Introduction to Marketing PowerPoint Presentation

Introduction to Marketing - PowerPoint Presentation Example outsourcing social media marketing services from the social media companies that have since been established and now, looking to dominate the industry. The overall market size for the social media advertising companies cannot be estimated precisely because to do so, one will need to count the ever-growing number of companies and institutions being established daily, and who essentially need to market their products. Thousands of existing companies and institutions are already outsourcing social media services, so an estimate of 50% of all businesses countrywide would be an appropriate market size, for now. 1. Placing adverts for companies and institutions on all the six most popular social media platforms. These include Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Google Plus+ and You Tube. The choice of platforms to use depends on the social media sites preferred by the client and most importantly, the nature of products and serviced being advertised. 2. Content creation and campaign management services. In an effort to marketing a particular product or service, there has to be a campaign to sensitize its use and the content in that campaign needs to be original. 4. Research, monitoring and analysis of social media marketing.- success depends on your ability to measure and understand your efforts. Community measurement is an essential tool in social media marketing. 2. The top areas businesses want to flourish in are tactics and engagement processes - At least 89% of companies want to use the most effective social tactics and engagement plans for their social media audience. 4. Businesses want to make the most out of Google+ - While 54% of big corporations are using Google+, 65% of smaller companies want to know more about it and 61% plan on increasing Google+ activities this year. 5. Podcasting is on growth trajectory-Though only 6% of companies have utilized podcasting in their advertising, 21% plan to increase their podcasting activities this year. That is

Siddhartha VS. Fahrenheit 451 Essay Example for Free

Siddhartha VS. Fahrenheit 451 Essay Siddhartha and Fahrenheit 451 are very similar in some ways and very different in others this essay will talk about some of these similarities and some of the differences. In order to understand the two books we must first write a detailed summary of them. Once that is done then we can get into the similarities of the two good books, and finally the differences of Siddhartha and Fahrenheit 451. In Siddhartha, the main character Siddhartha decides to leave his family, along with his best friend Govinda, in order to seek enlightenment. They travel to the woods to find the Samanas, a group of people who decide to live without property. During the three years with the Samanas they learn a lot. One day they hear that there is a man who is said to have achieved Nirvana. They take the leave form the Samanas in order to pursue Gotama, the Enlightened One. When they get there they hear one of his speeches, Afterwards Siddhartha confronts Gotama to ask why his speech did not tell him how to achieve Nirvana. Soon after the confrontation Govinda announces that he is going to stay and become one of Gotama’s followers, while Siddhartha decides that he is going to pursue his own path towards enlightenment. Govinda is not happy with this but he had already made his oath to serve loyally under Gotama. Siddhartha leaves the town and goes back through the woods where he encounters a ferryman. The ferryman whose name is Vasudeva lets Siddhartha spend the night in his hut and then gives him a change of clothes to wear into town. Siddhartha goes to the nearby town and there he meets Kamala, a local courtesan. He then proceeds to ask Kamala if she can teach him about love. AT first she laughs at him and said that for her to teach him he must get some money. Before Siddhartha leaves he asks Kamala if he could exchange a poem for a kiss. She agrees and after that was over she sent Siddhartha to the rich merchant, Kamaswami. When Siddhartha asks to learn the way of the merchant Kamaswami does not turn him down. Siddhartha now rich again and learning the ways of love and trade believes that he is happy for a change, but some part of him is still missing. After a while Siddhartha decides to leave his merchant life in order to keep chasing his dream. He leaves Kamala and Kamaswami behind and goes back to the woods. There he goes to the river where he looks down upon himself and believing that his life was over. He decides to drown himself for it would be the quickest way to go, but something talks him out of it. Instead he falls asleep by the base of a tree. When he wakes up he is astonished to find his best friend Govinda asleep across from him. He and Govinda talk for a while when Govinda said that he needed to catch up with his group of monks that were spreading the word of Gotama. Siddhartha then leaves and follows the river back to the Vasudava’s, the ferryman, house. While there he asks Vasudeva if he can teach him the ways of the ferryman. Vasudeva agrees. They begin by telling Siddhartha that in order to become a ferryman he must firs learn to listen to the river. When Siddhartha and Vasudeva are ferrying people across they come across Govinda and his group of monks again. The monks say that Gotama is dying and has called all his monks back to him. It is in one such time that Siddhartha and Kamala meet up again. This time Kamala has a son with her. Kamala has been bitten by a snake and Siddhartha wants to help her. He tries and tries but nothing works and she eventually dies. At the very end of the story Govinda and Siddhartha are reunited for the last time. Govinda now seeing Siddhartha for the first time in a while believes that Siddhartha has done it, he had achieved Nirvana. In Fahrenheit 451 the main character is a man known as Guy Montag. He is a fireman. Being a fireman does not mean that they fight fires, it means that they burn books that the people in their city try to keep hidden. On the way home from on hard day at work, Montag meets a young girl named Clarisse. She is a peculiar girl for she asks a lot of questions that have to do with nothing besides just random things. In one of these questions she asks if it were true that firemen actually fought fires instead of burning books. Montag does not know how to answer. He walks along until he gets to Clarisse’s house. The final question that she asks Montag is the strangest of them all. It is â€Å"are you happy†. Montag goes home pondering that final question. He gets ready for bed when he accidentally kicks a sleeping pill bottle on the floor. After realizing that it is empty he quickly calls the emergency room. They send someone over to help with Montag’s wife Mildred. They finish with her and tell Montag that they get about ten of these calls every night. He keeps going to work and talking with Clarisse. It was during one of these talks that she rubbed a flower under her chin. When Montag asks what it meant she says that it is to see if a person is in love or not. Montag goes to work one day and is attacked by the mechanical hound. After he gets away he says that the mechanical hound has done that three times and it would only act that way if someone had programmed it. Later on in the book he comes home and sees that Mildred is watching the news. It was saying that a young 17 year old girl was hit by a car and killed. Montag realizes that the girl was Clarisse. One day he is at the park and sees a man by the name of Faber. Montag learns that Faber was a college professor but quit because they had burned all of the books. Faber offers Montag his address. One night while the women friends of Mildred’s are over he goes to Faber’s house. There he comes up with his plan to reprint books. He also says that they should plant books in the fireman’s houses. Faber didn’t listen so in order to get him to listen, Montag starts to rip the pages out of the bible. Faber gives Montag an earpiece that allows them to talk. While back at work the firemen get a call that someone has books in their house. Montag is deep in conversation with Beatty the fire chief that only after they stop does he realize that the house they stopped in front of is his own. Beatty tells Montag that he is under arrest and he has to burn all of his books that he had with a flamethrower. After he finishes torching the books Montag gets irritation in the ear with the communication device. Beatty sees this and takes the earpiece. Now that Montag is frustrated he decides to torch Beatty. After that he is attacked by the mechanical hound. He kills the beast and gets away. Unfortunately for him every channel is playing a tape that tells people to be on the watch for Montag. While at Faber’s house He had given Montag some directions. Montag now on the run follow those directions. He meets up with a group of refugees that are all intelligent. They decide to leave for the city to reprint the books that they have memorized the city is leveled by bombs. They decide that it is now best to reprint those books so that the survivors have a sense of dignity again. Now that you understand the basic outline for the two books here are a few similarities between them. In both books the main character finds teachers that help him along the path to their destiny. In Siddhartha these teachers like Kamaswami, Kamala, and even his best friend Govinda. In Fahrenheit 451 Montag’s teachers are Clarisse, Faber, and even the group of outcast college professors. Another similarity between the two is that in both books the main character has to confront a river. In Fahrenheit 451, Montag must get in the river to help wash away his scent from the hounds and to help him get away. In Siddhartha, Siddhartha confronts the river three separate times. The first time is when he must cross to get to the town. The second time is when he faces a life and death scenario. The last time is when he is told by Vasudeva to learn from the river. These are just some of the similarities between Fahrenheit 451 and Siddhartha. There are many differences between these books. Some of these differences we will talk about now. In Siddhartha, the main character start out with a path set for him. While in Fahrenheit 451 Montag does not yet have a particular goal in mind. In Fahrenheit 451, Montag is on the run and he is being chased by a bunch a law enforcement officials. In Siddhartha, Siddhartha is not being chased or pursued by anyone or anything. He is simply making his own way throughout the universe. One last difference between the two is that in Siddhartha, the main character does not have to make a new friend to help him along the way, he already has Govinda. Whereas in Fahrenheit 451 Montag must find someone to replace Clarisse after she dies. That someone was Faber after they meet. These are just a few of the differences between the two. Now you have the basic information between the two books, the similarities and differences between them as well. These two books are not that different from each other. They both are written in a fictional setting and both are enjoyable. These two books will be good reading for just about anyone. Bibliography Hesse, Herman. Siddhartha. New York: New Direction, 1951. Print Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1967. Print.

Health and safety hazards to workers

Health and safety hazards to workers In Mauritius, we have five regional hospitals namely: SSRNH, Victoria Hospital, Nehru Hospital, Jeetoo Hospital and Flacq Hospital and other small specialised hospitals such as ENT Hospital, Moka Eye Hospital and Brown Sequard Hospital. Each regional hospital consists of a CSSD unit respectively which cater for the provision of sterile items to the hospital and to health centres which falls under the catchment area of that regional hospital. Although, the CSSD is a small unit in that hospital, its presence and service is of great importance to the healthcare staff, patients and to the public in general. The role of the CSSD is to prevent cross- infection and contamination of the patients, staff and visitors by sterilising all equipment and instruments which aid in providing the best care to the patients. It is time to think about the health and safety of the workers of Central Sterile Supply Department (CSSD). In order to protect and to prevent the staff of the CSSD from injuries and illnesses, it is important to identify the health and safety hazards that are present at each level and in each area of the CSSD. After identification of these hazards is carried out, appropriate preventive measures must be adopted if not to eliminate the hazards completely, but at least to minimise the exposure of the staff to these hazards so that they can work in a safer environment free from injuries, accidents and occupational diseases. For the purpose of this project, the Hazard Identification was carried out at the CSSD of SSRN Hospital. Abbreviations CSSD Central Sterile Supplies Department SSRNH Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam National Hospital PPE Personal Protective Equipment EtO Ethylene Oxide HIV -Human Immunodeficiency Virus OSHA 2005 -Occupational Health and Safety 2005- HBV Hepatitis B Virus MSD Musculoskeletal Disorders 1.0 INTRODUCTION Hospitals are such places where people get treatment for their illnesses, injuries and diseases. Many of these diseases are caused by biological agents such as bacteria, viruses and fungi. Thus, in hospitals there is high incidence of disease-causing micro-organisms which can spread from patient to patient or from patient to health care personnel or from the equipment and other materials that are used while giving care to the patients. It is the duty of the staff not only to cure the diseases of the patients but at the same time to prevent the transmission of diseases from one person to another. An effective measure to prevent spreading of the diseases is in making sure that all the items that are used in the care of the patients are sterile. Many of the instruments and materials used in the hospitals are quite expensive and are so designed that they can be reused. The importance of a CSSD in a hospital is to provide sterile items at the required time and place in the hospital. The CSSD of a hospital receives stores, sterilises and distributes to all the departments including the wards, outpatient department and other special unit such as the operation theatre. The main duty of the CSSD is the sterilisation of items such as catheters, tubings, surgical instruments, treatment trays and sets and dressings materials. Although, CSSD aims at providing sterile items so as to prevent the spread of infection and in some ways to protect hospital staff and patients from biological hazards, the CSSD itself is prone to various hazards. So, to be able to identify the health and safety hazards that workers face, we must first know the activities that are carried out in the CSSD. 2.0 The objectives of the CSSD: To provide sterile gauze packs cotton wool and equipment to all units of the hospital and to Area Health Centers, and Community Health Centers within the catchment area of a regional hospital. To ensure that proper cleaning, disinfecting and sterilising process of items is being carried out in the department. To keep an inventory of all supplies and equipment. To meet the demand of its customers, i.e. different units in supplying the needed amount of sterile items to them. To contribute to a great extent in preventing cross-infection by effective running of the department. To take some of the work of the nursing staff so that they can give more time to the patients. To make expensive equipment which are not used so often reusable. To provide a safe working environment for the staff. 3.0 The organisational structure of the CSSD at SSRNH: The CSSD has manpower of 26 workers: 1 Superintendent, 2 Supervisors, 17 CSSD Assistants and 6 CSSD Attendants. The Head of the Department is the Superintendent and is the one who liaises with other heads of different departments. The supervisors are responsible for monitoring the duties of the assistants and to ensure the smooth running of the unit. They are also responsible for the effective delivery of sterile items to the required units. The CSSD Assistants are those workers who perform most of the duties in the unit. The attendants are mainly concerned with manual handling, collecting and delivering items to other departments of the hospital. An organisational chart is as below: CSSD Superintendent CSSD Supervisors CSSD Assistants CSSD Attendants 4.0 CSSD Design F:ImagesP2108_26-04-10.JPG 5.0 The Sterile Supply Cycle 6.0 The different areas of the CSSD The CSSD is divided into four major areas: Sorting and Decontamination Assembly and Packaging Sterilising Sterile Storage and Distribution 1. Sorting and Decontamination Area: Here the instruments are cleaned and washed. For the purpose of cleaning and washing, chemical detergents and disinfectants such as javel, alcohol and soaps are used. The instruments are washed in basin using plenty amount of water. It is only after this process that the instruments are safe to be handled. Also, sorting of instruments is carried out, disassembling of the instruments is done when needed and the CSSD assistants inspect the items for cleanliness and damage. 2. Assembly and Packaging Area: Following decontamination, the items are further sorted, reassembled and packaged. Here, reusable linens such as surgical gowns, green sheets drapes are packed in individual special wrapping paper. Cotton wool rolls are place in carton boxes. Gauze pieces are cut into smaller sizes and are wrapped individually. Clean instruments are placed in trays (either small or large depending on the surgical intervention during which they are going to be used) and are then packed in double wrapping papers. Autoclave tapes are used to hold the surgical items packed for sterilisation intact. These tapes have white indicator lines which turn to black lines after sterilization, thus helping the user to make sure that the pack is sterile. 3. The Sterilising Area Here the packed items then undergo a process known as sterilization. This involves the killing of any potential pathogen on the items. Normally, several methods of sterilisation exit but steam and ethylene oxide sterilization are most commonly used. 4. Sterile Storage and Distribution Area The sterile items are then stored in the storage area arranged neatly on different shelves. From there, the sterile items are then distributed to respective units. 7.0 The Sterilising Process: The CSSD attendants collect used instruments and equipment, empty carton boxes for cotton wool and the CSSD book (in which the head of the unit jots down the number of each sterile items he needs) from respective units of the hospital. With the introduction of new technologies, old methods of sterilisation such as boiling and vaporization have been replaced by two main methods of sterilization namely: 1. Autoclaving, i.e. steam sterilisation 2. Gas sterilisation using ethylene oxide. The items that are sterilised in the CSSD are: Cloth, i.e. green sheets drapes Gauze Cotton wool Instruments Pre-sterilisation Prior to sterilisation, all the items must be prepared through a process known as pre-sterilisation. The pre-sterilisation process for the items that have to be sterilised is as follows: 1. Cloth The clean linen are folded, and then wrapped in a special paper. The packed linen is then sealed with autoclaves tape. 2. Gauze The gauze are cut into uniform pieces and made into either large gauze or small gauze. They are then packed in paper into individual packs and are sealed with autoclave tapes. 3. Cotton wool The cotton wool is made into small rolls from large bundles and placed in small carton boxes which are then sealed on the sides with autoclave tapes. 4. Instruments The instruments are first checked for soil, they are then washed and placed in trays or individual sets depending on the requisition of the respective unit. They are then packed in double special paper wrappers and sealed with autoclave tapes. Sterilisation It is a process used to make a medium free from micro-organisms including bacterial spores. Sterilisation can be done through heat, chemicals, irradiation and high pressure. In the CSSD at SSRNH, two types of sterilisation is being used: Gas Sterilisation Steam Sterilisation Gas Sterilisation Using ethylene oxide. This method of sterilization can be used to sterilise those items that can withstand temperatures of 50-60ËÅ ¡C. A long period of aeration is required to remove all traces of ethylene oxide. Autoclaving, i.e. Steam Sterilisation It is the most reliable process of sterilization. It sterilises with steam under pressure. The high pressure also ensures saturation of wrapped surgical packs. Autoclaving is one of the most effective methods for destruction of all types of micro-organisms. The amount of time and degree of temperature necessary for sterilisation depend on the articles to be sterilised. 8.0 LITERATURE REVIEW The aims of Occupational Health and Safety are: To promote and maintain a high degree of physical, mental and social well-being of workers in their respective workplace; To prevent adverse effects on the health of the workers that can be due to the working conditions; To protect the workers at their workplace from risks resulting from factors adverse to health; To provide the workers with such working environment that suits their physical and mental needs; the adaptation of work to humans. We can thus say that occupational health and safety englobes the social, mental and physical well-being of workers. A healthy workplace means a safe workplace where the workers will be in an environment where the hazards exposure is quite minimised if not eliminated completely. Occupational health and safety is important as: Work plays a major role in peoples lives, since most workers spend at least eight hours a day in the workplace. Therefore, work environments should be safe and healthy. But, this is not the case for many workers. Every day workers all over the world face many health hazards, such as: dusts gases noise vibration extreme temperatures. As a result of the hazards and a lack of attention given to health and safety, work-related accidents and diseases are common in all parts of the world. Appropriate and effective workplace health and safety programmes can help to protect the workers by reducing hazards and their consequences. Health and safety programmes can also have positive effects on both worker morale and productivity and can thus be beneficial to the organisation. At the same time, effective programmes can save employers a great deal of money. There are many hazards that might exist in any workplace such as: chemical hazards in the form of liquids, solids, dusts, fumes, vapours and gases; physical hazards, such as noise, vibration, unsatisfactory lighting, radiation and extreme temperatures; biological hazards, such as bacteria, viruses and fungi; psychological hazard as a result of stress and strain; hazards related to the non-application of ergonomic principles, like badly designed machinery, mechanical devices and tools that will be used by workers, improper seating and workstation design, or poorly designed work practices. Workers often get work-related health problems and do not realise that the problems are related to their work, particularly when an occupational disease, for example, is in the early stages. Besides the other more obvious benefits of training, such as skills development, hazard recognition, etc., a comprehensive training programme in each workplace will help workers to: recognise early signs/symptoms of any potential occupational diseases before they become permanent conditions; assess their work environment; insist that management to make changes before hazardous conditions can develop. Previous research on CSSD shows that: According to Linda Clement, Items processed in the decontamination areas are potentially pathogenic and pose a potential exposure risk to employees working in these areas. She also stated that to prevent cross contamination, good infection prevention processes must be put into practice. Also, the housekeeping procedures should be the same as those that are used in operation theatre and delivering rooms and that all horizontal working surfaces and the floors should be cleaned daily. The medical equipment poses a risk of exposure to blood and bodily soils, and other safety hazards before or during processing. So, appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) should be worn by the workers, they should adopt good work practices and have to follow the manufacturers instructions. Whether it is a sterilizer, a washer/disinfector, an endoscope or a surgical instrument, it is best to follow the device manufacturers instructions found in operator manuals and other product documentation for h andling, operation, cleaning and disinfecting medical equipment. As per John Brown, All personnel working in the decontamination area should wear clean, facility-provided uniforms that are donned at the facility. Also, workers should use general purpose utility gloves, gown, a surgical face mask and goggles while working in the decontamination area. During maintenance procedures, additional PPE is necessary including eye protection and steel-toed shoes should be worn at all times to protect from sharp and heavy objects from causing injury to workers feet. Leather gloves while handling potentially sharp objects, stainless steel panels and plumbing piping gloves and heat-resistant arm sleeves must be worn while working around steam piping and face shield when using cleaning chemicals. (Infection Control Today-Jennifer Schraag April 08) 8.1 HEALTH AND SAFETY HAZARDS: 8.1.1 Safety The primary areas of potential hazards include environmental, electrical, mechanical, chemical, biological, fire and physical. The work performed in the CSSD need special attention to avoid injury to the workers and sometimes visitors such as nursing staff. Most workplace injuries and accidents are caused by neglect, carelessness or lack of understanding of the principles of safety. Safety is every workers responsibility so as protects oneself and also the equipment in the CSSD which is governments property. 8.1.2 Chemical Hazard These hazards are present when a worker is exposed to any chemicals in the workplace, be it solid, liquid or gas. Some of these chemicals are safer than others, but some workers who are sensitive to chemicals, even those that are commonly used solutions can cause illness, skin irritation or breathing problems. In the decontamination area, the use of chemicals for cleaning purposes is necessary. These chemicals are caustic soda, javel, methyl spirit, soaps and detergents. Exposure may result when the workers do not use necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) while handling these hazardous chemicals found in soaps, disinfectors and cleaners. Exposure to these substances can cause contact dermatitis, excoriation of the skin and ulcers. Prolonged and persistent exposure may end up in allergic reactions or hypersensitivity. 8.1.3Ethylene Oxide (EtO) Hazards EtO possesses several physical and health hazards that really need much attention. EtO is a liquid below 51.7ËÅ ¡ F, or a gas that has ether-like odour at concentrations above 700 parts per million (ppm) and is both flammable and highly reactive. The current OSHA Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) to EtO is 1ppm for an 8-hour time weighted average. Normally, EtO sterilization is done for items which cannot be exposed to steam sterilization. Exposure hazards normally results from improper ventilation in ethylene oxide chamber after the sterilising process, during off-gassing of sterilized items or due to leakage from pipe connection. Hazards can also occur when removing sterilized items from the sterilizer or even when changing bottles of EtO gas. Health effects of EtO are: Eye irritation and injury to cornea, frostbite and on prolonged skin exposure, severe irritation and blistering of the skin can happen. Gastric irritation and injury to the liver can result from accidental ingestion of EtO. Inhalation of EtO vapours may cause respiratory irritation and lung injury, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, shortness of breath and cyanosis. Risk of cancer, adverse reproductive effects and chromosomal damage can result from prolonged exposure to EtO. 8.1.4 Biological Hazard In the decontamination area, workers may be injured from contaminated sharp instruments such as needles and scalpels, while sorting, cleaning and washing. Soiled, reusable instruments are considered to be contaminated with bacteria and other micro-organisms, which can cause illness to the staff. Exposure to infected material can cause diseases such as Viral Hepatitis and HIV. Contamination is liable to occur due to presence of blood borne pathogens found in soiled drapes and pointed objects, e.g needles. Hepatitis B is transmitted through contact with the blood or body fluid of an infected person on soiled drapes or surgical instruments which in turn land up in the CSSD for sterilisation. 8.1.5 Ergonomics related hazards When the physical requirements of a job and the physical capacity of a worker do not match, it can cause in work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSD). Ergonomic hazards occur when the type of work, body position and working conditions put strain on the body. A worker will not notice the strain immediately .For short-term exposure, a worker can get sore muscles the next day or in the days following exposure, but long term exposure can end in serious long-term injuries. These hazards may be due to: bad lighting not properly adjusted workstations and chairs frequent lifting bad posture repetitive awkward movements too much force is needed to do a work and it has to be done quite often. In the CSSD, workers are exposed to repetitiveness of works, prolonged standing and reaching out while sorting instruments, uncomfortable sitting postures on chairs which are non-ergonomically designed during trimming of gauze and putting cotton wool rolls in boxes. The workers have to bend frequently while lifting heavy loads, need to reach high storage shelves or need to push or pull heavy carts loaded with sterile or unsterile items, all this can lead to MSD. Contact trauma to forearm can also occur if the workers the wrists are placed on hard surfaces. 8.1.6 Physical Hazards These are the most common and can be present in most workplaces at anytime. They include unsafe conditions that can cause injury, illness and death. Sometimes bad working practices are used so often that they become the routine works habits and might be not considered as hazards to workers. But still these hazards cannot be accepted in a workplace. Physical hazards include: electrical hazards constant loud noise high exposure to heat slips/trips and falls. Burns and cuts Workers are exposed to burns and cuts during handling of hot sterilised items or sharp instruments when removing them from autoclaves. Slips/Trips/Falls Exposure to slippery floors can occur to spills of detergents and presence of water on the floors while cleaning and washing of instruments is being done in the decontamination area. In the sterilizing area because of the use of steam in autoclaving processes, the environment inside the room will be humid and may cause the floor to be slippery. Electrical Hazards All electrical devices should be inspected upon arrival in the CSSD. Improper grounding and earthing facilities can prove to be dangerous. Regular maintenance and repairs of the equipment in the CSSD should be documented and proper records should be maintained. Electrical cords lying on the floors can cause workers to trip over them and the cords can also be exposed to wet floors and cause electrocution. The use of extension cords should be avoided and electrical sockets should not be installed next to washing basins or near any source of water. Unsafe electrical installations by incompetent persons can give rise to electrical hazards. All electrical installations should have protective devices such as circuit breakers, fuses, Residual Current Devices so that the electrical equipment are safe from overvoltage and excessive current. Unsafe work practices can lead to electrical accidents. Heat Exposure to hot environment can lead to heat stress, heat exhaustion, and cramps. This can happen when workers are unloading items once autoclaving is completed. As autoclaving uses steam, the atmosphere in the sterilising area becomes very moist and the temperature in that unit is quite raised when the autoclaves are in operation. The workers feel very hot and also very uncomfortable to work in such conditions. Sweaty palms, fogged-up safety glasses and dizziness caused by the heat can increase risk of injuries in workers. Burns can also occur due to accidental contact with hot surfaces of autoclaves or with accidental opening of the autoclave door or due to improper closing of the door causing steam to escape. Fire Hazards EtO is used for gas sterilising. EtO is a highly flammable gas and improper ventilation system and leakage of the gas-line can cause accumulation of EtO in the CSSD, the use of cigarettes by staff in addition to the EtO in the air may cause a fire outbreak or even an explosion. Improper storage of flammable gases and liquids can have adverse effects and may result in fire. Improper maintenance of electrical equipment and aging electrical cords, with the presence of water can be a source of static electricity, sparks or minor combustion which can ultimately lead to a fire due to presence of large amount of combustible materials such as gauze, linen cotton, boxes, and paper wrappers in the CSSD. 8.1.7 Latex Allergy Workers normally wear latex gloves during handling and sorting of contaminated instruments and equipment is done. Some workers can develop allergy to the latex. 9.0 LEGISLATION The only legislative body concerned with the health and safety of workers in Mauritius is the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2005. The Superintendent, Supervisors and all the CSSD staff should be familiar with this Act as each worker will know about his rights and what work he should or should not do as per law and what protection he should have for doing a particular task. 10.0 RECOMMENDATIONS General Recommendations: An effective measure to prevent workers from hazards exposure is regular job rotation to different areas of the CSSD. The employees should be provided with gowns, hair covers and shoe covers while at work. During cleaning and washing of equipments, the workers should be provided with rubber gloves and aprons. While removing carts and trays from the hot sterilisers leather gloves should be worn by the staff. Frequent hand washing with good hand washing techniques will contribute to a great extent in preventing cross-infection. It is highly recommended to the workers not to wear any jewels, e.g. rings and nail varnish while washing the instruments and while packing the items for sterilisation. Workers must adopt safe work practices so as to prevent accidents, injuries and illnesses. Taking the necessary safety precautions while performing the required task can practically eliminate associated dangers. It is the duty of all workers to comply with specific health and safety precautions so to protect themselves from any hazard that might be present in the CSSD. Recommendations for Chemical Hazards: Goggles must be worn when washing and cleaning instruments as there is risk of chemicals being splashed into the eyes. Appropriate PPE such as gloves, goggles, splash aprons should be worn by workers so as to protect them while using detergents and chemicals in the decontamination area. In case of splash of chemicals into the eyes, the workers should flush the eyes immediately for at least 15 mins. Thus, suitable facilities for eye flashing should e situated within the working area. Recommendations for EtO Use proper ventilation especially for the Eto Room Local exhaust ventilation system should be installed. Workers exposure to EtO should be minimised when sterilization is being carried out The door of the sterilizer should be opened no more than two inches to allow the load to off gas before transferring them to carts. Installation of a ventilated exhaust hood installation would be very useful. For changing of cylinders, appropriate PPE such as butyl apron, gloves, and a canister respirator is recommended. Recommendations for Biological Hazards: Use protective glove for cleaning and decontamination, shoes should be closed and resistant to puncture, goggles for eye, face mask or face shield and plastic apron. Training in of handling of sharp equipment should be given to the workers. Engineering and Work Practice Controls must be the primary means used to eliminate or minimize exposure to blood borne pathogens. Engineering Controls are measures (e.g., sharps disposal containers, self-sheathing needles, and safer medical devices, such as sharps injury protections) that isolate or remove the blood borne pathogens hazard from the workplace. Use of resistant puncture sharp containers with biohazard symbol. Container to be filled to the mark and the container should not have any leakage. Recommendations for Ergonomics Related Hazards Workstation need to be redesigned so packaging and equipment are within reachable levels and the elbows are maintained close to the body. The wheels for the carts should be such that they are easily rolled. Prolonged overhead activity need to be minimised (e.g. storage shelves should be lowered to shoulder height). Height-adjustable work surfaces should be used or tables have to be lifted to minimise head tilt. Repetitive tasks should be prevented by rotating workers to different work area. The edge of the working surfaces which come into contact with the elbow or forearm should be padded to prevent contact trauma. Sit/stand stools may be provided in the working area. Anti-fatigue mats have to be used. Shoes with well-cushioned insteps and soles should be worn by workers in case there is no floor mats. Foot rest bar should be provided to the staff so can they continually alter their posture by raising one foot. Padded Work Surfaces Padded Work Surfaces Recommendations for Burns and Cuts Good work practices should be established to prevent hazards: Hot items should not be removed from sterilisers until they are cooled. Handling of sharp ends of instruments should be avoided. Forceps should be used to remove sharp instruments from baskets and autoclaves Leather gloves should be provided to workers for handling of hot items. Recommendations to prevent from burning with Autoclave: Unloading Autoclave Heat-insulating gloves, safety glasses/face shield and closed toed shoes should be worn while unloading autoclaves. Workers must make sure that the pressure of the chamber is 0 before they open the door. Workers should stand back away from the door as a precaution and carefully open the door not more than 1 inch (2.5 cm) so as to allow residual steam to escape and to the allow pressure within the liquids and containers are back to normal. Sterilised items should be allowed to stand for 10 minutes. This will allow the steam to clear and also allow trapped air to escape from hot liquids, reducing risk . (Note: This is built into the operating cycle on some of the autoclaves). Containers of super-heated liquids should not be agitated and caps must not be removed before unloading. When hot items are removed from the autoclave, they should be marked with warning sign (e.g. Caution: Hot. Do not touch.) till the items cools down to room temperature.. Recommendations for Slips, Trips and Falls: Floors should be kept clean and dry. For wet floor areas warning signs should be placed. Proper drainage should be done during wet processes and floors mats, dry standing places should be available and waterproof footgear can also be worn by the workers. All working area should be kept clean and in an orderly manner. All aisles and passageways should be and free from any obstruction. Floor plugs for equipment to prevent power cords from running across pathways. All exits should be free from any obstruction. Access to exits doors should be easily reachable. Slip resistant shoes should be worn. Spills need to be reported and cleaned immediately. Uneven floor surfaces should be eliminated. Recommendations for Electrical hazard: Avoid using extension cords. All cords should have a grounded, three-prong, hospital-grade plug. A cracked cord should be replaced immediately. No accumulation of water should be allowed near an electrical outlet. According to OSHA 2005 Clause 73,all electrical apparatuses and conductors including machines, equipment and fittings shall be sufficient in size and power for the work for which they are used and shall be constructed, installed, protected, worked and maintained so as to prevent danger. Recommendations for hazards related to Heat: Since, the place of work is quite hot; workers should wear light-coloured and

Internet Shorthand :: Communication Language Computers Essays

Internet Shorthand Translate the following conversation, if you can: GUY1: wuz up? GUY2: nm, just chillin, u? GUY1: co’, btw did u hear about joe GUY2: no GUY1: imho, hes crazy :) he told julia that he wanted 2 8==D her @ the mall GUY2: roflmao! :) ur right, hes crazy GUY1: 4 real GUY2: hey, I g2g, ttyl GUY1: l8r Any guess on to what is going on? Well, I’ll go ahead and give you the basic rundown on what the conversation said: Guy1 was commenting on how is friend Joe asked a girl (Julia) if they could have consensual sex together in the local mall. Guy2 found this exchange very amusing, as he was â€Å"rolling on the floor laughing my ass off†. Furthermore, Guy1 also interjected his own personal opinion that Joe was/is crazy. Finally they agreed to converse at a later date. All that from 43 separate â€Å"symbols† and words. Welcome to the future. However, in my humble opinion, you can exchange the word ‘future’ with ‘hell’. The internet, chatting and the glut of instant messengers have helped create a subculture of the English langue that is starting to creep into everyday life. It’s a disturbing trend. I feel the line needs to be drawn between the fast flowing conversational style shorthand of internet writing and formal English style before the way we write as we know it makes a radical change towards simple pictures and codes. Maybe part of my opinion is based on spite: If I had to learn all the dos and don’ts of modern English, so should you. But I think it’s more then just that. I can see the writing on the wall and it’s not looking too bright. Dumbing down the language to simplest terms can be a very dangerous thing. Don’t believe me, flip through a copy of Orwell’s 1984 and you’ll see how Big Brother has developed a â€Å"plainspeak† directive. In fact, I’m not alone in this belief. In Sven Birket’s article â€Å"Into the Electronic Millennium† he discusses the devolution of modern language: â€Å"The complexity and distinctiveness of spoken and written expression, which are deeply bound to traditions of print literacy, will gradually be replaced by a more telegraphic sort of ‘plainspeak’† (70).

Indian Independence Speech Essay

As you know all of us have gathered here to celebrate 67th independence day of our nation. This day, after the hosting national flag, we usually make mistake by remembering the heroic deeds of only few freedom fighters. But freedom fighting was collective effort. Without cooperation, sacrifice and involvement of all Indians it was impossible to get the freedom. So people of India were the real national heroes behind the success. We should express our sincere gratitude to all those who participated in the freedom struggle. This can only be done by defending our freedom like our ancestral property which cannot be valued. How to defend? Single person cannot defend it; again group effort is essential it is nothing but unity. How to form this unity? We should always remember that only patriotism can form unity irrespective of religion, language, caste, customs and traditions. So having patriotism only can save the freedom of our nation. To keep faith in secularism No compromise must be with patriotism, Punish the forces that support terrorism Else one bad day we will loose our freedom. I would like to express my views about the dark side of Present India. How should I say ‘My INDIA is great’? In this republic from schools to parliament, Elections are held at every moment, Children’s are taught fighting for the seat, How should I say ‘My India is great’? Even after golden jubilee of unconstraint, Many citizens are unable to fill their gut, Rich become richer and rests are indigent, How should I say ‘My India is great’? People are emotionally divided by communalist, Border in the north and south has water dispute, Leaders are selfish and have no solving interest, How should I say ‘My India is great’? Capable civilians are facing unemployment, Socially unfits have led the political movements, Voters are under tense of serious terror threat, How should I say ‘My India is great’? All are seeking benefits without effort, Bribery has become the style of management, Whole country pushed into a big corruption pit, How should I say ‘My India is great’? I pray to the divine creator with sentiment, Please give birth to sincere nationalist, Who should drive my nation towards overall development, So that I should say ‘My India is great’ Apart from these Our India is great country because Indians are generous, broad minded, kind hearted and united. No doubt we quarrel among ourselves for various reasons but we stay united in front enemies and in times of danger. I have got few facts which are in support of above statements. During Kargil war our Govt couldn’t spend even a single paisa from the budget but people gave every kind support for it. During Tsunami in Chennai, Flood in Bihar and Orissa, draught in the country, earthquake in Gujarat and Maharashtra and similar other natural disasters people stood united and helped each other, extended all kind of cooperation to start a new life. So I Say that My India is great and Indians are the greatest. â€Å"I am proud to be an Indian† India is a great country with many religions. It has rich natural resources and lengthy frontier with vast region. North has The Himalayas and south with the Hindu ocean, Bay of Bengal in the east and the west has the sea Arabian. It’s being administered with language wise partition. All are leading peaceful life with national integration. Enemy’s conspiracy is impossible with the unity of the nation. Festivals are celebrated here with memorable function.People help each other in time of affliction. So my India is great also I am proud to be an Indian.

Romeo And Juliet Essays - English-language Films, Free Essays

Romeo And Juliet Essays - English-language Films, Free Essays Romeo and Juliet Romeo and Juliet is one of Shakespeare's plays about tragedy. It is about two lovers who commit suicide when their feuding famillies prevent them from being together. The play has many characters, each with its own role in keeping the plot line. Some characters have very little to do with the plot but some have the plot revolving around them. Friar Lawrence does not have very much time on stage but the time he does have is crucial to the plot line. Through his words Friar Lawrence demonstrates the he is a good intentioned, yet sometimes short-sighted, man who is not afraid to take risks to help others One of Friar Lawrences most favourable traits is how good intentioned he is. He may do something out of the ordinary if he thinks the outcome will help someone he cares for. For example, when he says "In one respect I'll thy assistant be; for this alliance may so happy prove, to turn your households rancour to pure love."(Act 2, Scene 3), he is saying that the only reason he will marry Romeo and Juliet is because he hopes that the marriage will end the hostilities between the two houses. When he says "Shall Romeo by my letters know our drift, and hither shall he come; and he and I shall watch thy waking, and that very night shall Romeo bear thee to Mantua." (Act 4, Scene 1), he tells Juliet how everything will be all right. Unfortunately, for all his good intentions the play still ends in tragedy. Friar Lawrence is a man who is not afraid to take risks when he feels it is neccesary to help someone. For example in Act 2, Scene 6, when he marries Romeo and Juliet, he is risking his reputation as a Friar so he can help the two lovers. Also, when he says "Take thou this vial, being then in bed, and this distilled liquor drink though off;" (Act 4, Scene 1), he is suggesting that Juliet drink a potion so that she might feighn her own death and avoid marrying Paris. This is an extremely risky thing to do because anything might happen to Juliet while she unconscious. Even after all Friar did to help Romeo and Juliet the play still ended in tragedy because of Friar Lawrences' short sightedness. When the Friar married Romeo Juliet in secrecy, he did not think of all the complications that would arise but instead went on with the marriage because at that time he thought it was the right thing to do. In Act 4, Scene 1, he gave Juliet a sleeping potion without thinking of the possible outcomes of such an outrages plan. He admits that much of the fault of the tragedy lies in his hands when he says "And her I stand both to impeach and purge myself condemned and myself excused", and when he say "Her nurse is privy; and, if aught in this miscarried by myself..." (Act 5, Scene 3). Although Friar Lawrence does not have an especially large role, his role is none the less important. It is because of his good intentions that he was willing to help his friends that Romeo and Juliet were married - a key event in the play. It is because of his willingness to take risks for his friends that Juliet aqquired the sleeping potion - another key event in the play. Finally, it was the shortsightedness of his actions that in part led to the deaths of the two lead characters. This demonstartes that Friar Lawrence was a man who was a man with good intentions who was willing to take risks to help his frieneds. If he had been any other way, the play might not have turned out the way it did.

Conditions at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory - 1911

Conditions at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory - 1911 To understand the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire of 1911, its helpful to get a picture of the conditions at the factory before and at the time of the fire. Conditions at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Most of the workers were young immigrants, Russian Jews or Italians, with some German and Hungarian immigrants as well. Some were as young as 12 to 15 years old, and often sisters or daughters and mother or cousins were all employed at the shop. The 500-600 workers were paid at piecework rates, so that pay for any individual depended on the skill of the work done (men mostly did the collars, which was a more highly paid task) and how quickly one worked. Pay averaged around $7 per week for most, with some paid as high as $12 per week. At the time of the fire, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory was not a union shop, though some workers were members of the ILGWU.  The 1909 Uprising of the Twenty Thousand and the 1910 Great Revolt had led to growth in the ILGWU and to some preferential shops, but the Triangle Factory was not among those. Triangle Shirtwaist Factory owners Max Blanck and Isaac Harris were concerned about employee theft. On the ninth floor there were only two doors; one was routinely locked, leaving open only the door to the stairwell to the Greene Street exit. That way, the company could inspect handbags and any packages of workers on their way out at the end of the work day. There were no sprinklers in the building. There had been no fire drills to practice response to fires, though a fire expert, hired in 1909 on the advice of an insurance company, had recommended implementing fire drills. There was one fire escape which proved not very strong, and an elevator. On March 25, as most Saturdays, workers had begun to clear the work areas and fill bins with fabric scraps. Garments and cloth were in piles, and there would have been considerable fabric dust from the cutting and sewing process. Most of the light inside the building came from gas lamps. Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire: Index of Articles Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire  - the fire itselfThe 1909 Uprising of the Twenty Thousand  and the 1910 Cloakmakers Strike: background​After the Fire: identifying victims, news coverage, relief efforts, memorial and funeral march, investigations, trialFrances Perkins and the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire

Society and Culture in Provincial America

Society and Culture in Provincial America The article titled, Crime and social control in provincial Massachusetts, by David Flaherty is basically a review of criminal activity in modern America. The analysis is majorly focused in the state of Massachusetts which in real sense represents a big part of what is generally referred to as provincial America.Advertising We will write a custom article sample on Society and Culture in Provincial America specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The article tries to bring out the importance of social control in addressing the issue of criminality in the United States. Among the major issues highlighted include the maintenance of homogeneity in the population, the establishment of a proper system for the prosecution of criminals as well as the involvement of certain interest groups (such as church leaders) in commending appropriate behavior and rebuking undesired character. This article is very relevant to the course as it clearly provides an i llustration of how different components of society influence each other’s development over certain periods of time. Aside from this, American history focuses on various aspects of societal development including the development of criminal law and its application in conjunction with other strategies to reduce vices in society. The author’s main line of argument is that society makes criminals. This is drawn from his proposition that in order to address the issue of rampant crime, it is important for persons to first look at the roles they play in ensuring that the society around them is safe (Tolles 1957, 102). This includes encouraging the individual to personally exercise ideal morality before trying to establish ways of making the community function as a strong cohesive whole. According to the author, crime keeps on developing new facets as the years pass by. Provincial and national crimes are basically on an upward trend this is the main reason why the relevant crim e-prevention authorities need to draw on the resources and skills of different members of their teams in order to arrest the situation. The author explains that crime cannot only be tackled using policing methods only. He asserts that there are some types of criminal activities, such as those linked to drug abuse, which are prevented by tackling the underlying challenge. These, the author says are dealt with by modifying the environment in which they happen or sometimes by altering the social conditions that are purported to have basic linkages as far as the activities are concerned. Flaherty also asserts that in order to reduce crime, a conscious effort has to be made in order to provide support to those individuals who fall victim to the acts of criminals. This, according to him provides the required support to police investigations as well as to ensure that victims are not targeted again.Advertising Looking for article on social sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Using facts from the Massachusetts provincial criminal records over a given period of time, the author establishes that the art of crime prevention is an analytical process that starts by establishing the causes of criminal acts, the damage they cause to the victims and the amount of resources and skills that will be used to properly mitigate the situation. In this regard, Flaherty suggests that the prevention of criminal activities is most likely going to be effective if the strategies are based in the regions closest the occurrence, i.e. the interventions are more effective if carried out at a provincial level than at a national level. The approach taken is even more effective if a number of problem solving strategies are directed towards the solution of one criminal activity (Frank 2008, 238). Provincial governments, therefore, have a very critical duty as far as the control and prevention of crime is concerned (McDougall 2005, 46). The article has served to enlighten me in a number of ways, both as a scholar and as an individual. First is the fact that I have been able to establish the correlation between individual conduct and its effect in the security and character of society. In this regard, the article has shown me that change in society starts with the individual and that it is only until every member of a given community decides to lead a positive life that change happens. Secondly, I have been able to understand how the provincial culture determines the outlook of the entire society and that the input of various key social groupings can impact on a regions history. Pertaining to this, I have been able to link the basic social unit i.e. the family to the development of individual character which in turn has an impact on proper societal functioning. In his article, David Flaherty has raised a number of important questions. Top on the list is whether or not the destruction of the family structu re is responsible for the surging crime rates. His discussion appears to support the ideology that stability of the family set up is important in the raising of a responsible citizenry. Another question raised by the author and which has also been resolved is the connections are between various social vices such as alcoholism and crime. The author suggests that it is imperative for agencies handling crime to address the underlying issues while seeking solutions for criminal activities.Advertising We will write a custom article sample on Society and Culture in Provincial America specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Reference List Flaherty, David.1981. â€Å"Crime and Social Control in Provincial Massachusetts†. The  Historical Journal, 24, pp 339-360 Frank, Andrew. 2008. American Revolution: people and perspectives. California: ABC-CLIO McDougall, Walter. 2005. Freedom Just Around the Corner: A New American  History: 1585-1828. New York: HarperCollins Tolles, Frederick. 1957. James Logan and the culture of provincial America. New York: Little Brown

Are immigrants needed to provide low-wage workers in the U.S. to Essay

Are immigrants needed to provide low-wage workers in the U.S. to compete with workers in other regions of the world Do immigran - Essay Example This is not to say that these immigrants provide better quality jobs than the natives of the country as the reverse is usually the case. It could then be concluded in this regard that, the low-wage working immigrants in the US are not needed to compete with workers in other regions of the world but to meet up with the high demand of work in the country at a lower rate (Holzer, 2011). Immigrants take on low-paying work that people in the US do not want to do and the reasons for these are not far-fetched. Due to the need to make ends meet and the desire of the immigrants to get to do something during their sojourn in the US; they take any offer that comes their way (Holzer, 2011). This means that the immigrants are ready to take any offer that comes their way. Thus, the immigrants are satisfied taking the low-paying work as long as it would guarantee their survival in the country and make them more comfortable than the way they were in their native countries. It could then be said that the immigrants are ready and willing to take up low-paying jobs that the people in the US would never be willing to do.

Four Yogic Paths and Jainism Worksheet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Four Yogic Paths and Jainism Worksheet - Essay Example They offer sacrifices to the deities and tirthankaras. Jainism practice devotional deeds that have positive effects on an individual’s state of karma. Further, they aim the mind on reasonable and good behavior. Hinduism and Jainism share some religious aspects such as outlook on behavior and life, practices, beliefs, religious fasts and festivals, rituals and sacraments. There are several things between Hindus and Jainas, and particularly the vegetarian Hindus found in India. For instance, there exist certain castes in India whose members are found in both the Jainas and the Hindus, and that marital affiliations are still practiced between the Hindus and the Jainas. The distinction or differences between the Jainas and the Hindus are seen in the scriptures and the emergence of the world and its creator. The Hindu sacred scriptures like the Puranas, Smirtis and the Vedas are rejected by the Jainas while the Hindus do not accept any book from the Jainas. In addition, as the Hindus argue that God created the world, the Jainas hold that the world is eternal and that there is no creator. In Hinduism, worship is conducted of several forms of one powerful God who is the ruler and the creator of the world while in Jainism; worship is not conducted to an eternal God but to great individuals who have attained Godhood. The importance of worship in Hinduism is not similar to Jainism in that in Hinduism, the achievement of desired goals is by the will of certain supernatural beings that are to be pleased. Contrary, in Jainism, there is no prayer or offerings made to divine beings. Further, as the Hindus belief that Gods alone can achieve liberation, the Jainas hold that it is the rights of human beings. The way of salvation prescribed by Jainism is via the threefold paths of right conduct, knowledge and belies which all people should pursue. Contrary, Hindus have no prescription of any single path that a person should pursue to

Breast Cancer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Breast Cancer - Essay Example little more than 2.47 million women who had experienced having breast cancer, women should be informed the proper way of conducting a self-breast examination as a way of increasing their chances of survival. For this study, the student nurse will discuss the importance of breast cancer screening followed by explaining the proper way to screen breast cancer and the step-by-step physical assessment to enable women detect early signs of breast cancer. Healthy women should undergo the most common screening test like mammogram at least once a year in order to detect signs of breast cancer at an early stage. (Breast Cancer, 2009a) Early detection of breast cancer is important since women can have higher chances of survival. This is because of the fact that early stage cancer is easier to treat as compared to late stage breast cancer. (Breast Cancer, 2008g) Aside from the use of mammogram test, other ways to screen signs of early stage breast cancer is through the use of other imaging test like the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (Breast Cancer, 2008c). The blood marker tests can also be considered when screening a patient. In case cancer protein or blood markers like CA 15.3, TRU-QUANT, CA 27.29, CA125, and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) is present in the blood (Breast Cancer, 2008a), there is a strong possibility that the patient has a breast cancer. Because of the limitations of mammogram when screening for breast cancer, the use of digital tomosynthesis is now being considered as the best alternative for mammograms (Breast Cancer, 2008d). Although a lot of physicians believe that the use of mammography is the best method for detecting breast cancer, the Mayo Clinic 2008 study result suggest that the use of molecular breast imaging (MBI) is better than mammography in terms of detecting tumors in the breast (Breast Cancer, 2008f). Also highly recommended for women who have high risk of developing breast cancer, a new technique known as the ductal lavage can be

Human status in regards to Aristotle and Kant Research Paper

Human status in regards to Aristotle and Kant - Research Paper Example onal ideas of separation of mankind into various groups by the nature or in Gods will: Greeks and barbarians, elected and not elected, devout and not devout, civilized and uncivilized etc. The aspiration to prove the unity of the human race was always resisted by aristocratic, hierarchical, nationalist, racial, class and other theories. Understanding of mankind, and, therefore, the general concept of a person was finally developed only in the XIX century. All the second grade theories have one common feature: some part of mankind is recognized as superior. However, there classical theories, which allow us to understand the real essence of humans and their status in this world in the given work two views on humans’ status will be considered: the view of Kant and the view of Aristotle. German classical philosophy is presented by such thinkers as I. Kant, I. Fichte, F. Schelling and G. Hegel, who lived and worked at the end of XVIII - the first half of the XIX centuries. One of the main tasks of the German classical philosophy is to overcome the contradictions of XVII—XVIII centuries’ philosophy, which was expressed in opposition to rationalism and empiricism, exaggeration of a role of natural sciences and excessive optimism of Enlightenment. This movement is characterized by the revival of interest in history, art, mythology, as well as by the criticism of natural science direction in modern philosophy. All these are caused by a great interest to the problem of a person put in a new way. The German classical philosophy replaced an individual ideal of free identity of Renaissance by the collective ideal of free mankind expressed by the ideas of Enlightenment and the slogans of The Great French revolution. Protestantism is the religious fundamental of German classical philosophy. In Kants work there are two periods: critical and subcritical. During the subcritical period (1756-1770) the interests of Kant were mainly connected with logical problems and natural

Wal-Mart Control Mechanism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Wal-Mart Control Mechanism - Essay Example This research allows for better organization of supply chain activities. Wal-Mart already relies on suppliers that keep prices low, to pass on the savings to its consumers. The price controls keep customers who enjoy the savings coming back to its stores. Through automated and streamlined supply chain processes, costs for delivering products to the store shelves are minimized. Such organizational strategy allows Wal-Mart to more easily introduce new locations globally. Wal-Mart leads many other organizations into the direction it wishes them to take. This is done by requiring suppliers to meet pricing and packaging demands. â€Å"Wal-Mart accounts for 28% of Dial's sales, 24% of Del Monte Foods' sales, and 23% of Clorox's sales† (Hwang, 2003). Along with demanding low prices from manufacturers, the retailer also helps video game and software developers determine the content for products. Such control measures not only allow Wal-Mart to sell products at the lowest possible pric es, but also allows for control of content and subject matter. More controversial is Wal-Mart’s control of wages and benefits to its employees. Wal-Mart is openly anti-union, which allows for more control in many employment practices. It routinely hires many older and second income workers, to avoid providing benefits. While such practices help to keep prices low for consumers, they create income disparities and a reliance on government social programs for many of its employees.

IT Protect against Viruses Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

IT Protect against Viruses - Essay Example When I think of how a virus gets around on the web, I cannot help but think of the whooping cough or measles. Many years ago there were vaccines discovered that prevented these two illnesses. Children before that were very ill when they got these diseases. Many of them died. After the vaccine was discovered and children were inoculated, both diseases virtually went away. However, later on parents decided not to get these vaccines because they did not trust them and both diseases began to come back and then were spread to others one at a time in daycares. That is the way a virus gets around in a computer group also. Not too long ago, as an example, a friend who takes care of a computer system in a hospital noticed a virus warning that kept moving around. Eventually it was everywhere. It was nearly impossible to get rid of. It got in through a computer that someone forgot to load the virus software on and that nurse had been out on the web. It was a very expensive mistake. The connection between a company's computer and home users is the same as my touching your hand and you passing me a virus. If you had flu shot and not got the virus, you would not have passed it to me. Virus software, of course, affects network security but so does malware (infoworld.com). Many IT specialists say that these are now worse than the Trojans were and are. Malware sends in search mechanisms that get deep into the computer information and pull out personal things like all your employees security information or the company's security information. These are set up, not by hackers but by people that are out there to make a profit on your information and it only takes visiting the web at the wrong site or downloading the wrong file. This is truly dangerous to your organization and to any of your employees that may be working from their own PC's at home. In today's world, we are all touched by computers and like keeping personal and important information that is in paper form secure, so is it important to keep information secure on the computer. We all take a huge responsibility in being connected. We can pass malware or a virus on to anyone if we are not protected ourselves and that includes things like banks and utility companies as well as our own corporations. Who has not sent an email in to work at some time. When that happens a virus or malware could easily be passed on. Many people cannot afford the latest in antivirus software, especially when things are constantly changing (cnet.com). Many of the companies now provide continuous updates but there is always a time when you come to the end of those and have to pay. Providing free antiviral software that really works and is consistently updated could eradicate viruses just like the measles were stopped. If the virus cannot be transferred to someone else or in this case someone else's computer, it will die. This is a very good reason for absolutely everyone with a computer to have an antiviral program that works. It protects us all so the expense is nothing compared to have a computer or a corporation full of computers go down. People make more money online right now than has ever happened before. There are more wealthy people in the world and in the United States than ever before (bbc.co). Much of that wealth has been generated due to an online business. That wealth could disappear in a moment with the right virus and there are many out there trying to create it.

Human status in regards to Aristotle and Kant Research Paper

Human status in regards to Aristotle and Kant - Research Paper Example onal ideas of separation of mankind into various groups by the nature or in Gods will: Greeks and barbarians, elected and not elected, devout and not devout, civilized and uncivilized etc. The aspiration to prove the unity of the human race was always resisted by aristocratic, hierarchical, nationalist, racial, class and other theories. Understanding of mankind, and, therefore, the general concept of a person was finally developed only in the XIX century. All the second grade theories have one common feature: some part of mankind is recognized as superior. However, there classical theories, which allow us to understand the real essence of humans and their status in this world in the given work two views on humans’ status will be considered: the view of Kant and the view of Aristotle. German classical philosophy is presented by such thinkers as I. Kant, I. Fichte, F. Schelling and G. Hegel, who lived and worked at the end of XVIII - the first half of the XIX centuries. One of the main tasks of the German classical philosophy is to overcome the contradictions of XVII—XVIII centuries’ philosophy, which was expressed in opposition to rationalism and empiricism, exaggeration of a role of natural sciences and excessive optimism of Enlightenment. This movement is characterized by the revival of interest in history, art, mythology, as well as by the criticism of natural science direction in modern philosophy. All these are caused by a great interest to the problem of a person put in a new way. The German classical philosophy replaced an individual ideal of free identity of Renaissance by the collective ideal of free mankind expressed by the ideas of Enlightenment and the slogans of The Great French revolution. Protestantism is the religious fundamental of German classical philosophy. In Kants work there are two periods: critical and subcritical. During the subcritical period (1756-1770) the interests of Kant were mainly connected with logical problems and natural

IT Protect against Viruses Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

IT Protect against Viruses - Essay Example When I think of how a virus gets around on the web, I cannot help but think of the whooping cough or measles. Many years ago there were vaccines discovered that prevented these two illnesses. Children before that were very ill when they got these diseases. Many of them died. After the vaccine was discovered and children were inoculated, both diseases virtually went away. However, later on parents decided not to get these vaccines because they did not trust them and both diseases began to come back and then were spread to others one at a time in daycares. That is the way a virus gets around in a computer group also. Not too long ago, as an example, a friend who takes care of a computer system in a hospital noticed a virus warning that kept moving around. Eventually it was everywhere. It was nearly impossible to get rid of. It got in through a computer that someone forgot to load the virus software on and that nurse had been out on the web. It was a very expensive mistake. The connection between a company's computer and home users is the same as my touching your hand and you passing me a virus. If you had flu shot and not got the virus, you would not have passed it to me. Virus software, of course, affects network security but so does malware (infoworld.com). Many IT specialists say that these are now worse than the Trojans were and are. Malware sends in search mechanisms that get deep into the computer information and pull out personal things like all your employees security information or the company's security information. These are set up, not by hackers but by people that are out there to make a profit on your information and it only takes visiting the web at the wrong site or downloading the wrong file. This is truly dangerous to your organization and to any of your employees that may be working from their own PC's at home. In today's world, we are all touched by computers and like keeping personal and important information that is in paper form secure, so is it important to keep information secure on the computer. We all take a huge responsibility in being connected. We can pass malware or a virus on to anyone if we are not protected ourselves and that includes things like banks and utility companies as well as our own corporations. Who has not sent an email in to work at some time. When that happens a virus or malware could easily be passed on. Many people cannot afford the latest in antivirus software, especially when things are constantly changing (cnet.com). Many of the companies now provide continuous updates but there is always a time when you come to the end of those and have to pay. Providing free antiviral software that really works and is consistently updated could eradicate viruses just like the measles were stopped. If the virus cannot be transferred to someone else or in this case someone else's computer, it will die. This is a very good reason for absolutely everyone with a computer to have an antiviral program that works. It protects us all so the expense is nothing compared to have a computer or a corporation full of computers go down. People make more money online right now than has ever happened before. There are more wealthy people in the world and in the United States than ever before (bbc.co). Much of that wealth has been generated due to an online business. That wealth could disappear in a moment with the right virus and there are many out there trying to create it.

Achieve dramatic effect Essay Example for Free

Achieve dramatic effect Essay Act three is the boiling point of the crucible. How does Arthur Miller create tension and suspense to achieve dramatic effect?  The crucible was written in 1953 to highlight the atrocities of McCarthyism, the modern parallel to the Salem witch-hunts. Senator Joseph McCarthy was as determined to hunt out communists, as the Salem judges had been to hunt out witches. Like the Salem judges he sought to extract first confessions and then named of alleged associates. Refusal to denounce others in both communities could be punished as contempt of the committee or court therefore many were forced into self-preservation and started to blame others to save themselves. Most of the crucible is centered on the court and theocracy. It was these strong religious beliefs that made the town of Salem, Massachusetts, particularly disrupted by the rumour of witchcraft. Salem was an intensely Puritan village whose religion frowned upon fun; Christmas festivities were forbidden and holidays only meant that they must focus even more time upon prayer and the church. This strict upbringing, without any fun, was partly to blame for the childrens crying out. The boredom they must have suffered led to their accusations so that they may be at the centre of attention. The puritan religion at that time throve on fear of the devil and had an obsession with sin and damnation. Therefore any other justification for the girls behaviour was seen as contempt of the court. It wasnt until much later that mass-hysteria was considered and concluded to be the explanation if the girls behaviour. The cause of Mass-hysteria in this case was the group of childrens boredom; the reason for this is twofold. Firstly it led to dancing and conjuring of spirits in the wood and secondly Abigail Williams boredom gave her a need for attention. Abigails accusing of several witches caused Betty to believe she saw the Devil and a baseless belief, such as this, is often the cause of Mass-hysteria; it begins small with one person in hysteria (Abigail) but travels and inflicts more people and more people. Abigail Williams, a teenage girl, is the most powerful character in The Crucible. During the play she manages to gain control over all but one of the community. However, this person, John Proctor, subjected to Abigails power in the past as we find out later on and is the cause of much irony in act three. Abigail is Reverend Parris niece, his beliefs and his views of witchcraft change as the play progresses. He goes from being totally against witchcraft and tries in to avoid the subject to trying to convict many witches and those who try to stop the accusations in act three. I think that Parris does this is mainly for self-preservation. The first act of self-preservation in the play was made by Abigail, she accused Tituba, Parris slave. I think that she blamed Tituba because she saw it as a way out. I think that when Hale grabbed her up close and asked if she called the Devil she replied I never called him! Tituba, Tituba because it released the pressure off of her. The pressure being released and put onto Tituba meant that Abigail was free and was not under questioning. The courts procedures were very strict in Salem. There were two judges, judge Hathorne and deputy-governor Danforth. Danforth strongly believes in the court and is stubborn in his beliefs; he thinks that people are scared of the court because they are guilty. He wont listen to any reason that may lead him off his path. When Giles Corey proposes his deposition to save his wife (which said that Putnam manipulated the girls) is proposed in act three, Danforth sticks to the way he believes is right, the court. He says that he must go through the proper procedure and that he must submit his evidence in proper affidavit. Miller puts Giles deposition in the play for two reasons. I think that the first is to show how difficult it is to be heard and that they could not protest their innocence, this foreshadows the later events. I think the second reason is to create time for the judges to read it. This time creates tension as the audience are waiting to see what will happen with Mary Warrens deposition, which we know about from act two. Arthur Miller builds up the tension in act three, he uses the tension of the conflict between Danforth, Parris and Hale near the begin and throughout. Theses are three men with different beliefs, rules and procedures, to achieve dramatic effects. He does this by using the conflict to give hope in the audience that the court will crumble.  Later on in act three Miller creates tension by putting Danforth on the spot. He does this by putting Proctor on the scene with his deposition of the evidence of Mary Warren. Again Miller creates tension because we already know from act one about Marys character. She is a shy, naà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ve and subservient girl who wanted to be honest from the start. In act one she says Abby, weve got to tell. We must tell the truth, Abby! however Abigails strong, threatening behaviour stopped her from owning up, we wonder whether Abigail will do this again.

Effects of chinas one child policy on women

Effects of chinas one child policy on women As the most populous country in the world, the Peoples Republic of China has been adopting the One-Child Policy since 1979 in order to improve the problem of overpopulation which is seen as an obstacle of the growth and development of the country. While the Chinese Government emphasizes its achievements of population control in China, the controversial policy has been widely criticized for its negative influences. This paper presents the One-Child Policys effects on the position of women. Womens position in this paper is basically defined by womens rights, freedom, respectability and social status .I will first briefly introduce the policy, then analyze both the positive and negative impacts with relevant data and statistics, and lastly come to a conclusion. The Policy and Population Growth Introduced in 1978 and implemented since 1979, the One-Child Policy is a family planning policy adopted by the Chinese Government in order to improve Chinas over-rapid population as to prevent its unfavourable effects on economic and social development of the country.(Information Office of the State Council Of the Peoples Republic of China 1995) The policy restricts married urban Chinese couples from having more than one child by imposing monetary penalties on families with extra children yet exemptions are allowed for couples who belong to ethnic minorities, live in rural area or do not have any siblings.(BBC News 2000) The One-Child Policy is considered successful in terms of its control on Chinas population growth as the birth rate in the county has been greatly decreasing since the introduction of the policy. (see Figure 1) Compared with 1970, in 1994 the birth rate dropped from 33.43 per thousand to 17.7 per thousand; the natural growth rate, from 25.83 per thousand to 11.21 per thousand; and the total fertility rate of women, from 5.81 to around 2à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦According to statistics supplied by the United Nations, Chinas population growth rate has already been markedly lower than the average level of other developing countries. (Information Office of the State Council Of the Peoples Republic of China 1995) Figure 1. Changes in the total fertility rate in China Source: National Population and Family Planning Commission of China (2006) Violation of Womens Reproductive Rights Despite its success in population control, the One-Child Policy gives rise to criticisms among which one lies in its violation of womens reproductive rights. Reproductive rights are a subset of human rights first recognized at the United Nations International Conference on Human Rights in Teheran on 13th May 1986. According to the 16th article of the Proclamation of Teheran, Parents have a basic human right to determine freely and responsibly the number and the spacing of their children. Dixon-Mueller (1993: 12) suggests that reproductive rights can be defined as three types: 1. the freedom to decide how many children to have and when (or whether) to have them; 2. the right to have the information and means to regulate ones fertility; 3. the right to control ones own body. Reproductive freedom is the core of individual self-determination. The One-Child Policy does not only violate womens rights by limiting the number of their children but also leads to forced abortions in the country. Under the enforced policy, every 2.4 seconds there is a woman undergoing a forced abortion in China and this makes a total of about 35,000 abortions per day. (Phillips 2010: 1) Abortion is legal in China and as reported in China Daily in 2009, 13 millions of abortions are performed in China every year, which largely exceeds those performed in other countries such as the United States and Canada. (see Figure 2). There is a direct relationship between the One-Child Policy and Chines abortion rate. PostenYaukey (1992: 290) point out that the abortion rate in China increased by nearly 50% between 1978 and 1979 when the policy started being implemented. It is widely known that abortions can cause women health problems, not to mention its negative impacts on emotional and mental health. Ms. Reggie Littlejohn, president of Womens Rights Without Frontiers, criticized that The one child policy causes more violence toward women and girls than any other policy on the face of the earth. (Jiang 2009) Figure2. Abortion statistics in China, U.S.A., U.K., Canada and Australia Source: Jiang (2009) Unwanted Daughters and Sex-Selective Abortions A saying among peasants in China goes like this:The birth of a boy is welcomed with shouts of joy and firecrackers, but when a girl is born, the neighbours say nothing(WestleyChoe 2007: 2) In spite of Chinas modernization over the past decades, it is still common for Chinese parents to prefer sons to daughters. (Wang 1999: 197) Such a preference indirectly leads to sex-selective abortions as female fetuses are usually considered less precious than male ones, especially if the couples are allowed to have only one child. With fetal screening technologies such as ultrasound, amniocentesis and chorionic villi sampling, the sex of unborn fetuses can be recognized before their birth. Such technologies and available abortions result in the possibility that couples selectively abort female fetuses in the hope of having a son instead.(WestleyChoe 2007: 3) Beside sex-selective abortions, Chinas infant mortality rate is another thing to look into. Generally the mortality of male infants is expected to be greater than that of female ones as male infants are biologically weaker than female infants.(Li, 2007: 2) This assumption is also proved by the worlds infant mortality rate by sex.(See Table 1) However, as shown in Table 2, China goes in the reverse direction. It is believed that this unusual tendency is caused by female infanticides and daughter abandonments resulting from the son preference. Table 1. Worlds infant mortality rate by sex 1980-2010 Source: United Nations Population Division (2010) Table 2. Chinas infant mortality rate by sex 1980-2010 Source: United Nations Population Division (2010) Gender Imbalance Blessing or Curse? Together with the increasing female infant mortality, there is a rising trend of the sex ratio in China since the implement of the One-Child Policy.(See Figure 3) It is estimated by the State Population and Family Planning Commission that there will be 30 million more Chinese man than Chinese women in 2020. (BBC News 2007) Because of the supply-and-demand law that supply decreases t and demand remains unchanged then the value of supply increase, some people assume that if there are less women in China their values and social status should naturally rise. However, this law would make sense only if the demand of women was high. Poon(2008) points out that when women become the minority in a male-preponderant society like China, China may face a period of unprecedented male aggression, which would likely render women as victims and womens status even more precarious and vulnerable to subjugation. Figure 3. Rising sex ratio and excess female infant mortality in China Source: Sun (2005) Womens Empowerment The Mistaken Focus It is always emphasized by the Chinese Government that the One-Child Policy helps promoting womens empowerment and improving womens position as they are freed from heavy burdens brought about by having many children(National Population and Family Planning Commission of China 2006). This claim contains two causal relations: 1) Because of the One-Child Policy women have fewer children. 2) Women have fewer children so they can spend more time on their career. Both of them make sense in a large extent, but is the One-Child Policy a must to control the number of womens children? Probably no. Despite that Hong Kong is a special administrative region of the PRC, the One-Child Policy is never implemented in the city, where the social position of women is relatively high. As shown in Figure 4, the fertility rate of Hong Kong kept dropping even and was even lower than that of China. Of course one can argue that there are various factors contributing to Hong Kongs low fertility rate, yet one can also question whether the One-Child Policy is the only factor causing the decline in fertility rate and the rise of womens position. Figure 4. Fertility rates from 1960-2005 in China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and East Asia Pacific Source: The United Families International (2010) The Single Child Generation The One-Child Policy does not only aim to decrease the birthrate but also to improve the quality of the new generation, the future pillars of China. It is commonly believed that having single daughters will raise the position of women as their parents provide them with better and more concentrated resources such as education and materials. It may be true in some ways, but Greenhalgh(2007.) points out that the One-Child Policy has produced the most materially and educationally privileged generation of young people in Chinese history who are spoiled and egocentric. Having been the focus of attention from the family throughout their growing-up years, these children are more dependent on others and easily hurt psychologically.(China Daily 2005) The new single-child generation in China has already concerning Chinese from the older generation. Do better resources necessarily create a better generation? If it does not, how can we expect a decline in qualities of children (both male and fema le) will result in better positions of women? Conclusion The One-Child Policy was claimed to be a short-term measure when it was first introduced in China.(Hesketh, Li Zhu 2005) Now that the policy has already been implemented for three decades, its negative consequences eventually appear and have aroused worries from the society. The policy negatively affects womens position as it violate womens rights and enhances the existing favoritism towards male children and it is not coming to an end yet. According to Zhao Baige, deputy director of the National Population and Family Planning Commission of China, although it is said that the policy has been slowly being relaxed ,Chinas family-planning policy will remain unchanged until at least 2015. (Kumar 2010) (1631 words)

Music as Cultural Criticism Essays -- Music Musical Culture History Es

Music as Cultural Criticism Works Cited Not Included In his article â€Å"Daily Life in Black Africa: Elements for a Critique,† author Paulin Houtondji offers his perceptions of several aspects of life in Africa. His statements are explicit, observant, harsh, and backed up with examples and anecdotes. Many African pop musicians provide similarly critical assessments of various aspects of African life, but they choose to do so in a much subtler way. Houtondji’s criticism of Africa for its serious failure is similar to that of artists like musician E.T. Mensah, who uses upbeat music to lessen the sting of his subversive lyrics. In fact, so deceivingly happy is the sound of the music that missing the entire message of the song is highly possible. His candor and blatancy in expressing his opinion, however, also parallels the work of artists like Fela Kuti, Unsung Heroes, and Prophets of Da City. Though Houtondji and many musicians share the common goal of improving society, or at least highlighting its flaws, the parties focus on different aspects of society, and probably garner different results. To a Western reader, Houtondji and his writings may seem more serious, scholarly, and even competent, even for such a simple reason as a societal bias towards the written word over the spoken. On the other hand, taking into account the low literacy rates in much of Africa, as well as the aural language, the situation may be the opposite in Africa. The spoken, or sung, word should prove highly effective in addressing social wrongs, suggesting societal change, or calling people to action. Using words as weapons is not uncommon, and they are effective both set to music and written. A preliminary reading of Houtondji’s article leads to a c... ...such injustices. Words are often used as effective weapons in written and verbal war. Though seemingly non-violent, these conflicts contain elements of violence, and can thus prove highly painful. In his article â€Å"Daily Life in Black Africa: Elements for a Critique,† author Paulin Houtondji criticizes superficial problems in daily life in Africa, while hinting at the issues of the bigger picture. Similar to this approach, E.T. Mensah uses music to soften the blow of his loaded words. Other pop musicians, such as Fela Kuti, choose not to be sensitive to their audiences, and instead assault them with politically charged lyrics, calling them to action and demanding social change. Both approaches and styles are effective, but an audience’s receptiveness and perception may be the most important determining factors of an artist’s success in issuing a call for change.

Chivalry :: essays research papers

When Chivalry first began, many citizens felt this was mostly for the courtship of women. However, this also included such things as proper etiquette at the dinner table, generosity toward females, and the aspect of religion to the church. Becoming a knight was not an easy task at all. The whole process was more of an apprenticeship program like in today’s society. First, at about the age of seven, you were to go to the house of a noble and be their squire. Throughout this period, the young man would gain wisdom as well as skills he would need to develop in battle to become a successful knight. The boy would continue being a squire until he had mastered the use of weaponry and horsemanship and was then recognized by a knight. Then the young man would be "dubbed" a knight. Later in the Thirteenth Century, the process of becoming a knight became more ceremonialized, as we know of in our society from movies and such. The same process used in Medieval times was adopted and "modernized" for today’s workplace. For instance, the new employee is hired, then he learns his/her job. Once he/she is recognized for good work he/she is promoted to a higher level job. Another expectation the knights had to perform was to protect and uphold justice. This meant protecting the poor and innocent people of the land while proclaiming the ideals of Christianity at the same time. This concept originated in France and Spain, and spread throughout Europe very rapidly. The chief chivalric virtues were piety, honor, valor, courtesy, chastity, and loyalty. The knight was to be loyal to god, who was the main love of his life. Their idea of love in this case was different then ours. Their love to God was strictly platonic.

The Secret of Ella and Micha Chapter 14

Micha We end up racing home. I let her win, even though I'd love to have the favor, which would include lots of dirty things that she's not ready for. So now I owe her a favor and she tells me she has to think about it, with this little tease in her voice that makes me grin. We part ways at our houses and she leaves me with the promise she'll try to come over later tonight. She's slowly changing back into the girl I know, although that night still haunts her eyes, but I'm not sure she'll ever really get over it completely. It's still raining and lightning like hell, which means the party's going to have to take place inside. Ethan and I drag the wet keggers inside and stand them on the kitchen table. There's a note tacked on the wall from my mom, telling me she's going to be home late. Ethan starts rummaging through the cupboards for some food. â€Å"What band's playing?† â€Å"Naomi's.† I head to my room to change and get my guitar. â€Å"Answer the door if anyone knocks.† In my room, I tug on a grey t-shirt and pull a black pin-striped shirt over it. I slip on a pair of black jeans and put on a studded belt. Then I grab my guitar and text Naomi. Me: When u planning on heading over?† Naomi: Soon. Why? You waiting on us to tell us some super exciting news. Me: I haven't decided yet. Naomi: Don't turn it down. It's a great opportunity. Me: I'm not sayin yes or no. See u in a bit. When Naomi took me backstage at the coffeehouse, she first proposed the idea that I should replace their guitarist and hit the road with them. At first, I was all for it. It's what I've wanted to do since I was twelve and rocked out with Ethan and Dean in the garage. But then I thought back to Ella's sad eyes and doubts washed over me. The doorbell rings and I head to the living room to get the party started and clear my head for one night. Ella By the time I decide to go over to Micha's, things are already getting out of hand. Cars are parked on the lawn, and garbage cans are tipped over. Someone's even sitting on the roof. Lila talks me into going and we run up the driveway with our arms over our heads to shield our hair from the rain, but the crowded foyer overwhelms me and I start to back out. â€Å"Stop being a baby and go in there,† she says, giving me a gentle shove forward. â€Å"I want to see the tough girl everyone keeps talking about.† â€Å"No, you don't. Trust me,† I tell her. â€Å"She was mean and she would have never been friends with you.† â€Å"Okay, then show me a happy medium.† She has a dark blue, strapless dress on that matches her shoes and her blonde hair rests on her shoulders in curls, which have slipped loose because of the rain. â€Å"You can change yourself without losing your identity completely.† I turn away from the crowd toward her. â€Å"Why have we never talked like this before?† She smiles sadly. â€Å"Because you would never let us.† She says something else, but the music stifles her words. I fan the smoke from my face and step into the kitchen. Holding the bottom of my black skirt, I maneuver through the crowd toward the table. I lose Lila for a moment, but when the crowd thins, Lila stumbles out, stomping on a guy's foot with her high heel. She curses, fussing with her hair. â€Å"Has Micha ever heard of a little thing called air conditioning?† â€Å"He probably forgot to turn it on!† I shout over the music. â€Å"Wait here. I'll go turn it up.† I squeeze through the crowd toward the living room and the band. The music is deafening and I realize it's Micha playing with Naomi. They're sharing the microphone and he looks like he's enjoying himself. I stop in the middle of the room and watch him from the crowd. He's gorgeous under the light with his hair hanging in his eyes as he spills out his lyrics to people and strums on the guitar. I back through the room and into the hall. There's a couple making out in front of the thermostat. The music quiets down and then starts up again as I gently guide them over and they move out of my way without breaking their lips from each other. Fanning my face, I turn up the cold air. Suddenly, long arms encircle my waist and the scent of him fills my chest. â€Å"I thought you were playing,† I yell over the music with my hand pressed to my heart. â€Å"I was, but I took a break to see you.† His breath smells like beer. I scrunch up my nose. â€Å"Are you drunk?† â€Å"I've only had one beer,† he says. â€Å"I'm just excited to see you.† â€Å"And to be playing again,† I state. His smile is huge and it makes me happy for a moment. â€Å"Yeah, that too. I saw you watching me.† I shrug, playing it off. â€Å"I'm glad you're happy. You looked sad earlier at the drive-in.† His hand finds my hip and he grips it tightly, sending heat through my body. â€Å"I'm even happier now that you're here.† I relax against the wall. â€Å"You know I've heard you use that pickup line on girls before, right?† â€Å"Come on, let me have some fun with you,† he begs with a tease in his voice. â€Å"Pretend like you don't know any of my moves.† â€Å"You want me to pretend like I'm someone else?† I question. â€Å"Haven't you been telling me to do the opposite?† The reflection of the light dances in his eyes as he leans forward and wisps of his hair brush my cheek. â€Å"Just be the girl I used to know. The one that had fun and laughed all the time.† â€Å"That girl would have never pretended with you, even if you requested her to.† â€Å"I know that.† His other hand finds my waist and his body slants toward me. Glancing from left to right, I slide my hands up his firm chest and link them around his neck. Then I pull myself onto him and hitch my legs around his waist. His expression is stoic, but he lets out a growl and his lips come down hard on mine. Our chests press together as he thrusts his body into me. Our tongues connect, feeling each other thoroughly. My back is pressed into the thermostat and my skirt barely covers the top of my thighs. My head falls back against the wall as he trails kisses down my neck. My breathing is rapid and so is my pulse. What is he doing to me? The music stops and Naomi's voice rises over the speakers. â€Å"Micha Scott, get your ass back up here and play right now.† Micha pulls away, breathless. â€Å"I have one more song to play and then you and I are going to pick right back up with this.† Before I can answer, he leaves me in the hall. Touching my lips, I watch him weave back to the stage, knowing if he does pick it up, I'm not going to be able to stop it this time. Struggling with the loss of control over my own body, I wander back into the kitchen. Lila's over by the cooler, sipping on a drink and talking to Ethan. Straightening my shoulders, I march up to the counter and pour myself a drink. Lila and Ethan's eyes are on me as I knock it back. The alcohol burns my throat as I slam the cup down on the counter. â€Å"Who's up for a game of quarters?† *** Two hours and three shots later, I'm feeling pretty good. The band has finished playing and Micha has joined our game at the table. â€Å"Sail† by AWOLNATION beats through the stereo, soft lyrics and a sultry rhythm and it takes me back to another time. â€Å"I think I'm going to go dance,† I announce to the table. â€Å"Ah ha, I knew you secretly liked to dance.† Lila slams her hand down on the table and then hiccups. â€Å"Oh, excuse me.† Ethan laughs at her like she's the cutest thing in the world. â€Å"Are you reaching your limit little girl?† Lila narrows her eyes impishly at Ethan. â€Å"I'm not the one who missed the last three shots.† He replies with a comeback, but I don't hear it as I rise from my chair anxious to dance. Micha watches me inquisitively as I make a path through the crowd. Faceless people bead with sweat and the air smells like salt and is lit with desirable heat. The farther I descend into the crowd the hotter it gets. By the time I'm in the center, my skin is damp with sweat and the thin fabric of my strapless shirt is sticking to my back. There's a darkness inside my chest, like the devil hidden inside me is about to make a grand appearance. I raise my hands and sway my hips, letting my hair fall down my shoulders and back. I breathe freely, just like I use to. The more the music plays, the more relaxed I become. My head falls from side to side and my eyelids drift shut. I feel someone move up behind me and they smell of desire mingled with an earthy scent and something mouthwatering. Micha places his hands on my hips, his hands domineering. He nearly melts me as he spreads his fingers around my waist and presses his body against mine, wanting as much of me as he can get. â€Å"I thought you didn't dance anymore,† he whispers in a feral voice, his warm breath touching every part of me. I lean back into him, comfortable, and breathe in his familiar scent. â€Å"I guess I'm a liar.† â€Å"You didn't use to be.† He sweeps my hair to the side and implores our bodies closer as he moves with me. Through the fabric of our clothes, I feel the heat radiating off him like the sun. â€Å"In fact, you used to be the most honest person I knew.† I slant my head back against his chest. â€Å"I know, and I'm working on getting it back.† â€Å"Good, I'm glad.† His hands slide down my hips and don't stop until they reach the hem of my skirt. â€Å"Weren't you and I supposed to finish what we started in the hall?† I start to pull away, but he intensifies his embrace and restrains me against him so we're bonded in every way possible. I feel the hardness of his chest and the heat emitting off every single God damn part of him. It makes me want to moan. â€Å"You're fucking driving me crazy. You know that?† He whispers through a groan as his fingers slip underneath the side of my skirt and up my thighs. â€Å"I want you, pretty girl. Badly.† He's not lying. His desire is pressed up against the back of my waist. I should stop him†¦ He's practically got his hand up my dress and we're surrounded by a ton of people, but I give in to him, subsiding in his arms, and let his fingers inch higher up my skirt. Slowly, he kisses my skin, before parting his lips and nipping my neck, sucking, tasting, driving my body mad. His other hand wanders upward on the outside of my shirt and over the curve of my breast. I practically come undone in his arms. Without warning, I turn around, slipping out of his grip. I secure my arms around his neck. His eyes darken as he welds our bodies back together. My head falls back, allowing him access as I put my weight into his lean arms. He holds me tightly, tracking kisses down the hollow of my neck, licking my collar bone, delving lower and lower as his hand sneaks for the bottom of my skirt again and the palm of his hand caresses the back of my thigh. He groans, cupping the back of my head with his other hand, then suddenly he pulls away. â€Å"How drunk are you?† I glance from left to right like there's an answer hidden in the crowd. â€Å"I don't know.† He sighs and drags his fingers through his hair. â€Å"You're killing me, you know that?† â€Å"I'm sorry.† I pout. He laughs and directs me back over to the table. â€Å"Go meet up with Lila and I'll be there in a bit, okay.† â€Å"Why? Where are you going?† I ask. He rubs his hand across his face and lets out a breathy laugh. â€Å"I have to go take care of some business.† We part ways and I go back to the kitchen like he told me. Lila's eyes are accusing as I sit down at the table. I try not to smile, but I'm too intoxicated to care. â€Å"Look at you,† Lila says. â€Å"All smiley.† I start to say something, but spot Micha talking to Naomi in the middle of the crowd. She laughs at something he says and then the two of them head toward the hall where his bedroom is. I guess that was the business he had to take care of. I get up from the table and without another word I run outside into the rain. Micha Ella is killing me tonight. I've got a hard on so bad, it's probably going to take an hour in an ice-cold shower to calm me down and she's drunk, so I can't take it any further. I head back to my room, to take care of the problem myself, when Naomi meets up with me. She waves her finger at me and then laughs. â€Å"You and I need to talk.† â€Å"I still haven't decided!† I shout over the music. She takes me by the arm and tugs me down the hall, bumping people out of the way until we reach my room. She shuts the door and flips on the light. â€Å"Alright, please explain to me why it's so hard to make the decision about something you've always wanted to do?† â€Å"I'd rather not.† She throws her hands in the air, exasperatedly. â€Å"I don't get you. All you used to talk about in high school was playing in a band on the road.† â€Å"I still do,† I say. â€Å"But I'm not sure if I can leave people behind. Her face relaxes and her hands fall to her side. â€Å"I actually get that. I was worried to leave my dad alone, but I talked to him and explained why and you know what? He understood.† â€Å"Mine's more complicated, Naomi.† I sit down on the bed, wishing she'd leave. â€Å"It's not just my mom I'm worried about.† She sits down on the bed beside me and crosses her legs. â€Å"It's because of Ella.† â€Å"Fuck, am I that obvious,† I say. â€Å"Because I always thought I was subtle.† She snorts a laugh. â€Å"You've never been subtle. And it's not just you. It's both of you. But you know what, you can't center you're life around one girl. You gotta move on and live life the way you want to.† She doesn't get it. â€Å"Yeah, let's not talk about this.† â€Å"Alright.† She holds her hands up. â€Å"Sorry, I'll let you be. I just wanted to give you something to think about.† She pats me on the knee before heading out into the hall. Once the door shuts, I fall back onto my bed. Maybe she's right. Maybe it is time to let go of her. â€Å"Fuck.† I need resolution. My eyes wander toward Ella's house. It is dark, except for one light. The bathroom where her mother died. That light hasn't been on for eight months. Why is it on now?