Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Effects of Physiological Reproductive Events on Ovary

Impacts of Physiological Reproductive Events on Ovary Part one Presentation Foundation The two majors capacity of the ovary is the separation and arrival of female gametes (oocyte), which would then be able to be effectively prepared and guarantee the endurance of species. The ovary is likewise an endocrine organ that produces steroid hormones that permit the improvement of female optional sexual qualities and supports pregnancy. The mammalian ovary is secured by a solitary layer of epithelial cells (surface epithelium), which differ in type from basic squamous to cuboidal to low pseudostratified columnar (Anderson et al. 1976). Straightforwardly underneath the surface epithelium there is a layer of thick connective tissue known as the tunica albuginea. The mammalian ovary is a heterogeneous organ containing follicles and corpora lutea at different phases of improvement. The ovarian follicle is the central unit of the ovary, every follicle comprises of an oocyte, encompassed by granulosa cells and external layer of theca cells ( 1.2 Folliculogenesis During embryogenesis, early stage germ cells (PGCS) move from the yolk sac through the dorsal mesentery of the hindgut, to the genital edge. The germ cells at that point experience broad multiplication, and lose their motile qualities, also, physical cells got from the mesenchyme of the genital edge, multiply too (Hirshfield 1991). The germ cells stop mitotic division and structure relationship with little quantities of pre-granulosa cells to frame early stage follicle (Telfer et al. 1988). The germ cells experience the principal meiotic division and are presently called essential oocytes. The oocytes at that point become captured in the diplotene phase of prophase I of meiosis until the early stage follicles begin to develop lastly come to the ovulatory stage. In the diplotene stage, the oocyte may set itself up for fast mitosis and implantation, by creating a lot of mRNA and ribosomes (Picton et al. 1998). Early stage follicles might be seen from week 22 in the human (Faddy and Gos den 1995) and week 13 in the dairy animals (van nook Hurk and Zhao 2005). The pool of early stage follicles creates during fetal life in certain species (e.g primates, ruminants), however in others it creates during the early neonatal period (e.g rodents, bunnies) (Marion et al. 1971). The quantity of early stage follicles present during childbirth speaks to the complete populace of germ cells accessible to mammalian females during their whole regenerative life (Kezele et al. 2002), and is accepted to fill in as the wellspring of creating follicles and oocytes (Eppig 2001). Albeit late examinations have recommended that postnatal oogenesis may likewise happen in female warm blooded animals (Johnson et al. 2004), they recommended that germline undeveloped cells can repopulate the postnatal ovary and restore the early stage follicle pool. This gathering thusly proceeded to recommend that these phones were gotten from bone marrow (Johnson et al. 2005). This has pulled in a lot of consi deration just as analysis (Gosden 2004; Byskov et al. 2005; Telfer et al. 2005). This is a continuous discussion however the parity of proof recommends that reestablishment is anything but a main consideration in ovarian turn of events (Eggan et al. 2006). In warm blooded creatures, the quantity of early stage follicles in the ovaries during childbirth fluctuates massively between species, extending from several thousands in mice to millions in people and local species (Gosden and Telfer 1987). These follicles must create through early stage, essential and auxiliary stages before coming to the preovulatory stage, and ensuing ovulation (Figure 1.1). Legitimate follicle advancement includes development of the oocyte, which is encircled by factor layers of granulosa cells, wrapped by theca cells (Drummond 2005). Granulosa cells offer physical help of the oocyte and intercede flags between the oocyte, external theca cells and endocrine hormones. When the pool of early stage follicles ha s been built up, follicles progressively and constantly leave the resting pool to start development. Be that as it may, under 1% of early stage follicles present at the hour of birth of a creature will ever continue to ovulation (Erickson 1966), with most of follicles declining by atresia. 1.3 Regulation of early folliculogenesis A basic procedure in ovarian science is the progress of the formatively captured early stage follicle to the creating essential follicle. Follicular development may start whenever during the females life. The early stage follicle contains an oocyte captured in meiosis I encompassed by straightened physical cells named the pregranulosa (Kezele et al. 2002). During beginning of early stage follicle development, smoothed pregranulosa cells become cuboidal and start to multiply. The encased oocyte starts to develop simultaneously (Anderson et al. 2000; Clark and Eddy 1975). The developments of both the early stage follicles with oocytes portray the commencement of the developing stage. The oocytes inside the early stage follicles stay peaceful for a considerable length of time to years until they get the suitable signs to start folliculogenesis and early stage to essential follicle change. Up until this point, little is thought about the sub-atomic components and extracellular flagging elements that direct this procedure. These procedures legitimately influence the quantity of oocytes accessible to a female all through her regenerative life. When the pool of early stage follicles is drained, ovarian steroidogenesis closes and the arrangement of physiological changes called menopause starts (Richardson et al. 1987). It is indistinct whether the signs begin from the oocyte, or/and from encompassing substantial cells, or from outside the ovary. It is likewise obscure on the off chance that it is an inhibitory factor forestalling resting early stage follicles from leaving the stock or an improvement following up on the resting early stage follicles store that invigorates some follicle to leave it (Gougeon and Busso 2000). A large number of elements may act locally to direct early folliculogenesis by advancing development (Bennett et al. 1996) or by repressing development ( Bukovsky et al. 1995). The underlying development signal seems, by all accounts, to be free of the pituitary gonadotropins (Peters et al. 1975) (Figure 1.3). Early stage follicles don't have receptors for FSH hormone (Oktay et al. 1997). Regardless of certain examinations recommending that gonadotropins are engaged with the inception of follicular development in youthful rodents (Lintern-Moore 1977; Neal and Baker 1973), all things considered, during characteristic hypopituitary conditions in both creature species and people, the commencement procedure isn't totally abrogated (Howe et al. 1978; Halpin et al. 1986). In spite of the fact that follicles at beginning periods of improvement have been appeared to communicate follicle animating hormone receptors (FSH-R) (Bao et al. 1998), without gonadotropins during the beginning times of follicle development, follicles can in any case create to the early antral stage (Awotwi et al. 1984; Gong et al. 1996). Knockout mice who are invalid f reaks for either FSH receptor or LH receptor can experience the early stage to essential follicle progress (Zhang et al. 2001; Abel et al. 2000). A few neighborhood factors have been discovered that can control the early stage to essential follicle progress. Bone morphogenetic protein-7 (BMP-7) has been appeared to elevate the early stage to essential follicle change and to increment granulosa cell multiplication (Lee et al. 2001). Leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) has additionally been appeared to elevate the early stage to essential follicle change and to up-manage granulosa cell articulation of unit ligand (KL) (Nilsson et al. 2002). Bone morphogenic protein-15 (BMP-15) is a development calculate communicated the oocytes of creating follicles that assumes a job in early follicle movement (Dube et al. 1998) and animates granulosa cell multiplication (Otsuka et al. 2000). Development separation factor-9 (GDF-9) has been restricted inthe oocytes of mouse (Dong et al. 1996) rodent (Jaatinen et al. 1999) and human (Aaltonen et al. 1999) essential follicles. Nilsson and Skinner (2002) have demonstrated that GDF-9 promotesthe impro vement of essential follicles in neonatal rodent ovaries,but it has no impact on the development of early stage follicles (Nilsson and Skinner 2002).Studies by Wang and Roy (2004) have given the primary proof that GDF-9 can advance the arrangement of primordialfollicles and their resulting development in neonatal hamster ovaries (Wang and Roy 2004) . Hostile to Mullerian hormone (AMH) is an individual from the changing development factor-ÃŽ ² (TGF-ÃŽ ²) is considered as a negative controller of the beginning periods of follicular turn of events. AMH is delivered by the granulosa cells of creating preantral and little antral follicles which represses the early stage to essential follicle change (Durlinger et al. 1999). AMH is never found in early stage follicles, theca cells or oocytes (Ueno et al. 1989; Hirobe et al. 1994; Baarends et al. 1995). Assessment of ovarian follicles in AMH-insufficient female mice uncovered lower quantities of early stage follicles and all the more developing follicles contrasted and wild-type mice, these discoveries uncovered that, without AMH, ovaries are exhausted of their early stage follicles sooner than they are in charge mice and these perceptions prompted the propsal that AMH restrains early stage follicle enrollment (Durlinger et al. 1999). Results were gotten from another in vitro probes the cow-like ovarian cortex recommended that, in any event in nonhuman species, the nearness of AMH goes about as a brake on the actuation of early stage follicles and the development of preantral follicles (Gigli et al. 2005). It has been exhibited that oocytes from early preantral, late preantral and preovulatory follicles up-manage AMH mRNA levels in granulosa cells, in a style that is needy upon the formative phase of the oocyte (Salmon et al. 2004). These discoveries propose that oocyte guideline of AMH articulation may assume a job in intra-and interfollicular coordination of follicle improvement. ; pack ligand (KL) and essential

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Praise and Children Essay

Disclose how to help kids and youthful people groups self-assurance and confidence. We can bolster kids and youthful people’s fearlessness/confidence and advance this in settings by doing a scope of verbal/non verbal things to guarantee youngsters have certainty. It is significant that we give kids support while attempting another action, we can do this by verbal discourse, for example, ‘can you attempt to do it’? or on the other hand non verbal ways, for example, hand signals approval or grinning and so forth. Additionally after a youngster has accomplished something positive we should consistently adulate them verbally with a ‘well done’! or on the other hand approval and so forth even a sticker graph or group focuses has a similar impact. On the off chance that we don't give kids commendation and support they are more averse to participate in new exercises which won't give them certainty to encounter new things and become independant. It is significant that kids are constantly adulated for accomplishing something great with the goal that they have a high confidence and will need to exhibit the conduct once more. We should guarantee that kids have the certainty to settle on there own decisions by giving opportunities to them o do this. for eg give them the decision of what toys they need to play with, what exercises they might want to do or what snacks they might want. It is significant we do this to urge youngsters to turn out to be more independant. On the off chance that we don't permit youngsters to settle on there own decisions they may get dependant on a grown-up and not pick indispensable things further down the road that could influence them. We can likewise advance self-assurance by remunerating youngsters with things, for example, desserts or stickers. This can be a decent method of adulating youngsters however can likewise make kids ‘go back’ with conduct or get things done to much just to get a prize. For instance if a youngster is remunerated for utilizing the latrine or attempting to utilize the can they may simply sit on it the entire day so they get compensated. We should do customary perceptions of youngsters to discover there interests and create exercises around these to assist kids with meeting achievements. This is significant as the kid is in charge of there own learning and will feel like they matter. For instance if a childs intrigued by trains you could utilize them in what you are doing. On the off chance that the youngster has control of there learning they are bound to settle on decisions and believe in doing as such. It is additionally significant that we guarantee the kids realize that they can confide in their key laborer and can address them about anything, so the kid has constructive associations with the individuals in there setting.

Saturday, August 15, 2020

Short Thoughts

Short Thoughts Ive spent the better part of a day trying to blog about my semester, but I cant think of a pithy way to put everything together, so I wrote this instead. Theres frankly not too much to say because Ive been struggling with bouts of illness for the past month or so. Im not sure whats wrong. I keep thinking Ive recovered only to wake up with a sore throat or to find myself shivering in a heated room; I often go to sleep with a headache and wake up still with a headache. Its the first time in my MIT experience that Ive been sick for more than a few days. Im tired. The last time I blogged about classes, I was enrolled in six; I have since dropped to four. Besides that, there are a few things that have been on my mind. Thing One On Wednesday, I published an article about girlhood and math competitionsits under my full name, and its more personal than anything Im usually willing to write. Im linking to it here because I imagine that MIT Admissions attracts high-school girls who compete in math (and their peers); if you fit that bill (or not) or can relate to it and want to talk about your experiences and/or struggles, email me! Thing Two I wrote it on Odyssey, an online publication that recruits teams of writers at thousands of different universities. I’m editing for the MIT chapter. Weve been live for only two weeks, but Im pretty fond of some of the articles weve released: this ones about being first-generation at MIT, and this ones about being a student-athlete. The job has been trying in the cases when Ive had to edit work that is antithetical to my personal/political views. It makes me feel like Im complicit in releasing work that I think is wrong, and its a little painful reading an article that I disagree with and thinking, Some of these words are my words. But I worry that expressing disagreement (even on a personal account) would make all future editorial decisions seem questionable; Im also wary of involving myself in arguments on social media. Im not sure yet what I think the correct course of action is. Also: were recruiting, so if youre going to be at MIT in the fall and are interested in writing things weekly over the summer/during the semester, email me or apply here (under Local Opportunities, with MIT as your school). Thing Three Classes ended yesterday, and I cleaned up the notes on my iPhone todaydeleted a list of songs I discovered in Iceland, the Athena cluster code, the definition of the word supplication, my Hong Kong phone number. I keep notes inconsistently (and almost never on my phone), but here are a few interesting items Id forgotten about: By the way, do you know the difference between the optimist and the pessimist? No? They both get it wrong, but the optimist is happier. â€"Mme Christine Lagarde, at the Spring 2016 Compton Lecture people who participate in fiction â€"Shariann Lewitt, in 21W.755 writing code for the greatest processor ever â€"Shariann Lewitt, in 21W.755 (She was referring to writing fiction; the processor is the brain. She encouraged us to leave out parts that the processor can take care offor instance, dialogue does not need to be conversation, not word-for-word, because the reader can intuit and fill in the gaps. your sense of self will change substantially over your life because many things you thought were purely mental are actually based in physical structures Robert Shiller spoke at MIT in October; I dont remember too much of his talk but I think it had to do with behavioral economics and his book Phishing for Phools and policy (?) (my memory is unreliable). Anyway, I think this quote refers to the idea that we do not exercise as much control over our thoughts as we imagine. Im pretty sure he gave evidence of this. https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/conditional This is the poem The Conditional by Ada Limón. Im sitting in Starbucks now, shivering. I meant to leave a few minutes ago, but then they started playing a Fugees song, so Im still here. I have one final on Monday, and then Im done, and then I go home.

Sunday, May 24, 2020

Women of Marble - Cycladic Reclining Female Figures Free Essay Example, 1750 words

The positive space occupied by the object is indicative of the shape of a human female who is perhaps standing or lying somewhere straight with folded arms. The lines, horizontal and vertical are used to form the object giving different shapes to the body. Horizontal lines are used to form the shoulders, neck, torso, arms, knees and feet of the figure. However, the use of vertical lines suggests forming the shape of the legs and nose. The horizontal and vertical lines have been used in combination to form different shapes in the figure with curved lines showing thighs and legs. The texture of the statue gives the sense of hardness with slender features that seem to be delicate and fragile and would get broken if mishandled. On the whole, formal analysis of the reclining female figure shows that the figure is dull in colour, with geometrical shapes, curved, horizontal and vertical lines and hard but delicate texture (Hammel, 2011). The reclining female figure belongs to the Cycladic civilization that was famous for the collection of marble figures which people of this civilization used to make (Hammel, 2011). We will write a custom essay sample on Women of Marble - Cycladic Reclining Female Figures or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/page

Wednesday, May 13, 2020

Critical View Of Race To The Bottom And Globalization.

Critical view of Race to the Bottom and Globalization: Race to the bottom and Globalization has a critical relationship between them. Critics say that Globalization expedites the tendency of adopting the concept race to the bottom. Race to the bottom concepts says that the characteristic of continuous lowering the standard in terms of labor or environment as a result of the continuous competition. This concept mainly affects the developing countries in two ways directly and directly. Developing countries might have the perception that to cope with the global competition they need to decrease their product cost as much as possible. This phenomena leads them to behave in two ways. 1) Countries may directly soften the environmental laws and†¦show more content†¦From above examples we have seen that even developed countries have to deal with Race to the bottom affect, but as their income level rise their importance also shifts to the environmental issues. Developing countries concerns on environmental regulation is the erosion of their competitive position due to the movement of pollution-intensive industries to countries with lower standards. According to the research after global awareness of environmental safety arises, it can be concluded that neither study on trade flows nor on the FDI shows the International Traders choose their business location based on environment regulations rather than all other important factors. There are many evidences that support the opposite scenario as well. Globalization supports to take proper measure for environmental safety. The study of Frankel and Rose (2003) and Busse (2004) showed many evidences that clearly defines how Globalization can positively effect the environment. According to Busse environmental regulations is influenced by income level. The primary effect appears to come via income itself. When a country experiences economic growth its per capita income increases it can pays attention to environmental laws and regulation after serving its basic needs. Frankle and Rose found positive co elation between openness to trade and environmental quality. Openness to trade helps developing countries to enjoy both incentive to adopt greenShow MoreRelatedThe Political Economy Of Globalization1699 Words   |  7 Pagesand Layna Mosley both discuss globalization in detail and both have similar views regarding globalization. In the chapter â€Å"The Political Economy of Globalization† Layna Mosley asks the question whether globalizations effect on government policy making has adverse effects on the state of the global economy or if governments retain autonomy in regards to policymaking despite globalization. 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Marx closely analysed the economic interactions within the capitalist community, arguing that the unfair wages were being distributed to workers due to capitalism being driven by profit. This is known as the ‘Labour Theory of Value’. This theory illustrates how the rich are becoming richer and the poor and being coming poorer. For example, in 2015, at the top end of the spectrum, 34 million people dominate 113 trillion dollars. In comparison, at the bottom end of theRead MoreThe Problem of Childcare Essay1732 Words   |  7 Pagesunnecessary burden on employers in providing child care. Conclusion Though providing child care would incur additional cost and is cumbersome, employers should view it as a business investment. Support of workplace friendly policies such as childcare is an investment that clearly affects the bottom line of all businesses. Employee absenteeism, low morale, indifference and turnover carry significant costs to employers. In contrast, employee commitment, high morale, Read MoreMy Philosophy Of Adult Education1318 Words   |  6 Pagesmonetary. I am a firm believer that if one does what one loves, the dollar component will follow within time. As an African-American woman, I have experienced a great deal over the past 60+ years. Furthermore, as a Christian, my identity aligns with my race, culture and ethnic background concerning spirituality, and no it has not always been easy. However, I am most thankful for, George T. Doran, the originator of the S.M.A.R.T. Goals. The adult population in the United States shows that older adultsRead MoreBanana Wars: European Globalization and the Effect on the Caribbean2219 Words   |  9 Pageslast two decades as technological advances make it easier for people to travel, communicate, and do business internationally. Thus, Europe has been a leader in this advancement and has contributed greatly to the process the world calls globalization. â€Å"Globalization is an objective, empirical process of increasing economic and political connectivity, a subjective process unfolding in consciousness as the collective awareness of growing global interconnectedness, and a shot of specific globalizingRead MoreAn Introduction to Organizational Behavior1638 Words   |  7 Pagesinformational: monitor, disseminator of information, spokesperson ï  ® decisional: entrepreneur, disturbance handler, resource allocator, negotiator 3. Explain some of the benefits of studying OB - Improved managerial effectiveness and the company’s bottom line ï  ® sustain high performance over changing market conditions ï  ® improve individual and group productivity (reduce cost of employee turnover and of poor hiring decision) ï  ® increase organizational adaptability - More effective influencer ï  ® As

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Mcdonald Case Study Free Essays

McDonald’s: On a Customer-Focused Mission More than half a century ago, Ray Kroc, a 52-year-old salesman of milk-shake-mixing machines, set out on a mission to transform the way Americans eat. Kroc bought a chain of seven stores already existing for $2. 7 million. We will write a custom essay sample on Mcdonald Case Study or any similar topic only for you Order Now From the start, Kroc preached a motto of QSCV—quality, service, cleanliness, and value. These goals became mainstays in McDonald’s customer-focused mission statement. Applying these values, the company perfected the fast-food concept—delivering convenient, good-quality food at affordable prices. McDonald’s grew quickly to become the world’s largest fast-feeder. The fast-food giant’s more than 32,000 restaurants worldwide now serve 60 million customers each day, racking up system-wide sales of more than $79 billion annually. In the mid-1990s, however, McDonald’s fortunes began to turn. The company appeared to fall out of touch with both its mission and its customers. Americans were looking for fresher, better-tasting food and more contemporary atmospheres. They were also seeking healthier eating options. In a new age of health-conscious consumers and $3 muffin and coffee at Starbucks, McDonald’s seemed a bit out of step with the times. McDonald’s was struggling to find its identity among its competitors and changing consumer tastes. The company careened from one failed idea to another. It tried to keep pace. None of these things worked. However, McDonald’s continued opening new restaurants at a ferocious pace, as many as 2,000per year. The new stores helped sales, but customer service and cleanliness declined because the company couldn’t hire and train good workers fast enough. Meanwhile, McDonald’s increasingly became a target for animal-rights activists, environmentalists, and nutritionists, who accused the chain of contributing to the nation’s obesity epidemic with â€Å"super size† French fries and sodas as well as Happy Meals that lure kids with the reward of free toys. Although McDonald’s remained the world’s most visited fast-food chain, sales growth slumped, and its market share fell by more than 3 percent between 1997 and 2003. In 2002, the company posted its first-ever quarterly loss. In early 2003, a troubled McDonald’s announced a turnaround plan—what it now calls its â€Å"Plan to Win. † At the heart of this plan was a new mission statement that refocused the company on its customers. The company’s mission was changed from â€Å"being the world’s best quick-service restaurant† to â€Å"being our customers’ favorite place and way to eat. The new plan centered on five basics of an exceptional customer experience: people, products, place, price, and promotion. Under the Plan to Win, the goal was to get â€Å"better, not just bigger. † The company invested in improving the food, the service, the atmosphere, and marketing at existing outlets. McDonald’s redecorated its restaurants with clean, simple, more-modern interiors and amenities such as live plants, wireless Internet access, and flat-screen TVs showing cable news. Play areas in some new restaurants now feature video games and even stationary bicycles with video screens. To make the customer experience more convenient, McDonald’s stores now open earlier to extend breakfast hours and stay open longer to serve late-night diners—more than one-third of McDonald’s restaurants are now open 24 hours a day. Moreover, MacDonald added healthier options, such as Chicken McNuggets made with white meat, a line of Snack Wraps, low-fat â€Å"milk jugs,† apple slices, Premium Salads. In 2008, when the stock market lost one-third of its value—the worst loss since the Great Depression— McDonald’s stock gained nearly 6 percent. Through 2010, as the economy and the restaurant industry as a whole continued to struggle, McDonald’s outperformed its competitors by a notable margin. QUESTIONS 1. What are the main environmental factors that affected MacDonald marketing strategy and way of doing business? 2. How MacDonald responded to the changing environment? (How these changes affected its marketing mix? ) How to cite Mcdonald Case Study, Free Case study samples

Monday, May 4, 2020

Quality in Customer Focused Operations †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the Quality in Customer Focused Operations. Answer: Introduction Customer satisfaction is the key to success to an organisation no matter whether the organisation is older or new. Unarguably, this is one such factor that differentiates between the different rival companies and that also narrows down the competition in the market by limiting the numbers of potential companies. The necessity to satisfy the needs of customers is also associated with a fact to identify the actual needs of customers. Different companies use different marketing strategies to identify the needs of customers; however, it can never be predicted that they have performed an absolute task, which would provide them a clear insight of their target customers. Many perceptions of the customers can now be understood with the help of different strategies such as mapping the customer journeys before they buy something. However, it is extensively difficult to take anything for grant as customer behaviour changes very frequently (Six Sigma Online Training Certification Information 201 7). Saudi Aramco is one of many such companies that have to satisfy the needs of its clients and the customers. It operates at the global platform with many products under their belt such as Natural Gas, Petroleum and few other Petrochemicals. It is one of the most valuable companies in the world in terms of market capitalisation. The operation is extensively complex. They carry loads of responsibilities with them in order to satisfy the needs of its clients. It is one of such companies, which is operating to produce oils and natural gas; however, it is also becoming a clearer reason behind the rising carbon footprint and the environmental pollution (Saudi Aramco 2017). The main purpose of this assignment is to analyse the operational values of the selected company. The paper aims to find some quality management related issues if there is any. Moreover, the paper also recommends solution to overcome the identified issues along with the challenges that might come underway on implementing the suggested improvements. Background of the selected organisation Saudi Aramco is one of few companies in the world, which is engaged in various oil related projects such as oil refinery. It came into existence to reduce the shortages of oil during World War I in the year 1933. After it came to the existence it took four long years to get the first success. It continues to move gradually since then. However, the real recognition came into the year 2005 when it became the largest company in the world in terms of market capitalisation. It is headquartered in Dhahran but it operates at the global platform by means of exploration, refining, production, chemicals, marketing and distribution. All those activities are in continuous monitoring of the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Mineral Petroleum Resources. It has deployed several tankers to ship refined oil, crude oil and gas to the different parts of world. It is a challenge to company like such to maintain an utmost standard of customer service and to satisfy the needs of its clients the customers. Quali ty management in this regard appears to be a challenging task to such an operation (Saudi Aramco 2017). Extraction of oil and gas- The oil and gas used to be at the lower most positions in between the rocks in an umbrella shape. The oil and gas stays there in the position and travels to an upward layer of the rock from which it was formed. The Saudi Aramco Company drills the water in the identified zone and forms a well, so that, the required oils and gas travels to the area. The process of drilling is very expensive and is successful in quite a low occasion too. The crude oil travels to the drilled well and from where it is collected at the ground level. It requires an investment of millions of pound for the exploration and extraction. The liquids that are collected in the created well are composed of water, gas and crude oil. It is important to separate the crude oil and the gas in order to transport those safely. The entire process requires a detailed analysis of few important factors such as identifying the porous rocks making an efficient reservoir rock, planning a research to id entify that which rocks have the highest level of porous in it and identifying the process of drilling identifying the hidden oil in the deep beneath of sea water (Long et al. 2012). Transportation of oil and gas- The process after extracting the oil is also very complicated and challenging as well. The extracted petroleum and oil needs to send to the refinery centres in order to refine the separated oils and gas. It can be done in two ways such as by sending it to the refinery house either through the pile lines or by the transport. Saudi Aramco has many such transporting vehicles that take the responsibilities to carry the extracted oils and gas to its refinery centres. Crude oil is often traced in the exterior region such as in the jungle, deserts and the Arctic. In such circumstances, it is then a very complicated and challenging task as well to transport the extracted oil and gas to the refinery house. The oil refinery centres then transforms the crude oil into useful products or services. The transformed products are then sent to the most parts of world. The products then can be transported to the different parts of world through various available means suc h as rail, road and by boats alongside the canals and the rivers. Saudi Aramco has deployed numerous transporting vehicles to conduct the mentioned task (Willersrud et al. 2013). Input resources- It includes many such as identifying the zone that has porous rocks, establishing a plant to form a well and using the different technologies such as upstream downstream to drill the sea water (Coday et al. 2014). Transforming activities- It includes the transformation of extracted oil and gas into crude oil and liquefied petroleum gas. The transformation happens after a long process of drilling. The activity produces some of most precious resources from the water (Kawagucci et al. 2013). Output products/services- There are various valuable products are obtained. The extracted gas and oil are then sent to the refinery house either through the pipelines or through the transporting modes. In the refinery house, some very valuable products are prepared, which are then sent to the different parts of world (Hyne 2012). Literature review on quality management According to Jhandir (2012), perceived value is necessary to met by the service providers. Customers generally perceive something after having a look on something and they also develop a perception up to a certain level. The author has believed that different firms across the globe have failed in meeting with the set expectations of the customers, which they have built up based on their perceived values. This is because of such fact it is necessary for different companies that they try to match up with the perceptions and the expectations that customers have from their clients. The author has made this understood that to maintain an utmost quality in the service it is necessary for the Saudi Aramco to match up the expected demand of the customers. This could be challenging but they have to do in order to attain the maximum ratings in the customer satisfaction level. In the opinion of Abd-El-Salam, Shawky and El-Nahas (2013), service quality is very much required in order to attain the maximum standard of customer loyalty over the brand. The authors have provided their opinion on the importance of service quality. They have affirmed that service quality and customer satisfaction are both directly proportional to each other. It further means that customers would be more loyal to the different companies across the globe if they receive an utmost service quality from their trusted brands. It means that the Saudi Aramco Company should ensure an utmost customer service standard in their offer products and services. If they do so they would be able to win the loyal views of numerous customers across the globe. Zhao et al. (2012) have viewed customer service as an utmost need for the organisation across the globe. The authors have said that customer service is an asset, which influences the behaviour of customers on their respective chosen brands. If a brand has highest standard of customer service then the one would receive a maximum level of recognition from the customers. This is indeed important because this would enhance the loyalty level in customers towards the one particular brand. This would also raise the responsibility level towards the customers on the trusted brands. A brand as such of Saudi Aramco would then need to maintain a highest level of quality in its products and the services in order to attain a highest level of loyalty of the customers across the globe. In other words,, this mean that the Saudi Aramco need to maintain the standard they have set related to their products and the services. This would not only enhance the loyalty level of customers but it would also enh ance the quality in service of the company. According to Izogo and Ogba (2015), satisfied customers will be loyal customers. This further means that these authors have argued that it is a waste to think of a tool to measure the customer satisfaction level. Customers who are satisfied they will be loyal to the brands and would go nowhere else to purchase their required products. The authors have indicated here clearly that the Saudi Aramco Company should look to improve its quality management standard. It should rather never think of observing the customer satisfaction level. This is because those who are satisfied customers they will also be loyal to their choice of brands. The Saudi Aramco Company needs to concentrate more on improving its quality of service. This would help the company gets more loyal customers and hence its customers will become loyal to the company. In the opinion of Khan (2012), if a firm improves its service quality level the firm will get more loyal customers. Nevertheless, it is necessary to have a significant number of loyal customers in order to attain the highest level of success. The brands will be more flexible with the changing market circumstances that have behind them a large number of loyal customers. Going the same way as stated by the author, it can be concluded that it is necessary for the Saudi Aramco that it retains the earned customer base and build up more loyal customers with help from quality service. This is the one way they will get maximum numbers of loyal customers and hence will also get a sustained business operation. According to Auka, Bosire and Matern (2013), there are certain factors that contribute to the customers in becoming loyal to a particular brand. Those factors are reliability, tangibility, assurance, responsiveness and empathy. According to the authors these five factors are necessary to maintain through utmost operational strategy. This will help the companies get a long list of loyal customers to their credit. On a same note, the Saudi Aramco Company should focus on maintaining the five sought factors by the authors. The company would be able to maintain its gained customer base and would also be able to get a new list of customers, which is very necessary to maintain a healthy business operation for a long span of time. As opined by Dhar (2015), there should be a committed act from the organisation as this is very important to get the utmost business success. The author has emphasised on a fact that the workforce should be efficient enough to be flexible under any sort of unexpected circumstances. The market is very volatile and so the demand of customers. This is because of such reason, it is important to have a workforce that delivers under the any odd situations. On a same note, it is important that Saudi Aramco should invest a significant amount in training its workforce on utmost technical skills. This way they would be able to justify their participation with the company and therefore, they would be able to deliver the perceived performance from them. In the opinion of Karani and Bichanga (2012), quality in service can be attained if there is leadership in place taking care of the entire operations. They have emphasised on leadership quality, which according to them matters a lot because it helps in gain the utmost quality in service. Leadership quality according to the authors will help in fight even in an unexpected situation. On a similar note, the Saudi Aramco Company needs to build up the leadership quality in its every employee. This would help the company prepare a bench of such talents who all can stand firm strong under any challenge. This will only bring the much required flexibility in the operation. Moreover, this will help the company in maintaining the utmost quality in service and will also help in get more such success in the future ahead. Quality problems identified in the chosen organisation There can also be some quality related challenges in the Saudi Aramco Company. One of such challenges is the exploration of innovation. This means that the company that invest much on exploring the different technologies would be more successful in extracting the oils. There can be situations at times when the Saudi Aramco Company fails to invest much on the exploring the possible innovation. This would be a very dreadful situation for the company as it will unintentionally provide other the opportunities. Nevertheless, it is very important to use innovative thoughts and tools to perform better in extracting the oils (Crespi and Zuniga 2012). Needs of skilled engineers is the other quality related issue that can hamper the reputation of the Saudi Aramco Company. It is necessary to check whether pipe lines are in proper condition or else it may become responsible for an unexpected accident. It is therefore very important that the company must have such skilled and dedicated engineers who are in continuous checkups of the pipeline. A regular check-up will ensure identifying the flaws if there is any. Moreover, this will facilitate a timely repairing of the damage if it is done (King 2014). Need of skilled drivers is also required to maintain a quality performance in the Saudi Aramco Company. This is because they transport the extracted oils and gas through road vehicles as well. A proper driving in this regard will be highly required in order to maintain a safe environment. Nevertheless, a reckless drive with such products in vehicle would result in a huge fire that might even hamper a large area and the population (Klauer et al. 2014). Recommended improvements Based on the expected quality related challenges, which have been mentioned in the above section following recommendations can be made to the Saudi Aramco Company: Encouraging the leadership quality in the leaders, so that, they invest huge amounts in purchasing the tools that are latest and highly useful in bringing difference to the service quality. Companies face this challenging to identify the exact locations where porous rocks are available. This also incurs them huge. In this regard, the use of innovative tools will result in better research and hence in larger extraction of oils. Training the engineers on the safety parameters for proper handling of pipelines is the other recommendation, which would prevent any unexpected accident. The training needs to be done under the guidance of a certified program as this would help in inhibiting the required element for becoming an expert operator of pipelines. Making strict policies for drivers is the last recommendation, which the Saudi Aramco Company should enforce. This would create fear among the drivers and they would drive safely. Expected challenges in implementing the improvements The implementation of the improvements would be challenging to some extent as well. Making investments on purchasing eh various new technologies to improve the operational quality is very much feasible to a company like Saudi Aramco. However, it might face challenge to really follow the behaviour of drivers. The implementation would only require documentation; however, the implementation would not ensure an entire reduction of the flaws. This will rather be a documented implementation; however, the company needs a practical implementation. Additionally, there is technology to track the motion of the vehicle; however, there is no such technology to check whether the driver is driving properly (Ferguson 2012). Conclusion Saudi Aramco is the most reputed company in the world in terms of market capitalisation. However, the study has shown that even the company like Saudi Aramco is required to use innovative tools and to have skilled workforce in order to stand against any challenge. The study has shown some expected quality related failure that the company can have. The company may face challenge to invest significantly in buying the innovative tools. It may also face challenges in having a skilled workforce. Nevertheless, the company needs to overcome the identified threats that could hamper the quality service of the company. The oil and gas extraction process is very challenging, which is why it is necessary to maintain a utmost quality in service in order to stay strong in competition or else other competitors will take away the generated advantage. To stay competitive and to be a quality service provider, it is necessary that the Saudi Aramco Company is flexible enough to cope with the unwanted ch allenges that might come underway. The counter of such challenge is only possible with innovative tools, trained skilled workforce and responsible drivers. The challenge to stay strong in competition is getting enlarged as the industry is witnessing the entrance of numerous new giants with passage of days. References Abd-El-Salam, E.M., Shawky, A.Y. and El-Nahas, T., 2013. The impact of corporate image and reputation on service quality, customer satisfaction and customer loyalty: testing the mediating role. Case analysis in an international service company.Journal of Business and Retail Management Research,8(1). Auka, D., Bosire, J.N. and Matern, V., 2013. Perceived service quality and customer loyalty in retail banking in Kenya. Coday, B.D., Xu, P., Beaudry, E.G., Herron, J., Lampi, K., Hancock, N.T. and Cath, T.Y., 2014. The sweet spot of forward osmosis: treatment of produced water, drilling wastewater, and other complex and difficult liquid streams.Desalination,333(1), pp.23-35. Crespi, G. and Zuniga, P., 2012. Innovation and productivity: evidence from six Latin American countries.World development,40(2), pp.273-290. Davies, R.J., Almond, S., Ward, R.S., Jackson, R.B., Adams, C., Worrall, F., Herringshaw, L.G., Gluyas, J.G. and Whitehead, M.A., 2014. Oil and gas wells and their integrity: Implications for shale and unconventional resource exploitation.Marine and Petroleum Geology,56, pp.239-254. Dhar, R.L., 2015. Service quality and the training of employees: The mediating role of organizational commitment.Tourism Management,46, pp.419-430. Ferguson, R., 2012. Learning analytics: drivers, developments and challenges.International Journal of Technology Enhanced Learning,4(5-6), pp.304-317. Hyne, N.J., 2012.Nontechnical guide to petroleum geology, exploration, drilling, and production. PennWell Books. Izogo, E.E. and Ogba, I.E., 2015. Service quality, customer satisfaction and loyalty in automobile repair services sector.International Journal of Quality Reliability Management,32(3), pp.250-269. Jhandir, S.U., 2012. Customer satisfaction, perceived service quality and mediating role of perceived value. Karani, S.R. and Bichanga, W.O., 2012. Effects of Total Quality Management implementation on business performance in service institutions: A case of Kenya Wildlife Services.International Journal of Research Studies in Management,1(1), pp.59-76. Kawagucci, S., Miyazaki, J., Nakajima, R., Nozaki, T., Takaya, Y., Kato, Y., Shibuya, T., Konno, U., Nakaguchi, Y., Hatada, K. and Hirayama, H., 2013. Post?drilling changes in fluid discharge pattern, mineral deposition, and fluid chemistry in the Iheya North hydrothermal field, Okinawa Trough.Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems,14(11), pp.4774-4790. Khan, I., 2012. Impact of customer satisfaction and retention on customer loyalty.International Journal of Scientific Technology Research,1(2), pp.106-110. King, C.T., 2014. Sectoral Workforce and Related Strategies: What We Know and What We Need to Know.Connecting People to Work: Workforce Intermediaries and Sectoral Strategies. New York: The American Assembly, Columbia University, pp.209-238. Klauer, S.G., Guo, F., Simons-Morton, B.G., Ouimet, M.C., Lee, S.E. and Dingus, T.A., 2014. Distracted driving and risk of road crashes among novice and experienced drivers.New England journal of medicine,370(1), pp.54-59. Long, J.H., Aziz, T.N., Francis, L. and Ducoste, J.J., 2012. Anaerobic co-digestion of fat, oil, and grease (FOG): a review of gas production and process limitations.Process Safety and Environmental Protection,90(3), pp.231-245. Saudi Aramco. 2017.Saudi Aramco where energy is opportunity. [online] Available at: https://www.saudiaramco.com/en/home.html [Accessed 10 Oct. 2017]. Six Sigma Online Training Certification Information. 2017.The Role Of Quality Management In Customer Satisfaction. [online] Available at: https://www.sixsigmaonline.org/six-sigma-training-certification-information/the-role-of-quality-management-in-customer-satisfaction/ [Accessed 10 Oct. 2017]. Willersrud, A., Imsland, L., Hauger, S.O. and Kittilsen, P., 2013. Short-term production optimization of offshore oil and gas production using nonlinear model predictive control.Journal of Process Control,23(2), pp.215-223. Zhao, L., Lu, Y., Zhang, L. and Chau, P.Y., 2012. Assessing the effects of service quality and justice on customer satisfaction and the continuance intention of mobile value-added services: An empirical test of a multidimensional model.Decision support systems,52(3), pp.645-656.

Saturday, March 28, 2020

Corporations should participate in Elections

Introduction In every democratic state like the United States, citizens have a right to participate in the election process. Americans have the right to participate in the national elections campaigns whereby every individual can independently support a particular political party.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Corporations should participate in Elections specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In addition, the right to support a particular political party is extended to corporations, and thus private corporations have the freedom to help any aspiring politician in the campaigns. This ideology underscores the so-called the American democracy and it should not be interfered with by denying corporations the same right that individuals enjoy. However, there are limits within which such rights should be allowed and the violation of the same could cause public anarchy. Corporations should participate in election campaigns. The Nature of American Democracy Democracy is the basic need for citizens in every capitalist nation. Interestingly, democracy has its roots in the United States as the founding fathers came up with the ideology dubbed the â€Å"American Dream† in which they longed for the day when their descendants will enjoy democratic rights of questioning and correcting the government in the way that suited the citizenry. Americans have been enjoying democratic rights ever since the end of extreme racial segregations when the majority supported the idea of equal rights for all people. However, the election of President Barrack Obama as the first African-American president culminated the ideology of the â€Å"American Dream† of the founding fathers as well as the dream of the legendary civil rights activist, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.Advertising Looking for essay on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Hence, it would b e plausible to say that Americans have democratic rights that other citizens across the world are yet to enjoy. American citizens have the power to question government deeds through their representatives at the Congress and Senate, in addition to suing other means such as the media and public opinion forums. The individual’s right to support a particular political party is facilitated by the freewill to make decisions based on ideas that a party presents to the voters, but rather not the ethnic or corporate basis. This aspect implies that American campaigns are not meant to persuade voters through ethnic divisions or corporate basis, but rather through the validity of a party’s manifesto. In addition, a corporation cannot influence stakeholders to support a particular political party just because the people at the top support the party, but rather it allows an individual’s freedom to choose the party to support. Corporate Participation in the National Elections in the United States Over the past few decades, corporations across the United States have been on the frontlines during election campaigns whereby they support particular candidates or political party. Critics argue that permitting corporation to participate in the national election campaigns is a big blow to the American democracy.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Corporations should participate in Elections specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Youn (123) argues that corporations would interfere with an individual’s right to support a particular political party or aspiring politician at will, but looking into the argument at a different angle, the United States is too democratic to panic for such an issue as there are limits to which the corporations should not go beyond in their election campaigns’ participation. In the contemporary world, Henderson (127) argues that election campaigns have become th e most expensive venture that an individual can indulge into; hence, aspiring politicians seek the financial support of the wealthy individuals in the society to finance their election campaigns. In return, politicians offer hefty promises, to the â€Å"political investors† in an effort to woo them, and the promises are supposed to be honored only when the beneficiaries are elected into office. The political arena is evolving rapidly and these political gambling games have nowadays shifted from wealthy individuals to the corporations in a bid to fit in the dynamic political environment. The aspiring politicians seek the corporations’ financing by promising them good business deals and environments once they ascend to power. Youn (125) also argues that corporations have significant influence over the stakeholders and especially the employees and thus, they might pervert the principles of democracy by forcing employees to support certain politicians or political parties. This scenario can play out, but due to the financial demands that election campaigns have, it would be necessary to allow corporate participation, but bar them from interfering with the individuals’ rights.Advertising Looking for essay on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More On the other side, allowing corporations to participate in election campaigns comes with adverse economic effects, but little can be done to avert such repercussions. Private corporations have rights, which are nearly akin to the human rights, in the sense that if the owner of such a corporation chooses to support a particular politician and influences the entire set up to support the same politician, the corporation cannot be said to have violated the international business law as such is a matter of moral judgment. However, a corporation may spend vast amounts of money on supporting a politician, hence causing inflation as well as huge losses, which then lower the government revenue. However, such effects manifest during the post-election triumph period. On the other hand, public opinion is the real basis of enhancing the American democracy. According to these authors, Americans lack is enough political knowledge to shape the political environment into a democracy that they desire . In addition, note that Americans do not generally make decisions based on achievable ideologies presented by either the individual politicians or the political parties. On the contrary, they make decisions based on the game of liberalism and democracy. Under such situations, it is thus hard for Americans to make ideologically choices, which transforms the general election campaigns into a level of public campaigns because only a few are concerned with ideological decision-making. However, these arguments do not touch on the financing habits where corporations are forced to indulge in election campaigns. On the contrary, these authors emphasize on the idea of the majority of Americans not bothering to make decisions on an ideological basis, thus putting corporations at a critical situation whereby they can influence stakeholders’ decision-making courtesy of the mass campaign effect. Political analysts have anonymously supported this argument by noting that Americans are inco nsistent when it comes to matters of making political decisions, and hence, they are very vulnerable to influences from powerful politicians as well as corporations. It would be prudent to understand that political culture is dynamic and it has now turned out that corporations have a right to participate in the election campaigns. However, the manner in which election campaigns are handled also plays a crucial role in attracting corporations’ participation as influential business personnel is often at the forefront of political campaigns as aspiring politicians. To such individuals, their corporations cannot fail to rally behind them. Just like in the nature of business environments where gaining a competitive advantage is the only way to survive, rival corporations are forced to support aspiring politicians in an effort to ease the pressure posed by business persons in the forefronts of the campaigns. Hence, election campaigns have adopted business strategies, thus accommoda ting corporations; however, it appears like a difficult task for any government or political, regulatory measures to bar corporations from participating in election campaigns. Such great penetration of corporations is a democratic exercise that everybody enjoys, as corporations would want to have a government that they desire by supporting the aspiring candidates that they feel would be the best in addressing their needs. Hence, it would be wrong to argue that allowing corporations’ participation in election campaigns is a blow to the nation’s democracy for corporations run under the watch of individuals who enjoy democratic rights as well. More also, looking into Youn’s perspective, she argues that the voice of the Americans will be jeopardized by the corporations’ ability to flood money in the election campaigns. Also, she argues that the Supreme Court of United States ruling on January 21, 2010, where it permitted the corporate participation in the fed eral election campaigns opened doors for special interests in the politics of the United States (Youn 122). On the contrary, Henderson (127), through his article, â€Å"Permitting Corporations to Participate in Election Campaigns: Constitutionally Appropriate†, argues that the decision by the Supreme Court was in tandem with the American constitution. However, looking critically into Youn and Henderson’s arguments, the consequences of the decision to the American politics seem to be two-folded. First, corporations may cause money flooding into the country, which may take away the voices of the American people by influencing the majority whose economic status put them in a vulnerable position. In addition, it may scare away the aspiring politicians who could bring the changes that the United States needs because they do not have much money to finance their campaigns. Either of these possible consequences may jeopardize the â€Å"American Dream†. Secondly, corpora tions too are vulnerable to the nature of the American politics, and thus they have the right to participate in the election campaigns where they support the candidates that they need to get into power. The most  crucial objective of the election campaign is to get the right leadership, where aspiring leaders present their manifestos to the voters. Hence, voters then support the aspiring leaders who bear the manifestos that favor their needs. Therefore, the decision by the Supreme Court to permit the corporations’ participation in the election campaigns was a wise decision because corporations need the type of leadership that allows for their investment exercise (Henderson 129). Conclusion The argument that public opinion is a  powerful element for shaping the American politics is a weak argument to be used in support of barring the participation of corporations in the election campaigns, on the pretext that such involvement would influence public opinions. In addition, i t is true that public opinion is generally inconsistent, but such consistency has not been experienced anywhere across the world and the United States should not be an exemption. Hence, corporations should be allowed to participate in election campaigns by offering financial sponsorship to candidates, as election campaigns are expensive ventures. In addition, businesspersons are now pursuing politics, and thus, they need support of their corporate enterprises. Works Cited Henderson, Todd. â€Å"Permitting corporations to participate in election campaigns: Constitutionally appropriate.† You Decide! 2012: Current Debates in American Politics. Ed. John Rourke. New York: Pearson Education, 2012. 127-132. Print. Youn, Marcia. â€Å"Permitting corporations to participate in election campaigns: A Blow to Democracy.† You Decide! 2012: Current Debates in American Politics. Ed. John Rourke. New York: Pearson Education, 2012. 122-126. Print. This essay on Corporations should participate in Elections was written and submitted by user Rivka Moreno to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Saturday, March 7, 2020

Free Essays on Populism

Populism is a movement begun in the mid-1890s by farmers and other rural residents at the time. It quickly gained strength and has undergone many changes since then. It has not only changed in its views, but also in the political parties who utilize it not as an ideology but rather as a mode of persuasion. Populism is defined in the book as a language whose speakers see the people as one and not as a people bound by class restrictions, who see the elite politicians who oppose them as self-serving, and who wish to bring these "average people" together to fight against the overbearing powers of the political elite. Populist speakers voiced their discontent with elites who ignored, corrupted, or betrayed the ideal of American democracy, which consisted of rule by the common people. After the farmers created what we know as populism in the mid-1890s, there was a parting of the ways. In the early twentieth century, farmers' enthusiasm waned but two other groups' did not. These groups cons isted of the wage earners and the evangelic churchgoers. They argued that unions were now the best representation of the "average man". At the same time, middle-class Protestants were mounting campaigns as well. This was the first transition of the populist movement. . The second transition came in the late 1940s when populism began a migration from Left to Right. Conservative groups and politicians altered the speeches once given by reformers and radicals. Many reasons are given as to why this transition took place. Some of these included: the onset of the Cold War, the fact that most white Americans came to see themselves as middle-class consumers and taxpayers, and the growth of evangelical churches whose political stance was as conservative as their theology. Gradually and unevenly, a conservative populism emerged that promised to defend devout, middle-class communities against the governing elite. Populism is, in my opinion, a necessary component of d... Free Essays on Populism Free Essays on Populism During the late 19th century, the Populist Party began to materialize. In earlier years, economic depression in the western and southern portions of America had devastated many farm families. After bad seasons caused by drought many of these farmers began to fall heavily into debt. Frustrated as well as upset, their anger was further fed by discontent with railroads, manufacturers, lenders, and many others. In the early 1890s, alliances of farmers pulled together to form the People’s party. The first prominent populist in government was William Peffer. In 1890, this Kansan became the first populist senator. Continually growing, the People’s Party was soon established as a national party through a merger of the Farmers’ Alliance and the Knights Of Labor. Meeting in Omaha, the Populists took on a policy demanding free silver, graduated income tax, and government ownership of the telephone, telegraph, and railroads. Soon after, this third party nominated James Weaver for presidency in the election of 1892. Winning over a million popular votes and 22 electoral votes, this candidate became one of the few gain so many votes for a third party. Although they did not pull a victory, the Populist Party managed to gain much publicity. In the eastern, more urban portions of America, populism was not as â€Å"poplar†. The party’s main support came from six midwestern and western states. The south also refused to join this new party. A main reason was because more than a million members were black. Because of support from only a few states, the Populist Party began to lose it original spark. By 1896 the party was beginning to fall apart. Two main factions, â€Å"mid-roaders† and fusionists developed. Fusionists pushed for fusing with democrats in favor of free silver policies. Mid-roaders did not take firm enough stands to merge into other parties. Instead they kept politics that were in between those of the two larger parties. In an att... Free Essays on Populism Populism is a movement begun in the mid-1890s by farmers and other rural residents at the time. It quickly gained strength and has undergone many changes since then. It has not only changed in its views, but also in the political parties who utilize it not as an ideology but rather as a mode of persuasion. Populism is defined in the book as a language whose speakers see the people as one and not as a people bound by class restrictions, who see the elite politicians who oppose them as self-serving, and who wish to bring these "average people" together to fight against the overbearing powers of the political elite. Populist speakers voiced their discontent with elites who ignored, corrupted, or betrayed the ideal of American democracy, which consisted of rule by the common people. After the farmers created what we know as populism in the mid-1890s, there was a parting of the ways. In the early twentieth century, farmers' enthusiasm waned but two other groups' did not. These groups cons isted of the wage earners and the evangelic churchgoers. They argued that unions were now the best representation of the "average man". At the same time, middle-class Protestants were mounting campaigns as well. This was the first transition of the populist movement. . The second transition came in the late 1940s when populism began a migration from Left to Right. Conservative groups and politicians altered the speeches once given by reformers and radicals. Many reasons are given as to why this transition took place. Some of these included: the onset of the Cold War, the fact that most white Americans came to see themselves as middle-class consumers and taxpayers, and the growth of evangelical churches whose political stance was as conservative as their theology. Gradually and unevenly, a conservative populism emerged that promised to defend devout, middle-class communities against the governing elite. Populism is, in my opinion, a necessary component of d...

Wednesday, February 19, 2020

Nonverbal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nonverbal - Essay Example ited to personal space or proxemics, facial expressions or kinesics and a more commonly noticed modern issue known as aesthetics or ones external beauty. The nonverbal rule I have chosen includes not one but two, utilizing aesthetics and proxemics to view reactions and changes in interactions. In the experiment I undertook I chose to dress as a person from the street and sat next to a person we can call Mary at a bus stop. It became readily apparent that my being here was a distraction and she soon took her phone out and began having a whispered conversation with another unknown individual. While her tone was pleasant her body synchrony showed extreme anxiety that increased with small looks in my direction as she inched a little bit at a time down the bench to avoid me. As the minutes dragged on I stood up and moved closer to her side and then sat down again, her reaction was immediate and she stood up and walked around behind the bus stop to the opposite side. I attempted to speak with her and introduce myself, while explaining my actions she was not unfortunately entirely willing to converse as a result I decided to approach another individual. My next unfortunate subject we can call Tom, entered the bus stop directly following the exit of Mary and immediately sat down on the opposite side of the bench. His actions clearly showed his lack of desire for any interaction, his arms were crossed, and he placed headphones over his ears and lowered his eyes to look in front of him. I decided to sit down in front of him within a meter or so. His reaction was immediately apparent and he moved quickly and openly to the opposite side of the bench. I then shuffled slowly to the bench and sat down directly in the middle of it my location was less than an arm’s length from Tom. I began playing with the crumpled newspapers I had and kicking noisily at various pebbles and items on the ground in front of us. He quickly decided that this was not to his liking and asked me

Tuesday, February 4, 2020

Cloud Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Cloud Development - Essay Example As the temperature decreases the molecules lose some of their energy, and compress onto particles in the atmosphere, shaping clouds. Water molecules are stored in the atmosphere in all three states of matter. Water vapor in the atmosphere is commonly referred to as humidity. If liquid and solid forms of water can overcome atmospheric updrafts they can fall to the Earth's surface as precipitation. The formation of ice crystals and water droplets occurs when the atmosphere is cooled to a temperature that causes condensation or deposition. Four processes that can trigger such atmospheric cooling are oro-graphic uplift; convectional uplift; air mass convergence; and energy loss. [01] Precipitation can be defined as any aqueous deposit, in liquid or solid form, that develops in a saturated atmospheric environment and generally falls from clouds. A number of different precipitation types have been classified by meteorologists including rain, freezing rain, snow, ice pellets, snow pellets, and hail. Fog represents the saturation of air near the ground surface. Classification of fog types is accomplished by the identific ation of the mechanism that caused the air to become saturated. [01] The distribution of precipitation on the Earth's surface is generally controlled by the absence or presence of mechanisms that lift air masses to cause saturation. It is also controlled by the amount of water vapor held in the air, which is a function of air temperature. A figure is presented that illustrates global precipitation patterns. Clouds and Their Formation: A cloud can be defined as a visible mass of condensed droplets, frozen crystals suspended in the atmosphere above the surface of the Earth. More importantly, these clouds can also occur as masses of material in interstellar space, where they are called interstellar clouds and nebulae. [02] On Earth the condensing substance is typically water vapor, which forms small droplets or ice crystals, typically 0.01 mm in diameter. [02] When surrounded by billions of other droplets or crystals they become visible as clouds. Dense deep clouds exhibit a high reflectance (70% to 95%) throughout the visible range of wavelengths: they thus appear white, at least from the top. Cloud droplets tend to scatter light efficiently, so that the intensity of the solar radiation decreases with depth into the cloud, hence the gray or even sometimes dark appearance of the clouds at their base. [02] Thin clouds may appear to have acquired the color of their environment or background, and clouds illuminated by n on-white light, such as during sunrise or sunset, may be colored accordingly. In the near-infrared range, clouds would appear darker because the water that constitutes the cloud droplets strongly absorbs solar radiation at those wavelengths. [02] Types of Clouds: Although there are many types of clouds with respect to their different characteristics, clouds are mainly divided into three major classifications. These are as under, Cirrus Clouds: The name originates from the Latin word meaning "curl of hair". These feathery clouds form very high up in the sky (at altitudes between 5 km and 14 km) where it is very cold. [03] They are therefore made up of tiny ice crystals rather than water droplets. Cirrus clouds occur in warm air which is being slowly lifted over a large area by an approaching cold front, and they

Monday, January 27, 2020

TIRF Microscopy for Counting Molecules

TIRF Microscopy for Counting Molecules Robert Konstandelos How TIRF microscopy has enhanced the way single molecules are counted in the bacterial flagellar motor Abstract: The counting of individual molecules is important in order to establish how many molecules there are in a particular system. TIRF microscopy is one method to count molecules. The bacterial flagellar motor is a complex system in which motility protein B molecules can be counted using TIRF. Discussion is given for a key research topic based on counting of molecular subunits of this motor. Reviews of the background areas, limitations and confirmations of this research are conducted, and a discussion of the research and its contributions to technological and medical applications. 1. Introduction: The bacterial flagellar motor, TIRF microscopy and associated research Flagellar motors are machines used to drive many bacteria which have to swim in a solution like our bodies. This motor, usually studied in E. coli bacteria, is powered by a flux of H+ or Na+ ions across a cytoplasmic membrane driven by an electrochemical gradient (Sowa and Berry, 2008). The motor itself consists of two components, a rotor and a stator: the rotor spins relative to the cell and is attached by a helical filament known as a hook, whereas the stator is fixed to the cell wall (Francis et al 1994). A method commonly used to visualise the bacterial flagellar motor is Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy, which is one of the most frequently employed methods in bio-optical research (Leake 2013, P87). TIRF microscopy uses an evanescent field to illuminate the area covered by the specimen in question, which is adjacent to a glass-water interface. Using organic dyes has made it possible to view other properties of bacteria using TIRF (Sako et al 2000). This method is useful in counting the molecular subunits of the bacterial flagellar motor. TIRF microscopy has been used to view single molecules within live bacteria. For viewing the bacterial flagellar motor of E. coli, scientists tagged motility protein B (MotB) cells with Green Fluorescence Protein (GFP) in order to detect them via TIRF. This highlighted the areas within the bacteria where the motor was situated. To visualise the bacteria in a single confined position, the cell was tethered to the slide for viewing on the microscope. This is shown in Fig. 1, where the fixed position of the flagellum limits the bacteria’s movement to rotation. Fig. 1 Tethered cell showing its exposure to the evanescent field used for TIRF (Leake 2006, P355) 2. Background, difficulties and discoveries from the research 2.1 The history behind counting molecules Though the basis of this experiment began in the 60s, initially using the measurement of the activity of single molecules (Rotman 1961), optical detection and spectroscopic methods are now used instead. The counting of complex molecules can now also be achieved, but this area of research also needs TIRF microscopy. TIRF was enhanced in 1984 by Daniel Axelrod after the publishing of a paper on its experimental methods (Axelrod 1984), and those methods remain largely unchanged today. Furthermore, GFP molecules have only been recently understood. Without this research and development in GFP, visuals using TIRF would not be possible (Tsien 1998). 2.2 The difficulties encountered and overcome in counting molecules An estimate of around twenty-two molecules are thought to be present in the flagellar motor, with roughly eleven stator units. The main issue with determining this result explicitly is that there are many MotB molecules not associated with the motor. These molecules cause a problem as they are free to diffuse within the motors of the cell membrane. The fluorescence intensity was estimated from the areas where it was clear that no such molecules would interfere with results. Additionally, an intense laser beam focus for TIRF was required to photobleach GFP molecules. Only an extremely small region of the bacteria was viewed to improve the ability to track a small number of molecules – a significant amount of noise remained in the system, however, meaning that it is not yet possible to count exactly how many molecules are in each motor. Fig. 2 showing bright field (top) and their corresponding TIRF images (bottom) (Leake 2006, P355). The bright areas represent the flagellar motor. Using TIRF, bright spots indicate the centre of the cell rotation of the image shown in Fig. 2. There was a high density of spots centred on the flagellar motor, due to the high density of GFP-MotB molecules around the motor. Short times (between 0-10 seconds) are used because TIRF illumination over the bright spots decreases over longer periods of time, which makes it difficult to detect regions of the flagellar motor. Care was taken to not cause damage to the GFP due to the excitation light on the surrounding water: this means that smaller time steps were required such that the GFP molecules emitted a constant amount of photons. 2.3 The effects FRAP and FLIP With the noise effects reduced, there was the opportunity for the GFP-MotB molecules to spread into the area which had been bleached beforehand. Focusing the laser beam onto the motor itself resulted in the effects of fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) and fluorescence lost in photobleaching (FLIP). Observations of the molecular turnover in the cell found that over a period of five minutes, the intensity of the bright spots around the motor would decrease to nearly zero but then recover to half the initial intensity. This implied that binding and unbinding at the motor and bleaching occurred in the evanescent field (Leake et al 2006, P357), which means that the stator units in the motor only spend half a minute in each flagellar motor. This is demonstrated in Fig. 3, which illustrates the time elapsed after laser focused bleaching and how the intensity decreases but eventually recovers. Fig. 3. Shows the effects of FLIP and FRAP over the period of 5 minutes (Leake et al 2006, P357) 3. Benefits of the research and potential uses for the future An improved type of MotB was used in the research, which enhanced the way in which the molecules in the motor were counted. FLIP and FRAP indicate an alternative means for visualising the motor in motion, confirming that the stator units are dynamic instead of static (Sowa and Berry, 2008, P117). This is one of the first measurements of turnover in a molecular machine, establishing other possible characteristics which could be exploited to gain further understanding of the motor (Leake et al 2006, P357). Scientists are keen to understand more about how such motors work, so that developments in the delivery of medicine or for environmental purposes can be made. It may be possible to replicate the motor (Fukuda et al 2012). Delivery of medicine is one of the key goals: modelling the bacterial flagellar motor such that it could be used for targeted drug delivery would be revolutionary (Leake 2013, P259). Furthermore, through the development of nano-bots, this could be used to visualise diseased tissue or uncover parts of the human body. Summary This area of biophysics is relatively new: from the discoveries in the early 60s through to the 80s, there has not been a clear link between the two subjects. From the late 90s there was an opportunity to visualise biological material using physical optical devices. Over the past two decades, it has now reached to the point where it is possible to count single molecules to a close estimate. The use of GFP molecules combined with TIRF can enhance the visualisation of molecules in bacteria, and there are methods which can significantly improve the estimation of the number of molecules in the motor. This is still a difficult process due to the interference of other, unrelated molecules. FLIP and FRAP methods have proved that the stator is a dynamic rather than a static component of the motor. There are specific parts of this research which may be useful for future technological applications, for example: the delivery of medicine or the bio-sensing of diseased tissue. References Axelrod, D; Ann. Rev. Biophys. Bioeng.; 13; 1984; 247-68 Francis, N, R.; Sosinsky, G,E; Thomas, D; Derosier, D. J; Journal of Molecular Biology 235, 1994; 1261–1270. Fukuda, T; Kojima, M; Zhang, Z; Nakajima, M; Biomed Micro-device; 2012; 1027-32 Leake, M; Single Molecular Cellular Biophysics; 2013 Leake, M C; Chandler, J H; Wadhams, G H; Bai, F; Berry, R M; Armitage, J P; Nature 443; 2006; 355-358 Rotman, B; Biochemistry 47; 1961; 1981-91 Sako, Y; Minoghchi, S; Yanagida, T; Nature Cell Biol. 2; 2000; 1929-1932 Sowa, Y; Berry, R, M; Quarterly Reviews of Biophysics 41, 2008, 103-132 Tsien, R.Y; Annu. Rev. Biochem 67; 1998; 509–44

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Lady Liberty

It was 1885 in New York City. A little boy named Frederick Bloomsmen was hurrying down the streets to get to his master's shop. â€Å"Mayhap if I hurry, I'll get to see Lady Liberty,† Frederick thought. But as he ran along, he heard the town clock strike 6:00. â€Å"Oh no! I've got to make haste!† Frederick said desperately. Frederick had been delivering a saddle to the cart builder and had spent too long talking to the cart builder's son. Slam! The door to his master's store opened and shut as Frederick ran in. â€Å"Where have you been† Mr. Ezra (for that was Frederick's master's name) roared. â€Å"Delivering the saddle, sir, just as you asked me to,† Frederick answered timidly. â€Å"Well, you're late!† Mr. Ezra boomed. It was finally Saturday, Frederick's day off. He ran down the streets, as if racing the wind to see who could get to Lady Liberty skeleton first. Suddenly, he stopped still, for in a shop window sat the loveliest carved figure of Lady Liberty herself! His eyebrows slid up. He ran into the shop. â€Å"Excuse me, sir, how much money is that figure of Lady Liberty?† Frederick asked. â€Å"Well laddie, it's worth 15 cents but I'm lowering the price to 10 cents.† â€Å"Ten cents,† Frederick's head rang out as he ran home, â€Å"Where can I get such a fortune?† The next Monday, Frederick had almost forgotten the figurine. â€Å"Mr. Ezra, sir, may I please have my wages?† â€Å"All right, lad, but only because you haven't been sassin' me.† He opened the cash register and dropped a nickle into Frederick's outstretched palm. Halfway there! Frederick's head seemed to yell out with joy. Now he thought about how pretty that figure would look on Mama's mantle. † I'll give it to her for her next birthday,† he said aloud. â€Å"What was that, boy?† Mr. Ezra said. â€Å"Nothing,† Frederick said quickly, blushing bright red. The next morning after his chores were done, Frederick ran to the shop where the figure of Lady Liberty sat, to see if she was still there. Phew! There it was, looking as gorgeous as ever. The next week, Frederick got his wages. Another nickle! He finally had 10 cents. But as he walked down the roads he thought, â€Å"What if they need just 10 more cents to finish the Statue of Liberty?† And so silently he headed for the donation box. He listened to the cling as the coins dropped into the box. As the months flew by, Frederick's birthday was drawing nearer. One day, as he was running down the streets to see the Statue of Liberty, a shopkeeper (actually the very one that carried the figurine of Lady Liberty) called out from his shop. â€Å"Frederick! Wait! I've got a birthday present for you!† So Frederick stopped and went inside the shop. The shopkeeper handed him a small box. â€Å"Open it,† he urged. As Frederick did so, his eyebrows slid up as his mouth went down. For there, beautifully arranged in a pile of white tissue paper, sat the figurine of Lady Liberty! Frederick felt dizzy with happiness as he left the shop. Mama's birthday came just as quickly as Frederick's had. Frederick re-wrapped Mama's birthday present. When the time came for her to open it, her mouth dropped in surprise. â€Å"Why Frederick, where did you get this?† she asked in bewilderment, â€Å"It's beautiful! I absolutely love it! I'll put it on the mantle.† Frederick had to tell her the entire story, which was similar to the one I have just finished telling you now.

Saturday, January 11, 2020

The Escape – Creative Writing

I couldn't breathe. I could feel a large weight on top of me but when I looked there was nothing there. It was getting heavier and heavier. I tried to scream but every time that I tried I felt a shooting pain in my chest. All that I could do was wait and pray. I thought that it was unlikely that I would be found and I kept going over what had happened and couldn't understand how a life so perfect could go so wrong as easily as it had. It wasn't right. I looked down and released a ear splitting scream†¦ The previous month I had just been a normal teenager, going to school and going shopping at the weekend. Then it all changed. I came home from school to find that a large wagon was parked in front of our house and a man was carrying out our belongings. I saw my TV, stereo and Game cube being carried out of the front door by two large men. At first I thought that we were being robbed but then I saw my mum and dad appear at the front door. My mum was in floods of tears and my dad was stood with another man and signing papers. It never occurred to me what was happening. I ran across the garden and threw my arms around my mum. Although I didn't know what was going on I started to cry. I thought that I should try to be brave as my mum was so upset but it was the only time that I had ever seen her cry. I knew that something must be seriously wrong. I released her gently from my arms and gently asked her what was happening and who the men were. She said that my dad would explain everything when he had signed the papers. It was about five minutes, but seemed like a lifetime, before my dad could come and explain what we were going to do next. As my dad started to talk I became speechless. How could this happen? We hadn't done anything wrong yet we were the ones that were being punished. I couldn't take in what was being explained to me. It was so unfair that because my dad had done the right thing we were going to have to move out of our house and leave our life that my parents had built up for me. What had happened was that my dad had been involved in a robbery at work, the men had been captured but my dad had been asked to give evidence in court in order to get them put in prison. My dad had done this willingly but the thing that he had not realised was that the men who he had helped to send to prison were part of a large gang who were very violent. The other gang members were now out for revenge, with my dad. He had been receiving silent phone calls; evil text messages and he had even been sent death threats through the post. But what had happened the previous day was too much for anyone to cope with. Someone had burst into his office to try to attack him. It could have all gone horribly wrong for my dad if it hadn't been for a meeting being called at the last minute and him leaving his office to join it. I felt awful, it had been the previous day that I had been moaning because I wasn't allowed to go out with my friends. I could now understand that they had done it for my safety and the same men that had wanted to kill my dad could have killed me. I hadn't thought at any point in my life that I would have to be careful where I go and who I go with for the risk of my life. It all seemed so unreal. I had watched TV programmes and horror films about things like this happening but I never thought about what it must be like for people to be put in this situation. I felt disappointed in myself because I remembered when I was at a sleepover and I had joked that this sort of thing would never happen and that if it did the person who was on the run must have done something wrong. Even when I had this explained to me I didn't expect to hear what they told me next. We were being put in the ‘Witness Protection Programme'. I didn't fully understand what this meant. I thought that all it meant was that we had to move away from our home in order to get away from the people that were chasing us. As my parents continued to talk I realised that it meant that we were going to get a new identity and that we were not allowed to tell anyone what we were going to do. That was the hardest thing that I had to cope with. I said bye to my friends when I left school that day but it never entered my head that it was the last thing that I would be saying to them. I had always been popular at school and I couldn't understand why something like this would happen to me. Why couldn't it happen to Laura and her family? No one liked her and she didn't have any friends so there wouldn't be anyone who would miss her. I knew that it was a horrible thing to think but I couldn't help myself. What would my friends think if I didn't say anything before I left? I pleaded with my mum to let me phone them, I even said that one would be enough and that they could pass on the message to the others. This wasn't going to happen no matter how much I pleaded. They explained that it was for my safety. If I had told my best friend and she said something to my other friends, someone could overhear what she was saying and this problem could start over again. I did understand what they were saying but it seemed so undeserved. After we had the conversation I decided that I would have one last look inside the house. I was really surprised. The house still had the wallpaper and the carpets but the rest of the house was so bare. I climbed the stairs to where my bedroom was. It was weird knowing that it was the last time that I would be in my room again. It still looked like my room with the carpets and the poster but everything else was bare. I felt a tear fall down my face. I was trying to be strong but there was nothing that I could do, I just couldn't stop the tears from continually falling. I slowly walked down the stairs and quietly sat in the car. The large wagon started to drive off down the street and I knew then that it was the end of what I knew as my life. As my parents got into the car a policewoman came to sit in the back. It all felt so strange and I couldn't take the chance of looking behind me because I didn't know how I would react. When we turned the corner onto the main road my phone started to bleep to tell me that I had a message so I reached into my bag to get it out. It was no sooner that I had the mobile in my hand that the policewoman snatched it off me. She was sympathetic with me but she said that it would be best if I didn't read what it said because it may upset me to know that I was unable to respond to whatever was said. As we pulled onto the motorway it struck me that I did not know where we were going. I had been so wrapped up in my thoughts that we could have been going abroad and I wouldn't have known. I asked my dad but he said that he would tell me when we had arrived. It seemed to me as if I was being kept in the dark about everything that was going on. Did my parents not realise how much this was affecting me? My whole world was being turned upside down and they wouldn't tell me anything about what was happening. It wasn't as though I wouldn't understand; I was a teenager so why wouldn't they trust me. I didn't have any way that I could contact anyone so I couldn't put us in any danger from these people who were chasing us. We slowed down and I noticed a sign that was in welsh and as soon as I saw it I knew where my parents were taking me. We had been on holiday here the previous year and my parents had expressed how much they loved it her. I was really angry now. They were messing up my whole life and they were making me stay in this place. They knew how much I hated it because of how much there was to do. There were fields all around, no shops and no one who was near my age. I couldn't see how I was going to cope in a place like this. My life would revolve around school because there was nothing else to do. If we had to move why couldn't we move to a large town like London or Birmingham? This was going to be my worst nightmare, nothing to do but walk up hills and go to school. I had never realised how great my life was before. It makes me understand how true the saying ‘you never appreciate what you have until its gone' is. The amount of times my parents had said this I hadn't really understood it, I just assumed that if you lost something you would be able to get used to your life without it. I would never get used to this. We drove into the village and there was nobody about even though it was a Friday night. There were always people about when you wanted to go out. I hadn't even seen one person here. We pulled up in front of this tiny cottage. They couldn't seriously think that this was big enough for three people but when I looked round it seemed to be one of the biggest cottages in the area. I hesitantly walked through the front door to find that it seemed bigger on the inside than it looked from the outside. I knew that there was nothing that I could do now to change their mind so I returned outside and took one of the suitcases out of the boot of the car. As I turned around I noticed that there was a boy and a girl walking towards me. They seemed friendly and they looked about my age. I said hello and introduced myself. It seemed weird when I had to introduce myself by a different name. They didn't seem to notice the uneasy tone in my voice because they both introduced themselves to me. They said that they both lived down the road and that they went to the school that I would be going to. I told them that I had to take my things inside but I would hopefully see them later. They said bye and walked off. Things looked much better than I had originally thought that it could be. I slowly got used to living in a quiet village and by the end of the second week I had lots of new friends and I had told then why I had moved here-The made up version obviously. Everyone seemed nice but because it was so secluded there was only six people in my class. It was strange to begin with and I would go home upset because of how few people there are but after I thought about it I realised that it was much better for my education. It was as though I was having one to one tuition, which meant that I was learning much more than I did at my previous school. I still missed all my friends and in a strange way some of the teachers. After we had been at our new home for a month things started to go wrong for us. Someone had found out my mums new mobile number and she was getting prank phone calls and silent phone calls. We notified the police but they assumed that it was my fault and that I had been in contact with someone from my old school. Nobody believed me when I said that I hadn't done anything that I wasn't supposed to do and I was kept off school to be questioned and to ‘learn a lesson'. I hadn't realised that it was so serious if I had spoke to someone from my old school. I hadn't and that was what upset me, no one believed me. I stormed out of the house my eyes full of tears and a lump in my throat†¦ †¦ My scream rang through the dark lane and my chest hurt even more. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. My white T-shirt had turned red with the blood that was pouring out of my chest. I tried to think what had happened to me. I didn't know how long I had been here for. I didn't know how much longer I would be here. I heard a car engine in the distance. I tried to move but I found that no matter how hard I tried my legs would not move. I couldn't believe that I was going to be rescued but my luck changed. The car turned down a small lane. If only I had waited with my parents I wouldn't have been in this situation. Why didn't I wait at home and try to explain further? I didn't know what to do. I had no way of phoning home and I didn't know where I was. In the very far distance I saw a small yellow dot that was becoming larger with every second. I realised that it was someone on a bike. I wanted to scream for help but each time I tried there was only a small noise that escaped. I could only wait and hope that the bike wouldn't turn. It was coming straight towards me. My eyes closed and everything went dark. As I opened my eyes I could hear lots of noise and see lots of people hurrying around me. I was in a total daze. I could hear lots of people saying my name and asking if I could hear them. I could, I just couldn't respond. It was as though I was watching these people with someone else and there was nothing that I could do. I felt someone grab hold of my hand so I squeezed the hand as much as I could. When I had done this I heard the reassuring voice of my mum. It was saying â€Å"Everything will be okay. I wont let anything happen to you ever again. There is no-one that can harm you now. † I believed every word that she was saying to me. I knew that I would be okay from now on.