The Film Industry Of Crisis By Frank O Hara - 1759 Words

Introduction A a result of my keen interest in my Media Studies Course I have chosen to look for a poem that highlights the positive and negative viewpoints on different issues surrounding the film industry. The poem I have found, â€Å"The Film Industry In Crisis† by Frank O’Hara in 1957, comments on the choice audiences must make between â€Å"Glorious Silver Screen† or to the American LEgion or the Catholic church. O’Hara also makes a brief reference to â€Å"give credit where it’s due†, which has lead me to look further into the impacts of Illegal streaming of film. I also wonder about how the viewing experience has been affected by external factors throughout history and what the impacts of developing technology have been on the film industry as a whole. How have changes to technology, including legal streaming sites, influenced the consumption of films? The way films are being made has significantly affected the way films are consumed with the introduction of full colour viewing to the increase in resolution and frame rate of film as a result of digitalisation of film in the early 2000’s. Access to entertainment has also changed with audiences shifting from traditional cinema to smaller more readily accessible methods. Through the early 1900’s cinema ticket sales in the US remained steady, around 80-90 million sales annually (CyberCollege ©). After the introduction of television in 1929, ticket sales began dropping and by the time the 1950’s arrived ticket sales had dropped to

Meaning of Life and Language Free Essays

string(170) " Would you mind getting me a cheese sandwich\? \(intermediate\) Analysis| d\) Anticipated Problems| a\) Meaning \* to request politely that someone do something for you\." Written Assignment 1: Language related tasks Submit : __/__/_____ Length: Between 800 and 1000 words Aim: To develop your ability to look at language (structure, functional language and vocabulary) from the students’ point of view to enable you to prepare thoroughly for language lessons. You should make use of grammar reference books or course books and a monolingual dictionary. Bullet points may be used in this assignment. We will write a custom essay sample on Meaning of Life and Language or any similar topic only for you Order Now TASK: From the box below, select one item from each pair to analyse, and: a) Analyse meaning: Give a clear definition (appropriate for level) of what the item means; focus only on the meaning used in the statement. ) Analyse form and label the parts (using terminology): * Structure – statement/negative/question forms (if applicable); make sure it’s clear which words can be substituted and which are â€Å"set in stone†. * Vocabulary – label the item e. g. adjective, phrasal verb etc; irregular past forms, common collocations, etc. * Functional Language – show which parts are â€Å"set in stone† and which parts can be changed e. g.? Would you mind + verb+ing (present participle) + object? c) Highlight key pronunciation features. Use phonemic script where useful. * word or sentence stress, * weak forms, intonation, * links between sounds, contractions, lost sounds, etc. d) Anticipate problems – think about what problems students might ha ve with the features you listed above. a) What aspects of the meaning might be difficult for students to grasp? Are there other words/structure that express something similar? Does the structure exist in students L1? b) What form-related mistakes might students make when trying to use the item? c) What problems might sts have with particular sounds, word stress or other pronunciation issues? Use your common sense as well as reference sources. ) Imagine your students are not familiar with each language item. Describe a context that would help convey its meaning so that you could elicit the target statement. f) State how you would check students’ understanding of the language item. Write the concept questions you would ask and provide the answers. If a timeline is appropriate, you should also include this. You can include other ways of checking too, if you wish. g) State which reference book(s) or other source(s) you used to obtain the above information. —— Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- Choose ONE example from each pair. The target language has been underlined. ————————————————- 1. ————————————————- I’m meeting Dave for lunch on Sunday. (elementary) 2. ————————————————- If I get the job, I’ll need a new car. (elementary) ————————————————- ——————————————————————————————————– 3. ———â€⠀Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- He shouldn’t have insulted the policeman (upper-intermediate) 4. ————————————————- She might have left already. (upper-intermediate) ————————————————- ——————————————————————————————————– 5. ————————————————- He takes after his mother. (pre-intermediate) 6. ————————————————- She is very sensitive to criticism. (pre-intermediate) ————————————————- ————— —————————————————————————————– 7. ————————————————- How about watching a movie on Friday? (elementary) 8. ————————————————- Do you mind if I open the window? (elementary) ————————————————- ——————————————————————————————————– 9. ————————————————- I would like to try the tropical fruit/fruits on the island. 10. ————————————————- You want teens to have commi tted academic lives? Get real! WORKED EXAMPLE: VOCABULARY Target statement: John’s borrowed $200 from Holly. Intermediate) Analysis| d) Anticipated Problems| a) Meaningto receive and use something that belongs to someone else, and promise to give it back to them later| * Sts use lend instead of borrow| b) Form * to borrow (transitive verb – regular) * borrowed – past simple/past participle * To borrow + something (object) + from (preposition) + somebody/something| * Sts use incorrect preposition i. e. to borrow sthg to so. | c) Pronunciation * stress on 1st syllable borrow /’b? r / * silent â€Å"w† at end * past simple particle â€Å"ed† is pronounced /d/ * preposition â€Å"from† is weak e. g. /fr? /| * sts pronounce silent w at end * incorrect pron of ed /id/ * sts stress 2nd syllable | e) Providing a context/conveying meaning Tell story about my friend John who is always short of money but who always wants the latest technical ob jects e. g. mobile, computer, etc. John saw this new DVD recordable player but didn’t have the money so he asked if Holly, his girlfriend, would give him $200. He promised to pay Holly back at the end of the month when he got paid. She said OK so .. (write on whiteboard) John †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. $200 †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Holly. f) Checking understanding Did Holly give John $200? Yes What for? To buy a new DVD recorder. Is the money a present from Holly? No Will she get her money back? Yes, hopefully g) References â€Å"Macmillan English Dictionary†, Macmillan Publishers Ltd. 2003 â€Å"Practical English Usage†, Michael Swan (OUP, 1980) WORKED EXAMPLE: STRUCTURE Target statement: I used to do exercise regularly. (intermediate) Analysis| d) Anticpated problems| a) MeaningTo say what was true or what happened regularly in the past, especially when you want to emphasize that this is not true or does not happen now. | * Sts might think it refers to present habits, perhaps due to confusion with ‘be + used to + verb+ing’. * Sts may use it for single past events e. . I used to go to the cinema yesterday. * Possible confusion with the lexical verb ‘use’. | b) Form * statement: subj. + used to + verb (bare infinitive)+†¦ * negative: subj. + didn’t use to + verb (bare infinitive)+†¦ * question: Did (auxiliary verb) + subj. + use to + verb (bare infiniti ve) +†¦| * Sts may use past form of second verb, (I used to did exercise †¦) * Sts may forget â€Å"to† (I used do †¦) * Ss may use â€Å"used† instead of â€Å"use† in negative and question forms. (I did/didn’t used to .. )| c) Pronunciation * stress would normally fall on used and 2nd verb i. e. I used to do exercise regularly * weak form of ‘to† sed: /t? / * connected speech: used to /’just? /| * Ss might say /ju:zd tu:/ i. e. stress /d/ in â€Å"used† Ss might not use weak form of â€Å"to† /tu:/ instead of /t? /| e) Providing a context/conveying meaning Tell an anecdote about myself as a 16 year-old. I went running every morning and often went to the gym in the evening (use pictures/mime, if necessary). Then I stopped running and stopped going to the gym when I was about 25. I’m now 30 and I don’t do much exercise at all. So, â€Å"I †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ (try to elicit the target phrase) †¦ used to do exercise regularly. † f) Checking Understanding: Did I exercise in the past? Yes Did I do it once, or often? Often Do I exercise now? No Can you think of something you used to do but don’t do now? g) Reference: â€Å"Practical English Usage†, Michael Swan (OUP, 1980) â€Å"Macmillan English Dictionary†, Macmillan Publishers Ltd. 2003 WORKED EXAMPLE: FUNCTIONAL LANGUAGE Target statement: Would you mind getting me a cheese sandwich? (intermediate) Analysis| d) Anticipated Problems| a) Meaning * to request politely that someone do something for you. You read "Meaning of Life and Language" in category "Essay examples" * Often used with slightly bigger requests or more distance in relationship between the speakers. * Answer: Yes = no and no = yes. * Sts might not realise there are other less complex ways to ask for things politely * Sts get the answer yes/no wrong * This structure suggests a bigger request or a less personal relationship between speakers. | b) Form * Would you mind + verb+ing (present participle) + object? * Short answer: Yes/ No, subj. + would/wouldn’t| * Sts use infinitive instead of present participle e. g. Would you mind to get me †¦? * Sts use â€Å"Do† instead of â€Å"would† * Use Yes/No, I mind/don’t mind as the short answer| c) Pronunciation * Rising intonation * Stress on â€Å"mind† and â€Å"getting† * Weak form of would and you / w? / /j? / * Linking of would + you + mind /w? dj? ’ma? n/| * Sts say it forcefully or with flat intonation and it could sound impolite * Sts give equal stress to would+you+mind and don’t link| e) Providing a context/conveying meaning Jane has just started working for a new company. One of her new colleagues is going out to the local supermarket and asks her if she wants her to get her something for lunch. Jane is really hungry and ask her to get her a sandwich. What does she say? (Try to elicit â€Å"Would you mind getting me a cheese sandwich? †) f) Checking Understanding: Does Jane want a cheese s andwich? Yes Is she asking or demanding her colleague to get her a sandwich? Asking Is she polite? Yes Do you know another way to ask her to get a sandwich? Can/Could/Would you get me a †¦.? g) Reference: â€Å"Practical English Usage†, Michael Swan (OUP, 1980) â€Å"Macmillan English Dictionary†, Macmillan Publishers Ltd. 2003 Written Assignment 1: Language related tasks Length: Between 800 and 1000 words ————————————————- Name:Date: ————————————————- Please submit this cover sheet with your assignment | Pass(first draft)| Pass(second draft)| Fail| Assignment 1: Language related tasks| | | | If necessary, please resubmit by:See reverse side for resubmission details. | ————————————————- Assignment criteria ————————————————- For this assignment, candidates can demonstrate their learning by: a. ————————————————- Analysing language correctly for teaching purposes. b. ————————————————- Correctly using terminology relating to form, meaning and phonology when analysing language. c. ——————————————â⠂¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- Accessing reference materials and referencing information they have learned about language to an appropriate source. d. ————————————————- Using written language that is clear, accurate and appropriate to the task. ————————————————- Reference: CELTA Syllabus and Assessment Guidelines What are we looking for? An assignment that shows an ability to:| You| Overall| a. Clarify the meaning of language appropriate for level. | | | b. Clarify the form of language, using appropriate terminology. | | | c. Clarify key pronunciation features of language. | | d. Identify potential problems with meaning, form and pronunciation. | | | e. Provide a clear and appropriate context to help convey the meaning. | | | f. Check the students’ understanding of the target language ap propriately. | | | g. Use reference books to analyse language and acknowledge these sources. | | | Also the assignment †¦| | Is complete, i. e. answers all sections, and adheres to the word limit. | | Uses language which is clear and coherent, and essentially free of mistakes in spelling, punctuation and grammar. | | Is presented clearly. | | Overall Comments:| ———————————————— 1st Tutor’s signature:Date: ————————————————- 2nd Tutor’s signature:Date: ————————————————- Circle: This is my 1st submission. This is my 2nd submission. Written Assignment 2: Focus on the learner Submit: __/__/____ Length: Between 800 and 1000 words Aim: To de velop your ability to assess the needs of a group of learners, and to act on this information by finding appropriate material for language support. Task: Prepare a case study of your TP group. Your report should include (250-300 words): . Information about the students’ backgrounds (approximate ages, nationalities, reasons for learning English, previous English learning experience) b. The students’ learning styles (what they like/dislike in lessons, the things they find easy/difficult, how they like to learn) c. What YOU have noticed in their classroom behaviour (degree of participation, quantity or output in different stages of the lesson, fluency/accuracy of output, similarity of level amongst the group) ————————————————- Points a, b and c of the assignment should take the form of a REPORT. You should use a formal style of language. Make use of headings and sub-headings, paragraphs, linking words, etc to organise your work. d. A paragraph (150-200) words summarising your TP students’ main strengths in grammatical and phonological areas as well as in receptive skills. e. Identify 2 areas of weakness in your students’ grammar, 1 in pronunciation and 1 in vocabulary, providing at least one example to support your observation. State why you think the students made this error and what the correct form should be. (250–300 words) Point e can be put into boxes and bullet points can be used. Remember to include specific examples. Grammatical Weaknesses| Incorrect word order * I work also on Saturdays (I also work) * I went often home (home by bus)Reason: In German, the verb is usually the second idea in the sentence and students have transferred this rule to English. | f. Select 2 specific language focused activities (100-200 words) from published materials (not your course book) to focus on areas of weakness you identified: * 1 exercise/task focusing on grammatical areas of weakness AND * 1 exercise/task on phonological areas of weakness OR 1 exercise/task on the lexical weakness. For EACH activity: ) state the aim of the activity (i. e. by the end of this task, students should be better able to accurately use/discriminate between †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ ) 2) state briefly why you think the activity would be suitable for your students. (Remember to link this to your weaknesses and your profile of the students. ) 3) State where it comes from (Book, Author, Pg no. , Exercise no. ) and attach a referenced a copy of the activity Collecting your data: You will want to interview them so that you can note any good or weaker examples of language used. You might want to tape the interview so that you can identify language later. You could also get students to write something for you spontaneously e. g. a letter to a friend inviting them to spend the summer with them. You could also give them a reading and listening to do. You can further make use of the time before lessons start or during the breaks to chat to your students and find out the information you need. You should continue to make notes during TP classes. It is not necessary for you to personally interview all members of the class; you can interview 2 or 3 students and then share your findings with the other teachers in your TP group. You can also make generalisations on the basis of 2 or 3 students. Suggesting specific language focused activities: There are an abundance of activities in different books and on the publisher’s websites too. Attach photocopies of the relevant exercises that you would recommend. Don’t forget to reference your material, i. e. book name, level (if applicable), author, publisher, and page number, or website name and date accessed on. ————————————————- The students as people and as language learners. ————————————————- These questions could be asked in an interview or informal chat 1. ————————————————- How long has s/he been learning English? 2. ————————————————- Does s/he like learning English? 3. ————————————————- What is her/his mother tongue? Is English second/third language? 4. ————————————————- Does s/he have any experience of learning another language? 5. ————————————————- Does s/he have any specific aims in learning English? (e. g. isit to U K/need it for work) 6. ————————————————- What does the learner do for a living? 7. ————————————————- Is this their first English learning experience? Have they learnt English before? Where? How long? 8. ————————————————- In their previous learning experience, what kinds of methods were used? 9. ————————————————- What did they enjoy/not like about their previous learning? 10. ————————————————- What do they like doing in class? 11. â⠂¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€ Which areas of their English do they feel they need work on? 12. ————————————————- What do they find easy/difficult to do in class? ————————————————- ————————————————- These questions can be focussed on during TP 1. ————————————————- What kinds of activities do they seem to prefer? 2. ————————————————- Are the re any activities they seem to dislike? 3. ————————————————- How do they react to working with others in class? 4. ————————————————- Do they contribute to pair/group work? 5. ————————————————- Who are the stronger/weaker members of the group? 6. ————————————————- Note down examples of good language used. 7. ————————————————- Which topics do they seem to enjoy/not like talking about? 8. ————————————————- Note down any pronunciation/grammatical/lexical errors the students make? e. g. sounds, stre ss, intonation, verb tenses, articles, word order, etc) so that you can give examples. 9. ————————————————- Observe the students listening and reading abilities. Are they better at gist or specific reading/listening? Is it necessary to pre-teach vocabulary? Do they worry about words they don’t know? Do you have to grade your language when you talk to them? Do you have to paraphrase if they don’t understand? * In the assignment, don’t mention sts’ names. Say e. g. Some are interested in†¦ Three students want to learn English†¦ The main reason for learning English is†¦ Written Assignment 2: Focus on the learner Submit: __/__/____ Length: Between 800 and 1000 words ————————————————- Name:Date: Please submit this cover sheet with your assignment | Pass(first draft)| Pass(second draft)| Fail| Assignment 2Focus on the learner| | | | If necessary, please resubmit by:| ————————————————- Assignment Criteria ————————————————- For this assignment, candidates can demonstrate their learning by: ————————————————- ) Showing awareness of how learners’ backgrounds, previ ous learning experience and learning styles affect learning. ————————————————- b) Identifying the learners’ language/skills needs. ————————————————- c) Correctly using terminology relating to the description of language systems and language skills ————————————————- d) Selecting appropriate material and/or resources to aid the learners’ language development. ————————————————- e) Providing a rationale for using specific activities with learners. —————————— Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€ f) Finding, selecting and referencing information from one or more sources ————————————————- g) Using written language that is clear, accurate and appropriate to task. ————————————————- Reference: CELTA Syllabus and Assessment Guidelines What are we looking for? An assignment that†¦| You| Tutor’s Comments| Provides information on the learners’ ages, nationalities and reasons for learning English. | | | Provides information on students’ learning styles and preferences. | | Provides information on learners’ classroom behaviour. | | | Summarises students’ strengths | | | Identifies and gives specific examples of weaknesses in learners’ grammatical abilities. Plus error rationale . | | | Identifies and gives specific examples of weaknesses in learners’ phonological abilities. Plus error rationale. | | | Identifies and gives specific examples of weaknesses in the learners’ lexical use. Plus error rationale. | | | Selects an appropriate activity to develop learners’ grammatical weakness. | | | Selects an appropriate activity to develop learners’ phonological OR lexical weakness. | | States aim of each activity and provides rationale for choice based on learner profile. | | | Also the assignment †¦| | | Is complete, i. e. answers all sections and adheres to word limit and is written as outlined| | | Provides a referenced copy of the activities| | | Uses clear and coherent language and is essentially free of mistakes in spelling, punctuation and grammar. | | | ————————————————- Overall Comment:———â €”————————————- ————————————————- ————————————————- ———————————————— | ————————————————- 1st Tutor’s signature:Date: ————————————————- 2nd Tutor’s signature:Date: ————————————————- Circle: This is my 1st submission. This is my 2nd submission. ASSIGNMENT 3: Skills Related Task Submit: __/__/____ Length: Between 800 and 1000 words (not including the authentic material for classroom use and activities) Aim: To develop your ability to look at authentic materials from a teaching perspective to enable you to prepare these thoroughly for language lessons. TASK: Choose an authentic text of between 200 and 700 words AND a) Give an opinion on text and discuss suitability for lower/higher level students. b) Identifiy barriers to reading OR listening in general and link to own students c) Provide suggestion for interest raising task d) Select appropriate vocabulary to pre-teach and suggest a pre-teach task e) Describe what each sub-skill means (from background reading) f) Design a skim task g) Design a scan task h) Design a follow-up task that includes SPEAKING or WRITING. i) Devise a freer productive (speaking or writing) activity as a follow-up for the reading or listening. ALSO†¦ Clarify the reasons for using the material and each of the activities. Tasks (and their respective keys) must be included as appendixes to the assignment Remember, the assignment is NOT a Lesson Plan, but rather an informed description (What will be done, How and Why) of your choices in terms of text, tasks and their sequences. It can be used as a basis for a full lesson plan, but this NEED not be included in the assignment ASSIGNMENT 3: Skills Related Task Submit: __/__/____ Length: Between 800 and 1000 words ————————————————- Name:Date: ———————————————— Please submit this cover sheet with your assignment | Pass(first draft)| Pass(second draft)| Fail| Assignment 3Skills assignment| | | | If necessary, please resubmit by:See reverse for resubmission de tails. | ————————————————- Assignment Criteria ————————————————- For this assignment, candidates can demonstrate their learning by: a. ————————————————- Correctly using terminology that relates to language skills and sub-skills. b. ————————————————- Relating task design to language skills practice. c. ————————————————- Finding, selecting and referencing information from one or more sources d. ————————————————- Using written language that is clear, accurate and appropriate to task. ————————————————- Reference: CELTA Syllabus and Assessment Guidelines What are we looking for? | You| Tutor’s Comments| Gives an opinion on text and discusses suitability for lower/higher level students| | | Provides suggestion for interest raising task| | | Selects appropriate vocabulary to pre-teach and suggests a pre-teach task| | | Describes what each sub-skill means (from background reading)| | | Designs a skim task| | | Designs a scan task| | | Identifies barriers to reading OR listening in general and links to own students| | | States overall aim of speaking OR writing task clearly. | | | Also the assignment †¦| | | Is complete, i. e. answers all sections, adheres to the word limit. | | | Provides a referenced copy of practice tasks if not designed independently. | | | Uses clear and coherent language, which is essentially free of mistakes in spelling, punctuation and grammar. | | Is written in continuous prose (where appropriate)| | | Includes references to background reading. | | | Overall Comments:| ————————————————- 1st Tutor’s signature:Date: ———————†”————————- 2nd Tutor’s signature:Date: ————————————————- Circle: This is my 1st submission. This is my 2nd submission. Written Assignment 4: Lessons from the Classroom Submit: __/__/____ Length: 800 words AIM This assignment assesses your ability to identify strengths weaknesses in your own teaching and your development needs. It is meant to help you reflect on your own teaching and on what you have learnt from the observation of others. TASK Write a report using the following headings. Section 1 What strengths and weaknesses (name two of each) do you identify in your own teaching? For this section reflect on the feedback you have received from learners, your peers and tutors and give concrete examples from your own teaching. Section 2 Discuss what you have gained from observing experienced teachers (including video observations) and your peers and how this has influenced your own teaching. Section 3 Identify three ELT areas of knowledge and skills which you need further development in and give reasons for your choice. Describe specifically how you could develop in these areas after the course. Written Assignment 4: Lessons from the Classroom Submit: __/__/____ Length: 800 words ————————————————- Name:Date: ————————————————- Please submit this cover sheet with your assignment | Pass(first draft)| Pass(second draft)| Fail| Assignment 4Lessons from the classroom| | | | If necessary, please resubmit by:See reverse side for resubmission details. ————————————————- Assignment Criteria ————————— ———————- For this assignment, candidates can demonstrate their learning by: a. ————————————————- Noting their own teaching strengths and weaknesses in different situation in light of feedback from learners, teachers and teacher educators. b. ————————————————- Identifying which ELT areas of knowledge and skills they need further development in. c. ————————————————- Describing in a specific way how they might develop their ELT knowledge and skills beyond the course. d. ————————————————- Using written language that is clear, accurate and appropriate to the task. ————————————————- Reference: CELTA Syllabus and Assessment Guidelines What are we looking for? An assignment that:| Tutor’s Comments| Identifies 2 strengths in your teaching. | | Provides concrete examples of strengths from your own teaching. | | Identifies 2 weaknesses in your teaching. | | Provides concrete examples of weaknesses from your own teaching. | Reflects on what you have learnt from observing peers and experienced teachers. | | Highlights 3 areas for further development. | | Provides reasons for areas chosen. | | Provides concrete ways to address the se development needs after the course. | | Also the assignment †¦| | Is complete, i. e. answers all sections. | | Keeps to the word limit. | | Uses language which is clear and coherent, and essentially free of mistakes in spelling, punctuation and grammar. | | Is presented clearly. Makes use of headings and sub-headings| | Overall Comments:| How to cite Meaning of Life and Language, Essay examples

Cover Page Format free essay sample

Bangalore Aditya Kumar Jha 10RNSB5030 THE OXFORD COLLEGE OF SCIENCE (Affiliated to Bangalore University) BANGALORE – 560102 DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE amp; APPLICATIONS CERTIFICATE The forgoing software entitled â€Å"Car Showroom Management System† is presented in manner satisfactory to warrant its acceptance prerequisite to the award of Bachelor of Computer Applications degree, for which it has been submitted. It is understood by this approval that the undersigned do not  endorse or approve any statements made, opinion expressed or conclusion shown therein but approve the software for the purpose it has been submitted. Signature of faculty in charge Signature of Head of the Department Mrs. Vinita Tapaskar, MCA Dr. J Sebastian Nixon PHD, MCSE Name of ExaminerSignature of Examiner 1. 2: Acknowledgment We are extremely grateful and remain indebted to Mrs. Vinita Tapaskar (Project Coordinator) for being a source of inspiration and for her constant support in the Des ign, Implementation and Evaluation of the project. We are thankful to her for her constant constructive criticism and invaluable suggestions, which benefited us a lot while developing the project on â€Å"CAR SHOWROOM MANAGEMENT SYSTEM†. We will write a custom essay sample on Cover Page Format or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page She has been a constant source of inspiration and motivation for hard work. She has been very cooperative throughout this project work. Through this column, it would be our utmost pleasure to express our warm thanks to her for her encouragement, cooperation and consent without which we might not be able to accomplish this project. She has given us constructive suggestions and encouragements in developing the â€Å"Car Showroom Management System†. Thanks are also due to Dr. Prof. Elsamma Thomas Varicatt, Principal, The Oxford College of Science, our H. O. D Mr. J. S Nixon and all my teachers for their valuable guidance and their tireless effort in supporting us throughout the course of our study here in the institute. Without their kind support and inspiration, this project would not have resulted the way it is now. We also express sincere thanks to our friends and classmates who were always there for us to help in every possible way. Above all we would like to thank The Almighty God for all the blessings that he had bestowed upon us for giving us the courage and wisdom to face challenges. Thanking you, Aditya Kumar Jha Reg. No: 10RNSB5030 The Oxford College of Science (Affiliated to Bangalore University) Bangalore – 560102 Preface This project â€Å"Car Showroom Management System † gives us the complete information about the Car Showroom. We can enter the record of new cars and retrieve the details of cars available in the showroom. This project is a software application that aims to automate and minimize the traditional way of record keeping, tabulating in particular to Car Showroom’s and hence named as â€Å"CAR SHOWROOM MANAGEMENT SYSTEM†. Well this project incorporates the idea of automation and tries to reduce the man power involved in a showroom. With the help of this software one can easily retrieve all the information regarding a particular car or a particular member that has been registered in the system. It is also possible to retrieve the records of cars that are available or not. The software also enables a user to monitor and access information with just a click of a mouse. Throughout the project the focus has been on presenting information and comments in an easy and intelligible manner. The project is very useful for those who want to know about Car Showroom Management System.

Natural Disaster Essay Example

Natural Disaster Essay Ð ¡ellour india suffring from many disaster but mast important disaster is natural disaster . natural disaster is the impact of the human causing the wasteage of natural resoures andusing it very widly range becaus of using natural resoures in bulk amount it harmes pur planet as well as our country . the goverment should take action toward those industries which use the natural resoures in wide range. ande give them punishment to them and save our planet from natural disaters. A natural disaster is the effect of a natural hazard (e. g. flood, tornado, hurricane, volcanic eruption, earthquake, or landslide) that affects the environment, and leads to financial, environmental and/or human losses. The resulting loss depends on the capacity of the population to support or resist the disaster, and their resilience. [1] This understanding is concentrated in the formulation: disasters occur when hazards meet vulnerability. [2] A natural hazard will hence never result in a natural disaster i n areas without vulnerability, e. g. strong earthquakes in uninhabited areas. The term natural has consequently been disputed because the events simply are not hazards or disasters without human involvement. [3] Natural disasters which occur the movement of plate tectonics are earthquakes, volcanoes, geyser eruptions and tsunami. movement disasters [edit]Avalanches Avalanche on the backside (East) of Mt. Timpanogos, Utah at Aspen Grove trail Notable avalanches include: The 1910 Wellington avalanche The 1954 Blons avalanches The 1999 Galtur Avalanche The 2002 Kolka-Karmadon rock ice slide The 2010 Pacaya Volcano ash disaster [edit]Earthquakes Main article: Earthquake An Earthquake is a sudden shake of the Earths crust caused by the tectonic plates colliding. The vibrations may vary in magnitude. The underground point of origin of the earthquake is called the focus. The point directly above the focus on the surface is called theepicenter. Earthquakes by themselves rarely kill people or wildlife. It is usually the secondary events that they trigger, such as building collapse, fires, tsunamis (seismic sea waves) and volcanoes, that are actually the human disaster. Many of these could possibly be avoided by better construction, safety systems, early warning and evacuation planning. We will write a custom essay sample on Natural Disaster specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Natural Disaster specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Natural Disaster specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Earthquakes are caused by the discharge of energy accumulated along geologic fault. [edit]Lahars A lahar is a volcanic mudflow or landslide. The 1953 Tangiwai disaster was caused by a lahar, as was the 1985 Armero tragedy in which the town of Armero was buried and an estimated 23,000 people were killed. [edit]Volcanic eruptions Main article: Types of volcanic eruptions See also: Worlds largest eruptions Puu Oo An Eruption may in itself be a disaster due to the explosion of the volcano or the fall of rock but there are several effects that may happen after an eruption that are also hazardous to human life. Lava may be produced during the eruption of a volcano a material consisting of superheated rock. There are several different forms which may be either crumbly or gluey. Leaving the volcano this destroys any buildings and plants it encounters. Volcanic ash generally meaning the cooled ash may form a cloud, and settle thickly in nearby locations. When mixed with water this forms a concrete like material. In sufficient quantity ash may cause roofs to collapse under its weight but even small quantities will cause ill health if inhaled. Since the ash has the consistency of ground glass it causes abrasion damage to moving parts such as engines. Supervolcanoes : According to the Toba catastrophe theory 70 to 75 thousand years ago a super volcanic event at Lake Toba reduced the human population to 10,000 or even 1,000 breeding pairs creating a bottleneck in human evolution. It also killed three quarters of all plant life in the northern hemisphere. The main danger from a supervolcano is the immense cloud of ash which has a disastrous global effect on climate and temperature for many years. Pyroclastic flows consist of a cloud of hot volcanic ash which builds up in the air above under its own weight and streams very rapidly from the mountain burning anything in its path. It is believed that Pompeii was destroyed by a pyroclastic flow. [edit]Water disasters [edit]Floods Main article: List of floods The Limpopo River, in southern Mozambique, during the 2000 Mozambique flood Some of the most notable floods include: The 2010 Pakistan floods, damaged crops and the infrastructure, while claiming many lives. The Huang He (Yellow River) in China floods particularly often. The Great Flood of 1931 caused between 800,000 and 4,000,000 deaths. The Great Flood of 1993 was one of the most costly floods in United States history. The 1998 Yangtze River Floods, also in China, left 14 million people homeless. The 2000 Mozambique flood covered much of the country for three weeks, resulting in thousands of deaths, and leaving the country devastated for years afterward. Tropical cyclones can result in extensive flooding and storm surge, as happened with: Bhola Cyclone, striking East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) in 1970, Typhoon Nina, striking China in 1975, Tropical Storm Allison, which struck Houston, Texas in 2001 and Hurricane Katrina, which left most of New Orleans under water in 2005. Much of the flooding was due to the failure of the citys levee system. [edit]Limnic eruptions A cow suffocated by gases from Lake Nyos after a limnic eruption A limnic eruption occurs when a gas, usually CO2 suddenly erupts from deep lake water, posing the threat of suffocating wildlife, livestock and humans. Such an eruption may also cause tsunamis in the lake as the rising gas displaces water. Scientists believe landslides, volcanic activity, or explosions can trigger such an eruption. To date, only two limnic eruptions have been observed and recorded: In 1984, in Cameroon, a limnic eruption in Lake Monoun caused the deaths of 37 nearby residents. At nearby Lake Nyos in 1986 a much larger eruption killed between 1,700 and 1,800 people by asphyxiation. [edit]Tsunami The tsunami caused by the December 26, 2004, earthquake strikes Ao Nang, Thailand. Tsunamis can be caused by undersea earthquakes as the one caused in Ao Nang, Thailand, by the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake, or by landslides such as the one which occurred at Lituya Bay, Alaska. Ao Nang, Thailand (2004). The 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake created the Boxing Day Tsunami and disaster at this site. Lituya Bay, Alaska (1953). A mega-tsunami occurred here, the largest ever recorded. (This also fits within the Land movement disaster category because it started with an earthquake. ) See also 2010 Chile earthquake on October 26, 2010, a tsunami occurred at Sumatra, Indonesia [edit]Weather disasters Main article: Meteorological disasters Young steer after a blizzard, March 1966 [edit]Blizzards Significant blizzards in the United States include: The Great Blizzard of 1888 The Schoolhouse Blizzard earlier the same year The Armistice Day Blizzard in 1940 The Storm of the Century in 1993 [edit]Cyclonic storms Main articles: Tropical cyclone and Cyclone Cyclone, tropical cyclone, hurricane, and typhoon are different names for the same phenomenon a cyclonic storm system that forms over the oceans. The deadliest hurricane ever was the 1970 Bhola cyclone; the deadliest Atlantic hurricane was the Great Hurricane of 1780 which devastated Martinique, St. Eustatius and Barbados. Another notable hurricane is Hurricane Katrina which devastated the Gulf Coast of the United States in 2005. [edit]Droughts Well-known historical droughts include: 1900 India killing between 250,000 and 3. 25 million. 1921-22 Soviet Union in which over 5 million perished from starvation due to drought 1928-30 northwest China resulting in over 3 million deaths by famine. 1936 and 1941 Sichuan Province China resulting in 5 million and 2. 5 million deaths respectively. As of 2006, states of Australia including Western Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland had been under drought conditions for five to ten years. The drought is beginning to affect urban area populations for the first time. In 2006, Sichuan Province China experienced its worst drought in modern times with nearly 8 million people and over 7 million cattle facing water shortages. [edit]Hailstorms Hailstorms (AKA hailstones) are rain drops that have formed together into ice. A particularly damaging hailstorm hit Munich, Germany, on July 12, 1984, causing about 2 billion dollars in insurance claims. [edit]Heat waves The worst heat wave in recent history was the European Heat Wave of 2003. Hurricane Katrina A summer heat wave in Victoria, Australia, caused the massive bushfires in 2009. Melbourne experienced three days in a row of temperatures exceeding 40Â °C. The bushfire, otherwise known as Black Saturday was also started intentionally. [edit]Tornadoes Main article: Tornado Different Types of Tornadoes: Supercell Tornadoes Main article: Supercell Some of the most violent tornadoes develop from supercell thunderstorms. A supercell thunderstorm is a long-lived thunderstorm possessing within its structure a continuously rotating updraft of air. These storms have the greatest tendency to produce tornadoes, some of the huge wedge shape. The supercell thunderstorm has a low-hanging, rotating layer of cloud known as a wall cloud. It looks somewhat like a layer of a layer cake that hangs below the broader cloud base. One side of the wall cloud is often rain-free, while the other is neighbored by dense shafts of rain. The rotating updraft of the supercell is seen on radar as a mesocyclone. The tornadoes that accompany supercell thunderstorms are more likely to remain in contact with the ground for long periods of time—an hour or more—than other tornadoes, and are more likely to be violent, with winds exceeding-200 mph. Landspout Main article: Landspout Generally weaker than a supercell tornado, a landspout is not associated with a wall cloud or mesocyclone. It may be observed beneath cumulonimbus or towering cumulus clouds and is the land equivalent of a waterspout. It often forms along the leading edge of rain-cooled downdraft air emanating from a thunderstorm, known as a gust front. Gustnado Main article: Gustnado Weak and usually short-lived, a gustnado forms along the gust front of a thunderstorm, appearing as a temporary dust whirl or debris cloud. There may be no apparent connection to or circulation in the cloud aloft. These appear like dust devils. Waterspout A waterspout is a tornado over water. A few form from supercell thunderstorms, but many form from weak thunderstorms or rapidly growing cumulus clouds. Waterspouts are usually less intense and causes far less damage. Rarely more than fifty yards wide, it forms over warm tropical ocean waters, although its funnel is made of freshwater droplets condensed from water vapor from condensation not saltwater from the ocean. Waterspouts usually dissipate upon reaching land. The following are tornado-like circulations Dust Devils Main article: Dust devil Dry, hot, clear days on the desert or over dry land can bring about dust devils. Generally forming in the hot sun during the late morning or early afternoon hours, these mostly harmless whirlwinds are triggered by light desert breezes that create a swirling plume of dust with speeds rarely over 70 mph. These differ from tornadoes in that they are not associated with a thunderstorm (or any cloud), and are usually weaker than the weakest tornado. Typically, the life cycle of a dust devil is a few minutes or less, although they can last much longer. Although usually harmless, they have been known to cause minor damage. They can blow vehicles off the road and could damage your eyes by blowing dust into them. Firewhirls Main article: Fire whirl Sometimes the intense heat created by a major forest fire or volcanic eruption can create what is known as a firewhirl, a tornado-like rotating column of smoke and/or fire. This happens when the fire updraft concentrates some initial weak whirl or eddy in the wind. Winds associated with firewhirls have been estimated at over 100 mph. They are sometimes called fire tornadoes, fire devils, or even firenadoes. 4] [edit]Fire Main article: List of forest fires Wildfires are an uncontrolled fire burning in wildland areas. Common causes include lightning and drought but wildfires may also be started by human negligence or arson. They can be a threat to those in rural areas and also wildlife. Notable cases of wildfires were the 1871 Peshtigo Fire in the United States, which killed at least 1700 peo ple, and the 2009 Victorian bushfires in Australia. [edit]Health and diseases [edit]Epidemic Main article: List of epidemics The A H5N1 virus, which causes Avian influenza An epidemic is an outbreak of a contractible disease that spreads at a rapid rate through a human population. A pandemic is an epidemic whose spread is global. There have been many epidemics throughout history, such as Black Death. In the last hundred years, significant pandemics include: The 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, killing an estimated 50 million people worldwide The 1957-58 Asian flu pandemic, which killed an estimated 1 million people The 1968-69 Hong Kong flu pandemic The 2002-3 SARS pandemic The AIDS epidemic, beginning in 1959 The H1N1 Influenza (Swine Flu) Pandemic 2009-2010 Other diseases that spread more slowly, but are still considered to be global health emergencies by the WHO include: XDR TB, a strain of tuberculosis that is extensively resistant to drug treatments Malaria, which kills an estimated 1. 6 million people each year Ebola hemorrhagic fever, which has claimed hundreds of victims in Africa in several outbreaks [edit]Famine Main article: List of famines In modern times, famine has hit Sub-Saharan Africa the hardest, although the number of victims of modern famines is much smaller than the number of people killed by the Asian famines of the 20th century. edit]Space Fallen trees caused by the Tunguska meteoroid of the Tunguska event in June 1908. [edit]Gamma ray bursts Main article: gamma ray burst Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are flashes of gamma rays associated with extremely energetic explosions in distant galaxies. They are the most luminous electromagnetic events known to occur in the universe. Bursts can last from milliseconds to several min utes, although a typical burst lasts a few seconds. The initial burst is usually followed by a longer-lived afterglow emitted at longer wavelengths (X-ray, ultraviolet, optical, infrared and radio). Most observed GRBs are believed to be a narrow beam of intense radiation released during a supernova event, as a rapidly rotating, high-mass star collapses to form a black hole. A subclass of GRBs (the short bursts) appear to originate from a different process, possibly the merger of binary neutron stars. The sources of most GRBs are billions of light years away from Earth, implying that the explosions are both extremely energetic (a typical burst releases as much energy in a few seconds as the Sun will in its entire 10 billion year lifetime) and extremely rare (a few per galaxy per million years[1]). All observed GRBs have originated from outside the Milky Way galaxy, although a related class of phenomena, soft gamma repeater flares, are associated with magnetars within the Milky Way. It has been hypothesized that a gamma-ray burst in the Milky Way could cause a mass extinction on Earth. [2] GRBs were first detected in 1967 by the Vela satellites, a series of satellites designed to detect covert nuclear weapons tests. Hundreds of theoretical models were proposed to explain these bursts in the years following their discovery, such as collisions between comets and neutron stars. 3] Little information was available to verify these models until the 1997 detection of the first X-ray and optical afterglows and direct measurement of their redshifts using optical spectroscopy. These discoveries, and subsequent studies of the galaxies and supernovae associated with the bursts, clarified the distance and luminosity of GRBs, definitively placing them in distant galaxies and connecting long GRBs with the deaths of massive stars. [edit]Impact events Main article: impact event One of the largest impact events in modern times was the Tunguska event in June 1908. edit]Solar flares Main article: solar flare A solar flare is a phenomenon where the sun suddenly releases a great amount of solar radiation, much more than normal. Some known solar flares include: An X20 event on August 16, 1989 A similar flare on April 2, 2001 The most powerful flare ever recorded, on November 4, 2003, estimated at between X40 and X45 The most powerful flare in the past 500 years is believed to have occurred in September 1859 [edit]Supernovae and hypernovae Main articles: supernova and hypernova [edit]Future of natural disasters The United Kingdom based charity Oxfam publicly stated that the number of people hit by climate-related disasters is expected to rise by about 50%, to reach 375 million a year by 2015. [5] British defence secretary Liam Fox has pubilicly warned that a massive solar flare may occur in 2013, causing widespread damage to the worlds electronic and communications infrastructures. [6] [edit]Insurance Natural disasters play a major role in the insurance industry, which pays for certain damages arising from hurricanes, wildfires, and other catastrophes. Large reinsurance companies are particularly involved. [7]

Could Medical Services Management be for You

Could Medical Services Management be for You Are you interested in a health care career, but want to go a different route than practicing medicine and handling patient care? A great and lucrative option is a career as a medical services manager.  Behind the scenes of any medical facility–whether it be an office, a clinic, a hospital, or an assisted living center–is someone in charge of logistics, making the wheels turn and the operations run smoothly. A medical services manager oversees many aspects of a medical facility: billing, patient flow, scheduling, hiring, and much more. As the health care system continues to change rapidly with evolving technology, more demand for preventative care, and constant shifts in national regulations, someone on staff must be in charge to manage the constant flow of people and information.And it’s a career on the rise: the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that demand for the profession will rise 23% in the next 8 years.Think of the medical services manager as the glue that holds a center together–a master planner and organizer who who handles the day-to-day business, making it easier for medical professionals to tend to patients.Consider this rewarding and lucrative position in the health care field if you want to play a role shaping the future of the industry.

Digression Definition and Examples

Digression Definition and Examples Digression is the act of departing from the main subject in speech or writing to discuss an apparently unrelated topic. In classical rhetoric, digression was often considered one of the divisions of an argument or the parts of a speech. In A Dictionary of Literary Devices (1991), Bernard Dupriez notes that digression does not particularly make for clarity. It . . . easily becomes verbiage. Observations About Digression Digression, according to Cicero, had been put by Hermagoras . . . in the speech, between the refutation and the conclusion. It might involve praise or blame of individuals, comparison with other cases, or something that emphasized or amplified the subject at hand. Thus it is not literally a digression. Cicero criticizes the requirement as a formal rule and says such treatment should be interwoven into the argument. Ironically, ethical digressions of the sort here described are very characteristic of his greatest speeches.(Source: George Kennedy, Classical Rhetoric, 2nd ed. Univ. of North Carolina Press, 1999)Its Christian and Secular TraditionDigression in Classical Oratory[A]mong other functions, the digression in classical oratory served as a formal transition and in this capacity became incorporated into medieval and Renaissance arts of preaching. For Quintilian a digression outside the five divisions of the speech reflected an emotional detour; and indeed, from the early rhetoric ians, digression was associated with the extra breath of the furor poeticus, the inspired passion which excites emotion in the listener, which touches and persuades.(Source: Anne Cotterill, Digressive Voices in Early Modern English Literature. Oxford Univ. Press, 2004) But I digress-You are no doubt enlightened, he inserted in a gracious tone, but contrary to urban legend, there is actually an entire underworld of Christians who are normal, alert, engaged, even a good time. Many are very smart, well educated, even leaders in their fields. These are people who participate in real life and the open-minded discussions about it. I have met some of them in reading and in person. He grinned. But I digress.-Grinning, too, I could not help but think of Lord Byrons pronouncement that in life there exists no such thing as a digression.(Source: Carolyn Weber, Surprised by Oxford: A Memoir. Thomas Nelson, 2011)Digression is the soul of wit. Take the philosophic asides away from Dante, Milton, or Hamlets fathers ghost and what stays is dry bones.(Source: Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451, 1953)Robert Burton on Delightful DigressionsOf which imagination, because it hath so great a stroke in producing this malady, and is so powerful of itself, it will not be improper to my discourse, to make a brief digression, and speak of the force of it, and how it causeth this alteration. Which manner of digression, howsoever some dislike, as frivolous and impertinent, yet I am of Beroalduss opinion, Such digressions do mightily delight and refresh a weary reader, they are like sauce to a bad stomach, and I do therefore most willingly use them.(Source Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy, 1621) Also Known As: digressio, the straggler

Data wharehousing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Data wharehousing - Essay Example This is a concept of OLAP mainly used when it’s being related to data mining. This is possible through pre-aggregation, an aspect of relational databases in that they not only facilitate the creation of tables, but also can manipulate them together with the data they contain. Pre-aggregation in connection with OLAP basically explains how factual information, in this sense data that has been collected can be used to come up with probability estimations used for distribution (Kozielski & Wrembel, 2009). Data mining is a concept that has been confused with OLAP for a while. These two terms, though different have been used synonymously to refer to the other. However, these are two similar but different terms when viewed critically. Data mining is a data knowledge discovery mechanism that aims at identifying, from a pool of data, sets of useful and important data that may have been ignored, classifies the data in relation to the whole set and associates it to its class. This data a nalysis concept focuses mainly on dividing the existing data into small manageable sets, as regards their relationship. On the other hand, OLAP focuses on addition of more data to a pool that is already in existence. This is made possible since OLAP gives data a multi-dimensional approach, creating summaries in different dimensions that are then added up to the original data, making it more comprehensive A general definition associated with OLAP is that which describes it as software put in place to create a platform in which the user interacts easily with a complex database accessed online and is able to prompt the database for a service which n return provides a report in a form understandable to him/her. However, there are many other definitions attached to this concept. It’s amazing that some people even used the full name of the acronym as a definition, but this is entirely questionable since it does not give gist of what the concept is or what it refers to. The most com monly used definitions are listed below (Becker, 2002). First, there is what we can call the popular definition. It’s a precise and interesting definition of OLAP as set of many spreadsheets in a package. This is just but a typical meaning, mainly used to people who have little or no knowledge in information technology. Its true OLAP is used in spreadsheets to enhance the view of data, but it’s certainly not a set or group of spreadsheets. Secondly, OLAP has been popularly defined as a report given or presented with some extra information attached to it. This is adopted from the way OLAP works, by presenting data from different dimensions with diverse interpretations. In this case, OLAP allows the database users to scan through different perspectives of an issue. Lastly, there is the technical definition attached to OLAP. It describes on-line analytical processing as enhanced, friendly browsing of similar, multidimensional data. When a user prompts a query to the softw are, it may take up to less than a minute to give an output, hence its attribution as a fast software. It also does this in levels with a set of new data for each level. MegaSave uses data marts, tools used in presenting data and facts in multi-dimensions. The best definition, therefore, for such a scenario is the last one. This is so because so far,

Business Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Business Environment - Essay Example Q.1.What are the different market structures and how they impact on determining price and output decisions on an organizations? However, there are various market structures identified by the best research teams (Sarangi & Srivatsan, 2009), which are described in the following section of this paper Perfect Competition Imperfect Competition Oligopoly Monopoly Perfect Competition This market system assumes that customers are having perfect information about the price and quality of the products offered in the market, while there is a homogeneous product without any differentiation (Etro 2010), so in this way the customers can purchase a best quality product at a lowest possible price (Vlckova & Patak 2011). However, this type of competition is not present in the real world, because of its unrealistic assumption of homogenous product and perfect knowledge. Imperfect Competition This kind of competition the production is heterogeneous and the quality of the products produced by various ve ndors is also different. ... Oligopoly Under this mechanism various producers of a certain product combine their forces to capture the market through non price competition, in this way they attain the level of economies of scale, which causes their per unit cost to drop to a minimal level, via this strategy they are often able to achieve a monopolistic characteristics within a certain industry (Ananthram & Pearson), which allows them to charge the price of their choice against a product they make. Monopoly In this kind of market system there is only one supplier in the market, producing a certain product. This position gives it, the full autonomy over the price level for its product in this way it could charge the price of its choice, however, monopolists do produce their products at a minimal inventory level to minimize the hold and freight costs. Q.2 Describe the way in which market forces shape organizational response to external environment? In a general setting, market’s forces of demand and supply i nteract to determine the price of a product. Usually where the graphs of the above mentioned variables intersect, at that point the price of that product is determined. But, this interaction is not that simple, because the customers’ consumption and income trends also play a significant role in determining the level of demand and supply thus consequently the price, however, the current technological advancement, which transformed a typical market setup into a web based application, which provides information to the customers, thus shifting the balance of information towards customers and rendering them able to purchase for a best deal. Characteristics of market in

Effect of Temperature on Lipase Essay Example for Free

Effect of Temperature on Lipase Essay Theory The higher the substrate concentration the more quickly product is produced (rate of reaction  increases) until enzyme saturation is reached at which time more substrate has no further effect. Enzymes such as Catalase are protein molecules which are found in living cells. They are used to speed up specific reactions in the cells. They are all very specific as each enzyme just performs one particular reaction. Catalase is an enzyme found in food such as potato and liver. It is used for removing Hydrogen Peroxide from the cells. Hydrogen Peroxide is the poisonous by-product of metabolism. Catalase speeds up the decomposition of Hydrogen Peroxide into water and oxygen as shown in the equations below. It is able to speed up the decomposition of Hydrogen Peroxide because the shape of its active site matches the shape of the Hydrogen Peroxide molecule. This type of reaction where a molecule is broken down into smaller pieces is called an anabolic reaction. Hypothesis The prediction would be such that as the substrate concentration increases, the rate of reaction will go up at a directly proportional rate until the solution becomes saturated with the substrate hydrogen peroxide. When this saturation point is reached, then adding extra substrate will make no difference. The rate steadily increases when more substrate is added because more of the active sites of the enzyme are being used which results in more reactions so the required amount of oxygen is made more quickly. Once the amount of substrate molecules added exceeds the number of active sites available then the rate of reaction will no longer go up. This is because the maximum number of reactions are being done at once so any extra substrate molecules have to wait until some of the active sites become available. Variables Independent Variable(s) Concentration of substrate Dependent Variable(s) Rate of enzyme activity Control Variable(s) Temperature pH Pressure Apparatus S. No Item Qty. Size, Capacity, Amount 1 Graduated cylinder 1 500mL, 500cm3 2 Metal Stand 1 3 Catalase from Chicken Liver. Pour the hydrogen peroxide solution into the test tube containing the chicken liver and immediately put the cork with a transferring tube plugged into it connecting it to a rubber tube leading to a filled inverted graduated cylinder to measure the amount of gas in mL (cm3) formed. 3. Bubbles should start to rise up the tube and the water level in the graduated cylinder should move down. 4. Record the water level after every 30 seconds for a total period of 5 minutes. 5. Do the same for 4%, 6%, 8%, 10%, 12% and 14% and record the readings for them individually. When the concentration of Hydrogen Peroxide is increased, the rate of reaction increases at a directly proportional rate until the concentration of Hydrogen Peroxide reaches about 10%. If you double the concentration of Hydrogen Peroxide then the rate of reaction doubles as well. When the concentration is doubled from 8-16% the rate goes up from 1. 65-2. 97 Cm3 Oxygen produced per second, which is an increase of 1. 8 times. I would expect the rate to increase two times if the Hydrogen Peroxide concentration is increased two times because there are twice as many substrate molecules which can join onto the enzymes active sites. The reason that the number is less than two times could be put down to the fact that at 10% the Enzymes active sites may already be close to being saturated with Hydrogen Peroxide. There may also be some experimental error which causes the inaccuracies. After 10% the increase in the rate of reaction slows down. This is shown by the gradient of the graph going down. At this point virtually all the active sites are occupied so the active sites are said to be saturated with Hydrogen Peroxide. Increasing the Hydrogen Peroxide Concentration after the point of saturation has been reached will not cause the rate of reaction to go up any more. All the active sites are being used so any extra Hydrogen Peroxide molecules will have to wait until an active site becomes available. The theoretical maximum rate of reaction is when all the sites are being used but in reality this theoretical maximum is never reached due to the fact that not all the active sites are being used all the time. The substrate molecules need time to join onto the enzyme and to leave it so the maximum rate achieved is always slightly below the theoretical maximum. The time taken to fit into and leave the active site is the limiting factor in the rate of reaction. Limitations a) There is a slight delay between pouring the Hydrogen Peroxide into the catalase, putting the bung on and starting the stopwatch. This will slightly affect all the results but as I carried out all the three steps in the same way for all the experiments it should not make any difference to the overall result. b) It is also impossible to precisely measure out the amounts of Hydrogen Peroxide and catalase each time. As the scale on the pipettes shows the volume to the nearest mm3 the volume of the solutions that I used should be correct to the nearest mm3. The volume of gas in the test tube to start with is slightly affected by the amount which the bung is pushed down each time, if the bung is pushed down further then the volume in the tube will be less so the 30cm3 of gas is reached faster. c) Due to the fairly slow speed of our reactions it is only possible to measure the time of the reaction to the nearest 0. 1 second even though the stopwatch shows the measurements to the nearest 0. 01 second. d) Human errors such as inappropriate readings, time difference in readings, stopping flow of air by accidentally compressing rubber tube†¦ could also have been made

Silence in the Soviet Era :: Russian History Essays

Silence in the Soviet Era I enter a room and the first thing I hear is silence. In a rush to turn on the CD player I drop my bag, move some clothes around, and step on some books. I don't want silence to disturb my comfort. Silence screams and makes you think about this world and about the questions you never find answers for. So you stop looking. Besides silence is annoying in many other ways. I could never use to my advantage. When a child I had this remarkable capability to get into trouble for speaking up when I needed to be silent and to be reticent when I needed to justify myself or tell about what was oppressing me. I would get hurt, but I would never tell anybody about it. I would cry on my own. Words and thoughts would stuck in me, and...silence. I have never known how to fight this dumb muteness, in myself or in others. While my introversion affected me, I saw that I was a satellite of my whole culture. For as long as I lived, I saw how people in Belarus chose to be silent because of the fear to speak up against oppressive regimes. In the Soviet era, anyone who dared to disagree was declared as an enemy of the state. One morning a person would wake up and his/her neighbor, friend, or a relative was gone. State enemies were dealt with in most brutal ways. Some were sent to isolation in Siberia, which meant struggle to survive in Arctic conditions; others ended up in jail. In Belarus, there is a place known as Kurapaty, a forest some kilometers away from the capital where ''enemies of the state'' were brought. After being ordered to dig a pit, they were put around it and fired at. All together about 30, 000 common people were estimated to be killed. Although such repressions occurred mainly in the 30s under Stalin's rule, the first public acknowledgment of the event took place only in 1989 with the archeological discoveries of the bones and skeletons. Those who, realizing that dead would not speak for themselves, tried to organize events to attract people's attention to the historical tragedy, were chased by the state militia. A decade past since that discovery, but no public recognition of the tragedy arrived.

Chapter 19 The Servant of Lord Voldemort

Hermione screamed. Black leapt to his feet. Harry felt as though he'd received a huge electric shock. â€Å"I found this at the base of the Whomping Willow,† said Snape, throwing the cloak aside, careful to keep this wand pointing directly at Lupin's chest. â€Å"Very useful, Potter, I thank you†¦.† Snape was slightly breathless, but his face was full of suppressed triumph. â€Å"You're wondering, perhaps, how I knew you were here?† he said, his eyes glittering. â€Å"I've just been to your office, Lupin. You forgot to take your potion tonight, so I took a gobletful along. And very lucky I did†¦lucky for me, I mean. Lying on your desk was a certain map. One glance at it told me all I needed to know. I saw you running along this passageway and out of sight.† â€Å"Severus –† Lupin began, but Snape overrode him. â€Å"I've told the headmaster again and again that you're helping your old friend Black into the castle, Lupin, and here's the proof. Not even I dreamed you would have the nerve to use this old place as your hideout –â€Å" â€Å"Severus, you're making a mistake,† said Lupin urgently. â€Å"You haven't heard everything — I can explain — Sirius is not here to kill Harry –â€Å" â€Å"Two more for Azkaban tonight,† said Snape, his eyes now gleaming fanatically. â€Å"I shall be interested to see how Dumbledore takes this†¦He was quite convinced you were harmless, you know, Lupin†¦a tame werewolf –â€Å" â€Å"You fool,† said Lupin softly. â€Å"Is a schoolboy grudge worth putting an innocent man back inside Azkaban?† BANG! Thin, snakelike cords burst from the end of Snape's wand and twisted themselves around Lupin's mouth, wrists, and ankles; he overbalanced and fell to the floor, unable to move. With a roar of rage, Black started toward Snape, but Snape pointed his wand straight between Black's eyes. â€Å"Give me a reason,† he whispered. â€Å"Give me a reason to do it, and I swear I will.† Black stopped dead. It would have been impossible to say which face showed more hatred. Harry stood there, paralyzed, not knowing what to do or whom to believe. He glanced around at Ron and Hermione. Ron looked just as confused as he did, still fighting to keep hold on the struggling Scabbers. Hermione, however, took an uncertain step toward Snape and said, in a very breathless voice, â€Å"Professor Snape — it wouldn't hurt to hear what they've got to say, w-would it?† â€Å"Miss Granger, you are already facing suspension from this school,† Snape spat. â€Å"You, Potter, and Weasley are out-of-bounds, in the company of a convicted murderer and a werewolf. For once in your life, hold your tongue.† â€Å"But if — if there was a mistake –â€Å" â€Å"KEEP QUIET, YOU STUPID GIRL!† Snape shouted, looking suddenly quite deranged. â€Å"DON'T TALK ABOUT WHAT YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!† A few sparks shot out of the end of his wand, which was still pointed at Black's face. Hermione fell silent. â€Å"Vengeance is very sweet,† Snape breathed at Black. â€Å"How I hoped I would be the one to catch you†¦.† â€Å"The joke's on you again, Severus,† Black snarled. â€Å"As long as this boy brings his rat up to the castle† — he jerked his head at Ron — â€Å"I'll come quietly†¦.† â€Å"Up to the castle?† said Snape silkily. â€Å"I don't think we need to go that far. All I have to do is call the Dementors once we get out of the Willow. They'll be very pleased to see you, Black†¦pleased enough to give you a little kiss, I daresay†¦I –â€Å" What little color there was in Black's face left it. â€Å"You -you've got to hear me out,† he croaked. â€Å"The rat — look at the rat –â€Å" But there was a mad glint in Snape's eyes that Harry had never seen before. He seemed beyond reason. â€Å"Come on, all of you,† he said. He clicked his fingers, and the ends of the cords that bound Lupin flew to his hands. â€Å"I'll drag the werewolf. Perhaps the Dementors will have a kiss for him too –â€Å" Before he knew what he was doing, Harry had crossed the room in three strides and blocked the door. â€Å"Get out of the way, Potter, you're in enough trouble already,† snarled Snape. â€Å"If I hadn't been here to save your skin –â€Å" â€Å"Professor Lupin could have killed me about a hundred times this year,† Harry said. â€Å"I've been alone with him loads of times, having defense lessons against the Dementors. If he was helping Black, why didn't he just finish me off then?† â€Å"Don't ask me to fathom the way a werewolf's mind works,† hissed Snape. â€Å"Get out of the way, Potter.† â€Å"YOU'RE PATHETIC!† Harry yelled. â€Å"JUST BECAUSE THEY MADE A FOOL OF YOU AT SCHOOL YOU WON'T EVEN LISTEN –â€Å" â€Å"SILENCE! I WILL NOT BE SPOKEN TO LIKE THAT!† Snape shrieked, looking madder than ever. â€Å"Like father, like son, Potter! I have just saved your neck; you should be thanking me on bended knee! You would have been well served if he'd killed you! You'd have died like your father, too arrogant to believe you might be mistaken in Black — now get out of the way, or I will make you. GET OUT OF THE WAY, POTTER!† Harry made up his mind in a split second. Before Snape could take even one step toward him, he had raised his wand. â€Å"Expelliarmus!† he yelled — except that his wasn't the only voice that shouted. There was a blast that made the door rattle on its hinges; Snape was lifted off his feet and slammed into the wall, then slid down it to the floor, a trickle of blood oozing from under his hair. He had been knocked out. Harry looked around. Both Ron and Hermione had tried to disarm Snape at exactly the same moment. Snape's wand soared in a high arc and landed on the bed next to Crookshanks. â€Å"You shouldn't have done that,† said Black, looking at Harry. â€Å"You should have left him to me†¦.† Harry avoided Black's eyes. He wasn't sure, even now, that he'd done the right thing. â€Å"We attacked a teacher†¦We attacked a teacher†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Hermione whimpered, staring at the lifeless Snape with frightened eyes. â€Å"Oh, we're going to be in so much trouble –â€Å" Lupin was struggling against his bonds. Black bent down quickly and untied him. Lupin straightened up, rubbing his arms where the ropes had cut into them. â€Å"Thank you, Harry,† he said. â€Å"I'm still not saying I believe you,† he told Lupin. â€Å"Then it's time we offered you some proof,† said Lupin. â€Å"You, boy — give me Peter, please. Now.† Ron clutched Scabbers closer to his chest. â€Å"Come off it,† he said weakly. â€Å"Are you trying to say he broke out of Azkaban just to get his hands on Scabbers? I mean†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He looked up at Harry and Hermione for support, â€Å"Okay, say Pettigrew could turn into a rat — there are millions of rats — how's he supposed to know which one he is after if he was locked up in Azkaban?† â€Å"You know, Sirius, that's a fair question,† said Lupin, turning to Black and frowning slightly. â€Å"How did you find out where he was?† Black put one of his claw-like hands inside his robes and took out a crumpled piece of paper, which he smoothed flat and held out to show the others. It was the photograph of Ron and his family that had appeared in the Daily Prophet the previous summer, and there, on Ron's shoulder, was Scabbers. â€Å"How did you get this?† Lupin asked Black, thunderstruck. â€Å"Fudge,† said Black. â€Å"When he came to inspect Azkaban last year, he gave me his paper. And there was Peter, on the front page on this boy's shoulder†¦I knew him at once†¦how many times had I seen him transform? And the caption said the boy would be going back to Hogwarts†¦to where Harry was†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"My God,† said Lupin softly, staring from Scabbers to the picture in the paper and back again. â€Å"His front paw†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"What about it?† said Ron defiantly. â€Å"He's got a toe missing,† said Black. â€Å"Of course,† Lupin breathed. â€Å"So simple†¦so brilliant†¦he cut it off himself?† â€Å"Just before he transformed,† said Black. â€Å"When I cornered him, he yelled for the whole street to hear that I'd betrayed Lily and James. Then, before I could curse him, he blew apart the street with the wand behind his back, killed everyone within twenty feet of himself — and sped down into the sewer with the other rats†¦.† â€Å"Didn't you ever hear, Ron?† said Lupin. â€Å"The biggest bit of Peter they found was his finger.† â€Å"Look, Scabbers probably had a fight with another rat or something! He's been in my family for ages, right –â€Å" â€Å"Twelve years, in fact,† said Lupin. â€Å"Didn't you ever wonder why he was living so long?† â€Å"We — we've been taking good care of him!† said Ron. â€Å"Not looking too good at the moment, though, is he?† said Lupin. â€Å"I'd guess he's been losing weight ever since he heard Sirius was on the loose again†¦.† â€Å"He's been scared of that mad cat!† said Ron, nodding toward Crookshanks, who was still purring on the bed. But that wasn't right, Harry thought suddenly†¦Scabbers had been looking ill before he met Crookshanks†¦ ever since Ron's return from Egypt†¦since the time when Black had escaped†¦. â€Å"This cat isn't mad,† said Black hoarsely. He reached out a bony hand and stroked Crookshanks's fluffy head. â€Å"He's the most intelligent of his kind I've ever met. He recognized Peter for what he was right away. And when he met me, he knew I was no dog. It was a while before he trusted me†¦Finally, I managed to communicate to him what I was after, and he's been helping me†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"What do you mean?† breathed Hermione. â€Å"He tried to bring Peter to me, but couldn't†¦so he stole the passwords into Gryffindor Tower for me†¦As I understand it, he took them from a boy's bedside table†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Harry's brain seemed to be sagging under the weight of what he was hearing. It was absurd†¦and yet†¦ â€Å"But Peter got wind of what was going on and ran for it.† croaked Black. â€Å"This cat — Crookshanks, did you call him? — told me Peter had left blood on the sheets†¦I supposed he bit himself†¦Well, faking his own death had worked once.† These words jolted Harry to his senses. â€Å"And why did he fake his death?† he said furiously. â€Å"Because he knew you were about to kill him like you killed my parents!† â€Å"No,† said Lupin, â€Å"Harry–â€Å" â€Å"And now you've come to finish him off!† â€Å"Yes, I have,† said Black, with an evil look at Scabbers. â€Å"Then I should've let Snape take you!† Harry shouted. â€Å"Harry,† said Lupin hurriedly, â€Å"don't you see? All this time we've thought Sirius betrayed your parents, and Peter tracked him down — but it was the other way around, don't you see? Peter betrayed your mother and father — Sirius tracked Peter down –â€Å" â€Å"THAT'S NOT TRUE!† Harry yelled. â€Å"HE WAS THEIR SECRET-KEEPER! HE SAID SO BEFORE YOU TURNED UP. HE SAID HE KILLED THEM!† He was pointing at Black, who shook his head slowly; the sunken eyes were suddenly over bright. â€Å"Harry†¦I as good as killed them,† he croaked. â€Å"I persuaded Lily and James to change to Peter at the last moment, persuaded them to use him as Secret-Keeper instead of me†¦I'm to blame, I know it†¦The night they died, I'd arranged to check on Peter, make sure he was still safe, but when I arrived at his hiding place, he'd gone. Yet there was no sign of a struggle. It didn't feel right. I was scared. I set out for your parents' house straight away. And when I saw their house, destroyed, and their bodies†¦I realized what Peter must've done†¦what I'd done†¦.† His voice broke. He turned away. â€Å"Enough of this,† said Lupin, and there was a steely note in his voice Harry had never heard before. â€Å"There's one certain way to prove what really happened. Ron, give me that rat.† â€Å"What are you going to do with him if I give him to you?† Ron asked Lupin tensely. â€Å"Force him to show himself,† said Lupin. â€Å"If he really is a rat, it won't hurt him.† Ron hesitated. Then at long last, he held out Scabbers and Lupin took him. Scabbers began to squeak without stopping, twisting and turning, his tiny black eyes bulging in his head. â€Å"Ready, Sirius?† said Lupin. Black had already retrieved Snape's wand from the bed. He approached Lupin and the struggling rat, and his wet eyes suddenly seemed to be burning in his face. â€Å"Together?† he said quietly. â€Å"I think so†, said Lupin, holding Scabbers tightly in one hand and his wand in the other. â€Å"On the count of three. One — two — THREE!† A flash of blue-white light erupted from both wands; for a moment, Scabbers was frozen in midair, his small gray form twisting madly — Ron yelled — the rat fell and hit the floor. There was another blinding flash of light and then — It was like watching a speeded-up film of a growing tree. A head was shooting upward from the ground; limbs were sprouting; a moment later, a man was standing where Scabbers had been, cringing and wringing his hands. Crookshanks was spitting and snarling on the bed; the hair on his back was standing up. He was a very short man, hardly taller than Harry and Hermione. His thin, colorless hair was unkempt and there was a large bald patch on top. He had the shrunken appearance of a plump man who has lost a lot of weight in a short time. His skin looked grubby, almost like Scabbers's fur, and something of the rat lingered around his pointed nose and his very small, watery eyes. He looked around at them all, his breathing fast and shallow. Harry saw his eyes dart to the door and back again. â€Å"Well, hello, Peter,† said Lupin pleasantly, as though rats frequently erupted into old school friends around him. â€Å"Long time, no see.† â€Å"S–Sirius†¦R–Remus†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Even Pettigrew's voice was squeaky. Again, his eyes darted toward the door. â€Å"My friends†¦my old friends†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Black's wand arm rose, but Lupin seized him around the wrist, gave him a warning took, then turned again to Pettigrew, his voice light and casual. â€Å"We've been having a little chat, Peter, about what happened the night Lily and James died. You might have missed the finer points while you were squeaking around down there on the bed –â€Å" â€Å"Remus,† gasped Pettigrew, and Harry could see beads of sweat breaking out over his pasty face, â€Å"you don't believe him, do you†¦? He tried to kill me, Remus†¦.† â€Å"So we've heard,† said Lupin, more coldly. â€Å"I'd like to clear up one or two little matters with you, Peter, if you'll be so –â€Å" â€Å"He's come to try and kill me again!† Pettigrew squeaked suddenly, pointing at Black, and Harry saw that he used his middle finger, because his index was missing. â€Å"He killed Lily and James and now he's going to kill me too†¦You've got to help me, Remus†¦.† Black's face looked more skull-like than ever as he stared at Pettigrew with his fathomless eyes. â€Å"No one's going to try and kill you until we've sorted a few things out,† said Lupin. â€Å"Sorted things out?† squealed Pettigrew, looking wildly about him once more, eyes taking in the boarded windows and, again, the only door. â€Å"I knew he'd come after me! I knew he'd be back for me! I've been waiting for this for twelve years!† â€Å"You knew Sirius was going to break out of Azkaban?† said Lupin, his brow furrowed. â€Å"When nobody has ever done it before?† â€Å"He's got dark powers the rest of us can only dream of!† Pettigrew shouted shrilly. â€Å"How else did he get out of there? I suppose He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named taught him a few tricks!† Black started to laugh, a horrible, mirthless laugh that filled the whole room. â€Å"Voldemort, teach me tricks?† he said. Pettigrew flinched as though Black had brandished a whip at him. â€Å"What, scared to hear your old master's name?† said Black. â€Å"I don't blame you, Peter. His lot aren't very happy with you, are they?† â€Å"Don't know what you mean, Sirius –† muttered Pettigrew, his breathing faster than ever. His whole face was shining with sweat now. â€Å"You haven't been hiding from me for twelve years,† said Black. â€Å"You've been hiding from Voldemort's old supporters. I heard things in Azkaban, Peter†¦They all think you're dead, or you'd have to answer to them†¦I've heard them screaming all sorts of things in their sleep. Sounds like they think the double-crosser double-crossed them. Voldemort went to the Potters' on your information†¦and Voldemort met his downfall there. And not all Voldemort's supporters ended up in Azkaban, did they? There are still plenty out here, biding their time, pretending they've seen the error of their ways. If they ever got wind that you were still alive, Peter –â€Å" â€Å"Don't know†¦what you're talking about†¦Ã¢â‚¬  said Pettigrew again, more shrilly than ever. He wiped his face on his sleeve and looked up at Lupin. â€Å"You don't believe this — this madness, Remus –â€Å" â€Å"I must admit, Peter, I have difficulty in understanding why an innocent man would want to spend twelve years as a rat,† said Lupin evenly. â€Å"Innocent, but scared!† squealed Pettigrew. â€Å"If Voldemort's supporters were after me, it was because I put one of their best men in Azkaban — the spy, Sirius Black!† Black's face contorted. â€Å"How dare you,† he growled, sounding suddenly like the bearsized dog he had been. â€Å"I, a spy for Voldemort? When did I ever sneak around people who were stronger and more powerful than myself? But you, Peter — I'll never understand why I didn't see you were the spy from the start. You always liked big friends who'd look after you, didn't you? It used to be us†¦me and Remus†¦and James†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Pettigrew wiped his face again; he was almost panting for breath. â€Å"Me, a spy†¦must be out of your mind†¦never†¦don't know how you can say such a –â€Å" â€Å"Lily and James only made you Secret-Keeper because I suggested it,† Black hissed, so venomously that Pettigrew took a step backward. â€Å"I thought it was the perfect plan†¦a bluff†¦Voldemort would be sure to come after me, would never dream they'd use a weak, talentless thing like you†¦It must have been the finest moment of your miserable life, telling Voldemort you could hand him the Potters.† Pettigrew was muttering distractedly; Harry caught words like â€Å"far-fetched† and â€Å"lunacy,† but he couldn't help paying more attention to the ashen color of Pettigrew's face and the way his eyes continued to dart toward the windows and door. â€Å"Professor Lupin?† said Hermione timidly. â€Å"Can — can I say something?† â€Å"Certainly, Hermione,† said Lupin courteously. â€Å"Well — Scabbers — I mean, this — this man — he's been sleeping in Harry's dormitory for three years. If he's working for You-Know-Who, how come he never tried to hurt Harry before now?† â€Å"There!† said Pettigrew shrilly, pointing at Ron with his maimed hand. â€Å"Thank you! You see, Remus? I have never hurt a hair of Harry's head! Why should I?† â€Å"I'll tell you why,† said Black. â€Å"Because you never did anything for anyone unless you could see what was in it for you. Voldemort's been in hiding for fifteen years, they say he's half dead. You weren't about to commit murder right under Albus Dumbledore's nose, for a wreck of a wizard who'd lost all of his power, were you? You'd want to be quite sure he was the biggest bully in the playground before you went back to him, wouldn't you? Why else did you find a wizard family to take you in? Keeping an ear out for news, weren't you, Peter? Just in case your old protector regained strength, and it was safe to rejoin him†¦.† Pettigrew opened his mouth and closed it several times. He seemed to have lost the ability to talk. â€Å"Er — Mr. Black — Sirius?† said Hermione. Black jumped at being addressed like this and stared at Hermione as though he had never seen anything quite like her. â€Å"If you don't mind me asking, how — how did you get out of Azkaban, if you didn't use Dark Magic?† â€Å"Thank you!† gasped Pettigrew, nodding frantically at her. â€Å"Exactly! Precisely what I –â€Å" But Lupin silenced him with a look. Black was frowning slightly at Hermione, but not as though he were annoyed with her. He seemed to be pondering his answer. â€Å"I don't know how I did it,† he said slowly. â€Å"I think the only reason I never lost my mind is that I knew I was innocent. That wasn't a happy thought, so the Dementors couldn't suck it out of me†¦but it kept me sane and knowing who I am†¦helped me keep my powers†¦so when it all became†¦too much†¦I could transform in my cell†¦become a dog. Dementors can't see, you know†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He swallowed. â€Å"They feel their way toward people by feeding off their emotions†¦They could tell that my feelings were less — less human, less complex when I was a dog†¦but they thought, of course, that I was losing my mind like everyone else in there, so it didn't trouble them. But I was weak, very weak, and I had no hope of driving them away from me without a wand†¦.† â€Å"But then I saw Peter in that picture†¦I realized he was at Hogwarts with Harry†¦perfectly positioned to act, if one hint reached his ears that the Dark Side was gathering strength again†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Pettigrew was shaking his head, mouthing noiselessly, but staring all the while at Black as though hypnotized. â€Å"†¦ready to strike at the moment he could be sure of allies†¦and to deliver the last Potter to them. if he gave them Harry, who'd dare say he'd betrayed Lord Voldemort? He'd be welcomed back with honors†¦.† â€Å"So you see, I had to do something. I was the only one who knew Peter was still alive†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Harry remembered what Mr. Weasley had told Mrs. Wealsey. ‘The guards say he's been talking in his sleep†¦ always the same words†¦ ‘He's at Hogwarts.† â€Å"It was as if someone had lit a fire In my head, and the Dementors couldn't destroy it†¦It wasn't a happy feeling†¦it was an obsession†¦but it gave me strength, it cleared my mind. So, one night when they opened my door to bring food, I slipped past them as a dog†¦It's so much harder for them to sense animal emotions that they were confused†¦I was thin, very thin†¦thin enough to slip through the bars†¦I swam as a dog back to the mainland †¦I journeyed north and slipped into the Hogwarts grounds as a dog. I've been living in the forest ever since, except when I came to watch the Quidditch, of course. You fly as well as your father did, Harry†¦.† He looked at Harry, who did not look away. â€Å"Believe me,† croaked Black. â€Å"Believe me, Harry. I never betrayed James and Lily. I would have died before I betrayed them.† And at long last, Harry believed him. Throat too tight to speak, he nodded. â€Å"No!† Pettigrew had fallen to his knees as though Harry's nod had been his own death sentence. He shuffled forward on his knees, groveling, his hands clasped in front of him as though praying. â€Å"Sirius — it's me†¦it's Peter†¦your friend†¦you wouldn't –â€Å" Black kicked out and Pettigrew recoiled. â€Å"There's enough filth on my robes without you touching them,† said Black. â€Å"Remus!† Pettigrew squeaked, turning to Lupin instead, writhing imploringly in front of him. â€Å"You don't believe this — wouldn't Sirius have told you they'd changed the plan?† â€Å"Not if he thought I was the spy, Peter,† said Lupin. â€Å"I assume that's why you didn't tell me, Sirius?† he said casually over Pettigrew's head. â€Å"Forgive me, Remus,† said Black. â€Å"Not at all, Padfoot, old friend,† said Lupin, who was now rolling up his sleeves. â€Å"And will you, in turn, forgive me for believing you were the spy?† â€Å"Of course,† said Black, and the ghost of a grin flitted across his gaunt face. He, too, began rolling up his sleeves. â€Å"Shall we kill him together?† â€Å"Yes, I think so,† said Lupin grimly. â€Å"You wouldn't†¦you won't†¦Ã¢â‚¬  gasped Pettigrew. And he scrambled around to Ron. â€Å"Ron†¦haven't I been a good friend†¦a good pet? You won't let them kill me, Ron, will you†¦you're on my side, aren't you?† But Ron was staring at Pettigrew with the utmost revulsion. â€Å"I let you sleep in my bed!† he said. â€Å"Kind boy†¦kind master†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Pettigrew crawled toward Ron â€Å"You won't let them do it†¦I was your rat†¦I was a good pet†¦.† â€Å"If you made a better rat than a human, it's not much to boast about, Peter,† said Black harshly. Ron, going still paler with pain, wrenched his broken leg out of Pettigrew's reach. Pettigrew turned on his knees, staggered forward, and seized the hem of Hermione's robes. â€Å"Sweet girl†¦clever girl†¦you — you won't let them†¦Help me†¦.† Hermione pulled her robes out of Pettigrew's clutching hands and backed away against the wall, looking horrified. Pettigrew knelt, trembling uncontrollably, and turned his head slowly toward Harry. â€Å"Harry†¦Harry†¦you look just like your father†¦just like him†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO HARRY?† roared Black. â€Å"HOW DARE YOU FACE HIM? HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT JAMES IN FRONT OF HIM?† â€Å"Harry,† whispered Pettigrew, shuffling toward him, hands outstretched. â€Å"Harry, James wouldn't have wanted me killed†¦James would have understood, Harry†¦he would have shown me mercy†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Both Black and Lupin strode forward, seized Pettigrew's shoulders, and threw him backward onto the floor. He sat there, twitching with terror, staring up at them. â€Å"You sold Lily and James to Voldemort,† said Black, who was shaking too. â€Å"Do you deny it?† Pettigrew burst into tears. It was horrible to watch, like an oversized, balding baby, cowering on the floor. â€Å"Sirius, Sirius, what could I have done? The Dark Lord†¦you have no idea†¦he has weapons you can't imagine †¦I was scared, Sirius, I was never brave like you and Remus and James. I never meant it to happen†¦He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named forced me –â€Å" â€Å"DON'T LIE!† bellowed Black. â€Å"YOU'D BEEN PASSING INFORMATION TO HIM FOR A YEAR BEFORE LILY AND JAMES DIED! YOU WERE HIS SPY!† â€Å"He — he was taking over everywhere!† gasped Pettigrew. â€Å"Wh-what was there to be gained by refusing him?† â€Å"What was there to be gained by fighting the most evil wizard who has ever existed?† said Black, with a terrible fury in his face. â€Å"Only innocent lives, Peter!† â€Å"You don't understand!† whined Pettigrew. â€Å"He would have killed me, Sirius!† â€Å"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED!† roared Black. â€Å"DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!† Black and Lupin stood shoulder to shoulder, wands raised. â€Å"You should have realized,† said Lupin quietly, â€Å"if Voldemort didn't kill you, we would. Good-bye, Peter.† Hermione covered her face with her hands and turned to the wall. â€Å"NO!† Harry yelled. He ran forward, placing himself in front Pettigrew, facing the wands. â€Å"You can't kill him,† he said breathlessly. â€Å"You can't.† Black and Lupin both looked staggered. â€Å"Harry, this piece of vermin is the reason you have no parents,† Black snarled. â€Å"This cringing bit of filth would have seen you die too, without turning a hair. You heard him. His own stinking skin meant more to him than your whole family.† â€Å"I know,† Harry panted. â€Å"We'll take him up to the castle. We'll hand him over to the Dementors†¦He can go to Azkaban†¦but don't kill him.† â€Å"Harry!† gasped Pettigrew, and he flung his arms around Harry's knees. â€Å"You — thank you — it's more than I deserve — thank you –â€Å" â€Å"Get off me,† Harry spat, throwing Pettigrew's hands off him in disgust. â€Å"I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing it because — I don't reckon my dad would've wanted them to become killers — just for you.† No one moved or made a sound except Pettigrew, whose breath was coming in wheezes as he clutched his chest. Black and Lupin were looking at each other. Then, with one movement, they lowered their wands. â€Å"You're the only person who has the right to decide, Harry,† said Black. â€Å"But think†¦ think what he did†¦.† â€Å"He can go to Azkaban,† Harry repeated. â€Å"If anyone deserves that place, he does†¦.† Pettigrew was still wheezing behind him. â€Å"Very well,† said Lupin. â€Å"Stand aside, Harry.† Harry hesitated. â€Å"I'm going to tie him up,† said Lupin. â€Å"That's all, I swear.† Harry stepped out of the way. Thin cords shot from Lupin's wand this time, and next moment, Pettigrew was wriggling on the floor, bound and gagged. â€Å"But if you transform, Peter,† growled Black, his own wand pointing at Pettigrew too, â€Å"we will kill you. You agree, Harry?† Harry looked down at the pitiful figure on the floor and nodded so that Pettigrew could see him. â€Å"Right,† said Lupin, suddenly businesslike. â€Å"Ron, I can't mend bones nearly as well as Madam Pomfrey, so I think it's best if we just strap your leg up until we can get you to the hospital wing.† He hurried over to Ron, bent down, tapped Ron's leg with his wand, and muttered, â€Å"Ferula.† Bandages spun up Ron's leg, strapping it tightly to a splint. Lupin helped him to his feet; Ron put his weight gingerly on the leg and didn't wince. â€Å"That's better,† he said. â€Å"Thanks.† â€Å"What about Professor Snape?† said Hermione in a small voice, looking down at Snape's prone figure. â€Å"There's nothing seriously wrong with him,† said Lupin, bending over Snape and checking his pulse. â€Å"You were just a little — overenthusiastic. Still out cold. Er — perhaps it will be best if we don't revive him until we're safety back in the castle. We can take him like this†¦.† He muttered, â€Å"Mobilicorpus.† As though invisible strings were tied to Snape's wrists, neck, and knees, he was pulled into a standing position, head still lolling unpleasantly, like a grotesque puppet. He hung a few inches above the ground, his limp feet dangling. Lupin picked up the Invisibility Cloak and tucked it safely into his pocket. â€Å"And two of us should be chained to this,† said Black, nudging Pettigrew with his toe. â€Å"Just to make sure.† â€Å"I'll do it,† said Lupin. â€Å"And me,† said Ron savagely, limping forward. Black conjured heavy manacles from thin air; soon Pettigrew was upright again, left arm chained to Lupin's right, right arm to Ron's left. Ron's face was set. He seemed to have taken Scabbers's true identity as a personal insult. Crookshanks leapt lightly off the bed and led the way out of the room, his bottlebrush tail held jauntily high.