Workers Participation In Management Commerce Essay

Harmonizing to one position, workers engagement is based on the cardinal construct that the ordinary workers put his labor in, and ties his destiny to, his topographic point of work and, hence, he has a legitimate right to hold a portion in act uponing the assorted facets of company policy † . Harmonizing to G.S. Walpole, engagement in direction gives the workers a sense of importance, pride and achievement ; it gives him the freedom and the chance for self-expression ; a feeling of belonging to his topographic point of work and a sense of craft and creativeness. It provides for the integrating of his involvements with those of the direction and makes him a joint spouses in the endeavor † . The signifiers of workers engagement in direction vary from industry to industry and state to state depending upon the political system, form of direction dealingss and capable or country of engagement. The signifiers of workers engagement may be as follows: Joint Consultation Modes Joint Decision Model Self Management, or Auto Management Scheme Workers Representation on Board It should be borne in head that when persons are provided with chances for look and portion in decision-making, they show much enterprise and accept duty well. The principle of workers ‘ engagement in direction prevarications in that it helps in making amongst the workers a sense of engagement in their organisatoin, a better apprehension of their function in the smooth operation of industry and provides them a agency of self-fulfillment, thereby, advancing efficiency and increased productiveness. INTROdTION Participative Management I s a sophisticated construct I n the modern managerial universe, atleast in Indian Scene. Engagement in the decision-making procedure helps to accomplish greater occupation satisfaction on the portion of the employees and hlgher production on the portion of the administration. The workers can be motivated more efficaciously through non-monetary Incentives than through pecuniary inducements. I t one s observed in recent times that engagement Is one of the best non-monetary inducements I f the administration applies the engagement schemes decently, one T is believed that it w one cubic decimeter cubic decimeter be able to better the production and productivenesss of the different factors of production. At the same clip it serves as a incentive and satisfaction to the employees by run intoing their self-importance demands. Participative Management is the procedure of affecting subsidiaries i n the decision-making procedure. I t emphasiss active engagement of th e employees. I t utilizations thelr expertness and creativeness in work outing of import managerial jobs. I t remainders on the construct of shared authorization which holds that directors portion thelr managerla1 authorization with their subsidiaries. Participative Management, â€Å" is a procedure of deputation of authorization and duty in the general country of managerial maps. I t agencies sharing in an appropriate mode the decislonmaklng power with the lower ranks of the administration of an endeavor Participative Management is hence, a system or procedure in which workers are called upon to show their positions sing the preparation of policies and decision-making, to the direction. This is nil but a manner of sati sfylng the workers ‘ impulse for self look and making in them a feeling of belongingness in order to acquire their willing co-operation for the efficient working of the administration. The purpose of this system is to do the workers feel that the administration is their ain and its success or failure, Is their ain success or failure. I t would take the feeling of disaffection from the workers towards the direction every bit good as other workers In the same industry. Four procedures influence engagement. These procedures create employee engagement as they are pushed down to the lowest degrees in an organisation. The farther down these procedures move, the higher the degree of engagement by employees. The four procedures include: Information sharing, which is concerned with maintaining employees informed about the economic position of the company. Training, which involves raising the accomplishment degrees of employees and offering development chances that allow them to use new accomplishments to do effectual determinations sing the organisation as a whole. Employee determination devising, which can take many signifiers, from finding work agendas to make up one's minding on budgets or procedures. Wagess, which should be tied to suggestions and thoughts every bit good as public presentation.BENEFITS OF PARTICIPATIVE MANAGEMENTA participative direction manner offers assorted benefits at all degrees of the organisation. By making a sense of ownership in the company, participative direction instils a sense of pride and motivates employees to increase productiveness in order to accomplish their ends. Employees who participate in the determinations of the company feel like they are a portion of a squad with a common end, and happen their sense of self-pride and originative fulfillment heightened. Directors who use a participative manner happen that employees are more receptive to alter than in state of affairss in which they have no voice. Changes are implemented more efficaciously when employees have input and do parts to determinations. Participation keeps employees informed of approaching events so they will be cognizant of possible alterations. The organisation can so put itself in a proactive manner alternatively of a reactive 1, as directors are able to rapidly place countries of concern and turn to employees for solutions. Engagement helps employees derive a wider position of the organisation. Through preparation, development chances, and information sharing, employees can get the conceptual accomplishments needed to go effectual directors or top executives. It besides increases the committedness of employees to the organisation and the determinations they make. Creativity and invention are two of import benefits of participative direction. By leting a diverse group of employees to hold input into determinations, the organisation benefits from the synergism that comes from a wider pick of options. When all employees, alternatively of merely directors or executives, are given the chance to take part, the opportunities are increased that a valid and alone thought will be suggested.REQUIREMENTS OF PARTICIPATIVE MANAGEMENTA common misconception by directors is that participative direction involves merely inquiring employees to take part or do suggestions. Effective plans involve more than merely a suggestion box. In order for participative direction to work, several issues must be resolved and several demands must be met. First, directors must be willing to release some control to their workers ; directors must experience secure in their place in order for engagement to be successful. Often directors do non recognize that employees ‘ regar d for them will increase alternatively of lessening when they implement a participative direction manner. The success of participative direction depends on careful planning and a slow, phased attack. Changing employees ‘ thoughts about direction takes clip, as does any successful effort at a entire cultural alteration from a democratic or bossy manner of direction to a participative manner. Long-run employees may defy alterations, non believing they will last. In order for engagement to be effectual, directors must be echt and honest in implementing the plan. Many employees will necessitate to consistently see cogent evidence that their thoughts will be accepted or at least earnestly considered. The employees must be able to swear their directors and feel they are respected. Successful engagement requires directors to near employee engagement with an unfastened head. They must be unfastened to new thoughts and options in order for participative direction to work. It is of import to retrieve that although the director may non hold with every thought or suggestion an employee makes, how those thoughts are received is critical to the success of participative direction. Employees must besides be willing to take part and portion their thoughts. Participative direction does non work with employees who are inactive or merely make non care. Many times employees do non hold the accomplishments or information necessary to do good suggestions or determinations. In this instance it is of import to supply them with information or preparation so they can do informed picks. Encouragement should be offered in order to habituate employees to the participative attack. One manner to assist employees prosecute in the decision-making procedure is by cognizing their single strengths and capitalising on them. By steering employees toward countries in which they are knowing, a director can assist to guarantee their success. Before anticipating employees to do valuable parts, directors should supply them with the standards that their input must run into. This will help in flinging thoughts or suggestions that can non be implemented, are non executable, or are excessively expensive. Directors should besides give employees clip to believe about thoughts or alternate determinations. Employees frequently do non make their most originative thought on the topographic point. Another of import component for implementing a successful participative direction manner is the seeable integrating of employees ‘ suggestions into the concluding determination or execution. Employees need to cognize that they have made a part. Offering employees a pick in the concluding determination is of import because it increases their committedness, motive, and occupation satisfaction. Sometimes even merely showing several options and leting employees to take from them is every bit effectual as if they thought of the options themselves. If the employees ‘ first pick is non executable, direction might inquire for an option instead than rejecting the employee input. When an thought or determination is non acceptable, directors should supply an account. If direction repeatedly strikes down employee thoughts without implementing them, employees will get down to mistrust direction, therefore holding engagement. The key is to construct employee assurance so their thoughts and determinations become more originative and sound.ConcernsParticipative direction is non a charming remedy for all that ails an organisation. Directors should carefully weigh the pros and the cons before implementing this manner of direction. Directors must recognize that alterations will non take consequence overnight and will necessitate consistence and forbearance before employees will get down to see that direction is serious about employee engagement. Participative direction is likely the most hard manner of direction to pattern. It is disputing non merely for directors but for employees every bit good. While it is of import that direction allows employees to take part in determination devising and encourages engagement in the organisation ‘s way, directors must be cognizant of the potency for employees to pass more clip formulating suggestions and less clip finishing their work. High-level direction will non back up a participative direction plan if they believe employees are non run intoing their daily or hebdomadal ends. Some suggestions for get the better ofing this possible job are to put aside a peculiar clip each hebdomad for workers to run into with direction in order to portion their thoughts, or to let them to work on their thoughts during less busy times of the twenty-four hours or hebdomad. Another thought that works for some directors is to let employees to put up single assignments to discourse thoughts or suggestions. Directors should retrieve that participative direction is non ever the appropriate manner to manage a given state of affairs. Employees frequently respect a director that uses his or her authorization and makes determinations when it is necessary. There are times when, as a director, it is of import to be in charge, do a determination, and so accept the duty for the picks made. For illustration, participative direction is likely non appropriate when disciplinary action is needed. When directors look upon their ain occupations as a privilege alternatively of as a duty, they will neglect at doing participative direction work. They will be less willing to turn over some of the decision-making duty to subsidiaries. Another ground that participative direction fails is that directors do non recognize it is non the same as deputing or merely switching duty. Participation entirely has no value ; it is merely an effectual tool if it is used to work out jobs and meet ends. Some directors believe that ask foring employees to fall in in meetings and signifier commissions will make a successful participative direction plan. However, these steps are merely successful when employees ‘ thoughts are accepted by direction and implemented. The larger the organisation, the more hard it becomes to establish a participative direction manner. Large organisations have more beds and degrees, which complicate effectual communicating and do it hard to register the sentiments and suggestions of a diverse group of employees and directors. Critics argue that brotherhoods are frequently more effectual than participative direction in reacting to employee demands because brotherhood attempts can cut through bureaucratic organisations more rapidly. Participative direction plans can be threatened by office political relations. Due to conceal dockets and peer force per unit area, employees may maintain their sentiments to themselves and decline to state a director if they feel an thought will non work. Directors besides play a portion in political relations when they implement participative direction plans to affect their ain foremans but have no purpose of seeing them through. Many companies have experienced the positive effects of participative direction. Employees are more committed and experience more occupation satisfaction when they are allowed to take part in determination devising. Organizations have reported that productiveness improved significantly when directors used a participative manner. Participative direction is non an easy direction manner to implement. It presents assorted challenges and does non win nightlong. Directors will be more successful if they remember that it will take clip and careful planning before they will see consequences. Get downing with little undertakings that encourage and reward engagement is one manner to acquire employees to believe that direction is sincere and trusty.

How to Write a Marketing Research Proposal

Step 1 Determine why the research is taking place. A market research proposal must explain the purpose of the research. The abstract at the beginning of the proposal will explain the goals of the research as well as any theories the research is attempting to prove. Step 2 Identify the information needed for the research. Explain the type of research information that is necessary to serve the purpose identified in step one. For example, if the research is on television viewing habits, one type of information needed is the kind of shows being watched as well as the audience that is watching. Different demographics often have different viewing habits, so identifying the information you need is a critical part of the market research proposal. This information is a necessary component in the first third of the proposal. Step 3 Explain the research methods that will be used. You know what information is needed; now detail how you will find it. Will you use a poll? What other measuring tools will you use? Step 4 Explain the cost of the research. The cost is going to influence those making the decisions. Each recommendation you make should include a specific cost breakdown as well as a rating of the importance of that research tool in relation to the others. For example, if you can obtain the same information through two different methods, you should include cost, validity and reliability scales for decision-making. Step 5 Conclude the market research proposal with a summary and recommendation. While the bulk of the proposal should explore all options, the summation should include your recommendations and assessments of all the available options. 6. Step 6 Edit for structure. Be sure to format the market research proposal with an executive summary (abstract/introduction), background (information and research), and a definition of the research or the problem you seek to resolve with the research. Be sure to include objectives, research methods (how information will be gathered and analyzed) and method of reporting.

APTT reagent contains pathromtin and Action FS Essay

APTT reagent contains pathromtin and Action FS - Essay Example Poor monitoring of heparin, Heparin interacts with contact activation pathway than tissue factor pathway, therefore making APTT not an ideal monitoring tool for heaprinoid since it is prone to nonheparin influences. (c) (I) The most probable diagnosis is hemophilia. This is because from the reference range, APTT is abnormal and we are to look at the coagulation in intrinsic pathway. It is clear that abnormal APTT is a result of abnormalities in the IX, XI, XII and FVII. A shortage in FVIII stops coagulation thus making clot not to form. This causes weak clot to form which is susceptible to knocks and bumps that will increase the level of hemophilia, thus the reason the boy is having pain on his left elbow, as there is recurrent bleeding. (ii) Hemophilia is disease caused by continuous recurrent bleeding. A deficiency in the FVIII which is a clotting factor causes a clot not to form thereby resulting is sustainable tissue damage that are prone to mechanical and fibrinolytic damage. Th e common site of hemorrhage is the weight bearing parts of the body such as the elbows and knees since they bear strain because of weight moreover their daily movements are susceptible to bumps and knock that can lead to more hemorrhage. This recurrent bleeding on to joints is very painful and results in tissue damage. As this problem persists for a long time it may necessitates the replacement of the affected joints since there will continuous contraction and loss in movement. 2. (a) When a normal neutrophil is smeared with a combination of May Grunewald and Giemsa stain, the neutrophil appears in a round or oval shaped cells when observed and the cells have granulated cytoplasm and eccentric...This digestion is composed of two parts: oxidize or respiratory response in which it involves the activation of non-mitochondrial oxidize enzymes that generates toxic oxygen species and the other process involves the release of neutrophil granule content into the ingested material. The combi nation of these two processes results into an effective killing mechanism. After this, the neutro...

Business interculture communicating Research Paper

Business interculture communicating - Research Paper Example Business intercultural communication is an effective tool for the organizations in order to achieve their objectives along with attaining various accomplishments with regard to performing the international business operations. The effective use of communication within the organization and identification of various cultural norms of the country of operation are the basic elements for the organizations in terms of trading on a global basis (US Department of State, â€Å"Intercultural Business Communication Tips†). The verbal and non-verbal communications are the important aspects of conveying information. The communication style incorporated in the business activities in the UK can be considered as an explicit form of conveying information through utilizing both the verbal as well as non-verbal communication. The communication style employed in the UK has been observed as to be simple and uncomplicated while conveying any information to others. The sense of humor of the British people is also a major element in terms of making justification about any proposal or in terms of decision making process. From the perspective of non-verbal communication, the British people are especially undemonstrative with regard to keeping their emotions concealed from other people by not making anyone uncomfortable for their own problem (s). The reserve nature among the people within the British culture highlights their respect to the person to whom they are communicating with (Kowol & Szumiel, â€Å"United Kin gdom: communication, negotiations and cultural background†). With this concern of communication style that are followed by the British people are the major concerns for the IBM US employees. Therefore, it is important for the employees of IBM to make use of straightforward communication style along with using a minimum number of physical gestures. The undemonstrative nature of hiding the personal feelings is also an

Critically Consider the Importance of Public International Law to Essay

Critically Consider the Importance of Public International Law to International Business - Essay Example The universal international laws are those laws which govern the relations of one State with all the States in international arena however; particular international law may only be governing the relationships and conducts of one State with another State. (Bederman, 2002) At a larger scale, public international law governs the relationships of the States with each other and plays critical role in authoring treaties and formal agreements between the States. However, if States agree with each other, the overall scope of the law can also be extended to the individual persons and organizations. What is however, critical to note that in public international law, the political and legal elements are closely intertwined with each other hence the overall implications of the public international law can be significant for the nations. (Aust, 2010) The most important issue which has remained the cause of debate is whether States should only be the subjects of international law or should other s ubjects be also brought under its ambit. Public International law and International Business The debate on increasing the scope of international law beyond States therefore outlines that the international business firms, intergovernmental organizations and other relevant bodies should also be brought under the scope. It is because of this reason that Public international law is now applicable on the individuals, relationships as well as transactions which take place across the borders. International law not only governs the use of common resources of the world but also provides framework for managing the transnational problems faced by the international business firms. (Shaw, 2003) The advent of globalization as well as the spread of the communication technologies also necessitated the... This essay approves that public international law governs the domain of States and their relationship with each other however, over the period of time, its scope and application has increased. The subjects of international law are not now just limited to States and how their relationships are governed however; international organizations are also increasingly coming under the ambit of this law and are greatly affected by the international law. This paper makes a conclusion that one of the key elements of international law is that it governs the bilateral agreements between the States. Bilateral agreements however, also provide required level of protection to the international firms in terms of getting protection of their investment. Foreign direct investment is one of the ways through which international firms make entry into the international markets. However, without bilateral agreements between the States, it may be difficult for international firms to take advantage of such opportunities. International law also can provide a very safe conduit to the international firms for settling their disputes with their host countries. Dispute settlement as well as the settlement of the international financing can be effectively done with the help of international law. Another important significance of international law for the international firms protection provided to their intellectual property. International law can also provid e support to the international firms in dealing with issues like child labor, unfair labor practices as well as human rights issues.

Exegesis and Actualization on the Gospel of Mark Chapter 1 verses 1-8 Essay

Exegesis and Actualization on the Gospel of Mark Chapter 1 verses 1-8 - Essay Example n meaning of Mark 1:1-8 is appealing to the continuity of God’s work from the Old Testament to gather the true people of God not by religious rites but by personal repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. The mass of evangelical scholars agree about the priority of Mark’s Gospel among other gospels. Morna Hooker stated that, â€Å"The relationship between the three gospels is so close as to suggest that two of the evangelists must have copied this parallel material.†1 In that case Mark possesses material that Matthew and Luke have copied. Without hesitation, the book was written in Rome. Based on the accounts of Clement of Alexandria, Mark wrote the gospel in Rome and furthermore affirmed by Irenaeus.†2 The majority of the old and contemporary scholars believed that Mark was written sometime before the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in AD 70. It is presumable that Mark 13 paved the way for a massive persecution in the early days of Christianity that lead to its destruction. On the other hand, some say it could have been written right after the temple destruction.3 The political situation at the time of writing expresses revolts against Neronian persecution . Thus, John’s clothing and diet reveal this identity.4 He tried to hide himself for such a time. This implies that there is a power struggle in the politics as well as persecution in the church. Therefore, â€Å"preparing the way of the Lord† became more significant. This definitely affected the perspective generated by the Disciples anticipating to have the future glory manifestation in the present state. They could have been waiting for national liberty that Christ may bring. However, the Disciples misunderstood the concept of the purposeful mission of Christ. Hooker further explained: â€Å"A very different explanation suggests that the Markan community, like the Corinthian church, was ignoring the message of the Cross altogether, and interpreting the Christian life (as do James and

Why has the concept of Persian Gulf Security changed in the War on Essay

Why has the concept of Persian Gulf Security changed in the War on Terror - Essay Example But when they did-as in the case of Kuwait with a pre-oil population of perhaps no more than seventy to one hundred thousand, Qatar with no more than forty thousand, and Abu Dhabi with less than twenty-five thousand-they sometimes struck it very, very rich. These three shaykhdoms literally had money to burn, and did. At the same time, they could not escape changing the government, the society, and the economy†.1 From the years of pre-oil discovery to the present post 9/11 years the security issues concerning the Persian Gulf States have undergone a radical and conceptual change in the geo-political reality of the globe. Traversing temporally the issues of regional conflicts and supremacy to issues concerning partnering on either side of the iron curtain divide to support ideological hegemony and expansion; the Persian Gulf States have now emerged as independent, affluent, modernized nation states that are accountable both for their internal security to their own populations a nd responsible for their alleged and tacit cooperation to varying hues of terror activities globallyy as evidenced by the 9/11 and subsequent events in London Bombings. With the drawing down of the iron curtain and emerging globalized world this accountability has been brought to sharper focus than ever before. This essay examines the emerging shape of the Persian Gulf security amongst these countervailing considerations.This paper would traverse the entire gamut of Persian Gulf security right from British control days to the present post WTC and Iraq War policy initiatives of the US. The now popular and actively sought after phrase war on terrorism had its origin in a spate of bunched and planned terrorist activities the world over with the US as the prime target. Examples of such Muslim extremist actions in civilian arena received negative western press in the world trade center and pentagon episode-where Muslim extremist organizations had strategically planned to put pressure on the

Preparing the Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) section of the Essay

Preparing the Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) section of the annual reports - Essay Example The management discussion and analysis is considered to be the very important section of the annual report for those people who are generally concerned with analyzing the fundamentals of the company. The management discussion and analysis includes the management and management style. This section is also very useful for the potential investors of the company. It generally includes the rules and regulations which are adopted by the Security exchange commission. The management is responsible for preparation of the management discussion and analysis. The management has to interpret each criterion that accurately derive the historical figures from the books of record and entity and determine and evaluate the relevancy of information that is to be included in the annual report under the heading of management discussion and analysis and also estimates and make assumptions that might affect the reported information which is provided. Apple Inc is the company that designs and manufactures various personal computers, mobile communication, and digital music players. It also deals with the sale of variety of accessories, third party digital content, variety of related software, and its applications. The company sells iphone, ipad and Mac. The company sells its product to its small and medium size businesses, government customers, education etc.. The company was founded by Steve Jobs in the year 1976. It has it’s headquarter in Cupertino California (Grady 72). Microsoft is engaged in licensing, developing, and also supporting different varieties of software products. It is also engaged in designing and also selling the devices which integrate with the cloud based services. It attracts global audience through online advertising. It was founded by Bill Gates in the year 1975. It has it’s headquarter in Redmond Washington (Mosher 53). The net sales of apple have risen by 7% or 11.9 million dollar in the financial year 2014 as compared

African film Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

African film - Assignment Example The first was to enforce the ban on drugs and alcohol within the group to weed out the weak members who could potentially become informants for their next dose or drink. The second strategic move was to create havoc and chaos in areas that would bring mass police force to protect the citizens, by planting bombs in specific locations. The third strategic move was to remove police officers with no witnesses and no traces that could point to any one person. The fourth strategic move was to organize a peaceful strike and find shelter for everyone. The fifth strategic move was to constantly move locations of the leaders of the rebellion. The final strategy was to take out as many police officers, paratroopers, or French military personnel without surrendering. As one tactic was tried, the outcome was evaluated and determined if the move was effective or new strategies were needed to continue the fight for freedom. The description of resistance and response was eloquently surmised in the q uote by Colonel Mathieu, â€Å"The FLN wants to remove the French from Algeria and the French want to stay† (Pontecorvo, 1966). Whenever one group tries to enforce their rules and beliefs on another group, there is bound to be some sort of social movement, once the oppressed group decides they are not willing to concede or assimilate into the forced requirements of the dominating group. The tactics that are used during wartimes are not considered humane from any side. Many of the strategies used by the police, paratroopers, or rebels were terrorist and violent actions toward the opposing side (Pontecorvo, 1966). Each side tries to act like the â€Å"good guys† and make the civilians believe that their way is the best choice. Any group that is being repressed or oppressed is going to have some individuals who will object to the treatment. The use of torture to gain information is a tactic used by every organization during wartimes. The extent of the torture

Career Goal Essay Example for Free

Career Goal Essay My short term goal – immediately upon completion of the MBA – is to enter the field of FMCG marketing. My aim is to take up a challenging product marketing position with a top global consumer goods company. This role would give me the opportunity to identify target market segments, and devise strategies to tap into them. By working on the design and execution of marketing campaigns, I will be able to combine my newly acquired business skills with my inherent creativity and channel it in a way that helps my organization grow. I have deep interest in gaining extensive learning in the field of marketing. Over a period of a few years I aim to become an expert in end-to-end marketing strategy and execution. This expertise will help me achieve my longer term goal – to set up a niche marketing consultancy for the health foods and nutrition snacks sector. My consultancy will provide a one-stop solution for marketing and promotion activities such as market research, market targeting and segmentation and implementation of marketing programs. My firm will allow me to leverage my love of marketing for bringing healthy food supplements that benefit society as a whole. Through my work in commercial sales, I have gained experience in understanding complex and fragmented market landscapes, identifying market gaps that the business can serve, bridging operational ability with market needs and negotiating with suppliers and customers. I have learned the art of managing customer expectations and building strong customer relationships even under difficult delivery constraints and economic conditions. All of these will be valuable in my marketing career. Additionally, the MBA degree will help me address the gaps that presently exist in my competencies. The MBA program will give me exposure to multi-domain business knowledge from finance to supply chain to human resources to technology. More importantly, it will help me understand the interplay between business functions, and between the business and its competitive environment. This will be instrumental in devising optimal marketing strategies that best serve the organization’s vision. Through the MBA, I will also gain expertise in the use of popular marketing frameworks to identify market needs and gaps, and determine appropriate pricing strategies. Soft skills, such as presentation and communication skills, are also vital to success in marketing. The MBA degree will greatly help me enhance my soft skills. It will also give me the  opportunity to network and build professional relationships with peers and alumni – who themselves are successful business executives. These networks will be instrumental in my career growth as well as in establishing my business venture in the future. The comprehensive set of competencies that the MBA will equip me with makes will give me the perfect platform to reach my career objectives.

Communicating With People On The Internet

Communicating With People On The Internet The arrival of the internet has heralded a lot of new opportunities, created new markets, and afforded us new ways of interacting with each other. Meeting new people is no longer limited to talking to the person youre sitting beside on the bus, or keeping in touch with someone you met at a bar. Now we can find friends from continents away. The internet is a busy place, full of people, many of whom share your own passions and interests. And not just friends, its also a place where its possible to meet someone special. Naturally the hyper-connected youths of today use the internet as if its an extension of themselves. For them meeting new people online seems like a given. But the internet holds just as much promise for the rest of us. It has grown in popularity as a way to find friends, to chat among like minded people, and for finding love, sex, quick flings, soulmates, partners, husbands and wives depending on whos looking. Nowadays there are more and more people who are single enough to use it. The number of people getting divorced is higher than ever. The US, UK, Canada, Russia, New Zeland and Australia all in the top ten for highest divorce rates (per 1,000 people). Society has changed, and with it our values. It is no longer seen as socially unacceptable to leave someone. Why stay in an unhappy marriage? There are many women and men who have faced that very question. Of course there are still those who see it as a sign of a sinful society, or feminism run rampant, or the natural progression of a morally bankrupt western culture, or any number of fantasies that explain a trend in statistics they dont understand. In the past divorces were rare, but were the couples happy? Thankfully society is breaking free of old fashioned attitudes. Where it would have been seen as debauched and morally sinful for a woman to leave her husband, or a man to leave his wife, now individuals have an out. The modern world is about individual choice and personal freedom. Because of this, more people are single, and open to the possibility of meeting someone new. People are also working harder. A busy career can leave little time to build a social life and result in a stagnant love life. Success can often bring more work, and more money, at the expense of someone to share it with. Many successful individuals are even reticent when it comes to looking for love. Relationships can be a lot of trouble, and some people are content without them. Being far removed from our primitive origins, we are no longer slaves to biological imperatives. On the other end of the scale, its thought that as many as a third of the singles on the internet arent quite as single as youd think. But assuming we are single, free, and would like to find someone special, where do we look in the 21st century? Bars and clubs are naturally as popular as ever. Many people still meet through work and friends. Many people bump into that special someone through a random encounter a dropped batch of paperwork, getting stuck in a lift it could be clichà ©, but it will still happen for some of us. With the advent of the internet, meeting people online has become yet another option. A natural one, in this connected world we live in. Personals and dating are big business, bringing in $503.4 million (US) in 2005 and showing consistent year after year growth. And in the UK, with its population of around 60 million, 7.8 million singles used some form of dating service in 2007 according to a press release by dating service PARSIHP. Meeting people on the internet doesnt have to be conducted through dating sites either. Many people who use the internet find people naturally as they wander the landscape of cyberspace. Nor is this a new phenomenon. The dawn of the internet saw the creation of crude bulletin boards and internet relay chat. People found each other using these services just as they do using Messenger clients and forums today. The technology has definitely advanced through, and this has brought people a large number of places to go on the internet. There are many different services that run on the internet, here are some of them: Internet relay chat One of the oldest services on the internet, internet relay chat (IRC) is a service that posts messages to the page instantaneously so that the users can have a conversation that flows naturally in real time. There are thousands upon thousands of chatrooms available through IRC servers, and most of them are free. They can be accessed by downloading an IRC client, though sometimes a bit of configuring is needed to make it work. IRC isnt the easiest thing in the world to pick up and learn, a throwback from its early origins. Messenger clients From Yahoo Messenger to MSN, and now more recently Skype (which can be used in much the same way as a messenger between calls), messenger clients allowed people to manage a list of contacts and then chat with those contacts just like in IRC. Unlike IRC, big improvements were made to the interfaces and ease-of-use that helped to explode the popularity of messengers until we find that most people use at least one. Messengers are also great for keeping in touch with business contacts, family, friends, among many other uses. One of the earliest messenger service called ICQ had a random chat button that would find you someone to chat to, or indeed allow them to find you. Social Networks Like them or loath them, social networks found their place as the heart of meeting people on the internet. At first they were places to link up with your friends and share information about you what you were doing, how you felt, where you were, or indeed where you werent (such as working). Social networks soon snowballed into a giant productivity eating monster. If you havent heard of social networks then hello, and greetings under-rock person. Some of the more well known include LiveJournal, MySpace, Facebook, and Bebo. LiveJournal mixes blogging and social networking, Facebook has become synonymous with social networks, MySpace synonymous with controversy and Bebo was huge in the UK then fell out of favour with users. The phenomena of keeping in touch with contracts led to new companies trying spinnoffs of the idea. One of these Twitter lets users post short messages of up to 140 characters. These tweets can then be read by followers. Like them or loath them, social networks app ear to be here to stay. Work Rather than have separate disjointed categories, lets lump everything thats done for the sake of work together. It can be emails, video conferencing, virtual conferencing, social networking, messaging. If your work requires you to liase with anyone at all over the internet then theres always the chance of meeting someone you hit it off with. It happens all the time. Friends Friends are always looking out for you. If youre single then you can guarantee that your friends are looking out for someone to hook you up with. On the internet this behaviour is no different. Dating services Dating services started off as simple catalogs of user-made profiles, that could be searched according to any criteria. Paying users could then contact the users they found interesting. Growing from these primitive early systems, they added features such as live chat, messenger services, social networking and so on in order to stay ahead of competing services. Their combination of the best ideas found on the internet to provide the optimal environment for users to meet each other, and maintained the value of the service so that people would continue to pay. Dating services have been one of the leading drivers of growth. Similarly theres also a lot of overlap between dating services and other internet services such as social networks. Online Universes Pushing internet interactions further into the futuristic vision of cyberspace, online worlds give us the Neuromancer vision of cyberspace. Gamers were among the first to explore online universes. The advent of massively multiplayer online games (or worlds/universes/spaces) collectively known as MMOs added a new dimension to the internet. The earliest were game worlds, where users had no set goals, other than lead a double (and supposedly exciting) life as a mage, wizard, ranger, space pilot or any number of alternative personas depending on the game. These evolved, and soon virtual universes began to appear which played down gaming aspects and played up its usage as an alternative universe. Second Life proved to be one of the most popular, and its name captures the spirit in which many of these new universes were formed. Others, such as Entropia Universe grew out of games, but diversified into a platform for delivering anything the partner company could imagine (by renting out world ). In these spaces, you can wander through virtual towns and meet peoples avatars as they in turn go about their business. Avatars are, to steal a description from the matrix films, the mental projection of your digital self. People customize their avatars and in doing so reveal a lot about themselves. Interestingly, people behave similarly to the way they do in real life, albeit with less inhibitions. Sociologists have a great time studying virtual worlds because of this, but that is a story for a different article. Virtual universes however are a little too gamelike for some of us. A more recent addition to the virtual universe landscape called IMVU cleverly combines messenger services with Virtual Universe services to create a hybrid that has found a more mainstream popularity than other virtual worlds. Users can keep in touch through a messenger like contact list, or use its social network-like website, and chat to users in virtual rooms. Unlike virtual worlds, there is no walki ng around. You can move your avatar around, but only to fixed locations called nodes. Standing nodes feature in all rooms, and adding furniture adds more nodes. A couch will come sitting nodes, and some furniture includes nodes for couples to sit snuggled together. Removing the ability to walk around, kept IMVU simple enough that the virtual universe features didnt overwhelm the chat features. Users can buy new rooms, furniture, clothes, pets. They can also buy streaming music to play in their rooms. People meet in virtual universes all the time. Sometimes they even get married in the online universe. Often they get married and then quickly split. Sometimes couples take their relationship further, and meet in real life. Does it work? Implications Dangers Anonymity Conclusion What are people looking for? When asked the question: For me, dating is mainly about.. ? in the top dating tips survey, the most popular answer was simply love, edging ahead of the rest with 21% of the votes. Surprisingly, next came Marriage and Sex with 19% each. 1. Love 21% 2. Marriage 19% 3. Friendship 8% 4. Partnership 6% 5. Sex 19% 6. Company 3% 7. Social life 3% 8. Romance 12% 9. Conversation 3% 10. Sharing 6% (Source: TopDatingTips.com)

Cable Modems Vs. Digital Subscriber :: essays research papers fc

The Internet has grabbed on to the world and it isn’t letting go. Nearly 36 million U.S. homes currently have PCs and everyone is dying to jump on the information superhighway. The Internet, which started as a group of government agencies and universities, has grown to include almost anyone, from home users to large companies and everyone in between. It makes sense then that providing Internet service is big business. The service which used to be dominated by groups of nerdy computer whizzes using equipment in someone’s basement is now being provided by many telephone companies, large on-line services and may soon be available from you local cable company. Computer users are an impatient group. They are starving for a faster way of connecting to the ‘net. Until now home users have had to suffer with the slow connections available with analog modems or spend a relatively large amount on having a digital line, such as ISDN, installed and then continue paying a lot for the monthly charges associated with such lines. Standard analog modems have always been hindered by the bandwidth they are allowed to use. Standard voice grade phone lines use the frequency spectrum between 0khz and 4khz to transmit their signal. 33.6 kbps modems packed nearly 11 bits of data per hertz, a remarkable feat, which is very near the theoretical limit. To allow faster connections modems must use a wider bandwidth. Two new competing technologies are now being developed which use this broadband idea to give computer users the speed they crave. Telephone companies are working on developing a way to use the standard twisted pair copper wires that now connect nearly every home in America to transmit data at high speeds. These technologies, collectively called DSL, come in two main flavors. ADSL, this is an acronym for asymmetric digital subscriber line, is the most common. This name was coined by Bellcore in 1989. The other main type of digital subscriber line is called HDSL. It stands for high-bit-rate digital subscriber line. These two technologies are essentially the same, except they apportion a different bandwidth to upstream (user to network) and downstream (network to user) data transmission. Concurrently, cable television providers are working on technologies to allow them to connect computers to their network and allow users to connect to the Internet at speeds just as high. Such equipment is being called a cable modem. Cable modems offer the possibility of transferring data at rates up to ten megabits per second, a speed nearly ten times faster than that of ISDN and about twenty times faster than today’s fastest analog modems. This number is somewhat misleading however. The truth is that in order to actually

Ecstasy :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Ecstasy† MDMA also, known as ecstasy, has killed at least 15 young people and doctors are extremely concerned with it’s long term effect from continued usage. The usage of ecstasy increases every year and is usually taken by teenagers at clubs. But, more importantly the people taking this drug are young and that has to be a concern. Many of the drug users have no idea what there in for. Many don’t know that it only takes one pill to ruin a lifetime. Like any drug once it enters the human body, eventually the brain comes in contact with it. That’s when the psychological and physical effects come into action. MDMA is currently classified as a Schedule I substance. Until 1985, MDMA was used extensively by psychiatrists and psychologists to help people with certain psychological and emotional difficulties. Although it was said to be a aphrodisiac drug there is no evidence to prove it. Many of those who take ecstasy say it brings them a feeling of expansive well being. As the drug comes in contact with the brain, which is the control center for all thoughts, the neurotransmitter called serotonin is alerted. Serotonin controls our sensations of hunger, fatigue and depression. If serotonin increases in a great amount, that’s when the user feels satisfied and no guilt for decision on taking the drug. Ecstasy is taken in the form of pills, though there are different types of pills. According to some sources, six new designs are produced every month. Some include red and black capsules, known as â€Å"Dennis the Menace†, â€Å"White Doves†, and â€Å"Hamburgers†. An Ecstasy high can last from six to 24 hours, with the average â€Å"trip† lasting only about three to four hours. Ecstasy has the tendency to break down barriers between therapists and patients, lovers, and family members. Many of the risk user’s face with MDMA are similar to those of cocaine. Ecstasy causes many psychological difficulties, including confusion, depression, sleep problems, drug craving, severe anxiety, and paranoia-during and sometimes weeks after taking MDMA. Ecstasy causes confusion because it’s usually taken at a club where a lot of people attend and loud music is played. Ecstasy is a tolerant drug. In order to get the same effects after a period of time; the user needs to increase the dosage. MDMA has also shown some cases of liver damage and heart attacks. Although research has not yielded evidence of Ecstasy-induced brain damage in humans, heavy administration of the drug has produced neurological damage in rats and monkeys.

T.S Elliot: Threatening Women :: essays research papers fc

Threatening Women   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A reoccurring theme in much of Eliot’s poetry is the figure or figures of threatening women. Eliot includes his intimidation of women in a lot of poetry he writes. However, with some of his later poetry his feeling towards women changes. He goes from fearing them and feeling threatened to almost celebrating them. When comparing his work in â€Å"The Wasteland† to his work in â€Å"Marina† you can definitely sense a change in his feelings. Could this change in his poetry be a result of his estranged relationship with his first wife and the beginning of a happy one with his second? Being that a lot of his poetry was based on his relationships with women this notion is quite possible when delving further into the meaning of his poetry. Eliot’s usage of threatening women in his poetry changes as his relationships with women changes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To get a better understanding of this one must understand the relationship between Eliot and the women in his life. Vivien Haigh-Wood was his first wife. He met Vivien in 1915 and married her that same year. Neither of their parents knew of the courtship. She was of the English upper-middleclass. She was very intelligent and lively, but she was also very unstable, unknown to Eliot. From the start neither one of them could understand the other (T.S Eliot par.7). Vivien was extremely controlling and jealous, and embarrassing to take out socially. She drained Eliot with her constant illness and nearly drove him to a nervous breakdown (par. 9). Vivien was in and out of mental hospitals from 1928 and on. Then in 1932 Eliot was offered a job lecturing at Harvard. He saw this as his chance out of his unhappy marriage. So he went to the United States and filed for a legal separation from Vivien (par.13). In 1947 Eliot was shattered by the news that Vivien had passed away in a private mental hospital (par.15). Eliot met his next love interest in 1949. She was his secretary at Fabres, her name was Valerie Fletcher. After working with her for 8 years he finally proposed in 1956 (T.S Eliot par.17). They were married in 1957. Valerie was only 30 and Eliot was 68. Not many of his friends stopped him from this happiness. He told friends, â€Å"I am the luckiest man in the world.† He was very jolly during this time in his life (par.

The Geography of the Olympics

The London 2012 Olympics has had a massive effect on the world, in particular the UK. Geographically speaking the Olympic park is located in Stratford, East London. The Olympics is obviously a huge financial outlay, but it is not just for the 2 weeks of the games. Urban regeneration: The Stratford area was previously a under developed and unpleasant area of London. Due to the Olympics the ?4 billion urban regeneration of the 73 hectares of land within the M25 has been started, with Stratford at its heart. The new facilities will include over 100 shops, leisure facilities, hotels and schools. One area of Stratford is currently being developed to be the most significant business district since Canary Wharf, this is planned to provide space for up to 30’000 workers. Stratford’s residents have also benefitted from the athlete’s village, the poor standard of the previous housing has led to their demolition and residents will now be able to access the former athlete’s village as part of an affordable/social housing scheme. The inclusion of 11’000 new homes in the Olympic park area will provide what Boris Johnson dubbed â€Å"the most important urban regeneration project in the next 25 years. It was perhaps most needed in this area of London as it had one of the lowest GDP’s in Britain with unemployment peaking at 20% after the demise of what were once the world’s largest docks. The area was very undesirable and often dubbed stinky Stratford because of the slaughterhouses and noxious industries that operated there. A consequence of all this was the housing, before the Olympics it consisted of post-world war prefabs. (Sources: Gaurdian. co. uk/Live discussion- regeneration/ July 2012 & London2012. com/ Regeneration games/November 2011) Transport: With 204 countries competing in the 2012 and over 11 million tickets on sale, people from all around the globe will be travelling to see Olympic events. This influx of people needs significant public transport and a superb infrastructure in order to run smoothly. International arrivals/departures by plane relied on the continuous operation of major airports around the world and the transport links directly to major areas of London in particular, Stratford. This was facilitated by regular trains and buses running between the locations. Since the London 2012 games, Stratford train station has become the third largest station in the UK for the number of trains stopping there. The People: As well as including thousands of people from around the world the Olympics also managed to attract all age groups from young children to pensioners. This sets the Olympics apart from other events; the ability to include such a vast age range is incredibly hard it is event such as the Olympics that enable such a large demographic to come together. For the first time in Olympic history there was a female team member from each of the competing countries, this was a particular change for Saudi Arabia who let two women into the team this year in contrast to none in its Olympic history. The Finances: In the background of the photo it is clear to see the large steel structure. This was donated by Lakshmi Mittal, the owner of ArcelorMittal which is the world's leading integrated steel and mining company. The tower is named the ‘Orbit’ and is located in Orbit Circus to the East of the Olympic Stadium. Mr Mittal has long been a supporter of the Olympics, setting up a trust for aspiring Indian athletes after Indian won only one medal in the 2000 Olympics. Despite being of Indian origin he decided to fund the project in the UK, this clearly demonstrates a sense of globalisation as financial support came from philanthropists all over the world. The economic effects of the Olympics have also been demonstrated by many large corporations, such as Whitbread, the group including Premier Inn, 4 restaurant chains and Costa Coffee. They revealed that sales had pushed Whitbread to the top of the FTSE 100 risers, up 106p to ?22. 05. An average increase of around 5% across the group. Furthermore the construction of the Olympic sites has created 46’000 jobs, much of the workforce sourced locally to retain the financial benefits within the local area. Moreover the active encouragement of a healthy lifestyle generated by the Olympics has a significant impact upon the attitudes viewers have about sport and their health. Theoretically the long term effects of the Olympics could mean the government saves money in areas such as health care treatments associated with obesity and unhealthy living. This in turn would enable a higher proportion of taxes to be spent on further urban regeneration or other public interests. (Sources: Gaurdian. co. uk/Live discussion- regeneration/ July 2012 & Whitbread PLC/ Trading Update/ September 2012) The Economic benefits of the Olympics were hyped up to an un-believable level by some sources, figures circulated at around ?3. Billion from respected organizations such as Visa. This would have meant a 3. 5% rise in the UK’s overall economic output annually. It was also expected that between 2013-2015, all the UK regions would benefit financially totaling 2. 74 Billion in extra money spent by visitors. When broken down into sectors, the High street retailers were expected to gain the most totaling ?705 million, surprisingly the transport sector faired as the lowest e arner totaling just ?81 million. Therefore Visa came to the conclusion that the total ‘economic legacy’ would be ?5. 3 Billion by 2015. However, now the main Olympic Games have come to an end analysts, are broadcasting a contrasting opinions based on the financial figures from the games. The more realistic increase in the nation’s output for 2012 is likely to be around 1%, less than a third of the original predictions for the Olympics alone. This 1% would also include the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee which was estimated to have increase output by 0. 4% along with the 0. 1% of growth gained from ticket sales (doesn’t count as the Olympic effect) to a total of 0. %. So, even without the Olympic effect, output should increase by 0. 5% between the second and third quarters. For the economy to register even zero growth in 2012 as a whole output needs to rise by 1% this quarter and remain at that level in the final quarter. Several major think-tank’s and The Bank of England have cut the ir UK growth predictions to between 0% and -0. 7% after disappointing Olympic revenue. (Source: Visa Europe/Economic impact report/ July 2011 & Guardian. co. uk/Olympics-why the British economy isn’t a winner/August 2012)

Grill case Essay

In this case, we can appreciate the Sunset Grill at Blue has operational failures on management of capacity and demand which should be considered to solve to get success. Also it explains how the Sunset Grill at Blue was a restaurant which his aimed was to provide affordable meals that appealed to the entire family during their vacations. This restaurant offered breakfast items and lunch menu through the day. The franchisor of this restaurant always was focused on how he could save waiting time to the client when they come to eat in the restaurant instead of customer’s satisfaction. For this reasons, the owner evaluated important points about the service he has on the restaurant. First, he had a strict police of no-substitutions plates even when they brought the wrong plate and he knows that was bringing complains from the customers. In addition, the franchisor thought that maybe he could reduce items from the menu. Also, he realized they have more clients during the weekend and for that reason he decided to hire one runner staff who just delivers the food from the kitchen to the tables, allowing serves to serve customers more efficiently. No concern for the client No waiting area The Sunset Grill was not able to making a special area for the clients give them a place more comfortable at the restaurant if they need to wait. As the case mentioned, the client had to wait around 40 to 50 minutes to get the table and order their food. The lack of this waiting area, was affecting directly to the clients. They could be losing some of them because they can find another place without waiting that time. Also, nobody wants to wait 50 minutes for a table on an uncomfortable place. No customer feedback â€Å"The relationship with the customers is of paramount importance because it is a source of innovation and differentiation† (service management, operations strategy, Information Technology, Fitzsimmons. J, 7th edition ). The franchisor of Sunset Grill shows he didn’t have any relationship with the clients in order to get feedback to improve the restaurant. He focused his business on reduce the time to their clients, instead of worry about client’s satisfaction. The first point the owner of a company or business should do, is create a close relationship with the customer in order to give them what they need or what they want.

Healthy Eating Essay

Healthy eating tip 1: Set yourself up for success To set yourself up for success, think about planning a healthy diet as a number of small, manageable steps rather than one big drastic change. If you approach the changes gradually and with commitment, you will have a healthy diet sooner than you think. Simplify. Instead of being overly concerned with counting calories or measuring portion sizes, think of your diet in terms of color, variety, and freshness. This way it should be easier to make healthy choices. Focus on finding foods you love and easy recipes that incorporate a few fresh ingredients. Gradually, your diet will become healthier and more delicious. Start slow and make changes to your eating habits over time. Trying to make your diet healthy overnight isn’t realistic or smart. Changing everything at once usually leads to cheating or giving up on your new eating plan. Make small steps, like adding a salad (full of different color vegetables) to  your diet once a day or switching from butter to olive oil when cooking. As your small changes become habit, you can continue to add more healthy choices to your diet. Every change you make to improve your diet matters. You don’t have to be perfect and you don’t have to completely eliminate foods you enjoy to have a healthy diet. The long term goal is to feel good, have more energy, and reduce the risk of cancer and disease. Don’t let your missteps derail you—every healthy food choice you make counts. Think of water and exercise as food groups in your diet. Water. Water helps flush our systems of waste products and toxins, yet many people go through life dehydrated—causing tiredness, low energy, and headaches. It’s common to mistake thirst for hunger, so staying well hydrated will also help you make healthier food choices. Exercise. Find something active that you like to do and add it to your day, just like you would add healthy greens, blueberries, or salmon. The benefits of lifelong exercise are abundant and regular exercise may even motivate you to make healthy food choices a habit. Healthy eating tip 2: Moderation is key People often think of healthy eating as an all or nothing proposition, but a key foundation for any healthy diet is moderation. But what is moderation? How much is a moderate amount? That really depends on you and your overall eating habits. The goal of healthy eating is to develop a diet that you can maintain for life, not just a few weeks or months, or until you’ve hit your ideal weight. So try to think of moderation in terms of balance. Despite what certain fad diets would have you believe, we all need a balance of carbohydrates, protein, fat, fiber, vitamins, and minerals to sustain a healthy body. For most of us, moderation or balance means eating less than we do now. More specifically, it means eating far less of the unhealthy stuff (unrefined sugar, saturated fat, for example) and more of the healthy (such as fresh fruit and vegetables). But it doesn’t mean eliminating the foods you love. Eating bacon for breakfast once a week, for example, could be considered moderation if you follow it with a healthy lunch and dinner–but not if you follow it with a box of donuts and a sausage pizza. If you eat 100 calories  of chocolate one afternoon, balance it out by deducting 100 calories from your evening meal. If you’re still hungry, fill up with an extra serving of fresh vegetables. Try not to think of certain foods as â€Å"off-limits.† When you ban certain foods or food groups, it is natural to want those foods more, and then feel like a failure if you give in to temptation. If you are drawn towards sweet, salty, or unhealthy foods, start by reducing portion sizes and not eating them as often. Later you may find yourself craving them less or thinking of them as only occasional indulgences. Think smaller portions. Serving sizes have ballooned recently, particularly in restaurants. When dining out, choose a starter instead of an entree, split a dish with a friend, and don’t order supersized anything. At home, use smaller plates, think about serving sizes in realistic terms, and start small. If you don’t feel satisfied at the end of a meal, try adding more leafy green vegetables or rounding off the meal with fresh fruit. Visual cues can help with portion sizes–your serving of meat, fish, or chicken should be the size of a deck of cards, a slice of bread should be the size of a CD case, and half a cup of mashed potato, rice, or pasta is about the size of a traditional light bulb. Healthy eating tip 3: It’s not just what you eat, it’s how you eat Healthy eating is about more than the food on your plate—it is also about how you think about food. Healthy eating habits can be learned and it is important to slow down and think about food as nourishment rather than just something to gulp down in between meetings or on the way to pick up the kids. Eat with others whenever possible. Eating with other people has numerous social and emotional benefits—particularly for children—and allows you to model healthy eating habits. Eating in front of the TV or computer often leads to mindless overeating. Take time to chew your food and enjoy mealtimes. Chew your food slowly, savoring every bite. We tend to rush though our meals, forgetting to actually taste the flavors and feel the textures of our food. Reconnect with the joy of eating. Listen to your body. Ask yourself if you are really hungry, or have a glass of water to see if you are thirsty instead of hungry. During a meal, stop eating before you  feel full. It actually takes a few minutes for your brain to tell your body that it has had enough food, so eat slowly. Eat breakfast, and eat smaller meals throughout the day. A healthy breakfast can jumpstart your metabolism, and eating small, healthy meals throughout the day (rather than the standard three large meals) keeps your energy up and your metabolism going. Avoid eating at night. Try to eat dinner earlier in the day and then fast for 14-16 hours until breakfast the next morning. Early studies suggest that this simple dietary adjustment—eating only when you’re most active and giving your digestive system a long break each day—may help to regulate weight. After-dinner snacks tend to be high in fat and calories so are best avoided, anyway. Healthy eating tip 4: Fill up on colorful fruits and vegetables Fruits and vegetables are the foundation of a healthy diet. They are low in calories and nutrient dense, which means they are packed with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber. Try to eat a rainbow of fruits and vegetables every day and with every meal—the brighter the better. Colorful, deeply colored fruits and vegetables contain higher concentrations of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants—and different colors provide different benefits, so eat a variety. Aim for a minimum of five portions each day. Some great choices include: Greens. Branch out beyond bright and dark green lettuce. Kale, mustard greens, broccoli, and Chinese cabbage are just a few of the options—all packed with calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, zinc, and vitamins A, C, E, and K. Sweet vegetables. Naturally sweet vegetables—such as corn, carrots, beets, sweet potatoes, yams, onions, and squash—add healthy sweetness to your meals and reduce your cravings for other sweets. Fruit. Fruit is a tasty, satisfying way to fill up on fiber, vitamins, and antioxidants. Berries are cancer-fighting, apples provide fiber, oranges and mangos offer vitamin C, and so on. The importance of getting vitamins from food—not pills The antioxidants and other nutrients in fruits and vegetables help protect against certain types of cancer and other diseases. And while advertisements  abound for supplements promising to deliver the nutritional benefits of fruits and vegetables in pill or powder form, research suggests that it’s just not the same. A daily regimen of nutritional supplements is not going to have the same impact of eating right. That’s because the benefits of fruits and vegetables don’t come from a single vitamin or an isolated antioxidant. The health benefits of fruits and vegetables come from numerous vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals working together synergistically. They can’t be broken down into the sum of their parts or replicated in pill form. Healthy eating tip 5: Eat more healthy carbs and whole grains Choose healthy carbohydrates and fiber sources, especially whole grains, for long lasting energy. In addition to being delicious and satisfying, whole grains are rich in phytochemicals and antioxidants, which help to protect against coronary heart disease, certain cancers, and diabetes. Studies have shown people who eat more whole grains tend to have a healthier heart. A quick definition of healthy carbs and unhealthy carbs Healthy carbs (sometimes known as good carbs) include whole grains, beans, fruits, and vegetables. Healthy carbs are digested slowly, helping you feel full longer and keeping blood sugar and insulin levels stable. Unhealthy carbs (or bad carbs) are foods such as white flour, refined sugar, and white rice that have been stripped of all bran, fiber, and nutrients. Unhealthy carbs digest quickly and cause spikes in blood sugar levels and energy. Tips for eating more healthy carbs Include a variety of whole grains in your healthy diet, including whole wheat, brown rice, millet, quinoa, and barley. Experiment with different grains to find your favorites. Make sure you’re really getting whole grains. Be aware that the words stone-ground, multi-grain, 100% wheat, or bran can  be deceptive. Look for the words â€Å"whole grain† or â€Å"100% whole wheat† at the beginning of the ingredient list. In the U.S., Canada, and some other countries, check for the Whole Grain Stamps that distinguish between partial whole grain and 100% whole grain. Try mixing grains as a first step to switching to whole grains. If whole grains like brown rice and whole wheat pasta don’t sound good at first, start by mixing what you normally use with the whole grains. You can gradually increase the whole grain to 100%. Avoid: Refined foods such as breads, pastas, and breakfast cereals that are not whole grain. Healthy eating tip 6: Enjoy healthy fats & avoid unhealthy fats Good sources of healthy fat are needed to nourish your brain, heart, and cells, as well as your hair, skin, and nails. Foods rich in certain omega-3 fats called EPA and DHA are particularly important and can reduce cardiovascular disease, improve your mood, and help prevent dementia. Add to your healthy diet: Monounsaturated fats, from plant oils like canola oil, peanut oil, and olive oil, as well as avocados, nuts (like almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans), and seeds (such as pumpkin, sesame). Polyunsaturated fats, including Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids, found in fatty fish such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies, sardines, and some cold water fish oil supplements. Other sources of polyunsaturated fats are unheated sunflower, corn, soybean, flaxseed oils, and walnuts. Reduce or eliminate from your diet: Saturated fats, found primarily in animal sources including red meat and whole milk dairy products. Trans fats, found in vegetable shortenings, some margarines, crackers, candies, cookies, snack foods, fried foods, baked goods, and other processed foods made with partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. Healthy eating tip 7: Put protein in perspective Protein gives us the energy to get up and go—and keep going. Protein in food is broken down into the 20 amino acids that are the body’s basic building blocks for growth and energy, and essential for maintaining cells, tissues, and organs. A lack of protein in our diet can slow growth, reduce muscle  mass, lower immunity, and weaken the heart and respiratory system. Protein is particularly important for children, whose bodies are growing and changing daily. Here are some guidelines for including protein in your healthy diet: Try different types of protein. Whether or not you are a vegetarian, trying different protein sources—such as beans, nuts, seeds, peas, tofu, and soy products—will open up new options for healthy mealtimes. Beans: Black beans, navy beans, garbanzos, and lentils are good options. Nuts: Almonds, walnuts, pistachios, and pecans are great choices. Soy products: Try tofu, soy milk, tempeh, and veggie burgers for a change. Avoid salted or sugary nuts and refried beans. Downsize your portions of protein. Many people in the West eat too much protein. Try to move away from protein being the center of your meal. Focus on equal servings of protein, whole grains, and vegetables. Focus on quality sources of protein, like fresh fish, chicken or turkey, tofu, eggs, beans, or nuts. When you are having meat, chicken, or turkey, buy meat that is free of hormones and antibiotics. Healthy eating tip 8: Add calcium for strong bones Calcium is one of the key nutrients that your body needs in order to stay strong and healthy. It is an essential building block for lifelong bone health in both men and women, as well as many other important functions. You and your bones will benefit from eating plenty of calcium-rich foods, limiting foods that deplete your body’s calcium stores, and getting your daily dose of magnesium and vitamins D and K—nutrients that help calcium do its job. Recommended calcium levels are 1000 mg per day, 1200 mg if you are over 50 years old. Take a vitamin D and calcium supplement if you don’t get enough of these nutrients from your diet. Good sources of calcium include: Dairy: Dairy products are rich in calcium in a form that is easily digested and absorbed by the body. Sources include milk, yogurt, and cheese. Vegetables and greens: Many vegetables, especially leafy green ones, are rich sources of calcium. Try turnip greens, mustard greens, collard greens, kale, romaine lettuce, celery, broccoli, fennel, cabbage, summer squash, green beans, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, and crimini mushrooms. Beans: For another rich source of calcium, try black beans, pinto beans, kidney beans, white beans, black-eyed peas, or baked beans. Healthy eating tip 9: Limit sugar and salt If you succeed in planning your diet around fiber-rich fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, and good fats, you may find yourself naturally cutting back on foods that can get in the way of your healthy diet—sugar and salt. Sugar Sugar causes energy ups and downs and can add to health and weight problems. Unfortunately, reducing the amount of candy, cakes, and desserts we eat is only part of the solution. Often you may not even be aware of the amount of sugar you’re consuming each day. Large amounts of added sugar can be hidden in foods such as bread, canned soups and vegetables, pasta sauce, margarine, instant mashed potatoes, frozen dinners, fast food, soy sauce, and ketchup. Here are some tips: Avoid sugary drinks. One 12-oz soda has about 10 teaspoons of sugar in it, more than the daily recommended limit! Try sparkling water with lemon or a splash of fruit juice. Eat naturally sweet food such as fruit, peppers, or natural peanut butter to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Spirit Bound Chapter Nine

ROBERT DORU WAS EASY TO SPOT. It wasn't because he looked like Victor. It wasn't even because of any dramatic running-toward-each-other reunion type thing between him and his brother. Rather, it was Lissa's mind that tipped me off. I saw Robert through her eyes, the golden aura of a spirit user lighting up his corner of the restaurant like a star. It caught her by surprise, and she stumbled briefly. Spirit users were too rare a sight for her to be fully used to them. Seeing auras was something she could tune in or out, and just before â€Å"turning his off,† she noted that even though his had the brilliant gold she saw in Adrian, there was also a feel of instability to it. Sparks of other colors flashed there too, but they trembled and flickered. She wondered if it was a mark of spirit's insanity setting in. His eyes lit up as Victor approached the table, but the two didn't hug or touch. Victor simply sat down beside his brother. The rest of us stood there awkwardly for a moment. The whole situation was too weird. But it was the reason we'd come, and after several more seconds, my friends and I joined the brothers at the table. â€Å"Victor†¦Ã¢â‚¬  breathed Robert, eyes wide. Robert might have had some of the Dashkov facial features, but his eyes were brown, not green. His hands toyed with a napkin. â€Å"I can't believe it†¦. I've wanted to see you for so long†¦.† Victor's voice was gentle, as it had been on the phone, as if he were talking to a child. â€Å"I know, Robert. I missed you too.† â€Å"Are you staying? Can you come back and stay with me?† Part of me wanted to snap that that was a ridiculous idea, but the desperation in Robert's voice sparked a tiny bit of pity in me. I remained silent, simply watching the drama before me unfold. â€Å"I'd hide you. It'd be great. Just the two of us.† Victor hesitated. He wasn't stupid. Despite my vague claims on the plane, he knew the odds of me letting him go were nonexistent. â€Å"I don't know,† he said quietly. â€Å"I don't know.† The waiter's arrival jolted us out of our haze, and we all ordered drinks. Adrian ordered a gin and tonic and wasn't even carded. I wasn't sure if it was because he looked twenty-one or was convincing enough with spirit. Regardless, I wasn't thrilled about it. Alcohol muted spirit. We were in a precarious situation, and I would have liked him at full strength. Of course, considering he'd been drinking earlier, it probably didn't matter now. After the waiter left, Robert seemed to notice the rest of us. His eyes passed over Eddie quickly, sharpened at Lissa and Adrian, and lingered on me for a long time. I stiffened, not liking the scrutiny. He finally turned back to his brother. â€Å"Who have you brought, Victor?† Robert still had that oblivious, scattered air to him but it was lit with suspicion now. Fear and paranoia. â€Å"Who are these children? Two spirit users and†¦Ã¢â‚¬  His gaze fell on me again. He was reading my aura. â€Å"One of the shadow-kissed?† For a moment, I was astonished at his use of the term. Then I remembered what Mark, Oksana's husband, had told me. Robert had once been bonded to a dhampir–and that dhampir had died, drastically speeding up the deterioration of Robert's mind. â€Å"They're friends,† said Victor smoothly. â€Å"Friends who'd like to talk to you and ask you some questions.† Robert frowned. â€Å"You're lying. I can tell. And they don't consider you a friend. They're tense. They keep their distance from you.† Victor didn't deny the friend claim. â€Å"Nonetheless, they need your help, and I promised it to them. It was the price for me being allowed to visit you.† â€Å"You shouldn't have made promises for me.† Robert's napkin was now in shreds. I kind of wanted to give him mine. â€Å"But didn't you want to see me?† asked Victor winningly. His tone was warm, his smile almost genuine. Robert looked troubled. Confused. I was again reminded of a child and was starting to have my doubts that this guy had ever transformed a Strigoi. He was spared an answer yet again when our drinks arrived. None of us had even picked up our menus, much to the waiter's obvious annoyance. He left, and I opened mine without really seeing it. Victor then introduced us to Robert, as formally as he might at any diplomatic function. Prison hadn't dulled his sense of royal etiquette. Victor gave first names only. Robert turned back to me, that frown still on his face, and glanced between Lissa and me. Adrian had said that whenever we were together, our auras showed that we were linked. â€Å"A bond†¦ I've almost forgotten what it was like†¦ but Alden. I've never forgotten Alden†¦Ã¢â‚¬  His eyes grew dreamy and almost vacant. He was reliving a memory. â€Å"I'm sorry,† I said, surprised to hear the sympathy in my words. This was hardly the harsh interrogation I'd envisioned. â€Å"I can only imagine what it must have been like†¦ losing him†¦.† The dreamy eyes grew sharp and hard. â€Å"No. You cannot. It's like nothing you can imagine. Nothing. Right now†¦ right now†¦ you have the world. A universe of senses beyond those of others, an understanding of another person that no one can have. To lose that†¦ to have that ripped away†¦ it would make you wish for death.† Wow. Robert was pretty good at killing conversation, and we all kind of sat there hoping the waiter would return this time. When he did, we all made halfhearted attempts at ordering food–except Robert–most of us deciding on the spot. The restaurant served Asian cuisine, and I ordered the first thing I saw on the menu: an egg roll sampler. With food ordered, Victor continued taking the firm hand with Robert that I seemed incapable of managing. â€Å"Will you help them? Will you answer their questions?† I had a feeling that Victor was pushing Robert on this not so much as a way to pay back us rescuing him, but rather because Victor's scheming nature was dying to know everyone's secrets and motivations. Robert sighed. Whenever he looked at Victor, there was such a strong expression of devotion and even idol worship. Robert probably couldn't refuse his brother anything. He was the perfect type to play into Victor's plans, and I realized I should possibly be grateful that Robert had grown unstable. If he'd been in full control of his powers, Victor would never have bothered with Lissa last time. He would have already had his own private spirit wielder to use however he wanted. â€Å"What do you want to know?† asked Robert blearily. He addressed me, apparently recognizing my leadership. I glanced at my friends for moral support and received none. Neither Lissa nor Adrian approved of this mission in the first place, and Eddie still didn't know its purpose. I swallowed, steeling myself, and directed my full attention to Robert. â€Å"We heard you freed a Strigoi once. That you were able to convert him–or her–back to their original state.† Surprise flashed on Victor's usually composed face. He certainly hadn't expected this. â€Å"Where did you hear this?† demanded Robert. â€Å"From a couple I met in Russia. Their names are Mark and Oksana.† â€Å"Mark and Oksana†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Again, Robert's gaze slipped away for a moment. I had a feeling this happened a lot, that he didn't spend much time in reality. â€Å"I didn't know they were still together.† â€Å"They are. They're doing really great.† I needed him back in the present. â€Å"Is it true? Did you do what they said? Is it possible?† Robert's responses were always preceded by a pause. â€Å"Her.† â€Å"Huh?† â€Å"It was a woman. I freed her.† I gasped in spite of myself, hardly daring to process his words. â€Å"You're lying.† It was Adrian who spoke, his tone harsh. Robert glanced at him with an expression amused and scornful. â€Å"And who are you to say that? How can you tell? You've bruised and abused your powers so much, it's a wonder you can even touch the magic anymore. And all these things you do to yourself†¦ it doesn't truly help, does it? Spirit's punishment still affects you†¦ soon you won't be able to tell reality from dream†¦.† The words stunned Adrian for a moment, but he kept going. â€Å"I don't need any physical signs to see that you're lying. I know you are because what you're describing is impossible. There's no way to save a Strigoi. When they're gone, they're gone. They're dead. Undead. Forever .† â€Å"That which is dead doesn't always stay dead†¦.† Robert's words weren't directed at Adrian. They were spoken to me. I shivered. â€Å"How? How did you do it?† â€Å"With a stake. She was killed with a stake, and in doing so, was brought back to life.† â€Å"Okay,† I said. â€Å"That is a lie. I've killed plenty of Strigoi with stakes, and believe me, they stay dead.† â€Å"Not just any stake.† Robert's fingers danced along the edge of his glass. â€Å"A special stake.† â€Å"A stake charmed with spirit,† said Lissa suddenly. He lifted his eyes to her and smiled. It was a creepy smile. â€Å"Yes. You are a clever, clever girl. A clever, gentle girl. Gentle and kind. I can see it in your aura.† I stared off at the table, my mind in overdrive. A stake charmed with spirit. Silver stakes were charmed with the four main Moroi elements: earth, air, water, and fire. It was that infusion of life that destroyed the undead force within a Strigoi. With our recent discovery of how to charm objects with spirit, infusing a stake had never even occurred to us. Spirit healed. Spirit had brought me back from the dead. In joining with the other elements within a stake, was it truly possible that the twisted darkness that gripped Strigoi could be obliterated, thus restoring that person to their rightful state? I was grateful for the food's arrival because my brain was still moving sluggishly. The egg rolls provided a welcome opportunity to think. â€Å"Is it really that easy?† I asked at last. Robert scoffed. â€Å"It's not easy at all.† â€Å"But you just said†¦ you just said we need a spirit-charmed stake. And then I kill a Strigoi with it.† Or well, not kill. The technicalities were irrelevant. His smile returned. â€Å"Not you. You can't do it.† â€Å"Then who†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I stopped, the rest of my words dying on my lips. â€Å"No. No.† â€Å"The shadow-kissed don't have the gift of life. Only the spirit-blessed,† he explained. â€Å"The question is: Who's capable of doing it? Gentle Girl or Drunken Sod?† His eyes flicked between Lissa and Adrian. â€Å"My wager would be on Gentle Girl.† Those words were what snapped me out of my stunned state. In fact, they were what shattered this whole thing, this far-fetched dream of saving Dimitri. â€Å"No,† I repeated. â€Å"Even if it was possible–and I'm not sure if I believe you–she can't do it. I won't let her.† And in a turn of events almost as astonishing as Robert's revelation, Lissa spun toward me, anger flooding our bond. â€Å"And since when can you tell me what I can or can't do?† â€Å"Since I don't recall you ever taking guardian training and learning to stake a Strigoi,† I returned evenly, trying to keep my voice calm. â€Å"You only punched Reed, and that was hard enough.† When Avery Lazar had tried to take over Lissa's mind, she'd sent her shadow-kissed brother to do some dirty work. With my help, Lissa had punched him and kept him away. It had been beautifully executed, but she'd hated it. â€Å"I did it, didn't I?† she exclaimed. â€Å"Liss, throwing a punch is nothing like staking a Strigoi. And that's not even counting the fact that you have to get near one in the first place. You think you could get in range before one bit you or snapped your neck? No.† â€Å"I'll learn.† The determination in her voice and mind was admirable, but it took guardians decades to learn what we did–and plenty still got killed. Adrian and Eddie looked uncomfortable in the midst of our bickering, but Victor and Robert seemed both intrigued and amused. I didn't like that. We weren't here for their entertainment. I tried to deflect the dangerous topic by turning back to Robert. â€Å"If a spirit user brought back a Strigoi, then that person would become shadow-kissed.† I didn't point out the obvious conclusion to Lissa. Part of what had driven Avery crazy (aside from normal spirit usage) had been bonding with more than one person. Doing so created a very unstable situation that rapidly led all people involved into darkness and insanity. Robert's eyes grew dreamy as he stared beyond me. â€Å"Bonds form when someone dies–when their soul has actually left and moved onto the world of the dead. Bringing it back is what makes them shadow-kissed. Death's mark is upon them.† His gaze suddenly snapped onto me. â€Å"Just as it is on you.† I refused to avoid his eyes, despite the chill his words sent through me. â€Å"Strigoi are dead. Saving one would mean its soul was brought back from the world of the dead too.† â€Å"No,† he argued. â€Å"Their souls do not move on. Their souls linger†¦ neither in this world nor the next. It's wrong and unnatural. It's what makes them what they are. Killing or saving a Strigoi sends the soul back to a normal state. There is no bond.† â€Å"Then there's no danger,† Lissa said to me. â€Å"Aside from a Strigoi killing you,† I pointed out. â€Å"Rose–â€Å" â€Å"We'll finish this conversation later.† I gave her a hard look. We held each other's gazes a moment, and then she turned to Robert. There was still an obstinacy in the bond I didn't like. â€Å"How do you charm the stake?† she asked him. â€Å"I'm still learning.† I again started to chastise her and then thought better of it. Maybe Robert was wrong. Maybe all it actually took to convert a Strigoi was a spirit-infused stake. He only thought a spirit user had to do it because he had done it. Allegedly. Besides, I'd much rather Lissa preoccupy herself with charming than fighting. If the charm part sounded too hard, she might have to give up altogether. Robert glanced at me and then Eddie. â€Å"One of you must have a stake on you. I'll show you.† â€Å"You can't take a stake out in public,† exclaimed Adrian, in what was a remarkably wise observation. â€Å"It might be weird for humans, but it's still obvious that it's a weapon.† â€Å"He's right,† Eddie said. â€Å"We could go back to the room after dinner,† said Victor. He had that perfectly pleasant and bland look on his face. I studied him, hoping my expression showed my distrust. Even with her zeal, I could sense the hesitation in Lissa too. She wasn't keen on following any suggestion of Victor's. We'd seen in the past how desperately far Victor would go in attempting to fulfill his plans. He'd convinced his own daughter to turn Strigoi and help him escape jail. For all we knew, he was planning the same for– â€Å"That's it,† I gasped, feeling my eyes go wide as I stared at him. â€Å"That's what?† Victor asked. â€Å"That's why you had Natalie turn. You thought†¦ you knew about this. What Robert had done. You were going to use her Strigoi strength and then have him turn her back.† Victor's already pale face went paler, and he seemed to age before our eyes. His smug look disappeared, and he looked away. â€Å"Natalie is dead and long gone,† he said stiffly. â€Å"There's no point in discussing her.† Some of us made an attempt to eat after that, but my egg roll seemed tasteless now. Lissa and I were thinking the same thing. Among all of Victor's sins, I'd always considered him convincing his own daughter to turn Strigoi to be the most awful. It was what had really sealed the deal for me about him being a monster. Suddenly, I was forced to reevaluate things–forced to reevaluate him. If he'd known he could bring her back, it made what he had done terrible–but not as terrible. He was still evil in my mind, no question. But if he had believed he could bring Natalie back, then that meant he believed in Robert's power. There was still no way I was letting Lissa near a Strigoi, but this incredible tale had become slightly more credible. I couldn't let it go without further investigation. â€Å"We can go up to the room after this,† I said at last. â€Å"But not for long.† My words were to Victor and Robert. Robert seemed to have faded into his own world again, but Victor nodded. I gave Eddie a quick glance and got a curt nod of a different sort from him. He understood the risk in taking the brothers to a private place. Eddie was telling me he would be extravigilant–not that he wasn't already. By the time we finished dinner, Eddie and I were both rigid and tense. He walked near Robert, and I stayed by Victor. We kept Lissa and Adrian between the brothers. Yet, even keeping close, it was hard as we cut through the crowded casino. People stopped in our path, walked around us, through us†¦ it was chaos. Twice, our group got split by oblivious tourists. We weren't too far from the elevators, but I was getting uneasy about the possibility of Victor or Robert running off through the mob of people â€Å"We need to get out of this crowd,† I shouted over to Eddie. He gave me another of his quick nods and took an abrupt left that caught me by surprise. I steered Victor in that same direction, and Lissa and Adrian sidestepped to keep up with us. I was puzzled until I saw that we were approaching a hall with an EMERGENCY EXIT sign on it. Away from the busy casino, the noise level dimmed. â€Å"Figure there are probably stairs here,† Eddie explained. â€Å"Crafty guardian.† I flashed him a smile. Another turn showed us a janitorial closet on our right and ahead of us: a door with a symbol for stairs. The door appeared to lead both outside and to upper floors. â€Å"Brilliant,† I said. â€Å"You're, like, on the tenth floor,† pointed out Adrian. It was the first time he'd spoken in a while. â€Å"Nothing like a little exercise to–damn.† I came to an abrupt halt in front of the door. It had a small warning sign saying that an alarm would go off if the door was opened. â€Å"Figures.† â€Å"Sorry,† said Eddie, like he was personally responsible. â€Å"Not your fault,† I said, turning. â€Å"Back we go.† We'd have to take our chances in the crowd. Maybe the roundabout detour had tired Victor and Robert out enough to make escape unappealing. Neither of them was that young anymore, and Victor was still in bad shape. Lissa was too tense to think much about being led around, but Adrian gave me a look that clearly said he thought this traipsing was a waste of his time. Of course, he thought this whole Robert thing was a waste of time. I was honestly surprised he was coming with us at all back to the room. I would have expected him to stay in the casino with his cigarettes and another drink. Eddie, leading our group, took a few steps back toward the casino down the hallway. And then it hit me. â€Å"Stop!† I screamed. He responded instantly, coming to a halt in the narrow space. A bit of confusion followed. Victor stumbled into Eddie in surprise, and then Lissa stumbled into Victor. Instinct made Eddie reach for his stake, but mine was already out. I'd grabbed it as soon as the nausea had swept me. There were Strigoi between us and the casino.

Living at home and living outside of home Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Living at home and living outside of home - Essay Example Consequently, the paper would draw a comparative assessment between these two integral facets of modern day life of individuals i.e. living at home and living outside of home. Living at home provides an individual with certain substantial advantages. From the viewpoint of an elderly person, living at home can facilitate to obtain necessary care and medication in familiar surroundings which at times become imperative to ensure health and safety. With regard to students of schools and colleges who live at home, a significant benefit that they can obtain is that they are continuously guided and protected in the family atmosphere which lessens their worries regarding meeting the daily necessities such as food on their own. Moreover, guidance of parents can prevent them from wasting their valuable time in unproductive activities and can provide them a peaceful atmosphere where they can remain focused on their academic and other relevant goals in life. From financial point of view, living at home can enable to save a considerable amount of money which might otherwise have to be paid for the purposes such as paying rent and purchasing food among others. Moreover , getting love and care at home is an additional advantage (Nikki, â€Å"College Students Living at Home†). Conversely, a significant advantage of living outside of home for a student is that he/she can gain significant amount of experience as well as can become more responsible and independent which can provide imperative benefit to the individual to deal with various challenges in future life. They could be able to grow up more quickly and develop self-confidence on their abilities. Furthermore, students living in college campuses can have easy access of the college library which can facilitate them in their studies. They also can take advice from and consult with fellow students which are among the