Java: United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabian Culture Essay

International business and information technology are two important aspects of globalization. We live in a world that requires culture awareness, which is also the first step in doing international business. In the case The Java Lounge – Adjusting to Saudi Arabian Culture, the business has been successful because its entrepreneurs spent time and money to research their expectation that enough Saudis had become sufficiently westernized and affluent to frequent the restaurant. Its entrepreneurs have maintained strong culture awareness and had put them into actions. The Java Lounge had gone through culture collisions. Foreigners often find Saudi laws and customs at odds with their own value systems. For example, Saudi culture limits male-female interaction. That explains why the city of Jeddah was chosen to locate the Java Lounge – it was a port and it enjoyed more contact with foreigners and was less conservative than much of the rest of the country. The dress codes are more relaxed thus more acceptable to foreigners. If the location was chosen to be in a traditional place, it would not have been this successful. The culture collision would be so huge that it is hard for other cultures to digest and get close to. Thus when a company such as the Java Lounge implements practices, they would be less effective. Also, the employees as well as gusts would encounter difficulties in accepting or adjusting to foreign behaviors, which would cause unnecessary confusions and conflicts. Religion plays a key role in Saudi’s culture and religion is a cultural stabilizer. As the book says, many strong values are the result of a dominant religion. A good religion would make the nation united and its people strong. What is more, religion plays a part in business. In Saudi, religious proscriptions prohibit pork products, alcohol, and live music at the Lava Lounge. In the holy period of Ramadan, when people fast during the day, the restaurant serves customers only in the evening. When doing business in Saudi Arabia, one has to be careful in adjusting to the religious culture of Saudi Arabia because religion could also be a taboo sometimes. For example, when Muslim men are called to prayer, McDonald’s dims its lights, closes its doors, and suspend service during the five times per day. It is very important to respect one culture no matter how odd it looks to you. Behavioral practices are also affecting business. The term ascribed group memberships refer to the case that at the Lava Lounge, the entire staff is male. Even though laws and rules were signed to abolish discrimination against women, women in Saudi Arabia cannot work in some profession. There are rigid rules about what women can and cannot do. A research shows that Saudi women only accounts for 7 percent of the total workforce. It is still a man-dominant world, but women are so important. However, in Saudi, affiliation is determined by birth. One needs to pay attention in the gender-based employment practices in Saudi Arabia. When doing business in other countries such as in the United States, this might not be a problem. To summarize, what we could learn from the case The Java Lounge are that firstly, as an international businessman or businesswoman, one has to develop culture awareness as a starting point. Secondly, culture shock would occur frequently when doing international business. When culture collisions occur, we do not need to be afraid. Learn about the other cultures you are involving in, respect other cultures, ask a native friend for help, and embrace the shocks. Thirdly, pay attention to religions and other special cultural rules, they will help you with your business.

Critique of the AHIMA Code of Ethics Essay

One of the most important gifts that God gave us is our life. Without it, we are nothing. And to show our appreciation for this gift, we should take good care of our life by staying healthy. Nowadays, healthcare is very expensive: from medicine to health information management. The professionals that are involve in health information management takes charge of the administration and progress of medical information systems of the patient to guarantee the safety, security and privacy of the information. Much medical information contains several accounts that must be protected for the good of the individual concern and for the immediate family. The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) is the premier association in the US which includes Health Information Management (HIM) professional from all parts of the country. These HIM professionals have proficiency in healthcare information technology which includes accreditation from the Registered Health Information Administrator (RHIA). The responsibilities of the AHIMA members are not only providing service, protecting medical and social information, and assuring the privacy and confidentiality of these information but also to improve the quality of service in healthcare. To maintain the best service for the benefit of the patient, AHIMA provide its own code of ethics. This code of ethics will provide each HIM professional of the proper conduct each and every one of them should possess. AHIMA believes that this code of ethics is important for it will make this HIM practitioners the professional they should be. Professional in terms of having the values a good HIM professional should be. This code is necessary for it provides the guidelines for the conduct that should be shown towards a conflict or situation. It is the sole obligation of the HIM professionals to show actions that will mirror values and ethical principles. This Code of Ethics has 6 principles. Among those principles â€Å"is to determine the proper values that this task is based† and â€Å"gives HIM professional the option to weigh the circumstances under which they are involved† (AHIMA Code of Ethics). These principles will help them think of having the right decision that is needed. However, this code does not provide any specific event or situation wherein HIM professionals will have to follow. They are still the one who will decide of the decision they will make. The code implementation lies to the one who reviews the task done by a HIM professional. If a HIM professional is being regarded as a violator of the code, it does not mean that he/she will have a legal responsibility. This still undergoes in a peer review process that will make it fair for both of the professional and the other party that regarded him/her of the violation. The AHIMA Code of Ethics does not have the solution to all the problems that will arise nor will assure the ethical and principal behavior. Rather, it will set onward values that show the ethical meaning of the profession. On the other hand, the professional responsibilities do many heroic or sacrificial things to each professional. They act beyond the limits to make sure that they do their whole responsibility. Sometimes, individuals act through values of loyalty and service to others. They make themselves proud of the profession they have because of what they done to other’s lives. And this is to provide the people the need of protection of their medical and social information. I know that this code of ethics will give me the chance to become one of the finest and trusted HIM professional in the future. This will help my character grow for better by providing the idea of having the right decision in certain disputes and problems. So, how this code of ethics would make me realize that this is for real? That this will help me once I became a HIM professional? It is up to us, future HIM professional, to be guided of these principles. And it is up to us to give our own heart and passion for service and protection of people’s lives. References American Health Information Management Association. (2006). American Health Information Management Association Code of Ethics. Retrieved November 10,2007, from http://library. ahima. org/xpedio/groups/public/documents/ahima/bok1_024277. hcsp? dDocName=bok1_024277 College of Health Professions, Temple University. (2007). Health Information Management. Retrieved November 10, 2007, from http://www. temple. edu/chp/departments/him/ National Association of Social Workers. (2001). Code of Ethics. Retrieved November 10, 2007, from http://www. naswdc. org/pubs/code/default. asp

Sum up four readings about Social Protest Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sum up four readings about Social Protest - Essay Example According to studies conducted by Adler and Mittleman (2004, p. 110), globalization protests are mainly about understanding s of the shifts in the world’s political economy. The protesters’ expressions are not necessarily same as the views of the ideological leaders. From these protests, the streets bear more fluid and latent attitudes in the baseline. Globalization protests present difficulties in generalizing when centring on a particularly specific event. In most organizations, interviewees have differentiated attitudes towards globalization protests. Participants in protests may be activists, officers, or ordinary members. Most participants in protests, influenced by the information gathered from the internet. The degree of participants ‘involvement in a protest is of more significance in the globalization protests. Moreover, pushing participants to make choices between the can obscure the important interconnections concerning protests. According to studies conducted by Adler and Mittleman (2004, p. 110), one of the attitudes of protesters is that the protesters are diverse according to their involvement in the global justice demonstration previously. Lack of ability of a protest movement in excluding violent participants, continues to minimize its effectiveness centrally to the states’ growing willingness to employ the respective tactics indiscriminately. In relevance to   Brooks (2004, p. 570), stated that, some of the goals of anti-globalization protesters are delaying talks concluding meetings without an agreement of building new rounds of the trade negotiations. The anti-globalization movement does not exclude the potentially violent factions and this may impede its ability in democratizing institutions of globalization via the tactic of the protest alone. Brooks (2004, p. 577) further noted that, the movement also employs democratic master frame and operates is more decentralized

Hacking Exposed Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Hacking Exposed - Essay Example Similarly, he could acquire social security numbers of many persons at reputed ranks. Lamo misused Times’ LexisNexis account with intent to conduct some researches on various high profile subjects. In the words of Poulsen (2002), Lamo clearly found out ‘seven misconfigured proxy servers’ that acted as the connecting link between public internet and Times’ private intranet. As a result of his discovery; any person, who properly configuring his Web browser could have accessed into Times’ private intranet. Adrian Lamo was a journalism student who was seeking a job. According to the report of Ewalt and Hulme (2004), Lamo thought that hacking high security networks would give him fame so that he could get a reputed job. Therefore, it is obvious that Lamo did not ever think of making money out of act. In most of his hacking cases, he has informed the companies regarding their flows in database. It is reported that Lamo informed The New York Times about the weaker areas of its database and it indicates that his act did not intend to deceive Times. The hacking activity of Lamo at The New York Times indicates that he was a grey hat hacker. Grey hat hackers apply their skills in order to prove their eligibilities and thereby achieve public stature (Grey Hat Hackers).

Public health Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Public health - Assignment Example In both developed and developing countries, non-governmental organizations and local health systems have done their best in playing an essential role of preventing diseases infecting individuals. In developing countries, there is a low level of preventing diseases and medical care since there is no adequate and effective training of health workers. There are also no enough and appropriate resources which can help in providing quality health services. This is because there extremely high poverty levels hence no good health services provision (Hall, 1998). Therefore, this has led to many deaths in many developing countries due to inappropriate health measures. In dealing with residential age care, many developing countries in relation to health matters, have not taken into consideration and effectively act upon that issue. In most continents, especially in developed countries, different theoretical approaches have been developed to effectively deal with the issue of health policy agenda setting. For example, two models namely politics and social have been developed in tackling the issue of health oppression. In many countries in different continents, governments use their agencies in tackling the issue of public health. They normally use ministries of health in drawing effective strategies in dealing with health problems among individuals in their respective countries. In dealing with global health issue, a universal international agency has been established in order to deal with health issues. The World Health Organization coordinates and acts upon health issues internationally. This agency has largely helped many countries, especially t he developing ones, in encountering and dealing with health issues in their countries. In public policy agenda setting, an effective field of inquiry has been well-developed and established. A little organized and systematic

Future management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Future management - Essay Example The sole intention of a business is to satisfy the needs of the customers and generate profit for itself. However, one can question the apparent theoretical simplicity of the process. The answer is obvious ‘no’ in terms of simplicity because the simple process of providing goods and services to the customers for generating revenue passes through various complex stages to achieve the goals and fulfil its objectives. There are several business risks, but simultaneously, there are opportunities as well. Hence, to mitigate the risks and capitalize on the opportunities, a company need to have predefined strategies or plans (Gibson and Barsade, 2003). The notion of strategy has been borrowed from the military and adapted for the use in business. In business, as in the military activities, a strategy bridges the gap between objectives of the company and tactics. Hence, it can be stated that tactics and strategy together, closes the gap between the objectives of the firm and the means of achieving it. However, the question which arises in this context is: why does a business require a strategy to operate in the market place? There are several reasons, but one of them is the changing dynamics of the marketplace. The changes in market place occur due to shifts in the external business environment such as, consumer trends, political landscape, new government regulation or a technological change. According to eminent scholars and practitioners, the business environment is always dynamic in nature and undergoes radical shifts with time (Iivari, 2005). With the great global redistribution of social and economic power, it is expected to continue over the next few decades. Moreover, due to the changes in other business factors such as, the environmental factors, political factors, economical factors, legal factors, social factors and technological factors, companies are compelled to bring changes into their system of operation in order to comply with the external environment (Janicijevic, 2012). Despite several attempts to manage the business environment by devising strategies, the attempts have been futile and it also practically seems impossible for a company to manage the business environment (Jones, 2004). This is because a certain amount of change in one of the factors leads to a drastic amount of change in other factors, due to high interconnectivity. Figure 1 (Source: Newagepublishers, 2010) According to eminent scholars such as Schawalby (2005), companies will face a hard time in the future because of the involved uncertainties. The author had also mentioned that due to the increasing intensity of competition within the industries, a company is bound to face complexities. However, the level of complexities faced by the companies will depend upon their ability to adjust themselves in the changing marketplace. An organization has to deal with changes on a daily basis as people usually do with their lives. Change is therefore regarded a s inherent in the contemporary organizations and its management is not only critical, but also at the crux of organizational development (OD). A business always has two sets of objectives namely, short term objective and long term objective. The short term objectives generally deal with the achievement of short term goals. When it comes to the formulation and achievement of long term goals, the dependence on the external envi

Additional products offering that foreign bank could offer once CNAPS Research Paper

Additional products offering that foreign bank could offer once CNAPS has been implemented - Research Paper Example As with HVPS, BEPS caters to both in-city and cross-city transactions. Sending and receiving banks with direct membership in and connectivity to CNAPS will be able to process and receive inward collections in a real time and straight-through process. After the implementation of CNAPS, a foreign bank will be able to offer additional services that would be faster, and even offer real-time transactions. The bank may offer services in investments, though it may be hindered by limitations set by local regulations. Such services may include local currency contract saving, local currency or foreign currency call deposits,local or foreign currency time deposits, and treasury products like structure deposits. The bank may also offer in-city and cross-city local currency payments through CNAPS and alliance banks. In addition to that, in terms of receivables, the bank may offer shorter receivables collection cycles and provide information for reconciliation. This solution will allow customers to outsource their accounts receivable reconciliation and management to the

Leadership Communication Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Leadership Communication - Research Paper Example The reason that a plan to change the image of the company is important is because bad press leads to a decline in sales for an organization. The firm has to implement a variety of strategies to improve the corporate image of the company. The first strategy I would implement is to develop a corporate news bulletin to be released to the general public. The booklet should explain the operations of the company. It should mentioned all the safety measures the company takes to prevent accidents and it should provide a history of the company to prove to the general public that the explosion at the plant was an isolated incident. The firm must include an article explaining the reason that the explosion occurred to demonstrate to the public that the explosion was an industrial accident that could not have been prevented. In the news bulletin the firm should make public the new safety plan that the company is going to use to prevent accidents in the future. There should also be testimonials in the news bulletin from the employees expressing how happy the employees are working for the company. The company should also implement a strategy to move attention away from the explosion incident to demonstrate that XYZ Corporation is a socially responsible corporation. ... One of those causes should be the battle against hunger. The company will donate $250,000 to help support hunger in the continent of Africa. Over 41% of the people in the Sub-Sahara African region lives on less than $1 a day and 32% are undernourished (Thp). A good non-profit organization to donate the money to is Feed The Children. The company will donate an additional $250,000 to support the victims of HIV/Aids and cancer patients. The firm is not going to limit itself to monetary donations. The company is going to also donate the time of its employees to provide valuable labor to non-profit organizations throughout America. The firm will donate an amount of 1000 labor hours of its employees over a period of one year. The philanthropic initiatives the company is going to implement are a great way to change the corporate image of the firm, but these initiatives are only effective if the general public knows that they are occurring. The firm will launch an advertising campaign to sho wcase the socially responsible initiatives the company is undertaking. The company will spend $500,000 in advertisements using a variety of marketing channels including the written press, television, radio, internet, and cellular advertising. The public relations campaign is going to help build up the reputation of the company and it will stir attention away from the explosion incident that occurred at the organization. In today’s competitive business environment companies cannot afford to get their reputation tarnished. Companies with bad reputations are firms that customers do not realize business with. XYZ Corporation has to act quickly to minimize the damage to its image that the explosion caused. The plan that the firm will implement is going to help revive the

Communication Sources of Education Essay Example for Free

Communication Sources of Education Essay The objective of education should be to encourage the search for answers, since it is the only way to advance. Within the aim of advancement in knowledge, various facets incorporated within the teaching portfolio ensure the success of professional educators. To achieve success, educators have to lean on certain ideals to enable them better perform their duties as required. One of the main inclinations that would be crucial to the success of an educator would be showing concern about students. Apart from just teaching them, educators must show interest on aspects such as social, physical, emotional, and cognitive well-being (Capuzzi, 2012). Being alert to these facets not only help the educator teach effectively, but also enables the learning process to be smooth for students. In addition, students can better their current knowledge in given subjects, especially with support from their individual educators. Moreover, the practice accords the educators the opportunity to look in to, in an explorative manner, and challenge the existing educational policies. Literature Review A number of learning theories offer information, which can be quite instrumental in understanding the ability of students to learn within a classroom setting. Social cognitive theory by Albert Bandura was developed purposely with the aim of comprehending how students learn (Murphy, 2010). He felt that initial belief of rewards and behaviorism could not provide an understanding of the full process of human comprehension. His feelings were that people could learn through observation of actions of the others in certain situations. It was realized that his beliefs affect the modern classroom. The modern classroom is full of many factors, which affects students learning. The social cognitive learning theory by Bandura states that a student’s personality is modeled by the environment, thought and behavior. Educators should attempt to identify themes that emerge from teaching and make a decision on whether these themes a coherent pattern. Evidently, at the outset, that by way of example than percept, educators impart more (Capuzzi, 2012). Students are extremely perceptive in recognizing when the instructor does not put into practice what he preaches. Both in actions and in words, educators should always teach several values students. These include; importance of preparation, organization, and homework; respect for people’s view; and the value of effective and clear exchange of information both in written and  oral  form. To cater for more than just teaching the students, educators should come up with strategies to incorporate other aspects of life into the class. Students may become defensive if they feel that the teacher is prying on their privacy. In this, an educator should approach this subject with care, otherwise he or she may risk losing the trust altogether. The theme of inclusiveness ensures diversity is taken into account in all teaching. According to (Gould, 2010), educators should attempt to create a positive atmosphere. When students are called upon to answer questions, mistakes should be treated as opportunities in exploring misconceptions, rather than a reflection of the abilities of the students. Educators should create a fair playing field to teach students that, in their current world, there is no easy way out. With a class of almost many students, it is hardly easy to know each student by their names, let alone know about their emotional, physical, or cognitive experiences. To coun ter this, Capuzzi (2012) suggests that educators work with the policy of an openness, where they are available for consultation and assistance at working hours. There exists a gap between students and educators needs to be bridged if the educators are to effectively teach and guide their students. Koshy Koshy (2010) realized that a modified approach that teachers use in teaching from question-answer to answer-question approach provides a bridge between teachers and learners, and fosters self-evaluation and self-efficacy. Self-evaluation and self-efficacy provide the perfect opportunity for the educator to get to know his or her student on a personal note. In this, the educator is now able to evaluate the student’s emotional, physical, and cognitive aspects of life. Bandura, a renowned theorist, attained fame after his social-cognitive learning theory. The theory is based on individual self-efficacy and modeling. Despite having a number of ideas on learning, Bandura chose social cognitive learning theory. Through the process of modeling, students were required to account for diverse forms of learning. It was Bandura’s belief that through modeling, students are capable of making significant gains in self-motivation, action, and thought. Psychologists, until that time, had exclusively focused on learning through the consequences of actions. Bandura demonstrated that through the hazardous and tedious process of trial and error learning could be a short cut through modeling of competencies and knowledge exhibited by a variety of model (Murphy, 2010). Bandura’s belief was that students’ learn through experiences of watching others, which lead to self-efficacy or self-motivation. The theorist is credited for developing the social cognitive learning theory. While applying this theory, educators should guide their students by being role models, and by observing their behavior as Bandura suggest. Murphy (2010) observes that at that point in time, educators are able to mentor, advice and teach their students more effectively. Knowing the students’ is emotional, cognitive, and physical situation can be very instrumental in understanding the problems facing them or better still, the methods one can use as an educator to teach them effectively. The important part of advising, mentoring, and teaching student, is caring. Being attached to students begins by caring for them and what they are to become in the future. They have strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes, wants and needs, hopes and dreams. Educators should be party to these dreams and hopes, since they facilitate the learning process that they have factored into their futures (Zunker Osborn, 2012). What becomes on them and the leap-of-faith on their part should increase i nterest regarding their futures. Conclusion In conclusion, having better and more knowledge of students than just their classroom performance make educators better mentors, better teachers, and better persons. Educators should share reality with students to ensure they feel they are relating to a genuine person, who is willing expose his/her values, feelings, and distinctive perception about the world and the society. It is imperative to increase skills and knowledge in the application of instructional techniques to teaching philosophy by aiming at professional development in the subject matter. Additionally, educators should enhance their knowledge on how problem-solving strategies are related to student assessment. They should voluntarily sit in on their school training meetings to compare results with those of other educators. Educators should target increasing the abilities of students in all aspects of life, since it is an important part of the national, local, and state dialogue on educational achievement. References Capuzzi, D. (2012). Career counseling foundations, perspectives, and applications (2nd ed.). New York: Routledge. Gould, J. (2010). Learning Theory and Classroom Practice in the Lifelong Learning Sector. Exeter: Learning Matters. Koshy, V., Koshy, V. (2010). Action research for improving educational practice: A step-by-step guide (2nd ed.). Los Angeles: SAGE. Murphy, M. (2010). Habermas, critical theory and education. New York: Routledge. Zunker, V., Osborn, D. (2012). Using assessment results for career development: Career counseling: A holistic approach (8th ed.). Belmont, Calif.: Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning. Source document

Ethics in Noble Truth and Eightfold Path Essay Example for Free

Ethics in Noble Truth and Eightfold Path Essay In this paper I will be discussing the concept of the four noble truths and eightfold path within the Buddhist religion. The four noble truths do not give concrete answers to metaphysical questions, unlike other religions. Buddhism teaches human existence is imperfect and the four noble truths are a guide to help steer away from suffering. The four noble truths are important to Buddhist ethics in that they are the way to nirvana and enlightenment. The first noble truth is life is suffering. To live means to suffer and since it is human nature, no one is perfect in any shape or form. While we develop, we inevitably have to endure physical and psychological suffering sooner or later. Each of us, no matter how rich or poor, is going to get sick, grow old, and die. Nothing is permanent, nothing can permanently satisfy us. â€Å" Any aspect of life, no matter how seemingly pleasant, already has the seeds of the suffering that is a common denominator of all human experience† (Young) This is because things change and pass away; everything and everyone we love will someday pass away. The Buddha also taught the reason behind the suffering that individuals experience. The second noble truth is suffering is caused by craving. â€Å"We suffer because our craving leads us to become attached to things or people and deluded as to the real nature of our situation in life (Young). † As long as we are unable to detach of moral pleasures, we will experience suffering. One must learn to overcome these greed, aversion, hatred, jealousy, etc. These conditions are always in hand with society, family, and within one’s self. Recognizing and understanding the second noble truth gives way to the freedom from suffering. The third noble truth is cessation of suffering. It is the complete fading-away and extinction of this craving, its forsaking and abandonment, liberation from it, detachment from it†(welsh). This may be the most significant of all the noble truths, as it reassures us that true happiness is possible. When individuals give up useless cravings and learn to live each day to the fullest, enjoying what each day brings with no expectations, they are able to live a free life. Nirvana arises when an individual becomes free of all sufferings, and eliminates cravings. When an individual is able to attain nirvana, they are able to move on to the next noble truth. The forth noble truth is the means to liberation. This noble truth teaches how to remove all suffering from your life, and explains the various levels of achieving such. So, first of all, in order to gain the good qualities, we need to work on creating all the different conditions that will make those qualities emerge. To develop the various insights of meditation and real wisdom, we need to develop great faith and confidence in the validity and usefulness of that wisdom. Buddhist needs to change their habits so that they have the ability to do all the necessities to make insight and wisdom emerge. Therefore, there are many factors and conditions we must generate within our life that will bring about our happiness. The guide to peace and the end suffering is the eightfold path. The eightfold path is a guideline to ethical teachings and growth of an individual. The goal is to free believers from attachments and ultimately leads to understanding. â€Å" â€Å"Everyone should attempt to live by the eightfold path, and (theoretically) enlightenment is open to anyone, regardless of caste, gender, or whether lay or ordained. † Young. The Eightfold Path consists of three components: wisdom (prajna ): (1) right views and (2) right intention; morality (sila ): (3) right speech, (4) right conduct, and(5) right livelihood; and concentration (samadhi ): (6) right effort, (7) right mindfulness, and (8) right concentration. (Deal). The eightfold path is the way to avoid self-denial and self-indulgence considered the middle way. The first step in the eightfold path is the right view, which falls under the category of wisdom. The right view means understanding the four noble truths and grasping the nature of objects and ideas. Right view is attained, sustained, and enhanced through all capacities of mind. It begins with the insight that all beings are subject to suffering and it ends with complete understanding of the true nature of all things. The second step, which also falls under the component of wisdom, is correct intention. This refers to abandoning one’s own thoughts and desires. This is the step of the eightfold path that one must give up selfish attitudes that lead to more suffering and replace them with the opposite. â€Å"The point is not to nattached from oneself to a particular person but with a caring attitude, but to practice a â€Å"universal goodwill† young† The third step is correct speech. This means to tell the truth, to speak friendly and to talk only when necessary. †Man’s speech must be the truth, his conversation must be edifying and he must not engage in scandal gossip. One should take control with one’s word not only for the sake of truth but to demonstrate control and discipline. † Right speech can be seen as an ethical conduct in Buddhism. The forth step in the eightfold path is that of correct conduct. Young mentions that unwholesome actions lead to unsound states of mind, while wholesome actions lead to sound states of mind. â€Å" Not taking life, not stealing and not having sexual intercourse† (Van Voorst). It is important in Buddhism to concentrate on actions that will help the well beings of others. The fifth step is the right means to livelihood. This path represents earning an honest living. An occupation that is against the other steps of the eightfold path is in return against right livelihood. One should acquire only by legal means, not by illegally; one should acquire it peacefully, without coercion or violence; one should acquire it honestly, not by trickery or deceit; and one should acquire it in ways which do not entail harm and suffering. † (Bodhi) Selling of weapons would be an example of wrong in this religion as the consequences of weapons can cause harm to others. The sixth step in the eightfold path is right endeavor. This step is very important, as it is a necessity to put a conscious effort in what we do. Without right effort less would be able to get achieved. â€Å" Avoiding any sort of unwholesome action that will have a negative karmic influence, and pursuing beneficial deeds. †(Young) being aware of your own mind and not to have a mind that is diluted. This brings us to our next step, the seventh step, which is right mindfulness. This step in the eightfold path refers to the ability to see things without any delusions. â€Å" Right mindfulness refers to the deep, ultimately non-dual, understanding of the body, feelings, mind, and experienced things†(Koller. In the step being consciously aware of all that is that is going on with ones mind and body. Van Voorst states, â€Å" To remain focused on the body in and of itself- he is fervent, aware and mindful- putting away the greed and distress of the world. This step helps to actively observe and control our thoughts. The eighth step in the eightfold path is correct meditation. Once at the stage nirvana is at hand and, in a flash of intuition that state of final bliss dawns† (Young) This step leads to developing a deep insight into reality and the ability to be able to apply levels of concentration regularly. We see by the study of the noble truths and the eightfold path that Buddhist put great emphasis on the practices that they follow in order to reach nirvana. The noble truths and the eightfold path are essentially the ethics of the religion. The foundation of the path is moral virtue. Buddhist ethics is concerned with the practices that contribute to a believer to act in ways that help rather then harm. By following the noble truths and the eightfold path Buddhist are able to reach the goal of nirvana and non-attachment.

Rate of Conversion of Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) into Nitrogen

Rate of Conversion of Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) into Nitrogen 1.1 Chapter Introduction: This chapter gives some basic information of the thesis. Firstly, some background information about selective catalytic reduction(SCR) technology, aqueous and dry ammonia, NOx gas and its conversion. Secondly the reason and the motivation for choosing this research project. Then the aim, objectives and methodology is described. Finally, the progress of project, plan and the conclusion is given. 1.2 Background Information: 1.2.1 Selective Catalytic Reduction(SCR) Technology: SCR technology is an advanced emission control technology used to reduce the quantity of hazardous gases that come out through the exhaust of a diesel engine. It injects a reducing agent into the exhaust of a diesel engine with the help of a catalyst. The reducing agent is usually automotive grade Urea and it is known as a Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF). A chemical reaction occurs that converts the Nitrogen Oxides(NOx) into Nitrogen, water and carbon dioxide. SCR technology is made to allow the exhaust gases pass through the reducing agent to take place a chemical reaction in an oxidising atmosphere. The Selective word is used because it reduces the amount of NOx using a reducing agent in a catalyst system and the chemical reaction is called as Reduction where the DEF is a reducing agent that sets a chemical reaction with NOx and converts it into nitrogen, water and carbon dioxide (CO2) Figure 1 SCR System (Howard, n.d.) This technology is the most cost effective and fuel efficient technology used to reduce the emission of a diesel engine. The diesel truck engines produced after January,2010 must meet the new EPA standard. SCR reduces NOx emission up to 90% while on the other hand reducing hydrocarbon (HC) and carbon monoxide (CO) emission by 50-90% and particulate matter (PM), 30-50%. More emission reduction for PM can be achieved by attaching this system with the diesel particulate filter. SCR system is widely used in a marine vessel, cargo vessels, ferries, tugboats, large utility boilers, industrial boilers, and municipal solid waste boilers etc. 1.2.2 SCR reducing agent Ammonia: Some reductants are used in the SCR system such as anhydrous ammonia, aqueous ammonia and urea. These three reductants are widely available in the large quantity. Anhydrous ammonia is highly toxic and difficult to store, but it does not need any conversion, it can be used as it is to operate in the SCR. Anhydrous ammonia is a compressed liquid form of ammonia which does not contain water in it. Anhydrous ammonia is an important industrial cleaner that cleans the harmful bacteria and shines the industrial metal. The large amount of anhydrous ammonia stored requires more caution and safety. Stronger concentration of ammonia can cause burning and some fatal issues. In 1947, a ship filled with solid form of ammonia called as ammonium nitrate exploded in the Galveston Bay of Texas, resulting in number of deaths. Hence using anhydrous ammonia is SCR system is dangerous. (Lepore, n.d.) Urea is easy and safe to store but it is required to convert into ammonia through thermal decomposition to use as a reducing agent in SCR. Urea is very safe, stable, non-volatile, non-flammable and non- explosive. It can be safely transported, stored and handled. But the disadvantages of Urea are it may cause an extra emission of a nitrogen oxide and carbon monoxide which are harmful gases for environment as well as living organism. It may cause a contamination and corrosion at the point of injection, leakage of Urea may cause a formation of a white precipitate salt and when mixed with a water then the formed Urea solution can cause scaling blockage in SCR system. Aqueous ammonia which is known as ammonium hydroxide must be hydrolysed to be used and it is comparatively safer to store and transport than anhydrous ammonia. Larger volume of aqueous ammonia will be required as compared to anhydrous ammonia to control the same NOx efficiency. Aqueous ammonia is available in a concentration of 19 percent and 29 percent by weight. For the 29% of aqueous ammonia, the volume required 3.4 times that of anhydrous ammonia and for 19%, the volume required is 5.3 times that of anhydrous ammonia. There are some common things between aqueous ammonia and anhydrous ammonia SCR installation. It has storage tanks, pumps and injection valves. The controlling is same that of anhydrous ammonia. (Salib, n.d.) 1.2.3 NOx conversion: SCR technology was established in 1970s and mainly used in stationary sources and still it is measure strategy for the reduction of NO. The high frequency and the ability to react with the NOx selectively to form nitrogen, water and carbon dioxide. When the exhaust gases pass through the SCR system a chemical reaction takes place. The ammonia or other reductant such as urea is injected and mixed with the exhaust gases before entering the catalyst chamber. The following reaction takes place in the conversion of NOx. (Majewski, n.d.) 6NO + 4NH3 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ 5N2 + 6H2O 4NO + 4NH3 + O2 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ 4N2 + 6H2O 6NO2 + 8NH3 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ 7N2 + 12H2O 2NO2 + 4NH3 + O2 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ 3N2 + 6H2O NO + NO2 + 2NH3 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ 2N2 + 3H2O 2nd equation shows dominant reaction mechanism. 3rd to 5th reactions above include nitrogen dioxide reactant. The 5th reaction is very fast reaction. NO2 is responsible for the promotion of the low temperature SCR in this reaction. In diesel SCR system, the level of NO2 is increased to enhance the conversion of NOx at low temperature. In some reaction water is produced that shows moisture is always exist in diesel exhaust. If the NO2 content increases NO level in the feed gas increases. N2O formations are also possible as shown in the reaction below, (Majewski, n.d.) 8 NO2 + 6 NH3 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ 7 N2O + 9 H2O 4 NO2 + 4 NH3 + O2 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ 4 N2O + 6 H2O Some Undesirable procedures happening in SCR systems incorporate a few focused, nonselective reactions with oxygen, which is copious in the system. These reactions can either deliver optional emissions or, best case scenario, ineffectively consume ammonia. Partial oxidation of ammonia may deliver nitrous oxide (N2O) or elemental nitrogen, individually. Complete oxidation of ammonia, is shown in the following equation 2NH3 + 2O2 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ N2O + 3H2O 4NH3 + 3O2 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ 2N2 + 6H2O 4NH3 + 5O2 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ 4NO + 6H2O The SCR procedure requires exact control of the ammonia injection rate. A deficient injection may bring about unsuitably low NOx changes. An injection rate which is too high outcomes in arrival of undesirable ammonia to the climate. These ammonia emissions from SCR system are known as ammonia slip. The ammonia slip increments at higher NH3/NOx proportions. As indicated by the prevailing SCR reaction, 2nd equation the stoichiometric NH3/NOx proportion in the SCR system is around 1. Proportions higher than 1 altogether increment the ammonia slip. By and by, proportions near 0.9 and 1 are utilized, which limit the ammonia slip while as yet giving tasteful NOx changes. The alkali slip diminishes with expanding temperature, while the NOx transformation in a SCR catalyst may either increment or lessening with temperature, depending upon the specific temperature range and catalyst system, as will be examined later. 1.2.4 Diesel engine exhaust system: The first motivation behind a fumes framework was to securely course fumes gasses from the motor so they can be depleted into the earth, while additionally giving lessening of burning clamor. Fumes gas, nonetheless, contains parts that are hurtful to human wellbeing or potentially the earth. Thus, emanation levels of these fumes gas parts got to be distinctly directed. Since directed discharge levels are regularly much lower than that which can be accomplished through in-barrel control measures, the fumes gas must be dealt with after it leaves the motor. In this manner, while fumes frameworks keep on serving their unique capacities, they have developed into one of the basic components utilized for contamination control and reduction in cutting edge motors. A fumes framework from a diesel traveler auto is outlined in Figure 1. The fumes framework is regularly associated with the ventilation system, which gathers fumes gasses from the motor chambers fumes ports. In light-obligation applications, exhaust systems and diesel particulate channels (DPF) can be put either in the nearby coupled position to the ventilation system (the converter in Figure 1) or in the underfloor position (the particulate channel in Figure 1). The decision of area is controlled by the accessibility of space and the sought temperature profile, with the nearby coupled area giving introduction to the most noteworthy conceivable fumes gas temperatures. The after-treatment gadgets and their channeling are in some cases alluded to as the hot end of the fumes framework, while the suppressors and the tailpipes are the cold end of the fumes framework. The hot end channeling may incorporate the downpipe or front pipe (not present in the design appeared in Figure 1) which associates the ventilation system with the exhaust system, and additionally funneling between the impetus and the particulate channel. The after-treatment framework is associated with the suppressor by the inside pipe The presentation to high temperature, alongside different components, for example, quality necessities and synthetic introduction, decide the decision of fumes framework materials. Debilitate Brakes. Debilitate frameworks may likewise incorporate various segments. Some diesel trucks are outfitted with a fumes brake, which utilizes the fumes gas weight for vehicle braking, to facilitate the requests on wheel brakes and increment their life span. By actuating a throttle valve put in the fumes framework when the motor is creating no yield and braking is required, fumes backpressure and accordingly the torque required to pivot the motor is expanded. In motors furnished with a variable geometry turbine (VGT), the turbine vanes might be utilized to throttle the fumes stream rather than a different throttle valve. The adequacy of fumes brakes can be enhanced with an element that holds the fumes valve open constantly (bleeder brake). This can be proficient with an actuator that pushes the fumes valve and keeps it open through every one of the four motor strokes. Exhaust Brakes: It can be fitted to an assortment of medium-obligation diesel motors including overwhelming get trucks planned to pull moderately substantial trailers. Their application and adequacy is constrained by the greatest weight that the fumes framework segments upstream of the throttling valve can support. Deplete brakes have little effect on fumes framework commotion. Fumes brakes are just a single approach to utilize the motor to help in vehicle deceleration. Pressure discharge brakes-occasionally alluded to as motor brakes- open the fumes valve close to the highest point of the pressure stroke and discharge the packed air into the fumes framework before it can push the cylinder down amid the extension stroke. Pressure discharge brakes are frequently joined straightforwardly into substantial obligation diesel motors, for example, those utilized on Class 8 trucks. They give a fundamentally higher braking impact than fumes brakes without expanding deplete framework backpressure. They are being that as it may, significantly more exorbitant and require exceptional commotion concealment measures to keep away from intemperate fumes framework clamor. Waste Heat Recovery: Future fumes frameworks may likewise incorporate fumes gas vitality recuperation frameworks. In the diesel motor, the fumes gas enthalpy speaks to a critical portion of the synthetic vitality of the fuel-up to more than 30%-which is a standout amongst the hugest wellsprings of warm effectiveness misfortune. Debilitate warm recuperation frameworks may run from basic warmth exchangers to complex advances, for example, thermoelectric. An illustration vehicle with a fumes gas warm exchanger is the 2006 Citroen C4 Picasso, where squander fumes warm exchanged by means of the cooling framework is utilized to even more quickly warmth the lodge. Consider went for utilizing thermoelectric generators to deliver power from waste fumes warm in light-and substantial obligation diesel motors has been supported by the US Department of Energy 1.3 Reason and motivation for the research: Day by day the use of vehicle is increasing rapidly so that the emission of exhaust gases such as CO, NOx and CO2 are also increasing. Ammonia is basically known for being harmful for the environment, additionally adds to the development of particulate matter that has related to unfriendly wellbeing and environmental effects. In industries, the emission of NOx is rapidly increasing and it has become mandatory to control the impact or the emission of such hazardous gases. It may not be decreased but it can be controlled or converted into non-hazardous gases with the help of some reducing agents. Nitrogen oxides (NOx) are an extremely important and essential group of air polluting chemical compound. This clarifies why NOx are critical air toxins and how NOx is formed and react in the air. This notice likewise talks about the standards on which all NOx control and pollution prevention technologies are based; accessible NOx technologies for different combustion sources; and performance a nd cost of NOx technologies. Following are some toxic effect of NOx: It creates photochemical smog It causes acid rain and nitrate particulate It increases the risk of respiratory conditions and increases the response to allergens It causes a formation of ground ozone which is associated with adverse health effect. This thought motivated to design a technology to convert such gases into non-hazardous gases. Because of the expanding awareness with air quality, stricter emission limits have been formed, which will be much further fixed for off-expressway diesel motors in the coming years. Depending upon the application and the area, distinctive emission limits apply. The most stringent emission regulation is as of now forced by the European Union (EU) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in USA. Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) and (Particulate Matter) are the main focused pollutant on which the technology is being developed. An extra test emerges from the fact that, depending upon the application, distinctive test cycles must be utilized for the confirmation of engines. The engines are worked just in chosen regions of the engine map during particular accreditation runs. Just steady state test cycles are utilized for heavy vehicle engine with a power output more prominent than 560 kW. For versatile machinery engine with a power output beneath 560 kW. During the steady state test cycle, the engine is worked at steady speed and load while the emission estimation is directed. After every emission estimation, the working point is changed and the following estimation will be performed. At long last, the general test cycle result is calculated by a weighted sum of all estimations. During the NRTC test, the motor is worked completely transient, with a constant estimation of the emission. Along these lines, the after-treatment system has additionally to have the capacity to perform under transient conditions. Thi s reality prompts to requirement, e.g. highly exact urea dosing. This can be obtained by using the SCR technology The aim of this research project is to investigate the rate of conversion of Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) into Nitrogen and water when the NOx gas is passed through the reducing agent. Within this aim there are number of objectives: Determine the Mount the test rig. Set temperature and amount of ammonia. Adjust the pressure load of the exhaust gas. Pass the gas through the test rig. Take the 1st default reading without using ammonia and SCR catalytic converter. Attach aqueous ammonia and SCR catalytic converter and again take the readings Testing Conditions at 25%, 50% and 75% of full load of engine The amount of ammonia injection is determined Keep the load of engine constant and increase the flow rate of ammonia and take readings on various flow rate. Increase the load of engine and repeat the same procedure. Compare the readings and plot the graph. The same procedure is repeated to get test results of 5 injection rate and determine the optimum level of ammonia injection. The above procedure is conducted at exhaust gas temperature in range of 300 °C 500 °C and depends on the load of diesel engine. Purchase a SCR catalytic converter and ammonium hydroxide (aqueous ammonia). Second hand SCR catalytic convertor is available on www.for-sale.ie (For-sale, n.d.) Take permission to use the diesel engines and the other required equipment from the college lab. Determine the airflow of exhaust gases based on size of the diesel engine Airflow measurement with the help of U-tube manometer. Measurement of engine speed using RPM indicator. Arrange Rotameter to measure the amount of ammonia released in the chamber. Mount the experimental rig. Solve the errors and find solutions for the problems that will occur during the investigation Hence the progress of the research concludes that the aqueous ammonia is suitable for the conversion of NOx in the SCR system as it is widely available and safest to store. In addition to it aqueous ammonia is inexpensive.

Clarissas Way of Death Essay -- Samuel Richardson Clarissa Essays

Clarissa's Way of Death In Clarissa, Samuel Richardson finds "an exemplar to her sex." But her story does not provide a model to live by, as such a qualification may lead one to expect. Only in the afterlife does Clarissa presumably receive what she deserves. The life suggested by her example is untenable. Clarissa's death is the inevitable result of her unrealistic, unimpeachable virtue  ­ a virtue that is defined less by what she does than by what she will permit. Her death serves not only a narrative end in the novel, but the demands of psychological realism. Richardson respects the conclusion made inevitable by the very "divinity" of Clarissa's personality. This heroine can have no other conclusion. Her death-drive is a fundamental aspect of her character, one present since the very beginning of the book. Though she is an extremely rational heroine, she is not necessarily reasonable. Like all young people, she wants happiness  ­ but her idea of it is impossible to live, an almost childish fantasy. Her devotion to "the single life" is not only a resistance to an unwanted match, but a refusal to have her purity blemished. Her purity and her virtue are the building blocks of her selfhood, but these elements have been formed in her childhood, and thus are not directly transferable to the exigencies, and duties, of adult life. In defense of this virtue, Clarissa has an almost morbid streak that prefigures her conclusion. There can be no worldly happiness for Clarissa. Lovelace's crime, in a certain sense, is only incidental. Clarissa can never be married, as she can never accept its corollary, adulthood. Growing up implies a change of state that she cannot reconcile with her established identity. It is a shock, upon... ...these "trials" is the confirmation of her "divinity". "The fall of a regular person, no doubt, is dreadful" she writes to her uncle Antony (426). But this is not her situation, not her crime. She herself is not a "regular person", and her fall was not a typical fall: "would to Heaven," she implores later in the letter, "that I had had the circumstances of [my fall] inquired into!" (426-7). Her death is the manifestation of her blamelessness. Death recreates her as immaculate, by proving that a blemished existence is not consistent with her nature. Though she asserts, "I am ruined in my own eyes; and that is the same to me as if all the world knew it" (316), it becomes proof of her transcendence that "all the world" know it. By agreeing to publish her tale after her demise, she has transformed the circumstances of her disgrace into a proof of her greater purity.

Ted Hughes’ Ideas about Poetry :: Ted Hughes The Jaguar The Thought Fox Essays

Ted Hughes’ Ideas about Poetry Ted Hughes, was born in 1939 and died in 1989, he wrote two poems, The Jaguar and The Thought-Fox. These are the poems that I am discussing in my essay and also what his ideas are on the poems. He also specialises in nature poems and these are what we have also been studying. The Thought-Fox is quite a different poem. It wasn’t written about the fox it was written about him writing about the fox (confusing I Know!!!). The Jaguar on the other hand, was about the animal and it was describing the animal, can you tell the difference and how he likes to differ his poems â€Å"You don’t have to bother about commas or full stops or that sort of thing† to Ted punctuation is not important, but the senses are: â€Å" Just look at it, touch it, smell it, listen to it, turn yourself into it† as he believes senses are there to help you. If you write a poem completely different to another poet and you are worried about your work,/ Ted believes that you should not care about what other people have written it is your own work that matters and how you find it â€Å" Do not care how other people have written about this thing, this is the way you find it†. With ‘The Thought-Fox’ he thinks that a fox comes and walks in front of him and sits down, so he gets this image in his head and it creates things he can write down in a poem. At the start, he cannot think of anything to write but at the end he has created a poem. He also believes that a poem and an animal are one and the same, â€Å"A fox that is both a fox and not a fox†. Another quote â€Å"The words have a body for it and the poem has give the fox somewhere to walk† in other words the poem has brought the fox to life. ‘The Jaguar’ however, is very much different. He is actually writing about the animal in the poem and not how he thought of what to write about the subject. With the structure, ‘The Jaguar’ has five verses, four lines in each verse and around nine words in each line. ‘The Thought-Fox’ has around the same, six verses, four lines in each verse and about four to eight words in each verse. Alliteration, similes and metaphors are also common in most of his poems and as I have said he uses a lot of the senses. For example â€Å"A fox’s nose touches† and â€Å"Two

Personal Leadership Reflection Paper Essay

Taking the Big Five Personality assessment was incredibly informative to me. I learned that my primary strengths are my openness to experience and conscientiousness. Openness-to-experience personality dimension includes traits of flexibility, intelligence, and internal locus of control. (Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development, 2010, p41) I am an incredibly flexible individual and tend to go with the flow even in high stress situations. I need to be relaxed in my field of expertise otherwise I will go absolutely insane. I am a Graphic Designer and clients change their minds more than you would believe. Another great attribute about this strength in my field is the ability to solve problems such as how to create a high end product on a low budget. I also am a firm believer that one’s level of success is primarily based on the work that they put in to themselves, not on luck or other people. The conscientiousness personality dimension includes traits of dependabilit y and integrity.(Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development, 2010, p40) I am an incredibly dependable individual. If I say that I will stay at work all night if I have to in order to complete a task to meet deadline, I will make it happen regardless. As far as my integrity goes, I am incredibly ethical and honest. If a coworker needs to speak with me about a personal matter they can do so without ever having to worry about me using it against them for personal gain. I want to create a trusting and supporting group to work with which is a product of integrity and dependability. The weaker traits for me were adjustment, surgency, and agreeableness. Although I scored decently high on adjustment, I’m still categorizing it as a weakness. The adjustment personality dimension includes traits of emotional stability and self-confidence. (Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development,  2010, p39) I have issues with keeping my emotions in check. I need to work on my self-control and my confidence in my ideas and ability to make decisions. Unfortunately, I’m incredibly insecure about my work. I have untouchable work ethic and I’m really good at what I do, however, I will let the most unimportant comment about my work get under my skin. That then and ruins all of the confidence that I recently managed to build up. On a positive note, I work incredibly well under pressure and I don’t criticize other people’s work. I rather praise them and lift them up. That goes back to the ideal environment that I seek. The last thing that I want to do is criticize my co-workers in turn creating a bad work environment for me and everyone else. Also, if the individual that I criticize has a hard time with the insecurities, saying something negative to them will not only create animosity it will also decrease productivity in the office. I scored fairly low on surgency. The surgency personality dimension includes dominance, extraversion, and high energy with determination. One of the main reason in which I scored so low in this area is that I don’t like to manipulate people in order to get my way. I also am not really interested in climbing the corporate ladder. From what I’ve seen in my field, I’d rather be known as â€Å"just a designer.† Reason being, the higher up you are in my field, the less actual design you tend to do. I enjoy art directing and helping people out; however, I wouldn’t want to art-direct all day long. Lastly we have the trait in which I scored the lowest, agreeableness. The agreeableness personality dimension includes traits of sociability and emotional intelligence. (Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development, 2010, p38) The reasons I scored so low in this area are I’m not too crazy about working with others and I’m not concerned about having a bunch of friends. Theory, Concepts and Application There are a few observations that I’ve made about myself over the course of this class. One of them is that I need to adjust my self-concept. Self-concept refers to the positive or negative attitudes people have about themselves. (Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development, 2010, p51) I’ve learned throughout this course that my self-concept is incredibly negative. This is largely due to the fact that I’m afraid of my confidence appearing to be narcissism. In other words, the lack of confidence is more  in other’s ability to perceive me in the correct manner. I have an innate and irrational fear that I’m going to come across the wrong way and people will dislike me if I show how proud of my work I am. . I have a rough time at balancing my confidence. I’m usually way below the level I should be. My new focus is to have more self-efficacy in order to not only benefit myself, but to also inspire my peers to do the same. My self-assess ment showed that I had a moderately high number for adjustment personality dimension. If I’m able to work on my self-confidence, my overall adjustment personality will also improve. Another thing that I’ve learned about myself is that I’m truly not what one would define as a powerful leader. I have little need for surgency. I scored the lowest on surgency on my personality profile. If someone is trying to get to the rung above my on the later, I’ll probably assist them. I’m just not competitive like that and I surely am not cutthroat. I scored the second worst on agreeableness. I get along with people okay; however, I am not equipped with the social mechanisms needed for a powerful leadership role. I am okay with that seeing as that a powerful leadership role isn’t what I seek. I simply want to teach and inspire people. I don’t care about the money or the power. Lastly, I’ve learned that I would have more of a Theory Y attitude as a manager. Theory Y attitudes hold that employees like to work and do not need to be closely supervised in order to do their work. (Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development, 2010, p.50) The reason the fits me is that I personally feel that a Theory Y manager would be the ideal leader for me. This also can relate to the incredibly high score I got for conscientiousness on my personality profile. I am a trusting and dependable individual and I will trust my employees to be the same. Everyone deserves an honest chance to prove themselves. Reflective Observation I’m also more insightful after speaking to my direct supervisor about the results of my leadership profile. She said that she views me as an incredibly dedicated worker indicating that I will do what is needed to get the job done and to get it done right. She also views me as a very honest individual. For example, she has seen me critique people’s work time and time again and she said that what she respects about me is that I won’t hold back anything and give my honest opinion. To me, honesty right up front  saves a lot of time and money. I hate to see people trying to dance around the truth. Just say what needs to be said so everyone can keep moving in the right direction. Her description of me fit the conscientiousness personality profile the most. She did agree that I could most definitely work on my confidence and that I’m way too insecure. People see me praising coworker s about their work. However, I will bash my work up and down and hardly give myself the credit that I deserve. I can see why outsiders would see my behavior as negative. In a nutshell, people would describe me as an inspirational leader to others and a hazard to myself. The reason people perceive me as having low confidence is the way that I speak about my own work. My goal is to begin to speak good about myself and my talents so people will follow suit. I received another perspective on my personality profile from the Vice President of the company I work with. One thing that stood out to him about my profile was the openness-to-experience personality trait. He mentioned that our company has been through drastic changes over the past four years and that I’ve been flexible and resilient all along. He said that flexibility is unfortunately one of the traits he tends to struggle with in employees. However, he felt that flexibility is a very strong attribute of mine. I have been a pretty go with the flow kind of gal over the past four years regardless of the stressful environment. I’m elated that this behavior has been noticed. It makes me feel good about all of the sacrifices that I’ve made for the company. Personal Leadership and Skill Development In conclusion, I’ve learned a lot of valuable information throughout this course. First and foremost, I’m simply not made to be a powerful leader. I am more of an inspirational teacher who will probably be underpaid due to my lack of surgency. I couldn’t be more okay with this; As long as I stay true to myself. My conscientiousness is more important to me than power or money any day. Another thing that I’ve learned about myself is that I need to work on building up my self-confidence. In order to influence others, the first step is to show them that I have absolute faith and confidence in what I’m doing. There’s no way that I will captivate a faithful audience if I’m  questioning myself on the stage. One of the positive traits that I’ve learned about myself is that I’m flexible and dedicated. I will be open to working long hours and performing tasks that normally aren’t day to day for me in order to get the job done. I also am very honest and straight forward. The only goals that I truly plan to set are working on my confidence and possibly attempting to mingle a bit more in order to heighten my agreeableness. Overall, this has proven to be an incredibly informative class. I’m anxious to begin to apply the applications and theories on the job. References Lussier, R. N., & Achua, C. F. (2010). Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development.(5th ed) Mason, Ohio: South-Western.

Joyriders – Creative Writing

I had just died by getting trapped and then squeezed to death as the walls closed in on me playing `Tomb Raider Three'. In addition, I had successfully reached the final stage, when I died and then remembered that I had forgotten to save the last stage after being on the computer for hours upon end. At this point, I was agitated and really annoyed when I heard, â€Å"Ah, shut it you over drunk sod! † my parents were at each others' throats again. â€Å"If I were to have a death wish it would be to kill you in such a way that your entrails would ooze out slowly†¦ † replied my disturbingly vexed father. After hearing months of non-stop controversy, I knew that there was only one thing left to say. Moreover, I was meditating about†¦ † I want a divorce, I want a divorce now! † mum bawled down the stairs. Well I knew that I shared a special bond with my mum, but reading my thoughts, she is positively becoming a mind reader, I thought trying to avoid the topic. It could have just have been intuition. There was a silence in the long empty corridor leading up to the stairs, where I sat fed up and angry with my parents. Looking at the bare gloomy walls which stared at me, as if it was my fault that they ere separating, I thought of all the memories they bore. My childhood, which I shared with my parents, both my parents. A tear came to my eye, which I quickly wiped off my freshly tanned, mocha coloured cheeks. When it comes to emotional stuff, I am quite shy and keep things bottled up, whereas usually I am very open and loud, well so my friends have told me. `I have had enough' I thought to myself. With this thought in mind I gave my best friend, Mia, a call, and not very surprisingly she was just as bored as I was. I did not tell her about what had just happened, but I got the feeling that she knew I as not the perky self I normally am, even if I am bored out of my brain! â€Å"Why don't I bring, Kaz, Neil, AJ and myself around yours, in ten? † â€Å"Sure, but we can meet outside my house near the garage. † I slyly said, so that they do not have any encounters with either of my parents. â€Å"Yeah I'd probably get lost around your yard, with it being so big `n' all† Mia laughed back. â€Å"Right then, see ya in ten, bye† â€Å"Bye† and she hung up. I still clung onto the receiver, hoping she was still there, this was because I was afraid to go upstairs, in case they start talking about custody battles. `What am I thinking? they hate me and they are splitting up for spite. I will then probably end up an orphan, because neither of them will want me! `Shut up Neha! ‘. I realised I was going insane just like my diabolical parents. I kept pacing up and down the hall, waiting for Mia and the others to turn up. Which is when I realised, `the neighbours have gone on holiday and have left the house keys and the car keys for the BMW Z3 to mum'. A light bulb went on in my head. And the only word, which was lit up in my head, was `revenge'. â€Å"What's up Neha? † shouted Mia from across the road, wearing as usual, her long black three-quarter-length trench coat. Nothin' wanna go for a ride? † â€Å"You mean in that! † Neil pointed at the BMW, in excitement, which was parked in the garage, with the garage door raised. â€Å"Why not, got nothin' betta to do† I answered surprised that he even had to question me. â€Å"All get in before my parents suspect anything! † I yelled at Mia and the others, who immediately dashed across the road, past the old and fragile granny who lives at number 49, who inherited her mansion after her millionaire husband died last year. Jinita Batavia Page 2 28/04/2007 Kaz, who was sitting in the passenger seat quickly started up the car y turning the key in the ignition. That was when I got into the drivers' seat, and realised how short the top of my body actually is! I could not see beyond the fence, which was only five metres away from us! We sped away as fast as the `bima' could take us. We drove down the Highstreet. However, as it was a bit of a squeeze with the small sporty Z3 cramming two in the front and three in the back, with Neil being quite big, – not offending him, we cut the jaunt short and decided to cruise down small empty alleys, on the outskirts of the town. â€Å"We can make this place our territory, you know like a gang, or even etta a society like the Free Masons who stay anonymous. † Suggested AJ fidgeting around in the back seat. â€Å"That's a brill idea, but your forgetting something cleva clogs†¦ how do you suggest we actually get here, without any wheels? † said Kaz in a sarcastic tone. I was busy trying to tune the radio, when I heard a cry, `ah, it must be an owl or something' I thought, with it being about ten o'clock it was a good presumption. I finally found the `house and garage' station that I was searching for. â€Å"Turn up the base, I mean we are cruzin' in a bima, so might as well cruise in style Neha, innit Mia. AJ also insisted that we wind down our windows so that we are not only seen but also heard. It had only been a few seconds after I thought I had heard a cry, when I heard squeals. â€Å"Here that people? † â€Å"What babe? † â€Å"Oh, do shut up with that babe crap Neil! † â€Å"Fine hear what? † both AJ and Neil said momentarily. â€Å"I hear it now! † replied Kaz. I jolted the car to a halt and then I quickly opened my door to see what was going on, and to my horror, Kenny was lying in the middle of the road a couple of metres behind the car. He was waving his arms around in the air as if he could not breathe! â€Å"Kenny, Kenny, he's †¦ e's†¦ um†¦ dead! I†¦ I†¦ killed†¦ him† I stuttered, in shock. By now I was shivering, then AJ put his arm around me, to comfort me, or so I thought at that time. He brought me back to the car, where everyone were all shaken up and really stiff, peering through the curved windows in shear horror. They convinced me that we should not wait around, because no one saw and now no one except them, will find out. I felt assured and got back behind the wheel, after Mia , who had been quiet throughout the journey slowly came out with, â€Å"I knew it, I knew that this was going to happen, it was written in the stars. Even though she is my best friend, she does come out with bull sometimes, with all that superstitious nonsense that she believes in! After successfully picking our-selves up and returning back to earth, after such an incident had occurred I thought that I should carry on with my original plan. This was to have a minor knock about with the BMW. So we crashed into a lamppost, head on and dented the brand new spoiler on the front of the car. Then finally after a night of laughter, horror and fulfilment I first dropped off AJ, Kaz, Mia and then Neil home, impressing their neighbours in the process, after returning to my never ending ightmare, my house. I parked the car back where it was and then crept in through the back door. I walked up the stairs slowly, so that the stairs would not creek. I then ended up asleep within a minute of lying on my bed. In the morning, it was raining hard, pounding on the roof, above by bedroom. To this I woke up and turned on my radio. Craig David was on, with his recent debut single. I automatically rose from my bed sheets, grabbed my hairbrush, and started to sing and bop along to Jinita Batavia Page 3 28/04/2007 the beat. I was half way through waving my hands around, pretending I as Craig David at a gig when†¦ â€Å"What is this, Adam you prick, what the fuck have you done to the car? † My dad rushed down the stairs with a piece of toast in his mouth as he tied his robe together with his hands. â€Å"What, what? † dad cried, confused. I was sniggering from the corner of the stairs. The innocent face of my dad with mum hurling accusations at him as if they were tennis balls, was a sight to see! After lunch, with mum having hers in the kitchen and dad, being the couch potato of the house, he was flopped out in front of the television set; we heard a knock at the door. I thought it would probably be Mia, so I scampered to the front door to let her in and inform her about the plan that had been successful. But to my dismay there was a woman standing at the front door who went by the name of `Constable Stevenson. ‘ â€Å"Are your parents in darlin'? † she said in a proud PC kind of voice. `Wanna-be PC' I thought to myself and gave out a snigger. â€Å"It is not a laughing matter, now go call your parents†¦ † `Hold your horses woman she's so†¦ uh! ‘ I thought. After hearing a stem, strong deep voice at the door mum came rushing to see what was going on. â€Å"Can I help you constable? † Can I help you constable? † I mimicked. Luckily, no one heard except dad, who was also now at the door, and he gave me that big-eye look to stop it†¦ or else. â€Å"May I have a look at your car? † â€Å"I have a search warrant hear†. â€Å"Sure† said my mum not realising what she had just said then, â€Å"Hold on, why do you want to see our car? † † Well, there has been a murder in the local area, and it was witnessed to have been a hit and run and they said that there was a red car involved. Moreover, I believe that you have a red car sitting in your garage. † â€Å"Yes, well†¦ † mum, at that point gave dad a guilty look, but dad just ooked confused and walked back down the hall with a mug of tea in his hand to watch some television again. Mum thought to herself for a while and then realised that it would be unlawful to lie and with hold evidence, and also she would not have one of those messy divorces if her husband was behind bars, so she decided to spill. Then, mum went over to the car and bent down to show the PC the dent in the car. At this point, I was having a ball, the only thing that could make this better was a nice big tub of popcorn. â€Å"This looks nasty, and yet quite fresh, when did this happen love? † Mum was hesitant in saying â€Å"Last night, I expect† â€Å"OK so who was driving the car at the time of this incident? † the constable's voice was now developing a tone to it. A nasty tone. â€Å"I'll get the forensic team to take a closer look at this†. In saying this she pulled out a mobile about the size of her ego and started to dial. â€Å"Oh† was all that mum could come out with, after this huge enquiry about the car that was not even theirs. She was probably thinking that it actually was dad who killed the boy, ‘that's great' I thought to myself, not realising the charges or sentences dad could be faced with. After the forensic team arrived, about twenty minutes later they were able to come up with a full report. â€Å"I'm sorry to say, that we found some navy fibres attached to the front bumper and some very distinctive blood stains, which are of a person with blood type O, just like Kenny. † `That was strange, because when we hit Kenny there was not a dent anywhere, what can you say, but the police ain't as good as they make themselves out to be. ‘ Jinita Batavia Page 4 18/03/00 â€Å"I'm afraid you're under arrest. † The PC said relieved that this case was over. And it must have been one of the quickest cases ever! We'll have to take you down to the station; anything you do or say will be held against you later in court. † Those lines were just like the ones you here on television programmes. Ah well, dad would not be confused about that then, unlike everything else, as he watches television twenty-four/seven. Now that that was over, I thought that I should celebrate. `Wow' I thought to myself, I never thought I could put someone, especially my own dad behind bars, maybe I should try it more often! In addition, I also now have an extra room, as well as a mum, so I am safe from an orphanage†¦ for now!

Foundation Day Anchoring Essay

Good morning everyone. Today is a wonderful day and . It gives me immense pleasure to welcome you all on the 8th Foundation Day of our school. Well, my first and foremost duty – On behalf of the Principal and Teaching staff i would like to welcome all the visionaries of our school that means all the trustee members of our school. To begin this propitious occasion, may I invite Mrs. Reena Roy to invoke the almighty by a very beautiful prayer song. Thank you mam. Now, we will have our traditional auspicious LAMP-LIGHTENING ceremony as a tribute to Mother Saraswati, the Godess of knowledge by our honourable trustee members. (Mother, we pray for your blessings with all humility – give us wisdom to make this world a better place. May all human beings live in harmony with nature and other forms of life. May the truth prevail. May the darkness of ignorance be swept away by the dawn of self-realization.) Thank you This occasion gives us an opportunity to take stock of our achievements and to re-dedicate ourselves to face the new challenges that lie ahead. â€Å"The ideal of this school is to develop individuals who will be competent to change their environment to greater conformity with moral ideals.† our ultimate mission is of creating conscientious and forward -thinking students . In the present globalized world, the role of the School has undergone a sea-change and the education system needs to be geared to address the fundamental challenges that have emerged out of this. It requires our institutions to be leaner, fitter, professionally prepared and alwaysa ready to convert half opportunity into success. Here at Winners We value our intellectual capital, and nurture it through a perfect blend, of the traditional as well as contemporary ways and means, for the comprehensive development, of the students’ personality, so that every year the society at large is benefitted with the well equipped professionals who can significantly contribute to the value creation process. Welcome Now its time to sink into the depth of music, song, bliss and enjoyment and for this Today, we will have rainbow of cultural programmes prepared by our  teachers. First of all we will have a Desi fusion dance. . It involves various movements, figures and mesmerizing formations which will engross you to the core. So i would like to call all the teachers for the fusion dance. That was indeed a lovely performance. How captivating ! poetry of footsteps !! A blend of cosmic tune and divine music !. This type of performances show the unity and harmony of our teachers in each and every field. Unity is strength†¦ when there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved. Our next performance will be a melodious song with lyrics yu hi kat jaega safar Thak u Just ask UNIVERSE for help and we see wonders. That is what we call a â€Å"MIRACLE† Our next performance will be a holy divine song by Sashikant sir. I think they have truly spread the spiritual vibes this eve creating a state of trance with their magnetic performance. Lets move to our next programmee, Here comes a scintillating dance performance by Jitali mam. .mam, u Truly justified the characteristics of a great dancer – Elegance,poise,strength ,gracefulness everything.. Now its time for a very special performace by the jhankar beats group. In the history of winners for the first time all the gens teachers will shake their legs together .so without much adu i want to call the teachers

Medea Monologue Evaluation

The monologue I was given was an extract from the play ‘Medea. I played Medea. My director (Mark) and I started with a read-through of the script, even from the first read-through we decided the main theme was that we wanted to show her need for revenge. We the realised this was from the same play that we watched last year. We used this to come up with that themes needed such as her still being in love with Jason. We used units and objectives to the scene into sections. From different sections we got different units, some parts should show a very vulnerable side then others showed anger and love. We realised this was a script needed different levels of emotion and having the ability to change your emotion very quickly was key. We decided to focus on her unrequited love for her husband (Jason) who divorced and betrayed her. Also the anger that she held towards him because of the betrayal needs to be strong. She needed to be quite hard and strong but vulnerable at some points. Once we had cracked the themes and character personality we started do proper rehearsals. I rehearsed by myself to learn my lines and come up with some ideas on how to perform it. Then in school we tried the different ideas and different ways to say each line changing as we go. I sub-texted each line and brought it in so again we can see what she is really trying to say with each line. This made us change how I said the beginning of the script. We hot-seated with different partners’ and the question really made me think. It made me want to show that she still loved Jason but hated him too. Our class did an exercise when we had to be stuck in a lift with as our character with other characters. This was eye opening too, just how much of a strong facade Medea put on to try and mask her feelings. The set was just a simple chair in the middle of the stage. We wanted simplicity so people could focus on the dialogue. The costume again wasn’t complex but purple velvet toga (because she is a Greek princess); this was to show her royal roots. The rehearsal with Mr. Borrill was what turned it around because he told me what to focus on, what parts are meant too be strong and what parts are meant to show weakness. It definitely helped me develop how I wanted the audience to see Medea in the last few days before the performance. The day of the performance arrived. I used emotional memory to get me into the mood just an hour before and I think this really helped in the believability. I think it is one of my best performances; I felt like I connected with audience and used my projection well. I had just enough tension filled moments and I used the silence well. My main fault is my staging, I should’ve moved around more and that is something we focused on in rehearsal but I think my nerves didn’t want me to move. I used props well, when I used it as a symbol of different things such as one represented Jason. I think it was a very good performance other than the staging. I was proud of myself

Body Modification †Deviance in Society Essay

The last decade has seen a dramatic rise in spectacular forms of body modification, including the tattoo renaissance and the phenomena of body piercing, the emergence of neo-tribal practices like scarification and the invention of new, high-tech forms of body art like sub-dermal implants. Therefore, body modification practices have proven to be an interesting field of study for sociologists interested in deviance, social control, and the social construction of problematic behaviour. Much of the sociological research and literature into these practices fits within the symbolic interaction tradition, focusing specifically on the ways that people define body modification, and whether or not they perceive it as being scary or beautiful, dangerous or alluring, rebellious or inclusive. This essay explores the connections between body modification and deviance and seeks to identify whether physical alterations of the body are a rite of passage, a group identifier, or a mechanism of negative sanctioning and social control, believed to be key elements in the social construction of deviant self-identities. The origins of the cultural trend of body modification, unlike those of nearly all other fads, are thousands of years old. Ever since our Neolithic ancestors invented art tens of thousands of years ago, humans have been decorating the human body, as it is the most intimate of canvas (Siebers 2000, p. 212). Most sociological theory about body modification is framed in discussions of labelling and differential association orientations which explain social definitions and the processes through which body modifiers learn how to be successful in changing the ways their bodies look to themselves, and to those with whom they come in contact. The cause of controversy surrounding the issues of tattooing and piercings is directly rooted in the message that these forms of body modification present. The one essential feature all of these deviants share is visibility; they are all, by definition, overt deviants whose rule breaking is immediately apparent. Their deviance is rooted, not in what they have done, or even who they are, but in how they appear (Heitzeg 1996, p.358), therefore, this type of deviance is highly diverse with regard to the how  and why of rule breaking. In modern contexts, body modification practices can be seen as symbolic as they represent the death of conventional beauty standards and the rebirth of new ideals of attractiveness by challenging the classical ideal of the skin as ‘a pristine smooth closed envelope for the self’ (Pitts 2003, p.92). Hence, when a person submits the body to the modification process, it damages the skins basic structure and its integrity, which contradicts the western notion of the body as fixed and unchanging. The fact that Western society is not overtly tribal or strictly racially segregated (Atkinson 2003, p. 99) is perhaps one of the reasons why the importance of bodily appearance in constructing social identity is regarded so suspiciously. Western civilisation has no history of group body modification (Miller 2004, p. 61), and where we have encountered it in others, it has often been regarded as evidence of primitivism and savagery, with efforts made to eradicate it as part of the ‘civilisation’ process. In western culture, body modification practices have been shunned and outcast as the marks of Satan (Miller 2004, p.37) and traditionally, the Christian body was only marked as a sign of shame. In the last few centuries however, these fallacies have subsided to thoughts of mere loathing of any permanent defacing of a person’s body and it has been argued that body modification is ‘no more than just attention seeking self-mutilation, in which only heathens and criminals engage’ (Jones 1998, p. 89). The debates concerning body modification and self-mutilation often suggest that individuals who choose to decorate their bodies through tattooing and piercing are driven by harmful impulses that they cannot understand and do not control. Though many view these forms of body modification as sin and are loath to initiate any permanent modifications beyond those dictated by nature and necessity, others feel that it is a historical footnote about the cultural identity of this era. Though the desire to mark the body does emanate from the inner sense of self, it does not necessarily read as an intentional act of harm to the individual  self (Miller 2004, p. 102). Body modification, despite its interest in intervening with the physical flesh and creating blood, scars, holes and scars, actually is not a violent practice. Individuals partaking in such body modifications such as piercing and tattooing can be seen to be taking a kind of libertarian attitude towards their bodies as these acts of personal choice that demonstrate social independence. Vale & Juno (1999, p.8) believe that amidst an almost universal feeling of powerlessness to ‘change the world’, individuals are changing what they do have power over, their own bodies. Through various forms of body decoration, individuals attempt to resolve ‘ontological insecurities of modernism by deliberate self-identification’ (Pitts 2003, p.113). These are acts of personal choice that demonstrate social independence. The wilful act of modifying one’s body is not a passive, but a deliberate and successful attempt to direct the gaze of society where the individual chooses. In essence, tattooing and piercing puts control into the hands of the individual; control over their body and control over the objectified body, liberating it with alternative forms of power. Within the realms of body modification, you can take control of what you otherwise could not (Vale & Juno 1999, p. 82). Individuals engage in body modification through piercing and tattooing to challenge personal and social invisibility while also adding cultural capital to the body’s surface (Hewitt 1997, p. 112). In part people are using their bodies to reject homogenisation of popular capitalist culture. In an era in which large multi-national corporations dominate the socio-economic landscape, tattoos and piercings cannot be mass produced. They are a personal expression of one’s self. Body modification, through ink and flesh, as well as piercing is an act of self-creation. It is a protest of transient socially constructed features of desirability, inferiority or power. It constitutes a statement of control and ownership over the body in a cultural context characterised by accelerating social control and alienation. The human body is a canvas for the expression of cultural ideas of men and women throughout time and around the world. Therefore, arguments of the positive or negative connotations of tattooing and piercing do not often justify or debase body modifications but seemingly ‘indicate a breakdown between morality and aesthetics’ (Sanders 1989, p.35). The demographic and imagery of tattoos has undergone profound change and reflects the economic, political and social upheaval that has taken place in the 21st century (Turner 1994, p. 70). Tattoos and other forms of body modification have become more pervasive in the last couple of decade with a rise in mainstream clientele (Jones 1998, p. 65). New techniques, artists, technical innovation, professionalism and media attention have helped catapult the frequency and acceptance of body modification in conventional society. Whilst there is a rich history in regards to the ancient practice of permanent body art, a large majority of Western society view it as disruptive, crude, and a form of self-mutilation, seeing tattoos and piercings as marks of disgrace and social deviance (Miller 2004, p.75) whilst often showing little interest in what motivates people to decorate their body in such a way. However, Maffasoli (1995, p.51) suggests in his research that there is a strong fascination from ‘outsiders’ in regards to the art of body modification, although fear of negative sanctioning and lack of understanding regarding the process and the motivational factors of body modification mean people often shy away. This ‘popular interest’ manifests itself in numerous articles in popular magazines, current affairs television, documentaries, music videos, advertising and film. All of these mediums help to disseminate a basic knowledge and awareness of these modification practices to a larger mainstream population. This extended knowledge and interest has seen body modification practices shifted out of the backrooms of adult bookstores and into heavily patronised, high-technology shop-front studios. With middle-class customers increasingly entering the body modification arena (Sanders 1989, p.27) these practices are becoming less taboo and are no longer just the domain of bikers, sailors and social misfits. Tattoos and piercings not only give power and a sense of control to the individual but permits them to record one’s own history and developmental milestones on the body, therefore for some, body modification has a deeper meaning, serving the function of indelibly marking into the flesh  significant events in their lives (Favazza 1996, p. 92). A twenty-eight year old woman framed her decision to have her nostril pierced as a response to her experience of becoming a mother at eighteen, ‘the experience of being a young mother is in part why I chose to get my nose pierced. I felt trapped by others’ expectations, the piercing was a way of pushing through my own desires to deal with in myself the power of the systems that be, and my desire to refuse to conform’ (Holtham 1997). Others imbue private acts of body modification with symbolic power, capable of reclaiming previous experiences of powerlessness or an unpleasant event (Douglas 1970, p. 45). Another young woman shares, ‘I guess as my way of getting some pleasure out of the situation. I had a pair of stitched lips tattooed into the inside of my thigh six months after having been raped which symbolised my inability to speak about the event’ (Holtham 1997). Another reason for becoming a fan of modification practices are to do with enjoying the process and liking the ‘look of it’. Modification recipients speak of the ‘thrill’ and ‘rush’ of the actual moment of the piercing, as well as enjoying playing with healed piercings and adorning their bodies with jewellery (Dunbar & Lahn 1998, p.12). In support of this position, Featherstone (2000, p.55) believes that some individuals simply see their tattoos and piercings as little more than fashion accessories, on par with other forms of jewellery which enhance a certain ‘look’. Certainly, vanity can play a large part in the decision to modify one’s body, for example a tattoo strip around a man’s biceps can make them appear larger just as a tattoo or piercing will call attention to various parts of the female anatomy, especially on the lower back and around the belly button. Despite the diversified reasons for body modifications, most cultures from around the world were unified in their belief that body piercing was an art form with highly important, empowering, and positive connotations (Atkinson 2003, p.72). Whilst modern forms of body modification are seen as a self-motivated expression of personal freedom and uniqueness, ancient cultures usually marked a person to prove membership or non membership of a group, or to express religious, magical, or spiritual beliefs. These forms of body decoration have existed throughout history to mark numerous ideals within societies such as social stratification, servitude, and religious or spiritual rites. In modern times, if you modify your body, particularly in the methods discussed within this essay, you are inevitably changing your appearance whilst stating something about yourself, your lifestyle and social status. You are also making a statement about your income, wealth and class. However, body marks in pre-literate societies were permanent, collective and largely obligatory. Unlike today, they were set within a shared culture of collective meanings, where the significance of a tattoo or mark could be read unambiguously (Featherstone 2000, p.39) . The growing revival of highly visible and sometimes ‘shocking’ primitive body modification practices such as tattooing, multiple piercings and scarification is a personal choice just like cosmetic surgery and body building, which are seemingly more respectful avenues of body modification. People choose to be pierced or inked for aesthetic purposes, spiritual incentives, erotic reasons, fashion trends or a variety of other personal motives. Throughout history, society has always shown a multitude of symbols through body art and decoration, even in its simplest forms. That implicit link between past and present confers not only a sense of antiquity to body modification but also sanction and validity. Today, seeing a person with a body modification may evoke an involuntarily judgment or opinion, even though the conclusion may be wholly inaccurate and prejudicial. An altered body, as well as being a way to establish one’s own individual, unique personality, can also seen as a way to establish oneself in an alternative community (Pitts 2003, p.8). Society perhaps does not consider that the body modifiers or ‘modern primitives’ of today, just like their ancient equivalent, are not only using tribal customs to express themselves through body modification, but are also actually a form of tribe within their own social groups. There is no doubt that body modification is an interesting topic of discussion and one that can only result in examination by society. Tattoos and piercings have been around for millennia, and for the majority of that time, they have always been accepted as a form of art, not mutilation. Body modification such as tattooing and piercing is not a bizarre form of  deviance peripheral to society like many researchers signify but rather an ‘everlasting visual dialogue expressing one’s self-concept, ideas and beliefs’ (DeMello 2000, p.22). Body modification has become a vehicle for people to altar their appearance which can be of significant importance to the individual and can publicly express a rite of passage as well as break the accepted cultural code. As such these forms of body modification are primal forms of self-expression and a reflection of cultural reality. Lack of understanding surrounding participants of body modification can cause negative sanctioning such as unemployment, social ridicule or even ostracism from family and peers and social control practices are experienced to enforce or encourage conformity and deal with behaviour which violates accepted norms. As this essay has sought to explore, modified bodies invariably provoke a strong reaction among those who are not as they elicit a primeval response which touches the core of who we are as people and a society. As a new set of cultural and social meanings are being ascribed to bodies and we experience the re-definition of beauty, it is increasingly clear that society may need to become more accepting and adjust cultural norms to accommodate the novel yet historic culture of social communication through the decorated body. Reference List Atkinson, M., (2003). Tattooed: the Sociogenesis of a Body Art, University of Toronto Press, Canada. DeMello, M. (2000). Bodies of Inscription: A Cultural History of the Modern Tattoo Community, Duke University Press, London. Douglas, M., (1970). Natural Symbols: Explorations in Cosmology, Pantheon Books, New York. Dunbar, A., & Lahn, D., (1998). Body Piercing, Wakefield Press, NSW. Favazza, A.R., (1996). Bodies Under Siege: Self-Mutilation and Body Modification in Culture and Psychiatry, 2nd ed., JHU Press, USA. Featherstone, M., (2000). Body Modification, Sage Publishing, UK. Heitzeg, N., (1996). Deviance: Rulemakers & Rulebreakers, West Publishing Company, USA. Hewitt, K., (1997). Mutilating the Body: Identifying in Blood and Ink, Bowling Green State University Press, USA. Holtham, S., (1997). Body Piercing in the West: a Sociological Inquiry, http://www.bmezine.com/pierce/bodypier.html, retrieved 27/4/09. Jones, A., (1998). Body Art: Performing the Subject, University of Minnesota Press, USA. Maffesoli, M., (1985). The Time of the Tribes: the Decline of Individualism in Mass Society, Sage Publishing, London. Miller, J.C, (2004). The Body Art Book: A Complete Illustrated Guide to Tattoos, Piercings, and other Body Modifications, Penguin Publishing Group Inc., USA. Pitts, V., (2003). In the Flesh: The Cultural Politics of Body Modification, Palgrave MacMillan, USA. Roach Anleu, S., (2006). Deviance: Conformity and Control, 4th edn., Longman, South Melbourne. Sanders, C., (1989). Customizing the Body: The Art and Culture of Tattooing, Temple University Press, USA. Siebers, T., (2000). The Body Aesthetic: From Fine Art to Body Modification, University of Michigan Press, USA. Turner, B.S., (1994). Regulating Bodies, Routledge Press, UK. Vale, V., & Juno, A., (1999). Modern Primitives: An Investigation of Contemporary Adornment & Ritual, Research Publications, San Francisco USA.