Majoring in Philosophy Essay

An event was organized in a school for students who were going to attend college soon. Their main aim was to emphasize Major in philosophy. Many experts explained importance of philosophy. There are numerous reasons for choosing this course. In philosophy major, students are taught about how to interpret, imagine, converse, and write well. Philosophy answers many human quires which grouped into three traditional categories. These are axiology: the theory of value, Epistemology: the theory of knowledge, Metaphysics: basic kinds of things exist. Students can successfully complete philosophy if they posses good level of reading comprehension, transparency of thought, and good communication skill. Principles of philosophy apply to everyday life therefore courses are designed to use thoughts and theories from the history of philosophy to concentrate on real world issues in area of education, business, law, public policy, and society. The purposes of course in philosophy Major in applied ethics are particularly pertinent for students who are interested in the role played by ethical values in a diversity of professional settings. Philosophy courses are important because philosophical concepts, ideology, and process of inquiry are related in several fields. Whatever students learn in philosophy can be applied in practically all aspects of life. This course allows candidates to know when to use a liberal sprinkling of words and when to use imagination power. Philosophy is good area of study that provides a high degree of personal accomplishment. Students will also have opportunities to critically test the potential and the influence of contemporary theoretical and philosophical schools of thought in normal life. In studying profoundly about great philosophers, students can gain knowledge to think thoroughly about every aspect of human life. Philosophy major allows students to observe relations between very different fields of thought such as science, religion, and ethics. This course widens skills in writing, in argumentation, and in the communication of complex ideas. Philosophy course equip students to develop inherent personal value. They can experience expansion of consciousness, self-discovery, self-renewal, and a more clear direction in life. In short, philosophy is learning for full life span. For doing philosophy major, candidate must be well versed in a broad education and have good credits which must be upper division. Philosophy majors have the maximum average score of any major on the verbal reasoning, analytic writing section and on the quantitative reasoning section. The most clear career path for students majoring in philosophy is to complete graduation in philosophy and involve in teaching in reputed college or university. Many philosophy graduates choose non-academic profession. Philosophy major courses prepare students for vocations requiring a liberal arts education, including law, government, communication, management, the ministry, teaching, or even business administration. To summarize, event attended in school encourages students to join Philosophy Major to enhance career and get steep success. It was communicated that philosophy is one of the most flexible majors in the humanities. It intersects with economics, politics, mathematics, psychology and history. Students studying philosophy will have a good understanding of about themselves and the world. In the event, professionals drew attention of students by stating important facts of philosophy. The reason of studying this course is that philosophy makes the mind healthy and develops numerous skills to sharpen human mind. If a person wants to develop a variety of skills that prepare him for a wide variety of intellectual challenges, he must be serious in joining a philosophy major.

Impact of Portuguese Estado Da India

MANSABDARI SYSTEM IN MUGHAL DYNASTY Mansab was the generic term for the military type grading of all imperial officials of the Mughal empire. The mansabdars governed the empire and commanded its armies in the emperor’s name. The term is derived from Mansab, meaning rank. Hence,Mansabdari literally means rank-holder. Basically,the mansabdar system was borrowed from Persia. It was prevalent during the reign of Babur and Humayun. Mansabdar was a title used in the armed services of the Mughal empire.The term is derived from Mansab, standing for rank,mansabdar literally means a rank holder in military. A mansabdar was engaged in the service of the state and was obligated to render service. The mansabdars formed a military aristocracy which proved an admirable instant in the organization of Chengiz and Timur. Theâ€Å" mansab† meant rank. Different numbers which could be divided by ten were used for ranking officers. It was also meant for fixing the salaries and allowances of officers.Since,the mansabdars of the mughal empire received their pay either in cash(naqd) or in the form of assignments of areas of land(jagir) from which they were entitled to collect the land revenue and all other taxes sanctioned by the emperor,the mansabdar system was also an integrated part of the agrarian and the jagirdari system. This system introduced by Akbar . It was a unique feature of the administrative system of the Mughal Empire. The term mansab (i. e. officer,position,rank)in the mughal administrative indicated the rank of its holder(mansabdar) in the official hierarchy. It was of central Asian origin.According to one view Babur brought it to North India. DEVELOPMENT OF MANSABDARI SYSTEM- During the reign of Akbar, the lowest rank was that of number ten and the highest was that of twelve thousand. The mansab above five thousand and later on that of seven thousand was given only to princes of royal blood. Jahangir and Shahjahan awarded mansab to their officers upto t he number only three thousand while royal princes were given mansabs upto the number of forty thousand. Akbar introduced the mansabdari system in the mughal army which primarily meant the ranking of officers on decimal system.Mansabdari system was the novelty of army organisation of the mughals. It was introduced by Akbar and was kept as it was with minor changes upto the reign of Aurangzeb. The later mughals gave mansabs upto number of fifty thousand. All officers below the rank of the mansab of five hundred were called mansabdars,the officers enjoying the mansab from five hundred to two thousand five hundred were called amir-i-azam and amir- i-umda. Some historians described,that the mansabdars were required to maintain soldiers equivalent to the number of rank awarded to them.Classification of mansab which has been highlighted with chengiz khan who had divided his army 10-10000. In this matter any thing cannot be said how many horsemen were kept by any mansab,because Jama was bei ng exaggrated. When state got information about the situation of the agriculture and economy. Akbar took decision to control the situation which was quite different from written statements in the office. The main motto behind this was to implement dagh system. It means every mansabdar had to got registered his documents for face.Number of horses and their quality was checked and those who was not able to fulfill the criteria they were punished. According to badauni,who was also mansabdar of twenty rank. First mansab was given mansab of 20. So that he could serve the palace according to the situation. Aamir opposed dagh system and they were not ready for special sign which had been given to their horses. During dagh system create small aamir had taken power in their hand. Sometimes they used it to disturb reputted aamir, some shahi diwans who adopted hard ways due to this agitation happened in Bengal and Bihar in 1580 for which Akbar tried to remove this.Day by day dagh system was go ing to strict but mansabdars did not keep actual number of horsemen during any ocassion of the demonstration they took horses of others and did the formality. In many respects,the basic features were first delineated by Moreland and Abdul Aziz but their views have been greatly refined and often substantially revised by M. Athar Ali and Irfan Habib. Mansabdari which had been brought by Mughals was unique system. By and large, it has been here,mansab was the rank by which a man used to get honour in his salary for promotion.He was a appointed in administrative service or in the King’s court. Given mansab to aamir was pay to 10 to 5000. Although mansab word was used for all the mansabdars. Below 1000 all the persons were said mansabdars. It was assumed that time it is a system in which you have to promote yourself on the basis of your talent and wisdom. From 500 to 10000 mansab was reserved for shahi family but Akbar gave this mansab to his relative mansingh and brother Mirza Az iz Koka. There were tthirty-three grades of mansab ranging from commanders of 10 to commanders of 10000.Till the middle of Akbar’s reign , the highest rank an ordinary officer hold was that of a commanders of 5000 the more enalted grades between commanders of 7000 and 10000 were reserved for the royal princes. During the period following the reign of Akbar, the grades were increased upto 20000 or even more. There was no distinction between civil and military departments, officers both civil and military held mansabs and were liable to be transferred from one branch of the administration to another. Each mansabdars were expected to maintain prescribed number of horses,elephants,equipments etc according to his rank and dignity.Senior mansabdar were awarded a jagir(personal fief) rather than a salary. The mansab was not hereditary and it automatically lapsed after the death or dismissal of the mansabdars. Khwandamir tells us that at the command of the emperor Hindu has the salar ies of the military personnel and also the grades(maratib) of the he Imperial servants. The salaries of mansabdars were fixed according to their mansabs,while the rates for their troopers were sanctioned separately. Moreover the mansabdars were to maintain a separate stable of animals (elephants and horses) their own according to their mansabs.Akbar organized the nobility and his army by means of the mansabdari system. The ranks normally given to top officers and nobles were valued from 10 to 5000 later raised to 7000. But the credit going it an institutional framework goes to Akbar who made it the basis of Mughal military organization and civil administration. The mansabdars formed the ruling group in the Mughal Empire. Consequently,the numerical strength of the mansabdars and their composition during different periods materially influenced not only politics and administration but also the economy of the Empire.ZAT AND SAWAR-The mansabdars were differentiated by the Zat and Sawar r ank. Mansabdar had a zat or personal ranking and a sawar or a troop ranking. The mansabdars belonged both to the civil and military departments. They were transferred from the civil side to the military departments. They were transferred from the the civil side to the military department and vice versa. The mughal mansab was dual , represented by one designated zat(personal rank) and the other sawar(cavalry rank). In Akbar’s reign the mansabs ranged from command of 10 to 5000 troops.Subsequently, the highest mansabs were raised from 10000 to 12000 but there was no fixed number of mansabdars. During the reign of Akbar ,introduced the rank of zat and sawar in the mansabdari system was that ,every mansabdar was given the rank of sawar as well as that of zat. A mansabdar was paid rupees two per horse. In his period,the mansabdar were asked to keep as many horsemen as were indicated by numbers of their ranks of sawar. Every grade of his mansabdars holding the rank of five thousand or below it were divided into three categories.If a mansabdar had equal ranks zat and sawar ,he was of first category among his grade of mansabdar . i. e. if a mansabdar enjoyed the rank of five thousand zat and five thousand sawar then he was of the first category among the mansabdars of five thousand. If a mansabdar had the rank of sawar lower than the rank of zat but not lower than half of it then he belonged to the second category. i. e. if a mansabdar enjoyed the rank of five thousand zat and three thousand or two hundred and five hundred sawar then he belonged to the second category among the mansabdars of five thousand.And lastly, if a mansabdar enjoyed the rank of sawar which was less the half of his rank of zat then he belonged to the third category among his grade of mansabdars. A separate department was organized for the purpose of horses and elephants is called Dagh-Mahali. Akbar , of course ;deserved credit for imploring the army- organization of the Mughals. Akbarâ₠¬â„¢s death mansab was explained in two numerical representatives:the first zat determined the holder’s personal pay and the status in the hierarchy ,the second sawar indicated the number of horsemen to be maintained by the holder and set the amount sanctioned to cover their pay.Akbar introduced the sawar rank in his 11th regnal year (1566-67). Mansab as a single rank is further supported by the Tabaqat’s different way of expressing mansabs in terms of numbers of troopers(sawars or naukars). The sawars were distinguised in two classes- sih-aspa du aspa and barawardis. Irfan Habib to bring out the significance under Akbar of the term barawardis , as a pre-dagh uniform payment per unit of sawar rank ,which was intented to be adjusted after the dagh. Ain that clearly defines the term barawardi and implies that the final salary was fixed on the basis of the contingent of troopers actually brought to the brand(dagh).The pay sanctioned after dagh was determined by such facto rs as the number of horses mustered along with the troopers and the breed of horses. In other words, the 18-19 regnal years, we shows that- a. A single number was awarded as mansab. b. Each mansab indicated as per schedule ,a particular amount of monthly personal pay for the mansab-holder. c. Against each mansab,its holder was called upon to maintain different numbers of war and transport ,for which he was paid additional allowances at detailed rates laid down in official schedules. d. The mansab- holder was called upon to maintain horsemen equal to the number of the mansab. . An advance payment for the mansab was made at a rate called bar-awardi. Its the balance of full payment was made or at any rate became due after the contingent of the mansabdar was actually presented for inspection and brand(dagh). APPOINTMENTS AND PROMOTION OF MANSABDARS- Every candidate for a mansab had to provide a surely(zama) and this rule was extremely rigorously enforced. It appears that bankers or mone y lenders of standing were accepted as sureties by the administration. The mansabdar recuirement and promotion was gradually viewed as atedious job,especially when gaining a surety.It was specially needed that soldiers should be capable and worthy. A record of every sawar was kept and the horses were branded. They invited the king to impact their soldiers. The procedure for the grant of promotions to mansabdars was similar to the procedure for the grant of the initial mansab. The recommendation for promotion was usually made by princes,commanders under whom. Gallantry in millitary service and merit occupied a pride place, at the oher end of the scale stood the promotions granted on acknowledgement of a handsome present or peshkash from a noble.Promotion was also generally though not invariably, given when an officer was fixed to really deserve a superior post. In every cases, the ranks of mansabdars being increased. The mansabdears appointed during the reigns of the Mughal Emperors shows that some groups were more favoured category were the sons and close kinsmen of persons who were already in service. This group was called Khanazad. The rulers of autonomous principalities formed yet another group which received prefential treatment in rank and promotion. MAINTENANCE OF TROOPS AND PAYMENTS-Mansabdars were asked to present their contingnents for regular inspection and physical verification. All the horses presented for inspection by a particular noble were branded with a specific pattern to distinguish these from those of other nobles through a real(dagh). It was a special procedure. The physical description of troops(chehra) was also recorded. The scale of salary was fixed for the zat rank but one rank had no arithmetical or proportionate relationship with the other. Under Akbar zat rank above 5000 was given only to the princes. It is an integral part of Mughal administration.Jahangir started the system of Du-aspa and Sih- aspa. The full sawar rank of mansabda r was made du-aspa and sih-aspa. For example- If a mansab held a mansab of 4000 zat 4000 sawar he may be granted huma do aspa sih aspa (all two- three horses) in this case the original sawar rank would be ignored,and the mansabdar will maintain double the number of du- ispa sih aspa, then it would mean that out of the original sawar rank of 4000, tha bawardi troopers will be only 2000 and the additional rank of 2000 du aspa sih aspa will double itself to 4000 ordinary troopers.Thus the total number of horsemen would be 6000. Generally, the sawar rank could not be higher than zat rank. Shah jahan gave the mansabdars the new pay scale, monthly ratio and framed new rules to assign the jagirs. He prepared the registers which containing the database of jagirs. The jagirs were not edtimated in rupee but in Dams. The estimate of the revenue in the jagir is called jama. It is always calculated till almost the death of Akbar in copper coins called Dam(48 dam equals 1 rupee). Therefore it was called Jama-dami.Moreland mainly focussed rank. He has distinguish between the two kinds of rank,the original mansab,which governed the personal allowances,was known as the zat rank and the additional men were designated by the word sawar. Double rank had to maintain two contingents-(a. )some horsemen paid out of his personal salary , and (b. )some extra or additional horsemen paid from the allowance provided for this purpose. During Aurangzeb’s time the high class mansabdari increased in number and there were lack of jagirs to be given to them.The kings and his ministers put a check on the recruitment of new mansabdars. Yet due to changed circumtances,the recruitment could not be stopped. The result was that the system cracked after Aurangzeb and came to an end. It was noticed that the actual revenue collection (hasil) always fell short of the estimated income. In such a situation,the mansabdars salaries were fixed by a method called month-scales. For examples-If a jagir yi elded only half of the jama, it was called shashmaha(six monthly). If it yielded only one fourth , it was considered sihmaha(three monthly).The monthly scale was applied to cash salaries also. The largest deductions were from the Deccans,who had to pay a fourth part(chauthsi). There were other deductions known as khurak dawwah belonging to the Emperor. THE SYSTEM OF ESCHEAT-Especially, those of the European travellers,refer to the practice wherby the Emperor took possession of the wealth of the nobles after their death. The practice is known as escheat(zabt). The reason was that the nobles often took loan from the state which remained unpaid till their death.It was duty of the khan saman to take over the nobles property and adjust the state demand,after which the rest of the property was given to the heirs or sometimes distributed by the Emperor among the heirs himself without any regard for the Islamic Inheritance laws. In 1666,Aurangzeb issued a farman that after the death of a no ble without heirs his property would be deposited in the state treasury. It seems that is most cases it depended on the power of the Emperor. THE EVOLUTION OF MANSABDARI SYSTEM-The Mansabdar came from all castes such as-Mughal,Pathans,Rajputs.Humayun did not continue this system. The first stage starts from 1556 and this stage remains more or less stagnent for the last ten years. i. e. from the accession of Akbar till 1566-67 in which there is practically no rule of the mansab. The second stage starts from 1567 onwards when an attempt was made to fix up the size of the contingent according to the salary of the mansabdar and on the basis of the collection of the revenue of the jagir assigned to him. The third stage which is the most important one starts from 1573-74 when a mansabdar was given a certain number.The last stage which finalised or formalized the mansabdari system came in 1595-96. This suggest that the mansabdari system has finally around 1595-96,it is not a sudden one , i t has developed through long period of experiment in which there was a struggle between the crown and nobility. But by 1595-96 the struggle was over. COMPOSITION OF MANSABDARS-The Mansabdars, in practice considered heredity as an important factor. It appears that the khanzads (house-born,descendants of mansabdar) had the first claim.Out of a total number of 575 mansabdars holding the rank of 1000 and above during the reign of Aurangzeb,the khanzads numbered about 272. Apart from the khanzads , a number of mansabdars were recruited from the zamindars. Out of 575 mansabdars in 1707,therewere 81 zamindars. The mughals also welcomed Persian. Chagatai,Uzbeks as well as the Deccanis in the mansabdari. CONCLUSION- Mansabdari was the main institution of the Mughal Empire,which embraced both civil and military sectors of administration. Mansabdars and their large forces were used to expand the empire and administer if effectively.It is true that mansabdars had been role player in the develop ment of mughal states,became they had compailed mughal emperor to think about new challenges. There diplomatic policy regarding horsemen and other job had given new challenges to the emperor. Especially ,Akbar had been founder of mansab system. In his reign of 11th year Moreland and Abdul Aziz had studied a lot that’s why their contribution is corregiable. On the basis of Ain-i-Akbari as a quisar,had not supported it. According to him zat and sawar had been enforced in 1573-74. And Irfan Habib had supported it.Again,Shireen Moosvi has not supported it due to muntqab-ubd-qabai(badauni) and Ikbal nama-e-jahangir(mutmid khan). According to Abul –fazl mansab was related to mansabdar . As a quisar has written about this in the regime of 18th years. That system was â€Å"dagh system†was collection of animals and a chart was prepared for it†;Abul fazl said. Khurake philas(fooder of elephants) and irmas were system by which salary was deducted in order to by foode r and horses. The salaries and obligation of maintaining troops were governed by a definite set of rules which underwent changes from time to time.For revenue purposes,all the land was divided into two main types-The Jagir and Khalisa. The number of mansabdars rose from 2069 at the time of Jahangirs accession in 1605 to 8000 in 1637 Shahjahan’s reign and to 11,546 during the latter half of the Aurangzeb’s reign. REFERENCES- 1. The Evolution of the Mansab System under Akbar until 1596-7-SHIREEN MOOSVI. 2. Rank Mansab in the Mogul State Service-W. H. MORELAND. 3. Medieval India(1526-1761)-SATISH CHANDRA. 4. Medieval India(750-1540)-HARISHCHANDRA VERMA.

Ebola Newspaper Article comparison

I have chosen two newspaper articles from the Courier Mall and the New York Times which express their very contrasting opinions about the Bola epidemic currently happening in West Africa, one saying Bola Is out of control about and the there saying Bola Is nothing to worry about. The first article titled Bola vellums' bodies left to rot in the street as crawls worsens and has many examples of language features throughout the article. The Journalist has used emotive language towards the Bola virus which Is almost entirely negative.Examples of this would be words such as â€Å"crisis worsens† In the heading, â€Å"a country struggling to cope with the deadly virus† and â€Å"fear for their own health†. By using such negative and emotive language the journalist can position the audience to feel the same way as the people in Africa do I. . Make them feel scared and fear the Bola virus. Another example of language features used in article 1 is word play-at the end of the news article it is written â€Å"The WHO has convened a special summit of international experts in Geneva to determine if the outbreak constitutes a â€Å"public health emergency of international concern. If so, WHO will recommend temporary measures to reduce the international spread of the disease. † What the journalist is basically trying to say is that the WHO or World Health Organization is doing nothing about the Bola breakout in Africa and he is asking ho will take measures to stop the disease. This word play is used to again make the reader feel scared because it means that the Bola virus may be an international threat if the Who approves it.The Journalist has chosen certain visuals which can influence the audience's perspectives on the Bola virus. By using an image of an Bola victim lying dead on the ground the Journalist can do an effective job of positioning the reader to feel disgusted with the virus and also make them feel horrified. The Journalist has not on ly used this picture of the body because of what's In the foreground but also because what can be seen in the background Including children looking at the corpse and people running away from the body.The children looking at the victim's body simply adds the disgust and horrified emotion that the reader Is already experiencing and the people fleeing away from the body Is Implying that they are scared of and fear the virus which makes the reader feel the same way. The journalist who wrote the second article titled Why Bola Is nothing to worry about has shown many uses of language features In his writing. First he has used motive language in a positive way to position the reader to agree with the title.He does this by using facts and words Like â€Å"unlikely to spread†, â€Å"let's worry less† and â€Å"vanishingly unlikely to break out†. The Journalist has purposely used these words to position the reader to worry less about Bola and think on the bright side. Ano ther Language feature used in the news article Is Sarcasm. In the first line the Journalist has written â€Å"We're now witnessing the worst Bola epidemic ever -? and on your list that Bola is something to worry about. This makes the reader think that the idea of Bola being out of control is a Joke and that it is nothing to worry about.The last language feature used in the news article is In the second news article it can be seen that the Journalist has chosen a picture which he believes will also position the reader to feel a certain way. He has chosen a picture a Doctor who worked in West Africa and contracted the virus and survived. It can be seen in the picture that Dry. Kent Vibrantly has a stern or angry look on his face. This tells the audience that Bola is nothing to worry about because if a doctor can contract Bola and survive then it is to as serious as it has been thought.

Plagiarizing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Plagiarizing - Essay Example I agree that plagiarism should be removed from student’s consciousness that they should always practice academic honesty. That is, they should always cite their sources and as much as possible, they should paraphrase the sources. Plagiarism , or â€Å"the purloining of ideas or language from another source† is considered as literary theft (Silverman 152) and therefore a serious academic offense. But to end a student’s schooling for a single offense I believe is just too much and a little extreme. For all we know, the plagiarism may have been accidental or unintentional and this is not a remote possibility especially on topics that are considered as common knowledge. There is a chance that a point of view may have been already written by someone else and that may be construed as plagiarism albeit unintentional. And considering the University of Virginia’s Code of Honor , that is punishable by expulsion. Also, the plagiarism may have been just a case of a si mple overlook. Writing long paper with a lot of sources has a danger of overlooking some sources and that simple overlook does not deserve to be punished by expulsion. Even if the student deliberately plagiarized, expulsion is still too much as a punishment. The appropriate response for plagiarism is to fail the student for that subject plus a stern warning. If it happens again whether intentional or deliberate, the student will be suspended. On the third time, that is the only time that the student will have to be expelled. Giving a warning and graduated punishment to the student eliminates the possibility that the student may be punished for something that is accidental. Failing a student for the subject that he or she plagiarized is already a heavy punishment. But it is an appropriate punishment. Expelling a student is excessive expulsion is tantamount to failing the student in all subjects including those that he or she did well. Worst, forfeiting would also mean forfeiting the

Customer satisfaction and loyalty Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Customer satisfaction and loyalty - Assignment Example Once they enter the doors, it is the job of the front line employees (those who meet and greet the customers first) to keep them coming back by providing excellent customer service. Abildtrup states that businesses cannot depend on their employees to understand how to deal with customers on their own; instead, they must have the training they need to get the job done. Employees must understand that they are one of the reasons why people do come back to a business. If someone goes to a business for the first time, they are looking for something in particular that only that business can provide for them at that time. If customer service is genuine and happens quickly, people will remember this experience; they will also remember a bad experience.  Buchholz (2010) identifies four levels of interest that employees have who work in any business. These four levels are:1.  The survival level where the employee comes to work to do their job. They cannot be depended on to take on addition al work because they are only there to get a paycheck.2.  The acceptance level employee is open to new jobs and they believe in the philosophy and the goals of the organization. They are productive employees but they do not like to do more work, and if something else comes along, they probably will leave.3.  The merit level employee loves the company and adds to the company's mission. They love their job and they are the people who actually make sure that things are done. They are loyal employees.

Cloud Computing Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Cloud Computing - Research Paper Example Cloud computing services address these issues and provide a source for using computing resources without purchasing them. The computing resources can be attained dynamically as per the needs of the company. The computing resources can be released when the need for greater IT infrastructure ceases to exist, therefore the resources do not have to be actually bought. Cloud computing environments offer almost unlimited levels of scalability and mobility. The attainment and release of the resources are convenient and fast processes. Computing resources consist of a diverse range of virtual devices and applications, like virtual servers, data storage, operating systems, software applications and virtual platforms. Along with the major success and acceptance of the concept of cloud computing, a significant portion of users feel threatened in trusting the service providers with their intellectual assets. Therefore, the prevailing security and privacy issues related to cloud computing have be en discussed in the paper, along with its advantages as compared to the traditional form of computing and data centers. The paper also includes few recommendations for improving the protection of the intellectual assets of the users. Table of Contents 1. Introduction 1 2. Cloud Computing 1 3. Success of Cloud Computing 5 4. Comparison of Traditional Computing and Cloud Computing Data Centers 7 4.1 Advantages of Cloud Computing 8 4.1.1 Level of Scalability 8 4.1.2 Level of Mobility 8 4.1.3 Level of Maintenance and Updates 10 4.1.4 Disaster Recovery 11 4.2 Disadvantages of Cloud Computing 11 4.2.1 Level of Control and Privacy 11 5. Factors to Evaluate the Effectiveness of Data Centers 13 6. Physical Aspects of Cloud Computing Data Centers 13 6.1 Issues with Traditional Data Centers 13 6.2 Innovative Solutions in Cloud Computing Data Centers 14 7. Challenges in Cloud Computing Systems 17 8. Recommendations 18 9. Conclusions 19 Bibliography 22 Table of Figures 1 Figure 1: Different fact ors related to Cloud Computing Systems 4 2 Figure 2: Comparison between traditional data center and cloud computing data center 7 3 Figure 3: PUE of Microsoft from the year 2004 to 2007 16 Table of Tables 1 Table 1: Top 10 Technologies of the year 2011 6 1. Introduction Computer technology has seen remarkable development and continuous improvement ever since it has been invented. The mode of life has been changed by the respective invention. Every field and industry has been revolutionized by the integration of computers. The field of education has been improved by the advent of e-learning management systems, whereas the field of medicine has witnessed greater accuracy and reliability due to the usage of more efficient medical equipments. In the same manner, the field of business has been given a more formalized structure due to the incorporation of enterprise data centers and information management systems. Enterprise data centers supported the needs of organizations for many years . A change was felt necessary when the needs of the customers began increasing at an exponential rate. The advent of internet has broken geographical barriers, due to which the whole world is considered to be a single platform. Consumer has access to global products and services, which makes it vital for companies to provide commendable and uninterrupted services to their clients. The increasing competition in the markets has urged the companies to adopt innovative ways to meet the increasing needs of the cust

The Iliad(the epic written by Homer) comparted to Troy(the movie Research Paper

The Iliad(the epic written by Homer) comparted to Troy(the movie staring Brad Pitt) - Research Paper Example As they set off to Troy, a feud between Agamemnon the King of Greece and Achilles one of the greatest Greek warriors plays out very significantly at the beginning in both the film and the poem and creates the epic hero (Troy). Achilles despised the king and, refuses join the war and fight the Trojans. The raging battle resulted in many deaths and casualties among the Greeks. However, Achilles is forced to change his mind and fight alongside the king of Greece when Patroclus is killed by Hector who is the mightiest among the Trojan warriors. This makes Achilles rage towards Agamemnon shifts towards the Trojans and joins in the war to avenge Patroclus (Homer, 42). However, a significant outstanding difference comes out between the film and the poem. The poem talks of Patroclus as Achilles’ friend whereas the film displays him as Achilles’ cousin. Nevertheless the similarity that comes out in both works is notably the same: strong, close, and loving. Patroclus, seeing that Achilles had refused to join the action could not stand around any longer as his fellowmen get slaughtered by the Trojans. He decides to join the action and begs Achilles to let him fight alongside his fellowmen (Troy). Achilles agrees to let him join in the war and gives him his own armor to use in the battlefield (Homer, 20). The epic and the film display perfectly the changes that occur from shifting one medium to another (in this case text to film) and the effects of these changes. Whereas the movie appears visually appealing to the eye, it fails in creating the depth and originality found in the original piece of work. There are several changes in the dialogue, plot changes, temporal and spatial variations, casting, and inclusion and exclusion of particular themes. Some of these aspects are good in that they help in the presentation of the epic to a modern day viewer. The sense of reality in the time the epic was written differs significantly from that of a

Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of the various methods for Dissertation

Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of the various methods for providing near real time traffic information - Dissertation Example TOMTOM Company: Traffic Navigation System: Navigation system holds most significance in the present day lives of people allowing them to obtain information on traffic congestion and road safety, targeted towards reducing the negative effects of traffic problems. Navigation systems are owned particularly to obtain high quality information on traffic routes and in destinations that are unfamiliar for the drivers. Navigation systems provide the owners and drivers with suggestions on which route would be safer and suitable for them to reach to a particular destination (SWOV Fact Sheet – Safety effects of navigation systems 2010). TomTom Company provides its customers with a TomTom navigation device that allows them to obtain traffic updates on the screen of the device. Mobile phones of individuals can be connected with these devices. The company can keep a track of where these people are exactly moving and thus provide them with the accurate traffic updates on the location where t hey are present at a particular time. Other quality traffic information sources are used along with the availability of this device thus making the real time traffic information being available more effectively. ... One of the advantages of the navigation tool is that it provides road safety by allowing owners and drivers with suggestions to choose the most suitable route. This reduces the exposure of the users to dangers. With suitable route being suggested, the travel time also gets reduced. Users have to search less for the suitable routes on their own (SWOV Fact Sheet – Safety effects of navigation systems 2010). HD Traffic real-time traffic information is the basis for the navigation tool offered by TomTom. GPS and GSM systems are the fundamental concepts of the system that allows reliable information on traffic to the users of the navigation tool (White Paper – How TomTom’s HD TrafficTM and IQ RoutesTM data provides the very best routing n.d.). However a disadvantage of the tool is that adjustment of the tool needs to be done by the owners and doing this while driving is a risky task. However the overall mental stress and effort of the users reduce with the use of a na vigation tool. Moreover, traffic problems are reported to users at early stage so that they can avoid congestions and problems related to road traffic on their routes. However during certain times, information provided by these tools might be incorrect, particularly if the road maps on the tools are not updated regularly. Wrong information leads to wrong decision making in terms of choosing any particular route. Another major disadvantage of the tool is its dependency on categorization of roads which makes it difficult to determine which questions on the desirability of road categorization considering the safety on the roads (SWOV Fact Sheet – Safety effects of navigation systems 2010). GOOGLE Company: Google Maps, Traffic Sensors, and Crowdsourcing: Google maps, traffic sensors

Should regional actors play a greater role in international peace Essay

Should regional actors play a greater role in international peace operations - Essay Example As Hettne and Soderbaum argue, the UN is built on a Westphalian nation-state model in which the UN sits at the top with regional actors participating with the authority and support of the UN. At the same time however, regional organizations such as the EU, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) have become legitimate institutions quite capable of managing conflicts on their own.3 The UNSC has at times appointed regional peace keeping operations that were either under-resourced or ineffective or simply chose not to intervene.4 While Coleman’s global legitimacy pyramid suggests that regional actors require UNSC mandates in order to achieve legitimacy and therefore to be effective,5 the rise of regional organizations suggest that a post-Westphalian reality exists and the UNSC may need regional actors in order to achieve greater legitimacy. Moreover, Article 52 of the UN Charter calls for regional initiatives in peace keeping.6 The UNSC however, has failed to forge comprehensive relationships with regional organizations despite regional actors’ significant role in managing conflicts.7 Given the rise of regional powers8 and the soft power associated with the UNSC’s peace keeping practices9, this paper uses the theory of neoliberal institutionalism and social constructivism to consider whether or not regional actors should play a greater role in international peace operations. Traditional theories of international relations focuses too narrowly on materialism and state actors whereas neoliberalism looks more narrowly at how politics at the international level is institutionalized at either formal or informal levels.10 Social constructivism provides a theoretical framework which explains international relations in terms of security as a collective endeavor rather than self-help ambitions and thus allows a more

Race Discrimination Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Race Discrimination - Essay Example Federal law also provides more limited rights for employees of the federal government. These federal laws do not, on the other hand, apply to employees of state and local governments, agricultural workers or domestic employees; any statutory protections those workers have derive from state law. The pattern is even more mixed in the area of wages and working conditions. Federal law establishes minimum wages and overtime rights for most workers in the private and public sectors; state and local laws may provide more expansive rights, Similarly, federal law provides minimum workplace safety standards, but allows the states to take over those responsibilities and to provide more stringent standards. Formally, both federal and state laws protect workers from employment discrimination. In most areas these two bodies of law overlap; as an example, federal law permits state to enact their own statutes barring discrimination on the basis of race, gender, religion, national origin and age, so long as the state law does not provide less protections than federal law would. Federal law, on the other hand, preempts most state statutes that would bar employers from discriminating against employees to prevent them from obtaining pensions or other benefits or retaliating against them for asserting those rights (Chinese immigrants and American law, 1994, pp. 12-14). Let us try to look at what happens in reality. Historical discrimination. Chinese immigration to the United States has come in many waves. According to records from the United States government, the first Chinese arrived in the United States around 1820. Subsequent immigrants that came from the 1820s up to the late 1840s were mainly men, who came in small numbers. The major initial wave started around the 1850s. This was when the West Coast of North America was being rapidly colonized during the California Gold Rush, while southern China suffered from severe political and economic instability (Cose, 1992, p. 35). In 1860, two discriminatory laws were passed in California. One forbade Chinese American children to attend public schools. The other required a special license to be purchased by Chinese American fishermen. It was called a license instead of a tax because unequal taxation was forbidden by law. In 1862, the United States Congress passed a "Coolie Traffic Law" (the term "coolie" refers to unskilled laborers from Asia, in general) prohibiting transportation and importation of coolies from China, except when immigration was certified as voluntary by United States consular agents. Shortly afterward, the California legislature passed an act to protect free White labor against competition from Chinese coolie labor, and to discourage immigration of Chinese into the state of California (Cose, 1992, p. 62). A "police tax" law was passed, whereby all Mongolians 18 years or over, unless they had already paid a miner's tax or were engaged in production of sugar, rice, coffee, or tea, had to pay a monthly personal tax of $2.50. This was ruled unconstitutional by the State Supreme Court in 1863 (Chinn, 1969, p. 2). Railroad Construction. The most impressive construction feat of Chinese Americans was the work done on the western section of the transcontinental railroa

Hearing Child of a Deaf Parent and a Deaf Child of a Hearing Parent Assignment

Hearing Child of a Deaf Parent and a Deaf Child of a Hearing Parent - Assignment Example Daniel never hesitated to ask the tutors, audiologists and even other professionals any questions and even other issues of concern. They would often give him the utmost assistance he required. His parents loved and encouraged him, praised him for anything he did well, often smiling with him and paid attention to whenever he wanted to share something with them. These loving activities were the most important milestone of boosting his confidence and making him feel relaxed. He often came to class and mused around with his funny stories about his experiences at the family gatherings. He dreaded the occasions since he was the eldest child, yet his younger cousins and even the adults would not understand him. He would go by himself to read any book in the apartment including the children’s books. His cousins would ignore him and go about playing and making the clay â€Å"cookies†. He would interact with the adults with his parents always trying to interpret, though the degre es of success were varying. He often missed deep conversations even with his grandparents. He tells me that my shortcomings should never deter me from achieving success and this really inspires me. Billy told her story too. She had been raised by deaf parents but had no hearing impairment. At the age of five, she was lying on her bed, and the thought of little monsters under the bed crossed her mind. Their intention was to eat her feet if she attempted to step down. Like every other child, paralyzed in fear, she tried to call for help from her parents, but unfortunately, her screams would land on deaf ears of her parents. At that age, she knew her parents were deaf, and they lived in a visual world with her. To attract her parents’ attention, it demanded her to be within their coverage of sight and wave her hands, or to gently touch them to signalize her presence.

Implementing Immunizations Essay Example for Free

Implementing Immunizations Essay Implementing Immunizations Implementing immunizations into the clinics can be challenging for the facility and the staff. There are several methods that have been implemented to monitor the methods used by the staff to give the immunizations to the patients in the clinics. There have been several obstacles and challenges that the staff and leaders have faced. As with any changes that take place in patient care within an organization methods must be set up to monitor those changes. Changes promote challenges not just to staff leaders but the organization as a whole. Communication with any changes can be challenging for the leadership and staff (Surdu, 2010). Methods to Monitor Change In implementing changes there needs to be methods to monitor those changes. The first method is to monitor the reimbursement value units per visit associated with the immunizations. The need to monitor the increase of visits, the percentage of increase of the reimbursement value units now that the immunizations that are given in in the clinic since they are ordered immunizations ordered directly by the physician and not given on protocol (Surdu, 2010). Another method to monitor the change of implementation is to survey the patients to see how they have responded to immunizations being given directly in the clinic. This can be done in a survey form either via email or sent in the mail so patients can voice their opinion on the changes that have been implemented (Helfrich, Blevins, Smith, 2011). The leaders in the clinic can sit down with the staff to get their opinion and suggestions on how the changes of giving immunizations in the clinic are affecting their time management with patients. This can be very helpful to  leaders in adjusting the change that have been implemented because no change should never be set in stone. The input of the staff can be crucial when monitoring changes that have been implemented to determine whether they are successful or not (Helfrich, Blevins, Smith, 2011). The final method used to monitor that immunizations are properly being implemented in the clinic setting are going to be chart audits by the leadership. This will be used to ensure that the proper immunizations are given to the patients and that patient care is not being compromised (Helfrich, Blevins, Smith, 2011). Of all of the monitoring methods mentioned above the main issue is patient care. The â€Å"Patient Medical Center Home Model† consists of modeling the care around the patient. Ensuring that patient care is at the forefront of the facility, monitoring the changes is one way to ensure that this takes place. The quality control standards of the â€Å"Patient Medical Center Home Model† consist of upper management performing quality control chart checks on a monthly basis. These chart audits are done to ensure that the standards are being met which are determined by the Department of the Army. This is one of the main differences that a military treatment facility is held to as a standard versus a civilian facility. Therefore this can be seen to some as has bureaucratic red tape in some instances, whereas in others it does have its advantages (Marshall, Doperak, Milner, 2011). Organizational Relationship The relationship between organizations process systems and professional roles on a staff can be essential to the success of an implemented change. The Department of the Army has specific protocols when implementing changes such as implementing immunizations into the clinic setting. Organizational process systems will provide how changes will be implemented in the facility. In the facility changes come from Western region then trickle down from the Command or another words upper management. The changes are then implemented throughout the clinics in the facility. The responsibility falls on the clinic officer in charge to implement the changes throughout each clinic (Marshall, Doperak, Milner, 2011). In a military treatment  facility changes are implemented differently than in the private sector. In the organization upper management solely consists of military personnel while leadership within the clinic is a mixture of military and civilian personnel. The process of changes is not set in stone but guidelines are set forth from Western region. The actual written standard operating procedure for the facility is implemented and brought to the forefront by upper management. Then upper management delegates the implementation down to the clinic officer in charge for actual rollouts into each clinic (Marshall, Doperak, Milner, 2011). The roles of the leadership in the clinics are essential to the success or unsuccessful implementation of change. The attitude of the leadership carries weight on how well the rest of the staff receives the change. Leaders on the clinic level have to accept changes whether good or bad and expect staff to challenge them. Leaders have to be strong and accept the change themselves and to support upper management. There are problems dealing with changes when issues arise between created civilian and military personnel. These issues are not easily dealt with and when changes are ensuing within a facility this causes undue stress within the organization. This is one reason that leadership needs to bring forth and implement changes within an organization as all one team because staff is well suited at picking up any rift within the management team (Marshall, Doperak, Milner, 2011). Communication Techniques Communication techniques are one of the mainstays in addressing any issues when implementing changes in any organizational plan. There are several ways in an organizational plan change that communication can take place such as talking directly to leadership on the front lines who deal with the change or all the way up the chain dealing with upper management. Without communication problems with the changes that have been implemented will not be resolved and the changes will not be successful (Marshak. Grant, 2011). One communication technique that can be used is that leadership can address staff that seems to have issues with the changes that have been implemented. They can speak to staff on an individual basis using a closed-door setting to try to alleviate any issues that are affecting any of the employees work.  Employees may feel more comfortable speaking with a member of the leadership team on a one-on-one basis to voice their concerns with the change. Sometimes most of the issues dealing with an employee that have issues with changes that have been implemented, the staff member has questions or does not understand why the change has been made. This issue is best addressed in a one on one sit down conversation with the employee in a closed-door situation (Marshak. Grant, 2011). Another communication technique used to address any implementation issues with the changes can be providing specific emails to a particular person. By addressing issues to one particular person within the organization instead of problems associated with the change can be addressed centrally and immediately if necessary. If issues cannot be handled by this one person than the contact person can go to their resources and take care of the issue or issues at hand. Emails are the preferred method of communication unlike phone calls at a military treatment facility. Phone calls should only be used for emergencies, where there is an immediate response that is needed. In other words the majority of the issues dealing with the implementation of the changes that occur can be dealt with through emails. These issues are not needed to be dealt with in an immediate time frame and can be dealt with and a normal work week depending on the issue that have arisen (Marshak. Grant, 2011). Without proper communication, the need to communicate and how the communication is to take place the change implementation may well as not have ever taken place. Communication for a successful organization does need to take place in several forms; this is in the hands of a successful management and leadership (Borkowski, 2005). Conclusion In implementing changes there needs to be several methods to monitor how those changes are affecting the organization on the clinic level and as the organization as a whole. Many times staff along with the patients; both whom are giving input on the change in which the organization is trying to improve care on how the changes are taking place. The organization must be  willing to change its process in its systems whether or how management runs a certain part of their business develops a new process or because of a change implementation downsizes a facility. In order for the change to be successfully implemented communication is essential for this to take place. There are many techniques that organizations can use to accomplish this task. The communication technique will depend on the change implemented and the structure of the organization. Staff leaders whether at the clinic level or upper management are still the main key whether the organizational plan that has been set forth if the changes that have been implemented will be successful. Reference Borkowski, N. (2005). Organizational behavior in health care. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database Helfrich, C., Blevins, D., Smith, J. (2011, July). Predicting Implementation From Organizational Readiness for Change: A Study Protocol. Implementation Science , 6(76). Marshak., R., Grant, D. (2011, Sep). Creating Change by Changing the Conversation. OD Practitioner, 43(3), 2 7. Marshall, R., Doperak, M., Milner, M. (2011, Nov). Patient-Centered Medical Home: An Emerging Primary Care Model and the Military Health System. Military Medicine, 176(11), 1253 1259. Surdu, G. (2010, Winter). Organizational Change- Different A. Romanian Economic and Business Review, 5(4), 48-54.

Comparing The Contrast Of Blakes Songs English Literature Essay

Comparing The Contrast Of Blakes Songs English Literature Essay William Blake was born in, London, England on 28 November 1757, he was born to a middle-class family and was the third child of seven children, two of whom died in childhood. William did not go to school, and was educated by his mother at home William Blake displayed a bright imagination at a young age, which was not looked upon positively during the pre Romantic period. He continued throughout his writing to drastically question faith and politics. His parents knew enough of his stubborn character. He enthusiastically read on subjects of his own choosing. During this time, Blake was also making explorations into poetry. On August the fourth 1772, Blake became apprenticed to engraver James Basire, for seven years. At the end of this period, at the age of 21, he was to become a professional engraver On October the eighth 1779, Blake became a student at the Royal Academy in Old Somerset House, while his study required no payment; he was expected to bring in his own materials during the six-year period. Blake met John Flaxman in 1782, who was then to become his supporter, and Catherine Boucher, who was later on, to become his wife. Blakes marriage to Catherine remained close and loyal until his death. She helped him to colour his printed poems while he taught her how to write, In this assignment I will compare and contrast three of Blakes poems from the songs of innocence and three poems from the songs of experience, I will comment on the context, themes and Blakes craftsmanship. In Blakes poems many poems fall into pairs Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience they both have opposing perspectives of the world, Most of the time Blake is trying to show us how experience corrupt innocence. The first two poems I will be comparing is Infant Joy and Infant Sorrow Blake wrote the song The Chimney sweepers song of innocence and The chimney sweepers song of experience from totally different perspectives William Blakes wrote the poem The Chimney Sweepers in 1789, the poems tells the story of what happened to many young boys throughout this time. Boys were sold at very young age for the purpose of cleaning chimneys. These children were exploited and lived a very terrible life. Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience both protests the living conditions and the overall treatment of young chimney sweeps The innocence version of the poem consists of six four line stanzas. The poem starts with a depressing tone telling us from the Childs perspective that before he had even learnt to speak his parents had sold him My father sold me while yet my tongue could scarcely cry. In the songs of innocence boys innocence does not allow him to not understand the social injustice and unlike the experience version where the boy in the poem sees the unfairness and is able to speak against it. The songs of Experience version consists of three four line stanzas. The poem starts of with the line A little Black thing among the snow this suggests the Boy feels lonely and depressed, the boy also does not have trust in god and feels that he has lost his purpose this shown when he says Where are thy mother and father, say? They are both one up to church to pray The Boy also Blames his parents for making him do this work, this is shown here Because I was happy among the heath and smiled against the winters snow, they clothed me in the cloth of death, and taught me to sing the notes of woe this shows that the boy was joyful until his parents sold him The Nurses Song tells a tale of a Nurse who is looking over some children playing in the field. However the experience version differs form the innocence version in the Experience version it is more bitter than the innocence version, it shows a nurse that is jealous of the children and is cruel. On the other hand the innocence version shows a nurse that does not mind the children playing, it also seems as if she is enjoying watching the children play this I shown at the very first stanza where she says When Voices of children are heard on the green and the laughter is heard on the hill, My heart is at rest within my breast and everything else is still. Whereas in the Experience version in the first stanza the nurse says that When voices of children are heard on the green and whips rings are in the dale, my face turns green and pale this could suggest that the nurse is an old nurse with a lot of experience from life. In the last stanza the nurse says Your spring and your day are wasted in play, and your winter and night in disguise this shows that the nurse is weighed down by lifes experience. In the experience version we do not see a lot of colors, unlike the innocence version where Blake paints a childrens drawing in the readers mind. He also uses very smooth language for example instead of saying the sun goes down it is said till the light fades away In the Poem Infant joy songs of innocence Blake s showing us a two day old child that is happy to arrive to the world. Blake creates a lot of joyful Images in the readers mind, He does that by only adding positive language in his poem, for example the word joy is repeated seven times in the poem. The language that Blake uses when the child talks is also uncomplicated and simple, the poem has two stanzas and is a bit rambling we also see that the mother witch has experience is positively reflecting on the two day old who represents innocence On the other hand Infant sorrow from the songs of experience the child feels he is unwanted and that he doesnt belong to this world we learn that when in the first stanza when he says My mother groaned and my father wept We also learn the child is struggling Struggling in my fathers hands striving against my swaddling bands, the child also feels discarded this is shown when he say bound and weary I thought best to sulk upon my mothers breast. Helpless, naked piping loud this could suggest that Blake is talking about the industrial revolution and that the world is becoming to dangerous for next generations, in the second line the child also says Into the dangerous world I leapt In all of Blakes poems he tries to tell us that everyone was born innocent and that lifes experience that forced the us into something good or bad and that lifes experience took away the innocence of youth. Most of his poems illustrate that belief

Crossover Design for Speakers

Crossover Design for Speakers Crossover Design In terms of crossover design, there are two distinct options; passive or active crossovers. Passive crossovers are the most common implementation, since only one amplifier is required. In this case, filters comprising passive components (inductors, capacitors and resistors) are used to ensure that the correct frequency range is supplied to each driver. Low-pass, high-pass and band-pass filters are commonly used and need to be matched to ensure that the frequency roll-offs compliment each other, such that in the crossover zone(s) the combined acoustic output of the drivers maintains a flat frequency response. In terms of these passive filters, it is the order of the filters used that is the primary consideration. A first order filter has a roll-off of -6dB per Octave and a Butterworth characteristic. First order filters are undesirable for two reasons; a +3dB peak is introduced at the centre of the crossover band and the crossover bandwidth is large due to the gentle roll-off, which means the drivers need to be capable of handling a greater frequency range. However, first order filters require the least components, incur less power loss as a result and do not introduce a phase change in the output. Second order filters are the most commonly used type in passive crossovers, since they are relatively simple but solve the problems associated with first order filters. The roll-off is -12dB per octave and the filters may be designed with a Linkwitz-Riley characteristic which maintains a flat frequency response across the crossover band, unlike the combination of Butterworth filters. Third order filters offer a roll-off of -18dB per octave, however there is a problem of phase separation; in a two-way configuration there is a phase shift of 270 degrees which â€Å"can result in lobing and tilting of the coverage pattern† (DellaSala, G. 2004). Some designs such as the D’Appolito configuration[1], which uses three drivers, actually make use of this phase separation in order to minimise lobing, however the D’Appolito configuration is notoriously complex and difficult to implement well without precise driver measurements. If a high-order crossover is desired, fourth order filters are perhaps the best choice. Although they are more complex in terms of design and require more components, the advantages are a small crossover bandwidth (roll-off is -24dB per octave) and a 360 degree phase shift; hence no phase correction is required. Passive crossovers beyond fourth order are generally not considered. Borwick (2001, p.267) notes these â€Å"are seldom used in passive crossover designs because of their complexity, cost and insertion losses†. The other approach to crossover design is the active crossover. In this case active filters (normally based around op-amps) are used to divide the input signal into the required frequency bands prior to amplification; the crossover has multiple outputs and a separate power amplifier is needed for each frequency band. Some audiophiles complain that active crossovers (which normally employ high-order active filters) are not a good choice, due to the poor transient response of high order filters. However as Elliot (2004) notes, â€Å"the additional control that the amp has over the drivers behaviour improves the transient performance, and especially so at (or near) the crossover frequency the most critical frequency point(s) in the design of any loudspeaker†. Apart from the increased complexity and multiple power amplifier requirement, active crossovers are far superior to their passive counterparts in almost every way, although some purists may disagree. Good quality op-amps are cheap, as are the required resistors and capacitors (since these do not need to handle much power). The active solution means frequency response is no longer defined by the quite complicated combined resistive, capacitive and inductive load of the passive crossover and drivers. Thus the frequency response of the crossover is independent of dynamic changes in the load. Furthermore, the active crossover makes it easy to tune the crossover dynamically; with most commercially available active crossovers one can simply dial in the required frequency bands. Efficiency is improved with active crossovers, since no power is lost by the amplifier in driving passive inductors or resistors. The amplifier also has the best possible control over transient response, since there is nothing between it and the driver other than cable. Thus the amplifier can respond directly and â€Å"presents the maximum damping factor at all times, regardless of frequency† (Elliot R. 2004). In view of the above one may then wonder why passive crossovers continue to remain so popular, since it seems far more logical to implement frequency division before amplifying the signal. Ease of installation is perhaps the main factor. Almost all commonly available hi-fi systems use speakers with passive crossovers. For the consumer this makes things easy; the speakers are simply connected to the amplifier and installation is complete. In contrast, turnkey active solutions for the average consumer are not forthcoming, although rack-mounted â€Å"professional† active crossovers can be obtained for quite reasonable prices (around  £150 for a 4th order 2 way Linkwitz-Riley design)[2]. However, these require a fair amount of audio engineering expertise to set up correctly and the typical home listener simply does not possess this knowledge. For the high-budget client seeking the best audio reproduction, active crossovers are certainly the best option; the technical advantages have been seen to be numerous. This is offset by the fact that the system will be far more complicated to correctly install, but it is assumed in this case that complexity of installation is of little concern to the high-budget client who is unlikely to handle the installation themselves in any case. For the low-budget client, the best solution is the passive crossover. It is a simple option, only requires one amplifier and yet produces acceptable sound quality. It is far from the best solution, but adequate if a competitive price point is desired. In conclusion, all but a few dyed-in-the-wool purists will agree that the active crossover is a superior solution in terms of quality and control. What it lacks in simplicity is outweighed by a far superior level of control over frequency response and the drivers themselves. However, due to issues of complexity one can expect that the traditional passive crossover shall continue to lead a healthy existence in the majority of loudspeaker designs. Sources Borwick, John. (2001). Loudspeaker and Headphone Handbook, Focal Press. DellaSala, G. (2004). Filter Crossover Types for Loudspeakers, Audioholics Magazine. Dickason, V. (1995). The Loudspeaker Design Cookbook, Audio Amateur Publications. Elliot R. (2004). Active vs Passive Crossovers, Elliot Sound Products. Rossing, T. (1990). The Science of Sound, Addison-Wesley. 1 [1] D’Appolito’s full 1983 paper may be obtained here: http://www.aes.org/e-lib/browse.cfm?elib=11762 [2] For example the Samson S-2: http://www.inta-audio.com/products.asp?partno=sto-oth-sam2w

Discrimination and Liberty Essay -- Definition Essays Race Prejudice P

Discrimination and Liberty How much should we care if people discriminate? In answering this question, maybe it's a good idea to say what we mean by discrimination. The most internally consistent definition is that discrimination is the act of choice. Thus, discrimination is a necessary fact of life - people do and must choose. When one selects a university to attend, he must non-select other universities - in a word, he must discriminate. When a mate is chosen, there is discrimination against other possible contenders. In the first instance, we call it university discrimination and in the second case mate discrimination. Thus, when the term discrimination is modified by words such as race, sex, or university and mate, one merely states the criterion upon which choice is being made. Is there a moral distinction to be made when one makes a selection based on arbitrary distinctions when he chooses a university as opposed to making similar arbitrary distinctions when selecting a mate, employee or any other object of desire? In mate selection, people routinely discriminate by race. How does that act morally differ from choosing employees by race? We know that social sanction is granted when race is used in selecting a mate but not granted in the case of selecting employees. Some people might offer that when people select mates by race there is no private or social harm done whereas in the case of race discrimination in employment there is private and social harm done. On further thought, it can be easily shown that such a proposition clearly does not hold. At the private level, when a black male indulges his racial preferences by marrying a black female, that act reduces the opportunity set of white females that might ha... ...ence. Other ways are through taxes on profits, economic regulation and occupational licensure. In general, preference indulgence is subsidized whenever government dictates the terms and conditions of exchange. While many of us, including me, find some aspects of racial discrimination morally repulsive, we must at the same time recognize that freedom of association should be our overreaching value. Valuing freedom of association does not mean that we are helpless in registering revulsion to various forms of discrimination. There are private social sanctions that can be exercised similar to those exercised when people behave impolitely, use vulgar language, or disrespect elders. But the largest contribution to racial harmony is for us to keep government limited to its legitimate or moral functions; namely, preventing force, fraud, theft and initiation of violence.

Beowulfs Superiority :: Epic of Beowulf Essays

Beowulf, the great Geatish warrior, lives a very adventurous life filled with many voyages, battles, and victories. Through all of these events, he meets various people who are considered to be heroes like himself. These heroes, however, are unable to have the same abilities and characteristics of Beowulf. His great achievements cannot be matched by anything that they have done in their lives. Beowulf is a superior hero to Hrothgar, Unferth, and Wiglaf in the epic of Beowulf because he kills every monster that he fights, becomes a widely feared warrior and king, and dies in battle completing his final heroic act. Beowulf is superior to Hrothgar, Unferth, and Wiglaf because he kills every monster that he faces. When Herot was ravaged by Grendel and his mother, Hrothgar lacked both the strength and the courage to defend his people. Hrothgar was hindered by his old age and lacked the vitality of his youth that would have made him capable of slaying the monsters. However, when Beowulf grows old and becomes king, he is not affected by the factor of old age. Beowulf’s kingdom is attacked by a great dragon just like Hrothgars kingdom was attacked by Grendel. The difference is that Beowulf in his old age still had the strength and courage, unlike Hrothgar, to protect his kingdom. Unferth was considered to be the hero of Herot, but yet when monsters attacked the people that he was suppost to protect, he did nothing to stop it. Grendels reign of terror started many years before Beowulf came, so Unferth had plenty of time to at least make an attempt at stopping him. But because of Unferths lack o f action, Beowulf has to take on the task of slaying Grendel. By killing Grendel and his mother, Beowulf succeeds where Unferth has failed. Wiglaf and Beowulf both fought the dragon, but Beowulf is the one who actually killed it. Wiglaf was in full strength and was unhurt but all that he could do was stab the dragon. Beowulf, however, was badly wounded, but still managed to provide the fatal slice to kill the dragon. Hrothgar, Unferth, and Wiglaf all relied on Beowulf to kill the monsters that they could not kill themselves. This makes Beowulf superior to them because he obtained the strength, courage, and will that they all lacked. Beowulf is superior to Hrothgar, Unferth, and Wiglaf because he becomes a widely feared warrior and king.

Causes of Air Pollution Essay

There are several main causes of air pollution, the vast majority of them can be attributed to man. Some natural sources of air pollution include forest fires, dust storms, and volcanic eruptions. Plants such as ragweed contaminate the air with pollen. Decaying leaves and other forms of vegetation release gases that contribute to air pollution and cause haze. (Morgan) Air pollution is the introduction into the atmosphere of chemicals, particulates, and biological matter that cause harm to humans, other living organisms, or cause damage to the natural environment. Stratospheric ozone depletion (contributed to air pollution) has long been recognized as a threat to human health as well as to the Earth’s ecosystems. The Earth is capable of cleaning itself of a certain level of pollution, but man-made pollutant have become too numerous for the Earth’s natural mechanisms to remove. We are seeing the results of this overload in the form of acid rain, smog, and the variety of health problems that can be contributed to our environment. (Godish) One of the main causes of air pollution is manufacturing. This source of pollution spews particulate matter and chemicals into the atmosphere. The exhaust from a factory includes, sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and dioxide, as well as volatile organic compounds and particulates. There is not an area of the Earth’s atmosphere or an ecosystem that has not been altered by the long term effects of the pollution created by manufacturing. Strides have been made to filter the material coming from manufacturing plants, but it may take the Earth millennia to completely recover from the damage already done. (universe) A surprisingly link may exist between ocean fertility and air pollution over land, according to Georgia Institute of Technology research reported in the Feb. 16 issue of the Journal of Geophysical Research – Atmospheres. The work provides new insight into the role that ocean fertility plays in the complex cycle involving carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in global warming. (Cain) Finally, the burning of fossil fuels is a part of everyday life of every human on the planet. We burn fossil fuels in our cars, fossil fuel is burned to extract fossil fuel from the Earth, and fossil fuel is used to process fossil fuel into its individual components. Every step of the way releases sulfur and nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, heavy metals and particulates into the air. Each step in the process increases the number of asthma cases in the world, raises a person’s chance of having cancer, and increases the chance that your child will be born with congenital defects. (Turco) References Cain, Fraser. (2005). Air Pollution Linked to Growth of Life in Oceans. Retrieved from http://www.universetoday.com/10263/air-pollution-linked-to-gr Godish, Thad. 1997. Air Quality, 3rd ed. Lewis Publishers, Boca Raton, Fl. Morgan, M. T. (2003). Environmental Health, (3rd ed.). Belmont: CA: Wadsworth Turco, Richard P. 2001. Earth Under Siege: From Air Pollution to Global Change, 2nd ed. Oxford University Press, New York.

Succubus Dreams CHAPTER 20

I didn't expect to hear from Dante so quickly. Based on what he'd said about the difficulty of the Nyx-charm, I'd figured it would be a while – if at all. Hugh's observations on the matter had only reinforced my growing skepticism about Dante's abilities. â€Å"I've got your protection,† Dante told me on the phone. â€Å"Or at least as close as I can get. You want it, come pick it up.† He disconnected. I drove to Rainier Valley, finding Dante's shop empty as usual. â€Å"Guess you don't see a lot of business so close to Christmas, huh?† â€Å"Actually,† he told me, emerging from the back room, â€Å"you'd be surprised at the kind of desperation the holidays can bring out in people. Here, catch.† He tossed me something baseball-sized. I caught it, feeling a little disappointed when I studied it closer. It looked like a wicker ball, made of very thin, dark branches. Through the gaps, I could make out a few things inside. One looked like a rock. Another looked like a feather. The whole thing rattled when I shook it. â€Å"This is it?† I asked. â€Å"This is going to keep away an uber-powerful dream entity? It looks like a prop from The Blair Witch Project.† â€Å"It can't force her away,† he said. â€Å"Nothing can. But it might make her think twice. It's more of†¦a repellent.† â€Å"Like citronella?† He rolled his eyes. â€Å"Yes, like citronella. Depending on her energy charge, she might blow past it. If she's weak enough†¦well, it might hold her back.† I examined the ball again. It still didn't look like much to me. I sensed no power or magic off of it, but not all objects had an aura I could sense. For reading inanimate items, a psychic mortal tended to be more adept than a lesser immortal. My silence appeared to further annoy Dante. â€Å"Look,† he snapped. â€Å"You don't have to use it, but it took a fuckload of power for me to craft it, okay? It'd be nice if you could maybe withhold your customary sarcasm for a whole five minutes to thank me.† â€Å"My customary sarc – â€Å" I stopped the burst of temper starting to flare in me. Dante ranked near the top of my list of cynical acquaintances, but I wasn't exactly Pollyanna myself. I'd given him nothing but a hard time since I first came to him for help. And now, studying him, I noticed he was pale and tired-looking. His eyes were bloodshot. The ball might be worthless, but he'd clearly exerted some sort of effort in making it. â€Å"You're right,† I said. â€Å"I'm sorry. Thank you. Thank you for this.† His eyebrows rose, and I could actually see the self-control it took for him not to mock my sincerity. He nodded. â€Å"You're welcome.† We each waited for the other to speak. I don't think we knew what to do without the sarcasm. â€Å"So†¦did you find your angel friends?† â€Å"No. I apparently need a fucking Bat Signal or something. Jerome's gone too. Hugh – this imp friend of mine – could get a hold of him, but it'd probably piss Jerome off if we were wrong about all this.† I scowled, recalling the conversation in the deli. â€Å"Anyway, Hugh's pissing me off right now, so I don't even know if I want his help.† Dante smiled. â€Å"I thought succubi were supposed to make friends everywhere they went. Or is that a myth like the bat wings and flame eyes?† â€Å"He's just being an asshole about Seth.† Dante looked at me expectantly. I sighed. â€Å"He thinks us dating is a waste of time. And not because of the sex thing. He thinks I'm going to get hurt.† â€Å"Terribly altruistic of an imp. But then, considering your quasi-morals, I'm starting to think it's a bad idea to assume anything about you guys.† He took a few steps toward me and playfully tapped my nose. â€Å"And what about you? Do you think you're going to get hurt?† â€Å"No. And if I do, that's for me to deal with. Hugh shouldn't be worrying about it. And he shouldn't make Seth worry about it either!† â€Å"Don't get so upset about people worrying about you. It means they care. If enough of us were like that, there'd be a lot less pain in the world.† That was an unexpected observation from Dante. â€Å"Maybe. But there'd also be a lot less unnecessary stress.† He chuckled and caught hold of my hand. Flipping it over, he looked at the palm. â€Å"A random assortment of lines for this body?† he asked. I nodded. â€Å"Can you change it to your original?† â€Å"What, so you can read it? I thought this was a bunch of bullshit.† â€Å"Sometimes.† I waited for more, but it didn't come. His gray eyes were serious and thoughtful as they met mine. Something in them compelled me, and with great reluctance, I shape-shifted my hands back to the ones I'd been born with. I hadn't worn my original body since the day I'd become a succubus, and this small change felt unnatural. I hated this form. While my original hands weren't gargantuan, they were larger than was proportional to this petite frame I carried and appeared weird and mismatched. Dante held my hands in his and glanced back and forth between the palms. After just a few seconds, he snorted and dropped them both. â€Å"Surprise, surprise.† I shape-shifted them back to the way they had been. â€Å"What?† I asked. â€Å"Right-handed?† â€Å"Yeah.† He pointed to the left hand. â€Å"Those lines represent what you're born with – your inherent traits. The right hand is the hand that shows how you grow and change and adapt to what you're born with. Nature and nurture.† â€Å"So?† â€Å"Yours are identical on both hands. Your heart line is high on the palm – which means you have an intense, passionate nature. No surprise there. But it's broken into a million pieces. Sliced and diced.† He tapped my left hand. â€Å"You were destined for heartache.† He tapped my right hand. â€Å"And you are going to repeat that pattern forever. You aren't learning. You aren't changing.† â€Å"If I'm destined for it, then what does learning or changing have to do with anything? Isn't it a done deal?† I didn't like the censuring tone in his voice, like I'd done something wrong by having these palms. â€Å"Don't start,† he said. â€Å"I'm not a philosopher and don't want to get into any pre-destination or free-will debates. Besides, palm reading is a bunch of bullshit.† â€Å"Yeah,† I said dryly. â€Å"So I hear.† To my surprise, Dante put his arm around me and drew me close in a sort of half-hug. â€Å"Be careful, succubus. You've got a mess o' dangerous things in your life right now. On all fronts. I don't want to see you get hurt either.† I stayed in the embrace and rested my head on his chest. â€Å"When did you get so nice? Are you still trying to get me into bed?† â€Å"I'm always trying to get you into bed.† He pressed a kiss to my forehead, to my nose, and then to my lips. â€Å"But I kind of like you too. Just watch out.† I drove home after that, a bit confused over Dante's surprising behavior. Thinking about him, I soon arrived in Queen Anne before I knew it. I found neither Vincent nor the angels in my apartment and decided to go to the bookstore. I had today off too, but I knew they were busy and could use the extra help. I needed the distraction. Just before closing, Seth called my cell and asked if I could pick him up at his brother's. He and Terry had indeed gone to see the movie, but Seth's car was actually here in Queen Anne and he needed a ride now since Terry had originally picked him up. I finished what I was working on in my office and headed out. Terry and Andrea greeted me warmly when I showed up, reminding me to come to Christmas dinner – even though I'd long since told them I'd be there. They always regarded my relationship with Seth as a tenuous, fragile thing (which it was) and felt compelled to do all they could to protect it. The girls were as thrilled as always to see me, and they assaulted me with questions and chatter. All except Kayla. She'd apparently gotten to stay up late tonight. In some ways, her silence wasn't surprising. Aside from the startling conversation the other night, she almost never spoke anyway. But usually, she'd come forward with the other girls to see me. Tonight, she simply stayed on the couch, watching me solemnly. When Seth made motions to leave, I broke from the girls and went over to Kayla. â€Å"Hey, you,† I said, sitting down beside her. â€Å"How's it – â€Å" I hadn't touched her, but Kayla suddenly jerked away from me as though she'd been burned. Backing up, she scrambled off the couch and tore out of the room. We heard her small footsteps on the stairs as she ran to her room. Startled, I looked at the others. â€Å"What did I do?† â€Å"No idea,† said Andrea, puzzled. â€Å"She's been fine all night.† â€Å"Something must have gotten into her,† said Terry. â€Å"No telling with kids. Especially with girls.† He mussed Kendall's hair, and she yelped. Everyone promptly forgot about Kayla and continued to make farewells to Seth and me. I spoke to them half-heartedly, though. Kayla was always happy to see me, and last time, she'd demonstrated a special trust and belief in me. Tonight, she had looked at me with abject terror. Why? Was it a little girl mood? Or was there something hanging on me from another plane that I couldn't see? Just before we left, I asked if I could go say good-bye to Kayla and give talking to her another shot. Upstairs, I found her curled into a corner of her bed, clutching the unicorn. Her eyes widened in terror when she saw me, and I stopped in the bedroom door. â€Å"Hey,† I said. â€Å"You okay?† No answer, just wider eyes. â€Å"I won't come any closer,† I said. â€Å"Promise. But, please†¦just tell me. What do you see? Why are you afraid of me?† For a moment, I didn't think she'd answer. Then, finally, she spoke in a voice I could barely hear. â€Å"You're bad,† she whispered. â€Å"Why are you so bad?† That wasn't what I'd been expecting. I'd thought maybe she'd tell me there was a ghostly hag hovering above my head. Something in Kayla's words made my stomach sink. I knew I was evil – it was kind of the definition of a Hellish servant. I lived day to day with my eternal task, seducing and corrupting men. But somehow, a little girl telling me I was â€Å"bad† hit me harder than the cruelest, most profane accusation could. Without another word to her, I headed back downstairs. As I drove Seth back to my place, I gave him the scoop on the angels and my subsequent lack of progress. â€Å"You've got some creature stalking you, and you decided to go into work?† He sounded both amused and exasperated. â€Å"You might as well have gone to the movie with me.† â€Å"Oh.† I felt kind of stupid. â€Å"I didn't want to interrupt any brotherly bonding.† â€Å"And,† he added, â€Å"you forgot.† â€Å"I never forget about you,† I said stoutly. â€Å"But I was kind of distracted.† â€Å"Funny how that's never a good excuse when the roles are reversed†¦Ã¢â‚¬  My apartment was still empty when we got there. I left my coat and Dante's charm in my bedroom and then went to sit on the couch with Seth. â€Å"I hate waiting,† I told him. â€Å"Why does this always happen? Some big, supernatural crisis pops up in my life, and I always end up sitting around and feeling useless. I'm always dependent on others.† â€Å"No, you aren't,† he said, lacing his fingers through mine. â€Å"You're wonderful and capable. But you can't do everything.† â€Å"I just wish I could do something else besides shape-shift and look good. I wish I could, I don't know, shoot laser beams out of my fingers or something.† â€Å"You think that'd stop Nyx?† â€Å"No. But it'd be cool.† â€Å"Me, I always wanted frost power.† â€Å"Frost power?† â€Å"Yeah.† Seth gestured dramatically toward my coffee table. â€Å"If we're talking superhero abilities. If I had frost power, I could wave my hand, and suddenly that whole thing would be covered in ice.† â€Å"Not frost?† â€Å"Same difference.† â€Å"How would frost and/or ice power help you fight crime?† â€Å"Well, I don't know that it would. But it'd be cool.† I laughed and snuggled into Seth, feeling better. I could wait this out. â€Å"Are you hungry?† I asked him. â€Å"Yasmine and Vincent have been waging their own version of Top Chef around here.† We went to the kitchen and found it stocked with more food than it had ever had since I moved in. I unwrapped a plate of what appeared to be slices of freshly baked shortcake. Seth pointed to the refrigerator. â€Å"If there are strawberries in there, it's proof of God's existence.† I opened the door and peered around. â€Å"Get ready for a religious experience,† I told him, pulling out a bowl of chopped-and-sugared strawberries. With the other hand, I pulled out a larger bowl covered in plastic wrap. â€Å"And homemade whipped cream.† â€Å"Hallelujah,† he said. We piled plates high with shortcake and strawberries, and suddenly, dream entities seemed downright comical. I unwrapped the whipped cream, and Seth promptly dabbed a finger in it. â€Å"Savage,† I scolded. â€Å"Heavenly,† he countered, licking off the cream. He stuck another finger into the bowl and held it out to me. I leaned forward and ran my tongue over the tip. Rich sweetness flooded my mouth. â€Å"Mmm,† I said, closing my eyes. â€Å"Mmm,† said Seth. I opened my eyes. â€Å"Are you talking about the whipped cream?† â€Å"Not exactly.† â€Å"You talking about this?† There was still whipped cream on his finger. I took it into my mouth and sucked gently on it, cleaning up the last of the cream and stroking Seth's skin with my tongue. When I finished, he exhaled a held breath. â€Å"Thanks for the cleanup.† â€Å"Cleanliness is next to godliness, I hear.† â€Å"I think I have more on me, though,† he said. â€Å"Really?† I asked. â€Å"Where?† He swiped his finger through more whipped cream. â€Å"Right here.† I licked that off too, sucking and kissing all of the fingers on his hand – not just the guilty one. Finished, I flipped the hand over and kissed the top of it. â€Å"There. Sparkling clean.† Seth shook his head. â€Å"Oh no.† â€Å"What?† â€Å"You've got some on you too.† â€Å"Do I? Where?† He dipped into more whipped cream and dabbed it on my lips, my chin, and the side of my throat. â€Å"Everywhere,† he said. Before I could formulate a response, his mouth was on my neck, licking and kissing with as much sensuality as I had just used on his fingers. The eroticism of it astounded me – and I was hardly one to be caught by surprise with such things. I instinctually moved my body toward his, arching my neck back as his lips continued moving up. I felt his tongue, warm and amazingly skilled, clean up every drop of the whipped cream on my throat before sliding to my chin and finally to my mouth. We kissed harder, dessert (of the food nature) now forgotten. I felt his lips fit perfectly with my own. My back was against the counter, and Seth pressed his body against mine, trapping me. When I finally pulled back from the kiss, I could scarcely breathe. â€Å"Wow,† I said, eyes wide. â€Å"This is why I don't cook. It only leads to trouble.† Seth, still right against me, glanced left and then right. There was a heated, feral look in his eyes that made me shiver. â€Å"I don't see anything too bad happening.† â€Å"Not yet,† I admitted. â€Å"But you know the drill.† He shrugged. â€Å"Yeah. But nothing bad is happening now.† â€Å"It will if we – mmphf!† Seth was kissing me again, and this time his arms went around my waist, pulling us closer still. I wrapped my own arms around his neck, tilting my face upward to get more of the kiss. It was hot and dangerous and amazing, and I couldn't get enough. I knew, though, that I'd have to get enough of it pretty quickly here and was contemplating how to stop it when Seth broke away first. â€Å"Ah,† I teased. â€Å"You've come to your senses.† Seth smiled at me, and my heart raced at the juxtaposition of the animal desire and trademark laidback look on his face. â€Å"Nope,† he said. â€Å"Let's see how far we can go.† â€Å"You already know,† I said. â€Å"We've timed this before.† That was a bit of an exaggeration. We'd never had a stopwatch or anything, but we'd gained a good sense of how long and how deep a kiss could go before it was time to part. He shook his head. â€Å"Not kissing. This.† I wore a black tank top with a red cardigan over it. Seth reached out and unfastened the sweater's three large buttons and pulled it off of me. Letting it drop to the floor, he then rested his hands on my arms, fingers warm against my bare skin. He looked at me expectantly. â€Å"We're timing how quickly you can take off my sweater?† I asked. â€Å"Wrong answer. It's not always about you.† Removing his hands, he caught the bottom edge of his Cap'n Crunch T-shirt and pulled it over his head. He'd pulled me to his chest before it even hit the floor, and suddenly, I was face to face with golden, delicious-smelling Seth skin. Lots of it. Resisting the urge to start kissing his chest then and there, I looked up into his face and attempted levity. â€Å"Is this like strip poker? Except†¦without the poker part?† â€Å"This, Thetis,† he said, grabbing the edge of my tank top, â€Å"is a test. A test to see how far we can go on all dimensions. Not just kissing.† I should have stopped him, but the feel of his hands sliding up my torso was too intoxicating. The tank top went over my head and joined the other clothing on my kitchen floor. I laughed. â€Å"So†¦we know how much kissing we can do. Now you're trying to see how much naked we can do?† â€Å"Yes,† he said. He was attempting a dignified air. â€Å"It's a scientific experiment.† â€Å"Mostly it seems like you pulling off my clothes.† â€Å"That's part of it. We know how much we can kiss. But can we kiss naked? How long can we kiss naked? Is it the same?† â€Å"I don – â€Å" Again, he cut me off with a kiss, and my whole body tingled as my breasts pressed up against his chest. There was nothing between us, just skin on skin, and it was incredible. Between that and the kiss, I felt dizzy. And so, Seth's experiment progressed. He removed articles of our clothing one at a time, then would kiss me, pause, and examine the results. When we were both completely naked, he stepped back and admired my body, his face gleeful and smug. â€Å"I don't think the succubus thing is working,† he said. â€Å"Oh, it works, believe me,† I said, suddenly nervous. Every inch of me wanted to be touched and caressed and ravaged. My skin burned. And the hunger within me – the instinct that urged me to feed off human energy – was raging, realizing just how close it was to dinnertime. This had started out as an amusing game, but it now occurred to me how dangerous this had become. â€Å"It's less about naked and more about us not kissing so much. Remember that time we started making out in bed? I got some of your energy then, and we were dressed. Push this enough – or start doing things with other parts of our bodies – and it'll be game over.† I stepped back and reached for my shirt. â€Å"But you made good scientific progress tonight, I'll give you that.† Seth caught my wrist before I could get the shirt. He pulled me back to him. â€Å"Just a little bit more. Just to see.† He still had the same intensity and arousal all over him. I'd seen it in him before but never like this. â€Å"What more is there?† I asked. â€Å"Just one more kiss,† he said, feigning innocence. â€Å"A†¦parting kiss.† â€Å"Oh good grief.† â€Å"One kiss, Thetis. That's it.† I hesitated, then nodded. â€Å"Okay. Fine. But I'm onto you, so don't think you can get away with anything here.† â€Å"Noted.† At least that's what I think he said because it came out kind of muffled with his mouth crushing mine. I was pressed back against the counter again, and his hand was moving down my ass, down the back of my thigh. We were so close. So, so close. We'd never been this close, this naked, before. We'd certainly never been this naked and kissing before. I felt alive and on fire, craving him both as a succubus and a woman in love. The floodgates burst, and all the passion we kept restrained flowed forth. I could feel him, how hard he was and how much he wanted me. My own body responded in kind, pushing closer and grinding against him. His hand on the back of my thigh tensed and then pulled my leg up. It was barely around his hip when I felt†¦it. It. Seth's life. Sweeter than kissing, sweeter than whipped cream. It came into me pure and bright, unlike anything else I'd ever tasted – well, other than the last time I'd stolen some from him. I would have moaned if my mouth wasn't preoccupied. Reason seized me, and I did my best to squirm free. My best wasn't good enough, and all I could do was slide my mouth away from his. He simply moved down, kissing my neck. The energy didn't stop. â€Å"Seth. Seth. We made the point. We saw how far we can go.† His eyes, full of so much longing and passion, held mine. â€Å"Please, Georgina†¦we're so close†¦just this once†¦Ã¢â‚¬  We were so close. Too close. â€Å"No.† I pressed my palms to his chest. â€Å"Seth! Stop.† I shoved hard. â€Å"Stop!† I broke free all at once and staggered a few feet back, my hand catching the counter for support. The energy transfer cut off abruptly. He reached out a hand to help steady me, but I stayed out of reach. â€Å"Are†¦are you okay?† he asked. â€Å"I'm fine,† I said, breath heavy. â€Å"But you aren't. I got a little – a little of your energy.† â€Å"A little is nothing.† â€Å"Not to me,† I said, still keeping my distance. â€Å"It's not your energy,† he said. His eyes were still heated and hungry. â€Å"It's mine. And I think it was worth it.† He took a step forward. â€Å"And I'd think it was worth it, even if I lost more.† I held out my hand, palm-first. â€Å"Stop. Don't come closer. I don't trust you.† His expression became less aroused and more dumbfounded. â€Å"You†¦don't trust me? I never thought I'd hear you say that.† â€Å"That's not what I meant. Exactly. I mean, I don't know. I don't think you're going to rape me or anything, but you're†¦uh, persuasive. And you haven't been yourself lately. Ever since you got shot. You've been†¦I don't know. Risky. Like you're having a mid-life crisis.† â€Å"I'm having a life crisis, Thetis. I don't want to be one of those people who discovers on my death bed that I didn't do anything. Why can't you understand this? You're so quick to encourage Maddie to do exciting things, but you're still trying to protect me.† â€Å"It†¦it's different.† â€Å"How?† he asked. â€Å"Why is it okay for her to take risks but not me?† â€Å"Because there's a big difference between going rock climbing and sleeping with someone who's going to take years off your life. How long is this phase going to last? You always said it wasn't about sex between us.† â€Å"It's not,† he said stoutly. â€Å"Not at all. I love you for†¦so many reasons. More than I can even begin to describe. But I don't want to die never having touched you. Really touched you.† I stared. He was serious. How could he say he didn't want to die without touching me when touching me would only lead him closer to death? â€Å"You're only saying this because you haven't had sex in so long,† I accused. â€Å"You got all turned on and now you're not thinking straight.† â€Å"I am turned on,† he agreed. â€Å"By you. The woman I love.† He took another step toward me but still stayed far enough away so we didn't touch. â€Å"I want you, Georgina. So badly it kills me. I know you want me too. How can we go on being afraid of something we never tried? I'll take a hit for it, yeah, but if we go on for years†¦without ever knowing†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He shook his head and sighed. â€Å"Please, Georgina. Just this once. Let us be together – really together.† I swallowed. He was so earnest. So sweet. So sexy. And so help me, he sounded reasonable. The calm way he spoke almost made me believe it didn't matter, that if I gave in and let our bodies come together, the loss would be small and inconsequential. I looked into his eyes and tried to convince myself of his rationalization, bringing up what Carter and others had said. That it was Seth's choice to make, nothing for me to worry about. But, of course, it was. â€Å"No,† I said. â€Å"I can't. Please, Seth. Don't do this. Don't look at me like that. I love you too – so, so much. But we can't do this. I'm telling you, you just need to have sex. Go out and find someone – anyone. It doesn't matter. I don't care. It'll fix all this and make it easier for us to go on.† â€Å"You would care,† he said, voice deadly calm. â€Å"You say you wouldn't, but you would.† â€Å"Not if it protects you.† â€Å"Protecting me doesn't matter.† â€Å"Damn it, it does!† I yelled, lunging forward. I drove my fists – lightly – into his chest, and all the emotion that had been building up throughout this argument suddenly burst out. â€Å"Don't you get it? I have to protect you! If anything happens to you – if I'm responsible for anything happening to you – it will kill me. It. Will. Kill. Me. I can't handle that. I can't handle anything happening to you. It will kill me!† I stopped my yelling and met Seth's eyes. Neither of us said anything. And as he stared down at me, I knew what he was thinking. Because I was thinking exactly the same thing. I had just given voice to what Hugh had said, what Seth had been worried about. In my outburst, I'd changed the balance of risk. It wasn't about Seth hurting. It was about me hurting. Gently, he reached out and caught my wrists. He removed them from his chest and let go. Backing up, still not speaking, he picked up his clothes and began dressing. I stayed where I was, naked and frozen. â€Å"Seth†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I said slowly. â€Å"I didn't mean it.† â€Å"It's okay, Thetis,† he said, fastening his pants and not meeting my eyes. â€Å"I understand. I'm sorry. I'm sorry I pushed you.† â€Å"No, no†¦it's not†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"It's okay,† he repeated. His voice was so, so neutral. So, so steady. It wasn't natural. â€Å"Really. But I think I need to go. I think it's better for both of us, and God only knows you have enough going on without me to worry about.† I felt tears starting to fill my eyes. â€Å"I didn't mean†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I know what you meant,† he said. He straightened his shirt and finally looked at me. â€Å"But seriously†¦I should leave. We'll talk†¦I don't know. We'll talk later.† He held out his hand, like he might touch my cheek, and then let it drop. With another sigh, he said good-bye and left. I stood exactly where I was, still not moving. My heart felt like it had just had acid thrown on it. It was burning and raw. Finally, finally, it all caught up with me. My knees gave out, and I sank to the floor. It was cold and hard against my bare skin. I drew my knees up to me and buried my face in them, wondering what I had done. Part of me screamed to go follow him, to beg him to come back, to tell him we could make love and have everything we had ever wanted. Another part, half-reason and half-pride, held me back. It was that same part that had stopped me from going after Andrew that day back in the garden after we'd fought about the Black Death. I'd let him go and gone out of my way to avoid him after that. When the plague finally came to our town, my bishop was one of the first to leave. I went with him and the rest of our household. Just like in The Masque of the Red Death, there was no true place to hide from sickness. Still, some places were better than others, and my bishop took care to keep to the better places. He survived. Months went by, and stories and rumors trickled in about the town we'd lived in. By that point, I'd grown weary of Geoffrey and decided it was time for me to move on. I got permission from my archdemon for a transfer to Florence and sneaked out of Geoffrey's house one night to make the long journey. Our old town was along the way, and a week later, I passed through it. A plague town wasn't quite like what modern people might imagine. It wasn't as though there were piles of bodies lying in the streets or anything. Not always. After all, Europe had survived the Black Death in the end, and civilization had still functioned through the worst of it. Crops were still grown, houses still built, babies still born. But the town seemed quieter and more melancholy than when I'd lived there. Andrew wasn't at the church when I stopped by, and an old man tending the grounds told me that Andrew was off helping some of his parishioners in one of the poorer districts. I found him there, inside the home of a brewer. The brewer had a large family – eight children – as well as a couple of brothers living with him. The house was small and cramped and filthy. Everyone in it was sick except for the brewer's wife who wearily tried to help Andrew take care of her family. â€Å"Cecily?† he asked in astonishment when he saw me. He was kneeling by a teenage boy. Something inside my chest blossomed with both joy and relief. Andrew was alive. He'd stayed, fought disease, and won. I strode forward and knelt beside him. The wife, giving water to a small girl, watched me uneasily. I wasn't in silk or anything, but I was clearly from a different class than theirs, and she didn't entirely know how to treat me. â€Å"You're alive,† I breathed. â€Å"I've been so worried. So worried I'd never see you again.† He smiled that gentle smile of his, and I saw more lines around his eyes than I'd seen before. â€Å"God didn't want to separate us quite yet,† he said. I looked down at the boy. I'd figured Andrew was feeding him or something, but I realized then that the priest was actually giving him last rites. The boy wore no shirt, and I could see on his neck and in his armpits the tell-tale dark pustules that had given the plague its name. The plague usually did what it was going to do in about a week, but from his emaciated look, you would have thought he'd been dying for years. His eyes were fever-bright, and I didn't know if he even knew we were there. Bile rose in my throat, and I averted my eyes. Standing up, I told Andrew, â€Å"I'll let†¦I'll let you finish this and wait outside.† I left the house, going out to where it was warm and things weren't dying. A while later, Andrew found me. I didn't ask if the boy was still alive. Instead, I said, â€Å"How many of them live? Out of all the ones you stay and risk your life for, how many of them actually survive?† He shrugged. â€Å"Three-quarters. Sometimes half, if they're very young or very old.† â€Å"Half,† I repeated flatly. â€Å"That's not very good.† â€Å"If one more person lives because of me, then that's very good.† I looked at that confident, serene face and sighed. â€Å"You're so damned frustrating.† He smiled. I sighed again. â€Å"What can I do to help?† The smile disappeared. â€Å"Don't make light of this, Cecily.† â€Å"I'm not. Tell me what to do.† And that was how I found myself playing nurse in a small town in backwoods England. Honestly, there wasn't anything glamorous one could do to fight the plague. It was all about basics, keeping the people clean and supplied with as much food and water as they could take in. The rest was in the hands of their immune system and – if you believed Andrew – God. When my patients began declining past the point of no return, I usually stopped helping. I couldn't stand to watch and left them to Andrew and his prayers. But sometimes I'd see people come back around, people whom I'd given up on, and then I could almost believe there was a higher power at work. At least, I believed that until Andrew got sick. It started slowly at first, a fever and aches, but we both knew what that meant. He ignored it and kept working until the symptoms began compounding. Finally, he couldn't fight it. Neglecting my other patients, I devoted myself fully to him. â€Å"You should help others,† he told me one day. His skin was pink and blotchy, and he was starting to get the dark spots around his lymph glands. Through all the sickness and fatigue, he was still beautiful to me. â€Å"Don't worry about me.† â€Å"I have to worry about you. No one else is.† It was true. Andrew had helped so many, but no one had come to his side, despite the fact that plague survivors tended not to catch it again. â€Å"It doesn't matter,† Andrew told me, voice frail. â€Å"I'm glad they've survived.† â€Å"You will too,† I said obstinately, even though the signs were starting to suggest otherwise. â€Å"You have to go on so you can keep doing your annoying good works.† He managed a smile. â€Å"I hope so, but I think my time in this world may be drawing to a close. You, though†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He looked at me – truly looked at me – and I was astonished at the love I saw there. I knew he'd been attracted to me, but I'd never expected this. â€Å"You, Cecily†¦you won't get sick. You will go on, strong and healthy and beautiful. I can feel it. God loves you.† â€Å"No,† I said sadly. â€Å"God hates me. That's why he lets me keep living.† â€Å"God only gives us tasks he knows we can handle. Here, take this.† He touched the gold cross around his neck, but he was too weak to take it off. â€Å"Take it when I'm gone.† â€Å"No, Andrew, you won't – â€Å" â€Å"Take it,† he repeated in as firm a voice as he could manage. â€Å"Take it, and whenever you see it, remember that God loves you and knows that no tragedy you face is ever too much for you to bear. You are strong. You will endure.† Hot tears spilled down my cheeks. â€Å"You shouldn't have done this,† I told him. â€Å"You shouldn't have helped them. You would've lived if you hadn't.† He shook his head. â€Å"Yes, but then I wouldn't have been able to live with myself.† Andrew lingered a few more days after that. I stayed with him, but every moment of it was agony. I hated watching what happened to him and was more convinced than ever that there really was no benevolent power looking after humans. He died peacefully and quietly, much as he'd lived. Another priest came to administer last rites when it happened, and Andrew's final conscious moments reflected hope and absolute faith in what would come next. I stayed to make sure the funeral arrangements were taken care of, not that there was much fanfare or anything. There were no viewings or fancy funeral halls in those days – at least not for men like him. I soon left England for the continent, and after a while, the pain of his death began to take on a new form. Oh, I still missed him – still burned and ached and felt like part of me had been ripped away. But added to that, guilt was starting to create a pain of its own. I felt like I should have taken better care of him. I should have insisted on him leaving with me when the plague came. Or maybe I should have gotten my hands dirtier while helping him tend the sick; it might have kept him away from whomever had infected him. Florence was a beautiful city, on the verge of the Renaissance when I got there. Yet even while living amongst all that splendor and art, Andrew's death tormented me for many years, the pain of guilt and missing him digging into my heart. It never entirely went away, but it did lessen – it just took a really, really long time. As Hugh had said, a long life simply means having more time to mourn.