Clinical Trial and Nucleon Assignment Notes

Nucleon Assignment Notes Porter’s 5 Forces Industry Analysis †¢Competition: Intense †¢Buyer Power: Moderate to High oBig pharma companies likely have a lot of power, although as a small firm, your power increases once you clear phases of drug trials. †¢Supplier Power: Unsure, Moderate? oThe case makes it sound like there’s not many manufacturers out there for contracting purposes. Not sure what power suppliers of raw materials have. †¢Threat of Substitutes: Moderate to High oLots of firms racing to create the next blockbuster drug or treatment for big money illnesses.However, most drugs fail, so the likelihood of a substitute is probably only moderate. †¢Threat of New Entrants: Moderate oRelatively easy to start a new small drug research firm. Just need some smart scientists. Funding is currently difficult to come by, however. Nucleon †¢Competition: Moderate to Low oThe case mentioned they were in a pretty niche area of biotech. †¢Buye r Power: Moderate to High oBig pharma companies likely have a lot of power. But if Nucleon clears phase II their power increases substantially. †¢Supplier Power: Unsure, Moderate? The case makes it sound like there’s not many manufacturers out there for contracting purposes. Not sure what power suppliers of raw materials have. †¢Threat of Substitutes: Moderate to Low oI don’t think there’s much out there in the way of burn treatments (need to check on that). †¢Threat of New Entrants: Moderate to Low oThe drug research process is slow, so any new entrant in this specific area is going to be significantly behind with little to no way to catch up. Resource Based View VRIO Value:There’s definitely value in a successful drug for burn treatment; it also presents itself as a possible cure for other ailments as well (i. . kidney failure) Rarity:Not many alternatives for burn victim treatment (assumption based on the case’s voice); large mole cule research is still new and rare, tough to get into. Imitability: Not very imitable, especially if Nucleon can gain strong patent protection. Also, the slow development time means that even if another firm could mimic a similar drug, it would take time. Organization:Nucleon is currently not organized to begin trials and manufacturing of this drug. They also don’t have a significant amount of financial backing at this point.Transaction Based Economics Hold-ups †¢Contract manufacturer could hold up Nucleon for more money if drug passes phases and becomes more likely to be successful. †¢Contract manufacturer could increase manufacturing costs, slow production, or create problems in quality in order to hold up Nucleon. Options Going Forward Option 1: Build Pilot Plant Pros †¢Nucleon keeps tighter control of IP †¢Can retain ownership of product rights through phase I and II †¢More flexibility †¢Can begin to develop staff for in-house manufacturing, making scaling later easier Cons Expensive (likely need more financial backing/don’t have enough as is) †¢Risky oDrug could fail in clinical trials (which statistically is likely) oProcess uncertainty; bacterial vs. mammalian cells †¢Distracts Nucleon’s financial and human capital away from their core, the drug R&D Option 2: Contract Manufacturing Pros †¢No major upfront capital investment †¢Access to experienced manufacturing facilities and staff immediately †¢Retain ownership of product rights through phase I and II Cons †¢Still not cheap; doesn’t save Nucleon much money over Option 1 †¢Risk of IP issues Contract specifics are very difficult to hash out due to the nature of biotech †¢No faster than building their own plant due to slow process of negotiating, knowledge transfer, then scale-up Option 3: Licensing Pros †¢No capital investment †¢Little to no risk †¢Simple; allows Nucleon to focus on the R&D à ¢â‚¬ ¢Immediate cash flow †¢Keep rights for CRP-1 for other uses (other than for burn treatment) Cons †¢Much less share in the profits if drug is successful (mortgage the company’s success) †¢Would likely lower employee morale, which could in turn decrease likelihood of success of drug †¢Risk of IP issues Clinical Trial and Nucleon Assignment Notes Nucleon Assignment Notes Porter’s 5 Forces Industry Analysis †¢Competition: Intense †¢Buyer Power: Moderate to High oBig pharma companies likely have a lot of power, although as a small firm, your power increases once you clear phases of drug trials. †¢Supplier Power: Unsure, Moderate? oThe case makes it sound like there’s not many manufacturers out there for contracting purposes. Not sure what power suppliers of raw materials have. †¢Threat of Substitutes: Moderate to High oLots of firms racing to create the next blockbuster drug or treatment for big money illnesses.However, most drugs fail, so the likelihood of a substitute is probably only moderate. †¢Threat of New Entrants: Moderate oRelatively easy to start a new small drug research firm. Just need some smart scientists. Funding is currently difficult to come by, however. Nucleon †¢Competition: Moderate to Low oThe case mentioned they were in a pretty niche area of biotech. †¢Buye r Power: Moderate to High oBig pharma companies likely have a lot of power. But if Nucleon clears phase II their power increases substantially. †¢Supplier Power: Unsure, Moderate? The case makes it sound like there’s not many manufacturers out there for contracting purposes. Not sure what power suppliers of raw materials have. †¢Threat of Substitutes: Moderate to Low oI don’t think there’s much out there in the way of burn treatments (need to check on that). †¢Threat of New Entrants: Moderate to Low oThe drug research process is slow, so any new entrant in this specific area is going to be significantly behind with little to no way to catch up. Resource Based View VRIO Value:There’s definitely value in a successful drug for burn treatment; it also presents itself as a possible cure for other ailments as well (i. . kidney failure) Rarity:Not many alternatives for burn victim treatment (assumption based on the case’s voice); large mole cule research is still new and rare, tough to get into. Imitability: Not very imitable, especially if Nucleon can gain strong patent protection. Also, the slow development time means that even if another firm could mimic a similar drug, it would take time. Organization:Nucleon is currently not organized to begin trials and manufacturing of this drug. They also don’t have a significant amount of financial backing at this point.Transaction Based Economics Hold-ups †¢Contract manufacturer could hold up Nucleon for more money if drug passes phases and becomes more likely to be successful. †¢Contract manufacturer could increase manufacturing costs, slow production, or create problems in quality in order to hold up Nucleon. Options Going Forward Option 1: Build Pilot Plant Pros †¢Nucleon keeps tighter control of IP †¢Can retain ownership of product rights through phase I and II †¢More flexibility †¢Can begin to develop staff for in-house manufacturing, making scaling later easier Cons Expensive (likely need more financial backing/don’t have enough as is) †¢Risky oDrug could fail in clinical trials (which statistically is likely) oProcess uncertainty; bacterial vs. mammalian cells †¢Distracts Nucleon’s financial and human capital away from their core, the drug R&D Option 2: Contract Manufacturing Pros †¢No major upfront capital investment †¢Access to experienced manufacturing facilities and staff immediately †¢Retain ownership of product rights through phase I and II Cons †¢Still not cheap; doesn’t save Nucleon much money over Option 1 †¢Risk of IP issues Contract specifics are very difficult to hash out due to the nature of biotech †¢No faster than building their own plant due to slow process of negotiating, knowledge transfer, then scale-up Option 3: Licensing Pros †¢No capital investment †¢Little to no risk †¢Simple; allows Nucleon to focus on the R&D à ¢â‚¬ ¢Immediate cash flow †¢Keep rights for CRP-1 for other uses (other than for burn treatment) Cons †¢Much less share in the profits if drug is successful (mortgage the company’s success) †¢Would likely lower employee morale, which could in turn decrease likelihood of success of drug †¢Risk of IP issues

Feudalism in European and Japanese Society

Feudalism was used in both Japan and Europe and as such, ad similarities amongst in Uses including the basis the system was based on, the hierarchy involved in such a system, and the establishments lords built as their residences. However, as a result of varying cultures, the feudal system had a handful differences in both countries; from the basis of ideas regarding the feudal system (I. E.Confucianism and Kong Quiz versus Catholicism and Roman imperial laws) to the date of establishment of feudalism as a social system in their respective countries; payment of the lord and dainty for the military service performed by the serfs, peasants, and samurai to he aversion of suicide, or lack thereof when in regards to samurai, by knights as a result of their binding to Catholic Christian law. Feudal European and Japanese societies were built on a hierarchical society firstly.Various levels of social strata were the basis of aforementioned feudal societies. These levels of strata included (1 ) nobles (2) warriors and (3) tenant farmers or serfs. Like many ancient and medieval societies, social mobility was never truly at center stage and as a result it was a near nonexistent thing in feudal societies in both Europe and Japan. In addition, these feudal societies fostered an abundance of respect for the warrior class, stemming from constant warfare and their function as local lords. The warrior class was restrained by a code of ethics.For example, European knights were expected to follow a code of chivalry while Japanese samurai were expected to follow the doctrine of what is called bushier –?in other words, â€Å"the way of the warrior. † Finally, feudal lords in both countries, Europe and Japan, built strong and large castles that could be used for defense from invaders and also served as protection for themselves and their vassals, seeing as that in and of itself was the main precept f feudalism–protection in exchange for homage, labor, and a share of the agricultural harvest.On the other side of the coin, the basis of ideas regarding the feudal system of society differed from Europe to Japan. European feudalism was founded on the authority of the Catholic Church, an element of European life that was increasingly important in such a medieval society, along with Roman imperial laws and customs the likes of which were supported by said Catholic Church. As a result, the symbiotic relationship between a lord and his vassals was seen as contractual, an idea originating from he ancient patronize relationship found in the Roman Empire.The lords o offered both protection and payment while the vassals gave their complete loyalty to the lords. Whereas Japanese feudalism originated on the precepts of Confucianism and the doctrine of the Chinese philosopher, Kong Quiz. These doctrines emphasized morality and filial piety–respect for both superiors and elders-?and functioned as the quintessential â€Å"moral compass† Of both peasants and villagers who were required to honor and pay taxes to the warrior class.Secondly, feudalism made its way to Europe long before it surfaced in Japan–800 A. D. Versus 1100 AD. Respectively. This appearance of feudalism in Japan coincided with the ending of the Hein period and the rise to power of the Kumara Shogun. However, many years later, European feudalism came to a careening halt in the sixteenth century as a result of the growth of stronger political states, thereby eliminating the need for the symbiotic relationship between the lord and the vassals and serfs fostered by feudalism.Japanese feudalism would later find its inevitable end in 1868 as a result of the Meijer Restoration. In addition, European knights were gifted land by their lords as a exult of their military service and as such they had immense control over the serfs who worked the gifted land. This contrasts against the life of the Japanese samurai seeing as they en ever owned any land in their feudalism society.Instead, dainty used a percentage of their annual income, generally accumulated from taxing peasants, in order to pay the samurai. (This salary was typically paid in rice. ) Lastly, Catholic Christian law prohibited knights from committing suicide and, instead, encouraged the fight to avoid death in both battle and life. This precept of Catholicism originates from the belief that those who go commit suicide are emended to hell, a consequence that is unimaginable in the Christian faith.The Japanese, on the other hand, welcomed death seeing as they had no religious affiliation and saw no need to fear their own mortality or the consequences that would undoubtedly come with such an irreversible act. In their perspective, committing suicide in the face of inevitable defeat preserved their honor as warriors, thus suicide was honorable in Japanese culture. It is interesting to note, however, that although Japan and Europe had no quantifiable contact with one another durin g this time period, hey managed to develop sociopolitical systems akin to one another.

The Return: Nightfall Chapter 10

Elena was serenely happy. Now it was her turn. Stefan used a sharp wooden letter opener from his desk to cut himself. Elena always hated to see him do this, use the most efficient implement that would penetrate vampire skin; so she shut her eyes tightly and only looked again when red blood was trickling from a little cut on his neck. â€Å"You don't need to take a lot – and you shouldn't,† Stefan whispered, and she knew he was saying these things while hecould say them. â€Å"I'm not holding you too hard or hurting you?† He was always so worried. This time,she kissedhim . And she could see how strange he thought it was, that he wanted kisses more than he wanted her to take his blood. Laughing, Elena pushed him flat and hovered over him and went for the general area of the wound again, knowing that he thought she was going to tease him. But instead she fastened herself on the wound like a limpet and sucked hard,hard , until she had made him sayplease with his mind. But she wasn't satisfied until she made him sayplease out loud as well. In the car, in the dimness, Matt and Meredith thought of the idea at the same time. She was faster, but they spoke almost together. â€Å"I'm an idiot! Matt, where's the seatback release?† â€Å"Bonnie, you have to unfold her seat backward! There's a little handle, you should be able to reach it and pull up!† Bonnie's voice was hitching now, hiccupping. â€Å"My arms – they're sort of poking into – my arms – â€Å" â€Å"Bonnie,† Meredith said thickly. â€Å"I know you can do it. Matt – is the handle right – under – the front seat or – â€Å" â€Å"Yes. At the edge. One – no, two o'clock.† Matt didn't have breath for more. Once he had grabbed the tree, he found that if he loosened pressure for an instant, it pushed harder on his neck. There's no choice, he thought. He took as much of a deep breath as he could, pushed back on the branch, hearing a cry from Meredith, andtwisted , feeling jagged splinters like thin wooden knives tear his throat and ear and scalp. Now he was free of the pressure on the back of his neck, although he was appalled by how much more tree there was in the car than the last time he had seen it. His lap was filled with branches; evergreen needles were thickly piled everywhere. No wonder Meredith was so mad, he thought dizzily, turning toward her. She was almost buried in branches, one hand wrestling with something at her throat, but she saw him. â€Å"Matt†¦get†¦your own seat! Quick! Bonnie, Iknow you can.† Matt dug and tore into the branches, then groped for the handle that would collapse the backrest of his seat. The handle wouldn't move. Thin, tough tendrils were wrapped around it, springy and hard to break. He twisted and snapped them savagely. His seatback dropped away. He ducked under the huge arm-branch – if it still deserved the name, since the car was full of similar huge branches now. Then, just as he reached to help Meredith, her seat abruptly folded back, too. She fell with it, away from the evergreen, gasping for air. For an instant she just lay still. Then she finished scrambling into the backseat proper, dragging a needle-shrouded figure with her. When she spoke, her voice was hoarse and her speech was still slow. â€Å"Matt. Bless you†¦for having†¦this jigsaw puzzle†¦of a car.† She kicked the front seat back into position, and Matt did likewise. â€Å"Bonnie,† Matt said numbly. Bonnie didn't move. Many tiny branches were still entwining her, caught in the fabric of her shirt, wound into her hair. Meredith and Matt both started pulling. Where the branches let go, they left welts or tiny puncture wounds. â€Å"It's almost as if they were trying to grow into her,† Matt said, as a long, thin branch pulled away, leaving bloody pinpricks behind. â€Å"Bonnie?† Meredith said. She was the one disentangling the twigs from Bonnie's hair. â€Å"Bonnie? Come on, up. Look at me.† The shaking began again in Bonnie's body, but she let Meredith turn her face up. â€Å"I didn't think I could do it.† â€Å"You saved my life.† â€Å"I was so scared†¦.† Bonnie went on crying quietly against Meredith's shoulder. Matt looked at Meredith just as the map light flickered and went out. The last thing he saw was her dark eyes, which held an expression that made him suddenly feel even sicker to his stomach. He looked out the three windows he could now see from the backseat. It should have been hard to see anything at all. But what he was looking for was pressed right up against the glass. Needles. Branches. Solid against every inch of the windows. Nevertheless, he and Meredith, without needing to say anything, each reached for a backseat door handle. The doors clicked, opened a fraction of an inch; then they slammed back hard with a very definitivewham . Meredith and Matt looked at each other. Meredith looked down again and began to pluck more twigs off Bonnie. â€Å"Does that hurt?† â€Å"No. A little†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"You're shaking.† â€Å"It's cold.† It was cold now. Outside the car, rather than through the once-open window that was now completely plugged with evergreen, Matt could hear the wind. It whistled, as if through many branches. There was also the sound of wood creaking, startlingly loud and ridiculously high above. It sounded like a storm. â€Å"What thehell was it, anyway?† he exploded, kicking the front seat viciously. â€Å"The thing I swerved for on the road?† Meredith's dark head lifted slowly. â€Å"I don't know; I was about to roll up the window. I only got a glimpse.† â€Å"It just appeared right in the middle of the road.† â€Å"A wolf?† â€Å"It wasn't there and then itwas there.† â€Å"Wolves aren't that color. It was red,† Bonnie said flatly, lifting her head from Meredith's shoulder. â€Å"Red?† Meredith shook her head. â€Å"It was much too big to be a fox.† â€Å"Itwas red, I think,† Matt said. â€Å"Wolves aren't red†¦what about werewolves? Does Tyler Smallwood have any relatives with red hair?† â€Å"It wasn't a wolf,† Bonnie said. â€Å"It was†¦backward.† â€Å"Backward?† â€Å"Its head was on the wrong side. Or maybe it had heads on both ends.† â€Å"Bonnie, you arereally scaring me,† Meredith said. Matt wouldn't say it, but she was really scaring him, too. Because his glimpse of the animal had seemed to show him the same kind of deformed shape that Bonnie was describing. â€Å"Maybe we just saw it at a weird angle,† he said, while Meredith said, â€Å"It may just have been some animal scared out by – â€Å" â€Å"By what?† Meredith looked up at the top of the car. Matt followed her gaze. Very slowly, and with a groan of metal, the roof dented. And again. As if something very heavy was leaning on it. Matt cursed himself. â€Å"While I was in the front seat, why didn't I just floor it – ?† He stared hungrily through branches, trying to make out the accelerator, the ignition. â€Å"Are the keys still there?† â€Å"Matt, we ended up half in a ditch. And besides, if it would have done any good, I'd have told you to floor it.† â€Å"That branch would've taken your head off!† â€Å"Yes,† Meredith said simply. â€Å"It would havekilled you!† â€Å"If it would have gotten you two out, I'd have suggested it. But you were trapped looking sideways; I couldsee straight ahead. They were already here; the trees. In every direction.† â€Å"That†¦isn't†¦possible!† Matt pounded the seat in front of him to emphasize each word. â€Å"Isthis possible?† The roof creaked again. â€Å"Both of you – stop fighting!† Bonnie said, and her voice broke on a sob. There was an explosion like a gunshot and the car sank suddenly back and left. Bonnie started. â€Å"What was that?† Silence. â€Å"†¦a tire blowing,† Matt said at last. He didn't trust his own voice. He looked at Meredith. So did Bonnie. â€Å"Meredith – the branches are filling up the front seat. I can hardly see the moonlight. It's getting dark.† â€Å"I know.† â€Å"What are we going todo ?† Matt could see the tremendous tension and frustration in Meredith's face, as if everything she said should come out through gritted teeth. But Meredith's voice was quiet. â€Å"I don't know.† With Stefan still shuddering, Elena curled herself like a cat over the bed. She smiled at him, a smile drugged with pleasure and love. He thought of grasping her by the arms, pulling her down, and starting all over again. That was how insane she'd made him. Because he knew – all too well, from experience – the danger they were flirting with. Much more of this and Elena would be the first spirit-vampire, as she'd been the first vampire-spirit he'd known. But look at her! He slipped out from beneath her as he sometimes did and just gazed, feeling his heart pound just at the sight of her. Her hair, true gold, fell like silk down to the bed and pooled there. Her body, in the light of the one small lamp in the room, seemed to be outlined in gold. She truly seemed to float and move and sleep in a golden haze. It was terrifying. For a vampire, it was as if he'd brought a living sun into his bed. He found himself suppressing a yawn. She did that to him, too, like an unwitting Delilah taking Samson's strength away. Hyper-charged as he might be by her blood, he was also delightfully sleepy. He would spend a warm night in – or below – her arms. In Matt's car it only got darker as the trees continued to cut out the moonlight. For a while they tried yelling for help. That did no good, and besides, as Meredith pointed out, they needed to conserve the oxygen in the car. So they sat still again. Finally, Meredith reached into her jeans pocket and produced a set of keys with a tiny keychain flashlight. Its light was blue. She pressed it and they all leaned forward. Such a tiny thing to mean so much, Matt thought. There was pressure against the front seats now. â€Å"Bonnie?† Meredith said. â€Å"No one will hear us out here yelling. If anyone could hear us, they would have heard the tire and thought it was a gunshot.† Bonnie shook her head as if she didn't want to listen. She was still picking pine needles out of her skin. She's right. We're miles away from anybody, Matt thought. â€Å"There is something very bad here,† Bonnie said. She said it quietly, but as if every word was being forced out one by one, like pebbles thrown into a pond. Matt suddenly felt grayer. â€Å"How†¦bad?† â€Å"It's so bad that it's†¦I'venever felt anything like this before. Not when Elena got killed, not from Klaus, not fromanything . I'venever feltanything as bad as this. It'sso bad, and it's sostrong . I didn't think anything could be so strong. It'spushing on me, and I'mafraid – â€Å" Meredith cut her off. â€Å"Bonnie, I know we can both only think of one way out of this – â€Å" â€Å"There'sno way out of this!† † – I know you're afraid – â€Å" â€Å"Who is there to call? I could do it†¦if there were someone to call. I can stare at your little flashlight and try to pretend it's a flame and do it – â€Å" â€Å"Trancing?† Matt looked at Meredith sharply. â€Å"She's not supposed to do that anymore.† â€Å"Klaus is dead.† â€Å"But – â€Å" â€Å"There's nobody to hear me!† Bonnie shrieked and then she broke down into huge sobs at last. â€Å"Elena and Stefan are too far away, and they're probably asleep by now! And there isn't anyone else!† The three of them were being pushed together now, as branches pressed the seats back onto them. Matt and Meredith were close enough to look at each other right over Bonnie's head. â€Å"Uh,† Matt said, startled. â€Å"Um†¦are we sure?† â€Å"No,† Meredith said. She sounded both grim and hopeful. â€Å"Remember this morning? We are not at all sure. In factI'm sure he's still around somewhere.† Now Matt felt sick, and Meredith and Bonnie looked ill in the already strange-looking blue light. â€Å"And – right before this happened, we were talking about how a lot of stuff – â€Å" † – basically everything that happened to change Elena – â€Å" † – was all his fault.† â€Å"In the woods.† â€Å"With an open window.† Bonnie sobbed on. Matt and Meredith, however, had made a silent agreement by eye contact. Meredith said, very gently, â€Å"Bonnie, what you said you would do; well, you're going to have to do it. Try to get through to Stefan, or waken Elena or – or apologize to†¦Damon. Probably the last, I'm afraid. But he's never seemed to want us all dead, and he must know that it won't help him with Elena if he kills her friends.† Matt grunted, skeptical. â€Å"He may not want us all dead, but he may wait until some of us are dead to save the others. I've never trus – â€Å" â€Å"You've never wished him any harm,† Meredith overrode him in a louder voice. Matt blinked at her and then shut up. He felt like an idiot. â€Å"So, here, the flashlight's on,† Meredith said, and even in this crisis, her voice was steady, rhythmic, hypnotic. The pathetic little light was so precious, too. It was all they had to keep the darkness from becoming absolute. But when the darkness became absolute, Matt thought, it would be because all light, all air, everything from the outside had been shut out, pushed out of the way by the pressure of the trees. And by then the pressure would have broken their skeletons. â€Å"Bonnie?† Meredith's voice was the voice of every big sister who ever had come to her younger sibling's rescue. That gentle. That controlled. â€Å"Can you try to pretend it's a candle flame†¦a candle flame†¦a candle flame†¦and then try to trance?† â€Å"I'm in trance already.† Bonnie's voice was somehow distant – far away and almost echoing. â€Å"Then ask for help,† Meredith said softly. Bonnie was whispering, over and over, clearly oblivious to the world around her: â€Å"Please, come help us. Damon, if you can hear me, please accept our apologies and come. You gave us a terrible scare, and I'm sure we deserved it, but please, please help. It hurts, Damon. It hurts so bad I could scream. But instead I'm putting all that energy into Calling you. Please, please, please help†¦Ã¢â‚¬  For five, ten, fifteen minutes she kept it up, as the branches grew, enclosing them with their sweet, resinous scent. She kept it up far longer than Matt had ever thought she could endure. Then the light went out. After that there was no sound but the whisper of the pines. You had to admire the technique. Damon was once again lounging in midair, even higher this time than when he'd entered Caroline's third-story window. He still had no idea of the names of trees, but that didn't stop him. This branch was like having a box seat over the drama unfolding below. He was starting to get a little bored, since nothing new was happening on the ground. He'd abandoned Damaris earlier this evening whenshe had gotten boring, talking about marriage and other subjects he wished to avoid. Like her current husband. Bo-ring. He'd left without really checking to see if she'd become a vampire – he tended to think so, and wouldn't that be a surprise when hubby got home? His lips trembled on the edge of a smile. Below him, the play had almost reached its climax. And you really had to admire the technique. Pack hunting. He had no idea what sort of nasty little creatures were manipulating the trees, but like wolves or lionesses, they seemed to have gotten it down to an art. Working together to capture prey that was too quick and too heavily armored for one of them alone to manage. In this case, a car. The fine art of cooperation. Pity vampires were so solitary, he thought. If we could cooperate, we'd own the world. He blinked sleepily and then flashed a dazzling smile at nothing at all. Of course, if we could do that – say, take a city and divvy up the inhabitants – we'd finish it off by divvying up one another. Tooth and nail and Power would be wielded like the blade of a sword, until there was nothing left but shreds of quivering flesh and gutters running with blood. Nice imagery, though, he thought, and let his eyelids droop to appreciate it. Artistic. Blood in scarlet pools, magically still liquid enough to run down white marble steps of – oh, say, the Kallimarmaron in Athens. An entire city gone quiet, purged of noisy, chaotic, hypocritical humans, with only their necessary bits left behind: a few arteries to pump the sweet red stuff out in quantity. The vampire version of the land of milk and honey. He opened his eyes again in annoyance. Now things were getting loud down there. Humans yelling. Why? What was the point? The rabbit always squeals in the jaws of the fox, but when has another rabbit ever rushed up to save it? There, a new proverb,and proof that humans are as stupid as rabbits, he thought, but his mood was ruined. His mind slid away from the fact, but it wasn't just the noise below that was disturbing him. Milk and honey, that had been†¦a mistake. Thinking about that had been a blunder. Elena's skin had been like milk that night a week ago, warm-white, not cool, even in the moonlight. Her bright hair in shadow had been like spilled honey. Elena wouldn't be happy to see the results of this night's pack hunting. She would cry tears like crystal dewdrops, and they would smell like salt. Suddenly Damon stiffened. He sent one stealthy query of Power around him, a circle of radar. But nothing bounced back, except the mindless trees at his feet. Whatever was orchestrating this, it was invisible. Right, then. Let's trythis , he thought: Concentrating on all the blood he'd drunk in the last few days, he blasted out a wash of pure Power, like Vesuvius erupting with a deadly pyroclastic explosion. It encircled him completely in every direction, a fifty-mile-per-hour bubble of Power like superheated gas. Because it was back. Unbelievably, the parasite was trying to do it again, to get into his mind. It had to be. Lulling him, he supposed, rubbing the back of his neck with absentminded fury, while its packmates finished off their prey in the car. Whispering things into his mind to keep him still, taking his own dark thoughts and echoing them back a shade or two darker, in a cycle that might have ended in him flying off to kill and kill again for the pure black velvet enjoyment of it. Now Damon's mind was cold and dark with fury. He stood, stretching his aching arms and shoulders, and then searched carefully, not with a simple radar ring, but with a blast of Power behind each stab, probing with his mind to find the parasite. It had to be out there; the trees were still going about their business. But he could find nothing, even though he'd used the fastest and most efficient method of scanning he knew: a thousand random stabs per second in a Drunkard's Walk search pattern. He should have found a dead body immediately. Instead he'd foundnothing . That made him even angrier than before, but there was a tinge of excitement to his fury. He'd wanted a fight; a chance to kill where the killing would be meaningful. And now here was an opponent who met all the qualifications – and Damon couldn't kill it because he couldn't find it. He sent a message, lambent with ferocity, in all directions. I have already warned you once. Now ICHALLENGEyou. Show yourself – OR ELSE STAY AWAY FROM ME! He gathered Power, gathered it, gathered it again, thinking of all the different mortals who had contributed it. He held it, nurturing it, crafting it for its purpose, and raising its strength with all that his mind knew of fighting and of the skill and expertise of war. He held the Power until it felt as if he were holding a nuclear bomb in his arms. And then he let it go all at once, an explosion speeding in the opposite direction, away from him, nearing the speed of light. Now, surely, he would feel the death throes of something enormously powerful and cunning – something that had managed to survive his previous strafings designed only for eldritch creatures. Damon expanded his senses to their widest reach, waiting to hear or feel something shattering, combusting – something falling blind, with its own blood tumbling nearby, from a branch, from the air, fromsomewhere . Fromsomewhere a creature should have plummeted to the ground or raked at it with huge dinosaur-like claws – a creature half-paralyzed and completely doomed, cooked from the inside out. But although he could feel the wind rising to a howl and huge black clouds pooling above him in response to his own mood, he still could sense no dark creature close enough to have entered his thoughts. How strong was this thing? Where was it coming from? Just for a moment, a thought flashed through his mind. A circle. A circle with a dot at its center. And the circle was the blast he'd shot away in all directions, and the dot was the only place his blast didn't reach. Inside him alre – Snap! Suddenly his thoughts went blank. And then he began, sluggishly, slightly bewildered, to try to put the fractured pieces together. He had been thinking about the blast of Power he'd sent out, yes? And how he'd expected to feel something fall and die. Hell, he couldn't even sense any ordinary animals bigger than a fox in the woods. Although his sweep of Power had been carefully made to affect only creatures of his kind of darkness, the ordinary animals had been so spooked that they'd gone running wildly from the area. He peered down. Hm. Except the trees around the car; and they weren't after him. Besides, whatever they were, they were only the pawns of an invisible killer. Not really sentient – not within the boundaries he had crafted so carefully. Could he have been wrong? Half his fury had been for himself, for being so careless, so well-fed and confident that he'd let down his guard. Well-fed†¦hey, maybe I'm drunk, he thought, and flashed the smile again at nothing, without even thinking about it. Drunk and paranoid and edgy. Pissed and pissed off. Damon relaxed against the tree. The wind was screaming now, swirling and freezing, the sky full of roiling black clouds that cut out any light from the moon or stars. Just his kind of weather. He was still edgy, but he couldn't find any reason to be. The only disturbance in the aura of the woods was the tiny crying of a mind inside the car, like a trapped bird with only one note. That would be the little one, the redheaded witch with the delicate neck. The one who'd been whining about life changing too much. Damon gave a little more of his weight to the tree. He'd followed the car with his mind out of absent interest. It wasn't his fault that he'd caught them talking about him, but it did degrade their chances of rescue a bit. He blinked slowly. Odd that they'd had an accident trying not to run over a creature in approximately the same area he'd almost crashed the Ferrari trying to run one over. Pity he hadn't had a glimpse of their creature, but the trees were too thick. The redheaded bird was crying again. Well, do you want a changenow or don't you, little witch? Make up your mind. You have to ask nicely. And then, of course,I have to decide what kind of change you get.

College admissions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

College admissions - Essay Example My cumulative GPA is low because in my first year at Radford, I only did four out of the required six classes to be a full time student. My Ranford transcripts do not reflect my true academic potential adequately. I am a focused student who was perplexed during my first year of study and was not fully aware of the academic requirements of the institution. I have been going to Northern Virginia Community College and have an acceptable GPA but not when they factor in the 1st year at Radford. My acceptable GPA proves that I am a serious student focused on my educational endeavors. In addition, my test scores indicate that I have the required proficiency to fit into college and better my education. From personal experience, I am aware that I must create a respectful environment for these values to accomplish the integrity and success associated with George Mason University. I believe that I can carve my niche in the university, and similarly, the university can carve in me a similar niche. The problem is that I previously had no goals and was clueless on the exact path I wanted to take pertaining to my career. Presently, I am older and wiser and have some achievable goals I would like to realize in the coming future. I am certain that I want to be a special education teacher, based on my childhood experiences. When I was younger, I struggled with reading and Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and for that reason, I feel I have a lot to offer children with special education needs. I feel that my experience will provide an original perspective in George Mason University’s quest for knowledge, and help create a basis for future success. Based on my goals in life, this is truly the greatest success I can imagine. My recommendation letter and referees can attest to my level of brilliance and hard work. Kindly allow me to fulfill my academic

Marketing Strategy Justification with a Model Essay

Marketing Strategy Justification with a Model - Essay Example As a brief overview for the company’s product offering, it can be said that, the company’s product offering includes mainly developing latest technology devices in the field of pyrometrics, ceramic insulation, ceramic filtration, technical ceramics and various kinds of products of porous nature. The company, Mantec Technical Ceramics Limited is a leader all over the world in the B2B domain, in regards to their solution based offerings for highly innovative process and materials of ceramic technical (Mantec Technical Ceramics, 2012). Overview of Market The world, today, is getting increasingly dependent on technology. Ever since the widespread evolution of internet, emerging from the US during the middle of 1990’s, people have started to integrate and align their lives in relation to the developments happening in terms of technology and the latest communication devices. The four generations comprising of Baby Boomers, Generation X, Generation Y and the Millennium Generation have increasingly got dependent on the latest technological developments like the high end touch screen mobile phones, tablets PCs, laptop computers and the highly modernized I pads for availing the convenience and facilities provided by various products and services offered by today’s fast evolving Ecommerce based companies (National Tour Association, 2002, p. 17). This huge inclination of consumers worldwide for various kinds of technological devices have automatically triggered the demand for various small and vital components required for the production of these high tech devices. One particular product, which has become a key component for the development of these high tech technological devices and has experienced a sudden peak in demand, is the multi layer ceramic capacitors. The need for these ceramic capacitors has been tremendously high in markets, which produces high end portable devices in mass scale. As of today’s date, a large amount of these p ortable technological devices in manufactured in China and South East Asian countries, with them being recognized as the global hub for manufacturing of portable electronic products (Rajan, 2010). Identification of Market With the increase in demands for the latest technology high end portable devices by consumers all around the globe, there has been a tremendous spike in demand for the production of capacitors of ceramic nature. This demand for ceramic capacitor products has been increasingly high in markets where there has been a massive and large scale production for these high end technological devices. The entire Asia Pacific markets are increasingly considered as a global hub for production of electronic devices of portable nature (Rajan, 2010). Going by a micro level comparison of the demand forecasted for this multi layer ceramic capacitor on a market by market basis, it can be said that there are three scenarios that are arising in terms of future growth prospects in this p articular capacitor segment. In China, there has been a rising demand for the production of various portable devices like laptops, mobile phones and devices of similar nature. As a matter of fact, the demand for multi layered ceramic capacitors

Discussion 4 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Discussion 4 - Assignment Example In essence, the statement could be saying that the facts and realities of inductive arguments are not as important as those of deductive arguments but this could not be entirely true. Once the latter is accepted as true, it would mean that inductive arguments do not have the merit of being taken seriously. The fact that the premises of all arguments are linked with its conclusion in establishing the true in an argument is a very important analogy. This is because the conclusion of any given statement is as important as the premises. Under no circumstance should it be acceptable that the truth of a statement be judged merely based on the conclusion of the statement. The reason for this argument is that if that happens, the need to follow the logical arguments and reasoning in the structure of any given statement or argument will not be necessary and for that matter, it will be unnecessary to pay attention to statements till they get to their ends. The comment made in the paragraph above applies both in the situation of both deductive and inductive arguments. In effect, inductive and deductive arguments could both be said to have a very strong merit based on the relation made between the premises and the conclusion (Michigan State University, 2012). Furthermore, it would be emphasized that the from the last comment, the basis of as to whether an argument is inductive or deductive may not be as relevant as whether or not the substance of the argument could be trusted as the truth. In essence, inductive and deductive could both be trusted or mistrusted depending on the facts or ideologies that the arguments carry. This means that listeners should not be complecent in their judgments of the meanings that statements and arguments carry unless of course they have weighed all sides of the arguments and untaken background checks to verify the authenticity of the arguments. The final comment will be an example

How do people respond to economic incentives Term Paper

How do people respond to economic incentives - Term Paper Example This research will begin with the statement that an incentive is referred to as something that motivates a person to execute an action. Incentives in economics can also be said of factors that alter the purchasing behavior of consumers. Economics as a science relies significantly on assumptions to model and analyzing the actual world. These assumptions can vary from the idea that people are rational, and will act to satisfy their self-interest, to the view that resources are scarce, and thus, becomes subject to laws of supply and demand. According to Deolalikar, and Jones, the economic incentive is a reward, benefit, or the cost that encourages an economic action. People do things purposely, and naturally, and expect benefits from their choices and actions. Before one decides to create something, and sell it to other individuals, similarly, before one buys anything, they are aware of the benefit they are going to get from the product. People respond to of incentives where some are un selfish. Some people are motivated by virtue of their duty, or community in which they live in, or the choices that they make. The truth, however, is that many people and corporations are motivated majorly by financial incentive or rather economic incentives. The facts become apparent when we look at the popularity and success of low-cost retailers such as Wal-Mart. This does not imply that they are bad company, but it exemplifies the current social responsibility that people bear.

Turnover Calculations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Turnover Calculations - Essay Example It also informs the HR professionals that turnover can be a good aspect at times when it applies to non-performing employees since the important thing is employee productivity. Such data also helps HR professionals and their respective organizations to realize that employee turnover brings with it other related costs which include separation costs, vacancy costs, replacement costs, training costs, and indirect costs. In reducing employee turnover rates, HR professionals need to employee effective employee retention practices. Retention is not about offering the best salary packages to employees. One effective retention strategy is the building of positive work relationships within an organization. These include relationships between employees and the organization’s management, as well as relations between the employees themselves. The management includes the supervisors, managers, top-level managers, and the management board. Each of these levels of management has to ensure that they build a cohesive workplace where each worker feels part of the organization. For example, a supervisor can build positive work relationships by being nondiscriminatory and fair, allowing work-family balancing, enabling work flexibility, and providing feedback that appreciates a worker’s performance and efforts. This can create a positive work environment that in turn aids

Hamilton Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Hamilton - Term Paper Example In 1815, there was a chopping mill that became the forts industry in this area. The area grew speedily which was aided in 1827 by a channel to Burlington Bay that is in line with Lake Ontario. In 1833, Hamilton was incorporated as a police village where a legislature was thereafter passed where it was able to establish a market1. When the town of Hamilton was first incorporated in 1833, its first order of business was to establish place for its board to meet where they met at local taverns like Thomas Wilson Inn at Jackson Streets. Hugh Cossart Baker established the first life insurance company in Canada.2 It later became the first functioning railway that transformed Hamilton into a major center for the immigration route from Boston and Newyork to Chicago. In 1856, the town saw the first locomotives built. In 1862, Hamilton town invested in the Great Western Railway and at the end of the Depression in 1862, the population in the town had dwindled since it was not able to meet the interests on its bonds held by British investors. In the 1870s era the town started to have a financial edge and shifted to an economic strategy of attracting the industry. It saw the birth of working class in 1872 and unionists that created the Nine Hour Movement that was to fight for limited hours to nine daily by the government. The same era saw the Bank of Hamilton established which lasted until 1924. It merged with The Commerce that later became the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. In 1847, the town established the first department store. The town played a huge role in the telephone development. In 1877, Hugh Cossart Baker Jr established the first commercial telephone in Canada in the town of Hamilton. He also established the first telephone exchange in the British Empire. He made the town to be the first commercial site for long distance telephone line in the British Empire. This paved

Why is Writing for Radio and Television Different than Writing for an Essay

Why is Writing for Radio and Television Different than Writing for an Actual Newspaper or Magazine - Essay Example Various genres exist within conventional creative writing – prominent among them are novels, short stories, poetry and plays. Hence, both the medium and the genre combine to lay a set of guidelines for the writer. The rest of the essay will outline those guidelines and also provide examples. With the advent of long distance telecommunication technology during the early twentieth century, radio took off as the most sought after public broadcast medium. Writing for radio then became a specialized field for there are unique qualities associated with a purely aural mode of communication. This posed challenges as well as opportunities to writers and broadcasters. Those pioneers who conquered this new horizon in writing established a genre that was both refreshing and demanding. For example, listening to a play in the radio is quite different to watching it onstage. The playwright will have to supplement through audio the events on stage that are not accounted in words. In other wor ds, special audio effects to reflect transpirations on stage became important. Hence, writers had to pay more attention to detail and try to incorporate various kinds of information into the aural form. What radio writers also did was to improve the attention span and concentration of the audience, for the narrative tends to be information packed and tightly plotted to maximize content output. Coming to creative writing for television, the rules are not as rigorous as that applicable to radio writing, for the genre draws many of its rules from motion pictures. This is especially true with respect to soap operas, sitcoms and other televised entertainment. The British Broadcasting Corporation, which has mastered both radio and TV drama over the years, has the following to say about good TV drama writing: â€Å"TV is easy to turn off or turn over, so open your story as dynamically as you can. Try to hook the interest of the audience as soon as possible so that they will want to stay t uned and, if there are more episodes to come, will want to keep tuning in. Ask yourself if there’s a strong enough sense of character, drama, and story to sustain an audience’s engagement.† (www.bbc.co.uk, 2012) But, when it comes to news coverage in television, the main focus tends to be the headlines, with sound bites and video footage complementing the scrolling text. Television talk shows, on the other hand, have now become a time-tested concept that can succeed with even basic recording technology. We’ll now see how writing for radio and television is different to writing for newspaper and magazines. The printed word has always proven to be more powerful in expressing complex thought or argument. Hence, the media of magazines and newspapers are more apt for carrying out in-depth analysis of public issues. Writing for the print media also requires a greater command over vocabulary, grammar and usage. Hence, writing for publications is far more challeng ing and exacting than writing for television or radio. It is only those intellectuals who can perform incisive analyses that make it to editorial pages of major newspapers. Reporting for print media, on the other hand, is usually about following a set format or template, which doesn’t require high analytic skills. The following tips will come handy to the news or opinion writer: â€Å"The opening line of the article must grab the reader’s attention straight away. This is no different to any other form of writing: a story must hook the reader in a very short space of time...this hook must be the first sentence, not the second or the third...Another crucial point here is the length of the opening sentence. The word count needs to be no more than twenty-two words for your

Corporate Social Responsibility Policies, Including Business Ethics Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility Policies, Including Business Ethics and Impact on Business Practice and Key Stakeholders - Essay Example In this part of the paper, a stakeholder mapping analysis is performed to assess the key influences in Nestlà © in the area of corporate social responsibility. Schmeer (2001) identified planning as the initial phase of stakeholder mapping. In the planning phase, the purpose of the stakeholder mapping analysis is defined. It is also in this stage where the beneficiaries of the results of the stakeholder mapping exercise are identified. In this paper, the goal of stakeholder mapping analysis is to offer guidance with respect to a participatory, consensus-building process, with respect to corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives of Nestlà ©. Obviously, information derived from the analysis will be utilized in the brainstorming and formulation of Nestlà © CSR schemes for the benefit of society. The policy selected for analysis focused on Nestlà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s CSR projects supporting coffee and cocoa farmers in selected locations worldwide as part of the Millennium Development Goals to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger. The proposed policy selected for the analysis was the possibility of extending the project to third world countries in Asia who produce coffee and/or cocoa, or possibly other products. The aforementioned policy was chosen based on three criteria as recommended in Schmeer (2001): (1) the policy is specific and definable; (2) the policy is socially and politically controversial, considering the peace and order situation in the country being considered as beneficiary of the CSR project; and (3) the policy may be a key to current reform efforts and significant enough to justify the deployment of resources. Selman (2006) suggested the preparation of a long list of possible stakeholders, as comprehensive and feasible. As a general rule, nomination of stakeholders for inclusion in the long list should consider those who will be affected by, or will

Drug-resistant Organisms Essay Example for Free

Drug-resistant Organisms Essay By the 1960s, the discovery of antibiotic drugs and subsequent advances in their synthesis led to the conquest of most bacterial diseases, at least in developed countries. In the 1969, the Surgeon General of the United States proclaimed that it was time to close the book on infectious diseases (Krasner 29) It indeed seemed so. But today, we confront not only new infectious diseases such as AIDS, but also a resurgence of old diseases such as tuberculosis and malaria that were written off rather prematurely over a generation ago. The old diseases are back with a vengeance, sporting frightening new faces. The same bacteria that almost disappeared are now resistant to penicillin, ampicillin, erythromycin, vancomycin, fluoroquinolones all the weapons that were supposed to have vanquished them. These bacteria have evolved and pose tremendous new challenges, however man and mans technology can also steadily advance to effectively mitigate the emerging bacterial threats – only a vast new impetus to research is needed. Not too long ago, people in the Western countries tended to think of deadly infectious diseases as old-fashioned afflictions that belonged to pre-modern times (or to the present-day Third World). Since the end of the Second World War, classical sexual diseases like syphilis and gonorrhea virtually disappeared in almost all the industrialized countries (Mode, Sleeman 16). The sexual revolution in the 1970s was encouraged by the confidence that sexually transmitted diseases were merely a temporary inconvenience that penicillin could cure. And then there appeared AIDS. As if that is not enough, just when we thought at least our old enemies were gone, to our dismay we find them all staring in our face, more ferociously than ever. E. coli, staphylococci and many other pathogens are evolving in scary ways. The more researchers investigate, the more fast-changing microbes they find. As a result of this evolution, many bacteria are learning to resist more and more of the antibiotics we humans use to fight them. Drugs that have once so effectively countered many deadly are losing their power. Without the help of these once magical drugs, even people who have robust immune systems can be seriously sickened or killed by virulent germs, and people with compromised immune systems face a significant chance of dying. A bacteria can mutate any time it reproduces, and all of that bacterias offspring will bear that mutation. Because bacteria replicate so often, random genetic mutations are common, and some of those mutations create genes that arm bacteria with drug resistance. A change in even just one gene can give a new strain of bacteria the ability to fend off a given antibiotic, maybe even all of the antibiotics in a large class of drugs. Such resistance genes provide bacteria with remarkable defense mechanisms. Resistance can begin in a single person when bacteria are only partially challenged by medication. This can occur when a patient is given too low a dosage of a drug, or stops taking it when he feels better, without completing the full course of treatment. Sometime children spit out half of the medicine they are given because of the taste. These conditions allow a pathogen to develop ways to fend off the chemical warriors. Then its descendents mutate in a way that makes them more capable of surviving higher doses of the same drug. Successive generations, which can occur in a matter of days if not hours, possess an ever-growing ability to beat the medication, ultimately creating pathogens that become completely resistant to the drug. Most antibiotics are broad spectrum, meaning they attack any and all bacteria in the patients body. When a person takes an antibiotic for a staph infection, for example, the drug molecules will kill the invaders but also destroy harmless/helpful bacteria, in a situation of collateral damage. Normally, healthy bacteria occupy most of the places in the stomach and intestines guarding against harmful bacteria percolating into bloodstream. The helpful bacteria also consume a large portion of nutrients available to bacteria, thus keeping the pathogenic bacteria at bay and keeping us from getting sick more often. But after antibiotics have attacked, they become thinned out, leaving the harmful bacteria which may have randomly mutated and acquired drug resistance to be free, feed and multiply. The healthy bacteria will reestablish themselves, but the drug-resistant pathogens will settle among them in greater numbers. And they will have evolved to better resist the same antibiotic when it comes the next time. Moreover, bacteria also develop new traits by exchanging genes with one another. A staphylococcus bacteria one of the most common pathogens could be handed a new resistance gene by a different kind of resistant bacteria that happens to be close by, or by special viruses that infect bacteria and can take genes with them to their next host. Otherwise harmless bacteria inhabiting our gut or skin could become reservoirs of drug-resistance genes, passing them on to visiting pathogens. Most importantly, when an organism becomes resistant to one drug, say penicillin, it is also likely to resist related drugs such as ampicillin and amoxycillin. Finding new molecular structures of this family of drugs cannot provide any long-term advantage, because in a few years the organism will become resistant to the whole family again. An entirely new type of drug, or better, a wholly new approach to combat disease is needed — which, in practical terms, translates to massive research on unprecedented levels. Despite several obvious ominous trends for decades now, only three new classes of antibiotics oxazolidinones, streptogramins, and daptomycin have been developed in the past three decades (Galanter et al., 500). This pace of research is completely inadequate. We now face a near crisis situation. The reappearance of TB and the increase in cases of antibiotic-resistant pneumonia and meningitis leave little room for complacency in the search for new drugs, if we are to continue to enjoy our lives that are relatively free of bacterial infections. Man will be successful, as he has been since the observations of Pasteur, in finding or creating new antibiotics — if he gives his mind a vast new scope to pursue knowledge and discovery in the new millennium. References: Mode, Charles J. , Sleeman, Candace K. â€Å"Stochastic Processes in Epidemiology: HIV/AIDS, Other Infectious Diseases and Computers. † Singapore : World Scientific Publishing Co. , 2000 Galanter, Joshua Mark; Golan, David E. ; Tashjian, Armen H. â€Å"Principles of Pharmacology: The Pathophysiologic Basis of Drug Therapy† Baltimore, MD : Lippincott Williams Wilkins, 2005 Krasner, Robert I. â€Å"The Microbial Challenge: Human Microbe Interactions. † Washington, DC : ASM (American Society for Microbiology) Press, 2002

Mercury Contaminated Fish

Mercury Contaminated Fish Summary: This is a 7 page paper on, Effects of Mercury Contaminated Fish on Consumers Health. The paper further summarizes how mercury contaminated fishs effects on consumers health, and results of this contamination due to consumption. Running Head: EFFECTS OF MERCURY CONTAMINATED FISH ON CONSUMERS HEALTH Effects of Mercury Contaminated Fish on Consumers Health Effects of Mercury Contaminated Fish on Consumers Health Mercury is found naturally in environment and exists in different forms. These forms can be divided into three categories, metallic mercury, organic mercury and in-organic mercury. Metallic mercury is a shiny silver white metal and is liquid at room temperature; it is the pure form of mercury. The organic form of mercury known as Methyl mercury (MeHg) found in fish and caused neurological problems in children bare in the womb and females. Burning of coal in power plants containing mercury is the major source of environmental pollution. The only assessment of health risk from mercury is for neurodevelopment effects. The National Research Council (NRC) estimated that â€Å"60,000 newborns annually might be at risk for adverse neurodevelopment effects form in uterus exposure to methyl mercury†. Fish is afar evaluate as a source of many nutrients very important to the developing newborn, some of which may in fact increase growth of the nervous system in newborn and young children. Prevalent infectivity of fish with toxic mercury, though, has cast a shadow over the nutritional benefits of fish. (Cook) Exposure in uterus can cause many problems such as, delay in mental development of child, lower memory and neurological problems. A contaminated fish which is consumed by a pregnant woman can seriously damages the brain of her baby. As a National Academy of Sciences panel definitively warned last year, some children exposed in uterus by their mothers fish consumption are at risk of falling in the group of children who have to struggle to keep up in school and who might require remedial classes of special education. (Cook) In past years, many companies have used mercury to manufacture a wide variety of consumer products including thermometers, thermostats and automotive light switches. While the metallic mercury in these products hardly ever poses a direct health risk, industrial mercury contamination becomes a serious threat when it is released into the air by power plants, certain chemical manufacturers and other industrial facilities, and then settles into oceans and rivers, where it builds up in fish that we eat. Children and pregnant women are most at risk. (Learn About Mercury and Its Effects) Formerly mercury enters into oceans and rivers; naturally stirring bacteria take in it and convert it in to a type called methyl mercury. This transition is particularly important for humans, who absorb methyl mercury easily and are especially defenseless to its effects. (Learn About Mercury and Its Effects) Mercury then works its way up the food chain as large fish consume contaminated smaller fish. Instead of dissolving or breaking down, mercury accumulates at ever-increasing levels. Predatory fish such as large tuna, swordfish, shark and mackerel can have mercury concentrations in their bodies that are 10,000 times higher than those of their nearby habitats. (Learn About Mercury and Its Effects) Humans risk ingesting hazardous levels of mercury when they eat polluted fish. Since the toxic is unscented, unseen and accumulates in the meat of the fish, it is not easy to spot and cant be avoided by trimming off the skin or other parts. Once in the human body, mercury acts as a neurotoxin, snooping with the brain and nervous system. Exposure to mercury can be particularly harmful for pregnant women and small children. During the first several years of life, a childs brain is still budding and quickly absorbing nutrients. Prenatal and infant mercury exposure can cause mental retardation, cerebral palsy, deafness and blindness. Even in low doses, mercury may have an effect on a childs development, delaying walking and talking, restriction attention span and causing learning disabilities. (Learn About Mercury and Its Effects) In adults, mercury poisoning can harmfully affect fertility and blood pressure regulation and may cause of memory loss, tremors, vision loss and lack of sensation of the fingers and toes. A growing body of facts suggests that contact to mercury may also lead to heart disease. (Learn About Mercury and Its Effects) A July 2005 report from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) concluded that one in 17 women of childbearing age have mercury in their blood above 5.8 micrograms per liter of blood a level that could pose a risk to a developing fetus. This is an improvement from the prior report in 2003 which showed that one out of 12 women had mercury in their blood at this level. Newer science indicates, however, that mercury actually concentrates in the umbilical cord blood that goes to the fetus, so mercury levels as low as 3.4 micrograms per liter of a mothers blood are now a concern. Nearly one in 10 women of reproductive age in the United States has mercury in her blood at or above this level, according to the new CDC study. (Learn About Mercury and Its Effects) Dr. Jane Hightower, a doctor of internal medicine at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco also linked fish consumption to high mercury levels when she tested her own patients. Her 2003 study found that 89 percent of the participating patients chosen because of their fish-heavy diets had high mercury levels. Many had levels as much as four times that which the Environmental Protection Agency considers safe. (Learn About Mercury and Its Effects) An international group of scientists issued a world wide warning about the risks to health for the consumers who are using mercury contaminated fish frequently. However, British scientists argue against it, last month they found pregnant women who ate the most fish had children who were more advanced, with higher IQs and better physical abilities. (Laurence, 2007) They said that while mercury is known as it preventing the brain of infants to be developed, fish also contain omega-3 fatty acids and other nutrients which are necessary for brain development. They studied 9,000 families taking part in the Children of the 90s project at the University of Bristol and concluded, in The Lancet, that the risks of eating fish were outweighed by the benefits. (Fish contaminated with mercury pose worldwide threat to health By Jeremy Laurence, Health Editor, Thursday, 8 March 2007) The US scientists paying attention on the risks of mercury which they say now represent a public health problem in most regions of the world. In addition to its toxic effects on the human fetus, new verification shoes that it may increase the risk of heart disease, particularly in adult men. (Laurence, 2007) The nervous system is highly attractive to mercury contamination. In this type of poisonous incidents that occurred in other countries, some people who consumed fish contaminated with large amounts of methyl mercury or seed grains that are affected with methyl mercury or other organic mercury compounds developed severe damage to the brain and kidneys. Permanent damage to the brain has also been shown to occur from exposure to adequately high levels of metallic mercury. Whether exposure to inorganic mercury results in brain or nerve damage is not as certain, since it does not easily pass from the blood into the brain. (Public Health Statement for Mercury, 1999) Mercury is also severely affect to the kidneys of consumers of mercury contaminated fish, because it accumulates in the kidneys and causes higher exposures to these tissues, and thus more damage. All types of mercury, whether they are organic or in-organic can cause kidney damage if sufficient amounts enter the body. If the harm caused by the mercury is not too great, the kidneys are likely to recover once the body clears itself of the contamination. In addition to effects on the kidneys, inorganic mercury can damage the stomach and intestines, producing symptoms of nausea, diarrhea, or rigorous ulcers if swallowed in large amounts. Effects on the heart have also been observed in children after they accidentally swallowed mercury. Symptoms included rapid heart rate and increased blood pressure. There is little information on the effects in humans from long-term, low-level exposure to mercury. (Public Health Statement for Mercury, 1999) Mercury contaminated fish are not just dangerous for children and pregnant women but it is also dangerous for adults. The toxic destroys the nerve tissues and affects the visual cortex and the cerebellum, a brain part that manages complex movements and balances. It also effect attention and language deficits, seriously disturb the memory of consumer and he or she is unable to quickly call memory, and impaired visual and motor function. Adults who frequently use mercury contaminated fish may have decrease concentration, deftness and verbal memory. Women who eat severely contaminated fish may give birth to children with birth defects including cerebral palsy and mental retardation. (Mercury-Contaminated Fish Poses Health Risks to Adults, 2003) Researches shows that fish contains omega-3 fatty acids, that helps reducing the risk of heart diseases, though a new study questioned that consuming fish contaminated with mercury may increase the risk of heart diseases in addition to reduce other healthy benefits. It is found that men who had heart attack had 15 percent higher mercury levels that men who dont yet experienced heart diseases. A research shows that men with higher level were more than twice as likely to have had a heart attack as compared with men with the lower mercury levels. Children might be at risk due to consumption of mercury contaminated fish, consumption of mercury contaminated fish is that enters into pregnant women can also pass into the developing child. Mercury can also pass from mothers body into breast milk and into a nursing infant. The amount of mercury in the milk varies, depending on the exposure level of and the amount of mercury that enters into pregnant women body. Mercury can also gather in an unborn babys blood to a concentration higher than the concentration in the mother. The harmful health affects seen in children are similar to the affects seen in adults. High exposure to mercury causes lung, stomach and intestinal damage due to respiratory failure in severe cases. Mercury problems are very serious, but the solutions are fairy simple one have to watch his consumption of mercury contaminated fish, and also help force power companies and other big users of mercury to find substitute of mercury to help prevent environment from pollution. Children and women who are pregnant and are likely to get pregnant in future are the most in danger to mercurys harmful affects. They should avoid using certain fish from their diets, including mahi or big eye tuna, tilefish, swordfish, shark, king mackerel, marlin, orange roughy and fish caught in water that are polluted by mercury. The above discussion shows that consumption of mercury contaminated fish is very dangerous for consumers health. It is the source of different diseases especially in children and pregnant women. Mercury is not just dangerous for children and pregnant women it also dangerous for adults. Consumers have to control their fish diets. It is recommended that they regularly check their mercury levels and if they found their mercury levels higher they have to consult with their doctor immediately. Exposure with mercury cause disease like, destruction of nerve tissues, it also affects the visual cortex and the cerebellum. It also effect attention and language deficits, seriously disturb the memory of consumer. Adults who frequently use mercury contaminated fish may have decrease concentration, deftness and verbal memory. It also affects the blood pressure and fertility in adults. Women who eat severely contaminated fish may give birth to children with birth defects including cerebral palsy and mental retardation. It cause delay in mental development of child, memory problem and neurological problems. Fish provide important health benefits to the developing fetus, and pregnant women should be encouraged to eat fish with consistently low methyl mercury levels. Authorities need to take much stronger steps to protect a far greater portion of the population. They must move beyond their antiquated safeguards designed to protect an average woman from an average amount of methyl mercury in fish and take a realistic and protective stance against dietary exposure to methyl mercury. References Jeremy Laurence, (8 March, 2007) Fish Contaminated With Mercury Pose Worldwide Threat to Health, The Independent Retrieved on 24th March, 2008. http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/fish-contaminated-with- mercury-pose-worldwide-threat-to-health-439267.html Ken Cook, (2001) Retrieved on 23rd March, 2008 Mercola.com http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2001/04/25/mercury-fish-part- one.aspx Learn About Mercury and Its Effects, (2006) Natural Resource Defense Council, Retrieved on 23rd March, 2008.http://www.nrdc.org/health/effects/mercury/effects.asp Mercury-Contaminated Fish Poses Health Risks to Adults, (2003) Mercola.com Retrieved on 25th March, 2008. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles /archive/2003/06/21/mercury-fish-part-six.aspx Public Health Statement for Mercury (March,1999) The Encyclopedia of Earth, Retrieved on 24th March, 2008. http://www.eoearth.org/article/Public_ Health_Statement_for_Mercury

The Debate On Pornography Media Essay

The Debate On Pornography Media Essay The circumstances surrounding the debate on pornography cross ethical, social, religious, psychological, and cultural boundaries. It is argued that pornography decreases the desire and appeal for long-term traditional relationships. Judaism requires women to dress modestly while the ancient Hindu text, the Kama Sutra, depicts sexual behavior in ways considered today to be porn. Feminists argue that it is a violent exploitation of women and promotes chauvinism, and that it leads to abusive relationships and makes men more likely to rape women. This essay will discuss possible answers to the posed question by illustrating the arguments for and against pornography. Pornography is often defined pejoratively: words like violent, degrading, and humiliating may be used with no acknowledgement that such descriptions are subjective and contextually relative (Ciclitira 286). A common view is that pornography is degrading to women. This statement is an opinion. Ones perception of pornographys depiction of sex is related to their own sexual experiences and their views on sex. Some women might say that porn is degrading if their own sexual experiences have left them feeling objectified or used or if they have been sexually assaulted. In this case, the idea of sex itself might be the issue and therefore the depiction of sex might remind that woman of her own negative experiences. Other women who have had positive sexual experiences and frequently enjoy sex might be excited by porn and see the depiction of sex as a reminder of their own positive and satisfying experiences. Not all pornography portrays females as being passive participants or simple sex objects. In many cases, the woman is not just giving pleasure, she is receiving it. The presentation of women enjoying sex and orgasming shows sex to be natural, healthy, and pleasurable not something to be ashamed of. Pornography can depict sex as something romantic and emotional or as an act between adults who love each other. The view that pornography is degrading to women disregards the views of women who create porn whether by writing it, producing it, or acting in it. It also disregards the pornography that illustrates a womans perspective of sex and porn that is aimed at female audiences. Many women willingly participate in the production of pornography whether for mass distribution or for private viewing. Many women also enjoy watching pornography alone or with their partner(s). Pornography is harmful to relationships is another view. The Flood article (393-394) states, US studies find that a consistent minority of female partners of male regular pornography users find it damaging both for their relationships and themselves. They see their male partners pornography use as a kind of infidelity, feel betrayal and loss, feel less desirable, and describe other negative effects on their relationships, sex lives and themselves (Bridges et al., 2003). First, this is a minority of females and the article does not state how low that minority is. The minority could be 10% of Latino or 3% of Caucasian females. A perception of porn use harming a relationship may point to fundamental flaws in the relationship that are only made more visible through porn use but do not exist because of the porn use. For example, the woman might believe her sex life is floundering because her partner is using porn rather than her to satisfy his sexual needs, but the man might be using porn because he is dissatisfied with the woman or disinterested in her. In this case, it is not the porn that is harming the relationship; it is the lack of communication between the partners: the man isnt open about his dissatisfaction so the woman sees the porn as causing the mans disinterest in her rather than being a result of the disinterest. On the other hand, the man may be interested and sexually attracted to the woman, but pornography offers a form of arousal that cannot be found elsewhere. A relationship could be sexually vibrant but the introduction of pornography may illicit unique sensations that overwhelms the male and makes the woman feel less valuable. Pornography may benefit relationships, as sex can be a very important aspect of a relationship establishing and maintaining closeness, giving each other pleasure, satisfying each others sexual desires, expressing affection, etc. A couple (married or dating) might watch porn in order to get aroused prior to engaging in intercourse. But one may argue why a healthy couple would need to watch something to illicit arousal. Pornography can be used to spice things up for the couple giving them ideas of new positions to try or inspiring role-playing scenarios. The statement that porn harms relationships is too broad. The information available on the harmful effects of pornography on relationships seems to be focused on heterosexual relationships while ignoring homosexual relationships. Another view is that pornography makes men more likely to rape women. The Flood article (393) talks about studies that show a correlation between teenage boys frequency of consumption of porn and their agreement with the idea that it is acceptable to hold down and force a girl to have sex. However, the ability of parents to block their children who are minors from viewing porn on the internet or TV while at home may diminish the frequency of porn. Even though minors can acquire pornography from outside the home (from friends, on a different computer, etc), if adults teach children starting from a young age about sex, its need to be consensual, its consequences, and the importance of respecting women and people in general, then young boys attitudes toward sex and females may very well be unaffected by pornography. Nevertheless, even if all young boys were taught in this way, they would not all absorb the important lesson. Other factors such as peer or media influences play large roles in young boys attitudes towards sex and the treatment of women and those would need to be controlled as well. Flood (392) also states that men who frequently use violent or rape porn are more likely to report that they would rape a woman if they could get away with it. This does not necessarily mean that the porn is planting the desire to rape a woman. Perhaps the man who would rape a woman watches the porn in order to see a fantasy that he cannot realize. In this case might the porn be somewhat satisfying the mans desire to rape and preventing him from doing so in reality. However, violent porn can give violent or sexual offenders venues to act out their fantasies. The watchers of violent porn may gain inspiration to go and act out their fantasies on innocent women. Flood cites Malamuths writing that men at high risk for sexual aggression are more likely aroused by it and more likely influenced by it (392). But what percentage of men are at high risk for sexual aggression? Does the predisposition to sexual aggression guarantee that the man will rape or assault a woman ONLY if he watches porn? Or does watching porn create sexual aggression and violent feelings towards women? This view is also strewn forth in the media. Barongan and Hall conducted a study where males listened to neutral or misogynous rap music before viewing sexually violent and neutral vignettes (196). They would then choose a vignette to show to a female. Their reasoning for the study is that misogynous messages appear in the media and they can contribute to negative attitudes or behaviors towards women. And pornography has been defined, by some, as sexually explicit materials that can evoke sexually abusive and degrading treatment of women. Some men may believe that their own sexual aggression against women is justified because it is seen or heard in the media, and if so, their actions are not wrong because they are common. The study showed that of males that listened to misogynous rap music 30% showed the violent vignette to their female. Surprisingly only 7% of the males who listened to neutral rap music showed the assaultive vignette. Viewing pornography that glorifies sexual coercion is particularly degrading and harmful. Is sexual coercion degrading to women? If you use random association with this statement, it can easily lead you to agree with the statement. Coercion is to force, compel, or persuade. If women are coerced into sex in pornography, it seems easy. Who is persuaded easily? Unintelligent people? Children? Therefore, women are stupid or as ignorant as a child for being coerced into sex. Non-normative sexual activities falling into the sexual coercion category such as BDSM (Bondage/Domination/Sadism/Masochism) are practiced by both women and men. To say that depiction of sexual coercion is degrading and harmful is to pass judgment on those people who participate in BDSM. Why shouldnt people with non-normative (but still legal) sexual desires have pornography available to them that is suited to their desires? BDSM can be viewed as strange or weird. Why not judge them for being weird? If only a small ma jority of people participate in BDSM, why are their views of sex important to the rest of the population. Sexual coercion and even rape are common themes of sexual role-play among consenting sexual partners. To depict sexual coercion in pornography is to depict a real life scenario within consensual sex. I believe that pornography has beneficial effects for some and harmful effects for others. Do I believe that pornography is degrading to women? Generally speaking, no. However, films that are violent or disturbing in nature, depicting women enjoying these acts that probably no one would enjoy taking part it, I feel is degrading to women. I think that sexually there are things that no woman would want to be involved in, and to show that some people would do so can humiliate and lessen the value of such person. Pornography that that simply depicts intimate and erotic acts, I do not think is degrading. As for pornography creating a prevalence of violence in men or having influences that compel someone to commit rape, I think it is very possible, but it is a person to person issue. I think men who through watching porn think it is okay to force intercourse upon someone will eventually think that regardless of if they have viewed porn. Some people are predisposed to being violent towards women in many other ways than pornography, and although pornography is not the route cause, it can definitely attribute. Non-violent men who respect women and have had meaningful relationship will not have suddenly commit rape after seeing pornography. I think it could evoke thoughts or fantasies similar to acts depicted in the porn they watch, but they will not go out and rape or take a life. I do believe that pornography can damage relationships, but once again, it can have the opposite effect depending on the individuals. I have heard of problems that pornography has caused in friends relationships. I have seen it stem from the fact that women in pornography have physical attributes that are exaggerated to increase sex appeal. I understand that women can feel subpar to the women in the films because they dont look a certain way or compare to these women in societys opinion. I believe the adult entertainment industry can be a contributor to self-esteem or image problems of young women today. Moreover, self-esteem and confidence issues play a huge role in the successfulness of a relationship. On the contrary, I have heard of pornography helping relationships by adding something new to a fading love life. Pornography can spice up a love life, or ruin one. It can illicit arousal for intimacy or to commit a sexually violent crime. Pornography involves acts that are very instinctual to us and therefore can evoke strong judgment towards both ends of the spectrum. Similar to abortion or euthanasia, it is important to find middle ground, and to encourage imaginative thinking where people will not rush to say pornography destroys relationships or causes rape, but it can destroy relationships and may give someone the idea to rape.

Vietnam War - Social Movements :: Vietnam Conflict

The Vietnam War (1965-1975)was fought between the North and South Vietnam. The North was called Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the South was the Republic of Vietnam which was supported by the United States. On August 2nd, 1964 the USS Maddox was on a secret intelligent mission on the North Vietnamese coast where in the Gulf on Tonkin they were attacked by torpedo boats. The USS Turner Joy was attacked in the same area two days later. Due to the second attack Congress declared the Gulf of Tonkin resolution which led to air strikes.In 1959 there were 5,000 guerilla fighters and in 1964 the numbers jumped to 100,000. At Pleiku on March, 1965 U.S Marine barracks were attacked causing the three stage escalation bombing of North Vietnam to begin. The 3 year lasting bombing was used to force North Vietnam to stop supporting the "National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam" by destroying their industrial infrastructure and Vietnam's air defenses. Unfortunately this did not stop th e North's support for the NLF. The U.S. Air Force bases were constantly being attacked so the U.S. on March 8, 1965 the 3,500 U.S. Marines was deployed to South Vietnam. At this point in time, the U.S. public supported the dispatch because the Vietnam War had been portrayed to the American people as a war against the spread of Communism. Johnson was president at the time and he kept adding more and more troops as the war went on. As the draft quotas increased, the American public protests started. When Nixon came into presidency his policy towards the Vietnam War was "peace with honor" in other words he wanted to widen the war. After more bombing and fighting, on January 27, 1973 the Paris Peace Accords was signed, restoring peace in Vietnam and U.S. forces pulled out. Nixon stopped all American attacks on Vietnam. The condensed summary of the Vietnam War is to see what presidents were involved in this war (Johnson, and Nixon) and what foreign policies were taken towards Vietnam mos tly before the protests began. Social movements have been a huge influence in shaping U.S. foreign policy. I would like to focus on the Vietnam War and how social protests changed its route. The constant and organized protests done by the American people is definitely a factor that pushed Nixon to take the American troops out of Vietnam, when those weren't his intentions when he was elected for president.

School Daze :: essays research papers

School Daze I have to admit that I will not look fondly on my high school career. I spent most of my study time going out with my friends. I felt that I was paying my dues with the eight hours of boredom that began most of my days. Until now there were only a few classes that I enjoyed. In retrospect, I believe that it was my inability to choose the classes I took which resulted in my lack of enthusiasm on the ride to school each morning. I must also acknowledge my role in my transcript’s substandard showing. As my SAT and ACT scores indicate, I have the potential to achieve success in any field chosen. However, I have procrastinated and failed to apply myself to my studies. This year I have made and earnest effort to improve my work ethic. My grade point average is rising and my study habits are improving. I know that I can continue with this improvement. I have often wondered what it would be like to experience the freedom of choosing my own class schedule. This has to be infinitely more stimulating and enjoyable. I am also aware that college will be significantly more challenging, but I have always found it easier to study for a class that interests me. I am willing to accept the fact that as long as I am in school, there will be required courses which may not engender excitement or enthusiasm; however, success should not be as difficult to achieve due to the maturity that is developing during this last year of high school. In addition, I have gained an understanding of the benefit of being well rounded. There is value in all classes taken. It helps to know that even my least favorite subject will contribute to the ultimate goal of personal and career development. I will definitely enjoy the independence of campus life. The camaraderie, which will develop, should only add to the college experience. The courses will be challenging but I am willing to do what it takes to achieve my ultimate goal, which was alluded to earlier. The untapped potential is there. I would like to be given the opportunity to show what I can accomplish. My GPA is low; about a 2.7. I have been to many different high schools. I have not been academically successful. However, I do fairly well on standardized tests ACT 30 and SAT M660 V640.

Is technology a boon or a bane Essay

Technology offers us an escape to inconvenience and makes work lighter and provocative. Personally, technology gives me a lot of benefits. Tasks get lighter, distance gets shorter, communication gets faster, to reiterate some. In my field of work, I use MP3 attached to a speaker to play the songs I want to teach the kids; having said that, I always make sure that I know the song really well that in case of some technical difficulties like interruption of electric power supply or empty batteries, I can still teach the song without using my MP3. Same case when I’m using PowerPoint Presentation. I always have backups. Though technology makes our lives easier, as a teacher we are still reminded that technology will not reach the inner soul of the children. We need to look them in the eye while presenting the lesson through the projector. We need to hold them when we present the sense of touch. We need to utter the words to them when we want them to understand and truly learn the lesson.

High School Essay Essay

I spent the first two year of high school at Westland High in Columbus Ohio. Those years were somewhat average and most of the time I felt board, even though I was on the track team. One of the more unusual things that occurred was that a classmate, who I had talked with many times and who sat by me in a few classes murdered his parents! I spent the rest if high school at Grove City High School, after moving there in my junior year. My senior year was a little less exciting (which I didn’t mind). The co-op program that I was involved with allowed me to work outside of my high school for credit. During my freshman year I was approached by a track coach. His name was Mr. Lamb. I couldn’t help but remember his name by the way a lamb sounded. Mr. Lamb had noticed while I was running for exercise that I took long strides and moved pretty fast, so he asked me if I would like to join the track team. I had never been involved in sports or asked to join a team in my life, so I jumped at the opportunity. One thing my coach liked about me was that I didn’t require a lot of practice running. I could, as the Nike commercial says, â€Å"Just do it† and I did. I won numerous first place awards place and was even interviewed by the local newspaper for having the most wins with the least amount of running time. During my sophomore year things certainly got a lot more exciting. A classmate that I had contact with and had sat next to me in class also lived a block away from my house decided to sneak up behind his mother and shoot her in the back of the head while she stood in the kitchen. Then he dragged his mother’s body to the garage and hid to wait for his dad to come home and then he put a bullet right through his father’s eye! I remember watching TV after school when the program was interrupted by a news bulletin. The newscaster had said a 17 year old student from Columbus, Ohio had murdered his parents. I was horrified to hear the name of my classmate Brad Porter when they gave details about the suspect. Returning to school the next day was a bit eerie, because there sat Brad’s empty desk right next to mine. I was shocked and scared. I remember being afraid to walk around my block and seeing Brad hiding in his garage. Things were quieter my junior year, but I did have some big adjustments to make. Because of a family situation, I was forced to move to Grove City, Ohio and live with my mother. When I transitioned to Grove City High, I had to say goodbye to all my friends, classmates and teachers and start all over again socially. This was difficult for me because I quickly get comfortable in a situation and almost think it’s never going to change. Then, when change does occur, I have to reshape my thinking to fit the new change. The move to Grove Citywas awkward at first; The students were generally better off, so more of them had cars. It seemed like everyone drove or owned a car but this didn’t bother me much – I thought to myself â€Å"Heck, I use to be on the track team! What do I need a silly car for? † The rich kids looked down on everyone that happened to be out of style with them. The school itself was bigger too, about twice the size of Westland. It had two levels but no elevators, just steps that I had to climb every morning to get to all of my classes. Finally I made it to my senior year and things were looking bright this last year of high school. Grove City offered a co-op program that allowed students to work outside of the high school and still earn credits toward graduation. I was the first to sign up. The next day I had my schedule to report to McDonalds and to work five hours every day then was done by 2pm, then that I had all the time in the world to do nothing which is the favorite thing for any teenager suffering from â€Å"senioritis†. The softer schedule and time away from school was a welcome relief from the rigorous track schedule my freshman year, and a way to start forgetting the horrible drama from the next. All in all High School hadn’t been so bad. I had done well in my freshman year on the track team. My sophomore year had some drama. My junior year brought a move and my Senior year brought relief. Almost everyone has fond memories of high school, and even though my time was probably more traumatic than most, I’m no exception. The experiences from those four years exposed me to â€Å"real life† in a very harsh way, but the coping skills I developed and the growing up that I did prepared me well to face what lie ahead, I wouldn’t change a thing.

Ford Motor Co. Case Report

r [Type the company name]| Ford Motor Company: Supply Chain Strategy | [Type the document subtitle]| NICOLE | Table of Contents Page 3. Executive Summary Page 4. Identification Issues Page 5. Identification Issues, Environmental and Root Cause Analysis Page 6. Alternatives Page 7. Recommendation, Implementation, Control Page 8. Conclusions, References Executive Summary This case report addresses the challenges to implement virtual integration in Ford Motor Company, one of the largest automobile manufacturing companies in the world. It focuses on the viability of implementing a supply chain strategy following Dell’s â€Å"Direct Business model† Dell’s direct business model used information and technology to revolutionize the PC industry; it focused on developing effective supplier partnerships and JIT manufacturing becoming a highly horizontal or â€Å"virtual integrated† company. Dell skipped the intermediate retailers, selling to customers directly eliminating the reseller’s markup and the cost and risk associated with carrying large inventories. All this combined gave Dell a leading position in a very competitive market in only a 13 year period time. In 1970’s Ford’s main competition was with General Motors and Chrysler. However with the entry of Japanese companies like Honda, Toyota and Nissan the American firm faced a harder competition. In order to maintain its leading position, in 1995 Ford initiated the Ford 2000 plan; aimed to restructure many of their key processes like Order to Delivery (OTD) and Ford Production System (FPS). They wanted to reduce the OTD from 60 or more to 15 or less days. FPS was created to convert the supply chain from a push type to a pull type basing their forecast, production and inventory decisions on real market demands. The decision to radically redesign Ford’s supply chain infrastructure may significantly affect in a positive way the growth and competitiveness of Ford Motor Company in a short, mid and long term period. I strongly support the implementation of virtual integration and a pulled based system in Ford’s supply chain. It has been proven by Dell’s KPI’s that producing based on actual customer requirements using information technologies for the efficient information flow from the consumers all the way down to suppliers will directly improve the supply chain by reducing inventory levels and the related cost, reducing lead times, making your suppliers, the production systems and the overall SC more responsive and efficient. This new strategy will include the creation of an IT platform which its objective is to support an online operation, it will establish procedures to enable customization and ordering by customers via advanced EDI, this platform will be integrated to the physical dealerships as well so they can transmit in real time customer’s requirements. All customer orders would be taken either via Ford's web site or by phone and then produce. A pull system would be implemented completely. This Platform will also virtually integrated Ford’s supply chain where Ford and all its suppliers would share information by an intranet and Internet to coordinate in real time the flow of materials and production. Issues Identification Industries Differences One major issue is the differences between the auto business and the computer business were compared to Dell’s; Ford’s supplier network had many more layers and many more companies making Ford’s supply chain more complex than Dell’s. Change Management (short term issue) For the reasons above some Ford’s SC staff thought that the Dell’s direct business model will not deliver the same results for Ford. Ford’s staff never faced with the challenge of modifying work flow processes and standard operating procedures, this can result in employees being uncomfortable, dissatisfied and challenged by this new system, therefore they may fall back to their original habits. The adaptation of this new initiative at staff level will be a major challenge for Ford. Purchasing (short term issue, potentially long term issue) Different from Dell’s were purchasing activities reported to product development, Ford’s purchasing division is separate from product development, this is another source of disconnect in the supply chain. The efficient roll-out of new products may be impacted negatively due to lack of communication between these two key departments. Also suppliers were picked based on cost, and little regard was given to the overall supply chain cost. At this level of the supply chain restructuring may be difficult due to corporate history and politics. Information Technologies (short term issue, potentially long term issue) An important issue is the lack of technological knowledge and application throughout Ford’s supply chain, were first tier suppliers well developed IT capabilities interacting with Ford via EDI, but they were not able to invest in new technologies at the same rate as Ford did. The understanding of modernity technology rapidly decreased in the lower tiers of the supply chain. This situation was different to Dell’s supply chain, were by using new technologies Dell shared information in a real time fashion with its suppliers, helping them know Dell’s daily production requirements making the supplier more responsive to Dell’s needs. Also Dell only kept suppliers that maintained their leadership in technology and quality making the overall supply chain more competitive. Lead Times/Production Process (short term issue, potentially long term issue) The production at Ford is based on a predetermined schedule making its production system push based, creating high inventory levels with low turnover, in addition to this; bottlenecks were an issue in the material planning and vehicle production processes. So far this production system created a lead time of 65 days from the time a customer placed an order until the product was delivered, making the overall supply chain inefficient. Environmental and Root Cause Analysis Ford, as any other corporation is looking to achieve the ultimate goal; increase profit margins. The OTD and FPS initiatives established an aggressive goal to reduce lead times from over forty five days to fifteen days. To do this, it is necessary to improve the flow of information throughout the supplier network and reduce manufacturing time. The challenges faced include the unavailability of accurate demand information, poor supplier communication at every level, lack of interaction between product development and purchasing, and resistance to change within the organization. Ford’s current OTD time requires production to guess the real demands. Consumer demand is therefore met through a push rather than a pull manufacturing process. To move to a pull system and to improve demand forecasting, Ford must implement a process that will provide earlier demand notification to the supplier network. They must also be able to immediately link the actual orders to the manufacturing schedule at any of their almost two hundred manufacturing locations. Purchasing must also play an integral role in this process to insure the correct suppliers are receiving the information. Another important step for Ford is to coordinate thousands dealerships to transmit data sales efficiently, Dell’s business model involves direct manufacturer contact with the consumer, this greatly reduces order time by removing middle-man interference and inventory requirements. But for the automobile industry without the distribution channels will be impossible for a potential customer to decide to buy a car without testing it, seeing it and feeling it. For this reason the auto industry lacks this ability. Considering all the issues above and their associated challenges, would be fair to say that Ford’s multi-layered supply chain is in great need of a technological solution to its information sharing and communication needs. Alternatives 1. Keep Ford’s existing supply chain and initiatives of improvement without investing in a new IT platform: The existing initiatives such as FPS and OTD and their overall objectives and their supply management goals are a step in the right direction for providing the necessary data sharing with suppliers and therefore achieve the goals of Ford’s initiatives. Ford will have to rely on the actual technology (EDI) such as phone or email in some cases depending if it is a tier 1 suppliers can depend in a more sophisticated tools such as the FRN or the extranet created to connect ford with its suppliers in the B2B initiative. The advantage of this is that there will not be major changes and additional cost involved besides the ones related to the overall SC efficiency, the disadvantages of this is that it has been proven that any enterprise which is not up to date with the newest information technologies will not stay competitive and in a leadership position within mid and long terms, facing the chance of getting behind in a such competitive market. 2. Support Ford’s FPS and OTD initiatives by creating a specialized IT frame that will help to achieve the virtual integration in Ford’s SC. The initiatives above must now incorporate an advanced IT solution to be linked to the outside groups, tier-2 suppliers and upstream to the distribution network. The IT system will focus on developing the open sharing of real time demand information between the distribution network and the supplier pool. Further development of long-term supply contracts with key vendors and a continued focus on the sub-systems supply format will improve confidence while simplifying and speeding the entire process. Building linkages from the dealerships (Also is necessary to invest in the E-business infrastructure) all the way down to the lowest tiers, so the right people get the necessary data in the fashion and time that is needed to improve the SC. The disadvantage of this will be in the short term and probably midterm period, due to all the effort and extraordinary monetary investment that an initiative like this requires. If the system is poorly chosen, the entire initiative will fail. Technology costs, if not monitored and controlled, can escalate uncontrollably. Also while the platform is operational there may be unexpected issues which the staff and suppliers will not be able to solve causing inefficiencies in the supply chain, affecting Ford’s and its suppliers revenue directly. The advantage is that with an infrastructure like this Ford will virtually have automated its supply chain translating in achieving Ford’s initiatives and therefore their ultimate goal â€Å"Be more profitable and a leader automobile manufacturing company† Recommendation I strongly support the implementation of alternative number 2. Dell’s direct business model will be the guideline to follow when applying this model in Ford’s organization. Although there are several major differences between the companies, Dell’s direct business approach can be applied to every facet of Ford’s operation. The decision to support virtual integration will help redefine Ford as a competitive, cost effective and profitable company. Instead of remaining static, Ford must pursue continually evolve along with the new technologies trends, failure to incorporate the latest information technologies will result in continued inefficiencies and eventually Ford will be displaced from the automobile manufacturing leading positions. Implementation Stage 1 Accurate and timely information should be the primary focus of the IT implementation. For this stage, the existing FPS initiative should be combined more extensively with the existing intranet and extranet. Ford should leverage the B2B capabilities to incorporate upstream ordering information from the distribution network. To minimize risk, stage 1 should be applied on a specific product line and only with key suppliers (pilot projects). Initially, the information sharing may be a simple as providing real time demand to suppliers on a secured web site. Stage 2 Once this first stage has achieved quantitative results the IT objective will be to automate the order-to-scheduling process to adapt processes that would notify suppliers of orders and their manufacturing locations based upon every day orders from the dealerships. The objective is to develop information flow upstream from the suppliers. Ford will need to know on an accurate and real time fashion the suppliers individual daily capacities, only then Ford will be able to effectively allocate orders. Control Understanding this challenge, implementation plans will require phasing and adequate training, with follow through at all levels to ensure a predictable and comfortable transition. This stage should be split into manageable groups, action plans should be in place for addressing specific challenge areas, such as technically issues. The control will focus in monitoring the KPI’s within Ford and its suppliers, by this stage the refined IT solution will help to achieve FPS goals such as lower inventories, faster inventory turnovers, leaner manufacturing process, making the overall supply chain more cost effective and responsive, achieving the 15 days lead-time established by ODT. Conclusion Ford is an example of a company who can evolve at any stage of its existence; it is committed to be leader in the automobile market. They decision to implement major changes within the organization shows the determination to do anything to stay competitive, Ford knows that if they don’t keep up with the new trends, they will lose ground easily over the time. Once again I realize how the â€Å"information† plays the most important role within any organization, the effective and efficient manage of it will smooth any operation helping to achieve the expected results. Whether your company is vertical, horizontal or virtual integrated a key issue is to build based on real requirements delivered in real time. If everything starts with the right step, all of the following levels of the SC will enjoy a more organized and efficient process. Supporting these basic ideas with and efficient IT infrastructure will give the ultimate competitive advantage to any company it is applied. In conclusion if the recommended strategy is implemented successfully and in a timely manner, Ford will be positioned to become a dominant player in the automotive market enjoying great growth and larger profit margins. References Ford Motor Company: SC Strategy Case Study Harvard Business School by Robert D. Austin The Power of Virtual Integration: An Interview with Dell Computer’s Michael Dell by Joan Magretta.