Gradualism Versus Punctuationism Essay - 831 Words

Gradualism versus Punctuationism Although modern evolutionists are thought to be divided on the issues surrounding evolutionary theory, a close look at the evidence suggests that both the gradualist school of thought and the punctuationist school of thought share many characteristics in common. This is especially true when evaluating their beliefs about the fossil record, disagreement with the theory of saltation, and the misinterpretation of the word â€Å"rapid† in terms of punctuationist theory. Although this may be the case, the two theories do diverge on one important point, the notion of periods of stasis, but when taken as a whole, the evidence suggests that punctuationism is not as radical as it has been hyped up to be. In terms of†¦show more content†¦This could make sense when viewed in the context of the fossil record. Saltationists would argue that there really are no gaps in the fossil record. The dramatic changes noted in the fossil record would be products of macromutations which are signs of natural selection. This cannot be the case for two distinct reasons. First, large macromutations are considerably maladaptive for an organism. In this sense, the size of a mutation will determine whether the organism will survive and pass on the mutated gene. Larger mutations will be less likely to be selected, because they will produce large behavioral abnormalities in the organism, which will significantly impair the organism in carrying out normal species-typical behaviors for survival. In turn, the organism will probably die before it is able to successfully reproduce. In addition, some mutations that are termed macromutations are not really macromutations at all, but instead small changes i n the genetic instructions that produce large changes in the individual. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;It has also been argued, that gradualists believe that evolution proceeds in a constant fashion. This is also a myth. Both gradualists and punctuationists believe that evolution proceeds in a somewhat jerky fashion with periods of evolutionary change being mixed with periods of stasis, or no change (Dawkins, 1986). The main point at which the

Personal Narrative My Experience in AP US History

â€Å"Your final exam will be in three parts: multiple choice, primary source analysis, and three major essays. I won’t be allowed within 2 miles of you when you take the exam.† The words of Mr. F, my AP US History teacher, reverberated between my ear drums. He either didn’t notice or didn’t seem to care: â€Å"The AP US History exam will be on a Saturday in mid May. It’s graded on a scale of 0 to 5. Zero being the lowest possible score, 5 being the highest.† A student in the front row raises her hand, interrupting our baptism by fire. Mr. F motions for her to speak. â€Å"Are you related to Stephen King?† I didn’t realize it at the time (because let’s face it, I didn’t voluntarily read anything that wasn’t a motorcycle magazine until my senior year†¦show more content†¦In short, this was the â€Å"correct† form one should use in writing an academic essay. The irony is that the people who taught me this magical formula for essay writing, my English teachers, encouraged me to play with and alter the form . . . not completely, but to experiment with it. While other academic disciplines, most notably History but also others, strongly discouraged any deviation from the template. Two of the most hotly contested cardinal rules of the standard formal essay are 1) don’t - DO NOT - use contractions and 2) never speak in the first person. I never liked nor fully understood those rules, but they have been so deeply ingrained into my own writing process over the years that, to this day, I actually find myself asking professors in graduate classes whether contractions or the first person are acceptable in formal writing for their courses. Mr. F gave us some sample Multiple Choice questions on that first day of class, as a part of his lecture, just to prove to us that he wasn’t kidding when he said the 5th choice was a doozy (cardinal rule number 3: slang terms shall not be used unless specifically quoting another source). Of the 5 possible answers, I was sure only one wasShow MoreRelatedHelen of Troy Does Countertop Dancing1488 Words   |  6 Pageswhich was a reaction towards her father’s death. However the theme of the torture of woman and the use of mythological figures will be what we will be dealing with in ‘Helen of Troy does Countertop Dancing’. Atwood uses a narrative approach in this poem. This creates a personal connection with the reader especially woman feminists. Helen of Troy was known as the most beautiful woman in the world. There have been many different stories about who her parents were and how she was conceived. 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Sunshine Chapter 2 Free Essays

They dragged me up the last few stairs to the wide, once-elegant porch; the treads creaked under my weight as I missed my footing, while the vampires flowed up on either side of us with no more sound than they had made ranging through the woods. One of them opened the front door and stood aside for the prisoner and her guards to go in first. We entered a big, dark, empty hall; some moonlight spilled in through open doors on either side of us, enough that my eyes could vaguely make out the extent of it. We will write a custom essay sample on Sunshine Chapter 2 or any similar topic only for you Order Now It was probably bigger than the whole ground floor of Mom and Charlie’s house. At the far end a staircase swirled up in a semicircle, disappearing into the murk overhead. We turned left and went through a half-open door. This had to be a ballroom; it was even bigger than the front hall had been. There was no furniture that I could see, but there was a muddle overhead – its shadow had wrenched my panicky attention toward it – that looked rather like a vast chandelier, although I would have expected anything like that to have been looted years ago. It seemed like acres of floor as we crossed it. There was another muddle leaning up against the wall in front of us – a possibly human-body-shaped muddle, I thought, confused. Another prisoner? Another live dinner? Was waiting to be eaten in company going to be any less horrible than waiting alone? Where was the â€Å"old-fashioned guest† who liked dresses rather than jeans and sneakers? Oh, dear gods and angels, let this be over quickly, I cannot bear much more†¦ The muddle was someone sitting cross-legged, head bowed, forearms on knees. I didn’t realize till it raised its head with a liquid, inhuman motion that it was another vampire. I jerked backward. I didn’t mean to; I knew I wasn’t going to get away: I couldn’t help it. The vampire on my left – the one who had asked me why I didn’t beg for my life – laughed again. â€Å"There’s some life in you after all, girlie. I was wondering. Bo wouldn’t like it if it turned out we caught a blanker. He wants his guest in a good mood.† Bo’s lieutenant said again, â€Å"Shut up.† One of the other vampires drifted up to us and handed its lieutenant something. They passed it between them as if it had been no more than a handkerchief, but it†¦clanked. Bo’s lieutenant said, â€Å"Hold her.† He dropped my arm and picked up my foot, as casually as a carpenter picking up a hammer. I would have fallen, but the other vampire held me fast. Something cold closed around my ankle, and when he dropped my foot again it fell to the floor hard enough to bruise the sole, because of the new weight. I was wearing a metal shackle, and trailing a chain. The vampire who had brought the thing to Bo’s lieutenant stretched out the end of the chain and clipped it into a ring in the wall. â€Å"How many days has it been, Connie?† said Bo’s lieutenant softly. â€Å"Ten? Twelve? Twenty? She’s young and smooth and warm. Totally flash. Bo told us to bring you a nice one. She’s all for you. We haven’t touched her.† I thought of the gloves. He was backing away slowly as he spoke, as if the cross-legged vampire might jump at him. The vampire holding me seemed to be idly watching Bo’s lieutenant, and then with a sudden, spine-unhinging hisssss let go of me and sprang after him and the others, who were dissolving back into the shadows, as if afraid to be left behind. I fell down, and, for a moment, half-stunned, couldn’t move. The vampire gang was, in the sudden way of vampires, now on the other side of the big room, by the door. I thought it was Bo’s lieutenant who – I didn’t see how – made some sort of gesture, and the chandelier burst alight. â€Å"You’ll want to check out what you’re getting,† he said, and now that he was leaving his voice sounded strong and scornful. â€Å"Bo didn’t want you to think we’d try anything nomad. And, so okay, so you don’t need the light. But it’s more fun if she can see you too, isn’t it?† The vampire who had dropped me said, â€Å"Hey, her feet are already bleeding – if you like feet.† He giggled, a high-pitched goblin screech. Then they were gone. I think I must have fainted again. When I came to myself I was stiff all over, as if I had been lying on the floor for a long time. I both remembered and tried not to let myself quite remember what had happened. This lasted for maybe ten seconds. I was still alive, so I wasn’t dead yet. If it wanted me awake and struggling, to continue to appear to be unconscious was a good idea. I lay facing the door the gang had left by; which meant that the cross-legged vampire was behind me†¦Don’t think about it. I was up on my knees, halfway to my feet, and scrambling for the door before I finished thinking this, even though I knew you couldn’t run away from a vampire. I had forgotten that I was chained to the wall. I hit the end of my chain and fell again. I cried out, as much from fear as pain. I lay sprawled where I struck, waiting for it to be over. Nothing happened. Again I thought, Please, gods and angels, let it be over. Nothing happened. Despairingly I sat up, hitched myself around to face what was behind me. It was looking at me. He was looking at me. The chandelier was set with candles, not electric bulbs, so the light it shed was softer and less definite. Even so he looked bad. His eyes (no: don’t look in their eyes) were a kind of gray-green, like stagnant bog water, and his skin was the color of old mushrooms – the sort of mushrooms you find screwed up in a paper bag in the back of the fridge and try to decide if they’re worth saving or if you should throw them out now and get it over with. His hair was black, but lank and dull. He would have been tall if he stood up. His shoulders were broad, and his hands and wrists, drooping over his knees, looked huge. He wore no shirt, and his feet, like mine, were bare. This seemed curiously indecent, that he should be half naked. I didn’t like it†¦Oh, right, I thought, good one. The train is roaring toward you and the villain is twirling his moustache and you’re fussing that he’s tied you to the track with the wrong kind of rope. There was a long angry weal across one of the vampire’s forearms. Overall he looked†¦spidery. Predatory. Alien. Nothing human except that he was more or less the right shape. He was thin, thin to emaciated, the cheekbones and ribs looking like they were about to split the old-mushroom skin. It didn’t matter. The still-burning vitality in that body was visible even to my eyes. He would be fine again once he’d had dinner. My teeth chattered. I pulled my knees up under my chin and wrapped my arms around them. We sat like this for several minutes, the vampire motionless, while I chattered and trembled and tried not to moan. Tried not to beg uselessly for my life. Watched him watching me. I didn’t look into his eyes again. At first I looked at his left ear, but that was too close to those eyes – how could something the color of swamp water be that compelling? – so I looked at his bony left shoulder instead. I could still see him staring at me. Or feel him staring. â€Å"Speak,† he said at last. â€Å"Remind me that you are a rational creature.† The words had long pauses between them, as if he found it difficult to speak, or as if he had to recall the words one at a time; and his voice was rough, as if some time recently he had damaged it by prolonged shouting. Perhaps he found it awkward to speak to his dinner. If he wasn’t careful he’d go off me, like Alice after she’d been introduced to the pudding. I should be so lucky. I flinched at the first sound of his voice, both because he had spoken at all, and also because his voice sounded as alien as the rest of him looked, as if the chest that produced it was made out of some strange material that did not reflect sound the same way that ordinary – that is to say, live – flesh did. His voice sounded much odder – eerier, direr – than the voices of the vampires who had brought me here. You could half-imagine that Bo’s gang had once been human. You couldn’t imagine that this one ever had. As I flinched I squeaked – a kind of unh? First I thought rather deliriously about Alice and her pudding, and then the meaning of his words began to penetrate. Remind him I was a rational creature! I wasn’t at all sure I still was one. I tried to pull my scattered wits together, come up with a topic other than Lewis Carroll†¦Ã¢â‚¬ I – oh – they called you Connie,† I said at random, after I had been silent too long. â€Å"Is that your name?† He made a noise like a cough or a growl, or something else I didn’t have a name for, some vampire thing. â€Å"You know enough not to look in my eyes,† he said. â€Å"But you do not know not to ask me my name?† The words came closer together this time, and there was definitely a question mark at the end. He was asking me. â€Å"Oh – no – oh – I don’t know – I don’t know that much about vam – er,† I gabbled, remembering halfway through the word he had not himself used the word vampire. He’d said â€Å"me† and â€Å"my.† Perhaps you didn’t say vampire like you didn’t ask one’s name. I tried to think of everything Pat and Jesse and the others had told me over the years, and considered the likelihood that the SOF view of vampires was probably rather different from the vampires’ own view and of limited use to me now. And that having Immortal Death very nearly memorized was no use at all. â€Å"Pardon me,† I said, with as much dignity as I could pretend to, which wasn’t much. â€Å"I – er – what would you like me to talk about?† There was another of his pauses, and then he said, â€Å"Tell me who you are. You need not tell me your name. Names have power – even human names. Tell me where you live and what you do with your living.† My mouth dropped open. â€Å"Tell you – † Who am I, Scheherazade? I felt a sudden hysterical rush of outrage. It was bad enough that I was going to be eaten (or rather, drunk – my mind would revert to Alice), but I had to talk first? â€Å"I – I am the baker at Charlie’s Coffeehouse, in town. Charlie married my mom when I was ten, just before the – er.† I managed not to say â€Å"before the Voodoo Wars,† which I thought might be a sensitive subject. â€Å"They have two sons, Kenny and Billy. They’re nice kids.† Well, Billy was still a nice kid. Kenny was a teenager. Oh, hell. I wasn’t supposed to be using names. Oh, too bad. There are more than one Charlie and Kenny and Billy in the world. â€Å"We all work at the coffeehouse although my brothers are still in school. My boyfriend works there too. He rules the kitchen now that Charlie has kind of become the maitre d’ and the wine steward, if you want to talk about a coffeehouse having a maitre d’ and a wine steward.† Okay, I thought, I remembered not to say Mel’s name. But it was hard to remember what my life was. It seemed a very long time ago, all of it, now, tonight, chained to a wall in a deserted ballroom on the far side of the lake, talking to a vampire. â€Å"I live in an apartment across town from the coffeehouse, upstairs from Y – from the old lady who owns the house. I love it there, there are all these trees, but my windows get a lot of – er.† This time what I wasn’t saying was â€Å"sunlight,† which I thought might also be a touchy topic. â€Å"I’ve always liked fooling around in the kitchen. One of my first memories is holding a wooden spoon and crying till my mom let me stir something. Before she married Charlie, my mom used to tease me, say I was going to grow up to be a cook, other kids played softball and joined the drama club, all I ever did was hang around the coffeehouse kitchen, so, she said, she might as well marry one, a cook, since he kept asking – Charlie kept asking  œ she said she was finally saying yes, because she wanted to make it easy for me. That was our joke. She met him by working for him. She was a waitress. She likes feeding people – like Charlie and me and M – like Charlie and me and the cook. She thinks the answer to just about everything is a good nourishing meal, but she doesn’t much like cooking, and now she mostly manages the rest of us, works out the schedule so everyone gets enough hours and nobody gets too many very often, which is sort of the Olympic triathalon version of rubbing your stomach and patting your head at the same time, only she has to do it every week, and she also does the books and the ordering. Um. It’s just as well she’s back there because a lot of people don’t come to us for nourishing meals, they come for a slab of something chocolate and a glass of champagne, or M – er, or our all-day breakfast which is eggs and bacon and sausages and baked beans and pancake s and hash browns and toast, and a cinnamon roll till they run out, which they usually do by about nine, but there are muffins all day, and then a free wheelbarrow ride to the bus stop after. Er. That’s a joke. A wheelbarrow ride over our cobblestones would be no favor anyway. â€Å"I have to get up at four a.m. to start the cinnamon rolls – cinnamon rolls as big as your head, it’s a Charlie’s specialty – but I don’t mind. I love working with yeast and flour and sugar and I love the smell of bread baking. M – I mean, my boyfriend, says he wanted to ask me out because he saw me the first time when I was up to my elbows in bread dough and covered with flour. He says that for most guys it’s supposed to be great legs or a girl being a great dancer – I can’t dance at all – or at least a good personality or something high-minded like that, but for him it was definitely watching me thump into that bread dough†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I hadn’t realized I’d started crying. My long-ago, lost life. The tears were running – pouring – down my cheeks. And suddenly the vampire moved toward me. I froze, thinking, Oh no, and at last, and okay, at least my last thoughts are about everybody at the coffeehouse, but all he did was hold one of his big hands under my chin, so the tears would fall into his palm. I cried now from fear and anticipation as well as loss and sorrow, and my tears had made quite a little pool before I stopped. I stopped because I was too tired to go on, and my whole head felt squashy. I suppose I should have been flipping out. He was right next to me. He hadn’t moved again. When I stopped crying he lowered his hand and said calmly, â€Å"May I have your tears?† I nodded, bemused, and, very precisely and carefully, he touched my face with the forefinger of his other hand, wiping up the last drips. I was so braced for worse I barely noticed that this time a vampire really had touched me. He moved back against the wall before he licked the wet finger and then drank the little palmful of salt water. I didn’t mean to stare but I couldn’t help it. He wouldn’t have had to say anything. Maybe he’d liked the story of my life. â€Å"Tears,† he said. â€Å"Not as good as†¦Ã¢â‚¬  a really ugly ominous pause here â€Å"†¦but better than nothing.† â€Å"Oh, gods,† I said, and buried my face in my knees once more. I had begun to shiver again too. I was exhausted past exhaustion, and I was also, it occurred to me, hungry and thirsty. And, of course, still waiting to die. Gruesomely. I couldn’t bear not to keep an eye on him for long, however, and I raised my now sticky face from my knees soon enough. I wiped my face on a corner of my ridiculous dress. I hadn’t really noticed what I was wearing – there had been other things on my mind since I had been obliged to put it on – in other circumstances I would have found it very beautiful, but an absurd thing for a coffeehouse baker to be wearing, even a coffeehouse baker in a ballroom with a ball going on in it. If I were attending a ball I would be there as one of the caterers, I certainly wouldn’t be there for the dancing†¦I’m raving, I thought. The dress was a dark cranberry red. Heart’s-blood red, I thought. It was put together slyly, in panels cut on the bias, so it clung to me round the top and swung out into what felt like yards of skirt at the hem. It draped over my awkward knees in drifts like something out of a Renaissance painting. I supposed it was silk ; I hadn’t had a lot of close-up experience with silk. It was soft like a clean baby’s skin. I knew quite a lot about babies, clean and otherwise. I glanced at him – at his left shoulder. He was still watching me. I let my gaze drift down, over his ragged black trousers, to his bare feet. He too had a shackle around one ankle†¦ What? He was shackled and pinned to the wall just as I was. He must have seen me working it out. â€Å"Yes,† he said. â€Å"Wh-why?† â€Å"No honor among thieves, you are thinking? Indeed. Bo and I are old enemies.† â€Å"But – † The reason for the wasteland around the house was suddenly apparent. No shelter from daylight except inside the house. Whoever it was – Bo – thought the shackle itself might not be enough. The chain that held him was many times heavier than mine, and both the shackle and – I could see it, now that I was looking – the plate in the wall that held the ring were stamped with†¦well, to start with, with the old, most basic ward symbol: a cross and a six-pointed star inside a circle. The standard warding against inhuman harm that ten percent of parents still had tattooed over their babies’ hearts at birth, or so the current statistics said. It was illegal to tattoo a minor, because of the possible side effects, and you nearly had to have a dispensation from a god to be granted a license for a home birth since the Wars because the government assumed that the opportunity for an illegal tattoo was the only reason anyone would want a home birth. Warding tattoos didn’t happen in hospitals. Theoretically. Jesse and Pat said that no fiddling tattoo would stop a vampire, but the real reason for its being illegal is that the stiff fines levied against parents who had it done anyway was a nice little annual nest egg for the government. There was some evidence that a tempered metal ward spelled by an accredited wardsmith and worn next to the skin would discourage a vampire that unexpectedly came in contact with it, long enough for you to make a run for it – maybe. The problem with that scenario is as I said, most suckers run in packs. One of the friends of the one that let go of you would grab you, and the second one would know where not to grab. I didn’t want to peer too closely, but there were rather a lot of other symbols keeping the standard one company: the staked heart (I hated this one, however simple and coolly nonspecific the design), the perfect triangle, the oak tree, the unfallen angel, true grief, the singing lizard, the sun and moon. There were more too. Under other circumstances I might have thought the effect was a little frantic. As if whoever had planned it was throwing the book at a problem they didn’t know how to solve. The wardings did seem to be having some effect. The ankle the shackle encircled was swollen and a funny color (although what counted as a funny color for a vampire I wasn’t sure) and looked pretty sore. The skin looked almost†¦grated. Ugh. But if the metal ward did protect – or in this case debilitate – who had belled the cat – fixed the shackle? Leaving aside for the moment who had done the smith-work. I daresay a wardsmith wouldn’t argue if a gang of vampires showed up and put their case persuasively enough. Which is to say good wardsmiths can’t provide perfect protection, even for themselves. But†¦did Bo have nonvampires available also? That standard ward was supposed to prevent harm from the rest of the Others too†¦which would mean that this Bo creature had human servants. Not a nice thought. Again he seemed to read my mind. â€Å"They wore†¦gloves.† That had been another of those really nasty pauses. I stared at him. So, I thought, the wards do work, but a vampire can handle them so long as the vampire and, or possibly or, the wards are properly insulated? I wonder what the insulation is? No, I’m sure I don’t want to know. There’s a blow for all the wardcrafters if word gets out though. But then again maybe it would improve their business if it was known for certain that the wards worked at all. What a lot I am learning. Perhaps that was why Bo’s gang had used gloves to touch me – in case of hidden ward signs. Now that I knew their attitude toward their guest a little better I thought perhaps they were hoping I was wearing a good one. And since I was chained up, making a run for it while he blew on his burned fingers or whatever wasn’t an option for me. Or maybe they just hadn’t wanted to leave fingerprints on me. Perhaps it’s not polite to handle another person’s food even when you’re a vampire. There was a sputter and crackle behind me. I turned sharply around: one of the candles in the chandelier was guttering. They were all burning low, casting less light than they had. But the room seemed no darker; if anything the contrary. I looked out the nearest window. Grayness. â€Å"Dawn,† I said. I looked back at him. He was sitting as he had been sitting since I had come into that room, cross-legged, leaning – no, not quite leaning, straight-backed, only his head a little bowed – against the wall, arms on knees. The one time he had moved was when I’d wept. I looked at the windows in the big room. They were big too, and curtainless, and on three sides. I wondered about the weal on his arm. Daylight increased. The sun was coming up over the lake, on my left. So we were on the north side of the lake; my family’s old cabin was on the southeast, and the city on the south. Even in the desolation where I sat it was impossible for my heart not to lift at the coming of daylight. Dawn was usually my favorite time of day: end of darkness, beginning of light. I was kind of a light freak. I sighed. It occurred to me again that I was very hungry, and even thirstier than that. And so tired that if he didn’t eat me soon I might die anyway. Joke. I didn’t feel like laughing. I glanced at him. He looked even worse than he had by candlelight. How long has it been? Bo’s lieutenant had said. So presumably he’d lived – if lived was the word – through some days here already. Ugh. As the light grew stronger I could see the room more clearly. Near the corner to my left there was a heap of something I hadn’t seen before. Too small to be another vampire. No comfort. It was something lumpy, in a cloth sack. For something to do I stood shakily up – watching him over my shoulder the whole time – and edged over toward it. I could just reach it, at the fullest extent of my chain, almost lying along the floor to do it. The vampire was tethered in the center of the wall of the room, while my staple was a little more toward this end. If our chains were the same length, then I could reach this corner, and he could not. More vampire humor? If it was me he wanted, of course, he could just pull on the chain. I stood up again. I opened the sack. A loaf of bread – two loaves of bread – a bottle of water, and a blanket. Without thinking I broke off an end of one of the loaves: standard store bread, fluffy, without real substance, spongy textur e, dry crumb, almost no aroma. Not as good as what I made. It was Carthaginian pig swill compared to what I made. But it was bread. Food. I raised the end I had broken off, and sniffed it more carefully. Why would they leave me food? Was it poisoned? Was it drugged, would it sedate me, so I wouldn’t see him coming? Maybe I should want to be sedated. I was so hungry that standing there with bread in my hands made my legs tremble, and I had to keep swallowing. â€Å"It is food for you,† he said. â€Å"There is nothing wrong with it. It is just food.† â€Å"Why?† I said again. My continuing total-immersion course in vampire mores. Something like a grimace moved momentarily across his too-still face. â€Å"Bo knows me well.† â€Å"Knows†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I said thoughtfully. â€Å"Knows that you wouldn’t†¦right away. The bale of hay to keep the goat happy while the hunters in the trees wait for the tiger.† â€Å"Not quite,† he said. â€Å"Humans can survive several days, perhaps a week, without food, I believe. But you won’t remain†¦attractive for that long.† Attractive. I looked down at the cranberry-red dress. It had had a hard night. It was creased, and there was more than one smudge of dirt at the hem as well as the spots that wiping a teary face make, and my feet, sticking out from underneath, were scratched and filthy. I would have looked no less a lady in my T-shirt and jeans. I ate the bread in my hand, and then I broke off more, and ate that. It tasted no better than it looked, and while it had a funny aftertaste I assumed that was just flour improvers and phony flavoring garbage and nothing worse. It also might be my mouth, which tasted pretty funny anyway after the night I’d just had. I ate most of the first loaf. How long were these supplies supposed to last? I opened the bottle of water and drank a third of it. It was a standard two-quart plastic bottle of brand-name spring water and the ring-seal on the lid had been intact when I twisted it loose. I looked at him again. His eyes were only half open, but still watching me. He was well in shadow but while he sat as unmoving as ever, he looked smaller now. Under siege. I moved into the sunlight streaming through the window. Food and water had helped and the touch of the sun on my skin helped even more. I set the sack down again, with the rest of the bread in it, and sighed and stretched, as if I were getting out of bed on a Monday morning, the one morning a week I got up after the sun did. I felt tired but†¦alive. I clung to this tiny moment of comparative peace because most of me knew it was false. I wondered how much worse the crash would be when the rest of me remembered, than if I hadn’t had it at all. As I say, I am a light freak. My mom found this out the first year after we left my dad. She’d got this ugly cheap dark little apartment in the basement of an old townhouse – she wouldn’t take any of my dad’s money so we were really poor at first – and I spent eight months crying and being sick all the time. She thought this was about losing my dad, and the doctors she took me to agreed with her because they couldn’t find anything wrong with me except listlessness and misery, but the minute she could afford it she got us into a better apartment, on the top floor of the house next door, with real windows. (This was when she started working for Charlie, and the minute he heard she had a sick kid he gave her a raise. He didn’t find out till later how young I was, and that she was leaving me home alone while she worked, and that the reason she tried for a job at the coffeehouse in the first place was because it was so close she could run h ome and check on me during her breaks.) It was winter, and she said I spent three weeks moving around the new place lying in every scrap of sunlight that came indoors – including moving a table and a heavy chest of drawers that were in my way – and by the end of that time I was well again. I don’t remember this, but I do remember that that eight months is the only time in my life I’ve ever been sick. I stood there in the sunlight feeling the life and warmth of it and holding off the crash. I was still clutching the bottle of water. I looked at the vampire again. His eyes were shut, perhaps because I was standing in the light. There seemed to be a thin sheen of sweat on his skin. Did vampires sweat? It didn’t seem a very vampiry thing to do. I stepped out of the sunlight, and his eyes half opened again. He didn’t look around for me; his eyes opened on where I was. I almost stepped back into the sunlight again, but I didn’t quite. I walked over to him, to within easy arm’s reach. â€Å"You haven’t†¦killed me yet because if you did, that would mean Bo had won.† â€Å"Yes,† he said. His voice, inflectionless as it was, sounded exhausted. Pretending to myself I didn’t know what I was about to do, I held up the bottle of water. If vampires sweated, maybe they drank water†¦too. â€Å"Would you like some water?† He opened his eyes the rest of the way. â€Å"Why?† Involuntarily I smiled. His turn for the intensive course in human mores. â€Å"I don’t like bullies.† This wasn’t quite the whole truth, but it was as much of the truth as I knew myself. He made the cough-growl noise again. â€Å"Yes,† he said. I held out the bottle and he took it. He sat looking at it for a moment, looked at me again, then at the bottle. He unscrewed the plastic cap. All of this was happening at ordinary human speed, although all his movements had that creepy vampire fluency. But then†¦another third of the water disappeared. I didn’t see him drink. I didn’t see his throat move with swallowing. But there was only one-third of the water left in the bottle, and he was screwing the cap back on. And he looked a little better. The mushrooms he was the color of hadn’t been in the back of the fridge quite so long, and they weren’t quite so wizened. â€Å"Thank you,† he said. I couldn’t quite bring myself to say, â€Å"You’re welcome.† I moved far enough away again that while I was still mostly in the shade, the sun was touching my back, and sat down. The band of sun-warmth was a little like having a friend’s arm around me. â€Å"You could have just taken it.† â€Å"No,† he said. â€Å"Well. Ordered me to give you some.† â€Å"No,† he said. I sighed. I felt irritated with this treacherous, villainous, mortally dangerous creature. The weight of irony might smash what remained of my mind into pieces before he did, in fact, kill me. He said slowly, â€Å"I can take nothing from you. I can only accept what you offer. I can at most†¦ask.† â€Å"Oh, please!† I said. â€Å"I can refuse to let you kill me! Vampires have never killed anyone who hasn’t said ‘oh yes please I want to die, I want to die now, I want you to drink all my blood and whatever else it is that vampires do so that even my corpse is so horrible that after the police are done with it I will be burned instantly and the ashes sterilized before they’re turned over to the next of kin!’ † I would never have said such a thing while it was dark. Daylight was my time. For a few more hours I could forget that the nightmare would come again too soon. I was tired, and half-crazy with what I had already been through, and at some level I didn’t care any more. I had seen the sun once more – it was a beautiful day – and if I was going to go out now, I was going to go out still me. â€Å"If you have the strength of will you can stop me or any vampire,† he said. Again the words came slowly, as they had when he had first spoken to me in the night. The curious thing was that he seemed to want to speak. He’d also used the word vampire. Well, so had I. â€Å"These signs,† and he gestured briefly at his ankle. â€Å"They are†¦effective signs. They will do what they are made for. They will – contain. As Bo arranged for them to do here. They will also prevent inhuman harm to a human. But they can only do that if the human who bears the warding holds against the will of the one who stands against. Vampires are stronger than humans. Rarely can any hold out against our will. Why do you think you should not look in our eyes? We can†¦persuade you anyway. But looking into a vampire’s eyes is any human’s doom.† In horror I said: â€Å"Then they do ask you to kill them. They do beg you to†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Yes,† he said. I whispered: â€Å"Then, is it†¦okay, at the very end? Do they†¦like it, at the end?† There was a long pause. â€Å"No,† he said. There was a longer pause. I jerked away from him, stood up, stood in the sunlight again. I pulled the bodice of the dress away from my body so the sun could pour down inside. I pushed my hair back so the light could touch all of my face, and then I turned round and pulled my hair up on the top of my head so that it could warm the back of my neck and shoulders. I was not going to cry again. I was not going to cry again. I could look at it as practical water conservation. I looked at him as I stood in the sunlight. His eyes were closed. I stepped out of the sunlight, still watching him. His eyes half-opened as soon as I was in shadow. â€Å"How long can you hold out?† I said sharply, my voice too loud. â€Å"How long?† Again his words were slow. â€Å"It is not hunger that will break me,† he said. â€Å"It is the daylight. The daylight is driving me mad. Some sunset soon I will no longer be myself.† His eyes flicked fully open, his face tipped back to stare at me. I averted my eyes, looked at the weal on his forearm. â€Å"I may†¦kill you then. I may kill myself. I don’t know. The history of vampires is a long one, but I do not know of anyone who has had†¦quite this experience.† I sat down. I heard myself saying, â€Å"Can I do anything?† â€Å"You are doing it. You are talking to me.† â€Å"I†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I said. â€Å"I’m not much of a talker. Our wait staff are the ones who know how to talk, and listen. I’m out back, most of the time, getting on with the baking.† Although several of our regulars hung around out back, if they felt like it. There was also a tiny patio area behind the coffeehouse that Charlie always meant to get done up so we could use it for more seating, but he never did, maybe partly because it had become a kind of private clubhouse for some of the regulars. When the fan wasn’t going but the bakery doors were open I listened to the conversations, and people came and leaned on the threshold so I could listen more easily. Pat and Jesse’s more interesting stories got told out back. â€Å"The worst time is the hours around noon,† he said. â€Å"My mind is full of†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He paused. â€Å"My mind feels as if it is disintegrating, as if the rays of your sun are prizing me apart.† Silence fell again, and the sun rose higher. â€Å"I don’t suppose you’d be interested in recipes,† I said, a little wildly. â€Å"My bran and corn and oatmeal muffins are second only to cinnamon rolls in the numbers we sell. And then there’s all the other stuff, lots more muffins – I can make spartan muffins out of anything – and tea bread and yeast bread and cookies and brownies and cakes and stuff. On Friday and Saturday I make pies. Even Charlie doesn’t know the secret of my apple pie. I suppose the secret would be safe with you.† Charlie didn’t know the secret of my Bitter Chocolate Death, either, but I didn’t feel like mentioning death in the present circumstances, even chocolate ones. The vampire’s eyes were half open, watching me. â€Å"I haven’t got much more life to tell you about. I’m not a deep thinker. I only just made it through high school. I was a rotten student. I hated learning stuff for tests only because someone told me I had to. The only thing I was ever any good at was literature and writing with Miss Yanovsky.† June Yanovsky had tangled with the school board because she chose to teach a section of classic vampire literature to her junior elective. She said that denying kids the opportunity to discuss Dracula and Carmilla and Immortal Death was in the same category of muddleheaded misguided protectiveness that left them to believe that they couldn’t get pregnant if they did it standing up with their shoes on. She won her case. â€Å"I’d’ve dropped out if it wasn’t for her, and also Charlie really laid into me about how much my mom would hate it if I did. He was right, he usually is, especially about my mom. I’d been working at the coffeehou se since I was twelve, and I went straight from part time to full time after I graduated. I’ve never done anything. The farthest I’ve been from New Arcadia is the ocean a few times on vacation when the boys were little and the coffeehouse smaller and Charlie could still be dragged away occasionally. I like to read. My best girlfriend is a librarian. But I don’t have time to do much except work and sleep. Sometimes I feel like there ought to be something†¦Ã¢â‚¬  An image of my gran formed in my memory: an image from the last time I had seen her. I had never decided whether or not it was only hindsight that made me feel she had known I would not see her again, that she was going away. Superficially she had seemed as she always had. She had said good-bye as she always had. There was nothing different about that meeting except that it had been the last. â€Å"Sometimes I feel like there should be something else, but I don’t know what it is.† Slow ly I added, â€Å"That’s why I drove out to the lake last night.† I couldn’t let the silence after that linger. â€Å"You could tell me about your life,† I said. â€Å"Er.† Life? What did you call it? â€Å"Your†¦whatever. You must have done lots of stuff besides†¦er.† â€Å"No,† he said. How to cite Sunshine Chapter 2, Essay examples

Relationship Between Chromium & Chromium Compounds

Question: Describe about relationship between Chromium and Its Compounds and the Potential Harms? Answer: Introduction Workplace related accidents are major cause of chronic illness and deaths in Singapore. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a total of 5702 work related injuries have been reported and the annual rate of death is around 4 deaths per 100000 workers (as calculated in 2005). The major workplace incidents result in morbidity, mortality and even rise in the socio economic cost of Singapore1. All the multinational corporations are introducing newer hazardous technologies that can have negative impact on the occupational health of the workers and the employees. Much research and experiments have already been conducted that provide significant evidence that this feature of global commerce poses a serious threat to the health, safety and even the natural resources. This also endangers the workers who are involved in the organization. The nations that are less developed are at higher risk of exploitation of the human resources because they lack the expertise, safe guards, and the public pressures that can help in the prevention of the harms that are caused to the workers (in developed nations). There are many approaches and interventions that are taken by the industrial as well as the international organizations to address the workplace hazards, with the help of soft law, or hard law, codes of conduct and the self regulation that is voluntarily done2. One of the occupations is leather tanning that is basically chemical preservation of raw hide and it involves the process in which various chemicals bind to the proteins. The workers are at the potential risk of exposure to many hazardous chemicals, most importantly chromium salts and therefore, are under threat of chromium toxicity. Presence of chromium and its compounds in the working environment leads to changes in the cytogenetics of individuals who are exposed to this chemical and may eventually cause abnormality in the ventilator functions i.e obstructive airways. A research study was carr ied out on the heparinized venous blood leukocytes. The results revealed that forced expiratory volume and the forced vital capacity for one second, were reduced significantly in the workers that have been exposed. Also the chromosomal aberrations were higher in the exposed workers. The sister chromatid exchange was also found to be higher in exposed workers3.Chromium and its compounds have proved to be very harmful for the health of the occupational workers. Chromium is an irritant the can cause perforation in the nasal septum, dermatitis, respiratory problems, hepatic and impairments of renal and gastrointestinal problems as well. Direct contact with chromium can stimulate its binding with the proteins of the skin and produce complex antigens that can cause hypersensitivity and even in some cases, dermatitis. Chromium and its compounds can enter the body in hexavalent form and can cross the cell wall and then convert into a more disastrous form that can initiate a series of chroni c health disorders and conditions that may prove fatal for the survival of the workers3. Relationship between chromium and its compounds and the potential harms Chromium is monetarily essential in metallurgy, electroplating, and in different synthetic applications for example, colors, biocides and solid oxidizing operators. Unfavorable wellbeing impacts have long been known and incorporate skin ulceration, punctured nasal septum, nasal dying, and conjunctivitis. Reports of bronchogenic carcinoma showed up preceding World War II in Germany and were thusly affirmed in numerous studies.1 The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) pronounced in 1980 that chromium and sure of its mixes are cancer-causing and, in 1987, presumed that hexavalent chromium is a human cancer-causing agent yet that trivalent chromium was not yet classifiable. Late studies overhauling chromium laborer companions in Ohio2,3 and Maryland1 exhibited an overabundance lung disease hazard from introduction to hexavalent chromium. The use of chemicals has become extensive in the industrial regions. Most of the important products are derived from harmful chemicals. S ome of these products are fertilizers, fibre glass, pesticides, paints and even plastics. However, the lack of caution in the use of these chemicals has resulted in fatal occupational health outcomes. Some of the chemicals are so dangerous that they need to be properly stored in containers that are covered properly, for exposure into the air would lead to chemical conversion of the compounds and they might convert in more stable and more toxic compounds. Chemicals may be toxic, inflammable, reactive, radioactive or explosive. It is important to assess the hazardous potential of any chemical before putting it into use. For analyzing this it is important to identify the properties like inflammable nature, toxicity, radioactivity and reactivity of the chemical compound4. Chromium and its compounds fall in the category of incompatible chemicals, the chemicals that have the capacity to react with each other instantly and violently and their reaction leads to liberation of large amounts o f heat or may, in some cases, produce flammable or toxic products. Chromium trioxide and chromic acid are the chemicals that have acetic acid, camphor, turpentine, glycerol, naphthalene and other flammable liquids as their incompatible chemical counterparts4. Chromium and its compounds also fall in the category of sensitizers i. e they are capable of causing or stimulating or inducing an allergic reaction. The intensity and the effects of the chemical however depend upon the susceptibility of the receiver or the individual who is exposed to the compounds of Chromium4. The most promininet profession where the workers are at the maximum risk of counterfacing chromium toxicity, is chromium plating or manufacture of the dyes and the pigments. Even in the processes of electroplating and during the production and welding of stainless steel parts, chromium hexavalent) is utilized. Exposure to chromium is generally linked to fatal disorders of the lungs, and adverse effects to the nasal cavities and the paranasal sinuses5. Hromium is found to occur in mainly four different oxidation states: 0 (carbonyls, alloys and metal of chromium), II (the chromous compounds), III ( ores of chromite and compounds of chromic) and VI ( chromic acid, dichromates, chromates and chromium trioxides). The toxicity of the compounds of chromium depends upon the valence states of these compounds. And the valence states depend upon the administration of the solubility of these compounds. The toxicity exhibited by chromium is maily due to its hexavalent state and the potential to get reduced into trivalent state. The available literature deals with the pathomorphological changes in the organs of the animals when exposed to chromium toxicity. The effects of chromium are carcinogenic, mutagenic, teratogenic and embryotoxic effects. The experimental studies conducted on guinea pigs suggests that when high doses of chromium was administered to them, it resulted in renal injury and production of casts and albumin in the urine. There was also significant evidence that supported renala tubular damage in these animals and this was supported by the evidence of alterations in the activity and the functioning of different enzymes, glucosuria and proteinuria. Also, there was evidence of hypertrophy and hyperplasia6. In one of thestudy conducted on the effect of hazardous chromium on the Tannin industry workers, it was found that the tannin worker have the potential to be exposed to variety of toxic chemicals like chromium salts, organic solvents like formaldehyde, benze and benzidine based azo dyes. Those workers were mainly exposed to chromium salts like potassium dichromate ( used specifically in the section of the leather tanning. Chromium, being an irritant, can affect the nasal septum leading to problems in the respiration, causing dermatitis, or gastrointestinal infection and other chronic conditions. In its hexavalent form, chromium enters the cells and is immediately reduced to its trivalent form. Although chromium (III) is considered as a dietary mineral in low doses, Cr VI is carcinogenic. The hexavalent of chromium is corrosive in nature and carcinogenic and cytotoxic. Workers who are exposed to chromium are more prone to develop lung and nasal cancer. The free radicals can lead to oxidative change in the protein and may also cause mutations in the DNA or even damage the chromosomes7,8. Most of the publications have reported obstructive effects of chromium. There is some evidence about the after effects of soluble chromium also. It lead s to initiation of symptoms like chest pain, cough, dyspnea and even development of asthma9. According to a Risk assessment report that was published in 2005, five different chromium compounds and their effects on the health outcomes of humans was evaluated: sodium chromate, chromium trioxide, potassium dichromate, ammonium dichromate and sodium dichromate. The report was published in UK and the RAR identified the concerns and the fears of the workers who worked in the industries and the organizations that had high rates of chromium exposure. The Human health RRS was concluded and finished in 2007 and the commission had recommended the setting and establishment of EU wide occupational exposure limits. The report predicted the fatal outcomes in the health and the human concerns were mainly about the respiratory tract irritation, irritation of the skin and eyes, skin sensitization, occupational asthma, mutagenicity and carcinogenicity, reproductive toxicity (developmental and fertility toxicity) and acute toxicity which was majorly due to the short term peak inhalation of the chromium in the air14. Receptive oxygen species (ROS) are an unenviable piece of vigorous life. Their unfaltering state focus is a harmony in the middle of generation and end giving certain enduring state ROS level. The element harmony can be irritated prompting improved ROS level and harm to cell constituents which is called "oxidative anxiety"10. This survey depicts the general methodologies in charge of ROS era in sea-going creatures and discriminatingly investigations utilized markers for ID of oxidative anxiety. Changes in temperature, oxygen levels and saltiness can result in the anxiety in common and simulated conditions by means of actuation of disbalance between ROS generation and disposal. Human borne contaminations can likewise upgrade ROS level in hydrobionts. The part of move metal particles, for example, copper, chromium, mercury and arsenic, and pesticides, specifically bug sprays, herbicides, and fungicides alongside oil items in incitement of oxidative anxiety is highlighted. A years ago t he exploration in science of free radicals was refocused from just graphic attempts to atomic components with specific enthusiasm to ones improving resilience 11. Oel and threshold limit for exposure to chromium Research has found that the workers might be exposed to chromium VI, which can be present in the air due to its manufacture from other forms of chromium like the production of chromates from the chromium ore. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), chromium VI compounds are potential carcinogens, which are associated with nasal, lung or sinus cancer. The criteria document released by NIOSH has reviewed the critical health effect studies of hexavalent chromium (CrVI) compounds. NIOSH has conducted a quantitative risk assessment of the effect of chromium and the most acceptable threshold levels of its exposure. According to Park et al. (2004), NIOSH recommends the threshold limit for the usage of chromium VI , not beyond 0.2 g Cr (VI)/m3 for an 8 hour TWA exposure, during a 40 hour work week 12. The Recommended Exposure Limit is supposed to reduce the increased risk to lung cancer that is associated with occupational exposure to Chromium (VI) and its compounds. It is also expected to reduce the exposures that are air borne, in the workplaces and thereby ensure a significant reduction in the malignant respiratory effects including the perforated, irritated and ulcerated nasal septa. But since there are still certain levels of residual risks for lung cancer, NIOSH has recommended that continuous effort be made to reduce the exposures to CR (VI) and its compounds below the Recommended exposure limit (REL). The inclusion of Cr (VI) compounds in the category of potential carcinogens has been supported by scientific evidence. These compounds have shown to possess carcinogenic potential in invitro animals or humans 13. The Immediate dangerous to life or health (IDLH) is a measure of how much threat the exposure has. It is a condition that possesses a threat of exposure to the air borne contaminants when the exposure has the capacity to lead to death or delayed long term complications in the health of the worker who has been exposed 13. The motivation behind building an IDLH worth is (1) to guarantee that the laborer can escape from a given defiled environment in the occasion of disappointment of the respiratory insurance gear and (2) is viewed as a greatest level above which just a very solid breathing device giving most extreme specialist security is allowed The IDLH for chromic acid and the chromates is around 15 g Cr (VI)/m3 13. In this manner, the tannery laborers are under high hazard and in a stage in which expulsion from further introduction to Cr is compulsory before cancer-causing nature get to be settled. The laborers ought to be made mindful of the wellbeing risks because of Cr15. Procurement of staff defensive supplies, consistent word related biomonitoring of air levels of Cr and gasses, at the working environment and the close-by surroundings that can be utilized as an apparatus to lessen the introduction danger to Cr and different contaminations in the tannery laborers, especially those with SCE. On the other hand, further studies are additionally required to elucidatethe unsafe impacts of trivalent Cr in a more extensive populace of tanning laborers3. Conclusion Reading between the lines and considering the available evidence on the use and rate of exposure to chromium and its compounds, in various industries that employs millions of workers, it is clear that chromium is palatable to a certain limit only and beyond that the dose of chromium or its exposure becomes hazardous leading to chronic nasal problems and cancers of lung and skin18. The mutagenic, carcinogenic and cytotoxic nature of chromium makes it a hazardous chemical and the threshold limits prescribed and recommended by the NIOSH should be implemented in every organization, farm, agricultural field and industry that indulges in manufacturing processes that involve exposure of the workers to chromium filled environment or in areas where chromium is produced as a byproduct of any metallurgical process like electroplating or manufacturing of pigments and dyes 16. Considering the adverse effects of chromium Cr (VI), a criteria document for hexavalent chromium has been developed to se t an occupational exposure limit for Cr (VI) in the European Union (EU). The OEL is a health based document that contains sections on the identification of the chemical substance, its physical and the chemical properties, use and production data, recent information of the occupational exposure rates and the stats and figures for the same, the current available methods for assessment and analysis and the toxicology. The last section generally describes the criteria evaluation of data on both the humans as well as on the animals. It is important for every organization to follow the REL for exposure of their employees to Cr(VI) compounds and prevent the prevailing risk of health problems that can serve as the long term complications17. References 1. Ng, Z., Teo, L., Go, K., Yeo, Y. Chiu, M. Major workplace related accidents in Singapore: A major trauma centres experience. Epidemeology of workplace related accidents in Singapore [Internet]. 2010 [cited 2015 Mar 07]; 39:920-926.2. Baram, M. Globalization and workplace hazards in developing nations. Safety science [internet]. 2009 [cited 2015 Mar 07]; 47(6): 756-766. Available on: Elsevier.3. Hussein, A. Sharaf, N., Shakour, A., Hammad, S ElGelil, K. Ventilatory problems and cytogenetic changes in workers occupationally exposed to chromium. Academic Journal of Cancer Research [Internet]. 2013 [cited 2015 Mar 07]; 6(2): 50-57.4. Ministry of manpower. Guidelines on prevention and control of chemical hazards [internet]. 2009 [cited 2015 March 07]. Available from: https://www.mom.gov.sg/Documents/safety-health/factsheets-circulars/Prevention%20and%20Control%20of%20Chemical%20Hazards.pdf.5. Workplace Safety and Health Counsil. Workplace safety and health guidelines [Internet]. 2011 . [cited 2015 March 07]. Available from: https://www.wshc.sg/files/wshc/upload/cms/file/2014/WSH_Guidelines_Occupational_Diseases(1).pdf.6. Tandon, S. Organ toxicity of chromium in animals. Biological and environmental aspects of chromium [Internet]. 1982. [cited 2015 March 07]. Available from: Elsevier.7. Ambreen, K, khan, F, Hadauria, S Kumar, S. Genotoxicity and oxidative stress in chromium exposed tannery workers in north India. Toxicology and Health [internet]. 2012 [cited 2015 march 07]. 8. Hassanein, H.M., R.A. Abbas, H.A. Abo-Zeina, S.A. Hammad, A. El-Hawary and A. Saad. Carcinogenicity of chromium among steel workers: A comparative cross sectional study central. European Journal of occupational and Environmental Medicine [Internet]. 2008 [cited 2015 March 07]; 14(2): 137-148.9. Cruz, M.J., R. Costa, E. Marquilles, F. Morell and X. Muoz. Occupational Asthma caused by Chromium and Nickel. Arch. Bronconeumol. [Internet]. 2006 [cited 2015 March 07]; 42(6): 302-6.10. Langard, S . Biological and environmental aspects of chromium. Medical [Internet]. 2013 [cited 2015 March 07]. Available from: Elsevier.11. Lushchak, V. Environmentally induced oxidative stress in aquatic animals. Aquatic Toxicology [Internet]. 2011 [cited 2015 March 07]; 101(1): 13-30.12. Park et al. An alternate characterization of hazard in occupational epidemiology: years of life lost per years worked. Am J Ind Med [Internet]. 2002 [cited 2015 March 07]; 42: 1-10.13. NIOSH. Criteria for a Recommended Standard Occupational Exposureto Hexavalent Chromium [Internet]. 2013 [cited 2015 march 07].Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2013-128/.14. Thiele, K. SEA case study: Human Health The impact of chromium (VI) on occupational disease burden [Internet]. 2010 [cited 2015 March 07]. Available from : https://echa.europa.eu/documents/10162/13580/thiele_hia_chromiumvi_en.pdf.15. Kotaoe, J. and Stasicka, Z. Chromium occurrence in the environment and methods of its speciation. Environmental pollution [Internet]. 2000. [cited 2015 March 07]; 107(3): 263-283.16. Baruthio F. toxic effects of chromium and its compounds. Biol. Trace. Elem. Res. [Internet]. 1992 [cited 2015 March 07]; 32: 145-153.17. Cross, H., Faux, S and Levy, L. Establishing an occupational exposure limit for hexavalent chromium in the European union. Requl Toxicol. Pharmacol. [Internet]. 1997 [cited 2015 March 07]; 26(iPt 2): S72-6.18. United States Department of Labor. Exposure and controls [internet]. 2010 [cited 2015 March 07]. Available from: https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/hexavalentchromium/exposure.html.

Importance of Quality Management System for Running a Successful Company

Introduction Quality is an important aspect in the operation of any firm. There are a number of perspectives that one may opt to explore while defining quality. On the one hand, quality is regarded as a philosophy and on the other hand, it is viewed as a form of scientific measurement. With regard to quality as a form of scientific measurement, Schlickman (2003, p.19) opines that quality is relative, and not absolute.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Importance of Quality Management System for Running a Successful Company specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This means that the definition of quality varies from one customer to another. In line with this, the definition of quality amongst customers also varies depending on their expectations. This makes the attainment of quality a challenge amongst firms. However, there is always an opportunity for a firm to improve the quality of its products and services. Wi th regard to quality as a philosophy, a number of steps are considered in the improvement of quality in relation to products and services. The initial step entails the formulation of an effective improvement process in relation to quality objectives. This leads to the identification of action items by the firm’s management team with a view to improving the identified problems. A comprehensive audit of the findings is conducted and a conclusion drawn and this forms the basis for data analysis. As a result, corrective measures aimed at improving quality are undertaken and reviewed by the management. Considering the rate at which the business environment is undergoing transformation, it is vital for firms to consider integrating the concept of Quality Management System. Quality Management System (QMS) is defined as the number of activities aimed at directing and controlling a particular business enterprise to attain efficiency in its operation. One of the major theories of QSM i s Total Quality Management (TQM). TQM ensures that a firm’s operations are decentralized. This means that the employees contribute to a firms’ management since they have the capacity to undertake some decisions (Swansburg, 2002, p. 533). Concepts of QMS For effective implementation of QMS in a firm, there are a number of concepts that have to be considered as outlined below.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Organizational structure Procedures Processes Resources According to Schlickman (2003, p.20), QMS is integrated within the firm’s organizational structure. An effective organizational structure ensures that a firm has the necessary level of employees for effective operation. In addition, the institution of an organization structure ensures that the firm’s resources are utilized effectively in order to maximize output. In the operation of a firm, there are a number of policies that have to be met and integrated. These policies ensure that a particular firm remains in operation. However, the policies vary from one industry to another. An organization’s QMS must ensure that these policies and regulations are reviewed to ensure efficiency and effectiveness in the firm’s operations (Mukherjee, 2006, p.43). On the other hand, processes entail the various internal business operations which enable a firm to develop products and services in relation to market needs. QMS enables a firm’s management team to undertake a comprehensive review of the various processes with a view to ensuring that the products meet the predetermined standards. In addition, QMS ensures that customer’s expectations are attained and at the same time, that costs are controlled. Resources include the various items that a firm must procure in its production process. Integration of QMS enables a firm to review its raw mater ials and financial strength in order to determine whether the firm in question is operating profitably. Understanding the role of strategic quality planning for organizations Over the past few decades, consumers have increasingly become conscious of quality in their consumption patterns. As a result, firms have incorporated quality as one of the elements that can lead the firm to attain a high competitive edge relative to competitors. Consequently, the element of quality has been considered as a key issue in strategic planning. In order to attain quality, the management teams in various firms have incorporated the element of quality in the firm’s mission and vision statement and other organizational policy guidelines. For example, management teams are increasingly formulating quality statements which are a key component of strategic planning. These statements are reviewed occasionally. Through integration of quality in the firm’s strategic planning process, the firm is able to discover its customer’s needs. For example, the firm can be able to determine the consumers’ future needs. In addition, the firm is able to undertake customer positioning. For example, the management team is able to determine whether to increase or reduce its customer base.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Importance of Quality Management System for Running a Successful Company specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Through strategic quality planning, it is possible for the firm to conduct a gap analysis by evaluating the core values thus developing ways to close the gap. However, the changes to be implemented must be in line with the firm’s mission statement, vision statement, and core values. As a result, a firm’s employees are appreciating the importance of ensuring that the products and services are of high quality. This culminates with a shift in relation to the employ ee’s perception of products from being just mere physical products to customer value. The goals of Quality Management System According to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the goals of QMS are two- fold: the attainment of customer requirements, and organizational requirements. Customer requirements In the operation of a firm, the attainment of customer satisfaction is very important. According to Hill, Self and Roche (2002, p.20), an organization that puts into consideration customer satisfaction cannot survive in the long term as a going concern entity. In order for a firm to achieve this, it must identify customers’ requirements. Hill et al (2002, p.20) defines customer requirements as inclusive of all the customers’ expectations, whether stated or implied. This means that the customers’ needs may include a number of factors depending on how the customers judge an organization. Therefore, the expectations of a customer will not necessarily be related to the core products that the firm provides but also other aspects such as how the product or service supplied. It is the role of a firm’s management team to ensure that the customer’s requirements are effectively identified and delivered if at all customer satisfaction is to be attained (Grigoroudis, Siskos, 2009). In order to achieve this, all the firms’ employees are involved in the QMS. Through the incorporation of the concept of Customer Relationship Management, all the firm’s employees ensure that their activities contribute towards attaining the customer satisfaction objective.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The resultant effect is that the productivity of the employees is significantly improved. By delivering products and services which result in a high level of customer satisfaction, a firm is able to increase its market share and hence its productivity (Blanchard, 2010, para. 1-2). Attainment of organizational goals Through integration of QMS, there is a high probability of a firm attaining its organizational goals and objectives, resulting in the attainment of consistency in relation to methods, equipments and materials necessary for the attainment of the firm’s goals. For example, QMS results in the improvement of process control while at the same time reducing wastage (Jain, 2001, p.292). In addition, effective control of the processes through the stipulated QMS policies enables a firm to minimize the cost of operation. This culminates into an increment of efficiency in the firm’s process of operation. Ways in which a firm can design products for quality According to Peel (2002, p. 1) customers are undergoing a significant change. One of the factors that have resulted in this change is that they are able to access a wide range of information in relation to product s and services. In an effort to develop products which result in maximum customer satisfaction, firms should incorporate the concept of Customer Relationship Management. This will aid the management team to understand customers’ needs. Through CRM, a firm is can be able to develop a relationship with the customers, hence gaining effective understanding of their products and services needs. To attain this, the management team should determine goals which are congruent between the organization and the customers. This will result in the establishment and maintenance of a strong rapport between the two parties. By incorporating the concept of CRM, the firm’s management team shifts its focus to the customer. This means that the information obtained from the customers is used to design and develop the products. According to Oakland and Marosszeky (2006, p.89), a wide range of information is required in the product designing phase. Through the incorporation of CRM software, the firm can be able to gather a wide range of information. By sampling the customers’ complaints, the management team is able to identify problem areas in relation to quality which the firm should improve. This enables the firm to streamline what it offers in accordance with the customers requirements. Quality function development concepts The incorporation of quality function development plays a significant role in the process of designing products in relation to customer needs (Akao, 2004, p. 43). In order for quality function development to be effective, a number of concepts should be integrated. These include; Market research Concept design Innovation Prototype testing Testing the final product or service Trouble shooting Market research enables the development team to id entify market needs which will result in customer satisfaction. To ensure that a high level of effectiveness and efficiency is attained, it is important to incorporate members of other departments in the QFD team from the time the idea to develop the product or service is conceived (Oakland Marosszeky, 2006, p.89). Before producing the product in large numbers, it is important to test its effectiveness. This can be done by selling the product to a small proportion of customers. This will help in determining the product’s market acceptability and also identify areas which should be improved depending on market response. Correlation between quality management and business success According to Longnecker, Moore, Petty and Palich (2005, p.442), there is a direct correlation between quality management and a firm’s success. In order for this to be achieved, it should be ensured that a supportive company culture is incorporated. This means that the firm’s values, prac tices and traditions should be well understood and followed by the employees. As a result, quality becomes a key source of value in the firm’s culture. One of the firms that have succeeded in its operation as a result of integrating the concept of Total Quality Management is McDonald’s Company. In order to attain this, McDonald’s have integrated the concept of quality management in its totality. This entails the employees, the food and the restaurant. The employees are required to be time conscious and clean. In addition, they are required to adhere to well formulated operational standards. It is a requirement that the food served and the restaurant remains always clean. Quality control is also integrated via listening to customer feedback. Despite its rapid expansion via the incorporation of the concept of franchising, Sambo’s Pancake House, located at Santa Barbara, failed. Its failure resulted from the fact that the firm’s management team did no t ensure consistency in relation to quality control as it is the case in McDonalds (Kurtus, n.d, para. 5). Tools for Quality Management or Continuous Quality Improvement and renewal strategies In order to ensure that QSM is effectively integrated in the firms operation, there are a number of tools which firms’ management team should consider. In relation to TQM, some of the tools which can be integrated include the Pareto principle, checklists, control charts, check sheets, and scatter plots. The pareto principle postulates that 80% of challenges that a firm experiences in relation to the quality of its products and services result from either the raw materials, machines or the operator amongst others. Scatter plots will enable the management team to determine the relationship between two variables such as quality and customer satisfaction. On the other hand, checklists can be used to determine whether the necessary procedures have been adhered to. Conclusion and recommendati on Quality System Management is a key component in the long term success of a firm. Through QSM, a firm can be able to develop products that are in line with the market demand. The resultant effect is that the firm will create a high competitive advantage. In addition, the incorporation of QSM can result in a firm developing new products, resulting in a satisfaction of customers’ needs. Considering the current rate of globalization, it is paramount for firms to incorporate the concept of QSM in their operation. In addition all the various departments should be involved to increase its effectiveness and efficiency. The system should also be audited continuously in order to identify areas which require to be changed. Reference List Akao, Y. (2004). Quality function deployment: integrating customer requirements into product design. Washington: Productivity Press. Blanchard, D. (2010). Quality management helps you to determine if your customers are satisfied. Web. Grigoroudis, E. Siskos, Y. (2009). Customer satisfaction evaluation: methods for measuring and implementing service quality. Chicago: Springer. Hill, N., Self, B. Roche, G. (2002). Customer satisfaction measurement for ISO 9000: 2000. New Jersey: Heinmann-Butterworth. Hoyle, D. (2006). ISO 9000 quality systems handbook. New Jersey: Butterworth Heinemann. Jain, J.P. (2001). Quality control and total quality management. Washington: Tata McGraw-Hill. Kurtus, R. (2008). Quality in the restaurant business. Web. Longnecker, J., Moore, C., Petty, J. Palich, L. (2005). Small business management: an entrepreneurial emphasis. New Jersey: Cengage Learning. Mukherjee, P. (2006). Total quality management. New York: PJHI Learning PVT LTD. Oakland, J.S. Marosszeky, M. (2006). Total quality in the construction supply chain. New Jersey: Butterworth-Heinemann. Peel, J. (2002). CRM: redefining customer relationship management. London: Digital Press. Schilickman, J. (2003). ISO 9001: 2000 quality management syste m design. Canada: Artech House. Swansburg, R. (2002). Introduction to management and leadership for nurse managers. Chicago: Jones and Bartlett Learning. This research paper on Importance of Quality Management System for Running a Successful Company was written and submitted by user Tenebrous to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

My Poem Essays - Prayer, Scout Prayer, Nelle A. Coley, Free Essays

My Poem Essays - Prayer, Scout Prayer, Nelle A. Coley, Free Essays My Poem When we were young,I just knew I would find you.I might not of known you,But I knew what you were feeling.The day we met I knew it was you,The one in my dreams.When I think of you I know my prayers have been answerd.All now that I can hope for is that you will always love me.And when the day comes that we shall part,and leave one another.... Just think tomorrow we will meet again. Sometimes I feel,That this might be the end.But you always reasure me and say that this is only the begining. You say that you love me,But sometmes I wonder.Like when you say the things you do.I love you and even though I get confussed,I know that you love me. And I will never let you forget this...We have made it this far,we are here till the end! ________________________________

International Business - Final Analysis and Conclusion Essay

International Business - Final Analysis and Conclusion - Essay Example Seeking international expansion by moving into global market as an exporter- importer offers various opportunity aplenty. Through entering the global scene, Six Flags Entertainment Corp learn how to compete better domestically through adoption of workable foreign strategies. Likewise, they might compete effectively against international companies-and easily take the battle to these foreign companies on their own arena. The domestic and foreign potential impact of Six Flags Entertainment Corp in Singapore puts into question the overriding question to go global and the need to improve their potential for growth and expansion. This is in light with the potential challenges such as personnel and conflicting cultural setup to the traditional domestic market. Potentially selection and evaluation methods of distributing might impact on product abroad. Thus Six Flags Entertainment Corp can choose from various means for distributing product that have succeed in traditional market, from creating foreign subsidiaries that are company-owned to working with both domestic and foreign agents, distributors and representatives. All these might assist the company to reduce the risks associated with foreign

Style and periods in Pablo Picasso's Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Style and periods in Pablo Picasso's Art - Essay Example The essay "Style and periods in Pablo Picasso's Art" investigates Pablo Picasso, the artist from Spain and explores the styles and periods of his incredible art. "If an artist varies his mode of expression this only means that he has changed his manner of thinking, and in changing, it might be for the better or the worse." "Art is a lie that makes us realize the truth""The several manners (styles) I have used in my art must not be considered as an evolution, or as steps toward an unknown ideal of painting". He goes on to say that different subjects requires different forms of expression but that art is only the present and is not a manifestation of past or evolutionary events. His concept of his periods were as though they were independent of each other. Though most of his paintings are so full of emotions, there is one specific painting in each period which has been designated as a "summary" painting which shows the lost he had experienced in his life. He lost his mother as a young boy; he suffered when he left Spain during the Spanish revolution; he suffered severe poverty in Paris. His emotions are implicit though the paintings they represent show the parallel of the troubled times. Three major periods will be discussed with one summary painting for each period. His blue period is the use of blue and green hues to show sadness and suffering. He started his blue period as a consequence of the suicide of his good friend. He suddenly threw himself into the abstract influence of Van Gogh Starry Nights. where paintings were no longer meant to tell a story. His blue period often showed women in prison with the children, poverty stricken prostitutes. melancholy. La Vie 1903, is a summary painting, it represents loss, grievance and hostility.(Schneider 92) The mother has a hostile face as though she is blaming her child that she is going to die. The young man is Casagemas who is elongated and has the lover he thought he lost at the cafe. There are two interpretations. In both, Picasso leaves his sad and melancholic blue period. He loved copying other artists but keeping to his own style. The Absinthe Drinker shows how he had been influenced by Gauguin. He used bright colors but shows the blue of the water bottle. (Warncke, blue-period) The blue and green colors were a work of experimenting with lighting. El Greco gave him the death like skin color that would epitomize the death like quality of 20th century suffering of the lower social classes in France. Picasso liked to be melodramat ic "the starving intellectual artist" and the bohemian life are often contributed to having come from him. (Warncke, blue-period) Rose period 1904-1906. He uses red hues and sometimes blue. He didn't like that it be called his transitional year. It is his period of circus and street performers. (Picasso 1923) The Family of Acrobats 1905 shows a group of performers and one woman performer separate from the group. It close examination of this painting, once again the theme of pity and abandonment can be seen in relationship to the way the fat red clown is looking away; the men and young girl are elongated as was Castegamas to show that they are posed. They are looking down to the woman, a sign of rejection and shame.(Schneider 92) He continued doing portraits and drawing circus performers. He was raised in the school of 19th century romanticism. His use of colors in the rose period started to show that the painting was more important that the subject. Eventually his subject became com pletely anonymous. The basis of this period was to completely transform the classicism use of the line. He stops being a portrait painter as his

Poverty and the World Food Security Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Poverty and the World Food Security - Essay Example This essay discusses the fundamental human rights, such as the right to sufficient quality and quantity of food. In the subject, of assessing the conditions of poverty and food security, this essay is exceptionally extensive, and it also assesses the relation between the two factors. The researcher of this essay focuses on the obligations of the international and states human rights to poverty alleviation and food security. It exhibits the social and policy aspects that coherently reduce the chances of people attaining sufficient food and living standards at the household level. There is proper examination of the requirements of the nations to include and implement policies to increase food availability consequently alleviating poverty. It also addresses the various aspects that can be employed to alleviate poverty through attaining stable food security such as addressing income sufficiency, fulfillment of state responsibilities to human rights, application of antipoverty strategies, and the application of research recommendations on food security. This essay mainly intends to capture the attention of policy makers and institutions dealing with food security. It is also aims to address the general public and inform them about their rights and responsibilities of the state towards their food requirements. In conclusion, the researcher presents this essay as broadly expressive of the issue of food security in alleviating poverty, and it is in a clear and straight forward language that is easy to understand.

Developments of Stem Cell Technology

Developments of Stem Cell Technology The research of embryonic stem cell is classified under the study of biotechnology, which is one of the most recognized areas of research by the public, as well as one that have the potentials of benefited from the completion of the research7. The embryonic stem cells are the absolute base form of all cells that is within a human, they are frequently known for two of their main characteristics. One is the ability to self-renew though a long period of time while remain non-specialised, and the other main characteristic is the stem cells ability to differentiate and give rise to any specialised cell3. Because of these characteristics, it brings hope to cure diseases that were not possible before, by replacing the damaged cell with a new one that is being derive from a stem cell. Neurodegenerative diseases are a prime example where scientists believe that stem cells are the key to treating the disease. However, the research of embryonic stem cells has always being surrounded with contro versy, due to the pro-life movement around the world. This report will be mainly focused on the use of stem cell on treating neurodegenerative diseases, and a general overview of the progress in the research of stem cells. (202 Words) Review The majority of the research done on embryonic stem cells is directed mostly toward medical treatment such as bone narrow transplant, regrowing a new nerve cell to heal Neurodegenerative diseases and more. The researches of stem cell started in the mid eighteen hundreds, when scientists discovered that some cells have the ability to generate into others. But the application of stem cell only start to boom from 1960s, when the human understanding on natural biological systems had increased to the point that it allowed scientists and doctors to do bone marrow transfers between two humans which resulted in curing a patient with severe combined immunodeficiency in 1968. This is the reason that stem cell research attracted attention from the public, due to the possibilities of curing several different types of diseases or healing damages that were beyond humans natural healing ability. Stem cells are the fundamental cells of all the different types of cells that are in a human body. It has the ability to renew itself, under the correct environment and performs obligatory asymmetric replication (see diagram 1 at appendix 1). This, combined with their ability to transform into any specific cell type that can be found in a human body, makes it possible to create new cells to replace those that were damaged by disease or treatment processes. However, the current understanding of the behaviour of stem cells is not enough for scientists and doctors to use them to completely cure a certain disease. Nevertheless, we currently have enough understanding through research, to show that stem cells do have the ability to lessen the symptoms such ailments as Alzhei mers disease. The research into stem cells has potential of curing most of the long-term diseases known to doctors; however the cost of this research is the main reason of controversy. The reason of the controversy around stem cells is focused mainly because embryonic stem cells can only be gathered when an egg is being fertilized. The process of gathering a sample of stem cells started by triggering a human egg that has been left in cryo for more than the legal limit, to grow into an embryo like the normal growth of a child. Afterward, the egg started to grow for five to seven days where the blastocyst started to form along with the inner cell mass. The whole blastocyst is then moved to a specially prepared culturing plate that is covered in a feeder layer, that is designed to support the growth of the stem cell, and chemicals are added to break the blastocyst to allow the inner cell mass to be exposed. From this point on it is merely waiting for the inner cell mass to grow and divide into stem cells that the researcher can use to test in a controlled environment by using different growth factors that will hopefully allow the scientist to map out the reaction of different types of proteins and the chemical environment that would decide the growth path of these stem cells (see diagram at appendix 2). By this point, most biotechnologists require assistance from people in another field, such as chemical engineer, protein specialist and doctors to help culturing or to understand how this stem cell works. These specialist from other field of science, help scientists to understand the growth factor that is involved in the differentiation of the cells. A prime example would be the use of growth factors. Unfortunately this is also where the controversy starts; a lot of people around the world that support pro-life organisations believe that the research of stem cells is immoral; since every embryo that is being used to extract the stem cells have the possibility of becoming a full child, thus the process of extracting the stem cells would destroy the possibility of life. They believe that the same research can be conducted through adult stem cells, or known as somatic stem cells, that can be isolated from bone narrow, or any other cells that have the ability to self repair, without the need of creating a full embryo. While it may be possible to do so, the concentrations of somatic stem cells are extremely hard to isolate and researchers are currently unable to grow them in cultures for further study. However, most scientists believe that while each embryo has the possibility of developing into a child, the long period of cryo that is used to store the egg, is damaging it, to a point that the death rate of the infant will be higher, along with the fact that these cells were originally scheduled to be destroyed, thus it does not make much difference. Therefore, until either the somatic stem cells can be cultured and proven to be as potent as embryonic stem cells, or the latest induced pluripotent stem cells that are created by reprogramming the adult stem cell back into the pluripotent stem cell stage of development. Scientists are stuck on using embryonic stem cells for the majority of the study. (792) Application Case study The advancement in the field of biotechnologys research into stem cells has already started to show results. In the past, diseases such as Alzheimers, which are diseases that cause the degradation of neurons on nerve cells, which were not treatable by doctors before. The most that doctors were able to do was to relieve the pain caused by the disease, they were not able to locate the source of the disease, or how they affected patients. However, since the development of stem cell technology, scientists have regain hope of finding cure or treatment process that can permanent treat these diseases. Using the same system that was originally designed to house the stem cells, they were able to isolate the infected neuron samples that were affected by the diseases, and therefore, were able to devise a treatment or cure for the diseases as they now have a sample with which they can work. Alzheimers disease is one of the most common neuron degradation diseases seen in the world. In America alone, there are at least 5.3 million people that have this disease. Alzheimers disease attacks the nerves and neurons that are in the brain over a long period of time, which slowly causes memory loss, problem solving skills, thinking, to the point that the brain can no longer function properly, leading to death. Alzheimers disease currently has no cure, as the rate that the human body regenerates the brain cells are much slower than the rate of infection. Therefore, theoretically it will be possible to cure Alzheimers if all infected nerve cells could be removed, and replaced with new nerve cells that were derived from the adult stem cell of the patient. This same application can also be used on other diseases such as Parkinsons disease or sport injury that normally requires years of recovery. Based on a published journal in 2009, scientists were able to use bone marrow derived the mesenchymal stem cell to relieve symptoms of Alzheimers on a mice model that have been purposely induced. According to the research journal, when a patient (or mice in their case) that is presented with the disease, the concentration of amyloid-b (Ab) peptides in the form of amyloid plaques in the brain parenchyma increases, which causes neural loss to the patient. Therefore, in a direct treatment the research team injected bone-marrow-derived-mesenchymal stem cells into the brain of the induced mice, the result showed that there is a diminution of amyloid-b by the reactivation of microglia that were re-stimulated by the injection of the stem cells. Thus the research team arrived at the conclusion that BMMSCs can promote reduction of the amyloid-b through the microglial activation in the induced Alzheimers brain, suggesting a potential therapeutic agent against Alzheimers disease. (453) however, in the journal the research team fail to considered the other cause of Alzheimer the neruofibrillary tangles Conclusion In conclusion, it is clear that the development of stem cells is one field of biotechnology that is emerging quickly as the understanding of natural biological systems increase, along with the fact that the diversity of biotechnology is potentially limitless in the field of medical research. For example, during the process of creating a suitable environment for the embryonic stem cells to grow, researchers have accidentally created a solution that can keep donated organs for longer periods of time, allowing a higher chance of success to the transplant surgery after a long period of travel. In the future, once more is understood about stem cells, the whole technology may be advanced enough to reconstruct an entire limb. There remains much controversy around this field, due to the researchers ethical practices, notably, obtaining new stem cells. Referencing Kil Lee, Jong, Hee Kyung Jin, and Jae-sung Bae. Bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells reduce brain. Neuroscience Letter 450.2 (2009): 136-41. Web. 31 May 2010. . S. Shihabuddin, Lamya, and Isabelle Aubert. Stem cell transplantation for neurometabolic and neurodegenerative diseases. Neuropharmacology 58. (2010): 845-54. Web. 12 May 2010. . Stem Cell Basics. In Stem Cell Information [World Wide Web site]. Bethesda, MD: National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2009 [cited Wednesday, May 12, 2010]ÂÂ  Available at Unknown, Unknown. What is the history of stem cell research? History of Stem Cell Research. AllAboutPopularIssues.org, 2010. Web. 12 May 2010. . Unknown, Unknown. What is Alzheimer? Alzheimers Association. Alzheimers Association, 06 April 2010. Web. 28 May 2010. . Unknown, Unknown. Stem cell. Stem Cell. AlphaMed Press, 28 May 2010. Web. 12 May 2010. . Keener, Kevin, Thomas Hoban, and Rekha Balasubramanian. BIOTECHNOLOGY and its APPLICATIONS. North Carolina State University. North Carolina State University, 06/03/2010. Web. 12 May 2010. . Lindvall O (2003). Stem cells for cell therapy in Parkinsons disease. Pharmacol Res 47 (4): 279-87. Doi: 10.1016/S1043-6618(03)00037-9. PMIDÂÂ  12644384.ÂÂ   Goldman S, Windrem M (2006). Cell replacement therapy in neurological disease. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 361 (1473): 1463-75. Doi: 10.1098/rstb.2006.1886. PMIDÂÂ  16939969. Unknown, Unknown. Stem Cells and self-Renewal. isscr. ISSCR, 2010. Web. 28 May 2010. www.isscr.org/public/SC_self-renewal.pdf Unknown, Unknown. Neurofibrillary Tangles. Department of Pathology. University of Oklahoma, 2010. Web. 30 May 2010. .