Corporate Finance Assignment ( Questions ) Essay

Corporate Finance Assignment ( Questions ) - Essay Example The Enron scandal and Arthur Anderson case has been the witness of this testimony. If the interest of organisation and individuals are not aligned then there are classical cases like Arthur Anderson and Enron comes up in the public world. This case tries to highlight how a corporation like Arthur Anderson came to such demise. 80 years of legendary innovative history in Corporate America that was created by Arthur Anderson was washed up in a matter of 8 years. Internal divisions came up in the company and the world started to look at Corporate America with shame. To align the principal agent theory in practice, Sarbanes Oxley came into operation in 2002. The act tried to align the best interest of the shareholders and the agent i.e. Management in the same mould. The objective of the act was to reduce the ever growing gap between the two of the main functions of the organisation. There are two main functions of any organisation which decide the fate of the organisation as a whole. The first one of them is the shareholders (Principals) who elect the Management (agent) to represent them as the owner of the company. The objective of the principal is to maximise shareholders wealth while that of Management can be the same or it can be different also. If the objectives are aligned by using good compensation strategy and urging responsibilities over the management then agency cost of the company will be reduced. If that is not the case agency cost will always increase. With this background let us have a look at the classic case of Arthur Anderson. Management of the company which was looking after the AA division of the company was less compensated compared to their counterparts in AC. This is itself a contradiction to the principal agent theory. Arthur Anderson has grown from the roots as a major auditor and the consulting division came into picture very late when they started automating the book keeping systems. AC was very successful and the compensation was not in a lignment with the kind of success they achieved. Hence the companies were separated and consulting division was now separate from auditing division. After the separation AC kept growing fast with their own set of compensation strategy while AA started facing challenges. This challenges are advent from the number of lawsuits AA faced during 1990s and 2000. Employees at AA were resenting and finding other ways to get paid and rope in extra money for the organisation and themselves. This is when they started realigning shareholders interest with theirs. This was visible in the biggest corporate scandal of America- Enron. Enron was the worst corporate scandal which shook American Corporation. Auditors at Arthur Anderson signed the financial statements of Enron without cross checking the stated facts. This was done just to rope in extra money from this big ticket client. Somewhere this is an also a case where organizational structure should be questioned. The reason for this is because f or a big ticket client like Enron, Arthur Anderson compromised its corporate hierarchy. They allowed their premier groups to go and reside at the client’s headquarter. There was no proper check on what was happening within employees and the client. 2- (Goal of financial Management )Why is the goal of financial management to maximize the current share price of the company‘s stock? In other words, why isn’

George Orwell 1984 Essay Example for Free

George Orwell 1984 Essay In this essay I intend to investigate experiences and historical events in Orwell’s lifetime. These events may have significantly influenced Orwell’s style, structure and theme, contributing to the political and artistic nature of his novel. I also intend to compare the contradictory interpretations of Orwell’s ‘message’. Did he intend 1984 as a warning, a prediction, or a historical novel? Despite its critics 1984 has made a significant impression on the modern world. Its infiltration into reality television may not be a tribute Orwell would have appreciated but many of his terms and phrases have been used to highlight threats to social and personal freedom. I will use this as a basis to ascertain whether there are other aspects of Orwell’s novel that have become reality in the modern world. 1984 by George Orwell was written in1947/48. This era has been referred to as ‘The age of anxiety, the age of the lost generation’. (www. historyguide. org/europe/lecture10) It was a nightmare world where individuality was lost. The totalitarian states of the time, exercised complete control over the lives of their human subjects. The Great War (World War One) facilitated totalitarian regimes, simply because war has only one objective: victory. â€Å"Individuality is sacrificed for collectivism and freedom is restricted as governments reject liberal values†. (www. historyguide. org/europe/lecture10) This mood of anxiety and conformity, is clearly illustrated in 1984; this is portrayed in the early pages of the novel and is maintained throughout. Orwell cleverly uses his descriptive talent, to set the scene for his reader. At the very beginning of his novel ‘the vile wind, the swirl of gritty dust’ (Page 4) projects a negative image of life in 1984. The maintenance of these visual images is preserved and comparisons, between post-war Britain and 1984, are recognisable. Examples of these are the shortages, rationing and the bombsites of the 1940’s. Orwell successfully engages the readers’ senses to conjure up images within the mind of the reader. ‘The hallway smelt of boiled cabbage and old rag mats’. (Page 4) I found phrases like this one actually made me feel the squalor and deprivation he was describing. The use of visual cues is also a theme, which starts on the first page of Orwell’s novel. He continually presents images that could be describing London during the 1940’s, but are in fact describing life in 1984. ‘A coloured poster too large for indoor display has been tacked to the wall ’(Page 4) Orwell has managed to reaffirm the squalid surroundings by the use of the word ‘tacked’ before he has even described the poster. ‘It depicted simply an enormous face, more than a metre wide: the face of a man of about forty-five with heavy black moustache and ruggedly hand-some features’. Many have suggested that Orwell based his character â€Å"Big Brother† the leader of the party on Stalin and Hitler because they all shared similar physical characteristics and had the ability to â€Å"manipulate the minds of the masses†. (The Worlds Most Evil Men). However, Churchill was also â€Å"recognised for his skill in altering peoples minds†(The History Of World War II) which could be interpreted that, the people of the 1940’s were being manipulated, regardless of their countries political status. His creative talent excelled itself with the name of his totalitarian leader. Big Brother conveys an image of trust and loyalty with the idea that he is a member of your family who is a figure affording protection and security. This is a complete contradiction to the lives of the Russian citizens under Stalin or the German people during Hitler’s rein and indeed the population of nineteen eighty four had little opportunity to feel safe. The naming of other characters within his novel, I suspect, had a deeper meaning. For example Emmanuel Goldstein’s face was described as It resembled the face of a sheep and the voice, too, had a sheep like quality. The significance of this description becomes more meaningful if you look at a poster (see appendix 1) used during World War II. Henri Guigon represented Churchill as a British bulldog in an American poster. To the whole world Britain’s new prime minister epitomised the stubborn and proud nature of the British. Orwell uses animals for descriptive comparison frequently in his writing but the use of a sheep, in this instance, is a curious choice. The character Goldstein is the leader of the opposition and sheep like qualities conjure up images of low intelligence and all following the crowd. This is a form of sarcasm that implies ridicule, disapproval, or contempt Sarcasm often includes an element of irony. Winston’s description of the opposition is not dissimilar to party members. Orwell could have been expressing his concerns with how Churchill’s War Cabinet, had on occasions, behaved no differently from the fascist regimes of the era. News was censored, wages controlled and travel restricted under the guise of wartime necessity. (Guardian 2002). However Goldstein is a Jewish name and World War II had just ended when this book was being written. Goldstein is used as a scapegoat in 1984, which has, parallels with the Nazis attempt to blame their problems on the Jews. In my opinion the name of Orwell’s main character Winston Smith also had a deeper, if somewhat personal meaning. Orwell was a dying man, when he wrote this novel, and he was probably aware it would be his final legacy to the world. He had a reluctant admiration for Churchill. Although he did not always agree with his policies he admired him not only for his courage but also a certain â€Å"largeness and geniality†. The History Of World War II) This admiration was expressed in the form of poetry that he rarely wrote. (See appendix 2). It is a fitting acknowledgement of this respect, that Winston became the name of his primary character. Smith is simply a very common English name, which gives the impression that Winston Smith is a very ordinary citizen not dissimilar to oneself. The caption under the Big Brother posters read â€Å" Big Brother is watching you† (Page 4) Orwell’s use of capital letters for this caption, and indeed others later in the book, gives increased impact to the reader of the significance of these words. It gives a sense of the controlling nature of the society in which the citizens of 1984 lived; constantly being watched by the eyes of Big Brother. It was similar to the blackouts enforced during World War II where wardens’ patrolled neighbourhood, and failure to conform, resulted in humiliating offenders in front of their neighbours. (The History Of World War II) The use of posters and slogans in Orwell’s novel may well have been inspired by the vast array of similar images used during World War II. England and Germany, among others, used large images, in a poster format, to send messages to their people. These were used to encourage conformity, solidarity and patriotism within each nation. At times they were also used to inflate morale at home and abroad, while at the same time humiliating and ridiculing their opponents. (See appendix 3) A good example of this, used in World War II, is the appearance of ‘V’ on walls in German- occupied Belgium. The Flemish speaking Belgians would interpret this as ‘vrijheid’, which means freedom, and the French speaking Belgians would understand this to mean ‘victoire’ (victory). This is a cruel psychological attack on an already defeated nation. Winston describes party slogans, in 1984, on the walls of buildings, which also have contradictory meanings. â€Å"War is peace, Freedom is Slavery and Ignorance is Strength† (Page 6) Orwell uses this type of psychological approach in different ways throughout his novel. Orwell’s wife, Eileen O’Shaughnessy (1905-1945) had a degree in psychology from Oxford University. Obtained in the 1920’s this would have been a significant achievement for a woman at that time and her influence on Orwell’s writing has been recognised. Eileen wrote a poem called â€Å"End Of The Century, 1984†(1934). There are similarities between the futuristic vision of Eileen’s poem and Orwell’s 1984, including mind control and the destruction of personal freedom. (www. arlindo-correia) The aggression, described by Winston, during the two-minute hate, and the hangings could have been influenced by Eileen’s psychological knowledge. There are various psychological theories as to why people display aggression. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) believed aggressive impulses are a reaction to frustrations of daily lives. This theory could easily be applied to the citizens in 1984. Freud’s theories were very influential during the 1940’s/50’s and his written articles had an almost political language, when referring to human behaviour, which may have appealed to Orwell’s political and artistic nature. Behavioural psychologists believe behaviour is learnt through reinforcement; their theory is that humans respond to social reinforcement such as social approval. In the 1940’s solidarity and conformity in Britain was achieved via camaraderie â€Å"every one doing their bit†. (Yesterdays Britain) In 1984 it was built on fear. In the following quote Winston describes what happens to citizens who don’t conform to the party’s political orthodoxy. In the vast majority of cases there was no trial, no report of the arrest. People simply disappeared, always during the night. Your name was removed from the registers, everything you had ever done was wiped out, your one-time existence was denied and then forgotten. You were abolished, annihilated: vaporized. (Page 22) This type of enforcement was common after the death of Lenin in 1924. His successor Josef Stalin turned a popular revolution based on freedom and equality, into a totalitarian dictatorship maintained solely by terror. He said â€Å"The death of a man is a tragedy; the death of a thousand is a statistic† (World Most Evil Men). A census in 1937 estimated that Russia’s population was twenty million short of what it should have been, although this information was withheld and emigration and famine were factors Stalin’s purges accounted for millions of deaths during his rule. Winston describes the use of purges during the formation of the party. The intense anger and hatred that Winston describes are characteristic of mob behaviour and learning. The characters of Orwell’s novel show almost animal like hatred for the opposition and hero worship for Big Brother. This behaviour appears unrealistic, but if you look at Britain during World War II there are some striking similarities. The people of Britain were suffering a savage war with horrors, deprivation, shortages and bombings. Death and loss were a constant threat, yet ordinary British people obeyed government instructions â€Å"keep calm and carry on†. The conformity of the people of 1984 is portrayed in different ways firstly; party uniforms remove any possibility of individuality. The idea that men and women wore the same uniform also removed gender as a source of identity. ‘ I’m going to get hold of a real women’s frock from somewhere and wear it instead of these bloody trousers’. Julia goes on to say ‘In this room I’m going to be a woman, not a party comrade’. (Page 164) During the war women’s role changed and they were required to do the work previously done by men. The uniforms they wore, although practical, had a distinctly masculine appearance. Clothing was rationed until March 1949 and women had learnt to live independently. The Bible (Deuteronomy 22. 5) clearly states, â€Å"The women shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man† highlighting the social unacceptability of women wearing trousers. This did not change until the 1960’s. Gender identity refers to the psychological and biological dimensions of sex. Freud (1925) described this as â€Å"Psychical consequences of anatomical distinction between the sexes†(Freud 1925) In the modern world, there is legislation that prohibits discrimination, because of a person’s gender identity, which is part of the human rights laws. (www. ransgenderlaw. org) Although Orwell gives his characters names, the society he is describing mainly refer to each other as comrade. This was also a common term used in Nazi Germany, during World War II. Removing the use of personal names is another means of removing an individual’s identity and individuality. The party is all-powerful, friendships and family structure is suppressed to limit the possibility of divided loyalties. The party demands absolute loyalty in thought and deed. Children are brainwashed via organization such as the Junior Spies and Youth Groups these are similar to Adolph Hitler’s Youth League, during World War II. Education was designed to suppress independent thought and sources of information were restricted and controlled. In the 1940’s most educational establishments, educated children via the ‘didactic model’ sometimes called teacher- centred teaching. This method is where knowledge is passed from teacher to pupil. The teacher speaks and the pupil’s listen. In the modern world students are educated via the ‘critical method’ this is sometimes called ‘student-centred learning’. This is a process where students are taught to explore, question and formulate truth and opinions for themselves. The use of investigating, discussing and debating are used to facilitate the development of independent thought. (Pollard1998) One of the most chilling depictions of the repressive and controlling nature of life in 1984, in my opinion, is the inclusion of the telescreen.. â€Å"The telescreen receives and transmitted simultaneously, you had to live did live, from habit that became instinctive in the assumption that every sound you made was over heard, and except in darkness, every movement scrutinised†. Page 5) The use of the telescreen was an ingenious concept, taking into account the era. Technology was primitive compared to the modern world. However, the military during World War II improved radar and rockets, this enabled the post war development of television (1946) and close circuit television (CCTV) (1949). The Star newspaper (January 14 1949) included an article explaining a â€Å"New system of television being used to aid road safety†. This system carried signa ls direct from a camera to a screen with both visual and audio reception, this was known as CCTV. The summer of 1949 saw the technology and the knowledge but not the resources available to launch satellites (The Star 1949) which we now know can be used to monitor, observe and transmit around the world. In today’s society Britain has earned a reputation as a world leader of surveillance. It is estimated that the average British citizen is caught on camera up to three hundred times per day (The Star 2005). However, observation of British citizens is not a new concept. During World War II mass observation was the government’s way of keeping in touch with the mood of the people. Tom Harrison, the director of mass observation called for observers to monitor war morale. Citizens’ reactions in cinemas were monitored to perceive the mood of the nation (Yesterdays Britain). Orwell used irony extensively through out his novel. For example He was alone: no telescreen, no ear at the keyhole, no nervous impulse to glance over his shoulder or cover the page with his hand. (Page 214) This contradicts appearance with reality and allows the reader to understand Winston’s motives and rebellion. Later the reader is informed that in fact the telescreen is hidden behind a picture, which was offered for sale by Mr Charrington earlier in the novel. This suggests to the reader that an enemy is not always obvious. The friend and foe situation between the Communists and the Nazi’s during the 1940’s is a clear example of a hidden enemy. In the present world, America and Britain are fighting a War on terrorism. It appears ironic that we are fighting a war against an unknown enemy; at home and abroad. Orwell’s character Winston Smith is frequently concerned with the parties’ alteration of facts and history. The quote â€Å"He who controls the past controls the future† is a terrifying notion. The alteration of history, whether personal or social removes individuality and identity it also, to a certain extent, changes reality into anything the ruling party deems it to be. Stalin, after the Russian revolution, had history rewritten to magnify his part in events. Trotsky’s part had been erased from Soviet textbooks. (Time Archive 1940) For information and historical events to be constant and unalterable they need to be remembered. Humans have a complex memory system, which enables information received from the environment to be processed. Short-term memory (STM) is information that is held temporarily and long-term memory (LTM) is a permanent storage system. For information to pass from STM into LTM individuals need to pay attention to the received information. Repetition, relearning and making the information meaningful help to maintain the information permanently. Orwell’s 1984 society appears to be attempting to remove LTM from its citizens. Information is received via telescreens but due to poor LTM development this information can be altered without the individual remembering the original information. This is achievable partly due to the act that new information interferes with previous memories. Orwell expressed his concerns (Politics and the English language) that government officials debating on historic events trivialised the truth and found ways to convince everyone that history never happened or happened but it didn’t mater any way. Young children have a limited memory capacity due to underdevelopment of the pre frontal cortex but also because they are not particularly interested in remembering the past thus make little effort to develop ways of making memories meaningful, which also makes recall more difficult. Orwell use’s this concept in his novel in a variety of ways. Firstly the characters in 1984 are more concerned with survival than the past. The present is more relevant to this aim than events from the past. With the invention of Newspeak, the official language of Oceania it enables the party to restrict speech, thought and consequently memory. Many in today’s society, would suggest that politicians have perfected their own form of â€Å"Newspeak†. The use of text messaging is also a modern day form of newspeak. Orwell was concerned with the use, or misuse of the English language. He felt that words with variable meaning were often used with the intent to deceive and that language was intended for expression not concealing or preventing thought. In the modern world the media is required to present a ‘balanced’ coverage of news and public affaires. However this results in a form of ‘double think’ in which truth is immediately neutered by an opposite truth. The second section of Orwell’s novel deals mainly with the love affair between the characters Winston and Julia. This gives the novel direction and hope. However, the inclusion of â€Å"the book† makes this a difficult section to read. Orwell’s intentions may well have been to explain the futility of war where there are no winners or indeed losers; just simply the maintenance of war. Hitler wrote a book called Mein Kampf (My Struggle) outlining his vision of the future of Germany. It was a ranting, sometimes unreadable vision of the future of Germany (The world’s most evil men). This may have been the inspiration for the inclusion of â€Å"the book† in Orwell’s novel. Orwell uses various figurative language through out his novel, this gives the writing greater power of expression and meets Orwell’s criteria for artistic purpose (Why I Write). For example the melodramatic use of the nursery rhyme â€Å"Oranges and lemons†, say the bells of St Clements’s! (Page 112) Is an epigram, the rhyme symbolizes, in an almost child like way, the past. Orwell maintains the original historical names of the London churches before the formation of the party. Through this symbolic representation it gives Winston hope that, fragments of the past can survive. Other characters gradually piece together the rhyme until Charington finally completes it during the capture of Winston and Julia. These Churches are recognisable in London today and keep the novel relevant after the year 1984. Orwell uses innuendo with the words â€Å"we shall meet in the place where there is no darkness† (Page 118). Winston believes these words are from O’Brien but Orwell manages to keep the origin and the significance of these words unknown until Winston and Julia are captured. This creates and develops a sense of foreboding and suspense, which maintains the controlling and manipulating society, which is being portrayed in 1984. Winston’s dreams of the â€Å"Golden Country† are the direct opposite of his reality in 1984. They represent peace, beauty, unity and uniqueness. These are Freudian theories as they reveal Winston’s subconscious. The capture and subsequent torture of Winston shows a curious, horrific and terrifying journey. The absolute and total destruction of the mind and body. However, the language and tone is calm and detached with surprisingly little malice, anger or hatred. This gives a deeper more powerful description of what Orwell is suggesting the future could be. It also gives the character O’Brien a more complex personality. He is constantly switching between ‘good guy’ and ‘bad guy’. This intrigues the reader, as well as Winston. Is he friend or foe? He has the â€Å"power† to do good or evil, which will he choose? Orwell is using an interesting psychological theory. He is suggesting that not all evil men are bad all the time and thus good people do not always act nicely. The reader is left with a feeling of wanting to like O’Brien but at the same time hating him for his cruelty. This strange relationship is as contradictory and confusing as Churchill and Roosevelt’s involvement with Stalin (1939). Despite the catastrophic purges, and the negative value that Stalin had demonstrated over human life, they still became allies. Churchill said of Stalin, at the Yalta summit, â€Å"I walk through the world with greater courage when I find myself in a relationship of friendship and intimacy with this great man. † Stalin concealed a cruel and calculating nature prepared to commit war crimes at least as evil as those of the enemy. (Worlds Most Evil Men) Winston represents mankind (us)†If you are a man, Winston, you are the last man. †(Page 309) Winston’s torture and re-education is his or our chance to save humanity, freedom, individuality, choice, beliefs and the right to be different. Orwell has used psychological manipulation of the mind to project a horrific interpretation of the destruction of mankind Orwell uses a terrifying concept, by taking Stalin and Hitler’s atrocities to a whole new level: total and absolute conformity in life as well as in death. So long as human beings stay human, death and life are the same thing. (Page 156) Orwell’s novel in my opinion is a plausible projection of the future as he saw it in 1948. Projections of the future, often allows the reader to become detached because the people appear different from oneself. However, Orwell creates characters that are not dissimilar from us (the reader). The inclusion of the proletarians, that cleverly maintain sentimental songs and normal human compassion, also prevents detachment and preserves recognisable modern parallels. The setting of this novel is used to maintain the past, the present and the future. For example, the central administration building of The University of London which was used during World War II as the headquarters for the ministry of information. All censoring systems were coordinated from here. It bears a striking resemblance to the Ministry of Love described in 1984 and amusingly its telegraphic address was â€Å"miniform†. (www. orwelltoday. com) All other significant buildings, described in 1984 can be located in London today. This was probably Orwell’s intention and it keeps the novel viable even after the year 1984. In returning to the original question I feel I have demonstrated that George Orwell used many sources of inspiration, from the world, in his writing of 1984 and it powerfully reflects the times in which it was written. After the publication of Animal Farm (1945) Orwell explained that he intended â€Å"to fuse political purpose and artistic purpose into one whole†(Why I Write). This suggests that Orwell was concerned with Britain’s future. Even with overwhelming evidence of the evil nature of the Stalin regime, they still became allies with Britain and America. Malcolm Muggeride said of Orwell â€Å"He loved the past, hated the present and dreaded the future. I strongly believe that Orwell intended 1984, as a warning of what the world could become, not necessarily what it would become, if ‘we’ (the future) did not take action and responsibility. Orwell has left a legacy, a permanent warning. For the present and the future, to prevent the formation of the totalitarian states of the past. His terminology has given modern day man, the language to express themselves and to protect civil liberties and influence human rights. 1984 is a political satire that exaggerates all that was wrong with the world in 1949 to hopefully shock and horrify a nation into action and prevent this type of society becoming a reality. Although the date of the book has passed the message is still clear and in some ways more relevant today, than when it was written. The advances in technology have made the surveillance and monitoring of citizens easier and more commonplace. Freedom, in the true sense of the word still depends on where you live, your age and your gender. However, I feel Orwell’s novel should be recognised for its extraordinary impact and significant contribution to human rights in the modern world. Although Orwell’s warning has been subjected to many interpretations I feel a novelist is supposed to make you think and possibly reflect: you must agree, job well done. Despite its critics 1984 has sold millions of copies and has been translated into 65 languages.

Speech Variation In Restaurants Essay Example for Free

Speech Variation In Restaurants Essay There are three different dialects in Pennsylvania that will give away where you reside. Why is there so much contrast in speech among the residents of the city and country? The culture where I am from has molded my speech, attitude, and actions; it also has created who I am today. The â€Å"city life† is exceptionally different from the â€Å"country life,† I know this because of my expedition to the middle of nowhere, Lock Haven, PA. Somewhere on the four-hour car ride from Philadelphia to Lock Haven, the residents begin to talk a little stranger with a different dialect then the east coast. For the last five years, I have been employed at a corporate owned Mexican-grill restaurant, Chili’s. When I came to school at the beginning of the Fall 2011 semester, I took on a job at the local corporate restaurant, Ruby Tuesday. By working in restaurants, it forced me to communicate with thousands of people from all over the world. Not only did I encounter the behavioral differences of the â€Å"townies† in the Lock Haven area, but also I found it extremely difficult to converse and understand the costumers and employees at Ruby Tuesday. Going out to eat is something you do for relaxation and pleasure, but when a new employee is thrown into the stressful world of the restaurant industry, the â€Å"new fish† is quickly exposed to words that may seem like a foreign language. Although the syntax in the restaurant business is the same as the English language, the function words vary. There are countless restaurant terms that are used by every position in the establishment. These function words also change through out the country. Not only are you dealing with regional accents, you are dealing with different terminology that is dependent on the location of the business. In the city, it is usually assumed that slang would be more present in the restaurants. This is a true statement for the costumers going out to eat, this is a false statement for the employees that have to represent a corporation that is located in an area of high population, where most of the income is coming from. I have seen more employees get fired in the city for being unprofessional and using slang then I have seen in Lock Haven. At Ruby Tuesday, I have found myself baffled countless times by some of morphology my costumers use. It’s frequent that the costumers have to repeat themselves because of the language barrier. A speech community is a group of people who set norms and expectations regarding the use of language, and being from the city makes any Philadelphia aborigine an outcast. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speech_community]. There are different words for the same thing, synonyms, which vary around the state of Pennsylvania in restaurants. For example the seating area around the bar is called the â€Å"lounge† in Philadelphia. The seating area around the bar in Lock Haven is still known as the dinning room area. [http://blog.etundra.com/in-the-restaurant/glossary-restaurant-terms/]. Pennsylvania is divided into roughly three different dialects, The Atlantic midland, East midland, and Pittsburg. [http://aschmann.net/AmEng/]. After watching videos of citizens such as City Councilman Frank Rizzo, Jr. who resides in Philadelphia, Rick Gray, mayor of Lancaster, and U.S. representative Michael Doyle of Pittsburg, it’s is evident that Pennsylvania has distinct native accents. After watching all three videos of these men talking, the accent and dialect that I can most relate to would be Frank Rizzo Jr., the accent that affiliates the most with Lock Haven dialect is Michael Doyle. The way Frank Rizzo pronounces his vowels are very distinct. You can tell in the way he says â€Å"bad, had, and dad,† the IPA sound |à ¦| is pronounced as the IPA sound |I| is pronounced, this is a sign that he is a native of Philadelphia tongue. By having different accents in the restaurant industry, it could get confusing because of the constant screaming and communication in the BOH (Back of the House, or kitchen). [http://www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/wells/phoneticsymbolsforenglish.htm] Just in Pennsylvania, there are at least three contrasting dialects. There are multifarious clues that can give away where a costumer or fellow employee is from. If one pays attention to the sound of the use of their vowel pronunciations, behavior, actions and use of slang, it is effortless. It is a phenomenon how just a few hours can exaggeratedly change the way someone talks. Next time you go out to eat, try to figure out where your server is from using these clues!

Study On Emperor Qin Shih Huang

Study On Emperor Qin Shih Huang Emperor Qin Shih Huang was the first Emperor of Chine. He unified China and built the Great Wall of China that is still intact today. Emperor Qin Shih Huang left behind many legacies that have made China what it is today. In his 35-year reign, he managed to create magnificent and enormous construction projects. He also caused both incredible cultural and intellectual growth, and much destruction within China. (about.com) Despite his good intentions in unifying China, he did many things that were deemed unpardonable by people of his time. He killed many scholars because he was afraid that they would outsmart him. At the same time, many slaves were sacrificed during the construction of the Great Wall of China. Many people have argued that Emperor Qin Shih Huang was a brutal Emperor and disregard his contributions to China. However, his contributions far surpassed his relentless action therefore; Emperor Qin Shih Huang was a noble Emperor. Emperor Qin Shih Huang was born in 259BC, and was the son of the King of the Qin state. He was named Zheng, which meant upright or correct. When the King died in 247 B.C., Zheng became King at the age of thirteen. (Chinas First Emperor and His Terracotta Warriors 20) He reigned for 35 years and during his reign; it was described as the beginning of 246B.C. As Zheng was still a minor when he was King, Prime Minister Lu Bu Wei acted in his state for the first eight years. As there were rumors circulating that Lu Bu Wei was actually the father of Zheng, Lu eventually committed suicide by drinking poison. Twenty-four year old Zheng then took full control over the kingdom of Qin. (The Terra Cotta Army 56) During the time of 475-221 B.C., all the states were at war with themselves. It was called the Warring States period. (MacFarquhar and Schoenhals 2006) China was then divided into many small states and each had their own way of doing things. The states had been fighting for power and when a state won, they could take over another state. (Qin Shi Huangdi 6-7) Within twenty-five years of his reign, King Zheng was able to eliminate all the other states and have ruling power on all of them. King Zheng then named himself the First Emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi. Qin was for his original states, Shi means first, and Huangdi was a new compound word that joins majestic with emperor. (Chinas First Emperor and His Terracotta Warriors p 26) After his new title was formed, Emperor Qin went on and chose the symbol of the state according to the School of the Five elements-earth, wood, metal, fire, and water. With the new symbolism in place, the feudal system was abolished and the Qin dynasty was divided into thirty-six provinces that each had its own governor, army commander, and an inspector. (Sunzis Art of Wat and Managemtne Strategy) As the Qin empire was now unified from the warring states, Emperor Qin Shi Huang ordered General Meng Tian and his soldiers to fortify the walls along the North of China which had been built earlier. (enchanted learning.com) There were multiple purposes of building the wall, firstly, it marked the boundary of where the state is, secondly, it was a defense whereby enemies will find it difficult to raid the state, and lastly, merchants and travelers who were coming into the state would have to be taxed when they were passing through the border. (The first emperor: Chinas Terracotta Army 52) There was also another importance to the building of the walls. Because the Qin empire was so large, the walls provided a means of communication within the provinces. Soldiers were situated along the walls, keeping watch of the movement of the enemies. If there was a warning, they would light the fire and the soldiers all along the wall will also light the fire. Just like a stretch of streetlights b eing ignited one by one along a dark street. As the empire can now fend for itself, Emperor Qin still had some work to do to unify all the different warring states that had many different ways of doing things. The Qin empire created a new writing system to be used throughout the empire. It reduced the complex and variable Large Seal script with its curving lines, allowed swifer writing with brush and ink-essential for imperial record keeping, and it allowed communication between people who have never been able to communicate orally. (The early Chinese empires 53) This development led to the founding of an imperial school that dealt with texts and the interpretation of meaning. Many historians during that time had to obey what he was asked to do or write. Therefore, the histories that we have today may or may not be factual but was written to the pleasing of the Emperor during that time. In 213 B.C., there were texts defaming Emperor Qin despite his great efforts in unifying China. His Grand councilor, Li Si, was furious and suggested, To ban all works of literature and poetry, historical documents and the sayings of the hundred schools of philosophy. (The Terra Cotta Army 79) This event was traditionally viewed as a terrible act of censorship and vandalism. Many people believed that Emperor Qin was ruthless because they thought he was the one who suggested burning all the books, however, Emperor Qin was the one who agreed to this suggestion only because he thought he was unifying the empire and not destroying it. He only sought for unification. In modern day, Chinas ruler, Mao also took away many books during his time of Cultural Revolution. Why was Maos way of doing things still accepted when it was similar to what Emperor Qin Shi Huang did and was deemed terrible two thousand years ago? The standardization of physical things were the emperors attempt to standardize the mind of his people because of their great diversity. He standardized weights, measures, and the coinage system. The standardized coinage system was essential for the smooth running of the new bureaucratic administration. (Chinas First Emperor and his Terracotta Warriors 89) There were many forms of money during that time and the Qin dynasty used bronze coins with a hole in the middle and two characters that states the weight of the coin- eight grammes. This new coinage system was implemented throughout the whole of the Qin empire. Weights and measurements were also standardized in the empire. With the same coinage, weights and measurement system, the economy was much stable as everything was the same. (travelguidechina.com) Emperor Qin wanted his empire to be unified and one thus, he standardized many things. However, this led to the dissatisfaction of many philosophical ideas. Legalism was the only official belief and Confucianism was not allowed. Many scholars were dissatisfied with Emperor Qin. However, in order to keep his empire, Emperor Qin had to have his people think the same way so as to control what his people might do and result in splitting China back to the different states again. (Thinkquest.com) As the Qin Empire was huge, Emperor Qin was constantly on the road, visiting all the different provinces to make sure that his governors were doing what they were instructed to do. This led to Emperors Qin decision of building speed roads from the capital to the north, northeast, south, and southeast. (Governing China: From Revolution through Reform 71) This led to the improved communication system whereby people were able to travel and spend lesser time on the roads and helped Emperor Qin spend lesser time on the road. The speed roads that Emperor Qin built more than two thousand years ago are still being used now. Emperor Qin did many things to unify and make China what it is today.

the count of mountie cristo :: essays research papers

The Count of Monte Cristo I want to begin by introducing you to this great book written by Alexandre Dumas. This novel was published by the Penguin Group in 2001. It was a story full of love, adventure and betrayal. It began as a sweet romance . Then a third party began to reveal his perverse intentions to feed off of the innocent . It was a envy , jealous, and deceit. After the sad and unfortunate body of this suspenseful thriller there was a twist in the story. A great success for our Edmond and his only true love . The main character Edmond Dantes wore many hats in this epic piece. He was a sailor ,a lover ,a friend ,a captain, and a prisoner. After the tragic death of the captain he is honored and promoted to being the new captain . When they return he is regretfully convicted of treason and put into prison for 13 years .He copes with having it all then losing it all by way of the betrayal of a close friend and fellow sailor. .His faith brings him through this troubled storm into a glorious rainbow of blessing that ends this novel with a warm feeling of justice . Edmond Dantes left his beautiful girlfriend Mercedes to board a cargo ship with his trusted and treasured friend . While they are in the foreign island of Elba as the captain was dieing he agreed to deliver a letter for Napoleon , which later finds its way back to haunt him. Due to the fact that his friend was jealous of his new position and beautiful wife and began to sabotage his career . He is convicted of treason when it is brought to the attention of Frances government that he had been collaborating with the foreign emperor Napoleon. He spent thirteen years in prison along side of a priest who in exchange for helping him dig a tunnel for their escape he would teach Edmond how to read and write .He also taught him how to be a masterful swordsmen . Soon after the priest passed after a seizure and Edmond Dantes was left to complete the escape alone , but not as planned . He escaped switching places with the priests body and after being drug out in a body bag and thrown into the icy waters of the bay ,he visited the island of Monte

Understanding Alzheimers Disease :: Alzheimers Disease Essays

Understanding Alzheimer's Disease Alzheimer's Disease is a progressive and irreversible brain disease that destroys mental and physical functioning in human beings, and invariably leads to death. It is the fourth leading cause of adult death in the United States. Alzheimer's creates emotional and financial catastrophe for many American families every year. Fortunately, a large amount of progress is being made to combat Alzheimer's disease every year. To fully be able to comprehend and combat Alzheimer's disease, one must know what it does to the brain, the part of the human body it most greatly affects. Many Alzheimer's disease sufferers had their brains examined. A large number of differences were present when comparing the normal brain to the Alzheimer's brain. There was a loss of nerve cells from the Cerebral Cortex in the Alzheimer's victim. Approxiately ten percent of the neurons in this region were lost. But a ten percent loss is relatively minor, and cannot account for the severe impairment suffered by Alzheimer's victims. Neurofibrillary Tangles are also found in the brains of Alzheimer's victims. They are found within the cell bodies of nerve cells in the cerebral cortex, and take on the structure of a paired helix. Other diseases that have "paired helixes" include Parkinson's disease, Down's Syndrome, and Dementia Pugilistica. Scientists are not sure how the paired helixes are related in these very different diseases. Neuritic Plaques are patches of clumped material lying outside the bodies of nerve cells in the brain. They are mainly found in the cerebral cortex, but have also been seen in other areas of the brain. At the core of each of these plaques is a substance called amyloid, an abnormal protein not usually found in the brain. This amyloid core is surrounded by cast off fragments of dead or dying nerve cells. The cell fragments include dying mitochondria, presynaptic terminals, and paired helical filaments identical to those that are neurofibrillary tangles. Many neuropathologists think that these plaques are basically clusters of degenerating nerve cells. But they are still not sure of how and why these fragments clustered together. Congophilic Angiopathy is the technical name that neuropathologists have given to an abnormality found in the walls of blood vessels in the brains of victims of Alzheimer's disease. These abnormal patches are similar to the neuritic plaques that develop in Alzheimer's disease, in that amyloid has been found within the blood-vessel walls wherever the patches occur. Another name for these patches is cerebrovascular amyloid,

The Effects of Acid Rain on Statues :: Acid Rain Chemical Reactions Essays

The Effects of Acid Rain on Statues Introduction ------------ During this investigation, I will use dilute hydrochloric acid as the acid rain and crushed calcium carbonate as the chemical of the statues. Then I will time how long it takes for the limestone powder to react until there is no more left when the acid is added to it. Rain contains acid naturally as it collects carbon dioxide from the air and makes carbonic acid. Rain normally has a pH of about 5.5 – it is slightly acidic due to the carbon dioxide dissolved in it. It is a stronger acid if gases like sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides escape into the air from the burning fossil fuels, because they are dissolved by the rain and produce sulphuric and nitric acids that does more damage in a faster time. Acid rain reacts with statues and buildings that contain calcium carbonate and form carbon dioxide and water. The dilute hydrochloric acid in this investigation will have the same effect on the limestone as the acid rain on the statues. Yet, the only difference is that in nature, the acid rain reacted with the statue as a whole body, which takes approximately hundred years to corrode the object, whereas the hydrochloric acid in this investigation will take only few seconds to react with the limestone powder. Planning Aim --- The aim of my experiment is to investigate if the speed at which the limestones are dissolved is changed by how concentrated the acid is. Equipment To do my experiment, I will need beakers, a paper spoon, a stop clock, limestone powders, stirring rod, measuring cylinders and an electronic balance for powders Plan For this experiment, I will use 30mls of the acid each time and 1gm of powdered calcium carbonate. The concentration of the acid will be changed by adding water and less acid each time. First, I will use a paper spoon to spoon out the limestone powder and weigh it on the electronic balance. Next, take out the excess powder until the weight is 1gm. Then use two measuring cylinders, with each measuring the amount of water and dilute hydrochloric acid that should be added, e.g. when there is 30mls of acid, 0mls of water will be added; when there is 25mls of acid, 5mls of water will be added, and so on. The total amount will always be 30mls. Afterwards, I will pour the powder into a beaker that contain correct amount of acid in it and use a stop clock to time how long it will take for the powder to disappear. A stirring rod will be used so that no lumps would form.