Michael Kors: The Last Word in Luxury Essay

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Motivation Working In Groups Education Essay

AbstractionThe planetary competitory environment is witnessing a new displacement where more and more companies are forming their activities and undertakings around groups. Bing able to work efficaciously in a group is now considered a important demand for any employee. This write up inside informations my motive behind fall ining a Masters class in direction at the Bangor Business School and how this is assisting me to smooth my accomplishments as an effectual group member and a future director. This piece of work besides identifies assorted issues faced when working in groups and simple solutions that can be applied to antagonize these booby traps to maximise end products.MOTIVATION FOR JOINING A POSTGRADUATE PROGRAM IN MANAGEMENTThe undergraduate plan in Commerce at Bishop Heaber College Trichy, India introduced me to a broad scope of subjects in my nucleus topic such as economic sciences, statistics and mathematics. The commercialism course of study non merely inculcated a high g rade of job resolution and analytical accomplishments in the nucleus field but besides gave me a opportunity to briefly explore other practical concern spheres such as direction, finance, selling, accounting and jurisprudence. These subjects are extremely relevant in the current economic scenario and it is really interesting to look into how the interplay of assorted forces thrusts planetary growing. What fascinated me most was the fact that many of the theoretical subjects in direction have profound practical public-service corporation and when applied to assorted jobs these guarantee of import procedure and merchandise betterments. In order to carry through my dream of going a high-tech concern adviser, I decided to fall in a postgraduate plan in Management at a reputed university that would supply me with ample chances in footings of growing, personally every bit good as professionally. Harmonizing to McClelland ‘s Theory of Needs motive depends on three demands – Accomplishment, power and association ( McClelland, 1961 & A ; 1975 ) . These 3 factors were instrumental in actuating me to fall in a postgraduate plan and work towards accomplishing my ends.THE BANGOR BUSINESS SCHOOL: A GLOBAL PLATFORMThe following challenge that I faced was to calculate out a university that would run into my criterions and demands and would turn out cardinal to my success in future e nterprises. After a thorough research, I zeroed down on the Bangor Business School at the Bangor University. Harmonizing to Clayton Alderfer ‘s ERG Theory, being, relatedness and growing are the three chief factors that motivate people for fall ining an organisation. My determination of fall ining the Bangor University was based on these three factors as this university provides personal attending to pupils, offers chances that pupils can associate to and nowadayss ample infinite to turn ( Alderfer, 1969 ) . The Bangor concern school provides a overplus of classs in direction with a extremely trained staff and coactions worldwide with the industry supplying first-class future chances. The fact that this concern school has been late rated by the Research Assessment Exercise ( RAE ) as the best in UK for accounting and finance farther strengthened my determination of fall ining this university ( Bangor, Homepage, 2010 ) . In recent yesteryear, the university staff was responsible for transporting out extremely acclaimed consultancy undertakings for authorities and non-government organisations with assorted publications in the prima diaries. The Bangor concern school provides abundant chances for heightening and developing competences in direction. Besides, in order to go a successful adviser I require custodies on experience and cognition of planetary concern, foreign markets and competition with a thorough apprehension of planetary forces and concern schemes. Bangor, through its coaction with foreign companies and universities provides sufficient exposure in the planetary domain, both practically every bit good as technically.Students AT BANGOR BUSINESS SCHOOLAnother factor that attracted me towards the Bangor concern school apart from the module and installations was the pupils. As the college undertakes merely a limited figure of extremely qualified pupils who are selected after stiff competition, quality of pupils is the kernel of this university. The chief advantages offered by this layout include: Fewer figure of pupils enrolled guarantee that an first-class resonance is developed with all the members of the class. This helps in interchanging rich cognition and expertness from assorted subjects such as humanistic disciplines, commercialism, jurisprudence, scientific discipline, concern disposal, selling, etc. amongst different pupils. The familiarity, good will and contacts built during the continuance of the class prove to be really effectual and of import in the long tally when different pupils join different industries at assorted profiles. These pupils have varied positions and backgrounds and sharing this enormously helps in bettering any professional. Therefore, interacting with this creme de la creme was a large motive for fall ining the Bangor University.APPROACHES TOWARDS LEARNINGDetermining an appropriate and contributing attack towards larning is indispensible to the procedure of deriving cognition. Harmonizing to Biggs & A ; Telfer ( 1987 ) , the chief attacks undertaken by pupils comprise of two elements – Motivation and Strategy. Based on this, he identified three chief attacks adopted by pupils. These were the Surface Approach, the Deep Approach and the Achieving Approach. Surface Approach: In the Surface Approach, positive and negative extrinsic motivations play a critical function and pupil ‘s scheme is to try the least to go through a topic. In the procedure he renders himself inefficient of understanding the significance of what he has learned and the interplay of factors because the motivation is superficial and he has no personal involvement in what he is making. Deep Approach: In the Deep Approach, motivation is an intrinsic wonder to larn things and the scheme undertaken by the pupil is one of personal committedness towards larning. In the procedure he comprehends and understands things in the best possible mode, attempts to co-relate things learned with past experiences and accomplishes the chief undertaking of analyzing. Achieving Approach: In the Achieving Approach, the motivation is to accomplish a peculiar end such as high classs and the scheme adopted by the pupil is to make at the most what is required to accomplish his end.MY Approach TOWARDS LEARNINGDuring my full pupil life I have ever strived towards deriving a deep cognition of each topic that I studied. In the competitory universe that a professional faces one time that he comes out of the college, a strong foundation is required if he wishes to boom and turn. Hence, when I joined the Bangor University my chief motive was to construct a strong and deep apprehension of assorted topics, variables and subjects of direction.Influence OF THE BANGOR BUSINESS SCHOOL ON MY APPROACH TOWARDS LEARNINGIn 2001, Biggs described two chief influences that shape a pupil ‘s attack towards larning – Personal factors and Teaching. These are described below: Personal factors such as background, upbringing or personality may hold a positive or negative consequence on the pupil and may motivate him towards developing a Surface Approach or a Deep Approach. Teaching: Conventional learning methods such as everyday scrutinies, clip force per unit area, taging strategies, detainment, etc. lead pupils towards developing a Surface Approach of larning. On the other manus, newer learning methods such as instance surveies, activities, tutorials, job resolution, flexible rating systems, etc. promote pupils towards developing a Deep Approach. At Bangor, the module believes in an synergistic instruction manner where the pupil is free to inquire inquiries and is encouraged to believe out of the box. In fact the techniques employed have molded assorted pupils from being Surface attacks to Deep attacks. This procedure has been accelerated by advancing student-student interactions that result in an exchange of expertness and in bend actuating pupils to travel for an in-depth analysis of assorted jobs and issues. In short, the unique and latest learning methods employed at Bangor have helped direction pupils in developing a strong apprehension of assorted direction related subjects such as Problem Solving and Decision Making, Planning, Delegation, Internal Communications, Meeting Management, Leading, Coordinating and Controlling, Pull offing Self, Managing Stress, etc. ( McNamara, 2010 ) . These methods provide a alone environment where the pupils contribute towards the growing of each other therefore maintaining one and all motivated. Simultaneously, the university achieves the primary end of instruction by heightening the acquisition ambiance of pupils and by increasing the efficiency of the module.UNITY IN DIVERSITYAs discussed earlier, Bangor demonstrates a broad scope of diverseness by uniting different people from different parts with different academic backgrounds as one large group. As a portion of the MBA course of study, many times pupils are required to be grouped harmonizing to ac tivities, instance surveies or undertakings assigned to the category. This brings the subject of working in groups. Harmonizing to Robbins ( 2004, pp:219 ) :â€Å" A Group is defined as two or more persons, interacting and mutualist, who have come together to accomplish peculiar aims † .Working in groups can be either pleasant or hard or at times both. On the brighter side, uniting people with heterogenous backgrounds and experiences ensures best consequences in footings of value add-on to the batch. Students demonstrate a high degree of originative thought, solutions design and job work outing guaranting better end products. The kineticss achieved by this theoretical account guarantees a healthy ambiance within the campus and pupils staying positively competitory.POSITIVE ASPECTS OF WORKING IN GROUPSIn Management classs, pupils are divided into groups to accomplish assorted motivations which in bend help them in deriving a competitory border when they venture out in the indu stry. A individual who works good in a group is in all possibility traveling to be an first-class squad worker when he joins an organisation. Assorted positive results achieved by working in groups are described below: When pupils work in groups they draw on each others knowledge and expertise to accomplish better consequences. This is due to the fact that a multiple sentiment is ever better than a individual sentiment as it shows heterogeneousness and avoids prejudice. Group working achieves best consequences for rating studies such as instance studies, reappraisals and reviews, research undertakings such as those that entail primary and secondary research and little undertakings that involve an statement such as a argument. Students working in groups besides make the best of the available strengths within the group. For e.g. in a written undertaking, one of the members who has an first-class bid on vocabulary can compose the paper whereas other who has an expertness in the linguistic communication can proofread. Working in groups makes pupils responsible as they work coherently to accomplish a common undertaking and in the procedure maintain actuating each other to execute better. While working in groups there is a least possibility for members to stall. Group working ensures that single manners ever come to the head supplying enhanced consequences.Press FACTORS ON GROUP WORKINGGroup working is governed by assorted pressing factors such as efficiency of members, degree of struggle, external conditions, procedures, internal communicating, etc. These factors give rise to assorted issues within the group ( Goodman, 1987 ) . Group work is seldom perfect and one is expected to meet a broad scope of issues and jobs when working in groups. For any direction pupil to be effectual it is really of import that he uses solutions design and advanced schemes for antagonizing these issues. What remains indispensable is the fact that whatever 1 does, he should non ache or pique other group members. Few issues associated with working in groups along with executable solutions will be discussed in the undermentioned paragraphs.Working IN GROUPS: ISSUES & A ; SOLUTIONSI ) DisagreementDisagreement and following a collaborative working manner are the bigg est issues when working in a group. Each person in the group should understand that the basic thought of the course of study behind transfusing a collaborative working manner is the fact that thoughts will be challenged to accomplish better consequences and a struggle is non ever bad ( Schellhardt, 1994 ) . There are opportunities that other members of the group might come up with thoughts that are right or more relevant and can be supported by grounds. In order to stay competitory in such a scenario one should promote dissension to measure the strength of 1s ain thoughts and to research other possible options. A collaborative working manner should be promoted in the group to antagonize dissension. Collaborative manner has assorted paradigms associated with it. These include stating non merely what to make in the group but besides activities required for carry throughing a peculiar undertaking i.e. how to accomplish desired consequences. Collaboration is most fruitful when a certain degree of formality is introduced in the group behaviour such as everyday meetings and advancement sheets and by maintaining the group ‘s involvement before personal 1s. Another step to antagonize dissension is to be ready to compromise. This means that each member of the group should be ready to listen and suit each others sentiment and forfeit or modify his ain theories in the visible radiation of cognition and grounds. Encouraging dissension, as discussed above, is really effectual but what should be understood is the fact that groups that merely differ do non stay functional. Therefore, it is really of import to equilibrate the 2 forces of dissension. As per Robbins ( 2004 ) a working group is non an unorganised crowd but should hold a construction and most significantly a leader or a captain or a go-between. Therefore, a go-between or chair individual can be assigned for each meeting who will listen to all the parties and come up with concluding indifferent recommendations. All groups have specific norms that are established early to guarantee smooth operation ( Hackman, 1992 ) . Discussion regulations such as no personal onslaughts can be decided early in the procedure. Group behavior encourages people to develop a critical attack towards inquiries which proves to be an advantage in existent universe puting where an person is confronted with assorted pressing issues and jobs.II ) DIVISION OF WORKDivision of work Division of work and duties is indispensible to the success of working in groups. Undertakings should be divided in such a manner that all resources are adequately utilised without over burthening any specific person. Th e existent undertaking can be broken down into smaller sub-tasks and each sub-task can be assigned to one individual. Care must be taken to guarantee that sub-tasks should be divided harmonizing to single strengths. For e.g. a individual good at proofreading can be assigned for proofreading and one good at forming should be assigned to forming informations and concluding end product. Furthermore, interpersonal accomplishments are a deciding factor for high public presentation and members should show and larn these from each other to better their competences ( Stevens & A ; Campion, 1994 ) . Therefore, to maximise the use of resources work should be delegated harmonizing to the strengths and expertness of group members.III ) SOCIAL IdlenessCovering with Slackers is another issue in group working. This phenomenon called as Social Loafing ( Comer, 1995 ) refers to the inclination of people to work less when working in groups. Normally persons on a individual undertaking are uniformly g raded hence go forthing a large room for one or more members to go dawdlers. To cover with this state of affairs, regulations should be laid down at the start itself. These can be simple penalties such as if a member does non go to a meeting without any specific ground he would purchase a Burger for everyone in the group to harsh 1s such as non including the name of the individual on the concluding study. Usually group members end up making excess work because they do non take shirkers to undertaking and do non talk their head. On the contrary, such sentiments and issues should be flagged at the earliest in the group.IV ) RESPECT FOR INDIVIDUALAnother chief issue associated with working in groups is keeping regard for persons. The image becomes hard when one or more members in the group see themselves superior and smarter than others. This is a unsafe attitude that may do clash within the group. Besides there is a opportunity where persons may believe that they would hold learnt bet ter if they had worked separately on the subject. Researchs have demonstrated that group working is more efficient in doing better quality and speedy determinations when compared to single working ( Cooke & A ; Kernaghan, 1987 ) . It is besides of import to promote members to discourse their strengths and failings at the first session itself so that they can be best utilised. Sharing of ideas by and large consequences in coherence within a group as people feel nearer to each other. Group members should be encouraged to develop and heighten their ability to LISTEN. Group works best when all members are ready to listen to each other with an unfastened head. Furthermore, in a campus environment where pupils come from different states and civilizations, something which is acceptable in one civilization might non be the same in another ( Axtell, 1991 ) . Therefore, regard for persons, their civilizations and values is indispensable to the success of any group.V ) CommunicationTimely communicating on all undertaking and single related affairs is paramount to the success of any group. Unable to run into at distinct clip or topographic point can take to perturbations in the smooth running of a group. Regular communicating should be maintained in the signifier of regular meetings to be held at a stipulated clip agreed amongst the group members. Here, persons can v oice their findings on assorted subjects every bit good as flag their personal jobs if any. Other options such as electronic mails, telephones, confab suites, couriers, etc. may be used if in instance one-to-one treatments can non be planned at all. One of the members can be assigned to enter proceedingss of the meeting and can go around the meeting notes to everyone. This formalizes the procedure of communicating and makes certain that everyone in the group is on the same platform. Besides it is easier for the members to look back on the notes and see if they are on the mark and have achieved what was decided as per agenda.VI ) TIME MANAGEMENTInefficient clip direction besides causes a batch of jobs if things are non achieved as distinct. Therefore to avoid clip lags the best attack is to hold pre-agreed mileposts for the undertaking that can be converted into Gantt charts. It is a misconception that working in a group takes lesser clip. In fact, working in a group can be really cl ip devouring due to encephalon storming, developing understanding on a subject, collating information, alterations and proofreading, etc. Thus, group work should ne'er be considered as less work in lesser clip. It is besides of import to use meeting clip expeditiously to avoid slowdown subsequently on. To accomplish this, the docket of the following meeting can be decided in the current one itself ; all members should come prepared for the meeting ; go-between can direct a reminder through electronic mail or phone before for the approaching meeting ; go-between or chair individual should be rigorous about the timelines.Decision: MBA & A ; BEYONDTo sum up, prosecuting a Masters grade in Management for me is non merely a tool to accomplish position, richness and wealths but a ladder to understand and research assorted spheres of direction. The chief motive behind trailing this plan is to play with assorted direction patterns in order to understand the interplay of factors and to larn ways of using latest theories of direction to pattern. This will assist me in going an first-class director by steering my accomplishments to plan efficient and advanced concern solutions. Continuous chase for wisdom has made me look up to the cognition that I already had and has farther motivated me to hone my accomplishments. The Bangor Business School has provided me an first-class chance to carry through my dream by fall ining this class and deriving sufficient in footings of proficient accomplishments, interpersonal accomplishments and contacts. This concern school has non merely equipped me with a deep cognition of the class stuff but is determining me to be an effectual scholar and hearer. Assorted direction attacks and rules that I am larning in this class such as working in groups will fit me better to accommodate easy when I join the existent universe of concern. My love for direction patterns will do me take up challenges whole heartedly.APPLICATIONS OF THE CURRENT TOPICThis organic structure of work can be used by pupils to understand the importance and kineticss of working in groups. Furthermore, simple solutions proposed can be easy adopted and implemente d by one and all to maximise end products when working in groups.

A Game of Thrones Chapter Thirty-eight

Tyrion You want eat?† Mord asked, glowering. He had a plate of oiled beans in one thick, stub-fingered hand. Tyrion Lannister was starved, but he refused to let this brute see him cringe. â€Å"A leg of lamb would be pleasant,† he said, from the heap of soiled straw in the corner of his cell. â€Å"Perhaps a dish of peas and onions, some fresh baked bread with butter, and a flagon of mulled wine to wash it down. Or beer, if that's easier. I try not to be overly particular.† â€Å"Is beans,† Mord said. â€Å"Here.† He held out the plate. Tyrion sighed. The turnkey was twenty stone of gross stupidity, with brown rotting teeth and small dark eyes. The left side of his face was slick with scar where an axe had cut off his ear and part of his cheek. He was as predictable as he was ugly, but Tyrion was hungry. He reached up for the plate. Mord jerked it away, grinning. â€Å"Is here,† he said, holding it out beyond Tyrion's reach. The dwarf climbed stiffly to his feet, every joint aching. â€Å"Must we play the same fool's game with every meal?† He made another grab for the beans. Mord shambled backward, grinning through his rotten teeth. â€Å"Is here, dwarf man.† He held the plate out at arm's length, over the edge where the cell ended and the sky began. â€Å"You not want eat? Here. Come take.† Tyrion's arms were too short to reach the plate, and he was not about to step that close to the edge. All it would take would be a quick shove of Mord's heavy white belly, and he would end up a sickening red splotch on the stones of Sky, like so many other prisoners of the Eyrie over the centuries. â€Å"Come to think on it, I'm not hungry after all,† he declared, retreating to the corner of his cell. Mord grunted and opened his thick fingers. The wind took the plate, flipping it over as it fell. A handful of beans sprayed back at them as the food tumbled out of sight. The turnkey laughed, his gut shaking like a bowl of pudding. Tyrion felt a pang of rage. â€Å"You fucking son of a pox-ridden ass,† he spat. â€Å"I hope you die of a bloody flux.† For that, Mord gave him a kick, driving a steel-toed boot hard into Tyrion's ribs on the way out. â€Å"I take it back!† he gasped as he doubled over on the straw. â€Å"I'll kill you myself, I swear it!† The heavy iron-bound door slammed shut. Tyrion heard the rattle of keys. For a small man, he had been cursed with a dangerously big mouth, he reflected as he crawled back to his corner of what the Arryns laughably called their dungeon. He huddled beneath the thin blanket that was his only bedding, staring out at a blaze of empty blue sky and distant mountains that seemed to go on forever, wishing he still had the shadowskin cloak he'd won from Marillion at dice, after the singer had stolen it off the body of that brigand chief. The skin had smelled of blood and mold, but it was warm and thick. Mord had taken it the moment he laid eyes on it. The wind tugged at his blanket with gusts sharp as talons. His cell was miserably small, even for a dwarf. Not five feet away, where a wall ought to have been, where a wall would be in a proper dungeon, the floor ended and the sky began. He had plenty of fresh air and sunshine, and the moon and stars by night, but Tyrion would have traded it all in an instant for the dankest, gloomiest pit in the bowels of the Casterly Rock. â€Å"You fly,† Mord had promised him, when he'd shoved him into the cell. â€Å"Twenty day, thirty, fifty maybe. Then you fly.† The Arryns kept the only dungeon in the realm where the prisoners were welcome to escape at will. That first day, after girding up his courage for hours, Tyrion had lain flat on his stomach and squirmed to the edge, to poke out his head and look down. Sky was six hundred feet below, with nothing between but empty air. If he craned his neck out as far as it could go, he could see other cells to his right and left and above him. He was a bee in a stone honeycomb, and someone had torn off his wings. It was cold in the cell, the wind screamed night and day, and worst of all, the floor sloped. Ever so slightly, yet it was enough. He was afraid to close his eyes, afraid that he might roll over in his steep and wake in sudden terror as he went sliding off the edge. Small wonder the sky cells drove men mad. Gods save me, some previous tenant had written on the wall in something that looked suspiciously like blood, the blue is calling. At first Tyrion wondered who he'd been, and what had become of him; later, he decided that he would rather not know. If only he had shut his mouth . . . The wretched boy had started it, looking down on him from a throne of carved weirwood beneath the moon-and-falcon banners of House Arryn. Tyrion Lannister had been looked down on all his life, but seldom by rheumy-eyed six-year-olds who needed to stuff fat cushions under their cheeks to lift them to the height of a man. â€Å"Is he the bad man?† the boy had asked, clutching his doll. â€Å"He is,† the Lady Lysa had said from the lesser throne beside him. She was all in blue, powdered and perfumed for the suitors who filled her court. â€Å"He's so small,† the Lord of the Eyrie said, giggling. â€Å"This is Tyrion the Imp, of House Lannister, who murdered your father.† She raised her voice so it carried down the length of High Hall of the Eyrie, ringing off the milk-white walls and the slender pillars, so every man could hear it. â€Å"He slew the Hand of the King!† â€Å"Oh, did I kill him too?† Tyrion had said, like a fool. That would have been a very good time to have kept his mouth closed and his head bowed. He could see that now; seven hells, he had seen it then. The High Hall of the Arryns was long and austere, with a forbidding coldness to its walls of blue-veined white marble, but the faces around him had been colder by far. The power of Casterly Rock was far away, and there were no friends of the Lannisters in the Vale of Arryn. Submission and silence would have been his best defenses. But Tyrion's mood had been too foul for sense. To his shame, he had faltered during the last leg of their day-long climb up to the Eyrie, his stunted legs unable to take him any higher. Bronn had carried him the rest of the way, and the humiliation poured oil on the flames of his anger. â€Å"It would seem I've been a busy little fellow,† he said with bitter sarcasm. â€Å"I wonder when I found the time to do all this slaying and murdering.† He ought to have remembered who he was dealing with. Lysa Arryn and her half-sane weakling son had not been known at court for their love of wit, especially when it was directed at them. â€Å"Imp,† Lysa said coldly, â€Å"you will guard that mocking tongue of yours and speak to my son politely, or I promise you will have cause to regret it. Remember where you are. This is the Eyrie, and these are knights of the Vale you see around you, true men who loved Jon Arryn well. Every one of them would die for me.† â€Å"Lady Arryn, should any harm come to me, my brother Jaime will be pleased to see that they do.† Even as he spat out the words, Tyrion knew they were folly. â€Å"Can you fly, my lord of Lannister?† Lady Lysa asked. â€Å"Does a dwarf have wings? If not, you would be wiser to swallow the next threat that comes to mind.† â€Å"I made no threats,† Tyrion said. â€Å"That was a promise.† Little Lord Robert hopped to his feet at that, so upset he dropped his doll. â€Å"You can't hurt us,† he screamed. â€Å"No one can hurt us here. Tell him, Mother, tell him he can't hurt us here.† The boy began to twitch. â€Å"The Eyrie is impregnable,† Lysa Arryn declared calmly. She drew her son close, holding him safe in the circle of her plump white arms. â€Å"The Imp is trying to frighten us, sweet baby. The Lannisters are all liars. No one will hurt my sweet boy.† The hell of it was, she was no doubt right. Having seen what it took to get here, Tyrion could well imagine how it would be for a knight trying to fight his way up in armor, while stones and arrows poured down from above and enemies contested with him for every step. Nightmare did not begin to describe it. Small wonder the Eyrie had never been taken. Still, Tyrion had been unable to silence himself. â€Å"Not impregnable,† he said, â€Å"merely inconvenient.† Young Robert pointed down, his hand trembling. â€Å"You're a liar. Mother, I want to see him fly.† Two guardsmen in sky-blue cloaks seized Tyrion by the arms, lifting him off his floor. The gods only know what might have happened then were it not for Catelyn Stark. â€Å"Sister,† she called out from where she stood below the thrones, â€Å"I beg you to remember, this man is my prisoner. I will not have him harmed.† Lysa Arryn glanced at her sister coolly for a moment, then rose and swept down on Tyrion, her long skirts trailing after her. For an instant he feared she would strike him, but instead she commanded them to release him. Her men shoved him to the floor, his legs went out from under him, and Tyrion fell. He must have made quite a sight as he struggled to his knees, only to feel his right leg spasm, sending him sprawling once more. Laughter boomed up and down the High Hall of the Arryns. â€Å"My sister's little guest is too weary to stand,† Lady Lysa announced. â€Å"Ser Vardis, take him down to the dungeon. A rest in one of our sky cells will do him much good.† The guardsmen jerked him upright. Tyrion Lannister dangled between them, kicking feebly, his face red with shame. â€Å"I will remember this,† he told them all as they carried him off. And so he did, for all the good it did him. At first he had consoled himself that this imprisonment could not last long. Lysa Arryn wanted to humble him, that was all. She would send for him again, and soon. If not her, then Catelyn Stark would want to question him. This time he would guard his tongue more closely. They dare not kill him out of hand; he was still a Lannister of Casterly Rock, and if they shed his blood, it would mean war. Or so he had told himself. Now he was not so certain. Perhaps his captors only meant to let him rot here, but he feared he did not have the strength to rot for long. He was growing weaker every day, and it was only a matter of time until Mord's kicks and blows did him serious harm, provided the gaoler did not starve him to death first. A few more nights of cold and hunger, and the blue would start calling to him too. He wondered what was happening beyond the walls (such as they were) of his cell. Lord Tywin would surely have sent out riders when the word reached him. Jaime might be leading a host through the Mountains of the Moon even now . . . unless he was riding north against Winterfell instead. Did anyone outside the Vale even suspect where Catelyn Stark had taken him? He wondered what Cersei would do when she heard. The king could order him freed, but would Robert listen to his queen or his Hand? Tyrion had no illusions about the king's love for his sister. If Cersei kept her wits about her, she would insist the king sit in judgment of Tyrion himself. Even Ned Stark could scarcely object to that, not without impugning the honor of the king. And Tyrion would be only too glad to take his chances in a trial. Whatever murders they might lay at his door, the Starks had no proof of anything so far as he could see. Let them make their case before the Iron Throne and the lords of the land. It would be the end of them. If only Cersei were clever enough to see that . . . Tyrion Lannister sighed. His sister was not without a certain low cunning, but her pride blinded her. She would see the insult in this, not the opportunity. And Jaime was even worse, rash and headstrong and quick to anger. His brother never untied a knot when he could slash it in two with his sword. He wondered which of them had sent the footpad to silence the Stark boy, and whether they had truly conspired at the death of Lord Arryn. If the old Hand had been murdered, it was deftly and subtly done. Men of his age died of sudden illness all the time. In contrast, sending some oaf with a stolen knife after Brandon Stark struck him as unbelievably clumsy. And wasn't that peculiar, come to think on it . . . Tyrion shivered. Now there was a nasty suspicion. Perhaps the direwolf and the lion were not the only beasts in the woods, and if that was true, someone was using him as a catspaw. Tyrion Lannister hated being used. He would have to get out of here, and soon. His chances of overpowering Mord were small to none, and no one was about to smuggle him a six-hundred-foot-long rope, so he would have to talk himself free. His mouth had gotten him into this cell; it could damn well get him out. Tyrion pushed himself to his feet, doing his best to ignore the slope of the floor beneath him, with its ever-so-subtle tug toward the edge. He hammered on the door with a fist. â€Å"Mord!† he shouted. â€Å"Turnkey! Mord, I want you!† He had to keep it up a good ten minutes before he heard footsteps. Tyrion stepped back an instant before the door opened with a crash. â€Å"Making noise,† Mord growled, with blood in his eyes. Dangling from one meaty hand was a leather strap, wide and thick, doubled over in his fist. Never show them you're afraid, Tyrion reminded himself. â€Å"How would you like to be rich?† he asked. Mord hit him. He swung the strap backhand, lazily, but the leather caught Tyrion high on the arm. The force of it staggered him, and the pain made him grit his teeth. â€Å"No mouth, dwarf man,† Mord warned him. â€Å"Gold,† Tyrion said, miming a smile. â€Å"Casterly Rock is full of gold . . . ahhhh . . . † This time the blow was a forehand, and Mord put more of his arm into the swing, making the leather crack and jump. It caught Tyrion in the ribs and dropped him to his knees, wimpering. He forced himself to look up at the gaoler. â€Å"As rich as the Lannisters,† he wheezed. â€Å"That's what they say, Mord—† Mord grunted. The strap whistled through the air and smashed Tyrion full in the face. The pain was so bad he did not remember falling, but when he opened his eyes again he was on the floor of his cell. His ear was ringing, and his mouth was full of blood. He groped for purchase, to push himself up, and his fingers brushed against . . . nothing. Tyrion snatched his hand back as fast as if it had been scalded, and tried his best to stop breathing. He had fallen right on the edge, inches from the blue. â€Å"More to say?† Mord held the strap between his fists and gave it a sharp pull. The snap made Tyrion jump. The turnkey laughed. He won't push me over, Tyrion told himself desperately as he crawled away from the edge. Catelyn Stark wants me alive, he doesn't dare kill me. He wiped the blood off his lips with the back of his hand, grinned, and said, â€Å"That was a stiff one, Mord.† The gaoler squinted at him, trying to decide if he was being mocked. â€Å"I could make good use of a strong man like you.† The strap flew at him, but this time Tyrion was able to cringe away from it. He took a glancing blow to the shoulder, nothing more. â€Å"Gold,† he repeated, scrambling backward like a crab, â€Å"more gold than you'll see here in a lifetime. Enough to buy land, women, horses . . . you could be a lord. Lord Mord.† Tyrion hawked up a glob of blood and phlegm and spat it out into the sky. â€Å"Is no gold,† Mord said. He's listening! Tyrion thought. â€Å"They relieved me of my purse when they captured me, but the gold is still mine. Catelyn Stark might take a man prisoner, but she'd never stoop to rob him. That wouldn't be honorable. Help me, and all the gold is yours.† Mord's strap licked out, but it was a halfhearted, desultory swing, slow and contemptuous. Tyrion caught the leather in his hand and held it prisoned. â€Å"There will be no risk to you. All you need do is deliver a message.† The gaoler yanked his leather strap free of Tyrion's grasp. â€Å"Message,† he said, as if he had never heard the word before. His frown made deep creases in his brow. â€Å"You heard me, my lord. Only carry my word to your lady. Tell her . . . † What? What would possibly make Lysa Anyn relent? The inspiration came to Tyrion Lannister suddenly. † . . . .tell her that I wish to confess my crimes.† Mord raised his arm and Tyrion braced himself for another blow, but the turnkey hesitated. Suspicion and greed warred in his eyes. He wanted that gold, yet he feared a trick; he had the look of a man who had often been tricked. â€Å"Is lie,† he muttered darkly. â€Å"Dwarf man cheat me.† â€Å"I will put my promise in writing,† Tyrion vowed. Some illiterates held writing in disdain; others seemed to have a superstitious reverence for the written word, as if it were some sort of magic. Fortunately, Mord was one of the latter. The turnkey lowered the strap. â€Å"Writing down gold. Much gold.† â€Å"Oh, much gold,† Tyrion assured him. â€Å"The purse is just a taste, my friend. My brother wears armor of solid gold plate.† In truth, Jaime's armor was gilded steel, but this oaf would never know the difference. Mord fingered his strap thoughtfully, but in the end, he relented and went to fetch paper and ink. When the letter was written, the gaoler frowned at it suspiciously. â€Å"Now deliver my message,† Tyrion urged. He was shivering in his sleep when they came for him, late that night. Mord opened the door but kept his silence. Ser Vardis Egen woke Tyrion with the point of his boot. â€Å"On your feet, Imp. My lady wants to see you.† Tyrion rubbed the sleep from his eyes and put on a grimace he scarcely felt. â€Å"No doubt she does, but what makes you think I wish to see her?† Ser Vardis frowned. Tyrion remembered him well from the years he had spent at King's Landing as the captain of the Hand's household guard. A square, plain face, silver hair, a heavy build, and no humor whatsoever. â€Å"Your wishes are not my concern. On your feet, or I'll have you carried.† Tyrion clambered awkwardly to his feet. â€Å"A cold night,† he said casually, â€Å"and the High Hall is so drafty. I don't wish to catch a chill. Mord, if you would be so good, fetch my cloak.† The gaoler squinted at him, face dull with suspicion. â€Å"My cloak,† Tyrion repeated. â€Å"The shadowskin you took from me for safekeeping. You recall.† â€Å"Get him the damnable cloak,† Ser Vardis said. Mord did not dare grumble. He gave Tyrion a glare that promised future retribution, yet he went for the cloak. When he draped it around his prisoner's neck, Tyrion smiled. â€Å"My thanks. I shall think of you whenever I wear it.† He flung the trailing end of the long fur over his right shoulder, and felt warm for the first time in days. â€Å"Lead on, Ser Vardis.† The High Hall of the Arryns was aglow with the light of fifty torches, burning in the sconces along the walls. The Lady Lysa wore black silk, with the moon-and-falcon sewn on her breast in pearls. Since she did not look the sort to join the Night's Watch, Tyrion could only imagine that she had decided mourning clothes were appropriate garb for a confession. Her long auburn hair, woven into an elaborate braid, fell across her left shoulder. The taller throne beside her was empty; no doubt the little Lord of the Eyrie was off shaking in his sleep. Tyrion was thankful for that much, at least. He bowed deeply and took a moment to glance around the hall. Lady Arryn had summoned her knights and retainers to hear his confession, as he had hoped. He saw Ser Brynden Tully's craggy face and Lord Nestor Royce's bluff one. Beside Nestor stood a younger man with fierce black side-whiskers who could only be his heir, Ser Albar. Most of the principal houses of the Vale were represented. Tyrion noted Ser Lyn Corbray, slender as a sword, Lord Hunter with his gouty legs, the widowed Lady Waynwood surrounded by her sons. Others sported sigils he did not know; broken lance, green viper, burning tower, winged chalice. Among the lords of the Vale were several of his companions from the high road; Ser Rodrik Cassel, pale from half-healed wounds, stood with Ser Willis Wode beside him. Marillion the singer had found a new woodharp. Tyrion smiled; whatever happened here tonight, he did not wish it to happen in secret, and there was no one like a singer for spreading a story near and far. In the rear of the hall, Bronn lounged beneath a pillar. The freerider's black eyes were fixed on Tyrion, and his hand lay lightly on the pommel of his sword. Tyrion gave him a long look, wondering . . . Catelyn Stark spoke first. â€Å"You wish to confess your crimes, we are told.† â€Å"I do, my lady,† Tyrion answered. Lysa Arryn smiled at her sister. â€Å"The sky cells always break them. The gods can see them there, and there is no darkness to hide in.† â€Å"He does not look broken to me,† Lady Catelyn said. Lady Lysa paid her no mind. â€Å"Say what you will,† she commanded Tyrion. And now to roll the dice, he thought with another quick glance back at Bronn. â€Å"Where to begin? I am a vile little man, I confess it. My crimes and sins are beyond counting, my lords and ladies. I have lain with whores, not once but hundreds of times. I have wished my own lord father dead, and my sister, our gracious queen, as well.† Behind him, someone chuckled. â€Å"I have not always treated my servants with kindness. I have gambled. I have even cheated, I blush to admit. I have said many cruel and malicious things about the noble lords and ladies of the court.† That drew outright laughter. â€Å"Once I—† â€Å"Silence!† Lysa Arryn's pale round face had turned a burning pink. â€Å"What do you imagine you are doing, dwarf?† Tyrion cocked his head to one side. â€Å"Why, confessing my crimes, my lady—† Catelyn Stark took a step forward. â€Å"You are accused of sending a hired knife to slay my son Bran in his bed, and of conspiring to murder Lord Jon Arryn, the Hand of the King.† Tyrion gave a helpless shrug. â€Å"Those crimes I cannot confess, I fear. I know nothing of any murders.† Lady Lysa rose from her weirwood throne. â€Å"I will not be made mock of. You have had your little jape, Imp. I trust you enjoyed it. Ser Vardis, take him back to the dungeon . . . but this time find him a smaller cell, with a floor more sharply sloped.† â€Å"Is this how justice is done in the Vale?† Tyrion roared, so loudly that Ser Vardis froze for an instant. â€Å"Does honor stop at the Bloody Gate? You accuse me of crimes, I deny them, so you throw me into an open cell to freeze and starve.† He lifted his head, to give them all a good look at the bruises Mord had left on his face. â€Å"Where is the king's justice? Is the Eyrie not part of the Seven Kingdoms? I stand accused, you say. Very well. I demand a trial! Let me speak, and let my truth or falsehood be judged openly, in the sight of gods and men.† A low murmuring filled the High Hall. He had her, Tyrion knew. He was highborn, the son of the most powerful lord in the realm, the brother of the queen. He could not be denied a trial. Guardsmen in sky-blue cloaks had started toward Tyrion, but Ser Vardis bid them halt and looked to Lady Lysa. Her small mouth twitched in a petulant smile. â€Å"If you are tried and found to be guilty of the crimes for which you stand accused, then by the king's own laws, you must pay with your life's blood. We keep no headsman in the Eyrie, my lord of Lannister. Open the Moon Door.† The press of spectators parted. A narrow weirwood door stood between two slender marble pillars, a crescent moon carved in the white wood. Those standing closest edged backward as a pair of guardsmen marched through. One man removed the heavy bronze bars; the second pulled the door inward. Their blue cloaks rose snapping from their shoulders, caught in the sudden gust of wind that came howling through the open door. Beyond was the emptiness of the night sky, speckled with cold uncaring stars. â€Å"Behold the king's justice,† Lysa Arryn said. Torch flames fluttered like pennons along the walls, and here and there the odd torch guttered out. â€Å"Lysa, I think this unwise,† Catelyn Stark said as the black wind swirled around the hall. Her sister ignored her. â€Å"You want a trial, my lord of Lannister. Very well, a trial you shall have. My son will listen to whatever you care to say, and you shall hear his judgment. Then you may leave . . . by one door or the other.† She looked so pleased with herself, Tyrion thought, and small wonder. How could a trial threaten her, when her weakling son was the lord judge? Tyrion glanced at her Moon Door. Mother, I want to see him fly! the boy had said. How many men had the snot-nosed little wretch sent through that door already? â€Å"I thank you, my good lady, but I see no need to trouble Lord Robert,† Tyrion said politely. â€Å"The gods know the truth of my innocence. I will have their verdict, not the judgment of men. I demand trial by combat.† A storm of sudden laughter filled the High Hall of the Arryns. Lord Nestor Royce snorted, Ser Willis chuckled, Ser Lyn Corbray guffawed, and others threw back their heads and howled until tears ran down their faces. Marillion clumsily plucked a gay note on his new woodharp with the fingers of his broken hand. Even the wind seemed to whistle with derision as it came skirling through the Moon Door. Lysa Arryn's watery blue eyes looked uncertain. He had caught her off balance. â€Å"You have that right, to be sure.† The young knight with the green viper embroidered on his surcoat stepped forward and went to one knee. â€Å"My lady, I beg the boon of championing your cause.† â€Å"The honor should be mine,† old Lord Hunter said. â€Å"For the love I bore your lord husband, let me avenge his death.† â€Å"My father served Lord Jon faithfully as High Steward of the Vale,† Ser Albar Royce boomed. â€Å"Let me serve his son in this.† â€Å"The gods favor the man with the just cause,† said Ser Lyn Corbray, â€Å"yet often that turns out to be the man with the surest sword. We all know who that is.† He smiled modestly. A dozen other men all spoke at once, clamoring to be heard. Tyrion found it disheartening to realize so many strangers were eager to kill him. Perhaps this had not been such a clever plan after all. Lady Lysa raised a hand for silence. â€Å"I thank you, my lords, as I know my son would thank you if he were among us. No men in the Seven Kingdoms are as bold and true as the knights of the Vale. Would that I could grant you all this honor. Yet I can choose only one.† She gestured. â€Å"Ser Vardis Egen, you were ever my lord husband's good right hand. You shall be our champion.† Ser Vardis had been singularly silent. â€Å"My lady,† he said gravely, sinking to one knee, â€Å"pray give this burden to another, I have no taste for it. The man is no warrior. Look at him. A dwarf, half my size and lame in the legs. It would be shameful to slaughter such a man and call it justice.† Oh, excellent, Tyrion thought. â€Å"I agree.† Lysa glared at him. â€Å"You demanded a trial by combat.† â€Å"And now I demand a champion, such as you have chosen for yourself. My brother Jaime will gladly take my part, I know.† â€Å"Your precious Kingslayer is hundreds of leagues from here,† snapped Lysa Arryn. â€Å"Send a bird for him. I will gladly await his arrival.† â€Å"You will face Ser Vardis on the morrow.† â€Å"Singer,† Tyrion said, turning to Marillion, â€Å"when you make a ballad of this, be certain you tell them how Lady Arryn denied the dwarf the right to a champion, and sent him forth lame and bruised and hobbling to face her finest knight.† â€Å"I deny you nothing!† Lysa Arryn said, her voice peeved and shrill with irritation. â€Å"Name your champion, Imp . . . if you think you can find a man to die for you.† â€Å"If it is all the same to you, I'd sooner find one to kill for me.† Tyrion looked over the long hall. No one moved. For a long moment he wondered if it had all been a colossal blunder. Then there was a stirring in the rear of the chamber. â€Å"I'll stand for the dwarf,† Bronn called out.

History the world Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

History the world - Essay Example The early human communities were dependent on the nature for food as they were hunters and gatherers. The early settlements were sparse as compared to the new age due to numerous hunters present, and the game would not suffice. In addition, they would fish for their food along water bodies within their proximity. Their tools were of basic materials such as rocks and wood. They also acquired a language through which they would communicate, and developed the ability to use it in order to pass on what they had learnt. The early cultures were vulnerable to wild beasts and natural disasters, which may have developed enormous fear of the unknown forces of nature, these uncertainties of human life established religious beliefs and practices in an effort to preserve themselves from the unknown forces (The birth of civilisation 2). As the clock turned, the early man’s tools grew more complex and advance, and were more precise. These advancements lead to domestication of plants and animals, meaning that people could move to areas where these plants and animals did not naturally occur. The communities explored other areas such as valleys and riverbeds allowing their expansion and creating room for more advancement. The farmers also built dwellings that are more permanent in an effort to care for their crops from the planting season to harvesting. Along the riverbeds, pottery was acquired, illustrating the beginning of specialisation. Communities can be distinguished from each other owing to the level of social complexity and organisation, as well as their vast economic and cultural activities. For instance, the earliest of civilisations in Mesopotamia would use rivers for irrigation in the fields, which was not observed in other regions. This ensured sufficient food production for the community who would engage in other

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Research Paper on the film No Country For Old Men - Essay Example Using the critical mythological approach in analyzing the film’s content and how the events lead to one another, it is possible to entertain the existence of strong or invincible people despite having the fragile nature of humans, and how differing ideas regarding higher beings, destinies or fate, and the laws of the universe control the thoughts and viewpoints of individuals, which are also universal themes seen in older or classical stories. Evasion of and Facing People, Circumstances, and Death Some of the most compelling stories include parts wherein the main protagonist escapes getting hunted down and killed by adversaries, of having the need to face the enemies, and the possibility of ending up dead. This is an archetypal storyline of heroes and their adventures or quests, which in a way builds the heroic character and nature of the main protagonists (Guerin 153). ... rchetypal predisposition, wherein there is an evasion of circumstances when a hero initially stops to think and plan, to meditate or do retrospective thinking in order to transform and become better (Guerin 166). On the other hand the need to face people, circumstances and death as the consequence of events are shown in Moss’s unexpected death not from Chigurh but from a group of Mexicans shows how he faces death as the circumstance of seeing the results of a drug deal gone wrong and holding on to money he does not rightfully own right from the start, of Chigurh facing divine punishment after getting hit by a car and nearly dying right after scenes imply that he killed Moss’s wife, Carla Jean, and of Sheriff Bell having to face the reality that he has to let go of some things and move on with his life as his retired uncle explains to him(â€Å"No Country†).While not in their entirety seen as an adventure or heroic story, the individual lives of Moss, Chigurh, and Sheriff Bell reflect similarities with the quests of mythical heroes, of which some may succeed such as Chigurh, some may fail such as Moss and his death, and some momentarily put it on hold such as Sheriff Bell’s thoughts on resignation. Invincibility and Weakness Invincibility and weakness are often bound to each other, and usually employed in some, if not most classical works to remind people that despite all perfections within humans there will always be a hint of a weakness to ground them as mere mortals (Guerin 153). The Coen Brothers exploited this archetypal image of invincibility and weakness in developing Chigurh, the main antagonist in No Country for Old Men. Chigurh’s character is the definition of a scary, amoral, and dangerous antagonist that cannot be persuaded to spare lives by any means

Discussion Question 2 Week 10 - Short- and Long- Run Impact Assignment

Discussion Question 2 Week 10 - Short- and Long- Run Impact - Assignment Example en in shared service centers); eliminate redundant information systems and unify multiple platforms; minimize inconsistencies in data definitions; automate manual processes; reduce the number of handoffs; better integrate far-flung offices and acquisitions; bring new employees up to speed faster; broaden responsibility for controls; and eliminate unnecessary controls† (Wagner & Dittmar, 2006, p. 1). 2. From the e-Activity above, analyze how easy or difficult it may be for officers and managers of organizations to stay in strict compliance with SEC rules and for consumers, investors, and regulators to detect errors. Then, determine at least one action that CEOs and boards can take to improve compliance. The 10Q of a company are actually defined as â€Å"a comprehensive report of a companys performance that must be submitted quarterly by all public companies to the Securities and Exchange Commission. In the 10-Q, firms are required to disclose relevant information regarding their financial position. The form must be submitted on time, and the information should be available to all interested parties† (Investopedia US, 2013, p. 1). The 10Q was likewise noted to be filed within 35 days after of the first three quarters. Therefore, it is tedious for officers and managers to stay in strict compliance due to the regularity and comprehensiveness of the information which should be disclosed and to be likewise disseminated to relevant stakeholders: consumers, investors, and regulators. Therefore, to improve compliance, since there is a standard format to the followed, accounting and finance personnel must regularly update their financial reports (which is actually done in the company’s books daily, weekly and monthly). As such, consolidating the figures on the required quarterly basis would be easier. For instance, a look at the 10Q of Amazon.com contains financial information and other information contained in 47 pages (Amazon.com, 2013). Thus, the wealth of

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English - Essay Example How many times these low feet staggered (238) BY EMILY DICKINSON How many times these low feet staggered - Only the soldered mouth can tell - Try - can you stir the awful rivet - Try - can you lift the hasps of steel! Stroke the cool forehead - hot so often - Lift - if you care - the listless hair - Handle the adamantine fingers Never a thimble - more - shall wear - Buzz the dull flies - on the chamber window - Brave - shines the sun through the freckled pane - Fearless - the cobweb swings from the ceiling - Indolent Housewife - in Daisies - lain! Tone and Implications of Death in Dickinson’s â€Å"The Only Ghost† and â€Å"How Many Times† Emily Dickinson, as a poetic writer, composed most of her works with the theme of death, the entirety of which can be categorized into three different periods of writings, the earliest mainly contained the themes of death and immortality, personifying death and elegiac poems and lacked the intensity and urgency of her later poe ms or their fascination with the physical aspects of death (Van Daesdonk 2007). Because of Dickinson’s immense fascination with this subject, it is interesting to compare her pieces against each other to see how her view of death changed over the years of her writing. These poems are â€Å"The Only Ghost I Ever Saw† and â€Å"How Many Times These Low Feet Staggered.† â€Å"The Only Ghost I Ever Saw† has a softer tone and composition that suggested an early fascination with death and disillusionment with the Church’s idea of death, while â€Å"How Many Times These Low Feet Staggered† has a more realistic and macabre tone and composition because of the realization of how death reveals a person’s past identity, which suggests that, in some cases, death is better than life after all. â€Å"The Only Ghost I Ever Saw,† written in 1857-62, is an example of the earlier period of Dickinson’s writing. There are many different inte rpretations of this piece, the most obvious one is that the poem centers on an individual who has encountered the spirit of a person and is shocked by the meeting. A deeper analysis shows the possibility of the poem being about how the speaker, or Dickinson, is forced to reassess her loyalty or belief of Christianity through the encounter of a ghost. In contrast, â€Å"How Many Times These Low Feet Staggered,† written 1890, can be recognized to belong in her later period, as its theme centers on the viewing of the corpse of a mundane housewife and the physical aspects of her death. The poem itself is in the first person persona and contains a grotesque dreary tone; and from the poem’s fascination with the corpse, the Dickinson’s frustration and obsession with death is shown. Concerning the form and structure of â€Å"The Only Ghost I ever saw,† the piece is a ballad, one of the two main forms of narrative poetry, as the poem uses the traditional ballad me tre, which is made up of rhyming quatrains of alternative four-stress and three-stress lines. It is written in iambic metre which gives the poem a soft flowing, lilting rhythm, this along with the many pauses throughout the poem cause the pace to become slow and smooth, much like the movement of the poem’s subject, a ghost, would be. â€Å"How Many Times† differs from this in that the meter of the poem is iambic, the first syllable of each line is unstressed followed by a stressed one; however, the first line of the poem intentionally breaks this pattern. â€Å"

Assignment 4 Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Assignment 4 - Case Study Example If cooperation were present in the organization, relationships between employees and employers and among the employees would improve. Question #2 There are several problems facing Frank Questin as the Product Engineering Manager of the organization. First, he does not believe in himself with respect to his job. He constantly doubts his capacity to deal with complex situations despite being his very first time to hold a managerial position (Silverman 677). Second, he has managerial issues in that he does not complete most of his tasks on time. Additionally, his team management skills are lacking in spite of the fact that he has introduced teamwork in the organization. Third, the motivation of his employees is also deficient. This is because some of his employees are dissatisfied with their positions to the point that they would like to quit. Additionally, he receives and addresses many complaints in a day. Furthermore, at one time, he had some overdue performance appraisals. Question #3 Frank’s management style has certain pros and cons. The pros include that he facilitates and encourages teamwork and communication in the organization. ... Question#4 The major cause of conflicts among the major departments is the lack of a clear definition of roles and those responsible for these roles. This is the reason behind some employees being unavailable to help their peers in common challenges. Additionally, this has resulted in production of underperforming and faulty products. To resolve this issue, the manager must redefine all roles and ensure that all individuals are aware of their roles. This would improve the flow of work and thus reduce conflicts and complaints. Question #5 The organizational structure of Custom Chip has its pros and cons. The pros include that the employees are clearly aware of their immediate leaders. Additionally, the employees have a clear path through which they would get to a specific position when promoted. The cons include that although the employees know the immediate leader, they are not clear on a precise leader to whom they should turn for specific problems. Moreover, although the structure is clear, it does not fulfill its roles that include provision of clear work processes and roles for individual positions. Furthermore, the organization does not appear to have a specified culture that the employees follow. An organization’s culture defines the values and behaviors of employees while performing their duties. In addition, the structure lacks innovation and flexibility. Here, self-regulating teams have not been established. Such teams are flexible and have the opportunity to test their ideas so as to facilitate innovation. Question #6 To improve the current situation, Frank should take specific appropriate steps that include variation of leadership styles. First, he

Assessment Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Assessment Analysis - Essay Example Hence, educating the ESOL students with intellectual programs such as IT can emerge as a challenging process. It is worth mentioning in this regard that effective learning of IT requires the learners to possess skills in terms of numeracy and language application where the ESOL students are commonly observed to lack behind (Lawton & Turnbull, 2007; Kambouri & et. al., 2006). It is in this context that the effectiveness of a particular learning process, such as IT, depends on its assessment process by a considerable extent where the limitations possessed by individual ESOL students are addressed and mitigated within the classroom environment (Rust, 2002). Reviewing Two Assessment Methods The assessment method of observation in the classroom provides an opportunity to teachers to effectively and rationally recognize the various developmental needs of individual students from a comparative perspective. Observation also allows teachers to conduct continuous interaction with the students and gain better knowledge regarding their perceptions, individual competencies, individual limitations and other factors which strongly influence their behaviour as well as learning performances with regard to learning IT skills. Additionally, observation also assists in the proper identification of the distinctive learning needs among the students by allowing the comparison of one student with their peers in the classroom setting. It can be stated that as IT skills consist of diverse practical skills, thus observation can be regarded as a key assessment method. This method can significantly facilitate to enhance the level of motivation of a learner as development needs and lacunas can be better assessed by this method (Crown, 2004). Another assessment method that has proved to be quite effective when teaching IT to ESOL students is the application of practical tests. As mentioned by Kambouri & et. al. (2006), literacy skills are highly required among students when learning IT. Howe ver, owing to the behavioural limitations of the ESOL students and lack of knowledge in English language, the literacy rate is quite likely to differ from one group to the other as well as in the individual level as well. It is in this context that the practical test process aims at evaluating the literacy skills possessed by the students based on quantitative raking system where the learners are required to solve few IT problems through multiple-choice questioning by applying their obtained knowledge and skills learnt through the education process. Strengths and Weaknesses of Observation and Practical Test Assessment Methods Observation Method Strengths: Through continuous observation, teachers can maintain a record of students to identify the IT related skills as well as limitations possessed by individual students which are often non-verbally communicated by the students’ attitudes This process allows the observers, i.e. the teachers to prepare the IT related tasks accordi ng to the requirements and capabilities of the learners Comparison of the development of one student in comparison to the other with regard to

The Formation Of Gender Identity Essay Example for Free

The Formation Of Gender Identity Essay The debate over the factors affecting the formation of gender identity has more than a 100-year history, whereas the professional evidence-based level of the debate has been represented since the 1950s. In the Western sociology and psychology, gender identification is composed of a number of aspects, including perception of one’s gender roles, social identity and self-perception in general. The present paper is designed to address the role of biological, social and psychological factors in gender identity-shaping. In fact (Ellison, 2000), human behavior greatly depends upon hormonal secretion, as it is widely known that adrenaline is released when the brain receives a message about certain environmental threats and results in anxious and uneasy behavior, whereas   endorphins are released during exercise and result in a positive inspiration and sociability. Female sex hormones derive from ovaries and include progesterone and estrogens (mainly 17-beta-estradioll), whereas the major male hormone, testosterone, is produced by the testes. These chemicals are responsible for the formation of secondary sex characteristics and determine behaviors, attributed to the specific gender role. Masculinity in terms of gender identity is normally associated with assertiveness, self-control and aggression, provided by testosterone (Ellison, 2000), whereas femininity is conceptualized as compliance to dependence, interest in care about others and comfort creation. Byne and Parsons (1993), the followers of the classic model, indicate in their theoretical research of biological and neurobiological conditioning of   gender identification that a person’s gender is determined during conception, but the fetus begins to develop sex organs only at the 6th week of pregnancy.   Therefore, the developing testes or ovaries might begin hormonal secretion â€Å"off schedule†, which affects the development of the neural network of the brain and results in the person’s inability to accept their biological sex and the sense of gender dysphoria. Dittmann (1990) states that girls with congenital adrenal hyperplasia, the disease that refers to the overproduction of androgens, are more committed to the masculine roles like violent games, inclination to leadership in peer groups, willingness to increase physical strength, and are more likely to fell to certain degree uncomfortable in their female body, as the scholar notes that a number of teenage girls are unwilling to accept their physical development and differentiation. Similarly, boys with the Turner syndrome that refers to the excessive release of female hormones tend to de-valuate their biological sex (Tiefer, 1992). It needs to be noted that the evolution of sexuality in childhood is associated mostly with sex role games and self-observation:   â€Å"Children this age are very curious about bodies – their own and other peoples. They are trying on roles and behaviors† (Haffner and Needleman, 2001, p.41). At this stage, children experience a gradual transition from unconsciousness to awareness of their sexuality, so Dittmann holds that parents, aware of the child’s hormonal disease, can diplomatically interfere then and assist children in developing a superstructure of gender roles over their biological sex. One of the most interesting approaches to gender identity is biological psychology. On the one hand, Sharpe (2003) writes that the brain structures, which refer to communication (listening and speech) and emotions or empathy are notably better developed in females , whereas the male brain is hard-wired for system construction and perception/analysis of visual information. However, Haffner and Needleman (2001) write that infancy is characterized by the active synaptogenesis, or the strengthening of neural connections, to great extent dependent upon the environment. As the researchers write, â€Å"the development is on the one hand genetically determined, but the formation and pruning of synapses are controlled by the environment† (Haffner and Needleman, 2001, p.46). As a result, parental taboos upon sex role games and the lack of gender-sensitive childrearing (neutral treatment of infants and pre-school boys and girls as sexless) that stabilize the synaptic connections between neurons in the specific brain structures (e.g. the growth of hippocampus in boys playing spatial memory games) might   bring in the future a misperception of one’s biological sex up to the manifestation of androgyny   in the later adolescence (sporadic display of male and female behavioral patterns). Furthermore, it is important to take into consideration the cognitive and moral development of 3-5-year-old children as discussed by Paiget (Haffner and Needleman, 2001) who alleges that this period is characterized by the first sparkles of self-awareness and the reflex-based belief in the relationship between â€Å"naughtiness† and punishment. Hence it is quite easy to cause an imbalance in the child’s sex and gender awareness through imposing excessively stringent moral restrictions upon the child’s behavior. The dominant social psychological approach to gender role taking is Bem’s comprehensive gender schema theory that stresses the meaning of environmental factors. In 1971, I created the Bem Sex Role Inventory to measure how well the person fits into their traditional gender role by characterizing their personality as masculine, feminine, androgynous, or undifferentiated† (Bem, 1981, p. 355). The scholar believes that under the ever-lasting influence of the environment and broader cultural context the person carefully sorts all behaviors into the categories of masculinity and femininity and then employs them with relation to the cultural and social context. However, a substantial gender identity collapse might occur when professional values and desire for equality in career opportunities begin to interfere with gender beliefs; for instance, female leaders and executives recognize they are â€Å"tomboyish† and excessively committed to the masculine behaviors in non-wo rkplace settings (Bem, 1981, p. 356). To sum up, gender identity is rather a social construct than a set of biological, namely hormonal determinants. As a result, increasingly more specialists in neuroscience consent to the fact that the degree of consistency between biological sex and upbringing determine the formation of gender identity in the future (Dittmann, 1990; Haffner and Needleman, 2001) . For instance, the paper has incorporated the article showing the effect of parental guidance and the degree of progress in the cognitive and moral areas on the stability of synaptic connections in young children. Similarly, hormonal secretion is not pre-planned before the birth, but might occur under the specific social and psychological conditions (e.g. girls with anorexia nervosa are rather androgynous in demeanor than feminine and suffer from the deficiency of estrogens). Thus, the environmental factors might reinforce the inborn somatic substrates referring to the aspects of gender identity or result in their alteration, increasing or decreasing the person’s responsiveness to the neural impulses, which drive sex-related behaviors. Reference list Bem, S. (1981). Gender schema theory: A cognitive account of sex typing. Psychological Review, 88, 354-364. Byne, W. and Parsons, B. (1993). Human Sexual Orientation: the Biologic Theories Reappraised.   Archives of General Psychiatry, 50 (3), 228-239. Dittmann, B. (1990). Congenital adrenal hyperplasia. I: Gender-related behavior and attitudes in female patients and sisters. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 15, 401-420. Ellison, C. (2000). Human Sexual Response. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger. Haffner, D. and   Needleman, R. (2001).   Childhood sex play and synaptogenesis. The Family Journal, 11: 39-50. Sharpe, R. (2003). Adult Sexuality. The Family Journal, 11: 420-426. Tiefer, L. (1992). Historical, scientific, clinical and feminist criticisms of â€Å"the Human Sexual Response Cycle† mode. Annual Review of Sex Research, 2: 1-23.

The Story of the Kindertransport Essay Example for Free

The Story of the Kindertransport Essay Out of all the evil people in the world, it only takes a few good souls to stand up and do the right thing in order to make a difference. There are so many stories from wars about death and destruction of peoples homes, lives, and dignities. Wars have a unique ability to cloud the mind. They can make people do crazy things. They can make people do things that they would never think they were capable of doing. Wars can make you do the wrong thing, but they can also open your heart to doing the right thing. Despite the fact that there was so much destruction caused by the dictators who ruled much of Europe during the time of World War two there were people who stood up against those evils. According to the Talmud, whoever saves one life, saves an entire world. This Jewish saying, points out that if you can save one life you have saved an entire generation. This is because when you take away someones life, you take away their ability to fall in love, marry, and have children; therefore, destroying potential. There were six million lives taken away because of the horrific acts that Hitler carried out Six million humans, six million people capable of creating the next generation of the world. Instead, their lives were cut short. It is vital that we remember those who survived this horrific incident and remember their stories. It is important that we tell the story of the Kindertransport so that their story can be remembered for future generations. The word Kindertransport comes from two words in German. Kinder means the children, and transport means to move or relocate. This is exactly what happened to around 10,000 Jewish children living in Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Poland during the Holocaust. The decision for the parents of these children to essentially give up their children in hopes that they might have a better life, must have been very difficult. Normally children were unable to decide on emigration themselves, and it was often only at the station that they realized they had to leave their parents. Emigration for them took place at the stage when a familiar environment with known people is a necessary requirement for development. Moreover, children are always dependent on the help and support of others, particularly in unfamiliar surroundings. One of Britains tasks was how they were going to handle the influx of so many children entering their country. Living in Germany during the 1930s was already difficult enough, but being a Jew living in Germany was even more difficult. Jews were ostracized and persecuted because much of the propaganda that was being filtered throughout Germany blamed the Jews for the economic conditions of their country. Hitler persuaded the German people that their problems would go away if the country was free of Jews. This type of anti-Jewish message sent waves of hate throughout Germany. In November 1938, the events of Kristallnacht (night of broken glass) escalated the persecution of Jews. It is hard for an event like this to not become known throughout the world. Indeed, many countries did hear about this event. Kristallnacht was a massive, coordinated attack on Jews throughout the German Reich on the night of November 9, 1938. On November 9, mob violence broke out as the regular German police stood by and crowds of spectators watched. Nazi storm troopers along with members of the SS and Hitler Youth beat and murdered Jews, broke into and wrecked Jewish homes, and brutalized Jewish women and children. All over Germany, Austria and other Nazi controlled areas, Jewish shops and department stores had their windows smashed and contents destroyed. Synagogues were especially targeted for vandalism, including desecration of sacred Torah scrolls. Hundreds of synagogues were systematically burned while local fire departments stood by or simply prevented the fire from spreading to surrounding buildings In July of 1938, there was a conference held in France. The United States was in attendance. The goal of the conference was to discuss the problems of the Austrian and German Jews. Between 1933 and 1941, the Nazis aimed to make Germany judenrein (cleansed of Jews) by making life so difficult for them that they would be forced to leave the country. By 1938, about 150,000 German Jews, one in four, had already fled the country. After Germany annexed Austria in March 1938, however, an additional 185,000 Jews were brought under Nazi rule. Many Jews were unable to find countries willing to take them in. Many German and Austrian Jews tried to go to the United States but could not obtain the visas needed to enter. Even though news of the violent pogroms of November 1938 was widely reported, Americans remained reluctant to welcome Jewish refugees. In the midst of the Great Depression, many Americans believed that refugees would compete with them for jobs and overburden social programs set up to assist the needy. Other countries besides the United States also resisted the Jewish population. The Great Depression caused hard times everywhere and this created a mind set of resistance. One country, however, saw the need to invite Jewish civilians into their homeland, and that country was Britain. After the British government had been alerted by Jewish organizations to developments in Germany and particularly to the pogrom of November 9, 1938, there were several reasons for Great Britain to issue group visas for an unlimited number of children. First, Great Britain felt a particular responsibility for the refugees from Europe in that Palestine was governed as a British protectorate, but in order not to endanger its diplomatic relations with Arab states Great Britain had announced strict immigration restrictions. Furthermore the government, seeing itself as a world power, hoped with this action to represent a role model which would encourage other countries to follow suit. Not least, the government was aware of its responsibilities to its own Jewish community and did not wish to evade them. The people who advocated for the immigration of the German and Austrian Jewish people was the Religious Society of Friends. The government responded to their cause and agreed to help. However, the fundamental attitude to the Jewish refugees from Europe tended to be reserved. The outcome of the conference at Evian-les-Bains in July 1938 corresponded roughly with the British position towards the refugee question. Under no circumstances did the government wish to give the impression that Britain had opened wide its doors to allow even more refugees to enter the country. It also wanted to avoid encouraging the German government to carry out further expulsions. The danger of provoking further persecution and expulsion of the Jewish population by adopting over-liberal refugee regulations was an argument which was constantly drawn upon both before the outbreak of war, and also during the war itself, to justify the British asylum policy. The decision to issue group visas for Jewish children reflected to a degree this attitude and was, moreover, relatively easy to carry out with the agreement of the British public. Children aroused sympathy in the majority of the population and they posed little danger, at least in the short term, to the labor market. Moreover the childrens stay in the country was at first only planned to be temporary, for at the time of their arrival it was confidently assumed that they would either return to their home countries or would migrate to the U. S. A. or Palestine. Furthermore, it may seem strange from todays perspective how casually children were separated from their parents through the visa regulations. However, for a large section of British society, who could look back on a long tradition of boarding schools, it was completely normal for children to grow up from an early age away from their parents. Understanding the precarious situation that these German-Jewish children faced is very hard to comprehend. It is important that actual survivors tell their stories. The children had to adjust to life in Britain and their experiences are valuable to understanding the difficulties that they encountered. No parent wanted to send their children away, but parents had some hindsight on the dangers that were beginning to surface upon them. Norbert describes the situation as follows: My parents faced a terrible dilemma, a dilemma no parent of small children should ever have to face. [My parents were] convinced that we could not leave Germany in the foreseeable future, so they decided to send me, at age eleven, to safety. The first boat left Berlin on December 1, 1938. The children boarded special trains, and then boarded a ship where they arrived in England, then took another train to London. Ruth described the night before she left: The night before my departure, both my parents gave me a blessing. That is, they laid their hands on me and said a prayer commending me to Gods care: The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord look kindly upon you and be gracious unto you; The Lord bestow favor upon you and give you peace. There was little else my mother and father could do. I can imagine their thoughts and emotions Saying goodbye to a parent with the uncertainty of what was to happen was troubling for many children. Another survivor Tom Berman of the Kindertransport, documented his feelings before he left in a poem. The end of the poem describes what it was like leaving his home country: Leather suitcase from a far-off country, Czechoslovakia, containing all the love parents could pack for a five year old off on a journey for life. Once they arrived in Britain, they Kinder had to adjust to their new lives. Many of the young children stayed with foster families. If they were unable to be cared for they were sent to hostels or boarding schools. Many organizations and individuals assisted in settling the Kinder in the United Kingdom, including the Refugee Children’s Movement, the B’nai B’rith, the Chief Rabbi’s Religious Emergency Council, various youth movements, the Y. M. C. A., the Society of Friends, and many other Jewish and non-Jewish organizations. Private gifts of money, bedding, and clothing were received as well as offers of foster homes and houses for possible group homes. Many of the Quakers who were involved in petitioning these childrens arrival sought after these children and became foster mothers and fathers to many of the children. Many families, Jewish and non-Jewish, opened their homes to take in these children. Many of the children were well-treated, developing close bonds with their British hosts; however, others were mistreated or abused. A number of the older children joined the British or Australian armed forces as soon as they reached eighteen years of age and joined the fight against the Nazis . While many children recount the fact that they were safe, being in Britain was still an adjustment. Neither of my foster parents spoke German, and adjustment was quite difficult I attended a two-room schoolhouse. All the children knew I came from Germany and they called me Nazi, a world I understood all too well. None of the children wanted to make friends with me. World War two lasted from 1939 to 1945 and was a long and devastating conflict that involved many countries. More than fifty-five million people lost their lives. The world had never seen such a big or deadly war. After the war ended, no one had expected that the Kinder would need to stay in Britain forever. By this time, there were not very many young children, and some had even become adults. Re-uniting with their families seemed virtually impossible. Many people believed that these children were never going to find their family members again. A recent survey by the Association of Jewish Refugees, however, reveals a more positive outcome. The study found that even though approximately two-thirds of the Kinder did not see their parents again, one-third of the children came to Britain with a sibling and about two-thirds of the Kinder found other relatives after the war. Many of those who were unable to re-unite became British citizens. Many people in Britain should be considered heroes. Even though this story seems tragic, it is important to note that many lives were saved because of the brave acts of the citizens of Britain. Without them supporting these children, they may not have had a change to grow up and recount their story. Many of the accounts that are told to help them cope with everything. One survivor has written a poem to help him retell and comfort others who went through the same thing. He ends his poem with these words: And that’s basically my story and that’s basically there I mean there are other things that happened in England and so on but that is really the story of the Kindertransport the story of German Jews And I’m very glad to tell you this because let’s be true if my parents hadn’t been very brave to part with their only child and send it away cause I’m sure they knew that they might never see me again you all wouldn’t be here [ 2 ]. Hodge, Deborah. Rescuing the children: the story of the Kindertransport. Toronto: Tundra Books, 2012 5. [ 3 ]. Hodge, 8 [ 4 ]. The Evian Conference. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. http://www. ushmm. org/outreach/en/article. php? ModuleId=10007698 (accessed April 17, 2013). [ 5 ]. Harris, Mark Jonathan, and Deborah Oppenheimer. Into the arms of strangers: stories of the Kindertransport. New York: Bloomsbury Pub. :, 2000. 21 [ 6 ]. Hodge,16 [ 7 ]. Harris, 22 [ 8 ]. Norton, Jennifer A. , Mona L. Siegel, and Sacramento University. The Kindertransport: history and memory. London: Nick Hern Books, 2010. 35 [ 9 ]. Hodge 18. [ 10 ]. Norton 39 [ 11 ]. Hodge, 22 [ 12 ]. http://www. kindertransport. org/voices/berman_poem_suitcase. htm [ 13 ]. http://www. kindertransport. org/history04_Britain. htm [ 14 ]. Hodge 38 [ 15 ]. AJR: Kindertransport. AJR: Welcome to The Association of Jewish Refugees. http://www. ajr. org. uk/kindertransport (accessed April 17, 2013). [ 16 ]. David I. Hanauer, Living the Kindertransport: A Poetic Representation.

Synthesis of Janus Nanocomposites for Drug Delivery System

Synthesis of Janus Nanocomposites for Drug Delivery System Over the past few decades, drug delivery systems have been well developed and studied to improve the curative effect of drugs.[1–4] Drug delivery systems can ameliorate the problems of conventional administration by prolonging duration time, enhancing drug solubility, retaining drug bioactivity, reducing side effect, and so on.[5, 6] A variety of carriers such as lipids,7, 8 polymer gels,[9,10] especially nanoparticles,11, 12 have been studied in drug delivery systems. At present, stimuli sensitive drug delivery systems have been an attractive theme for controlled release. The release behaviors of drugs can be easily controlled by surrounding properties, such as temperature,13, 14 pH,15,16 electric field,[17 ionic strength,[18 and so on. Recently, combined therapy with dual-drugs of different therapeutic effects shows excellent performance in treatment of diseases.19, 20 In order to optimize therapeutic effects, the doses and species of drugs should be optimized at different c linical manifestations and periods in the treatment. One of the main challenges of combined therapy is to control the release behavior of each drug independently. However, simple drug delivery systems cannot fulfill the needs of such therapy, because the most widely used carriers are normally possess single symmetrical geometry with single-surface. Even the dual-drugs are loaded on the single-surface carrier at same time, the delivery systems are designed only for the simultaneous release of two different drugs, and the release of each drug cannot be controlled. Furthermore, the multi-conjugates or loadings can interact with each other leading to undesired adverse effects. Therefore, developing independent multi-surface nanostructures for combination or loading of multiple drugs is critically desired. Janus nanoparticles possess multiple surface structures are anisotropic in composition, shape, and surface chemistry.[21] The structural asymmetry is ideally suited for dual-drug conju gations or loadings on different sections of a single Janus particle.[22] Furthermore, functionally distinct surfaces of the Janus particle can be used to selectively conjugate with specific chemical moieties for controlling the dual-drug loading or releasing, respectively.[23-25] During the past decades, considerable efforts have been made on the fabrication of Janus particles.[26-30] For instance, a monolayer of spherical particles such as those of polystyrene (PS) or silica colloidal nanospheres are spread on a solid substrate.[31-33] Thus, the functionalization could take place only on the top surfaces of the anchored particles. Because the low yield of the Janus particles result from the limited surface area of the bulk substrates, a modified method was later developed by using colloidal particles as the supporting substrates.[34-38] Another method for fabricating Janus particles was carried out at interfaces: a particle partially contacted with reactive medium and generated different surface functionalities from the opposite surface.36 With the development of microfluidic technique, Janus particles could also be fabricated by solidifying droplets composed of immiscible components.[39, 40] Other methods such as controlled surface nucleation, phase separat ion, and controllable polymer attachment,[41-54] have been also developed to synthesize the Janus particles. But the Janus particles reported previously were often close to micrometer in size and typically involved various types of polymers, which could induced poor biocompatibility, the fabrication of small Janus nanoparticles with inorganic materials is still a greater challenge.[48-54] On the other hand, the widely used silica is an useful material for building concentric [emailprotected] structures by using metallic or magnetic nanoparticles or quantum dots as cores,[55-57] but there have been few reports about silica based Janus nanoparticles. Due to the amorphous nature of silica, it is difficult to fine-tune the surface tension or lattice mismatch between silica and these core materials to form the Janus nanostructure. Feasibility for the synthesis of Janus nanocomposites As mentioned above, it is difficult to fine-tune the surface tension or lattice mismatch between silica and these core materials to form the Janus nanostructure due to the amorphous nature of silica. But for mesoporous silica materials, it has attracted a great deal of attention because of their versatility in surface tension and pore lattice parameters.[58, 59] In order to realize the formation of silica based Janus nanoparticles, the solution-grown synthesis route for the fabrication of inorganic nanocrystals based Janus (such as Au-Fe3O4,[60] Au-CdSe,[61] CdS-FePt,[62] Ag-Fe3O4,[63] CdSe-Fe3O4,[64] and so on) provides a possible clue to the creation of the silica based Janus nanoparticles by using the mesoporous silica as a structural subunit. The inorganic nanocrystals may have polymorphic atomic structures that are epitaxially attached at the interface from a core, leading to specific inorganic nanostructures with well-defined and characteristic shapes such as dimmers or trimers .[65, 66] For the growth of the ordered mesoporous structures, it is partly analogous to the growth of inorganic nanocrystals. Rather than epitaxy from atomic structures, the mesostructures can also be oriented by surfactants micelle and further induced the epitaxy growth of the mesoporous silica. So, compared with the formation of the inorganic nanocrystals Janus nanostructures, the silica based Janus nanocomposites would also be fabricated under the direction of the epitaxially growing properties of the mesoporous silica. Project proposal Focusing on the issues faced by the synthesis of the silica-based Janus nanocomposites and corresponding applications, this proposed project concerns the development of a novel anisotropic growth induced route for the synthesis of Janus core-shell mesoporous silica nanocomposites [[emailprotected]2@mSiO2-PMO (NCs = Functional nanocrystals; mSiO2= mesoporous silica; PMO= periodic mesoporous organosilicas)] by using the mesoporous silica as a structural subunit, and the obtained Janus nanocomposites can be used for dual-control drug release (ibuprofen and doxorubicin). As shown in Scheme 1, inorganic functional nanocrystals, including upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs), magnetic nanoparticles (Fe3O4) and quantum dots (QDs), are firstly synthesized by using solvothermal approaches at a high temperature. Then, the [emailprotected]2 [emailprotected] nanoparticles, including [emailprotected]2, Fe3O4@SiO2, [emailprotected]2, will be synthesized with the reverse micro-emulsion method. Duo to the hydrophobic surface property of the obtained NCs, this hydrophilic SiO2 layer is very necessary for the following syntheses and applications. Furthermore, SiO2 layer can also serve as protective cover for the physical properties of the inorganic functional NCs, such as the fluorescences of UCNPs and QDs. Subsequently, the radial mesoporous SiO2 will be synthesized to form [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 [emailprotected]@shell nanostructures with the Stà ¶ber method in the presence of structure-directing agent (CTAB). The radial mesoporous layer of the obtained [emailpro tected]2@mSiO2 can accommodate the guest drug molecules (doxorubicin), the channel can also be easily modified with light sensitive switch molecules (azobenzene) by using post-modification method to realize the controllable release of doxorubicin. Finally, the Janus core-shell mesoporous silica nanocomposites of [emailprotected]2@mSiO2-PMO can be fabricated through a surfactant-templating approach by using cationic surfactant CTAB as a structure-directing agent and organic silica precursor as a source. At the very beginning, mesostructured CTAC/PMO composites can be assembled and deposited on the [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 nanoparticles surfaces. Then, through an anisotropic growth, the mesostructured shells finally develop into mesoscale single-crystals coated on the spherical [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 cores and form Janus nanocomposites. The mesoporous of PMO section of Janus nanocomposites can also accommodate the guest drug molecules (ibuprofen). By introducing the heat sensitive pha se-change material (1-tetradecanol) as switch molecules, it will realize the dual-control release of the guest species. As shown in Scheme 2, the dual-control (heat and NIR light) drug release (ibuprofen and doxorubicin) can be realized as following. Drug molecule (doxorubicin) loading in the [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 domains of the Janus nanocomposites: In this procedure, the inorganic functional nanocrystals are specified as NaGdF4:Yb, Tm UCNPs, which can emit photons in both UV (~ 350 nm) and Visible (~ 470 nm) region under NIR (980 nm) excitation. The mesopores of the [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 nanoparticles are modified with azobenzene molecules by using the post-modification method firstly. Both the loading and release of doxorubicin are regulated by the trans–cis photoisomerization of the azobenzene molecules. Specifically, the trans isomer of the azobenzene molecules will transform into the cis isomer under UV light irradiation, and in contrast the cis isomer will form the trans isomer under irradiation of visible light. The installing â€Å"photomechanical† azobenzene groups in the m esopores of silica are act as â€Å"stirrer† in the mesoporous silica, which can be used to control the loading and release of the drug. So, not only the release but also the loading of doxorubicin should be processed under the UV and visible light at the same time, and the drug will be locked in the mesopores of the [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 domains in the Janus structures after the UV and visible light are removed. The doxorubicin molecules absorb on the surface and mesopores of PMO domains in the Janus can be washed off with water. Drug molecule (ibuprofen) loading in the PMO section of the Janus nanocomposites and heat control release: After ibuprofen molecules are absorbed into the mesopores of PMO, the mesopores can be blocked with a phase-change material (1-tetradecanol), which has a melting point of 38 – 39 à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ °C. Below 1-tetradecanol’s melting point, it will be in a solid state to completely block the passing of encapsulated ibuprofen. When the temperature is raised beyond its melting point, it will quickly melt to release the encapsulated ibuprofen (heat control release). NIR light control release of doxorubicin in the [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 section of the Janus nanocomposites: Upon absorption of NIR light (980 nm), the UCNPs can emit photons in the UV/Vis region, which are absorbed immediately by the photo responsive azobenzene molecules. The reversible photoisomerization by simultaneous UV and visible light emitted by the UCNPs creates a continuous rotation–inversion movement, and the doxorubicin molecules can be released from the mesopores of [emailprotected]2@mSiO2. Novelty of the project proposal: The anisotropic growth induced route for the synthesis of silica based multi-functional Janus core-shell mesoporous silica nanocomposites is proposed for the first time. Varieties of inorganic nanocrystals, including upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs), magnetic nanoparticles (Fe3O4), quantum dots (QDs), can be introduced to further functionalize the Janus nanocomposites. Dual-control drug relase system based on mesoporous silica is proposed for the first time. The mesopore channels of [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 domains and PMO domains in multi-functional Janus nanocomposites can accommodate two kinds of drug molecules independently at the same time. Two kinds of switch molecules are design to realize dual-control release of the drug molecules independently for the first time. Task 1: Synthesis of the inorganic functional nanocrystals (NCs), including upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs), magnetic nanoparticles (Fe3O4), quantum dots (QDs), and so on. The synthesis of the inorganic nanocrystals will be carried out at organic solvent with high boiling point solvents such as 1-octadecylen via a solvothermal approach at a high temperature (~ 300 à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ °C for UCNPs, ~ 270 à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ °C for Fe3O4 NCs, ~ 240 à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ °C for QDs) in presence of the surfactants (oleic acid, oleylamine, etc.). Some simple inorganic salts such as rare earth chloride, iron acetylacetonate, iron oleate, cadmium oleate, zinc oleate, etc. will be used as the inorganic precursors. The necessary characterization (i.e. TEM, XRD, PL, UV-Vis, VSM) will be used in the experiments. Task 2: Fabrication of the [emailprotected]2 [emailprotected] nanoparticles, including [emailprotected]2, Fe3O4@SiO2, [emailprotected]2 and so on. Duo to the hydrophobic surface property of the obtained NCs, the [emailprotected]2 [emailprotected] nanoparticles will be synthesized with the reverse micro-emulsion method. The hydrophilic SiO2 layers in this objective are very necessary for the following syntheses and applications. Furthermore, SiO2 layers can also serve as a protective cover for the physical properties of the inorganic functional NCs, such as the fluorescences of UCNPs and QDs. Typically, the obtained inorganic NCs are dispersed in cyclohexane. Then polyoxyethylene (5) nonylphenyl ether (CO-520) and NH3.H2O are introduced to form reverse micro-emulsion. Finally, TEOS is introduced and hydrolysized at room temperature to form the [emailprotected]2 [emailprotected] nanoparticles. The necessary characterization (i.e. SEM and TEM) will be used in the experiments. Task 3: Fabrication of the [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 [emailprotected]@shell nanoparticles. In this step, the radial mesoporous SiO2 will be synthesized with the Stà ¶ber method in the presence of cationic surfactant such as CTAB. TEOS is used as a silica sources and hydrolysis in ethanol/water solution under alkaline condition (NH3.H2O) at room temperature. The necessary characterization (i.e. BET, SEM, and TEM) will be used in the experiments. Task 4: Fabrication of the Janus core-shell mesoporous silica nanocomposites ([emailprotected]2@mSiO2-PMO). The orientation growth of the cubic mesostructure of mesoporous organosilica (PMO) materials is the key factor for the formation of the silica-based Janus nanocomposites. In this step, organic silica precursors, such as bis(trieth-oxysilyl)benzene (BTEB), 1,2-bis(triethoxysilyl)ethane (BTEE), bis(triethoxysilyl) ethylene (BTEEE), are used as the silica sources and hydrolysis in ethanol/water solution under alkaline condition (NH3.H2O) at room temperature in the presence of CTAB templates. By adjusting experimental parameters, the organic silica precursors can cooperative self-assembly with surfactant CTAB to form the ordered cubic mesostructured PMO crystals. Because the different mesostructures between [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 (radial) and PMOs (cubic), the PMOs will epitaxy growth to form the [emailprotected]2@mSiO2-PMO Janus structure instead of the [emailprotected]2@mSiO2@PM O [emailprotected]@[emailprotected] structure. The necessary characterization (i.e. BET, XRD, SEM, FL, VSM and TEM) will be used in the experiment. Task 5: The design and evaluation of the dual-control drug release by using the obtained Janus core-shell mesoporous silica nanocomposites. The dual-control drug release can be realized as following. Drug molecule (doxorubicin) loading in the [emailprotected]2@ mSiO2 section of the Janus nanocomposites: In this procedure, the inorganic functional nanocrystals are specified as NaGdF4:Yb, Tm, UCNPs, which can emit photons in both UV (~ 350 nm) and Visible (~ 470 nm) region under NIR (980 nm) excitation. The mesopores of the [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 nanoparticles are post-modified with azobenzene molecules by using N-(3-triethoxysilyl)propyl-4-phenylazobenzamide in ethanol at 80 à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ °C firstly. Both the loading and release of doxorubicin are regulated by the trans–cis photoisomerization of the azobenzene molecules. So, not only the release but also the loading of doxorubicin should be processed under the UV and visible light at the same time, and the drug will be locked in the mesopores of [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 domains in the Janus after the UV and visible light are removed. The doxorubicin molecules absorb on the surface and mesopores of PMO domains in the Janus can be washed off with water. Drug molecule (ibuprofen) loading in the PMO domains in the Janus nanocomposites and heat control release: After the ibuprofen molecules are absorbed into the mesopores of PMO, the mesopores can be blocked with a phase-change material (1-tetradecanol), which has a melting point of 38 – 39 à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ °C. Below 1-tetradecanol’s melting point, it will be in a solid state to completely block the passing of encapsulated ibuprofen. When the temperature is raised beyond its melting point, it will quickly melt to release the encapsulated ibuprofen (heat control release). NIR light control release of doxorubicin in the [emailprotected]2@mSiO2 domains in the Janus nanocomposites: Upon absorption of NIR light (980 nm), the UCNPs emit photons in the UV/ Vis region, which can be absorbed immediately by the photo responsive azobenzene molecules. The reversible photoisomerization by simultaneous UV and visible light emitted by the UCNPs creates a continuous rotation–inversion movement, and the doxorubicin molecules can be released from the mesopores of [emailprotected]2@mSiO2. The necessary characterization (i.e. UV-Vis, FTIR, SEM, and TEM) will be used in the experiments.