Descriptive Essay About Fast Food - 825 Words

A lot of people eat fast food regularly. It has become a way of life for a lot of people, and I am no exception to this. I never really paid attention to the actual details of fast food, but recently I started to wonder who was the best fast food restaurant. To answer this, I compared the service quality, the price and the food quality from Chick-fil-A, McDonald’s and Burger King. I went to one establishment a day from Wednesday through Friday at around 12:10 pm, and I got enough food for the average family size of three to sample from. I found it extremely important to get food around noon because it’s the peak of lunch rush. Service Lunch rush is where the real service quality of a restaurant is going to shine. It really shows how well a†¦show more content†¦The staff was ok. Unlike the other restaurants it wasn’t very busy. The staff seemed more interested in goofing off than assisting me. The thing that really got me was the speed of this restaurant. Burger king took approximately 7 minutes. The same as Chick-fil-A. The problem is that a Burger King only serving three other people took as long as a completely full Chick-fil-A. The staff at Burger King was okay in terms of manners. They weren’t rude, but they could have been more focused. They are absolutely terrible with their time. The first-place winner in the service category is clearly Chick-fil-A. They are consistently nice and quick. Second-place goes to Burger King. It shouldn’t have taken that long, But the staff weren’t crabby like the people at McDonald’s. Good service is a must have for returning customer s, but it’s not entirely what draws people to a certain fast food place. Price The thing that draws most people to a particular fast food place is the bargain that they think they’re getting. Going to a restaurant to buy 15 individual items and 15 meals to compare prices is insane. So instead I found online charts that had the prices (not including tax) for Chick-fil-A, McDonald’s and Burger King to compare instead. The food I’m looking at are two fast food staples: The chicken nugget and the fry. The Chick-fil-12-piece nugget meal contains: 12 nuggets, a medium drink and a medium fry. This will run you about $8.59. The individual prices forShow MoreRelatedMy Favorite Food848 Words   |  4 Pages-Here are some guidelines for writing a descriptive essay: Take time to brainstorm If your instructor asks you to describe your favorite food, make sure that you jot down some ideas before you begin describing it. For instance, if you choose pizza, you might start by writing down a few words: sauce, cheese, crust, pepperoni, sausage, spices, hot, melted, etc. Once you have written down some words, you can begin by compiling descriptive lists for each one. Use clear and concise language. Read MoreObjectivity In Autophenonmenology And Heterophenomenology.938 Words   |  4 PagesHeterophenomenology In the journal â€Å"How to Study Human Consciousness Empirically,† Daniel Dennett claims that â€Å"people are often just wrong about what they are doing and how they are doing it.† Rather than having an objective and complete understanding of our own intentions and processes, we tend to use assumptions as knowledge, alter facts to align with our beliefs, and theorize about causes and effects. As a result, studies of traditional phenomenology (referred to in this situation as autophenomenology) areRead MoreAn Analysis Of Hans Taparia And Pamela Koch s New York Times Online Article1337 Words   |  6 PagesRhetorical Analysis Essay: â€Å"A Seismic Shift in How People Eat† In Hans Taparia and Pamela Koch’s New York Times online article â€Å"A Seismic Shift in How People Eat,† posted on November 6, 2015, the current struggle that big food companies are experiencing in relation to increased consumer awareness is discussed. Prompting this article is the overwhelming movement to healthy eating by the general populace and the havoc it is wreaking on corporate companies. Highly popular among health enthusiastsRead MoreCommunication Is Important For All Aspects Of Human Interaction1548 Words   |  7 Pagesbeen perfecting.) Communication is something that is necessary for all aspects of human interaction, however what happens when you are forced to use different means of communication to represent what you are trying to say? To be discussed in this essay is: CMC, verbal, and nonverbal communication and their relation to how we make decisions when we are exposed to new types of language. Consequently, one can observe how those decisions are based on a lack of language which directly affects communicationRead MoreServing in Florida Analysis Essay1742 Words   |  7 Pagespizza barf, decomposing lemon wedges, and water-logged toast crusts; sounds like the typical garbage can. Would anyone believe that these phrases apply to a run-down restaurant in the middle of Florida? Barbara Ehrenreich goes undercover at a local fast food diner known as Jerry’s to investigate life as a blue-collar laborer, serving to customers arriving in â€Å"human waves† (Ehrenreich 180). It is throughout her journey working for both Jerry’s and a factory known as Hearthside that she learns the difficultiesRead MoreThe Global North/South Divide1724 Words   |  7 PagesA descriptive essay on the Globla North/South divide. Explores the social, cuptural and economic differences that exist between the regions defined as the global north and the global south. The theory of the Global North and Global South is a new geopolitical perspective. It divides the world into two blocs – the industrialized countries of the global North and the poor countries of the South on the global level of analysis. While â€Å"Global South† is sometimes used as a synonym for the more familiarRead MoreShhh Essay2170 Words   |  9 Pages(2012) Summary: Is Popular Culture Good for You? Length: 1-2 pages (double-spaced with proper header, a descriptive title, and a Works Cited entry) Source: David Crystal’s â€Å"2B or not 2B† Due: End of class period, Wednesday, June 13th Percentage of Final Grade: 10% Objective: Write a summary of Crystal’s essay â€Å"2B or not 2B.† Use a template from They Say, I Say to begin your summary. Make appropriate rhetorical â€Å"moves,† such as integrating quotes, choosingRead MoreTen Most Effective Ways to Improve Your English1003 Words   |  5 Pages10 Most Effective Ways to Improve Your English 800-1000 words essay 1. Read : Read anything and everything in English. You can read story books, newspapers, magazines, blogs, comics, English textbooks, instructions and ingredients on food packages, advertisements, etc. For story books, don’t force yourself to read something too difficult or something you know you won’t enjoy. Make reading fun! Read books that you ENJOY reading. I hate to read books that bore me too. Opening up books beforeRead More Essay on Euthanasia and Doctor-Assisted Suicide1175 Words   |  5 Pagesmore popular points of interest involved with the euthanasia-assisted suicide discussion. There are less than a dozen questions which would come to mind in the case of the average individual who has a mild interest in this debate, and the following essay presents information which would satisfy that individuals curiosity on these points of common interest.    Euthanasia and assisted suicide are legal in the state of Oregon and in the country of the Netherlands; these are the only two jurisdictionsRead MoreAnalysis : Capital Dysphoria 2234 Words   |  9 Pagesbeyond given norms. ​We begin with Barbara Ehrenreich’s essay Serving in Florida, in which the author provides a diaristic account of a single month living off of minimum wages from two full time jobs. Coming from the background of a journalist visiting this lifestyle as a personal/journalistic experiment, Ehrenreich attempts to make sense of the toxic environment she becomes immersed in upon entering her new workplace at a local fast food chain: â€Å"The kitchen is a cavern, a stomach leading to the

12 Angry Men Movie - 1698 Words

12 Angry Men In a world where the jury is the voice of the peoples justice, twelve men sit in a room poised to determine the fate of one boys life. Did he do it? If he didnt, who did? Why would a young man kill his beloved father with a switchblade knife? The moment that the jury-comprised of twelve Caucasian men, abhorrent in todays society-entered the small, blank, bleak room, they had already come to the conclusion that the young man was guilty as charged without deliberation. One lone man stood his ground and had the guts to stand up to the others and profess that he believed the man could not be found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt due to conflicting information. How could he prove it? Through verbal and nonverbal†¦show more content†¦He became incredulous and demanded that the juror who made the statement to revise what he said and recognize that not all individuals from the slums are criminals. This is a prime example of profiling. Oral communication has played a huge factor in the deliberations in the jury room. Up to this point each juror has conveyed his belief through speech. â€Å"A verbal message can be conveyed and a response received in a minimal amount of time. If the receiver is unsure of the message, rapid feedback allows for early detection by the sender and, hence, allows for early correction† (Judge, 371) Some jurors were eloquent in the way they relayed their reasonings to the others, and some were very loud and abrupt and had little evidence to support their beliefs but relied purely on prejudices, biases, and ignorance in an effort to get a quick response. These jurors also used this opportunity to elicit any responses or feedback or make corrections to others’ reasonings. Many of the jurors relied on the oral messages that they received through the testimony of eyewitnesses in the courtroom. When they regurgitated the information in the jury room, however, some of the messa ges could have been, and probably were, distorted. This is why many people prefer to hear it â€Å"straight from the horse’s mouth.† Others used the testimony to prove the beliefs of others wrong or to find a reasonable doubt to vote not guilty. TheShow MoreRelated12 Angry Men In The Movie : 12 Angry Men808 Words   |  4 Pagesoften touchy subjects in a unique light. In this movie the audience is faced with 12 jurors who hold the fate of a young man on trial for murder in their hands. It is supposed to be that one is innocent until proven guilty; however that is not the case in this movie. The Jurors are very prejudiced and closed minded throughout most of the movie for the most part. However, the one juror who is not that way is number 8. In the 1957 MGM film 12 Angry Men Juror number 8 relies primarily on his core valuesRead More12 Angry Men : Movie Analysis : 12 Angry Men1103 Words   |  5 PagesThe 1957 movie version of 12 angry men, brings twelve people together with different personalities and experiences to discuss the fate of a young boy that allegedly killed his father. At the very beginning many agree that the boy is guilty except for one man. Juror #8 votes not guilty and pushes to have the evidence talked thr ough. Slowly after reviewing all the evidence carefully the eleven to one vote switched from eleven thinking guilty to eleven thinking not guilty. Each juror brought differentRead MoreThe Movie 12 Angry Men 865 Words   |  4 Pages As a Criminal Justice major, the classic movie 12 Angry Men has always been very influential and essential in my studies. This brilliant film is based on the concept of a fair trial to a young man, aged eighteen, who has been accused of stabbing his own father to death. Being tried for first-degree murder, the jurors vote most be unanimous on whether or not this child is to be sentence to death. Demanding the viewers to question the veracity behind our â€Å"fair† criminal justice system, this 1957 trialRead MoreMovie Paper (12 Angry Men)1493 Words   |  6 PagesCOMM 132 October 2, 2014 Movie Paper (12 Angry Men) In the Movie, 12 Angry Men, 12 jurors were tasked with finding a young man guilty or not-guilty of murdering his own father. In order for the men to fulfill their duty as jurors, they had to come to a consensus of whether the young man was guilty or not by working together, as a group, in order to analyze the trials evidence and testimonies, to then come to an agreement on the defendant’s guilt or innocence. As a group that was formed solelyRead MoreMovie Analysis : 12 Angry Men1639 Words   |  7 Pageswithin a diverse group.The purpose of this paper is to analyze the importance of cooperative communities while providing different aspects of leadership. Movie Summary The movie 12 Angry Men is a depiction of a jury deliberation in the 1950’s involving the trial of a teenager that is accused of murdering his father. These twelve men were brought together by a random selection process to make a unanimous decision. In the beginning, all jurors believed the boy to be guilty without a doubtRead MoreAnalysis Of The Movie 12 Angry Men 933 Words   |  4 Pages12 Angry Men Overview In the movie of 12 Angry Men, a group of jurors must decide the fate of an inner-city boy, who is charged with killing his father. The case should have been a slam dunk, yet one man (Juror No. 8) in the initial vote cast reasonable doubt over the evidence of the trial. While deliberating their verdict, the details are revealed. Subsequently, the jurors slowly changed their vote to innocent on the basis of doubt. Despite their duty to separate personal matters from the factsRead MoreAnalysis Of The Movie 12 Angry Men 946 Words   |  4 Pages12 Angry Men For the purpose of this paper I will be using a movie based on a teen male who is on trial for the murder of his father in 1957. There are twelve men on the jury who are from all different areas of society. They have one goal, to decide based on testimony and evidence on whether the accused is guilty or not. The following information is one person’s observation of the movie â€Å"12 Angry Men† using the 5 Stages of Group Development. Keywords: Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, AdjourningRead MoreMovie Review 12 Angry Men607 Words   |  3 PagesAns 6. â€Å"Prejudice always complicated the truth.† The movie 12 Angry Men, by means of several situational examples, reaffirms the fact. The first case in point is of the boy on trial who is born and brought up in slums. Many of the jury members, especially jurors 10, 7, 4 and 3 are heavily influenced by the prejudices they hold against children from the slums. In one of the scenes, juror 10, goes into a rage and explains why people from the slums cannot be trusted and calls them little better thanRead MoreAnalysis Of The Movie 12 Angry Men 2223 Words   |  9 Pages12 Angry Men is a movie centered around a murder case and the 12 men that are in charge of providing a verdict for a kid charged of first degree murder of his own father. In this movie, the characters have to face a long and grueling procedure of figuring out how to charge the kid after a six day long trial and hours long deliberation between the jurors. The film of 12 Angry Men has several key psychological aspects to it that can be accurately and summarily described. In the movie, the jury hasRead MoreMovie Analysis : 12 Angry Men1404 Words   |  6 PagesThe group type presented in the film 12 Angry men appears to be a task group. Task groups typically come together to accomplish a specific charge. In this case, their task was to decide a verdict of guilty or not guilty for the boy on trial. According to our text, some feature of this task group would include those listed under the â€Å"teams† category such as appointed leadership and focus on a specific task or charge. The members’ bond is simply there interest in the task, as they have no previous

Blood Promise Chapter Twenty-Six Free Essays

string(90) " dead end spun me around, and I tried to calm myself, knowing panic would make me sloppy\." I think the profanities that came out of my mouth when I hit the ground would have been understandable in any language. It hurt. The bush was not particularly sharp or pointy, but it wasn’t soft by any stretch of the imagination. We will write a custom essay sample on Blood Promise Chapter Twenty-Six or any similar topic only for you Order Now It broke my fall somewhat, though it didn’t save my ankle from twisting underneath me. â€Å"Shit!† I said through gritted teeth, climbing to my feet. Russia sure was making me swear a lot. I tested the weight on my ankle and felt a twinge of pain but nothing I couldn’t stand on. A sprain, thank God. The ankle wasn’t broken, and I’d had worse. Still, it was going to slow down my getaway. I limped away from the bush, trying to pick up the pace and ignore the pain. Stretching before me was that stupid hedge maze I’d thought was so cool the other night. The sky was cloudy, but I doubted moonlight would have made it easier to navigate. No way was I going to fight that leafy mess. I’d find where it ended and get out through there. Unfortunately, when I circled the house, I discovered an unhappy truth: The hedge was everywhere. It encircled the estate like some kind of medieval moat. The annoying part was, I doubted Galina had even had it installed for defense. She’d probably done it for the same reason she had crystal chandeliers and antique paintings in the hallways: It was cool. Well, there was nothing for it, then. I picked an opening to the maze at random and started winding my way through. I had no idea where to go, no strategies for getting out. Shadows lurked everywhere, and I often didn’t see dead ends coming until I was right on top of them. The bushes were tall enough that once I was only a little way into the maze, I completely lost sight of the top of the house. If I’d had it as a navigation point, I might have been able to just move in a straight (or nearly straight) line away. Instead, I wasn’t entirely sure if I was going backward or in circles or what. At one point, I was pretty sure I’d passed the same jasmine trellis three times. I tried to think of stories I’d read about people navigating mazes. What did they use? Bread crumbs? Thread? I didn’t know, and as more time passed and my ankle grew sorer, I began to get discouraged. I’d killed a Strigoi in my weakened state but couldn’t escape some bushes. Embarrassing, really. â€Å"Roza!† The voice carried distantly on the wind, and I stiffened. No. It couldn’t be. Dimitri. He’d survived. â€Å"Roza, I know you’re out there,† he called. â€Å"I can smell you.† I had a feeling he was bluffing. He wasn’t close enough for me to feel sick, and with the cloying perfume of the flowers, I doubted he could scent me yet-even if I was sweating a lot. He was trying to bait me into giving up my location. With new resolve, I headed down the next twist in the bushes, praying for the exit. Okay, God, I thought. Get me out of this and I’ll stop my half assed churchgoing ways. You got me past a pack of Strigoi tonight. I mean, trapping that one between the doors really shouldn’t have worked, so clearly you’re on board. Let me get out of here, and I’ll†¦ I don’t know. Donate Adrian’s money to the poor. Get baptized. Join a convent. Well, no. Not that last one. Dimitri continued his taunting. â€Å"I won’t kill you, not if you give yourself up. I owe you. You took out Galina for me, and now I’m in charge. Replacing her happened a little ahead of schedule, but that’s not a problem. Of course, there aren’t many people to control now that Nathan and the others are dead. But that can be fixed.† Unbelievable. He truly had survived those odds. I’d said it before and meant it: Alive or undead, the love of my life was a badass. There was no way he could have defeated those three†¦ and yet, well†¦ I’d seen him take on crazy odds before. And clearly his being here was proof of his capabilities. The path ahead of me split, and I randomly chose the right hand path. It spread off into the darkness, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Score. Despite his breezy commentary, I knew he was also moving through the maze, getting closer and closer. And unlike me, he knew the paths and how to get out of it. â€Å"I’m not upset about you attacking me, either. I would have done it in your place. It’s just one more reason why we should be together.† My next turn took me into a dead end filled with climbing moonflowers. I kept my swearing to myself and backtracked. â€Å"You’re still dangerous, though. If I find you, I’m probably going to have to kill you. I don’t want to, but I’m starting to think there’s no way we can both live in this world. Come to me by choice, and I’ll awaken you. We’ll control Galina’s empire together.† I almost laughed. I couldn’t have found him if I wanted to in this mess. If I’d had that kind of ability, I’d My stomach swirled a little. Oh no. He was getting closer. Did he know it yet? I didn’t fully understand how the amount of nausea correlated to distance, but it didn’t matter. He was too close, period. How close did he need to be to truly smell me? To hear me walking on the grass? Each second brought him closer to success. Once he had my trail, I was screwed. My heart started racing even more-if that was even possible at this point-and the adrenaline pumping through me numbed my ankle, even though it still slowed me down. Another dead end spun me around, and I tried to calm myself, knowing panic would make me sloppy. You read "Blood Promise Chapter Twenty-Six" in category "Essay examples" All the while, that nausea grew in increments. â€Å"Even if you get out, where will you go?† he called. â€Å"We’re in the middle of nowhere.† His words were poison, seeping into my skin. If I focused on them, my fear would win, and I’d give up. I’d curl into a ball and let him come for me, and I had no reason to believe he’d let me live. My life could be over in the next few minutes. A turn to my left led to another wall of glossy green leaves. I sidestepped it quickly and headed in the opposite direction and saw-fields. Long, vast stretches of grass spread out ahead of me, giving way to trees scattered off in the distance. Against all odds, I’d made it out. Unfortunately, the nausea was strong now. This close, he had to know where I was. I peered around, realizing the truth of his words. We really were in the middle of nowhere. Where could I go? I had no idea where we were. There. To my left, I saw the faint purple glow on the horizon that I’d noticed the other night. I hadn’t realized what it was then, but now I knew. Those were city lights, most likely Novosibirsk, if that was where Galina’s gang did most of their deeds. Even if it wasn’t Novosibirsk, it was civilization. There would be people there. Safety. I could get help. I took off at as fast a run as I could manage, feet pounding hard against the ground. Even the adrenaline couldn’t block that much impact out, and pain crackled up through my leg with each step. The ankle held, though. I didn’t fall or go to a true limp. My breath was hard and ragged, the rest of my muscles still weak from all I’d been through. Even with a goal, I knew that the city was miles away. And all the while, the nausea grew and grew. Dimitri was close. He had to be out of the maze now, but I couldn’t risk looking back. I just kept running toward that purple glow on the horizon, even though it meant I was about to enter a cluster of trees. Maybe, maybe it would provide cover. You’re a fool, some part of me whispered. There’s nowhere you can hide from him. I reached the thin line of trees and slowed just a little, gasping for breath and pressing myself up against a sturdy trunk. I finally dared a look behind me but saw nothing. The house glowed in the distance, surrounded by the darkness of the hedge maze. My sick stomach hadn’t grown worse, so it was possible I might have a lead on him. The maze had several exits; he hadn’t known where I’d come out. My moment of respite over, I kept moving, keeping the soft glow of the city lights in sight through the branches. It was only a matter of time before Dimitri found me. My ankle wasn’t going to let me do much more of this. Outrunning him was slowly becoming a fantasy. Leaves left over from last fall crunched as I moved, but I couldn’t afford to step around them. I doubted I had to worry anymore about Dimitri sniffing me out. The noise would give me away. â€Å"Rose! I swear it’s not too late.† Shoot. His voice was close. I looked around frantically. I couldn’t see him, but if he was still calling for me, he likely couldn’t see me yet either. The city haze was still my guiding star, but there were trees and darkness between me and it. Suddenly, an unexpected person came to mind. Tasha Ozera. She was Christian’s aunt, a very formidable lady who was one of the forerunners of teaching Moroi to fight back against Strigoi. â€Å"We can retreat and retreat and let ourselves get backed into corners forever,† she’d said once. â€Å"Or we can go out and meet the enemy at the time and place we choose. Not them.† Okay, Tasha, I thought. Let’s see if your advice gets me killed. I looked around and located a tree with branches I could reach. Shoving my stake back into my pocket, I grabbed hold of the lowest branch and swung myself up. My ankle complained the whole way, but aside from that, there were enough branches for me to get good hand- and footholds. I kept going until I found a thick, heavy limb that I thought would support my weight. I moved out onto it, staying near the trunk and carefully testing the limb’s sturdiness. It held. I took the stake out of my pocket and waited. A minute or so later, I heard the faint stirring of leaves as Dimitri approached. He was much quieter than I had been. His tall, dark form came into view, a sinister shadow in the night. He moved very slowly, very carefully, eyes roving everywhere and the rest of his senses no doubt working as well. â€Å"Roza†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He spoke softly. â€Å"I know you’re here. You have no chance of running. No chance of hiding.† His gaze was fixed low. He thought I was hiding behind a tree or crouched down. A few more steps. That was all I needed from him. Against the stake, my hand began to sweat, but I couldn’t wipe it off. I was frozen, holding so still that I didn’t even dare breathe. â€Å"Roza†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The voice caressed my skin, cold and deadly. Still scrutinizing his surroundings, Dimitri took one step forward. Then another. And then another. I think it occurred to him to look up the instant I jumped. My body slammed into his, knocking him to the ground back-first. He immediately tried to throw me off, just as I tried to drive the stake through his heart. Signs of fatigue and fighting were all over him. Defeating the other Strigoi had taken its toll, though I doubted I was in much better shape. We grappled, and once, I managed to rake the stake against his cheek. He snarled in pain but kept his chest well protected. Over it, I could see where I’d ripped his shirt the first time I’d staked him. The wound had already healed. â€Å"You. Are. Amazing,† he said, his words full of both pride and battle fury. I had no energy for a response. My only goal was his heart. I fought to stay on him, and at last, my stake pierced his chest-but he was too fast. He knocked my hand away before I could fully drive the stake through. In the process, he knocked me off of him. I flew several feet away, mercifully not hitting any trees. I scrambled to my feet, dazed, and saw him coming toward me. He was fast-but not as fast as he’d been in previous fights. We were going to kill ourselves in trying to kill each other. I’d lost my advantage now, so I ran off into the trees, knowing he’d be right behind me. I was certain he could outrun me, but if I could accrue just a tiny lead, then maybe I could secure another good attack place and try to â€Å"Ahhh!† My scream rang into the night, jarring against the quiet darkness. My foot had gone out from under me, and I was sliding rapidly down a steep hillside, unable to stop myself. There were few trees, but the rocks and my ungainly position made the fall painful, particularly since I was wearing that sweater dress. How I managed to keep holding the stake was beyond me. I hit the bottom roughly, managed to briefly stand, and then promptly stumbled and fell-into water. I stared around. On cue, the moon peeked out from the clouds, casting enough light to show me a huge expanse of black, fast-moving water in front of me. I gaped at it, utterly confused, and then I turned in the direction of the city. This was the Ob, the river that ran through Novosibirsk. The river headed right toward it. Glancing behind me, I saw Dimitri standing on top of the ridge. Unlike some of us, he’d apparently been watching where he was going. Either that, or my scream had tipped him off that something was amiss. It was going to take him less than a minute to come running down after me, though. I looked to either side of me and then in front. Okay. Fast-moving water. Possibly deep. Very wide. It’d take the pressure off my ankle, but I wasn’t thrilled about my chances of not drowning. In legends, vampires couldn’t cross running water. Man, I wished. That was pure myth. I did a double take to my left and just barely saw a dark shape over the water. A bridge? It was the best shot I had. I hesitated before going toward it; I needed Dimitri to start coming down here. I was not going to run off and let him pace me up above on the ridge. I needed the time his hill descent would buy me. There. He took one step onto the slope, and I tore off down the shore, not looking back. The bridge grew closer and closer to me, and as it did, I realized just how high it was. I’d misjudged it from where I’d landed. The slopes around the bridge reached farther up the more I ran downriver. I was going to have a hell of a climb. No problem. I’d worry about that later-by which I meant in about thirty seconds, since that was probably how long it’d take Dimitri to catch up with me. As it was, I could hear his feet splashing through the shallow water on the bank, the sounds growing nearer and nearer. If I could just reach the bridge, if I could just get to high ground and to the other side. The nausea surged in me. A hand closed around the back of my jacket, jerking me backward. I fell against Dimitri and immediately began fighting him, trying to free myself. But God, I was so, so tired. Every piece of me hurt, and no matter how weary he was, I was worse. â€Å"Stop it!† he yelled, gripping my arms. â€Å"Don’t you get it? You can’t win!† â€Å"Then kill me!† I wriggled, but his hold on my upper arms was too strong, and even holding the stake, I couldn’t do anything with it. â€Å"You said you would if I didn’t surrender myself. Well, guess what? I didn’t. I won’t. So just get it over with.† That phantom moonlight lit up his face, eradicating the normal shadows and making his skin stark white against the night’s backdrop. It was like all the colors in the world had been blanked out. His eyes merely looked dark, but in my mind’s eye, they glowed like fire. His expression was cold and calculating. Not my Dimitri. â€Å"It’d take a lot for me to kill you, Rose,† he said. â€Å"This isn’t enough.† I wasn’t convinced. Still holding onto me with that unbreakable grip, he leaned toward me. He was going to bite me. Those teeth would pierce my skin, and he’d turn me into a monster like him or drink until I was dead. Either way, I’d be too drugged and too stupid to know it. The person who was Rose Hathaway would leave this world without even realizing it. Pure panic shot through me-even as that part of me that was still in withdrawal cried out for more of those glorious endorphins. No, no. I couldn’t allow that. Every nerve I had was set on fire, ramping up for defense, attack, anything†¦ anything to stop this. I would not be turned. I could not be turned. I wanted so badly to do something to save myself. My whole being was consumed with that urge. I could feel it ready to burst out, ready to. My hands could touch each other but not Dimitri. With a bit of maneuvering, I used the fingers of my left hand to pry off Oksana’s ring. It slipped off and into the mud, just as Dimitri’s fangs touched my skin. It was like a nuclear explosion going off. The ghosts and spirits I’d summoned on the road to Baia burst between us. They were all around, translucent and luminescent in shades of pale green, blue, yellow, and silver. I’d let loose all of my defenses, let myself succumb to my emotions in a way I hadn’t been able to when Dimitri first caught me. The ring’s healing power had barely kept me in check just now, but it was gone. I had no barriers on my power. Dimitri sprang back, wide-eyed. Like the Strigoi on the road, he waved his hands around, swatting the spirits as one would mosquitoes. His hands passed right through them, ineffectual. Their attack was more or less ineffectual too. They couldn’t physically hurt him, but they could affect the mind, and they were damned distracting. What had Mark said? The dead hate the undead. And from the way these ghosts swarmed Dimitri, it was clear that they did. I stepped back, scanning the ground below me. There. The ring’s silver gleamed up at me from a puddle. I reached down and grabbed it, then ran off and left Dimitri to his fate. He wasn’t exactly screaming, but he was making some horrible noises. That tore at me, but I kept going, running toward the bridge. I reached it a minute or so later. It was as high as I’d feared, but it was sturdy and well built, if narrow. It was the kind of country bridge that only one car at a time could cross. â€Å"I’ve come this far,† I muttered, staring up at the bank. It was not only higher than the one I’d fallen down, it was also steeper. I pocketed the ring and stake and then reached out, digging my hands into the ground. I was going to have to half-crawl, half-climb this one. My ankle got a slight reprieve; this was all upper-body strength now. As I climbed, however, I began to notice something. Faint flashes in my periphery. An impression of faces and skulls. And a throbbing pain in the back of my head. Oh no. This had happened before too. In this panicked state, I couldn’t maintain the defenses I usually did to keep the dead away from myself. They were now approaching me, more curious than belligerent. But as their numbers grew, it all became as disorienting as what Dimitri was now experiencing. They couldn’t hurt me, but they were freaking me out, and the telltale headache that came with them was starting to make me dizzy. Glancing back toward him, I saw something amazing. Dimitri was still coming. He really was a god, a god who brought death closer with each footstep. The ghosts still swarmed him like a cloud, yet he was managing progress, one agonizing step at a time. Turning back, I continued my climb, ignoring my own glowing companions as best I could. At long last, I reached the top of the bank and stumbled onto the bridge. I could barely stand, my muscles were so weak. I made it a few more steps and then collapsed to my hands and knees. More and more spirits were spinning around, and my head was on the verge of exploding. Dimitri still made his slow progress but was a ways from the bank yet. I tried to stand again, using the bridge’s rails for support, and failed. The rough grating on the bridge scraped my bare legs. â€Å"Damn.† I knew what I had to do to save myself, though it could very well end up killing me, too. With trembling hands, I reached into my pocket and pulled out the ring. I shook so badly that I felt certain I’d drop it. Somehow, I held on and managed to slide it onto my finger. A small surge of warmth radiated from it into me, and I felt a tiny bit of control settle into my body. Unfortunately, the ghosts were still there. The traces of that fear, of dying or turning Strigoi, were still in me, but it had lessened now that I was out of immediate danger. Feeling less unstable, I sought for the barriers and control I usually kept up, desperate to slam them into place and drive my visitors away. â€Å"Go, go, go,† I whispered, squeezing my eyes shut. The effort was like pushing on a mountain, an impossible obstacle that no one could have the strength for. This was what Mark had warned about, why I shouldn’t do this. The dead were a powerful asset, but once called, they were difficult to get rid of. What had he said? Those who danced on the edge of darkness and insanity shouldn’t risk this. â€Å"Go!† I shouted, throwing my last bit of strength into the effort. One by one, the phantoms around me vanished. I felt my world settle back into its rightful order. Only, when I looked down, I saw that the ghosts had left Dimitri too-as I’d suspected. And just like that, he was on the move again. â€Å"Damn.† My word of the night. I managed to get on my feet this time as he sprinted up the slope. Again, he was slower than usual-but still more than fast enough. I began backing up, never taking my eyes off of him. Getting rid of the ghosts had given me more strength, but not what I needed to get away. Dimitri had won. â€Å"Another shadow-kissed effect?† he asked, stepping onto the bridge. â€Å"Yeah.† I swallowed. â€Å"Turns out ghosts don’t much like Strigoi.† â€Å"You didn’t seem to like them much either.† I took another slow step backward. Where could I go? As soon as I turned around to run, he’d be on me. â€Å"So, did I go far enough for you to not want to turn me?† I asked as cheerfully as I could manage. He gave me a wry, twisted smile. â€Å"No. Your shadow-kissed abilities have their uses†¦ Too bad they’ll go away when you’re awakened.† So. That was still his plan. In spite of how much I’d infuriated him, he still wanted to keep me around for eternity. â€Å"You’re not going to awaken me,† I said. â€Å"Rose, there’s no way you can-â€Å" â€Å"No.† I climbed up onto the railing of the bridge, swinging one leg over. I knew what had to happen now. He froze. â€Å"What are you doing?† â€Å"I told you. I’ll die before I become Strigoi. I won’t be like you or the others. I don’t want that. You didn’t want that, once upon a time.† My face felt cold as a night breeze blew over it, the result of stealthy tears on my cheeks. I swung my other leg over and peered down at the swiftly moving water. We were a lot more than two stories up. I’d hit the water hard, and even if I survived that fall, I didn’t have the strength to out swim the current and get to shore. As I stared down, contemplating my death, I thought back to when Dimitri and I sat in the backseat of an SUV once, discussing this very topic. It was the first time we’d sat near each other, and every place our bodies touched had been warm and wonderful. He’d smelled good-that scent, that scent of being alive was gone now, I realized-and he’d been more relaxed than usual, ready to smile. We’d talked about what it meant to be alive and in full control of your soul-and what it meant to become one of the undead, to lose the love and light of life and all those you’d known. We’d looked at each other and agreed death was better than that fate. Looking at Dimitri now, I had to agree. â€Å"Rose, don’t.† I heard true panic in his voice. If he lost me over the edge, I was gone. No Strigoi. No awakening. For me to be turned, he needed to kill me by drinking my blood and then feed blood back to me. If I jumped, the water would kill me, not bloodletting. I would be long dead before he found me in the river. â€Å"Please,† he begged. There was a plaintive note to his voice, one that startled me. It twisted my heart. It reminded me too much of the living Dimitri, the one who wasn’t a monster. The one who’d cared for me and loved me, who’d believed in me and made love to me. This Dimitri, the one who was none of those things, took two careful steps forward, then stopped again. â€Å"We need to be together.† â€Å"Why?† I asked softly. The word was carried away on the wind, but he heard. â€Å"Because I want you.† I gave him a sad smile, wondering if we’d meet again in the land of the dead. â€Å"Wrong answer,† I told him. I let go. And he was right there, sprinting out to me with that insane Strigoi speed as I started to fall. He reached out and caught one of my arms, dragging me back onto the railing. Well, half-dragging. Only part of me made it over; the rest still hung out over the river. â€Å"Stop fighting me!† he said, trying to pull on the arm he held. He was in a precarious position himself, straddling the rail as he tried to lean over far enough to get me and actually hold onto me. â€Å"Let go of me!† I yelled back. But he was too strong and managed to haul most of me over the rail, enough so that I wasn’t in total danger of falling again. See, here’s the thing. In that moment before I let go, I really had been contemplating my death. I’d come to terms with it and accepted it. I also, however, had known Dimitri might do something exactly like this. He was just that fast and that good. That was why I was holding my stake in the hand that was dangling free. I looked him in the eye. â€Å"I will always love you.† Then I plunged the stake into his chest. It wasn’t as precise a blow as I would have liked, not with the skilled way he was dodging. I struggled to get the stake in deep enough to his heart, unsure if I could do it from this angle. Then, his struggles stopped. His eyes stared at me, stunned, and his lips parted, almost into a smile, albeit a grisly and pained one. â€Å"That’s what I was supposed to say†¦Ã¢â‚¬  he gasped out. Those were his last words. His failed attempt to dodge the stake had made him lose his balance on the edge. The stake’s magic made the rest easy, stunning him and his reflexes. Dimitri fell. He nearly took me with him, and I just barely managed to break free of him and cling to the railing. He dropped down into the darkness-down, down into the blackness of the Ob. A moment later he disappeared from sight. I stared down after him, wondering if I would see him in the water if I squinted hard enough. But I didn’t. The river was too dark and too far away. Clouds moved back over the moon, and darkness fell over everything again. For a moment, staring down and realizing what I’d just done, I wanted to throw myself in after him, because surely there was no way I could go on living now. You have to. My inner voice was much calmer and more confident than it should have been. The old Dimitri would want you to live. If you really loved him, then you have to go on. With a shaking breath, I climbed over the rail and stood back on the bridge, surprisingly grateful for its security. I didn’t know how I would go on living, but I knew that I wanted to. I wasn’t going to feel fully safe until I was on solid ground, and with my body falling apart, I began to cross the bridge one step at a time. When I was on the other side, I had a choice. Follow the river or the road? They veered off from each other slightly, but both headed roughly in the direction of the city’s lights. I opted for the road. I didn’t want to be anywhere near the river. I would not think about what had just happened. I couldn’t think about it. My brain refused. Worry about staying alive first. Then worry about how you’re going to live. The road, while clearly rural, was flat and packed and made for easy walking-for anyone else. A light rain began falling, which just added insult to injury. I kept wanting to sit and rest, to curl up in a ball and think of nothing else. No, no, no. The light. I had to go toward the light. That almost made me laugh out loud. It was funny, really. Like I was someone having a near-death experience. Then I did laugh. This whole night had been full of near-death experiences. This was the least of them. It was also the last, and as much as I longed for the city, it was too far away. I’m not sure how long I walked before I finally had to stop and sit. Just a minute, I decided. I’d rest for a minute and then keep moving. I had to keep moving. If by some crazy chance I’d missed his heart, Dimitri could be climbing out of the river at any moment. Or other surviving Strigoi could be coming after me from the manor. But I didn’t get up in a minute. I think I may have slept, and I honestly don’t know how long I’d been sitting there when headlights suddenly spurred me to alertness. A car slowed down and came to a stop. I managed to get to my feet, bracing myself. No Strigoi got out. Instead, an old human man did. He peered at me and said something in Russian. I shook my head and backed up a step. He leaned into the car and said something, and a moment later, an older woman joined him. She looked at me and her eyes widened, face compassionate. She said something gentle-sounding and held out her hand to me, cautious in the way one would be when approaching a feral animal. I stared at her for several heavy seconds and then pointed at the purple horizon. â€Å"Novosibirsk,† I said. She followed my gesture and nodded. â€Å"Novosibirsk.† She pointed to me and then to the car. â€Å"Novosibirsk.† I hesitated a little longer and then let her lead me into the backseat. She took off her coat and laid it over me, and I noticed then that I was soaked from the rain. I had to be a mess after everything I’d been through tonight. It was a wonder they’d even stopped. The old man began driving again, and it occurred to me I could have just gotten in a car with serial killers. But then, how would that be any different from the rest of my night? The mental and physical pain were starting to drag me under, and with my last effort, I wet my lips and choked out another gem from my Russian vocabulary. â€Å"Pazvaneet?† The woman looked back at me in surprise. I wasn’t sure if I had the word right. I might have just asked for a pay phone instead of a cell phone-or maybe I’d asked for a giraffe-but hopefully the message came through regardless. A moment later, she reached into her purse and handed me a cell phone. Even in Siberia, everyone was wired. With shaking hands, I dialed the number I now had memorized. A female voice answered. â€Å"Allo.† â€Å"Sydney? This is Rose†¦Ã¢â‚¬  How to cite Blood Promise Chapter Twenty-Six, Essay examples

Burmese Pythons in the Everglades free essay sample

They followed their ears to a duel between an alligator and a huge Burmese Python. The alligator clamped his jaws around the snake. The snake wrapped its body around the alligator. The tourists wasted no time in whipping out their camera phones or video cameras, and within days the video was viral. Millions were enthralled by the odd match-up, but to scientists, it was a sign of what could be a very serious problem. The fight between an American alligator and a Burmese Python is unusual, and pretty intriguing, because the Burmese Python is not native to Florida. In fact, people barely noticed they were there until the early 1990s. The accidental introduction of an invasive species to an ecosystem can be absolutely devastating. They can wipe out other species, destroy habitats, and throw the whole system out of whack. We’ve seen it before. The introduction of the Brown treesnake to Guam, for example, caused major ecological and socioeconomic problems since its introduction to Guam shortly after World War II. The tree snakes clearly thrived in the environment of Guam over that of Australia; Specimens from Guam were significantly larger, Dobson 2 nd reproduced year round, as compared to those found living in Australia, which reproduce seasonally. As the snakes thrived in a new home, the island could not quite handle them as their native lands could. The brown treesnake caused a severe decline in native forest bird species, the loss of two lizard species, and declines in the Marianna fruit bat. It is now recognized as a public health threat, as well as a substantial drain on Guam’s economy. What has happened to Guam at the hand of a foreign, invasive species which should never have been introduced could easily happen to Florida too. If we allow the Burmese Python to take over and deplete the diverse everglades, there is no telling what could be the long term effect. Like the Brown Treesnake to Guam, the Burmese Python survives better in the Everglades than its own natural environment. In Southeast Asia, the pythons may be prey to jackals, monitor lizards, parasites, and diseases. â€Å"By the time they reach two years old, not much can eat them in the Everglades† says USGS biologist Kristen Hart, quoted by Michael Tennessen (6). These animals are large: up to 20 feet long, and 200 pounds heavy. They are sneaky: they’re often underground, in trees, underwater, or just blending into their surroundings with their brown and green-ish markings. They’re fast: â€Å"Relocated Pythons have demonstrated a homing ability, returning up to 48 miles from where they were captured. † (Tennessen, 5) Most native species of the Everglades don’t stand a chance against these monsters. Some experts estimate that there are tens of thousands of Burmese Pythons living free in Florida today. Some eighteen hundred specimens have been removed and recorded in and around the Everglades since 2005. Their numbers have risen dramatically. Two Burmese Dobson 3 Pythons were captured in the Everglades in 2000. In 2008, the number captured hit 343 (Tennesen, 3). Long ago, water from the Kissimmee River was free to flow to Lake Okeechobee and southward, over the lowlands of Biscayne Bay, the Ten Thousand Islands, and Florida Bay. It was a shallow layer of water moving slowly across nearly 11,000 square miles. It created the swamps, sloughs, ponds, marshes and forests which now make up the remaining wilderness of southern Florida. Many of those species are native, but many have been introduced to the environment, usually as stowaways on other imports, or pets that have been released. The Burmese Python is one of the most invasive of these non-native species. The snakes originate from Southeast Asia, so they thrive in Florida’s similar environment. The Everglades became sort of a paradise to the pythons, since their introduction in the early 1990’s. A female Burmese Python will lay up to 207 eggs at once. Inside her nest, she will coil her body around the eggs to maintain a temperature of about ninety degrees Fahrenheit. Incubation takes around two months. The python has only just recently been observed engaging in shivering thermo genesis for the first time outside of captivity. This is the production of body heat through muscle contractions. The mother snake does this to raise the temperature of her nest and eggs- the warmer the incubation, the quicker they will hatch, and slither free throughout the forest, carrying on its destructive path. With this sort of reproduction, it’s no wonder they’re so easily taking over the Everglades. Dobson 4 One of the first big releases of the Burmese Python in Florida took place in 1992. Hurricane Andrew, a category 5 hurricane, took down a large snake importer’s warehouse, as well as causing many billions of dollars of damage. Each year, Miami receives 12,000 exotic pet shipments, many of which are the Burmese Python. A person who takes in a 20-inch baby python might be understandably surprised when it becomes a 12-foot, 200 pound beast within a couple years, and many will end up releasing it into the wild. Most likely they are unaware that the reptile is about to wreak havoc on the ecosystem, gobbling native small to medium-sized species of all kinds, if they are unlucky enough to fall into its path. A Burmese Python will eat anything from birds and rodents to bobcats and deer- it will even swallow one of Florida’s iconic American Alligators like the one the tourists captured. Scientists who are worried about conservation of The Everglade’s native species have been recording numbers of medium-sized animal sightings and comparing them to numbers taken during 1996 and 1997. The recordings for most species were down by close to 99 percent! Obviously there are other factors that have surely had an effect on the animals, like climate change, pollution, hurricanes, and whatever else, but there is a pretty definite link between the time of introduction of the Bermuda Python to wild Florida, and the sharp decrease in sightings of native species. The solution for such an issue is a tricky debate. How do you get rid of such a large population entirely? It may not seem especially â€Å"eco-friendly† or humane to run around capturing and killing as many Burmese Pythons as we can get our hands on, but neither is Dobson 5 allowing these creatures that humans are responsible for bringing to Southern Florida, deplete the natural ecosystem and force native species into endangerment or extinction. So far nobody has thought up a good alternative, and permits to catch/kill Burmese Pythons found in and around the Everglades are now distributed. In 2003, the Task Force established an interagency team (FIATT) that will focus its efforts on non-native species. Their goal is to figure out how to assess and control the numbers of these threatening species (National Resource Council, 53). The largest subtropical wilderness here in the United States has also been designated as a World Heritage Site, an International Biosphere Reserve, and Wetland of International Importance. It is naturally home to a wide spectrum of species, some which cannot even be found anywhere else. Needless to say, the preservation of this landmark is hugely important. Besides the Pythons there are Nile Monitor Lizards, African Sacred Ibis, Old World Climbing Ferns, and god knows what else threatening a fragile ecosystem. There is no quick or easy way of stopping the Burmese Python from destroying the Everglades. We will have to work tirelessly and with dedication, because this problem will not take care of itself. One by one, each Burmese python will have to be captured and dealt with by relocation, or extermination. In all of my research, I found no alternative solution proposed, besides killing off most of the snakes. Maybe, more humanely, we could arrange some sort of python sanctuary in which Burmese Pythons are captured, sterilized, and cared for until their natural deaths.

The Sunflower free essay sample

A fact which we all have to emit is that humanity existence always creates conflicts and fighting which we call WAR. In war, people kill each others for many reasons - resources, personal benefits, territories, powers, revenge, etc. In war, one becomes a hero for killing human lives and eventually he gets honored and well-known in peoples heart. The Holocaust, according to Germans, was the war between Germans and Jews. Approximately six million Jews included 960,000 innocent children died during Hitlers regime called Nazism. Unlike the hero(s) whom people honor, the Holocaust was a hideous crime and the participants were bloody murderers. Today people are taught about the Holocaust and learn how to avoid it. Many books written about the Holocaust have published and people read and respond. Written by Simon Wiesenthal, a Holocaust survivor, The Sunflower has challenged many readers throughout the world about human responsibility, compassion, and justice with the question about forgiveness, You are a prisoner in a concentration camp. We will write a custom essay sample on The Sunflower or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page A dying Nazi soldier asks for your forgiveness. What would you do? I have thought about the question and seek for the answer for a long time. Finally I find myself in the position that compassion is more important than justice under such a circumstance. I would forgive the dying SS soldier because I feel like nothing is more important than his repentance. There are two other major factors that help me to decide to forgive the dying SS soldier which are peer pressure and his naiveness. I am just a normal person who does not believe in any superhuman being. However I have learned about different religions and they share the same common lesson about compassionmercy is sometimes more important than justice. They forgive sinners who genuinely repent. I would forgive Karl because he finally showed repentance before he died. In our religion repentance is the most important element in seeking forgivenessAnd he certainly repented said priest Bolek to Simon Wiesenthal (The Sunflower 83). Karl was a good person; he was not born a murderer. According to his mom, he was always a good man who never done anything wrong. And that was basically what Karl said before his deathI was not born a murderer (The Sunflower 31). Facing the death, a person would never tell a lie because there is nothing to lie about and there is no need to lie. Karl recognized his crime while he was in hospital and he knew that he was guilty. His dilemma comes not only because the dying SS man asks for forgiveness, but also because he genuinely seems to recognize his crime and guilt. This recognition, if nothing else, is an important first step. says Sven Alkalaj (The Sunflower 103). Everyone makes mistake but not all recognizes his/her guilt. For me, Karl is deserved to be forgiven because he makes mistake and he repents (for some people Karls mistake was unforgivable). Simon Wiesenthal did not full believe that the dying soldier was confessing. Was he better than othersor did the voices of SS men change when they were dying? he wondered. As I mentioned earlier, a dying person can only tell the true and Karl was truely confessing as he said Look, those Jews died quickly, they did not suffer as I dothough they were not as guilty as I am. Karl believed that God was punishing him because he was so much guilty. That was why GOD did not let him die (as quick as the Jews) but made him suffered. Simon Wiesenthal left the room without saying a single word because part of his heart was not certain how to answer the dying SS man. I sense that Mr. Wiesenthals silence meant to forgive Karl. Cardinal Franz Konig, a responder in The Sunflower, also states, Even though you went away without formally uttering a word of forgiveness, the dying man somehow felt accepted from you; otherwise he would not have bequeathed you his personal belongings. Mr. Wiesenthals compassion wanted to forgive the dying man but he thought he didnt have the right to grant forgiveness in the name of other dead Jews. In other words if Karl wanted to be forgiven, he then must ask the Jews, who were killed, for absolution. But who was to forgive him? I? Nobody had empowered me to do soI have no power to forgive him in the name of other people said Mr. Wiesenthal (The Sunflower 82). However, Karl seemed like treating Mr. Wiesenthal as a representative of Jews. He wished forgiveness from a member of Jews community and thats enough for him to leave the world in peace. Those Jews who were killed would not be able to answer Karl. So it must depend on people who are still alive to grant forgiveness for Karl. Death is the end; a murderer is human. Let me forgive the dying repented soldier so he could rest in peace. Karl voluntarily joined the Hitler Youth because he was naive and lack of life experience so that he was convinced by false information provided by the Nazis easily. Karl joined the Hitler Youth when he was twenty one years old. Before that he did not care much about the world around him. As he mentioned, Otherwise all I knew about the Jews was what came out of the loudspeaker or what was given us to read. We were told they were the cause of all our misfortunesThey were trying to get on top of us, they were the cause of war, poverty, hunger, unemployment (The Sunflower 40). Radio news, propagandas, newspapers provided false information about the Jews so that the Germans will treat the Jews badly because they all believed that Jewish success was the reason why Germany went down. It was Karls fault to join the Hitler Youth and became a murderer. People also blame him because he did what he knew was wrong. Yet he was just a young soldier without knowledge about the Jews; and a soldier must follow the orders. Let people blame the leaders instead of the soldiers who did not even have the right to refuse orders. Eventually Karl confessed with the images of the mother and the father jumped out with their child from a building which was set on fire. Again confession should deserve absolution. Peer pressure is another important element that brought Karl into Nazi regime. Karl was young high spirit and wanted to be part of the country, so he simply joined the army with his friends and other youths. Actually Karl was force do to something that he didnt want to do. The Platoon leader and his comrades had the tendency to know what they should do, and Karl should do what they were doing. You and your sensitive feelings! Men, you cannot go on like this. One must be hard! They are not our people. The Jew is not a human being! The Jews are the cause of all our misfortunes! And when you shoot one of them it is not the same thing as shooting one of usits doesnt matter whether it is a man, woman, or child, they are different from us. Without question one must get rid of them. If we had been soft we should still be other peoples slaves,(The Sunflower 49) There was no way for Karl and his comrades go against the orders. Some might force themselves to believe what the leader said because these soldiers are patriot to their country. They just did what the leader said without knowing that they were used as tools for killing. Naiveness and peer pressure can be forgiven because. Let think in other way that Karl was also a victim of Adoft Hitler when he became a murderer because it was not what he wanted to do in the Nazi. In other words, Karl and other soldiers were trapped to become soldiers. Most of them were brainwashed. Many people blame Karl for keeping being a murderer, didnt stop the crime. It was too late for him to quit by the time he knew what he was forced to do. He already joined the army and even his life or his parents lives might be threatened if he did not obey the orders. Karl did not think cleverly because of his naiveness and he chose a wrong way to go with other Germans youths even though he didnt want to go. Those leaders were actually true murderers. People should blame these leaders but not soldiers. Dith Pran was a survivor in the Cambodian Holocaust. He related the Cambodian Holocaust as same as the Germany Holocaust. I could never forgive and forget what the top leaderships of the Khmer Rouge had done to me, my family, or friendsI blame the dozen leaders, the brains behind a sadistic plot, who orders the death of millions of people, including the disabled, children, religious people, the educated, and anyone who they thought was a threat to their ideasPulling away from the Khmer Rouge leadership, I can forgive the soldiers of the Khmer Rouge, those who actually did the killing, although I can never forget what they did. Placed in Simon Wiesenthals position, I would have forgiven the soldier. Dith Pran explained that the soldiers were taught to kill. Most of them were uneducated or poor. They were brainwashed. Their lives, even their families lives, would be in danger if they didnt follow the orders. They were forced to kill (The Sunflower 230). The sunflowers grew on graves of those SS murderers were symbol of forgiveness. Each sunflower heads up toward the sun represented the SS soldier seeking for a brighter future (maybe the future in Karls). Forgiveness is the willingness to overcome the past and accept confession to show mercy. I think the key to forgiveness is understanding. said Dith Pran (The Sunflower 232). Forgiveness comes from peoples heart, from the compassion. It doesnt mean to forget because if people forget the atrocities, it might happen again in the future. The Dalai Lama also stated that people should forgive the person who committed the crime but dont forget about it. The dying SS soldier in The Sunflower was deserved to forgive because he genuinely repented. It is not quite right to blame him for his action because he was young, naive, and he was under peer pressure. He finally paid for his action. Newtons third law states that for every exerted force, there is always an equal reaction force. Let me rel ate this law to the fact that Karl killed Jews (exerted force) and he eventually died in his young age (reaction). People should open their heart to accept Karls repentance and give him a chance to make up in his other world. Let the compassion remains forever. Word Cited The Sunflower free essay sample A novel is formed and influenced by the way in which it is written. In The Sunflower by Simon Wiesenthal, the structure of the novel dictates the way in which we process our thoughts and emotions about the novel and helps us to better understand the complexities in the novel by having multiple ‘voices’ explain the various aspects of the novel to us from various points of view. In the first part of the novel, we have the story about Simon Wiesenthal’s journey through the Holocaust and after that we have the symposium, a collection of entries by acclaimed people around the world who give their input on the novel and how they view the issues and moral dilemmas which are faced in the novel. This structure and point of view helps us to better understand the novel in terms of what Simon Wiesenthal believes about forgiveness, the views of three others in the symposium and how they help us to make an informed decision about forgiveness. We will write a custom essay sample on The Sunflower or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The first part of the novel is the story of what Simon Wiesenthal went through in the Holocaust and builds us up to the point at which the Nazi, Karl, asks him for forgiveness, at which point we can make our decision about what he could have or should have done in this situation. As it is in his point of view, we could see this as having bias on the novel, but it also helps us to better understand the context of the novel. The context helps us to make an informed decision about forgiveness. As Simon Wiesenthal explains, he was moved around from place to place, and while having to deal with the physical labour of what he would go through day-to-day with sheer amount of work that is required at a work camp as well as having to deal with the psychological and mental burden of the situation he was in. He would often listen to his campmates who would talk about their dire situation such as when he felt that everyone had lost hope as he said â€Å"but I knew that he would not go, he too had lost all feeling for death† when he asked a doctor to look at a dying prisoner, but the doctor would not go and he lost hope for himself and for everybody in his situation because he showed that everyone was immune to death and thus were not afraid of it and wouldn’t feel bad if they succumbed, because they felt that they were in such a tragic position, as shown by his thoughts about a doctor not helping som eone because he thought that it was hopeless. This illustrates the dark theme and context of the novel as it is shown to set up a scene of hopelessness and this relates to his attitude towards forgiveness in the novel. He purposefully displays his  apathy towards giving a pardon towards the Nazi soldier as he is called over to supposedly give him his last wish. This is shown by him saying that â€Å"Of course it is soon to die I thought, but did the Nazis ask whether our children whom they were about to gas had ever had anything out of their life?† He displays his attitudes towards absolving the Nazi as he questions whether or not remorse was ever shown both ways and not just in this situation, which ultimately lays an undertone for his response, which was to say neither sorry, nor I can’t apologise to you, as he both feels he cannot say sorry, as for the aforementioned quote and that because of his situation in that he was dying he felt that he couldn’t not apologise. The introduction and first part of the novel provide us with the setting and context of the novel, as it is a hopeless time for people like Simon Wiesenthal and for him, he is questioning his existence as well as the right for him to absolve a person whose comrades would not have thought twice about killing an innocent person. This predicament is explained by entries in the symposium, the second part of the novel. The three entries into the symposium that help us to make decisions about the novel, among others, are The Dalai Lama, Abraham Joshua Heschel and Primo Levi. The Dalai Lama believes that one should forgive the person or persons who have committed atrocities against oneself and mankind. He believes that we should forgive but not forget. He also relates an example of his experiences that are almost perfectly relatable and comparable to Simon Wiesenthal’s story and experience. I think it has value, especially not-forgiving part, but the fact that the experiences correlate, we appreciate his contribution more. I would ask if there were any limits to this and what he would do if he knew someone was unforgiving. This point of view is about forgiving and not forgetting and suggests that everyone should be absolved of their crimes. Abraham Joshua Heschel’s views are almost aligned with mine as I feel that forgiveness can only be between the perpetrator and the victim. This has value because it is like Simon Wiesenthal’s case, in that he tells a story of a salesperson who offends a common man, who turns out to be a rabbi, so when the man asks for forgiveness, the Rabbi tells him to apologise to a common man and not him because he only offended a common man. In summary of Abraham Joshua Heschel’s point, he says â€Å"No one can forgive crimes committed against other people. It is therefore preposterous to assume that anybody  alive can ext end forgiveness for the suffering of any one of the six million people who perished.† Abraham Joshua Heschel views forgiveness as something that cannot be given when the necessary parties are not present. Primo Levi says that an act of violence is forever irreparable and that the Nazi soldier, Karl, probably only asked for forgiveness due to his impending death and not out of his heart. This therefore raises the question of the Nazi soldier’s credibility and Levi says that Wiesenthal would have been wrong to forgive a man whose apology was insincere. I agree because I think that Karl was taking advantage of his situation, and we will never know whether it was just to clear his existential conscience or actually because it questions the Nazi’s motives for asking for forgiveness. It is a question of whether or not he meant the apology or just to have peace of mind when the opportunity presented itself as he could give the order for a Jewish person could be given to him in order to facilitate an apology. Primo Levi asks if there was actually a basis of whether or not forgiveness was warranted and how the apology would have been misguided if it was given to an insincere person. Although these three symposium contributions appear to not directly contradict each other, they do entice thought that is not just on one level, but appeal to questioning the affect and effect of an apology. While the Dalai Lama says that you should forgive and not forget, whereas Abraham J. Heschel argued that only certain people can be in an apology, and Primo Levi asks if an apology should have ever been given, they all give arguments to different specific moral questions in the text. They argue whether or not an apology was or wasn’t needed, the purpose of the said apology and how the apology could have been conveyed in a logical and moral manner. This of course does not give a succinct answer but rather a range of answers in which we can take away points from the arguments that we like and disregard other views that we see as irrelevant or immoral. The symposium helps us to gain a better understanding of the issue by presenting different subthemes all under the umbrella of forgiveness. We have gone from getting the sole point of view of Simon Wiesenthal to the many views of the symposium which allows us to understand the story with the thought-provoking entries that are provided. It is with this that the structure is important to the novel as it follows the introduction which sets up the story and helps the reader make an informed view of the book while in first-person,  and the symposium introduces new people to give their input, which is shown above with the various arguments towards the same issue, but in different ways, which enables you to gain a clearer understanding of the text. Now that the first and second sections of the novel have enabled us to see how to make an informed decision about Simon Wiesenthal’s response and our hypothetical response if we were in that situation, which is based on both the context of his situation and the importance of the situation. It has been shown above that simply having one part of the novel, either the first or the second is not complete without the other, as they both help us to understand the novel, with the context and attitudes of the times allowing us to empathise with Simon Wiesenthal in the first section and the varied knowledge and point of views of the symposium helping us to dissect specific moral judgements of the situation and together help us to make a decision of the importance and the limitations of forgiveness. By the fact that we have 53 different points of views in the symposium, we can hone in on our exact sentiment and feelings towards the issue facing Simon in a precise and logical manner. The book is structured in a way that at first we empathise with Simon and try to gain a better understanding of his situation and then we analyse the responses objectively of many scholars and academics which helps us to make an informed decision about the limits of forgiveness. The beauty of this enables us to establish that events like this are not limited to the past as explained by the Dalai Lama as he talks about genocide in Tibet. The parallel of his experiences to Simon’s reinforces some points such as not forgetting about what has happened, but also makes us think about whether or not Simon Wiesenthal should have forgiven the soldier as the Dalai Lama forgive his captors and oppressors, which only occurs because the stories are similar and they allow for interesting and thought provoking reading. The point of view of the novel enables us to first get the view and thoughts of Simon Wiesenthal where we subjectively judge his decision based on his thoughts and his words, afterwards we read through the symposium and further refine our judgements from multiple sources in an attempt to eliminate bias and come up with a more clear and concise conclusion about the possibilities and limits of forgiveness, justice and human responsibility. The structure of novels helps us to better understand them. In the novel The Sunflower by Simon Wiesenthal, he details his experiences  and situation first-hand which is followed by various entries about the morality of what he did and whether or not he was right in doing so. In the novel we first get introduced to Simon, a Jew who is in dire straits, working at a labour camp and is told to visit a Nazi who asks for Simon to forgive him. Simon ends up saying nothing and following this is a collection of thoughts on the issue called the symposium. This enables us to informed decision about the morality behind forgiveness and its limitations. It is with this that we get exposed to more than one point of view which helps us to debate the issue and come up with a conclusion about forgiveness. The structure of the novel enables us to formulate our arguments as does the various point of views presented to us, which helps us to determine for ourselves the possibilities and limits of forgiveness. The Sunflower free essay sample The Sunflower and having mixed emotions during this book I made my decision. â€Å"What would I have done? † I would have done the same thing you did. Just walk away from all of it. I believe it would be a tough situation to think about and have a response to right then and there. Like Deborah says in her essay, The question to be asked is not should the prisoner have forgiven the SS man but could the prisoner have forgiven him? This is obviously saying that no one has the right to forgive anyone on behalf of another. This request brings up several moral questions like, Is it alright to forgive someone who has done no harm to you? Can a person forgive someone on behalf of others? Can anyone really forgive anyone else, or is forgiveness in the hands of a higher power? The soldier asked you for his forgiveness just because you are a Jew, and in the soldiers mind, all Jews are equal. We will write a custom essay sample on The Sunflower or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Even though you weren’t burned alive, shot dead, or in any other heinous acts in the concentration camps. How could his forgiveness, had he granted it, put the soldier at rest about the hundreds of Jews he has been a party to the murder of? I think you had no right to forgive the soldier. The soldier didn’t commit a crime against you personally, and for you to forgive him would have been an empty phrase with no meaning. The soldier should have asked for forgiveness between himself and all the Jews he murdered. Sven Alkalaj I like that Sven included in his essay what he went through in Bosnia. I agree with Sven that Simon made a good decision not forgiving the soldier. Just as Sven asks in his essay, Who is entitled to speak on behalf of the victims? Simon didn’t have much of a say just because they didn’t torture him. Just like Sven says, Simon was unsure if his response to the dying soldier was okay. It was hard for Simon to get over his response and wanted other peoples opinions on his decision. When the nurse attempts to give Simon some of the soldiers possessions. Simon refuses the package. It obviously shows that he didn’t want to do much with the soldiers. The holocaust was a horrible thing, and the killing of thousands of Jews was not okay. Forgetting the crimes would be worse than forgiving the criminal who seeks forgiveness† It is such a atrocious thing, its hard to forget and Sven said it would be bad to forget everything that happened. The Dalai Lama I don’t agree with Lama. He says â€Å"one should forgive the person or persons who have committed atrocities against oneself and mankind. † I am t otally against what he says because forgiving the soldier would mean that Simon is okay with what he did. The soldier didn’t really care if the Jew was tortured or not because he just asked the nurse to find a random Jew. I felt like the soldiers apology was a lie and he just wanted to die in peace. But he doesn’t really deserve it after everything he did. Lama also says â€Å"but that is not the Buddhist way,† Lama’s culture is different and believes that forgiveness is okay. But if Simon was to forgive the soldier, it wouldn’t bring back any of the people he killed. The Jews he killed are piled up dead and accepting his apology isn’t going to change a thing. All the awful things that happened will always be in Simon’s mind. Melissa Torres Period: 6 The Sunflower In The Sunflower, by Simon Wiesenthal the main character, Simon is put in an awkward situation and doesn’t really know how to deal with it. His development from the beginning of the book to the end of the book is kind of crazy. Towards the end of this book he realizes he made the right decision. Simon just needed a little bit of extra help to decipher if what he did was right. With condoning factors supporting the Nazi in The Sunflower is asking for forgiveness both out of guilt and amends, there is no possible way to decipher if he should or should not be forgiven. Simon was asked to go clean at a hospital. When he arrived at the hospital the nurse asked him if he was a Jew. Simon said yes and the nurse took him to the bedside of Karl, a 21-year old dying Nazi soldier. Karl was covered in bandages with openings only for his mouth, nose and ears. Karl wanted to tell Simon his story. Karl talked about his childhood and then the conversation came up to him being a Nazi. Karl admitted to shooting a mother, father and their two kids. Karl felt guilty about the hundred of Jews he killed and he didn’t want to die without coming clean to a Jew. Karl asked for forgiveness, he knew he was asking for too much from Simon but without his answer Karl couldn’t die in peace. Simon left the room without a word. When he returned to the hospital the next day, the same nurse came to Simon and told him that Karl had died. Over the next years of the war, time and time again, through all his suffering, Simon thought of Karl and wondered if he should have forgiven him. Over the years, every time Simon would enter a hospital, see a nurse, or a man covered with his head bandaged, he recalls Karl. Many years later Simon questioned whether he had done the right thing. He asked many people about his actions. A few of these people included Jews, Rabbis, a Catholic Cardinal, Christians and even an ex-Nazi. They all had different opinions and different reason of forgiveness. Faced with the choice between compassion and justice, silence and truth, Simon said nothing. Simon always wondered if he had done the right thing. As the book was coming to an end, Simon started noticing that he did the right think not forgiving Karl. Forgiving him wouldn’t bring back any of the people he killed. The Jews he killed are piled up dead and accepting his apology isn’t going to change a thing. Karl didn’t commit a crime against Simon personally, and for Simon to forgive Karl would have been an empty phrase with no meaning. Karl should have asked for forgiveness between himself and all the Jews he murdered. The main character’s development throughout the book showed that at first Simon wasn’t confident with his decision and always had the situation on the back of his mind. But towards the end of the book, Simon notices he did make the right decision to just get up, walk away without saying a word. Simon basically needed other peoples opinions to see that he had done the right thing.

How to Write an Accounting Research Paper

How to Write an Accounting Research Paper Writing a research paper for Accounting is no different than writing a research paper for another discipline. However, there is no agreed-upon writing style format within this discipline, so be certain to follow your professor’s instructions. If no preference is stated, then follow APA guidelines, utilizing a 12 pt. Times New Roman font. Writing a research paper for Accounting involves several steps: Select a topic – If your professor has not provided you with a topic and you cannot readily think of one, then watch the news or read a newspaper. Some areas to consider for research are treasury stock, managerial, or financial accounting. The topic should be one that has relevance, not only to you, but to your targeted reading audience as well. Conduct some background research – Peruse at least three resources in order to develop an argument or thesis statement for your research paper. Develop an outline – Begin by providing your thesis statement above the outline. The thesis statement should consist of one or two sentences that clearly describe the purpose of your research paper. It is the controlling statement for your paper. The outline shows how you plan to develop your paper, step-by-step. Write your draft – Your paper should contain an introduction, body, conclusion, and references. Begin your paper with an introduction. It should include your thesis statement and should also explain the importance of your argument. The main part of your paper is the body where you will provide evidence to support your thesis statement, that is, the main premise or argument of your paper. The conclusion summarizes the main points in your paper with a clear connection as to how the points support your thesis statement. Unless specified by your professor, you are expected to cite sources from peer-reviewed journals. These sources should be listed on a separate references page in addition to being cited within your Accounting research paper. Revise your outline and draft – Expect to revise both your outline and draft as you write your paper. As you research, more ideas and information will surface. This will necessitate adding and/or deleting ideas as well as reorganizing the sequencing of ideas in a logical and coherent manner. Proof-read and edit your final draft. Make certain that mechanical errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation have been addressed. Recheck word-choice and sentence structure. You may need to pull out that thesaurus to avoid using the same words too many times. Avoid writing in first or second person. Do not use â€Å"he† or â€Å"she.† Instead, refer to â€Å"an individual† or â€Å"a person.†

Reflection of "Slingshot assignment #1 AET Movie Review

Reflection of "Slingshot assignment #1 AET - Movie Review Example Tom, Jim and Tim introduce the video with facts about what used to take place during these historical times where drag racing took the better part of the entertainment. These experiences of people taking pleasure in drag racing, in the backyards during the World War II, gives me a clear insight of the tremendous changes that car racing has undergone. I was taken back by the extent that the spectators took the entire racing as a hobby. I have seen spectators making an event lively but, this one (drag racing) immerses spectators in far much undying feeling of entertaining speed and adrenaline. It is clear that the entire world adored drag racing, which could be a reason for the fast development and change of the sport. In this regard, the sport has seen the light of every new day with tremendous economic changes. These changes have made it even better than before, with many people sparing time to take part in the drag race. Previously, I was worried about the accidents that the drag racers would encounter while attempting to push maximum limits. I thought that this auto racing sport may be a bit unsafe for the racers. I noticed instances where the racers cause accidents. For example, cars exploding, considering that the racer is placed literally on the engine in such a case the results is fatal. Also, the neck breaking speed can easily shatter one into pieces considering the light weight of the machine.There is need for safety measures. If a racing machine can go extremely fast, then it is right to have specific safety measures employed, just in case something bad happens. This may include roll cages, safety clothing and harnessing or an entire modification of the racing machine. This is evident in the modern day racing where significant modifications have been put in place. As a result, safety has improved. From this experience, I learn that, in life, I can push an extra mile, as long as I have prepar ed well for the worst. I also had

Research application Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Application - Research Paper Example The company undertakes services from receiving shipments from defined points to taking charge of all clearance procedures upto the delivery points. Aramex Inc (2014) provides different modes of transportation such as air-sea, air-land and supposedly sea-land depending on customer requirements. The financial statement analysis presents consolidated financial statements of Aramex Inc and its subsidiaries. Presentation of consolidated financial position and review of consolidated statement of cash flows, comprehensive income statement and balance sheet is on quarterly basis. Expenses as per the company can be categorized as under administrative expenses and operating expenses (Market Publishers, 2014). Review of financial statement includes calculation of differents financial ratios. Financial ratios based on the balance sheet focuses on current asset and current liability as shown within the company’s balance sheet. The financial ratios include Working Capital, Current Ratio and Quick Ratio (Market Publishers, 2014).. According to Aramex Inc financial statement, the current ratio for the company is 2.31 and this indicates the liquidity position of the company. Current ratio indicates the relationship existing between current assets and current liabilities. For satisfactory liquidity position the ratio should exceed 2:1, therefore there is strong liquidity position within the firm since the ratio exceeds two. However, the company gives no detail concerning Quick Ratio due to lack of detail inventory making current ratio to serve same purposes as Quick ratio. This is an indication on the fact that short-term solvency of the firm in high and eligible. The Cash Ratio for indicates soundness of the firm showing that the company currently has enough cash at hand making it possible for management to meet current obligations (Market Publishers, 2014). From the financial statement analysis, Debt management ratios include; Debt

Joe Keller Character Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Joe Keller Character Analysis - Essay Example In the play’s plot, there exists other characters who play significant roles in the story’s development, characters who will help in expounding on this papers thesis that revolves around dynamism and static nature. This paper will look in depth at the dynamic character of Chris, who is the son to Joe and Katie. Chris is a dynamic person because of his anticipation to see change, his romantic relationship with Kate and because of his heroism in the war. Chris Keller was a soldier who found his way home after the war and was disturbed by what he saw when he came back. He was principally troubled by the fact that the world and in specificity his parents’ home and neighborhood was unperturbed regardless of the war ordeals. He is naturally dynamic because of his anticipation to see change as a result of the war in which he had fought hard to survive. Chris is portrayed as a man who had succumbed to change as a result of the war in which he had observed some of his col leagues fight do hard but eventually died. â€Å"We used to shoot a man who acted like a dog, but honor was real there ...But here? This is the land of the great big dogs, you don't love a man here, and you eat him. That's the principle; the only one we live by - it just happened to kill a few people this time, that's all. The world's that way...† (Andrew 167). ... Chris Keller is a dynamic person on the basis of his romantic relationship to Ann, who is a former girlfriend to Chris’ brother, Larry. In the beginning Chris and Ann had fallen in love as they used to write letters to each other. Chris even requested her to come to his home to propose marriage. Chris is a dynamic character because at first he wanted to be with Ann, but at the end of the play he no longer wants her, and this is illustrated in the conversation they have close to the end of the play. The conversation goes like â€Å"Ann: I am coming with you†¦Chris: No, Ann, I can’t make that†¦ Ann: I do not ask you to do anything about Joe. I swear I never will; Chris: Yes, you do. In you hart you always will.† Chris did not want to be with her anymore because he started thinking that she is going to look at him like in his dad. In the beginning he believed in honest of his father and at the end he changed his mind. At the end of the play, we find Chris to be a person who came to be devastated after learning of his father’s deceit and outright lies in the case of selling damaged cylinder heads to the American Air force fighting in World War two. For three years, Joe had lied about his involvement in the sale of the damaged cylinder heads and entirely blamed his business associate Steve Deever of the sub-standard products. Steve was found blameworthy and incarcerated whereas Gorge was set free. Fate would play its role when Steve’s son, George pays visits him (Steve) in jail. George learns from his father how Joe had set him up whereas he was innocent. The enraged George finds his way to Joe’s family house to face him and his family about his deceitful actions. It is in this scenario that

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Genetically Modified Organisms Biology Essay

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Genetically Modified Organisms Biology Essay The benefits and risks of any particular genetically modified crop depend on the interactions of its ecological functions and natural history with the agro-ecosystem and ecosystems within which it is embedded. These evolutionary and ecological factors must be considered when assessing genetically modified crops. We argue that the assessment of genetically modified crops should be broadened to include alternative agricultural practices, ecosystem management and agricultural policy. Such an assessment ecological services that support it. The benefits of genetically modified crops should be compared to those of other means of agricultural intensification such as organic farming, integrated pest management and agricultural policy reform. A gradual and cautions approach to the use of genetically modified crops that relies on a truly comprehensive risk assessment could allow people to reap substantial benefits from genetically modified crops while mitigating their serious risks. INTRODUCTION Genetically modified organisms ( GMOs ) is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques. These techniques generally known as recombinant DNA technology, use DNA molecules from different sources which are combined into one molecule to create a new set of genes. This DNA is then transferred into an organism, giving it modified or novel genes. Genetically Modified Organisms can be produced by gene cloning methods in which a non-native gene is introduced and expressed in a new organism. Generally the new protein has also been somewhat modified or engineered for proper expression in the new host. In particular, differences between microorganisms and eukaryotic cell must be overcome, such as the presence or absence of introns, occurance of DNA methylation and certain post-translational modifications to the protein itself for proper transport within or between cells. The advent of PCR and gene sequencing methods have opened up the door to all sorts of manipulative techniques for changing the structure of protein through genetic alterations. The introduction of bacterial genes into cash crops, to enhance their growth, nutritional value or resistance to pests, is becoming rather common place in plant technology. One example that has made frequent headlines is the introduction of bacterial genes for natural pesticides into plants in order to eliminate the need for chemical pesticide use. The drawback to this technology is public concern over the consequences of ingesting these natural pesticides. Problems such as these might be alleviated by site-specific expression of the gene or control of expression throughout the lifecycle. For example, it might cause less concern if expression of a pesticide gene in the leaves of young plants could be used to prevent foliage from being destroyed early on without expression in the fruit later in the lifespan. Advantages of Genetically Modified Organisms The world population has topped 6 billion people and is predicted to double in the next 50 years. Ensuring an adequate food supply for this booming population is going to be a major challenge in the years to come. Genetically modified foods promise to meet this need in a number of ways: Pest resistance Crop losses from insect pests can be staggering, resulting in devastating financial loss for farmers and starvation in developing countries. Farmer typically use many tons of chemical pesticides annually. Consumers do not wish to eat food that has been treated with pesticides because of potential health hazards and run-off of agricultural wastes from excessive use of pesticides and fertilizers can poison the water supply and cause harm to the environment. Growing genetically modified foods such as B.t. corn can help eliminate the application of chemical pesticides and reduce the cost of bringing a crop to market. Herbicide tolerance For some crops, it is not cost-effective to remove weeds by physical means such as tilling so farmers will often spray large quantities of different herbicides (weedkiller) to destroy weeds, a time-consuming and expensive process, that requires care so that the herbicide doesnà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢t harm the crop plant or the environment. Crop plants genetically-engineered to be resistant to one very powerful herbicide could help prevent environment damage by reducing the amount of herbicides needed. For example, Monsanto has created a strain of soybeans genetically modified to be not affected by their herbicide product Roundup. A farmer grows these soybean which then only require one application of weed-killer instead of multiple applications, reducing production cost and limiting the dangers of agricultural waste run-off. Disease resistance There are many viruses, fungi and bacteria that cause plant diseases. Plant biologists are working to create plants with genetically-engineered resistance to these diseases. Cold tolerance Unexpected frost can destroy sensitive seedlings. An antifreeze gene from cold water fish has been introduced into plants such as tobacco and potato. With this antifreeze gene, these plants are able to to tolerate cold temperatures that normally would kill unmodified seedlings. Drought tolerance/salinity tolerance As the world population grows and more land is utilized for housing instead of food production, farmers will need to grow crops in location previously unsuited for plant cultivation. Creating plants that can withstand long period of drought or high salt content in soil and groundwater will help people to grow crops in formerly inhospitable places. Nutrition Malnutrition is common in third world countries where impoverished people rely on a single crop such as rice for the main staple of their diet. However, rice does not contain adequate amounts of all necessary nutrients to prevent malnutrition. If rice could be genetically engineered to contain additional vitamins and minerals, nutrient deficiencies could be alleviated. For example, blindness due to Vitamin A deficiency is a common problem in third world countries. Pharmaceuticals Medicines and vaccines often are costly to produce and sometimes require special storage conditions not readily available in third world countries. Researchers are working to develop edible vaccines in tomatoes and potatoes. These vaccines will be much easier to ship, store and administer than traditional injectable vaccines. Phytoremediation Not all genetically modified plants are grown as crops. Soil and groundwater pollution continues to be a problem in all parts of the world. Plants such as poplar tress have been genetically engineered to clean up heavy metal pollution from contaminated soil. Disadvantages of Genetically Modified Organisms The pros and cons for using genetically modified organisms ( GMOs ) are vast and varied but there is little argument over the uncertain consequences of this relatively new science. The pace at which GMOs have found their way into the food supply is what frightens many opponents, as long-term risk assessments wonà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢t be available for many years. Long-term health effects The science of genetically modifying organisms is in its infancy, coming online in earnest in the mid-1990s. Pressure from agricultural interests and the scientific community eager to prove the viability of the process has led to what some would call an irresponsible rush to market of these products. More than 60 percent of the products in most U.S. grocery stores are derived from sort of genetically altered plant or animal, notes Nina Fedoroff, a molecular biologist at Penn State University in the spring 2007 issue of Science Journal. There simply hasn;à ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢t been enough time to study the long-term health effects on humans from eating genetically altered foods. Gene spilling Many of the arguments against bio-engineered food stuffs focus on the law of unintended consequences. It is unclear what effect, if any, genetic pollution from inadequately sequestered populations of genetically modified crops would have on the surrounding wild varieties. Releasing pollen from genetically altered plants into the wild via wind and insects could have dramatic effects on the surrounding ecosystem but there is no long-term research yet available to gauge the impact. Reduced biodiversity Biodiversity even within a species or genus, keeps plant and animal population viable. If a particular virus for example, affected corn in Northern Iowa but the slightly different variety of corn grown on an adjacent farm was immune, only the portion of the crop susceptible to the virus would be lost. As genetically engineered crop consume more and more acreage, the number and variety of wild species is reduced. Such as alignment threatens the entire supply as pests and diseases repelled by just one or a few genetically altered varieties develop resistance to those defenses. In a doomsday scenario, a lone pathogen could wipe out an entire harvest nationwide and spawn years of underproduction as the agriculture industry struggles to recover and combat the threat. Cross-pollination The potentially negative environmental impacts of GMOs are numerous, and many are as yet unknown and could be irreversible. These include the loss of flora and fauna biodiversity, unintended harm to other organisms and reduced effectiveness of pesticides. According to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, one of the biggest concerns is the creation of super weeds: the unintentional transfer of herbicide resistance genes from desired crops to weeds. Some of these concerns, however, are the same concerns that could occur with breeding. Genetic consequences The artificial insertion of genes into organisms could destabilize that organism, encouraging genetic mutations that could be detrimental either to the environment, to humans or both. Insertion of the desired gene into a crops genome could activate or deactivate other genes, causing unintentional consequences as well. For example, genes that orchestrate the precise development of tomatoes could be de-activated, leaving tomatoes rotting on the vine before maturation. Long-lived organisms, such as trees, would be most at risk with consequences unknown for perhaps years. Its entirely possible they would no longer bear fruit, or they would have weak trunks. Characteristics of bark we may rely upon for paper products may disappear. The possibilities are essentially endless. Furthermore, changes in gene expression of genes that already exist in the organism may have negative consequences by interacting with the product of the inserted gene. For example, the gene coding for the red color of berries could interact with the inserted disease resistance gene creating an entirely new protein that perhaps would cause cancer after the berries were eaten by humans. As of 2010, many of the consequences are purely speculative and true issues would not be known for perhaps years. Animals GMOs pose a potential risk to insects, particularly those involved in pollination of GMO crops, as well as birds, insects, organisms in soils, and water. The impact of GMO pollen in bees gut or ingestion by bacteria is not known. One fear is that the insects may develop resistance to the pesticides after ingesting GMO pollen, creating swarms of pesticide-resistant bugs. Intellectual property The risk of GMOs to the world economy may be significant. It is entirely possible that world food production would be dominated by a few companies, increasing the dependence of developing countries on industrialized nations. Foreign exploitation of natural resources, labeling issues and scientific advances skewed to interests of richer countries are just a few of the concerns. Although eventually more efficient and economical, initial research and development costs involved in bringing GMO products to market are substantial. To offset these costs, companies patent their products. Infringement issues are a major issue. Human health Human health is also at stake. GMO plants may create new allergens or unintentionally confer antibiotic resistance in humans. As part of the technique, genes that confer antibiotic resistance are inserted into GMOs as markers but they could confer resistance to these antibiotics when consumed by humans. However, the gene introduced into the potatoes was already known to be toxic to mammals. Researchers simply chose the gene to test the technique and it was never intended for human or animal consumption. As pollen spreads, pharmaceuticals derived from plants and fed to animals are then consumed by humans, also with unknown consequences. Food supply at risk Genetically modified seeds are a patented product, and in order to purchase the seeds customers must sign an agreement for use with the seed manufacturer. As the reliance on GM seeds expands world wide, concerns about food supply and safety continue to escalate. Genetically engineered seeds are identical in structure, and if a problem affects one particular crop a major crop failure can result. Environmental destruction Most GMO seeds are genetically engineered to be herbicide tolerant, resistant to insect infestation and disease. Environmentalists worry that the characteristics of GM crops may encourage farmers to increase their use of herbicides and pesticides, which will raise human consumption of dangerous toxins. GM crops also manufacture their own pesticides, which puts further poisons into humans and soil and may cause unforeseen changes in the environment. Another concern is that toxins contained in the GMO plants may harm other organisms, such as monarch caterpillars, bees and birds. The pesticide found in genetically modified cotton and corn is implicated in the deaths of poultry, cows, horses, sheep and buffalo worldwide. Conclusion As a nutshell, although Genetically Modified Organisms have a lot of advantages but still face many ethical issues related to the growing and consumption of genetically engineered crops. They hold potential to greatly increase the nutritional value of food as well as the productivity of crops, while at the same time provide many safety as well environmental concerns. These decisions need to be looked at by all of humanity since everyone is directly affected by the choices. While each person can read these details and come to different conclusion on the value of genetically engineered foods as well as the ethical choices being made by the companies in charge of producing these foods. The ultimate choice on genetically engineered foods should be placed onto a well informed consumer not held in the dark by those in power of the government and large corporations which may not have the general publicà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s interests as their primary goal.