Cómo consultar fácil estado solicitud visa americana

Cualquier persona puede consultar el estado de todas las visas no inmigrante que ha solicitado recientemente o en el pasado ingresando a una pà ¡gina oficial del gobierno de Estados Unidos. Este artà ­culo, que aplica a visas no inmigrante como la de turismo, intercambio, inversià ³n, estudiante, trabajo temporal, religiosos, etc. muestra cà ³mo saber el estado de la solicitud y todos los tipos de respuesta que se pueden obtener y quà © significan.  ¿Quà © se necesita para verificar estado de solicitud de visa? Antes de empezar con el trà ¡mite es necesario tener a mano el cà ³digo de barras que se imprimià ³ tras realizar la solicitud de visa por internet mediante el formulario DS-160. A continuacià ³n, introducir en esta pà ¡gina del Departamento de Estado ese nà ºmero y el nombre de la ciudad donde se realizà ³ la entrevista, si à ©sta ya tuvo lugar, o donde se realizarà ¡, en caso contrario.  ¿Quà © resultados se pueden obtener al verificar el estado de tramitacià ³n? Aparecerà ¡ una pantalla en inglà ©s donde lo importante son cualquiera de las siguientes palabras: No Status. Quiere decir que se ha realizado la solicitud pero todavà ­a no ha comenzado su tramitacià ³n dentro del sistema de visas. Dependiendo de la Embajada o consulado puede demorarse. Ready. En estos momentos la tramitacià ³n està ¡ en marcha. Pronto tendrà ¡ lugar la entrevista y la toma de huellas digitales. Si ya tuvo lugar o no es necesario, volver entrar al sistema dos dà ­as mà ¡s tarde para darle tiempo a actualizar el estado. Administrative Processing. En ocasiones y por razones varias una solicitud de visa no es ni aprobada ni negada. Simplemente se considera que es necesario hacer mà ¡s comprobaciones. En estos casos pasa a una situacià ³n de procedimiento administrativo. El tiempo que se puede prolongar va desde unas semanas a incluso meses. Mientras tanto, el solicitante no puede hacer nada. Si la oficina consular necesita documentacià ³n adicional, la pedirà ¡. Issued. La visa ha sido aprobada y està ¡ o bien en su à ºltima fase de gestià ³n o en proceso de envà ­o. Una vez que aparece esa palabra, si no se recibe el pasaporte con la visa estampada en à ©l en el plazo de diez dà ­as, consultar con la Embajada o consulado a cargo del trà ¡mite. Muchos consulados y embajadas de EE.UU. utilizan el servicio de mensajerà ­a de DHL para enviar los pasaportes con las visas estampadas en los mismos. El solicitante de la visa debe recogerla en la oficina de DHL que designà ³ en el momento de hacer la peticià ³n. Si no lo hace dentro de plazo, la visa serà ¡ regresada a la delegacià ³n consular y, si no se reclama en el plazo de un aà ±o, serà ¡ anulada. Refused. La visa ha sido negada. Si el visado es negado no es verdad que se pueda apelar la decisià ³n del oficial consular. Las solicitudes de las visas no inmigrante se pueden rechazar por dos grandes categorà ­as: inelegibilidad o inadmisibilidad. Estas son las 20 causas mà ¡s frecuentes  por las que el solicitante es inelegible. Ademà ¡s, hay que tener en cuenta estas 22 causas que convierten a una persona en inadmisible para los Estados Unidos. Para evitar perder tiempo y dinero –ya que es necesario volver a presentar una solicitud nueva y por lo tanto pagar de nuevo la tarifa de $160–, es muy recomendable saber cuà ¡l fue la causa del rechazo. Y segà ºn sea analizar si es posible aplicar con à ©xito o no. Por ejemplo, si el problema fue que no se demostrà ³ con à ©xito lazos econà ³micos y familiares en el paà ­s de origen lo mejor esperar a que se produzca un cambio en la situacià ³n del solicitante para tener mà ¡s à ©xito. Por ejemplo, tener un buen trabajo, haber formado una familia, propiedades, empresas, etc. En otras palabras, todo lo que sirva para que el oficial consular no sospeche que la razà ³n para solicitar la visa sea ingresar en EE.UU. con el fin de trabajar y/o quedarse en el paà ­s mà ¡s tiempo que el autorizado. Sin embargo, si se rechazà ³ la solicitud porque con anterioridad la persona estuvo en Estados Unidos ilegalmente en Estados Unidos despuà ©s de cumplir los 18 aà ±os de edad por mà ¡s de 180 dà ­as, tendrà ¡ un castigo que le impide regresar al paà ­s por tres o de 10 aà ±os, segà ºn las circunstancias. Otras situaciones que pueden dar lugar a problemas muy graves en la solicitud de la visa son la pertenenciaa  las pandillas, el trà ¡fico de drogas, el mentir en una aplicacià ³n para la visa o presentar documentos falsos, ya que se considera que es un fraude de ley, etc. Cabe destacar que en casos muy particulares es posible pedir un perdà ³n para visa no inmigrante.  Cuando se solicita la visa que se rechaza el oficial consular puede sugerir pedir un perdà ³n, tambià ©n conocido como waiver o permiso, cuando crea que el solicitante reà ºne los requisitos para que el mismo le sea concedido. Puntos clave: Cà ³mo comprobar el estado de solicitud de la visa americana En la pà ¡gina oficial del Departamento de Estado www.ceac.state.gov es posible rastrear el estatus de la visa no inmigrante que se ha solicitado. Es necesario tener a mano la hoja de confirmacià ³n con su cà ³digo de barras que se tuvo que imprimir cuando se inicià ³ la solicitud de la visa mediante el formulario DS-160.En el rastreo pueden aparecer cinco resultados: No status (sin estatus), Ready (preparado), Administrative Processing (en proceso administrativo), Issued (emitida_ y Refused (rechazada).Las visas no inmigrante se rechazan por dos grandes categorà ­as de causas: inelegibilidad e inadmisibilidad. Este es un artà ­culo informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal.

Night by Elie Wisel and Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck...

Night by Elie Wisel and Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck are both books that have differences and similarities in the relationships of their main characters. These characters are Elie and his father, which are two Jews trapped in a concentration camp for the book Night. The other book Of Mice and Men includes two other characters, who are Lennie and George. These two characters have very close friendship, and take care of each other. These two relationships differ and coincide, in how they treat each other, and in how they care for one another even when they don’t have to. The relationships of the characters in both books are both fairly close, but still face many hardships along the way. As in all books the characters have a†¦show more content†¦A quotation from this novel of this is when Slim said â€Å"You had to George, I swear you had to† just after the murder place. The quote relates to the relationship of Elie and his father by showing how they both felt the same burden about others. Lastly, another similarity between the relationships is how close they are throughout the novels. For example, one way is as mentioned earlier, they care for each other by feeling remorse when something happens to them such as in Night or when they do something that might put them in danger or make them ill. An example is when George says â€Å"Lennie for God’ sakes don’t drink so much.†This relates to Elie and his father by showing us how they cared for each other’s health. All of this shows that even if characters are from different novels there are still many qualities in their relationships that coincide. The relationship between Elie and his father, and the relationship between George and Lennie differed in many aspects. One example, of this is that George and Lennie from the novel Of Mice and Men had a relationship of â€Å"tough love† even though they cared for each other, compared to Elie and his father which still loved each other but were not so harsh on each other. For instance, George always would say â€Å"I would be better off without you Lennie.† Even though he was tough on him George still cared for him. This quote relates to Elie and his dad because it explains how this made their relationships differ. On the other

Top brands Free Essays

Division of the technology brand on the basis of those who have strong consumer facing brand and those who do not have as Google and other technology brands like Apple and Samsung generate a lot of attention compare to non-technology brands. For few brands which have consumer products, consumer experience plays an Important role. Google with its various application such as maps, translation. We will write a custom essay sample on Top brands or any similar topic only for you Order Now Voice services and more is one of those brands for which consumer experience plays an important role. 2. Apple: Apple being a technology brand creates a lot of attention which goes a long way in establishing Itself as the number two brand behind Google. It attracts a lot of commentary, Like Google do, with Its desirable mainstream products as well as their more experimental efforts Like wearable. Firms Like Apple and others shape the bar for what a digital experience for any consumer to be. Collaborations and acquisitions also help Apple grow both as a brand and value. Barberry’s collaboration with Apple for taking images for its catwalk with the latest ‘phone. 3. MOM: The number third position Is again occupied by a technology company, MOM. Marketing has evolved at an unprecedented rate, the consumer behavior is changing at a blink of an eye, brands are bigger than ever, competition is global, for this purpose you need platforms or software that can keep you in the game for long run, tools which can be incorporated into ever more comprehensive platforms of business software by companies such as IBM and other technology giants. As Microsoft is a very old and well established brand it occupies number four position in the ranking. Through its salient features (coming to mind spontaneously) it has a wide acceptance in terms of reliability and functionality. The rapid rises in brand value and the fluctuations with Apple declining and Microsoft rebounding is testimony to the fact of extraordinary rate of industry maturation and innovation happening simultaneously. Few brands with powerful tagging attract the consumer. The most successful technology brands are those that constantly push brand life cycle to the right. Brands see through the cloud and turn planning into action. 5. McDonald: With a brand value $85,706 million, McDonald occupies the fourth position in the ranking. It is also a salient brand when one thinks of fast food with quality and one which impacts human health directly. McDonald slowed down in terms of brand value as compared to the year 2013 because of menu complications. Influence of other brands either makes the brand more innovative or competitive or makes it fall. 6. Coca-Cola: Coca-Cola is the only soft drinks firm in the top ten Global Brands. Salience in an important parameter for a brand to be consistently in the top brands of the world. If one thinks of fast food McDonald comes into mind and similarly when one thinks of soft drinks Coca-Cola comes to mind. As these brands impact human health any once regarding the same has an adverse effect on the brand as a whole. High brand contribution also plays an important role and helps in staying power. 7. Visa: Certain brands might be very strong compared to their competitors but the category as a whole might not be talked about much and one such category is Visa (credit cards). Financial services are driven by third party communications, consumer facing experimental commentary is minimal. But distinct from this trend Visa and other financial services giants such as American Express had success with consumer campaigns which reiterated the rewarding promise of the cards. We can conclude that campaigning might give surety and security to the customers. 8. ATT: ATT is a telecoms brand which occupies eighth position. The pressure and the competition is very tough in telecoms sector and this factor led only to a marginal increment of three percent over the previous year. Also contributing to this cut throat competition is the pricing distribution. In a category noisy with competitor claims, differentiating and services provided makes a huge difference as ATT made similar points with its TV campaign â€Å"It’s not complicated†. 9. Marlboro: With a brand value of $67,341 million Marlboro occupies the ninth position. The possible TV ads and radios in the world condemns. 10. Amazon. Com: Amazon. Com is the only retail brand among the top 10 brand of the world. It gives testimony to the service that it provides, and its foray into the Indian market with one day delivery concept that too free of cost is giving Jitters to Indian retail giants such as Flippant. Com. An online e-retailing firm wouldn’t able to exist if it doesn’t deliver what it promises and being in the top ten Amazon. Com gives reasons to believe its efficiency, effectiveness to the hilt. How to cite Top brands, Papers

Business Administration for Legislative Laws - myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theBusiness Administration for Legislative Laws and Policies. Answer: Ethical considerations, especially in the human resources department, are crucial. It is important that in the recruitment process, there is a clear procedure that fulfils all the set standards and regulations in line with the recruitment process. It is, therefore, important to recognize the significance of the regulations and policies guiding the work process over personal feelings and emotions that may come to affect the outcome of the recruitment activity. In this scenario, when a person I know personally with some past criminal offences applies for the position; I will have to weigh the most appropriate options before arriving on the decision to recommend the eligibility of the applicant. As a supporting human resource recruiter, the primary legislative laws and policies come first before my personal opinion. According to (Shen et al.), human resources are the primary pillar of a proper recruitment process. Hence, my ethical considerations for the applicant would revolve around his professional ability, his current integrity, and the value he/she will add to the organization. The Clean Slate Act of 2004 outline conditions a person must meet to qualify for protection against revealing of his past deeds (Ministry of Justice). Among them requires a person to not have been convicted in the last seven years or never sentenced to imprisonment among others. The Act is only eligible for protecting those people with minor offences, especially during their youth periods. In addition, New Zealand employment policy stipulates equal opportunities for all the people regardless of their social, ethnic or political backgrounds. The human resource practice should adhere to the strict professional practice and the codes of ethics (Turner, Huemann Keegan). This scenario, however, calls for a very crucial look and analysis. There are two obvious alternatives that would either lead to the positive recommendation of the applicant or decline his/her application. The first alternative is, if the person has fulfilled all the professional requirements, and he/she has had a clean recent criminal record apart from the minor offences committed in the past and posses the ability to transform the organization in a bigger way with his contribution, then as HR support, I would definitely recommend the person to the manager. This is because; minor offences and non-custodial convictions in the past history of an applicant cannot affect productivity in the workplace. However, the second alternative is, if the applicant has fulfilled all the professional requirements, but from personal knowledge, he is a person with recent wrongdoings whether minor or not and frequently gets himself in trouble with the law; then from an ethical point of view, I would not recommend the applicant to the manager. For the best interest of the organization, I would not endorse the applicant because the Clean Slate Act cannot reveal the real extent of a persons criminal ability. Sticking to a high level of professionalism in such scenario is fundamental because, in human resource management, professionalism is one of the most discussed areas as a part of ethical practice (Hussain Ahmad). Scenario Two Ethical considerations can at times rise from many unexpected cases. But it still calls for an appropriate action anyway. Nevertheless, the considerations should be higher in line with the set laws and regulations. In matter to with credit and debt conflicts, there are several recommended ways through which the disputes could be solved. They include the Disputes Tribunal among others (Craeg). However, in New Zealand, the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act 2003, as well as the Credit Reporting Privacy Code (CRPC) are the guiding laws in addressing such cases. Additionally, in relation to this scenario, the MRC has a customer privacy and protection policies that safeguard its customers from unfair treatment. As a worker of MRC, I have the moral obligation to serve all the customers without involving personal disputes. However, if the scenario presents a case whereby the person in the picture has been involved in activities that have affected my family and poses a threat to the council, then an action is necessary. The CRPC Act regulates the law on matters to do with the reporting of the credit issues, while the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act 2003 provides contractual procedures and agreements in relations to credit acquisition and reclaiming (New Zealand Legislation). Therefore, considering what the law states and the rules of the council, my actions would be strategic but ethical. From the scenario, the person has seemingly breached the credit contract between him and my father. The customer has also closed down all the communication channels with my father meaning that he/she is not willing to respond to any issues in regard to my father's money. Because of the all the above-mentioned braches, he/she has committed a criminal act. If the rules of the council do not allow me to take direct necessary measures from my workplace such as calling of the policies, then I also have the moral authority in informing my father about the person who had declined to repay the borrowed money because morality goes hand in hand with good professional practices. References Craeg, Williams. "What You Need To Know About Debt Collection Laws In New Zealand." TPS Credit Control (2013). Available at: https://www.tpscreditcontrol.co.nz/blog/what-you-need-to-know-about-debt-collection-laws-in-new-zealand (Accessed 28 Nov 2007) Hussain, Mansoor and Mushtaq Ahmad. "Mostly Discussed Research areas in Human Resource Management (HRM) A Literature Review ." International Journal of Economics and Management Sciences (2012): 10-17. Ministry of Justice. "Criminal Records (Clean Slate) Act 2004." (n.d.). Available at https://www.justice.govt.nz/about/news-and-media/media-centre/media-information/media-guide/access-to-court-information/clean-slate-act/ (Accessed 28 Nov 2017) New Zealand Legislation. "Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act 2003." (n.d.). https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2003/0052/latest/DLM211512.html Shen, Jie, et al. "Managing diversity through human resource management: an international perspective and conceptual framework ." The International Journal of Human Resource Management (2009). Turner, Rodney., Huemann, Martina and Keegan, Anne. ".A Human resource management in the project-oriented organization: Employee well-being and ethical treatment." International Journal of Project Management (2010).

lord of the flies play Essay Example

lord of the flies play Paper The theatre version ofLord of the Flies based on the novel by William Golding and adapted by Nigel Williams are now being presented in the Lyric Theatre Hammersmith, London. Tickets cost about 7.00. This review is comparing the book and how Nigel Williams adapted it. The theatre version ofLord of the Flies is very good. Interesting and always in the climax. The actors are not little kids and there are not lots of them. There are only 8 actors. Some of the actors take 2 or 3 roles. The adult actors acted like a bunch of kids, which was very effective. The way the stage is set out was terrific, the moves around and about on the stage were really planned out well. The stage is a wrecked plane broken in to 2 parts. Actors used up all the stage.See diagram. For example when it is the mountain scene the fire on top of the shelter is lit up and the movable part is facing towards us with the highest point towards the audience. When simon is running down the mountain the movable parts were facing with the lowest point towards us so that it creates a downhill effect. Piggy was a very good actor. The person who took the role of piggy really sounded like piggy.(cockney accent). Some of Piggys lines were cut out and the way the Piggy died was totally different. Ralph was played by a good actor. The actor was really active, hyper, and was very childlike. He was serious and sometimes fun like in the book. Jack was not what I expected. The entrance of the choir was very good but Jacks voice was just to high pitched and annoying. If Jack were a bit more serious and manly he would have been the perfect actor. Jack sounded too childish. Simon was a very good actor. He was interesting. I taught that the actor had the potential to be like Ralph but because he plays Simon he doesnt talk that much. The

Electronic Telebanking

Electronic Telebanking 1. Electronic/Tele Banking1.1. Overview of Electronic/Tele BankingFrom a general perspective electronic/Tele banking means the ability to have 24-hour access to the bank either through web based services, mobile services such as SMS banking or simply be able to transact through an automated teller machine (ATM).Electronic/Tele banking, also known as Electronic Fund Transfer or Electronic Financial Telecommunication, uses computer and electronic technology as a substitute for checks and other paper transactions and are initiated through devices like cards or codes that let you access the banks services. Many financial institutions use plastic cards (ATM cards, Debit cards, Credit cards or smart cards) and Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) for this purpose while phones make use of codes and PINs for transactions.Examples of Electronic Banking ServicesAutomated Teller Machines or 24-hour Tellers are electronic terminals that let you bank almost any time to withdraw cash, make depos its, or transfer funds between accounts.Block diagram of an ATM.Today it is common to see banks providing ATM services to other bank customers by charging a premium from the customer for such transactions.Direct Debits lets you authorize specific direct withdrawals so that recurring bills, such as insurance premiums, mortgages, and utility bills, are paid automatically.Personal Computer Banking also known as home banking lets you handle many banking transactions via your personal computer. For instance, you may use your computer to view your account balance, request transfers between accounts, and pay bills electronically.Point-of-Sale Transfers (POS Terminal Transfers) let you pay for purchases with a Debit Card, which also may be your ATM card. The process is similar to using a credit card, with some important exceptions. While the process is fast and easy, a debit card purchase transfers money - fairly quickly - from your bank account to the store's account. So it's...

Sony PlayStation2 (A) Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Sony PlayStation2 (A) - Lab Report Example Before the advent of the Playstaion console, Nintendo, another game maker, had control of a big part of the game market, but "their games were usually simple and consumers were usually between 6 to 13 years of age, due to limited technology." (Deshpande, Rohit p. 8). The Sony Playstaion and playstation2 however, came out with high resolution 3-D graphics, and "enabled game developers to create more sophisticated games that appealed more to mature gamers, especially those between 20 and 30 years old" (Deshpande, Rohit p. 8) The Sony Corporation is the Manufacturer of the palystation2 console, and the company has set up various websites that serve as the company's driving force on the internet. Sites like sonystyle.com and playstation.com. These Websites provide information about new and upcoming Playstaion games, game console sales, and customer service. Playstation.com has already been quite successful, because the Playstation console is an industry leader when it comes to video games. Sony has also been striving to create an all new lifestyle in the net era, which is based on the interconnectivity of Sony's digital electronic products with modern IT technologies, and the company is well positioned take the lead in the market for digital home products, if it succeeds in aligning its software systems with its content business lines. Presently, the company has been perceived to be in a struggle to reinvent itself, in the process of pursuing hit products like the new PlayStation3 console Business Strategy & Analysis The makers of the playstation2 console, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI), came out with the objective to own the largest share of the home video game market. The company intended to achieve this by "leveraging proprietary, interactive 3-D graphics technology to provide entertainment that was unmatched by any other game system." (Deshpande, Rohit p. 4) Between 1994 and 1997, the price of the Playstaion console was reduced in a series of gradually increasing drops, forcing competitors to also decrease the prices of their products. "in 1997, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. lowered the price of the Playstaion to $149, and Nintendo and Sega refused to reduce their prices too, but by 1999, Playstaion and Nintendo's N64 platform were being sold at $99 in order to clear inventory for upcoming game models.In 2000, "Fuelled by anticipation of the success of playstation2, Sony stock rose, and hit an all time high of $314 from the $74 recorded the previous year". (Deshpande, Rohit p. 14) SWOT Analysis for Sony and the Playstation2 Strengths Sony has many valuable physical assets The playstation2 console is also a clear market advantage for Sony Weaknesses Sony might be seen to have a narrow product line in its production of Playstaion games Opportunities Excellent software capabilities Joint ventures with other progressive corporations Threats There is a risk that Sony's innovative nature with the Playstaion might not continue as well as it has in the past There is a possibility that the video game market may, in the long run, separate the Sony Corporation video game makers into winners and losers. Bibliography Deshpande, Rohit Sony PlayStation2(A) Grant, R.M. Contemporary strategy

The View On The Future Life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The View On The Future Life - Essay Example Now if I talk from the realistic perspective, I see my self at a stable position after ten years. It is because currently I am a high school student and I have plans to study further until I become a graduate. If I continue my studies, I will be able to earn a graduate degree, which will be one of my greatest achievements. Even being a high school student, I have no fantasies in my mind. Being a realistic person, I see myself doing a reasonable job in a company after getting my graduate degree. It is because every person does some sort of job after completing the education which is a realistic approach towards life. Therefore, I am hoping for the best but with that, I am also ready for the worst because, in reality, nothing is certain about the future of any person.There is a huge difference between the romantic and realistic approaches towards life. The romantic approach means a dreamy, idealistic, or impractical approach towards life. Romanticism makes a person idealistic, which is of very less importance in the real life. Romanticism generates a sense of fantasy in the mind of a person that leaves behind the importance of a practical and realistic life. If we talk about realistic approach, we can say that realistic approach is a sensible and rational approach towards life. Realism generates the sense of practicality in life. Realistic approach definitely leads a person towards success because it incorporates practical and fact-based thinking regarding different matters of life.

Will let you know the paper later Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Will let you know the paper later - Assignment Example In order to have a fruitful business meeting with the Australians, it is vital to have a clear insight of their culture, communication styles and their behaviors (Schroevers, 2013). For Alison McKenzie to make a commendable first impression at the introductory meeting, there are basic etiquettes that she ought to observe. Establishing contacts with the Australian business people is considerably simple. They pay less attention to first creating solid relationships, and are thus open to approaches from outside their business contexts. In general, Australians do not necessarily require a recommendation from a mutual friend to enter into a business agreement with a foreigner. Nonetheless, having such a connection is normally important, since business relationships tend to be personal (Sabath, 2002). Australian business executives are usually very occupied and busy. As such, securing an appointment with them can be a tricky task. To secure a business meeting with them, it is advisable to book an appointment a month prior to the set date. In spite of their busy nature, they are friendly and approachable. Generally, the working hours in the country start from 9AM and ends at 5PM. Thus, when scheduling a business trip, the material day should not fall within their vocational period, which is between December and February. Depending on the organization’s size, appointment proposals are usually submitted via emails and confirmed through telephone calls (Schroevers, 2013). Australians have a dominantly conservative dress code for business visitors. Australian men put on dark suits and ties, while their women while their ladies wear professional dresses or suits. In Australia, the dress code of an organization is dependent upon the climatic environment that the firm is situated (Schroevers, 2013). For that reason, the business attire may be less formal in tropical regions unlike in towns and cities like

The Abused Childhood Of Christopher Simmons English Literature Essay

The Abused Childhood Of Christopher Simmons English Literature Essay Christopher Simmons was a disturbed and abused child who committed an awful crime at the age of seventeen. He murdered a woman. His case has major significance to the juvenile justice system. He eliminated the possibility of a juvenile to be sentenced to death. He was sentenced to death row and after multiple appeals and a writ of habeas corpus; his charge was reduced to life in prison without possibility of parole. However, based on the mitigating circumstances of his prior history, the violation of his rights and the ineffective assistance of counsel, his sentence of life in prison does not seem justifiable. Christopher Simmons had a plan. His plan was to commit a burglary, primarily. After he and his friends committed the burglary, he would tie the person up and throw them off a bridge. He was sure he would not get caught due to his age; however things did not turn out as planned. Chris intended on burglarizing a voo-doo man because he was thought to have a lot of money. However their victim turned out to be Shirley Crook. It was September 8, 1993 at two in the morning. Chris Simmons, Brian Moomey, and his friend Benjamin went to Shirleys house. They entered through the back door which was easily opened due to a window being open. As Christopher went throughout the house he went to the bedroom of Shirley Crook. She awoke from bed and Chris recognized her quickly on the account that had gotten into a car accident with prior. Next, Chris went to get duct tape while Benjamin watched over her. Chris then taped Crooks eyes and mouth. She had also been tied with electric cable, leather straps and duct tape. The boys placed her into a mini-van and drive her to a railroad trestle in Castlewood Park located in St. Louis County. There, Simmons bound her hands and feet together, hog-tie fashion, with the electrical cable and covered Mrs. Crooks face completely with duct tape. Simmons then pushed her off the railroad trestle into the river below. Her body was found the next day and Christopher Simmons was arrested . Her cause of death was known to be drowning. Christopher Simmons was picked up by the cops and questioned, but not properly according to the U.S. Constitution. His rights were violated. He was interrogated without advice of counsel or a guardian. Chris confessed, but not all too willingly. Though, he did cooperate, he was forced to confess. He felt as though he had no choice. He was told he must confess or else he would be facing life in prison or the death penalty otherwise. Little did he know that by confessing he would have to face both those sentences. The District Attorney offered Chris a pea bargain to life in prison. Chris declined and the case went to trial. There they had shown a video tape reenactment, of the night Crook was murdered, that Chris performed at the crime scene. A witness testimony that came from his friend stating that it was planned and thus proving there was premeditation which makes any crime a first degree. Simmons moved for the trial court to set aside conviction and sentencing for he had ineffective assistance of counsel however the court denied him. The trial went on and in the end the jury came back with the decision that Simmons was guilty of the charges. The evidence presented was so minimal that at least one member of the jury, that James V. Biundo, a professor at Southeast Missouri State University, was left wondering how it was possible that Simmons, a loving brother and good neighbor, could have participated in such a crime. The jury recommended that Chris Simmons be sentenced to death row. Chris a ppealed and filed for a writ of habeas corpus. His defense attorney never brought up his life at home, only that he was a loving person Chris was a product of abuse and a very broken family. His mother and father divorced and re-married. His living situation was with his mother, Cheryl Hayes, and stepfather, Bob Hayes. He did however keep in contact with his father. His parents divorced when he was just a young kid. When his mother got re-married, she married a man that would abuse Chris to the point of insanity. Bob Hayes had two children of his own, both of which were not treated anywhere as badly as Chris had suffered. He was looked at like a slave. During the evaluation by a psychologist during his sentence, Bob Hayes admitted to tying Chris up to tree while he went fishing, intentionally, so he did not have to watch him or worry of him wandering. There was also witness to Chris getting hit in the ear, by his stepfather, so hard that it drew blood and damaged his ear drum. The same witness, Christie Brooks, also confessed that she saw Chris sob due to the torturous treatment of his stepfather (IJP). Chris was dis ciplined with whoopings and Bob later began to torture Chris about his acne. He would regularly hold him down squeezing all of his pimples until they bled. As for his mother, she felt like a helpless victim as well. She was too afraid to intervene with Bob and Chris and stop the abuse (American Bar Association). Chris also faced drug and alcohol problems. According to a psychologist, given his environment in which Simmons was raised and his familys prior generational history of psychiatric illnesses and substance abuse, which is reported by his family, Christopher Simmons was predisposed to developing a psychiatric illness. When Chris was a teen he drank and smoked weed every day. He also did LSD and shrooms. He turned to drugs and alcohol not only because of bad genes but also because of the lack of support from his family and his need for escape. It was a way to reduce his anxiety. The psychological effects on Christopher of growing up in this alcoholic and abusive environment provide mitigating factors which a jury should have had available when asked to consider why a seventeen year old, with no prior history of violence and no criminal record, would commit a murder such as this. All the evidence of substance abuse and physical and mental abuse was never presented by the defense attorney . If it was, Chris may not have had to face such a harsh sentence. Simmons consistently appealed his case only to have the death penalty upheld. Chris decided to file for a new petition for post conviction relief. The Missouri Supreme Court said a national consensus has developed against the execution of juvenile offenders and therefore was sentenced to life in prison without parole. The state of Missouri appealed the decision to the Supreme Court. When the case was heard in the Supreme Court in 2004, they held that the death penalty to anyone under the age of eighteen would be considered cruel and unusual punishment and thus violates the Eighth Amendment. Chris has changed since he has been in prison. He is known to be model prisoner and he has become part of a religious group in prison. He has also taken part in prevention programs for teens in order to keep them from crimes. In Chriss own words he says: I am definitely sorry for all of the suffering Ive caused people especially the victims, I just wish there was a way to make things right. I wish I could let people know how genuinely Ive had to deal with it for the eight years Ive been in prison and had to look in the mirror everydayI want to continue to help troubled teens, as I once was, and I presently get the opportunity to in a Youth Enlightenment Program that we have here at this prison. I came to death row a messed up, drug addicted, 17-year-old runaway that grew up here in the worst of prison realities. Ive had to wake up every day facing the pain and suffering Ive caused others. In conclusion, the case of Christopher Simmons has many different turns. It seems to be an unfair story starting with his arrest. His due process rights were violated and so he incriminated himself. That led to a court case that wasnt handled correctly by the defense. A defense lawyer led to Chriss sentence on death row. Thankfully, his sentence was overturned and he was sentenced to life in prison due to Supreme Court Case, Roper v. Simmons, where the sentence of a juvenile to death was considered unconstitutional. However Christopher Simmons case should of been appealed, re-tried with a better lawyer and gotten a more lenient sentence to begin with. Because of his abuse and background, he could have gotten help from psychologists and hopefully released from prison to be a functional member of society instead of a functional member of prison.

The Killer Angels :: essays research papers

The novel starts out when Harrison, a Confederate spy, reports to James Longstreet that 80,000 to 100,000 Union soldiers have marched within 200 miles of Lee's position near Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. Harrison also bears news of a change in Union leadership. Major General George Meade had replaced "Fighting Joe" Hooker as commander of the Union Army. Lee sees this change as an opportunity to strike while the new commander gets his bearings. He decides to concentrate on Gettysburg, the small town where several roads in the area converge, where he intends to cut the Union army off from Washington, D.C. First shots are fired at dawn as Rebels attack Buford's dismounted cavalry. Later that day Lee orders Ewell to take control of Cemetery Hill. Ewell did not follow orders and the union gained control of the Hill instead. Late in the afternoon, on the second day, Colonel Chamberlain's 20th Maine regiment is moved into the woods. Colonel Vincent orders Chamberlain not to withdraw from his new position at the left flank of the Union line. The Confederates engage with the Union troops and Chamberlain’s 20th Maine time and time again. Finally when ammunition is low Chamberlain gives the order to â€Å"fix bayonets,† and charges down the hill driving the rebels back. That same day Lee orders Longstreet to attack the Union center, and Longstreet advises against it. â€Å"They will break," Lee insists. He directed Longstreet to take three divisions. Longstreet passes the order along to his generals Pickett, Pettigrew, and Trimble. Pickett and other commanders lose mos t of their men in the battle. As the survivors pull back, Lee finally admits his error to Longstreet, who gives his order to retreat. The two personalities that stand out the most in my mind are Robert E. Lee and Joshua Chamberlain. Lee and Chamberlain share many similarities. They are idealistic, optimistic, and have faith and pride in their men. Both care about their men, yet do not hesitate to use them, including Chamberlain’s own brother, for the sake of the cause. The men under Lee and Chamberlain show them a great deal of respect. Chamberlain is somewhat of a father figure to his men, as is Lee to James Longstreet. Joshua Chamberlain is an unusual man, formerly a college professor, and views the war and the men around him more as a philosopher then a military man. On his march toward Gettysburg he sees a row of dead confederates from a previous battle, and wonders whether the town’s people will give them a decent burial or leave them for the buzzards.

Economics Essay

1. What did Keynes think some of the chief benefits and defects of capitalism were? Keynesian theory which was developed by Keynes advocates for a mixed economy where the government and private sector are important. In Keynesian model economy is assumed to be below full employment.   Keynesian argues that the aggregate demand for good which seek to increase employment of resources in the country is the driving force of an economy.   According to Keynes, the government’s role is to reduced unemployment rate and deflation level to enhance increased output in an economy (Baqliano and Bertola, 2003). Capitalism developed by Max argues that the poor in capitalistic society are so because of exploitation by the merchants who own the means of production and distribution.   The merchants are said to exploit the poor through low wages.   Marx argued that the value of any economic good should be determined by the labor used to manufacture.   Any cost that is higher than the cost of labor represents the surplus which is the profits the capitalists realize from exploitation of their laborers.   Marx believes that all means of production should be owned by the government or should control by the government.   Marx advocated for socialist government that owns the means of production or democratic administration that control them. Economists who include Keynes deny the claims of Marx that labor is the only measure for surplus.   According to Keynes who support capitalism, employers and employees are guided by the prevailing market wages hence employers offer employment to willing workers. John Keynes believes in capitalistic economy and called on the government to stimulate it but not eliminate it.   However, Keynes site defect in capitalism where he argues that capitalism does not promote full employment, wealth and incomes which the model seeks to achieve in the long run. Keynesian ideologies have been employed by politician but both abuse of the model, inflation has resulted.   This is evident with government manipulating policies to make economic conditions favorable during election which has led to high inflation in most state.   Action by government leads to reduce real wages and real incomes which do comply with Keynes model.   Capitalism has led to segregation of the society into strata according to income and wealth owned.   Most politician use Keynes ideologies by making promises that will earn them votes.   Implementations of the promises require higher taxation which reduces income of individuals (Baqliano and Bertola, 2003). Keynesian advocate for full employment which should be accompanied buy steady controlled inflation level as an effective means of guiding the economy in he interests of capital.   Keynes argue that real wages can be allowed to fall, government expenditure on schools, hospitals and infrastructure can be reduced as anti-inflationary measures and this inflationary measure should be continued until employment level desired is achieved. According to Keynes denied that unemployment is contributed by capitalism. However Keynes argued that unemployment in capitalism is brought by inadequate demand of personal articles of consumption and productive articles of consumption.   Keynes argue that inadequate demand is as a result of the workers tending to accumulate part of their incomes through savings and the inadequate demand   for productive consumption is brought by failure of people to invest their capital profitability which would lead to increase in output and hence reduced unemployment. Keynes advocates that employment can be increased by lowering real wages through inflation introduction and decreasing rate of interest.   Increased rate of interest will encourage investment of capital which will increase aggregate demand.   The government should then expand its budget to allow mass investment. Consumptive demand can be increased through increased extravagance of the ruling class; investing in war prone areas and increased non-productive expenses by the state.   The increased non-productive expenses to attain full employment of the population will actually lead to diminished living standards of laborers. Keynes in his support for capitalism argued that the workers should not be assisted to rise above the capitalists because capitalists who consist of intellectuals are the quality of life and they carry seed of achievement.   Keynes argued against socialism where the government owns the production. Keynes in support of capitalism advocates the governments to support monopoly.   The wage freezing policy by the federal government in Middle East helped increase the profits of the monopolies while lowering the living standards of the workers. Keynes argue that inflation bring about equilibrium position I n capitalism.   In Capitalism â€Å"Boomâ€Å" lead to increased profits and hence increased prices.   Production expands up to overproduction point where equilibrium is achieved through â€Å"boom bursting. 2. What is the `identification problem` in using econometric analysis? Identification problem in ecometrics involves solving unique values of the parameters of the structural model from the values of the parameters of the reduced form of the model.   Reduced form of a model presents a model where endogenous variables are expressed functions of exogenous variables. For example prices in a marker are determined by supply and demand, hence must establish the demand and supply functions.   However, the equation obtained by regressing quantity on market price cannot be identified specifically as either supply or demand function.   In special cases, we use regression to get demand function.   While holding supply function constant or vice versa, but cannot obtain regression while accommodating fluctuation changes in both (Baqliano and Bertola, 2003). Economics Essay The three areas of economics affect an individual both positively and negatively. First, in making decisions, a person often has to decide on tradeoffs because he/she just cannot afford to buy everything that he/she needs. In other words, sacrifices must be made. Economics, after all, is about allocating the resources available to a person – which happens to be scarce most of the time. This would mean, for instance, that if one has set aside $10 dollars for chocolates and he/she wants to buy some oranges, the decision would often entail buying less chocolates to enable him/her to buy some oranges. This effect is often interpreted as a negative one because a person has to let go of one want in order to satisfy another desire. This illustration clearly shows that budget constraint plays a major role in decision-making. (Mankiw, 2004) The second area of economics, interaction with others, affects members of society positively because in a free market economy, prices could not just be dictated by producers and sellers without the involvement or say of the consumers. In other words, if the price of a certain commodity proves too expensive, consumers would usually look for cheaper alternatives, thereby causing the demand for the more expensive version to fall. If the 21† colored television set produced by Sony Corporation, for instance, has been priced much higher than the 21† colored television of Philips, chances are that consumers would opt for the television set being sold by Philips because of the lower price. In this case, preference for Sony, which might prove to have a higher quality, could only be expressed by those who have the money, therefore feeling no budgetary constraints. Finally, the workings of the economy could affect an individual both positively and negatively. One instant is when government decides to print and circulate an abnormally high volume of money. This situation forces money to depreciate in value, thereby resulting to inflation. A high level of inflation causes prices to increase because of the additional costs being shouldered by manufacturers owing to the lower value of money. An upside of this situation, however, could be a temporary increase in employment. Because of the availability of money, employers can afford to hire additional workers. (Mankiw, 2004)

Work Sheet

* * Scavenger Hunt Worksheet Assignment Background: The point of this assignment is to get you to search and become familiar with the GCU Learning Management System (LMS) LoudCloud and the GCU web site. These two sites have many resources to help you be a successful student. Assignment Instructions: Answer the following questions that require you to search the LoudCloud classroom and GCU web site. Feel free to search around the sites until you find the things you are looking for. LoudCloud Questions 1.After logging into the LoudCloud classroom, list the tabs and other items on the screen when you first enter a course in LoudCloud. 2. From the course home page in LoudCloud, click on the â€Å"Tasks† tab and then click on â€Å"Forums†. Make notes on the various forums and their purposes. * * 3. Find the Student Success Center under the Resources Tab. Click on this link. List some of the services provided to students at this link. * * 4. Inside the Student Success Center, click on the Writing Center link. Click on LoudCloud Courses.What writing style is required for 100- and 200-level courses at GCU? 5. Inside the Student Success Center, click on the Support Services link. List the services available at this link. 6. Inside the Student Success Center, click on the Succeed at GCU link. Click on the GCU Tutorials link at the bottom of the page. What tutorials are available for students at this link? 7. Click on the Resources Tab in the LoudCloud classroom. List each section. Review each section and list what you find in it. 8.Click on the Course Home link the left-hand corner of the screen. List some of the components found on this page. 9. Go to http://library. gcu. edu. Click on the Frequently Asked Questions (on the left) link. List how a GCU student finds a Book, DVD, streaming video, or other multimedia at the GCU library: * GCU Web site Questions (http://www. gcu. edu) 1. Locate and click the Spiritual Life link on the right side of the screen. You will notice a navigation pane on the left side of the screen. Click the â€Å"+† sign next to Chapel and the Gathering.What information is listed under Chapel and the Gathering? 2. On the Home page, locate and click the Current Students button on the right side of the screen. Scroll down the page. What links are listed under the Student Resources section? 3. On the Home page, locate and click on the Resources tab at the top of the screen. Click the Technical Support link listed under the Support Services section. What information can be found under Technical Support? 4. On the Home page, click on the Contact Us tab which is located just above the home page footer.This is where you can locate phone numbers and addresses of the colleges, the main GCU switchboard, and the Student Services offices. List the phone numbers of the following departments located in the Student Contact Information section: * Career Services- * Center for Learning Advancement- * Academic Advising- * Finance Counselors- * Office of Academic Records- * Technical Support 5. On the Home page, notice the icons on the top right header area. What are the other icons listed next to theâ€Å"† for the GCU Facebook page? 6. On the Home page, click the About Us tab located at the top.What is the vision and mission statement for Grand Canyon University? 7. Also under the About Us tab, locate the four pillars of Grand Canyon University. 8. Navigate from the About Us tab to the Academics tab. Read about Accreditation near the bottom of the page. What did you learn? 9. Navigate from the Academics tab to the Student Life tab. Scroll down the page to locate and click on Bookstore. Click the Online Bookstores link and then through to the Grand Canyon Online Students section. What sort of materials can a student purchase from this site?

Standard of living essays

Standard of living essays Standard of Living and the Quality of Life Todays companies should not be responsible for the standard of living and quality of life of their foreign suppliers. Many of the major companies like Nike and Mercedes-Benz have moved their factories overseas or in other countries because of the minimum taxes and regulations. For instance a celebrity was recently under fire for having her clothes made in India. They were making around 70 cents a day. Being Americans we thought they were getting ripped off and that the celebrity was taking advantage of the people working for them, in fact they probably were, but we do not know how much money you need to survive to live in India. It might be $0.05 a day or it might be a lot more. It is not right for us to tell other people in foreign countries how to live. We cant just go to India and say You need to build your houses like we do in America. The minimum wage here is $6.75, etc. It is not our right to do that. Foreign countries have a different standard of living than the Un ited States. Companies should be responsible for making and keeping their employees happy. The companies should not be responsible for their quality of living. Companies do not know how their employees would like to live. All the companies need to do is keep their employees happy in the work place. Once they are off the job they can do whatever they want to make them happy. Their employers should not be held responsible for how they live their life outside of work. ...

Reading Response 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Reading Response 1 - Essay Example not only aimed at spreading the gospel, but had the interest of taking the land of the local people with the pretense they were teaching the people how to use land and the new gospel. The result was grievous execution and torture of the locals who refused to embrace the new teachings and were unwelcoming to strangers. Instead of preaching a gospel of peace, Christians perpetrated mass execution of the locals torturing them by burning them alive and dismembering their bodies, among other atrocities. Children and women bore the wrath of the Christians whose gospel was opposite of their actions. In the name of the gospel, a large population of the Indies people was eliminated, the rest were taken as slaves to work for the benefit of the same Christians, who continued to gather wealth while the locals struggled to suffer in poverty. The locals were denied food despite working in extreme conditions to enrich the missionaries in their own land and using their own blood and resources (Casas 34). The main aim behind the colonialists’ atrocities in the Indies was to weaken the resistance of the locals. There was a thin line between spreading the gospel in Christianity in such Asian regions and exploring the land for resources to enrich the colonialists’ mother countries. Most of the early missionaries turned to be political elements who explored new lands and resources for their mother countries, and the Indies was not an exceptional. The locals were harsh and unwelcome to the colonialists, as a response, the colonialists had to use cruel methods to deter any resistance from the locals and to weaken the resistance of the people towards receiving new instructions. Women and children were easier to deal with, which explains the mass execution of males; moreover, as political figures, the missionaries had to use cheap labor to attain maximum benefits from exploiting resources in the Indies, which degenerated into slave trade. One of the greatest impacts of colonialism

Risk management and insurance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Risk management and insurance - Essay Example an insurance agent, one is charged with the responsibility of contacting potential clients, selling different types of insurance, and explaining policies to customers (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, n.d.). While the job can be greatly rewarding, it also has a lot of challenges especially for beginners. The insurance agent may have to walk the streets soliciting customers. The hustle involved in trying to convince potential albeit disinterested customers to buy an insurance policy seems too much for me especially considering that I am not as social as the job may demand. I especially do not like to engage complete strangers walking along the streets. Dealing with people unknown to me is especially stressful since they may hurl obscenities at me without any considerable provocation. In many cases, insurance companies place no requirement for working as an insurance agent. In any case, the insurance agents do not need much to be licensed to start working – passing a state administered licensing exam and taking a short course on insurance suffices to join the trade. While some may prefer to work with college graduates, this requirement is more often than not overlooked in a bid to find the right candidates for the job. In order to work as an agent, one may take economics and business courses (Career Planning.about.com, n.d.). This is not the case when dealing with insurance attorneys. Every organization wants to work with a competent insurance attorney which means that the candidate has to be well trained at college or university level at the least, law being a major component in his/her training. According to the requirements instituted by companies seeking insurance attorneys, it is beyond doubt that the candidate is better placed to earn much more than the insurance agent who may be earning on commission basis. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (n.d.), the median annual wage for agents stands at about 46,770 USD which is significantly lower

Affluent Society 1950 Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Affluent Society 1950 - Term Paper Example During the World War, Roosevelt declared Detroit as Arsenal of Democracy. Most of the American males were involved in War and women were also called to develop weapons in Arsenal of democracy. Subsequently, unemployed had already dropped suddenly. On the other hand, America fortunately did not lose much of its assets during war. As the World War ended American businessman saw an open world to market it out whatever goods they could make. Rest of the world was somehow under deep requirements to overcome from damages that had hurt international economy quite badly. As DeGrasse (1981) puts factually: Before the World War, United States was mired in the great depression. Unemployment which had been as high as 24.9 in 1933 still averaged 14.6 in 1944. During the World War unemployment dropped rapidly. In 1942 it averaged 4.7 and in 1944 it reaches wartime 1.2. As a result, a number of populations had got various jobs in overwhelming economy that created a booming middle class. Earlier thi s boom could not be recognized so clearly. However, as American Business expanded through the world, this class continued to spread. Further, it became the base of future economic and marketing development of American society which helped America to soon reach at the status of an economic superpower.

Academic Project Title Essay Example for Free

Academic Project Title Essay The purpose of this study is to study design of public toilets in shopping malls with high status. This study was conducted at the well-known shopping center in Kuala Lumpur at KLCC. KLCC is chosen as the place has always been a focus of people no matter domestically or internationally. KLCC can be said as a luxury place as for business that provides well-known store sales and items with high price and most of it is expensive. So, the main purpose of this study is to evaluate the design of public toilets have their own class, a literature review was based on the goals and objectives of the study. Many studies through secondary data methods obtained from a variety of different sources such as, books, journals, newspapers, articles, and even the internet. Most of the data collected from the library at UiTM Shah Alam. See more: The stages of consumer buying decision process essay Researcher also do a variety of research methods, including the four methods of research which is based on the observation, physical measurements at the site location, interviewing experts in the design of the toilet and also produce and distribute a questionnaire to obtain primary data. After getting the information from all methods of research, then all data will be collected and analyzed to be used to determine the objectives of the study. Data analysis will be separated into two sample case studies to be carried out to obtain the findings. Toilet with fee of RM 2 per entry in KLCC has been used to study the case. All research methods have been used for the review process for primary data based on research on selected toilet. Researcher has also managed to interview a designer who has been involved in the design of the toilet. Apart from distributing the questionnaire sheets to the toilet users, measuring and observing the restroom area also took place at the site location.

Hierarchy Of Effects Model

Hierarchy Of Effects Model Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. The desired result is usually to drive consumer behavior with respect to an organizational goal commonly to increase awareness or sales. Advertising messages are usually paid for by sponsors and viewed via various media; including traditional media such as newspapers, magazines, television, radio, outdoor or direct mail; or new media such as websites and text messages. In shorter terms, advertising is the non-personal communication of information usually paid for and usually persuasive in nature about products, services or ideas by identified sponsors through the various media. However not all advertising are successful and those that fail are mainly due to the lack of communication or failure to establish the desired messages to the audiences. In order for an advertising campaign to be successful, there are several implementations based on advertising theories which can help communication to occur effectively with the audience. Hierarchy-of-Effects Model Among advertising theories, the hierarchy-of-effects model is predominant. It shows clear steps of how advertising works.Hierarchy of effects Model can be explained with the help of a pyramid. First the lower level objectives such as awareness, knowledge or comprehension are accomplished. Subsequent objectives may focus on moving prospects to higher levels in the pyramid to elicit desired behavioral responses such as associating feelings with the brand, trial, or regular use etc. it is easier to accomplish ad objectives located at the base of the pyramid than the ones towards the top. The percentage of prospective customers will decline as they move up the pyramid towards more action oriented objectives, such as regular brand use. Awareness: If most of the target audience is unaware of the object, the communicators task is to build awareness, perhaps just name recognition, with simple messages repeating the product name. Consumers must become aware of the brand. This isnt as straightforward as it seems. Capturing someones attention doesnt mean they will notice the brand name. Thus, the brand name needs to be made focal to get consumers to become aware. Magazines are full of ads that will capture your attention, but youll have trouble easily seeing the brand name. Knowledge: The target audience might have product awareness but not know much more; hence this stage involves creating brand knowledge. This is where comprehension of the brand name and what it stands for become important. What are the brands specific appeals, its benefits? In what way is it different than competitors brands? Who is the target market? These are the types of questions that must be answered if consumers are to achieve the step of brand knowledge. Liking: If target members know the product, how do they feel about it? If the audience looks unfavourably towards the product to communicator has to find out why. If the unfavorable view is based on real problems, a communication campaigns alone cannot do the job. For product problem it is necessary to first fix the problem and only then can you communicate its renewed quality. Preference: The target audience might like the product but not prefer it to others. In this case, the communicator must try to build consumer preference by promoting quality, value, performance and other features. The communicator can check the campaigns success by measuring audience preference before and after the campaign. Conviction: A target audience might prefer a particular product but not develop a conviction about buying it. The communicators job is to build conviction among the target audience. Purchase: Finally, some members of the target audience might have conviction but not quite get around to making the purchase. They may wait for more information or plan to act later. The communicator must need these consumers to take the final step, perhaps by offering the product at a low price, offering a premium, or letting consumers tried out. This is where consumers make a move to actually search out information or purchase. Thus advertising is thought to work and follow a certain sequence whereby the prospect is moved through a series of stages in succession from unawareness to the purchase of the product. Advertising cannot induce immediate behavioural response, rather a series of mental effects must occur with the fulfillment at each stage before progress to the next stage is possible. 3ALIENCE IN OUR SENSE IS ABOUT THE BRAND COMING TO MIND IN PERSONALLY RELEVANT CHOICE SITUATIONS 2OMANIUK AND 3HARP B 4HE BRAND HAS BECOME PART OF ONE S BROAD CONSIDERATION SET A BRAND THAT ONE MIGHT BUY OR USE n EITHER NOW OR IN YEARS AHEAD 4HIS GOES WELL BEYOND TRADITIONAL AWARENESS OR EVEN THE strength OF SUCH AWARENESS E G lRST RECALL 3ALIENCE CONCERNS THE @SIZE OF THE BRAND IN ONE S MIND 2OMANIUK AND 3HARP B I E ALL THE MEMORY STRUC TURES WHICH CAN ALLOW THE BRAND TO COME FORWARD FOR THE WIDE RANGE OF RECALL CUES THAT CAN OCCUR IN PURCHASE OCCASIONS 7ITH THIS @SHARE OF MIND COME FEELINGS OF BEING FAMILIAR AND FEELINGS OF ASSUR ANCE h9ES ) VE HEARD OF IT )T SHOULD BE ALL RIGHT v 4HAT IS OUR BROAD DESIGNATION OF h3ALIENCEv n AWARENESS AND MEMORY TRACES PLUS FAMILIARITY PLUS ASSURANCE -ORAN IN HIS SEMINAL PAPER AL READY STRESSED THE ROLE OF A BRAND S h0RES ENCEv 3IMILARLY BULLMORES fAME(2002) IS A COLOURFUL WAY OF REmECTING SA LIENCE UT IT OVERSTATES THE ROLE OF BIG BRANDS n SUCCESSFUL SMALL BRANDS CAN STILL BE SALIENT FOR THOSE WHO USE OR CONSIDER THEM BUT HARDLY famous Digital advertising Television advertising / Music in advertising The TV commercial is generally considered the most effective mass-market advertising format, as is reflected by the high prices TV networks charge for commercial airtime during popular TV events. The annual Super Bowl football game in the United States is known as the most prominent advertising event on television. The average cost of a single thirty-second TV spot during this game has reached US$3 million (as of 2009). The majority of television commercials feature a song or jingle that listeners soon relate to the product. Virtual advertisements may be inserted into regular television programming through computer graphics. It is typically inserted into otherwise blank backdrops[9] or used to replace local billboards that are not relevant to the remote broadcast audience.[10] More controversially, virtual billboards may be inserted into the background[11] where none exist in real-life. This technique is especially used in televised sporting events.[12][13] Virtual product placement is also possible.[14][15] Infomercials: An infomercial is a long-format television commercial, typically five minutes or longer. The word infomercial combining the words information commercial. The main objective in an infomercial is to create an impulse purchase, so that the consumer sees the presentation and then immediately buys the product through the advertised toll-free telephone number or website. Infomercials describe, display, and often demonstrate products and their features, and commonly have testimonials from consumers and industry professionals. Radio advertising Radio advertising is a form of advertising via the medium of radio. Radio advertisements are broadcast as radio waves to the air from a transmitter to an antenna and a thus to a receiving device. Airtime is purchased from a station or network in exchange for airing the commercials. While radio has the limitation of being restricted to sound, proponents of radio advertising often cite this as an advantage. Radio is an expanding medium that can be found not only on air, but also online. According to Arbitron, radio has approximately 241.6 million weekly listeners, or more than 93 percent of the U.S. population. Online advertising Online advertising is a form of promotion that uses the Internet and World Wide Web for the expressed purpose of delivering marketing messages to attract customers. Examples of online advertising include contextual ads that appear on search engine results pages, banner ads, in text ads, Rich Media Ads, Social network advertising, online classified advertising, advertising networks and e-mail marketing, including e-mail spam. Product placements Covert advertising, also known as guerrilla advertising, is when a product or brand is embedded in entertainment and media. For example, in a film, the main character can use an item or other of a definite brand, as in the movie Minority Report, where Tom Cruises character John Anderton owns a phone with the Nokia logo clearly written in the top corner, or his watch engraved with the Bulgari logo. Another example of advertising in film is in I, Robot, where main character played by Will Smith mentions his Converse shoes several times, calling them classics, because the film is set far in the future. I, Robot and Spaceballs also showcase futuristic cars with the Audi and Mercedes-Benz logos clearly displayed on the front of the vehicles. Cadillac chose to advertise in the movie The Matrix Reloaded, which as a result contained many scenes in which Cadillac cars were used. Similarly, product placement for Omega Watches, Ford, VAIO, BMW and Aston Martin cars are featured in recent James Bond films, most notably Casino Royale. In Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, the main transport vehicle shows a large Dodge logo on the front. Blade Runner includes some of the most obvious product placement; the whole film stops to show a Coca-Cola billboard. Physical advertising Press advertising Press advertising describes advertising in a printed medium such as a newspaper, magazine, or trade journal. This encompasses everything from media with a very broad readership base, such as a major national newspaper or magazine, to more narrowly targeted media such as local newspapers and trade journals on very specialized topics. A form of press advertising is classified advertising, which allows private individuals or companies to purchase a small, narrowly targeted ad for a low fee advertising a product or service. Another form of press advertising is the Display Ad, which is a larger ad (can include art) that typically run in an article section of a newspaper. Billboard advertising: Billboards are large structures located in public places which display advertisements to passing pedestrians and motorists. Most often, they are located on main roads with a large amount of passing motor and pedestrian traffic; however, they can be placed in any location with large amounts of viewers, such as on mass transit vehicles and in stations, in shopping malls or office buildings, and in stadiums. The RedEye newspaper advertised to its target market at North Avenue Beach with a sailboat billboard on Lake Michigan. Mobile billboard advertising Mobile billboards are generally vehicle mounted billboards or digital screens. These can be on dedicated vehicles built solely for carrying advertisements along routes preselected by clients, they can also be specially equipped cargo trucks or, in some cases, large banners strewn from planes. The billboards are often lighted; some being backlit, and others employing spotlights. Some billboard displays are static, while others change; for example, continuously or periodically rotating among a set of advertisements. Mobile displays are used for various situations in metropolitan areas throughout the world, including: Target advertising, One-day, and long-term campaigns, Conventions, Sporting events, Store openings and similar promotional events, and Big advertisements from smaller companies. In-store advertising In-store advertising is any advertisement placed in a retail store. It includes placement of a product in visible locations in a store, such as at eye level, at the ends of aisles and near checkout counters, eye-catching displays promoting a specific product, and advertisements in such places as shopping carts and in-store video displays. Coffee cup advertising Coffee cup advertising is any advertisement placed upon a coffee cup that is distributed out of an office, cafà ©, or drive-through coffee shop. This form of advertising was first popularized in Australia, and has begun growing in popularity in the United States, India, and parts of the Middle East.[citation needed] Street advertising This type of advertising first came to prominence in the UK by Street Advertising Services to create outdoor advertising on street furniture and pavements. Working with products such as Reverse Graffiti and 3d pavement advertising, the media became an affordable and effective tool for getting brand messages out into public spaces. Celebrity branding This type of advertising focuses upon using celebrity power, fame, money, popularity to gain recognition for their products and promote specific stores or products. Advertisers often advertise their products, for example, when celebrities share their favorite products or wear clothes by specific brands or designers. Celebrities are often involved in advertising campaigns such as television or print adverts to advertise specific or general products. The use of celebrities to endorse a brand can have its downsides, however. One mistake by a celebrity can be detrimental to the public relations of a brand. For example, following his performance of eight gold medals at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, swimmer Michael Phelps contract with Kelloggs was terminated, as Kelloggs did not want to associate with him after he was photographed smoking marijuana.

The Atomic Bomb Helpful or Harmful Essay -- essays papers

The Atomic Bomb Helpful or Harmful There used to be a time in America when the name â€Å"Atomic Bomb† seemed fictional to some, non existent to others,and seemed only a dream to those in the science world. That time is long gone.The day that changed all ideas and opinions about what war was and what is has evolved to be was August 6,1945. President Truman had decided to drop the Atomic bomb in order to end the war and save as many lives as possible. The United States had dropped the bomb on Hiroshima in order to end the war almost instantly and avoid bloody invasion, thereby saving both American and Japanese lives. Whether or not to drop the atomic bomb was president Truman’s decision, faced with this decision Truman researched and asked advisors to share their ideas about the bomb and then made the best decision for the American and Japanese people. â€Å" In an invasion of Japan,the fighting would have been more savage, and the number of lives lost on both sides would of been tragic.†(O’Neal 35) The Atomic bomb was essential in helping to put and en d to the war and saving lives. The decision to drop the atomic bomb was made by President Truman . In his decision he states, â€Å" The only thing that was the right thing to do for the American and Japanese people was to end the war through the use of the atomic bomb.† ( O’Neal 36) Why all the controversy over the bomb? Historians and people today continue to ask this question along with others. Were the Japanese seriously considering surrendering before the bomb was let off, and was the only way the war could of been ended ended was throughout the bomb? The atomic bomb saved lives on both sides and served it’s purpose of helping to end the war. The facts remain the Atomic Bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima killed many civilians, but if the war continued to go on it would of killed many more. When President Truman walked in to the White House he had problems and decisions lying ahead of him that he knew little about.In his first few days of briefing from advisors and committee he had said,†I have to decide Japanese strategy-shall we invade Japan proper or shall we bomb and blockade? That is my hardest decision to date .but I’ll make it when I have all the facts. â€Å"(Takaki 26) As you can see Truman had no intention of making uneducated decisions and he was by no means in a rush to bo... ...tomic bomb was being assembled at the time and it was to be let off on Tokyo, that bomb was never used. The 500,000 lives that were saved in bombing Hiroshima compared to the 100,000 that died in the bombing shows that Truman did in fact make the best decision when lives were at stake. Bibliography: Alperovitz, Gar. The Use of the Atomic Bomb. Chicago : D.C. Heath and Company, 1974. Blow, Michael. The History of the Atomic Bomb. New York ,New York:American Heritage Publishing and Company Inc., 1968. Feis, Herbert. The Atomic Bomb and the end of World War II. Chicago: Princeston University Press, 1866. Kurzman, Dan. Day of the Bomb. New York: McGraw- Hill Book Company, 1986. Nardo, Don. Modern Japan. California: Lucent Books, 1995. O’Neal, Michael. President Truman and the Atomic Bomb. San Diego,California Greenhaven Press, Inc., 1990. Takaki, Ronald. Hiroshima. Canada: Little Brown and Company Limited, 1995. Wheeler, Keith. World WarII Time Life Books. Virginia: Time Life Books Inc., 1983. Wyden, Peter. Day One Before Hiroshima and After. New York: Simon and Schustler, 1984.

Hamlet Theme Analysis Essay

In William Shakespeare’s tragedy Hamlet, the title character’s logical soliloquies, and over thinking of situations inhibit his abilities to act on his passions. It’s safe to say that Hamlet was a logical and reasonable person right from the start. In the society he was raised in most actions carried out through passion were considered taboo. Take jealousy, lust and vengeance for example; in the play all of these passions are put into satisfying action by the people surrounding Hamlet. Everyone but Hamlet makes a move based on emotion; Claudius murdered his brother for his crown, Gertrude quickly married Claudius, and Laertes takes revenge on Hamlet. The prince, instead, takes the path of thought and only allows himself to do what he makes himself believe is the most logical. In the beginning Hamlet is distressed. He feels no compassion for his new stepfather considering him â€Å"a little more than kin and less than kind† (I.ii.67), as Claudius is not a replacement for his father and Hamlet refuses to accept that. He most definitely does not stand for Claudius referring to him as ‘son.’ His relationship with his mother isn’t any better. Hamlet feels a strong resentment toward this whole marriage business and expresses his displeasure through riddles in court. â€Å"Ay, madam,† he says disdainfully toward his mother’s insistence that he stop mourning and that death is a common occurrence, â€Å"it is common† (I.ii 76). In Hamlet’s eyes she has betrayed his father by marrying so soon, in fact by re-marrying at all; especially to Claudius, the king’s brother. Claudius attempts to make it look like everyone is friends in the eyes of the court by trying to sympathize with Hamlet but ends up just telling him to suck it up and deal with his father’s death like a man. â€Å"Take it to heart? Fie! ‘tis a fault to heaven/A fault against the dead, a fault to nature† (I.ii 104). Hamlet’s mourning is not natural to his family much as their marriage is not natural to him. So when his new daddy dearest refuses to let him out of the country to go back to school Hamlet feels even more out of place because now, he can’t escape. In every soliloquy we hear from Hamlet there is talk of suicide. The most obvious of all, â€Å"to be or not to be, that is the question:† (III.i.63) Or earlier mention of self harm after the coronation of the new king. â€Å"Or that the Everlasting had not fix’d/His canon ‘gainst self-slaughter† (I.ii.134). However, Hamlet is a logical guy and he knows suicide would cause a big mess and besides, in the first soliloquy it is evident that Hamlet would rather be anywhere but Denmark, even the grave but he finds there are better things to be ranting about; like his mother’s remarriage. â€Å"O God! a beast that wants discourse of reason/Would have mourn’d longer–married with my uncle,/My father’s brother, but no more like my father/Than I to Hercules† (I.ii.154). Hamlet can’t find a single good thing to come out of this union and his opinion of his mother has been flipped onto its head. So he deals with an internal conflict; â€Å"But break, my heart, for I must hold my tongue!†(I.ii.162), he can’t exactly go around telling everyone that his mother is a whore. She’s the queen and he the prince, it would be more trouble than it’s worth to go about making accusations especially since Claudius made it clear that he was weird for mourning for so long. So, onward goes Hamlet’s little self/Claudius loathing party. Hamlet’s trusted friend Horatio tells him some very interesting news. Horatio tells Hamlet that his father’s ghost had been spotted in the courtyards and that it wouldn’t answer to anyone no matter what. Horatio believes that our young prince must see what this ghost has to offer. Hamlet is excited to say the least when the ghost appears â€Å"That I will speak to thee. I’ll call thee Hamlet,/King, father, royal Dane. O answer me!†(I.iv. 47). He follows the ghost and the ghost tells Hamlet that he was murdered by Claudius and that Hamlet must avenge him. He isn’t sure what to make of this ghost at first, how can Hamlet be absolutely positive the ghost isn’t lying or tricking him? After all, murder is a big order, he can’t dive head first into that pool of accusations without verification. Hamlet decides he will ‘act’ mad so to not draw attention to his plans to kill Claudius. This works for a while, no one suspects he knows of Claudius’ deed, not even Claudius himself. He definitely wouldn’t suspect the prince to come into his chambers and catch him while praying; which is exactly what happens. Hamlet is given his prey on a silver platter and decides against it. â€Å"Now might I do it pat, now he is praying;and now I’ll do’t. And so he goes to heaven† (III.iii.76). A reasonable explanation as to why Hamlet didn’t kill Claudius is because he was scared. He was afraid to act on his passions thus, his mind gave him a reason not to do it; if he killed Claudius while the man repented, his soul would be unfailingly sent to heaven. However, this is not the case â€Å"That cannot be; since I am still possess’d/of those effects for which I did the murder†(III.iii.55). Claudius does not regret his decision, nor would he leave what he had gained through murder even for heaven. This hesitation revealed that Hamlet does not kill Claudius in the most logical and perfect time to do so because his passions had muddied his ability to think clearly. And so he continues with his ‘mad’ facade. Everyone has noticed the prince’s new attitude and his mother grows worried for his sanity. â€Å"Hamlet, thou hast thy father much offended† (III.iv.9) If there is anything ‘crazy’ Hamlet has latched onto as a vehicle upon which to launch his insanity, it is any mention of his late father. Especially mention that he has somehow failed his father. The queen claims that Hamlet’s behavior has upset his father and shamed the family. But quick and clever Hamlet simply quips â€Å"Mother you have my father much offended†(III.iv.10). Gertrude is appalled by her son’s behavior and wants him to stop, but bringing up the late King Hamlet wasn’t the best way to go around that. As I’ve said, Hamlet is using any mention of his father’s death to flip the tables around and around and drive any serious conversation off course with puns and quips of his mother’s hasty remarriage. â€Å"Come, come, you answer with an idle tongue† (III.iv.11). â€Å"Go, go you question with a wicked tongue† (III.iv.12). At one point during the conversation between mother and son it is hard to determine where Hamlet’s insanity begins and his act of madness ends. We are given, throughout the entirety of the play, one single act of passion from Hamlet that was done to simply give a larger voice to his slip on sanity. His murder of Polonius. He feels no remorse for the act, although he believed it to be Claudius and states after his mother’s cries â€Å"A bloody deed. Almost as bad, good mother/as kill a king and marry with his brother† (III.iv.31). He continues â€Å"Peace! sit you down/and let me wring your heart;for so I shall,/if it be made of penetrable stuff;†(III.iv.38). Hamlet doesn’t feel sorry for his mother either. He could care less if she was disturbed by her son’s murder of Polonius, he was going to tell her that he was right and she was wrong and sinful and disgusting, because it fit with the appearance Hamlet was trying to portray. Hamlet allowed this one, small, passionate outburst for the potential sake of avenging his father but even smart, logical Hamlet couldn’t have predicted the consequences of this one act of passion because he didn’t give himself the time to think it over. He never would have thought that their father’s death would lead poor Ophelia to madness or that Laertes would be so spited by it, or that it would get around that Hamlet himself had committed the murder. But all of these things do happen and they happen because of Hamlet’s one moment of passion. The prince discovers why acting passionately is a bad thing for him; he’s just not good at it. He can’t judge when to, the whole ‘could kill him now but I’m not going to even if it’d be so freaking easy,’ thing with Claudius and the ‘I’m gonna stab the curtain and see what happens,’ moment when he murdered Polonius. After Polonius’ murder and the discovery by Laertes that his sister is beyond mental, Claudius approaches the boy and tells him he can help avenge his father’s death. Laertes listens and latches to Claudius’ every word â€Å"And where the offence is let the great axe fall./I pray you go with me† (IV.v.234). The end of act four introduces a bit of a mess. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern were sent with Hamlet to see him killed in England, however, Hamlet is on his way back to Elsinore and Claudius is none too pleased. However, he quickly turns this information into a plan he can work with. He has Laertes swear allegiance to him â€Å"will you be ruled by me?† (IV.vii.63) and recruits the younger man into the ‘let’s kill Hamlet club.’ Thus, Hamlet finds himself in an unfortunate pickle. He had planned to kill Claudius and Laertes and they had planned to kill him, but Laertes acted sooner. Laertes let his passions guide his sword through Hamlet’s gut and Hamlet let logic lead him to the moment of his death; logic led by the very vengeance he had sworn for the former king. A passionate vengeance called upon to give Laertes strength to murder the prince. Hamlet’s ability to look at a situation and make a logical, well- thought out choice made him a strongly intelligent character. However his inability to act on passions or make a decisive decision drew him closer to death in every page. Had Hamlet acted on his earlier plans and ideas, he may not be dead.

Newspaper article Essay

The Pirates put out an amazing playoff season, this year having been the first year in the playoffs since 1992, but on October 9, 2013 they lost to the St. Louis Cardinals ending their amazing playoff season. In their last playoff game in St. Louis the Pirates lost 6-1 to the Cardinals, ending the season. In the second inning the Cardinals scored two runs taking the lead over the pirates. There was no more scoring until the sixth inning when the Cardinals scored yet another run, now having a three point lead over the Pirates. In the next inning the Pirates scored their first run. And sadly, the Cardinals scored three more runs in the eighth inning ending the game at a score of 6-1. The Pirates played the best they’ve played since 1992, which wasn’t enough this time. There was some amazing plays in the game, but I believe an incredible one was in the fourth inning when Starling Marte covered about twenty feet to catch a fly ball and get the second out with his incredible dive catch. An articles read about their season said that they played everything right, it was a amazing season but it wasn’t enough this year, they needed a little more. This year the Pirates MVP player is Andrew McCutchen, he put up an OPS+ of 158, and swiped 27 bags this season. The teams LVP was Barmes, who plays shortstop, he hit a measly . 211/. 249/. 309, which is considered quite weak. The Pirates gameplan for next season is to keep the team mostly intact, and to hopefully make it farther into the playoffs next season. According to Christian Hartman † The teams MVP should definitely be McCutchen, he hits well, plays amazing center field, and he’s just overall great. He is everything a player should be. † The Pirates put out an amazing playoff season, this year being their first playoff season since 1992.

Free Essays on Problems In English Pronunciation

Millions of foreign students want to learn English as well as they can; for some it is only a matter of reading and writing it, but many students want to be able to speak English well,with pronunciation which can be easily understood both by their fellow-students and by English people . Written English and spoken English are obviously very different things. Writing consists of marks on paper which make no noise and are taken in by eye,while speaking is organized sound,taken in by the ear. How can a book which is nothing but marks on paper ,help anyone to make their English sound better? The answer to this is that it can’t , not by itself. But if you will co-operate ,and listen to English as much as you can, then you will find that the instructions given in the following pages will make your ears sharper for the sound of English and when you can hear English properly you can go on and improve your performance. Language starts with the ear. When a baby starts to talk he does it by hearing the sounds his mother makes and imitating them. If a baby is born deaf he cannot hear these sounds and therefore cannot imitate them and will not speak. But normal babies can hear and can imitate; they are wonderful imitators,and this gift of imitation ,which gives us the gift of speech,lasts for a number of years. It is will known that a child of ten years old or less can learn any language perfectly,if it is brought up surrounded by that language,no matter where it was born or who its parents were. But after this stage the ability to imitate perfectly becomes less, and we all know only to well that adults have great difficulty in mastering pronunciation(as well as other parts) of foreign languages. Some people are more talented than others’ they find pronouncing other languages less difficul, but they never find them easy. The reason for this can be found in our native language. B y the time we are grown up the habits ... Free Essays on Problems In English Pronunciation Free Essays on Problems In English Pronunciation Millions of foreign students want to learn English as well as they can; for some it is only a matter of reading and writing it, but many students want to be able to speak English well,with pronunciation which can be easily understood both by their fellow-students and by English people . Written English and spoken English are obviously very different things. Writing consists of marks on paper which make no noise and are taken in by eye,while speaking is organized sound,taken in by the ear. How can a book which is nothing but marks on paper ,help anyone to make their English sound better? The answer to this is that it can’t , not by itself. But if you will co-operate ,and listen to English as much as you can, then you will find that the instructions given in the following pages will make your ears sharper for the sound of English and when you can hear English properly you can go on and improve your performance. Language starts with the ear. When a baby starts to talk he does it by hearing the sounds his mother makes and imitating them. If a baby is born deaf he cannot hear these sounds and therefore cannot imitate them and will not speak. But normal babies can hear and can imitate; they are wonderful imitators,and this gift of imitation ,which gives us the gift of speech,lasts for a number of years. It is will known that a child of ten years old or less can learn any language perfectly,if it is brought up surrounded by that language,no matter where it was born or who its parents were. But after this stage the ability to imitate perfectly becomes less, and we all know only to well that adults have great difficulty in mastering pronunciation(as well as other parts) of foreign languages. Some people are more talented than others’ they find pronouncing other languages less difficul, but they never find them easy. The reason for this can be found in our native language. B y the time we are grown up the habits ...

The Ancient Practice of Bloodletting in Archaeology

The Ancient Practice of Bloodletting in Archaeology Bloodlettingpurposefully cutting the human body to release bloodis an ancient ritual, associated with both healing and sacrifice. Bloodletting was a regular form of medical treatment for ancient Greeks, with its benefits debated by scholars such as Hippocrates and Galen. Bloodletting in Central America Bloodletting or auto-sacrifice was a cultural trait of most of the societies in Mesoamerica, beginning with the Olmec perhaps as early as 1200 AD. This type of religious sacrifice involved a person using a sharp instrument such as an agave spine or sharks tooth to pierce a fleshy part of his own body. The resulting blood would drip onto a lump of copal incense or piece of cloth or bark paper, and then those materials would be burned. According to historical records of the Zapotec , Mixtec, and Maya, burning blood was one way to communicate with the sky gods. Artifacts associated with bloodletting include sharks teeth, maguey thorns, stingray spines, and obsidian blades. Specialized elite materialsobsidian eccentrics, greenstone picks, and spoonsare thought to have been used for elite bloodletting sacrifices in the  Formative period and later cultures. Bloodletting Spoons A so-called bloodletting spoon is a type of artifact discovered on many Olmec archaeological sites. Although there is some variety, the spoons generally have a flattened tail or blade, with a thickened end. The thick part has a shallow off-center bowl on one side and a second, smaller bowl on the other side. Spoons usually have a small hole pierced through them, and in Olmec art are often depicted as hanging from peoples clothing or ears. Bloodletting spoons have been recovered from Chalcatzingo, Chacsinkin, and Chichà ©n Itz; the images are found carved in murals and on stone sculptures at San Lorenzo, Cascajal, and Loma del Zapote. Olmec Spoon Functions The real function of the Olmec spoon has long been debated. Theyre called bloodletting spoons because originally scholars believed them to have been for holding blood from auto-sacrifice, the ritual of personal bloodletting. Some scholars still prefer that interpretation, but others have suggested spoons were for holding paints, or for use as snuffing platforms for taking hallucinogens, or even that they were effigies of the Big Dipper constellation. In a recent article in Ancient Mesoamerica, Billie J. A. Follensbee suggests Olmec spoons were part of a hitherto unrecognized toolkit for textile production. Her argument is in part based on the shape of the tool, which approximates bone weaving battens recognized in several Central American cultures, including some from Olmec sites. Follansbee also identifies several other tools made of elite greenstone or obsidian, such as spindle whorls, picks, and plaques, that could have been used in weaving or cord-making techniques. Sources Follensbee, Billie J. A. 2008. Fiber technology and weaving in formative-period Gulf Coast cultures. Ancient Mesoamerica 19:87-110. Marcus, Joyce. 2002. Blood and Bloodletting. Pp 81-82 in Archaeology of Ancient Mexico and Central America: An Encyclopedia, Susan Toby Evans and David L. Webster, eds. Garland Publishing, Inc. New York. Fitzsimmons, James L., Andrew Scherer, Stephen D. Houston, and Hector L. Escobedo 2003 Guardian of the Acropolis: The Sacred Space of a Royal Burial at Piedras Negras, Guatemala. Latin American Antiquity 14(4):449-468.