Analysis Of The Poem Dream By Langston Hughes

Veronica Rincon English 1 Prof. Young June 14, 2016 Regret The structure and meaning of each poem are very similar, but yet are different in their own unique way as well. The two pomes are about dreams, the first poem, Dream is about what could possibly happen if we let go of our dreams and don t purse them. The second poem, Harlem is about the possibilities of what could happen when we postpone our dreams. Both poems do not exactly end with a happy ending, for they show the regret that we will be left with, possibly even death. The poem Dream by Langston Hughes is about following your dreams, because we never know what our near future can become if we do not attempt to accomplish our visions in life. One way to define the word dreams is to refer to them as a reflection of our possibilities that we desire to think about and aspire to achieve. To add on, not only can dreams get us through hard times, but they are a reminder to ourselves to keep going, plus they provide you with a purpose in life. Hughes states, Hold fas t to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that can not fly, meaning if one does not hold fast to their dreams and make them a reality then, we will never get to see what our life could have turned out to be and we ll be left with sadness and regret. Although Hughes illustrates the bird having a broken wing, it is still alive and breathing, the bird can still chirp and it can still be healed: those dreams willShow MoreRelatedEssay about Analysis of Dream Deferred by Langston Hughes615 Words   |  3 PagesAnalysis of Dream Deferred by Langston Hughes Dreams are the driving force of America today. Every person has some sort of dreams and or goals. Although in life everyone has dreams and goals, there are obviously more struggles for some ethnic groups than for others. The poem, Dream Deferred, by Langston Hughes, is one mans expression of his dreams during a difficult time period. As a black man in a time period where African-Americans were considered an inferior group of peopleRead MoreLiterary Analysis of Langston Hughess A Dream Deferred1028 Words   |  4 Pagescirculated, analysis of the poem must take place. It unveils and discusses the themes, figures of speech, word placement, and flow of the piece, and A Dream Deferred, is no exception. In Langston Hughess poem, A Dream Deferred, the theme is that no really knows to dreams if they are not reached, and very realistic figures of speech help convey this idea; the poem can be surprisingly related to Mr. Hughess life through the subtitle and quotes from Langston himself. The meaning of, A Dream DeferredRead MoreLangston Hughes : A Modernist1222 Words   |  5 PagesSappington 13 Apr. 2017 Langston Hughes: A Modernist Credited as being the most recognizable figure of the Harlem Renaissance, Langston Hughes played a vital role in the Modernist literary movement and the movement to revitalize African American culture in the early 20th century. Hughes’s poems reflect his personal struggle and the collective struggle of African Americans during this cultural revival. Langston Hughes’s life contained key influences on his work. As a child, Hughes witnessed a divorceRead MoreHarlem: a Dream Deferred1043 Words   |  5 PagesHarlem: A Dream Deferred Langston Hughes Literally Analysis Dreams are aspirations that we hope to reach on our lifetime. They are the day that gives us the drive to live our lives and accomplish our goals. When reaching our goals, we will do anything to get to our destination. But what happens when your dreams deferred and put on hold due to unseen circumstances? Or what do you so when someone tells you that you can not so the things you want to so because of the pigmentation of your skinRead MoreAnalysis Of The Literary Work Let America Be America Again By Langston Hughes1324 Words   |  6 PagesTara Lesko English 102 Historical analysis of the literary work â€Å"Let America be America Again† by Langston Hughes Man has always been interested in analyzing issues in the history of the world. People tend to appreciate it when grand historical events are described in works of literature. Consequently, writers and poets, try to capture every single step of societal and personal experiences in their works. 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Throughout the poem he uses various methods to evoke the patriotic images and dreams that he feels America should and will eventually be. Hughes states that America is supposed to be a place of equality for everyone including both white and colored people. During this periodRead MoreReoccurring Themes in the Work of Langston Hughes Essay1649 Words   |  7 PagesLangston Hughes is an extremely successful and well known black writer who emerged from the Harlem Renaissance (â€Å"Langston Hughes† 792). He is recognized for his poetry and like many other writers from the Harlem Renaissance, lived most of his life outside of Harlem (â€Å"Langston Hughes† 792). His personal experiences and opinions inspire his writing intricately. Unlike other writers of his time, Hughes expresses his discontent with black oppression and focuses on the hardships of his people. Hughes’Read MoreAnalysis Of The Poem Harlem 1303 Words   |  6 PagesJames Mercer Langston Hughes was an American poet; a Joplin, Missouri native and an active, versatile writer, earning acclaim as a poet, novelist, playwright and columnist. He was one of the first poets to explore an innovative sing-songy, stylized delivery called jazz poetry. As an African-American, his point of view, collectively synergized with this then-new literary art, catapulted his writings between the 1930s - 1960s. He is often credited as the leader of the Harlem Renaissance, and â€Å"famouslyRead MoreLiterary Analysis Of Langston Hughes961 Words   |  4 PagesComing Quick (A Literary Analysis of Langston Hughes’ Poems) The nineteenth and twentieth centuries were impressive times for the growing of several different cultures. One of the main cultures that grew through those time periods was that of the black community. 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All Quiet On The Western Front By Erich Remarque - 1366 Words

War often has drastic and lasting effects on individuals; the violence and horror ages soldiers mentally and physically. World War I was a violent and distressing war; men came home with mental illnesses and never were fully able to sink back into society. Through these lasting effects common civilians with no affiliation were unaware to the consequences. In All Quiet on the Western Front, Erich Remarque investigates the damaging effects of war on an individual’s identity using Paul Bà ¤umer as a representation for all soldiers; he draws specific attention to the continuing loss of purpose and ability to relate to the rest of society. The beginning is the starting point of Paul’s change throughout the novel; first going into war, Paul knew who he was, not just another solider. But the literal line where the front starts is the launch of the stripping of his humane and individual identity. Paul narrates the exact point where a physical and mental borderline is set up, â€Å"We march up, moody or good-tempered soldiers – we reach the zone where the front begins and become on the instant human animals† (27). His identity shifts when he acknowledges that there must be change for like on the field, he becomes an â€Å"instant human animal;† no matter â€Å"moody of good-tempered† prior to arriving at the line, their individuality is demolished. War rips the uniqueness off civilian men and throws them in backwards evolution and forces them to act like animals: attacking, killing, and surviving.Show MoreRelatedAll Quiet On The Western Front By Erich Maria Remarque1714 Words   |  7 P agesAll Quiet on the Western Front written by Erich Maria Remarque is a narrative describing World War I from a German soldier s perspective. 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Management Decision linked to Capital Budgeting †Free Samples

Question: Discuss about the Management Decision linked to Capital Budgeting. Answer: Introduction Capital budgeting is a decision making tool that managers make use of, for evaluation of particular projects(Stout, 2008). Businesses determine positives and negatives associated with a project or an investment decision, which forms a part of companys growth prospects. Capital budgeting processes helps decide on cash flows from a particular project by understanding cash flows that are generated from the project. A company determines rate of return which are acceptable or unacceptable depending upon factors of a project. Capital budgeting processes creates measurability and accountability for businesses that needs to diversify its resources in particular projects. With proper understanding of risks and associated return it becomes easier to have ownership and responsibility in regards to a particular project(Baker, 2010). Effectiveness of an investment decision or of a project is understood in this manner or else there will be minor chances of business existence in competitive marketp lace. As sole motive for businesses is to make profits for its shareholders, capital budgeting processes needs to be encompassed for understanding long-term financial as well as economic gains. In corporate decision making, management can make decisions pertaining to sensitivity analysis, break-even, scenario or simulation techniques. However, all pertinent management decisions are linked to capital budgeting techniques including net present value, internal rate of return, accounting rate of return, payback period and so on and so forth(Bekaert, 2009). All pertinent management decision are taken with the aid of capital budgeting processes. The scope of the following analysis establishes relationship of capital budgeting techniques and procedures with that of managerial decision processes, evaluating scopes and application for each. Analysis Capital budgeting is integral for businesses as it enables creation of structured process for better managerial decision making. For long-term strategic goal development is generated by attracting new projects and creating business cash flow forecasts(Garrison, 2010). Each and every capital budgeting techniques involves undertaking assumptions for making future estimations regarding project performance. Results from calculations from capital budgeting decisions often emerge to be inaccurate which leads to unexpected outcomes. In cases of low profits, then company can break-even due to bad economic conditions. Sensitivity Analysis Sensitivity analysis allows businesses to develop estimates with projections in cases they turn out to be unreliable. It encompasses changing assumptions for understanding impact on project finances, which allows business managers prepare for unexpected results(Jackson, 2010). In every investment projects, net present value (NPV) or accounting rate of return (ARR) or other methods are utilized for calculations with different rates of return for conducting sensitivity analysis, which in turn will allow making a decision. Through sensitive analysis, business managers can better generate results that can create expected results, such that they can analyse project investment in a better manner. In case a business investment can earn $500, $1500 and $2000 in initial three years of the project. In case the business makes initial investment of $3000, which can be generated within the first three years. In case the project performs better in the first two years compared to its expectations, then it can easily break-even within the first two years(Miller, 2007). An example of sensitivity analysis encompasses, an investment decision for $100,000 is said to generate returns of $10,000, $30,000, $50,000, $45,000 and so on in the first four years of its commencement. Managers determine that there could be an increase of 5% in total cash flows in case cost of capital comes down by 10%, then financial model for the investment decision for sensitivity analysis will be to estimate what will happen to investment decisions in case cash flows increases by 10%, 50% or 100%. Sensitivity analysis reflects that higher cash flows are sensitive to lower costs of capital involved. In case of sensitivity analysis, different values of independent variable can generate impact on a dependent variable with sets of assumptions. It is applicable in cases where there is more than one variable as effects that changes interest rates in bond prices. Scenario Analysis Scenario analysis is another integral concept in managerial decision making. It analyses expected value from proposed investment or business activity with statistical mean being the highest probability event expected for a situation. Multiple scenarios are combined with various probability with which they occur can enable better determination of value of an investment. Probability of calculating expected value with which it will occur allows managers determine productivity of an investment alternative(Gervais, 2011). Probability distribution of an investment helps analyse risk inherent to an investment, which in turn allows calculation of expected rate of return. Through this procedure risk tolerance of the companys investment decision can help create better prospective for the investment or business venture. Scenario analysis can be applied in many ways using multi-factor analysis or random factor analysis. Multivariate model are also used in multiple instances for forecasting value s. Assuming values of each variable, most probable mean value of potential distribution can be ascertained(Tayles, 2007). Mean has informational value but does not depict variation in outcomes. Risks analysis is crucial for determinant for any type of project, especially for future outcome predictions. Mean is assumed to be a mid-path between extreme positive and negative side for any investment alternative. Scenario analysis often computes multiple net present values for the project with multiple different scenarios. In capital budgeting processes, the first or initial capital budgeting estimate is deemed to be base-case scenario. From the base-case other cases are generated and determined or developed(Besley, 2007). Managers compute several NPVs based on best economic situations and also worst economic situation which entail better decision making for the company. Break-even Analysis Break-even analysis is a point that determines a point where costs equals revenues generated from an investment project. With this calculation, managers estimates margin of safety for a particular investment project. When the amount of revenue exceeds amount of investments made then it is assumed that the investment has attained its break-even point(Zimmerman, 2011). Break-even analysis is however, a supply side analysis that incorporates costs of investments, it does not assesses ways in which cash outflows might determine costs of the capital. Therefore, at break-even point losses equals to gains, hence managers in a business needs to determine this point to understand profitability. Costs are important in understanding of break-even analysis as fixed costs, variable and semi-variable costs. In an investment project, fixed costs are those which does not change over time or increases or decreases(Jain, 2013). Fixed costs in a project are those which the company has to pay in case of independent business activities. Such costs are total of services or goods provided. An example includes, for a project delivery the company needs to lease instruments worth $200,000 which does not change with specific components within the project, hence needs to be spread over across all its units. In case the project costs of capital is spread across longer duration of time then fixed costs components will be spread as against in case costs of capital is concentrated in a particular period, which leads to higher fixed cost appropriated within the time period. Variable costs are however, dependent on specific outputs. In case project activities are strained then it leads to higher variable costs as those arising from rents, office supplies, insurances and so on(Bierman Jr, 2012). Semi-variable costs on the other hand are semi-fixed costs that is a mixture of fixed along with variable costs components. Labour costs can be termed as semi-variable in nature and there are other semi- variable costs as well that are associated with certain project output. Break-even analysis often involves adjusting costs of capital for assessing project benefits or outcomes. Company managers determine competition-driven cost calculation tactics that can render competitive advantage in the market. Competitive costing and calculation of rate of return for a particular project helps attain a profitable market share, by controlling excessive costs that might arise from particular projects(Baldenius, 2007). In break-even analysis, capital budgeting technique of payback period is assumed for managerial decision making. In case a project costs is $100,000 and cash flows from it in first years of its progress are $20,000, $70,000, $ 40,000 and $30,000, then it can be understood that payback period for the project is estimated to be at 2 years and 3 months. Thus, at 2 years and 3 months the project can be assumed to attain its break- even point. Thus, payback period and NPV from the proj ect which are capital budgeting techniques are used for understanding managerial decision making in break-even analysis as well. Simulation Technique With most capital budgeting techniques being focused on decision making models as NPV, ARR, IRR, Payback Period and so on, which often goes on to including taxing implications as well. These models however do not include any random figures and are determined using single figures with them(Froot, 2007). Hence, it can easily be understood that cash flows with uncertainties are ignored in all respects, which leads to analysing a project from single aspect of risks expressed in terms of a single discounting rate. For capturing greater amounts of risks from a project, it is required that the project delivers over normal returns. A simulation based model have capabilities to imitate real life situations when adapting to capital budgeting techniques. Thus, managers encompass this technique along with application of capital budgeting decision making tools to arrive at consolidated real-life figures with probability distribution connected to every cash flow from an investment. In order to dri ve random model, simulation techniques are assumed with random numbers from 0 to 1, it can be easily accommodated into Excel tool using RAND() within a particular cell. This project thus encompasses all risks endeavors in capital budgeting decision making within an economic situation. Probability of a calculation makes it more practical oriented approach for determination of likelihood of cash flows that a project is expected to generate. NPV which is a technique of capital budgeting thus is used for generating decision making capabilities in simulation as well. As contradictory to other tools for decision making which involves singular aspects, capital budgeting decision making includes financial decisions as well as investment decisions. When shareholders of a business agree to investment in a particular decision, then they make financial commitment to it along with substantial risks(Chen, 2008). Risks from projects can be multifarious as delays, cost overruns, increase in costs, regulatory changes, taxation changes and so on. Further, an investment decision will have an impact on future decision and growth for a company. Hence, project evaluation from investment or financial decision-making can create tremendous limitation for the project(Truong, 2008). Hence, a series of steps needs to be taken for managerial level decision making which will create long-term strategic orientation for the Company. Conclusion Managerial decision making includes critical aspects that can generate returns for the business and in turn for its shareholders. Capital budgeting techniques includes various processes that can estimate returns from a particular investment project. Managerial decision techniques as sensitivity analysis, scenario analysis, break-even analysis, simulation techniques and so on uses capital budgeting techniques for their analysis. Integrating such techniques is critical for arriving at values for managerial decision making with various discounting rates or values. Thus, capital budgeting decision techniques forms a crucial aspect for managerial decision making for estimating future cash flows. It facilitates transfer of information for various investment projects, which are in turn required for acquiring new investment projects. It also facilitates monitoring and controlling of expenditures for long-term strategic decision making. References Baker, H. K. 2010. Management views on real options in capital budgeting. Baldenius, T. D. 2007. Cost allocation for capital budgeting decisions. The Accounting Review, 837-867. Bekaert, G. . 2009. International financial management. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall., 809. Besley, S. . 2007. Essentials of managerial finance. Cengage learning. Bierman Jr, H. . 2012. The capital budgeting decision: economic analysis of investment projects. Routledge. Chen, S. 2008. DCF techniques and nonfinancial measures in capital budgeting: a contingency approach analysis. Behavioral Research in Accounting, 13-29. Froot, K. A. 2007. Risk management, capital budgeting, and capital structure policy for insurers and reinsurers. Journal of risk and Insurance, 273-299. Garrison, R. H. 2010. Managerial accounting. Issues in Accounting Education, 792-793. Gervais, S. H. 2011. Overconfidence, compensation contracts, and capital budgeting. The Journal of Finance, 1735-1777. Jackson, J. 2010. Promoting energy efficiency investments with risk management decision tools. Energy Policy, 3865-3873. Jain, P. K. 2013. Capital Budgeting Decisions. In Financial Management Practices . Springer India., 37-76. Miller, P. . 2007. Mediating instruments and making markets: Capital budgeting, science and the economy. Accounting, organizations and society, 701-734. Stout, D. E. 2008. Improving capital budgeting decisions with real options. Management accounting quarterly, 1. Tayles, M. P. 2007. Intellectual capital, management accounting practices and corporate performance: perceptions of managers. Accounting, Auditing Accountability Journal, 522-548. Truong, G. P. 2008. Cost-of-capital estimation and capital-budgeting practice in Australia. Australian journal of management, 95-121. Zimmerman, J. L.-Z. 2011. Accounting for decision making and control. Issues in Accounting Education, 258-259.

Julius Caesar, Life Of Essays - Julius Caesar, First Triumvirate

Julius Caesar, Life of Julius Caesar was a strong leader for the Romans who changed the course of the history of the Greco - Roman world decisively and irreversibly. With his courage and strength he created a strong empire . What happened during his early political career? How did he become such a strong dictator of the Roman Empire? What events led up to the making of the first triumvirate? How did he rise over the other two in the triumvirate and why did he choose to take over? What happened during his reign as dictator of Rome? What events led up to the assassination of Caesar? What happened after he was killed? Caesar was a major part of the Roman Empire because of his strength and his strong war strategies. Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman whose dictatorship was pivotal in Rome's transition from republic to empire. When he was young Caesar lived through one of the most horrifying decades in the history of the city of Rome. The city was assaulted twice and captured by Roman armies, first in 87 BC by the leaders of the populares, his uncle Marius and Cinna. Cinna was killed the year that Caesar had married Cinna's daughter Cornelia. The second attack upon the city was carried our by Marius' enemy Sulla, leader of the optimates, in 82 BC on the latter's return from the East. On each occasion the massacre of political opponents was followed by the confiscation of their property. The proscriptions of Sulla, which preceded the reactionary political legislation enacted during his dictatorship left a particularly bitter memory that long survived. Caesar left Rome for the province of Asia on the condition that he divorce his wife because Sulla would only allow him to leave on that condition. When he heard the news that Sulla had been killed he returned to Rome. He studied rhetoric under the distinguished teacher Molon. In the winter of 75-74 BC Caesar was captured by pirated and, while in their custody awaiting the arrival of the ransom money which they demanded, threatened them with crucifixion , a threat which he fulfilled immediately after his release. He then returned to Rome to engage in a normal political career, starting with the quaetorship which he served in 69-68 BC in the province of Further Spain. In the Roman political world of the sixties the dominance of the optimates was challenged by Pompey and Crassus. The optimates, led by Quintus Lutatius Catulus and Lucius Licinius Lucullus , were chiefly men whose careers had been made by Sulla. Pompey and Crassus were consuls in 70 BC and had rescinded the most offensively reactionary measures of Sulla's legislation. During Pompey's absence from 67 to 62 BC during his campaigns against the Mediterranean pirates, Mithridates, and Crassus, his jealous rival. Caesar married Ponpeia after Cornelia's death and was appointed aedile in 65 BC As aedile , Caesar returned to Marius' trophies to their former place of honor in the Capitol, thus laying claim to leadership of the populares. When Caesar was a praetor, he supported a tribune who wanted Pompey recalled to restore order in Rome. As a result, Caesar was suspended from office for a period and antagonized Catulus. Before leaving Rome to govern Further Spain for a year, Caesar divorced his wife Pompeia because of the allegation that she had been implicated in the offense of Publius Clodius. The latter was then awaiting trial for breaking into Caesar's house the previous December disguised as a woman at the festival of the Bona Dea, which no man is allowed to attend. After his return from a successful year administrating Spain Caesar was elected consul for 59 BC through political alliance with Pompey and Crassus . This alliance was called the first triumvirate. Caesar's purpose was to gain a big military command. Pompey for his part sought the ratification of his Eastern settlement and land allotments for his discharged troops. Crassus sought a revision of the contract for collecting taxes in the province of Asia. An agrarian bill authorizing the purchase of land for Pompey's veterans was passed in January of 59 BC at a disorderly public assembly which Caesar's fellow consul Calpurnius Bibulus, was thrown from the platform and his consular insignia were broken. Bibulus tried to stop Caesar and his supporters from passing any further law but was only able to postpone the creation of the new laws by saying that the skies would not permit it because there was stormy weather and they were very superstitious. Caesar disregarded Bibulus' behavior and the remainder of the legislative program

How to Calculate Mass Percent Composition

How to Calculate Mass Percent Composition This is a worked example problem showing how to calculate mass percent composition. Percent composition indicates the relative amounts of each element in a compound. For each element, the mass percent formula is: % mass (mass of element in 1 mole of the compound) / (molar mass of the compound) x 100% or mass percent (mass of solute / mass of solution) x 100% The units of mass are typically grams. Mass percent is also known as percent by weight or w/w%. The molar mass is the sum of the masses of all the atoms in one mole of the compound. The sum all the mass percentages should add up to 100%. Watch for rounding errors in the last significant figure to make sure all the percentages add up. Key Takeaways Mass percent composition describes the relative quantities of elements in a chemical compound.Mass percent composition is also known percent by weight. It is abbreviated as w/w%.For a solution, mass percent equals the mass of an element in one mole of the compound divided by the molar mass of the compound, multiplied by 100%. Mass Percent Composition Problem Bicarbonate of soda (sodium hydrogen carbonate) is used in many commercial preparations. Its formula is NaHCO3. Find the mass percentages (mass %) of Na, H, C, and O in sodium hydrogen carbonate. Solution First, look up the atomic masses for the elements from the Periodic Table. The atomic masses are found to be: Na is 22.99H is 1.01C is 12.01O is 16.00 Next, determine how many grams of each element are present in one mole of NaHCO3: 22.99 g (1 mol) of Na1.01 g (1 mol) of H12.01 g (1 mol) of C48.00 g (3 mole x 16.00 gram per mole) of O The mass of one mole of NaHCO3 is: 22.99 g 1.01 g 12.01 g 48.00 g 84.01 g And the mass percentages of the elements are mass % Na 22.99 g / 84.01 g x 100 27.36 %mass % H 1.01 g / 84.01 g x 100 1.20 %mass % C 12.01 g / 84.01 g x 100 14.30 %mass % O 48.00 g / 84.01 g x 100 57.14 % Answer mass % Na 27.36 %mass % H 1.20 %mass % C 14.30 %mass % O 57.14 % When doing mass percent calculations, its always a good idea to check to make sure your mass percents add up to 100% (helps catch math errors): 27.36 14.30 1.20 57.14 100.00 Percent Composition of Water Another simple example is finding the mass percent composition of the elements in water, H2O. First, find the molar mass of water by adding up the atomic masses of the elements. Use values from the periodic table: H is 1.01 grams per moleO is 16.00 grams per mole Get the molar mass by adding up all the masses of elements in the compound. The subscript after the hydrogen (H) indicates there are two atoms of hydrogen. There is no subscript after oxygen (O), which means only one atom  is present. molar mass (2 x 1.01) 16.00molar mass 18.02 Now, divide the mass of each element by the total mass to get the mass percentages: mass % H (2 x 1.01) / 18.02 x 100%mass % H 11.19% mass % O 16.00 / 18.02mass % O 88.81% The mass percentages of hydrogen and oxygen add up to 100%. Mass Percent of Carbon Dioxide What are the mass percentages of carbon and oxygen in carbon dioxide, CO2? Mass Percent Solution Step 1: Find the mass of the individual atoms. Look up the atomic masses for carbon and oxygen from the Periodic Table. Its a good idea at this point to settle on the number of significant figures youll be using.  The atomic masses are found to be: C is 12.01 g/molO is 16.00 g/mol Step 2: Find the number of grams of each component make up one mole of  CO2. One mole of CO2 contains 1 mole of carbon atoms and 2 moles of oxygen atoms. 12.01 g (1 mol) of C32.00 g (2 mol x 16.00 gram per mole) of O The mass of one mole of CO2 is: 12.01 g 32.00 g 44.01 g Step 3: Find the mass percent of each atom. mass % (mass of component/mass of total) x 100 And the mass percentages of the elements are For carbon: mass % C (mass of 1 mol of carbon/mass of 1 mol of CO2)  x 100mass % C (12.01 g / 44.01 g) x 100mass % C   27.29 % For oxygen: mass % O (mass of 1 mol of oxygen/mass of 1 mol of CO2)  x 100mass % O (32.00 g / 44.01 g) x 100mass % O 72.71 % Answer mass % C 27.29 %mass % O 72.71 % Again, make sure your mass percents add up to 100%. This will help catch any math errors. 27.29 72.71 100.00 The answers add up to 100% which is what was expected. Tips for Success Calculating Mass Percent You wont always be given the total mass of a mixture or solution. Often, youll need to add up the masses. This might not be obvious! You may be given mole fractions or moles and then need to convert to a mass unit.Watch your significant figures!Always make sure the sum of the mass percentages of all components adds up to 100%. If it doesnt, you need to go back and find your mistake.

Losing the Plot 5 Top Tips on Writing a Good Story

Losing the Plot 5 Top Tips on Writing a Good Story Losing the Plot? 5 Top Tips on Writing a Good Story In narrative writing, the term â€Å"plot† refers to the events that make up a story. But how do authors approach plotting a story? And what makes a good plot in the first place? We have a few helpful tips! 1. Plotting Your Plot Once you have a premise for your story, think about where it will go and create a plot outline. You might even want to come up with an end point and work backwards! This will help you get a sense of how the story will progress and how different events will be connected. Many story plots follow a classic three-act structure.(Image: Bratislav/wikimedia) You don’t have to stick to this outline as the story develops, so don’t worry if it isn’t perfect at first. The point is to give yourself a structure to work with so that your writing stays on track. 2. Build a Story Around Character Arcs Plot is important, but it needs to be supported by strong characters. After all, if the characters in your story don’t have believable goals and motivations, how will the story move forwards? One good tip is to make sure your main characters each have a character arc. This refers to how characters change or overcome challenges during the story. To get started on this, think about who they are, what happened in their pasts, and want they want to achieve. 3. Use Subplots (But Not Too Many!) The main plot in your story will be what drives everything forward (the ticking bomb that cannot be ignored or forgotten, perhaps literally if you’re writing a thriller). But subplots allow you to flesh out a story with smaller narrative arcs that develop characters or themes related to the main plot. Adding a few romantic entanglements or mysteries that need to be solved can therefore add an extra dimension to your writing. However, any subplots you include should help move the main plot forward in some way (e.g., by revealing important information). If you add too many unrelated subplots, on the other hand, your story may become difficult to follow. 4. A Twist in the Tale? While your overall story should be easy to follow, you also want to surprise your reader now and then! Think about where you could add a plot twist to complicate things. However, make sure any twists you add follow from the logic of the story up to that point. And it’s probably better to avoid any ending that can be summed up as â€Å"and it was all a dream.† And he was dead all along has been done, too.(Photo: Gage Skidmore/flickr) 5. Explain Your Story to a Friend Finally, don’t struggle alone! As with most things in life, writing a story is easier if you ask for help. Before you start writing a first draft in full, try explaining the plot of your story to a friend. If there is something they don’t understand, you may want to work on clarifying how that part of the story fits into the overall narrative. You can always ask for feedback on specific issues, too! And once you have a first draft, we can help with the editing process.

Critical writing Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Critical writing Questions - Essay Example (Harding 12-16) My feminist literary critic examines Daviss later on works and reassessing the input in her later fiction to the causes of social reform. Davis Harding explored the tormented conflict, for her female characters, of marriage and professional work. Her works seemingly are exclusive longings for both family and artistic fulfillment but never arrive at a suitable resolution. Occasionally she celebrated the delight of domestic life. More often than not, she articulated ambivalence about the academically or creatively motivated woman. (Harding 21). In conclusion, in view Harding’s work as a critique of inactive Christianity. However, Davis Harding’s works of irony fall short of addressing sufficiently the outstanding constructive essentials of Life in the Iron Mills. On the other hand, her tale is a conversion tale that does not meet justice to Hardin’s text

Tube Feeding Question and Obituary Research Paper

Tube Feeding Question and Obituary - Research Paper Example The research paper "Tube Feeding Question and Obituary" talks about the educated response to the tube-feeding question. The patient’s condition is terminal and she has not shown any sign of relieving symptoms. Even though feeding tube is able to prolong the patient’s life, you should not put the patient on the artificial feeding because of the involved risks of using feeding tube and benefits of allowing the patient to die a natural death. Moral and clinical factors inform this position. Ethically and as the authority over the patient who is already confused and disoriented, you need to minimize pain to the patient, to yourself, and to the children. The death of the patient is evident and the associated pain will be felt, regardless of the time at which the patient dies. Life of the patient should not be the primary factor in the decision. Deciding not to use the feeding tube only amounts to allowing the natural death process and not contributing to the patient’s death. A legal consideration also allows for the withholding of feeding tube and this also justifies the proposed decision. Even though failure to use feeding tube may induce pain to the patient, owing to the fact that she is able to respond to her environment, the level of pain can be managed. Using the tube may prolong the patient’s life but it has many disadvantages, some of which could end the patient’s life and render the tube effort useless. The patient will likely suffer from chest congestion and fluid buildup in her throat.

The Opening Two Chapters of the Lord of the Flies Essay Example for Free

The Opening Two Chapters of the Lord of the Flies Essay When William Golding introduce the three main characters of the first two chapters, they seem to be stuck on an unknown island with no adults to look after them. Ralph, Piggy and Jack are their names. Ralph is a fair-minded boy who is ready for action. He is very wise as he often comes up with good ideas. He is immature compared to Piggy. Piggy is more determined and eager. In chapter one, he is very eager to find any other living being on the island. When Jack comes into the story you find that he is very aggressive and quite competitant. He is not fair-minded the way Ralph is and he is eager to be a chief and take charge of things. Through the essay I will discuss the leadership qualities of the three characters and I will argue that none of the them are capable of being a good leader on their own, but if they were to work together then maybe they could reach some succession Ralph, who is one of the three main characters, is the first person to be introduced on the island. One of the positive leadership qualities of Ralph is that he is very confident. This was the voice of one who knew his own mind. To be a leader, confidence is very necessary because if you have to stand up infront of people, you wont feel ashamed or scared! Piggy does not seem as confident as Ralph as he tends to hesitate when speaking in large crowds. Piggy glanced nervously into hell and cradled the conch. Jack, like Ralph, is confident too. Ralph and Jack are the ones who normally speak up whereas Piggy is the one who sits and listens. Ralph being as wise as he is, comes up with good ideas. We ought to draw a map. As Ralph is chosen as leader instead of Jack, he always shares his ideas with the rest of the group. I think that a good leader should come up with good ideas, as this is how the group will come to success and actually get somewhere. So really a good leader should be a team player. Like Ralph, I dont think that Piggy and Jack are team players. Even though Piggy is friendly to others he is not really a team player because he does not mix in well with others because of his problems. I think that Jack is too dictatorial to be a good team player. By reading the first couple of chapters, I found out that Ralph is basically the popular one of the group. Ralph counted. Im chief then. He had the most hands up out of the group when they were electing chief. So this does mean that he is popular. If a leader does not have any popularity then no one would listen to them. As Ralph is elected leader he tries to be fair and democratic. He allows Jack to be leader of the hunters when he himself is chosen as leader. Although Ralph has got good physical features and good leadership qualities, you could see now that he might make a boxer, as far as width and heaviness of shoulders went, but there was a mildness about his mouth and eyes that proclaimed no devil, he also has some weaknesses. I think that Ralphs immaturity can get in the way of his leadership. He always wants to have fun and is hardly serious about anything. Whilst were waiting we can have a good time on this island. A leader should take things seriously to get things done right, and on time. But having said all this, if you put Ralphs immaturity and his seriousness together, they kind of balance. So strictly speaking, Ralph has a got a balanced personality. I think that Jack and Piggys personality is not balanced like Ralphs is. I think that maybe theyre more on the mature and serious side. After Ralph is introduced in the story as the boy with fair hair, Piggy comes into the story. He makes his entrance by calling to Ralph. Hi! it said, Wait a minute! This quote indicates that Piggy wants to get noticed by Ralph. This shows that Piggy likes to be noticed although in the story this does not happen many times. Unlike Ralph, Piggy is more determined and eager, so a leader should be because I think that determination is what mostly brings people to success. In the first chapter Piggy is very eager to find anyone else living on the island. He comes up with different ways in which to manipulate Ralph into helping him do so. I expect theres a lot more of us scattered about. When Piggy and Ralph find the conch, Piggy comes up with a very good idea to call the others. He told Ralph to blow in it. This is a sign that Piggy does have a good leadership quality: he can come up with good ideas, like Ralph. Piggy is also very kind and friendly. This is a very necessary quality. If a leader is not very friendly, like Jack, then nobody would like them and enjoy having them around. Let him have the conch! shouted Piggy. This is where Piggy allows the little boy to have the conch so he could speak. As we know by reading the first couple of chapters, Piggy is quite mature compared to Ralph. Like kids! he said scornfully. Acting like a crowd of kids! When Piggy says this, he tries to imply that the rest of the boys are acting like kids and he is the only mature one around. Piggy can also be calm about things and very sensible at times, these are the good leadership qualities that could make him a good leader. But besides all this, when you read chapter two, you learn that Piggy has got a very quick temper. This is a very negative leader ship quality to have. Piggy lost his temper. Also, Piggy can be sarcastic. Sarcasm does not sound very polite the way Piggy sometimes uses it. You got your small fire all right. And again it is quite a negative leadership quality to have. Besides all the leadership qualities necessary to be a leader, Piggy does not have very good physical features. A leader should be strong and practical and very healthy. Piggy is neither of them. He is more on the fat side. His asthma does not allow him to be as practical as he may want to be. I was the only boy in school what had asthma, said the fat boy. I think that when the other boys went to explore the island, they did not let Piggy come with them because they were afraid that he would slow them down. To conclude about Piggy, I dont think that with all the problems he has, he would make a good leader. When Jack comes into the story, he makes his entrance by marching in on the beach. This already shows that he is full of confidant, a good leadership quality. Although Jack is very aggressive and dictatorial, he could make a good leader. He owns his own choir and he orders them about with oomph and confidence. Choir! Stand still. A leader should be able to talk to the rest of the group with confidence, like Jack and Ralph do. Jack is also quite competitant. A leader should be because this way they could have a challenge with someone else and see what they are good at and what they need to be good at. I think that in a way, a leader should be dominant. Jack is very dominant. I think that this is a good leadership quality because if a leader can control his group then there is no point of them being there. A leader must be dominant and should control their group. Although Jack seems too aggressive, he can also be friendly, like Piggy. Jack grinned back. It seems that Jack can smile and does not always hold a posh look. He is also quite funny as he can make people laugh. Shut up fatty! You have to be able to make someone laugh because this means that if someone is feeling down, you could make him or her feel better by making him or her laugh. I dont think that Jack will be a very good leader if he is chosen as one because he has not got many good leadership qualities as it is. I think that the following words describe him best: Dictatorial, impulsive, aggressive and dominant, arrogant, cruel, envious and red headed. As I have now explained the positive and negative leadership qualities that each of the three main characters has, I have finally come to a conclusion. I have decided that none of the three characters, Ralph, Piggy and Jack could make a good leader on their own. I think that if they work together and not have an individual leader then maybe they could achieve some success and come up with good ideas together. If you put all their positive leadership qualities together then you come up with one ever so good leader. If I were to re-write the whole story again, I would put that all three of them are leaders together!

Academic Relevancy :: essays papers

Academic Relevancy Meeting the educational needs of all students is a challenging task for educators. This task is intensified when the student has learning, and/or physical disabilities. A learning disability is defined as "any of various conditions, thought to be associated with the nervous system, that cause difficulty in mastering a basic skill such as reading" (Wordsmyth, 2000). A physical disability is defined as "the condition or state of incapacity, esp. as caused by an injury, congenital defect, illness, or the like" (Wordsmyth, 2000). Many of these students require special instruction. "For example, students with mental retardation benefit from very organized learning situations, because of their limited cognitive abilities" (Duhaney, Duhaney, 2000). Students with learning disabilities often encounter difficulty in reading and writing; modifying instruction for these students is necessary in order to ensure their academic success. Assistive technology will play an important role in helping students with disabilities to improve their learning experience. Assistive Devices "People with disabilities rely on assistive technology devices and services to sustain, regain or increase their functional capabilities. About 13 million people with disabilities report using assistive devices to provide functional capabilities needed to participate in major life activities" (RERC, 2001). The Technology-Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities Act of 1988 (Tech Act) defines assistive technology devices as any item, piece of equipment, or product system whether acquired commercially, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities. Some examples of the various categories of assistive technology include:  § TALKING WORD PROCESSORS  § WORD PREDICTION  § PORTABLE NOTE-TAKING DEVICES  § Communication Aids  § Amplification Devices  § Switches  § Optical Pointers  § Touch Screens  § Touch Pads Specific Uses in Education Talking word processors give the student auditory feedback to reinforce the writing process. Letters, words, sentences, paragraphs, or entire documents can be read aloud while the student types. Features can be customized to individual student needs by selecting what text is read from pull-down menus (Quenneville, 2001).

American Home Products Corporation Essay

American Home Product Corporation (AHP), a highly growing American company, has four business lines: prescription drugs, packaged drugs, food products, house wares and household products. Its policies include: -A tight financial control and maintained an aggressive capital structure policy. – Make money for its stockholders and to maximize profits by minimizing cost. – It has been able to finance internally its growth while paying a very high portion of its earning to its shareholders (60%). Currently, AHP seems to have no business risk but may face a certain risk in the long run. Based on the ratios shown on the attached sheet, AHP should not worry about business risk since its working capital is very healthy ($1472.8 million) and cash excess $233 million. The high ROA, high profit margin, low current-to-asset ratio and 49.71 collection days show that AHP can generate cash quickly, thus it can maintain current high growth rate. However, it’s decreasing annual sales growth from 14.1% in 1978 to 8.8% in 1981 (exhibit 1) shows that it faces future risk of losing market shares in all its business lines if it does not foresee competition and continues to focus on increasing stockholders’ value. AHP’s current financial performance is very good since it has high ROE (30.3), high quick ratio (42.68), low debt-to-equity ratio (0.09) and low debt-to-asset ratio (0.01). However, an analysis of different debt ratios shows that if AHP increases debt ratio, it will face a financial risk of increased debt-to-equity and debt-to-asset ratios. In other words, it will face solvency problems in long terms. AHP also face liquidity problems since the quick ratios decrease when the debt ratios increase. 2 The proposed mechanism follows a dual mechanism of leveraging:- (a) Increase the Debt Equity Ratio. (b) Buy back the shares. This also results in the following:- (i) Improves EPS as the amount gets shared by lesser number of shares. (ii)Improves Price / earnings ratio (iii) The excess capital gets utilized. (iv)Sends a +ve signal to the market and share prices likely to increase. (v) Improves Return on Equity ratio. The calculations enclosed indicate that the best option in accordance with the company stated policy would be to have Debt-Equity Ratio of 70%. Shareholders’ value increases when debt ratios increase. EPS increases from $3.18 to $3.49. The dividend payout ratio also increases from 0.597 to 0.602. Similarly, the dividend yield from 0.063 to 0.070. It means that the company can increase shareholders’ value by increasing debt ratios. However the following needs to be considered:- (i) The valued net worth of the firm which decreases may not convey the correct picture to the investor and thus negating the positive signals of buy back of shares. (ii) The firm has no strategy related to R&D in new products and focuses on me-too products thus constituting a large business risk. (iii) The firm would reduce the cash to debt ratio substantially exposing itself to financial risk. The closest competitor has Debt – Equity Ratio of 30% which if taken as a benchmark gives a conservative method of deciding the proposed leveraging, however this does not maximize the shareholder value, but is in line with the strong conservatism philosophy of the firm. It also gives a better Return on Assets ratio and has a safer Debt to Cash ratio. Even though AHP has a very good current financial performance, it should change the financial policy to increase debt ratio at a certain level. To meet the goal of increasing shareholders’ value, AHP should not use its excess cash flow to repurchase its stocks because this is only a temporary solution and may generate serious financial problems in the long run. Instead, AHP should use this excess cash to invest in profitable projects to improve its current products and launch new products that meet current market demands. By doing so, AHP can minimize the business risk, prepare itself for competition and increase sales growth. On the other hands, AHP should increase debt ratio to a certain level that is suitable for its  business to increase shareholders’ value. Also it should continue to exercise tight monetary policies as earlier to pay off the debt in a disciplined manner This solution does not bring financial risk to AHP but enable it to minimize business risk. If AHP remains only concerned about how to increase shareholders’ value and ignores market threats, it might lose its business to its competitors.

Private Fitness, Inc.

BBUS 425 Advanced Management Accounting| Case 1: Private Fitness, Inc. | Analysis of existing management and operation issues| Yunlong TangYen Hao ChaoInstructor: Tony BellSep 16, 2012| MEMORANDUM DATE: Sep 16, 2012 TO: Rosemary Worth, the owner of Private Fitness, Inc. FROM: Yen Hao Chao and Yunlong Tang ————————————————- RE: Analysis of existing management and operation issues It’s a pleasure that we have a chance to review your company’s existing management and operation system.We believe that there are some serious management and operation problems which need to be changed or improved immediately. In this memorandum, we will identify those issues in management and operation system, and provide recommended solutions for solving problems. Issues in management and operation system 1. The biggest issue is that the company has less control on tracking all recor ds, such as the number of clients, the length of any private fitness class, and the money transactions between customers and the company.Without this information, the company may not collect cash properly and prevent crimes from happening in the operation, such as money stealing 2. Some of the jobs from management level have not been well performed in the normal business operation, since all power and jobs have been centralized onto one person. 3. Employees might provide some private fitness classes to the client without reporting to the company. This is a very serious problem, since employment honesty is a huge benefit to the health of your business.Solution We will provide you the suggestions based on two types of control which are action control and personal control. In action control, we recommend you to install a control system for tracking classroom usage and hire another financial manager to take over any financial jobs, operation cost and profit recording from Kate. In perso nnel control, we recommend you to regulate some new policies such as no personal discount and any class appointment must be reported to the new finance manager.Classroom usage control system Classroom usage control system is a system to help you to track the length of using the classroom in order to verify how much money is collected based on the time of classroom usage. Under this system, every client or employee must apply a card to use the classroom. They need to swipe on the machine in order to get in or out of the exercise room. After they swipe the machine, the computer will automatically record this data and save it to the database.Through this control system, you will have the complete information about how many clients you have, how long they stay in the classroom, and how much money you are supposed to earn each month based on the time of classroom usage. If the collected money does not match the amount of cash received based on the length of classroom usage, the financial manager needs to be responsible and find out the reason for the missing money as well as report the incident to you immediately. Although this control system will solve the problems and generate huge profits in the long run, but it still has some disadvantages such as cost and maintenance.Additionally, you have to provide significant training for employees and customers to know how to use this system. Management system Your management system has failed to meet the goal of its function which is supposed to include monitoring and controlling the finance of your company. First, we know that your manager, Kate Hoffman, has been in charge of almost all jobs at the management level. Putting too much power in the hands of one manager may create risks to the management system.Second, since Kate has both jobs as an instructor and a manager in the company, she may not have enough time to keep track of every single transaction and all expenses accurately. As a result, we believe that hiring a professional person with finance education and management experience as a financial manager is necessary. The new manager will be in charge of record monitoring, appointment scheduling and financing, and Kate will become the marketing manager including the duty of facility up-keep and keep her position as one of the instructor in the company.Kate and the new manager will now each receive 50% of the salary which Kate used to receive, but Kate can still have the bonus as usual. All business transaction, such as money collecting and equipment purchasing, will be reported to the new manager. Although most clients have direct contact with some of your company’s employees, any appointment of taking classes must also be reported to the new manager with details on the date of the appointment and the length of the class.As well, the new manager has to directly report all information to you periodically, like once a month. Hiring a new manager will lead to a flatter business structure so that every manager has more specific functions on controlling the system and more accuracy on performance. Furthermore, viewing the report of all periodic expenses and profit from the finance manager will provide a forecast on the company’s future financial situation and become more helpful to improve the efficiency of the operation and the decision making from the management level.However, this new move may create unexpected expenses on paying salary to the new manager, and also, the new manager will need time to become familiar with his/her new co-workers and the new working environments. Policies Since many of the students have straight contact with the instructors, they may deal with the instructors under the table, such as asking for the personal discount privately. Some of the instructors may also provide private classes to students with using company’s facility in the normal business schedule without reporting.To prevent those risks, you must create related policies as follow: * No personal discount provided to customers from any of our employees unless the discount is permitted by the company * No private fitness classes are provided to the customers at any of the time unless the classes have been reported * Any violation of the two policies will receive penalty or warning depending on the situation.We believe the new policies will restrict the authority of using the facility and limit the contact with customers from the employees. The employees will behave more professionally and become more honest to the company. The chance of creating unreported transaction will be minimized, and the record of using any facility in the company will be more accurate. However, the employees may feel uncomfortable with the new policies, but they will get used to the new policies. RecommendationWe recommend that the company should set up a system for tracking the usage of classrooms, hire a new financial manager to take over partial duty of management from Kate and regulate some new policies. New system and new manager will provide significant control on tracking the process of collecting money and organizing business operation. On the other hand, in order to enhance the honesty of employees, implementing new policies inside the company is necessary and beneficial to provide a healthier working environment.

Makayla Fails Essays - Racism, Americas, Free Essays, Term Papers

Makayla Fails Essays - Racism, Americas, Free Essays, Term Papers Makayla Fails Dr. Carr Intro to African American Studies February 2, 2017 How Do We Undertake the Study of African Experiences? Abstract: So what does this big question mean? "How do we undertake the study of African Experiences?" What we basically have here is a simple question asking, "Where do we start when learning about African experiences?" Where we start is one of the most important factors of this subject. Dr. John Henrik Clarke once said, "If you start your history with slavery, everything since then looks like progress (Lecture)," and that is exactly what I believe most of us in this world have done. We all think that just because we aren't considered "slaves" anymore, and that we are now "free", this means that our lives and the condition of our lives have gotten better, but that is not completely the case. I think visually, the world may have gotten slightly better, but that is about it. By this I mean that we do not always visually see how blacks are treated. The thoughts that go through the minds of white people could very well be the same as they were back in the 1700s, and some of them still openly expr ess these thoughts. The only difference now is, there are laws and regulations that "all" Americans are "supposed" to follow, which does not allow for every one of their thoughts to be made publicly acceptable. So now we ask again, "Where do we start?" We need not to start before slavery, but right when slavery started. We need to look at all that was experienced at that time in order to really understand the entire process that Africans went through. We need to understand what really happened. Critical Review of Scholarship: We have reviewed a number or readings for this first framing question, one of them being, Something Torn and New by Ngugi Wa Thiong'o. This book talks about how the main goal of Europeans was to overpower the African culture by imprinting their culture and ways of living into the souls of the Africans. When discussing this book in class, we basically came up with the conclusion that the Europeans took everything away from the Africans. So not only did they take their freedom, they took their languages, their memories, and their culture. So when I say the Europeans wanted to "overpower" the African culture, they wanted to completely wipe it out as if it never existed. This book helps you to realize how much the Africans value their language, memories, culture, and their identity as a whole. The next reading that I will be using to answer the first framing question is, What Black Studies is Not: Moving from Crisis to Liberation in Africana Intellectual Work by Greg Carr. Overall, this reading helps to teach us that what most of us think would fall under the category of African American Studies are wrong. It helps eliminate the things in which people believe Africana studies to be, allowing room for new knowledge and a deeper understanding of the topic. These things help individuals to begin to grasp the African experience as a whole, not just the things society wants to showcase which goes along with the "progression" we "seem" to see in America. Lastly, I will be using content mentioned during lecture to help further answer this first framing question. Discussion: Within this discussion, I will be using the six conceptual categories to further help explain my answer to the question, "How do we undertake the study of African Experiences. The first conceptual category is Social Structure, which helps to understand how the citizens were organized. I am not sure if there is a specific name for the social structure that existed during slavery, so I am going to explain how I visualize it the best can. I feel like most social structures can be explained through the separation of a pyramid, therefore I will explain accordingly. I can see the pyramid only being separated with 4 parts. At the bottom of the pyramid, we would have the slaves that worked out in the fields under such harsh conditions. Then on top of them we would have the slaves that were considered to be "the help". Next would be all

Cashing in on Local Copywriting Gigs

Cashing in on Local Copywriting Gigs When I began freelancing over a decade ago, I greatly enjoyed the challenge of pitching and achieving payment for writing magazine articles. But since the assignments weren’t easy to come My first step was to learn about search engine optimization (SEO) so I could attract clients to my website. That meant creating pages on my site for keyword combinations like â€Å"Sacramento copywriter† and â€Å"Sacramento freelance writer.† I also targeted a wider area with pages for â€Å"Silicon Valley copywriter† and â€Å"California freelance writer.† I decided that I would specialize in electronic newsletters, which included writing, creating, and managing them with Constant Contact. I planned to target my favorite local day spa as my first potential client, but I couldn’t find an email address for the owner (and I was too chicken to pick up the phone). So, I typed up a letter letting him know I was a long-time customer of the spa, as well as a local copywriter and marketing expert. I said that he was missing out on business opportunities I wrote and managed his electronic newsletter for $1,100 per month- a contract that went on for several years. And that client referred me to several other day spas near While my newsletter business grew, I joined several local networking groups, including two women’s business groups and the Sacramento chapter of Business Networking International (BNI). Referral groups like BNI and LeTip International conduct weekly meetings where local business owners share details about the services they offer. Among the many real estate agents, insurance brokers, and life coaches, I stood out as one of the only copywriters in the area- at least the only one who was showing up to those events. At one of the meetings, I met a website designer. He said his greatest challenge was getting his clients to write the copy for their web pages, which caused his projects to slow to a grinding halt. â€Å"If you can write the web page copy for them, you’ll make my life so much easier.† I agreed, and he referred three clients to me that first week. I charged around $200 per page, with a five-page minimum. The pages usually included Home, About, and several services pages. I taught clients that listing their services on individual pages with focused keyword combinations was good for their SEO. This allowed me to bring additional value to their businesses while also expanding the scope of my projects. I would usually meet with the clients in person or It wasn’t long before I began attracting clients outside of the area, thanks to the SEO I’d applied to my website. Several Silicon Valley companies hired me for various copywriting projects. One company actually hired me to write a unique greeting for the company holiday card. Just two lines of text, billed at my minimum project rate ($500)! My copywriting business grew so quickly that If you’re hungry for new ways to boost your writing business revenue, consider getting out in your local community. There are more business networking events than ever before. Aside from those I’ve already mentioned, check out your chambers of commerce, service groups like Rotary, and groups organized on Meetup.com. With a little effort and a dash of luck, your business could grow quickly, too.

Application of the Letter from Birmingham in the War in Syria Essay

Application of the Letter from Birmingham in the War in Syria - Essay Example Martin Luther and his friend Abernathy Ralph had led demonstrations against laws that promoted the segregation of the black people in America. According to the law, Martin and Abernathy were supposed to get a permit to conduct the demonstrations. However, they failed to get the permit and that led to his arrest (King 34). The church clergy had responded to his arrest on the same day that he was detained in Birmingham prison arguing that both the white and black people should obey the civil laws in the country. Luther wrote the letter with the aim of justifying his disobedience of the law by arguing that it was the unjustness of the law that made him to demonstrate. Luther argues there are just and unjust laws, but the existence of unjust laws anywhere leads to injustice everywhere in the letter (King 36). King’s separation of just and unjust laws may be used in the analysis of the way in Syria and recommend on the actions that should be taken to end the war in the country. Mar tin argues that a regulation is just when it concurs with the laws of God, which he calls the ethical rules. Unjust laws, on the other hand, are those that are not based on the moral laws of God. Thus, according to King, laws are fair when they are acceptable in the whole society because God’s rules are equal to all citizens despite their race and color (Tiefendbrun 68). This argument aimed at informing the state that the segregation of the black people who lived in the southern parts of Alabama was an unfair act that was against the will of God. The segregation of the black people commonly known as the Negros had been in the country since the eighteenth century when slavery of Africans and Asians was practiced in the western nations (King 25). King also argued that injustice in any part of the country led to unfairness in the whole nation. This meant that the injustice that existed in the southern part of the nation led to the unfairness in all regions of America (Tiefenbrun 70). Luther also meant that the segregation of the black people was a sign of immorality of the whole nation including the whites. This indicated that the white people would be considered as immoral even when they acted fairly in other things in the south and in other regions in the country. This means that even if nations and people conduct themselves in all things except one, they will still be unfair and they will lack development. King demonstrates this by giving the example of how Africa was moving towards independence at a high speed while America was wasting time segregating the black people. The activist argued that Americans were lagging behind by taking the longest time to serve Africans only a cup of coffee (King 79). This meant that the injustice of the laws would cause injustice in the country by slowing down freedom and development like that which Africa and Asia were experiencing at that time. Martin postulates that â€Å"the oppressors who are mainly the leaders do not award the minority groups their freedom voluntarily† (King 80) Therefore, he argues that there is need for civil disobedience by the oppressed groups to force the leaders to grant them their moral rights. This argument justified King’s act of disobeying laws by conducting demonstrations instead of negotiating with the leaders. He further justifies himself by pronouncing that he was tired of being asked to wait for negotiations. Luther argued that the word wait had become a synonym of never because he and his fellow Negros had heard it for numerous years before deciding to disobey the law (King 82). Thus, according to Martin, leaders should award their people with justice on time to avoid the disobedience of the law. However, when the leaders fail to create fair regulations, they should be reminded through

Formal specification of non-functional properties in component Research Paper

Formal specification of non-functional properties in component software engineering - Research Paper Example Component-based software engineering (CBSE) is observed as the best example of such technique (Chen, 2004). It assists in handling the intricacy through following a divide-and-conquer tactic, modularizing huge software schemes into smaller, reusable elements called (software) units. CBSE is believed to be chiefly effective in the background of what is referred to as unit markets, where units are established by autonomous third party establishers and purchased by application contractors to be organized into full applications. If the elements are to be bartered on component markets, they have to be escorted by a specific illustration of all of their pertinent properties (Lamanna, 2002). Element developers must articulate such an illustration without understanding the background in which their elements will be employed. Conversely, it has to be clear to the application contractors and has to be achievable for them to create specifications of distinct elements and rationalize about possessions of the ultimate system. For instance, application contractors need to acknowledge whether an application constructed from some set of elements (Bechhofer, 2005). These elements are organized on a system with reliable amount of present resources will accomplish the required execution goals, how much network bandwidths or memory will be devoured or whether data value will meet the needed benchmark. Thesis statement The ultimate aim of this report is to examine the concept of formal specification of non-functional properties in component software engineering. This entails reviewing the entire aspect of software development and looks at the specification languages that already exist as well as examining the component forms related to specification languages . The paper then examines the problems statement and the research plan then winds up with a conclusion. Literature Review General Concept of Software Development The following diagram (figure 1) provides an indication of the general software development procedure for non-functional characteristics. The main concept of approach is the division of measurement description usage meaning that precision of non-functional characteristics of applications using those gauges. A measurement refers to something that is practical to a system and produces quality value for the scheme being gauged (Chen, 2004). Examples of measurements are d elay, response time et cetera. Measurements are mostly described in relation to a contextual model which defines the concepts of an application system that has to be recognized in order to develop the measurement value. Therefore, dimension can be described autonomously as a real practical system. To employ measurements to a practical system, a mapping between the component model of the practical scheme and the context model of the measurement must be illustrated. The descriptions of measurements can be sophisticated, but on the other hand, it will be developed only a single time. Thus, the roles of dimension designer and practical designer must be put apart in the development process. According to Heiko  Ludwig 2004, their joint efforts directs to a precision of the system encompassing its non-functional characteristics (Bechhofer, 2005). The measurement modeler employs a graphical notation centered on the specification language CQML+ [2] and notions from [3] to identify measurem ents and their context designs (Zschaler, 2008). Ludwig adds on that designer can then described distinct

Ethical issues - New centry financial corporation Case Study

Ethical issues - New centry financial corporation - Case Study Example These decisions prompted the stakeholders of the company to quit thus leading to its bankruptcy. It is notable that the ethical issues associated with New Century Financial Corporation were damaging to various groups of people in the subprime mortgage industry. The groups included mortgagors, investment banks, and mortgage brokers, rating agencies, lenders and investors (Palepu, Srinivasan & Sesia, 2009). The low quality of loans that the company offered affected the Mortgagors (borrowers). Investment banks realized massive losses from the money they had invested by offering New Century Financial Corporation mortgages. Mortgage brokers also made losses by conducting business with the corporation. Lenders and investors, likewise, realized massive losses due to New Century Financial Corporations misuse of their funds. By 2005, the subprime market was already experiencing advancement both in technology and loan quality. However, New Century Financial Corporations management failed to adapt to these changes. Instead, the companys performance continued to deteriorate due to a poor management. Most of the decisions New Century Financial undertook based on efficiency. The company ensured that the distribution of its securities to investors was favorable. It also terminated loan applications for efficiency due to the withdrawal of its lenders. The companys decisions and operations were associated with various ethical issues. First, it was unethical for New Century Financial Corporation to lack proper documentation of its operations. Proper documentation would enable the company to keep perfect records. Secondly, the corporation had an ethical issue in the valuation of the loans it was selling. For instance, the management was unable to account for purchase of its mortgage loan reserves. Next, the loan quality offered by New Century Financial Corporation was an ethical issue. The company

Theories and a biopsychology of addiction

Theories and a biopsychology of addiction The biopsychology of addiction examines the interaction of biological aspects associated with addictive behaviors. The word addiction comes from the Latin verb addicere meaning to enslave (Yucel, Lubman, Solowij, Brewer, 2007). The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fourth Edition-Text Revision identifies drug addiction as a dependence syndrome with essential features of a lack of control over drug use despite significant drug-related problems (Kranzler Li, 2008). The prevalence and problems associated with drug addiction cost an estimated $524 billion a year, including health care, productivity loss, crime, incarceration, and drug enforcement (NIDA, 2009). Advanced research confirms that addiction is a disease because it alters the brain. It shares common attributes with other chronic diseases, such as heart disease and diabetes. The underlying concept is that there is a disruption in healthy functioning that results in serious, harmful consequences, although treatable, that can potentially last a lifetime (NIDA, 2009). Recreational drug use usually begins in adolescents at a stage in development most vulnerable to executive functioning impairment. Executive functioning impacts decision making, judgments, and emotional regulation. Brown, et al. (2008) found an increase in drinking during the age span between 16 to 20 years that fuels neurological damage and social impairments. Beckson (2005) reported an increase in adolescent drug use. Preven tion of drug addiction needs to start during adolescents because it usually begins during this stage in development. The goal of this paper is to explore multiple factors related to the biopsychology of addiction, including the molecular level of synaptic neuron communication, neurotransmitters, brain anatomy, drugs of abuse, relapse, and long-term effects of addiction. The genetic and environmental influences along with stress play significant roles in drug addiction. Theories of addiction exist with a growing agreement among experts that the Incentive Sensitization Theory of Addiction provides the best explanation. Robinson and Berridge (2003) describe several theories. Opponent Process Theory of Addiction The first theory described by Robinson and Berridge (2003), is the Opponent Process Theory of Addiction representing the traditional view of addiction. Pinel (2009) refers to this theory as the Physical-dependence Theories of Addiction. Initially drugs are taken for the positive feelings, but gradually build tolerance and dependence to the drug. Withdrawal symptoms begin and compulsive drug cravings take over. Drug use continues in an effort to avoid negative withdrawal symptoms and achieve the pleasurable effects again. Other names for this traditional theory of addiction include pleasure-pain, positive-negative reinforcement, opponent process, hedonic homeostasis, hedonic dysregulation, and reward allostasis (Robinson Berridge, 2003). Limitations exist with this theory because not all drugs, such as heroin, produce serious withdrawal symptoms. A major argument against this theory is that after a period of abstinence the rate of relapse remains high despite the lack of withdrawal s ymptoms. Positive-incentive Theory of Addiction Another theory described by Robinson and Berridge (2003) involves aberrant learning suggesting that drugs create a strong connection to natural reward centers based on learning through classical conditioning. Pinel (2009) refers to this theory as the Positive-incentive theories of drug addiction. Explicit learning as a subcategory of aberrant learning describes the learning process through declarative associations at a conscious level between actions and outcome. Explicit learning also involves the declarative predictive relationships between environmental cues and expectation or anticipation of rewards, such as drugs. Declarative learning does not sufficiently explain the transition from recreational drug use to drug addiction. Addicts do not report exaggerated declarative memories or expectations of drug pleasure because they know the pleasure gained is not worth the consequences suffered (Robinson and Berridge, 2003). Implicit learning as a second subcategory of aberrant learning describes the unconscious procedural learning that occurs automatically by pairing a stimulus and response. Drug use becomes an automatic response through the corticostriatal loops operating through the dorsal striatum (Robinson Berridge, 2003). The aberrant learning theory does not hold up under scrutiny either because implicit learning does not actually generate an automatic response, such as tying your shoe, because it is compulsion that motivates the continuation of drug use and drives the cycle of addiction. Incentive Sensitization Theory of Addiction The Incentive Sensitization Theory of Addiction best explains the transition from drug use to drug addiction. According to Robinson and Berridge (2008), the theory states that repeated drug use changes brain cells and brain neural circuitry creating a hypersensitivity to repeated drug use and associated drug cues. Incentive sensitization generates a pathological motivation or wanting of drugs that last for years, even after abstinence. The wanting of drugs may be implicit by an unconscious wanting or explicit by a conscious craving. The addicts focus on drugs is created from an interaction between incentive salience mechanisms with associated learning mechanisms. Pathological motivation generated from sensitization of brain circuits stems from a Pavlovian conditioned incentive or motivational process, known as incentive sensitization. Associative learning can trigger the motivation for drugs through incentive attributes, such as within the context of associated drug experiences and i nteractions. The pathological motivation drives the addict to seek and obtain drugs at any cost. However, the stimulus-response learned association does not fully explain the core problem of addiction. Damage or dysfunction in cortical regions creates changes in executive functioning resulting in impairments. These impairments play an important role in the addicts poor choices about drugs coupled with pathological incentive motivation for drugs triggered through incentive sensitization. Sensitization specifically refers to the increase in drug effect caused by repeated drug use. Incentive sensitization is essence of the theory. Engagement of brain incentive or reward systems, include the mesotelencephalic dopamine systems. It is the hypersensitivity in the motivation circuitry that contributes mostly to the addictive wanting of drugs. Evidence in favor of the incentive sensitization from past studies includes three features of incentive stimulus: Pavlovian conditioned approach to behavior, Pavlovian instrumental transfers, and conditioned reinforcement. The sensitization related changes in the brain are important for the transition from casual to compulsive drug use. Changes in the brain include a much larger increase in the density of dendritic spines on medium spiny neurons in the core of the nucleus accumbens. It relates to development of psychomotor sensitization. Studies further indicate that the neural changes underlying sensitization may be sufficient to promote subsequent addict-like behaviors. The essential factor in addiction is neural sensitization. Nature versus Nurture On the one hand, a genetic predisposition toward drug addiction appears evident for a substantial number of individuals. Researchers are continuing to identify specific genes related to drug addiction. The use of Quantitative Trait Locus Mapping contributes to identify specific genes for the risk and protection against addictive behavior (Crabbe, 2002). On the other hand, the learning hypothesis suggest drugs promote the learning of strong stimulus-response habits leading to compulsive behavior paired with rituals involved in consuming drugs (Robinson Berridge, 2008). Associative learning occurs in drug addiction through Pavlovian conditioning. The motivation for drugs becomes incentive sensitive when encountering familiar associations within the context and surrounding of the drug use, friends, location, and the like. Churchland (2004) argues that everything we know is the result of both our genetic makeup and our environmental experiences. Science has shown that development depends upon both genes and experience. Genes produce the hardware and experience provides the software. Learning occurs through genetic unfolding that generates changes in cells through memory systems of learning experiences constructed from environmental experiences. Our brain neuromodulators act upon synapses and become strengthened with repeated exposure that provides the foundation for learning. According to Kranzler and Li (2008) drug addiction stems from a combination of genetic, environmental, social, and psychological factors. The study of addiction involves multiple disciplines, including neuroscience, epidemiology, genetics, molecular biology, pharmacology, psychology, psychiatry, and sociology. It is not a matter of nature versus nurture, but more accurately nature and nurture. It is well known that addiction stems from a genetic predisposition and environmental stress and influences. Li, Mao, and Wei (2008) report that an estimated 40% to 60% of genetic factors appear responsible for drug addiction and the remaining percentage of factors relate to environmental factors. Genes and common pathways appear to underlie drug addictions. In a study conducted by Li, Mao, and Wei (2008), an extensive review of the genetic research associated with drug addiction resulted in the creation of the Knowledgebase of Addiction-Related Genes (KARG). The KARG is the first database of a bioinformatic compilation of genetic research on addiction. Through statistical analysis of the database, the authors found five common pathways in addiction, including neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction, long-term potentiation, GnRH signaling pathway, MAPK signaling pathway, and Gap junctions. Advances in science from the use of new technology, such as tillingarray and proteomics, provid e new avenues in studying the underlying pathways and genetic composition of addiction and how addiction forms from environmental influences. Brain Communication Chemical messengers called neurotransmitters carry information across tiny spaces, called synapses that exist between neurons (Cruz, Bajo, Schweitzer, Roberts, 2008). The brain communicates through electrical and chemical signals transmitted from neuron to neuron. A neuron represents the brains communication network. A neurotransmitter is released from one neuron into the synapse within 20 to 50 nanometers of the receiving neuron (Lovinger, 2008). The releasing neuron is referred to as presynaptic neuron and has at the tip of its axon terminals small pockets known as vesicles. These vesicles contain neurotransmitters that release molecules when activated by the action potential stimulated by the presynaptic neuron. The neurotransmitter is released into the synaptic gap between the two neurons. The post-synaptic neuron receives the neurotransmitter and binds it to the receptor site. According to Lovinger (2008) two major categories of neurotransmitter receptors, include the ligand-gated ion channel (LGIC) receptors and G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCR). The LGIC produces an excitatory or an inhibitory reaction depending on the action potential. The GPCRs represent proteins that bind neurotransmitter molecules and activate intercellular reactions. Once the neurotransmitter is released it becomes rapidly removed by neurotransmitter transporters. The neurotransmitter transporters are housed on the surface of the neurons cell membrane and rapidly retrieve the neurotransmitter pulling it inside the neuron. The uptake reloads the neurotransmitter into vesicles and the cycle repeats. Other brain chemicals exist, such as neurotrophins and steroid hormones. Lovington (2008) describes neurotrophins as peptides or amino acids secreted from different neuron structures, such as axon terminals and dendrites. Neurotrophins support neurons and assist in synaptic plasticity and neuron survival. Many are located within the central nervous system and the neural mechanisms that contribute to addiction (Lovinger, 2008). Steroid hormones represent small molecules that assist with intercellular communication. These hormones are found throughout the central nervous system as well. Lovinger (2008) further describes agonist as molecules that bind to and activate receptors. Antagonists also bind to neurotransmitter receptor sites by competing and blocking receptor activation. Many molecules serve as neurotransmitters, such as the amino acids, glutamate, and glycine. Histamines and different peptides also act as neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters play a significant role in addiction. Neurotransmitters Fitzell (2007) defines neurotransmitters as molecules in the brain that transmit chemical reactions in order for neural communication to occur. There are approximately 100 billons neurons in the brain. Neurons release neurotransmitters from one neuron to the next via a presynapitc nerve terminal and receptor site at the synapse. The releasing of a neurotransmitter either triggers a message to other neurons in a chain reaction or a message to disengage signals. There are several neurotransmitters that activate specific receptors site referred to as fitting a key into a lock (Fitzell, 2007). The neurotransmitters include noradrenaline (norepinephrine), and adrenaline (epinephrine), acetylcholine, GABA, glutamate, dopamine, serotonin, opioids and other peptides, and endocannbinoids. Endorphins and enkephalins produce natural opiates in the brain related to intense pleasure. Noradrenaline (norepinephrine) has a stimulating effect on the brain. It is responsible for regulating the heart, breathing, body temperature, and blood pressure. It also may play a role in hallucinations and depression (Fitzell, 2007). Adrenaline (epinephrine) controls paranoia and the fight-or-flight response. It is also responsible for our appetite and feelings of thirst (Fitzell, 2007). Acetylcholine is responsible for muscle coordination, nerve cells, memory, and is involved in the transmission of nerve impulses in the body (Fitzell, 2007). It has a significant role in reaction to stress. GABA is found throughout the brain and in numerous sensory neurons (Cruz, Bajo, Schweitzer, Roberto, 2008). It functions as a regulator of transmitting nerve signals, and it acts on receptor sites, including GPCR, by functioning as an inhibitor. Activation of the receptor sites prohibit the release of neurotransmitters. Ethanol acts as an excitatory for the release of GABA and has a role in alcohol intoxication and contributes to the brains hyperexcitable during alcohol withdrawal. Opiods, cannabinoids, and alcohol all act on GABA through the same brain regions. Glutamate functions as a major excitatory neurotransmitter in the lower brain region (Clapp, Bhave, Hoffman, 2008). It serves most brain neurons and is found throughout the brain. Two receptors, AMPA and NMDA, appear to be involved in learning and memory. Acute alcohol consumption inhibits the release of glutamate and appears to play a role in inhibiting synaptic plasticity and impairment of memory (Lovinger, 2008). Gass and Olive (2008) studied glutamates influence on drug addiction. Studies found that all drugs of abuse utilize glutamate transmissions producing a long-term neuroplasticity in the brain. Glutamate contributes to compulsive drug-seeking behavior and drug-associated memories. Dopamine serves as the most significant neurotransmitter in the brain. It is responsible for controlling our moods, energy, and feelings of pleasure (Fizell, 2007). Dopamine influences brain mechanisms of reward, evaluation of environmental stimuli, general behavioral activity level, and some brain disorders. According to Cruz, Bajo, Schweitzer, and Roberto (2008), dopamine becomes pervasive throughout the brain and is produced by only a few neurons. It is considered a pure neuromodulator because it becomes activated only by GPCRs. There are five dopamine receptor sites, D1 through D5. Half of the neurons connect to the substantia nigra pars reticulate forming the direct pathway to activating the cortex (Cruz, Bajo, Schweitzer, Roberto, 2008). The other half connect to the globus pallidus internal segmane forming the indirect pathway to slow down cortical output. Dopamine controls performance of action, including the intoxication from alcohol and other drugs (Cruz, Bajo, Schweitzer, Roberto, 2008). Many drugs target dopamine transmission, and dopamine plays a significant role with all drugs. Cocaine, amphetamine and other stimulant drugs either block or reverse the action of the dopamine transporter (Lovington, 2008). As a result, the level of dopamine in the synapse increases. Research shows that interference with dopamine transmission generates an intoxicating and addictive effect with drugs and alcohol Nicotine and alcohol stimulate dopamine. Morphine and other opiates slow GABA activity and indirectly increase the activity of dopamine. It also contributes to learning environmental cues in relation to the context of drug use that encourages drug and alcohol use. Fitzell (2007) describes serotonins role in the brain as relating to the five senses, sleep, aggressive behavior, eating, and hunger. Its release brings about a sense of calm, happiness, peace, satisfaction, signals of fullness, and reduced appetite. A decrease of serotonin or blockage in the brain cells results in aggression and violent behavior. Low levels of serotonin are associated with depression and increased appetite. Serotonin is a very powerful mood enhancer and appetite regulator located in the base of the brain (Fitzell, 2007). According to Lovinger (2008), neurons connect to other neurons through the central nervous system, including the cerebral cortex and other forebrain structures. Serotonin influences sensations related to environmental stimuli, perception, learning and memory, and sleep and mood. Serotonin activity involves 15 CPCRs that either increase or decrease neuron output. It is the target of psychoactive drugs, such as LSD, mescaline, and psilocybin that serve as agonists of serotonin. Amphetamines, such as MDMA also known as ecstasy, interfere with serotonin transporters and increase serotonin levels. It is suspected that the effect may result in sensory-enhanced effects. Alcohol appears to cause a reduction of serotonin uptake. Opioids and other peptides contribute to the brains communication by decreasing excitatory glutamate and inhibitory GABA at the cell level (Cruz, Bajo, Schweitzer, Roberto, 2008). However, GABA continues to have an excitatory effect throughout the brain producing the pain-relieving effect of opioids as well as opioid dependence. Peptides help neuromodulation of the brain through GPCRs. These peptides serve as agonists to receptor sites for morphine, heroine, and other opiate drugs (Lovington, 2008). Three opiate receptors of importance include mu-type, delta-type, and kappa-type (Befort, et al., 2008). Reduction in opioid peptide actions interfere with promoting an increase in dopamine. Lovinger (2008) describes another hormone of particular importance, the corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH). CRH communicates signals of stress, mood, and changes in bodily functions. CRH and its receptors play a role in stress, drug addiction, and relapse. The opioid peptides, endorphins, and enk ephalins affect mood, produce intense feelings of pleasure, and can reduce and relieve pain. Endorphins also help in managing stress. Enkephalins help the body fight pain (Fitzell, 2007). Wand (2008) describes a the stress response as involving a glucocorticoid response generated from the hypothalamic pituitary-adrenal (HPA), activation of peptides corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF), and activation of the sympathetic nervous system releasing epinephrine and nonrepinephrine. Endocannabinoids (endogenously formed cannabinoids) and other lipid-derived neuromodulators are involved in synaptic communication and acute reinforcing effects of drugs (Cruz, Bajo, Schweitzer, Roberto, 2008). Lovinger (2008) describes the receptor site CB1 linked to GPCR as functioning to inhibit the release of neurotransmitters. CB1 acts as agonists and influences both inhibitory and excitatory synaptic transmissions (Cruz, Bajo, Schweitzer, Roberto, 2008). As a result, a decrease in several neurotransmitters occurs, including GABA and glutamate. A long-term synaptic depression may occur produced by retrograde endocannabinoid signaling. A consequence of this occurrence plays a key role in learning and memory and associated addiction (Lovinger, 2008). Brain Anatomy of Addiction The brain attempts to counteract the chemical changes caused by drug addiction. The process of neuroadaption or neuromodulation strives to reinstate homeostasis in the brain. Drug addiction influences all aspects of the brain with several significant regions serving more dominant roles. The mesotelencephalic dopamine system is a diffuse pathway consisting of dopamine neurons associated with pleasure (Pinel, 1998). Its cell bodies are connected to two structures in the midbrain tegmentum: substantia nigra or the ventral tegmental area. The axons of these two structures extend into different structures in the telencephalic sites. These structures include frontal cortex, striatum, septum, cingulated cortex, amygdala, and nucleus accumbens. The mesotelencephalic dopamine system is associated with motivation of behaviors and self-administering addictive drugs, sexual behavior, and eating (Pinel, 1998) The substania nigra is a midbrain nucleus of the tegmentum and contains cell bodies of many of the neurons of the mesotelencephalic dopamine system. Its dopaminergic neurons terminate in the striatum (Pinel, 1998). The nigrostriatal pathway is a dopaminergic tract from the substantia nigra to the striatum. The striatum is composed of the caudate and putamen and serves as the terminal of the dopaminergic nigrostriatal pathway. The ventral tegmental area is located medial to the substania nigra and contains cell body of many neurons in the mesotelecephalic dopamine system (Pinel, 1998). The nucleus accumbens is a nucleus located between the striatum and the basal forebrain. It is a major terminal in the mesotelencephalic dopamine system. It plays a critical role in the experience of pleasure (Pinel, 1998). Koob and Simon (2009) indicate that the mesocorticolimbic pathway is the brain circuit that transmits dopamine in the rewarding effects of alcohol and other drugs. The mesocorticolimbic dopamine system represents the reward system in the brain. Neural inputs and outputs interact with the dopamine projections from the ventral tegmental area to the basal forebrain (Koob Simon, 2009; Ikemoto, 2007). Pinel (1998) describes the prefrontal cortex as the large area of the frontal cortex anterior to the primary and secondary motor cortex. It consists of three large areas: dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, orbitofrontal cortex, and medial prefrontal cortex (Pinel, 1998). The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is the large area on the lateral surface of the prefrontal lobes and plays a role in memory for temporal sequence of events but not the actual events, response sequencing, inhibiting incorrect but previously correct responses, developing and following plans of action, and creative thinking. Pinel (1998), indicates that the orbitofrontal cortex is the large area of prefrontal cortex on its anterior pole and inferior surface. Damage to the orbitofrontal cortex results in marked personality changes, an inability to inhibit inappropriate behaviors, and influences social behaviors. The medial prefrontal cortex is the area of the prefrontal cortex on the medial surface of the prefrontal lobe s that when damaged, produces a blunting affect (Pinel, 1998). Amygdala is a major structure in the limbic system. It is an almond-shaped nucleus of the anterior temporal lobe. The central nucleus of the amygdala has the highest density of enkephalins. Enkephalins are found in the cell bodies of GABA neurons, the most abundant type of neuron in the nucleus of the amygdala (Cruz, Bajo, Schweitzer, Roberto, 2008). The amygdala is responsible for the fight or flight emotional reaction. The extended amygdala signifies brain structures located near the front of the lower brain region, referred to as the basal forebrain (Befort, et al.). The extended amygdala is comprised of a number of structures, including the nucleus accumbens (NAcc), the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA), and the bed nucleus of stria terminals (BNST). It plays a role in relation to the acute reinforcing effects of drugs and the negative effects of compulsive drug use and reward. The CeA consists mostly of GABA as inhibitory neurons with neuron connections or project to the brainstem or BNST. It is considered the gate that controls information through the intra-amygdaloidal circuits. Befort, et al. (2008) describes the central extended amygdala (EAc) as a network formed by the central amygdala and the BNST controls. It plays a significant role in drug cravings, drug-seeking behaviors, drug rewards, and drug dependence. Hippocampus is the allocortical limbic system structure of the medial temporal lobes and extends from the amygdala at its anterior end to the cingulated cortex and fornix at itsposterior end (Pinel, 1998). The basolateral amygdala mediates motivational effects of drug use and the context associated with drug use in forming emotional memories (Koob, 2009). It plays a major role in learning and memory, particularly in relation to associated drug behaviors. Feltenstein and See (2008) provide a depiction of the brain anatomy and drug related connections in the mesocorticolimbic system. Dopamine projects from cell bodies in the VTA and connect to limbic structures via the mesolimbic pathway (amaygdala, ventral pallidum, hippocampus, and NAcc, and cortical areas (mesocortical pathway, including the prefrontal cortex, the orbitofrontal cortex, and the anterior cingulated gyrus) (Feltenstein See, 2008); Ikemoto, 2007). The NAcc and ventral pallidum serve as the primary effects of drug abuse. The amygdala and hippocampus serve a role in learning as it relates to the process of addiction. The amygdala and ventral hippocampus impact learning in discrete stimulus-response associations. The amygdala and dorsal hippocampus impact learning through stimulus-to-stimulus associations important in contextual learning. The prefrontal cortex, orbitofrontal cortex, and anterior cingulate gyrus regulate emotional responses, cognitive control, and executive functioning (Feltenstein See, 2008). Feltenstein See (2008) further indicated that repeated drug exposure leads to neuroadaptions at the cellular level of the prefrontal NAcc glutamatergic pathway that contributes to the persistent addictive behaviors, including diminished cognitive control and hyper-responsiveness to drug-associated stimuli. The mesolimbic pathway is involved in the acute reinforcing effects of drugs and various conditioned responses related to drug cravings and relapse. Cycle of Addiction Drug addiction forms through progressive stages of drug use, impulsivity, and compulsion. Addiction begins with the choice to use drugs for a variety of reasons, such as peer pressure or curiosity; however not everyone who uses drugs develop an addiction. As the drug begins to change neuron interactions, the brain develops neuroadaptive reactions to the drugs invasion. Drug use gradually shifts from recreational drug use to a compulsive drug need based on changes in the brain circuitry. Everitt, et al. (2008) discovered that low levels of dopamine receptors in the nucleus accumbens predict the propensity to escalate cocaine intake and the shift to compulsive drug-seeking and drug addiction. Kobb (2009) describes three stages of addiction: preoccupation/anticipation, binge intoxication, and withdrawal/negative effect. The three stages feed into each other, become intensified over time, and shift from positive reinforcement to negative reinforcement (Kobb, 2009). Drug use starts with experimentation and enjoying the pleasurable attributes of the drug. In time the addict focuses more on obtaining and using drugs that begins to shift impulsivity to tolerance and cravings in the drug relationship. As the drug begins to control the addict, the positive emotions begin to shift to negative emotions. The addict requires continued use of the drug in order to avoid negative reinforcement and to achieve positive reinforcement. The addict shifts into a compulsive need for the drug. According to Koob and Simon (2009), the binge/intoxication stage of addiction involves the nucleus accumbens-amygdala reward system, dopamine inputs from the ventral tegmental area, local opioid peptide circuits, and opioid peptide inputs in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus. The stage of negative withdrawal involves a decrease in function of the reward system and the brain stress neurocircuitry. The preoccupation/anticipation (craving) stage involves key afferent projections to the extended amygdala and nucleus accumbens, specifically the prefrontal cortex (for drug-induced reinstatement), and the basolateral amygdala (for cue-induced reinstatement). Compulsvie drug-seeking behavior appears driven by ventral striatal-ventral pallidalthalamic-cortical loops. In particular, the orbitofrontal cortex in the prefrontal cortex area influences impulsivity and compulsivity in drug addiction (Torregrossa, Quinn, Taylor, 2008). It is also critical in decision making and response selection. The orbitofrontal cortex influences impulsivity in three specific ways: delaying gratification, inability to inhibit strengthened motor responses, and an inability to reflect on potential consequences of action (Torregrossa, Quinn, Taylor, 2008). Schoenbaum and Shaham (2008) concur with the concept of an altered orbitofrontal cortex in drug addicts with a lasting decline in plasticity or the ability to encode new information. Drugs Classifications Commonly Abused Drugs commonly abused change the brains chemistry by interfering with the neurotransmitters and receptor sites. Different classes of drugs appear to affect different receptors either through overproducing a neurotransmitter or blocking the production of a neurotransmitter. All drugs of abuse share enhancement in the mesocorticolimbic dopamine activity, although at different levels. Depressants Ethanol is the primary drug in alcochol. It changes serotonin levels, and acts as a substitute for endorphins. According to Frezell (2007), behaviors that occur when under the influence of the drug include sleepiness, possible violence or aggression, depression, and a dulling of psychological pain. After the effect of alcohol wears off, sleep disturbance, depression, lack of endorphins to relieve normal pain, and cravings for more alcohol occur in reaction to the brains reduction in producing endorphins. Cruz, Bajo, Schweitzer, and Roberto (2008), indicate that alcohol increases the inhibitory effect of GABA and decreases the excitatory action of glutamate. GABA is involved with the intoxication effects of alcohol and the long-term effects, including tolerance and dependence. The CeA adapts to the changes as alcohol dependence forms. Feltenstein and See (2008) indicate that ethanol interacts with a wide variety o