Both obsessive-compulsive disorder and post traumatic stress disorder Essay

Both obsessive-compulsive disorder and post traumatic stress disorder are linked under the umbrella of anxiety disorders. What a - Essay Example OCD is characterized by repetitive obsessions with a particular kind of phenomenon. One of the aspects of this disorder is through the use of rituals. For example, someone who is OCD about bacteria might was their hands an obsessive amount of times in order to make sure they have gotten rid of the bacteria. It is the fourth most commonly diagnosed psychological disorder. There is strong evidence to support that this condition not only has environmental and behavioral triggers, but also that there is a biological component involved in the neurochemistry of behavior. The most common forms of treatment for this disorder is through the use of behavioral therapy in which a therapist tries to make the ritualistic behavior, obsessions and compulsions extinct through classical and operant conditioning. Also, in some cases psychopharmacology is used in order to help supplement the counseling therapy. PTSD is a condition which often is the result of some sort of traumatic incident in a personà ¢â‚¬â„¢s life. This can range anywhere from military combat to sexual abuse.

Richer Sounds Case Essay Example for Free

Richer Sounds Case Essay The measures above effectively increased the valence, which highly motivate employees so they can give the best. Equity theory: the fact that the pay level in Richer Sounds is at the highest in the hi-fi industry + benefits given to employees is actually rarely seen in other organizations. Richer Sounds employees enjoy a higher ratio of input to output that of staff in other hi-fi retailers, which is actually positive inequity. When people realized the over-reward they received, they tend to reduce the inequity by working harder, according to Buchanan and Huczynski. Good work recognition, gratitude: very present in the case. The trust put by the management to its employees is actually a kind of recognition in itself for the honesty and credibility. The fact that the staff is working for a reputable company + great pay = pride from employees, which is also a strong motivator. Richer sounds = formal group: people are formally allocated to form into psychological groups to work together for their common goals as a basic function unit of the organization. Cohesiveness of group: in the case, we see the efforts put on the cohesiveness establishment of groups and the whole organization. To achieve good results, Richer Sounds tried many methods: 1) Membership: small teams better than big temps (big = reduction of communication, higher absenteeism rate). Richer sounds only hire candidates with similar interest, knowledge and enthusiasm in the hi-fi industry 2) Work environment: the nature of tasks given by Richer Sounds is similar in different stores and the fact that some of the surveyed staff claim that they laugh a lot implies that the communication among group members is good. That improves the cohesiveness of the work groups within Richer Sounds. 3) Organizational elements: The sense of trust increase cohesiveness of groups. The success that has been achieved so far by Richer Sounds contributes to the cohesiveness. Leadership: The company leader, Julian Richer, tends to establish a sense of trust between the employees and him via the trust culture and policies in the company. Richer also shows his respect to his employees, calling for a mutual respect as well. That way, the staff will be more inclined to work harder in a very enthusiastic way. The combination of transactional and transformational leadership approaches worked well and led to good performance of the whole organization, which is why Richer sounds has the highest record in sales per square foot amongst retailers. In Richer Sounds, many organizational behaviors are consolidated as rules, procedures policies and contracts. This tends to shape the good behavior of employees. Success of Richer Sounds: motivation strategies, group and team building strategies and the proper leadership adopted by the organization play a significant role. In the motivation area, appropriate measures like professional training programs could be adopted to improve the instrumentality and the expectancy to motivate employees. Performance management with clear set goals may also be helpful. Regarding the groups and teams, outdoors activities could be introduced. To what extend do you think that this leadership/management approach is replicable to other organizations? Google Apple Facebook?

Atoms Essay -- essays research papers

The beginning student of chemistry must have a knowledge of the theory which forms the basis for our understanding of chemistry and he must acquire this knowledge before he has the mathematical background required for a rigorous course of study in quantum mechanics. The present approach is designed to meet this need by stressing the physical or observable aspects of the theory through an extensive use of the electronic charge density. The manner in which the negative charge of an atom or a molecule is arranged in three-dimensional space is determined by the electronic charge density distribution. Thus, it determines directly the sizes and shapes of molecules, their electrical moments and, indeed, all of their chemical and physical properties. Since the charge density describes the distribution of negative charge in real space, it is a physically measurable quantity. Consequently, when used as a basis for the discussion of chemistry, the charge density allows for a direct physical picture and interpretation. In particular, the forces exerted on a nucleus in a molecule by the other nuclei and by the electronic charge density may be rigorously calculated and interpreted in terms of classical electrostatics. Thus, given the molecular charge distribution, the stability of a chemical bond may be discussed in terms of the electrostatic requirement of achieving a zero force on the nuclei in the molecule. A chemical bond is the result of the accumulation of negative charge dens...

My Mother, My Love Essay

Edwin Hubbell Chapin says, â€Å"No language can express the power, and beauty, and heroism, and majesty of a mother’s love. It shrinks not where man cowers, and grows stronger where man faints, and over wastes of worldly fortunes sends the radiance of its quenchless fidelity like a star†. From the moment we are born till we are cradled in the chariot of death, we come across many relations. Some are just for time being, some are to betray you, some are to leave you alone when you need their presence the most, some are with you just because of your attributes and some are compelled to stick with you due to blood relation compulsion and restrictions. But, there is one being who surpasses the love, care and affection of anyone related to you and she is ‘The Mother’. The love of a mother has no match nor can one replace her love. If a boy or a girl lover challenges a mother’s love will be defeated because they cannot love more than a mother can. A mother’s ageless love and care cannot be exemplified. When you were in her womb; she took every step so gently and carefully not to bother you from your sleep. This abysmal depth of a mother’s love is immeasurable. There are many precious things that Allah has bestowed on us however a Mother is one of the unique gifts of Allah. She is the embodiment of sacrifice and love. Life without mother is so dull and colorless. The beauty of life is in the lap and under the shade of mother’s love and care. Those who are bestowed with this gift don’t quit feel it but those who are deprived of this gift feel it from the core of their hearts. A mother turns a house into a home and home is the initial school of a child. Mother is our best teacher and trainer. She never gives up training us to speak â€Å"Am’ma (Mamma)†. She walks by knees to help us in our first steps. She teaches us the behaviors lessons. She never gives up on us. Mothers teach us how to love, cherish, and respect who we are, and what it takes for us to become the adults we will one day be. When a female becomes a mother, her heart gets filled with immense amount of love for her child. She carries her child for 9 months in her womb, bears all the pain and trouble in that process and when her child comes into her arms, she forgets all the pain and loves her child unconditionally. Before Islam, mother was not given any rights and respect but was only treated as a female who could be loved but not at the expense of self. But Islam gave the mother all the respect, love and status in the society she ever deserved. Holy Prophet P. B. U. H says, † Jannat lies under the feet of the mothers. † By this hadith we come to know the greatness and status of a mother in Islam. A mother holds a great respect in Islam. But in our today’s society few mothers are dealt with those of the housemaids. Order her, make her do work and in return give her nothing not even respect which is of no cost. As she bears too much pain and faces several troubles to fulfill our needs but when she grows old and weak and needs a shoulder, we just throw her away like a useless polythene bag. We tell her that she is now old and has now gone crazy. Not we think of our past? Not we take notice of the sleepless nights she had spent for us? Not we remember her support in every moment while we were young? Not we remember, while we were afraid of our own shadows and she was our only lifeguard? Not we even remember the way she wiped our tears when we used to cry over our broken toys? Respecting our mother must be our top priority as we were her top priority while we were young. Quran Says 17:23 â€Å"Say not a word of disrespect (to your mothers). † Allah Almighty strictly orders us not to say harsh and disrespectful words to your mother, for she is your best lover among your relations. After Allah and His prophets a mother is the most respectful person. She loves her child even more than a father does. She had cared and will always care for us as ever more than anyone related to us. We must never let her down. When we are born we are so helpless and dependent, and she is our only help in that stage. She shrills her voice and talks in a funny loving manner just to bring a smile on our face. While we are asleep in our comfortable warm cradle she sits aside, looks at us and curses herself a thousand times for us. She is ready to bear any pain but never wants a scratch onto us. She never feels boredom in our company. She is the supreme lover on this earth no one can surpasses her boundaries of love. How deep is her love! We must never let her down. We must always try our utmost to be the reason for her smile, not the reason for her sorrows and sadness. Muhammad P. B. U. H has ordered us to be good to our mothers. He has told us about the great rewards for that person who is good to his mother and punishments for those who are disobedient to their mothers. We must look after our parents even more when they are weak and old. We must be gentle to our parents and speak to them in a nice and polite manner. To me, my mother is my security blanket. No matter how bad of a day she had, she will always be there with a shoulder to cry on and a sympathetic ear for me. Even if she’s been screamed at all day, she will still be eager to hear my drama-filled gossips. My mom is my personal miracle. Whenever something becomes too much for me, she is there calming me down with just a hug and a kiss on my forehead. She is always there to company you. My lord mercy upon my parents the way they had mercy upon me when I was young.

Educational and Cultural Experience Essay

In research undertaking the methodology section is one of the crucial areas to be tackled in a proposal document. This is due to the fact that it forms the basis of the results of research findings. A research can be faced with big challenges due to a wrong choice of the method to be used. To avoid this good planning of the method is essential and more in order to get reliable results. The issue of reliability establishes that a research should have the ability to show consistency in the results even after a study is done by different researchers repeatedly. Reliability in research study can also be enhanced through good structure of the methodology. When the correct data collection methods are used, proportional samples are collected and the correct method of analysis is used in a research can achieve validity. In a research, the research problem forms the basis of research (Morgan et al. ,1980), and this is where the study should focus on. The methodology can take on either the positivist approach also known as the quantitative, or take the post positivist approach also known as the qualitative approach. The qualitative approach is a more detailed than the quantitative approach as it lays more emphasis on the finer details of the data and in most cases, it involves a researcher’s judgment and interpretation. Quantitative approach deals more with quantification like calculating the population sample, population size among others. The choice of the researcher on either the qualitative or the quantitative approach depends on whether the research/study is inclined to the natural sciences or the social sciences (Finch, 1986); (Easterby-Smith et al. 1991). 3. 1 Role of the Researcher The role of the researcher is an integral part of the evaluative process in the qualitative research. I am a certified teacher of mathematics, music and elementary education. Prior to the classroom, more than ten years were spent in insurance investigative claims work. The occupation included extensive ‘on-the-job’ training in organization, communication and interviewing skills. I was also deployed to Kuwait and Afghanistan, respectively, and have over 15 years in the United States military acquiring certain proficiency as a planner, liaison, administrator and human resource specialist. Co-operative inquiry involves at least four different kinds of epistemology; in other words, ways of knowing. Presentational knowing results from experiential knowing and provides the first form of expression through narratives and various expressions of art. Presentational knowing is expressed through ideas and theories. Practical knowing is modeling how to do something and is portrayed in a skill or competence. These epistemologies are compatible with each other. If knowing is grounded in experience, expressed through stories and images, understood through sounds ideas, and expressed in worthwhile action in one’s life, then knowing will be ‘more valid’ (Reason, 1999). 3. 2 Research Design To appropriately analyze the participant’s stories, the research will employ a narrative framework that serves as a screen through which the story of the participant may be examined. This method also becomes an avenue for which the participant may critically reflect on his own perspectives in order to construct or reconstruct meaning in his own life world. The considerable narrative analysis approach requires a level of scholarship and sensitivity which I am preparing to employ. This approach involves a human science observer that is a sensitive of the subtleties of everyday life. Ardent reading of relevant texts of the humanities, history, philosophy, anthropology and the social sciences as they pertain to the domain of interest is a main ingredient to the effectiveness of this proposed research (van Manen, 1990). For this study, the researcher actively participates in examining the experiences of a translator in the delivery of translation of language and culture amidst the socio-political challenges of the past. Qualitative research is exploratory in nature and is best suited for understanding phenomena. The approach should remain pragmatic for the researcher in order to remain in a tentative state with regard to applicable variables or desirable themes which may enable appropriate examination of the individual’s experiences. 3. 3 Data Collection Methods During my 12 month deployment as a liaison officer, I commenced amicable communication with each of the translators who accompanied me to the daily meetings. During my tenure, I engaged in many open discussions concerning cultural and social differences, nuances in communication and language disparities. After a few months, I presented some of my proposal ideas and opened discussion to the possibility of participation in a study I was contemplating. Several of the translators asked me to serve as their advocate in order to petition for the United States Special Visa. So, over the last year, many of these translators have since relocated to various communities in the United States. Both secondary and primary data sources will be used. The triangulation method of data collection will involve the use of interviews, literature review and case studies (Zikmund 2003, pp. 1-745). The primary data method that was used is the questionnaire method of data collection. Questionnaires were distributed among the Afghan officials, Liaison officers, and interpreters. There were also case studies that were conducted for other three countries to know about the experiences of interpreters in the other countries compare with the ones in Afghanistan. This also drew an insight of the various experiences of interpreters in other countries. There was the use of literature review in order gather information on the educational and cultural experiences of interpreters generally. The literature in this research included research journals, books, articles and sources from university libraries (Dick, 2000). Interviews also form pertinent component data collection methods. This enabled the getting of a clear picture of the plight and livelihood of Afghan interpreter, their mode of operations, factors affecting them and future predictions on their cultural and educational experiences. The four categories of quality management in research were highly considered. They include; validity, reliability, ethics and rigor (Zikmund, 2003). Reliability of a research is its ability to have consistence in results. This was done through controlling the sample by stratifying the population to get a more representative sample. Validity is the ability of a scale to measure what it is intended to measure but not going beyond the topic of the study. The triangulation method was used to control this aspect in research. Ethics involves adherence to the norms accepted in gathering of information. This was ensured by providing secrecy on the information collected from the subjects. The rigor of the research was directed towards efficient sample size in a critical facet in any investigation. The main purpose a researcher will utilize a sample is to reduce the charges and collect important data faster (Zikmund, 2003). The key purpose of data collection was to ensure a rich set of description was obtained. To achieve this, the interviews were transcribed in real time by the interviewer. The responses were then reduced and analyzed by adopting principles of data codification and clustering (Miles et al, 1994). 3. 4 Sources Researches normally rely on secondary data to enable them gain initial insight into the research problem. The classification of secondary sources of information is on the basis of internal or external sources referring to information acquired within the organization or outside the organization. The secondary sources are liked for their cost saving aspects and time saving. Secondary sources of information are supposed to be searched prior to conducting primary research, and usually for the literature review section of a research. This is because secondary information provides useful background that identifies main questions and all other issues that will need to be tackled by the primary research (Steppingstones, 2004). The disadvantages that are associated with the use of the secondary sources range from the unavailability of pertinent information on the research topic, to the integrity, accuracy, and reliability of some secondary sources. Other disadvantages associated with secondary sources arise where data is available in a format other than that required by a researcher, and the age of the information particularly where the information is several years old and may not reflect the present circumstances. This makes it necessary to limit secondary information to sources which are not more than six years old (Steppingstones, 2004). The data gathered for this research is from a wide range of documentary sources relating to the cultural and educational experiences of interpreters in general as well as those specifically relating to the plight and livelihood of the Afghan interpreters. These mainly included policy documents, academic and the non-academic documents. First, journals on livelihood of Afghan interpreters were searched. Second, electronic databases were searched using key words like ‘interpreters’, ‘translators’ ‘Afghan interpreters’ and ‘experiences of Afghan interpreters’. Third, Afghan government website for International communication and the website for the International Security Assistance Force were searched. Literature review included both conceptual and empirical works with about 25 articles reviewed for this study. 3. 5 Interviews Interviews in a research are useful in getting information behind a participant’s experiences. This is particularly important because an interviewer may be able to pursue in-depth information regarding the topic of study, and also the fact that interviews serve as follow-ups to responses obtained from questionnaires. Qualitative research interview should seek to give a description and meaning of central themes regarding the experiences of the subjects, by seeking to cover both the factual and meaning level. It was important that a guided interview approach was adopted so as to ensure that same general areas of information are gathered from each interviewee (Valenzuela et al. , 2004). The interviews dwelt on the following areas: †¢ Educational and cultural background of interpreters. †¢ The relationship between educational background and cultural background of the afghan interpreters. †¢ How the educational and cultural backgrounds shape the livelihood and experiences of the afghan interpreters. †¢ What the future hold for the afghan interpreters and their plight given the limited educational background as well as the rigid cultural backgrounds. Once the data is collected through the open-ended interview process, the documents will be transcribed. After transcription, to ensure a correct analysis of the data, the participant will be shown the transcription and asked if what is written is aligned with their viewpoints. The data will then be analyzed from the transcription. Qualitative research is exploratory in nature and is best suited for understanding phenomena. The approach should remain pragmatic for the researcher in order to remain in a tentative state with regard to applicable variables or desirable themes which may enable appropriate examination of the individual’s experiences.

buy custom Securing the Crime Scene essay

buy custom Securing the Crime Scene essay Cross-contamination of forensic science evidence refers to the presence of trace evidence on a significant item (Brown Davenport, 2011). Trace evidence, such as hair, blood, paint, and fibers, is readily transferable from one item to another. This fact raises the issue of the forensic science evidence cross-contamination (Brown Davenport, 2011). A significant evidence can mix with a trace evidence during the investigation process.. Many forensic investigators have arrived at wrongful conclusions because of the cross-contamination of significant evidence. It is possible to avoid cross-contamination by following well-controlled forensic procedures during the investigation. Forensic investigators perform strictly controlled procedures in order to make it certain that cross-contamination has happened during the crime and not during the investigation (Brown Davenport, 2011). This discussion will consider the effectiveness of the procedures that help protect forensic science evidence fr om the cross-contamination. Securing the crime scene, proper packaging during collection, and secure transportation of the significant evidence, are the crucial steps that forensic officers should observe (Brown Davenport, 2011). Forensic officers should observe maximum care during each step in order to avoid the possibility of the cross-contamination after the discovery of the crime. Securing the crime scene avoids the cross-contamination effectively because the sources of trace evidence do not cross to the significant evidence. While securing the crime scene, the forensic officers should then collect, handle, and pack with care the significant evidence. They should pack each piece of evidence separately in the clean containers and label them correctly. Secure transportation ensures that the packages of significant evidence arrive to the forensic laboratories for the examination (Brown Davenport, 2011). Therefore, because of the possibility of the cross-contamination, forensic officers should be extremely careful while handling the forensic science evidence. Securing the crime scene, proper packages, and secure transportation of the significant evidence, effectively avoid the cross-contamination. The presence of trace evidence may lead to the wrongful conclusion after the analysis. Buy custom Securing the Crime Scene essay

Business Writing Style Tools

Business Writing Style Tools (Issue 27: April, 2010)This issue offers a strategy reminder and a tool to measure your business writing clarity.Good strategy is summarized by Mark Twain, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and even the A-Team's Mr. T.: "I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words and brief sentences. That is the way to write English - it is the modern way and the best way. Stick to it; don't let fluff and flowers and verbosity creep in." - Mark Twain "It is not enough to write so that you can be understood; you must write so clearly that you cannot be misunderstood." - Ralph Waldo Emerson "Don't gimme none o' that jibba-jabba!" - Mr. T A good tool is the Readability Measurement within Microsoft Office and Outlook. By default, the "Spelling Grammar Check" feature is enabled, and of course you should always run it to check for typos and errors. It is not infallible, but it will flag many errors. The Readability Measurement must be enabled, and will assess: 1. Words per sentence (average) 2. Percentage of passive sentences 3. Flesch Reading Ease score 4. Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level.Why paying attention to these four readouts can improve your writing:Words per sentence - In general, the longer the sentence, the harder it becomes for your reader to follow along. That's not to say you should always write in short sentences. Instead, strive for a variety that makes for interesting and engaging reading.Percentage of sentences written in the passive voice measures the readability of your text as the ratio of passive sentences over active sentences.The lower the score, the better. Active sentences are nearly always easier to read and understand, thus making your message clearer and more persuasive. Aim for a score less than 20%.The Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) is the standard test of readability used by the U.S. Department of Defense for its documents and forms. It indicates how easy it is to read a given document.The results can be between 0 and 100. The higher the score, the easier it is to understand what you have written. For example, a typical issue of Reader's Digest earns an FRE score of around 65 while Time Magazine scores in the low 50's. Lincoln's Gettysburg Address scores a 74.2. One way to score higher is to use shorter sentences. The results can be interpreted as following: * 0-29 - very confusing hard to read * 30-49 - difficult to read * 50-59 - fairly difficult * 60-69 - standard * 70-79 - fairly easy * 80-89 - easy * 90-100 - very easyRecommendation: A score of 60 or more. Higher is better. Even for business documents, a score of 60 is very achievable and it takes only a few edits to obt ain it.Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) measure translates the Flesch Reading Ease measure to a grade level. The grade level means the number of years of education generally required to understand a text. For example, a score of 9.4 would indicate that the text is expected to be understandable by an average student in the 9th grade. Most newspapers in the U.S. are written at a seventh to eighth grade level.Recommendation: 8.0 to 10.0 is a good target, but lower is better because it reflects language clarity, not content complexity.In business writing one should "write to express, not to impress." This does not mean you should dumb down your ideas and concepts. Instead, it requires you to express them with clean language.These measurements are not perfect. They only assess the textual structure of your document, not content. But, they will provide snapshot measurements to diagnose the textual clarity in your documents.

Biography of Granville T. Woods, Black Thomas Edison

Biography of Granville T. Woods, 'Black Thomas Edison' Granville T. Woods (April 23, 1856–Jan. 30, 1910) was a black inventor so successful that he was sometimes referred to as The Black Edison. He dedicated his lifes work to developing a variety of inventions, many relating to the railroad industry. By the time of his early death at age 53, Woods had invented 15 appliances for electric railways and received nearly 60 patents, many related to the railroad industry. Fast Facts: Granville T. Woods Known For: Highly successful black inventorAlso Known As: The Black EdisonBorn: April 23, 1856 in Columbus, Ohio or AustraliaParents: Tailer and Martha Woods or Martha J. Brown and Cyrus WoodsDied: Jan. 30, 1910 in New York, New YorkNotable Invention: Synchronous Multiplex Railway Telegraph Early Life Granville T. Woods was born on April 23, 1856. Most reports indicate he was born in Columbus, Ohio, the son of Tailer and Martha Woods, and that he and his parents were free African-Americans by virtue of the  Northwest Ordinance  of 1787, which prohibited slavery from the territory that included what would become the state of Ohio. However, Rayvon Fouchà © wrote in a Woods biography that, based on census records, Woods death certificate, and journalistic accounts published in the 1890s, Woods was born in Australia and apparently moved to Columbus at a young age. Some biographies list his parents as Martha J. Brown and Cyrus Woods. Early Career Most sources agree that Woods had little formal education, leaving school at age 10 to work as an apprentice, studying to be a machinist and a blacksmith, and literally learning his skills on the job. Woods held a variety of positions in his early teens, including working as an engineer in a railroad machine shop and on a British ship, in a steel mill, and as a railroad worker. While working, Woods took courses in fields such as engineering and electronics, realizing that education was essential to developing the skills he would need to express his creativity with machinery.​  Some reports say he had up to two years of college course training in either electrical or mechanical engineering or both, possibly in an East Coast college from 1876 to 1878. In 1872, Woods obtained a job as a fireman on the Danville and Southern railroad in Missouri, eventually becoming an engineer and studying electronics in his spare time. In 1874, he moved to Springfield, Illinois, and worked in a rolling mill. Four years later, he took a job aboard the British steamer Ironsides. Within two years, he became its chief engineer. Settling Down His travels and experiences finally led him to settle in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he dedicated himself to modernizing the railroad and its equipment. Woods invented more than a dozen devices to improve electric railway cars and other devices for controlling the flow of electricity. His most noted invention at this point was a system for letting a train engineer know how close his train was to others, which helped reduce collisions. He also developed a system for overhead electric conducting lines for railroads, which aided in the development of overhead railroad systems in cities such as Chicago, St. Louis, and New York. Woods eventually set up his own business, the Woods Electrical Co., in Cincinnati to develop, manufacture, and sell electrical apparatus. In his early 30s, he became interested in thermal power and steam-driven engines. He filed his first patent for an improved steam boiler furnace in 1889. His later patents were mainly for electrical devices. He also developed the Synchronous Multiplex Railway Telegraph, which allowed communications between train stations and moving trains. This made it possible for trains to communicate with stations and other trains so everyone knew exactly where the trains were at all times. Among his other inventions were an automatic air brake used to slow or stop trains and an electric car that was powered by overhead wires. It used a third rail system to keep the cars running on the right tracks. Other Inventors Telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bells company, American Bell Telephone Co., purchased the rights to  Woods patent on an apparatus that combined a telephone and a telegraph. The device, which Woods called â€Å"telegraphony,† allowed a telegraph station to send voice and telegraph messages over a single wire. Proceeds from the sale gave Woods the luxury of being a full-time inventor. Success led to lawsuits. One was filed by famed inventor Thomas Edison, who sued Woods on a claim that he, Edison, was the inventor of the multiplex telegraph. Woods eventually won the court battle, but Edison didnt give up easily when he wanted something. Trying to win over Woods and his inventions, Edison offered Woods a prominent position in the engineering department of Edison Electric Light Co. in New York. Woods declined, preferring to maintain his independence. Early in his career during the summer of 1881, Woods contracted smallpox, which was in its last years as a major health threat in the United States. The often fatal illness sidelined Woods for nearly a year and left him with chronic kidney and liver disease that might have played a role in his early death. He suffered a stroke on Jan. 28, 1910, and died at Harlem Hospital in New York two days later. During his smallpox illness, Woods was quoted as saying he had to take extreme measures to support his family. Another reference, in 1891, mentioned that he was being sued for divorce. Generally, though, newspaper accounts referred to Woods as being a bachelor. Legacy Granville T. Woods dozens of inventions and patents made life easier and safer for countless Americans, especially when it came to railroad travel. When he died, he had become an admired and well-respected inventor, having sold a number of his devices to such industrial giants as Westinghouse, General Electric, and American Engineering. Decades later, many of his other patents have been assigned to major manufacturers of electrical equipment that play a substantial role in daily life. To the world, he was known as the Black Thomas Edison, and his numerous inventions and improvements to existing technology seem to support that characterization. Sources Granville T. Woods:  1856–1910.Encyclopedia.com.Granville T. Woods. Biography.com.Granville T. Woods. AfricanAmericanHistoryOnline.com.Granville T. Woods. Famous Black Inventors.

Gender and Sexuality Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Gender and Sexuality - Research Paper Example Biological, psychological, social, ethical, legal, cultural, religious, and spiritual factors influence sexuality. Combination of sexuality and gender makes a huge difference in people’s life. These differences determine wellness or ill-being of a person. In addition, the disparities of people’s life stretch between life and death (Rahman and Jackison 52). Gender refers roles and behavior that a particular group of people prefers suitable for women and men. These differences can lead to inequalities between men and women in both health status and access to health care. Women have been on the receiving end for a long time and they continue to fight for their recognition. Patriarchy dominates many societies placing women in a lower class than their men. Some traditions dictate that women should be chaste and pure. A violation of this ideology can lead to restriction in women’s economic and political participations. Other ideologies invites for female genital mutila tion and honor killings incase women goes contrary with such societal beliefs. These ideologies seek to ensure that man and woman stay in line with gender stenotypes (Rahman and Jackison 55). This paper addresses gender difference in sexuality. The paper endeavors to look gender differences in sexuality. According to an article entitled gender differences in sexuality, published in Psychological Bulletein journal, there is a difference in the subject of sex between men and women. In this research, Oliver surveys the incidences of gender differences among males and females. The report was looking at sexual attitudes using 21 different variables (Oliver and Hyde 29). Some of the factors that the article sought to understand were masturbation, casual sex, homosexuality, and sexual satisfaction between men and women. Oliver reveals that, the largest and common incidence among men was masturbation. The articles portray men to have biggest numbers of masturbation incidences as compared to the males. In addition, this article on this journal points out that there is a greater gender disparity in the feelings towards casual sex. Oliver et al depict that men are very lenient and engage in casual sex more often than women do. On matters of homosexuality and sexual satisfaction, the article reveals that there is no evidence or noticeable difference on these issues in both men and women. Each gender expressed a fulfillment in the matters of sexual satisfaction (Oliver and Hyde 46). This article explains the noticed sexual differences between men and women bear their explanation in neo-analytic theory. According to the authors, the observed genders difference in matters of sexuality emanate from early mother child interactions. The article alludes that mothers are the primary caretakers and develop a strong relationship with their children. This implies that young girls and boys have a close-knit relationship between their mothers. The article points out that boys and girl s internalize such a tight connection with their mothers, which determines the gender roles when they grow up. The article suggests that difference in motivation to casual sex and masturbation are attributable to maturity. Women display a difference in sexual desire when they mature. This sis because women needs are for relational commitments and are not completely fulfilled even through marriage and cohesive friendship. The findings of the report of the low

Northern Irelands Unionist Paramilitaries Essay

Northern Irelands Unionist Paramilitaries - Essay Example There are many books and other material that have discussed these topics at length and with great competence. The unionist point of view has been and still is the preservation of the status quo, that is, Northern Ireland within the political framework of the United Kingdom. The status quo not only preserves their built-in advantage as the majority in Northern Ireland, it also protects them from becoming the minority in a united Ireland. The status quo, they believe, is their only guarantee that they can keep exercising their right to their own identity, traditions, religion and culture. Loyalists are all these and more. Where nationalist paramilitaries are willing to use force to change the status quo, loyalist paramilitaries are willing to use force to preserve the status quo. This is their objective and rationale in the use of both force and the threat of force. Loyalist paramilitaries (such as the UDA, UVF and LVF) who usually choose civilian targets, use terror against the Catholic community to prevent it from attempting to change the status quo. ... Their choice is also influenced by the ease with which they can access their targets, and by their own extreme sectarianism. Nationalist paramilitaries on the other hand tend to pick their targets from the ranks of the police and military, in keeping with their stance against the state and for protection of the people against state abuse. 2 Paramilitary groups, both loyalist and republican seemed quite successful in launching their military operations, if we are to judge by the number of dead and injured. Almost 3,600 died in Northern Ireland from 1969 to December 1997, and out of that number 87% were victims of paramilitary groups. If the same proportion were to be applied to a country like Britain, it would have around 170,000 casualties or half a million in a country like the US.3 Loyal and Armed 3 "Between 1968 and 1998, loyalist paramilitaries killed an estimated 864 civilians (most of them Catholic), compared with an estimated 728 civilians (most of them Protestant) killed by the IRA. Experts say loyalist groups have often acted out of religious hatred, while the IRA has more often targeted British security officers- killing more than 1,000 of them-in an effort to further its political goal of ejecting the British from Northern Ireland." 4 But did these acts of violence and terror help unionist paramilitaries in achieving their objective of maintaining a Northern Ireland status quo The Anglo-Irish Agreement The Anglo-Irish Agreement was signed by Northern Ireland's House of Representatives and Senate in 1999. It provides for the implementation of human rights laws in Northern Ireland, including recognition of equal status and rights for all minorities,

What key skills do employers want fresh university graduates to have Research Paper

What key skills do employers want fresh university graduates to have - Research Paper Example Now-a-days, the employers are trying to find effective and fresh university graduates to enhance their several business operations. It is important for the fresh graduates to avail effective knowledge and skills in their educational fields to achieve significant employment opportunity. However, the employers usually look for general behaviors and competencies that are important for the successful working. These aspects are often overlooked by the fresh university graduates but these are the basic things that the employers or recruitment officials want to find. Discussion The recruitment officers or the employers generally want ten important skills and competencies from the fresh university graduates. These are communication, commercial awareness, teamwork, problem solving, negotiation and persuasion, leadership, perseverance and motivation, organizations, confidence and ability to work under immense pressure. These ten aspects are discussed below in details. Communication Verbal comm unication and ability to listen are considered as important skills of an employee. Clear, focused and concise communication helps an employee to tailor his or her message for the target audience. On the other hand, listing to the views and suggestions of others can enhance and effective communication process. Clear and concise communication is required in an organization between the employers and employees to reduce the possibilities of conflict. Inadequate communication process can affect the business performance of the organization in several ways (Heneman, 22). Ultimately, it can affect the business performance of the organization. Looking into these mutterers, the employers try to hire fresh university graduates who avail good communication skill. Commercial Awareness Commercial awareness or business awareness is quite important of the fresh university graduates. The recruitment professionals always try to observe the knowledge and awareness level of the applicants during the re cruitment process. According to the employers, effective knowledge about an organization can help an employee to perform in significant way. Teamwork Effective teamwork within the workplace can drive an organization towards successful business performance. The fresh university graduates need to prove that they are effective team player. In addition to this, the fresh university graduates should have the ability to delegate and mange other team members within the workplace (Lipman & Hall, 2008). Effective team management is about developing positive and effective working relationship to achieve professional and personal goals. Problem Solving Problem solving and decision making method is quite important for business operation. Effective problem solving and decision ability of the employees can help an organization to achieve successful business outcome. In addition to this, effective problem solving ability of the employees can help an organization to resolve critical issues during s erious situations. Negotiation and Persuasion Effective negotiation and persuasion process of employees can help them to put forward in their desired ways. In addition to this, effective negotiation and persuasion process helps an employee to understand the background of several unknown individuals (Paper, 2007). This key understanding process and the effective negotiation ability of the employees can help the organization to meet business objectives within quick time period. Leadership It is true that each and every leading organization around the globe is trying to improve and maintain their workplace and

1.Select a research topic of your choice based on a business issue and Essay

1.Select a research topic of your choice based on a business issue and design a research proposal for this topic - Essay Example Crude oil is valued in terms of dollars per barrels of gallons in the international markets (BALKE 1997). The aim of the research here is to analyze the influence of shifts in Crude oil prices to the general economic performance due to its immediate influence on the World’s leading stock markets. The study is aimed at finding the changes that do occur in the stock markets which are related to increases or fall in the crude oil prices. The data gathered in the study will be analyzed to a certain the influences of fluctuations on Crude oil prices on inflations (BALKE 1997). Crude oil prices stability in the international market is always short term in nature. As a result such fluctuations have always shown influences on the world commodity prices in one way or the other. From mid-2010, there was a considerable increase in commodity prices as oil prices rose by 40%. During this time there was an incredible increase in food items costs and other farm products, metals and precious commodities like minerals and gem stones rose at a faster rate than ever experience before the energy price changes. Increase in energy prices therefore resulted in the upsurge of prices for food commodities due to the high demand for energy in the production of grains (BALKE 1997). Fluctuations on oil prices do occur following developments on the equity markets which is influenced by crisis in the market such as those of European debt crisis. During this time, the OPEC Reference Basket showed an average of $ 106.32/b, which represented a decline in the previous price level by over $ 5.30. In this period the crude oil future market, the Nymex WTI front-month rose to average $ 86.43/b. Crude Oil price hikes sometimes can be attributed to other factors such as demand. Increased demand for energy in the international markets can be attributed to the increasing economic

The Rise of the Tablet PC in the U.S. Market Essay

The Rise of the Tablet PC in the U.S. Market - Essay Example carriers like AT&T Inc., Verizon Wireless, Sprint Nextel Corp. and T-Mobile USA (Kharif). The United States tablet PC market is in a growth succession and has became very trendy and a great competitor for computer companies, and by 2015, tablet users are anticipated to develop from an expected 26 to 82.1 million. The market is presently dominated by Apple Inc., yet they will shortly have a new contestant challenging them to come down off their thrown thanks to China’s second-largest manufacturer of mobile-phone gear, ZTE Corporation, publicized its plan to uncover an Android tablet in the U.S. before the end of 2011. Apple’s tablet, the Ipad 2 achieved a market share of 75% in September 2011, leaving only a 25% market share for its rivals. Android based tablets, like the notorious Ipad, will soon be eligible for purchase for a surprising $499 which will get the attention of a lot of tablet lovers, yet there is other competition and brands to consider when this new Android gadget launches because the tablet can be found at Dell, Hewlett Packard, Gateway, Ace r, and other well-known computer and electronic distributors, so a really competitive attitude and business strategy will have to be in place for Apple to stay at the top of the list of the world’s preferred company to buy tablet computers and other Apple made products and services. Despite ZTE’s current success and future plans, one of the greatest aspects about Apple Inc. is that they really strive hard to satisfy their customers because they are not only a leader in making fine PC equipment, yet they provide exceptional 24 hour customer service, have many different certifications and employment opportunities all over the world for anyone interested in becoming employed at their company, and their corporations are in place throughout the globe along with millions of products sold at national and international stores. However, ZTE, based out of Shenzhen, feels that they will rise to the

The Business Environment of European Union Research Paper

The Business Environment of European Union - Research Paper Example With the formation of the European Union, all the member states are required to follow the EC 92 as the Single European Act. The single European act was a step closer to the goal of economic integration. Economic integration has revolutionized all the laws and regulations and has changed the whole business environment in most of the member states. With the dismissal of the trade barriers the European act also proposed an array of commercial policies including single European standards for goods produced. This has given rise to difficulties for the companies producing below the standards as they are faced with the challenges of technology upgrade and quality advancement while keeping the prices competitive due to increased competition. For example in the Italian textile industry producers are struggling to keep under priced clothes from flooding the Italian market, designer label brands are waging another battle - against imitations, or "knockoffs", as they are known in the trade. (Italian designers, 2005) Most of the fakes come from China or other Asian countries with low labor costs and no concern for social services, welfare and pollution control. Although the Italian sector is currently facing unprecedented challenges these challenges can be faced only by innovation. These include the abolition of quantitative restrictions (quotas) which took place on 1st January 2005. These challenges are occurring in a period of marked slowdown in economic activity, which has a significant impact on sectors such as textiles and clothing. Furthermore, at the same time, the Euro has shown a significant upward trend against the US dollar. All in all, every segment of textiles and clothing production, from spinning and weaving to garment make-up, has in one way or the other suffered from the impact of the developments of the last few years. (Textiles and clothing sector in the EU-25) The years 2001-2004 have been particularly difficult for the industry. After substantial falls in production and employment in the previous three years, it is estimated that in 2003 production fell by a further 4.4% and employment by 7.1% (EU-25, source: Eurostat). The trade deficit (EU-25) amounted to 29.4 billion in 2003, the trade in textiles reaching a surplus of 3.7 billion and the deficit in clothing 33.1 billion. The European Union was expanded in May 2004 having 25 members. The aim of the creation of the union was to create the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world, capable of substantial economic growth with more, and better, jobs and greater social cohesion (Elizabeth Hunt Recruitment). All the member states of the EU have to follow common trade and employment laws, which on the one hand provided them with the ease of free trade and larger availability of workforce and a vast product market on the other.

The Rise of the Tablet PC in the U.S. Market Essay

The Rise of the Tablet PC in the U.S. Market - Essay Example carriers like AT&T Inc., Verizon Wireless, Sprint Nextel Corp. and T-Mobile USA (Kharif). The United States tablet PC market is in a growth succession and has became very trendy and a great competitor for computer companies, and by 2015, tablet users are anticipated to develop from an expected 26 to 82.1 million. The market is presently dominated by Apple Inc., yet they will shortly have a new contestant challenging them to come down off their thrown thanks to China’s second-largest manufacturer of mobile-phone gear, ZTE Corporation, publicized its plan to uncover an Android tablet in the U.S. before the end of 2011. Apple’s tablet, the Ipad 2 achieved a market share of 75% in September 2011, leaving only a 25% market share for its rivals. Android based tablets, like the notorious Ipad, will soon be eligible for purchase for a surprising $499 which will get the attention of a lot of tablet lovers, yet there is other competition and brands to consider when this new Android gadget launches because the tablet can be found at Dell, Hewlett Packard, Gateway, Ace r, and other well-known computer and electronic distributors, so a really competitive attitude and business strategy will have to be in place for Apple to stay at the top of the list of the world’s preferred company to buy tablet computers and other Apple made products and services. Despite ZTE’s current success and future plans, one of the greatest aspects about Apple Inc. is that they really strive hard to satisfy their customers because they are not only a leader in making fine PC equipment, yet they provide exceptional 24 hour customer service, have many different certifications and employment opportunities all over the world for anyone interested in becoming employed at their company, and their corporations are in place throughout the globe along with millions of products sold at national and international stores. However, ZTE, based out of Shenzhen, feels that they will rise to the

Project Management - Organization and Communication (U5GP) Essay

Project Management - Organization and Communication (U5GP) - Essay Example This school is located in Lawton, Oklahoma; has the wolverine as a mascot; and possesses the following breakdown of students per grade: The above information is significant since the type of uniforms supplied will differ by grade. Although the overall style will remain the same throughout the grades, each grade will have its own unique identifying color in order to allow school officials to quickly differentiate among students. The first goal has already been accomplished, and that was to gather basic information regarding the amount of students to supply uniforms for and grade level of those students, as discussed herein. The second goal will be to speak with school representatives regarding the style and grade level color choices that they can make with regard to the school uniforms. The third goal will be to outline a budget for the school uniforms. Based on that budget, a list of potential suppliers can be drawn up and catalogs of uniform choices presented to school officials. Finally, school officials will be able to choose a supplier from the gathered list based upon their unique needs and the criteria outlined above. According to Mochal (2006, pg. 1), â€Å"Effective communication is a key element of successful project management.† Cornelius and Associates (2008, pg. 1) add that, â€Å"Communication not only keeps everyone up-to-date on the project progress, but also facilitates buy-in and ownership of major project decisions and milestones. To ensure the success of a project much information, including expectations, goals, needs, resources, status reports, budgets and purchase requests, needs to be communicated on a regular basis to all the major stakeholders.† For this particular project, the description in the paragraph above means that each step of the prior discussed goals will need to be communicated with school officials, as

The detective genre Essay Example for Free

The detective genre Essay During the era of Queen Victoria, when flickering gas lamps lit the squalid streets casting an eerie shadow, a soon to be well known compilation of stories belonging to Detective genre were being published. They were the first of their kind, and were created by Arthur Conan Doyle. His stories became so well known, that soon after writing his stories, Arthur Conan Doyle was knighted by Queen Victoria herself. Doyles stories called The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, became legendary, as Doyle had created an original fictional pipe-smoking character, called Sherlock Holmes, whose job, it was to solve crimes. This was ironic at the time, due to the simple fact, an infamous murderer, Jack the Ripper, was loose on the streets of London, attacking women. He knifed and ruthlessly murdered many prostitutes. Unfortunately, the police could not catch him and their methods were seen as inefficient. Conversely, when Sherlock Holmes, surfaced in 1887 many of the Victorians fell for the fictional character, as he became the perfect detective, by cracking every case bought to him. Many believe that Sherlock Holmes was the answer to their problems as many Victorians held a deep resentment towards the police, as they did not appear to be protecting the public. The time in which Doyle published his creations was very important to his great success, as the nation was developing and many more people were soon become wealthier. Furthermore, the introduction of compulsory schooling in the 1870 meant that many people soon became literate which meant even more Victorians had a great chance to read Doyles work. Also, as for the developing middle class, they had much more leisure time and more time to read, at free libraries as they were being established in many towns and cities in Britain. This offered more reading material to entertain the Victorians. These factors help Doyles success, and so did the use of forensic science. As forensic science was only just developing, Sherlock Holmes was the first fictional detective to use methods of finger printing. This he uses on many occasions, but in The Beryl Coronet one of Doyles most famous stories, he visits the crime scene and collects a set of fingerprints off the window seal. This is ironic because the police officers, which have already investigated the crime, do not collect a set of fingerprints. Due to their lack of expertise, the police arrests Arthur Holder, ironically, their judgement is flow, and with the help of Sherlock Holmes, Arthur Holder is found to be innocent. Sherlock Holmes reassures the readers those crimes, can be solved and justice will be done. In effect this builds up the publics confidence in him. The Sherlock Holmes compilations are engaging to their audience as most of the stories include the main features necessary for detective fiction, which are: victims, suspects, villains, clues, red herrings and a detective. The detective has the most important role in the whole story, as it is him, who has to engage the readers to stay focused in the story line. In order for this to work the writer has to add mystery, confidence and intelligence to his character. Doyle in his creation of Sherlock Holmes uses his own medical knowledge and background to create such an extraordinary character like Holmes.

Michael Moore´s Bowling For Columbine Essay -- Film Movies

Michael Moore ´s Bowling For Columbine Bowling For Columbine is a well-directed documentary that informs people about gun violence in America. Michael Moore is successful in showing that America has been going through many gun tragedies; and portrays the sense that America’s problems are out of control. He conveys this through informative facts, images, and comparisons. Throughout the film Michael Moore throws many cold facts on the screen that makes it obvious that the strong nation of America is unruly. One of the facts that stand out the most is the number of deaths caused by guns in America per year. In comparison to the other countries, America has an outstanding of 11,127 gun related deaths a year. This is ten times more than all the countries together that are mentioned in the documentary. With this extreme comparison it shows that there is something in America that is making people turn on their fellow man and shoot them in the head. On April 19, 1999 two boys Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, went to school and killed 12 students and one teacher. Michael Moore does not really need to go further than just stating these few words to show how incredibly devastating this day was. How have the social standards reduced themselves to a world where two high school students feel that they have the right to bring firearms to school and open fire? O ne is reminded of an old saying, â€Å"like father like son.† The American government can be seen as the father to all the ...

Soldiers Home :: essays papers

Soldiers Home Critical Analysis of "Soldier's Home": Before, During, and After the War (with bibliography) Many of the titles of Ernest Hemingway's stories are ironic, and can be read on a number of levels; Soldier's Home is no exception. Our first impression, having read the title only, is that this story will be about a old soldier living out the remainder of his life in an institution where veterans go to die. We soon find out that the story has nothing to do with the elderly, or institutions; rather, it tells the story of a young man, Harold Krebs, only recently returned from World War I, who has moved back into his parents' house while he figures out what he wants to do with the rest of his life. And yet our first impression lingers, and with good reason; despite the fact that his parents' comfortable, middle-class lifestyle used to feel like home to Harold Krebs, it no longer does. Harold is not home; he has no home at all. This is actually not an uncommon scenario among young people (such as college students) returning into the womb of their childhood again. But with Harold, the situation is more dramatic because he has not only lived on his own, but has dealt with -- and been traumatized by -- life-and-death situations his parents could not possibly understand. Hemingway does not divulge why Krebs was the last person in his home town to return home from the war; according to the Kansas City Star, Hemingway himself "left Kansas City in the spring of 1918 and did not return for 10 years, [becoming] 'the first of 132 former Star employees to be wounded in World War I,' according to a Star article at the time of his death" (Kansas City Star, hem6.htm). Wherever he was in the intervening time, by the time Harold gets home, the novelty of the returning soldier has long since worn off. All the other former soldiers have found a niche for themselves in the community, but Harold needs a while longer to get his bearings; he plays pool, "practiced on his clarinet, strolled down town, read, and went to bed" (Hemingway, 146). What he is doing, of course, is killing time. The problem, of course, has to do with Harold's definition of who he has become. He recognizes he has changed, and this change is played out dramatically against the backdrop of a town where nothing else has changed since he was in high school. His father parks his car in the same place; it's still the same car; the girls walking down the

Mrs. Dalloway

Virginia Woolf in â€Å"Mrs. Dalloway† derides the superficiality of social conventions in society, forcing its members to constantly pretend, mask their individuality and abandon their own needs.The text depicts how individuals are shaped by their social environments, how historical forces impinge on people's lives, how class, wealth, and gender help to determine people's fates. â€Å"Mrs. Dalloway† was published at a time when British society was still recovering from World War One.The difficult post-war times affected Woolf privately and eventually affected her writing Woolf focuses on the internal description of the characters while bringing to light the social conditions of the postwar Britain. â€Å"Mrs Dalloway is set in a very volatile time period in Britain, portraying the idea that war is more than just a conflict on a battlefield .The war lead to the destruction of not only the physical infrastructure in Britain, but the social/political infrastructure that is vital in character relationships and analysis. Woolf showcases London populated by people of differing disabilities, socioeconomic statuses, and sexualities wherein each character occupies a unique position within the narrative's classist, patriarchal, and heteronormative society.Woolf eliminates any sense of an omniscient narrative voice by the constant bounce from the narrator?s commentary to the thoughts of a central character. â€Å"Mrs Dalloway† portrays a critique of Empire and the war, taking the state as the embodiment of patriarchal power, who even Richard Dalloway refers to as â€Å"our detestable social system†. Dalloway's words reverberate Virginia Woolf's intention; ‘In this book I have almost too many ideas. I want to give life and death, sanity and insanity; I want to criticise the social system and to show it at work, in its most intense.'† â€Å"Mrs.Dalloway† offers a scathing indictment of the British class system.Woolf, through her novel and her characters such as Clarissa Dalloway, Septimus Warren Smith, Dr. William Bradshaw and Dr. Holmes, shows how complex structures of power can seize the people's real identity and fabricate it in order to be appropriate with the values and norms of power. In â€Å"Mrs Dalloway†, the British upper-class ignores the actuality of the aftermath of war and social events become a form of normalization for them to neutralize the existence of reality, giving them an illusion of fulfilment and connectedness.†Mrs Dalloway† becomes an extended social critique where the audacity and stateliness of the most prominent guests is mocked through the description of the epicurean Hugh Whitbread, the sophisticated Lady Burton. Clarissa by inviting high members of English society who are the symbols of power,provides an appropriate background for madness to reveal itself, where the upper-class cannot help but find relief and peace in the deaths of working class people who have become free of all societal pressures resulting in Septimus' suicide becoming a casual conversation at their party. Woolf mocks the inability of upper class English society to recognize the changing social and political landscape .Lady Bruton,a once powerful upper class individual faces challenges due to her old ways of aristocratic networking,representing the degeneration of old english society. Richard's committees, Lady Bruton's emigration project, Hugh Whitbread's letters to the Times , are all the exhibition of the authority of ruling-class.Hugh, an advocator of ruling class,functions as a symbol of all those who have inherited their social standing and who are protective of their privileged social standing. Woolf gives us Kilman as a symbol for all the despicable things people sometimes claim to do in the name of religion. Society includes a group of people who are in common geographical region and under the same political and cultural authority. Individuals have to conform to the norms defined by the society and violating these unwritten rules, is seen as abnormal. In Mrs Dalloway,Holmes and Bradshaw try to suppress this abnormality. Bradshaw views himself as one who helps his country by making his patients conform to his idea of sanity and secluding them from society. The characters of the doctors, Hugh Whitbread, and Lady Bruton as compared to the tragically mishandled plight of Septimus, allows Woolf to depict how exposed and ill-treated those suffering from mental illness really are by the doctors. Septimus Smith is portrayed as a war veteran suffering from shell-shock, who finds frustration in his doctor's prognosis and decides to commit suicide. Septimus felt that his lack of emotion was a sign of strength and courage. Woolf, through portraying Septimus' life, indicates the prevalent insanity in London and the disillusionment in English people.His suicide becomes an act of resistance to the power of London's social system. Septimus, through his madness, his death and life, unveils the truths hidden under the surface of society. Woolf utilizes madness to criticize the structures of English society with a sharp attack to the social system at â€Å"its most intense.† Placing the doctor and patient together, Woolf emphasizes the fatal impact of society's social structures upon people.The world of the sane and the insane side by side: Woolf portrays the sane grasping for significant and substantial connections to life. Woolf in â€Å"Mrs Dalloway† showcases the breakdown of stable social categories and how the escalation of social roles to be performed results in an anxiety about the ability of the characters to â€Å"sanely† exist within a hostile social system, performing roles that do not adequately correspond to their identity. Woolf shares a ruthless observation of the social system, through Clarissa Dalloway and Septimus Smith, who have both been have been psychologically damaged by their position in society. These two psychologically distinct and disparate characters, both try to establish a stable identity while struggling with patriarchal arrangement of the society and misunderstanding of mental illness. Clarissa's fertility is the sole dynamic providing her with a function in this patriarchal society, leading her to face a psychological crisis as to her future role. Septimus suffers a similar crisis of identity as a victim of the society; fighting a war sparked by bureaucratic tensions out of his control. Unable to reconcile his feelings for the England he left to fight for and the England to which he returns leads to rapid changes in his status and identity eventually claiming his sanity. Both Clarissa and Septimus suffer from the society's oppression; Septimus eases his internal struggle through death while Clarissa is unable to find a way out for herself due to the ideology of class propriety to which she must adhere to. Woolf portrays the conventional society of the beginning of the 20th century, where women's lives were shaped by the patriarchal society, sexual suppression and ideologies of gender. The society brings to light masculine normativity, which governs what is more convenient to their genre, where most of tht men belong to the public sphere, possessing an active role within their society and majority of women belong to the private sphere,dealing with household or some domestic issues. Woolf through the text offers a critique of the patriarchal and imperialistic society, where women have no individual identity, and are impelled to suppress their needs. Woolf utilizes Clarissa as a vehicle for critiquing patriarchy and all it involves including class-based social ranking, gender bias, and heteronormativity. Clarissa's decision to marry, in general, is because she is a member of a society that enforces heterosexuality upon an individual.Clarissa's love for Salley Saton,contradicts all norms of patriarchy and they ignore their desires because the only accepted female identity was the one that was accepted by patriarchy. Clarissa, in rejecting the potentially fulfilling relationship with Sally and marrying Richard , not only conforms to the expected ideologies of her society, but represses her homosexual desires for women. Because of her ‘place' in society, Clarissa explores her sexuality and love for Sally only in her memories, while her marriage to Richard Dalloway represents superficiality and conventionality of the upper-class in the early twentieth century Britain. Septimus' class and his mental instability differentiates him from Clarissa; however, they both struggle with the same oppressive structure-patriarchy that defines and categorizes men as much as they do women. Septimus idealizes war for it offered him the apparently straightforward and masculine role of defending idealized womanhood.His society's expectations of masculinity destroy his ability to express his emotions. He sees phantoms, has visions, and is unable to convey his reality. Peter Walsh exemplifies the oppressive effects of male privilege and heteronormative systems, by using Daisy Simmons to fulfil his preconceived idea of marriage. Woolf emphasizes the misconception of marriage as a social chain, criticizing how marriage imposed boundaries on people that psychologically oppressed them, leading them to even commit suicide. Clarissa, conforms to the ideals present in her society;Septimus, too, marries; but shell-shock prevents him from reintegrating into London's social spaces. Septimus's suicide highlights the fact that there is no way out of the patriarchal structure; there are only ways of coping with it. The terrible effects of patriarchy is portrayed also through Lucrezia's life who becomes a victim to the cruelty of the social and political doctrine of the English society.She silently struggles through Septimus's insanity,enduring even the indifference of Septimus,for whom she left her relatives and country. â€Å"Mrs. Dalloway† acts a critique on female subjugation in the domestic sphere of hostessship where Woolf presents characters that are lost in their own being,they have to put up to the obstacles of the system that gives them an apparently viable reality. Woolf rejects the literary and linguistic conventions of novel-writing to dismantle the ordered nature of early 20th century society.Through this aversion to established literary practices, Woolf subtly proposes the need to alter the traditional rituals and structures of society ,if its inherent problems are to be rectified. However, Woolf is never brazenly or overtly radical in her condemnation, refusing to adhere to one particular viewpoint. Many critics argue that the novels depicted by the technique of stream-of-consciousness struggle reflect the serious social problems and that â€Å"Mrs. Dalloway† is an apolitical and asocial novel about individual internal life as opposed to social life. Critics who do believe that the novel is concerned with social and political events and developments of the time, consider it a novel of suggestion, not argumentation. Woolfs social critique and political radicalism are more subtly formed and is expressed in the language of observation rather than in direct commentary since she believes it is the reader's work to put the observations together and understand the coherent point of view behind them. As Julia Briggs indicates in Virginia Woolf: An Inner Life, Woolf invites readers to explore the literary tensions within her novels: â€Å"Woolf intended her [experiments in writing] to bring the reader closer to everyday life, in all its confusion, mystery and uncertainty, rejecting the artificial structures and categories of Victorian fiction†.

The Twilight Saga 3: Eclipse Chapter 3. MOTIVES

THE SUN WAS SO DEEPLY BURIED BEHIND THE CLOUDS that there was no way to tell if it had set or not. After the long flight – chasing the sun westward so that it seemed unmoving in the sky – it was especially disorienting; time seemed oddly variable. It took me by surprise when the forest gave way to the first buildings, signaling that we were nearly home. â€Å"You've been very quiet,† Edward observed. â€Å"Did the plane make you sick?† â€Å"No, I'm okay.† â€Å"Are you sad to leave?† â€Å"More relieved than sad, I think.† He raised one eyebrow at me. I knew it was useless and – much as I hated to admit it – unnecessary to ask him to keep his eyes on the road. â€Å"Rene is so much more . . . perceptive than Charlie in some ways. It was making me jumpy.† Edward laughed. â€Å"Your mother has a very interesting mind. Almost childlike, but very insightful. She sees things differently than other people.† Insightful. It was a good description of my mother – when she was paying attention. Most of the time Rene was so bewildered by her own life that she didn't notice much else. But this weekend she'd been paying plenty of attention to me. Phil was busy – the high school baseball team he coached was in the playoffs – and being alone with Edward and me had only sharpened Rene's focus. As soon as the hugs and squeals of delight were out of the way, Rene began to watch. And as she'd watched, her wide blue eyes had become first confused and then concerned. This morning we'd gone for a walk along the beach. She wanted to show off all the beauties of her new home, still hoping, I think, that the sun might lure me away from Forks. She'd also wanted to talk with me alone, and that was easily arranged. Edward had fabricated a term paper to give himself an excuse to stay indoors during the day. In my head, I went through the conversation again. . . . Rene and I ambled along the sidewalk, trying to stay in the range of the infrequent palm tree shadows. Though it was early, the heat was smothering. The air was so heavy with moisture that just breathing in and out was giving my lungs a workout. â€Å"Bella?† my mother asked, looking out past the sand to the lightly crashing waves as she spoke. â€Å"What is it, Mom?† She sighed, not meeting my gaze. â€Å"I'm worried. . . .† â€Å"What's wrong?† I asked, anxious at once. â€Å"What can I do?† â€Å"It's not me.† She shook her head. â€Å"I'm worried about you . . . and Edward.† Rene finally looked at me when she said his name, her face apologetic. â€Å"Oh,† I mumbled, fixing my eyes on a pair of joggers as they passed us, drenched with sweat. â€Å"You two are more serious than I'd been thinking,† she went on. I frowned, quickly reviewing the last two days in my head. Edward and I had barely touched – in front of her, at least. I wondered if Rene was about to give me a lecture on responsibility, too. I didn't mind that the way I had with Charlie. It wasn't embarrassing with my mom. After all, I'd been the one giving her that lecture time and time again in the last ten years. â€Å"There's something . . . strange about the way you two are together,† she murmured, her forehead creasing over her troubled eyes. â€Å"The way he watches you – it's so . . . protective. Like he's about to throw himself in front of a bullet to save you or something.† I laughed, though I was still not able to meet her gaze. â€Å"That's a bad thing?† â€Å"No.† She frowned as she struggled for the words. â€Å"It's just different. He's very intense about you . . . and very careful. I feel like I don't really understand your relationship. Like there's some secret I'm missing. . . .† â€Å"I think you're imagining things, Mom,† I said quickly, struggling to keep my voice light. There was a flutter in my stomach. I'd forgotten how much my mother saw. Something about her simple view of the world cut through all the distractions and pierced right to the truth of things. This had never been a problem before. Until now, there had never been a secret I couldn't tell her. â€Å"It's not just him.† She set her lips defensively. â€Å"I wish you could see how you move around him.† â€Å"What do you mean?† â€Å"The way you move – you orient yourself around him without even thinking about it. When he moves, even a little bit, you adjust your position at the same time. Like magnets . . . or gravity. You're like a . . . satellite, or something. I've never seen anything like it.† She pursed her lips and stared down. â€Å"Don't tell me,† I teased, forcing a smile. â€Å"You're reading mysteries again, aren't you? Or is it sci-fi this time?† Rene flushed a delicate pink. â€Å"That's beside the point.† â€Å"Found anything good?† â€Å"Well, there was one – but that doesn't matter. We're talking about you right now.† â€Å"You should stick to romance, Mom. You know how you freak yourself out.† Her lips turned up at the corners. â€Å"I'm being silly, aren't I?† For half a second I couldn't answer. Rene was so easily swayed. Sometimes it was a good thing, because not all of her ideas were practical. But it pained me to see how quickly she caved in to my trivializing, especially since she was dead right this time. She looked up, and I controlled my expression. â€Å"Not silly – just being a mom.† She laughed and then gestured grandly toward the white sands stretching to the blue water. â€Å"And all this isn't enough to get you to move back in with your silly mom?† I wiped my hand dramatically across my forehead, and then pretended to wring my hair out. â€Å"You get used to the humidity,† she promised. â€Å"You can get used to rain, too,† I countered. She elbowed me playfully and then took my hand as we walked back to her car. Other than her worries about me, she seemed happy enough. Content. She still looked at Phil with goo- goo eyes, and that was comforting. Surely her life was full and satisfying. Surely she didn't miss me that much, even now. . . . Edward's icy fingers brushed my cheek. I looked up, blinking, coming back to the present. He leaned down and kissed my forehead. â€Å"We're home, Sleeping Beauty. Time to awake.† We were stopped in front of Charlie's house. The porch light was on and the cruiser was parked in the driveway. As I examined the house, I saw the curtain twitch in the living room window, flashing a line of yellow light across the dark lawn. I sighed. Of course Charlie was waiting to pounce. Edward must have been thinking the same thing, because his expression was stiff and his eyes remote as he came to get my door for me. â€Å"How bad?† I asked. â€Å"Charlie's not going to be difficult,† Edward promised, his voice level with no hint of humor. â€Å"He missed you.† My eyes narrowed in doubt. If that was the case, then why was Edward tensed as if for a battle? My bag was small, but he insisted on carrying it into the house. Charlie held the door open for us. â€Å"Welcome home, kid!† Charlie shouted like he really meant it. â€Å"How was Jacksonville?† â€Å"Moist. And buggy.† â€Å"So Rene didn't sell you on the University of Florida?† â€Å"She tried. But I'd rather drink water than inhale it.† Charlie's eyes flickered unwillingly to Edward. â€Å"Did you have a nice time?† â€Å"Yes,† Edward answered in a serene voice. â€Å"Rene was very hospitable.† â€Å"That's . . . um, good. Glad you had fun.† Charlie turned away from Edward and pulled me in for an unexpected hug. â€Å"Impressive,† I whispered in his ear. He rumbled a laugh. â€Å"I really missed you, Bells. The food around here sucks when you're gone.† â€Å"I'll get on it,† I said as he let me go. â€Å"Would you call Jacob first? He's been bugging me every five minutes since six o'clock this morning. I promised I'd have you call him before you even unpacked.† I didn't have to look at Edward to feel that he was too still, too cold beside me. So this was the cause of his tension. â€Å"Jacob wants to talk to me?† â€Å"Pretty bad, I'd say. He wouldn't tell me what it was about – just said it was important.† The phone rang then, shrill and demanding. â€Å"That's him again, I'd bet my next paycheck,† Charlie muttered. â€Å"I got it.† I hurried to the kitchen. Edward followed after me while Charlie disappeared into the living room. I grabbed the phone mid-ring, and twisted around so that I was facing the wall. â€Å"Hello?† â€Å"You're back,† Jacob said. His familiar husky voice sent a wave of wistfulness through me. A thousand memories spun in my head, tangling together – a rocky beach strewn with driftwood trees, a garage made of plastic sheds, warm sodas in a paper bag, a tiny room with one too-small shabby loveseat. The laughter in his deep-set black eyes, the feverish heat of his big hand around mine, the flash of his white teeth against his dark skin, his face stretching into the wide smile that had always been like a key to a secret door where only kindred spirits could enter. It felt sort of like homesickness, this longing for the place and person who had sheltered me through my darkest night. I cleared the lump from my throat. â€Å"Yes,† I answered. â€Å"Why didn't you call me?† Jacob demanded. His angry tone instantly got my back up. â€Å"Because I've been in the house for exactly four seconds and your call interrupted Charlie telling me that you'd called.† â€Å"Oh. Sorry.† â€Å"Sure. Now, why are you harassing Charlie?† â€Å"I need to talk to you.† â€Å"Yeah, I figured out that part all by myself. Go ahead.† There was a short pause. â€Å"You going to school tomorrow?† I frowned to myself, unable to make sense of this question. â€Å"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I?† â€Å"I dunno. Just curious.† Another pause. â€Å"So what did you want to talk about, Jake?† He hesitated. â€Å"Nothing really, I guess. I . . . wanted to hear your voice.† â€Å"Yeah, I know. I'm so glad you called me, Jake. I . . .† But I didn't know what more to say. I wanted to tell him I was on my way to La Push right now. And I couldn't tell him that. â€Å"I have to go,† he said abruptly. â€Å"What?† â€Å"I'll talk to you soon, okay?† â€Å"But Jake -â€Å" He was already gone. I listened to the dial tone with disbelief. â€Å"That was short,† I muttered. â€Å"Is everything all right?† Edward asked. His voice was low and careful. I turned slowly to face him. His expression was perfectly smooth – impossible to read. â€Å"I don't know. I wonder what that was about.† It didn't make sense that Jacob had been hounding Charlie all day just to ask me if I was going to school. And if he'd wanted to hear my voice, then why did he hang up so quickly? â€Å"Your guess is probably better than mine,† Edward said, the hint of a smiletugging at the corner of his mouth. â€Å"Mmm,† I murmured. That was true. I knew Jake inside and out. It shouldn't be that complicated to figure out his motivations. With my thoughts miles away – about fifteen miles away, up the road to La Push – I started combing through the fridge, assembling ingredients for Charlie's dinner. Edward leaned against the counter, and I was distantly aware that his eyes were on my face, but too preoccupied to worry about what he saw there. The school thing seemed like the key to me. That was the only real question Jake had asked. And he had to be after an answer to something, or he wouldn't have been bugging Charlie so persistently. Why would my attendance record matter to him, though? I tried to think about it in a logical way. So, if I hadn't been going to school tomorrow, what would be the problem with that, from Jacob's perspective? Charlie had given me a little grief about missing a day of school so close to finals, but I'd convinced him that one Friday wasn't going to derail my studies. Jake would hardly care about that. My brain refused to come up with any brilliant insights. Maybe I was missing some vital piece of information. What could have changed in the past three days that was so important that Jacob would break his long streak of refusing to answer my phone calls and contact me? What difference could three days make? I froze in the middle of the kitchen. The package of icy hamburger in my hands slipped through my numb fingers. It took me a slow second to miss the thud it should have made against the floor. Edward had caught it and thrown it onto the counter. His arms were already around me, his lips at my ear. â€Å"What's wrong?† I shook my head, dazed. Three days could change everything. Hadn't I just been thinking about how impossible college was? How I couldn't be anywhere near people after I'd gone through the painful three-day conversion that would set me free from mortality, so that I could spend eternity with Edward? The conversion that would make me forever a prisoner to my own thirst. . . . Had Charlie told Billy that I'd vanished for three days? Had Billy jumped to conclusions? Had Jacob really been asking me if I was still human? Making sure that the werewolves' treaty was unbroken – that none of the Cullens had dared to bite a human . . . bite, not kill . . . ? But did he honestly think I would come home to Charlie if that was the case? Edward shook me. â€Å"Bella?† he asked, truly anxious now. â€Å"I think . . . I think he was checking,† I mumbled. â€Å"Checking to make sure. That I'm human, I mean.† Edward stiffened, and a low hiss sounded in my ear. â€Å"We'll have to leave,† I whispered. â€Å"Before. So that it doesn't break the treaty. We won't ever be able to come back.† His arms tightened around me. â€Å"I know.† â€Å"Ahem.† Charlie cleared his voice loudly behind us. I jumped, and then pulled free of Edward's arms, my face getting hot. Edward leaned back against the counter. His eyes were tight. I could see worry in them, and anger. â€Å"If you don't want to make dinner, I can call for a pizza,† Charlie hinted. â€Å"No, that's okay, I'm already started.† â€Å"Okay,† Charlie said. He propped himself against the doorframe, folding his arms. I sighed and got to work, trying to ignore my audience. â€Å"If I asked you to do something, would you trust me?† Edward asked, an edge to his soft voice. We were almost to school. Edward had been relaxed and joking just a moment ago, and now suddenly his hands were clenched tight on the steering wheel, his knuckles straining in an effort not to snap it into pieces. I stared at his anxious expression – his eyes were far away, like he was listening to distant voices. My pulse sped in response to his stress, but I answered carefully. â€Å"That depends.† We pulled into the school lot. â€Å"I was afraid you would say that.† â€Å"What do you want me to do, Edward?† â€Å"I want you to stay in the car.† He pulled into his usual spot and turned the engine off as he spoke. â€Å"I want you to wait here until I come back for you.† â€Å"But . . . why?† That was when I saw him. He would have been hard to miss, towering over the students the way he did, even if he hadn't been leaning against his black motorcycle, parked illegally on the sidewalk. â€Å"Oh.† Jacob's face was a calm mask that I recognized well. It was the face he used when he was determined to keep his emotions in check, to keep himself under control. It made him look like Sam, the oldest of the wolves, the leader of the Quileute pack. But Jacob could never quite manage the perfect serenity Sam always exuded. I'd forgotten how much this face bothered me. Though I'd gotten to know Sam pretty well before the Cullens had come back – to like him, even – I'd never been able to completely shake the resentment I felt when Jacob mimicked Sam's expression. It was a stranger's face. He wasn't my Jacob when he wore it. â€Å"You jumped to the wrong conclusion last night,† Edward murmured. â€Å"He asked about school because he knew that I would be where you were. He was looking for a safe place to talk to me. A place with witnesses.† So I'd misinterpreted Jacob's motives last night. Missing information, that was the problem. Information like why in the world Jacob would want to talk to Edward. â€Å"I'm not staying in the car,† I said. Edward groaned quietly. â€Å"Of course not. Well, let's get this over with.† Jacob's face hardened as we walked toward him, hand in hand. I noticed other faces, too – the faces of my classmates. I noticed how their eyes widened as they took in all six foot seven inches of Jacob's long body, muscled up the way no normal sixteen-and-a-half-year-old ever had been. I saw those eyes rake over his tight black t-shirt – short-sleeved, though the day was unseasonably cool – his ragged, grease-smeared jeans, and the glossy black bike he leaned against. Their eyes didn't linger on his face – something about his expression had them glancing quickly away. And I noticed the wide berth everyone gave him, the bubble of space that no one dared to encroach on. With a sense of astonishment, I realized that Jacob looked dangerous to them. How odd. Edward stopped a few yards away from Jacob, and I could tell that he was uncomfortable having me so close to a werewolf. He drew his hand back slightly, pulling me halfway behind his body. â€Å"You could have called us,† Edward said in a steel-hard voice. â€Å"Sorry,† Jacob answered, his face twisting into a sneer. â€Å"I don't have any leeches on my speed dial.† â€Å"You could have reached me at Bella's house, of course.† Jacob's jaw flexed, and his brows pulled together. He didn't answer. â€Å"This is hardly the place, Jacob. Could we discuss this later?† â€Å"Sure, sure. I'll stop by your crypt after school.† Jacob snorted. â€Å"What's wrong with now?† Edward looked around pointedly, his eyes resting on the witnesses who were just barely out of hearing range. A few people were hesitating on the sidewalk, their eyes bright with expectation. Like they were hoping a fight might break out to alleviate the tedium of another Monday morning. I saw Tyler Crowley nudge Austin Marks, and they both paused on their way to class. â€Å"I already know what you came to say,† Edward reminded Jacob in voice so low that I could barely make it out. â€Å"Message delivered. Consider us warned.† Edward glanced down at me for a fleeting second with worried eyes. â€Å"Warned?† I asked blankly. â€Å"What are you talking about?† â€Å"You didn't tell her?† Jacob asked, his eyes widening with disbelief. â€Å"What, were you afraid she'd take our side?† â€Å"Please drop it, Jacob,† Edward said in an even voice. â€Å"Why?† Jacob challenged. I frowned in confusion. â€Å"What don't I know? Edward?† Edward just glared at Jacob as if he hadn't heard me. â€Å"Jake?† Jacob raised his eyebrow at me. â€Å"He didn't tell you that his big . . . brother crossed the line Saturday night?† he asked, his tone thickly layered with sarcasm. Then his eyes flickered back to Edward. â€Å"Paul was totally justified in -â€Å" â€Å"It was no-man's land!† Edward hissed. â€Å"Was not!† Jacob was fuming visibly. His hands trembled. He shook his head and sucked in two deep lungfuls of air. â€Å"Emmett and Paul?† I whispered. Paul was Jacob's most volatile pack brother. He was the one who'd lost control that day in the woods – the memory of the snarling gray wolf was suddenly vividin my head. â€Å"What happened? Were they fighting?† My voice strained higher in panic. â€Å"Why? Did Paul get hurt?† â€Å"No one fought,† Edward said quietly, only to me. â€Å"No one got hurt. Don't be anxious.† Jacob was staring at us with incredulous eyes. â€Å"You didn't tell her anything at all, did you? Is that why you took her away? So she wouldn't know that -?† â€Å"Leave now.† Edward cut him off mid-sentence, and his face was abruptly frightening – truly frightening. For a second, he looked like . . . like a vampire. He glared at Jacob with vicious, unveiled loathing. Jacob raised his eyebrows, but made no other move. â€Å"Why haven't you told her?† They faced each other in silence for a long moment. More students gathered behind Tyler and Austin. I saw Mike next to Ben – Mike had one hand on Ben's shoulder, like he was holding him in place. In the dead silence, all the details suddenly fell into place for me with a burst of intuition. Something Edward didn't want me to know. Something that Jacob wouldn't have kept from me. Something that had the Cullens and the wolves both in the woods, moving in hazardous proximity to each other. Something that would cause Edward to insist that I fly across the country. Something that Alice had seen in a vision last week – a vision Edward had lied to me about. Something I'd been waiting for anyway. Something I knew would happen again, as much as I might wish it never would. It was never going to end, was it? I heard the quick gasp, gasp, gasp, gasp of the air dragging through my lips, but I couldn't stop it. It looked like the school was shaking, like there was an earthquake, but I knew it was my own trembling that caused the illusion. â€Å"She came back for me,† I choked out. Victoria was never going to give up till I was dead. She would keep repeating the same pattern – feint and run, feint and run – until she found a hole through my defenders. Maybe I'd get lucky. Maybe the Volturi would come for me first – they'd kill me quicker, at least. Edward held me tight to his side, angling his body so that he was still between me and Jacob, and stroked my face with anxious hands. â€Å"It's fine,† he whispered to me. â€Å"It's fine. I'll never let her get close to you, it's fine.† Then he glared at Jacob. â€Å"Does that answer your question, mongrel?† â€Å"You don't think Bella has a right to know?† Jacob challenged. â€Å"It's her life.† Edward kept his voice muted; even Tyler, edging forward by inches, would be unable to hear. â€Å"Why should she be frightened when she was never in danger?† â€Å"Better frightened than lied to.† I tried to pull myself together, but my eyes were swimming in moisture. I could see it behind my lids – I could see Victoria's face, her lips pulled back over her teeth, her crimson eyes glowing with the obsession of her vendetta; she held Edward responsible for the demise of her love, James. She wouldn't stop until his love was taken from him, too. Edward wiped the tears from my cheek with his fingertips. â€Å"Do you really think hurting her is better than protecting her?† he murmured. â€Å"She's tougher than you think,† Jacob said. â€Å"And she's been through worse.† Abruptly, Jacob's expression shifted, and he was staring at Edward with an odd, speculative expression. His eyes narrowed like he was trying to do a difficult math problem in his head. I felt Edward cringe. I glanced up at him, and his face was contorted in what could only be pain. For one ghastly moment, I was reminded of our afternoon in Italy, in the macabre tower room of the Volturi, where Jane had tortured Edward with her malignant gift, burning him with her thoughts alone. . . . The memory snapped me out of my near hysteria and put everything in perspective. Because I'd rather Victoria killed me a hundred times over than watch Edward suffer that way again. â€Å"That's funny,† Jacob said, laughing as he watched Edward's face. Edward winced, but smoothed his expression with a little effort. He couldn't quite hide the agony in his eyes. I glanced, wide-eyed, from Edward's grimace to Jacob's sneer. â€Å"What are you doing to him?† I demanded. â€Å"It's nothing, Bella,† Edward told me quietly. â€Å"Jacob just has a good memory, that's all.† Jacob grinned, and Edward winced again. â€Å"Stop it! Whatever you're doing.† â€Å"Sure, if you want.† Jacob shrugged. â€Å"It's his own fault if he doesn't like the things I remember, though.† I glared at him, and he smiled back impishly – like a kid caught doing something he knows he shouldn't by someone who he knows won't punish him. â€Å"The principal's on his way to discourage loitering on school property,† Edward murmured to me. â€Å"Let's get to English, Bella, so you're not involved.† â€Å"Overprotective, isn't he?† Jacob said, talking just to me. â€Å"A little trouble makes life fun. Let me guess, you're not allowed to have fun, are you?† Edward glowered, and his lips pulled back from his teeth ever so slightly. â€Å"Shut up, Jake,† I said. Jacob laughed. â€Å"That sounds like a no. Hey, if you ever feel like having a life again, you could come see me. I've still got your motorcycle in my garage.† This news distracted me. â€Å"You were supposed to sell that. You promised Charlie you would.† If I hadn't begged on Jake's behalf – after all, he'd put weeks of labor into both motorcycles, and he deserved some kind of payback – Charlie would have thrown my bike in a Dumpster. And possibly set that Dumpster on fire. â€Å"Yeah, right. Like I would do that. It belongs to you, not me. Anyway, I'll hold on to it until you want it back.† A tiny hint of the smile I remembered was suddenly playing around the edges of his lips. â€Å"Jake . . .† He leaned forward, his face earnest now, the bitter sarcasm fading. â€Å"I think I might have been wrong before, you know, about not being able to be friends. Maybe we could manage it, on my side of the line. Come see me.† I was vividly conscious of Edward, his arms still wrapped protectively around me, motionless as a stone. I shot a look at his face – it was calm, patient. â€Å"I, er, don't know about that, Jake.† Jacob dropped the antagonistic faade completely. It was like he'd forgotten Edward was there, or at least he was determined to act that way. â€Å"I miss you every day, Bella. It's not the same without you.† â€Å"I know and I'm sorry, Jake, I just . . .† He shook his head, and sighed. â€Å"I know. Doesn't matter, right? I guess I'll survive or something. Who needs friends?† He grimaced, trying to cover the pain with a thin attempt at bravado. Jacob's suffering had always triggered my protective side. It was not entirely rational – Jacob was hardly in need of any physical protection I could offer. But my arms, pinned beneath Edward's, yearned to reach out to him. To wrap around his big, warm waist in a silent promise of acceptance and comfort. Edward's shielding arms had become restraints. â€Å"Okay, get to class,† a stern voice sounded behind us. â€Å"Move along, Mr. Crowley.† â€Å"Get to school, Jake,† I whispered, anxious as soon as I recognized the principal's voice. Jacob went to the Quileute school, but he might still get in trouble for trespassing or the equivalent. Edward released me, taking just my hand and pulling me behind his body again. Mr. Greene pushed through the circle of spectators, his brows pressing down like ominous storm clouds over his small eyes. â€Å"I mean it,† he was threatening. â€Å"Detention for anyone who's still standing here when I turn around again.† The audience melted away before he was finished with his sentence. â€Å"Ah, Mr. Cullen. Do we have a problem here?† â€Å"Not at all, Mr. Greene. We were just on our way to class.† â€Å"Excellent. I don't seem to recognize your friend.† Mr. Greene turned his glower on Jacob. â€Å"Are you a new student here?† Mr. Greene's eyes scrutinized Jacob, and I could see that he'd come to the same conclusion everyone else had: dangerous. A troublemaker. â€Å"Nope,† Jacob answered, half a smirk on his broad lips. â€Å"Then I suggest you remove yourself from school property at once, young man, before I call the police.† Jacob's little smirk became a full-blown grin, and I knew he was picturing Charlie showing up to arrest him. This grin was too bitter, too full of mocking to satisfy me. This wasn't the smile I'd been waiting to see. Jacob said, â€Å"Yes, sir,† and snapped a military salute before he climbed on his bike and kicked it to a start right there on the sidewalk. The engine snarled and then the tires squealed as he spun it sharply around. In a matter of seconds, Jacob raced out of sight. Mr. Greene gnashed his teeth together while he watched the performance. â€Å"Mr. Cullen, I expect you to ask your friend to refrain from trespassing again.† â€Å"He's no friend of mine, Mr. Greene, but I'll pass along the warning.† Mr. Greene pursed his lips. Edward's perfect grades and spotless record were clearly a factor in Mr. Greene's assessment of the incident. â€Å"I see. If you're worried about any trouble, I'd be happy to -â€Å" â€Å"There's nothing to worry about, Mr. Greene. There won't be any trouble.† â€Å"I hope that's correct. Well, then. On to class. You, too, Miss Swan.† Edward nodded, and pulled me quickly along toward the English building. â€Å"Do you feel well enough to go to class?† he whispered when we were past the principal. â€Å"Yes,† I whispered back, not quite sure if this was a lie. Whether I felt well or not was hardly the most important consideration. I needed to talk to Edward right away, and English class wasn't the ideal place for the conversation I had in mind. But with Mr. Greene right behind us, there weren't a lot of other options. We got to class a little late and took our seats quickly. Mr. Berty was reciting a Frost poem. He ignored our entrance, refusing to let us break his rhythm. I yanked a blank page out of my notebook and started writing, my handwriting more illegible than normal thanks to my agitation. What happened? Tell me everything. And screw the protecting me crap, please. I shoved the note at Edward. He sighed, and then began writing. It took him less time than me, though he wrote an entire paragraph in his own personal calligraphy before he slipped the paper back. Alice saw that Victoria was coming back. I took you out of town merely as a precaution – there was never a chance that she would have gotten anywhere close to you. Emmett and Jasper very nearly had her, but Victoria seems to have some instinct for evasion. She escaped right down the Quileute boundary line as if she were reading it from a map. It didn't help that Alice's abilities were nullified by the Quileutes' involvement. To be fair, the Quileutes might have had her, too, if we hadn't gotten in the way. The big gray one thought Emmett was over the line, and he got defensive. Of course Rosalie reacted to that, and everyone left the chase to protect their companions. Carlisle and Jasper got things calmed down before it got out of hand. But by then, Victoria had slipped away. That's everything. I frowned at the letters on the page. All of them had been in on it – Emmett, Jasper, Alice, Rosalie, and Carlisle. Maybe even Esme, though he hadn't mentioned her. And then Paul and the rest of the Quileute pack. It might so easily have turned into a fight, pitting my future family and my old friends against each other. Any one of them could have been hurt. I imagined the wolves would be in the most danger, but picturing tiny Alice next to one of the huge werewolves, fighting . . . I shuddered. Carefully, I scrubbed out the entire paragraph with my eraser and then I wrote over the top: What about Charlie? She could have been after him. Edward was shaking his head before I finished, obviously going to downplay any danger on Charlie's behalf. He held a hand out, but I ignored that and started again. You can't know that she wasn't thinking that, because you weren't here. Florida was a bad idea. He took the paper from underneath my hand. I wasn't about to send you off alone. With your luck, not even the black box would survive. That wasn't what I'd meant at all; I hadn't thought of going without him. I'd meant that we should have stayed here together. But I was sidetracked by his response, and a little miffed. Like I couldn't fly cross country without bringing the plane down. Very funny. So let's say my bad luck did crash the plane. What exactly were you going to do about it? Why is the plane crashing? He was trying to hide a smile now. The pilots are passed out drunk. Easy. I'd fly the plane. Of course. I pursed my lips and tried again. Both engines have exploded and we're falling in a death spiral toward the earth. I'd wait till we were close enough to the ground, get a good grip on you, kick out the wall, and jump. Then I'd run you back to the scene of the accident, and we'd stumble around like the two luckiest survivors in history. I stared at him wordlessly. â€Å"What?† he whispered. I shook my head in awe. â€Å"Nothing,† I mouthed. I scrubbed out the disconcerting conversation and wrote one more line. You will tell me next time. I knew there would be a next time. The pattern would continue until someone lost. Edward stared into my eyes for a long moment. I wondered what my face looked like – it felt cold, so the blood hadn't returned to my cheeks. My eyelashes were still wet. He sighed and then nodded once. Thanks. The paper disappeared from under my hand. I looked up, blinkingin surprise, just as Mr. Berty came down the aisle. â€Å"Is that something you'd like to share there, Mr. Cullen?† Edward looked up innocently and held out the sheet of paper on top of his folder. â€Å"My notes?† he asked, sounding confused. Mr. Berty scanned the notes – no doubt a perfect transcription of his lecture – and then walked away frowning. It was later, in Calculus – my one class without Edward – that I heard the gossip. â€Å"My money's on the big Indian,† someone was saying. I peeked up to see that Tyler, Mike, Austin, and Ben had their heads bent together, deep in conversation. â€Å"Yeah,† Mike whispered. â€Å"Did you see the size of that Jacob kid? I think he could take Cullen down.† Mike sounded pleased by the idea. â€Å"I don't think so,† Ben disagreed. â€Å"There's something about Edward. He's always so . . . confident. I have a feeling he can take care of himself.† â€Å"I'm with Ben,† Tyler agreed. â€Å"Besides, if that other kid messed Edward up, you know those big brothers of his would get involved.† â€Å"Have you been down to La Push lately?† Mike asked. â€Å"Lauren and I went to the beach a couple of weeks ago, and believe me, Jacob's friends are all just as big as he is.† â€Å"Huh,† Tyler said. â€Å"Too bad it didn't turn into anything. Guess we'll never know how it would have turned out.† â€Å"It didn't look over to me,† Austin said. â€Å"Maybe we'll get to see.† Mike grinned. â€Å"Anyone in the mood for a bet?† â€Å"Ten on Jacob,† Austin said at once. â€Å"Ten on Cullen,† Tyler chimed in. â€Å"Ten on Edward,† Ben agreed. â€Å"Jacob,† Mike said. â€Å"Hey, do you guys know what it was about?† Austin wondered. â€Å"That might affect the odds.† â€Å"I can guess,† Mike said, and then he shot a glance at me at the same time that Ben and Tyler did. From their expressions, none of them had realized I was in easy hearing distance. They all looked away quickly, shuffling the papers on their desks. â€Å"I still say Jacob,† Mike muttered under his breath.