The Other Side Of Suicide - 1577 Words

Josh Arteseros Gwendleyon November 24, 2014 The Other Side Of Suicide â€Å"What scenarios makes someone suicidal?† One evening going to Santa Rosa Junior College college for class I see up ahead theres two white vans with (I don t remember exactly what it said but I m going to say) â€Å"youth suicide prevention† written on the side, sitting in the main quad of the campus blocking my main walk path. I had to walk around the whole set up but while doing so I notice hundreds of backpacks all over the place, sitting on benches, hanging from tees, covering all 1500 square feet of grass, as if it was mandatory to stay on the red brick sidewalk and not cut through the grass. I didn t think the backpack were connected with the suicide vans†¦show more content†¦Its like the saying â€Å"its always the ones you least expect† but if that was true, wouldn t we all be the person to be least expected of. Ideally we are because to be least expected means to convey a higher role in life, building yourself up confidently to people, expressing only the good side of your life which everyone does through the social network such as Facebook, twitter, Instagram, etc. Its always yourself who makes you least expected to people. The rate in suicide is problematic the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) collects data about mortality in the U.S., including deaths by suicide.(American Foundation For Suicide Prevention) In 2012, 40,600 suicides were reported, making suicide the10th leading cause of death for Americans. The suicide rate shows the number of suicide deaths that occur for every 100,000 people in the population for which the rate is reported. In 2012, the highest suicide rate (19.88) was among people 45 to 59 years old. The second highest rate (17) occurred in those 75 years

The Inflammatory Response Free Essays

The body is designed to defend itself against invading bacteria, and infection. The skin and mucous membranes are the first line of defence, the invasion of foreign bacteria can pass this first line of defence and immediately triggers the second line of defence. The second line of defence is the inflammatory response (McCance Huether, 2009). We will write a custom essay sample on The Inflammatory Response or any similar topic only for you Order Now The mechanism of the inflammatory response is to protect the injured site by killing the agent responsible, limiting its effects on the rest of the body and initiating the healing process (Porth, 2007). According to Botwinski (2001), during infection bacteria grow and divide, and release potent toxins that cause damage to the body’s cells. These toxins trigger the initiation of the inflammatory response. The changes that occur are initiated by the interactions between bacterial products and inflammatory mediators. Inflammatory mediators are chemicals that are released by protective cells or plasma when harmful agents invade the body. Inflammatory mediators include histamine, prostaglandins, and leukotrienes (Kumar, Abbas, Fausto, Robbins, Cotran, 2005). The main cells involved are the mast cells and are located in connective tissue in close contact with blood vessels. Mast cells play a key role in the inflammatory response, when stimulated by infection they release a potent substance called histamine. When histamine leaks into the tissues it causes changes in the surrounding blood vessels. The two changes that occur in the blood vessels is blood vessel dilation and increased capillary permeability. The changes are designed to maximise the movement of plasma proteins and circulating cells out of the blood flow and into the site of infection (McCance Huether, 2009). At the onset of injury the histamine that is released causes the blood vessels at the site to constrict for a short time then dilate (Nair, 2009). This widening of the blood vessels increases blood flow, and therefore increases the amount of oxygen, nutrients, and white blood cells being delivered to the site of injury (Botwinski, 2001). New blood vessels can also open up at the site and the area becomes flooded with blood. This increase in blood flow produces the characteristics of redness and warmth and are the earliest symptoms seen in the inflammatory response (Porth, 2007). The blood vessel wall confines blood products and cells in the circulation and prevents it from leaking out into the surrounding tissues of the body. This is done by cells called endothelial cells that tightly line the walls (Braun Anderson, 2006). The chemicals that are released at the site of injury bind with receptors on the endothelial cells and cause’s them to retract producing gaps in their walls. This structural change allows healing fluid and cells to escape out into the affected area (Porth, 2007). Braun Anderson (2006) describe that the harmful bacteria are diluted by this increased amount of fluid. The increased fluid and pressure produces the swelling seen at the site of infection. Nerve endings can also be stimulated as a result from the increasing pressure and this is what can cause the pain associated with infection (Nair, 2009). An important part of the inflammatory response is to send circulating white blood cells to the infected area. They are attracted in large numbers to the scene of injury as a result from blood vessel dilation and the release of bacteria substances and inflammatory mediators (Kumer et al. 2005). The white blood cells job is to provide a defence by killing invading bacteria, and getting rid of dead tissue. The main white blood cell in the inflammatory response is the neutrophil and arrives first at the site of inflammation approximately six to twelve hours after the initial injury (McCance Huether, 2007). Macrophages are cells that live in various tissue locations and like the neutrophils they are released in the blood stream and attracted to the sub stances released at the site of infection. Macrophages and neutrophils are called phagocytes, and share the same job in the inflammatory response, which is to clean up the damage by ingesting and killing the invading bacteria (McCance Huether, 2005). According to Sherwood (2009), the phagocytes floating in the circulation stick to the inside of the blood vessel wall, this process is called mirgination. Diapedesis then occurs, in this process the phagocytes squeeze through the gaps of capillary walls that were formed earlier on in the inflammatory response. Chemical mediators called chemotaxins accumulate at the site of infection and attract the phagocytes. Once inside the surrounding tissue the phagocytes make their way through the tissue to areas where there are higher concentrations of chemotaxins, this process is called chemotaxis (Roitt Delves, 2001). Once at the affected area the neutrophils and macrophages eliminate the invading bacteria from the inflammation site by a process called phagocytosis. Phagocytosis is â€Å"cell-eating† and is a three stage process composed of recognition and attachment, engulfment, and killing and degradation (Kumar et al. , 2005). Phagocytes have receptors on their surface that enable them to recognise and attach to the receptors on the surface of the microorganism, this attachment prevents the bacteria from â€Å"getting-away†. In the process of engulfment the phagocytes stretch two surface like projections called pseudopods around the microorganism until it completely surrounds it, the microorganism is then trapped inside. Potent chemicals and enzymes are released inside the phagocyte and these break down and kill the invading microorganism. The pus that forms at the infected site is the accumulation of these phagocytic cells both living and dead (Sherwood, 2009). McCance Huether (2009) describe that there are three protein systems that are also initiated during the inflammatory response. They are the complement, clotting and kenin systems, and consist of protein enzymes. These systems work along side the protecting cells and help them carry out their roles. The complement system consists of potent defensive proteins that help in the destruction of invading bacteria. The clotting system produces fibrinous tissue that acts as a boundary by trapping the bacteria and maximising the activity of the phagocytic cells. The clot that is formed also minimizes blood loss and prevents spread of infection (Botwinski, 2001). The kenin system consists of mainly bradykinin a protein that cause’s dilation of vessels, vascular permeability, and pain (McCance Huether, 2009). The protective mechanisms of the inflammatory response prepare the site for healing and regeneration of the destructed tissue. Depending on the severity of infection and damage this can be a long process and is finished when structure and function is returned to normal (McCance Huether, 2009). How to cite The Inflammatory Response, Papers

Emily Jimenez Essay Example For Students

Emily Jimenez Essay English 161 March 27, 2017 Literature Review In the present decades unlike the past, the word feminist has become a title to brand anyone who talks and writes about the feminine sex. After all the term is dynamic and it is always discussed and conferenced by both sexes in media and even the internet. Hence, the effect has taken its toll and feminism is now just knowing about and believing it, that all are equal but not taking any measures and fight to it. However being a feminist means being an activist of the feminine sex- not that the men sex is to be hated-by believing and having a stand for it that all the sexes are the same and equal in all categorical grounds. This will bring the diverse sex to one ideology and make each and every one a feminist, who understands what he/she is up for. The authors main goal is to establish that the Lemonade album was dedicated to a specific audience, black women. Sydney Gore author of Lemonade Is A Love Letter From Beyonce To Black Women believ es that Beyonce dedicated this body of art to black women due to the way she narrates the struggle of black women. Struggles like fighting for equality, being viewed as a sexual objects and the fact that no help is given to the female. In the visual aspect of Lemonade a Southern gothic theme is presented as it is set in the deep South, that is more or less what black feminism is visualized in our minds. Beyonce tries to artistically show what it means to go about life dealing with depression, heartbreak, and anger. A major stick in the mud like the author mentioned was infidelity, although the point of the album wasnt directly to point out the struggle within her marriage, it was to force everyone to accept the truthwe are all flawed human beings. Her solution to all of this is trying to encourage women to believe in themselves and to keep hope alive, trying to create an environment to protect black women. In this article, Beyonce and Lemonade are giving these feminist scholars so much to debate the author, Caitlin Gibson is trying to figure out whether Beyonce is pushing her progress or is just marketing her brand?Beyonces visual album, Lemonade portraits black womanhood, infidelity and redemption. Feminist activists bell hooks and Janet Mock shared conflicting views about its portrayal of women. Bell hooks believes Beyonce utterly aestheticized the presentation of the female body/form by simply showing beautiful black women does not create well-being for them. While author Janet Mock followed by arguing that Beyonce and any woman should be taken seriously no matter how she presents herself. The argument within would be that women should be free to present themselves without suffering accusations that their sexuality is harmful. This article compared different authors opinions on Beyonces visual album in relation to women. Elle Hunt author of the article Beyonces Lemonade album expl ained, from beginner to Beyhive' talks aboutBeyoncetelling Vogueshe guesses she is a feminist because she believes in equality. A year later, she performed at the MTV Music awards in front of FEMINIST in lights. To follow, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichies TED talk established Beyonces credentials as a public feminist, due to her Super bowl Halftime Show when she sang about her negro nose with Jackson 5 nostrils, flanked by dancers wearing Black Panther berets, concluding with a Black Power salute signalled a newly politicised chapter of her career. I believe Beyonce knew that appearing this way in her performance would cause a lot of commotion and rumors about her being a feminist figure so she must be okay with such label. .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 , .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 .postImageUrl , .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 , .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3:hover , .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3:visited , .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3:active { border:0!important; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3:active , .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3 .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u8032245742574ab66f0b36dc3522b9b3:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Themes Of Pride And Prejudice Essay Kinitra Brooks, an associate professor of English at the University of Texas at San Antonio who specializes in black feminist theory believes:Beyonce is working out for herself what she thinks feminism is. Her working that out publicly and working through those certain ideas, it appeals to a lot of people and encourages them to examine their own practice of feminism, although, it also fails to appeal to a lot of people and pushes back (at) what they believe feminism to be. I can partially agree that Beyonces Lemonade album is trying to appeal to a lot of people the reasons because, it seems like she is focusing more on the black struggle s women face. Although others may agree that:Lemonadeis giving us thoughts of resistance going into this moment that were in, to really push us through. says Quita Tinsley, Feministing writer and activist. Author Stephanie Trefzger, who wrote the ALBUM REVIEW: Lemonade Beyoncepositively spoke about the way Beyonce portrayed her life as a women in the album Lemonade which gave for many women to connect to specifically black women. Within the album Beyonce based some songs about her marriage and the way she tried to stay throughout the bad moments, followed by the way she thrive to show she will be respected.She uses her power and influence to draw attention to issues of race and gender in an unapologetic way. In the video album, she samples activist Malcolm X when he declares, The most disrespected person in America is the black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America is the black woman. Men are mostly absent from the video, both visually and emotionally. In their place are a large group of black women and girls forming a front of solidarity and sisterhood. Among them are tennis star Serena Williams, the young actresses Qu venzhane Wallis and Amandla Stenberg, as well as the actress/singer Zendaya. Sybrina Fulton, mother of Trayvon Martin and Lesley McSpadden, mother of Michael Brown, are also featured. Some people are not going to like this display of power, although this album is for black women and while other people can identify with things discussed in the album, we have to realize that this was not made specifically for everyone.At the end of my research on the pop artist Beyonce, I believe the reasons why she presents herself as a feminist is to simply attract more of the female audience and to try to guide them into feeling positive about themselves, presenting a world where men are not in dominance. Work Cited Gore, Sydney. Lemonade Is A Love Letter From Beyonce To Black Women.Lemonade Is A Love Letter From Beyonce To Black Women. N.p., 25 Apr. 2016. Web. 11 Apr. 2017. Gibson, Caitlin. Beyonce and Lemonade are giving these feminist scholars so much to debate.The Washington Post. WP Company, 11 May 2016. Web. 11 Apr. 2017. Trefzger, Stephanie. ALBUM REVIEW: Lemonade Beyonce.Niner Times. N.p., 24 Apr. 2016. Web. 11 Apr. 2017. Hunt, Elle. Beyonces Lemonade album explained, from beginner to Beyhive'The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 28 Apr. 2016. Web. 11 Apr. 2017. Quarshie, Mabinty. Beyonces Lemonade album but a sip of her evolving feminist story.USA Today. Gannett Satellite Information Network, 24 Feb. 2017. Web. 11 Apr. 2017.

The Naked Ape Essay Example For Students

The Naked Ape Essay In The Naked Ape, Desmond Morris provides an alternative explanation of the causative factors underlying various human behavior patterns and societal and cultural activities. He develops his theme around such human activities as feeding, grooming, sleeping, fighting, mating and care of the young. He compares human traits and behaviors with those exhibited by animals, mainly the primates, in like activities. His point is that understanding the evolutionary source of many behaviors can throw new light on understanding the complex nature of the human species. Morris begins by examining the evolution of the mammals, from the earliest insectivores to the latest carnivores, detailing the survival characteristics which led to the success of some species over others. He provides great detail on the development of the nearly naked carnivorous hunting ape from the fruit eating primate group. He presents a thorough discussion of sexual behavior, stressing the similarities between human rituals and primate behaviors. Tracing the three characteristic sexual phases of pair formation, pre-copulatory activity, and copulation, the evolutionary process which lies at the root of modern human sexual behavior is clearly laid out. We will write a custom essay on The Naked Ape specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now Similarly, he examines human child-rearing, and provides interesting insights into non-verbal communication and body language between mother and child. The role of exploratory behavior in the basic survival patterns of feeding, fighting, and mating, as well as its importance to an individuals social adjustment, is detailed. Morris analyzes thoroughly our human aggressive urges, as always providing examples of animal behaviors which serve as an objective base upon which to understand why we act as we do. In addition to territorial and social dominance aggressive behaviors, he describes the actual mechanics of aggression, both physiologically and behaviorally. Both displacement activity and appeasement activity are explored in detail. He concludes by examining human feeding and comfort behaviors and mankinds relationships with animals. Throughout the book he stresses that as a species, man is a simple biological phenomenon subject to all the basic laws of animal behavior. He feels that it is important to the survival of the human species to understand itself and the limitations implicit in being a naked ape. Morris admits that he perhaps over-stresses the biological/zoological slant of his thesis, but even so his concepts are capably and logically developed. I found it easy and fascinating to recognize myself (and others) in almost every behavioral situation he describes. One very important point to keep in mind about Morris book is that he is exploring normal social behavior, not abnormal behavior. He has taken almost every aspect of mans everyday life and shown, acceptably and believably in my opinion, that in many cases human behavior can be understood in terms of our evolutionary roots.

Local Artist From Rimersburg Show †Art Essay

Local Artist From Rimersburg Show – Art Essay Free Online Research Papers Local Artist From Rimersburg Show Art Essay The local artist from Rimersburg put together a lot of different pieces of art, mostly acrylic paintings although there were a few sketches and sculptures. The art was different from most of the other art pieces that I have seen. There were some parts that I liked, but I really wasn’t too crazy about his art. One thing that did catch my eye was the backgrounds of his pictures. The colors and the textures are what I liked best about the backgrounds. I wasn’t a fan of the smaller paintings with the swirled colors all over them. Truthfully, the colors in them were getting boring after seeing ten other paintings that all looked alike. I did like the two bigger ones with the swirls. I thought that the swirls made it look like a whole bunch of people standing together. That is why I liked the bigger paintings better that the smaller ones, they looked less confusing and more like whole people. I disliked the other paintings more than the swirl paintings. The white things that were painted on top of the background all looked like body parts having sex. The sculpture also looked like they were having sex. The artist used th is really ugly blue color in almost every peace of art he painted. Overall, I didn’t like this art show. I would have liked to have seen more of a variety of paintings, less of the swirl paintings, and to have gotten rid of that ugly blue color. Research Papers on Local Artist From Rimersburg Show - Art EssayHip-Hop is ArtThe Masque of the Red Death Room meaningsBook Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm XWhere Wild and West MeetEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeThe Spring and AutumnCapital PunishmentHonest Iagos Truth through DeceptionMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever Product

Exercise in Identifying Sentences by Function

Exercise in Identifying Sentences by Function In terms of their function, sentences can be classified in four ways: declarative (making a statement)interrogative (asking a question)imperative (expressing a request or command)exclamatory (expressing strong feelings) This exercise will give you practice in identifying these four functional types of sentences. Practice Identifying Sentences by Function Identify each of the following sentences as declarative, interrogative, imperative, or exclamatory. When youre done, compare your answers with those on page two. How beautiful a street is in winter! (Virginia Woolf)Have the skillet hot and keep it well greased. (Ernest Hemingway)We boarded our train with feelings of unbounded relief. (James Weldon Johnson)Each cell measured about ten feet by ten and was quite bare within except for a plank bed and a pot of drinking water. (George Orwell)Where were the blackbirds? (Richard Jefferies)Always obey your parents, when they are present. (Mark Twain)The house was so big that there was always a room to hide in, and I had a red pony and a garden where I could wander. (W.B. Yeats)Even now, the sight of an old, six-inch, worm-eaten cork brings fragrant memories! (Samuel H. Scudder)Why does a funeral always sharpen ones sense of humor and rouse ones spirits? (George Bernard Shaw)And whom should we see in the evening, but our two little boys, walking on each side of a fierce, yellow-faced, bearded man! (William Makepeace Thackeray)How can any deny themselves the pleasure of my company? (Zora Neale Hurston) He was exceedingly poor, wearing only a ragged shirt and trousers. (James Huneker)Quietly go in, sit down, look at your man until you have seen him enough, and then go. (H.G. Wells)I looked tired, but my complexion was good. (Emma Goldman)Not a man in London made a better boot! (John Galsworthy) Answers to the Exercise exclamatory sentenceimperative sentencedeclarative sentencedeclarative sentenceinterrogative sentenceimperative sentencedeclarative sentenceexclamatory sentenceinterrogative sentenceexclamatory sentenceinterrogative sentencedeclarative sentenceimperative sentencedeclarative sentenceexclamatory sentence

Self-Defense Is Not Just A Physical Technique Essay

Self-Defense Is Not Just A Physical Technique - Essay Example Self-defense lessons also offer women an unusual chance to discover the wide range of sentiments that frequently happen when we begin to recognize the altitude of aggression in our culture. It is an outstanding vehicle for discovering annoyance, sorrow, and terror, and for patter into the delight that arrives from finding your tone and determines your personal inner supremacy. As the law of self-defense has evolved, it has become recognition of our right to defend ourselves with lethal force when we reasonably believe we are confronted with an imminent threat, which threat we did not create and from which we cannot retreat with safety. Under those circumstances, the law is ready to justify, as self-defense, conduct that otherwise would be considered criminal (Women Self Defense, Online). Traditionally, self-defense has been defined as "the act of defending one's person when physically attacked, as by countering blows or overcoming an assailant" (Webster's Encyclopedic Dictionary, 1989). This definition, if strictly followed, would narrow the scope of instructional content to contain only the psychomotor learning domain. Holistic physical education instructional units must additionally account for the cognitive and affective learning spheres. Therefore, a conservatively modern understanding of self-defense must be adopted-- a task that can prove challenging due to the diversity of self-defense curricula (Mencken, Pg 113-114). Self-defense is only designed to be used defensively, never as an offensive weapon. Beyond that, if there are other means of protection available, the law directs us to use those rather than choosing to defend with deadly force. There are numerous institutes where teachings of self-defense are given. Some are specially meant for the courses given particularly for women, they may include some as follows: Home Safety Precautions Internet Safety Precautions Dating Safety Precautions Parking Lot Safety Precautions Walking Home from School Safety Precautions Outdoor Exercise Safety Precautions Socializing Precautions Sexuality Concepts Bystander Effect Drugs/Alcohol/Date-Rape Drugs Trusting Your Intuition Awareness of Physical Surroundings Statistics on Violence/Crime Trusting Strangers Dog Attacks (Jacobs and Ogle, Pg 13-14) Elements Of Self-Defense Self-defense is planned to operate as a shield, not a sword. For that reason, rules have developed historically requiring a showing that the person claiming to have employed self-defense was not acting as the aggressor but was, instead, defending next to imminent attack. It is virtually indisputable that as a general rule one should not be allowed exoneration by striking out preemptively, claiming that a future attack would have occurred had it not been thwarted. But battered women cases force us to reexamine the rules that have grown up to support the principle that self-defense is only defensive in that strict temporal sense. (Jacobs and Ogle, Pg 99) State Of Mind In my view, frame of mind and psychological approach is the supreme component of any personal Target Hardening policy. One has to make a decision at the instant that one is the marauder; that someone is the conqueror.

Substance Dualism - argument rehersal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Substance Dualism - argument rehersal - Essay Example Let us begin with me. I can conceive myself without my left hand. In case my left hand is cut off in an accident, I would still be who I am. It’s true that I’ll be handicapped, but that won’t mean I’ll cease to exist. Let’s take another situation. Let me just think I am dead. How will my loved ones react then? It is very much possible for me to conceive the situation. They will feel sad; some will cry. Now since I am conceiving these thoughts by myself only, I can exist without a body, for it’s conceivable I can be without a body. Let me now run a thought experiment to back this claim. Suppose I try to conceive my existence by separating myself from my body. In other words, I being a thinking thing envision my body sitting on a chair in front of the computer. The entire process of this thought experiment, it may be noted, is conducted on a metaphysical level aligned with the premises of conceivability. The substance dualist argument is based on three premises: It is now important to connect my thought experiment with these premises. The fact that I succeed in conceiving myself out of my body supports the second premise in that what I can conceive is also possible, because conceivability is a good guide to possibility. In other words, it is my mind that conceives what it conceives, and it can conceive successfully all the possibilities given that the laws of essential properties are not flouted. What do essential properties mean in relation to the substance dualism theory? To understand this, we should make another thought experiment. Suppose I strive to conceive of a set of parallel lines overlapping with each other. This is not possible even to think. The essential property of parallel lines does not in any way comply with the property of overlapping. I can imagine either the existence of a set of parallel lines or that of two straight lines overlapping with each other, but not both within a single reference

Mrs. Compton on the Five-Forty-Eight Essay Example for Free

Mrs. Compton on the Five-Forty-Eight Essay When Mr. Blake’s eyes met mine on the five-forty-eight, I smiled and could tell it did not affect his mood a bit. Of course it was my usual smile—sweet and slightly welcoming—but I knew Mr. Blake was a harder shell to crack than I encountered on a daily basis, and it did not bother me the least that he neither returned nor politely acknowledged my own outward kindness. It did not surprise me, either, since his wife and I had what I would consider a mutual relationship in regards to womanly confessions and the general outrage we keep inside until the right person (usually myself) ends up—coincidentally or not—in the other person’s life. I do have a keen eye for the â€Å"suffering,† and while anyone with a husband such as Mr. Blake had to be in all sorts of pain, Louise Blake just radiated the emotional pain I was familiar with hearing and, in effect, relieving by that very same act of just listening. So was I surprised to hear that Mr. Blake had given Louise another one of his childish â€Å"I’m not talking to you† fits? Hardly. Neither was I shocked to learn from his feigned indifference that he disapproved of my relationship with his wife, as most men did. Now I do not particularly enjoy being a â€Å"busybody† as some might put it, but when the woman asked Mr. Blake if she could sit beside him, I was slightly intrigued. Not so much in the woman posing that question in an only half-full car, but in Mr. Blake’s once more feigned, but convincing, approval. He tried to hide his shock, or maybe it was nervousness, but I could Mr. Blake’s comfort level had certainly been violated. I am an optimist, but certainly know when a man is disturbed by a woman. There was nothing platonic about this â€Å"meeting.† I unfortunately could not hear, being several cars ahead, but kept myself facing forwards so he could not gauge how closely focused I was. Louise is my friend, and I felt it was my duty as such a friend to keep her out of harm’s (emotional and physical) way. So I had no issue with trying to grasp the situation. Mr. Watkins, who is Mr. Blake’s neighbor and a man he dislikes far more than me, did not show any sign of acknowledging the pair, though he could have been hiding it as well as I do. It was not long before I took a quick peak back and realized Mr. Blake’s face, which had a habit of glowing bright red as a furnace when he was angry—and so, a good portion of the time was burning—had suddenly turned as white as a heavy snow. Not just thick, either, but blanketing. Something Mr. Blake wanted to keep hidden was stowed away beneath that layer of pale, perhaps even cold, skin. Even the gloom and shadow of the rain and graying clouds outside could not veil it, and instead probably intensified it, because snow is always stronger in a dark environment. Over the next while I managed to sneak glances at the two, and it was obvious whatever conversation they were having was neither a happy one nor entirely forgiving upon Mr. Blake’s complexion. I could just imagine the conversation though, and Mr. Blake’s frustration building up until he realized the woman was planning on blabbing to the wife about their after-work adventures. Then she slipped him a letter, and as he glanced up at me I pretended as if I had seen nothing, not the look of fear in his eyes or the flash of devils in hers. This is how it went for the next while: folks boarded and I snuck more glances back to see how the two were acting. She was whispering something into his ear. Must be trying to blackmail him now. Or force him to divorce Louise. Poor Louise! â€Å"Shady Hill, next, Shady Hill.† The conductor’s voice brought me back to the image of the car and the rest of the world. Again, I try not to be a â€Å"busybody† but this was an exception. Louise’s husband had not only cheated on her, but was now plotting to leave her for the woman! Maybe I am getting ahead of myself, though. It really could be nothing. But the look on his face, and the fire in her eyes†¦ The train stopped and I forgot all the parcels I had with me, and quickly gathered them with my mind still drawn to the awkward couple behind me. As I stepped off the train, I questioned what I should do. Tail them and see where they go? Confront him, perhaps? I kept my eyes straight so as not to give myself away. The rain stung my eyes and face with its cold little bodies. Should I call Louise as soon as I arrived home? Tell her what I saw? And could I be the one to break her poor little heart? I suppose I could; it would be better from me than him. With all the pain he has put her through, she was likely to kill him.

My Philosophy of Teaching Essay -- Educational Educating Teaching Essa

Philosophy of Education As Malcom Forbes once said, â€Å"Education’s purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one.† As a future teacher and educator, I heartily agree with the quote from Mr. Forbes, a successful businessman. Because I have been a student in school since I was five years old, I have had many opportunities to look at my education and assess what I have truly learned. Honestly, I can say that the most important part of my past and current education has been being exposed to the many ideas and concepts of our world today. Aside from learning about the all important â€Å"classic† subjects, I have been fortunate enough to be educated by individuals who truly wanted to teach me, as well as other students, to make a difference in the world. Due to the condition our world is in today, I feel it is extremely important to teach my future students about such issues as racism, gender inequality, war, legal matters and environmental issues, just to name a few. In order to be a successful person in the world today, it is imperative that all citizens are aware of the many non-educational issues surrounding them. It is vital that every person is capable of making rational decisions on his or her own. These ideas and skills are not something that parents alone can teach their children, simply because so many children do not have parents that are involved in their lives. Therefore, it is the school’s responsibility to teach the students about all areas of life. Every student, regardless of background, race, sex, and ethnicity will be educated on how the become a more worldly person. No one, thanks to a free public education, will be denied the right to learn. Because I hold these views, it is clear that I embrace a So... ...e, as well as observation hours and lessons to teach. Yet I know that deep down inside, I am making a good decision for my life. Teachers may not make the most money or have the most respected profession, but it is a job that is always needed. Teachers have helped encourage so many of the world’s brightest people; so many people have admitted that they wouldn’t be where they are today without the support from that one special teacher. I want to be that special teacher, the one who goes the extra mile for her students and pushes them to be the best they can be. But most importantly, I want to be able to teach my students to be worldly and independent. For Robert Hutchins once said, â€Å"It must be remembered that the purpose of education is not to fill the minds of students with facts†¦it is to teach them to think, if that is possible, and to always think for themselves†.

Japan-2011-Earthquake-Case-Study Essay

Japan is an island nation located in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia. Japan is an archipelago of 6,852 islands. The four largest islands are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku, together comprising about ninety-seven percent of Japan’s land area. Japan is a major economic power and has the 3rd largest nominal GDP Its GDP per capita is $34,739 or the 25th highest in the world in 2011 Population is approximately 127 million people, which is the 10th largest population in the world. One of the world’s highest life expectancy at 81. 25 years of age. Ageing population with people 23% of the population are over 60 years old fertility rate below replacement level at 1. 39 children per woman while the uk’s fertility rate is 1. 9 Occurred at 2:46pm Tokyo time on the 11th of March 2011. It was a Magnitude 9 earthquake its amplitude was 100x that of Haiti’s 7. 0 Lasted for 3-6 minuets but there were strong aftershocks. The epicentre was 24 km deep, was 72 KM off the coast of sendai. A 400 to 500 km long segment of the north american plate which was being subducted Japan lies at a major triple junction of three major plates which interact in a complex and unpredictable way. The leading edge of the Pacific plate subducts beneath the westward moving Eurasian plate creating the worlds deepest known trench i. e. Marianas trench. In this same area the Pacific Plate subducts beneath the Philippine plate. Factors that contributed to the vunerability: Off Sendai there is a very old oceanic crust which is cooler and denser, it was assumed that the crust would easily slide into the mantle so only small earthquakes are predicted. Warping of the pacific plate means that it gets stuck rather than sliding smoothly into the mantle causing pressure build up. Rugged Ria coastline, many inlets caused tsunami waves to be concentrated, causing waves to encroach further. 70% of Japan is mountainous, making settlements cramped into narrow low lying coastal areas. Much of japans land is reclaimed which is very susceptible to liquefaction or ground shaking potentially causing landslides Government officials admitted that officials were too complacent & believed in technical infallibility. Japan earthquake and tsunami – 2011 Effects of the Earthquake: Primary effects: Magnitude quake of 9 that lasted for 3-6 minutes. This caused lots of ground shaking that triggered lots of secondary effects Secondary effects: Physical: An 10-meter tsunami was seen at the port in Sendai, near the epicenter. Japan’s east coast was moved up 4meters out into the Pacific Ocean, some areas sunk by more than a meter. Ground shaking caused buildings to collapse; some caught fire due to gas pipes bursting. The tsunami swept inland, mainly along the north-east coast swallowing boats homes vehicles trees and anything else. 50sq kilometres of land were flooded. When water receded trains, had vanished, ships and cars were tossed everywhere. Tokyo’s earthquake proof skyscrapers were swaying lots however damage was limited. An oil refinery exploded in the town of Ichihara, a commuter town of Tokyo. In Sendai the areas nearest to the focus, areas near the sea were very badly damaged, but inland near the city was largely undamaged. In Mionami-Sanriku only half the population of 17000 escaped alive and nearly all buildings were destroyed. Over 25,000 dead or missing due to the tsunami however many more would have perished if the early warning system hadn’t been in place. Aftershocks continued for two weeks terrifying people, there were 700+ recorded. A tsunami measured at anywhere from one meter to 7. 3 meters hit at various places along the coast Aftershocks were continuing, with one hitting magnitude 7. 1, according to the USGS. Tall buildings swayed violently in central Tokyo as the aftershocks hit. Other effects: Half a million people were made homeless for weeks, 150,000 people lived in temporary shelters. At least 1 million homes did not have running water, 6 million homes did not have electricity & cars queued for rationed petrol. There were shortages for food, water & medical supplies. Japan earthquake and tsunami – 2011 Hydrogen explosion and the melt down of two nuclear reactors in Fukushima nuclear powerplant caused wide spread panic and evacuation due to the spread of nuclear material. They melted down due to the tsunami breaking over the 8meter high barrier and engulfing the backup generators which cooled the rods. Panic selling occurred in global markets due to the panic of a nuclear disaster Responses: Immediate responses: A Tsunami warning was issued 3 minutes after the earthquake. Rescue workers searched the decimated coastline of submerged homes for survivors. Helicopters plucked survivors from wreckage or rooftops. 100,000 soldiers were mobilised to establish order, distribute bottled water, food and petrol . Offers of aid came in from lots of different countries including the USA and China. The UK sent 63 fire service search and rescue specialists, two rescue dogs and a medical support team. People were rescued after being trapped for several days. An exclusion zone was set up was set up around the Fukushima nuclear plant. Homes were evacuated and iodine tablets which prevent radiation sickness were distributed. There were no cases of looting or violence. Social networking such as Twitter were bringing updates on the situation far earlier than the media, showing how modern technology can be used in disaster situations. Long term responses: Japan has the world’s highest debt and the cost of the repair will force the government to borrow more still. Private companies faced hardship due to businesses being destroyed, however Japan is a developed MEDC and will recover over time. Japan’s previously thought infallible tsunami defences will be reviewed and rebuilt stronger so that if another tsunami occurred of the same scale the area would be better protected. Now what are the developments in 2012? Japan still has a quarantine zone around the Fukushima plant where radiation levels are high. Caesium levels in fish stocks off the coast for Japan are still high, this may be a long lasting effect on the environment that could cause damage to the food chain or decreased biodiversity. Fears of more nuclear disasters such as Japan may occur in Europe for example In Germany, Europe’s largest economy and power market, seven nuclear power plants have been closed .

Virtual Business Solution

Virtual Business Solution' is a large touch screen products industry in Australia. We are a three years old company with 100 employees split into specialized teams for maximum efficiency. We are based in Brisbane and offer our providing quality products, including tablet, smartness and laptops all across Australia.Aim to expand our business internationally in order to live up to the ‘solution' aspect of our company name, but in order to do so we must first develop our brand within Australia. 2 Analysis of Issue McKinney & Company (2014) propose lean management is described as Focus on the delivering the maximum of value, trust and enable the team to organize their operation, implementing a continuing improvement culture and with a shared vision. Companies reduce returns from years of cost cutting. Managing vendors now consumed many of the gains from outsourcing.Products, were no longer ‘low price', ND Just can't keep it low. Because of keeping up with latest IT technology , and causing barge issue(David J, Feb. 2014, Para. 2). However IT technology is required, on finding ways to do things better, including management. Issues in maximizing customer satisfaction, is a challenge for many companies. The problems were avoidable, however underlying causes went unaddressed, and negative affect to customers. Consistency is the key to making customers happy, which is the aim of this organization.Research by McKinney & Company (2014) suggested that evaluating he customer Journey is 30% more predictive of overall customer satisfaction than individual touch points, which makes increasing customer satisfaction easier to do. Even more importantly, Seeking, T (2013) suggest that improved satisfaction leads to increased customer loyalty. Loyal customers are likely to retain our service and recommend our service to others, thus increasing our customer base and generating more business. By focusing on its strengths, its key customers, and the underlying values they n eed. But, focusing employee is also managers' Job.When an employee is n unwell condition, it can cause decrease in value efficiency to customers. â€Å"Reducing Work Related Stress† (2014) suggests unhealthy levels of stress can also affect work colleagues, the local manager as well as the person's family and friends. Research by McKinney & Company (2014) suggested that work-related stress cause by 3 factors; high professional demand, low control and low social support. Means that stress is more likely in large companies than small ones. Stress small organization dropped from 56% to 46%, where large companies 67% dropped to 54%.Proofed management ere cause of stress. The organizations that work efficiently can provide them support mechanisms so that they can truly master their work. Furthermore Dunn. F (2014) suggested that good relationships in workplaces, prevents stress. When the employees are happy with what the manager does, understand his or her challenges and participa te actively in solving the problems, the manager will have less stress. 3 Conclusion BBS is such a vendor. It serves its clients as a trusted ally, providing them with the loyalty of a business partner and the economics of an outside vendor.

buy custom Electronic Health Record essay

buy custom Electronic Health Record essay Electronic Health Record is a the electronic documentation of patient health information through one or more encounters in any care delivery setting .The information contained in it includes patient demographics, progress notes ,problems ,medications, past medical history, immunization, laboratory data, and radiology reports. Limitation of using this technology is that time is wasted when the system is affected by hardware problems. Q1. Emerging technologies in relation to administrative functions: a. Executive decision support systems They are active information systems which use set of patients data to generate advice. They manage clinical complexity and details, support diagnosis and treatment plan, support coding and documentation and monitor medication orders. b. Management information systems This is a discipline that utilizes information science, computer science and health care in optimizing acquisition, storage, retrieval and use of information in health and biomedicine. It relies on clinicl guidelines, formal medical terminologies, and information communication systems. Q2. Terminologies used in medical and clinical practice a. Clinical decision support This is interactive computer software designed to assist physicians and other health professionals with decision making tasks to determine diagnosis of patients data. These support systems are categorized in terms of knowledge base and time. b.Bar coding/electronic medication administration This is a control system that uses barcodes in the distribution of prescription medication in hospitals. It makes sure that no human errors occur and the patients get correct doses. It consists of a barcode printer, bar reader, mobile computer, computer server and software. Each medicine is labeled with a special barcode. c. Physiological signal processing This is the activity of analyzing the electrical signals generated from the process occurring in living organisms, more importantly the humann being. The result is then used in electromyography and electrocardiography. d. Point of care information This is a computerized provider to reduce medication error .These errors may be due to prescription. e. Clinical care pathways These are tools used to manage the quality in healthcare concerning standardization of care process. They make healthcare to be efficient and well organized. e. Telemedicine Telemedicine is a system of health care delivery in which physicians examine distant patients through the use of telecommunication technology. Q3. Natural language processing technology in health information management This is a technology that uses computer aided software to accurately interpret the meaning and context of medical terminology in electronic health records. It acts as a link between physicians and the data required in information system to help the patients get correct accurate doses. Buy custom Electronic Health Record essay

Most vs. Almost

Most vs. Almost Most vs. Almost Most vs. Almost By Maeve Maddox A reader wonders why some speakers write â€Å"most everybody† when what they mean is â€Å"almost everybody.† For example: Most everyone agrees that children benefit from living with two caring parents. â€Å"Most everyone† is commonly heard in colloquial speech but is avoided in formal speech and writing because most is a superlative. Most refers to the greatest part, number, amount, or extent of something: I have finished most of my chores. Most dogs have tails. That’s the most awesome song on the album. Almost is used to convey the idea of something nearly completed or close to being finished: Mr. Henry has almost finished building the bridge. We almost won the game. Almost everyone agrees that children benefit from living with two caring parents. The objection to â€Å"most everyone,† and â€Å"most anyone† is that most applies to quantities capable of being separated. One can say â€Å"Most dogs have tails,† but not â€Å"Most dog have tails† or â€Å"Most dog have a tail.† Apart from surgery or mutilation, dog is not divisible. Neither are words like everybody, everyone, all, and any. The use of most in the following examples is nonstandard because the word is being used to qualify something that is not divisible: Incorrect: Most everyone agrees that cheating is bad. Correct: Almost everyone agrees that cheating is bad. Incorrect: I think most everybody will agree that summer flies by too fast. Correct: I think almost everybody will agree that summer flies by too fast. Incorrect: I feel like most all of my friends are fake. Correct: I feel like almost all of my friends are fake. If you find yourself writing most when what you mean is nearly or approximately, change it to almost. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:How to Structure A Story: The Eight-Point ArcDoes "Mr" Take a Period?What’s the Best Way to Refer to a Romantic Partner?

Online Payments Assurance and Security Term Paper

Online Payments Assurance and Security - Term Paper Example The demand for quick, suitable and safe payment substitutes is increasing rapidly. Along with this, there is an alteration in the way commerce takes place in the recent times. One of the easiest ways to identify the significance of electronic payments is to imagine a world without them. In other words, if electronic payments come to a sudden pause then in such circumstances most of the facets of commerce such as trade, travel and internet might confront terrible consequences. Although cash and cheque still plays a vital role in making payments, there are many problems associated with these payment options such as lack of speed and convenience. These also face issues related to safety demanded by the consumers, governments as well as businesses in today’s fast-paced and ever-dwindling world. It can be mentioned that the extensive utilization of the electronic payments along with the sophisticated network that interconnects many consumers, financial institution and merchants in the world are at the center of commerce (OECD, 2012). The significance of the electronic payments is apparent not only in industrialized countries but in developing countries as well. One of such costs is related with interchange where a comparatively small fee is offered to the card issuers by card acquirers. It is worthy of stating that interchange comprises part of most of the expenses that issues are supposed to bear for the purpose of creating the advantage that merchants enjoy while accepting the payment cards. It has often been observed that the advantages of payment system and the significance of interchange go unnoticed. Most of the people are aware of the fact that electronic payments which are vast and complex permit the transaction to take place within no time. It is these systems that permit the cardholders to make use of their card at any part of the country and with the same ease and convenience that they experience at their area. The online payment system permits peo ple to travel with greater peace of mind because they are aware of the fact that they do not need to carry huge amount of money. The very same systems rationalize the checkout process for consumers as well as merchants (Master Card, 2012). Payment systems are considered to be a significant part of the electronic commerce. Even though in electronic markets, common media of interchange is generally utilized, it is observed that there is escalation of the spatial distance between the buyers as well as the sellers which in turn increases their worries after having successfully completed their dealings. There are numerous payment methods available in online auction markets. They are personal check, credit card, debit card and prepaid card among others. There are different risks, costs as well as convenience associated with each form of online payment method (Peffers & Ma, n.d.). The main objective of the study is to identify how the companies can enhance their security measures so that

Dra DB ROD Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Dra DB ROD - Assignment Example Tsakos’ presentation is methodological, interactive and effectively thought through. She presents her ideas systematically and proves the claims she makes. I therefore conquer with all the facts she presents and does not disagree with any of the facts she presented since she provided sufficient proof to them. Theater is indeed a catalyst for social change. Theaters assemble people of varying ages and cultural backgrounds for entertainment purposes. The messages that occur in the form of themes address social, economic and political issues. Through such messages, theaters influence public opinion thereby initiating social changes. Character and theme are two of the six Aristotelian elements. Character refers to the agents in the plot used to convey a message while a theme is the central reason for the play and the message in the same. The two are evident in Tsakos’ video. She uses a number of performers including herself in her attempt to prove that technology has enhanced the development of theaters. Her systematic use and portrayal of the six Aristotelian elements in her video coupled with her systematic relay of information makes her presentation a fine

CCHBC Supply and Demand Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

CCHBC Supply and Demand Management - Assignment Example The paper tells that the ability to meet the demands of both the external and internal environment within a multinational corporation requires planning and implementation through various means. The structure which is followed through Coca Cola’s HBC is one which provides alternative methods to ensure that various needs are met for the product. This is based on the operations strategic management and the ability to control the supply and demand with planning and control. The way in which CCHBC is able to work with suppliers and monitor principles within the corporation furthers the advantages of the corporation and the strategies which are developed. Examining the relevant approaches which are associated with CCHBC and how these are assisting with the development of the corporation then is able to provide an alternative approach to the development of corporations at a global level and with a strategic infrastructure. The first concept which is approached within CCHBC is the ope rations strategic management and the ability to achieve strategic aims. The approach which CCHBC is using is based on the four main principles of meeting the supplies and demands, including availability, affordability, acceptability and activation. These are operation management practices which are practically applied at various levels to ensure that the quality is maintained within each procedure. The availability is one which centers on the supply chain management and accuracy of each of the orders. This is followed by the affordability, specifically which associates with the quality control and planning while assisting with competitive prices dependent on the location of suppliers and region of the country. The acceptability furthers with quality control and planning and is based on matching with specific standards for the CCHBC to continue with high – quality products. The activation which is associated with this includes having the right price, location and brand while d eveloping the management processes and cohesion. This occurs through multi – departmental agreements. The approach which is used for quality control and planning as well as supply chain management is one which builds strength and reliability

Framework of Sustainability for SMEs

Framework of Sustainability for SMEs Sustainability: Integrating the Literature to Develop a Framework for SMEs Abstract Business today is called to consider sustainability or corporate social responsibility. Is this call meaningful or relevant to SMEs? Using the taxonomy of Garriga and Mele the literature on the broad spectrum of work related to sustainability and CSR is reviewed to develop a framework for SMEs, structured around the simple concepts of why, when, what, how and where. Further work with the framework will answer two questions; the circumstances of how SMEs engage in sustainability and what are the unique aspects of this sustainability for SMEs. Introduction Over recent times there has been a growing demand for business to consider corporate sustainability. Most large public companies are engaging with the concept in some way as evidenced by the production of Sustainability or Corporate Social Responsibility Reports (Bartells, 2008). Small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) are less likely to be engaged and some would argue they are not even sure what the concept means or whether it is relevant (Redmond, Walker, Wang, 2008; Spence, Jeurissen, Rutherfoord, 2000; Vives, 2006). There is a large body of literature on the aligned concepts of sustainability, corporate social responsibility, corporate social performance, global responsibility and corporate citizenship, with a variety of perspectives, definitions and assumptions. There is no integrated theory or framework broadly adopted by scholars and in fact there have been only a few attempts at this (Garriga Melà ©, 2004; Jones, 1983; Montiel, 2008; Wood, 1991). Within the SME literature there have been calls for research to develop a theoretical framework to understand CSR and SMEs (Jenkins, 2006; Thompson Smith, 1991). Whilst there is a growing body of literature focused on SMEs it is often merely descriptive and uses a single theoretical lens. A broader model encompassing a wider range of theoretical perspectives may have more utility. The utility and practicability of the framework as a tool for small business will be tested as part of a lager project to develop, from case study research and the literature, a useful integrative framework, to assist SMEs to engage with sustainability in the most appropriate and relevant way for their business. The normative approach frequently used in studies of large organisations whilst ideal may not be the most pertinent to SMEs. This paper aims to develop a practical theoretical framework unifying the spectrum of theoretical and empirical approaches and focussing in particular on the needs of SMEs. The paper starts with an outline of the concept of sustainability and a review of the unique aspects of SMEs. It then moves into a review of the literature using a taxonomy based on Garriga (Garriga Melà ©, 2004), considering both theory development and empirical studies. From this the most relevant elements are drawn together to develop a number of propositions regarding both the circumstances of how SMEs engage in sustainability and what are the unique aspects of this sustainability for SMEs. To add to the practicality of the framework it will be structured around 5 dimensions; Why, when, what, where and how? What is Sustainability At the outset a normative definition with regard to sustainability is required to anchor this work. Corporate sustainability is an umbrella concept (Gond Crane, 2008) which integrates the social, environmental and economic dimensions into business operation. Within these three categories, there are a range of elements which are comprehensively detailed in the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI, 2006). Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is often used interchangeably with sustainability in the business world and large companies may have either a CSR or sustainability report with little notion of the long theoretical tradition behind each of the terms. In the academic literature there are quite different origins of the two. It is worth digressing to briefly explore the history and overlaps of the terms. CSR as defined by Carroll encompassed four elements, economic, ethical, legal and philanthropic (Carroll, 1979). This was later refined to three with philanthropic being incorporated into the economic or ethical space depending on the logic (Schwartz Carroll, 2003). Until Woods work in 1991 there was no mention of the natural environment within the CSR literature (Wood, 1991). In parallel, during the late 80s ecological modernisation implored business to consider its environmental impact and look for solutions to environmental problems (Mol Sonnenfeld, 2000). Also in the 80s, as a response to the UN movement on sustainable development, business or corporate sustainability was developed, focusing not only on profit, but on the social and environmental impacts of business. Thus there were three independent movements CSR (predominantly social/ethical), ecological sustainability (predominantly environmental) and sustainability (economic, social and environmental). This differentiation still exists in scholarship. When one considers the divisions within the Academy of Management there exists both Social Issues in Management (SIM) the natural home of the CSR scholars and Organisation for the Natural Environment (ONE) the natural home of the environmentalists. Those who chose the sustainability path exist in both divisions and are not completely at home in eith er. The concepts of CSR and sustainability are becoming closer. Some scholars now argue that environmental issues are an explicit subset of CSR (Agle, Mitchell, Sonnenfeld, 1999; Waddock, 2008) . Montiel claims that both CSR and sustainability now include the economic, social and environmental elements, with sustainability more integrated and with different questions asked by researchers in each paradigm (Montiel, 2008). The difficulty remains in the implicit versus explicit definitions. CSR literature often includes the environment implicitly. The risk is that what is implicit can be overlooked, and so CSR could exist without considering the environment, but in sustainability the environment is explicit, although not exclusive. Social and economic considerations are also explicit in sustainability. This is one reason sustainability is more appropriate then CSR as the focus this work. There is another subtle difference between the two with CSR being more concerned with an ethical perspective, and a requirement that involvement must be voluntary and beyond any legal requirements. This last concept is not considered in sustainability. Research on CSR often reflects on individual activities tagging philanthropy and volunteering as evidence of CSR (Jenkins, 2006; Porter Kramer, 2002) . Corporate sustainability is focused more on the long term and has no relative measure against any legal requirements. Two key concepts are clearly defined in sustainability and less explicit within the CSR literature, particularly earlier papers. These are upstream social impacts in the supply chain and the expanded concept of product stewardship. Product stewardship refers to the environmental or social impact of the product from raw material, through manufacture and its useful life to disposal impacts. The supply chain factors include the social impacts on employees and communities u pstream in the supply chain. As a final clarification, sustainability in some work focuses only on the environmental case (Bansal Roth, 2000; Tilley, 2000), however in this paper the term sustainability refers to the wholesome integration and consideration of the dimensions of economic performance and social and environmental impact into a business, and is very much aligned with the approach that has been described as Corporate Sustainable Development (Bansal, 2005). In an ideal world sustainability is a normative concept with business understanding that it has a wider responsibility than simply an economic outcome and must consider its impact on the social and ecological environment it operates in now and for future generations. The major focus of the larger project, of which this paper forms a part, is to determine if this is real and meaningful for SMEs or if there is a more appropriate definition and framework for SMEs. SMEs There are a few definitions of SMEs in the literature. For this exercise we will adopt a definition of businesses between 10 and 200 employees (the Australian Bureau of Statistics definition of SMEs). They tend to be owner operated. There is much evidence that SMEs are different to large firms and hence behave in different ways. Generally they are independent, multi-tasking and cash strapped (Jenkins, 2004; Williamson, Lynch-Wood, Ramsay, 2006) more flexible and less formalised (Aragà ³n-Correa, Hurtado-Torres, Sharma, Garcà ­a-Morales, 2008; Lefebvre, Lefebvre, Talbot, 2003), have a shortage of management skills (Luetkenhorst, 2004), are unlikely to use costly professional advice (Spence, Schmidpeter, Habisch, 2003), and manage stakeholders with whom they have personal relationships (Jenkins, 2006). When the economy is tough SMEs have to focus on short term survival as they generally do not have the depth of resources of larger firms (Luetkenhorst, 2004). This suggests a resource constraint in adopting new approaches to work wether focused on sustainability or strategic management. This is explicitly stated as an inhibitor for SMEs to adopt CSR (Kuhndt, Volker, Herrndorf, 2004). A contrasting view suggests a shared vision, proactively driven by the founder, combined with the innovativeness and flexibility, will actually encourage adoption of better practices in SMEs and in the case of one study, better approaches to environmental management (Aragà ³n-Correa et al., 2008). There is a comprehensive body of work on SMEs and sustainability, which tends to show evidence of attention to some of the elements of sustainability within SMEs almost accidently (Lawrence, Collins, Pavlovich, Arunachalam, 2006; Roberts, Lawson, Nicholls, 2006), very little affiliation with CSR (Jenkins, 2006) or environmental impact (Petts, 2000; Redmond et al., 2008) and a general disengagement with sustainability (Vives, 2006). All papers argue the importance of looking at small business because of its aggregated size and impact and its difference to large business where a much more substantial body of work has been undertaken. In the review of the theoretical approaches relevant empirical or descriptive work from the SME literature will be considered. Taxonomy of the literature There are a number of articles which detail the history of scholarly endeavours into CSR, sustainability and aligned concepts (Bansal, 2005; Carroll, 1999). Suffice to say that after 50 years no single theory or integrative framework exists which brings together the disparate views of corporate sustainability, stakeholder theory, natural capitalism, resource based views of the firm, corporate social responsibility, global responsibility, sustainable leadership and corporate citizenship, into a framework beneficial to business operators and not just academics. From an empirical approach, the Sustainable Leadership model of Avery developed using a grounded theory methodology (Avery, 2005), contains many elements from most of these theories as does Stubbs Sustainability Business Model (Stubbs Cocklin, 2008) and will be reviewed later. Garriga and Mele published a taxonomy of the CSR field in 2004 based on the work of Parsons who identifies four problems in any dynamic system; that of building and distributing resources; the economic aspect, that of allocating and prioritising resources; the political aspect, that of maintaining social relationships; the social aspect and that of ensuring actors display the right values; the ethical aspect. Using these dimensions, theories based on the prime organisational goal of wealth creation Garriga identifies as instrumental theories, those based on the responsible use of the social power of organisations are defined as political theories, those based on integrating social demands to satisfy todays stakeholders are integrative theories and those based on normative values unbounded by time and environment, they term ethical theories. The authors add that most theories will have elements of all four aspects with a strong focus on one area, used as the basis for segmentation (Ga rriga Melà ©, 2004). A limitation of the review is that it focuses on predominantly American literature and ignores salient literature such as global responsibility (GR) developed in other geographies. Considering the context of the business system or the surrounding institutions (Luetkenhorst, 2004; Matten Moon, 2008), focusing on a single geography gives the narrow focus of a single business system. A second limitation is that the theories considered are all firm centric and so papers that look at how external institutions can impact CSR activities are not considered. Finally the work does not include the literatures outside of the traditional CSR space so ecological modernisation and business sustainability are excluded. The following will include a review of the broader literature omitted from Garrigas paper. The taxonomy chosen is relevant given the empirical evidence of its elements in the CSR activities and motivations of large companies (Whitehouse, 2006) To develop an integrated framework for SMEs, this paper must cover off a broader range of literature which includes institutions that may impact on SMEs involvement with sustainability. With this and the limitations of the Garriga taxonomy in mind, expansion of the concept of political theories to look at external as well as firm centric theories is appropriate. This group will be called institutional theories after Powell and Di Maggio (DiMaggio Powell, 1983). In the following sections each of these four groups, ethical, instrumental, integrative and institutional is explored in more detail, considering the main theories within each group, any supporting empirical or SME research. Finally the most relevant questions and implications for SMEs are extracted to develop propositions which form the bones of the integrated framework. Ethical theories Within this group are considered theories that are predominantly ethical arguing that it is the responsibility of business to look beyond the financial bottom line to the wider context and impact of business on the societies in which it operates, in a relatively unbounded manner, because it is the right thing to do. All strategic management theories have some moral or ethical underpinning (Phillips, Freeman, Wicks, 2003) however they are only included in this group when this is the primary focus of the theory. Under review will be CSR, normative stakeholder theory and global responsibility followed by a review of relevant empirical or SME work. Corporate Social Responsibility in its original form was an ethical theory. Developed in the USA as early as the 1950s it was unabashedly normative, â€Å"the social responsibility of business encompass the economic, legal, ethical and discretionary expectations that society has of organizations at a given point in time† (Carroll, 1979, p. 500). The normative version of stakeholder theory is also ethical; â€Å"Stakeholder theory begins with the assumption that values are necessarily and explicitly a part of doing business† (Freeman, Wicks, Parmar, 2004, p. 364). Normative stakeholder theory is differentiated from the applied or integrative use of stakeholder theory in that it generalises on which stakeholder interests should be considered and admonishes managers that these stakeholders must be considered in decision making (Phillips et al., 2003). In the last few years a new â€Å"global responsibility† literature has developed in Europe. The concept has its origins in CSR however the new label is proposed on the basis there are greater pressures from technological progress and globalization, moving so fast, that neither ethics nor legal frameworks can keep up. Thus it is up to business owners to fill this ethical vacuum and develop a new business model based not on making profit but on making progress. De Woot states: â€Å"In a global economy the raison dà ªtre of the firm is to ensure economic and technical progress that furthers human progress and facilitates the type of society we wish to have† (de Woot, 2005, p. 113). The corporation is viewed as a source of energy and creativity which has led to massive global development. DeWoot seeks to change the focus of this energy towards progress, not just profit, and to fill the gaps in global governance. Global Responsibility supersedes CSR, claiming that both corporate and social are too narrow (Antal Sobczak, 2004). Perez defines global responsibility in more detail, identifying responsibility for actions and their consequences in a global context which implies extensions to the societal, environmental and time dimensions in which we are used to operating. The responsibility is borne both by the organisation and its â€Å"social representatives†, with responsibility owed to shareholders, external authorities and other stakeholders (Perez, 2003). Beyond the strict definition of the words, the intent of both concepts is the same, for business to be motivated by more than the â€Å"single thought† (de Woot, 2005, p. 39) or profit motive and consider both a wider goal and a wider sphere of impact. A number of authors identify two opposing models of company orientation aligning one with a firm response to the ethics of global responsibility or CSR and the other with a sole focus on profit. The former has been called the Rhineland model (Albert, 1992; Avery, 2005) and is expressed by Perez; â€Å"The manager considers that his mission, and that of the enterprises he manages, is a multiple one: he must of course be competitive to do otherwise would be suicidal but also, as far as possible, be attentive to his internal and external partners, think about the environment and future generations, in short be globally responsible† (Perez, 2003, p. 82). The opposing perspective is the Anglo US model (Avery, 2005) and follows the ideology of the single thought (de Woot, 2005). It is this differentiation which leads to a contentious issue in the CSR literature. Much of the CSR literature talks about the need to go beyond legal requirements (Carroll, 1999) however once this is int erpreted through the lens of the national business system it can be seen why this has come about. The lack of regulation in the American corporate context, to address other than financial imperatives, requires that if a company is considering its social impact it must go beyond compliance. In the European context many of these requirements are bound up in institutional aspects of the local business model. Matten and Moon refer to this as implicit and explicit CSR (Matten Moon, 2008). This international context of the institutions, cultures and norms of the society in which firms are rooted needs to be considered in much of the discussion about CSR and sustainability, particularly when we talk of institutional literature. Much of the work stemming from United Nations initiatives around sustainable development such as the Brundtland Report and the Global Compact also stem from an ethical perspective. The argument is about the rights of the worlds peoples and hence the dual obligation on business to maintain the ecological environment for the benefit of future generations and to be responsible for the social impacts on society today. The common thread amongst the ethical arguments is that they are all focused on why these broader issues should be a responsibility of business. They do not venture into what or how: this will come from subsequent literature. There are relevant empirical studies which help to develop this â€Å"why† concept further particularly for SMEs, which will now be reviewed. Empirical work on ethical theories of sustainability, CSR or normative stakeholder theory is sparse (Berman, Phillips, Wicks, 2006). No research investigating global responsibility and business could be found, although there are a number of descriptive case studies of business which are used to show evidence of a global responsibility approach (Antal Sobczak, 2004; Zinkin, 2004). De Woot identifies that small business is unable to make the changes required alone and this will only happen through their professional associations (de Woot, 2005). Within the descriptive literature on SMEs and the adoption of CSR or sustainability there is considerable evidence that there is an ethical motive behind some business activities which could be considered a part of the CSR spectrum (Condon, 2004; Graafland, van de Ven, Stoffele, 2003; Spence et al., 2003). Jamalis work in Lebanon reached a conclusion that is typical of many studies: â€Å"there was a high level of convergence regarding a philanthropic conception of CSR that was characterized as an obligation parallel to the business rather than being integrated into it. All six SME managers (with no exception) equated CSR with philanthropy, which they considered as a necessary activity independent of mainstream business transactions.† (Jamali, Zanhour, Keshishian, 2009, p. 364) This is not unlike the early view of CSR, where the key issue was philanthropy as an activity of the firm somewhat separate from the firms business. Spence has looked deeply at the personal ethics of small business owners and how this impacts their business operation, to identify four orientations; profit maximisation, subsistence priority, enlightened self interest and social parity (Spence Rutherford, 2001). This frame gives us some insight into the utility of ethical theories of CSR. For those who have a social orientation, ie those exhibiting enlightened self interest or social priority an ethical theory may have utility in further integration of sustainability into the business beyond mere CSR activities. For those with a profit maximisation focus, however ethical theories are unlikely to entice operators to be involved. Which begs the question if ethical theories are only useful to those who are ethical then do they have any utility at all? And yet maybe they do and the focus needs to be to inculcate business to understand that if they claim to be ethical they need to take on De Woots call and use their energy to change t he way their business operates and strategically incorporate the new paradigm into their daily operations. It may be that it is the inability to gain traction with ethical arguments that led truly committed individuals such as Elkington and Hawken to develop their work as instrumental theories and encourage business buy in this way. In summary the research shows that for SMEs an ethical intent of the owner may lead to adoption of sustainability or at least elements of CSR. This will be considered further as propositions are developed to build the framework. Instrumental theories Within the taxonomy, instrumental theories are defined as those that argue that CSR can be adopted as a means to achieve an economic end. In other contexts they are termed the Business Case (Dyllick Hockerts, 2002; Epstein Roy, 2003). Garriga includes Friedmans shareholder maximisation theory, the work of Porter on social investments in a competitive context, Prahlad on the bottom of the pyramid, Harts natural resource view of the firm, and work on cause related marketing. To this can be added Natural Capitalism and the triple bottom line. Harts Natural Resource Based view seeks to engage business to maintain and protect the environment by exhorting a firm to consider a wider view of the resources available to it, and extend from the traditional consideration of capital and labour as the only constrained resources to include the natural resources it uses. In particular it asks a firm to consider pollution prevention, product stewardship and sustainable development. The theory is instrumental because it argues that over time the adoption of this strategy will lead to competitive advantage, which in the current business paradigm equates to more profit (Hart, 1995). The theory is extended to a model for how to integrate sustainability through the sustainable value framework a somewhat integrative model however clearly focussed on creating shareholder value, which may be a broader construct then profit alone (Hart Milstein, 2003). One concept clearly articulated in this framework and absent in many others is that this i s a strategic choice and should be part of the strategic decision making framework of the firm. Patagonia is held up as a company whose successful growth and green reputation is based on successfully integrating the elements of natural resource based theory into its strategy (Fowler Hope, 2007). Porter weighed in on the environment debate in the 90s arguing that to be green would lead to long term competitive advantage albeit at a potential short term cost (Porter Linde, 1995). This is very much an instrumental or profit oriented approach. He came late to consideration of CSR and unsurprisingly has also taken an instrumental approach. The profit motive is explicit in his comment; â€Å"The essential test that should guide CSR is not whether a cause is worthy but whether it presents an opportunity to create shared value that is, a meaningful benefit for society that is also valuable to the business† (Porter Kramer, 2006, p. 84). Prahalads plea for multinationals to engage in developing products appropriate for, and taking their business to, developing countries, whilst altruistic, is again instrumental. The focus is that business can make money with the approach (Prahalad, 2002). Since this is a call to multinational corporations this is unlikely to be relevant for the SME framework, except potentially to the extent of product development. The Triple Bottom line is another instrumental approach. Elkington comes from a personal conviction that the world must change (Elkington, 1999), with an argument that is not unlike DeWoots global responsibility argument. This is his personal motive for raising awareness. However in developing his theory and identifying the seven pillars of a sustainable future and thus calling others to action he relies on a business case and clearly states that the reason is not about ethics or religion (Elkington, 1999) He avoids the argument for a paradigm shift and reverts to a business case argument almost as if he were trying to seduce business to accept his ideas and unwittingly do the right thing by the environment. The theory of Natural Capitalism has a similar thread. It is again easy to confuse the theory with the ethics of the creator. The four pillars are increased resource productivity, waste elimination through closed loop material circuits, an economic shift to a solutions based business model and investment in natural capital. However as the proponents states: â€Å"that enable business to behave responsibly towards both nature and people while increasing profits, inspiring their workforce and gaining competitive advantage† (Lovins Lovins, 2001, p. 99). They are profit focused and thus instrumental and move from the â€Å"what† typical of most instrumental theories and extend it in to a â€Å"how† which we typically see in Garrigas integrative theories. As a generalisation instrumental theories tell us what to look at to achieve competitive advantage or profit. There is a focus on material usage, waste and physical resources (Hart, 1995; Lovins Lovins, 2001), product stewardship (Hart Milstein, 2003), symbiotic partnerships (Elkington, 1999), relevant social issues (Porter Kramer, 2006) and on marketing and business models (Elkington, 1999; Lovins Lovins, 2001). From a theoretical perspective we now have why, what and a little on how. The following paragraphs review the empirical work on SMEs and instrumental theory to further inform the framework. There is significant empirical work testing the validity of the business case argument. Orlitzkys meta-analysis of this body of work shows that there is a correlation between corporate social performance and corporate financial performance (Orlitzky, Schmidt, Rynes, 2003). This finding gives an additional utility to this group of theories for the profit motivated adopting the new ethics of CSR or sustainability makes a contribution to profit so we have a why as well as a what. Ethicists however take issue and question whether the ends adoption of CSR justify the means taking it on because it adds to profit (Gond, Palazzo, Basu, 2009). Within the SME literature there is a strong case argued that contribution to profit is critical and when this can be demonstrated practices which form part of the sustainability agenda may be adopted (Castka, Balzarova, Bamber, Sharp, 2004; Williamson et al., 2006). Studies show that cost savings and competitive advantage can be gained from attention to the environment (Aragà ³n-Correa et al., 2008), successful implementation of eco-efficiency and environmental policies was motivated by a business case (Cà ´tà ©, Booth, Louis, 2006; Kerr, 2006, p. 34) and application of Harts strategies are directly applicable to SMEs (Avram Kà ¼hne, 2008). When looking deeper into the literature for the items identified in the discussion of instrumental theories, ie material usage, waste and physical resources, symbiotic partnerships, relevant social issues and marketing and business models, it is only the clear business performance characteristics which resonate and are considered (Williamson et al., 2006). In considering the integrative framework it will be necessary to consider what elements identified should be considered given the limitations of SME resourcing. Integrative models Integrative models consider how social demands are integrated into a business. They do not have the scope of ethical theories and are bounded in the present what social issues demand the attention of the business now. In Garrigas taxonomy integrative theories include stakeholder management, corporate social performance, issues management and public responsibility. Dunphys pathways framework (Dunphy, Griffiths, Benn, 2007) and Tilbury and Wortmans organisation development methodology (Tilbury Wortman, 2004) are added into this class. Integrative theories developed because an ethical notion of CSR is holistic and does not help the manager in determining the granularity of what issues to address and how to address them. In developing the idea of CSR as a process, issues management, Jones states â€Å"Corporate managers do not advance by asking abstract questions but by making the pragmatic, specific decisions that confront them in the operation of their business.† (Jones, 1980 , p. 60). Similarly in her 1991 paper, Wood develops a practical framework from the previous theoretical work on CSR and corporate social performance, integrating principles, process and outcomes (Wood, 1991). Within the GR literature Thevenet also tries to develop an integrative form of global responsibility in an attempt for relevance. For GR to be effective he suggests business is responsible to expose and train managers, to develop personal reflection and maturity without which he claims ethical decisions cannot be made, â€Å"The key to global responsibility will be, at the end of the day, behavioural responsibility from people† (Thevenet, 2003, p. 124). With a prima facie base in ethics the separation between integrative and ethical theories is ambiguous. The difficulty is that once the theory becomes integrative and focused on application, the origins become less significant and the same process can be used for different reasons. At the extreme is the work of Gond on the Mafia as an organisation which on the surface can be said to exhibit many CSR best practices yet is patently not an ethical organisation. Practices include; developing good relationships with the local community and stakeholders (albeit using

The Holocaust :: essays research papers

Hitler had a plan to ?purify? Germany in order to fulfill his vision of a perfect nation.In Mein Kampf, a book written by Adolf Hitler which explains his ambitions and explains how he wants to cleanse Germany of all Jews, communists, gypsies, homosexuals, and disabled people. Hitler had targeted specifically the Jewish population because of his hatred towards them. In World War Two, around 6 million Jews were persecuted by the Nazis. Firstly, in 1935, the Nazi Party passed the Nuremberg Laws, which were designed to stop Jews and Germans from marrying, to make sure that German blood was not tainted by mixing with other races, and produced pictures warning people about what could happen. People were ?warned? about which shop belonged to the Jews and were discouraged to buy any goods from Jewish stores. It was conspicuous that this racist law passed by Hitler was very degradingly towards the Jews. Despite that most people were not ignorant and knew this was wrong, no one dared to oppose the Nazis due to fear. Anyone that opposed the Nazis was to be shot. Hitler realized that this was not effective enough in order to achieve his goal. The Nazis had a meeting to discuss more efficient ways to eradicate the Jews. In 1938, the situation took a more serious turn for the worst. Called the night of Broken Glass, the Nazis started to use violence against the Jews. Jewish shops, churches, and other buildings were openly attacked. People became subjected to violence. It would lead to the start of more systematic violence. The violence escalated to the pinicle of the tragedy that the Jews experienced, the Holocaust. From 1939 onwards, Jews were rounded up. They were forced to move out of their homes. Jews started getting sent t o areas in cities designed only for them.

Is Billy Pilgrim Sane? Essay

Billy Pilgrim plays a very influential role as the main character in Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse 5. Since the novel is based entirely on Billy Pilgrim’s interaction with the environment around him, pinpointing Billy’s state of sanity on the scale of normality helps the reader determine what is really happening, and what is a figment of Billy’s imagination. Before making the decision regarding Billy’s state of mind, one must first establish the parameters of what is considered sane and what is not. What one person may consider insane another may consider pure genius. The dictionary definition of ‘sane’ is: free from mental derangement; having a sound, healthy mind. However the general consensus for ‘sane’ is a lot closer to: having or showing reason, sound judgment, or good sense. Once those guidelines are set up, one can proceed to analyze Billy’s state of mental health. Since Billy is a fictional character in a b ook and the man who wrote the book is dead, the only information available to someone trying to analyze Billy is through Billy’s actions/thoughts/experiences and the speculations of other readers. Luckily one is not required to delve very deep into Billy’s past before coming across tragedy. At a very young age Billy is thrust into the middle of World War Two. He is ill equipped and has no fighting training or experience. During the battle of the Bulge Billy becomes lost with one other soldier and two scouts. While hiking through the underbrush in German territory Billy is overcome with cold and waits for the eventuality that is death to pass over him and remove his soul from his body. Instead Billy becomes what the narrator describes as â€Å"unstuck† in time. This is the first time that Billy ever experiences ‘time travel’. There are at least two ways to interpret this scene. In the first one, the reader assumes that Billy is in shock, is delirious, and has a very vague connection with the outside world. This thought is followed by the next logical idea that since Billy is nearly incapacitated, anything odd he experienced in this time frame did not actually happen. However every Yin has a Yang. The second way this could be interpreted is that Billy’s mind  has lost touch of reality to the point it sheds its boundaries regarding time, freeing Billy from the human confines of viewing time in a linear fashion. Since the decision regarding Billy’s sanity is based purely on a reader’s personal opinion. A reader would do well to create a mental tally chart of notes. If the first interpretation makes more sense, simply put a mark in the ‘insane’ column, however if the second interpretation floats your boat, make a mark in the ‘sane’ column. Between the first major occurrence and the second, Billy is faced with minor issues that may or may not play an influential role on Billy’s state of mind and so even though they play minor roles, it is important that they are mentioned and taken into account. While Billy is a prisoner of war he is treated poorly, underfed, kept in a crowded train car full of viral and bacterial diseases and scented with the touch of death. It is during this time that Billy manages to make the entire train car hate him, causing him to draw further into the safety of his mind. Whether this train ride actually affected Billy or not is up to the reader to decide. The second of Billy’s major experiences that carries the capability to instil a mental illness in an otherwise healthy being would be the bombing of Dresden. While Billy was being used for labour in Dresden, his own country fire bombed him along with the rest of a city full of civilians. Billy waited out the bombing in an underground meat cooler along with a group of other POW’s and their guards. After the ground had cooled, the POW’s emerged from their safe haven and was faced with what can be described as the moon’s surface. Billy was eventually ordered to help collect the bodies for a mass burial. Now, whether it was sitting underground listening to an entire city being levelled, or the retrieval of dead bodies or both that scarred Billy, it is hard to know. However Billy did have a flashback of the bombing during his eighteenth wedding anniversary that caused him to freak out. However there is no direct evidence that the bombing caused Billy to go insa ne and only the reader can decide if it was pertinent to his mental stability or not. Another traumatizing incident endured by Billy was the combination of him being the sole survivor of a plane crash followed by his wife’s untimely death. While Billy was on his way to an optometry convention with several other optometrists, the plane he is on crashes. He is the only survivor and is rushed to the hospital. When Billy’s wife hears what happened, she rushes to  the hospital. On her way there she ends up crashing the car and loses her exhaust system. She ends up dying of Carbon Monoxide poisoning right as she stops in front of the hospital. Because of Billy’s constant time-travelling, he never really knew his wife too well so the odds of him feeling overly distraught because of her death are really quite minimal. Also because he has adopted the Tralfamadorian view of death, he would probably just imagine that now she is in a better place in her life. So even though this may not be the happiest point in Billy’s life, in this author’s opinion, it is doubtful that it has altered his state of mind, however everyone is entitled to their own opinion and so a reader may interpret otherwise. Although looking at Billy’s past may give hints as to his sanity, looking at his actual thoughts would be a lot more helpful in making the final decision. Bibliography Findley, Timothy. The Wars. New York: Penguin Group Australia, 1977.