Commentary on Tash Aw’s Harmony Silk Factory Essay

The extract from the novel â€Å"The Harmony Silk Factory† by Tash Aw, seems to serve as an introduction within the larger context of the complete novel. The central theme of the extract is the concept of appearance VS reality; some things are, in reality, not what they appear to be. Through the use of characterisation and setting, the author manages to bring out this theme. In addition, the use of setting and characterisation creates a degree of tension within the extract, and draws the reader into the story. Characterisation plays a major part in the extract. The main character of the extract is also the narrator. The narrator is characterised through the use of many literary devices; through his narration, aspects of his personality are revealed to the reader. We find that the narrator has two sides: the face he shows the world around him and the side that the reader is introduced to through his narration. The side that the narrator shows to the world around him and the side of him revealed to the reader are two different personalities. His external appearance is one of a quiet, non-existent, seemingly inconsequential person as can be seen from the fact that â€Å"none of the visitors ever noticed [him]†. However, this quiet exterior belies the fact that he observes all the comings and goings within the silk harmony factory. â€Å"From my upstairs window, I saw everything unfold. Without father ever saying anything to me†. The narrator is fully aware of all his father’s smuggling activities â€Å"opium and heroin and Hennessy XO† and bribing of the â€Å"Thai soldiers†¦with American cigarettes and low-grade gemstones† but never lets his father catch on to that fact. The narrator also states that he is only of â€Å"modest intellect† and this is supported by his father’s belief that he would â€Å"always be a dreamer and a wastrel†. We find however, that his quiet demeanour conceals an observant, keen intellect. Contrary to his self-deprecating statement, we notice that he displays an extraordinary sense of awareness in a child of his age, suggesting that he is extremely intelligent. Even as a child he â€Å"was aware of what [his] father did†. His action of lifting the linoleum and pressing his ear to the floorboards to listen into his father’s Safe Room reveals to us his ingenuity and is a reflection of his intellect. While he does not mange to discern any information, he is sharp enough to realise that the â€Å"low, muffled rumble† was the â€Å"tipping of diamonds onto the green baize table†. While the narrator may appear to be of merely modest intellect, it seems that in reality he is incredi bly intelligent for a young child. His self-deprecating statement also serves to highlight his actual cleverness and quick mind. The theme of appearance VS reality can also be seen in the characterisation of two minor characters: the general and the young lady in the car. The narrator tells us that the general â€Å"didn’t look much like a soldier, but he had a Mercedes-Benz with a woman in the back seat†, which would indicate a fairly high level of affluence and power which comes with the rank of a general in the army. With his â€Å"cheap grey shirt† and gold teeth, the man may not have looked like a general, but other indications would have exposed the reality of what he really was. This is similarly echoed in the characterisation of the young woman in the back seat of the car. The narrator describes her as having â€Å"fair skin, almost pure white, the colour of salt fields on the coast†. The narrator then goes on to state that â€Å"she was young and beautiful, and when she smiled I saw her teeth were small and brown†. This contrast between the state of her teeth and the colour of her skin further highlights the theme of appearance VS reality; while she appears to be pure and white on the outside, her teeth are dirty and decayed. This contrast is highlighted also by the use of visual imagery â€Å"salt fields† when describing the colour of her skin. Furthermore, the contrast between the general and the young woman also emphasizes the theme of appearance VS reality. The general wears a grey shirt, while the young woman is described as having white skin. Where the general’s teeth are gold in colour, hers are small and brown. From this we can see that outward appearance does not seem to be a very good indicator of what the reality really is. Finally, the setting also contributes back to the theme of appearance VS reality. The name of the factory â€Å"The harmony silk factory†, which becomes synonymous with the house, gives no indication as to the activities of vice conducted there. Both physically and figuratively, the narrator’s house seems to be hiding behind the factory. The theme of appearance VS reality is manifested in the physical setting of the Harmony Silk Factory. The characterisation and setting, besides bringing out the theme of the appearance VS reality, also serves to create tension in the story and cause the reader to want to read on. The setting of the house, with its â€Å"small mossy courtyard which never got enough sunlight† gives the location of the extract an air of mystery; the lack of light and dampness of the place (as can be seen by the growth of moss) further builds upon the mysteriousness of the setting. This description appears in the first line of the extract, and the reader’s curiosity is pricked as to what actually goes on within the Harmony Silk factory. Also, the characterisation of the narrator serves to lead the reader on to read the rest of the novel. How is this achieved? Firstly, the narrator is a nameless, 1st person narrator. The use of the 1st person narration serves to give the tone of the extract a feeling of intimacy, or closeness to the subject matter. At the same time, his lack of a name distances him from the reader, again creating an air of mystery which surrounds him. Secondly, the tone of the narrator is very â€Å"matter-of-fact†. He describes somewhat shocking, illegal proceeds with the same tone one would use to describe everyday activities. He matter-of-factly states â€Å"Mainly he smuggles opium and heroin and Hennessy XO† and â€Å"I knew what he was up to and whom he was with†. The narrator describes theses happenings with a certain detachment which seems nonchalant or could be due to the fact that he is already used to this sort of behaviour. In fact, the narrator comes across as unfazed by all his father’s wrongdoings and does not seem affected in any way. This matter-of-fact tone is further highlighted by the narrator’s use of literary devices such as verbal irony. The use of verbal irony is evident throughout the extract. One of the first instances is in the 2nd paragraph in which the narrator describes the type of people who visit his house. He describes his Father’s clients as if they were guests or VIPs. â€Å"Entry was strictly by invitation† with â€Å"privileged few† being granted access; he states that only the â€Å"liars, cheats, traitors and skirt chasers† of â€Å"the highest order† are allowed in. These individuals have been seemingly elevated to a position of importance but by describing them in this way, the narrator has revealed them to be merely the scum of society. Another instance of verbal irony is in the line â€Å"Now I would give everything to be the son of a mere liar and cheat†. The irony is in the fact that the narrator views his father is so vile that he would rather be the son of someone who only cheats and lies. Also further irony can be found in the line â€Å"my crime-funded education to good use†. We find that he is now using his education, paid for by his father’s crimes, to uncover his father’s crimes. The use of verbal irony builds upon the narrator’s characterisation, as parts of his personality are slowly revealed to the reader. The narrator also uses an extremely convoluted and verbose way of narrating known as periphrasis. His manner of speaking is roundabout and elaborate. He uses ellipsis to interrupt his own narrative, â€Å"partly for convenience – the only people who came†¦ – partly because my father’s varied†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The narrator constantly interjects his own narrative with interruptions and unnecessary lines such as â€Å"gold, real solid gold†. The use of unnecessarily long paragraphs to say a simple thing also add on to his convoluted manner of narration. The second last paragraph could have been shortened by saying â€Å"I am now at peace and am not ashamed to reveal the story of my father’s life†. However, he instead says â€Å"there is another reason I now feel particularly well placed†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦I am at peace†. The use of periphrasis also heightens the melodramatic way the narrator leads the reader on. Phrases such as â€Å"that wasn’t all he was† and â€Å"†¦I have searched for this all my life. Now, at last, I know the truth and I am no longer angry. In fact, I am at peace† serve to heighten the tension within the paragraph. He describes his father’s past as â€Å"terrible† and the title he gives to his tale, â€Å"The true story of the infamous Chinaman called Johnny†, seems to elevate his father’s story to one legendary importance. The use of the phrase â€Å"true story† also lends a sense of credibility to his account. The revelation of the title to the reader is the climax of the tension that has been building in the last few paragraphs, albeit a somewhat anti-climatic one. This climax (or anti-climax) serves to leave the reader wanting more and leads the reader on to continue reading the rest of the story. The narrator’s self-deprecating and quirky way of narrating serves to endear the narrator to the reader. We also discover certain facts about his childhood through his narration. At no point in the extract does a narrator mention his mother. This may only be a conjecture, but the lack of a motherly figure in his life, a lack of love, may have contributed to his strange and unusual way of narrating and also his self-deprecating attitude. Also, we find that he may have endured physical abuse as a child from the line â€Å"I had become used to this kind of punishment† in response to his father twisting his ear. This makes the reader increasingly sympathetic to the narrator as the narrative progresses. Thus, when the narrator begins using melodrama to capture the attention of the reader and lead the reader on to the rest of the novel, the reader follows with little resistance. This characterisation and narration, coupled with the mysterious atmosphere created by the setting, creates a sort of tension which compels the reader to read on. It engages the reader and draws the reader into the world the author has created. As we have seen characterisation and setting both have a dual purpose. If this extract is the beginning of the novel, then the author has succeeded in drawing the reader into the novel. By using both characterisation and setting to bring out the theme and simultaneously create tension, the author has succeeded in creating a world with characters that engage readers and has successfully written an effective and exciting beginning to the novel.

The Return: Nightfall Chapter 19

Matt was knocking at the Bryces' door, with Elena at his side. Elena had disguised herself by stuffing all her hair into a Virginia Cavaliers baseball cap and wearing wraparound sunglasses from one of Stefan's drawers. She was also wearing an over-large maroon and navy Pendleton shirt donated by Matt, and a pair of Meredith's outgrown jeans. She felt sure that no one who had known the old Elena Gilbert would ever recognize her, dressed like this. The door opened very slowly to reveal not Mr. or Mrs. Bryce, nor Jim, but Tamra. She was wearing – well, close to nothing. She had on a thong bikini bottom, but it looked handmade, as if she'd cut a regular bikini bottom with scissors – and it was beginning to come apart. On top she had two round decorations made of cardboard with sequins pasted on and a few strands of colored tinsel. On her head she wore a paper crown, which was clearly where she'd gotten the tinsel. She'd made an attempt to glue strands onto the bikini bottoms as well. The result looked like what it was: a child's attempt to make an outfit for a Las Vegas showgirl or stripper. Matt immediately turned around and stood facing away, but Tami threw herself at him and plastered herself to his back. â€Å"Matt Honey-butt,† she cooed. â€Å"You came back. I knew you would. But why'd you bring this ugly old whore with you? How can we – â€Å" Elena stepped forward, then, because Matt had whirled with his hand up. She was sure that Matt had never struck a female in his life, especially a child, but he was also over-sensitive about one or two subjects. Like her. Elena managed to get between Matt and the surprisingly strong Tamra. She had to hide a smile when contemplating Tami's costume. After all, only a few days ago, she hadn't understood the human nakedness taboo at all. Now she got it, but it didn't seem nearly as important as it once had. People were born with their own perfectly good skins on. There was no real reason, in her mind, to wear false skins over those, unless it was cold or somehow uncomfortable without them. But society said that to be naked was to be wicked. Tami was trying to be wicked, in her own childish way. â€Å"Get your hands off me, you old whore,† Tamra snarled as Elena held her away from Matt, and then she added several rather lengthy expletives. â€Å"Tami, where are your parents? Where's your brother?† Elena said. She ignored the obscene words – they were just sounds – but saw that Matt had gone white around the lips. â€Å"You apologize to Elena right now! Apologize for talking that way!† he demanded. â€Å"Elena's a stinking corpse with worms in her eye sockets,† Tamra sang glibly. â€Å"But my friend says she was a whore when she was alive. A real† – a string of four-letter words that made Matt gasp – â€Å"cheap whore.You know. Nothing's cheaper than something that comes free.† â€Å"Matt, just don't pay any attention,† Elena said under her breath, and she repeated, â€Å"Where are your parents and Jim?† The answer was littered with more expletives, but it amounted to the story – truthful or not – that Mr. and Mrs. Bryce had gone away on vacation for a few days, and that Jim was with his girlfriend, Isobel. â€Å"Okay, then, I guess I'll just have to help you get into some more decent clothes,† Elena said. â€Å"First, I think you need a shower to get these Christmas doodads off – â€Å" â€Å"Just try-hy-hy! Just try-hy-hy!† The answer was somewhere between the whinny of a horse and human speech. â€Å"I glued them on with PermaStick!† Tami added and then began giggling on a high and hysterical note. â€Å"Oh, my God – Tamra, do you realize that if there isn't some solvent for this, you may need surgery?† Tami's answer was foul. There was also a sudden foul smell. No, not a smell, Elena thought: a choking, gutcurdling stench. â€Å"Oops!† Tami gave that high, glassy giggle again. â€Å"Pardonmoi . At least it'snatural gas.† Matt cleared his throat. â€Å"Elena – I don't think we should be here. With her folks gone and all†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"They're afraid of me,† Tamra giggled. â€Å"Aren'tyou ?† – very suddenly in a voice that had dropped several octaves. Elena looked Tamra in the eye. â€Å"No, I'm not. I just feel sorry for a little girl who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. But Matt's right, I guess. We have to go.† Tami's whole manner seemed to change. â€Å"I'm so sorry†¦. I didn't realize I had guests of that caliber. Don't go, please, Matt.† Then she added in a confidential whisper to Elena, â€Å"Is he any good?† â€Å"What?† Tami nodded at Matt, who immediately turned his back to her. He looked as if he felt a terrible, repulsive fascination for Tami's ridiculous appearance. â€Å"Him. Is he any good in the sack?† â€Å"Matt, look at this.† Elena held up a small tube of glue. â€Å"I think she actually did PermaStick that stuff to her skin. We have to call Child Protective Services or whatever, because nobody took her to the hospital right away. Whether her parents knew about this behavior or not, they shouldn't have just left her.† â€Å"I just hopethey're all right. Her family,† Matt said grimly as they walked out the door, with Tami coolly following them to the car, and shouting lurid details about â€Å"what a good time† they had had, â€Å"the three of them.† Elena glanced at him uneasily from her place in the passenger seat – with no ID or driver's license, of course, she knew she shouldn't drive. â€Å"Maybe we'd better take her to the police first. My God, that poor family!† Matt said nothing for a long time. His chin was set, his mouth grim. â€Å"I feel somehow as if I'm responsible. I mean, I knew there was something wrong with her – I should have told her parents then.† â€Å"Now you're sounding like Stefan. You're not responsible for everyone you meet.† Matt gave her a grateful glance, and Elena continued, â€Å"In fact I'm going to ask Bonnie and Meredith to do one other thing, which proves you're not. I'm going to ask them to check on Isobel Saitou, Jim's girlfriend.You've never had any contact with her, but Tami might have.† â€Å"You mean you think she's got it, too?† â€Å"That's what I hope Bonnie and Meredith will find out.† Bonnie stopped dead, almost losing her hold on Mrs. Forbes's feet. â€Å"I am not going into that bedroom.† â€Å"You have to. I can't manage her alone,† Meredith said. Then she added cajolingly, â€Å"Look, Bonnie, if you go in with me, I'll tell you a secret.† Bonnie bit her lip. Then she shut her eyes and let Meredith guide her, step by step, farther into this house of horror. She knew where the master bedroom was – after all, she had played here since childhood. All the way down the hall, then turn left. She was surprised when Meredith came to a sudden stop after only a few steps. â€Å"Bonnie.† â€Å"Well? What?† â€Å"I don't want to frighten you, but – â€Å" This had the immediate effect of terrifying Bonnie. Her eyes snapped open. â€Å"What?What? † Before Meredith could answer she glanced over her shoulder in fear and saw what. Caroline was behind her. But not standing. She was crawling – no, she was scuttling, the way she had on Stefan's floor. Like a lizard. Her bronze hair, unkempt, hung down over her face. Her elbows and knees stuck out at impossible angles. Bonnie screamed, but the pressure of the house seemed to choke the scream back down her throat. The only effect it had was to make Caroline look up at her with a quick reptilian movement of her head. â€Å"Oh, my God – Caroline, what happened to your face?† Caroline had a black eye. Or rather, a purplish-red eye that was so swollen that Bonnie knew it would have to turn black in time. On her jaw was another purple swelling bruise. Caroline didn't answer, unless you counted the sibilant hiss she gave while scuttling forward. â€Å"Meredith, run! She's right behind me!† Meredith quickened her pace, looking frightened – all the more frightening to Bonnie because almost nothing could shake her friend. But as they lurched forward, with Mrs. Forbes bouncing between them, Caroline scuttled right under her mother and into the door of her parents' room, the master bedroom. â€Å"Meredith, I won't go in th – † But they were already stumbling through the door. Bonnie shot quick darting glances into every corner. Caroline was nowhere to be seen. â€Å"Maybe she's in the closet,† Meredith said. â€Å"Now, let me go first and put her head on the far side of the bed. We can adjust her later.† She backed around the bed, almost dragging Bonnie with her, and dumped Mrs. Forbes's upper torso so that her head rested on pillows. â€Å"Now just pull her and put her legs down on the other side.† â€Å"I can't do it. I can't! Caroline'sunder the bed, you know.† â€Å"She can't be under the bed. There's only about a five-inch clearance,† Meredith said firmly. â€Å"She's there! Iknow it. And† – rather fiercely – â€Å"you promised you'd tell me a secret.† â€Å"All right!† Meredith gave a complicit glance through her disheveled dark hair. â€Å"I telegraphed Alaric yesterday. He's so far out in the boonies that telegraph is the only way to reach him, and it may be days before my message gets to him. I had an idea that we were going to need his advice. I feel bad, asking him to do projects that aren't for his doctorate, but – â€Å" â€Å"Who cares about his doctorate? Godbless you!† cried Bonnie thankfully. â€Å"You did just right!† â€Å"Then come on and swing Mrs. Forbes' feet around the bottom of the bed. You can do it if you lean in.† The bed was a California king-size. Mrs. Forbes was lying at an angle across it, like a doll thrown on the floor. But Bonnie halted near the foot of the bed. â€Å"Caroline's going to grab me.† â€Å"No, she won't. Come on, Bonnie. Just get Mrs. Forbes' legs and give one big heave†¦.† â€Å"If I get that close to the bed, she'llgrab me!† â€Å"Why should she?† â€Å"Because she knows what scares me! And now that I've said it, shedefinitely will.† â€Å"If she grabs you, I'll come and kick her in the face.† â€Å"Your leg's not that long. It would bang on the metal bed-frame thingummy – â€Å" â€Å"Oh, for God's sake, Bonnie! Just help meheeeeeeere !† The last word was a full-fledged scream. â€Å"Meredith – † began Bonnie, and then she screamed, too. â€Å"What is it?† â€Å"She's grabbing me!† â€Å"She can't be!She's grabbingme ! Nobody has arms that long!† â€Å"Or that strong! Bonnie!I can't make her let go!† â€Å"Neither can I!† And then any words were drowned in screaming. After dropping Tami off with the police, driving Elena around the woods known as the Fell's State Park was†¦well, a walk in the park. Every so often they would stop. Elena would go a few steps into the trees and stand, Calling – however you did that. Then she came back to the Jaguar, looking discouraged. â€Å"I'm not sure that Bonnie wouldn't be better at this,† she said to Matt. â€Å"If we can brace ourselves to go out at night.† Matt shuddered involuntarily. â€Å"Two nights were enough.† â€Å"Do you know, you never told me your story from that first night. Or at least, not when I could understand words, spoken words.† â€Å"Well, I was driving around like this, except almost on the other side of the Old Wood – near the Lightning-Split Oak area†¦?† â€Å"Right.† â€Å"When right in the middle of the road something appears.† â€Å"A fox?† â€Å"Well, it was red in the headlights, but it wasn't like any fox I've ever seen. And I've been driving this road since I could drive.† â€Å"A wolf?† â€Å"Like a werewolf, you mean? But, no – I've seen wolves by moonlight and they're bigger. This was right in between.† â€Å"In other words,† Elena said, narrowing her lapis lazuli eyes, â€Å"a custom-made creature.† â€Å"Maybe. It sure was different from the malach that chewed my arm up.† Elena nodded. Malach could take all sorts of different forms, from what she understood. But they were siblings in one way: they all used Power and they all needed a diet of Power to live. And they could be manipulated by a stronger Power than they had. And they were venomous enemies of humans. â€Å"So all we really know is that we don't know anything.† â€Å"Right. That was the place back there, where we saw it. It just suddenly appeared in the middle of the – hey!† â€Å"Go right! Righthere !† â€Å"Just like that! It was just like that!† The Jaguar screeched almost to a stop, turning right, not into a ditch but into a small lane that no one would notice unless they were looking directly at it. When the car stopped, they both stared up the lane, breathing hard. Neither had to ask whether the other had seen a reddish creature zip across the road, bigger than a fox but smaller than a wolf. They looked up at the narrow lane. â€Å"The million-dollar question: should we go in?† Matt asked. â€Å"NoKEEP OUT signs – and hardly any houses on this side of the wood. Across the street and down a way there's the Dunstans'.† â€Å"So we go in?† â€Å"We go in. Just go slowly. It's later than I thought.† Meredith, of course, was the one to calm down first. â€Å"Allright , Bonnie,† she said. â€Å"Stop it! Now! It's not going to do any good here!† Bonnie didn't think shecould stop it. But Meredith had that special look in her dark eyes; the one that meant she was serious. The look she'd had before laying Caroline out on Stefan's floor. Bonnie made a supreme effort and found that somehow she was able to hold in the next shriek. She looked dumbly at Meredith, feeling her own body shake. â€Å"Good. Good, Bonnie. Now.† Meredith swallowed. â€Å"Pulling doesn't do any good, either. So I'm going to try†¦peeling her fingers off. If anything happens to me; if I get – pulled under the bed or anything, then yourun , Bonnie. And if you can't run, then you call Elena and Matt. You call until you get an answer.† Bonnie managed something almost heroic then. She refused to picture Meredith being pulled under the bed. She wouldn't let herself imagine how that would look as Meredith, struggling, disappeared, or how she would feel, all alone, after that. They'd both left their purses with their mobile phones in the entryway to carry Mrs. Forbes, so Meredith wasn't saying to call them in any normal sense. She meant Call them. A sudden radical burst of indignation swept through Bonnie. Why did girls carry purses anyway? Even the efficient, reliable Meredith often did it. Of course Meredith's purses were usually designer handbags that enhanced her outfits and were full of useful things like small notebooks and keychain flashlights, but still†¦a boy would have his mobile phone in his pocket. From now on, I'm wearing a waist pouch, Bonnie thought, feeling as if she were raising a rebel flag for girls everywhere, and for just a moment also feeling her panic recede. Then she saw Meredith stooping, a hunched figure in the dim light, and at the same moment she felt the grip on her own ankle tighten. Despite herself she glanced down, and saw the outline of Caroline's tanned fingers and long bronze nails against the creamy white of the rug. Panic burst out in her again, full force. She made a choked sound that was a strangled scream, and to her own astonishment she spontaneously hit trance and began to Call. It wasn't the fact that she was Calling that surprised her. It was what she was saying. Damon! Damon! We're trapped at Caroline's house and she's gone crazy! Help! It flowed out of her like an underwater well that had been suddenly tapped, releasing a geyser. Damon, she's got me by the ankle – and she won't let go! If she pulls Meredith under, I don't know what I'll do! Help me! Vaguely, because the trance was good and deep, she heard Meredith say, â€Å"Ah-hah! It feels like fingers, but actually it's a vine. It must be one of those tentacles that Matt told us about. I'm – trying – to break one of the loops – off†¦Ã¢â‚¬  All at once there was a rustling from under the bed. And not just from one place, either, but a massive whipping and shaking that actually bounced the mattress up and down, even with poor little Mrs. Forbes on it. There must be dozens of those insects under there. Damon, it's thosethings! Lots of them. Oh, God, I think I'm going to faint. And if I faint – and if Caroline pulls me under†¦Oh, please come and help! â€Å"Damn!† Meredith was saying. â€Å"I don't know how Matt managed to do this. It's too tight, and – and I think there's more than one tentacle here.† It's all over,Bonnie sent in quiet conclusion, feeling herself start to go at the knees.We're going to die. â€Å"Undoubtedly – that's the problem with humans. But not justyet ,† a voice said from behind her, and a strong arm went around her, taking up her weight easily. â€Å"Caroline, the fun's over. I mean it. Letgo!† â€Å"Damon?† Bonnie gasped. â€Å"Damon? You came!† â€Å"All that wailing gets on my nerves. It doesn't mean – â€Å" But Bonnie wasn't listening. She wasn't even thinking. She was still half in trance and not responsible (she decided later) for her own actions. She wasn'therself . It was someone else who went into rapture when the grip on her ankle loosened, and someone else who whirled around in Damon's grip and threw her arms around his neck and kissed him on the mouth. It was someone else, too, who felt Damon startle, with his arms still around her, and who noticed that he made no attempt to pull away from the kiss. That person also noticed, when at last she leaned back, that Damon's skin, pale in the dim light, looked almost as if he had flushed. And that was when Meredith straightened up slowly, painfully, from the other side of the bed, which was still jouncing up and down. She hadn't seen anything of the kiss, and looked at Damon as if she couldn't believe he was really here. She was at a great disadvantage, and Bonnie knew she knew it. This was one of those situations where anyone else would have been too flustered to speak, or even stammer. But Meredith just took a deep breath and then said quietly, â€Å"Damon. Thank you. Do you think – would it be too much trouble to make the malach let go of me, as well?† Now Damon looked like his old self. He gave a brilliant smile aimed at something no one else could see and said sharply, â€Å"And as for the rest of you down there – heel!† He snapped his fingers. The bed stopped moving instantly. Meredith stepped away, and closed her eyes for a moment in relief. â€Å"Thank you again,† she said, with the dignity of a princess, but fervently. â€Å"And now, do you think you could do anything about Caro – â€Å" â€Å"Right now,† Damon cut in even more roughly than usual, â€Å"I have to run.† He glanced at the Rolex on his wrist. â€Å"It's past 4:44, and I had an appointment I'm already late for. Come around here and prop up this dizzy bundle. She's not quite ready to stand by herself.† Meredith hastened to switch places with him. At that point, Bonnie discovered that her legs were no longer wobbling. â€Å"Wait a minute, though,† Meredith said rapidly. â€Å"Elenaneeds to talk to you – desperately – â€Å" But Damon was gone, as if he'd mastered the art of simply disappearing, not even waiting for Bonnie's thanks. Meredith looked astonished, as if she'd been certain that the mention of Elena's name would stop him, but Bonnie had something else on her mind. â€Å"Meredith,† Bonnie whispered, putting two fingers to her lips in amazement. â€Å"I kissed him!† â€Å"What?When? â€Å" â€Å"Before you stood up. I – don't even know how it happened but I did it!† She expected some kind of explosion from Meredith. Instead, Meredith looked at her thoughtfully and murmured, â€Å"Well, maybe it wasn't such a bad thing to do, after all. What I don't understand is why he turned up in the first place.† â€Å"Uh. That was me, too. I Called him. I don't know how that happened either – â€Å" â€Å"Well, there's no point in trying to figure it out in here.† Meredith turned toward the bed. â€Å"Caroline, are you coming out of there? Are you going to stand up and have a normal conversation?† There was a menacing and reptilian hiss from under the bed, along with the whipping of tentacles and another noise that Bonnie had never heard before but which terrified her instinctively, like the snapping of giant pincers. â€Å"That's answer enough for me,† she said, and grabbed Meredith to drag her out of the room. Meredith didn't need dragging. But for the first time today they heard Caroline's taunting voice, lifted childishly high. â€Å"Bonnie and Damon sitting in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes love, then comes marriage; Then there comes a vampire in a baby carriage.† Meredith paused in the hallway. â€Å"Caroline, you know that that isn't going to help matters. Come out – â€Å" The bed went into a frenzy, bucking and heaving. Bonnie turned and ran, and she knew Meredith was right behind her. They still didn't manage to outpace the singsong words: â€Å"You're notmy friends; you're thewhore's friends. Just you wait! Just youwait !† Bonnie and Meredith grabbed their purses and left the house. â€Å"What time is it?† Bonnie asked, when they were safely in Meredith's car. â€Å"Almost five.† â€Å"It seemed like so much longer!† â€Å"I know, but we've got hours of daylight left. And, come to that, I have a text message from Elena.† â€Å"About Tami?† â€Å"I'll tell you about it. But first – † It was one of the few times Bonnie had seen Meredith look awkward. Finally she blurted, â€Å"How was it?† â€Å"How was what?† â€Å"Kissing Damon, you nitwit!†

Family Business Transitions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Family Business Transitions - Essay Example This activity generates a significant proportion of the economy in many countries, whereby the enterprises are approaching the point where business owners' are making serious decisions regarding their long term future, this decision impacts, individual businesses, business sector and the whole society. This move results into a widespread interest in various business succession planning. Though this business operates within personal relationships which affect and influence the business concern. When these relationships are central to the operations of the business, then there must be a focus upon the relationship in a successful negotiation of a business transition process. It is not normally easy to have a successful family business transition, since there are many problems associated in this generation to generation transition. This family business includes relationship involving individuals and those involving the business itself. The individual relationship has an impact on transition whereby, the quality of the relationship is vital, whether they are involved directly or indirectly. Most problems occur in this individual relationships where we find the small generation has no desire to take over the family business, this may not be... ion transition process, this includes: Poor communication this can lead to negative emotions evolving during the transition process , there is also a psychological factor under which the perception of the key family stake holders especially those of the highest generation and the lower generation has a crucial influence considering their roles, intentions and attitudes of others within the transition process. Therefore when the low generation is not psychologically prepared to take control over the transition then this makes this process unsuccessful and also when the transition process is not successful then the successor is not psychologically ready to prosper. This makes the incumbents and the successor's mental status very important in judging when the transition should be taken and what requirements are needed for the process to be successful. 2 Also family values influence the business heavily, whereby there happens to be a higher risk for poor long term business performance, this normally occurs when the subject of the business relies on the family needs. Under this case of psychology we find tat during the transition process, the psychological process results into conflicts between individuals, that is between the incumbent and the successor, there is therefore a contradiction arising at the succession, whereby, the successor desires to imitate the incumbent in order to supersede him while seeking independence, this causes an internal conflict for the successor on how to behave, in such a situation , both the incumbent and the successor desire to be a leader thus reinforcing a leader role causing a spiral of conflicts, confusion and confrontation. 3 Many family business issues derive from the different experiences of each family member presenting the

Statistics Summary Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Statistics Summary - Research Paper Example Quantitative statistics however defines categorical measures that only identify data but does not induce a numeric value (Mann, 2010). There also exist four levels of statistics, nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio levels. Nominal level only has identity property. Ordinal level of measurement has both identity and dimension properties, interval level identifies statistics and measures dimension with equal distance between consecutive variables while ratio level of measurement has a true zero besides properties of interval level of statistics (Babbie, 2010). The role of statistics in business decision making involve research and evaluation of data on alternatives to a problem with the aim of understanding the alternatives for informed decision (Mann, 2010). Statistics could be used to investigate effectiveness of a marketing strategy on an organization’s level of sales. Identification of significant effectiveness in a pilot study, through test of hypothesis, would suggest implementation the strategy while lack of significant effectiveness would mean that the marketing strategy would not promote sales and should not be implemented (Mann,

Main Theories of International Trade and Corporate Strategy Essay

Main Theories of International Trade and Corporate Strategy - Essay Example The theory of absolute advantage states that a country contains an unconditional advantage in the production of a product when it can produce more of that product with the same amount of resources than another country. (Aghazadeh, 2003) Absolute advantage can also result in higher incomes for a country as one hour of labor output should increase and the country should become more efficient as a result of trade between countries (Herriot and Pemberton, 2006, 34). Realistically, one country should have an absolute advantage over another country in the production of some goods. As an example, Saudi Arabia would have an absolute advantage in the production of oil compared to a country such as Japan. (Beardwell, Holden & Claydon, 2004, 14) The theory of comparative advantage states that a country has a comparative advantage in producing a product when its opportunity costs are lower than another country producing the same product. Opportunity costs are sacrificed in order to consume or produce another good. With comparative advantage, countries can benefit by specializing in trading certain products. Production or total output should boost when countries concentrate on producing and exporting goods and sequentially lead to a further proficient application of resources (Herriot and Pemberton, 2006, 34). The Heckscher-Ohlin factor endowment theory is mainly about the variation in the comparative profusion of factors of manufacture in a variety of states as the most significant indication of the dissimilarity between relative costs of services and proportional benefit (Herriot and Pemberton, 2006, 34). Every country has various amounts and types of resources that will determine what they are able to produce or not produce. The combination of resources such as land, labor, and capital is referred to as a country's factor endowment.  

Teaching strategies to students with severe disabilities who are Research Paper

Teaching strategies to students with severe disabilities who are second language learners - Research Paper Example This paper shall discuss the various strategies which can be applied by the teacher in order to effectively teach students with severe disabilities who are also second language learners. Body Learning impaired students refer to students who have been diagnosed with learning disabilities, disabilities which are ranging from processing deficits (input, integration, storage, or output) (Rathus, 2010). It also includes function impairment, developmental dyslexia, dysphagia, aphasia, as well as low IQ scores. These impairments often imply that the students are not performing well in school and may be even delayed in their studies (Rathus, 2010). Second language students are those students who are in the process of learning a second language. More often than not, they may be immigrant students trying who are not native English speakers. The challenge in this case is how the teacher can communicate with the second language students, especially those students who are learning impaired. The t eacher must develop strategies in order to manage the challenges in teaching these students. Schools are institutions which represent the richness and diversity of culture and languages, including customs and traditions. For most students, parents, and other educators, establishing ways by which to instruct all children effectively and meaningfully is considered a professional and pedagogical responsibility (Lopez-Reyna, 2002). Specifically, ways to manage the knowledge which many people have established from the bilingual and special education fields have also been established by various academicians. Crucial to the process of teaching children is to secure a thorough understanding of his or her learning based on his or her specific learning skills, weaknesses, and needs (Wagner, et.al., 2005). There is a need to secure a complete and informal evaluation in order to ensure that the teacher understands what the child knows, and what he already understands. The primary assumption on learning is that there is also a need to secure a strong sense of a student’s language, his home setting, his values, and his previous experiences in his current or previous school (Lopez-Reyna, Birnbaum, 2002). There are eight principles which are considered effective in teaching English language learners (Gersten and Jimenez, 1994). These principles include the need to secure higher order thinking opportunities as well as expectations, including the higher level of involvement in one’s own learning, experiences, and cultural diversity. Suggestions on the use of mediation via visual organizers and modelling the application of appropriate resources have also been made. Support for the application of collaborative and cooperative learning has also been advocated (Calderon, et.al., 2011). A determination on which language to use for learning impaired students has often been posed. Even as the benefits of ensuring instruction in a child’s primary language has been seen in terms of general education settings, it is not clear how the learning should unfold for learning impaired students (Lopez-Reyna, 2002). Using English can be a challenge because it would take years to master the language for second language learners. In effect, teaching academic skills to students in their native language seems to be the more effective method of teaching

Financial Management by Timothy Gallagher and Joseph D Andrewsenior in Essay

Financial Management by Timothy Gallagher and Joseph D Andrewsenior in college - Essay Example Discounting the cash flows for each of the periods and summing them up, I determined that the NPV of launching a new product is equal to $1,000,570. The value is positive and quite significant, therefore, based on the NPV criteria the project should be accepted and the new product launched. However, if the company considers several mutually exclusive projects (for example, launching this product or investing instead in the new factory to increase the production of highly-demanded existing product etc.) and the NPV of this particular project is lower than of those also under consideration, it would be abandoned. The initial investment is equal to $1,000,000. The sum of the discounted cash flows for the first three years amounts to $807,801 $1,000,000. Therefore, the payback period is 3.62 years. Based on the Superior Company's policy of not accepting projects with life of over three years, the project of launching the new product under consideration should not be accepted. If the project required additional investment in land and building, it would increase the initial capital investment amount and consequen

Undergrad research (Sonicator) Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Undergrad (Sonicator) - Research Paper Example The production of methanol was done through the distillation of wood. Methanol today is industrially synthesized from a nonstoichiometric mixture of carbon monoxide, hydrogen and carbon dioxide over Cu/ZnO/AL203 catalysts. Methanol is an industrial chemical used as raw material in the manufacture of solvents such as formaldehyde and producing acids, for example, acetic acid through hydroformylation. Synthesis of methanol is crucial due to wide usage of methanol in industries. Sonicator (Ultrasonic) is one method used to manufacture methanol (Eta, Valerie, 71). Ultrasonic is a phenomenon used in reactive chemical whereby ultrasound energy of approximate 20 kHz is used to agitate the reactants. This method is efficient because necessary temperature and energy are generated by ultrasonic machine. Methanol is a short chain alcohol that is immiscible. The use of the sonicator or ultrasonic is to synthesize methanol in a reaction entitled as transesterification. Catalytic functional group in methanol is methoxide (CH3O-) which is formed when methanol reacts with a strong base or when metals like potassium react with anhydrous methanol (Arutyunov, Vladimir, 95). Mechanism of ultrasonic effect on esterification was illustrated experimentally using bubble- dynamic model where ultrasound energy and micro bubbles in the reactor increased the interface formed between the triglyceride and methanol emulsion, thus considered a physical reaction and not a chemical reaction (Eta, Valerie, 103). There seems to be the best use of the sonicator and why it is mainly used for the production of methanol. The use of Sonification is good as it has led to the production of more methanol and carbon while using less energy. The use of Sonification makes it possible for synthesis of methanol via the use of carbon dioxide and hydrogen, which leads to the water-gas shift formation and surface morphology effects. However, because the use of carbon dioxide and hydrogen is a two-way step,

Argument Essay Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Benefits of Legalized Marijuana - Research Paper Example The evidence demonstrates that legalizing cannabis for medicinal in addition to general purposes would prove a benefit to society, evidence which is well-known throughout the scientific, political and public arena but this collective knowledge has yet to be acted upon. The economic feasibility of decriminalizing marijuana has become a much-discussed subject in recent years. The federal government presently spends a lot of capital on law enforcement to combat distributors and producers of drugs. By legalizing drugs this could eradicate much of the profit, bloodshed, and corruption of that trade. If legalizing drugs is to have a positive effect on the crime rate, drugs must be made both inexpensive and available. Studies have repetitively suggested that prohibiting marijuana in the U.S. has not shown to be efficient or effective. According to the Drug Policy Alliance, â€Å"U.S. ... â€Å"Many critics argue that the increased toughness of that policy has done more harm than good. Some go so far as to suggest that drugs should simply be legalized† (Caulkins, et al. 2005). If marijuana were legalized, governments would have the ability to regulate quality and, like alcohol, the ages allowed to purchase and the ability to add safety warnings to help educate users. People in this country who only use small amounts of marijuana have routinely been arrested and jailed for mere possession; actions that don’t take drugs off the streets or persuade more people to quit using them. At the same time, imprisoning those who possess marijuana creates a burden on society as tax dollars must be increased to support these people who are no longer free to secure employment outside prison. The domino effect of this circumstance puts more children and their families onto the welfare role, contributing to their consequential failure and dependence on society. (â€Å"En gland.† 2006) â€Å"In the United States, drug use is illegal and the police hunt down drug users to throw them in prison. Four thousand people died from illegal drugs in the US last year and we now have more than 600,000 people in prison on drug charges.†Ã‚  

My Attitude to the God is Dead Phrase of Friedrich Nietzsche Essay - 8

My Attitude to the God is Dead Phrase of Friedrich Nietzsche - Essay Example As a result, he argues that God can only do things that other humans can do. He also argues that God can die. He specifically argues that ‘there was only one Christian, and he died on the cross’ (p. 109). This further shows Nietzsche’s opinion that the founder of Christianity, who was crucified, never resurrected. According to Nietzsche’s history, he was a learned person, a professor, and the people whom he associated with were also respected. Wagner, whom he saw as a father, for example, influenced him. Their relationship however ended because he revolted against him. Nietzsche then tried to establish a love relationship with Lou Salome but the relationship did not succeed. This negatively affected him and he resigned from his work at a university. He then wrote a number of books before suffering from mental illness in the year 1889 and meeting his death in the year 1900. A majority of his writings discredited Christian religious beliefs. I do not agree with Nietzsche’s opinion because of many reasons. While Nietzsche argues that all humans, including God, should be treated equally, he does not appreciate the possibility that God may be the creator of the universe. He also does not explain an alternative origin of nature to oppose the possibility that God created the universe. This, therefore, means that he believes that God has supernatural powers that created the universe. If God created the universe then he has higher powers than any other creature. Therefore, Nietzsche’s opinion that God and other beings are equal is not true. Similarly, his opinion that there existed only one Christian is not true. This is because a Christian is a person who follows the doctrines that Jesus Christ taught. History identifies a number of people who devoted their lives to following the doctrines. Many people also follow the doctrines of this generation.

Crossing Borders - Interracial Dating Essay Example for Free

Crossing Borders Interracial Dating Essay In the hodge-podge of American culture you are bound to find interracial dating. There are many differences between people. One that is obvious to the naked eye is the difference of race. In the society that we live in it is sometimes difficult for people of different races to be a couple. The Dominant Culture puts out an invisible border that separates people of different races. In an experiment that I did with a white friend named Michelle, we went out as a couple. Me being Indian and her being Caucasian posed some difficulties for some people to understand. We first went to a park and decided that we would just sit on the swings. There was another little Caucasian girl next to us. The next thing I saw really surprised me and Michelle. The mother of that little girl came and quickly grabbed her daughter and brought her to another part of the playground. All along, the mother looked at me and Michelle in a weird way. After that, we went to the shopping mall. Keeping in mind that we are in a predominantly white suburb, we held hands at the stores. People looked at us as if we were from another planet. I guess they could not believe that an Indian guy and a white girl could be going out on a date. We even brought another one of my friends to see the reaction of other people that me and Michelle could not see. Our other friend, Jim, said that many people kept on starring at us. Also that some people were whispering about us after they had passed us up. This really was a surprise to me. This experiment that I did was a real eye-opener because it gave me the evidence that people really were not happy seeing different races dating. Although this is not the opinion of all people, it seemed to be the opinion of a quite a number of people. These people are what keep the invisible border present in society. The real question that I asked myself is why this happened. One conclusion I came to was that since this was a primarily white suburb, people would not be too open to different races just being there. If someone different from them was to come into their society, it would be natural for them to not accept them. Especially in a situation that involved dating, people would be closed minded. Not only would they want themselves having nothing to do with interracial dating, they would want others of their same race not to be involved with interracial dating. The white people in this suburb probably looked down upon Michelle for being with an Indian guy. Furthermore, the events of September 11th did not help this situation either. Ever since that date, Indian people have been clumped into the whole middle-eastern terrorist category. This just gives the people of this suburb a reason to denounce me and our relationship. Much of this anger comes out of stereotypes. Since these people think that most middle-eastern people are bad or somehow connected to terrorism, this creates a stereotype that I am labeled with. Another reason we got such a hard time is that our cultures did not match up. Even though we have similar values, the customs of Caucasians and Indians are obviously different. Many people in the suburbs that we saw probably did not understand my culture, so what they do not understand, they do not like. People still have stereotypes of Indians. They might think that we cannot speak English or that we smell. These stereotypes bring the Indians in a lower regard with the dominant culture. Why is it harder for black and white couple to be accepted by society rather then an Indian and a white couple? This particular question can be answered in many ways. One of the many reasons is that social standards are set in our community that base blacks down the totem pole. Blacks have been discriminated against from the start of slavery and to this day in some rare cases. The dominant culture has looked down upon blacks because of their skin color for many generations. This is cause for the dominant culture to look down upon blacks. When it comes to Indians, some white people perceive Indians as somewhat semi-British. Whites are less prone to be against a relationship with an Indian person. It is more accepted for Indians to date white people because the dominant culture holds Indians in higher regards than blacks. It is because of biased thinking that this notion came into being. After everything, people are still not open to other ideas or beliefs. Even though the dominant culture puts out an invisible border, that border is becoming more visible with stereotypes that are put out there. This invisible border is displayed by their actions when they see interracial couples. They make it more difficult for these couples to be together. Other things like September 11th added to this invisible border in me and Michelles case. What this means is that the majority of our society will be closed minded to interracial dating. What it also means is that the racial lines will be erased if these couples get married and have children. The dominant culture wants to keep the races separate. In relating my experience with Michelle in that suburb, I felt like we should not be together as a couple. The reactions I got made me feel like I did something wrong. It is this feeling the invisible border is suppose to bring to me. I realized this only in the end. It is up me to decide who I date. It should be the concern of the two people that are dating and not the society.

Cultural Differences in Psychology: Indigenous Psychology

Cultural Differences in Psychology: Indigenous Psychology Bedia, Ben Joseph People often attribute culture with cultural products such as the food they eat, the music they listen to, the dance that their body imitates and with psychological constructs such as beliefs, values, and norms. But in order to have a deeper understanding of culture, one should dig in to bodies of knowledge such as superstition, history, and language. In understanding culture, one should take an insider’s view who is capable of feeling, thinking, and identifying themselves as members of the culture. The creation and re- creation of culture is a continuous process and starts every time a child is born. With this, new patterns of relationships between the person and the environment develops and is also shared with others. Several units of the society such as tribes, clans, and families make strategies to cope and adapt with natural conditions that affects their livelihood and entire existence (Segall et al., 1990). Culture makes human beings unique from animals because without culture, people would not be able to think and behave the way they do. Humans are able to communicate with one another, make meaningful conversations, are able to manage their physical and social world, and more importantly, they make their own identity. All of these are because of culture. There are two approaches in understanding culture: understanding a culture from within and understanding a culture from without but I will only discuss about understanding a culture from within because the concern is to understand culture in the Filipino context. Results of years of psychological research have been disappointing since data have been based with objective third- person analysis (Kim, 199; Koch Leary, 1985). Two types of knowledge are identified in indigenous psychology. The first one are semantic, analytic, and declerative which is about information about impartial, objective analysis and the second one is about phenomenological, episodic, and procedural knowledge describes the subjective first- person experience. With these, it is really hard to understand culture because each person has each own approach and views. That is why scholars have developed Sikolohiyang Pilipino or Filipino Psychology. According to Enriquez (1994a), Sikolohiyang Pilipino wants to explain Philippine realities putting into consideration distinct Filipino values, characteristics, and experiences which other psychological models fail to explain. Western methods and concepts are the ones being used in the education and practice of psychology in the Philippines and there applicability to the Filipino culture and society is being questioned by Filipino scholars. But the prevalence of western psychology is not only felt in the Philippines but as well as in other countries around the globe and this led to the development of indigenous psychology. A characteristic that defines Sikolihiyang Pilipino is the use of Filipino language for research and writing. SP scholars have noted that the use of native languages are important sources in the construction of native constructs as it can reach a wider audience and can contribute to the development of national identity (Enriquez, 1994b; Enriquez Marcelino, 1984; Javier, 1996; Rood, 1985; Salazar, 1982b, 1991; Sibayan, 1994). Research also shows that the language used in data collection reflects the identity and quality of the data (Church, Katigbak, Castaà ±eda, 1988; see Church, 1986, pp. 106–113, for a review). Two types of indigenous psychologies were identified by Enriquez (1993). Indigenization from within and indigenization from without. Indigenization from within involves the development of methods, concepts, and theories within the Philippines while indigenization from without involves the transfer of western psychological methods, concepts, and theories and modify it to fit local culture. These types of psychologies aim to understand how people behave naturally and when they interact with the real world. Several challenges have been encountered in the indigenization of psychology in the Philippines. One example is hybridization. Hybridization can be seen as a result of intercultural marriages as it results to the combination of existing beliefs and practices forming into new forms creating new identities. In other words, it is a transformation of existing culture into new ones (Pieterse, 1995; Rowe Schelling, 1991). The stronger the hybridization, the greater the influence it has to the person and this has both negative and positive effects. Another challenge is the one according to Wilkinson (1995). He states that is there is only on civilization and those who interact intensely, continuously, and significantly belong to one civilization even if it is a hostile interaction and their cultures are very dissimilar. These criterion were made by Wilkinson because according to him warfare, conflict, and even hostility when frequent creates a system for socialization composed by the antagonists and protagonists who cannot live in isolation. Glocalization is an attempt to fuse the global and the local. One best example is micromarketing in which global brands are tailoring their products to fit in the local market through advertisements, In order for their products to sell, they should incorporate locality. For example, in selling a shampoo brand in the Philippines, international brands should have a sachet version of it because Filipinos love to use small versions of products as it make them save more money. The third challenge is cultural complexity in which again discusses the diversity of methods that culture is taught and understood. Technology had a big help with these. Dubbed as â€Å"machineries of meanings†, they enable personal communication even without the presence of one another (Hannerz,1992). If I were to study Filipino culture in a psychological lens, I would take into view social class as culture. Social class divides the society into elements such as schools, forms of recreation, the neighbourhood they choose to live, and the choice of food to eat (Domhoff, 1998). A person’s everyday life is controlled by his or her social class and it is already becoming a cultural identity. Objective social class refers to wealth, social behaviours, and preferences and these signals other people on how to perceive us. Social class can also be seen in non- verbal behaviour such as head- nods and eye contact for the lower- class individuals and less eye contact and head- nods for upper- class individuals. When a person identifies himself into a social class, he or she also identifies himself into a hierarchy and hierarchies provide individuals access to privilege and resources. A person’s social rank also affects his or her social cognition. For example, lower- class individual’s decisions are influenced by external factors such as their bosses, government policies etc. as compared to upper- class individuals where their lives are more individualistic in which they decide whatever decision they would like to make on their own. In other words, lower- class people just tend to follow what upper- class people tell them because they think that upper- class individuals know-it-all and they would not question that. A perfect example for me is our household helper. I noticed that whenever my mom tells her to do some errands, she just always say yes without having any questions. I later on concluded that maybe because she thinks that my mom is knowledgeable enough and that no further question should be asked. Research has shown that individuals with low income blame educational opportunity as the reason for their poverty and wealth problems as opposed to upper- class individuals where they attribute their situation with their disposition. Emotional empathy also differs with your social class. Kraus Keltner (2009) noted that lower- class individuals are more engaged and reliant with others. Also, research indicates that having less makes a person more sensitive to others, interacts more, and is more emphatic leading to the theory that lower- class individuals are more prosocial. A study by Piff et al., (2010) found that individuals with lower socio- economic status gave more to charity than upper- class individuals. References: Enriquez, V.G. (1994a). From colonial to liberation psychology:  The Philippine experience. Manila: De La Salle University  Press. Enriquez, V.G. (1993). Developing a Filipino psychology. In U. Kim and J.W. Berry (Eds), Indigenous Psychologies: Research and experience in cultural contetxt (pp. 152-169). Newburry Park. CA: Sage. Segall, MH.—Kim 2000   (Kim, 199; Koch Leary, 1985). Enriquez, V.G. (1994b). Pagbabangong-dangal : Indigenous psychology  and cultural empowerment. Quezon City, Philippines:  Akademya ng Kultura at Sikolohiyang Pilipino. Enriquez, V.G., Marcelino, E.P. (1984). Neo-colonial politics  and language struggle in the Philippines: National consciousness  and language in Philippine psychology. Quezon City,  Philippines: Akademya ng Sikolohiyang Pilipino, Philippine  Psychology Research and Training House. Javier, R.E., Jr (1996). Sikolohiyang Pilipino: Papaloob o papalabas?  [Sikolohiyang Pilipino: Inward or outward?]. Layag, 1,  51–56. Rood, S. (1985). Language and Philippine social science. In A.  Aganon S.M.A. David (Eds.), New directions in indigenous  psychology: Sikolohiyang Pilipino: Isyu, pananaw at kaalaman  [Filipino psychology: Issues, views and knowledge] (pp.  76–90). Manila: National Book Store. Salazar, Z.A. (1982b). Ilang batayan para sa isang sikolohiyang  Pilipino [Some bases for a Filipino psychology]. In R. Pe-Pua  (Ed.), Sikolohiyang Pilipino: Teorya, metodo at gamit [Filipino  psychology: Theory, method and application] (pp. 45–55). Quezon City, Philippines: Philippine Psychology Research  and Training House. (Reprinted from Ulat ng unang pambansang  kumperensya sa sikolohiyang Pilipino [Proceedings of  the 1st National Conference on Filipino Psychology], pp. 33–48, by L.F. Antonio, E.S. Reyes, R.E. Pe, N.R. Almonte  (Eds.), 1976, Quezon City, Philippines: Pambansang Samahan  sa Sikolohiyang Pilipino.) Sibayan, B.P. (1994). The teaching of the technical disciplines in  Filipino.Unitas, 67, 88–99. Church, A.T., Katigbak, M.S., Castaà ±eda, I. (1988). The  effects of language of data collection on derived conceptions  of healthy personality with Filipino bilinguals. Journal of  Cross-Cultural Psychology, 19, 178–192. Pieterse, J.N. (1995). Globalization as hybridization. In M. Featherstone,  S. Lash, R. Robertson (Eds.), Global modernities (pp.  45-68). London: Sage. Rowe, W., Schelling, V. (1991). Memory and modernity: Popular  culture in Latin America. London: Verso. Wilkinson, D. (1995). Central civilizations. In S. K. Sanderson (Ed.),  Civilizations and world systems: Studying world-historical change  (pp. 46-74). LondHannerz, U. (1992). Cultural complexity: Studies in the social organization  of meaning. New York: Columbia University Press.on: Altamira Press. Consumer Choice Behaviour: UK Nightclub Industry Analysis Consumer Choice Behaviour: UK Nightclub Industry Analysis From about 1900 to 1920, working class Americans got together at bar to dance with the music played on a piano or a jukebox, and this is the early origin of the nightclub (Smith, 2001, p. 3). Nowadays, in general perspective, the Nightclub is a word can represents the entertainment and social nightlife. And in recently decades the nightclub has become one of the most important parts of modern entertainment industry (Peretti, 2007, p. 4). It is clearly that, compared with the pub and bar, the nightclub not only has some similitudes, but also has more own characteristics. The nightclub sells alcoholic drink and put music as pub and bar. However, nightclub generally has dance floor and a DJ booth, the music always includes hip hop, rock, reggae and some house music (Smith, 2001, p. 5). To some extent, nightclub mixed the advantages of pub and bar, it has more entertaining and more modernity. As Smith (2001, p. 9) claimed that the nightclub industry is bright and profitable in the coming future, and this industry will probably has more influences on economic growth. For example, a positive phenomenon of U.S. shows that after consumer spending declined on nightclub industry in 2009, consumer spending is probably has a noteworthy growth in 2010 (Bars, Nightclubs Drinking Establishments report in IBISWORLD, Jan 04 2011). And this kind of situation is happening in UK. In UK, there are 332,700 people working in the pubs, bars and nightclub industry, 40% of this people is working for nightclub. Therefore, the nightclub provides a huge number of job opportunities to society Pub, bar and nightclub industry workforce report in WARWICK, March 2010). Consequently, now the nightclub industry is playing a significant role in UKs economy. Although the nightclub industry is important, in the academic circles there is a few literatures were related to the consumer behaviour of this industry. Moreover, in nightclub industry, less than 20% of entertainment venues capture 80% of the market share (Nightclubs | A business where 20% continue to make 80% of the money cited in NIGHTCLUBBIZ, 08 February 2010). And there is no authoritative and coincident academic theory to explain this unbalanced phenomenon. Therefore, more and more attention began to focus on this interesting unbalanced situation. What are the main factors dominating consumer choice in nightclub industry and what is the core competitive advantage in this truly competitive market. Obviously, the nightclub industry is a bright and profitable industry over the next few decades. Therefore, realizing the main factor dominating consumers choice behaviour is useful and significant. This dissertation will make an in depth look into the nightclub industry and investigate the main factors dominating consumers choice behaviour. And then, provide some theoretical supports for understanding consumers choice behaviour in this industry. Moreover, use the research results to provide some positive suggestion about the marketing and promotions strategies in the nightclub industry. Literature Review Obviously, nightclub industry is truly different from other industries, such as food, medical, clothing and so on. These kinds of industries produce tangible products. However, the nightclub industry provides tangible products and intangible service together (Rigakos, 2008, p. 12). To some extent, the intangible service is more difficult to promote and also uncontrollability. Therefore, investigate the main factors which dominate the consumers choice behaviour in this industry is arduous task. Firstly, looking back the previous academic theories, Baker (1999) demonstrated that marketing is a process that can provide the products to the consumers, and this process includes four factors; they are product, price, place and promotion. Additionally, Keller (2003, p. 7) claimed that brand take on special meaning to consumers. It is a significant source of competitive advantage of the manufacturers. Fill (2006, p. 8) suggests that the marketing communication can add value through enhanced product and organisational symbolism. Egan (2008, p. 16) and Buttle (2009, p. 14) demonstrate that the customer relationship management is a positive technology to enhance the achievement of enterprise, helping broader organizational goals. In the secondary research procedure, this dissertation will take these academicians theories as the basic theoretical supports. After the secondary research studying in this area, it can be seen that in nightclub industry there are several factors can influence the consumers choice behaviour. According to the basic theories and through the preliminary assessment, these factors can be separated by two parts, internal and managerial. The internal factors includes: music, light, price and security. The managerial factors includes: brand value, promotion and customer relationship management. First of all, some perspectives support that the music is the core competitive advantage of a nightclub. The main types of music in nightclub include hip hop, rock, reggae and pop music and so on. And different consumer groups have different demands to the music (Smith, 2001, p. 219). Therefore, comfortable musical environment is an important factor could be influence the consumers choice behaviour. Then the other internal facilities factor is light. On the topic of professional writing and referencing Smith (2001, p.131) states: Light set the mood, like many other things, light play an important role in establishing an overall mood, and if the place is hopping, it usually results in an easy decision for customers to enter and if it is not, they may leave. Furthermore, sometimes the price is also an important element to influence consumers choices behaviour. That is not to say price is cheaper is better. It is mean that in this industry, there should be different price ranges for different consumer groups (Engelson, 1995, p. 33). For example, there is a figure shows that per person spending on average from  £12 to  £31 one night (A basic overview of nightclub and bar investments cited in NIGHTCLUBBIZ, 08 February 2010). Different consumer groups have different attitudes on same price. Therefore, some consumers with high consumption would probably choose the high price service or product. Opposite, the low consumption consumers would be more price-sensitive (Engelson, 1995, p. 35). Consequently, to some degree the price is probably an important factor can influence the customer choice behaviour. Recently, the security problem is raising a key master of the nightclub industry. That is because there are several malignant cases were re lated with nightclub. For example, a man died after a shooting outside a nightclub in Winter Garden on 5 April 2001 (One killed in shooting outside Winter Garden club cited in ORLANDOSENTINEL, 05 April 2011). And in earlier time, there is another homicide case happened in East London nightclub (Murder at Boheme nightclub cited in MURDERMAP, 27 March 2011). Except the malignant cases, the fire disaster is another frequent threat to the security of nightclub (McManus OToole, 2005, p. 244). Therefore, the consumers put more and more attention on security of nightclub. The first managerial factor is brand value. Rigakos (2008, p. 46) mentioned that the brand value to a nightclub is crucial adjective. And the brand value can make your nightclub stand out from the rest and potential customers need to be able to find your nightclub. Moreover, Peretti (2007, p. 201) comments that create a brand name is significant step for building fame in the nightclub industry, sometimes the brand value is the key matter for earning profit in this industry. Therefore, the brand value is a significant element in the process of the consumers choice behaviour. Secondly, promotion for the nightclub is a significant element. Compared with other industry, the customers of nightclub industry have more mobility. It is meant in this industry the average customer loyalty is lower than traditional industry. Hence, this industry needs more promotions activities (Coe, 2009, p. 102). Some simple promotions technologies can results in an easy decision for consumers to enter the nig htclub. Such as the free hats, shirts, and carry bags. According to the academic work of Egan (2008, p. 16), the customer relationship management is not just sent an email to customers. It is also not simply sent the invitation on Facebook. The customer relationship is becoming the major trend in marketing and the key mater of nightclub promotion process. It is clearly that, customers prefer to the nightclub with favorable customer relationship management. Consequently, from the analyzing the related material, the customer relationship management is probably can be a main factor dominating the customers choice behaviour. Finally, through reading the literatures it is can be found that there are some factors are basic. Such as the price, security, music, favorable traffic condition and convenient parking conditions. That is to say if the nightclub investor wants get customers into nightclub and make profit, these factors are necessary. Expect there necessary conditions, the brand, promotion and customer relationship management are the extended conditions. Therefore, in the process of primary research, this project will investigate these factors can dominate the consumers choice behaviour or not. And if there has influence on the consumers choice behaviour, how much is the degree of the influence. Research Question and Aims The proposed research question is to explore what are the main factors can dominate the consumers choice behaviour in UK nightclub industry. As motioned previously, there are many factors have influences on customers choice behaviour. And what are the decisive factors can dominate the consumers choice behaviour in this competitive market? This project is designed to investigate the current situation of UK nightclub market and find out the core factors which can decides the consumers choice behaviour in this industry. Then, in order to help the owners of nightclub in UK can better realise the customers intend propose and need, increasing the profitability. Proposed Method Research strategy Form the research question and aim; this project will focus on investigating the main factors which can dominate the consumers choice behaviour. That is to say, why the consumer choice A nightclub rather than B nightclub? What are the main reasons of the consumption behaviours? Therefore, the emphasis of this project will focus on the consumer side. However, that is not to say the information come from the operator of nightclub is useless. This project will also adopt the case study method, choosing some successful nightclubs as the samples of case study. Interview the operators of the nightclub or do some participant observation works for collecting the useful data from the nightclub operators. According to the research methods literature; this project will adopt the qualitative and quantitative research methods together to get the research result. And the main basic theoretical supports come from Bryman and Bell (2007), Saunder (2007) and Easterby-Smith, et al. (2002). Research design Several research designs were considered. Consequently, cross-sectional design, longitudinal design, Multiple-case study design and comparative design was decided as the practical and appropriate research designs due to the restraints imposed by time and accessibility (Bryman Bell, 2007, p. 44-66). The reasons of choosing these kinds of research designs have four: firstly, this research will adopt the questionnaire and structured interviewing methods, and the cross-sectional design is an appropriate research design to analyse the data come from the questionnaire and structured interviewing (Saunder, et al., 2007, p. 153). Secondly, in this research, it will adopt the case study method to analyse several nightclubs. Therefore, it meant there will be Multiple-case study design. Because the case study research always includes longitudinal factors, and the longitudinal design is also an effective way to analyse the changes happened inside of the cases (Saunder, et al., 2007, p. 161). He nce, it will be also adopted in this research. Thirdly, the comparative design is appropriate for analysing the external elements of the cases (Bryman Bell, 2007, p. 66). It can be used to investigate the differentiations and similarities among different nightclubs. Research method In this research, it will first collect the related literatures about the research topic, analysing the similarities and differentiation among different literatures, and then, obtain the background of this topic and the general theoretical framework about this field (Easterby-Smith, et al., 2002, p. 60). Secondly, this research will use the primary research methods to glean the original data. In this procedure, it will include questionnaire, interview, participant observation and some internet research methods (Easterby-Smith, et al., 2002, p. 168). The questionnaire will be used in the structured interview, and the self-completion questionnaires would not be adopted in this research, because the limitation of lower response rates and not prompt (Bryman Bell, 2007, p. 242). The types of interview will include structured, unstructured and semi-structured interview. The structured interview will be used in the process of questionnaire, and the unstructured and semi-structured intervie w will be adopted to interview the operators of nightclubs. Additionally, the participant observation will be used to analyse the nightclubs which the research selects as the samples (Easterby-Smith, et al., 2002, p. 76). Access issues This research will choose the Newcastle nightclub market as the research sample. The reason for doing have two. One is Newcastle upon Tyne is famous for its entertainment, and especially the nightlife culture. And a new survey by Luxardo sambuca reveals that Newcastle followed Manchester as the second most offers for nightlife city in UK (Top UK Nightlife City Survey cited in PRNEWSWIR, 25 November 2011). Therefore, the Newcastle nightclub market has its strong representativeness of the UK nightclub industry. Two is I am a student in Newcastle University, I live in Newcastle, for the reason of restraints imposed by time and accessibility therefore I choose Newcastle nightclub market as the sample is reasonable and viable. And after determine the sample this project will try to glean the data from consumers by questionnaire. And this research will print two hundreds paper questionnaires and the questionnaires will be distributed by structured interview around the city centre and in fr ont of door of the nightclubs. The electronic questionnaires will be distributed by email or put on the websites. For example, establish a group discussion on Facebook or Twitter. Furthermore, this research will attempt to interview fifteen nightclub operators in Newcastle, obtaining their perspectives about the dissertation question for supplementing the data come from consumers. And until now, I have two interviewees were selected, one is my classmate, he is the main operator of the Voodooers party in Newcastle. The other one is the manager of Sinners. Because that I have operated some private parties in her nightclub. Therefore, she would like to be an interviewee of my interview and would like to introduce other nightclub managers to me. And this project will search for more interviewees in May. Proposed work plan April: The design of questionnaire Check the quality and viable of the questionnaire Send the questionnaires and analysis of questionnaires data Continue to search for the interviewees Continue the secondary research work and contact with the interviewees of interview May: Carry out the interviews and record the process of interview Finish the report of interview June: Analysing all of the primary data and contrast the results of the secondary research and primary research Start writing the final dissertation July to August: Finish the writing of dissertation Ethical issue In this research it will adopt a series of research methods. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention on the ethical issue. Firstly, it should keep the rule of reciprocity and trust; create a favourable research environment (Bryman Bell, 2007: 144). Secondly, In the process of questionnaire, it should keep the principles of voluntary participation and informed consent, it means the respondents must be fully informed about the procedures and risks involved in research and give their consent to participate (Bryman Bell, 2007: 137). Thirdly, in the process of participant observation, it should avoid the harm of participants to the respondent, and keep a certain distance from the respondents in hope that avoiding the negative influence and maintaining the objective of the data. Furthermore, in the process of data analysing, do not destroy the privacy of the respondents. Moreover, protect the security of data after finish research (Bryman Bell, 2007: 143). Consequently, only under t he ethical principles, the research is reasonable and significance, the results of research can be objective and credible. Limitations The most serious limitation of this research is that the secondary literatures are not adequate. Therefore, to some extent, the primary research is the key matter of this research. Hence, the quality of the primary research decides the results and the quality of this project. Consequently, if the collection and analysis of primary data are not reasonable, then the results of the research will not representative (Easterby-Smith, et al., 2002, p. 128). Therefore, in the process of designing questionnaire and the procedure of analysing the data should be more cautious and systemic. The second limitation is that the size of the sample. It is common that bigger size sample will make minimum biased (Bryman Bell, 2007: 242). Hence, I am not sure that the two hundreds questionnaires will get the representative primary data or not. Whether increase the size of sample or not need to be checked and considered in the practice process. Finally, there is another limitation is that lack of practical experience. I just make sure two interviewees until now. Therefore, I need to contact thirteen interviewees in May. And the worse thing is I did not have any experience about the interview. I need to design a question plan and ask questions in an appropriate way. Consequently, this process for me is a challenge, for the whole research is a limitation. Proposed data handling and analysis Generally speaking, in this research it will obtain plenty of data come from the questionnaire and interview. Therefore, it is important to adopt an appropriate method to analyse the qualitative research data. There are two general strategies of qualitative data analysis were considered. One is analytic induction (Bryman Bell, 2007: 582). The other one is grounded theory (Bryman Bell, 2007: 584). And this project will adopt the grounded theory as the main strategy of qualitative data analysis. The data of the qualitative research will be analysed by the computer software NVivo (Saunder, et al., 2007, p. 480). Moreover, the quantitative data will be analysed by using the normal statistical methods (Saunder, et al., 2007, p. 414). Furthermore, the secondary analysis will be used in both of the quantitative and qualitative research.

Non-conventional Sources of Energy: An Analysis

Non-conventional Sources of Energy: An Analysis CONSERVATION OF ENERGY Energy is a primary input in any industrial operation. Energy is also a major input in sectors such as commerce, transport, telecommunication, etc besides the wide range of services required in the household industrial sectors. (A) What Do We Mean by Alternative Energy? The alternative-energy segment of the energy industry covers a broad range of sources. These sources range from well established technologies, such as nuclear energy and hydroelectric power, through high-growth segments such as wind and solar power. They also include less tried and tested alternatives, such as hydrogen-powered, fuel-cell technology for use in electricity generation (7) Renewable sources of energy: It is that energy which is renewed again again. These include wood obtained from forests, petroplants , plant biomass agricultural wastes, wind energy,water energy, geothermal energy, these can reproduce themselves in nature can be harvested continusiously through a sustained proper planning management(B) Non renewable sources of energy: These are available in limited amount develop over a long period of time. They are exhausted one day.these include coal,oil,petroleum, the common source of energy being organic in their origin also called fossil fuel.( B) Conventional source of energy: In most of the fuel wood was consumed for domestic purposes mainly in rural areas, very little of it was available to industrial sector. Coal already in use in industries become a highly priced source. It was then supplemented by mineral oil. Likewise the use of hydro-electricity become dearer the areas where running water needed technology was readily available. After 2nd world war nuclear power was developed. All these sources of energy. All these sources of energy are known as conventional sources of energy. Coal still occupies a central position. (B) Non conventional sources of energy: Non renewable of energy could exhaust one day. Most non renewable sources cause environmental pollution We must conserve non renewable sources by replacing with renewable sources. (B) CONSERVATION OF ENERGY Renewable sources of energy: Non renewable sources of energy: Conventional source of energy Non conventional sources of energy Sources of ener Sources of energy: Primary Secondry 1: primary sources are those which we get from environment.Eg. fossil fuel, nuclear fuel, hydro energy, solar energy, wind energy. 2: secondry sources are those which are derived from primary energy resource. Eg. Petrol, electrical energy, coal burning . (A) Conventional sources of energy: Coal: The heat capacity can be converted into the electricity gas , oil. therefore many thermal super thermal powerstation are located on the coal fields to produce electric power to feeds regional grids.(A) Oil : it was formed more than 300 million year ago. Tiny diatoms are the source of oil. Diatoms are the sea creature in the size of pin head. Diatoms are dead they fell into the sea floor. They buried under the rocks. The rock squeeze the diatoms the energy in the bodies could not escape. The carbon eventually turned into oil under great pressure heat. Oil natural gas are found under ground between rocks in areas where rocks are porous.(C) Natural gas: It is lighter than air . It is made up of methane (made up of carbon hydrogen atoms ch-4). It is found near the petroleum under the earth. It has no odour.it is usually mix with a gas that has strong odour like rotten eggs.(C) NUCLEAR FUSION If light nuclei are forced together, they will fuse with a yield of energy because the mass of the combination will be less than the sum of the masses of the individual nuclei. If the combined nuclear mass is less than that of iron at the peak of the binding energy curve, then nuclear particles will be more tightly bound than they were in the lighter nuclei, and that decrease in mass comes off in the form of the energy according to the Einstein relationship. For elements heavier than iron, fission will yield energy. For potential nuclear energy sources for the Earth, the deuterium-tritium fusion reaction contained by some kind of magnetic confinement seems the most likely path. However, for the fuelling of the stars, other fusion reactions will dominate. (c) NUCLEAR FISSION The nucleus captures the neutron, it splits into two lighter atoms and throws off two or three new neutrons. The two new atoms then emit gamma radiation as they settle into their new states. There are three things about this induced fission -the probability of a U-235 atom capturing a neutron as it passes by is fairly high. -the process of capturing the neutron and splitting happens very quickly, in the order of picoseconds -An incredible amount of energy is released in the form of heat and gamma radiation, when a single atom splits. The two atoms that result from the fission later release beta radiation and gamma radiation of their own as well. The energy released by a single fission Comes from the fact that the fission products and the neutrons, together, weigh less than the original U-235 atom. The difference in weight is converted directly to energy at a rate governed by the equation e=mc2 (C) NUCLEAR REACTOR (1)Light water reactor-We use ordinary water for colling and moderisation these are basic 2 types boiling water reactor pressurised water reactor There are also high temperature gas called reactors which basically of l.w.r type (2):heavy water reactor: the most popular one has been Canadian deuterium uranium reactor. The design is difficult from that of lwr type. The fuel is arranged horizontally rather than the vertically as in l.w.r. (3):liquid metal fast breeder reactor: here we use liquid sodium as the coolent. There are 300 atomic power plant ,operating in world. Max in use (83), Ussr (40), up (35), France(34),Japan 25, Germany 15, Canada 13 India is rich in atomic mineral. Uranium mines are located in singbum in bihar parts of bihar Most abudent source is monazite sands on the shores of kerala. Thorium is derived from these sands. Nuclear power corporation is engaged with the establishment of nucleus. Power plants: 6 nuclear power plants in operation generating 1230 mwe(single individual plant is 210-235mwe). (b) Advantages Nuclear energy has a number of positives going for it. First, it does not give off carbon emissions, earning it supporters in the environmental community among those concerned about global warming. second, once reactors are built, it is very cost effective to keep them running at high capacity and for utilities to address demand fluctuations by cutting back on usage of fossil fuels. Third, nuclear plants tend to last a long time and many existing plants have become more efficient over time, reducing their demand for uranium.and represent reliable sources of supply Disadvantages There are a number of disadvantages to the nuclear-power option. These include not only the safety questions but also some economic and supply-related questions that are currently being debated by those for and opposed to renewal of outdated power plants or an expansion of the sector.In terms of safety, two issues are regularly debated. First, the issue of nuclear waste and, second, concerns over potential terrorist attacks on nuclear power plants. The first objection may be overcome through the introduction of new types of power plants, such as the pebble-bed modular reactor. This type of reactor uses graphite balls flecked with tiny amounts of uranium, rather than conventional fuel rods. With the fuel encased in graphite and impermeable silicon carbide, the theory is that the waste should be relatively easy to dispose of. The terrorism fears are less easily addressed and may ultimately stall the construction of new plants in countries such as the U.S., where these worries are great est. Among economic concerns is the question of construction costs. Although the cost of energy produced by existing nuclear plants is competitive, the upfront capital costs of constructing new plants are extremely high, calculated at $1,300-$1,500 per kilowatt- hour, or twice the amount it costs to construct a gas-fired power station(F) Non Conventional energy source SOLAR ENERGY Two weeks of solar energy is roughly equivalent to the energy stored in all known reserves of coal.oil and natural gas on the earth. Solar energy may be directly used either by active solar system or passive solar system. Another potentially important aspect 0f direct solar energy involves solar cells or photovoltaic that convert sunlight directly into electricity. Two other type of solar energy are the solar power tower and solar ponds.(b) There are two main ways to harness the power of the sun to generate electricity: photovoltaic (PV), where sunlight is directly converted into electricity via solar cells, and solarthermal power. PV is a proven technology that is most appropriate for small-scale applications to provide heat and power to individual houses and businesses. Sunlight falls on a layer of semiconductors, which jostles electrons. This, in turn, creates an electrical current that can be used as a source for heat. Solar PV cells are already cost effective for powering houses and businesses in some regions. As with wind power, technological developments have reduced costs considerably over the last few years. Unlike wind power, however, largescale electricity production using solar energy costs about 22 cents per kilowatt-hour, significantly more expensive than its fossil fuel competitors and nuclear energy. Hopes to reduce these costs lie with newer technologies. Solar-thermal generated energy is only just emerging from the experimental stage to full-scale electricity production. Solar-thermal power concentrates the sun to heat up fuel such as gas or oil. The heat trapped within is then used to convert water into steam, which powers a conventional steam turbine to generate electricity. Fossil fuels are sometimes used as a back-up to heat the water in the boiler if the sun is not shining. There are three different methods for concentrating the suns rays: Parabolic Trough — This method uses long, parallel rows of glass mirrors in the shape of a trough to concentrate the suns rays toward the â€Å"absorber tube† — usually filled with oil — to maximum effect. Power Tower — Similar in principle to parabolic-trough technology, the mirrors are placed in a circular pattern. At the center of the circle is a tower, at the top of which is a receiver filled with water, air, liquid metal or molten salt that moves to a power block and is used to power a steam turbine. Parabolic Disk System — In this system, dishes rather than troughs are used to concentrate the power of the sun. An example of this type of solar project is the 500-megawatt Solar Energy Systems plant being constructed in the Mojave Desert in California. By the end of 2006, the company expects to begin supplying electricity to Southern California Edison (SCE), but will not be fully operational until 2011, when it may account for as much as a 20 percent increase in SCEs electricity generation from renewables(F) Advantages In spite of its cost versus other sources of energy, solar power is attracting interest due to the following: Solar energy makes use of a renewable natural resource that is readily available in many parts of the world. The process used to generate solar energy is emission-free. Technological advances have reduced costs to a point that it can compete with fossil fuel alternatives in specific circumstances. The technology is scalable in that it can be used fordomestic heating purposes or on a larger scale for commercial electricity generation, as solar water heaters are an established technology, widely available and simple to install and maintain Disadvantages The biggest barriers to increasing solar power generation are the cost, the amount of land required for large-scale electricity production, and the intermittent nature of the energy source.In terms of the latter, thermal systems do not work at night or in inclement weather. Storage of hot water for domestic or commercial use is simple, needing only insulated tanks, but storage of the higher-temperature liquids needed to generate electricity on a large scale — or storage of the electricity itself — requires further technological development(F) WIND ENERGY In the country there are areas which are quite windy. Wind energy may be converted into mechanical electrical energy. Now, wind has been utilized for pumping water in rural areas. Wind energy is useful in remote areas helps in saving fossils fuels, would deliver on the spot small quantity of energy which is free pollution environmental degradation.Gujrat is first to starts using wind power. Advantages There are a number of notable advantages associated with wind power: It is a clean, renewable energy source. There is no fuel component, so once built there is no a finite fuel supply or costs associated with such a supply. Wind power can be generated in remote areas, including out in the oceans. It is scalable in that it can be used to generate power in a local area or even at the individual property level, but can also generate large amounts of power that can be added to an electricity grid system.. For land-based wind farms, once the wind towers are installed, the land area around them can be used for other purposes, such as agricultural use. Disadvantages As with any source of energy, there are some drawbacks to wind power. The most significant is that the wind to drive the turbines may be intermittent and that it does not always blow when electricity is needed. Wind energy may only be available 40 percent of the year in some areas versus 90 percent for a fossil-fuel powered plant. New blade design can overcome this problem to a certain extent, as can storing the energy in batteries, but because of these potential drawbacks, the site of the wind farm is key to its success and vice versa.(F) OCEAN ENERGY (TIDAL ENERGY) Tidal power generation depends on the harnessing of rise and fall of sea level due to tidal action. Small tidal power plants have been constructed in china USSR. The most important application of tidal power is electricity generation. In India sites exploitation of tidal energy are gulfs of kutch kombay sunderbans. India could intensify work on ocean thermal energy conversion wave energy. The country is already experience with exploiting tidal energy. The central electricity authority Gujrat electricity board carried out site studies for establishment of tidal plants in golf of kutch. India has excellent OTEC potential some of the best sites in world are known to be located off the Indian mainland island of lakshdeep Andoman nicobar. Total OTEC potential in India is 50000mW which is about 150% of installed power generated capacity in India. PRESENT USES Tidal power has on a small scale been used throughout the history of mankind. It was not until twentieth century that large-scale tidal projects were considered. Today, sites suitable for the utilisation of tidal power exist in many places around the world. DISADVANTAGES -Not yet economically feasible. -Problems with transportation of hydroelectricity. -Technology not developed. ADVANTAGES -Renewable resource. -No pollution. -Produced 24 hours a day and 365 days a year. -Peak output coincides with peak energy demand.(c) Fuel cell Production of electricity by thermal plants is not a very efficient method and is major source of pollution. It now possible to make such in which reactants sre fed continuously to the electrodes and products are removed continuously from the electrolyte compartment. Galvanic cell that are designed to convert theenergy of combustion of fuels like hydrogen, methane, methanol,etc. directly into electrical energy are called fuel cell. One of the most successful fuel cell uses the reaction hydrogen with oxygen to form water. The cell was used for providing electrical power in Apollo space programme. The water vapours produced during the reaction were condensed and added to the drinking water supply for the astronauts. In the cell, hydrogen and oxygen are bubbled through porous carbon electrodes into concentrated aqueous sodium hydroxide solution. Catalyst like finally divided platinum metal are incorporated into the electrodes for increasing the rate of electrode reaction. Efficiency is 70%compared to thermal plant whose efficiency is 40%.(E) A fuel cell that runs on pure oxygen hydrogen produces no waste product. when a reformer is coupled to the fuel cell some pollutant are released(co2)but levels are typically less than conventional fossil fuel combustion in a power plant or an auto-mobile engine.fuel cell could be ideal zero emission power source for vehicle. Fuel cell busses could be tested in a Canada. The current from a fuel cell is proportional to the size of electrode voltage is limited (1.23). Tiny fuel cell running on methanol might used in cell phone, pager, toys, computer, now run by batteries. Bio fuel: based on fuel derived from organic biomass from recently living animals or plants or their by products, has transformed from a niche alternative to fossil fuels (e.g., gasoline, diesel) to become a booming industry. Any liquid that stores energy, which is typically utilized by an engine or generator, can be called a â€Å"fuel.† The term â€Å"bio fuels† encompasses a wide range of fuels, including vegetable oils, animal fats, ethanol, biodiesel (any oil or fat that undergoes trans esterification to more closely resemble mineral-based fuel), and syn fuel (fuel made from gasi fied organic matter, then liquefied to form fuel). The main common trait of all these fuels is that they are derived from organic biomass, rather than minerals. Bio fuels are made using a fairly simple process that typically involves harvesting feedstock, or the raw materials (e.g., soybeans, sugarcane), crushing the feedstock, separating the dry matter from the oil, then re-crushing and/or further processing to extract as much oil as possible. The resulting oil can then either be directly consumed (e.g., by vehicles with specially designed engines), further processed (e.g., into biodiesel), or blended with mineral-based fuel before being delivered to the end user at gas stations and depots around the world (the most common blends in the U.S. are E10 (10% percent ethanol blend) and E85 (85% ethanol blend). Only some biofuels, most notably biodiesel, can be used in traditional internal combustion engines. Other biofuels, such as ethanol, must be blended with mineral-based fuel in order to be used in existing engines. The most common inputs into biofuels vary by country. In the U.S., corn and soybeans are most prevalent, while Europe tends to use flaxseed and rapeseed, Brazil sugarcane, and Asia palm oil. Brazil is in many ways the pioneer of the biofuels industry, having introduced ethanol from sugarcane (and flexfuel vehicles capable of running on ethanol) over 25 years ago as method to reduce dependence on oil imports. a fuel cell uses a catalyst to create a reaction between hydrogen from a fuel and oxygen from the air to generate electricity, with the only byproduct being water. Such fuel cells can be used for power generation and as a replacement for the combustion engine to run cars and other vehicles. Fuel cells have long been used in the U.S. space program, but until the past few years have proved prohibitively expensive for civilian use. Interest in fuel cells was reignited in the late 1990s, as companies began to make breakthroughs in technology. Large automotive manufacturers, such as General Motors and Daimler Chrysler, also started investing in fuel-cell companies and began to design concept fuel-cell powered vehicles. Development, thus far, has focused primarily on protonexchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells. This type of fuel cell uses a polymer membrane to separate two subcells, one fed with hydrogen and one with oxygen (through air). On the hydrogen side, the hydrogen breaks down into pr otons and electrons, and the protons migrate through the membrane into the oxygen side. The electrons, on the other hand, are forced to detour through wire connecting metal plates, resulting in a reaction that creates electricity. Other types of cells include the molten-carbonate fuel cell, which is the most efficient design but is very complex and only economical when generating more than 200 kilowatts. Westinghouse is developing a competing design, the solidoxide fuel cell, which operates at extremely high temperatures and has the added advantage that waste heat can be used to drive an auxiliary gas turbine.(F) What are the Challenges to Large-Scale Hydrogen Production? One of the biggest challenges to moving towards large-scale adoption of the â€Å"hydrogen economy† is production of hydrogen itself. A question often raised is whether it takes more energy to produce the hydrogen than you get back when you either drive the car or use it to power a building. There are currently three ways to produce hydrogen: Natural gas, coal, wood and organic waste burn with air and steam at extremely high temperatures. When cooled, the resulting gases contain a significant amount of hydrogen. An electrical current is passed between two electrodes (anelectrolyzer) immersed in water. Hydrogen rises up from the negative electrode and oxygen from the positive electrode. Some bacteria reportedly produce hydrogen, but this method has yet to be exploited commercially The first of these options has traditionally been the most cost-effective. That it still requires the burning of fossil fuels, combined with the rising price for natural gas, however, makes it less attractive as a long-term solution. The second option is simple to establish and can be done on a small or large scale nearest the point where the hydrogen may be needed. However, it also has a major drawback. Although this method has a 98 percent efficiency rate, when you factor in the voltage of the fuel cell, you get back only 40 percent of what you put in There are two powerful arguments for converting electricity into hydrogen, in spite of the inefficiency of the process: The first is the â€Å"use it or lose it† principle. Electrical power itself cannot be stored in its pure form; it needs to be converted to something else. Just as surplus nuclear and gas-fired power stations may store unused power by using it to pump water back up inside a damper as part of an integrated electrical storage system in combination with a hydroelectric power plant, hydrogen can be similarly used to store unused electrical power. Second, electricity stored as hydrogen is versatile. Not only can it be used for re-electrification, it also can potentially be used as fuel for cars or for producing heat. Why Fuel Cells? Fuel cells directly convert the chemical energy in hydrogen to electricity, with pure water and potentially useful heat as the only byproducts. Hydrogen-powered fuel cells are not only pollution-free, but also can have two to three times the efficiency of traditional combustion technologies. A conventional combustion-based power plant typically generates electricity at efficiencies of 33 to 35 percent, while fuel cell systems can generate electricity at efficiencies up to 60 percent (and even higher with cogeneration). The gasoline engine in a conventional car is less than 20% efficient in converting the chemical energy in gasoline into power that moves the vehicle, under normal driving conditions. Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, which use electric motors, are much more energy efficient and use 40-60 percent of the fuels energy — corresponding to more than a 50% reduction in fuel consumption, compared to a conventional vehicle with a gasoline internal combustion engine. In addition, fuel cells operate quietly, have fewer moving parts, and are well suited to a variety of applications. How Do Fuel Cells Work? A single fuel cell consists of an electrolyte sandwiched between two electrodes, an anode and a cathode. Bipolar plates on either side of the cell help distribute gases and serve as current collectors. In a Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (PEM) fuel cell, which most promising for light-duty transportation, hydrogen gas flows through channels to the anode, where a catalyst causes the hydrogen molecules to separate into protons and electrons. The membrane allows only the protons to pass through it. Comparison of Fuel Cell Technologies In general, all fuel cells have the same basic configuration — an electrolyte and two electrodes. But there are different types of fuel cells, classified primarily by the kind of electrolyte used. The electrolyte determines the kind of chemical reactions that take place in the fuel cell, the temperature range of operation, and other factors that determine its most suitable applications.(7)