Boston Tea Party Essay

Enticement: You presumably wouldn’t trust me in the event that I revealed to you that a medication that makes a similar flagging movement in the cerebrum as cocaine is sold lawfully on pretty much every city intersection the country over. This is a reality in any case, and the medication is caffeine. It is one of the primary fixings in espresso, and is as of now the most every now and again utilized recreational medication on the planet. Build up Credibility: I for one view myself as an espresso master, and have been drinking at any rate one mug of espresso pretty much every morning throughout the previous three years. Identify with the crowd: Presently, I know few out of every odd one of you drinks espresso however as should be obvious by the various Dutch Bros, Starbucks, and other bistros around town it is an exceptionally huge piece of our way of life today. See: Throughout the course of this discourse, I will talk about three significant focuses identifying with espresso. To begin with, I will give some data on the historical backdrop of espresso and when it previously came into human culture, trailed by the positive medical advantages and a portion of the negative wellbeing dangers related with espresso. [First of all, I’m going to talk a smidgen about the authentic side of espresso and how it previously got mainstream in our way of life. ] Body I. Primary concern: To comprehend why espresso is such a major piece of cutting edge society, we should initially comprehend where it began. A. Sub-point: Coffee was first developed on the Arabian Peninsula in the fifteenth century. 1. Supporting subtleties: Not just were the Arab’s the first to develop espresso, however they additionally were the first to exchange espresso. 2. By the sixteenth century, the prevalence of espresso was at that point extending and Persia, Egypt, Syria and Turkey all had found about the stunning refreshment. B. Sub-point: By the seventeenth century espresso was all the while picking up reputation around the globe, anyway it was as yet not a family unit most loved as it as today. 1. Supporting Details: Coffee houses fired growing up wherever in the 1700’s, anyway tea was as yet the most well known beverage around. 2. In 1773 an overwhelming assessment on tea was exacted by King George, which prompted a truly celebrated revolt called The Boston Tea Party. 3. Since individuals couldn’t manage the cost of tea after the duty, espresso immediately took over as the most mainstream morning drink over the world, and remains the most famous today. [Although espresso has been drank for many years, most of its medical advantages have as of late been found over the most recent couple of decades. ] II. Primary concern: most of individuals drink espresso just to get past every day, anyway it has numerous positive advantages to your wellbeing. A. Sub-point: Within simply the most recent couple of years alone there has been research done indicating that espresso may ensure against type 2 diabetes, liver malignancy, and Alzheimer’s illness. 1. Supporting subtleties: According the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, liver malignancy is the ninth driving reason for malignancy and espresso has been appeared to diminish danger of liver malignancy by 40%. 2. Drinking espresso lessens the danger of diabetes also, which is a typical hazard factor of liver malignant growth. B. Sub-point: One of the other clinical employments of espresso is in forestalling Alzheimer’s malady and dementia. 1. Supporting subtleties: The most widely recognized neurodegenerative illness and number 1 reason for dementia is Alzheimer’s. 2. There is no solution for Alzheimer’s, anyway it has been shown that espresso consumers have up to a 65% lower danger of getting the illness. [You may be thinking espresso is a marvel drink after a portion of those insights, anyway it additionally has many negative impacts on wellbeing also. ] III. Primary concern: There are a lot of medical problems that can come about because of drinking espresso, with probably the most widely recognized being compulsion, a sleeping disorder and expanded circulatory strain. A. Sub-point: As an understudy, one of the last things you will ever need to encounter is a sleeping disorder, yet it is a normal reaction of espresso. 1. Supporting subtleties: By hindering certain receptors in the cerebrum, espresso forestalls synthetic substances that incite rest from being utilized. B. Sub-point: Another broadly considered impact of espresso, explicitly caffeine, is the manner by which addictive it is. 1. Supporting subtleties: Caffeine animates the focal sensory system and customary use will bring about a physical reliance. 2. In the event that a standard espresso consumer doesn’t have their day by day cup, they will feel exhausted, fractious, and experience cerebral pains inside the initial 24 hours. End 1. Progress: all in all, espresso isn’t for everybody except in the event that you do decide to expend it, you at any rate presently know how it influences you. 2. Synopsis of Main Points: Throughout this discourse we took a gander at how espresso previously picked up notoriety in mankind, some of it’s positive medical advantages just as a portion of the negatives. 3. Source of inspiration: Even if you’ve never been an aficionado of espresso, take a stab at drinking a cup before your next investigation meeting and check whether you still don’t like it. 4. Important end: Although it might be irresistible and cause genuine potential medical issues, there must be something uncommon about espresso considering over portion of grown-ups in the U. S. drink it every day. References: 1) â€Å"Coffee Acts Just like Cocaine, Says Scientist. † BeverageDaily. com. Refreshment Daily, 02 Sept. 2002. Web. 12 Nov. 2014. 2) Goldschein, Eric. â€Å"11 Incredible Facts About The Global Coffee Industry. † Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 14 Nov. 2011. Web. 12 Nov. 2014. 3) Gunnars, Kris. â€Å"13 Proven Health Benefits of Coffee† Authority Nutrition. N. p. , n. d. Web. 12 Nov. 2014. 4) â€Å"The History Of Coffee. † †National Coffee Association. NCA, n. d. Web. 12 Nov. 2014. 5) Stromberg, Joseph. â€Å"This Is How Your Brain Becomes Addicted to Caffeine. † Smithsonian. N. p. , 9 Aug. 2013. Web. 11 Nov. 2014. 6) Van Dam, Rob. â€Å"Ask the Expert: Coffee and Health. † The Nutrition Source. Harvard School of Public Health, n. d. Web. 09 Nov. 2014. 7) Weber, Belinda. â€Å"Coffee Consumption Cuts Liver Cancer Risk. † Medical News Today. MediLexicon International, 22 Oct. 2013. Web. 12 Nov. 2014.

The Mexican Drugs Cartels

Mexico City is notable for sedate dealing which occurred easily with no obstruction. The rise of the Mexican medication cartels was started by Miguel à ngel Fã ©lix Gallardo, who was a Judicial Federal Police operator in Mexico in the 1980s.Advertising We will compose a custom exposition test on The Mexican Drugs Cartels explicitly for you for just $16.05 $11/page Learn More The medication dealing was effectively accomplished on the grounds that he built up an entrenched framework that associated the medication dealers in Columbia with those in Mexico (Grayson 2010). The advancement of the Mexican Drug Cartel The Mexican Drug Cartel created and spread quickly continuous in light of the fact that it delighted in security by the Mexican government. This framed the reason for much increasingly ground-breaking and hazardous groupings, which brought about expanded wrongdoing exercises. What's more, these medication dealing exercises expanded when there were expanded monetary osmoses th at cleared route for exchanging with the United States (Stares, 1996). Nonetheless, there have been huge political changes in the course of recent years like the decentralization of the Mexican political framework, which crumbled these incredible cartels. The very much connected system between the Mexican medication dealers and the Transnational Organized Criminals was disturbed prompting wild rivalry to acquire a decent portion of the rewarding unlawful business. In addition, the 1980s denoted a significant defining moment for the Mexican Drug Traffickers, on account of the single decision party called the ‘Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI)’, which evaded crimes. In any case, remembering that this decision party was profoundly various leveled and brought together, it filled in as an escape clause for debasement and exemption as long as there were acceptable result to people with great influence. For example, the ‘Federal Security Directorate (DFS)’, which guaranteed local security profited commonly from degenerate dealings with the medication dealers by getting enormous adjustments while the cartel proprietors got tight security. During the 1970s and 1980s, the Mexican medication dealers earned a significant salary from illicit cocaine exchanging, which caused Mexico to be marked as the ‘drug dealing hub’ into the United States. Medication dealing has kept on spreading quickly throughout the years in Mexico with the medication dealers being autonomous people, tranquilize cartels or gatherings, and much bigger medication networks.Advertising Looking for exposition on government? How about we check whether we can support you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, by the late 1990s, there had created around four other medication dealing cartels, which contended savagely to deal with the market that prompted division and battles among the medication dealers. Obviously, Mexican medication cartels have ov erwhelmed the unlawful medication exchanging the United States, as there is expanded co-activity with the detainees and road vendors in the United States; also, sedate dealing has spread quickly into different countries, to a degree that it has become a worldwide issue (Grayson, 2010). Differences among drugs cartels in Mexico There was expanded rivalry, which finished in clashes among the significant players in the market; this was as aftereffect of advancement of political pluralism, and somewhat due to revamping of Mexico’s police power. This made increasingly complex associations that couldn't be handily directed (Grayson, 2010). Nonetheless, the Mexican government has constantly looked for control quantifies with an end goal to battle illicit medication exchanging however shockingly has flopped because of debasement. Because of these differences, there has emerged an extreme war between the Mexican government and the cartel heads and among the adversary cartels as they b attle for predominance in the market. In the ongoing years, the Mexican government has taken disciplinary measures to all who confess over such offenses however it has not borne much organic products. Rather, progressively ground-breaking and rough medication cartels have advanced and battle for control of the pathways utilized for dealing of the medications in the United States (Grayson, 2010). Instances of the illicit medications exchanged Mexico’s sedate cartels are known to control almost 70 percent of the absolute exchanged unlawful medications the United States. Among the significant medications exchanged incorporate, cannabis sativa and methamphetamine just as heroin. Moreover, it is evaluated that 90 percent of the absolute cocaine provided to the United States originate from Mexico having been delivered in Columbia. This is evaluated to win them around $13.6 billion to $48.4 billion on yearly premise. Ongoing examination discoveries uncover that the Mexican economy w ould drop significantly by 63 percent should medicate exchanging be cleared totally (Randal, 2009).Advertising We will compose a custom article test on The Mexican Drugs Cartels explicitly for you for just $16.05 $11/page Learn More Current cartels Apparently, there are two significant coalitions of street pharmacists in activity since February 2010; one made out of Tijuana cartel, Los Zetas, Juarez cartel and Beltrã ¡n-Leyva Cartel„„, and the other one made of Sinoloa cartel, Gulf and La Familia cartel (Randal, 2009). Transnational sorted out wrongdoing (TOC) It is additionally alluded to as transnational wrongdoing, which is arranged offense, rehearsed across national outskirts between states. Transnational sorted out wrongdoing is feared most as a result of its pernicious impact on national security influencing social, financial, and political advancement of the general public. A portion of the arranged offenses incorporate human dealing, dealing of guns, drugs deali ng, illegal tax avoidance, dealing of vagrants where the most common one is selling of medications which draws in immense benefits. There is a desperate requirement for the legislatures to participate with UNODC in finding an answer for the approaching issue just as forestall further improvement of these offenses (Fukumi, 2008). The expanded association in exchange between countries on account of modernization and globalization has cleared route for greater inclusion in crimes. Notwithstanding, the antiquated type of administration has stopped, supplanting it with free systems that are currently prevailing in the medications dealing. It has been seen that these sorted out wrongdoing â€Å"groups associated with tranquilize dealing are ordinarily occupied with pirating of other unlawful goods† (Stares, 1996). In fact, the battle against these settled or sorted out posses is a tough assignment since these gatherings are profoundly dug in and are difficult to unstick. A portion of the proposals to control their tasks may incorporate utilization of electronic contraptions to quick track the crooks, completing extemporaneous investigations of individuals and vehicles, ordering more tightly rules of uncovering crimes (Seelke, 2010). The impact after government impedance This produced results when Mexican President Felipe Calderon propelled war against drugs with an end goal to battle the fierce violations that were submitted by the medication dealers. Both the military powers and the police returned together to cut the severe homicides as security was an issue all over Mexico. In any case, this has not borne much accomplishment as defilement of the administration officials has prompted the lawbreakers being liberated (Randal, 2009).Advertising Searching for paper on government? We should check whether we can support you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Find out More The present status of the state is that of an awkward government which has no control over these hoodlums; in reality, the state is currently in alarm as severe blood shedding and savagery are the standard of the day as progressively amazing, wealthier and powerful packs of medications have come up to pay off the police power prompting heightening of wrongdoing. Be that as it may, the legislature has not surrendered; it is resolved to enroll progressively legitimate and dependable police and military powers to execute equity and great administration. The administration is likewise planning on setting up government police troops who might crusade against drugs as a method of improving the degenerate gatherings. The administration has brought about a great deal of costs in mission for security and harmony in Mexico. The war on drugs has so far antagonistically influenced the economy of Mexico as the administration attempts to control the approaching violations (Rakrf, 2008). Furthermor e, the Mexican government faces an incredible test of picking up trust in the state as medication dealing is such a great amount of dug in the peoples’ day by day life as it welcomes considerably more food on the table than some other wellspring of pay. End It is very certain that the battle against these types of composed wrongdoings will never end as long as the ordered laws have been penetrated or are not entrenched. The battle against its further entrance into the less common zones has not been effective. This may incompletely be ascribed to trouble among states to forestall utilization of hard medications, and somewhat in view of defilement among government authorities (Seelke, 2010). Progressively rigid laws ought to be upheld on the lawbreakers and medication arrangements ought to be reconsidered to guarantee there is no escape clause left for tranquilize dealers to work. Then again, the administration ought to endeavor to give the vital apparatus that is deficient in the general public, which makes them result to wrongdoings, just as attempt to dispense with joblessness, being worked on, neediness, over-populace, tribalism, natural hardship and absence of education (Stares, 1996). References Fukumi, S. (2008). Cocaine dealing in Latin America: EU and US approach reactions. Burlington: Ashgate Publishing Ltd. Grayson, G. (2010). Mexico: narco-brutality and a bombed state? Jersey: Transaction Publishers. Randal, C. A. (2009). Mexican Drug Cartel Violence Spills Over, Alarming U.S. The New York Times. Web. Rakrf, J. (2008). Calderon shields war on cartels. Web. Seelke, C. R. (2010). Latin America and the Caribbean: I

MIT Dorms Burton Conner House

MIT Dorms Burton Conner House So I suck at life and havent blogged in FOREVER. =( But! Im making up for it by putting tons of effort into this much-anticipated virtual tour of Burton-Conner. Seriously. I took literally about 70 pictures of the dorm before sorting, editing, and writing captions for them. So if you think the entry sucks, keep your mouth shut. =P First lets start with some dorm-wide facilties and common areas The first thing youll see when you walk into Burton-Conner is the front desk. The desk is staffed by BC residents who make sure anyone who doesnt actually live here checks in and out. The front desk is also where you can get your mail, find out if Mom sent you any care packages lately, check out a movie from the dorm collection, or borrow the pool cues/ping pong paddles/etc to use in the game and TV rooms. (More on those later.) The laundry room is conveniently labeled. Ta-da! The laundry room. Not much to say here, really, except that one use of a washer or dryer costs $0.75. And someone has an awful lot of clean socks they forgot to pick up. This is Burton-Conners newly painted spacious TV roomtheres a TV in there, I swear. On the other side of the room. Anyway, the TV room is a cool place to hang out with friends, watch TV or movies, or play on any of the game consoles the dorm has. I have no idea which ones they are, sorry. Seriously, the game room is a little sad and lonely looking these days. Not many people use it, but Ive definitely not studied for finals by playing game after game of pool down here. Any BC resident is free to use the weight room. Yay exercise! (Theres also a cardio room with a treadmill, exercise bike, and elliptical machine. But I couldnt remember the combo to unlock the door, so no pictures. But whatever, you probably already know what a treadmill looks like.) This is the Porter Room. Back in the day it used to be a dining hall, until the dorm got rid of it. Now were left with this big open, underused space. Dorm-wide meetings/social events/CPW stuff/Orientation parties are held here, and sometimes different groups and clubs (like small dance and theater groups) will request to use the space for practices or performances. My friend Becky 09 practices belly-dancing in there all the time. I know because she always has to borrow my CD player. This is the Burton-Conner library. Im not gonna lie, I dont think theres a single book in there that was published after 1962 or something. But theres a small Athena cluster and a study space with desks with those big anti-distraction walls. Its a good place to study without being tempted by your computer or TV or friends. Its also a good place to look for course bibles- collections of all the notes/psets/exams in a particular course from previous years. Plus, we recently elected two new library chairs who are going to try to breathe some life into that place. =) Not pictured: several music rooms for resident use. Im not remotely musical, so Ive never been in them. But I assure you they exist. Now, a little geography. All of these dorm-wide spaces I just showed you (except for the library) are on the ground floor. Above the ground floor is the first floor. Yeah, I know. This confuses a lot of people. There are no rooms on the ground floor of BC. So when someone says they live on Burton 1, they actually live on the second floor. Also, the dorm is split into two sides- Conner and Burton (big surprise). Theyre both in the same building, but arent directly connected- so Burton 2 and Conner 2 are technically on the same floor, but theres no way to get from one to the other without going down to the ground floor, over, and back up again. Also, there is no Conner 1. Conner 1 is taken up by the housemasters suite (a faculty member who lives in the dorm), a conference room, and the library- so no one actually lives there. And thats how Burton Conner has 6 floors and 9 living groups. =) If you end up living at BC next year (for real, after freshmen musical dorms), youll go through floor rush- each of the 9 floors will have free food and fun for you to enjoy. Its a chance to meet the upperclassmen and get to know each of the very different living groups before having to rank your preferences. Each floor has its own lounge and its own sense of style. Ive chosen some pictures to show off some of my favorite floor lounges and hallway decorations. The first picture in each set is the floors mural (each floor has one on its stairwell landing). Burton 4 Burton 4 has a pretty sweet entertainment system in their lounge, if you ask me. They also not only have a mural on their elevator doors, they have a punching bag in the main hallway so you can take out your pset frustrations in anon-violent way Burton Third. The Burton Third Bombers, as they call themselves, really like orange and black. Burton 1. Burton 1 has some pretty awesome murals in its hallways dont you think? Conner 4- my adopted hall. =) From the people who brought you toy gun fights and bicycle skiing the Conner 4 whiteboard always has a new, hilarious mad lib about C4 residents. Its probably good that you cant really read it. Im sure its not all entirely appropriate. Conner 3 Conner 3 has a huge projection screen instead of a TV in their lounge. They also decorate their hallways with collages of pictures from past years. Its a pretty neat look into the past. As for the actual living spaces themselves, the dorm is arranged in suites. Each suite consists of between 4 and 12 people (ish) who all share a suite lounge (separate from the floor lounge), a kitchen, and a bathroom. The 23 suite is the largest Conner-side suite. The 223 suite residents spruced up their lounge with some Christmas lights and a comic strip mural. The 224 suite has a huge dragon painted on their wall, and the 413 suite has decorated their walls with chalkboards they use to keep track of embarassing out-of-context quotes their friends make. In short, there are lots of ways to decorate your suite lounge. =) Meara 09 kindly poses for a photograph as she cooks dinner in her kitchen. Meara lives in the 12 suite, which is one of the smallest suites in the entire dorm. This kitchen is only shared by 4 people; all the other kitchens are larger than this. Id show you a picture of my kitchen butwell it needs to be cleaned. Plus, youve already seen them when I blogged about the freshman dinner. A bunch of 09s socialize in the 212 lounge while Meara cooks. This is my bathroom- which is shared by six people. On the opposite wall is a shelving unit for keeping all of our soaps/shampoos/miscellaneous hygeine products. Becky and Sam (both 09) have decorated their door with a pirate flag, which I think is cool enough to warrant a mention here. As for the rooms themselves- as a general rule, freshmen live in doubles and move into singles as sophomores. Of course, the number of rooms is set, but the number of people in the dorm changes, so sometimes it doesnt work out quite that nicely, but its a nice general rule. I wish I could show you more rooms, but there was barely anyone around when I was taking pictures. So youre stuck with all the old picures of my room- before and afer we painted it and before and after we got our futon. It looks pretty much the same as it did then, only messier. Hopefully Ill get some pictures of typical singles and post them. But mostly theyre just the like doublesonly smaller. So now that you know all about BC, go ahead and flood me with questions. Ill answer them all in my next entry (along with the old ones I havent answerd yet- I havent forgotten!) Edit: OK I lied. Im going to answer your questions in this entry as I get them. Here we go. Dima said: A few questions, because Im thinking this is where I want to live. Are there music practice rooms? Yup! I edited the entry just now to mention them. Also, do most entries have pool tables? And also, do the people in most entries cook dinner together? Youre confusing BC and MacGregor- were organized by floor, not entry. Also, all of the stuff I showed you on the ground floor- the TV room, the game room, etc- is shared by the entire dorm. None of the floors have their own pool tables, although I believe Burton 1 has their own air hockey table. Sometimes people will cook a big meal and share with the floor, and sometimes roommates shop/cook together, but in my experience most people dont cook in groups. And I know BC is probably really diverse as a whole, but what are some characterstics that the residents share, in general? I dont think theres an answer to that. Some other dorms have stereotypes attached to them- like thats where all the math majors/business majors/comp sci nerds/frat guys live, but BC is one big mix of everyone, which is why I like it so much. I dont think BC has much of a stereotype attached to it like other dorms, but maybe its just hard for me to notice because I live there. Id be interested to know what perceptions other MIT students have of the dorm- theyd probably be able to answer better than I can. And also, what dont you like about BC? Ill throw in a response to a question I got via email here- yes BC has mice, but theyre not any bigger or scarier than the mice in all the rest of the dorms. I think Ive seen one all year. They dont bother me so much. That said, we had tons of ants in the beginning of the year. Talk about gross. They went away for the winter and havent come back yet, so Im hopeful that the treatment they did over winter break is working. Post Tagged #Burton-Conner House

How Frida Kahlos Experiences Influences Her Artwork

Frida Kahlo was an amazing woman whose many tragedies influenced her to put her stories into her paintings. She was born in July 6th 1907 to a Mexican Roman Catholic mother who was of Indian and Spanish decent and a German photographer father. Frida had three sisters, Mitilde and Adriana, who were older and Christina who was younger. She learned about Mexican history, art and architecture by looking at her father’s photography. When Frida was six she got polio and it was a long time before she would heal completely. After surviving polio, Frida’s right leg became weak and thin, so her father encouraged her to play sports to help her. Frida was a very smart girl even though she missed a lots of school due to the polio. She had a†¦show more content†¦It showed her distaste of the United States in its industrial period which seemed very dirty and dull with the beauty of her beloved homeland with its vibrant colors and Aztec ruins. Another great painting she did wa s called â€Å"My Dress Hangs Here†. This painting, done during the Great Depression, also showed how unhappy Frida was in New York City. The dress alone without Frida in it shows of the way she felt wasn’t there and didn’t belong. It also shows how she saw America in its industrialism with all the big factory buildings and the trash can filled with over flowing trash. Frida did not like the fact that she and other famous people were still having parties and hanging out like nothing was happening. This made her long for her Mexico even more. Finally after 3 years, Frida and Diego moved back to Mexico. This was a time when Frida and Diego fought and argued a lot. Some of Frida’s greatest paintings would be painted during this time. Being back in Mexico allowed Frida to show how talented she truly was when Diego wasn’t always in the spot light, like he was when they were in the United States. Not only did she paint on canvas, she also painted on metals and wood which was going back to the roots of Mexican artwork. At this time she had to have more surgeries due to health problems from the accident earlier in her life. She also found out she could not have any children. TheseShow MoreRelatedKahlo And The Broken Column1199 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Æ' ‘Discuss how artworks express an artist’s emotions, memories and experiences.’ Make reference to two or more artworks by Frida Kahlo (1907-54) Artworks express an artist’s emotions, memories and experiences by the way they represent themselves in the artwork, this is seen by the Mexican artist Frida Kahlo (1907- 54). Kahlo was influenced by indigenous Mexican culture. This is shown by the use of bright colours and symbolism within her artworks. Kahlo was also influenced by many personal life experiencesRead MoreEssay On Frida Kahlo1342 Words   |  6 PagesFrida Kahlo was one of the most influential female artists in the twentieth century. Being a woman in a misogynistic career, Kahlo did not experience the fame she has today while she was still alive. Through her captivating paintings she reveals the dark side of life, relating to her own experiences. Many articles, bibliographies, movies, and even Frida Kahlo’s diary have been published for scholars, artists, and feminists to discuss the influence Kahlo had on art and society. Although the movieRead MoreComparing the Art Works of Frida Kahlo and Osamu Tezuk a907 Words   |  4 PagesArt Comparison A comparison of the works of Frida Kahlo and Osamu Tezuka based on their cultural significance. Introduction Art and culture are two heavily intertwined concepts. Art can be thought of as an expression of culture and sometimes the influence of art is so great that it can work to transform culture. Therefore the two concepts can have effects on each other that are somewhat cyclical in nature. The two concepts can also both be considered as different forms of expression justRead MoreFrida Kahlo Essay1353 Words   |  6 PagesFrida Kahlo was a half-mexican, half-hungarian painter of the 20th century born Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderà ³n in Coyoacà ¡n, Mexico City on July 6, 1907. During her short lived life, she had many accomplishments. She was a surrealist artist whos paintings reflected her thoughts and feelings. Her creative style was always amazing but confusing. Unfortunately, she lived most of her artistic life in the shadow of her husband, Diego Rivera, and her work was not truly recognized until after herRead More Frida Kahlo: Artist, Feminist, Rebel Essay3022 Words   |à ‚  13 Pages Frida Kahlo is a world-renowned Mexican painter known for her shocking self-portaits filled with painful imagery. Her artwork was seen by many as surrealist and socialist, but she refused the labels put on herself. Until today, her works have been able to exude the same playful and wild feel as before (Fisher n.p). Her legacy as a painter has attracted prominent people like Madonna who has confessed her admiration for the painter. Not only that but fashion designers are frequently inspired by herRead MoreFrida Kahlo Of The Face Of Suffering Essay1831 Words   |  8 PagesThe artwork Frida Kahlo completed during her lifetime was heavily influenced by the suffering triggered by the torment of her physical incapability’s and tumultuous marriage. From physical to romantic to family predicaments Frida Kahlo is the epitome of demonstrating â€Å"alegria [joy] in the face of suffering† (Herrera 6). Born the 6th of July in the year of 1907, Magdalena Carmen Frieda Kahlo was raised in a world with emerged with the cultures of German and Mexican. It was with the cultural influenceRead MoreA Bar At The Folies Bergere1572 Words   |  7 PagesOn the surface it may seem like artwork is meant to have a sole point of focus when viewed, but that is not always the case. Upon further analysis, there are many pieces with multiple significant aspects beyond the initial big picture. While influence may span certain time periods, it is not limited by style, century, or location. Seventeenth century work by artists such as Indian artist Bichitr, Chinese artist Wang Hui, and Spanish artist Diego Velazquez contain examples of this despite their barriersRead MoreHow I Paint My Own Reality2134 Words   |  9 Pagesthe state of self as an individual, personal experiences and who one is outside of collective assembly. Adversely, social identity takes into consideration position in society and belo nging in groups. These may include gender, class and ethnicity among others and shape a person’s sense of self in terms of how much power and social standing they have. Cultural identity is expression of culture and surroundings, like beliefs and traditions. In her art, Frida Kahlo explores all these aspects of who sheRead MoreFrida Kahlo : A Modern Cultural Icon2048 Words   |  9 PagesFrida Kahlo is one of the definitive Latina women in the history of the world. Her image and art are synonymous with the Latin American experience and she is an inspiration to many Latin Americans today. Her life and image have been co-opted by so many people over the years after her death that her life has become a post-modern cultural icon. If you look at Frida’s life, she can be whatever you want her to be. She can be seen as an inspirational artist, Diego Rivera’s wife, a revolutionary, a communistRead MoreAnalysis Of Frida Kahlo2070 Words   |  9 Pagescomes to my chosen artist, Frida Kahlo, her portraits could not be a better example of that saying. All of the 200 paintings done by Frida Kahlo say more about her life and what she experienced than any article I have ever read about her. From her health issues and violent bus accident to her tumultuous marriage with her husband, Diego Rivera is all an influence in her paintings. I chose Frida Kahlo because I believe her paintings are not just something that came to her mind with no real meaning

Mass Percentage - Definition and Example

Mass percentage is one way of representing the concentration of an element in a compound or a component in a mixture. Mass percentage is calculated as the mass of a component divided by the total mass of the mixture, multiplied by 100%. Also Known As: mass percent, (w/w)% Mass Percentage Formula Mass percent is the mass of the element or solute divided by the mass of the compound or solute. The result is multiplied by 100 to give a percent. The formula for the amount of an element in a compound is: mass percent (mass of element in 1 mole of compound / mass of 1 mole of compound) x 100 The formula for a solution is: mass percent (grams of solute / grams of solute plus solvent) x 100 or mass percent (grams of solute / grams of solution) x 100 The final answer is given as %. Mass Percentage Examples Example 1: Ordinary bleach is 5.25% NaOCl by mass, which means each 100 g of bleach contains 5.25 g NaOCl. Example 2: Find the mass percentage of 6 g sodium hydroxide dissolved in 50 g of water. (Note: since the density of water is nearly 1, this type of question often gives the volume of water in milliliters.) First find the total mass of the solution: total mass 6 g sodium hydroxide 50 g watertotal mass 56 g Now, you can find the mass percentage of the sodium hydroxide using the formula: mass percent (grams of solute / grams of solution) x 100mass percent (6 g NaOH / 56 g solution) x 100mass percent (0.1074) x 100answer 10.74% NaOH Example 3: Find the masses of sodium chloride and water required to obtain 175 g of a 15% solution. This problem is a bit different because it gives you the mass percentage and asks you to then find how much solute and solvent are needed to yield a total mass of 175 grams. Start with the usual equation and fill in the given information: mass percent (grams solute / grams solution) x 10015% (x grams sodium chloride / 175 g total) x 100 Solving for x will give you the amount of NaCl: x 15 x 175 / 100x 26.25 grams NaCl So, now you know how much salt is needed. The solution consists of the sum of the amount of salt and water. Simply subtract the mass of salt from the solution to obtain the mass of water that is required: mass of water total mass - mass of saltmass of water 175 g - 26.25 gmass of water 147.75 g Example 4: What is the mass percent of hydrogen in water? First, you need the formula for water, which is H2O. Next you look up the mass for 1 mole of hydrogen and oxygen (the atomic masses) using a periodic table. hydrogen mass 1.008 grams per moleoxygen mass 16.00 grams per mole Next, you use the mass percentage formula. The key to performing the calculation correctly is to note there are 2 atoms of hydrogen in each water molecule. So, in 1 mole of water there are 2 x 1.008 grams of hydrogen. The total mass of the compound is the sum of the mass of the two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. mass percent (mass of element in 1 mole of compound / mass of 1 mole of compound) x 100mass percent hydrogen [(2 x 1.008) / (2 x 1.008 16.00)] x 100mass percent hydrogen (2.016 / 18.016) x 100mass percentage hydrogen 11.19%

Scarlet Letter Images Free Essays

Joseph Gurke 10. 17. 2012 Ms. We will write a custom essay sample on Scarlet Letter Images or any similar topic only for you Order Now Boas P. 1 The Scarlet Letter Light, Dark, Sunlight and Shadows Throughout his entire life, Nathaniel Hawthorne had lived in seclusion from people and society, isolating himself and his thoughts behind a mysterious shade. This may explain why the themes of sin, secrecy and guilt are used in Hawthorne’s fiction, exploring hidden human dimensions. The images of sin, secrecy, and guilt are constantly portrayed in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, The Scarlet Letter, through the presence of recurring motifs of light and dark, sunlight and shadows; as these themes aid the reader’s depiction of the separation between evil and goodness. Images of light are seen throughout the novel The Scarlet Letter. These images illuminate a character’s true intention and personality, yet at the same time, force a character to hide certain aspects of his personality while under the public eye. The view of Hester on the scaffold, when she is receiving her punishment for adultery in front of the public eye, the image of light illuminates her scarlet letter and sin; liberating Hester from public judgment and the pain of concealing sin, â€Å"Those who had before known her, and had expected to behold her dimmed and obscured by a disastrous cloud, were astonished, and even startled, to perceive how here beauty shown out, and made a halo of the misfortune and ignominy in which she was enveloped. † (49). The fact the Hester’s sin is known to all and that she is stands tall with her baby in her arms and the scarlet letter on her chest shows that she no longer needs to conceal anything from the public eye, â€Å"And never had Hester Prynne appeared more lady-like, in the antique interpretation of the term, than as she issued from the prison. † (49). After being revealed to the public, Hester must now live in isolation with nature, self-reliance and non-conformity being the ethics in her life; yet having the relief of wearing sin on her chest. Sunlight is a naturally occurring light and one that reflects goodness and pureness in characters. It is a positive image, representing cleanliness and lack of sin in this novel. When in the forest with Pearl, the sunlight avoids Hester completely while she carries the scarlet letter on her chest, â€Å"Mother,† said little Pearl, â€Å"the sunshine does not love you. It runs away and hides itself, because it is afraid of something on your bosom. . . . It will not flee from me; for I wear nothing on my bosom yet! †(161). When she removes the letter, sunlight flows into the forest, bringing everything to light and removing any shadows present, â€Å"So speaking, she undid the clasps that fastened the scarlet letter, and, taking it from her bosom, through it to a distance among the withered leaves. † (191) â€Å"All at once, as with the sudden smile of heaven, forth burst the sunshine, pouring a very flood into the obscure forest, gladdening each green leaf, transmuting the yellow fallen ones to gold, and gleaming adown the grey trunks of the solemn trees. The objects that had made a shadow hitherto, embodied the brightness now. †(191). The sunlight represents cleanliness; washing sin, secrecy and guilt from characters, allowing them to feel a sense of freedom, â€Å"Her sex, her youth, and the whole richness of her beauty†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (190). With the absence of the scarlet letter, sunlight floods the forest and surrounding area around Hester and Dimmesdale, removing any shadows, which represent evil and bondage, and with this flood of sunshine comes a new feeling of freedom for both, exactly what sunshine represents in the text, â€Å"And as if the gloom of the earth and the sky had been but the effluence of those two mortal hearts, it vanished with their sorrow. (190). Darkness is a constant theme in this novel, representing guilt, sin and secrecy, major themes that Nathaniel Hawthorne incorporates into his literature. Dimmesdale, Hester and Pearl meet on the scaffold, under the darkness of night and shadows, the only time that Dimmesdale can express his sin and evil, â€Å"Mr. Dimmesdale reached the spot wher e, now so long since, Hester Prynne had lived through her first hours of public ignominy. † (133). The scaffold shows the irony of Hester and Dimmesdale’s situation because Hester, in the daylight reveals her sin to the town and could be freed from the bondage of hiding sin, and now Dimmesdale, after seven years is revealing his sin on the scaffold to only Hester at night, still feeling the pain of bondage and concealment of this sin. It is the only time that Dimmesdale, Hester’s lover and Pearl’s father ever embraces them and can openly reveal his sin, but the darkness does not allow him to be free. The minister felt for the child’s other hand and took it. The moment that he did so, there came what seemed tumultuous rush of new life, other life than his own, pouring like a torrent into his heart, and hurrying through his veins, as if the mother and child were communicating their vital warmth to his half-torpid system. The three formed and electrical chain. † (142). This love that the minister feels frees him of his bondage and cleanses his soul for a moment in time, yet this moment is enveloped back by the surrounding darkness that takes all hope of escape from him. Hester experienced this escape on the same scaffold that they are on yet in the light that allowed her to live the rest of her life without this bondage to sin, that under darkness, the minister cannot be free. Light, dark, shadows and sunlight, are all motifs that Nathaniel Hawthorne uses to describe different types of emotions in the text. Light and its more natural form in sunlight reflect the goodness in characters and the ability to be free from bondage with nothing holding you back, no pain of concealing sin. While one the other hand darkness and shadows allow the characters to reflect their emotions and reveal sin, but under darkness these emotions and secrets will not reach anyone else and will keep characters like Dimmesdale in bondage and pain. Works Cited Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. New York: Bantam Books, 1986. Print. How to cite Scarlet Letter Images, Essay examples

Week 8 and 9 Assignment free essay sample

Glam rock was characterized as a form of rock that was performed by male performers who wore makeup and very feminine clothing. Many glam rock bands had very elaborate stage shows and costumes and were also known to make many references to both sexuality and drugs in their performances and lyrics. In addition to the sexual references, glam rock was also known for its gender ambiguity as well as depictions of androgyny. Glam rock bands also featured many exaggerated themes during their performances, such as horror or science fiction. The artistic element of glam rock, which had heavy focuses on visual style and showmanship, changed the rock scene of the 1970s. 1. Describe what is meant by counterculture and psychedelia. What are some of the important elements of the hippie worldview? How can music be psychedelic? The word â€Å"psychedelia† is a reference to the many new ways that people are able to experience the world. We will write a custom essay sample on Week 8 and 9 Assignment or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The mid 1950s was a time where teenagers truly experienced a youth culture that was clearly different and distinguishable from the culture of adults. The â€Å"counterculture† refers to the clear separation from adult culture during the mid 1960s. It was a term associated with the hippie worldview that was dedicated to cultural change through the use of music as the main medium. Since drugs helped people to a state of higher consciousness, it was perceived as a big influence on providing young people that new worldview. Rock became more psychedelic through its promotion of drug trips, which led people on spiritual journeys and achieving that higher consciousness they had sought. The more psychedelic rock became, the spacier and longer the tracks became to its listeners.

Free Rational in Buying Economics Essay

Free Rational in Buying Economics Essay Rational in Buying Introduction Branding is all about creating differences. Brands identify the source or marker of a product and allow consumers to assign responsibility to that particular manufacturer or service. The four steps to a strong brand are: Create brand identity. Establish brand meaning. Develop the correct customer response. Most importantly, create an intense, active loyalty relationship with customers. This is called brand relationship. A brand is judged by its salience, performance, imagery, judgment, and resonance. Advertising companies through their dedicated and professional work develops a brand. To understand the rationale in buying within the various demographics (the focus of this study will be on those in the 12-18, 30-45 and over 55 aged groups), this paper first takes a look at the role of brands and its position within the 4Ps of marketing, before evaluating its influence on the various demographics. The 4 Ps of marketing refer to Product, Place, Promotion, and Price. Each of these elements plays an important role in the success of a brand and has direct influence on the demographics mentioned herein. What is the concept of brand personality? No product or company can survive competition or sustain its identity without asserting itself on two basic components in marketing: Image, and people. If not managed properly, these components can break a brand. Brands and people have to be owned, nurtured and developed by an organisation. They are the ultimate differentiators and value creators. Companies such as Pepsi, Coca cola, Levis, and Cadburys are examples of well managed brand companies. So powerful is a brand, that unless harnessed properly, sustainability, popularity, and growth of the product can be at stake. Elements that affect an individual's relationship with a brand are: Relationship between the product and the customer, and the personality the brand associates itself with. The consumer obviously would like the personality traits to be that of his own. Characteristics that brands would like to associate with are a sense of dependability, understanding, and caring; a friend who is always there to care, respect, comfort, and enjoy (Brand Personality-The relationship Basis Model, groups.haas.berkeley.edu). It was thought that companies were responsible was the creation of a brand, or its managers and planners, but the reality is far from these. Brands are created by ordinary people like us. It is the extent to which it makes sense and the role it plays in a consumers life that builds a brand. There are two questions which should be asked: How different are these brands, and how relevant is it to us, as consumers? A product becomes a brand not when it talks about itself, but when people talk about it. Every single thing that one does builds a brand. Executive Summary The three key elements of demographic segmentation variables are age, gender and the life cycle. Age is an important demographic variable in brand development and sales, as purchases vary from one demographic to another. Those in the age group of 12-18 would have a different view of a product than those in the 30-45 age brackets. This can change again with those 50 and above. So, how do marketers identify the needs of these age groups, and what are the parameters by which they can gauge the right demographic for expanding their market and brand? Today, most consumers are aware of his/her rights and are well informed. Television, newspapers and magazines have only contributed to their better understanding of the world around them. Internet has gone a step ahead in educating and promoting awareness at the click of a button. So knowledgeable is todays consumer that it becomes difficult for manufacturers and producers to associate themselves with them. However, there are certain influenc es that demarcate these demographics, the 4Ps of marketing namely, product, place, promotion, and price. These elements have a direct impact on a consumers buying rationale. In order to understand the topic on a consumers buying rationale on the three demographics, this paper explores the importance of branding, and the role of the 4Ps in influencing the buying behaviour.. Three age groups are considered for this analysis; 12-18, 30-45 and those over 55. The primary objective of this paper will be to research the factors that contribute to consumer buying rationale, and then focus on the effect of this on those in the 12-18 ages demographic. Branding and the 4Ps of Marketing Branding is an integral part of marketing. Consumers rely on information to judge a product before buying it. A consumer would weigh the options available to suit his/her need. This is what branding does. Branding is a process employed by manufacturers to convince their customers that their product is about the only thing that provides a solution to their need. The objective of branding is to convey a clear message, ensure credibility, identify with the consumer, motivate the buyer, and develop a strong bond or product loyalty. For this, it is imperative that the company knows the needs and wants of its customers (Lake.L, Lesson 1 in the Developing your Brand's Strategy Course, What is Branding and How Important is it to Your Marketing Strategy? marketing.about.com). So, how do we define branding? Branding is the process by which both a brand and brand identity are developed. Brand stands for name, and brand identity for uniqueness. It is these traits that appeals to the consumer (Definition of Branding on the web, www.wompro.com). Customers have different tastes and not all have the same loyalty for a particular brand. The same is the case with demographics. A brand that may be popular to one segment of demographic need not necessarily be a favourite of another. When such a situation arises, market planners need to work overtime to identify their product to a particular segment of demographic and plan their strategy. This is where 4Ps of marketing come in. Product, product promotion, placing of the product, and pricing of the product are an intrinsic part of marketing. Brand alone will not help sell products, they need to be positioned and priced properly to attract greater market segment. The 4Ps of Marketing The 4 Ps of marketing are in more than one way interdependent. They together help customers in making purchase decisions. If planned properly, 4Ps can also help companies identify the right segment of customers. Consumer buying behaviour is dependent on the following factors: Culture influences: Influenced by parents, brothers, sisters and other family members, they are taught what is wrong or right. Personal References: Friends or people they look up to may influence their choices of purchasing a particular product or service Economical background: Do they have a secure job and a regular income to spend on goods? Marketing and Advertising: Product awareness and branding. Social Status: Can have deep impact on buying behaviour. Parents can influence their children; professionals will have their own opinion. (Factors influencing the behaviour of buyers, Learn Marketing.com, www.learnmarketing.net) In order overcome these factors and attract consumers, marketing gurus employ the 4Ps of marketing. This not only helps companies develop a brand and instigate consumer buying behaviour, it also helps companies identify their target audience. Cultural and social influences have a negative effect on the 12-18 demographic groups. Economically too, these youngsters are dependent. They have a strong understanding of the product and brands, yet their ability to take independent decisions is truncated. However, those in the 30-45 ages demographic are more independent and can pursue their personal preferences. They are economically, socially, and culturally independent. They can thus be targeted by companies easily. The only problem with this segment is that they are not brand loyal and not easily attracted by brand. Those in the 55 and above demographic are active buyers. Necessity is their forte. In the face of this revelation, market pundits find the young 12-18 demographic to be their v alued targeted customers. They are brand loyal. Thus 4Ps have a broader meaning in branding and consumer buying behaviour. A product must satisfy a consumers need. It comes with a cost. Production costs must be kept in check and at the same time quality should not be compromised on. A brand must keep its consumers interest in mind always. Price is next. Price escalation takes place when a product moves through the distribution channel. A manufacturer's selling price becomes a distributor's cost price. This hurts dealers who end up paying more to the distributor. Ultimately, this affects competition and sales. This escalation in prices forces many consumers to look elsewhere. There are many strategies employed by companies to beat competition. There are some who find it hard to offer at reduced price because of brand. There are others who reduce their price in the face of stiff competition. Then there are those who, while retaining their image, launch products that are branded but service a different segment of demographic. Thus, price plays an important role in a consumers buying behaviour. Place can also determine price. Factors like who the final consumer will be and what he or she looks for must be considered. Where does a consumer look when shopping? Having an automobile showroom far from the city may not be the ideal location. It could involve additional transportation costs leading to more price escalation. Is it well connected and accessible or will additional expenses accrue in moving the products to this place? Distribution is affected. Time and money is lost. These are questions that must be addressed to control cost escalation and service customers properly. Promotion relates to publicity. Promotion can take many forms: advertising in various media, events, press releases, trade shows, brochures, flyers, internet and so on. This is where a company focuses on projecting itself and its product. Promotion creates awareness, the first step to sales. Thus, branding and 4Ps play a vital role in consumer buying rationale. This paper focuses on Levis for its research on consumer buying rationale. Levis was selected for the research as its products serve all demographics in 12-18 age group, 30-45 age group, and those above 55. The outcome of the research reflects the influence of branding and 4ps on the various groups (Volker.M, Marketing 4Ps of Marketing, www.sfu.ca). The Company Sal Herman, the creator of Sloops Blue Jeans, would never have imagined that his denim jeans would take the world by storm. The most popular brand the world over denim caters to both the young and old since the 1960's. "Denim is one of the world's oldest fabrics, yet it remains eternally young" declared an American fashion magazine. Denim's popularity was on the rise. It was stronger and more expensive than jean, and though the two fabrics were very similar in many ways, they did have one major difference: denim was made of one colored thread and one white thread; jean was woven of two threads of the same color. Levi Strauss came to San Francisco to open a branch of his brothers' New York dry goods business. He spent time learning the fabric trade in New York before launching his own business that spelt success and made a name for himself. This even instigated people to consider him to be the founder of today's blue jeans, an acknowledgement that is well appreciated by millions of people the world over. Jacob Davis a regular customer of Levis, used to bolts of cloth from the wholesale house of Levi Strauss Co. He introduced metal rivets at the point of strains and looked to Levi Strauss as a business partner for this unique design. Levi, an astute businessman, saw the potential for this new product and agreed to Jacob's proposal. On May 20, 1873, the two men received patent #139,121 from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Although denim pants had been around at work, worn for many years, it was the first use of rivets that created todays jeans. Jeans began to appear in western cowboy movies and this inculcated more interest in the wear. James Dean and Fonz can be credited for bringing the casuals into fashion for teenagers in the 60's. Jacob Davis took charge of manufacturing when Levi Strauss Co. opened its two factories in San Francisco. The denim for the riveted pants was brought from Amoskeag Mill in Manchester, New Hampshire. Durability was the magic word. People began to accept the denim jeans in a big way and began sporting them to work. Sometime in the 1890s, these pants were so popular that they were assigned the serial number 501 by Levi Strauss Co, a number that exists to this day. Levi Strauss Co. was the only company allowed to make riveted clothing (jean pants and jackets) until the patent went into the public domain around 1891. With the expiry of the patent, began a revolution that saw many garment manufacturers imitating the riveted clothing made by Levi Strauss Co. Sloops Jeans have these same pocket seam rivets and are a direct descendant of the original pair made in 1873. Thanks to Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis, the blue jean has become a household name today (History of the Blue Jeans, The h istory behind Sloops Blue denim jeans started in the 17th Century, www.sloops.com). Analysis Based on the Marketing Research figure No.1 in Appendix of Investigation into different age demographics and rational in the buying behaviour, Levis is an apparel company that launched their successful Levis brand of jeans in the United States in the early 1890s. The jeans have been popular wear with all, especially in age groups of 12-18 and 30-45. There are those die-hards who still swear their loyalty to Levis. It was stronger and more expensive than most other jean. There were two fabrics that were used to make these apparels. Denim was made of one colored thread and one white thread; jean was woven of two threads of the same color. Levis chose to wed the two fabrics milling techniques and used the best grade cotton, of which one thread was dyed indigo blue and the other white. This technique is synonymous of todays jeans. What was it that made Levis a success with all age groups? How and why was Levis accepted without a fight? The success of Levis can be attributed to three distinct features: Colour Reliability Style While blue is the hallmark of all jeans, Levis had used a mixture of indigo blue and laced it with white. This gave their product distinct uniqueness. The combination was an instant hit. People of all ages could relate their style and work by wearing this. School and college goers found jeans most suited to their lifestyle, rugged and carefree. The blue colour gave the students unlimited scope to innovate with other colour shirts and tops. Black, brown, green, white, orange, red, and yellow tops and T-shirts went well with the jeans. The rugged look also appealed to their senses. Thus, Levis had the measure of the youth with their branded product. Levis had created a brand image that reflected the youth. A Levis jean was known for its reliability. The jeans were made of very strong fabric that could resist pressure and strong wash. This appealed to the other age group of 30-45 office goers. Many people found that they could ill afford to work under trying conditions in ordinary pants. Many were faced with the prospect of working under severe physical condition and most wear restricted their movement. Also the fact that many had to be content with limited resources also made it impossible to fill their wardrobe. Thus, they found that Levis suited their demand and position and were immediately attracted to it. Thus, Levis could break into two age groups with their business acumen. A consumers buying behaviour is as intrinsic as a jigsaw puzzle. There are a lot of internal and external factors that propagate an individuals thought. It could be either an individual thought or it could be a result of their immediate surroundings. Consumers are aware of their need and will analyse a product before deciding on what to buy, where to buy, when and how to buy. In general, consumers look for quality, price, and other benefits before deciding on it. These are internal factors that consumers are knowledgeable of. External factors are decisions that are enforced on consumers. Brand plays an important part in a consumers buying pattern. Most consumers are strongly affected by brand imagery and quality of the product. To cater to the 12-18 aged consumers, Levis had to understand the rationale in their buying behaviours. It took them some time to understand the reason for their business decline. Levis had to deviate from their time-tested marketing strategies. What is brand equity? To understand the brand equity, the following pyramid shows how advertisers develop a brand. Brand Pyramid Brand Resonance Most reliable. Brand judgement/Feelings an attractive and comfortable piece of fabric woven to perfection. Brand Performance/Imagery A Quality product. Reassuringly Expensive Brand Salience Best jeans for your money. To achieve a Brand Resonance is the dream of all companies. Levis has grown from strength to strength over the years. Today, the jean is worn as a formal wear as well. This only goes to say that people have accepted Levis as a truly multifunctional product. Levis made adjustments to capture the younger generation by introducing a range of lower priced products to supplement the premium range because the premium market was definitely smaller in terms of size. This had to be done to sustain their presence in all the sectors. In America, Levis answer to expanding customer base and strengthening brand loyalty was to create an entirely new business within Levi Strauss Co that would build on the proven Levi heritage and address an unidentified market. They began by directing their premium jeans in value channels like Target and Wal-Mart. The 150-year-old Levi Strauss Co. was losing ground because of a weakening product and poor customer knowledge. The company was losing ground due to market lapses. They were not paying attention to customer needs. A brand needs to understand the consumer needs. No individual is alike, but to enjoy a better market share, the company needed to study the buying rationale of its customers. From adolescents to the middle aged, these were the people Levis was targeting. They had to plan a strategy to bring back their customers. New brands came along with sexier fits and better fabrics. This was done after they conducted surveys with these age groups to figure out the size of the existing market, their fit, styles and prices that would improve their share without hurting their parent brand. We had a different product and a different archetype, said Scott LaPorta, President and General Manager of US Levi Strauss Signature Brand. He is of the strong belief that the new Levis Strauss Signature jeans stood for strong family values; high quality at affordable price, while the older brand represented individuality and adventure ( Farah, CMO, The Resource for Marketing Executives, How the LPGA and Levi Strauss Signature Brands Built Customer Loyalty and New Brands, www.cmomagazine.com). The Image of a Brand, in the eyes of the consumer, may also act as a so called filter or perception of good or bad products. This is easily influenced by marketing variables and/or other social influences over which the commercial marketer has limited control. Premium Branding has enabled producers to establish consumer loyalty, increase consumer and customer awareness and develop and establish extensions of the brand. This makes branding a paramount element of Marketing Strategy, although it was always demanding a great deal of long-term investment, especially for advertising, promotion and packaging (Phillip Cotter 2003). Marketing What is marketing and how does marketing sustain the awareness of a brand? Can advertising agencies give a brand the impetus to grow and be a part of a household? Ask an OM executive and his immediate response would be yes. Companies are all the time competing with others for space, and to have that cutting edge in the market seek the guidance of professionals who can change the complex of a product by spicing it up. The consumer of today is well educated and knowledgeable. They expect and seek quality. So, do brands really sell by themselves? We come across numerous advertisements endorsed by celebrities. Celebrities like Tiger Woods, Maria Sharapova, David Beckham, and even Ronald Reagan to name a few, endorsed products to create a brand. What marketing gurus need to look at is the services that the company can offer its customers and at what price. We have seen that the needs of those in the age demographics of 12-18 and 30-45 are different. So, what is it that will sell and attra ct these groups? With competition getting bigger, companies are forced to seek new avenues to fight to sustain their image and product in the market. What do advertising agencies offer these companies to enhance their share of the market? Most advertising companies provide all or most of the services like PR, Strategic marketing, Media support, Client servicing, Creative writing, Account planning and Event Management. Public Relations relates to image makers. Advertising agencies offer constant monitoring of competitive advertisements and provide the much needed insights into market trends. Branding Branding is all about creating differences. When a product is given a name, logo, or a symbol it is said to be branded. Brands identify the source or marker of a product and allow consumers to assign responsibility to that particular manufacturer or service. A brand is judged by its salience, performance, imagery, judgment, feeling and finally resonance. Whether the brand ultimately became the number one is debatable. How does a product sustain itself? Simple! Get customers to buy the product over and over again. Is it that simple to have consumers buying the same product over a period of time, despite new products coming into the market? Definitely not! Levis shot to the top for a while before losing ground. Becoming the number one is one thing and sustaining that position is another. The fact is that every brand in every position, whether a number one or a number seven, needs to keep running at the same pace as the other, to remain where it is. No brand becomes a number one overnight unless, of course, it is like Milkmaid, which was a first of its kind in concept. All brands start at positions that are far below in the pecking hierarchy of brands in their respective category. Slowly, but steadily, through relevant inputs of the branding kind, brands raise higher and higher in their category stakes. What consumers look for is reliability and the assurance of a brand. For a brand to be considered number one, it should have high brand equity and high sales volume. It is these factors that determine the confidence in a consumer. It is nice to select number one brands. It should be done in a systematic fashion with inputs from consumers because brands are made for them. This is what advertising agencies strive to deliver for their clients. Every advertising agency strives to attain this goal for their clients. Retail Modern retail is supposed to be complicated business. And we are not just talking about managing a supply chain involving hundreds of suppliers or managing store inventory running into thousands of SKUs (stock-keeping units). Retail is supposed to be complicated for one simple reason: One can never really tell what your customers want. Thats why giant retailers like Wal-Mart and Target spend millions of dollars running sophisticated computer systems that not just track what gets and what doesnt get sold, but the time, place and identity of the buyer. That way, retailers get to push their stocks faster and better. The idea to good advertising and marketing is in studying consumer behaviour. Consumer behaviour is quite unpredictable at times, but on most cases, its just a question of getting the basics right. Advertising agencies draw up plans from time-to-time to woo consumers to these malls. Attractive gifts and discounts offered lure the middle-class strata of society. Strategy It is proven that those in the age bracket of 25-40 have more buying power than others, because of the fact that they are active earners, have relatively liberal social views, and this demographic segment of people outnumber the other age demographics. However, they are impulsive buyers with low brand loyalty. Levi's looked to tap into pop culture to move its merchandise. The move was seen necessary to attract the 12-18 age demographics. Retailers and Merchandisers teamed up to identify the music that was the perfect premium to entice their broad target market. BMG was entrusted the job to identify, confirm, and execute the program and recommend list of songs and artists specifically selected to excite the target market. The end product comprised of three discs for $1.99, with every purchase of $35 or more in Levi's merchandise. This ensured that the teens were receiving a quality product along with three good CDs. These CDs featured video enhancements, special codes allowing the experience of an online chat with Christina Aguilera (one of the artists) herself, game pieces and special links to Sears, Levi's and the artist's Web sites. According to Britton, these are the kind of extras that make promotional products span all age groups within the teen market. "These are successful because, not only is the activity fun, teens can associate it with hanging out with their friends, and if you can tie in something that is going to relate to them and their friends, it's going to hit much closer to home" he continued. It's certainly not hard to imagine a group of teens heading to Sears, not only to buy their clothes and get their CDs together, but also to head home to schedule their chat with their favorite music star together. The CD promotion was a great success for Sears and Levi's, with more than 750,000 CDs distributed over the lifespan of the program. Britton also said that concert tickets, entrances to festivals, a night on the town in a limo, were the kind of experiences teens dream of and get excited about. This does however have a legal tangle; "While teens are more tech-savvy these days, they are still not adults, and as a responsible brand, you have to raise the bar on your level of communication with younger people. "Companies need to be clear about the real ch ances to win and what teens really have to do to participate, and maybe the fine print should be a little bit bigger, so to speak". Companies dealing with kids below 14 years need to deal with their parents as well. If any kind of direct marketing is involved with children below 14 years, COPPA laws states clearly that they have to get their parents assent to get the e-mail address. By marketing to teens a lot more can be gained. It is here that greater opportunity to build a lifetime brand loyalty among teenagers begins. It may seem easy to say but the fact that in order to keep the targeted teens loyal to the brand, strategies need to develop simultaneously. Consumer behaviour and buying trend needs to be monitored from time-to-time. Coca-Cola, according to Britton, is an example to emulate. "Coke has done a great job. That company starts with the teens, takes them all the way up to adulthood, and back to nostalgia," he says (Back to School, September 2, 2003, potentialsmag.com) . Recommendations Thus, the research on the three age demographics revealed that by employing strategies, they could sustain their operations and profits. The outcome pointed to the following points in determining consumer buying rationale. These factors directly or indirectly led to the buying rationale of those in the age groups of 12-18, 30-45, and 50 and above. These factors are: Culture and society Consumers personal involvement in buying, and motivation patterns The consumers brand perception Social background Models of consumer behaviour need to be studied Motivation 4Ps Market planners must initiate action to identify consumer needs and want. Branding is a method to induce a purchase. Meticulous planning and the use of the 4Ps will help companies overcome difficulties and help sustain business. Companies need to identify their market segment and work to build on their image. Price, place, promotions, and product, not necessarily in that order, need to be made more consumers centric. This will only help overcome competition. Conclusion Companies can learn from the strategies adopted by Levis. Levis had from the beginning targeted the 12-18 ages demographic, and worked on bringing them into its strong consumer base. This age demographic is more brands loyal and this was a point of contention for Levis to target this segment. To win them over, Levis had to cut price and at the same time produce quality Levis brand jeans. This they did by cutting overheads, designing equally good jeans at lower costs, while at the same time maintaining their trademark brand for their more high class customers. They did away with franchise and opened their own outlets to minimise costs and made elaborate arrangements to cut into logistics. This way, Levis was able to control price escalation and maintain their loyal consumer base.

Transition to Full-time Freelance Writing Just Took a Bit of Math

Transition to Full-time Freelance Writing Just Took a Bit of Math Like many people who want to write for a living, I was much better in English class than math. But, once I crafted a loosely-defined mathematical equation about freelance writing income, I easily transitioned into full-time  freelance writing. I began writing professionally as a side gig in 1990, working other non-writing jobs for steady income. I then began working in writing-related jobs while growing my freelance business- and then became fully self-employed when I created the following mix of income streams:   Ã‚     Creating content for clients of digital marketing agencies   Ã‚     Creating content for clients where I directly contract with them   Ã‚     Writing books   Ã‚     Teaching/consulting/mentoring/speaking gigs   Ã‚     Editing content   Ã‚     Doing creative writing projects Here are benefits of each. Digital Marketing Agency Content Digital marketing agencies are companies that offer blogging and copywriting services, among other offerings such as SEO, to clients. Often, they get more writing work than they can handle, so they outsource it. To find agencies in my state, I’d type this in Google: digital marketing agencies Ohio. I’d then click on the Google Map that shows up and contact numerous agencies that show up. I’ve also found opportunities at FreelanceWritingGigs.com. With this type of work, I’m given monthly writing assignments from the agencies, often for several of their clients, and then I get paid directly from the agency: one monthly invoice, one monthly check per agency for me. Directly Contracting with Clients Typically, I can get a higher rate when I work directly with a client, which is a plus. So, you can make more money Writing books At any given time, I like to have a book in some stage of development. To date, I’ve traditionally published 14 (and I’m considering self-publishing a book of poetry). The advantage of including book publishing in the mix is that you can gain fairly significant publicity for your work through being an author, plus this is one of the best ways to get speaking gigs- plus there is the income from book sales. I wouldn’t want to rely solely on royalties and book signings, but it plays a role. I find that books appealing to niche audiences to be the most in demand. These include Hidden History of Lorain County, About Boomerangs: America’s Silent Sport and Joe Jackson: A

Usage Of Cloud Computing In IT-Sphere Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Usage Of Cloud Computing In IT-Sphere - Essay Example To understand the concerns, insights and popularity of cloud computing by both private and public sectors, not only currently but also on the future perspective, IT Professionals conduct statistics and conclude suggestions and likely future predictions to comprehend their observations and understandings for current and future implementation of cloud computing and what IT assessment makers need to consider. With the growth in applications and infrastructure that support and collaborates with cloud computing, the growth trend in its acceptance, use and promotion are likely to give rise to a whole new dimension in Information Technology’s system delivery (Sosinsky, 2011). E-mail, web conferencing etc. are the most common collaboration services which use cloud services. Currently, 92% of large enterprises use a minimum of one cloud service while on average each enterprise has 6 applications usage to the cloud. IaaS and PaaS in the cloud are increasing as 42% of future implementations of clouds indicate 6 more applications. This owes to the immense current and future usage with development in infrastructure and virtualization as a source of cloud acceptance and popular use. The economic perspective of efficiency in work, support, better productivity and low-cost initiative of cloud tends IT decision makers to make a close observation of cloud services. Since the promising new environment of technology has to offer more, the IT professionals are attracted to cloud services implementation. However, reputable service provider and  Service Level Agreements (SLAs)-which are always not clear, raise security and protection issues. I.T Professionals fear the risk of being cheated, the information getting lost or the privacy of the consumer at risk. These risks keep development of platform low.

Managing Shareholder Value Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Managing Shareholder Value - Essay Example For effectively planning and managing the funds, another scorecard of metrics is being developed with the provision of incentives for bettering the budgeted figures being used. All of these elements when considered individually excel with their simplicity. But when the system as a whole is looked at it turns to be complex with a number of "metrics, methods and messages" which makes the understanding of the finance executives of the shareholder value rather difficult. Hence it becomes vitally important that the CFO of any organization coordinates his efforts in designing the systems of the financial management with the CEO and the directors of the company so that the internal corporate governance is strengthened and if necessary modified to meet the firm's requirements. With this background this paper envisages presenting a report on the degree of profit measure of economic surplus and shareholders funds economic value accurate the metrics of the key economic visions of a firm. The shareholder value is represented by the wealth a company creates through its profitability for its shareholders. The shareholder value also includes the broad framework in which the firm operates to achieve the shareholder value and it also includes the organizational culture. ... areholder Value theory works on the premise that the value created by a business is best represented by the change in its economic value that is, the change in the net present value of its expected future cash flows to shareholders."1 There are a number of Shareholder Value measures which are being used for monitoring and evaluating the performance of the organization as well as rewarding the employees. One of the most popular methods of shareholder Value Measure is the Economic Value Added (EVA) approach. 2.1 Rationale behind adopting Shareholder Value Approach: The Shareholder Value approach has increasingly been adopted due to the following factors: The managers always feel that there exist a difference in the value of the firm as perceived internally and by the shareholders and this approach helps them to bridge the gap It is also necessary that the investors should know the true economic value of the firm for making their investment decisions on the basis of the economic profit of the firms. The accounting statements present rather a historic value and analysis of the performance of a company and it is necessary to have information on the future value of the company. Since the shareholder value is based on projected cash flows allowing for the cost of capital which are also discounted are less influenced by accounting rules and hence project the true value of the firm. Due to the globalization there is a delay in accessing the standard measures of performance Due to increased contribution to business by the information technology the expectations of investors has increased to get more clear measures of performance. The above factors necessitate adopting a proper measure for the assessing the value of a firm from a shareholder's perspective and Economic Value

The God And The Evil Demon

The God And The Evil Demon In the Meditations on First Philosophy, Descartes sets out to build his foundation of knowledge. To discover true knowledge, Descartes uses the Method of Doubt which states that he must reject whatever is open to the slightest doubt(p.138)1. In doing so, Descartes invokes the existence of an Evil Demon who is described to be supremely powerful and cunning, and works as hard as he can to deceive me (p.138)1. In this paper, I shall argue that Descartes would not think that his having an idea of the Evil Demon proves that the Evil Demon exists. Descartes searches for one thing he can be certain is true. He uses the role of the Evil Demon which is to deceive Descartes view of the world where body, shape, extension, motion, and place are fantasies(p.138).1 In applying the Method of Doubt, Descartes has come to one necessary truth, the cogito I think therefore I am.2 Because he is able to doubt, he must be a thinking thing, and to be able to think, he must exist. I exist as long as I think that I exist; the Evil Demon cannot deceive me in thinking otherwise. Because the cogito is a clear and distinct idea, it must be true. Clear and distinct ideas means to be open and present to the attending mind(p.145). 1 In order to come to a truth with certainty, Descartes came up with an idea of God, a non-deceiver who has given him a way to arrive at true beliefs.2 Descartes is certain that God exists and that the idea of God came from God Himself. All ideas have the same degree of Formal reality, whether the idea is of a finite or infinite substance. Some things are on a higher scale of Formal reality than others. For example, God would have a higher degree than human. The Presentational reality of an idea is the amount of Formal reality the idea has.2 Descartes states that the idea of God, who is eternal, infinite, omniscient, omnipotent, and creator of all things other than himself(p.143)1, lies on the highest degree of Presentational reality. Therefore, God has a higher formal reality than Descartes idea of God. God is seen to be omnipotent and omniscient; he is seen to be perfect.2 And since Descartes knows that he himself is an imperfect being, as he is able to doubt, there must exist a perfect being out there. Descartes concludes that he could not have invented the idea of God, because ideas must be at least as close as the cause there is at least as much [reality] in the cause as in its effect (p.143-4)1. Since Descartes could not have caused this idea himself, God must have put it there.2 He states that, By God, I understand, a substance which is infiniteit must be concluded that God necessarily exists(p.145).1 God must exist. If God exists and He is not a deceiver, then He would not allow an Evil Demon to deceive my thoughts. To allow an Evil Demon to deceive me, God would be just be as bad of a deceiver, but Descartes idea of God is that of perfection; God would not exist to deceive me. The Evil Demon and God are not of the same entity. According to Descartes, the Evil Demon plays the role of a deceiver confusing my very view of the world, while God allows me to find my way to true knowledge. One can either be deceived or not to be. This follows that both the Evil Demon and God cannot exist at the same time, either the Evil Demon exists to deceive our views or God exists. Descartes proved that God exists, therefore the Evil Demon cannot exist. In conclusion, Descartes would not think that having the idea of an Evil Demon would prove that the Evil Demon exists. The main purpose Descartes went out to prove the existence of God is to arrive at true knowledge. He knows for certain that the cogito is true, even the Evil Demon cannot deceive him of that. In proving the existence of God, Descartes can rule out the idea of the existence of a deceiver, the Evil Demon. 1Perry, John, Michael Bratman, and John Martin Fischer. Introduction to Philosophy: Classical and Contemporary Readings. New York: Oxford UP, 2010. Print. 2Notes taken from lecture

Night World : The Chosen Chapter 3

God, it stank. RashelJordan had seen a lot of vampire lairs in her seventeen years, but this was probably the most disgusting. She held her breath as she stirred the nest of tattered cloth with the toe of one boot. She could read the story of this collection of garbage as easily as if the inhabitant had written out a full confession, signed it, and posted it on the wall. One vampire. A rogue, an outcast who lived on the fringe of both the human world and the Night World. He probably moved to anew city every few weeks to avoid getting caught. And he undoubtedly looked like any other homeless guy, except that none of the human homeless would be hanging around aBoston dock on a Tuesday night in early March. He brings his victims here, Rashel thought. The pier's deserted, it's private, he can take his time with them. And of course he can't resist keeping a few trophies. Her foot stirred them gently. A pink-and-blue knit baby jacket, a plaid sash from a school uniform, a Spiderman tennis shoe. All bloodstained. All very small. There had been a rash of missing children lately. TheBoston police would never discover where they had gone-but now Rashel knew. She felt her lips draw back slightly from her teeth in something that wasn't really a smile. She was aware of everything around her: the soft plash of water against the wooden pier, the rank coppery smell that was almost a taste, the darkness of a night lit only by a half moon. Even the light moisture of the cold breeze against her skin. She was aware of all of it without being preoccupied with any of it-and when the tiny scratch sounded behind her, she moved as smoothly and gracefully as if she were taking her turn in a dance. She pivoted on her left foot, drawing her bokken in the same motion, and without a break in the movement, she stabbed straight to the vampire's chest. She drove the blow from her hips, exhaling in a hiss as she did it, putting all her strength behind it. â€Å"Gotta be faster than that,† she said. The vampire, skewered like a hot dog, waved his arms and gibbered. He was dressed in filthy clothing and his hair was a bushy tangle. His eyes were wide, full of surprise and hatred, shining as silver as an animal's in the faint light. His teeth weren't so much fangs as tusks: fully extended, they reached almost to his chin. â€Å"I know,† Rashel said. â€Å"You really, really wanted to kill me. Life's tough, isn't it?† The vampire snarled one more time and then the silver went out of his eyes, leaving only the look of astonishment. His body stiffened and slumped backward. It lay still on the ground. Grimacing, Rashel pulled her wooden sword out of the chest. She started to wipe the blade on the vampire's pants, then hesitated, peering at them more closely. Yes, those were definitely little crawly things. And the blankets were just as repulsive. Oh, well. Use your own jeans. It won't be the first time. She carefully wiped the bokken clean. It was two and a half feet long and just slightly, gracefully curved, with a narrow, sharp, angled tip. Designed to penetrate a body as efficiently as possible-if that body was susceptible to wood. The sword slipped back into its sheath with a papery whisper. Then Rashel glanced at the body again. Mr. Vampire was already going mummified. His skin was now yellow and tough; his staring eyes were dried up, his lips shrunken, his tusks collapsed. Rashel bent over him, reaching into her back pocket. What she pulled out looked like the snapped-off end of a bamboo backscratcher-which was exactly what it was. She'd had it for years. Very precisely, Rashel drew the five lacquered fingers of the scratcher down the vampire's forehead. On the yellow skin five brown marks appeared, like the marks of a cat's claws. Vampire skin was easy to mark tight after death. â€Å"This kitten has claws,† she murmured. It was a ritual sentence; she'd repeated it ever since the night she'd killed her first vampire at the age of twelve. In memory of her mother, who'd always called her kitten. In memory of herself at age five, and all the innocence she'd lost. She'd never be a helpless kitten again. Besides, it was a little joke. Vampires†¦ bats. Herself†¦ a cat. Anybody who'd grown up with Batman and Catwoman would get it. Well. All done. Whistling softly, she rolled the body over and over with her foot to the end of the pier. She didn't feel like carting the mummy all the way out to the fens, the salt marshes where bodies were traditionally left inBoston . With a mental apology to everybody who was trying to clean up the harbor, she gave the corpse a final push and listened for the splash. She was still whistling as she emerged from the pier onto the street. Hi-ho, hi-ho, it's off to work we go— She was in a very good mood. The only disappointment was the constant one, that it hadn't been the vampire, the one she'd been looking for ever since she'd been five years old. It had been a rogue, all right-a depraved monster who killed human kids foolishly close to human habitations. But it hadn't been the rogue. Rashel would never forget his face. And she knew that someday she would see it again. Meanwhile, there was nothing to do but shish-kebab as many of the parasites as possible. She scanned the streets as she walked, alert for any sign of Night People. All she saw were quiet brick buildings and streetlights shining pale gold. And that was a shame, because she was in terrific form tonight; she could feel it. She was every bloodsucking leech's worst enemy. She could stake six of them before breakfast and still be fresh for chemistry first period at Wassaguscus High. Rashel stopped suddenly, absent-mindedly melting into a shadow as a police car cruised silently down the cross-street ahead. I know, she thought. I'll go see what the Lancers are up to. If anybody knows where vampires are, they do. She headed for the North End. Half an hour later she was standing in front of a brownstone apartment building, ringing the buzzer. â€Å"Who's there?† Instead of answering, Rashel said, â€Å"The night has a thousand eyes.† â€Å"And the day only one,† came the reply from the intercom. â€Å"Hey there, girl. Come on up.† Inside, Rashel climbed a dark and narrow stairway to a scarred wooden door. There was a peephole in the door. Rashel faced it squarely, then pulled off the scarf she'd been wearing. It was black, silky, and very long. She wore it wrapped around her head and face like a veil, so that only her eyes showed, and even they were in shadow. She shook out her hair, knowing what the person on the other side could see. A tall girl dressed like a ninja, all hi black, with black hair falling loose around her shoulders and green eyes blazing. She hadn't changed much since she was five, except in height. Right now she made a barbaric face at the peephole and heard the sound of laughter behind the door as bolts were drawn. She waited until the door was shut behind her again before she said, â€Å"Hi, Elliot.† Elliot was a few years older than she was, and thin, with intense eyes and little shiny glasses that were always slipping off his nose. Some people would have dismissed him as a geek. But Rashel had once seen him stand up to two werewolves while she got a human girl out a window, and she knew that he had practically single-handedly started the Lancers-one of the most successful organizations of vampire hunters on the east coast. â€Å"What's up, Rashel? It's been a while.† â€Å"I've been busy. But now I'm bored. I came to see if you guys had anything going.† As Rashel spoke, she was looking at the other people in the room. A brown-haired girl was kneeling, loading objects from boxes into a dark green backpack. Another girl and a boy were sitting on the couch. Rashel recognized the boy from other Lancers meetings, but neither of the girls were familiar. â€Å"Lucky you,† Elliot said. â€Å"This is Vicky, my new second-in-command.† He nodded at the girl on the floor. â€Å"She just moved toBoston ; she was the leader of a group on the south shore. And tonight she's taking a little expedition out to some warehouses in Mission Hill. We got a lead that there's been some activity out there.† â€Å"What kind of activity? Leeches, puppies?† Elliot shrugged. â€Å"Vampires definitely. Werewolves maybe. There's been a rumor about teenage girls getting kidnapped and stashed somewhere around there. The problem is we don't know exactly where, or why.† He tilted his head, his eyes twinkling. â€Å"You want to go?† â€Å"Isn't anybody going to ask me?† Vicky said, straightening up from her backpack. Her pale blue eyes were fixed on Rashel. â€Å"I've never even seen this girl before. She could be one of them.† Elliot pushed his glasses higher on his nose. He looked amused. â€Å"You wouldn't say that if you knew, Vicky. Rashel's the best.† â€Å"At what?† â€Å"At everything. When you were going to your fancy prep school, she was out in theChicago slums staking vampires. She's been inL.A. ,New York ,New Orleans†¦ even Vegas. She's wiped out more parasites than the rest of us put together.† Elliot glanced mischievously at Rashel, then leaned toward Vicki. â€Å"Ever heard of the Cat?† he said. Vicki's head snapped up. She stared at Rashel. â€Å"The Cat? The one all the Night People are afraid of? The one they're offering a reward for? The one who leaves a mark-â€Å" Rashel shot Elliot a warning look. â€Å"Never mind,† she said. She wasn't sure she trusted these new people. Vicky was right about one thing: you couldn't be too careful. And she didn't like Vicky much, but she could hardly turn down such a good opportunity for vampire hunting. Not tonight, when she was in such terrific form. â€Å"I'll go with you-if you'll have me,† she said. Vicky's pale blue eyes bored into Rashel's a moment, then she nodded. â€Å"Just remember I'm in charge.† â€Å"Sure,† Rashel murmured. She could see Elliot's grin out of the corner of her eye. â€Å"You know Steve, and that's Nyala.† Elliot indicated the boy and girl on the couch. Steve had blond hair, muscular shoulders, and a steady expression; Nyala had skin like cocoa and a faraway look in her eyes, as if she were sleepwalking. â€Å"Nyala's new. She just lost her sister a month ago,† Elliot added in a gentle voice. He didn't need to say how the sister had been lost. Rashel nodded at the girl. She sympathized. There was nothing quite like the shock of first discovering the Night World, when you realized that things like vampires and witches and werewolves were real, and that they were everywhere, joined in one giant secret organization. That anybody could be one, and you'd never know until it was too late. â€Å"Everybody ready? Then let's go,† Vicky said, and Steve and Nyala got up. Elliot showed them to the door. â€Å"Good luck,† he said. Outside, Vicky led the way to a dark blue car with mud strategically caked on the license plates. â€Å"We'll drive to the warehouse area,† she said. Rashel was relieved. She was used to walking the city streets at night without being seen-important when you were carrying a rather unconcealable sword-but she wasn't sure that these other three could manage. It took practice. The drive was silent except for the murmur of Steve's voice occasionally helping Vicky with directions. They passed through respectable neighborhoods and venerable areas with handsome old buildings until they got to a street where everything changed suddenly. All at once, as if they had crossed some invisible dividing line, the gutters were full of soggy trash and the fences were topped with razor wire. The buildings were government housing projects, dark warehouses, or rowdy bars. Vicky pulled into a parking lot and stopped the car away from the security lights. Then she led them through the knee-high dead weeds of a vacant lot to a street that was poorly lighted and utterly silent. â€Å"This is the observation post,† Vicky whispered, as they reached a squat brick building, a part of the housing project that had been abandoned. Following her, they zigzagged through debris and scrap metal to get to a side door, and then they climbed a dark staircase covered with graffiti to the third floor. Their flashlights provided the only illumination. â€Å"Nice place,† Nyala whispered, looking around. She had obviously never seen anything like it before. â€Å"Don't you think-there may be other people here besides vampires?† Steve gave her a reassuring pat. â€Å"No, it's okay.† â€Å"Yeah, it looks like even the junkies have abandoned it,† Rashel said, grimly amused. â€Å"You can see the whole street from the window,† Vicky put in shortly. â€Å"Elliot and I were here yesterday watching those warehouses across the street. And last night we saw a guy at the end of the street who looked a lot like a vampire. You know the signs.† Nyala opened her mouth as if to say she didn't know the signs, but Rashel was already speaking. â€Å"Did you test him?† â€Å"We didn't want to get that close. We'll do it tonight if he shows up again.† â€Å"How do you test them?† Nyala asked. Vicky didn't answer. She and Steve had pushed aside a couple of rat-chewed mattresses and were unloading the bags and backpacks they'd brought. Rashel said, â€Å"One way is to shine a flashlight in their eyes. Usually you get eye-shine back-like an animal's.† â€Å"There are other ways, too,† Vicky said, setting the things she was unloading on the bare boards of the floor. There were ski masks, knives made of both metal and wood, a number of stakes of various sizes, and a mallet. Steve added two clubs made of white oak to the pile. â€Å"Wood hurts them more than metal,† Vicky said to Nyala. â€Å"If you cut them with a steel knife they heal right before your eyes-but cut them with wood and they keep bleeding.† Rashel didn't quite like the way she said it. And she didn't like the last thing Vicky was pulling out of her backpack. It was a wooden device that looked a bit like a miniature stock. Two hinged blocks of wood that fit snugly around a person's wrists and closed with a lock. â€Å"Vampire handcuffs,† Vicky said proudly, seeing her look. â€Å"Made of white oak. Guaranteed to hold any parasite. I brought them from down south.† â€Å"But hold them for what? And what do you need all those little knives and stakes for? It would take hours to kill a vampire with those.† Vicky smiled fiercely. â€Å"I know.† Oh. Rashel's heart seemed to thump and then sink, and she looked away to control her reaction. She understood what Vicky had in mind now. Torture. â€Å"A quick death's too good for them,† Vicky said, still smiling. â€Å"They deserve to suffer-the way they make our people suffer. Besides, we might get some information. We need to know where they're keeping the girls they kidnap, and what they're doing with them.† â€Å"Vicky.† Rashel spoke earnestly. â€Å"It's practically impossible to make vampires talk. They're stubborn. When they're hurt they just get angry-like animals.† Vicky smirked. â€Å"I've made some talk. It just depends on what you do, and how long you make it last. Anyway, there's no harm in trying.† â€Å"Does Elliot know about this?† Vicky lifted a shoulder defensively. â€Å"Elliot lets me do things my way. I don't have to tell him every little detail. I was a leader myself, you know.† Helplessly, Rashel looked at Nyala and Steve. And saw that for the first time Nyala's eyes had lost their sleepwalking expression. Now she looked awake- and savagely glad. â€Å"Yes,† she said. â€Å"We should try to make the vampire talk. And if he suffers-well, my sister suffered. When I found her, she was almost dead but she could still talk. She told me what it felt like, having all the blood drained out of her body while she was still conscious. She said it hurt. She said†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Nyala stopped, swallowed, and looked at Vicky. â€Å"I want to help do it,† she said thickly. Steve didn't say anything, but then from what Rashel knew of him, that was typical. He was a guy of few words. Anyway, he didn't protest. Rashel felt odd, as if she were seeing the very worst of herself reflected in a mirror. It made her†¦ ashamed. It left her shaken. But who am I to judge? she thought, turning away. It's true that the parasites are evil, all of them. The whole race needs to be wiped out. And Vicky's right, why should they have a clean death, when they usually don't give their victims one? Nyala deserves to avenge her sister. â€Å"Unless you object or something,† Vicky said heavily, and Rashel could feel those pale blue eyes on her. â€Å"Unless you're some kind of vampire sympathizer.† Rashel might have laughed at that, but she wasn't in a laughing mood. She took a breath, then said without turning around, â€Å"It's your show. I agreed that you were in charge.† â€Å"Good,† Vicky said, and returned to her work. But the sick feeling in the pit of Rashel's stomach didn't go away. She almost hoped that the vampire wouldn't come.