Sky Telescope essays

Sky Telescope essays The magazine Sky s going on outside our galaxy. This magazine is also helpful in showing astronomers new ways to look at stars. Certain articles can help with finding focal points, which elements of the spectrum to use to view certain stars, and how to get the best photo images as possible. Sky t have telescopes. They always seem to find some of the best pictures to use in their magazine. Sky If youre having trouble finding out the latest missions in Space Exploration, you can go to Sky The article I researched explained the possible Future of the Universe. At the beginning, it explains the different possible types of universe: flat, closed, and open. A closed universe, caused theoretically by the Big Bang Theory, will make the universe collapse on itself over a period of time. An open universe can keep expanding, because there are no barriers to make it collapse on itself like a closed universe. The flat universe may keep expanding, but it will be at such a slow rate that it will seem to approach a standstill. The article is explained more easily through a cosmic time line. The age of the universe starts with the Big Bang then ...

The Magna Carta by Stephen Langton

The Magna Carta by Stephen Langton Introduction The Magna Carta has become known as the first successful attempt on limiting the powers of a ruling authority by citizens under the authority. The document, signed by King John of England in the presence of witnesses, gave more freedom for the people of England in later years.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Magna Carta by Stephen Langton specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The documents in the Magna Carta set course for development of human rights and empowered parliament in the making of decisions. In the US, the founding fathers used the Magna Carta as a reference point when formulating the American constitution. This article entails a brief history on the source of the Magna Carta and details on its influence in American Law. Background The Magna Carta was first drafted by Stephen Langton, an Archbishop who was perceived as one of the most influential Barons in England. The document was pre viously known as the â€Å"articles of the Barons’, as it was drawn to reflect the discontent of Barons in light of King John’s rule (Clanchy 141). The document has also been referred to as the Great Charter or Magna Charter. The charter aimed to award more freedom to the non-serf community in the country, and thereby reduce the arbitrary powers of the king. It could be viewed as the first step to establish a constitution within a country. King John was reluctant to sign the charter into law since his powers would be reduced. The charter also set a foundation for the establishment of parliament. Several events led to the signing of the Magna Carta. In the year 1205, King John of England had a disagreement with Pope Innocent III on who would be the next Archbishop of Canterbury, whereby the king swore that the pope’s candidate would never be allowed into England (Holt 107). As a result, Pope Innocent III excommunicated the king and banned church services in Engl and. King John also levied high taxes on the citizens of the land, whenever such money was required. The Magna Carta came into effect in the year 1215, and was reissued with a shorter version in 1227 by King Henry III (Danziger and Gillingham 278). Influence on past and current American law The statute held in the Great Charter of 1297 set the pace for the development of citizen rights in England. Due to the close connections between England and America, documents citing English liberties would also influence American liberties. Article 21 of the United States Constitution states, That no freeman ought to be taken, or imprisoned, or disseized of his freehold, liberties, or privileges, or outlawed, or exiled, or in any manner destroyed, or deprived of his life, liberty, or property, but by the judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land. As such, the US constitution has become the supreme law of the land.Advertising Looking for research paper on constitutional law? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The most important aspect of the Magna Carta is that it placed everybody under the rule of the law, or as stated in the document, the rue of the land. This enabled greater justice and fairness in the country since the law would be effected for all members if society, thererby abolishing the norm of the class system. The Magna Carta contained elements of English common law and a few other new laws, which were used by Americans when designing their own constitution. In its scope, the Magna Carta later developed to recognize all English in its statement of â€Å"any freemen†, the same way as the American constitution applies to all Americans in the phrase â€Å"we the people†. Certain provisions in the Magna Carta required for the preservation of the rights awarded to citizens. In this case, the Magna Carta specified that subsequent alterations of the law should not cancel out rights of the English citizens. America uses such provisions from the Magna Carta in the formulation of laws by ensuring that new laws do not negatively affect the rights of the citizens. This fact is entrenched in the Ninth amendment to the constitution, stating, â€Å"The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.† The Magna Carta limited the slightest of changes in its wording, just as the American constitution requires that only a majority vote can amend a previous law. Another key influence of the Magna Carta is evidenced in the Bill of Rights, for instance in the Fifth Amendment (the Suspension Clause), which states, â€Å"No person shallbe deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.† The Magna Carta had previously declared,†No freeman shall be taken, imprisonedor in any other way destroyedexcept by the lawful judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land. T o no one will we sell, to none will we deny or delay, right or justice.† This was therefore the reference point of the Fifth Amendment. Although the Magna Carta was not intended to be universally democratic by the barons who designed it, the document became an integral part of the British constitution, and later the American constitution. By limiting the power of the king to raise taxes, the founding fathers adopted this idea when developing a revenue system that would suit the country. The president of the United States of America is not allowed to arbitrarily raise taxes or spend money at his discretion. The President has to explain to congress why the government should implement certain policies while congress votes on the proposed policy.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Magna Carta by Stephen Langton specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The Magna Carta set a foundation for an appropriate legal sys tem. Just as the king of England was under the rule of the land, the American president would also be under the rule of the new constitution. The Magna Carta imposed that crime offenders be fined according to their capacity to pay such fines, and that no one should be condemned without through judgment of peers and law. The American constitution requires that suspects be tried in a court of law before they are declared guilty or otherwise, in the presence of a group of peers, or trial by jury as interpreted from the Magna Carta. The American revolt against the British was as a result for what the Americans believed was an infringement of the rights awarded to them by the Magna Carta. An interpretation by Sir Edward Coke argued that the Magna Carta provided the same rights for all Englishmen, whether in England or in America (Linebaugh 113-114). Another justification for the rebellion was as an argument against the taxes imposed by parliament in England, to which the Americans argued that it was taxation policy without representation. Americans believed that they should be free to rule themselves, just as the Magna Carta had enabled then formation of parliament in Britain, thereby allowing for self governance. Significance of the Magna Carta The Magna Carta was the first written document citing the laws of the land and their application. Governments around the world have established written constitutions which specify the governing and application of law n their jurisdictions. The Magna Carta also gave way for the development of the basic human rights as championed by organizations such as the United Nations and the United States (Flood 31). The notion of a speedy and unbiased trial, as stipulated by the Magna Carta, called for an effective judicial system. Another great contribution of the Magna Carta was the idea of majority rule. This has allowed for good governance of the United States by allowing citizens to vote their leaders and the elected leader will b e the one with majority votes. This concept also dominates the Congress in the development of new laws. The Magna Carta made a couple of significant contributions to the United States constitution. As noted, the chapter on the Bill of Rights draws heavily from the Magna Carta by emphasizing on the equality of the citizens (Turner 39-40). All Americans, including the President are liable under law for breach of the constitution.Advertising Looking for research paper on constitutional law? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The American constitution is the Supreme Law of the land. While individual states within the United States of America may enforce their own laws, such laws should not contravene provisions in the United States of America Constitution. The Magna Carta was the source of English law, and later American law (Thompson 9-10). It also provided protection of the citizens from adverse policies formulated by people in authority while its legacy lies in the empowering of individuals by its protection of human rights. The provision of â€Å"due process† of law was previously aimed at providing checks on powers of the king, while the same currently implies checks within the government system. The supremacy clause, embedded in the constitution, provides that there is a higher law that applies to everyone in the country, including the executive and the legislature, just as the king could be liable for breach of common law as implied by the Magna Carta. The bill of rights and other provision s that are based on the Magna Carta are enforced by the Supreme Court. Clanchy, Micheal. A History Of England: Early Medieval England. New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons, 1997. Print Danziger, Danny and John Gillingham. 1215: The Year of Magna Carta. New York: Simon Schuster, 2004. Print Flood, Patrick James. The effectiveness of UN human rights institutions. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group. 1998. Print Holt, James Clarke. The Northerners: A Study in the Reign of King John. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.Print Linebaugh, Peter. The Magna Carta Manifesto: Liberties and Commons for All. Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2008. Print Thompson, Faith. Magna Carta – Its Role in the Making of the English Constitution. 1300–1629. New York: Read Books, 2008. Print Turner, Ralph V. Magna Carta: through the ages. New York: Pearson/Longman, 2003. Print.

Pest analysis that influences the grocery market in the uk Essay

Pest analysis that influences the grocery market in the uk - Essay Example By use of PEST model, the analysis will expound on the following macro factors: political, economical, social and technological factors prevailing in the market. UK’s grocery market has been positively impacted by the government regulations. As a pertinent congruent of the UK’s economy, the government has instituted regulatory policy framework aimed at monitoring the sector. The regulatory framework provides the guidelines for a myriad key of keys issues including business registration, health and hygiene standards. Through the integration of EU provisions by the Food Standard Agency (FSA), UK’s grocery industry is subject to food hygiene standards, business set up, food safety and marketing guidelines. The government has further revised the competition law in accordance with the provisions of European Commission’s white paper dated 2014. Under article 101 of EU’s treaty on the functioning of the European Union, grocery enterprise are banned from engaging in agreements that could either lead to prevention or restriction of competition in the subject market (IGD, 2015). The Scottish independence referendum w as also a key factor in UK’s grocery market in 2014. With the prospective of a positive vote for the independence of Scotland, grocery stores were bound to experience increased overhead cost that would have eventually been passed to Scottish consumers. The positive outlook of the UK‘s grocery market has been underlined with the intensified competition in the industry. UK’s economy continues to recover from 2013 with the real GDP growth projections for 2015 and 2016 standing at 2.5 % and 2.3 % respectively (PWC, (2015). Consequently, UK’s economic growth has given rise to disposable income of UK consumers thereby leading to heightened consumer purchasing power. The leading grocery stores in the UK have further globalized their operations to fortify their financial resources through

Article Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 4

Article - Essay Example Thus, the increasing premiums resulted in businesses relocating to states with lower rates of worker compensation. So as to avoid businesses and jobs from leaving their states, legislators pushed for reforms concerning compensation laws. Thus, 1,050 amendments related to workers compensation were enacted by legislators between 1982 and 1988.In fact states that enacted amendments experienced a reduction in worker compensation rates. OSHA normally enforces federal worker compensation laws whereas the Worker Compensation Agency enforces state worker compensation laws. Voluntary programs have been implemented by some states so as to make sure regulations are being adhered to. Others make use of accident avoidance services to reduce the costs of workers compensation. Some other states utilize targeting strategies so as to focus on companies having above average accidents in the workplace. In addition, companies having above average injuries are required to adhere to safety regulations. This study categorized the obligatory state level workplace safety requirements into groups that comprised of safety program laws, safety committee laws, insurance carrier loss control regulations as well as targeting programs. Thus these 4 kinds of safety requirements differ from conventional hazard particular to OSHA federal standards. The first stage for this study was looking at the preceding research and information regarding st ate level worker compensation initiatives and work place needs and arranging them into 4 classes. The records were taken from documents that were derived from workers compensation in addition to the labor agencies of every state. They discovered that 26 states shared 48 safety requirements as regards compensation of workers. Twenty four out of all the state lacked state-initiated workplace requirements. The 1990’s was

Three Business Types Essay Example for Free

Three Business Types Essay Barber Shop This is a small service oriented business. It is established by one individual with the purpose of providing barbing services to the community. It provides the people of the community a place to go and have their hair cut without having to go extra distance to get hair cuts. Setting up a barber shop is not so financially demanding as all you will need is a location (shop), hair clipper(s), chair(s) and mirrors. I essence if you are renting a shop the bulk of the expenses in setting up the barber’s shop will be the shop itself. The owner of the barber’s shop in my community is skilled in the barbing of hair and so when he started out he was alone and did not have to employ the services of another barber. It was the skill he possessed that prompted him to choose to start a business of barbing. Today, with prudent financial management, excellent services and perfect customer relation he has grown the barber shop so much that he has 10 barbers working for him; and he doesn’t have to do barbing jobs himself except for very important customers. What led the owner to choose this business are:Â   (1) he has the skills; (2) proximity to market, and; (3) it is not so financially demanding to set up. Football Club The community football club is a business that is listed on the stock exchange and thus provides for general ownership by everybody within and outside the community. The business of this football club is entertainment which is also more of service inclined. It also does merchandising of its jerseys and other club memorabilia. What must have led the initial owners of this business to form it was to provide entertainment and also bring popularity to the community through the sporting prowess of her football team. In other words, it was not established for profit but overtime and with stronger popularity, the money started coming in. Energy Company This corporation started with exploration and exploitation of oil then realising that it could maximise profit going full circle into the energy industry built its own refinery and power generation machine that runs on the fuel it exploits and refines. Today it not only generates and sells electric energy and petroleum fuel; it also builds refineries and electric plants for other companies and governments across the world. The global demand for energy and the need to meet this demand must have prompted the owners of this business to set up the company that has become one of the world’s leading energy corporations. Because of the huge energy demand on a global scale there is a guarantee of huge returns on investment. Reference http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/sc_mangb/stepstogrowth/engdoc/step3/ssg-3-5.php#industry; sourced 00:45 GMT +1, 2/10/06

Assistive Technology On Disabled Students Impact Education Essay

Assistive Technology On Disabled Students Impact Education Essay Abstract This study proposes to determine the impact of Assistive Technology (AT) on disabled students in South African higher institutions. The disabled people in any society are generally facing many debilitating quandaries, including physical, emotional and physiological degradation. As a result, empowering people with disabilities to realize their self-esteem as well as enhance their skilling and employability represents an interesting and challenging task to government, industry, interest groups and individuals worldwide. However, the emerging assistive technology provides a unique opportunity to alleviate the challenges of people with disabilities. Exploiting this novel technology, our current goal is to determine the impact of AT on disabled students in South African higher institutions. Randomized control group pre-test and post-test experimental design will be used for impact determination. Cronbach alpha will be used to measure the reliability of the data solicited from participatin g students in a kind of participatory survey. Bootstrapping statistics will be used to analyze the result of the experimental design and correlation will be used to discover relationship between data samples. As a case study, we would like to validate our design using randomly selected students from University of Pretoria, Tshwane University of Technology and University of Witwatersrand, which due to their closeness to the researchers makes the study cost-effective. We are hopeful that our design would be systemic enough to be easily extrapolated into other institutions. The expected contributions of this study are to: (a) explore different types of AT available to disabled students, (b) determine the user-friendliness of the AT, (c) compare the performance of disabled students with non-disabled peers and (d) determine the impact of AT on disabled students in South African higher institutions. Keywords: Assistive Technology, disabilities, South Africa, disabled students 1. Introduction The disabled people in any part of the world are generally facing many debilitating quandaries and they are not experiencing the kind of comfort, dexterity and optimism that most non-disabled people enjoy. The number of people with disabilities, continuous to insistently increase due to high rate of accidents, natural disasters, diseases and increasing number of aging people. For instance, disabled people in South Africa account for 5% (2  255  982) of the total population (Statistics South Africa, 2001), which significantly outgrows the previous statistics of (please supply previous statisticsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.) and in many parts of the world, the story is sympathetic. As a result, the impact of having some more people with disabilities in our society than ever before is immeasurable. The South African government has embarked on encouraging initiatives to have more disabled South Africans obtain formal education as a way to provide succour so that disabled people are better empowe red in the society. For example, the Ministry of Education improvises that South African schools should provide AT services and equipments for disabled students to enable a balanced (free and appropriate) public education. These initiatives make the use of AT practically relevant in our schools be it higher or lower institutions of learning. An emerging AT is any mobile device or infrastructure that can be used to maintain or improve the capabilities of individuals with disabilities (IDEA, 1990). With careful planning and guidance, the vast number of AT devices and software can be potentially beneficial to disabled students (Duhaney Duhaney, 2000). AT can enable people who are suffering from a wide range of natural disabilities to enjoy more comfortable lives. These technologies are being used at home, schools, work places and also in communities as a whole by disabled people (Howell, 1996). The use of AT is allowing people with disabilities to be more independent, productive, self-confident and for them to easily integrate into the mainstream society. The technology, for example, can enable a student with physically impaired hands or arms to be able to operate a computer with a switch or an onscreen keyboard, a mute student to communicate using a device that speaks and a student who cannot walk can be assisted to do so with specialised mechanical devices (Mirenda, 2001). As a result, the impact of AT on disable students in South Africa is undoubtedly enormous. Moreover, not only is AT beneficial for teaching and learning purpose, the living style of disabled students can be greatly improved socially by allowing them, for instance to play games and communicate fluently. However, many issues and obstacles such as lack of AT knowledge, training, funding, poor coordination between service providers and technology developers as well as fear of these technologies are hindering the successful application of AT in the society at large. That is why this study proposes to evaluate the impact of AT on disable students in South African higher institutions. 1.1. Problem Statement and Research Questions Today, the greatest challenge confronting the South African students with disabilities is to smoothly integrate into the society, participate in a competitive educational system and be equipped for the professional economic world. A number of emerging technologies: assistive and adaptive have been developed to cater for disabled students. But, very little literature has been written about these novel technologies. Additionally, the evaluation of their impact on the end-users has also not been widely reported. One way to ensure best outcomes for disabled students in South Africa would be to evaluate the impact of AT on these students. To do so, different types of AT would have to be identified and equal opportunities would have be given to disabled and non-disabled students to compete. Thus, a participatory research is necessary to determine the impact of AT on disabled students in South Africa. The main research question to solve in this study is: what is the impact of AT on disabled students in South Africa? To answer this question satisfactorily, first it is important to identify various AT available and determine their contributions towards improving the academic performance of disabled students in South Africa. As result, following research sub-questions will be squarely addressed in order to solve the main research question. What are the different types of AT are available to disabled students? How user friendly are the available AT to disabled students? Does AT smoothly integrate disabled and non-disabled students? Does the use of AT improves the academic performance of disabled students? How is AT used by disabled students to facilitate social networking? What influence is AT playing in the life of disabled students? 1.2. Goals and Objectives of the Study The core goal of this study to determine the impact of Assistive Technology (AT) on disabled students in South African higher institutions. This could help to uncover some unresolved issues introduced by disabled students on the impact of AT in their learning environments. This goal will be accomplished by implementing the following primary objectives. To identify different types of AT that are available to disabled students in South African higher institutions. To determine the user-friendliness of the available AT to disabled students in South African higher institutions. To determine whether the use of AT smoothly integrates disabled students with non-disabled students. To determine whether the use of the AT improves academic performance of disabled students in South African higher institutions. To determine how is AT used by disabled students to facilitate social networking. To determine the influence that AT is playing in the life of disabled students? 1.3. Expected Deliverables Within a 2 year project leading to an award of MTec degree, it is important to ensure that there are clear expectations for what can be delivered in these timescales. We hope to deliver the following. A comprehensive account of disabled students learning experiences and a clear documentation of the impact of AT on disabled students. A set of recommendations for practitioners, support staff, institutional managers and program developers on ways to manage the challenges of disabled students in the society. 2. Literature Review Most of the recent literature focusing on the impact of ICT on students in Universities across the world can be classified into three sources: Literature and case studies that have been developed from publicly funded studies to determine the impact of AT in higher education exist in academic domains and are mostly inform of case studies (e.g. Skills for Access, DART, ALERT).Other studies that support this include Seale(2006). Research studies that have explored the general education experiences of disabled students exist in both academic and non-academic domains (e.g. BBC, OUCH, SKILL). Other studies that support this include; (Mortimer Crosier, 2006), Shelving et al. 2004 and (Fuller et al. 2004). Research studies that have explored the specific e-learning experiences of disabled students Have generally been conducted in the UK,an example of this is Draffan et al. (2007) in a survey of the use of and satisfaction with AT by disabled students in UK higher institutions. Another survey by Cobham et al. (2001) also tried to explain the specific experiences of disabled students when using AT. The important conclusion from these studies is whether their findings are true for all students, especially the disabled students who may need emerging technology such as AT effective learning? The unique novelty of this study in relation to these studies listed above are abvious.With the use of participatory research methods, this study shall; (a) be a voice for the disabled students; (b) get raw (first hand) information from the uses themselves. This enables to answer the paradigm of Nothing about me, without me since the users are involved in every phase of this study. The important conclusion from these studies is whether their findings are true for all students, especially the disabled students who may need emerging technology such as AT effective learning? In particular, some of the most significant change in the education of students with disabilities in South Africa has been the initiative to adapt the inclusive education theory into their education system (Patton, 1992). This form of initiative is mainly a collaborative setting that includes a content specialist paired with a learning specialist and then leads to sharing of the teaching responsibilities, which will later benefit the education of all students. The use of inclusive education may change from one institution to other, but it clearly indicates that it is extremely important as enabler for students to achieve their ultimate educational goals. The rapid developments in innovative ICT infrastructure, particularly in the field of AT rekindles the hope and aspiration for those who have so long been deprived of opportunities with which life has burdened them: visual impairment, physical disability, hearing impairment and Communication impairments (Levin Scharffenberger, 1990) . More importantly, disability is being recognized as a social construct created by ability-oriented and ability-dominated environments. Traditional methods for studying the impacts of AT on disabled students in South African higher education includes: (a) interviews, (b) questionnaire surveys and (c) focus groups. However, in recent time, there has been a need to develop methods and practices that enable the student voice to be more focus on AT studies (Levin Scharffenberger, 1990). However, it should be clarified that efforts to include disabled students in studies of the impact of AT in the learning environments may need new alternative methods besides the traditional methods. Researcher can draw their learner-centred AT research studies from two related filed methods to analyse the impact of AT on disabled students in universities, these include: (a) participatory design and (b) participatory research. These methods are commonly used for designing AT and to incorporate the related fields of user-centred design, co-design and inclusive design (Hanson, et al., 2007). Participatory design according was defined as th e involvement of disabled students throughout the entire phases of the study (Hanson et al. 2007). This study involves: (a) working directly with the disabled students to fully participate in the study from phase one throughout to last phase, (b) involving the real disabled students in their real contexts, ignoring window dressing to keep the deficiencies of their school secret, (c) a continuous cycle of development and evaluation phases until both the researcher and research participants (disabled student in this case) reach an agreed solution, (d) dual participation between participants (disabled students) and designers in development of key AT methodologies. The benefits of participatory design methods are obvious when researching intensive study on the disabled students and how they use these technologies in daily activities (Davies et al. 2004). The strong in-depth analysis offered by such methods appears to be highly applicable to research studies focusing on hearing the stude nt voice. This study, therefore nominates participatory methods to be used to explore the impact of AT on disabled students in three higher education institutions in South Africa, taking three universities: (a) University of Pretoria, (b) University of Witwatersrand and (c) Tshwane University of Technology as a case study. This study advocates that there is the need for research to be written from the disabled students perspective and that is why participatory research is an appropriate approach for this study. Although most of the educators in south Africa are trying to make sure that the disabled students use the same technology as non-disabled, it has been hard for the disabled students to deal with the fact that most of the software being developed do not accommodate the aspect of inclusive education and design for all (Fischer, 1995). Research Design and Methodology The methodology of this study will try to demonstrate how the use of participatory methods of research will be used to show how the goals and objectives and problems questions of this study were meant. The most common forms of participatory methods are by use of interview plus, questionnaires and focus groups. The first objective (to identify different types of AT that are available to disabled students in South African higher institutions.), this study shall design a template of various AT from different literature study on AT. This AT template is then presented to the research participants (disabled students) to choose what are the different types of assistive technologies they are currently using. The second objectives (to determine the user-friendliness of the available AT to disabled students in South African higher institutions), this study proposes to include in the questionnaire a question that enables the disabled students to select one option from 1-10 how user friendly they think the AT they are using are. The higher the number, the more use-friendly that participant feels about that AT. The third objective (to determine whether the use of the AT improves academic performance of disabled students in South African higher institutions), this study proposes, after ethical approval has been granted from the various university, this study shall ask the University Authorities to provide academic transcripts of the research participants, to see if using these ATs have helped them improve on their academics. The fourth objective (to determine how is AT used by disabled students to facilitate social networking), this study proposes with the use of a questionnaire and interview plus, the research participants will be asked to choose or list the social networks that they are using at that current state and how much easier ATs have helped these students while using these social networks. The fifth objective (to determine the influence that AT is playing in the life of disabled students), this study proposes to have a controlled and experimental sample of participants. Since the South African government encourages the use of inclusive design, most of the ATs are used by both the disabled students and their non-disabled peers. During the interviews and answering of questionnaire, the research participants shall be asked to list how they feel ATs have helped them; both negative and positive responses shall be encouraged. Thus study will encourage these participants to even include non-academic influences of ATs on them. The focus group and interview plus shall be mainly used when the participants and answering to the questionnaire. These forms of participatory research methods shall also be used to enable the research participants to provide any additional information that they feel that this study might have left out. This study shall during the first focus group meeting provide each research participant with the proposed questions that this study intends to use. Each participant shall be asked to first tick which questions they feel are relevant to this study. Using an excel sheet, every question shall be listed in one column and another column showing how many students have chosen a particular question. This number is then divided by the total number of research participants to determine the mean score. The higher the mean score, the more relevant a question is to this study. The same format shall be used when deterring the best relevant data collection tool to use. These mean scores can also be classified as alpha scores. 3.1 Overview of data collection tools The data collection tools that will be used in this project consist of (a) interview plus (b) questionnaire and (c) focus groups. The use of these tools is not unique to research that uses a participatory approach; several general studies of disabled students in higher education have employed these methods. However, what is unique about the use of these data collection tools in this study is that participation influenced the nature and focus of each tool: 4. Project Plan 4.1 Summarised Project Plan WORKPACKAGES March April May June July August September October November Startup/Project Planning Communication Questionnaire Student recruitment Phase 1 all inclusive Phase 2 purposive Data collection Data Analysis Evaluation /Reporting Table 1:Project Plan 4.2 Master Project Plan Work package and activity Outputs Start date End Date WORKPACKAGE 1: Startup/Project Planning Objective: To provide project management for the project 1. Produce project plan, workpackages, and dissemination plan. march Ongoing 2.Reading of project material Gathering literature from library and internet March Ongoing 2. Choose of University to use List of University March March 3. Write Chapter One Presentation of Proposal March June WORKPACKAGE 2: Communication Objective: Maintain communication with Cordinator, and external interested parties Team Communication with Cordinator Minutes of meetings/emails weekly March Ongoing Academic and Student Services Staff University of Minutes of meetings/emails weekly March Ongoing External interested parties (Disability South Africa) Minutes of meetings/emails weekly March Ongoing Focus Groups Minutes of meetings/emails weekly July Ongoing WORKPACKAGE : Questionnaire Objective: Develop questions that will answer the Goals and Objectives Developement of Assisitve Technology Types Questionnaire Questionaire May May Developement of Goals and Objectives related questions Questionnaire May June Revised Chapter One Hand in Research Proposal(Chapter One) June July WORKPACKAGE 3: disabled Student recruitment Phase 1 all inclusive Objective: Participation of max available of disabled students Student Services support and Ethics Committe Acceptance of outline questions and support of project July July (Re)formulate interview questions with disabled students Pilot / Questionnaire acceptable to participants and evaluation of changes made. July August Data Analysis from initial questionnaires and contact with students from Phase 1 Analysis and report on outcomes of initial questionnaire, e-mails and discussions with students. August August WORKPACKAGE 4: Phase 2 purposive Objective: Recruitment of students who agreed to participate during Phase 1 Participatory research of methodology initial discussions,on-going evaluation and implementation Analysis and report on Methodologies August September Interviews/ participation/development of artefacts Analysis of interviews summary report September September WORKPACKAGE 5: Data collection Objective: Systematic Storage and re-formatting of data Collection of Data from participants Raw data available to team September September Accessible Multimedia artefacts Data available to team with captions, text descriptions, etc. September September WORKPACKAGE 6: Data Analysis Objective: Evaluation of all the data and other artefacts collected Analysis of interview data from Phase 2 Synopsis of transcripts accepted by individual participant September October Analysis of all artefacts provided by participants Agreement with participants, as to which artefacts are used for dissemination. Ocotober October Analysis of all external the data gathered in relation to the project. Agreement with team as to inclusion of external data relating to the project e.g. accessibility guidelines etc. October October WORKPACKAGE 7: Evaluation /Reporting Objective: Evaluation of methodologies used and completion of progress and final reports Progress report Draft to Advisory Group and Team Itemised report of progress to date October November Final evaluation of the questions used and Research Question Report Draft summary report detailing how the research questions have been addressed and drawing out lessons learned from the particular institutional context; October November Methodology Critique and analysis Draft report of a critique of the chosen methodology November November Recommendations/Guidelines on impact of the use of Assistive Technologies Draft recommendations and guidance for practitioners, support staff, institutional managers, learners, content providers, instructional designers, technical and program developers November November FINAL THESIS Hand in final research paper November November Table 2:Master Project Plan showing the activities that will be involved

Gone with the Wind Essay

â€Å"Gone with the Wind† is an adaptation of an historical romance. The film, set in Civil War-era southern United States, tends to be highly sentimental. Paradoxically, the circumstances in which it is set are often harrowing and serve to highlight the bravery required to survive during that time. The â€Å"frothiness† of the plot is in stark contrast to the utter seriousness of its context. The film opens in the antebellum South, on a Georgia plantation where the heroine entertains two gentlemen callers. The talk is of imminent war, a theme which guests carry through the subsequent picnic. Talk then turns to action and the men depart to enlist in the Confederate Army. Confidence and jubilation quickly become disappointment which gives way to horror as the realities of war intrude upon the genteel tableau. Under assault, the Southerners struggle to keep their society together in the face of poverty, filth, and chaos. We see the major historical points of the period, especially Sherman’s march through Georgia and the burning of Atlanta, a scorched earth policy. The women are the main characters in the film. In the effects of war and its aftermath we see destitution, famine, terror, desperation. The wounded are legion and supplies dwindle and disappear. The war ends and the soldiers come home to regroup. Carpetbaggers descend and begin an uneasy alliance with enterprising individuals, notably Scarlett. She casts aside honor to regain prosperity, marrying for money and using her combination of feminine wiles and shrewdness to rise above abject poverty. Finally she marries Rhett, a selfish opportunist like her. At the end he realizes that she will never love him and leaves Scarlett with that which has sustained her; an abiding love for Tara. This narrative is history seen from the women’s perspective. They are alternately brave, childish, and childlike, treading on the line between what they are and what they must be. They do it for the men of the South, themselves, and for the South itself. The depiction of the war and the events surrounding it is largely consistent with the historical record. The factual portions of the film are in part accurate. For instance, at a benefit supporting the war, the ladies are asked to relinquish their jewelry. Such a depiction is consistent with the account in â€Å"The American Civil War† by Peter J. Parish and it highlights one of the sacrifices women made during this time. George A. Trenholm, who replaced Secretary of the Confederate Treasury Memminger, asked for these concessions as the finances of the South became particularly desperate. This detail concerns one of the points at which â€Å"Gone With the Wind† succeeds as history. â€Å"†¦wealthy female slaveholders escaped significant disruption in their lives at the outset of the war, for they had money to maintain their antebellum lifestyle and the slaves to maintain plantation production. † (Frank 514) Thus the sheltered experience depicted in the film is wholly consistent with rich women’s lives until the last stages of the period. In opposition, several events as depicted in â€Å"Gone with the Wind† are inaccurate. At the end and after the war, black people did not leap to the aid of their former masters as the film asserts. The character Mammy would have sought paid employment rather than stay on a ruined plantation. In reality, the vast majority of the planters used violence to subjugate their â€Å"property. † In one scene, the character Ashley Wilkes chides Scarlett for treating the convict workers in her lumber mill cruelly in supposed contrast with their treatment of the slaves. It is true that in the darkest days for the South they did choose to prevail upon the Negroes to fight for their own oppression. â€Å"There was no greater irony in all the efforts of the Confederacy to find adequate means to match its ambitious goals than the proposal to arm Negroes. † (Parish 561) But the slaves did not fight for the South as much for a newfound and cherished liberty, greater than they had ever known. And once they had tasted that liberty, they did not willingly acquiesce in the imposition of a terrible, unjust burden. The importance of the Civil War and its aftermath can hardly be overstated. The struggle has been the only armed conflict fought on our territory. It consumed nearly 500,000 lives, the largest wartime death toll in American history. It also was a first step in remedying the shame of slavery which Americans had perpetrated in a country which largely had been the realization of a vision of freedom and equality. They fought with not only the political reality of the South’s secession of 1861, but with the region’s separate psychology. â€Å"By 1860 the South was a state of mind as well as a place on the map. A definition of ‘Southernness’ was and is at least as much a task for the psychologist as for the geographer. † (Parish 303) This enduring mindset notwithstanding, had the South won, not only would the crime of slavery have been continued, it is doubtful that the U. S. would have grown into the superpower it is today. The war determined that an integral part of the union would remain. The significance of the war for the world at large in the mid-nineteenth century â€Å"†¦belongs in part to the realm of might-have-beens; its long-term consequences derived less from what did happen from what did not. † (Parish 381) Among the events that very well might have happened were interference from foreign governments, international recognition of the Confederacy, and the widening of this internecine war into a general conflagration abroad. Such luck for the union was due to the relative isolation the U. S. has enjoyed throughout its history. Americans fought their war amid constant threats from abroad. â€Å"There was nothing inevitable about the fact that it remained a domestic†¦affair. It remained a purely American affair through a combination of good fortune and great skill on the part of those who wished to keep it so, gross errors on the part of those who did not, and canny calculations of national and self-interest on the part of those who might have been caught in its toils. † (Parish 381) Although some continue to fight this war in their minds, they benefit from over 200 years of federal association and its attendant largess. As I stated earlier, with regard to the historical accuracy of the film as document, it is a women’s narrative. Though there was no Scarlett O’Hara per se, the things we see her experience and perpetrate on others is consistent with the accounts of those who actually lived in that time and place. The threat of starvation was indeed present in all households in the later stages. â€Å"Domestic production and ingenuity staved off a state of crisis for slaveholding women for a while, but, by the end of the war starvation and material deprivation shook even the most affluent households. † (Frank 515) When Scarlett was forced to hide her wagon under a bridge with three highly vulnerable people in it while Northern soldiers passed overhead, she was surviving a circumstance familiar to many Southern women. â€Å"†¦many faced the hazards of living in the path of the Union army. Those who resided near the battlefront risked having their property commandeered, stolen, or destroyed by Northern soldiers. (Frank 515) Such dangers were in addition to the threat, both potential and realized, of bodily violation. Scarlett valiantly, not to say desperately, defends herself and her loved ones against a looting Union soldier when she shoots him in the face. It is an act not uncommon to those willing and able to defend themselves. The depiction of slave and ex-slave loyalty is highly romanticized to say the least. â€Å"Gone with the Wind† depicts Negroes as possessing a childlike innocence. They seem to be a rich vein of merriment instead of the human beings upon which the horrors of bondage had been visited. Nowhere do we see slavery’s pain and degradation. The black characters in the film are even more a caricature than even the heroine is at times. The film’s tendency toward opaque sentiment at first glance is a terrible injustice to a period quite painful to the American psyche be it black or white, Northern or Southern. Certainly the film is nowhere near the caliber of slave narratives, Ken Burns’ â€Å"the Civil War†, or â€Å"Uncle Tom’s Cabin. † However, it is important as hitherto all-too-often neglected genre of women’s history. Seldom in mainstream culture is the women’s perspective represented so faithfully. And equally seldom is it given the attention and resources devoted to this film. It is simply not taken seriously enough and shunted off into women’s studies classes rather than included in the mainstream of scholarship. Valuable though they are, the women’s studies classes or gender studies courses tend to attract the favor of those predisposed to appreciate them. â€Å"Gone With the Wind†, for a long while a staple of popular culture, has reached a much wider audience. In many ways this movie is indeed an historical romance, ladies’ fiction. However it is also a significant historical document. Many more people have learned about the Civil War from the women’s point of view by means of viewing this film than from any other source. This fact, in addition to its inclusion of important data, renders it deserving of attention and respect. For instance, it highlights the worthlessness of the Confederate currency, a situation which underscores the sheer lack of administrative competence displayed in the South at all stages of the war. Not only did the Confederates fight the North, they also had to contend with the inherent weaknesses of their fledgling nation, as they sought to envision it. Many things weakened â€Å"The Cause†, most notably slavery’s lack of long-term viability as an economic model. The South was heavily invested in a system which had no hope of succeeding beyond a few years. To a great extent, the Confederacy fell under its own weight, much to the past and continuing chagrin if its champions and much to the edification of the nation of which it is a part as well as humankind in general. If only the proof of that assertion would not have required the death of so many and the maiming of still more. Bibliography Frank, Lisa Tendrich. Women in the American Civil War Vol. II. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, Inc. , 2008 Parish, Peter J. American Civil War, the. New York: Holmes and Meier, 1975.

Strategic Plan Part 2: Swot Analysis

The purpose of this synopsis is to analyze the forces and trends that Green Mountain Coffee Rosters faces relevant to its competitive position. The synopsis will explore external forces such as economic, social, legal and regulatory. The paper will also weigh internal forces such as resources, goals, and intellectual property, as it relates to Green Mountain Coffee Rosters. I will describe how the company adapts to changes; identify the major issues and opportunities that this company faces with in this synopsis.External Forces and Trends Legal and Regulatory- These forces impact Green Mountain Coffee Rosters daily. In my opinion the one legal or regulatory force GMCR encounters is the Clayton Act. This stands out to me because of all the brands that are under the GMCR banner (Lister, 2012). The Clayton act prohibits board of directors being in position to make decisions for competing companies working under the same corporate banner. The coffee retail market is governed by U. S. nti trust laws as any other industry. The Federal Trade Commission Act bars dishonest methods of competition, such as misleading information or deceptive business practices (Lister, 2012). The act is aim is to keep each coffee retailer, regardless of whether it sells coffee, honest with the information it provides to consumers about its products, and The Food and Drug Administration monitors all coffee products sold in the U. S. and inspects them to ensure no potentially harmful ingredients are present.Economic- Economic factors concern the nature and direction of the economy in which a firm operates, Pearce & Robinson (2009). A potential economic trend is the Hispanics demographic. The ethnic group drinks coffee more than other racial and ethnic groups. They begin drinking coffee earlier than other groups and in their older years are more likely to be exclusive coffee drinkers; and 74 percent of Hispanic-Americans drink coffee daily, twelve percentage points ahead of other Americans.As they become acculturated they mimic the attitudes and behaviors of non-Hispanic coffee drinkers. Competitive Analysis- Since 1981 GMRC has built formidable organization from its humble beginnings as a small cafe in Waitsfield, Vermont. Its positioning strategy thus far has been brilliant, differentiating its brand from other brands in the market. Green Mountain Coffee Rosters used a method of delivering value, strategic relationships and customer segments to wrestle away market from Nestle and other hot beverage manufactures. Internal Forces and TrendsStrategy- It appears that GMCR is consistently strategizing. Even with the inevitable expiration of K-Cup pack patent in September 2012. The company is positioning competitively GMCR is attempting to increase its brand’s awareness by partnering with other coffee manufacturers, such as Folgers by supplying K-Cup packs for competitors, GMCR increase awareness of Keurig products with this strategy. Another tactic GMCR is using to combat the expiration of K-Cup pack patent is technology (Green Mountain Coffee Roasters INC. , 2012).The organization recently machine introduced to the market a mid-high end brewer that provides many more options than regular Keurig machines. Consumer can control the strength of their drink, the temperature at which it is brewed, the amount brewed, and brew many other drinks including cafe beverages (Green Mountain Coffee Roasters INC. , 2012). This is an opportunity for GMCR to tap into more affluent markets and promote its specialty coffee as a complement to the Keurig Vue. Culture – The culture at GMCR is mindful to the effectiveness of the business.The ideas promote a positive perception in the company from customers, employees, suppliers, and stakeholders. The GMCR focus on establishing cultural environment to ensure everyone effectively knows how to implement the mission, vision, and values set for the organization. Key areas are: GMCR purpose states â€Å"We create the ultimate coffee experience in every life we touch from tree to cup – transforming the way the world understands business† (Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, 2012). Another notable cultural belief of GMCR is personal excellence quoted this way â€Å"For today and tomorrow.Our competitive strength comes from the continuous improvement of all that we do† (Green Mountain Coffee Roasters INC. , 2012). We actively seek out and apply best practices†. Other principles to support its cultural environment are continuous learning, appreciating differences, shared ownership, and world benefit. Strategic Capabilities – Green Mountain Coffee Rosters imported coffee from 24 countries. This indicates that it has inbound logistics capabilities, such as material control systems, inventory control systems, raw material handling, and warehousing (Green MountainCoffee Roasters, 2012). Located in 7 states GMCR operates from three business units: the specialty coffee bus iness unit, which includes Green Mountain Coffee, Barista Prima, Tully’s Coffee, Timothy’s World Coffee, and Coffee People coffee brands; the Keurig Business Unit, where the Keurig single cup brewing system was created; and the Canadian Business Unit, which is responsible for all GMCR sales in Canada and includes the Van Houtte business and Timothy’s brand (Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, 2012). This is also a demonstration of its strategic capabilities.Conclusion Before I analyzed the competitive position of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, I asked could this company do anything wrong? Now at the end of my analysis I ponder the same question. I’m not an expert yet at conducting SWOT analysis, but in my humble opinion one does not conduct a SWOT on a successful firm. I analyzed GMCR objectively and un-bias and still think the company has exceptional competitive positioning strategy The only weakness to me is expiration of K-Cup pack patent in September 201 2.Still the organization manages to use the one the counter measure that my professor taught GMCR does. They are practically giving K-Cup packs away, supplying them to any firms that want to use them. For now this prove they can produce the product cheap, showing the competition that it probably not a good strategy to develop a similar product to the K-Cup. ?ReferencesGreen Mountain Coffee Roasters INC. (2012). Corporate Overview. Retrieved from http://www. gmcr. com/about-GMCR. html Green Mountain Coffee Roasters. (2012).Corporate Social Responsibility Report Fiscal 2011. Retrieved from http://www.com/-/media/sustainability/PDF/CSRreport/GMCRCSRReport. 2011. ashxGreen Mountain Coffee Roasters. (2009). Corporate Overview. Retrieved from http://www. gmcr. com/about-GMCR. html Lister, J. (2012). Regulation of Coffee Retail Market in the USA.Retrieved from http://www. ehow. com/about_6886008_regulation-coffee-retail-market-usa. html Pearce, J. A. , & Robinson, R. B. (2009). Strategic M anagement: Formulation, Implementation, and Control (11th ed. ). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Stand Your Ground essays

Stand Your Ground essays If a person today is asked to do something that he or she may not like to do and they say no, they may be looked down upon. Not only does this happen today, but it also was true in the early 1900s. It is just not fair when people stand up for what their mind feels is right, such as Atticus does in the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, that they are looked down upon and harassed. Atticus tries to teach his children to stand up for what is right throughout the novel. One night Atticus was talking with Jem and said, As you grow older, youll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and dont you forget it-whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash.1 Atticus taught and also practiced what he felt was right. One night while Atticus was guarding the jailhouse where Tom Robinson was staying, a group of men confronted him about the whereabouts of Tom. One of the men said to Atticus, You know what we want...get aside from the door, Mr. Finch (162). Atticus could have just said, ok, Tom is in there go get him, but he wanted to stand up for what he knew was right. That was telling them that he was there ______________________________________________________________________________ 1 Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird (Lippincott, 1960), p. 233. and that he was not going to let the group of men get to Tom so they could kill him. Atticus stands up and says, You can turn around and go home again (162). This was just one of the many times that Atticus, Jem, and also Scout would run across people that felt differently than they did about discrimination and what they would do to stand up to it. The mockingbird in the novel symbolizes innocence. Treating a person bad be ...

The Duma in Russian History

The Duma in Russian History The Duma (Assembly in Russian) was an elected semi-representative body in Russia from 1906 to 1917. It was created by the leader of the ruling Tsarist regime Tsar Nicholas II in 1905 when the government was desperate to divide the opposition during an uprising. The creation of the assembly was very much against his will, but he had promised to create an elected, national, legislative assembly. After the announcement, hopes were high that the Duma would bring democracy, but it was soon revealed that the Duma would have two chambers, only one of which was elected by the Russian people. The Tsar appointed the other, and that house held a veto over any actions of the other. Also, the Tsar retained ‘Supreme Autocratic Power.’ In effect, the Duma was neutered right from the start, and people knew it. There were four Dumas during the institution’s lifetime: 1906, 1907, 1907–12 and 1912–17; each had several hundred members made up of a mix of peasants and ruling classes, professional men and workers alike. Dumas 1 and 2 The first Duma was comprised of deputies angry at the Tsar and what they perceived as backtracking on his promises. The Tsar dissolved the body after only two months when the government felt the Duma complained too much and was intractable. Indeed, when the Duma had sent the Tsar a list of grievances, he had replied by sending the first two things he felt able to let them decide on: a new laundry and a new greenhouse. The Duma found this offensive and the relations broke down. The second Duma lasted from February to June 1907, and, because of the actions of Kadet liberals shortly before the election, the Duma was dominated by extremely anti-government factions. This Duma had 520 members, only 6% (31) had been in the first Duma: the government outlawed anybody who signed the Viborg Manifesto protesting dissolving of the first one. When this Duma opposed the reforms of Nicholass Minister of the Interior Pyotr A. Stolypin, it too was dissolved. Dumas 3 and 4 Despite this false start, the Tsar persevered, keen to portray Russia as a democratic body to the world, particularly trade partners like Britain and France who were pushing forward with limited democracy. The government changed the voting laws, limiting the electorate to just those who owned property, disenfranchising most peasants and workers (the groups who would come to be used in the 1917 revolutions). The result was the more docile third Duma of 1907, dominated by Russia’s Tsar-friendly right wing. However, the body did get some laws and reforms put into effect. New elections were held in 1912, and the fourth Duma was created. This was still less radical than the first and second Dumas, but was still deeply critical of the Tsar and closely questioned government ministers. End of the Duma During the First World War, the members of the fourth Duma grew increasingly critical of the inept Russian government, and in 1917 joined with the army to send a delegation to the Tsar, asking him to abdicate. When he did so, the Duma transformed into part of the Provisional Government. This group of men tried to run Russia in conjunction with the Soviets while a constitution was drawn up, but all that was washed away in the October Revolution. The Duma has to be considered a significant failure for the Russian people, and also for the Tsar, as none of them were either a representative body or a complete puppet. On the other hand, compared to what followed after October 1917, it had a lot to recommend it. Sources Bailey, Sydney D. Police Socialism in Tsarist Russia. The Review of Politics 19.4 (1957): 462–71.Briman, Shimon. The Jewish Question and Elections to the First and Second Duma, 1905-1907. Proceedings of the World Congress of Jewish Studies 1997 (1997): 185–88.Keep, J. L. H. Russian Social-Democracy and the First State Duma. The Slavonic and East European Review 34.82 (1955): 180–99. Walsh, Warren B. The Composition of the Dumas. The Russian Review 8.2 (1949): 111–16. Print.Walsh, Warren B. Political Parties in the Russian Dumas. The Journal of Modern History 22.2 (1950): 144–50. Print.

Characteristics of Servant Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Characteristics of Servant Leadership - Essay Example This essay would describe the leaders’ attitudes and values and the leaders’ behaviors and actions that have been observed. Further, the areas Jack Welch focused on that demonstrated how he served employees, other stakeholders, community and society would be identified. Likewise, the impact that these behaviors and actions in these areas of service had on the organization, in terms of its performance and its contribution to the greater good, would also be proffered. Finally, the four values for the personal leadership model (honesty and integrity, open communication, accountability, and perseverance would be defined. One observable leadership behavior which this value is likely to enable would ultimately be identified. According to Byrne (1998, par. 12), â€Å"No one, not Microsofts (MSFT) William H. Gates III or Intels (INTC) Andrew S. Grove, not Walt Disneys (DIS) Michael D. Eisner or Berkshire Hathaways (BKR.A) Warren E. Buffett, not even the late Coca-Cola (KO) chieftain Roberto C. Goizueta or the late Wal-Mart (WMT) founder Sam Walton has created more shareholder value than Jack Welch.† He has a charismatic personality, â€Å"coupled with an unbridled passion for winning the game of business and a keen attention to details† (Byrne, 1998, par. 16). He demanded an informal structure where the traditional chain of command was violated; enforced an open communication at all times encompassing all levels; and regularly and frequently interrelated with all personnel regardless of ranks. He has great faith in people’s creativity and believes in the value of surprise. As emphasized, â€Å"there are no bounds to human creativity. The idea flow from the human spirit is absolutely unlimited, Welch declares. All you have to do is tap into that well. I dont like to use the word efficiency. Its creativity. Its a belief that every person counts.† (Byrne, 1998, par. 31) Concurrent with his philosophy of enforcing

Memoir Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Memoir Assignment - Essay Example It was around 10 o’clock in the morning when the accident occurred. While traversing one of the many narrow mountain bends, our bus skidded off the road and plunged down a ravine. I remember screaming in horror before fainting. When I opened my eyes, the first person I saw was my grandmother. She was tying her scarf around my slightly bruised forehead. The badly dented bus was precariously perched against a small boulder on the edge of a thin ledge. I was relieved to find that my grandmother was not injured. She told me how the narrow ledge saved us (there were around 30 people in the bus), breaking the fall of the plummeting bus. There were many injuries but luckily none fatal. Some passengers tried to use their mobile phones, but encountered range problems. My grandmother was magnificent, going around bandaging wounds,comforting people, assuring them that help would come. Some passengers tried to use their mobile phones, but failed due to range problems. Help did come, and sooner that we expected. We later learnt that the driver of a car traveling some distance behind our bus witnessed the accident, and reported it at the nearest police station. A rescue team rushed out to our aid. Fortunately, the ledge on which we huddled was quite near the top (about 150 feet), and we soon heard sounds of cranes and winches being mobilized. Relief and excitement was very much evident among us as everyone started talking or laughing with some even crying. Our joyful celebrations were interrupted by a shrill scream. One of the passengers was an American tourist (we later learned her name was Linda) who was knocked unconscious during the accident. She had returned to consciousness, looked around searchingly, and started screaming that her little daughter Wilma was still trapped in the bus. We tried to tell her that help was on the way and specialized rescue workers would secure the bus soon, but she screamed that it may be too late.