Descriptive Essay The Cobalt Sky - 1515 Words

The cobalt sky was patchy with cirrus clouds that looked as though they’d been painted on with a dry roller. Standing on the soft shoulder with an outstretched thumb and a trust-me-I’m-friendly smile, I felt my exposed skin flushing Popsicle pink beneath the Mexican sun (which is also the Canadian sun, the Namibian sun and even the Venusian sun). When the Ford F-series pickup trundled to a stop, Matt and I swung first our backpacks, then ourselves, into the truck bed and tapped the side of the vehicle. â€Å"Vamos!† Suddenly the heat was abandoned alongside the dusty Pemex station, swapped for the cool rush of highway air that accompanied us the rest of the way to Mexico City. It was a terrific morning by hitchhiking standards, and on any other day I would have reclined against the wheel hump with my feet propped up on the spare tire, basking in the joy of life. But that day, anxiety turned my stomach like a bad burrito. I had backpacked through Latin America before and while I’d eagerly snorkelled with sharks in Belize and tobogganed down a volcano in Nicaragua (they clocked me going 46 kilometres per hour), I had vetoed a trip to Mexico City on the grounds of it being much too frightening a place. Hugging my knees as I leaned against the hatch, I now imagined cartel members on every corner, shooting at one another from behind tethered burros and taco vendors. I wondered what it would feel like to have the barrel of a handgun pressed against my spine as I was shoved into anShow MoreRelatedPhoto Descriptive Essay484 Words   |  2 PagesTime Photo Descriptive Essay The sweeping vista stretches out before me, offering a delightful study in contrasts, mountain, lake, sky, and desert, a feast for the eyes and soul. Not just the stark beauty, I feel the serenity and isolation of this place. Time seems frozen as I look out over this sun-drenched panorama that stretches for miles. My perch atop the sand dunes is nearly perfect for drinking it all in. The tranquility is almost palpable, like a hug. This impression is heightened by the

Young People Have More Want Than Needs. What Are Your View Free Essays

Young People Have More Wants than Needs. What do you think? This materialistic world produces enormous amount of goods and services to satiate our wants more than our needs. The attitude of satisfying one’s wants has almost always preceded one’s needs. We will write a custom essay sample on Young People Have More Want Than Needs. What Are Your View? or any similar topic only for you Order Now This new wave of attitude is especially obvious in young people who have endless desires to have what they want instead of what they actually need. Consequently, nowadays, we have often heard the phrase â€Å"I want† and rarely get to hear â€Å"I need† from young people. This is especially evident in the things young people are seeking today. No doubt, good education is part of it and it is indeed necessary. However, some have become so obsessed with achieving better grades that they are willing to spend a fortune on getting additional help beyond their school for the sake of beating their classmates in academic results. Wanting to achieve their objectives, some have hired a few personal tutors to help them out. Instead of relying and making good use of what is already provided to them, such ones have taken things for granted. They do not see that their needs have actually been fulfilled but focus too much on their wants, which is getting better results to perhaps outshine their peers. Regrettably, this kind of obsession would mean that their parents’ hard-earned money is spent wastefully or even unwisely. For what, for satisfying their wants when their needs have actually been met. Additionally, the pursuit of keeping up to date with fashion is all too common in young people. These things are not bad in themselves but to maintain one’s closet with the latest fashion means that young ones may often spend beyond their means simply for the purpose of satisfying their wants. Even for those without the means to possess the latest, they may even try to get what they want through illegal channel such as doing part time as escorts. Sadly, this has been happening in recent years. Apparently, the trend has taken root because young people often fail to differentiate clearly their wants from their needs. Not to be overlooked is the desire to pace up with the epoch of technology in terms of mobile phones. Gone are the days of owning a phone just to make calls and sending short text messages. Our generation has become extremely sophisticated with the advancement in technology. Unfortunately, we have been witnessing the massive production of smart phones that keeps flooding the market with infinite choices and temptations to have to own one. Ironically, we are seeing young people wning the latest smart phones more than adults who are supposed to be the more likely group of people to own these things. So the question is how on earth do our young people get the financial means to purchase these gadgets? Apparently, their main sponsors are their parents. As a matter of fact, quite a large number of young people are often seen pestering their parents to buy them or equip them with the latest products. This has also evidenced itself when parents are being demanded to trade good examination r esults in return for getting what their children want. To make matters worse, young people sometimes threaten their parents, who may not be wealthy enough, to buy the latest smart phones for them. To sum it all up, I must say that young people have more wants than needs. If only they could exercise a little more of their thinking ability, they would definitely be able to discern for themselves that wants will always be endless but needs are very few and necessary but the latter must precede the former. How to cite Young People Have More Want Than Needs. What Are Your View?, Essay examples

Life Of Mozart Essay Example Example For Students

Life Of Mozart Essay Example The Life of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91) is regarded as the greatest composer who ever lived. He began writing minuets at the age of 5,and by the time he died in 1791 at the age of 35, he had produced 626 cataloged works. â€Å" Mozart has enriched the concerto form with a larger number of masterpieces than any other composer.†1 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is said to be the greatest genius in western music history. Wolfgang Amadeus was born in Salzburg, Austria January 27, 1756 his parents were Leopold Mozart and Anna Maria Pertl. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s father was a successful composer, violinist, and assistant concertmaster at the Salzburg court. The Archbishop Sigismund von Schratten told Leopold Mozart to encourage the kids musical abilities. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Life By the age of four Wolfgang had great musical memory and a great ear for music. Due to Wolfgang’s talent his father signed him up for Harpsichord lessons. After a few lessons Wolfgang’s talent was noticed by many. Wolfgang also had a sister Maria Anna she was a musician and they toured Munich and Vienna. At the time of the tour Wolfang was only six years old, but he began composing at the age of five. Because of this early start Wolfgang composed for the rest of his life he never stopped performing or composing music. While on the tour Wolfgang became a violin virtuoso. By Wolfgang’s early teens he had mastered playing the piano, violin, and harpsichord. Also he had composed keyboard pieces, oratorios, symphonies, and operas. He performed his first major opera when he was fourteen it was staged in Milan in 1770 the style of the opera was opera seria, Mitriade. In 1762 he and his sister performed in the courts of Vienna for the Emperor Francis I and the Empress Maria Theresa. During the time of (1763-1766) the children performed in Germany, Paris at the court of Versailles ,and in London Mozart’s Compositional Style Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s style unlike anyone else. Mozart was a master of counterpoint, fugue, and the other traditional compositional points of his day. He is also considered the best melody writer the world has ever known. Wolfgang perfected the grand forms of symphony, opera string quartet, and concerto made the classical period. â€Å"Mozart’s music is characterized by lucid ease and distinction of style.†2 Wolfgang wrote over 600 works which consisted of 21 stage and opera works, 15 masses, over 50 symphonies, 25 piano concertos, 12 violin concertos,27 concert arias, 17 piano sonatas, 26 string quartets, and many more. His operas range from comic baubles to tragic pieces. In his Requiem it illustrates the supreme vocal sounds in any of his work. Wolfgang’s musical influence and preparation Wolfgang did not have much preparation because he was a child prodigy. Wolfgang did take a few music lessons on the Harpsichord and he thought himself how play the violin. While in London on tour Wolfgang meet Johann Bach and it is found evident that Bach influenced the young composer. His father a great composer-musician also influenced his son. Also another composer that influenced the young composer was Josef Haydn it said that Mozart dedicated six string quartets to Haydn. The review of Marriage of Figaro The Marriage of Figaro was composed for Viennese court in 1786. The Marriage of Figaro was a very controversial piece of music it contained revolutionary ideas that made the Viennese court nervous. The opera is an opera buffa or called by some as opera comedy. The opera is based upon real human life as Jacob’s says â€Å" It is an opera about masters and servants and the complications in that relationship caused by sex.†3 On the musical side of Figaro the opera has a monophonic texture with vocal timbres consisting of sopranos and baritones. The form of this piece is a ternary form ABA or the De Capo style. The type of music is a secular style. .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 , .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 .postImageUrl , .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 , .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7:hover , .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7:visited , .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7:active { border:0!important; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7:active , .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7 .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u94def96f5671fb042e0f7eefa0228fd7:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: marijuana research EssayBibliography 1.Grabbe, Paul The Story of One Hundred Symphonic Favorites p.129 1986. 2.Gridlestone, Cuthbert Mozart and His Piano Concertos p.13 164. 3.Jacobs, Arthur Greatest Composers in Synopsis p.26 1966.

Is Sula A Tragic Novel I Think It Is. Because Sula Grows Up In An Unu

Is "Sula" a tragic novel? I think it is. Because Sula grows up in an unusual family and many tragedies happen during her growth. Those kinds of tragedies we can even see it at the very beginning of the story. "Eva had married a man named BoyBoy and had three children: Hannah, the eldest, and Eva, whom she named after herself but called Pearl, and a son named Ralph whom she called Plum." (32) After five years of their marriage, BoyBoy left Eva without leaving anything except $1.65, five eggs, three beets, and three children. "She was confused and desperately hungry." (32) Sometimes, she will get help from her neighbors in the Medallion town. In one middle of December, Plum stopped having bowel movements. Eva tried her best to save his life. Two days later, she left all her children with her neighbor and left the town. Eighteen months later, Eva returned with one leg. "First she reclaimed her children, next she gave the surprised Mrs. Suggs a ten-dollar bill, later she started buildin g a house on Carpenter's Road, sixty feet from BoyBoy's one-room cabin, which she rented out." (35) From here, we can see that there is a tragedy after the leaving of BoyBoy, Eva has no choice and becomes desperate. She leaves the town and sells her leg to support the family. We also see that Eva loves Plum. Hannah is the mother of Sula. She married to a man called Rekus who died when Sula was about three years old. Sula was staying in the big old house with Eva until she left the town after her best friend, Nel's marriage. It is rather peculiar because in the big old house, there are different kinds of tenants and there are many male guests playing around in that house. There are Dewey boys and Tar baby. All of them are staying in the house because Eva takes them in. From that, Eva earns respect from the community because she benefits the homeless. It is also very strange that he Dewey boys originally are different young boys. But they always mix up themselves in front of people. Therefore, they always mess people up. There is a lot of male guests in the house because "'With the exception of BoyBoy, those Peace women loved all men.' 'Hannah simply refused to live without the attentions of a man, and after Rekus' death had a steady sequence of lovers, mostly the husbands of her friends and neighbors.' '? Sula came home from school and found her mother in the bed, curled spoon in the arms of man' '? taught Sula that sex was pleasant and frequent , ...'" (41, 42, We can see that from here Sula is growin g up in a disorder and chaos family. In 1920, another tragedy happened. Plum returned from the war and became drug addicted. At one night, Eva went to his room and burned him up. She burns him up because she has to kill him before the drug totally destroys her son. "She demonstrates a deep and abiding love for Plum that when she saturates him in kerosene and strikes a match, we accept her heinous crime as an act of desperation born out of love." (Melby 76) From this point, we can also see that Eva is controlling everything on her own hand. As she feels that she has sacrificed herself to save the family. Her children have to do everything that she wants them to do. Sula is growing up in this family with disorder and chaos. However, her best friend, Nel, is totally different from her. Nel's mother, Helene Sabat is the daughter of Creole whore. In Helene's early childhood, she stayed with her grandmother for sixteen years. Then, she married to Wiley Wright who was a seaman. He will only be at home three days out of every sixteen. Therefore, Nel stays with her mother most of the time. "'Helen's hand the girl became obedient and polite. Any enthusiasms that little Nel showed were calmed by the mother until she drove her daughter's imagination underground.' 'Helene Wright was an impressive woman, at least in Medallion she was.'" (18) Although these two

Anthony Ng Architects Limited Essays

Anthony Ng Architects Limited Essays Anthony Ng Architects Limited Essay Anthony Ng Architects Limited Essay ANTHONY NG ARCHITECTS LIMITED: building towards a paperless future 2011 BSM920 Topics in Advanced Strategy Group D 8/6/2011 1. Introduction Since the 1970s, the architectural industry in Hong Kong enjoyed a brilliant growth as a result of real estate and stock market speculation. In 1996, the industry was very profit-oriented and time conscious, and heavy bureaucracy was one of the main characteristics of the market. The role of the government and others institutions such as the HKIA (Hong Kong Institute of Architects) are essential in the Hong Kong architectural industry. Anthony Ng is an architect from Hong Kong who started his own architectural practice in 1991 in Wan Chai. Thanks to his visionary and entrepreneurial leadership qualities, he succeeded in making Anthony Ng a practice able to deliver buildings on time while providing top designs. The firm has been selected for big projects such as the Verbana Heights and most recently the HK$ 12 billion new airport development project in Tung Chung. These big projects created new needs for the company in order to improve its performance. First the number of employees needed to be increased, but with that the management of information and communication also needed to be improved. Indeed, the number of persons involved in the project and so the number of documents needed to be forwarded, distributed and stored was consequent. A technological improvement of the communication system became a necessity; in 1997 Anthony Ng recognised the future potential of using a paperless system which would then improve the circulation of information and knowledge in the company. 2. Towards a paperless architectural practice Internal pressures Inhouse Transaction costs economics Physical storage of documents in the office of Anthony Ng was an important cost for the company. First of all, it was costing time as the tracking of the documents could take a certain amount of time depending on when they had been stored. Secondly, the storage space used for documents was big enough to fit 20 employees, and according on how the number of employees was growing throughout the years, the need for space will soon be a priority. Third, the documents filing required personal filing charges as well. Finally, the communication costs were not insignificant around 40 mails were getting in the office every day, documents needed to be photocopied too, and the communication between Anthony’s Ng employees and with clients were costing time and money. There were for Anthony Ng undeniable in-house transaction costs which needed to be reduced. The paperless strategy imagined by Anthony Ng implied a new document management system, which would then enable the firm to reduce the costs of personal filing. The room used by the central filing storage would disappear and allow the company to increase the number of employees. In the architectural industry and for Anthony Ng, the competitive advantage lie in the creativity and originality of the designs, but the main critical success factor is time. The market is very time conscious as mentioned before. A new document management system would enable Anthony Ng to save time on communication thanks to the use of emails, on documents tracking thanks to the web-browser. By improving their efficiency on the time delivery of project, the practice would avoid minor delays, granting Anthony Ng a competitive advantage, because in 1997 the technology was not widespread yet. External pressures Institutional Based View One of the external pressures was coming from the government which plays a huge role in the architectural industry of Hong Kong. The HKIA also plays a huge role as it is responsible for the governance of the professional conduct of architects by making them adhere to Code of Professional Conduct. These institutional pressures come with rules and norms (certification ISO 9000), so the organisations seek for legitimacy and survival by accommodating to institutional practices (Greenwood et al. 2008). In Anthony Ng case, the bases of the institutionalisation are both a coercive regulation and a cognitive internalization (Scott, 1995). The HKIA is an association which is using rewards and penalties to coerce architects into compliance with the standards they came up with = COERCIVE REGULATION On the other side the government is a national institution which encourage compliance as it is taken for granted as the way things are done (Oliver 1991, Shenkar 2002) = cognitive internalization To respond to these institutional pressures, Anthony Ng decides to use co-option strategies to cope with government pressures. Learning to deal with the Building department was an important aspect of the architectural industry, as it would help avoiding important delays and loss of contracts. Another aspect of the co-option strategies use by Anthony Ng was to adopt corporate social responsibility which is considered as a new institutional logic (Lee, 2008). In addition to standards building and attractive designs, Anthony Ng decided to work on eco friendly projects, which enabled the firm to won the highest honour from the HKIA. 3. Chaos The implementation of a paperless system was a change that would take place in a complex environment. When starting to use this new system Anthony Ng did not know the real outcome of this change, because there could have been many different effects that were largely unknown in advance. When the staff started using the paperless system, the organization could not assure that the change would increase the productivity of the company. Even though the costs of the company would reduce and the information was supposed to flow easily, what if the staff did not adapt to the new technologies or if the clients preferred face to face communication rather than emails? What if there was a problem with the system and the documents could not be sent? Anthony Ng adapted to the new change. This meant that also the agents (staff and clients) had to change their behavoiur and hence the behavior of the company changed as a whole. 4. Evolution The paperless system was an evolution for Anthony Ng. On one hand the nature of the change was incremental. They were already performing computer aided design and sharing peripherals. Moreover the use of internet and browser technology was becoming more usual. So at this point Anthony Ng decided to start planning a Intranet based document viewer and management system. On the other hand the extent of the change was a transformation, as the new system was going to change the way the company used to work, their communication system, their culture. This evolutionary change was necessary. Among the internal and external pressures mentioned before, we can find some pushing factors that motivated the change. One of these factors are the high inventory costs. With the implementation of the new system the physical storage of the documents was not longer be necessary, and this space could now be used for fitting more employees that would be necessary for working in future projects. Not only this personnel for taking care of the management of the physical document would not be necessary. Another factor is that with the new system the documents were going to be stored in an appropriate way. There would not be physical storage of the documents, instead the documents were going to be scanned, distributed and stored in the system and the hardcopy would be given a unique ID that cross-referenced the softcopy in the system. This way the retrieval and tracking of the documents would be much more systematic and efficient than the traditional paper-based filing. The need to share information internally was other of the pushing factors. Accessing Tung Chung, where Anthony Lg’s next project was taking place, was only possible by boat. Communicating with the staff working there and discussing necessary issues with them would be very time consuming. Therefore the intranet that was going to be implemented would enhance communication and make it more efficient. 5. Impact The implementation of the paperless system will have impact in many aspects of the organization. First of all there will be an impact in the communication patterns. From being paper based to online reliance. The possible good impact of this change is the enhancement of information’s delivery both internally externally and speeding up processes. A very probable bad impact would be avoiding face to face communication. There would also be a change in culture, in the way architecture was done. Now with all the electronic systems there was a fear that this could affect the way of working in a negative way, as there might be a lack of attention to details. There could also be a bad impact of resistance for the organization. As they might percieve this new systems as insecure, because they do not know it or maybe just because they preferred the traditional system. What is necessary to be done is to help adaptation with a good change manager, that maintains effective communication and involves employees in the change process. A good communication strategy, training programmes, and reward systems can help employees to adapt easier to the change and to be optimist and committed to it. Finally it should be necessary to improve security and follow the evolution process. 6. Conclusion Anthony Ng used an IT strategy in alignment with its business strategy. Indeed IT is very important in the knowledge based strategy of Anthony Ng. By using Henderson and Venkatraman’s strategic alignment model maps we can determine the relationship between the firm’s strategy and IT. Anthony Ng used technology transformation with the implementation of the new document management system to manage knowledge and communication inside the company. The change management became crucial to implement this new IT strategy because of the new organisational structure, new routines and new control structure that lead to a new paradigm thanks to the sharing of knowledge. References

What Is Mitosis A Complete Guide to Mitotic Cell Division

What Is Mitosis A Complete Guide to Mitotic Cell Division SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips If you’re studying biology, the concept of mitosis is pretty unavoidable. Mitosis is part of the cell cycle, and studying how cells work makes up a huge portion of any biology class. It’s safe to say you’re going to need some working knowledge of mitosis if you’re looking to breeze through any biology-related course or exam. Here’s what we’re going to cover in this article so you’re up to speed on the purpose of mitosis, how the process of mitosis works, and why mitosis is important to know about. We will: Answer the question, â€Å"What is the purpose of mitosis?† (definition and explanation of the importance of mitosis included) Description of the 4 phases of mitosis Review the similarities and differences between mitosis and meiosis Our top three tips for studying and memorizing the stages of mitosis, and Three resources for further learning about mitosis! And, now, let our journey through the world of mitosis begin! Mitosis Definition The first thing we need to do is answer the question, â€Å"What is mitosis?† In cell biology, mitosis is a part of what is called the cell cycle. The cell cycle, sometimes called the cell-division cycle, is the series of events that occur in a cell that lead to duplication of that cell’s DNA and, ultimately, the creation of new cells. During mitosis, the cell division part of the cell cycle, a single parent cell’s replicated genetic material- called chromosomes- divides to produce two new, genetically-identical daughter cells. In the cell cycle, the cell’s DNA is replicated in interphase, the phase that precedes mitosis. Mitosis alternates with interphase to make up the cell cycle in its entirety. In fact, a cell cannot begin mitosis until interphase is successfully completed. So we’ve explained that mitosis is the part of the cell cycle when cell division occurs, but let’s get a little more detailed than that. During mitosis, one cell divides one time, and the cell that’s being divided is always called the â€Å"parent cell.† When the process of dividing the parent cell is complete, the result is two â€Å"daughter cells.† These cells are called daughter cells because, during mitosis, the genetic material of the parent cell is passed on to each new daughter cell. But it’s important to note that, in the type of cells that undergo mitosis, the genetic material of the cell is contained within the cell’s nucleus. So, while mitosis is often referred to as â€Å"cell division,† mitosis is technically the division of a cell’s nucleus into two new, identical nuclei. What Types of Cells Undergo Mitosis? You may have heard about two types of cells: eukaryotic (animal) cells, and prokaryotic (plant) cells. Both types of cells undergo cell division, but only eukaryotic cells experience cell division through mitosis. In fact, all eukaryotic cells can engage in mitosis. Mitosis happens exclusively in eukaryotic cells because this type of cell has a nucleus. The nucleus of a cell contains its genetic matter, and this is what is passed to the new â€Å"daughter† cells in the process of mitosis, or cell division. In order to replicate the genetic material, mitosis has to occur in cells that have a nucleus. 2 Reasons Why Cells Divide (and Why Cell Division Is so Important) Answering the question, â€Å"Why do cells divide?† pretty much also answers the question, â€Å"Why is mitosis important?† The process of mitotic cell division in eukaryotic cells is important for two main reasons: because cell division creates new cells that keep eukaryotic organisms thriving, and because cell division passes a consistent genetic identity to a new generation of cells. First, the division part of the cell cycle- mitosis- is so important because the parent cell passes its genetic information to its offspring cells (sometimes called â€Å"daughter† cells) during this type of cell division. If cell division doesn’t occur, new cells can’t be created. And it’s important for new cells to be created in eukaryotic organisms because . . . cells get worn out and die! The dead cells need to be replaced with new cells so the organism can continue growing. Second, the process of mitosis is so important because parent and daughter cells in certain types of organisms must be identical in order for the organism to survive. When mitosis occurs successfully, two new cells with the same genetic composition and an identical chromosome set to the previous generation are created. If there’s an error during mitosis, harmful conditions can develop, like cancer or hemophilia. When Does Mitosis Occur in the Cell Cycle? Mitosis is really important, but it’s actually only one part of the cell cycle. A period called interphase precedes mitosis in the cell cycle, and interphase and mitosis alternate as the cell cycle occurs over and over. So, mitosis is the second or concluding part of the cell cycle, and mitosis cannot start until interphase has been successfully completed. During interphase, the cell grows and develops the proteins needed for cell division. In the middle of the interphase period, the cell duplicates its chromosomes. Once the chromosomes have been duplicated and all other conditions are ideal in the cell, the first phase of mitosis can begin! The 4 Phases of Mitosis, Explained We have a much longer article that covers the four phases of mitosis in more detail, but we do want to give you an overview of what the four phases of mitosis are and what happens during each phase here. If you’re looking for a deep dive into the four phases of mitosis, take a look at our article, â€Å"A Detailed Breakdown of the 4 Phases of Mitosis†! Mitosis is a process that happens in phases that always occur in the same order and accomplish the same tasks (unless something goes wrong!). The four phases of mitosis are prophase (P), metaphase (M), anaphase (A), and telophase (T). Each of these phases helps achieve the purpose of mitosis by moving the process of cell division and reproduction along. Without the proper completion of each of the four phases, cell division wouldn’t happen the way it’s supposed to. We’ll quickly breakdown each phase of mitosis for you next! Phase 1: Prophase and Prometaphase During prophase, the first phase of mitosis, the chromatins inside the cell’s nucleus begin condensing into chromosomes. The protective membrane surrounding the cell’s nucleus, called the nuclear envelope or membrane, also begins to break down. As the chromosomes condense inside the nucleus and the nuclear membrane disintegrates, centrioles outside of the nucleus start moving toward opposite sides of the cell and form the mitotic spindle, which is made up of fibers called microtubules. The mitotic spindle stretches from one side of the cell to the other, suspended between those centrioles that moved away from each other. Phase 2: Metaphase Metaphase is the second phase of mitosis. During metaphase, spindle fibers attach to the centromere of each pair of sister chromatids. The sister chromatids also move into the middle of the cell and line up along an invisible line, called the metaphase plate. These spindle fibers prepare the sister chromatids to separate properly in the next phase of mitosis. Phase 3: Anaphase Anaphase is the third phase of mitosis, and this is when cell division really begins. During anaphase, the spindle fibers attached to the sister chromatids start shortening, which pulls the sister chromatids apart down the middle toward opposite sides of the cell. By the end of anaphase, each side of the cell has a complete, identical set of chromosomes. Phase 4: Telophase Finally, we have telophase: the fourth and final phase of mitosis. In telophase, the separated chromosomes start to unfold and form chromatin. The spindle also disintegrates, and a new nuclear envelope forms around the two new sets of chromosomes. These two new sets of chromosomes make up two nuclei, which have received genetic information from their parent cell. iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zrKdz93WlVk" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen/iframe Mitosis Versus Meiosis: The Similarities and Differences Mitosis, meiosis. You probably know that both of these processes have something to do with cells. But what’s the difference between the function of mitosis and the function of meiosis, and why do you need to know the difference? - To understand how mitosis and meiosis are related, the first thing you need to know is that mitosis isn’t the only type of cell division that can occur. Meiosis is also a form of cell division and reproduction! But while mitosis results in two identical daughter cells, meiosis results in four sex cells. That’s right- meiosis is the process of cell division and reproduction that occurs in organisms that reproduce sexually. Here are the key differences between mitosis and meiosis as processes of cell division and reproduction: Mitosis Meiosis Where it occurs Occurs in all organisms, except viruses Only occurs in animals, plants, and fungi Cells it produces Creates body/somatic cells Creates germ/sex cells Number of cell divisions One cell division ( 4 stages total) Two cell divisions (8 stages total) Prophase length Prophase is short Prophase I is longer Recombination/crossing over No recombination/crossing over in prophase Recombination/crossing over of chromosomes during prophase I Metaphase During metaphase, individual chromosomes line up on cell’s equator During metaphase I, pairs of chromosomes line up on cell’s equator Anaphase During anaphase, sister chromatids move to opposite ends of the cell During anaphase I, sister chromatids move together to the same cell poll During anaphase II, sister chromatids are separated to opposite ends of the cell Number of cells created End result: two daughter cells End result: four daughter cells Ploidy Diploid daughter cells Haploid daughter cells Genetics Daughter cells are genetically identical Daughter cells are genetically different That’s a lot of differences, right? But there are also several similarities between the processes of mitosis and meiosis. Here they are: Both mitosis and meiosis begin with a diploid parent cell, or a parent cell with two sets of chromosomes Mitosis and meiosis go through the same phases, in the same order- prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase- but the phases occur only once during mitosis and twice during meiosis Both mitosis and meiosis end with cytokinesis, the cytoplasmic division of a eukaryotic cell into two daughter cells In general, you want to try to remember the two main differences between mitosis and meiosis: meiosis involves two cell divisions, while mitosis only involves one, and meiosis gives rise to the production of germ cells, while mitosis gives rise to the production of somatic cells. Now you should be able to come up with answers to the questions, â€Å"What is the purpose of mitosis?† and, â€Å"What is the purpose of meiosis?† all on your own! Next, we’ll tell you about our top three tips for studying and memorizing the details of mitosis. Our Top 3 Tips for Studying and Memorizing the Details of Mitosis Now, learning cell biology is essentially a gargantuan effort to remember a lot of stuff about a lot of things, so maybe you’re wondering how you’re going to remember what the stages of mitosis are, the order of the phases, what happens in each phase . . . the list could probably go on! Fear not: we’ve come up with some strategies that can help you remember some of the most important details about mitosis. Check out our top three tips for studying and memorizing the key details about mitosis below. Mnemonic Devices Mnemonic devices are techniques that people can use to help them remember something. If you need to remember the 4 stages of mitosis in order, try memorizing one of these mnemonic devices: I Picked My Apples Today I Prefer Tea And Milk IPMAT Get it? The first letter of each word in the mnemonic devices above corresponds with the first letter of each of the phases of mitosis, plus interphase: I = Interphase Picked = Prophase My = Metaphase Apples = Anaphase Today = Telophase Adding one of these easy-to-remember phrases to your study arsenal can make remembering the phases of mitosis much easier in a high-pressure situation! Use the Letters In â€Å"Mitosis† and â€Å"Meiosis† to Remember the Difference If you thought those mnemonic devices were a cheesy way to remember key details about mitosis, just wait: we’ve also got a couple of ways to differentiate between mitosis and meiosis just by using the letters in the words mitosis and meiosis. Here’s an example: Mitosis has a â€Å"t† in it, so mitosis is going to result in two cells. Here’s a visual: The â€Å"T† in mitosis = two cells. Just remember that â€Å"t,† which should help you remember that mitosis results in two genetically identical daughter cells. Now for meiosis- and this one is easier. Ready? Meiosis doesn’t have a â€Å"T† in it, so it isn’t going to make two cells. â€Å"T† in mitosis = two cells. No â€Å"T† in meiosis = not two cells. A Different Kind of Mnemonic and A Hand Trick Maybe you need a trick to remember what happens during each phase of mitosis in addition to remembering what order they go in. Here’s one more trick that takes the first letter of each phase of mitosis and associates it with a word starting with that same letter to describe what happens in the corresponding phase of mitosis: Prophase = Prepare Metaphase = Middle Anaphase = Apart Telophase = Tear Prepare - middle - apart - tear. The idea with this one is to use one word that sort of sums up what happens in each phase of mitosis to trigger your memory about the other details of what happens in that phase. So, for example, if you can remember prophase = prepare, that should set you up to explain how prophase prepares the genetic material in the cell’s nucleus for division by condensing it tightly together. If a visual representation of what happens during each phase of mitosis is more helpful to you than another mnemonic device, try memorizing the quick hand trick demonstrated in this YouTube video! You could also combine the descriptive words from the mnemonic above with the hand trick for a double whammy. 3 Resources for Further Learning About Mitosis If you need some extra help answering the question, â€Å"What is mitosis?† on your own or want to build on your current mitosis definition, check out the three resources below that provide more information about mitosis! Nature Journal Maybe you’re feeling pretty ambitious and you want to dive into peer-reviewed, academic research articles on mitosis. One of the best places you can turn for that is Nature, an international science journal, and one of the most reputable in its field. If you need to do research on mitosis that’s going to be up to, say, a college professor’s expectations, any search you do in Nature’s archives will get you the kind of sources you need. The big drawback of most academic research journals is that the subscription fees are hefty. A one-year subscription to Nature for students is $119. Don’t lose heart, though. A lot of times, schools and universities buy subscriptions to reputable journals, so it’s likely you could access articles or issues on mitosis through your school library’s online databases. If you’re in doubt, just ask a research librarian! Scitable by Nature Education If a full-fledged, peer-reviewed scientific journal is a bit much for you at this point, Nature Education provides a tapered down resource for students looking for credible overviews of science-related topics, called Scitable. Scitable focuses specifically on key genetic concepts, so they definitely provide content that covers mitosis. When you search a concept on Scitable, the results pop up conveniently categorized based on type of content. So, if you search â€Å"mitosis† from the Scitable homepage, you’ll get results categorized as â€Å"articles,† â€Å"concept pages,† â€Å"definitions,† â€Å"images,† and â€Å"blog posts.† We recommend exploring Scitable on your own, but we’ve also linked to a few resources on mitosis that Scitable provides below: Mitosis definition page Concept page explaining replication and distribution of DNA during mitosis Video showing a timelapse of mitosis occurring under a light microscope If you’re looking for a variety of scientist-authored educational resources on mitosis in one place, Scitable is a great place to go. iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/f-ldPgEfAHI" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen/iframe The Amoeba Sisters’ YouTube Videos on Mitosis If some jazzy music and creative visuals help you get focused to learn something new, try checking out the Amoeba Sisters’ set of YouTube videos on mitosis. Their content is lively, accessible, and relatable, which is always a welcome way to learn more about (or frantically review) science-y things! The Amoeba Sisters have several videos that will help you answer the question, â€Å"What is mitosis?†, but we especially recommend â€Å"Mitosis: The Amazing Cell Process that Uses Division to Multiply!† and â€Å"Mitosis vs. Meiosis: Side by Side Comparison.† And they don’t just provide video content: if you look right under all of their videos on YouTube, you’ll find that they provide a link to a page with tons of handouts that you can use to study and review what you’ve learned from their videos about mitosis. If you’re still asking yourself, â€Å"What is mitosis?†, these videos and handouts can help you answer that question. One more cool thing about their videos: they update them periodically to ensure their content stays up-to-date with scientific research and what’s being taught in formal education settings pertaining to mitosis, so you know you’re getting credible information. What’s Next? Are you still a little confused about what happens during mitosis? Or do you need a more in-depth resource to help you study? Here’s a step-by-step guide to mitosis that breaks every phrase down in detail (coming soon). Once you read this article, you’ll be on the way to becoming a mitosis expert! If you think biology is amazing, you might be a good candidate for taking AP Biology classes in high school. Here’s a guide to help you decide if an AP Bio class is right for you. (You can also take a sneak peek at the AP Biology syllabus to give you an inside look at what taking the class would be like!) Maybe you’re already taking AP or IB Biology and are looking for more study resources. We’ve got you covered there, too. Here’s a complete AP Biology review and a comprehensive list of the best online IB Biology SL/HL study notes, too.

Business Oulining Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business Oulining - Research Proposal Example MARKETING PLAN From statistics, it showed that the existing similar businesses in the area are very few and don’t serve the population to maximum. The firm will ensure that it offers maximum products and services to the customers; the main targeted customers include individuals, institutions, contractors and other commercial and industrial customers. Price strategy will be laid down considering the corresponding cost of product, labour and prices charged by other competitors. The business will advertise its goods through posters, trade exhibitions and mass media. This will enable the business to compete effectively with other enterprises. The opportunity is quite promising since the competition is not that high. ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT The owner of the business will be overall manager. Having obtained a Masters degree in Business Management hence will have high skills in management field. His duties will be setting business goals, making decisions, recruiting new employees and overall supervision of the business. The owner will employ a number of qualified staff who will assist in carrying out various duties involved in the business. The workers experts from the business related field. Recruitment of a new staff and motivation will be tactfully applied. Promotion of staff will be considered and incentives will be offered depending on qualifications, experience, long-service and hard working. The business will obtain all necessary legal documents e.g. licenses and the supportive services such as insurance, banking services shall be provided OPERATIONAL PLAN The business will operate on a considerable rented hall. It will start operating early January 2015. The premises will be equipped with all important facilities e.g. telephone, toilets, etc. Operational days will be throughout the week from 8.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. apart from Sundays and Public Holidays where the business shall remain closed. Financial plan The estimated amount of money required to s tart the business is $20,000. The source of the funds will be personal savings of $5000 shillings, a bank loan of $12,000 and donation from friends and well wishers of $2000. The break-even point of the business is estimated to be $ 15000 and the gross profit margin ration is estimated to be 87.97%. the business plans to make contact to 300 business owners per month and convert it to total of 15 sales per month in a minimum of 10,000 loan request from merchants at 5% commission will be estimated income of $7500 per month. I am expecting to pay back the amount monthly in 5 years. I am passionate in helping small business to survive. Item Cost E-mail greeting for sales $50 Desk top $900 Desk and chair purchase $200 Leads to call $700 for 3 months $2100 Paper and office supplies $700 Simple website set up $500 Home line and greeting setup $100 Email and domain setup $20 Hire an attorney for applications and agreements with Merchants $500Â   Create a company name and other company setu ps $800 List of questions for Merchants 400 CRM $5500 Extra Employee pay for 3 months $7200 Total $15,000 Executive Summary Rosie Neek investment Limited is an Independent sales operator (ISO) working in the merchant industry to help build profitable businesses by lending to potential customers. They serve as links to business requiring capital boosts while charging transaction, statements and monthly minimum fees. The business is based in 40 Wall Street, New York. ISOs makes business to

The Rebel by Charlie Nguyens Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Rebel by Charlie Nguyens - Essay Example Before 2002, foreign films were not allowed screening in movie theatres. The government revised its policy in 2002 and the private movie studios were given the green signal to carry out their work. This policy change brought new opportunities for independent movie producers to become commercially successful. By 2005, the private studios were seeing success in terms of production and distribution of movies but the commercial and independent moviemakers received no funding. The policy change seemed to lure for the expatriates who saw an opportunity in making films in Vietnam. Low-budget movie makers and technicians found the business profitable in the wake of increasing domestic disposable income. The expatriates especially jumped on the bandwagon. However, the moviemakers did not enjoy complete autonomy because the state policy determined the overall film production. The taste of the audience also governed the theme and movie genre. Betrayal and loyalty have turned out to be the two major themes in the Vietnamese film production history. The Rebel also portrays these themes, which are really relevant in the today’s Vietnam. Vietnam had remained at war for such a long time that it drained its economy and the much-needed liquidity. The country has either fought off invasions or engaged in wars with France, China, Japan, Cambodia and the US (Narkunas, p. 149). In 1979 Vietnam was fighting 1 million Chinese troops. The battle depleted Vietnamese economic resources and left it as one of the poorest countries in the world. It is inevitable that the theme of patriotism manifests itself in the Vietnamese film industry. The themes of betrayal and loyalty always almost always find its place in the screenplay of successful Vietnamese movies. The Rebel is based on the struggles of fighting the French occupation in Vietnam. The protagonists of the movie converse with his father about loyalty to the country.  Ã‚  

Communication Styles Essay Example for Free

Communication Styles Essay In this current context, the study investigates language and communication issues from the perspectives of two categories: (1) EAL professionals who are employed in their field and (2) managers in companies that employ them. Questions of language and communication need to be unpacked so that language educators, settlement services, employers, EAL immigrants and policy makers can understand language needs in more depth than a numerical proficiency level can provide. Investigating employers’ and EAL employees’ perspectives on communication experiences in the workplace can add to our understanding of these issues. The study aims to capture participants’ hindsight and reflections on their own employment experiences, as managers or employees. It attempts to build on findings of the existing research and also opens up issues for further questioning. It presents insights but also uncovers contradictions, and identifies directions for further research and policy adjustment. The study reported here comprises the interview phase of a two-part project; the second part, an observational case study of immigrant professionals in the workplace, is currently underway. Interviews of employers of EAL immigrant professionals and tertiary-educated EAL employees offer a focus on language and communication experiences in the workplace. Interviewees thus have the additional benefit of reflection and hindsight and the open-ended interview format allowed them to construct their own perspectives. While the study size and interpretive approach mean that the research findings are not generalizable, they present insights into issues that have been identified but not widely analyzed. The current system of pre-immigration testing to determine the level of language readiness for the workplace does not adequately reflect the breadth and depth of communicative needs in particular workplace contexts. For example, engineers who need to communicate with construction site workers, as well as clients on the telephone and colleagues in meetings need a range of English language competencies well beyond test taking skills. Nevertheless, it might be expected that highly-qualified, experienced EAL immigrants would feel confident that once they pass the language test requirements, their English would be adequate to perform their work. One drawback for both employers and employees is that communicative language development takes time. If newly-hired employees need to work immediately with customers and clients, employers may be disappointed in their communication skills. Likewise, if employees are in a workplace with little regular interpersonal contact, including informal contact where they can talk without job performance stress, their language development is disadvantaged. For example, the importance of asking questions and checking understanding can be emphasized, discussed and compared across cultures in language and work orientation programs. But employers can also adopt non-threatening strategies for checking comprehension, as well as giving feedback. Moreover, it is important to remember that miscommunication is a function of various situations and does not always arise from problems of English language ability. They tended to see their job as particular tasks and responsibilities for which they were well-qualified and experienced. Employers, on the other hand, considered interaction at work to be essential to smooth functioning of the workplace and to the establishment and maintenance of workplace relationships. They faulted EAL employees’ general lack of engagement in workplace interaction. This project has taken a step in investigating issues of language and communication in the workplace. The findings can be assessed against others’ knowledge and experience of employers and EAL immigrant professionals COMMUNICATION ACCOMODATION THEORY (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communication_accommodation_theory) Communication accommodation theory (CAT) is a theory of communication developed by Howard Giles. It argues that â€Å"when people interact they adjust their speech, their vocal patterns and their gestures, to accommodate to others†[1]. It explores the various reasons why individuals emphasize or minimize the social differences between themselves and their interlocutors through verbal and nonverbal communication. This theory is concerned with the links between â€Å"language, context and identity†.[2] It focuses on both the intergroup and interpersonal factors that lead to accommodation as well as the ways in which power, macro and micro-context concerns affect communication behaviors. [2] There are two main accommodation processes described by this theory. Convergence refers to the strategies through which individuals adapt to each other’s communicative behaviors, in order to reduce these social differences.[3] Meanwhile, Divergence refers to the instances in which individuals accentuate the speech and non-verbal differences between themselves and their interlocutors.[3] Sometimes when individuals try to engage in convergence they can also end up over-accommodating, and despite their good intentions their convergence can be seen as condescending. Background Speech accommodation theory The communication accommodation theory was developed by Howard Giles, professor of Communication at the University of California, Santa Barbara. It evolved from the speech accommodation theory (SAT), but can be traced back to Giles’ accent mobility model of 1973. The speech accommodation theory was developed in order to demonstrate the value of social psychological concepts to understanding the dynamics of speech. It sought to explain â€Å"the motivations underlying certain shifts in people’s speech styles during social encounters and some of the social consequences arising from them†. Particularly, it focused on the cognitive and affective processes underlying individuals’ convergence and divergence through speech. The communication accommodation theory has broadened this theory to include not only speech but also the â€Å"non-verbal and discursive dimensions of social interaction†. Thus, it now encompasses other aspects of communication. In addition CAT has moved in a more interdisciplinary direction than the previous speech accommodation theory. It now also covers a wider range of phenomena. Social psychology and social identity theory Like speech accommodation theory, communication accommodation theory continues to draw from social psychology, particularly from four main socio-psychology theories: similarity-attraction, social exchange, causal distribution and intergroup distinctiveness. These theories help to explain why speakers seek to converge or diverge from the language, dialect, accent and behavior of their interlocutors. CAT also relies heavily in social identity theory. This later theory argues that a person’s self-concept comprises a personal identity and a social identity, and that this social identity is based in comparisons people make between in-groups (groups to which they belong) and out-groups (groups to which they don’t belong). According to social identity theory, people strive to maintain a positive social identity by either joining groups where they feel more comfortable or making a more positive experience of belonging to the groups to which they already belong. Since speech is a way to express group membership, people adopt convergence or divergence in communication in order to â€Å"signal a salient group distinctiveness, so as to reinforce a social identity†. Communication accommodation thus, becomes a tool to emphasize group distinctiveness in a positive way, and strengthen the individual’s social identity. Four main socio-psychologies Similarity-attraction The similarity-attraction theory posits that â€Å"the more similar our attitudes and beliefs are to those of others, the more likely it is for them to be attracted to us. Convergence through verbal and non-verbal communication is one of the mechanisms that we can use to become more similar to others, increasing their attraction towards us. For this reason, it can be said that one of the factors which leads individuals to use convergence is a desire to obtain social approval from his or her interlocutor. It could hence be concluded that â€Å"the greater one’s need for social approval, the greater will be one’s tendency to converge.† Natalà © (1975), for instance, has found that speakers with high needs for approval converge more to another’s vocal intensity and pause length than those with low needs for approval†. An individual on the receiving end of high level of accommodation is likely to develop a greater sense of self-esteem and satisfaction than being a receiver of low accommodation. Social exchange process The social exchange process theory â€Å"states that prior to acting, we attempt to assess the rewards and costs of alternate courses of action†, and that we tend to choose whatever course of action will bring greater rewards and less costs. Although most often convergence can bring forth rewards, there are some occasions when it can also bring forth costs such as â€Å"increased effort to converge, a loss of perceived integrity and personal (and sometimes group) identity†. Hence when choosing whether or not to use convergence people assess these costs and rewards. Causal attribution process The causal attribution theory â€Å"Suggests that we interpret other people’s behavior, and evaluate the individual themselves, in terms of the motivations and intentions that we attribute as the cause of their behavior† It applies to convergence in that convergence might be viewed positively or negatively depending on the causes we attribute to it: â€Å"Although interpersonal convergence is generally favorably received, and non-convergence generally unfavorably received, the extent to which this holds true will undoubtedly be influenced by the listeners attributions of the speaker’s intent†. Giles and Smith provide the example of an experiment that they conducted amongst French and English speaking Canadians, in order to illustrate this. In this experiment, when individuals believed that the person from the different group used language convergence in order to reduce cultural barriers it was more positively evaluated than when they attributed convergence to the pressures of the situation, which forced them converge. â€Å"When French Canadian listeners attributed an English Canadian’s convergence to French as due to his desire to break down cultural barriers, the shift was viewed favorably. However, when this same behavior was attributed to pressures in the situation forcing the other to converge, positive feelings were not so strongly evoked†. Intergroup distinctiveness The process of intergroup distinctiveness, as theorized by Tajfel argues â€Å"that when members of different groups are in contact, they compare themselves on dimensions which are important to them, such as personal attributes, abilities, material possessions and so forth†. In these â€Å"intergroup social comparisons† individuals seek to find ways in which they can make themselves positively distinct from the out-group in order to enhance their social identity.[5] Because speech style and language is an important factor in defining social groups, divergence in speech style or language is often employed in order to maintain intergroup distinctiveness and differentiate from the out-group, especially when group membership is a salient issue or the individual’s identity and group membership is being threatened.[6] Assumptions Many of the principles and concepts from social identity theory are also applicable to communication accommodation theory. Under the influence of social psychology, especially social identity theory, communication accommodation theory are guided by mainly four assumptions. * There are speech and behavioral similarities and dissimilarities in all conversations. * The way in which we perceive the speech and behaviors of another will determine our evaluation of the conversation. * Language and behaviors have the ability to communicate social status and group belonging between people in a conversation. * Norms guide the accommodation process which varies in its degree of appropriateness. The first assumption indicates that people bring their past experience to conversations. Therefore, communication is not only influenced by situational conditions and initial reactions but the social-historical context in which the interaction is embedded†. People’s attitudes and beliefs, derived from those factors, determine the extent to which they are willing to accommodate in a conversation. The more similarities they share with each other, the more likely for them to accommodate. The second assumption is concerned with how people perceive and evaluate a conversation. Perception is the process of attending to and interpreting a message and evaluation is the process of judging a conversation.[1] When someone enters a conversation, usually he first observes what takes place and then decides whether he should make adjustment to fit in. However, the decision about accommodation is not always necessary. Imagine the encounter of two strangers, they may have a random small talk and simply say goodbye. In this case, neither of them is likely to evaluate the conversation since they have little possibility to meet again. The importance of language and behaviors is illustrated in the third assumption since they are indicators of social status and group belongings. When two people who speak different languages try to have a conversation, the language they agree to communicate with is more likely to be the one used by the higher status person. This idea of â€Å"salient social membership negotiation is well illustrated in the situation of an interview as the interviewee usually makes all efforts to identify with the interviewer by accommodating the way he speaks and behaves so that he can have more chance to secure the job. The last assumption puts emphasis on social appropriateness and norms. Here norms are defined as â€Å"expectations of behaviors that individuals feel should or should not occur in a conversation†. Those expectations give guidance to people’s behaviors, helping them to figure out the appropriate way to accommodate. Most of the time, the accommodation made according to those norms are perceived socially appropriate. For instance, when a young person talks to the seniors in his family, he should avoid using jargons among his generation to show respect and communicate more smoothly. Convergence, over-accomodation, and divergence Convergence Convergence refers to the process through which an individual shifts his speech patterns in interaction so that they more closely resemble the speech patterns of his interlocutor(s). People can converge through many features of communication such as their use of language, their â€Å"pronunciation, pause and utterance lengths, vocal intensities, nonverbal behaviors, and intimacy of self-disclosures†(Giles and Smith, 1979, 46), but they do not necessarily have to converge simultaneously at all of these levels. In fact people can both converge at some levels and diverge through others at the same time. People use convergence based on their perceptions of others, as well as what they are able to infer about them and their backgrounds. Attraction (likability, charisma, credibility), also triggers convergence. As Turner and West note, â€Å"when communicators are attracted to others they will converge in their conversations†. On the other hand, as the similarity attraction theory highlights, when people have similar beliefs, personality and behaviors they tend to be more attracted towards each other. Thus when an individual shifts his speech and non-verbal behaviors in order to assimilate to the other it can result in a more favorable appraisal of him that is: when convergence is perceived positively it is likely to enhance both the conversation and the attraction between the listener and the speaker. For this reason it could be said that convergence reflects â€Å"an individual’s desire for social approval† from his interlocutor, and that the greater the individual’s need for social approval, the more likely he or she is to converge. Besides attraction, other factors which â€Å"influence the intensity of this â€Å"need of approval and hence the level of convergence â€Å"includes the probability of future interactions, the social status of the addressee, and interpersonal variability for need of social approval†. Other factors that determine whether and to what extent individuals converge in interaction are their relational history, social norms and power variables. Because individuals are more likely to converge to the individual with the higher status it is likely that the speech in a conversation will reflect the speech of the individual with the higher status. Converging also increases the effectiveness of communication, which in turn lowers uncertainty, interpersonal anxiety, and increases mutual understanding. This is another factor that motivates people to converge. Over accommodation However, although people usually have good intentions when they attempt to use convergence in conversation, some interlocutors can perceive convergence as patronizing and demeaning and hence just as it can enhance conversation it can also detract from the processes of communication. Over accommodation can exist in three forms: Sensory over accommodation, dependency over accommodation, and intergroup over accommodation. Sensory over accommodation is when an individual thinks that he is being accommodative to someone’s linguistic or physical disability but overdoes it, so that the other person perceives his behavior as patronizing. Dependency over accommodation refers to the situations â€Å"when the speaker places the listener in a lower-status role so that the listener is made to appear dependent on the speaker and he or she understands that the speaker is the primary speaker in the conversation in order to communicate a higher status. And finally, intergroup over accommodation involves manipulating people based on a general stereotype and not as individuals with an individual persona. The socially categorized stereotypes that people hold of others result in these cognitively linked forms of over-accommodation. Over-accommodation takes place in all types of circumstances. For example, it is not uncommon for nurses or caretakers to speak to their elderly patients in baby talk. While the nurses may have the purest of intentions to care and to relate to them, the patients actually end up feeling degraded and underestimated. In this particular case, it also can cause difficulty in adapting to an institution and a dysfunctional environment. Divergence Divergence is a linguistic strategy whereby a member of a speech community accentuates the linguistic differences between his or herself and his interlocutor. In the most part it reflects a desire to emphasize group distinctiveness in a positive manner and it usually takes places when an individual perceives interaction as an intergroup process rather than an individual one. â€Å"Given that communication features are often core dimensions of what it is to be a member of a group, divergence can be regarded as a very important tactic of displaying a valued distinctiveness from the other., This helps to sustain a positive image of one’s in-group and hence to strengthen one’s social identity. Divergence can thus be a way for members of different groups to maintain their cultural identity, a mean to contrast self-images when the other person is considered a member of an undesirable group, and a way to indicate power or status differences, as when one individual wishes to render another one less powerful. Components of CAT Further research conducted by Gallois et al. in 1995 has expanded the theory to include 17 propositions that influence these processes of convergence and divergence. They are categorized into four main components: the sociohistorical context, the communicators’ accommodative orientation, the immediate situation and evaluation and future intentions.These components are essential to Communication accommodation Theory and affect the course and outcome of intercultural conversations. Sociohistorical context The sociohistorical context refers to way in which past interactions between the groups to which the communicators belong influence the communication behaviors of the communicators. It includes the relations between the groups having contact and the social norms regarding contact[4]. These relations between the different groups to which the communicators belong, influence the communicators’ behavior. Amongst these socio-historical factors which influence communicators are: political or historical relations between nations, the different religious or ideological views between possessed by the two groups participating in the conversation, amongst others. Accommodative orientation Accommodative orientation refers to the communicators tendencies to perceive encounters without group members in interpersonal terms, intergroup terms, or a combination of the two. There are three factors that are crucial to accommodative orientations: (1) â€Å"intrapersonal factors† (e.g. personality of the speakers), (2) â€Å"intergroup factors† (e.g. communicators’ feelings toward out-groups), and (3) â€Å"initial orientations† (e.g. perceived potential for conflict). The issues which influence this last factor include: collectivistic culture context or whether the culture is collectivistic or individualistic; distressing history of interaction, the possible tensions that exist between groups due to past interactions; stereotypes; norms for treatment of groups; and high group solidarity/ high group dependence, how dependent the persons self-worth is in the group. Immediate situation The immediate situation refers to the moment in which the actual communication takes place. It is shaped by five aspects which are interrelated: (1) â€Å"sociopsychological states†, (2) â€Å"goals and addressee focus† (e.g. motivations and goals for the encounter), (3) â€Å"sociolinguistic strategies† (e.g. convergence or divergence), (4) â€Å"behavior and tactics† (e.g. topic, accent) and (5) â€Å"labeling and attributions†. Evaluation and future intentions This aspect deals with how communicators perceive their conversational partners’ behavior and its effects on future encounters between the two groups. Positively rated conversations will most likely lead to further communication between the interlocutors and other members of their respective groups. Communication Accommodation Theory in Action In 1991, Giles, Coupland, and Coupland expressed the belief that a â€Å"more qualitative perspective† would be necessary in order to obtain more diverse and clarifying explanations of the behaviors presented within varying contexts. They referred to this as â€Å"the applied perspective† that showed accommodation theory as a vital part of day-to-day activity as opposed to solely being a theoretical construct. They sought to â€Å"demonstrate how the core concepts and relationships invoked by accommodation theory are available for addressing altogether pragmatic concerns†[3]. For Giles, Coupland, and Coupland, these â€Å"pragmatic concerns† were extremely varied in nature. One of these â€Å"pragmatic concerns† included understanding the relational issues that present themselves in the medical and clinical fields, such as the relational â€Å"alternatives, development, difficulties, and outcomes,† which affected the patients’ contentment with their medical interactions and whether or not, through these interactions, they agreed with and implemented said health care regimens. Another of these situations involved the potential options in a legal arena. The way that the judges, plaintiffs, and defendants accommodated themselves to both the situation and the jury could manipulate the jury’s acceptance or rejection of the defendant, and could, thus, control the outcome of the case. Communication accommodation theory was also found to have a place in media. In regards to radio broadcasting, the alliance of the audience with the broadcaster played an important part in both the ratings that the shows would receive and whether the show progressed or was cancelled. In the area of jobs and employment, accommodation theory was believed to influence the satisfaction one has with his or her job and the productivity that that person possesses in said job through convergence with or divergence from the co-workers and their work environment. Accommodation theory also possessed practical applications in the development of learning a second language. This was seen when the student’s education of and proficiency in said language was either assisted or hindered by accommodative measures. Giles, Coupland, and Coupland (1991) also addressed the part that accommodation theory plays in a situation they called â€Å"language switching†, when bilingual individuals must decide which language they should speak when they are in an organizational environment with other bilingual individuals. This can be an incredibly important choice to make, especially in a business setting, because an incorrect judgment in this area of communication could unwittingly promote negative reactions between the two or more parties involved. In addition, accommodation theory was strongly intertwined with the way an immigrant accepts and is accepted by their host country. An instance of over-accommodation from the immigrating individual can unintentionally damage that person’s sense of individuality while a strong divergence from the immigrating individual from their host culture can prompt the natives of the host country to react negatively to them because of the immigrating individual’s use of divergence. The final area of practical application, as presented by Giles, Coupland, and Coupland (1991), was that of accommodation theory’s effect on the lives of people with disabilities. Accommodation theory was thought to either aid them by promoting them to â€Å"fulfill their communicative and life potentials,† or by hindering them from reaching their full potential by focusing on the disability that made them different rather than the other characteristics that made them similar to their peers. Despite the fact that communication accommodation theory is theoretical, it has shown itself to be viable by its numerous practical applications. Communication Accommodation Theory in Action among Diverse Cultural Groups Intergenerational communications Researchers of communication accommodation theory have been interested in conversations between the elderly and the young; actively apply this theory to analyze intergenerational communication situations. Since aging of population is growing to become a serious issue in current society, communication difficulties of older adults and issues like ageism should be addressed. According to mainstream sociolinguistic studies, age is regarded as a variable only to the extent that it may show patterns of dialectal variation within speech communities across time. However, â€Å"the existence of potentially important generational differences relating to beliefs about talk, situational perceptions, interactional goals, and various language devices between the young and the elderly as empirical questions in their own right â€Å"are all taken into account when using communication accommodation theory to explore intergenerational communication problems and improve effectiveness. Previous research have also developed models such as the communication predicament model of ageing and the communication enhancement model of ageing to point out numerous consequences brought by both negative and positive attitudes towards aging.

Essay --

Health promotion is important in the prevention of diseases and negative health behaviours in the mass public. It cost’s the NHS a lot more to cure or treat the disease than it does to promote a healthier lifestyle. Health promotion is ‘the process of enabling people to increase control over and improve their health’ (Ottawa H.P. Charter). In the 1950s the world health organisation worked to get individuals interested in and educated about their own health. The building of healthy public policy is related to the decisions made at all levels of the government and the work of other organisations who aim to improve health. The campaign ‘Healthy Child Healthy Weight’ is aimed the prevention of unhealthy weight in children, which will lead to obesity either now or in adulthood and later life (Scottish Government, 2011). The campaign works closely with schools, finding this as a key organisation to help combat childhood obesity. The campaign takes into cons ideration Scottish policy ‘Route Map towards Healthy Weight’ which also places a large focus on tackling obesity in children, to base their interventions on. Also it reflects the ‘Getting It Right For Every Child’ approach by putting the child and their family at the centre of the interventions and providing support so children can get the best start in life (Scottish Government, 2012). The understanding that families, parents as well as children must be included will have a great impact on the success of the campaign; since these are the people who make the decisions regarding their child’s eating habits and creating good dietary behaviour. In Scotland over one million adults and over 150,000 children are obese. Scotland has the third highest level of obesity per population, after t... ...nts should be limited during the periods of time children are likely to be watching TV and should only have a limited amount of air play per day. In conclusion the ‘Healthy Child Healthy Weight’ campaign can be very effective in reducing overweigh and obesity in children. Obesity is a major problem in today’s society with the level of occurrence rising meaning the cost to the NHS to treat the consequences increasing. Intervention in childhood will be beneficial to start the behaviour change process early where habits have not been instilled for a great length of time. Working with families will help the child strive for a healthy weight, as they will be able to provide healthy meals and encourage physical activity. The cost of the campaign is an issue to ensure the campaign keeps running, further funds must be sourced to provide more interventions in local areas.

A million dollars or a knighthood: what would you choose and why?

I hardly hesitated for a second before deciding my answer to this question. I would choose the money every time. Not that I am a particularly greedy person or that I don’t appreciate the ability of a title to ensure a decent table in a restaurant or a better seat on a plane. But the latter only works if the other person is impressed by a title.Money is much more versatile. And it grows. With the proper advice and investments I could not only meet my own needs, but I could make even more money and so be able to help a wider number of good causes.Even if all I did was invest the money in a luxurious house I would be helping others because of the number of people involved – lawyers, estate agents, builders, garden designers etc.All this isn’t what I’d really do though. I would buy a mobile home and travel first before deciding where to settle. I would be able to do something really useful such as fund a new well in a remote village or buy animals and seeds fo r a third world agricultural project.   Many charities have a titled person as a sponsor, just because, in some cases at least, they think that a title on the headed notepaper will impress. I am still to be convinced.And if I wanted status I could always use a little of the money to buy an ancient title such as the ones advertised on the web site Noble Titles Their prices start from only  £2,000 and I would by far above any Sir and still have plenty of money in my pocket.Titles do not pay bills, not do they fill larders, ensure commonsense or anything else really worthwhile, though I do admit that money does not quite do all of those. The title Sir was often bestowed by a grateful sovereign on some brave hero. I am just not that brave and will settle for the money. Where do I sign?

Political Dynasty Essay

The Philippine Constitution is a Social Contract which embodies the fundamental principles and policies, according to which the Filipino people are governed by the State. The fundamental principles are abstract and as such they cover every aspect of the life of the Filipino people; while the fundamental policies cover specific areas of application of those principles. The fundamental principles remain fixed and permanent, but the policies built upon those principles can be modified or repealed by legislation to suit the needs of the times. The title is product of my out of the box philosophizing about the provisions of Section 1 and Section 26 taken together of Article II of our Constitution. I must say that philosophizing does not tell us my conclusions and/or thoughts are right or wrong, true or false, but it has certainly given me the basis upon which to present my meta-understanding of Section 1 and Section 26: Article II, Section 1 says: â€Å"The Philippines is a democratic and republican state. Sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them. † This is the most basic principle of the Constitution, and it refers to a natural law as formulated and accepted in the mind; it refers also to essential truth upon which other truths are based. Article II, Section 26: â€Å"The State shall guarantee equal access to opportunities for public service, and prohibit political dynasties as may be defined by law. † This is a policy built upon the principle of Section 1, and it refers to a planned line of conduct in the light of which individual decisions on political dynasties are made and coordination is achieved. Moreover, political dynasties refer to the line of politicians of the same families. Every coin has two inseparable opposite sides – the head and the tail – yet they complement each other as they are opposed to each other to constitute only one coin. Similarly, the political issue on dynasty has two opposite yet complementary sides (a) â€Å"the principle of political dynasty† of Section 1 and (b) the â€Å"the policy of political dynasty† of Section 26. Both Sections constitute one Article II. The policy of Section 26 names the specific area of application of the principle of Section 1 of the same Article II. The policy of Section 26 is built upon the basic principle of Section 1. Moreover, the fundamental principle of Section 1 remain fixed and permanent, but policies of Section 3 can be are modified or repealed by legislation to suit the needs and demands of the times. The People: The Creators and Masters of Political Dynasties The phrase – â€Å"sovereignty resides in the people, and all government authority emanates from them† – clearly shows that the people are the habitat of the sovereignty. However, â€Å"people† have two distinct yet mutually complementary meanings, namely, â€Å"people as electorate† which is the source of political power of elected politicians and â€Å"people as corporate nation† which is the reason for being of elected politicians. These â€Å"dual meanings of people† effectively signify that the elected politicians are â€Å"public servants† of the people; hence the people are their â€Å"boss and master† in our democratic and republican state, not the way around By virtue of their sovereign power, the people are superior to any and all existing political dynasties, whose reason for being is service to their masters, the people. On moral grounds, the people must be awakened to the reality that they are the boss of political dynasties, and therefore they have no reason to fear the, before, during, and after political elections. Centrality of Morality in the Constitution The centrality of morality to our Constitution is evident in the Preamble, in the imploration to Almighty God for aid to build a just and humane society and to establish a Government that shall embody the Filipino ideals and aspirations and promote their common good under a regime of truth, justice, freedom, love, equality, and peace. The rest of the Constitution revolves around these moral ideals and moral values. These are the moral foundations of the Social Ethics Society. There are socio-economic phenomena in many areas of the country where the life-style and the exercise of political power by political dynasties is betrayal of public trust, because it is not in accord with the following moral imperatives and criteria of right and wrong in public service: â€Å"Public office is a public trust. Public officers and employees must at all times accountable to the people, serve them with utmost responsibility, integrity, loyalty, and efficiency; act with patriotism and justice, and lead modest life†. (Article X on Accountability) Every elected politician in the public service is bound to abide by those mandates. Congress had passed anti-graft and anti-corruption laws, e. g. RA No. 6713, also known as Code of Ethics for Government Officials and Employees, in the public service. However, it appears that many of our elected politicians pay only â€Å"lip service† to anti-Graft and Anti-Corruptions laws. For instance, there are widespread phenomena of bribery and corruption in the public service, reportedly perpetuated by corrupt politician, many of whom are allegedly members of political dynasties. Centrality of Morality to Legality The Preamble provides the moral grounds and the foundation of ethical politics of several Articles of the Constitution. No statutory law is enforceable if it is unconstitutional; and the Constitution cannot be enforced if it is immoral. The bottom line – any enabling law on political dynasty is legally binding upon the Filipinos, only if it is constitutional and moral. A law that is moral is always constitutional, but a law that is constitutional is not necessarily moral. A Moral and Ethical Proposal I believe the policy of Section 26 which â€Å"prohibits political dynasties as may be defined by law† has two distinct opposite sides, (1) â€Å"the letter of the Constitution† which is the legalistic side, and (2) the â€Å"spirit of the Constitution† which is the ethical side. The pro-political dynasty advocates and promoters behave in accord with legal politics. Their action is legal so long as there is no law defining and enabling the constitutional prohibition against political dynasties. Therefore, the anti-dynasty advocates and promoters should stand on moral and ethical grounds against political dynasties. It is my proposal on moral and ethical grounds that the anti-dynasty advocates should develop and promote the concept of â€Å"political dynasty of the people† based on the principle of Section 1 face-to-face the â€Å"political dynasties of oligarchs† based on the policy of Section 26 but built upon the principle of Section 1. When there is a conflict between a principle and its policy, the principle should prevail over its policy. Moral, Ethical, and Legal Practices in Politics Moral and ethical are similar in meaning in that they both have to do with the difference between right and wrong. They are dissimilar in meaning in that ethical tends to refer to a code, system, theory, or standard of judging rightness or wrongness of moral behavior; whereas moral tends to refer to more concrete choices and issues that arouse strong feelings. In other words, moral refers to good and evil, while ethical refers to right and wrong. Because of the untruthful disclosure of his SALN per Code of Ethics, former SC Chief Justice Renato Corona was found ethically wanting for which he was impeached, despite his superior legalistic knowledge of law; Hence, we could say that â€Å"what is moral is always ethical, but what is ethical is not necessarily moral. † Hence, when an elected politician acts according to RA 6714, his behavior is ethical as well as legal – â€Å"what is ethical is always legal, but what is legal is not necessarily ethical†. The Pursuit of Ethical Politics Our major problem in the pursuit of ethical politics is the lack of political will on the part of the people as electorate. Let us awaken and educate their political consciousness, and empower their political will by making them conscious of their being the political dynasty that is superior over all existing political dynasties of oligarchs† per mandate of Article II, Section 1 that the people are the habitat of sovereign power, but the exercise of such pwer is delegated and vested upon elected politicians. Assume that Congress would never pass the law enabling the policy against political dynasties; let us then resort to the principle of Section 1 in Article II. This principle does not require any enabling law because it is precisely the ultimate basis of all enabling laws. This is the principle why the political candidates try to win the votes of the people during political campaigns. We have indeed laws prescribing the requirements of the policy to vote. The Social Ethics Society can start the movement to marginalize the political dynasties,, if not altogether eliminate them eventually from the political landscape of the Philippine.

Essay on About Obama Improvements and Views

Essay on About Obama Improvements and Views Essay on About Obama: Improvements and Views In a democracy a president is elected to oversee the population for up to two four-year terms. The president runs against other high political individuals and in the end, runs against other person. The population has the option to vote and choose between the president and the opposing person amongst other categories. I personally feel as though Barrack Obama, our President, should win and regain office. Although the opponent’s views carry some sort of merit, they still compliment the views of Obama. Obama wants to help the middle class and those in need with health care. He has put Obama care in place in order to ensure that people without health care receive the proper treatment that they deserve. Both Obama and his opposition, Mitt Romney, were interested in creating jobs, but they had different ways of doing so. Obama was in favor of creating new jobs here in America but Romney didn’t want that, he wanted to give people jobs that already existed, but overseas. Obama believed that the key to getting out of the bad economy was a stronger middle class so he lowered taxes and made everything equal, whereas Romney wanted to tax the middle class more and the rich less. There would have been a tremendous loss of health benefits, the elderly would suffer because of this and that’s not right because the elderly helped build this great nation. The elderly would not be the only ones to suffer, the disabled people would suffer as well. Those that have pre-existing injuries would face a big loss because of

The Knights Hospitaller of St. John of Jerusalem

The Knights Hospitaller of St. John of Jerusalem In the mid-11th century, a Benedictine abbey was established in Jerusalem by merchants from Amalfi. About 30 years later, a hospital was founded next to the abbey to care for sick and poor pilgrims. After the success of the First Crusade  in 1099, Brother Gerard (or Gerald), the hospitals superior, expanded the hospital and set up additional hospitals along the route to the Holy Land. On February 15, 1113, the order was formally named the Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem and recognized in a papal bull issued by Pope Paschal II. The Knights  Hospitaller were also known as Hospitalers, the Order of Malta, the Knights of Malta. From 1113 to 1309 they were known as the Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem; from 1309 to 1522 they went by the Order of the Knights of Rhodes; from 1530 to 1798 they were the Sovereign and Military Order of the Knights of Malta; from 1834 to 1961 they were the Knights Hospitaller of St. John of Jerusalem; and from 1961 to the present they are formally known as the Sovereign Military and Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta. Hospitaller Knights In 1120, Raymond de Puy (a.k.a. Raymond of Provence) succeeded Gerard as leader of the order. He replaced the Benedictine Rule with the Augustinian Rule and actively began to build up the orders power base, helping the organization to acquire lands and wealth. Possibly inspired by the Templars, the Hospitallers began to take up arms in order to protect pilgrims as well as tend their illnesses and injuries. Hospitaller Knights were still monks and continued to follow their vows of personal poverty, obedience, and celibacy. The order also included chaplains and brothers who did not take up arms. Relocations of the Hospitallers The shifting fortunes of the western Crusaders would also affect the Hospitallers. In 1187, when Saladin captured Jerusalem, the Hospitaller Knights moved their headquarters to Margat, then to Acre ten years later. With the fall of Acre in 1291 they moved to Limassol in Cyprus. The Knights of Rhodes In 1309 the Hospitallers acquired the island of Rhodes. The grand master of the order, who was elected for life (if confirmed by the pope), ruled Rhodes as an independent state, minting coins and exercising other rights of sovereignty. When the Knights of the Temple were dispersed, some surviving Templars joined the ranks at Rhodes. The knights were now more warrior than hospitaller, though they remained a monastic brotherhood. Their activities included naval warfare; they armed ships and set off after Muslim pirates, and took revenge on Turkish merchants with piracy of their own. The Knights of Malta In 1522 the Hospitaller control of Rhodes came to an end with a six-month siege by Turkish leader Suleyman the Magnificent. The Knights capitulated on January 1, 1523, and left the island with those citizens who chose to accompany them. The Hospitallers were without a base until 1530, when Holy Roman emperor Charles V arranged for them to occupy the Maltese archipelago. Their presence was conditional; the most notable agreement was the presentation of a falcon to the emperors viceroy of Sicily every year. In 1565, grand master Jean Parisot de la Valette exhibited superb leadership when he stopped Suleyman the Magnificent from dislodging the Knights from their Maltese headquarters. Six years later, in 1571, a combined fleet of the Knights of Malta and several European powers virtually destroyed the Turkish navy at the Battle of Lepanto. The Knights built a new capital of Malta in honor of la Valette, which they named Valetta, where they constructed grand defenses and a hospital that attracted patients from far beyond Malta. The Last Relocation of the Knights Hospitaller The Hospitallers had returned to their original purpose. Over the centuries they gradually gave up warfare in favor of medical care and territorial administration. Then, in 1798, they lost Malta  when Napoleon  occupied the island on the way to Egypt. For a short time they returned under the auspices of the Treaty of Amiens (1802), but when the 1814 Treaty of Paris gave the archipelago to Britain, the Hospitallers left once more. They at last settled permanently in Rome in 1834. Membership of the Knights Hospitaller Although nobility was not required to join the monastic order, it was required to be a Hospitaller Knight. As time went on this requirement grew more strict, from proving nobility of both parents to that of all grandparents for four generations. A variety of knightly classifications evolved to accommodate lesser knights and those who gave up their vows to marry, yet remained affiliated with the order. Today, only Roman Catholics may become Hospitallers, and the governing knights must prove the nobility of their four grandparents for two centuries. The Hospitallers Today After 1805 the order was led by lieutenants until the office of Grand Master was restored by Pope Leo XIII in 1879. In 1961 a new constitution was adopted in which the orders religious and the sovereign status was precisely defined. Although the order no longer governs any territory, it does issue passports, and it is recognized as a sovereign nation by the Vatican and some Catholic European nations.