Essay about Scarlet Letter

Essay about Scarlet Letter Essay about Scarlet Letter Puritanical Vengeance Revenge is a thematic motif found in the puritanical works The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and "The Crucible" by Arthur Miller. While Roger Chillingworth in The Scarlet Letter seeks vengeance against Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale for their adulterous actions, Abigail Williams in The Crucible likewise seeks revenge against Goody Proctor for the pursuit of her husband, John Proctor. However, revenge in both novels proves to be a double edged sword, for not only do Chillingworth’s and Abigail’s victims take injury to vengeance, but so do Abigail and Chillingworth themselves. Although Puritans believed retribution was an act reserved only for God, both novels show that Puritans mercilessly follow through with vengeful acts, despite their belief that revenge is not to be sought by humans. Therefore, these novels show that revenge is an inherit trait among human character, and is a transcendent desire through the generations that is found within modern society, and will forever be an instinctive human act. Nathaniel Hawthorne presents the concept of revenge as an unnatural act that transfigures a person's soul into a black and hollow shell. Never satisfying, revenge consumes the life of Roger Chillingworth, who is absorbed into the role of punishing both Arthur Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne. Chillingworth is so intent on vengeance that he loses his human self in the process. Believing himself justified in his pursuit, Chillingworth's vengeance is seen by Dimmesdale as "blacker than my sin. He has violated, in cold blood, the sanctity of a human heart" (Hawthorne 161). Even though committing the sin of adultery, Dimmesdale shows the pursuit of revenge as an even more heinous crime than his. Furthermore, Hester, also an adulteress, seeks forgiveness from Dimmesdale for her keeping of Chillingworth's identity; "Let God punish! Thou shalt forgive" (Hawthorne 161)! exclaiming that only God may punish Hester for her crim es. Evans adds that Chillingworth "forgets, however, that [Dimmesdale] is known to God, the only judge who ultimately matters. Chillingworth's declaration is therefore less a sign of any disinterested concern for justice than an indication of his prideful (and sinful) yearning for personal revenge" (Evans par. 7). In addition, Arthur Miller's character Abigail Williams seeks revenge against Goody Elizabeth Proctor, for she desires Proctor's husband, John. Thus Abigail begins a wave of hysteria on witchcraft, accusing any who would compromise her quest to be rid of Goody Proctor. As said by Bryer, the "manipulative" Abigail utilizes her power to accuse Elizabeth as Abigail "gets caught up in the power she wields" (Bryer par.2). With this power, she even boldly warns "Mr. Danforth. Think you to be so mighty that the power of Hell may not turn your wits" (3.796)? and is unafraid to remove anyone in her vengeful path. As the town believes she is a messenger of God to rid the town of ev il, she is thought to be justified in her accusations as a suitable means for revenge. However, John Proctor realizes her intent; "I’ll tell you

Princess Elizabeth Becomes Queen at Age 25

Princess Elizabeth Becomes Queen at Age 25 Princess Elizabeth (born Elizabeth Alexandra Mary on April 21, 1926) became Queen Elizabeth II in 1952 at the age of 25. Her father, King George VI suffered from lung cancer for much of his later life and died in his sleep on February 6, 1952, at age 56. Upon his death, Princess Elizabeth, his oldest daughter, became Queen of England.   The Death and Burial of King George VI Princess Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Philip, were in East Africa when King George died. The couple had been visiting Kenya as part of the beginning of a planned five-month tour of Australia and New Zealand when they received the news of King Georges death. With this very sad news, the couple immediately made plans to return to Great Britain. While Elizabeth was still flying home, Englands Accession Council met to officially determine who was the heir to the throne. By 7 p.m. it was announced that the new monarch would be Queen Elizabeth II. When Elizabeth arrived in London, she was met at the airport by Prime Minister  Winston Churchill  to begin preparation for the viewing and burial of her father. After laying in state at Westminster Hall for over 300,000 people to pay respect to his image, King George VI was buried on February 15, 1952,  at St. Georges Chapel in Windsor, England. The funeral procession involved the entire royal court and 56 chimes from Big Ben, one for each year of the kings life.   The First Television Broadcast Royal Coronation Over a year after her fathers death, Queen Elizabeth IIs coronation was held at Westminster Abbey  on June 2, 1953. It was the first televised coronation in history (yet excluded the communion and anointing). Before the coronation, Elizabeth II and Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh, moved into Buckingham Palace in preparation for her reign.   Although it was highly believed that the royal house would assume Philips name, becoming the  House of Mountbatten, Elizabeth IIs grandmother, Queen Mary, and Prime Minister Churchill favored retaining the  House of Windsor.  Ã‚  Ultimately, Queen Elizabeth II released a proclamation on April 9, 1952, a full year before the coronation, that the royal house would remain as Windsor. However, after the death of Queen Mary in March of 1953, the name Mountbatten-Windsor was adopted for male-line descendants of the couple.   Despite Queen Marys untimely death three months prior, the coronation in June continued as planned, as the former queen had requested before her death. The coronation gown worn by Queen Elizabeth II was embroidered with the floral symbols of Commonwealth countries including the English Tudor rose, Welsh leek, Irish shamrock, Scots thistle, Australian wattle, New Zealand silver fern, South African protea, Indan and Ceylon lotus, Pakistani wheat, cotton, and jute and the Canadian maple leaf.   The Current Royal Family of England As of February 2017, Queen Elizabeth II is still the reigning queen of England at 90 years old. The current royal family consists of her offspring with  Philip. Their son Charles, Prince of Wales, married his first wife Diana, who bore their sons Prince Henry (of Wales) and William (Duke of Cambridge), who in turn married Kate (Duchess of Cambridge), who bore Prince George and Princesses Charlotte (of Cambridge). Prince Charles married Camilla (Duchess of Cornwall) in 2005. Elizabeths daughter Princess Royal Anne married Captain Mark Phillips and bore Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall, both of which married and had children (Peter fathered Savannah and Isla with wife Autumn Phillips and Zara mothered Mia Grace with husband Mike Tendall). Queen Elizabeth IIs son Andrew (Duke of York) married Sarah (Duchess of York) and sired Princesses Beatrice and Eugenia of York. The queens youngest son, Edward (Earl of Wessex) married Sophie (Countess of Wessex) who gave birth to Lady Louise Windsor and Viscount Severn James.

Legal Aspects of Nursing Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Legal Aspects of Nursing - Case Study Example An accurate record is the only proof a nurse may give in the event of a lawsuit against him or her. The nurses’ testimonies at trial would have a great influence on the case as they serve as further evidence of negligence and malpractice on their part. In my opinion, the other nurses made the situation turn from bad to worse with their own revelations of how they often â€Å"could not remember exactly† the prescribed medication and dosages. This is also coupled with the fact that the nurses also deviated from the doctors’ instruction by deviating from IM injections and preferring to administer medication through intravenous drips. This new revelations could lead to further lawsuits on the rest of the nursing staff that had given the aforementioned testimonies. The court and the relevant State Board of Nursing should investigate on the possible root causes for the widespread malpractice and negligence by its nursing staff. The court should also give a court order to authorize the police to carry out drug tests on the indicted nurse so as to accurately determine if she after all had been diverting the narcotics for personal use. The outcome of this medical exam may be used by the nurse to sue the institution if she the results back up her testimony. The affected health facilities should also formulate new policies and guidelines to ensure that similar cases do not happen again. These policies should also be designed in a manner that patient safety is given paramount importance. The health record is a legal document itself and based on the evidence available there are discrepancies between the handwritten record and the computerized medicine cabinet thus suggesting existence of negligence. On the other hand the hospital on its part has failed to provide sufficient and clear cut policies to support and protect its nursing staff. The healthcare facility is legally liable for some of the nurses’ malpractices. The

The Symbiotic Relationship Between the United States and Britain Essay

The Symbiotic Relationship Between the United States and Britain - Essay Example The Second World War was initially fought on the European Continent and American role was marginal till it came under Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor in December 1941. The American masses were generally against participation in a Continental War. The British were facing a crisis of sorts as France was overrun and the Soviet Union came under the throes of the biggest threat ever, Churchill the British Prime Minister was left to Britain’s dogged determination to survive the critical days till America joined the war effort. The incidents leading to Pearl Harbor, America’s reaction to Japan’s surprise attack and British response denote that Churchill had foreseen the eventuality of this strike and declared war against Japan within 24 hours. It was a momentous event and Churchill could not hide his glee at finally drawing America into the Great War, as this tipped the balance in favour of the Allies. (Churchill: 1970). A key event which not only determines the course of the Second World War but also the post-war alliance was drafting of the Atlantic Charter. Churchill had developed a personal rapport with the American President, Roosevelt. Drafting of the Charter was a triumph of Anglo American cooperation. The declaration included provisions as no territorial aggrandizement or changes by the alliance partners, right of people to choose the form of government, fair and equitable distribution of resources and creation of peace and stability within nations as also on the high seas. (Churchill: 1970). The United Nations was thus formed after the war and a number of nations freed from colonial dominance.

JetBlue Airways Corporation Essay Example for Free

JetBlue Airways Corporation Essay JetBlue Airways Corporation was formed in August 1998 as a low-fare, low-cost but high service passenger airline serving select United States market. JetBlues operations strategy was designed to achieve a low cost, whilst offering customers a pleasing and differentiated flying experience. JetBlue has had a successful business model and strong financial results during that period, and performed well in comparison to other airline companies in the US during the period between 2000 and 2003. It had been the only other airline apart from Southwest airlines, to have been profitable during the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks on World Trade Center, and at a time when the entire airline industry was experiencing losses. The core of JetBlues strategy was low operating cost achieved through a smaller and more productive workforce; utilizing aircraft efficiently; better use of technology to achieve lower distribution cost i.e. use of electronic ticket as against paper ticket; use of brand new single model planes that reduced maintenance costs and training costs at the same time. However, moving into the growth phase, JetBlue was contemplating expansion with the introduction of a new model of planes, i.e. Embraer E190, that are smaller than the A320s that they were using. These planes were to be utilized for penetrating mid-size cities and also during off-peak times on existing routes. The company defined these markets as destination with 100 to 600 local passengers per day each way, compared to the much larger markets that the company was serving with its A320s. This had potential implications for its low-cost strategy. Jetblues expansion required investments in areas other than just new aircraft. Owen needed to decide how to raise additional capital to fund the  companys growth. Investment bankers had presented two financing proposals; a new public equity offering and a private placement of convertible debentures. Own needed to decide which proposal, if any, to recommend to the board. QUESTION 1 PART A In early 2003, JetBlue continue to see opportunity to grow by adding both new market and new flight to existing destination. One of such new market where the company believed there was attractive opportunity was the mid-sized market segment which comprised of destinations with 100 600 local passengers per day each way. To accommodate this growth, the company is seeking to purchase 65 new Airbus A320, with an option to buy additional 50 new aircraft, and also committed to purchase 100 Embraer E190 aircraft, with the option to purchase 100 additional ones. Jetblue had embarked on a $6.8 billion plane acquisition program that would increase its aircraft fleet from 45 to 252, including existing aircraft purchase commitment. The company needs thus to think about a way to finance those acquisitions, as well as other needed investments such as spare parts, new engines, additional hangars and a flight training centre JOHN OWEN THE CFO OF JETBLUE IS TRYING TO DECIDE WHICH OF TWO FINANCING PROPOSALS (NEW PUBLIC EQUITY OFFERING AND A PRIVATE PLACEMENT OF CONVERTIBLE DEBENTURE) TO PURSUE. A straight equity issue will dilute his principal shareholders ownership, but favored a conservative capital structure that would help to ensure JetBlues financial flexibility, access to capital and a favorable lending rate. On the other hand, a convertible debt alternative seems less dilutive, and cheaper, but brings with it an increased risk of default and financial problems. PART B The financing decision taken by the CFO is important because of the positive impact it is expected to have on the current and future performance of the JetBlue. The considerations as regards impact of the financing decision are discussed; IMPACT ON CURRENT PERFORMANCE OF THE COMPANY It is expected that the new capital would ease Jetblues ability to finance its short term obligations as JetBlue does not have a line of credit, or short-term borrowing facility. Therefore, the company depends on its operating cash flow to finance its short-term obligations The new capital will be required to finance working capital requirement of Jetblue, Working capital is the short term resources that are used to manage the business on a daily basis. This is otherwise referred to as current asset. The financing decision which is aimed at securing the purchase of the new 100-seat Embraer E190 aircraft would allow JetBlue to enter smaller markets while maintaining low operating costs, and increase flight frequency on existing routes. The low fares offered by JetBlue would allow it to attract new passengers who might otherwise not fly. Earnings from this market segment is expected to contribute to the profitability and positive financial performance of the company IMPACT ON FUTURE PERFORMANCE OF THE COMPANY The additional capital is expected to strengthen the companys balance sheet at a time when JetBlue will be shouldering a significant amount of debt related to new aircraft deliveries. The decision on financing method would result in a strong capital structure for Jetblue which would ensure that the company would continue to grow while avoiding financial problems. The new cash inflow which is directed at ensuring JetBlue achieves its expansion activities. It is expected that the company will be in a position to purchase larger volumes of jet fuel and would thus have more leverage in procuring fuel than today. The company will thus suffer relatively less from fuel shortages and the negative impact a rise in fuel has an operating income QUESTION 2 PART A John Owen the CFO of JetBlue generally favored a conservative capital structure. A conservative funding strategy is when a firm finances both its seasonal and permanent requirement with long term debt. The criteria which John Owen used to evaluate his decision on the appropriate capital structure and mode of financing to support the expansion drive of the business are; FINANCIAL FLEXIBILITY: This refers to the firms ability to take advantage of unforeseen opportunities or their ability to deal with expected events depending on the firms financial policies and financial structure. A firm with a high debt obligation and weak solvency and liquidity is not financially flexible. FAVORABLE LENDING RATE: The lending rate to a business varies directly with the risk associated with any given financial structure which can be accessed by leverage analysis. It is expected that a higher leverage (as a result of accepting debt offering) tends to amplify a firms predictable business swings i.e. associated risk. This inclines to increase lending rate to the firm and ultimately result in an unfavorable lending rate. CONTROL: The financing scheme of a company can imply changes in control constrains on the firm, this can be indicated by percentage distribution of share ownership and structure of debt covenant. There is a high chance that the board of directors will not favor the equity offering as they were  sensitive about the dilution (i.e. control dilution) that an equity offering would cause to existing shareholders. INCOME: This compares financing tactics on the basis of their effect on value creation and distribution i.e. the impact on Earnings per share (EPS) and Return on equity (ROE). The debt option limited the ability of Jetblue to manage one of the airlines principal risk; rising fuel prices. As discussed above, the debt offering afforded Jetblue less financial flexibility. If fuel prices rose unexpectedly, operating income will decline thus hurting JetBlues ability to meet the additional debt service payments. PART B Other criteria John Owen could use to evaluate his decision on the appropriate capital structure and mode of financing are; Timing: This considers whether the current capital market environment is the right time to implement any alternative financial structure and what the implication for future financing will be if the proposed structure is adopted. Financial market condition often favour one or another kind of financing. Others: This is the consideration of the impact of the alternative financing choice on other issues and vice versa. An example is the ability to use collateral to reduce the costs and risk of debt financing and the effect of various financing tactics on the liquidity of investment. REASONS WHY JOHN OWEN SHOULD PROPOSE THE EQUITY FINANCING OPTION From the above analysis, it can be deduced that using equity financing option minimizes the companys weighted average cost of capital, thus maximizes the overall stock price of the company and the shareholders wealth. The NPV of the company is higher under the equity financing option JetBlue, as any airline company has a debt to equity ratio of 61.21% and incurs very high fixed costs as a result of high value operating property and equipment. An equity offering would increase the financial flexibility of the company. The company has a very high operating leverage as a result of variability in fuel price. This exposes the company to the risk of cash flow projections errors in case it does not meet the projected revenues figures. Any variation in the estimated revenues, might lead the company to a position where it could not meet its financial obligations related to debt. From this point of view, JetBlue needs to secure its cash flows. This can be achieved using equity financing. The lending rate to a business varies directly with the risk associated with any given financial structure which can be accessed by leverage analysis. Issuing equity will reduce the leverage of business and reduce lending rate. PART C Other financing option I would like to recommend to the board and John Owen are; JetBlue can consider some other alternatives as well. Indeed, the company can issue some preferred stock. This stock might be considered as equity in accounting, to strengthen the balance sheet of the company, but will at the same time accommodate the board members concern about dilution. Another alternative might be the issuance of simple corporate bonds. The coupon rate for those will however be higher than the 3.5% of the convertible bonds. This option will thus cost more for JetBlue than convertible bonds QUESTION 4 PART A Aviation fuel cost is the second largest operating cost in the airline industry after payroll, this has significant impact on operating and financing risks of a company. IMPACT ON OPERATING RISK: In 2002, JetBlues fuel cost amounted to $76 million or 14.4% of operating cost. In the event that fuel prices rises, there will be a significant drop in operating income and higher exposure to operating risk (risk created by operating leverage). Operating leverage is the magnification of the top half of the income statement, it measures how EBIT changes in response to changes  in sale, and the relevant cost is the fixed cost of operating the business. It is expected that as operating leverage increase due to jet fuel increase, the operating risk of the business likewise increases. IMPACT ON FINANCING RISK In the event that jet fuel rises, it is expected that operating profit will drop and operating leverage would increase. This will also hurt JetBlues ability to meet the additional debt service payment i.e. it may face risk of default or potential financial loss which is known as financial risk. Financing risk is the risk associated with financing and its created by financial leverage. Financial leverage is the magnification of the bottom half of the income statement, it measures how EPS (earnings per share) changes in response to changes in sale, and the relevant cost is the fixed cost of financing, in particular interest. PART B The operating and financing risk exposure of JetBlue through rising fuel price of JetBlue has being managed in the past through hedging 75% of its fuel using a combination of CALL OPTIONS, SWAPS AND COLLARS hedging instrument. PART C HEDGING: Fuel hedging is a contractual tool some large fuel consuming companies such as airlines (JetBlue) use to reduce their expose to volatile and potentially rising fuel cost. A fuel hedge contract allows a large fuel consuming company to lock in the cost of future fuel purchase, allowing an increasing number of airlines to avoid surprises from unforeseen cost fluctuations. The hedging could be done via a commodity swap or option. One of the basic reasons why a company enters into hedging contract is to mitigate their exposure to future fuel prices that may be higher than current prices and/or  to establish a known fuel cost for budgeting and predictability of earnings. PRINCIPAL WAYS JETBLUE HAS BEING USING HEDGING TO MANAGE FUEL PRICING RISK: Jetblue is a small airline which had less leverage in procuring large volume of jet fuel in order to mitigate risk of volatility or shortage of jet fuel. In order to mitigate fuel pricing risk, Jetblue used a combination of fuel call option, swaps and collars hedging instrument. From time to time Jetblue has simply bought call options which tend to be at least $5 per barrel. HOW THE HEDGING INSTRUMENT WORKS The hedging instrument mostly used by JetBlue is the call option. CALL OPTION: This is a financial contract between two parties, the buyer and the seller of this type of option. The buyer of the option has the right but not the obligation to buy an agreed quantity of a particular commodity (jet fuel) from the seller of the option at a certain time (the expiration date for European call option or at any time during the life of the option for American call option) for a certain price (the strike price). The seller is obligated to sell the commodity (jet fuel) or financial instrument should the buyer so decide. The buyer pays a fee called a premium for this right. In the case JetBlue, the premium it pays is at least $5 per barrel. SWAPS: Swaps are tailor made futures contract whereby an airline exchanges payment at a future date (which can be in jet aviation fuel and could be further into the future into the future than possible through commodity exchanges), based on the fuel or oil price. There could be an arrangement with a supplier such as Air BP. The airline would buy a swap for a period of say one year at a certain strike price for a specified amount of jet fuel per month. The average price for that month is then compared with the strike price, and if it exceeds it the counter-party would pay the airline the difference times the amount of fuel. However, if it were lower, then the airline would pay the difference. They lock in a given price, as with forward contacts. COLLARS: This is a combination of a call and a put option. The call protects the holder from adverse price increases above its strike price, at a cost of the option premium that would be paid in any event. The holder of this call also writes a put option that limits the advantage it can take of price reduction below its strike price. The total cost of taking the two options is the call option premium paid less the put option premium received. A collar limits the speculative risk to a small range of price moves and locks in the price that will be paid for fuel between two known values.

Moby Dick :: essays research papers fc

Moby Dick I. Biographical Insights A. The culture this great author was a part of was the time in American history where inspiring works of literature began to emerge. It was also a time when American writers had not completely separated its literary heritage from Europe, partly because there were successful literary genius' flourishing there. B. Herman Melville was born on August 1, 1819, he was the son of Allan and Maria Melville. During Herman's childhood he lived in the â€Å"good† neighborhoods of New York City. In 1832 Herman suffered tragedy when his father died after trying to cope with the stress of debts and misfortunes. After a short time in a business house in New York City, Herman determined he needed to go to sea. He spent years traveling on a variety of ships, including whaling ships. C1. Melville's perspective on life is that God created the universe with an infinite number of meanings and man is always trying to determine one specific meaning. D2. The â€Å"lessons† that Melville is likely to weave into his writing are 1. An exposition on whales and the whaling industry. 2. A commentary on the universe and human destiny. 3. Thoughts about God and Nature. III. Characters B. The protagonist in this book is Ishmael, a Christian, schoolteacher and part- time sailor. Ishmael's role in the hunt for â€Å"Moby Dick† is to interpret what is happening. He discusses his reasons for going to sea and interprets and looks for understanding a number of reasons for any specific action where other characters only understand one reason. C. It is hard to say what changes take place in Ishmael's personality, since he is the narrator he doesn't talk about himself, he only talks about what he sees. D1. Ishmael befriends Queequeg who is a cannibal. Even though Queequeg is very ugly Ishmael sees that Queequeg has an honest heart, great honor, and a lot of courage. This friendship had a positive influence on Ishmael's behavior because it taught him not to judge on outward appearances. E2. Another relationship that was very short was the relationship between Ishmael and Captain Ahab. For the first few days aboard the Pequod Ishmael always saw Ahab in the shadows. When Ishmael finally saw Ahab he had shivers run through his body. Ishmael felt Ahab's attitude of determination, dedication and hatred towards â€Å"Moby Dick† in Ahab's appearance. This relationship was a negative relationship because Ishmael now feared Ahab and did not want to become friends with such an evil person. F. The conflict that Ishmael experienced was that he saw how Ahab was such an

Criminal Thinking Patterns Essay

Loyalty can be defined by anyone but there’s only one definition of loyalty. Google’s definition of loyalty is the quality of being loyal to someone or something. The second definition for loyalty is a strong feeling of support or allegiance; fights with in-laws cause divided loyalties. My definition of loyalty relates to the first definition; however, it consists of more than just that. Loyalty means respect and competence pertaining to a certain degree of trust and allegiance to an organization or personal lifestyles one might be involved in. Emotions and stereotypical thoughts have a major role in the play called loyalty. Loyalty and emotions have similarities just because of the fact an individual has to have some form of feeling towards a person or they will never be able to be loyal. What is the meaning of being loyal? Loyalty is defined by the person giving the meaning of its definition. Google definition of loyalty is true to a certain extent, but there is still something missing. The quality of being loyal should exist in everyone. Everyone or a particular breed has the quality of being loyal. Definitions seem to captivate everyone’s minds into believing the term or definition is true just because it has a reliable source. Sources are undoubtedly opinions from scholars; opinions arouse from person’s experience to inform people about such terms. If the term loyalty is true as it is supposed to be it might as well be self-explanatory. Loyalty is a word that consists of trust, faith, allegiance, and love. Without those four terms loyalty doesn’t exists. The quality of being loyal all depends on the people that may think of these terms. Imagine two couples that have undeniable trust for each other with stipulations which are to be loyal forever, one runs off to meet another individual she might have attractions for, the other partner finds out about it so the partner feels like she is not being loyal. The reason for that is because he feels like she is only upposed to be attracted to him, but she feels differently because she feels that she hasn’t cheated on him. These are two couples with two different definitions pertaining to loyalty. Emotions and stereotypical thought has everything to do with loyalty. Emotions give an individual trust and fear which are needed so one can attain the ability to be loyal. Without trust for an individual, people will never be able to give their complete trust and loyalty especially when the individual wants the same respect. Stereotypical thoughts pertaining to the term loyalty will give an individual a lesser understanding of the term loyalty mainly because stereotypical people tend to have their own opinions about everything which isn’t wrong but it justifies the statement. Everyone has their own definition of loyalty. Furthermore, what is the meaning of loyalty which is one of the questions everyone tends to asked themselves? Loyalties are moreover something genuine and sacred people or an organization tends to have. Loyalty consists of trust, love, and respect. Everyone has the ability to be loyal as long as it has true meaning.

Wgu Kot 2

Medicare, the Uninsured, and International Healthcare Review Western Governors University Medicare, the Uninsured, and International Healthcare Review Healthcare and healthcare reform are hot topics of debate in today's society. As the population grows and life expectancy increases, the nation faces many challenges in providing healthcare benefits to the people. â€Å"According to the report, titled Income, Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2010, 49. 9 million Americans or 16. 3 percent of the total US population had no health insurance in 2010.That percentage represents a slight increase on 2009’s figures, when 49 million citizens or 16. 1 percent of the population was uninsured† (Gamser, 2011). Unless there is a turnaround in their economic downfall, unemployment rate, and healthcare reform these numbers will most likely continue to increase. This paper will discuss some of these issues and how they impact two different families. The paper wi ll look at Mrs. Zwick, a 77-year-old female who was hospitalized for five days following a minor stroke and is then transferred to the skilled nursing facility for rehabilitation.Her rehabilitation is delayed 10 days into her stay due to a hospital acquired urinary tract infection. Discussion will include coverage for her medical care using Medicare Part A, Part B and Part D. Discussion will also include how the hospital acquired infection is not reimbursed by Medicare. Finally the paper will discuss how Mr. Davis, a gentleman with chronic sickle cell anemia and loses his job position due to his illness, will have the option to continue insurance coverage by way of the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA).Discussion will include two challenges that state or local government face when providing care for the uninsured with long-term or chronic illnesses. Elaboration on one of the challenges will be further described. Due to his frustrations with loss of his employmen t, healthcare coverage, and his chronic sickle cell anemia, Mr. Davis verbalizes he wish he lived in another country. Through investigation of healthcare in Great Britain, Japan, Germany, and Switzerland this paper will discuss which of these countries would best benefit Mr. Davis if you ere to become a citizen there. Mrs. Zwick was hospitalized for five days following a mild stroke, and then transferred to a skilled nursing facility for rehabilitation with projected discharge in 21 days. However it is discovered that she developed a hospital acquired urinary tract infection 10 days into her rehabilitation requires IV antibiotics to treat. The infection leads per week and unable to continue her rehabilitation until the urinary tract infection is cleared. As a result, instead of 21 days in rehabilitation she has to stay 40 days.When discharged she was giving a prescription for several medications and a walker. Her daughter inquires about the bills from other is insured with Medicare Part A, Part B and Part D and asks the nurse if she can explain the benefits to her. Medicare Part A, which is also known as hospital insurance, is usually provided free since Medicare taxes are paid into the program while working. â€Å"Part A is hospital insurance that helps cover inpatient care in hospitals, skilled nursing facility, hospice, and home health care† (Medicare. gov, n. d. ). Cherry and Jacob (2011, p. 28) states that Medicare is a federal health insurance plan for Americans 65 and older and certain disabled people. The client must be eligible for Social Security or Railroad retirement. The nurse would explain that Medicare Part A will cover the cost of the hospital stay as well as the skilled nursing and rehabilitation stay. Medicare Part B she explains is considered to be the medical insurance. This will cover services such as physician services, services and supplies that are needed to diagnose and treat her medical condition and would also cover certain pr eventative services such as flu vaccines (Medicare. ov, n. d. ). This would cover the rehabilitation services that her mother has received while in the rehabilitation center as well as the walker that was prescribed by the physician at the time of discharge. Medicare Part D is the prescription drug plan. There are various options under this portion of Medicare and depending on the one that your mother has chosen would base the amount of coverage that she would receive for prescription medications. This does not necessarily cover the full cost of the prescription medications; there are deductibles and copayments that must be met. The hospital acquired rinary tract infection that Mrs. Zwick developed during her hospital stay is not covered by Medicare. Research of an article in Medical News Today states: â€Å"Starting in 2009, Medicare, the US government's health insurance program for elderly and disabled Americans, will not cover the costs of â€Å"preventable† conditions, m istakes and infections resulting from a hospital stay. So for instance, if you are on Medicare and you pick up a hospital acquired infection while you are being treated for something that is covered by Medicare, the extra cost of treating the hospital acquired infection will no longer be paid for by Medicare.Instead, the bill will be picked up by the hospital itself since the rules don't allow the hospital to charge it to you† (Paddock, 2007). Healthcare acquired infections (HAI) not only contribute to exorbitant amounts of financial burden on the healthcare system but also attribute to staggering numbers of patient deaths. â€Å"Healthcare acquired infections (HAIs) are infections that patients contract while receiving treatment for medical and surgical conditions. The U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that HAIs contracted in U. S. ospitals account for approximately two million infections, 99,000 deaths, and an estimated $4. 5 billion in excess costs annually† (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009) More recent results show a very minuscule decline in these types of infections. It is but a mere scratch at the surface of the deeply rooted problem within our healthcare systems. There are ethical implications as well in treating Mrs. Zwick’s healthcare acquired infection. As healthcare providers, there is a duty to do no harm. Ethically we must do the right thing as an advocate for patient safety.To attain these standards the healthcare provider must diligently be cognizant of infection control measures and ways to improve current practice. Examples include strict hand hygiene, aseptic technique, and current best practice as defined by evidenced based medicine. The continuous monitoring and surveillance of all healthcare acquired infections looking for trends. Perhaps it is a specific hospital unit or employee. These identifiers will assist through education and competency in the correction and preven tion of future occurrences.Healthcare as a whole also has an ethical obligation to make known to the patient, patient families and the community these HAI’s when discovered. This paper will now focus on Mr. Davis who was terminated by his employer for extended absences due to hospitalizations from chronic sickle cell anemia. Even though Mr. Davis is unemployed his employer must offer him the opportunity to continue his healthcare benefit under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA).COBRA requires employers with more than 20 employees to provide the employee and his family the opportunity to continue medical benefits for up to 18 months. This includes voluntary or involuntary job loss, decreased work hours, changing jobs, and various life changing events. The employee may be responsible for paying the entire premium to continue this healthcare coverage. COBRA can also impose fines of up to $110 per day to employers that fail to offer continued healthcare be nefits to the separated employee. (U. S. Department of Labor, n. d. ) Should Mr.Davis remain unemployed beyond the 18 month limit imposed by COBRA, state and local government are usually called upon to provide assistance. There are options available but often times these require months or even years to get assistance and quite frequently require the assistance of an attorney to receive benefits. Medicaid is probably the most widely known and the recommended source of state medical assistance. The Medicaid program is a federal and state grant program that used primarily for the disabled, low income families with dependent children, and people who are confined in nursing homes with low income levels.The state is responsible for setting the guidelines of eligibility for this program. Once Medicaid is approved for an individual, the coverage can be retroactive for up to three months from the time it was approved. Indigent and underinsured medical care must be funded by state and local g overnment. This challenge is usually met through taxation. Each municipality and sometimes healthcare district must budget to provide care for its citizens through state and local tax. Depending on the economic region this can present a huge challenge.For example, areas of Florida where migrant farmers are present may have to budget more for healthcare than a wealthier district such as West Palm Beach. So in reality, all working citizens pay for the indigent healthcare in their particular municipality. In Texas such budgeting and care is known as the Indigent Health Care and Treatment Act passed in 1985. This act spells out what basic services must be allowed for the indigent in each county. If more care is provided then it is the local governments’ responsibility to pay for it.Other state and local programs may include State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) which is also a state and national government run program designed for families that don't meet the minimum requirements for Medicaid due to income even though the income is still modestly below poverty level. Local and state governments may also provide other benefits such as free clinics, public health, Meals on Wheels, subsidized housing, discounted transportation services, food stamps, and free or discounted childcare for working parents.Local consumers have even pitched in by providing either free or drastically reduced prescription medications that are commonly prescribed to provide assistance during these tough economic times. Mr. Davis had mentioned in his frustration that at times he wished he lived in another country. His hope would be that healthcare would be more accessible to him. This paper will look at the healthcare system of four different countries Great Britain, Japan, Germany, and Switzerland. After a brief review of the healthcare systems in these countries this paper will focus on one country's health care system that would benefit Mr.Davis the most. Discussion of th is country's healthcare system will examine areas such as medication coverage, pre-existing conditions coverage, requirements if necessary for healthcare specialist evaluation and the access for retired people, children, and the unemployed. The healthcare system in Great Britain is considered to be socialized medicine. Basically what this means is that the citizens of Great Britain pay taxes for health care and in return the government-run National Health Service (NHS) provides and pays those funds to healthcare providers.There are no fees when a patient sees a physician since most physicians and nurses are government employees. In order to see a specialist patients must first visit there general practitioner for a referral. Physician visits are free; however there are fees for prescription medications. â€Å"Young people and the elderly are exempt from all drug co-pays† (Public Broadcast System, n. d. ). A major problem with this healthcare system according to Tanner (2008 p . 4) is the extremely long waits for healthcare and depending upon the patient's severity of illness, a procedure such as an open heart surgery for someone deemed too ill or too old by the government may be denied treatment. Switzerland has long been considered to have one of the best healthcare systems in the world. However it is not without its drawbacks. The overall cost for healthcare and Switzerland is second only to the United States. Even still is far less than what the United States spends on healthcare. All residents residing in Switzerland are required to purchase basic healthcare insurance with them three months of residency.Swiss law requires all citizens to purchase a basic package of health insurance, an individual mandate. The term basic benefits package is somewhat misleading since the required benefits are quite extensive, including inpatient and outpatient care, care for the elderly and the physically and mentally handicapped, long-term nursing home care, diagnosti c tests, prescription drugs, and complementary and alternative therapies. (Tanner, 2008 p. 25) The Swiss government does provide assistance for those that are low income and can't afford to pay the healthcare premiums.It is expected that citizens pay no more than 10% of their income on healthcare premiums. Referrals to specialists are not required by the primary care physician. There are no exclusions for pre-existing conditions. Private rooms in the hospital and dental insurance require a supplemental policy and are not covered in the basic plan. Healthcare in Germany is based primarily on two types of insurances, public and private insurance. Anyone earning a salary in Germany must have public health insurance. This public health insurance covers not only the employee of German citizenship but all nonworking dependents as well.There is no added cost for pre-existing conditions. Pregnant women are provided public health insurance for free. The premium for the insurance is around 5% of the person’s total income. Referrals are not required to see a specialist but higher co-pay may be charged. If a person opts out of the public health insurance for private insurance he cannot go back later to the public health insurance, even if income drops below the level required for private insurance (Underwood, 2009). The unemployed people are covered through a social fund which pays the physicians fee.This paper will now discuss the healthcare system in Japan. The Japan healthcare system would probably be the most beneficial for Mr. Davis of the four countries that we have researched. There are two types of healthcare insurance in Japan, National Health Insurance and Employees’ Health Insurance. Anyone who cannot afford healthcare insurance is provided with public assistance. The premium for the Employees’ Health Insurance is usually split between the employer and the employee; although there are some companies that will pay more. â€Å"Everyone in Ja pan is covered by insurance for medical and dental care and drugs.Insurers do not compete, and they all cover the same services and drugs for the same price† (Arnquist, 2009). The government decides on the fee schedule. Insurance premiums are not held or inflated for pre-existing conditions. Premiums are based on taxable income for the National Health Insurance. This insurance is for the self-employed, retirees and students. â€Å"The financial resources for unemployment benefits are covered by insurance premiums paid by employees and employers (they equally bear the amount equivalent to 0. 8% of workers' wages) and by the National Treasury† (The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2011).Healthcare is free for all children under the age of six. So as a result Mr. Davis would be well covered under Japan's healthcare system. Mr. Davis will have coverage for his medications, he would be able to see any specialist of his choice although a premium might be added without ha ving a referral, and there is no denial or rate increase for pre-existing conditions and the healthcare system provides for children, the unemployed and retired persons. In summation, this paper has discussed Medicaid Part A, B, and D. There is discussion on how COBRA would help Mr. Davis continue his insurance while he's out of work.There has been discussion of at least two challenges that both local and state government would face in providing care for Mr. Davis. And then finally there is some discussion of healthcare in Great Britain, Germany, Switzerland, and of course Japan which is the system that was chosen for Mr. Davis. While researching this paper it is discovered that healthcare reform is needed not only in the United States of America but throughout the entire world as well. The hope is that one day everyone will be afforded some type of healthcare coverage. References Arnquist, S. (2009, August 25). Health care abroad: Japan.Retrieved from http://www. prescriptions. blo gs. nytimes. com/2009/08/25/health-care-abroad-japan/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2009, December 31). Healthcare acquired infection and prevention plan. Retrieved from http://www. cdc. gov/HAI/pdfs/stateplans/or. pdf Cherry, B. , & Jacob, S. R. (2011). Contemporary Nursing issues, trends, & management (5th ed. ). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier Mosby. Gamser, M. (2011, September 16). US Census Shows Little Change in Number of Uninsured Americans. Retrieved from http://www. globalsurance. com/blog/us-census-shows-little-change-in-number-of-uninsured-americans-420520. tml Medicare. gov (n. d. ). Medicare Benefits. Retrieved from http://www. medicare. gov/navagation/medicare-basics/medicare-benefits/part-a. aspx? AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1 Paddock, C. (2007, August 20). Medicare will not pay for hospital mistakes and infections, new rules. Retrieved from http://www. medicalnewstoday. com/articles/80074. php Public Broadcast System (n. d. ). Sick around the world. Retrieved f rom http://www. pbs. org/wgbh/pages/frontline/sickaroundtheworld/countries/ Tanner, M. (2008, March 18). The grass is not always greener: a look at national health care systems around the world.Retrieved from http://www. scribd. com/doc/13673626/–the–grass–is–not-always–greener–a–look–at–national–health–care-systems–around–the–world–Cato–policy–analysis–no–613– The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan (2011). Second periodic report by the government of Japan under articles 16 and 17 of the international covenant on economic, social and cultural rights. Retrieved from http://www. mofa. go. jp/policy/human/econo_rep2/article9. html U. S. Department of Labor (n. d. ). Health plans & benefits, continuation of health coverage-COBRA. Retrieved from http://www. dol. gov/dol/topic/health-plans/cobra. htm Underwood, A. (2009,

Learn Direct Response Copywriting From Junk Mail Pros

Learn Direct Response Copywriting From Junk Mail Pros Are you ashamed at how vulnerable you are to junk mail? Direct response letters are part of the pantheon of junk mail.  Or at least, that’s one way to look at them. They are those letters that arrive that sell a product or solicit a donation from you, the main reason the postal service is probably still in business. Yet  direct response letters are an example of copywriting that can be extremely effective in getting your reader to take action. And, in that sense, they are not junk mail. They’re a copywriting gold mine. How To Write The Best Copy Ever With Advice From Junk Mail via @JulieNeidlingerDirect response copywriting is different from indirect response copywriting because of the timing of the response. Indirect response is copy that eventually leads to a purchase over time by building trust and awareness. Direct response pushes for a purchase immediately, at the end of that copy. That means that direct response copywriting is easily tested; you’ll know quickly whether your copy is working or not. Advertising czar David Ogilvy refused to hire any copywriter unless they’d spent a few years writing and studying direct response copywriting, that’s how valuable he thought direct response techniques were. Bill Jayme, Direct Response Extraordinaire In the 20th century, Bill Jayme’s direct response copywriting (via mail) was second to none. He was the king of the direct response mailed letter with clients lining up to pay him to write their letter. One of his better-known examples was something he wrote to help launch the magazine Psychology Today. Jayme also wrote the copy for the envelope, and for this particular piece, he posed a provocative headline: From Mike Capuzzi’s blog post on provocative headlines. The envelope needed to be opened, just like your marketing emails need to be opened, just like your blog posts need to be read. Jayme wrote a headline that piqued curiosity, and then combined it with a free take-it-now psychological test and another free offer. Whether a person answered yes or no to the question was irrelevant. It got them in the door. Marketer Gary Elwood suggests that Jayme was successful with his direct response copywriting because he took an unorthodox approach combining both the visual design of envelopes with powerful copy techniques that included: Using mystery and intrigue. How do you get people to open envelopes? To read? You make them curious. Jayme frequently asked questions or used cliffhangers to get people to proceed. Involving readers psychologically. Jayme would ask seemingly strange questions that would pull readers in. Questions such as, â€Å"Are you embarrassed to eat in a restaurant alone?† or â€Å"How much should you tip the waitress, when you’re planning to steal the ashtray?† are effective, regardless of whether the reader answers yes or no. They’ll keep reading to find out what their answer means. Using urgency. Jayme would create scarcity by suggesting there was only a limited quantity or a limited time. Scarcity motivates people. No one wants to be left out. Turning the service/product into something else. Jayme never lied about the product or service for sale, but he turned it into something more valuable. For example, you’re not selling a financial magazine, you’re selling knowledge that will make someone a savvy investor and ultimately more rich. Saying the word â€Å"free.† Jayme used the word â€Å"free† in as many ways as possible, even providing an example: ‘Free gift comes to you with our compliments gratis- on the house. It’s yours to keep as an outright present without cost or charge- not a penny!' That’s about eight ways to say â€Å"free† in two  sentences! Using exciting words. The words Jayme used were not boring. They often had cacophony to their sound and excitement in their meaning. They were words that caught attention, such as: dead, naked, free. Knowing who was reading. In order to ask the right provocative question, Jayme had to know what buttons to push. And that meant understanding the reader a bit. Elwood uses an excellent example of this: promotional copy for Coastal Living said, â€Å"If you love the shore, this new magazine will do you a world of good.† The first five words establish who the audience is that Jayme was targeting. Jayme was fond of empathy as a selling technique. This is evidenced by how he started most letters with â€Å"Dear Reader.† Empathy, incidentally, requires a far better understanding of your audience than mere demographics. Demographics tell you who the reader is and what they’re interested in. Empathy taps into understanding what the reader wants. For Further Reading: The Gary Halbert Letter: Gary Halbert has used classic direct response copywriting techniques in his pared down website. Read some of his copy to get an idea of how direct response copy sounds. â€Å"Junk Mail’s Top Dogs†: New York Times article that covers the history of the practice, and highlights Bill Jayme’s work. Bill Jayme’s â€Å"Cool Friday† letter: A wildly successful direct response letter Jayme wrote for Life Magazine, considered a classic in the genre. Armageddon Advertising: Putting fear into readers might not be the best route for you, but studying â€Å"armageddon advertising† is still a useful learning tool, as it taps into reader psychology. Learn From Direct Response  Copy Examples Clearly, direct response â€Å"junk mail† is powerful, even if we think it’s cheesy and doesn’t work. Because it does work, even on marketers who know what’s up. John Jantsch, from DuctTapeMarketing, pulled together some examples of sales letters, and extracted the foundation of what made them tick: They use a headline. There is always some sort of startling, attention-grabbing headline at work in a sales letter. Whether it was on the outside of the envelope or in the letter itself, the success of the sales letter hinged on this. They demonstrate how a reader benefits. The copy of a sales letter isn’t telling the reader how great the company or product is. Instead, they show how the reader will have a better life if they buy. They offer something logical. There must be an offer, of course, or it wouldn’t be a sales letter. But that offer must, by the time the reader gets to the end of the letter, make sense. Ads don’t offer anything. They announce sales and product prices. Too often, our copy does the same. There is a difference between an offer and an ad. The best offer is a deal that can’t be refused. With those three characteristics in mind, Jantsch dissects sales letter samples. I’ve summed up the sales copy approach with a template so that you can see the method distilled down. â€Å"If Your Name Is On This Letter† In this example of a letter from Newsweek, readers were encouraged to subscribe to the magazine. This type of sales copy, according to Jantsch, feeds into reader vanity. It suggests there is exclusivity at work and that the reader, should the offer apply to them, is special. Otherwise, if the offer isn’t of interest to them, they are common.  This copy relies heavily on the second person (â€Å"you†), and often starts out describing what isn’t (the negative) instead of what is (the positive). Writing to sell? Tell your reader they're special, offer exclusivity, guarantee enrichment.The first paragraph assures readers they are special (â€Å"your education and income set you apart from the general population†). The letter then proceeds to tell readers that subscribing to Newsweek won’t make them rich, won’t give them more friends, or give them a better job. At this point, readers are curious as to why they should get the magazine. The sales copy responds to that question by showing how the magazine can satisfy curiosity, reduce the boredom of small-minded conversation, and expand knowledge of what’s happening in the world. It then presents an offer that reduces risk by letting readers know they can get money back. Reader, you’re special. That’s why we contacted you. We’re not going to lie about what our offer will do for you. But we will enrich your life. If you don’t like it, we’ll return your money. â€Å"Two Young Men† The next example Jantsch uses is from the Wall Street Journal. This direct sales copy uses a story (which readers love) to promise readers success if they buy (and suggest a warning if they don’t). The Wall Street Journal starts with a simple paragraph telling the story of two young men who met back during a 25th college reunion. One man was a success, the other was not. The letter then proceeds in sections, outlining what made the difference between the two men (knowledge provided by the publication, in this case), and how that applies to the reader. Read this interesting story about two possible outcomes. We’ll tell you why this happened. We’ll show you how our offer will give you the better outcome. We’ll reiterate, one more time, why those outcomes were different. And then we’ll make you a risk-reduced offer, and remind you again of the story. â€Å"Dirty Hands† The third letter example in Jantsch’s ebook is from Popular Mechanics, and uses a couple of unique things. The letter itself has a visual box at the top, filled with brief copy that establishes whether the reader is the right audience using vanity and rather obvious qualifications we all want to assign to ourselves. â€Å"If you want to live better, don’t mind hard work, like to pay your own way†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The rest of the copy works very hard at appealing not to the elitist, but to the â€Å"average Joe†.   It’s filled with homey phrases that promote elbow grease, hard work, and flag-waving. Write to sell: Appeal as understanding, offer just for them, give away a bonus for  free.Popular Mechanics knew its audience pretty well, and they knew this would be best way to elicit trust and provide a sense that they truly understood what their readers wanted or thought. In this case, it was an illustrated handyman guide, and the selling points were how it would save you money by showing you how to make repairs yourself, that it was easy to use, and it was for readers â€Å"just like you.† To cap it off, the offer included a free first book, no strings attached, telling you what kind of projects you could find on specific pages in that first book. We understand you perfectly, and we made this product for readers like you. It’s so good, we’re giving the first one away completely free. â€Å"Quite Frankly† This letter example, from American Express, relies heavily on exclusivity. More than anything, we all like to know we’re good enough to be part of an elite and exclusive club, and (shamefully) that other people won’t get in. Compared to the other letters, this letter isn’t particularly long. It’s main punch is in two sentences in the opening paragraph, making a point to say that not everyone who applies to get the card will, and that such a card isn’t for everyone. The rest of the letter is a list of the perks and benefits the card provides. We’re exclusive, and not everyone gets in. You’re lucky we’re inviting you in. Look at all the benefits you’ll get. We expect you’ll apply now. â€Å"A Story About Grandmother† Using the story approach, this letter writes in first person and tells of memories of grandma. It’s very personal and approachable, and draws the reader in immediately. This letter is for Prevention magazine, and uses memories of healthy food vs. chemical-laden food, and the need to better understand how things had changed since the time of those grandma memories. The reader then learns about how the magazine can help them, being quite direct as to how it will make their lives better. In some sense, it taps into fear, suggesting that even their doctor isn’t telling them all they need to know. For all of us, the fear that we are being kept in the dark is a highly motivating one. The letter closes with bonuses that the reader could receive, and Jantsch notes that some people will buy based on the bonuses they get when making the initial purchase. So do offer bonuses. Let me tell you a personal story. Then I’ll tell you why you should be a bit afraid. But don’t worry; I have the solution. And, if you buy, I’ll give you lots of great extras! Putting Direct Response  Methodology To Work Direct sales letter writing techniques are directly applicable to your landing pages, of course, but also some of your blog posts. Challenge: The next time a direct sales letter arrives, don’t throw it. Dissect it. Figure out what they are doing in that copy, and what makes it work (or fail). Or, do some online searches and find more examples of direct response  letters, or landing pages that employ the same techniques. Do you feel motivated to buy at the end? Why or why not? What is the writer appealing to? Fear, vanity, trust? How long is the copy? How many words? How is the offer presented? Are there bonuses? Is the copy written in first or second person? These are just a few questions to ask as you figure out what makes direct response  copy work.

brain lateralization essays

brain lateralization essays Language comes naturally to human and is one of the attributes that distinguish us from animals. It is an innate trait, which enables a child to master a language at an early age. Researches showed that the critical age and the cognitive specialization of the brain might have played a part in this. However language needs nurturing in a way of proper exposure to ensure its smooth progress. Whatever it is, the knowledge of the factors above does register some significance to me personally. I am now planning to expose my children to more than one language before they reach the schooling age. Probably Malay and English, which of course will involve my husband and I conversing with them in two languages at a time, thus creating a natural environment for them to attain the language. Realizing their exasperating penchant for remembering and repeating everything they hear, Ive now restricted their access to television to mainly childrens programs. However when they do occasionally watch movies, I make a point to sit with them and act as an interpreter for certain concepts which they cant comprehend. Being an adult student, and going through my mid thirties and way past the critical age, I somehow have not suffered any setbacks regarding the acquirement of a new language, yet. In fact, I took two Arabic courses two years ago and did not find it as difficult as I thought. Probably, this is due to maturity and the influence of some intrinsic motivation. However now that Im aware of the plasticity of the brain and afraid mine might just harden or give up on me, I try my very best to work twice as hard on my studies. ...

Cereal Aisle Analysis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Cereal Aisle Analysis - Assignment Example Consumer behavior process comprises of different stages which are undertaken by every customer. These stages are problem recognition, information search, and evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision, purchase and post-purchase evaluation. Customers need to firstly identify their need with respect to purchasing a product or service. This kind of need is further utilized to search information and take appropriate action. All possible alternatives available in the market place are identified by customers. Finally purchase decision is made and products or services are purchased (Alba and Hutchinson, 2008). Growth or success of a brand depends on post purchase evaluation. I visited a local grocery store where I observed behavior of three consumers who were going towards three different aisles. All of the three consumers had different demand such as one wanted to purchase breakfast cereals, another was looking at bread aisle, and third was visiting cereal aisle. Customer A had a need for breakfast cereals and the lady was visiting the store outlet with her kid. She compared prices of all breakfast cereals kept on the track and selected some like Kellogg’s, Lucky Charms and Cocoa Puffs. However while making final purchase decision her kid put across his preference towards Kellogg’s Apple Jacks. The lady finally purchased breakfast cereal of Kellogg’s. On the other hand, customer B was in a hurry, he smartly moved in and went to specific department to purchase a particular brand’s bread.

The Piano Lession Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Piano Lession - Essay Example Berniece is very stalwart in upholding family traditions. She has been very close to her father. She and her father had developed an obsession for the piano. Berniece’s perspective on piano shows her being very keen to preserve the past of her family. She resents racism too but protests against it within the limits of reasonability. The piano has the carving of her family’s history in the shape of pictures, blood and tears. These are invaluable for Berniece and she does not want to let go any part of that. In her point of view, her father stole the piano because he wanted to get close to the engravings that were on it. It shows that she has great love and respect for her family’s past and history. She also respects the feelings of her ancestors. She acts as a guard for her family’s past. She does not want the piano to be sold and thinks that her father would have approved her intentions. Berniece is a cleaning lady and she accepts the world the way it is. She has lost her husband and she blames Boy Willie for that. She has lost very much and all she is left with is the pleasant memories of the past. She chose to live close to the piano just like her mother, Mama Ola. She goes through almost the same type of tragedy that her mother had faced. She loves her mother very much which is shown by her cleaning of Mama Ola’s picture with love (Act 1, Scene 1, Part 1). Her decision of not agreeing to sell the piano shows that she is very attached to the memories of the past and the legacy of her family. She is so much attached to her past that she does not heed to the offer of Avery to court her (Act 2, Scene 2). She does not want her daughter, Maretha, to suffer from a similar nostalgia which is why she has not told her anything about what the carvings on the piano mean (Act 2, Scene 5). Boy Willie wants to sell the antique piano to buy the land in which his ancestors worked as slaves. His perspective on the piano describes his nature. He shows utter disregard for the family traditions. He thinks that if he sells the piano and is able to purchase the Sutter’s land, he would avenge his father and live at the â€Å"top† of life. His father was also as reckless as he is. He thinks that if he is able to sell the piano, his father’s wishes would be immortalized. It also suggests that his father is somewhat responsible for instilling a rash behavior in him. He looks at the piano as an object that can fulfill his desire to become rich. He thinks that his father would have done the same (Act 1, Scene 2, Part II). He does not care about what his family wants and upholds. He completely rejects the wishes of sister, Berniece. His decision to sell the piano shows his negative approach towards life which has made him a person who looks at easy ways to get rich rather than by working hard. Boy Willie thinks that the only way to stand neck to neck with the white people is to become wealthy. This is a common belief among the suppressed races of the world that they can get respect if they become wealthy. Boy Willie thinks that the white people have no right to look down on him and must treat him with respect. He can get his due respect by becoming rich and selling the piano is his only chance at that. He is a person who has received a lot of mental suffering due to the racism between blacks and whites. He has a lot of hatred for white people. His father worked for the white people all his life. He holds the