Drama Coursework Development and evaluation of Disasters Essay Example For Students

Show Coursework Development and assessment of Disasters Essay Just got on board the titanic and room is well decent!! Unloaded all my garments and im going to go to the bar in a piece to meet a few fellows. The spot is stunning and cant hang tight for the excursion. Met an exquisite chap, my age, beautiful looking, meeting in at the bar tonight. Must go; send you another letter soon. Dear Aunty Nora and Uncle Bob I have quite recently put all my stuff down and I am laying on my new bed for the outing. The boat is astounding! I cannot accept how enormous it is. I will view it in some time, after I have unloaded. You will adore it here. I will go up soon to discover when I am beginning work and were it will be, I trust I am in first class, it is so rich and magnificent. I am so happy I figured out how to land this position; it is new rent of work for me! I am certain I will make the most of my outing and I trust you make the most of your vacation, I will see you when I return. Dear Family, I have quite recently shown up on the titanic and it is awesome, aside from the minor paint work, however I like my room and the eating zone is radiant and exceptionally spotless. I am unloading my garments right now, and will join the others for tea in some time. The boat is extremely indistinguishable to the one we went on a year ago with the family. Expectation you are generally having a pleasant time in London. See you when I get back. These are three postcards to show how they originally responded to the Titanic when they previously showed up here. The privileged societies didnt value it as much as the lower class travelers did and they referenced that the vessel was similar to the one they had been on before the titanic. The subsequent postcard gives you how thankful the team were to land these positions as it was an all out new life for them working with all the luxurious individuals and taking in new things. A instant message from traveler on plane before crashing into first pinnacle I love you so much, I generally will. Guarantee me that you will help the children as they grow up; I want to be with you to support you however shockingly I will be no more. You will meet with me again yet not until you have made every second count. Simply recall that I love you so much and nobody could adore you the manner in which I do well at this point. Tell the youngsters I love them, yet couldnt be with them, however will looking down at them with the heavenly attendants. Love all of you to such an extent! Xxxx If I somehow happened to coordinate the two scenes of when the plane was controlled to when the plane had been captured, I would utilize complexity to show the crowd the distinctions. At the point when the plane was in charge I would show that everything was alright utilizing facial and body articulations. The air ladies would cook for the travelers and giving travelers drinks and so on, and development would be extremely moderate. The attendants would likewise be utilizing an extremely moderate and profound manner of speaking to show typicality as this would be there ordinary daily schedule on a flight. At the point when the fear based oppressor assault begins I would show quick developments and the body and outward appearances would show the crowd stun and trouble. I would likewise show the development as the characters would be extremely stunned and would move around a great deal to show this. The peak would be quick during this part so you would show this y utilizing diverse faci al and body articulations. .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90 , .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90 .postImageUrl , .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90 .focused content territory { min-tallness: 80px; position: relative; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90 , .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90:hover , .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90:visited , .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90:active { border:0!important; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90 .clearfix:after { content: ; show: table; clear: both; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90 { show: square; change: foundation shading 250ms; webkit-progress: foundation shading 250ms; width: 100%; obscurity: 1; change: haziness 250ms; webkit-progress: mistiness 250ms; foundation shading: #95A5A6; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90:active , .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90:hover { darkness: 1; progress: murkiness 250ms; webkit-change: murkiness 250ms; foundation shading: #2C3E50; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90 .focused content region { width: 100%; position: rel ative; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90 .ctaText { outskirt base: 0 strong #fff; shading: #2980B9; text dimension: 16px; textual style weight: striking; edge: 0; cushioning: 0; text-improvement: underline; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90 .postTitle { shading: #FFFFFF; text dimension: 16px; text style weight: 600; edge: 0; cushioning: 0; width: 100%; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90 .ctaButton { foundation shading: #7F8C8D!important; shading: #2980B9; fringe: none; outskirt range: 3px; box-shadow: none; text dimension: 14px; textual style weight: intense; line-stature: 26px; moz-fringe sweep: 3px; text-adjust: focus; text-design: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-stature: 80px; foundation: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/modules/intelly-related-posts/resources/pictures/basic arrow.png)no-rehash; position: outright; right: 0; top: 0; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90:hover .ctaButton { foundation shading: #34495E!important; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e 017ed90 .focused content { show: table; stature: 80px; cushioning left: 18px; top: 0; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90-content { show: table-cell; edge: 0; cushioning: 0; cushioning right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-adjust: center; width: 100%; } .ubffbeb5bbe9ba1813ac8e7b9e017ed90:after { content: ; show: square; clear: both; } READ: How might you direct Act 3 Scene 5 from William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet? EssayWe utilized numerous writings and investigated them to get a vibe of what it resembled for those caught inside the structure. We considered a content called Fallen. For this content we investigated the manners in which we could show the various degrees of the twin towers gradually tumbling to the floor. We utilized a despite everything picture of the two structures standing and afterward another despite everything picture to show the twin towers falling apart in mid air and afterward we indicated the remains on the ground in masses. This gave extraordinary effect to the crowd since it indicated how the twin towers fell however utilizing shapes with our bodies. We at that point considered another content to concentrate on the various characters and what they experienced on this day. We utilized pretend to make the various environments. This indicated the crowd that albeit for the most part representatives were included it additionally included such individuals as retailers (beneath the twin towers), mortgage holders, bystander yet the vast majority of all, cops and fire fighters. The content investigated the various circumstances and investigated the way they (the others around the twin towers at that point) and how they responded when this occurred. We utilized freeze outline, utilization of room and moderate movement to give the crowd the correct impression of what occurred, how the individuals who werent included helped the individuals who for the most part required it right now. We would likewise make an impression by utilizing lighting methods, levels and the various settings. The bit of text was called Fallen and to represent this we would need to think and investigate the way that individuals tumbled from the various degrees of the towers. First we would need to feel that a great many people would consider this to be passing so they would place themselves in the demise position, crossed arms on chest. We would likewise think about those frightened, covering their eyes. The individuals who were seriously harmed effectively, attempting to discover any exit plan, plunging out of the structure head first. Through seeing this made us think by what other method they would hop. It would be at all various circumstances and we would show facial and body articulations in still pictures demonstrating these developments and contemplations while falling. Catastrophes Evaluation In making work dependent on the topic Disasters I feel that we were exceptionally effective and remarkable with our methodology. We utilized a few distinctive show procedures and built up these to depict the various fiascos. During our workshops we for the most part utilized despite everything pictures to make the correct image of who was progressively significant and what the characters character, peculiarities and stance. The still pictures likewise empowered us to show the crowd the various pictures that were made during the fiasco and the variety of class. We likewise utilized pretend, with the goal that we could look from various viewpoints and various perspectives.

Online Harassment and Cyber Mobs Essay Essays

Online Harassment and Cyber Mobs Essay Essays Online Harassment and Cyber Mobs Essay Online Harassment and Cyber Mobs Essay Article Topic: Digital Bullying Cyberbullying. we have all known about it and a large portion of us have even experienced it in some way or another. There is no vulnerability. that being purposefully annoyed in unfriendly habits on the Internet can hold deadly impacts for the people in question. What's more, lethal impacts were absolutely what the 15-year-old Amanda Todd endured. After grouped sorts of cyberbullying. Amanda Todd was separated to her nucleuss and on October 10 2012 she submitted implosion. Amanda Todd became universe well known for a YouTube picture. where she uncovered the entirety of the various sorts of on-line torment that she had experienced. Pretty much something very similar happened to Anita Sarkeesian. Anita propelled a web based raising support run. to make awareness of how female characters are depicted as sexual generalizations in videogames. Tragically. Anita did non only dispatch a run. however, other than the start of a clasp with unpleasant on-line torment against herself. from indiv iduals who couldn't help contradicting her endeavor. Anita is currently a significant voice with regards to ending the torment of grown-up females on the Internet. which she demonstrated in a location at the TEDxWomen occasion in 2012. It is incontestable that Anita Sarkeesian has experienced numerous adversely influenced feelings when she was badgering on the Internet. also, she is non reluctant to permit the crowd know how it resembled. She is of class using power to energize the audience’s sentiments. with the end goal for her to procure them on her side. As of now in the start of the location. she goes after the audience’s feelings: â€Å"All of my cultural media were overwhelmed with dainties of colza. power. rapes. perish †And you’ll notice that these dainties and comments were all explicitly pointing me sexual orientation. †1 As the reference appears. the words that she has picked are extremely ground-breaking. Wordss like colza. power and expire are largely words that have a quick surprise result on the crowd. which is really in support of her. Another way that she conveys is with the use of mind. On different occasions all through her location she utilizes humourous words and expressions. which advances the connection among her and the accepting frameworks. In add-on to the way that she connects with the crowd in her location. Anita Sarkeesian other than experts communicated address procedures that assist her with conveying the crowd. One representation is an expository request: â€Å"The thought being that on the off chance that you were keen on the endeavor. you could give. what's more, on the off chance that you weren’t intrigued. you could take non to give. It’s sensibly straight frontward. isn't that so? I mean what could perchance travel off base? Better believe it. †2 As it were. she is to the full aware of that the crowd realizes that something will travel wrong with the endeavor ; she only asks the request so as to benefit from the audience’s commitment. It is minimal little quick ones or strategies like these that assist her with conveying the crowd. As I brought up before. Anita designs impact in her location. This is withal non the solitary signifier of plea that she designs. Anita other than endeavors to do herself a progressively trusty individual and she does that by doing herself show up as a solid character: â€Å"Do you wan na cognize what befell my pledge drive after all that? Well preeminent. the digital riffraff neglected to quiet me. as is grounds of me being here today. †3 So despite the fact that digital riffraff attempted to quiet her. she stayed solid and rose over the impact. What's more, that strongly makes her a person to accept. In any case, how is the issue of on-line torment truly viewed? Well. in Singapore situated in Asia on-line torment is viewed with a similar sicken as in America. They have likewise experienced pointless female casualties. furthermore, they are henceforth all set through new Torahs against torment on the Internet: â€Å"Victims of torment experience the ill effects of insufficient security and face a not well characterized way when looking for resort. especially when provocation happens or overflows to everyday life. Priest for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Law. Mr K. Shanmugam. has demonstrated that new Torahs on torment will be postponed following twelvemonth. †4 Henceforth this reference. it is sheltered to express that on-line torment is non simply some neighborhood luck. be that as it may, actually a planetary activity. Else its a well known fact to anyone. that the Internet is the quickest way to disperse and divide contemplations. so if on-line torment is non yet a vocation on an overall graduated table. so it is only an issue cut before it is. On the different manus. there is ever another side of the example. also, on-line torment is no prohibition. Only every piece simple all things considered to have electronic sends with bothering illicit relationship or even Facebook messages and tweets. just as simple is it to drop it again. Some accomplish for that ground. also, different articulations as great. parcel the conviction that on-line torment is exaggerated and non an existent activity like physical terrorizing: â€Å"Cyber terrorizing is misrepresented. at that place. I said it. It is non a well known perspective to keep. yet, this is the means by which I feel about digital terrorizing issues ( †¦ ) Electronic sends can simple be separated. discussion misuses can be accounted for and instant messages can be separated. blocked or used to follow back to the transmitter. Outside of the accompanying bit which can be left to the parent to oversee. a child can be instructed how to make the rest of. †5 In spite of the fact that the reference from above is just from an on-line blogger and non another master in this impossible to miss field. it is as yet a fit delineation of how on-line torment is viewed something else. Without expressing that either position is correct or inaccurate. Anita Sarkeesian is a populating apt proof of on-line torment of grown-up females. which is sufficient ground for this subject to be talked about and perhaps spread with. Anita Sarkeesian might be a decent talker with great convincing methods. however, that does non change the way that her story is valid. Luckily. she had the valiance and solidarity to show signs of improvement of the on-line torment that she was gotten through. in any case, numerous misss like Amanda Todd don’t have a similar guts. Be that as it may. it is other than evident that electronic sends and other on-line interchanges frameworks are extremely simple to oversee. hence it is conceivable with the privilege capable skill to secure oneself from on-line torment and even digital riffraff. Regardless of the various situations regarding this matter. on-line torment is an on-going thing and it unequivocally merits joining in.

Only 8% of Leaders are Good at Both Strategy and Execution

Only 8% of Leaders are Good at Both Strategy and Execution This situation replays itself severally in many organizations across the world. The organization spends a lot of time, money and effort conducting market research.The research is excellent, and the data from the research is used to come up with a brilliant strategy that the entire board falls in love with.The CEO signs off the strategy, which is then communicated to the rest of the organization. Everyone unanimously agrees that they all got it. It’s all systems go!Once the strategy is launched, however, things start going awry. Nothing goes as expected, and most of the key performance indicators remain static, some even take a dip.  A good example of this is Nokia. Starting from the late 90’s to the early 2000’s, Nokia was the leading mobile phone Brand.Five years before the launch of the iPhone, Nokia was ready to launch its own touch operated, internet-connected device with a large display. They knew where the mobile phone market was headed and they had a strategy to dominate that market, yet they were unable to  maintain their dominant market position.When Apple released their first iPhone in 2007, they toppled Nokia from the dominant position and started a decline that ended with Nokia being sold to Microsoft in 2013.  Why does this happen?The problem here is something known as a  strategy-execution gap, a big black hole that yawns menacingly between strategy and execution. Far too many visions get swallowed by this unforgiving black hole.  One survey found out that executives claim that  40% of their strategy’s potential value gets lost due to poor execution.For organizations to remain successful, its leaders need to excel at both strategy and execution.  They need to not only know how to give a grand promise to their customers and investors, but how to deliver on this promise as well.  A brilliant strategy is good for nothing if the execution is poor.Unfortunately, most organizations continue to treat strategy and execution as separate elements.   Very often, you will find different areas of the company managing strategy and execution. The CEO, presidents and other senior management team are  typically  in charge of strategy, while the execution bit is left to the functional leaders and individual employees.Separating the two activities creates  a  risk that the  important activities and processes that drive the strategy might not get executed properly, which then undermines the importance of the risk.What is worrying is that a  2013 survey by Strategy  found that only 16% of executives excel at either strategy or execution. Even more saddening is that only half of these (8%) are good at both strategy and execution.Great business leaders realize the importance of  strategy and execution and treat them as two complimentary elements that must work together in order to achieve success.Take the case of Steve Jobs, who was recalled to Apple in 1997 in an attempt to turn around the fortunes of the  rapidly declining tech giant.Jobs came with a strategy on how to return the company to profitability, but he didn’t just share a strategy and leave it at that. He was deeply involved in the execution of the strategy, cutting down on multiple products that were in development and even convincing  Microsoft to invest $150 million in Apple, despite the two companies being rivals. The good news is that, while only few executives are exceptionally good at both strategy and execution, this is a skill that can be learnt and improved.If you want to improve your company’s performance and gain an edge over your competitors, here are some few tips on how to excel at both strategy and execution.COMMIT TO AN IDENTITYAs a leader, you first need to figure out what your organization’s identity is, what the organization stands for.Once you define this identity, commit to it and ensure everything within the organization, including your strategy, is aligned to this identity.Understand your organization’s distinctive capabilit ies and  its  unique value proposition, then ensure that your strategy is in line with these key differentiators.Avoid the temptation to chase multiple areas and markets where you have no chance of winning. A good example of a company that does this well is IKEA.IKEA grew from a single store in a Swedish forest to become the world’s largest furniture retailer with a net worth of $58.7 billion by remaining committed to its identity of “creating a better everyday life for many people.” Every undertaking by the company, from its frugal business model to its thorough research into how people actually live at home, is meant to help the company deliver on this promise.Another great example of a company that is well committed to its identity is Apple. Apple knows that they can’t do everything and do it well. Because of this, they say no to a number of great ideas and focus instead on opportunities that are in line with their identity.They understand that any project they undertake either contributes to the successful execution of their strategy or takes away vital resources, therefore they opt to focus only on projects that contribute to the successful execution of their strategy.Once you define your identity and come up with a strategy that it aligned with this identity, you need to spend time translating this strategy into clear actionable goals that can be tracked and measured. According to the  survey by Strategy, high performing business leaders spend 20% more time translating their strategy into actionable goals compared to low performing business leaders.You also need to ensure that the people who are in charge of delivering the strategy are clear on the company’s identity, the strategy and the specific actions they need to take in order for successful execution of the strategy.You should communicate frequently and make  sure that a consistent message is delivered downward throughout the organization and that everyone knows the deliverables that are required in order for the strategy to be achieved.High performing business leaders spend 12% more time ensuring that the strategy and deliverables are clear to everyone within the entire organization compared to low performing leaders.TRANSLATE THE STRATEGY INTO SHORT TERM ACTIONS AND PROCESSESA strategy is a grand, long term plan.  Without turning the strategy into everyday actions and processes, it is more likely that your grand dreams will evaporate into thin air.You need to ensure that there is a clear link between day to day (short term) activities and the overall strategy.For instance, if your strategy is to capture a new market, some of the actions that you might need to accomplish in order to successfully achieve  this strategy might include increasing your marketing activities in that market segment, setting up an office in the location for geographically targeted markets, buying out a competitor or merging with them, and so on.Asking yourself the below questions can make i t easier for you to translate your strategy into everyday actions and processes.Who will be involved? What team will handle which work? Who will be the team leaders?Are there any visible programs, such as training programs, new processes or new technologies that need to be built in order for the vision to be achieved?What impact will the strategy have on other areas of the organization? How can we enhance this (for positive impacts) or mitigate against it (for negative impacts)?What are the personal goals for each manager or employee?What resources will be required in order to execute the strategy? Do we need more time, more financial resources, more equipment or more people?How will  we  track and ensure that everyone is diligently following through with what has been decided?As a leader, you need to be deeply involved in this process. You need to provide any coaching and support that your team might need in order to achieve the desired results.  Follow up regularly to ensure that everyone meets their targets and deadlines.  If you notice that some things are not working or going according to plan, be ready to step in and readjust the rudder.You should also be ready to give immediate corrective feedback on your team’s performance.The survey by Strategy found that high performing business leaders spend 25% more time establishing the short term activities and processes required for successful execution of the strategy and 14% more time checking their progress and readjusting their course compared to low performing business leaders.LEVERAGE YOUR ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURECompany culture  is an often under-appreciated and under-utilized element within organizations.When coming up with a strategy, many organizations see company culture as an impediment rather than an asset. Smart leaders, however, know that they can leverage their organizational culture to help in the implementation of strategy.They ensure that the strategy is aligned with the  core values that defi ne organizational culture  and that they take talent management seriously.They know that strategies cannot be successfully implemented if they do not align with the company culture. This is well encapsulated in the words of Peter Drucker, who famously that ‘organizational culture eats strategy for breakfast’.Take a look at your company’s culture. What are your company’s core values? Do your employees feel a sense of community and camaraderie between each other? Is there a flow of efficient communication within the organization?Are your employees committed to learning? What behaviors and practices do you associate with your company? Does your strategy align with your company’s core values? How can you take advantage of the behaviors and practices associated with your organization to drive the strategy?Do you have forums for employees to candidly share their feedback on what works and what does not? Answering these crucial questions will help you to leverage your organizatio nal culture to drive execution.In leveraging your organizational culture, you also need to think about your role as a CEO. Many CEOs often forget that company culture starts with them. Your staff sees how you incorporate your personal values in your daily activities and emulate it. Therefore, if you want to promote an organizational culture that encourages strategy execution,  don’t forget  that it starts with you.FOCUS ON STRATEGIC PRIORITIES AND CUT COSTS TO GROW STRONGERLeaders who excel at strategy and execution have a laser focus. They know that the main purpose of a strategy is not to create goals, but to help them make choices. As a leader, you should use your strategy as a guide that helps you to identify the few key processes that have the biggest impact on the success of your organization.Once you identify these key processes, you can then focus all your attention on them and forget everything else. For instance, I have noticed that when organizations want to improve rev enue, many leaders decide to simply cut costs across the board.Smart leaders, on the other hand, totally cut back the costs on process and projects that do not matter and double down on projects that hold the highest potential.A good example of a company that did this is Lego. In 2004,  Lego was losing a million dollars a day. A decade later, in 2015, it had claimed its position as the  world’s largest target company.  How did it do this?Lego was able to turn its fortunes by marshalling its resources strategically  and cutting costs to grow. In 2004, Lego had investments in multiple industries, including areas like theme parks and clothing, yet it had no chance at dominating in these industries.Instead of sticking to the  fallacy of sunk cost, Lego decided to do away with these businesses and focus on its core business, which is making and selling toys. By doing so, Lego was able to get back to profitability.Another good example of a company that did this was Apple in 1997. When S teve Jobs came back to Apple in 1997, the company had over 18 different products, yet its sales were dismal.Realizing that the company was expending a lot of time and resources on products that were not even profitable, Steve Jobs decided to kill over 70% of the company’s products, including the Newton, the Pippin, The Twentieth Anniversary Mac, The Cube and several Mac Clones.Entire departments were dissolved, and the remaining resources were deployed to the four most important products. Within a year, a company that was almost going bankrupt posted $309 million in profits.As a leader, you should use your strategy to allocate resources strategically.  Deploy significant amounts of resources (people, time and finances) to the most important projects and processes and forget about everything else. Spending your resources on too many priorities is like trying to juggle too many balls at once.Sooner or later, all of them will end up on the ground. This  view is supported by  Strategi c’s  survey, which found that high performing leaders spend  54% more time defining strategic projects and allocating resources accordingly. They are also 36% more effective at prioritizing these important projects.SHAPE THE FUTUREIn today’s world where change, innovation, technological change, and disruption  happens  faster than you can predict,  business agility  has become  all the rage.Business pride themselves on being able to quickly respond to changes within the market. Smart leaders, however, know that simply being agile and responding to external changes as quickly as possible is not enough.That puts them in a reactive mode. Instead of constantly reacting to external changes, smart leaders shape the future by determining the change they want to see and then moving forward to create it.Starbucks is a great of a company that shaped its future. Starbuck’s customers thought they just wanted a place to have a cup of coffee.Starbuck’s CEO, Howard Schultz, however, knew t hey wanted more than coffee. He knew they wanted a place of conviviality beyond the home and the workplace, a place they could gather and connect with each other in a friendly, lively and enjoyable atmosphere.Instead of waiting for customer attitudes to change from looking for just coffee to ‘coffee and community’, Schultz went ahead and created this new concept and then dominated the new industry.Once again, Steve Jobs provides another good example on how to shape the future instead of reacting to external changes. He is quoted to have said that people don’t know what they want until you show it to them.He  opined that it is the job of companies to figure out what customers want long before the customers do and then create products that they never knew they wanted but can’t live without after using them.By introducing the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad, Apple shaped not only its future, but that of the world.Before launching these products, the masses had never even imagined about such products, yet today, people can’t live without them.To be an effective leader who  helps shape the future, you need to become proactive.  You also need to come up with proactive strategies that give your organization the freedom to chart its own path instead of constantly responding to situations that may well be out of control.You should learn how to anticipate any challenges and obstacles that might hinder the implementation of your strategy and how to anticipate customer needs and meet them even before they are expressed. Similarly, you should learn how to anticipate changes and trends within the market and capitalize on them before they become ubiquitous.According to the survey by Strategic, high performing leaders that successfully shape the future instead of constantly reacting to external changes spend 25% more time engaging with crucial stakeholders, identifying their needs and coming up with ways to meet them.They also spend 13% more time thinking proactively and planning about the future and refining their strategy. They spend more time anticipating bottlenecks and challenges and positioning their organizations for  future success.VALUE FLEXIBILITYOne of the major reasons why strategic plans fail is rigidity on the part of business leaders.Many leaders often confuse successful strategy execution with following the plan. Unfortunately, like the popular military saying goes, no battle plan survives contact with the enemy.It does not matter how well planned your strategy is, once you start implementing it, it is inevitable that you will  face  some obstacles and  challenges along the way. The most successful leaders are those who know the importance of flexibility.Instead of following rigid plans that have been rendered obsolete by the obstacles, they reach quickly and readjust their plans to maneuver around the obstacles, while at the same time ensuring they don’t lose sight of the long term goal.Leaders who excel at both strategy and e xecution are great at contingency planning.They identify all the assumptions that their strategy is based on and come up with specific action plans to help them adjust their course in case any of these assumptions changes. Caterpillar provides a good example of  business leaders  that value flexibility.In 2005, way before the  global financial crisis of 2007-2008, Caterpillar’s then CEO Jim Owens asked all the division heads to come up with contingency plans in case of a market crash. By then, business was booming for Caterpillar and its competitors. Demand was at an all-time high. No one was contemplating an economic downturn.While the move was not a popular one, the division heads nevertheless came up with contingency plans for a downturn. When the recession actually hit, the contingency plans were put into effect.While its competitors suffered huge drops in revenue, Caterpillars profits were not majorly affected. By the time the economy was rising out of the Great Recession in 2010, Caterpillar stocks were the best performing in the Dow Jones industrial average.WRAPPING UPIf you want to set your organization apart from the thousands, perhaps millions of businesses whose grand visions get swallowed up when it comes to execution, you need to stop treating strategy and execution as separate activities and start thinking of them as crucial activities that should go hand in hand.Remember, the key to nailing both strategy and execution is committing to an identity, translating your strategy into short term activities and processes, leveraging your organizational culture, focusing on strategic priorities, shaping the future and adopting flexibility.If you follow these  six tips, you will be on your way to joining  the elite 8% of business leaders who are good at both strategy and execution.

The Characteristics of a Sexually Healthy Person, Sexual Dysfunctions and Sexually Transmitted Diseases Free Essay Example, 2750 words

Some people may suffer from a form of sexual dysfunction that inhibits their ability to maximize the pleasure derived from sex. In the case of men, some are unable to get it up or get an erection. Others may experience premature ejaculation or when they get orgasm long before their partner does ore even prior to penetration. On the other hand, some may not even reach orgasm regardless of how often and how long they have sex. For women, some may experience pain while having sex due to the lack of lubrication or simply because they are not wet enough. In the same way as men, some women may also have difficulty in having an orgasm during sexual intercourse. Other women may even be too frigid to even have sex. These are just some of the common sexual dysfunctions experienced by males and females. Given the importance of sex in human beings lives, it is necessary that these dysfunctions be addressed. These sexual dysfunctions have a direct effect on how one could have children an d build a family. Moreover, these dysfunctions may have adverse psychological effects on men and women like the loss of self-confidence. Specifically for men, they may be subjected to teasing from their peers. With the prevailing macho ideology, male prowess is often indicated by how much men are able to have sex. Being teased about their ability to have sex is a big no-no for men as this would cause a definitely big blow in their ego. We will write a custom essay sample on The Characteristics of a Sexually Healthy Person, Sexual Dysfunctions and Sexually Transmitted Diseases or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/page Others go about this with their partner since having a sexual dysfunction is not only the problem of the person suffering from it but also of his/her sexual partner. Especially for long term relationships, going about this in pairs as a team may help enhance the success rate of the therapy.

Essay on Comparison of Mussolini and Hitler - 4381 Words

Comparison of Mussolini and Hitler Fascism was a totalitarian political movement that developed after 1919 as a reaction against the political and social changes brought about by World War 1 and the spread of socialism and communism. It flourished between 1919 and 1945 in several countries, mainly Germany, Spain, Italy, and Japan. Fascism is a form of totalitarian dictatorship that had ideals such as extreme nationalism, economic self sufficiency and military strength. The dictators abolished all opposition against them and basically took complete control of the lives of everyone in their country. Benito Mussolini was the founder of Italian Fascism and premier of Italy from 1922-43 and ruling as a dictator from about 1925. In 1919†¦show more content†¦He was the ruler of Germany from 1933 to 1945. He established a brutal totalitarian regime based on the ideologies of National Socialism, of Nazism. His desire for total power resulted in the devastation of World War ll, including the slaughter of millions of Jews and others whom he considered inferior human beings. In World War 1, Hitler volunteered for service in the Bavarian army, where he proved to be a dedicated courageous solider. After Germany’s defeat in 1918 he returned to Munich, where, in 1919 he joined the Nazi party. In 1921 he was elected party chairman with dictatorial powers. He soon became a key figure in Bavarian politics and by January 1933 he was appointed chancellor. Once in power Hitler quickly established himself as dictator. He started hauling off thousands of anti-Nazis to concentration camps. The economy, the media, and all cultural activities were brought under Nazi authority by making an individual’s livelihood dependent on their political loyalty. His desire was to establish German rule over Europe and other parts of the world. He realized that this would lead to a European conflict and so he started his plan to conquer Europe by invading Poland in 1939 and started World War ll . The war started off good for the Germans but once the United States entered the war they started to lose. As time passed, defeat became more certain, but Hitler refused to give up. Finally with all of Germany overrun by AlliedShow MoreRelatedA Comparison Between Hitler and Mussolini Essay example1442 Words   |  6 PagesA comparison between Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini There is no doubt that Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini shared many similar characteristics. They shared movements that were typical of National Socialism: they adopted a radical nationalism, militaristic hierarchies, violence, the cult of charismatic leadership, contempt for individual liberties and civil rights, an anti-democratic and anti-socialist orientation, and a refusal to socialize industries. Hitler and Mussolini looked uponRead More A Comparison Between Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini Essay1429 Words   |  6 PagesA Comparison Between Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini There is no doubt that Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini shared many similar characteristics. They shared movements that were typical of National Socialism: they adopted a radical nationalism, militaristic hierarchies, violence, the cult of charismatic leadership, contempt for individual liberties and civil rights, an anti-democratic and anti-socialist orientation, and a refusal to socialize industries. Hitler and Mussolini lookedRead MoreEssay on Italy in World War II1093 Words   |  5 Pageswere involved in the war, Benito Mussolini and his Italian army sought to settle their differences with many nations. Benito’s fascist views, his idea of a nation built by one race, and his relationship with Adolf Hitler ultimately led to his involvement in the war. His responsibility, in essence, was to ally himself with the superpowers of the world, and lead his people into a war that they could not fight. Il Duce, (the leader), was the name that Benito Mussolini gave himself as his rise to powerRead MoreWorld War Ii Research Report Essay1668 Words   |  7 Pagesthose considered inferior in Germany, a comparison of anti-Semitic actions in Germany, also an explanation of The Final Solution. This paper concludes with a description of the aftermath of World War II. The Rise of Totalitarianism in Italy Political changes totalitarianism and fascism in Italy during 1918. Benito Mussolini advocated a violent revolution to over throw the parliamentary monarchy within Italy and denounced nationalism. Mussolini celebrated Italy entering the war; he alsoRead MoreCompare and Contrast the Domestic Policies of Hitler and Mussolini1495 Words   |  6 PagesFundamentally, both Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler had the same burning desire to each make their nation a respected and economically impregnable Great Power. Mussolini wanted to return Italy to its glory days of the ancient Roman Empire, a domestic policy amongst others which was used as propaganda and to ultimately consolidate his power. A strong economy and a united state were vital for both countries in case of the outbreak of yet another catastrophic war. Everything in the state, nothingRead MoreThe Propaganda Machine1552 Words   |  7 PagesOrwell who had worked for the British military police, disliked the cruelties of the imperial system, and had distrust for a tyrannical government. He blends various components that are representative of the regimes and philosophies of Stalin, Mussolini, and Hitler in his novel, 1984. 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Throughout the 1920s, the world was relatively peaceful—save perhaps the Italian â€Å"revolution† by Mussolini who had his Fascist government set up fully by the year 1926 and the Beer Hall Putsch led by Adolf Hitler in 1923. With the crushing of the revolution by the Bavarian government (which was completely riddled full of Nazi sympathizers), Hitler was sentenced to the minimum five years in prison at Landsberg Castle in Munich where he had a Martha Stewart-esqueRead MoreThe Dictatorship Of A Fascist Regime Essay1918 Words   |  8 Pagesstate for Spain with little or no restriction on his power, much like Hitler or Mussolini. Even Franco was known to describe Spain as a totalitarian state. Stating in his victory speech after the Spanish civil war, ’a totalitarian state will reign in Spain’ Franco’s regime was as Griffin said an authoritarian one, with totalitarian policies. This is shown in the fact he removed all other political parties in Spain, similar to Hitler upon his rise to power also with trade unions, media outlet under hisRead MoreThe Munich Agreement And The Anglo German Declaration1035 Words   |  5 Pagesinevitable between the great European powers and allowed Hitler to gather more territory with relative ease. This document between the powers of Germany, Italy, France, and the United Kingdom outlined the terms and conditions under which Germany would annex a large portion of Czechoslovakia. Throughout this text, the historical context and significance of the Munich Agreement will be analyzed. The Munich Agreement was produced in hopes to stop Hitler; he was threatening to unleash war upon Europe if he

Cheating and Sportsmanship Free Essays

Cheating and Sportsmanship HPE essay-BY Elliott Biggs Just like everything in life, sports too are governed by rules, customs and even competition. Sports are a way through which we are able to connect with our past and have good feelings about the future. Sports acts as a way of bonding people despite their age, gender and race differences. We will write a custom essay sample on Cheating and Sportsmanship or any similar topic only for you Order Now Sports today, instead of bonding people and teaching them discipline and teamwork is causing them to cheat. And athletes have a reason to cheat now with all the fame, drugs and endorsements available to gain from. Cheating in sports is certainly not something new; it has been taking place ever since sports and sporting competitions were first introduced. 2000 years before Mike Tyson bit a piece of Evander Holyfield’s ear and due to it faced disqualification in the boxing match, a boxer from Thessaly, Eupolus’s had bribed 3 of his opponents to take dives in the Olympics of 388 BC (Los Angeles Times). Eupolus’s cheating is considered to have been the first cheating act to have been committed in sports. Everyone wants to win and wants an easy way to do it. The way people cheat in sports has become various and diversified over the years but I will discuss only three. Performance enhancing drugs, performance enhancing equipment and blood doping. First, Performance enhancing drugs. The use of enhancement â€Å"substances† for sporting events dates back to the ancient Greeks and ancient Maya. Performance potions where utilized by the Greeks to increase their abilities, and cocoa leaves where thought to be used by the ancient Maya to increase their abilities. Today, athletes will go to many lengths to increase athletic ability, including: steroids, HGH, Amphetamines, and even animal or human organs just as the Greeks did in their time. Most young athletes will tell you that the competitive drive to win can be very intense. Besides the satisfaction of personal gain, young athletes often pursue dreams of making it to the Olympics or a place on a professional team. This competitive environment, created by our culture, has led to a more common use of steroids and other performance-enhancing agents in sports. For a growing number of athletes, winning at all costs includes taking anabolic steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs. Some may appear to achieve physical gains from such drugs, but at what cost? The truth is that long-term effects of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs haven’t been painstakingly studied. And short-term benefits are flawed with many potential side-effects and consequences such as loss of medals, eligibility and even death. Billie Holiday said â€Å"Dope never helped anybody sing better or play music better or do anything better. All dope can do for you is kill you – and kill you the long, slow, hard way. † It isn’t worth it. People can die because of these things but they will do anything to win. The use of performance enhancing equipment has many limitations and boundaries. For example, i believe that if you have to use such equipment then it is alright. E. g. Oscar pistorius. Pistorius has below the knee amputations on both legs that have been fitted with Flex-Foot Cheetah carbon fiber transtibial prostheses. He has no choice; if he wants to achieve his goal as an athlete he must use this equipment. Some say that this puts him at an advantage, but i disagree. If they make them just long enough to give the same amount of spring as the human legs. But, if the competitors are to use equipment unnecessarily, it would be unfair. E. g. a corked bat is a specially modified baseball bat that has been filled with cork or other lighter, less dense substances to make the bat lighter without losing much power. A lighter bat gives a hitter a quicker swing and may improve the hitter’s timing. One thing that might make this fair would be if every competitor used the same equipment. But that would not solve anything, would that not just put them back where they started. This is unfair on other competitors because it gives the athlete an unfair advantage by making them more aerodynamic, faster, leap further or maybe even swim faster by eliminating water resistance. What is the point of athletes using suits anyway, in the end it all still comes down to raw talent anyway. Say swimmer a’s time is 27. 6 secs and swimmer b’s time is 28. 4 secs. They wear the suit which takes of 0. 01 of a second. And swimmer a’s time becomes 27. 59 and swimmer b’s becomes 28. 39. Swimmer a still wins anyway. Blood doping. The process of blood doping, also called blood boosting or blood packing, involves illicitly increasing the number of red blood cells throughout one’s body. In terms of anatomy red blood cells carry oxygen from the lungs to the muscles. With more oxygen being carried to the muscles during rigorous activity, the longer the muscles will perform without building up lactic acid. Once lactic acid builds up within the bloodstream it restricts the flow of oxygen to working muscles therefore producing fatigue. In essence with more red blood cells more oxygen can be arried to working muscles, therefore increasing endurance and reducing fatigue. For this very reason blood doping has become a favourite practice of some elite endurance athletes due to the fact that it gives them improved aerobic capacity. It allows them to perform rigorous activity, such as cross country skiing, cycling, as well as running at a higher level for a longer period of time. As you can imagine that would give an athlete a significant advantage. A new-Mexico study showed that EPO use can shave up to 69 seconds off of a world-class 10,000 meter time. In any world class event such as track and field, a 69 second deficit is the difference between being considered the worlds-finest to just another middle runner. This is what inspires athletes to dope. But is it fair? No it is not. I have discussed in this essay three types of cheating in sports and their advantages. I have successfully answered the question, is cheating in sports ethical. Cheating in sports has been around for many hundreds of years and no-one will ever change the fact that people will cheat and find a way to win any way possible. How to cite Cheating and Sportsmanship, Essay examples

Free WB Based EHR Systems

Question: Describe about Free WB Based EHR Systems? Answer: EHR, which is the acronym for Electronic Health Records, is currently considered as the most fundamental application that is being implemented in Information Technology portfolio of healthcare services. The applications of HER, Medical Billing and/ or Practice Management are nowadays mandatory for any healthcare provider (Charmtracker.com, 2015). Practice Fusion is one such web based Electronic Health Records system which is currently being deployed by many health care service providers. The software vendor claims that it is the most popular and mostly widely used EHR system that is currently being used: the software has around 17,000 customers who have bought the premium version, and 100,000 users are at this point of time using the free version of this software. Practice Fusion is an EHR system which is completely web based and can be used by doctors performing private practices, by groups of doctors practicing together and/ or by large groups of medical practitioners (Medved, 2014). The EHR system provided by this software vendor is a complete free ware. However the free version supports innumerous ads, which can only be disabled by buying a premium version. Practice Fusion has facilitated the funding of thousands of medical groups: the cash flow being utilized and employed in providing good infrastructure and treatment facilities in those medical practices. The technically advanced interface and the attractive design of the software make it easy to use and simple to incorporate in the business structure. The software also provides full support to those who are new to maintain Electronic Health Records system or those who are currently in the process of transforming their system. References Charmtracker.com,. (2015).Online web based EHR | Cloud EHR | SaaS EMR. Retrieved 26 May 2015, from https://www.charmtracker.com/ehr/online-web-based-ehr.html Medved, J. (2014).The Top 7 Free and Open Source EMR Software Products - Capterra Blog.Blog.capterra.com. Retrieved 26 May 2015, from https://blog.capterra.com/top-7-free-open-source-emr-software-products/

Air Bags Can Kill Essays - Airbag, Bags, Seat Belt,

Air Bags Can Kill Air Bags Can Kill Even though air bags are designed to save lives, they can be harmful or fatal to some people. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has recognized this concern and has made efforts to reduce injuries caused by air bag deployment by allowing the installation of a switch that turns off air bags. But in order to have a switch installed, the driver must file a request for an air bag on-off switch. People shouldn't have to seek permission from the government to disable a device that has been found to be responsible for many deaths from their vehicles. According to The Oracle, ?Turning off the airbags?, (http://zephyr.oracle.usf.edu/archive/199711/19971119/19971119-comm ent1.html), when an airbag deploys, there is an explosion in the dash and steering wheel that releases the airbags at a speed of 200 mph. This force has been found to be the cause of many deaths, mostly being children. And the explosion that propels the airbag can cause chemical burns and even blindness. The dangers of airbags are so great that car manufacturers now put warning labels in vehicles explaining the dangers. Now, according to CNN, ?Government announces rules for air bag switches,? (http://www.cnn.com/US/9711/18/airbags.presser/index.html), if the owner of a vehicle or a passenger has a medical condition which would put them at a greater risk from airbags, then they can apply permission to disable the airbags in their vehicle. This also applies if a child must ride in the front seat. But it doesn't protect people who would need to drive someone else's car, or people who would give someone else's children a ride. It will only protect the vehicle's owner and immediate family. Although passing the rule that allows the owner of a vehicle to disable the airbags is a good start in saving lives, it is not enough. Everyone can't have switches installed in their vehicles, just people who meet the requirements set by the NHSTA. The government shouldn't have to decide whether or not air bags pose a treat to individual passengers and drivers. As Henry Thoreau says in ?Civil Disobedience? Conversations p.642, ?government is best which governs least.? We just don't need laws on airbags at all. It would be more practical for the driver of the car to make the choice if the airbags should be on or off. If there is to be a law passed, then it should require auto manufactures to put shutoff switches on all vehicles equipped with airbags. The government won't do this because it has the attitude that it has to protect everyone from themselves, and that if the people are given a choice in their safety, then they will make the wrong choice. This is unfortunate, especially with airbags, because unlike other mandatory safety devices, like seat belts, air bags have been proven dangerous. They now have warnings on them explaining how dangerous they are and how to protect yourself from them, but wouldn't the best protection for some be turning them off? For some the answer is ?yes.? Even though most people benefit from airbags in serious crashes, some don't. And these people need to be able to turn off the air bag in front of them in any vehicle they drive or ride in, not just the one they own. This problem has a simple solution. Allowing anyone to install a shutoff switch on his/her own vehicle without having to get permission from the government would be the first step. Also, all new vehicles should have airbag shutoff switches as standard equipment. And the NHTSA should put out public awareness advertisements about who airbags help and who they can be harmful to. The informed consumer would then be able to override the airbag system whenever they might pose a threat to the driver or passenger and many lives would be saved Bibliography Sorces Special Crash Investigation Report http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/ncsa/SCIFiles/1099rpt.htm DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 49 CFR Parts 571 and 595 [Docket No. NHTSA-97-3111] RIN 2127 - AG61 Air Bag On-Off Switches http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/airbags/rule/section01.html Mazda Safety Notice 6 August, 1997 http://www.miata.net/misc/airbagsafety.html Current Events

t.v. ratings system essays

t.v. ratings system essays How was the rating industry started and how does entertainment-rating work? Since the beginning of radio and television, advertisers have been spending billions yearly in order to promote sales and gain business, so it just makes sense that they want to know if there advertising money is being put on the stations that are actually being listened to or watched. Because of this high demand of user information, companies began to come up with ways to monitor these activities without actually going to each household throughout the country. For this to happen devices had to be made that are compatible for everyday household use and could be used by anyone at that location. However the solution was conceived on finding this information about who listened or watched what and for how long it didnt matter, just as long as the advertisers knew where to put their advertisements when it came to the popularity of a station. The beginning of this ongoing process of audience surveying began in the 1920s with radio when radio station owners grew curious about how many people actually listened to their stations. The broadcasters of these stations urged that listeners of their station filled out a post card verifying that they actually heard this request and also to state whether their stations signal was clear or not. This type of survey continued on for a while until advertising companies began to demand the estimated size of their listening audience in order to decide what stations that they would air their product advertising on. Nevertheless the American Association of Advertising and the Association of National Advertisers coincided to form the Cooperative Analysis of Broadcasting, or the CAB in 1930. From this came the first recorded method of audience recording called the telephone recall method. With this method 35 cities were chosen across the United States to have calls placed to random ho mes picked from a phone direct...

Hydrostatic Pressure Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Hydrostatic Pressure - Lab Report Example A fluid in this condition is known as a hydrostatic fluid (Myers, 2006). So our Hydrostatic pressure lab was to determine the hydrostatic pressure of water on a flat surface, adding weight and then filling the tank with water to the point where the apparatus was in equilibrium in order to calculate the force on the flat surface using the given equations. The Fluid Mechanics laboratory provides a â€Å"hands on† environment that is crucial for developing students understanding of theoretical concepts (Damodara Reddy, 2012). Fluid mechanics laboratory is where fluids and their flows are studied and observed such as â€Å"Pressure variations of compressible fluids when they are allowed to flow through convergent divergent nozzles, calibration of pressure gauges and theoretical demonstration of different laws of fluid mechanics and others† (Desmukh, 2009). The objective of this experiment was to â€Å"calculate the hydrostatic force a fluid exerts on a submerged plane surface† and then liken the experimental hydrostatic force to the theoretical hydrostatic force. Furthermore, we will calculate the center of pressure for a plane surface partially submerged in a fluid and then for the plane surface full submerged in the fluid. Firstly, the following measurements were made; of quadrant’s end face, lever arm length and the distance between pivot and the lower edge. Now with the apparatus placed steadily on the stall, position the balance arm on the knife edge pivot and hang the weight pan from the balance arm.The apparatus was made use of adjustable feet and spirit level. Now the counterbalance was rotated until the balance is level and the counterbalance was to remain at the same position for the whole experiment.Now a mass of 50g was positioned on the weight pan and water was added until the balance arm was horizontal. The mass on the water pan and water level were measured Now we increment the

Critical thinking Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Critical thinking - Case Study Example This amounts to 8.5% of the total population. The American Indians are 16 people, while the Asians are 12. In percentage terms, the Indians amount to 0.77%, while that of the Asians was 0.58%. There are also other minority tribes, such as Eskimos and the Pacific Islanders. Their total number amounts to 98, which is 4.9% (Statistical abstract of the United States, 17). St. Juan is a city found in Hidalgo, one of the counties of the state of Texas. The city is located at 26Â °1133"N 98Â °9 10"W, and has an area of 11 square miles. In 2011, the city had a population of 34,091, which was an increase of approximately 30%, as compared to the statistical figures of 2000 (Statistical abstract of the United States, 36). The number of males was 16, 498, and this is a percentage of 48.4%. The female population amounted to 17,593, which represents a percentage of 51.6% (Statistical abstract of the United States, 21). The largest numbers of people in St Juan are the Hispanics, whose number was 32,734 representing a percentage of 96.7%. The Asians were 47, and the blacks were 32, which was a percentage of 0.1 and 0.09 % respectively. The total number of white people was 1012, and this was a percentage of 3%. The minority tribes of the Eskimos and the Pacific have amounted to 10 people, and this contributed to a percentage of 0.03% (Statistical abstract of the United States, 25). The reason as to why the Whites and the Hispanic are the majority in these cities is because they assimilated the minority groups of the Eskimos, the Pacific’s and the Black Americans. The Eskimos and Pacific’s are small in number; this makes them vulnerable to the dominant tribes of the Hispanics and the Caucasians. The Hispanics and the Caucasians intermarried with them, and because of their dominance, they were able to assimilate these groups. This led to the increase of the Hispanics in the St Juan city, and the increase of the whites at the city of St. jo. Intermarriage is an

History About The Internet Banking Marketing Essay

History About The Internet Banking Marketing Essay As we all know Internet Banking is becoming popular in every part of the world and Mauritius comprises of one those countries where Internet Banking is being adopted by many people. So we will study the factors that influence the implementation of Internet Banking for the situation of the developing Mauritian economy. The frequently used services by Mauritians are inter account transfer, payment to other personal account, transfer to credit card account, and recharge mobile among others. The Banking Industry is likely to be the principal actor in E-business. Banks have acknowledged an internet presence with numerous aims and most of them are using the internet as a new distributing system. In Mauritius there have been some specific problems that are limiting the e banking adoption they are mainly attitude towards technology, security and privacy concern, trust in banking firms, the e-banking culture, and skills and penetration. E-banking will flourish if the main structures, especial ly the payment of bill are handling well. The banks have already started to focus on increasing and refining E-banking services as they have started to work together with various usefulness companies to enable customer to perform numerous functions online. Keywords: e-banking services, banks, Mauritius, effectiveness, challenges INTRODUCTION A feature of the banking industry across the world has been that is progressively becoming turbulent and viable, categorized by an increasing development towards internalization, mergers, takeovers and alliance of the banking industry. Pikkarainen, Pikkarainen, Karjaluoto, and Pahnila, (2004, p. 224) defines internet banking as an internet portal, through which customers can use different kinds of banking services ranging from bill payment to making investments. Apart from removal of cash, internet banking allows its customer to have access to nearly any kind of banking operation at the click of a mouse. Banks have tried to build customer satisfaction through the delivery of better products and services and at the same time to lessen the operating cost. Thus the world of banking industry has been constantly transforming and with the arrival of technological developments, mainly in the area of telecommunications and information technology, one of the latest revolution that took birth, and quite unavoidably has been the internet banking. Most people have heard of e-banking but they have not tried it as for them it. Many people still pay their bills by mail and deposit checks at banks much of the way almost every people do including our parents. Individuals might shop online for loans, insurance and may other things but when the time reaches to commit themselves they will be more at ease and secure to go at their banks. Online banking is not out to alter your money habits. Instead, it uses todays computer technology to give you the opportunity of avoiding the time-consuming, paper-based aspects of traditional banking in order to be able to manage your finances more rapidly and professionally. The appearance of the Internet and the popularity of personal computers offered both a chance and a test for the banking industry.it has been for years, financial institutions have used influential computer networks to mechanize millions of daily dealing. Today, often the onl y paper record is the customers receipt when the sale is done. At the present customers are connected to the Internet via personal computers, banks envision similar economic advantages by adapting those similar internal electronic processes to home-based use. Most banks view e banking as an authoritative value added tool to be able to attract and preserve new customers though by using the help to eradicate expensive paper handling and teller contact in an progressively viable banking environment Evolution of E-Banking Over a last few decades, technology had drastically affected the banking industry which gave rise to a new concept called E-Banking. E-Banking became popular in late 80s where the system could be accessed with phone lines. But nowadays with computers and internet, E-banking continued to grow. Online Banking was first adopted in New York in 1981 where the major banks like Citibank, Chase and others provided home banking services by making use of a system called videotext. Stanford Federal Credit Union was the first service provider of internet banking in October 1994. The use of E-Banking business is advantageous for both business and stakeholders. They can access the service 24-hour and retrieve any information easily. Moreover, it is affordable for both large and small companies. In addition, it has created new way of marketing the financial services and share mutual support and guidance within a virtual community (Barnatt 1998). But on the other side, there are dangers and disadvantages of E-Banking prevailing. It can be seen that the system available for accessing the services may be discouraging because of poor control in many cases. There is always the threat of hackers whatever the level of security is (Souflis 2002). Furthermore, there is no direct contact with customers and banks (Baldock 1997; Danial 1999; Ramsay and Smith 1999). It can be seen that whatever be the challenges faced by E-Banking, still there are new entrants providing the above services worldwide and they are trying to manage that effectively. Internet Banking around the World In Europeans countries, online banking has been adopted differently. It was seen that most banks which were of medium size made use of internet banking at the very start. However, when comparing the respond rate of North Europe from that of South, it could be deduced that the Northern Europeans adopted online banking at a quicker pace. In early times E-Banking was dependent on the level of education and in some parts of Europe there was highly educated people compared to other parts. Reaching 2008, around 60% of households had started using E-Banking. In USA, banks had lagged behind to adopt internet banking at the very start but slowly they did catch up. The banks like Bank of America, Citibank and Wells Fargo were the main banks providing online banking and they were the mega banks in USA. They had dominated the internet banking field for quite some time. Nowadays, there is 80% of credit unions offering this facility and they have around 6,300 members in this sector. It can be seen that in the American countries, banks make use of internet banking as a business strategy to increase market share rather than making profits. In the study carried out by Capgemini, Unicredit Group and European Financial Management and Marketing association, it was deduced that most banks made use of internet banking as a strategy aiming to attract more clients by offering lower price for products and services. But, it was not advantageous for all banks in all countries. For e.g. In Russia, providing internet banking facilities to its customers was very expensive. This has caused an impact on their market share as clients were unable to benefit from lower prices and moved to other means where costs were low. In Romania, E-banking was introduced in 1996, by a foreign bank followed by local banks in 1998 and 1999. Many people did not have internet connection at that time and the target customers were mostly companies. In 2003, there was 18, 000 users of internet banking which gradually increased to 200,000 in 2006. In the year 2007, internet banking completely entered the main stream in Romania. In May 2007, a study was conducted on internet banking services which considered 5 banks in the Romanian Banking sector which were the Bankpost, B.R.D, Banca, Transilvania, HVB Tiriac, Raiffeisen Bank. The usability study looks into accounts of those customers who were computer literate and had at least one card to be used online. It was concluded that customers were more conscious about security and risks involved in E-banking rather than the benefits that were provided. But, today in Romania, people are more conscious about the opportunities that E-banking provides and they want to switch to these services as fast as possible. It can also be seen that youngsters are more interested in using all these services especially in the modern times. E- Banking allows customers to do almost everything without having to go in any branch of their banks. It offers a range of advantages and they are mainly the same around all countries and they are:- Informational: They provide clients with information about the products and services offered by banks which are free of cost. Communication: clients can get information about their accounts and can update their profiles as they can get access to the banks main system. Transactional: Customers can pay their bills, transfer money, make loan application without any inconvenience of going to bank, waiting for their turn and complete their transactions. Time is also saved. Moreover, with E-banking, banks can target customers of other countries not necessarily the home countries. In this technological age organizations around the world are making extensive efforts to cope with the evolving business environment. Increases in domestic and global competition, are causing markets to add pressures on the organizations to come up with effective responses to survive and succeed. Ease in the international trade barriers, economic globalization, globalization and deregulation are major challenges that organizations in developing and newly industrialized economies such as India. To be able to respond to the changes in the external environment effectively, companies are using information technology (IT) as a tool to improve their productivity and competitiveness. Over the last decades India has been one of the fastest economies to adopt information technology, in particularly due to its capability to offer software solutions to organizations across the world. This comparative advantage has enabled India to provide remarkable impetus to their domestic banking industry to present latest advances in technology, especially in the internet banking and e-commerce arenas. (kannabiran, narayan, 2005). Banking industry in India does not contrast much from other industries in terms of facing constantly changing market conditions and leverages. IT is basically used for competitive advantage purposes. In todays global context, IT has become an imperative for organizations to remain competitive and grow effectively. Even if the technological advances around the world had been quite fast over the past years, the process was relatively slow in India. The emergence of new private banks in India changed the entire scenario drastically since these banks business model evolved around IT. As a result IT became an important strategic necessity for banks in the industry to remain competitive. Prior to the 1990s IT was used to automate the back offices of banks. From then on IT has been deployed in different types of back-office and customer interface activities. From technological perspective, Indian banks found it difficult to adopt information technology both as a strategic tool and as an operational necessity. The first challenge had been the availability of comprehensive and centralized banking application that could cope with the various operational requirements and controls that could be adapted to the Indian banking environment. The second challenge was the difficulty to set up a strong communication network connecting the branches of the bank to the data center hosting the core banking applications. With the expansion of internet usage, e-banking is one of the most revolutionized components in this new eras economic growth. E-banking is somehow said to the most powerful value-added tool to attract new customers and retain existing ones. Proliferation of internet and computer usage has only caused the electronic banking delivery to become ideal and to meet customer expectations. This has been the result of the adoption of internet banking by Malaysian banks. Malaysia has endeavored to develop its e-commerce significantly. Banking organizations in Malaysia are offering online transactional services for its customers via banking services. In Iran, Amin Sulaiman et al. (2005) conclude that the adopters perceive e-banking to be an easy and convenient way and carry out their E-banking transactions either from their homes or office, also, the age, income and job positions held influence E-banking adoption. Higher adoption was seen amongst younger persons, persons with high salaries and those holding higher positions. The introduction of internet banking has only brought up the concept of Anytime Anywhere Banking. Banks have been spending lots on the technological wave of internet banking. It has also discouraged physical transactions by simply levying additional charges at the physical branches. Due to high investments in technology and its adoption by numerous banks, the internet banking sector has known tremendous growth. From the Asian experience, it is clear that Internet Banking is here to stay and is a key channel to acquire and service customers. Since 2006, internet banking has increased by more than 45.4million in the Asia Pacific regions. In markets like Korea and Singapore, over 10% of their population makes use of the Internet banking facilities. Even though these markets are a long ahead of India both in terms of internet penetration and on-line banking services, we should not forget that India has very big potentials and is a world in itself. India is speeding to catch up with its other Asian counterparts. Mauritian Context With the trend of globalization all around the world, it is almost difficult for a country whether big or small, developed or developing to remain separated from what is happening around. For a country like Mauritius, which is one of the promising emerging markets, such separation is almost impossible, more specifically in the information Technology area. Information Technology has reduced in size the world, and as a result, time and distance is of no importance. In the current global context, information Technology is of great importance for organization to remain competitive and to grow (Uppal and Chawla, 2008). The concept of banking in Mauritius has drastically changed where technology is the most predominating factor which has helped banks to have new products and services in order to win the competitive market. Before the electronic era, the entire banking in Mauritius was conducted manually and very little through computers, but today almost every transaction is done electroni cally. Long ago in Mauritius, banks conducted their activities mainly in the banks itself, that is if customers had to make any transactions or have recourse to any services offered by banks, they had to go to the banks in order to be able to conclude their transactions. But, many changes have occurred in the global business environment in the last decade of the 20th century, among which is electronic commerce, or trade of products and services through internet and telecommunication networks (kalakota whinstone, 1997). Nevertheless, the effect of electronic commerce has been more obvious in the banking and financial services industry in contrast to other industries (Bughin, 2004; eMarketer, 2000). The adoption of technology by the banking industry in many countries around the world has been at a very high level. But the process in Mauritius has been slow over the last several years. It got off to a slow start and only picked up momentum in the 1975s. Information Technology was mainly emplo yed to automate the back-office and customer-interface activities of banking. It was only in the year 1997 that internet banking really becomes in operation. It is a relatively recent phenomenon in Mauritius (Padachi et al, 2007). This was mainly due to a relatively good quality infrastructure with respect to communication, internet facilities available to almost every citizen of Mauritius and has the highest education attainment as well. In 1997, out of the 11 banks in Mauritius, only 4 of them, namely the Mauritius Commercial Bank, the State Commercial Bank, Banque de Mascareignes and Barclays were offering internet banking facilities (Padachi et al, 2007). But today almost every bank in Mauritius is offering e-banking services. Some of the e-banking services banks in Mauritius are offering are: mobile banking, electronic bill presentment and payment, fund transfer between a customer account to another customers account or to any banks, loan application and transaction, receiving or checking bank statement online, Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) and many othe rs. In the next paragraph, we will study the e-banking services in more details. E-Banking services The e-banking services that the Mauritian banks offer are as follow: Mobile banking Mobile banking is a term used to perform balance account transactions, balance checks, payments etc. via a mobile device such as mobile phone  or Personal Digital Assistant (PDA). Mobile banking today is most often performed via SMS or the  Mobile Internet. There is also the recharge of mobile phones where a customer can recharge his mobiles credit anytime and anywhere. You just have to send a text to recharge your mobile or to check your bank balance wherever you are1. Electronic bill presentment and payment (EBPP) This service facilitates payment of electricity, telephone bills, insurance premium bills and many others by allowing its customers to electronically settle payments of goods and services. Customers and billing companies can use the phone or the internet to make payments as well as having access to their billing information where the company bills its customer and receives the payment electronically. EBPP can provide significant savings to traditional print mail billing and payment remittance, and also causes significant reduction in the use of paper. The customer does not have to pay their bills in person, delegating it to the bank and as such saves time for the customer2. 1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/mobile-banking 2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EBPP Fund transfer Customers can transfer any amount from his own checking or savings account to another customers account of the same or any other banks. They can transfer funds in any banks in Mauritius and also overseas. As such, it allows customers to use this service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week as compared to traditional fund transfer. It offers greater security as no tangible cash is involved. This service also provides a fast and perpetual connection with the bank1. Loan application and transaction Nowadays customers no longer have to wait long time in queues for a loan application. They can simply apply for a loan online. They only have to sign in to have access to the online services and enter the sum of money which they want to receive as loan. The customer is either notified by mail or by telephone and the notification is faster than traditional loan application. Checking and receiving bank statement online. The customer just has to enter his PIN number in order to check his or her bank statement online. It is a flexible and convenient service where the customers can have access to their bank statements anywhere in the world, whether its at home or at work even if the bank is closed. It also eliminates paper processing. Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) 1http://www.hsbc.co.mu/1/2/personal/Personal-bankingATM is a device that allows the banks customer to have access to financial transactions in a public space without the help of a bank teller. On the ATM, the customer is identified by inserting his ATM card that contains a unique card number and some security information. The customer just has to enter his PIN to have access to his bank account in order to make cash withdrawals and to check his account balance. Thus customers saves time as they do not have to make queues for withdrawal of their money in banks and also, the speed of transaction is faster than the traditional banking channel. They can also withdraw money anytime they want (Salami). Challenges Over the past few years, numerous financial bodies have launched e-banking over the Internet. Given the necessities of matching marginal gains versus marginal costs, measuring the effectiveness of market growth along definite scopes and segments, and determining whether the new technology would be recognized, it is authoritative that this result is frequently re-evaluated. Commercial banks face substantial tests on both the supply side and demand side, allied in specific with race, product-service excellence and diversity, cost effectiveness, transaction security, and demographic alteration (Zigi Liao and M.T Cheung). Despite that information technology has enormously improved operating efficiency in the banking sector, it has also weakened the banks information system. The negative effects on online banking are very few but have a significant impact on customer satisfaction. Customer who lacks computer skills and is not at ease in using the internet may find it difficult to navigate and learn how to use online services thus causing frustration. Forgery is another challenge concerning e-banking as there are some proxy websites or fraud, which can hack information which a person entered when doing a transaction and exploit it unfairly. Therefore, people may lose their money without realizing it and by the time they are aware, they have already make huge losses. Matila and Matila(2005) ascertained that security impedes the adoption of e-banking. As such, customer loses the banks confidence. Customer confidence is another barrier towards the adoption of e-banking as lack of trust may prevent customers from using electronic channel (Steward, 1999). Another challenge of e- banking is that it takes time to get the Internet account started, as it needs a lot of paper work. Some people evade using Internet banking services as they find it hard to comprehend how it works. Also, the fact that an incorrect click can cause financial losses may be a preventive. Internet banking can also pose difficultly, then if the network crashes in ones area this may originate into trouble, if the person has to do an essential deal. Furthermore, Clerk and Mills (1993) implies that some customers will prefer face-to-face interaction by establishing personal contact with the bank who want social and psychological benefits, thus detrimental to e-banking. One very common challenge of e-banking is when a person has a difficultly or a query. In traditional banking, if someone is in difficulty, he can go to an employee of the bank to solve it. But, in the case of e-banking, he will find himself making infinite calls to the customer service department. Another problem encountered by a customer is where he is put on hold or his phone call is passed from one employee to another thus annoying the customer. Access to internet is one of the major barriers for e-banking. E-banking services is determined by the number of people having access to internet and also the cost of internet connection(Li and Worthington,2004; Sonail and Shanmugham, 2003). Age is another factor that affects the adoption of e-banking. Elderly people are more reluctant to use e-banking services as compared to younger generation. As pointed out by Oumlil and Williams(2001), mature banking customers are not innovators of new technologies, but are rather reluctant or are small in number towards adoption of new services. Though, e-banking has certain challenges, one can gain of its customer-friendly services, if one is cautious and careful. One should never give away his password to any unknown person and to make the experience of Internet banking an easy process and must use sites that are familiar and reliable.

Going Against Nature with T.C. Boyle

Jessica Arroyo English 116 11 April 2012 Life is hard. There are two things we need to succeed in life. We need to understand that nature is a key player in life, and that it has a greater power over us than we do it. We cannot control nature, nor can we impact what it has in store for us. If nature, such as the weather, decides there’s going to be a storm this weekend, well the best we can do is prepare for it. If nature creates us in one mode, who are we to go against it and try to change our species? If nature decides it’s going to slam a commit into the earth, we are helpless in the matter.Going against nature, or even questioning its methods, has its consequences and the characters of the short stories written by T. C. Boyle seem to know this all too well. Nature is a greater power who demands great respect. It is not a choice in matter, but rather a forced way of life that we have no means to alter, which Boyle convincingly conveys through his stories. In the stor y â€Å"The Swift Passage of Animals†, T. C. Boyle takes us on a â€Å"big adventure† (91) in which a new relationship is intended to flourish by a romantic weekend getaway.The nature of the male, Zach, is to impress the young recently divorced woman, Ontario. Though they are already dating, he is still courting her in hopes to further impress her by taking her to â€Å"hike the trails and cross-country ski†¦ and then sit at the bar at the lodge till it was time to go to bed†(84), by sharing the experiences with the greatest thing they have in common, their love for nature. Of course, there is more in it for Zach than just enjoying the beauty nature has, he intends on fulfilling the â€Å"unspoken promise percolating beneath the simple monosyllable of her assent—going to bed† (84).Zach is using her love of nature to his fullest advantage. Nature is not something to be taken advantage of, as it is not something to be questioned or controlled. Z ach, being the dominate â€Å"risk-taker† (79) that he believes himself to be is about to get a whole new taste of what nature has to offer when take advantage of for personal gain. Though Zach claims that the main reason for their trip is to explore and enjoy their common interest of nature at the Big Timber Lodge it is just a cover for what he really has in mind, which is going to bed with Ontario. T. C.Boyle’s diction throughout the beginning of the story foreshadows this â€Å"unspoken† (84) intention of Zach by placing details such as â€Å"the soft sexy scratch of [her voice] shot from his eardrums right to his crotch† (80), and the reference of her sweater with the â€Å"reindeer prancing across her breasts† (81), he foreshadows the consequences of these provoking thoughts by directly following them with the dangers of the â€Å"sleet† â€Å"dark† (80) road they were on. In showing his dominance and risk taking skills, Zach cho oses not to prepare in case they get caught in a storm on the way to the Lodge.He also presses nature even further by choosing to take the back road even though â€Å"there was a winter storm watch out of the Southern Sierras†¦and he knew that [it] would be closed as soon as the first snow hit† (74). All he could think about was getting there as fast as he could. â€Å"He was always in a hurry. Especially tonight. Especially with her† (74). Zach experiences his â€Å"first prick of worry† (81) when he spots a sign that said â€Å"Cars required with Chains† (81). Perversely† (95) nature enhances his worries by letting the snow paint the road with such intensity it was â€Å"as if some cosmic hand had swept on ahead with a two-lane paintbrush† (81). Despite the skidding of the tires and the snow â€Å"coming down as if it wasn’t going to stop till May† (88), Ontario maintains full confidence in Zach. â€Å"She wasn’t staring out the windshield into the white fury of the headlights, but watching him as if they were cruising down the Coast Highway under a ripe delicate sun† (83).But even with the confidence of his potential mate, his risk taking skills, and attitude nature still manages to turn things around on him when the car skids into a boulder and lands itself in â€Å"a glistening white ditch that undulated gracefully away from the hidden surface of the road† (85). Zach is now completely alone in the nature with Ontario, â€Å"which was where he really and truly wanted to be† (85). However, it is now that all of his unpreparedness becomes apparent. â€Å"He didn’t have a shovel in the truck—no shovel, and no chains† (86).No â€Å"knife† or â€Å"hatchet†, or â€Å"anything to cut with† (87). Nothing of any use to assist them in getting the tires up and out of the ditch. All of their feeble attempts merely gave â€Å"the rear whee ls a moment’s purchase† which just resulted in â€Å"[shoving] the front end in deeper† (88). Nature successfully pulls this egotistical, risk taking, prideful, dominant male down â€Å"to feel less a risk taker and more a fool, callow, rash, without foresight of calculation, the sort of blighted ndividual whose genetic infirmities get swallowed up in the food chain before he can reproduce and pass them on to vitiate the species† (86). As nature pulls Zach further and further down, deepening his misery by torrential snow and all the worries that come with leaving your car out in the middle of the wilderness (such as if â€Å"the yahoos come out and strip it† (92) ) in an attempt to hike to the Big Timber Lodge which was still a long â€Å"thirteen miles† (93) away, Ontario is â€Å"inordinately cheerful† (91).But â€Å"given how miserable [Zach] was† (91) because of the crash, he was able to pull the optimistic outlook of Ontari o down to his pessimistic level. By the end of their hike, Zach finds himself grouped into â€Å"the unlucky and unprepared† (95) people which nature tackles with full force. His trip was ruined, as well as his time with Ontario. When they finally reach the lodge, after being rescued from the cold by â€Å"the man in the goggles†(96) on a â€Å"snowmobile† (96), Ontario corrects Zachs request of a room to â€Å"two rooms† (98). In â€Å"Dogology† T. C.Boyle introduces us to Cynthia, or â€Å"C. f. , Captial C, lowercase f† (44) as she prefers to be called. She is a young woman who has finished grad school and attempting to â€Å"challenge† (35) the misconceptions people have about dogs. The world views dogs as â€Å"beneath them†¦ common, pedestrian, no more exotic than the housefly or the Norway rat† (35). C. f. was obsessed with changing the worlds view of dogs despite the fact that â€Å"the graduate committee rejected her thesis† (35). Humans have domesticated dogs. This results in two types of dogs: the wild and the domesticated.Cynthia challenges the methods of nature, by trying to change herself into a member of the pack. She committed herself to doing things as the pack would, â€Å"made a point of wearing the same things continuously for weeks on end†¦ in the expectation that her scent would invest them, and the scent of the pack too† (40). She â€Å"[hoped] to gain their confidence† (40) by smelling like them, running with them â€Å"reminding herself to always keep her head down and go quadrupedal whenever possible† (35) this was how she was going to â€Å"hear, smell and see as the dogs did† (35).Nature did not intend for Cynthia to take on the life of the dog. She was born human, and yet â€Å"what she was doing, or attempting to do, was nothing short of reordering her senses so that she could think like a dog and interpret the whole world— not just the human world—as dogs did† (35). Cynthia is exposed to the consequences of challenging nature by converting yourself to a different species of the world. Though married, Cynthia commits her days to accomplishing â€Å"the rhythm of dogdom† (40), ignoring the needs and the wants of her husband.She throws her â€Å"neighborhood into an uproar† (41) to the point where â€Å"they’re going to have her committed† (51). Her husband â€Å"locked her out† (50) of the house, leaving her to be with the dogs after a confrontation in which â€Å"he’d kicked her† (49) out of the frustration of her â€Å"research†(49) which he plainly saw as â€Å"bullshit† (49). â€Å"He wanted her back home, back in the den, and that was his right† (49), however Cynthia had other ambitions. Truly, she was accomplished being â€Å"left alone†(49) to enjoy â€Å"the unalloyed sweetness in life† where â€Å" the sun blessed† her body as she lay â€Å"streched out† among the pack.However, to the average citizen it may seem all a bit too costly to sacrifice the lives we live and relationships we have all for an understanding of something so â€Å"common† (35). In â€Å"Chicxulub† we are faced with the worst scenario a parent can imagine; a late night phone call, when we least expect it, stating â€Å"there has been an accident† (135) involving our own daughter, or in this story their daughter, â€Å"Madeline Biehn of 1337 Laurel Drive† (135).We are rushed through a flury of emotions while paralleling the catastrophic events of â€Å"Tunguska† (133) and â€Å"Chicxulub† (136), a â€Å"meteor† (133) and â€Å"asteroid† (136) that had impact with the Earth with such force that they were able to flatten â€Å"seven hundred square miles of Siberian forest† (133) and make â€Å"at least seventy-five percent of all know n species extinguished† (136). The most recent of the two, â€Å"Tunguska† (133) was â€Å"nearly a hundred years ago† (133).No one was expecting it, as no one expects a phone call in the middle of the night saying your child has been in a car accident. It seems nature has an awful need to demonstrate its authority every now and again, reminding us â€Å"that we, and all our works and worries and attachments, are so utterly inconsequential† (139). The chances of these catastrophic events are rare; they are about as likely as â€Å"dying in an auto accident in the next ten months†, however they are not unheard of. There is nothing we can do if one of these events were to take place in our lifetime.It doesn’t matter if you spend your life preparing for such a catastrophic event, such as the most recent dooms day preparers, or you buy your daughter â€Å"a Honda Civic, the safest thing on four wheels† (134). If nature has a plan it will e nact and follow through with its intentions. In fact the narrator clearly states his â€Å"point. You’d better get down on your knees and pray to your gods because each year this big spinning globe we ride intersects the orbits of some twenty million asteroids† (134). Sometimes, nature â€Å"perversely† (95) likes to hand out wake up calls.We find out after â€Å"the slow striptease of death† (142) as â€Å"the sheet draws back† (142) from the gurney where the supposed dead Madeline is to be, that their â€Å"daughter is not in the hospital† (143). Their daughter is exactly where she is supposed to be â€Å"asleep in her room† (143). It was a mistaken identity because Madeline â€Å"[loaned] her ID to her second-best friend, Kristi Cherwin† (143). The narrator of the story, â€Å"rushing still with the euphoria† realizes that this is not his daughter, and in fact not the â€Å"Chicxulub† of his lifetime.However he is left with a renewed perspective that â€Å"the rock is coming, the new Chicxulub, hurtling through the dark and the cold to remake our fate† (144). So it is through the stories that we have a renewed sense that nature is much more than a companion in life. Much more than just the flowers, and trees we pass by as we are â€Å"cruising down the Coast Highway under a ripe delicate sun† (83), much more powerful than our tactics of prevention such as our â€Å"Honda Civic† (134), or our will to undue to the simplification of our domesticated house pets.Nature has created the ways that we live in today. We are merely the players on its game board, â€Å"inconsequential† (139), insignificant. Nature does not bend to our will, but rather, we will bend to its will. Otherwise, we will be subjected to the wrath and fury of mother-nature itself.Works Cited Boyle, T. C. Tooth and Claw. New York: Viking, 2006. Blio. com. Blio. 2006. Web. 11 April. 2012.