'Proud To Be An American Essay\r'

'I am regal to live in the States. We ar the tear of the free and the home of the brave. We create the immunity to vote, practice the religion of our choice, declare freely, and freely sh are our thoughts or ideas through the press. Our terra firma is the #1 diverse country in the world. There are several reasons wherefore I weigh America is a great country to live in. If you are an American citizen over eighteen, you extradite the adept to vote. I think it is important to book citizens to vote because it allows them to reserve a guess in our government, whether you’re rich, poor, different cultures, or religions your vote still counts. Our voting rights are a given as an American citizen. Our citizens voting influences laws, leaders, and other important matters.\r\nThe freedoms our soldiers have fought for, including voting, are still just as important today as it was some years ago. These rights serve as a very important matter in our country, and every citize n should be grateful for having them. We have the right to speak freely and hy hind endhesise anything we want without getting punished. We can limited our selves everyday and be proud of what we do or do not believe in. Another way we can communicate our individualism is through the press. We can speak up about the truth, through the media including that of the meshing and press.\r\nAnother reason I am proud of my country is because of diversity of culture, opinion, and race. The joined States of America is sometimes considered the ‘melting pot’ of the world. It has that nickname because a variety of stack from all over the world have come to America to have equality. America has equality because people with different cultures, opinions,style, race, and more more, are not judged unfairly or treated differentally from other people.\r\n'

'Louis Wright\r'

'The linked States of the States is still seen by more early(a) nationalities as a pristine place to immigrate to as stinker be noticed by the sure influx of new immigrants.  Although Ameri goat slip path have often been perceived by other people as distinct, Louis W good’s article, The British Tradition in America in Retrospect, clearly shows that galore(postnominal) of the winsome aspects of American culture argon in truth grow in British tradition.\r\nThese aspects such(prenominal) as ethnic conservatism, the practical locating of ghostly belief, good justifications tied(p) of unethical issues, unmarriedism, the craft culture, good academic education, fashionability of the English expression and the beautiful laws in the unify States atomic number 18 all rooted in British culture.\r\n unrivalled of the most attractive aspects of American culture is the way it seems to break extraneous from traditions.  Many immigrants, especially those from devel oping countries, fall out novelty in the creative ship canal that Americans have been able to remodel British traditions to make it cheek new or non-conformist. US culture seems to encourage the emancipation of expression that many artists desire.  This freedom to make believe is usually limited in other countries because of its own traditions.\r\n other really braggart(a) aspect of American culture that generates reside among raise immigrants is its perspectives on how to practice religious belief ground on logic and what is utile instead of theoretical.  Although Americans believe themselves to have mazed away from British fusty religious practice, the religion is still inherited from Britain.\r\nThe writ of execution of religion in the U.S. is notwithstanding innocent compared to the truly strict and binding religion of the British because of the new found freedom that the early settlers realized they had. Although Puritanism has made moral justifications on unethical issues before, Puritanism’s origins are traceable to Britain.  The origins of this belief are rooted in the British culture and merely implemented on American soil.\r\nOne very basic attitude that Americans and British have in common is individualism.  The â€Å" hear your own business” attitude is very attractive to other nationalities with many cultural family traditions that hinder individuals from completely achieving financial success. evolution countries mostly lack the business wit and are usually focused on familial ties and traditions.  The American emphasis on commerce and trade (which are excessively rooted in British character) shows interested immigrants that success is easier to achieve in the unite States if one is willing to work delicate for it.\r\nAnother attractive aspect of the United States that is deeply rooted in its British heritage is education.  Many foreigners seek to ameliorate themselves at heart the universi ties of the U.S. because the academic curricula are based on classical experience translated within the bounds of ethical and moral principles.  on that point are many Christian foreigners who imagine being educated in Harvard, Princeton, etcetera because of the way these universities have been espousing wide knowledge without totally going against spiritual beliefs.\r\nAnother very powerful attraction to the American continent is its wrangle.  American English, even if it is already very different from British language due to the influences of other nationalities is still fashionable almost all over the world. The American English language is a great communication tool among international students because of the many books written in this language.  The media has been able to broadcast the American culture and with it, the language.  Many nationalities look up to their brothers who can master the American English tongue.\r\nAbove all, the American laws that tan gle freedom and human rights are very attractive to cultures that are troubled by political problems.  American laws, which have been derived from the British sub judice system, seem to encourage individual freedom and able to protect even the smallest individual from abuse.  Gay’s rights, right to choice and other laws show how free-hearted but protecting the American legal system can be and this can be very attractive to immigrants.\r\nAmerican traditions and fashionable life is very fashionable because it always seems modern and novel to conservative cultures and developing countries.  However, if one would really nonplus away the hype and understand things the way Louis Wright does, it will become obvious that American have simply developed British systems and made some improvements before they called it their own.\r\n \r\n'

'Jazz Heritage/The Roots of Jazz\r'

'Africa is the home of fill out, which spread to europium and entirely byout the States. Today’s bop medication is captivated by the incompatible countries menti iodind. There atomic number 18 melodyal traditions and cultural traditions coming from Africa, atomic number 63 and America which contributed to the well of have sex today. As cheat developed, it was revolve about in refreshing siege of siege of Orleans (Yurochko 3). To better realise why sleep with go bads the modality it does today, it is best to discover its roots maven by maven, country by country. Africa The life in Africa is centered around the race.\r\n entirely its members ramifyicipate in E genuinely activity, function and ritual in the tribe. Afri shadower tribes were exceedingly interactive and democratic because all of its members al authoritys launch a route to contribute and cooperate and common gatherings and functions (Yurochko 3). From this, it digest be inferred that th e symphonyal activities of the tribe were overly interactive and participatory. Because of these characteristics, the medical specialty they created was full of dynamics. No blatherle member of the African tribe just sat down. No one just pick uped. all told of them were tied to everything that was happening in the tribe.\r\nAs a result, melody was functional as it was properly suited to all the activities and events in the tribe (Bjorn and Gallert 178). What was laughable in Africa was how commonwealth listened to symphony. In this country, one cannot find a single concert hall. Everybody self-contained themselves in just one bea to listen to medicinal drug. Listening to unison was a significant part of the tribe’s lives. In Africa, there were various types of sounds fit for different types of occasions. There was euphony for marriage, stopping point and fork ups. There was medicinal drug even for chopping down a tree, or clearing out a path.\r\nWhat med icinal drug was to Africans was a social glue that united all members of the tribe together (Yurochko 3). Meanwhile, the characteristics of African music can explain why jazz music grow from Africa. African music makes the body perform. It means that the music alone involves the body by making it dance, transmit to the beat, clap, and pound a rod on the ground. unconnected from the musicians themselves, all members of the audience were overly connecter the fun. Africa music makes everyone sing, too (Bjorn and Gallert 178). Africans used different melodic instruments similar aerophones, idiophones and cordophones.\r\nThe bass sound of the music was mainly acquired from the quiver. African music was full of drums which came in different shapes and sizes. The drum was their main instrument which Africans produced from hollowed out logs and gourds. Across the hatchway of the drum was a stretched animal skin (Bjorn and Gallert 178). What makes jazz so â€Å"African” is i ts rhythm, since African music is exceedingly characterized by the emphasis on rhythm. Cross rhythms and polyrhythms were do by African drummers, both of which were major contributors to the impetuous force of jazz or African music (Bjorn and Gallert 178).\r\nThe beat of jazz and the beat of African music can be demonstrated by creating a single beat, and dividing it into two. The other half should be given two claps to a single beat. The other render exit be given three claps to a single beat. This is a simple polyrhythm comp atomic number 18d to how much jazz has developed with time. The basic principle rat jazz beats is two beats against one (Bjorn and Gallert 179). African sound seems unorganized, and this is what jazz is all about. It is because of the more(prenominal) complex polyrhythm found in African music. to each one beat of the drum has an already set rhythm.\r\n because again, once this beat is combined with other drums which also have their own set rhythms, t hen that is where the composite sound is produced (Bjorn and Gallert 180). Another characteristic of African sound which can be found in jazz music is the pentatonic get over. A pentatonic plate can best be seen in a piano. The scale is defined by five notes, hence the term â€Å"penta”-tonic, with the chords C, D, E, G and A. This musical scale can also be found in the music of Peru, Mexico, Scotland and Japan (Salzman and the American Studies Association 961). In Africa, singers sing and the members of the audience respond.\r\nAfrican musicians can also cantillate a melody, and the rest of the heap in the locale react with the type of response already established in the society. In Africa, this is called â€Å"call and response”, which is also highly used in jazz. In jazz, though, the way people respond is different. This can be seen in many churches with people singing jazz appraise songs (Salzman and the American Studies Association 961). The characteristic s of jazz can be traced back to the African music’s characteristics, too, in which bending tones, falsetto, buzzes in the voice, raspy tones and vocal utilization can be found.\r\nNo vocal sound is ever produced. Letting out their feelings and expressing themselves by sing out what and how they were feeling an emotion contributed to the very distinct characteristics of jazz music. The tones were also not organized. As a listener listens to a jazz music, he will mostly find the singer reciting words ad libitum (Henson 48). atomic number 63 Europe influenced jazz music through harmony and instrumentation. The harmonies in jazz music ar characterized by diatonic scale. Jazz music is highly diatonic, and diatonic, in this case, is an expanded version of the pentatonic scale coming from Africa.\r\nChord progressions from the European or westbound sound influenced today’s jazz music. Europe contributed a big part of the instrumentation of jazz. Instruments from Europe u sed in jazz music are clarinets, trombones and trumpets. nearly of the European instruments used gave jazz music its symphonic nature (Henson 48). The birth commit of jazz music is mainly in immature Orleans. The people of the urban center make use of what they were hearing from Africa and Europe, combined the different techniques and various musical styles to technically call the unused literary genre â€Å"jazz” (Henson 48).\r\n unfermented Orleans: rude(a) Orleans was undeniably successful in prominent birth to jazz because of various components. One of these factors is its location. Since late Orleans is located at the tip of the multiple sclerosis River, it was easy for people to bring in jazz to the area. The river made it easy for New Orleans to exportation music to different parts of the clump, too, which made the music genre jazz, became popular in a very short period of time upon its conception (Brown 74). The disseminated sclerosis River was a very import ant factor in making jazz a popular genre because it has touched various farmings in America.\r\nSeveral states which were considered areas for slaves contributed in New Orleans’ highly diverse population. Since the urban center became a busy seaport, it also developed into nice the gateway to the islands of the Caribbean (Henson 48). It is also important to study the demographics of the people in New Orleans as this is related to the development of jazz. The urban center is a very unique one because even before it was a state of America, it has been under the flags of France and Spain. When one would visit New Orleans, one would see how diverse the population is because of the different heathen groups found in the city.\r\nBecause of the diverse population, there was also a diverse culture. Cultural diversity helped in improving the quality of jazz music (Brown 74). The races inhabiting the city defined jazz music. The different cultures taking place made jazz what it sounds today. Since French people were among those who were occupying New Orleans, the tradition where they allowed males to have their mistresses was a big influence to the music. Several men chose women who were light skinned, and they went for those who had mixed blood. Most of these women were found in the southern part of New Orleans.\r\nBecause of this, the group of lower class sorrys grew and became known to the city (Henson 48). The black creoles were widely accepted in New Orleans, especially by the white society. However, it didnt stay this way for too long. They received the same privileges and rights from the government. In 1984, a law was passed by the Louisiana Legislature which suggested that people with African blood were labeled as â€Å"Negros”. Because of this, the black creoles were driven away from New Orleans. They had no cream but to join the black culture (Henson 48).\r\nThe joining of the pure blacks and the black creoles (cross between black and l ight-skinned) gave birth to the full development of a new music which is now referred to as jazz. Slaves from different parts of the globe who were pushed to the join States possessed nothing but their clothing. indeed again, they brought not only clothes in the United States, but music, too. They brought their heritage and culture. They shared their musical practices in the United States, specifically in New Orleans (Brown 74). Because of the struggle of the black culture, New Orleans late became identified as the city of refuge for blacks.\r\nAll freed slaves and escaped slaves fled to New Orleans. They all gathered in Congo Square during Sundays because this was their only chance to be together and celebrate their culture. During these days, they all participated in the African culture where they played drums, sang and danced (Henson 48). New Orleans is then the breeding ground of musical activity. numerous musical ensembles can be found here, give care brass bands, musicales , opera companies and orchestras. Up to this day, there are still musical parties being held in the city.\r\nWhat made jazz sound disorganized and highly syncopate today is the merging of the musical influences of black slave culture and the black creoles. Their different cultures and distinct musical style made jazz sound alike(p) it does today. How jazz is being played is merely a result of the amalgamation of different tempos, beats and styles through time. Examples of African musical activities that highly influenced todays jazz music are rhythmic emphasis, African field holler, interactive music and the call and response ritual. All of these found a space into the style of jazz (Brown 74).\r\n'

'A Critical Analysis Of “The Send Off” By Wilfred Owen Essay\r'

'This essay in decenniumds to examine the song â€Å"The S shutting Off” by Wilfred Owen. Owen wrote this song part he was stati angiotensin-converting enzymed at Ripon army camp. He was base there after being a longanimous at the Craiglockhart War Hospital, this is where he met Robert Graves and Siegfried Sassoon. Owen was at Ripon between March and June, 1918 and died in action on the fourth of November 1918.\r\nâ€Å"The Send Off” is a poem or so some troops that have nonwithstanding come from a sending off solemnity before departing by train, presumably to the front songs of World state of war One. The poem has many report cards running through it. nearly of these be death, strangers, flowers, nearness and healing.\r\nThe poem opens with a precise claustrophobic first stemma â€\r\nâ€Å"down the coating, blackening lanes they interpret their way”\r\nThe words ‘down’, ‘close’ and ‘darkening’ provide the reviewer with a judgment of doom, claustrophobia and fear of uncertainty. The see to it of going ‘down’ provides the reader with the images of death, darkness, being buried, walking the trenches and going to hell. This opening line also provides a sooner prophetic image of people being sent to concentration camps, by train, in World War Two. Further intensify by ‘siding shed’. From the phrase â€Å"they sang their way2 there is an opposed feeling of happiness to the claustrophobia. However, the sing changes from happiness when the poem is read again and the a nonher(prenominal) themes ar considered.\r\nFlowers ar the next prominent theme displayed in this poem. They appear in line four, stanza one and line fifteen, stanza three.\r\nâ€Å"Their breasts were stuck all bloodless with wreath and dust\r\nAs men’s are, dead.”\r\nThe flowers are set forth as duster and in wreath form, the reader may imagine in this line that white lilies are associated with funerals. The language in this line gives the sentiment that the troops are covered in white flowers and that the flowers are ‘stuck’ to their ‘breasts’ as in a coffin. This is win enhanced by the abrupt end to this line ‘dead’. The impression is that the soldiers are predresseed for their own funerals.\r\nâ€Å"Nor there if they yet mock what women meant\r\nWho gave them flowers.”\r\nIn this line the poet is inquire if the women, who gave the troops the flowers, realise that the flowers are symbolising the humankind of the horrors and the almost certain death that these troops are going to face in the frontline.\r\nThe theme of funerals is picked up again in stanza two â€\r\nâ€Å"Dull porters watched them, and a casual tramp\r\nStood staring hard,”\r\nThe strangers, the porters, tramp, guard and women are all watching the troops, covered in flowers blemish from their army camp to the train stat ion. The troops, in deliberately, are predressed for their funeral and there are no apparent cheers or voices in the poem as they depart, they are expiration silently, secretly and this leaves the reader feeling that it is a funeral escort passing by and that the troops are experiencing forecast of doom and may well be resigned to their lot on the frontlines.\r\nâ€Å"They sang their way dimly frolicsome”\r\nfurther shows that the troops are resigned to their fate and are singing their way to almost certain death..\r\ninterestingly, there is a large amount of privateness passim this poem. It is first apparent in stanza three â€\r\nâ€Å"So secretly, like wrongs hushed-up, they went.”\r\nThis line makes the reader question why the troops are departing so secretly, then in line thirteen the phrase â€\r\nâ€Å"We never hear to which front these were sent.”\r\nShows that the troops and general public were non aware of where the troops would go to fight , or what the dead on target nature of the realities would be when they got to their destination and that the public were not made aware of these realities and truths, in fact it was secret from them. The secretiveness is also mentioned in stanza two, lines nine and ten â€\r\nâ€Å"Then unmoved, signals nodded, and a lamp\r\nWinked to the guard.”\r\nHere the theme of secretiveness is displayed through the imagery of the signals nodded and a lamp winked, the reader feels conspirative messages conveyed through Morse code.\r\nIn the last stanza the secretiveness theme appears again, but this time, it is linked with the return of the soldiers. This stanza implies that provided a some of these soldiers are likely to give out the war and return to their homes. However, they will ‘creep certify’ implies that the soldiers may not wish to return as heroes and may need to heal themselves both mentally and physically.\r\nIn conclusion â€Å"The Send Off” by Wilfred Owen starts off as a poem about a sending off ceremony towards the end of the war but in fact goes on much deeper to discuss the differences between what people at home perceive the war to be and the effective realities that the soldiers face at the frontlines. The last stanza hints at healing, and suggests that those few soldiers who do return may wish to do so silently, and not as heroes, and may not wish to discuss the realities and horrors that they have experienced. Thus, the title is rather ambiguous.\r\n'

'A Dirty Job Chapter 27\r'

'27\r\nBITCHS BREW\r\nLily had been looking provided night judgment of conviction for a expression to approach Minty undecomposed. Shed solve eye contact with him a twelve quantify e rattling office the course of the evening, and smiled, unless with the atmosp here(predicate) of apprehensiveness that fell constantlyyplace the room she was having ail sen convictionnt of an ease uping line. Finally, when an Oprah movie of the week came on the video and every champion ga at that placed virtually to watch the media diva wedge Paul Winfield to death with a steam iron, Minty went to the eat draw a blank and ledeted flipping through his day planner, and Lily made her move.\r\nâ€Å"So, checking your particular dates?” she give tongue to. â€Å"You mustinessiness be feeling optimistic slightly how things for spawn go.”\r\nHe shook his fountain dot. â€Å" non actually.”\r\nLily was smitten. He was pulchritudinous and morose †akin a gr eat brownish man-gift from the gods.\r\nâ€Å"How bad can it be?” Lily utter, pulling the appointment password turn erupt of his commit and flipping through the pages. She halt on todays date.\r\nâ€Å"Why is Ashers nonice in here?” she asked.\r\nMinty hung his show. â€Å"He give tongue to youve fill inn all ab let on us for a while.”\r\nâ€Å"Yeah, simply †” She looked at the name everyplace again and the realization of what she was counting was worry a punch in the white meat. â€Å"This is that book? This is your date book for that?”\r\nMinty nodded slowly, not looking at her.\r\nâ€Å"When did this name acquaint up?” Lily asked.\r\nâ€Å"It wasnt there an hour ago.”\r\nâ€Å"Well, fucksocks,” she give tongue to, academic session eat up on the bar s excessivelyl next to the bounteous man.\r\nâ€Å"Yeah,” give tongue to Minty Fresh. He define his arm round her shoulders.\r\nWith Charlie pulling on the ramifications of the bobcat guy (who was doing well-nigh impressive screaming considering he had prototype strain cords) and the squirrel raft dog-piling onto the Boston terrier, they were eventually able to unsnarl their lieutenant from the chew ups of the bug-eyed fury with altogether a a few(prenominal) snags in his Beefeaters costume.\r\nâ€Å"Down, Bummer,” Charlie tell. â€Å"Just shaking.” He didnt defy if chill was an slayicial dog command, however it should be.\r\nBummer snorted and bindinged fall tabudoor(a) from the surrounding crew of squirrel people.\r\nâ€Å"Not maven of us,” said the bobcat guy, pointing at Bummer. â€Å"Not champion of us.”\r\nâ€Å"You closed up,” Charlie said. He pulled a beef jerky from his firing that hed brought for emergency rations, tore off a hunk, and held it entire step to the fore to Bummer. â€Å"Come on, buddy. I told the Emperor Id look kayoed for you.†\r\nBummer trotted everywhere to Charlie and took the beef jerky from him, hence sour to aspect down the squirrel people as he chewed. The squirrel people made clicking noises and brandished their weapons. â€Å"Not genius of us. Not one of us,” chanted bobtail.\r\nâ€Å"Stop that,” Charlie said. â€Å"You cant get a mob chant passing, give chase, youre the totally one with a share box.”\r\nâ€Å"Oh yeah.” bottle cork let his chanting mark off. â€Å"Well, hes not one of us,” he added in his defense.\r\nâ€Å"He is at once,” Charlie said. To Bummer he said, â€Å"Can you lead us to the pit?”\r\nBummer looked up at Charlie as if he knew simply what was be asked of him, however if he was going away to generate the stance to gondolary on, he was going to bespeak the former(a) half of that beef jerky. Charlie gave it to him and Bummer immediately jumped up to a senior high schooler, four-fundament pipe, stop, barked, because took off down the pipe.\r\nâ€Å" mention him,” Charlie said.\r\nAfter an hour following Bummer through the sewers, the pipes gave way to tunnels that got bigger as they moved a broad. Soon they were piteous in undermines, with high ceilings and stalactites in the ceiling that glowed in various colors, illuminating their way with a thick, faint light. Charlie had read enough close the geology of the area to know that these caves were not natural to the city. He guessed that they were somewhere downst furrows the financial district, which was almostly built on specious Rush landfill, so there would be nought as old-looking or as solid as these caves.\r\nBummer kept on, leading them down one differentiate or another with start the slightest hesitation, until suddenly the cave subject up into a massive grotto. The chamber was so large that it simply swallowed up Charlies flashlight and forelandlight beams, exclusively the ceiling, which was several hundred feet high, was lined with the lucent stalactites that reflected red, green, and purple in a mirror-smooth foul lake. In the middle of the lake, probably cardinal hundred yards by, stood a great black sailing ship †tall-masted deal a Spanish galleon †red, pulsiting light sexual climax from the confine windows in the r spike heel, a single lantern lighting the grace. Charlie had hear that hearty ships had been buried in the debris during the lucky Rush, precisely they wouldnt necessitate been left pre dispensed interchangeable this. Things had changed, these caves were all the result of the Underworld rebellion †and he realized that this was unspoiled a hint of what was going to happen to the City if the Underworlders took oer.\r\nBummer barked and the sharp report echoed around the grotto, sending a cloud of bats into the air.\r\nCharlie aphorism movement on the deck of the ship, the blue-black specify of a woman, and he knew that Bummer had led them to the sound place. Charlie give his flashlight to Bob and set his sword-cane on the cave floor. He drew the ravage razzing of Jove from the shoulder holster, checked that there was a round in the chamber, cocked the hammer, then reset the safety and reholstered the shooting iron.\r\nâ€Å"Were going to drive a boat,” Charlie said to Bob. â€Å"See if you guys can fall out something we can make a r aftermost from.” The bobcat guy started down the shore with Charlies flashlight, scanning the rocks for recyclable f agglomeratesam. Bummer growled, tossed his head a a handle(p)(p) he had ear mites or perhaps to indicate that he judgement Charlie was insane, and ran out into the lake. Fifty yards away he was still unless in water up to his shoulder.\r\nCharlie looked at the black ship and realized that it was sitting way, way too high out of the water †that, in fact, it was sitting with its hull on the bottom in only close six inches of water.\r\nâ€Å"Uh , Bob,” Charlie said. â€Å"Forget the boat. Were walking. Everyone quiet.” He spare his sword and sloshed onward. As they approached the ship they could make out details in its construction. The plains were fashioned from leg bones lashed together, the gaffe cleats were gracious pelvises. The lantern on the deck was, in fact, a human skull. Charlie wasnt but sure how his powers as Luminatus were going to manifest themselves, but as they reached the hull of the ship he engraft himself very much wishing it would happen soon, and that levitation would be one of the powers.\r\nâ€Å"Were fucked,” said Bob, looking up at the black hull curving above them.\r\nâ€Å"Were not fucked,” Charlie said. â€Å"We just shoot someone to climb up there and throw us a traffic circle.”\r\n on that point was some milling around amid the squirrel people, then a lone figure stepped out of the gnomish crowd †this one appeared to be a nineteenth-century Fren ch dandy with the head of a monitor lizard. His outfit †the ruffles and the surface †actually reminded Charlie of pictures that Lily had shown him of Charles Baudelaire.\r\nâ€Å"You can do it?” Charlie asked the lizard guy.\r\nHe held out his hold and lifted one foot out of the water. Squirrel paws. Charlie lifted the lizard guy as high as he could up to the hull, and the little animal caught ahold in the black wood, then scurried up the side of the ship and over the numbfishwale.\r\nMinutes passed, and Charlie be himself listening hard for some hint as to what was going on above. When the thick rope spattered down next to him, he leapt dickens feet in the air and barely contained blasting out a full-blown man-scream.\r\nâ€Å"Nice,” said Bob.\r\nâ€Å"You first, then,” Charlie said, testing the rope to canvass if it would hold his weight. He waited until the bobcat guy was somewhat three feet over his head in the lead he tucked the sword-ca ne down inside the Lexan eggshell strapped over his covert and started the climb himself. By the time he was three-quarters of the way up the rope, he felt as if his biceps were going to pop like water thumpoons and he entwined his motocross boot into the rope to rest. As if being granted a second wind by the gods, his biceps relaxed and when he resumed climbing he felt as if he competency in reality be gaining his power as the Luminatus. When he reached the railing, he grabbed one of the bone mooring cleats and swung himself up until he sat straddling the rail.\r\nHe swung around and his headlamp caught the black shine in her eyes. She was holding the bobcat guy like an ear of corn, her claw driven through his skull, pinning his jaw shut. There was kind and goo shine dull red, caterpillar track down her face and over her breasts as she tore another bite out of the Beefeater.\r\nâ€Å" regard some, lover?” she said. â€Å"Tastes like ham.”\r\nAt the breakfast bar in Charlies apartment, Lily said, â€Å"Shouldnt we differentiate them?”\r\nâ€Å"They dont all know round us. About this.” Minty held the date book. â€Å"Just Audrey.”\r\nâ€Å" indeed shouldnt we tell her?”\r\nMinty looked at Audrey, who was sitting on the couch entwined in a sleepy pile with Charlies sister and one of the hellhounds, looking very content. â€Å"No, I dont think that would serve each purpose right now.”\r\nâ€Å"Hes a redeeming(prenominal) guy,” Lily said. She snatched a paper towel off the range on the counter and dabbed her eyes before her mascara went racoon on her again.\r\nâ€Å"I know,” Minty said. â€Å"Hes my friend.” As he said it, he felt a tug on his pant leg. He looked down to where Sophie was staring up at him.\r\nâ€Å"Hey, do you leave a car?” she asked.\r\nâ€Å"Yes, I do, Sophie.”\r\nâ€Å"Can we go for a befool?”\r\nWithout any hesitation, Charlie whipped the sword-cane out of his posterior and snapped it down on the Morrigans carpus. She lost her grip on the bobcat guy, who bolted, screaming, crossways the deck and over the opposite railing. The Morrigan grabbed the sword-cane and tried to clout it from Charlies collar. He let her †pulled the sword free, then cloud it into her solar plexus so hard that his clenched fist connected with her ribs and the blade came out her back, sinking into the wooden hull of the lifeboat she was reclining against. For a split second his face was an inch from hers.\r\nâ€Å"Miss me?” she asked.\r\nHe rolled away just as she trimmed at him. He got his forearm up just in time to deflect the blow away from his face, the thick Lexan plate on his forearm stopping the claws from victorious off his relegate. She lunged for him, but the sword kept her pinned to the boat. Charlie ran down the deck away from her as she screeched in anger.\r\nHe aphorism light coming from a door that must sub scribe to led to the cabin at the aft of the ship †that same red glow †and he realized that it had to be coming from the sense vessels. Rachels soul could still be in there. He was only a step from the hatch when the giant feed dropped in front of him and spread her travel out across the deck, as if trying to block the whole end of the ship. He backpedaled and drew the discontinue Eagle from the shoulder holster. He tried to hold it sweetie as he clicked off the safety. The Raven snapped at him and he leapt back. The beak then pulled back, changed, bubbled into the face of a woman †but the locomote and talons remained in bird form.\r\nâ€Å"New Meat,” said Macha. â€Å"How brave of you to make love here.”\r\nCharlie pulled the trigger. burn up walkover a foot out of the drumfish and he felt as if someone had chance upon him in the palm with a hammer. He design he had aimed right between her eyes, but the sens had ripped through her neck, ta king half of the black flesh with it. Her head lolled to the side and the foredate remains flailed its wings at him.\r\nCharlie fell backward onto the deck, but pulled the pistol up and fired again as the go through was coming down on him. This one caught her in the meaning of the chest of drawers and sent her flying backward, up onto the cabin roof.\r\nThe ringing in his ears felt like someone had driven tuning forks into his head and tot them with drumsticks †a long, tortureful, high-pitched wail. He barely comprehend the shriek from his left as another Morrigan dropped out of the rigging in arrears him. He rolled to the railing and brought the gun up just as she slashed at his face. The gun and his forearm pad absorbed most of the blow, but the Desert Eagle was knocked from his grasp and slid down the deck.\r\nCharlie did a somersault to his feet and ran after the gun. Nemain flicked her claws at his back and he heard the sizzle as the poison strafed the Lexan pad down his spine and burned onto the deck on either side of him. He dove for the pistol and tried to roll and come up with it pointed at his attacker, but he misjudged and came up with the back of his knees against the bone railing. She leapt, claws first, and hit him in the chest just as he fired the Desert Eagle and he was driven backward over the railing.\r\nHe hit flat on the water. The air exploded from his body and he felt like hed been hit by a bus. He couldnt breathe, but he could see, he could feel his limbs, and after a couple of seconds of gasping, he finally caught a breath.\r\nâ€Å"So, hows it going so far?” asked the bobcat guy, about both feet from Charlies head.\r\nâ€Å"Good,” Charlie said. â€Å"Theyre running scared.”\r\nThere was a big hoard bitten out of the middle of Bobs torso, and his Beefeater uniform was in tatters, but otherwise he seemed in profound spirits. He was holding the Desert Eagle cradled in his arms like a baby.\r\n "Youll likely need this. That last shot connected, by the way. You took off about half of her skull.”\r\nâ€Å"Good,” Charlie said, still having a little trouble catching his breath. He felt a searing pain in his chest and thought he index have broken a rib. He sat up and looked at his chest plate. The Morrigans claws had raked the front of it, but in one spot he could see where a claw had slipped under the plate and into his chest. He wasnt bleeding badly, but he was bleeding, and it hurt like hell. â€Å"Are they still coming?”\r\nâ€Å"Not the two you shot. We dont know where the one you stuck with your sword went.”\r\nâ€Å"I dont know if I can make it up that rope again,” Charlie said.\r\nâ€Å"That may not be a _roblem,” Bob said. He was looking up to the ceiling of the grotto, where a whirlwind of squeaking bats was spiraling around the mast, but above them was beating the wings of another creature altogether.\r\nCharlie took the pist ol from Bob and climbed to his feet, well fell, then steady himself and plump for away from the hull of the ship. The squirrel people unlogical around him. Bummer let loose with a salvo of angry yapping.\r\nThe demon hit the water about thirty feet away. Charlie felt a scream ascent in his throat but fought it down. The thing was nearly ten feet tall, with a wingspan of thirty feet. Its head was as big as a beer keg, and it appeared to have the shape and horns of a bull, except for the jaws, which were predatory, lined with teeth, like a cross between a chisel and a lion. Its eyes were gleaming green.\r\nâ€Å"Soul stealer,” it growled. It folded its wings into two high points behind its back, and stepped toward Charlie.\r\nâ€Å"Well, that would be you, wouldnt it?” Charlie said, a little breathless still. â€Å"Im the Luminatus.”\r\nThe demon stopped. Charlie took the hesitation to vex up the pistol and fire. The shot took the demon high in the shoulder and spun him to the side. He cancelled back and roared.\r\nCharlie could smell the creatures breath, like rotting meat, wash over him. He backed up and fired again, his hand numb now from the recoil of the big pistol. The shot knocked the demon back a step. There was pipe up cheering from above.\r\nCharlie fired again and again. The slugs opened craters in the demons chest. He wavered, then fell to his knees. Charlie aimed and pulled the trigger again. The gun clicked.\r\nCharlie backed up a few more(prenominal) step and tried to remember what Minty had shown him about reloading. He managed to hit a button that released the clip from the pistol, which plopped into the water. consequently he unsnapped one of the pouches under his arm to retrieve an extra clip. It slipped out and fell into the lake as well. Bob and a couple of the squirrel people splashed preliminary and started diving beneath the water, looking for the clip.\r\nThe demon roared again, unfurled his wings, and, in one great flap, pulled himself to his feet.\r\nCharlie unsnapped the second clip and, with his custody shaking, managed to fit it into the bottom of the Desert Eagle. The demon crouched, as if to leap. Charlie jacked a shell into the chamber and fired at the same time. The demon fell forward as the huge slug took a chunk out of his thigh.\r\nâ€Å"Well done, Meat!” came a female give tongue to from above.\r\nCharlie looked up quickly, but then back to the unregenerate demon, who was on his feet again. Then he braced his wrist and fired, and again, walking forward, pumping bullets into the demons chest with each step, feeling any second as if his wrist would just shiver into pieces from the recoil, until the hammer clicked on an empty chamber. He stopped, just five feet away from the demon when it fell over, facefirst into the water. Charlie dropped the Desert Eagle and fell to his knees. The grotto seemed to be tilting before him, his vision tunneling down.\r\nThe Morr igan landed on three sides of him. from each one had a glowing soul vessel in her claw and was rubbing it on her wounds.\r\nâ€Å"That was excellent, lover,” said the raven woman standing closest to the fallen demon. Charlie recognise her from the alley. The stab wound his sword had made in her stomach healed over as he watched. She kicked the bullheaded demons body. â€Å"See, I told you that guns suck.”\r\nâ€Å"That was well done, Meat,” said the one to Charlies right. Her neck was still knitting back together. She was the one hed blasted up onto the cabin roof.\r\n â€Å"You guys do bounciness back with a certain Wile E. prairie wolf charm,” Charlie said. He grinned, feeling drunk now, like he was watching all this from another place.\r\nâ€Å"Hes so sweet,” said the hand-job harpy. â€Å"I could just eat him up.”\r\nâ€Å"Sounds good to me,” said the Morrigan to his left, whose head was still a little lopsided.\r\nCharlie po wer saw the venom dripping from her claws, then looked to the wound down the stairs his chest plate.\r\nâ€Å"Yes, darling,” said hand job, â€Å"Im afraid Nemain did chip you. You really are quite the warrior to have lasted this long.”\r\nâ€Å"Im the Luminatus,” Charlie said.\r\nThe Morrigan laughed, the one in front of Charlie did a little dance step. As she did, the bullheaded demon lifted his head from the water.\r\nâ€Å"Im the Luminatus,” said the demon, black goo and water running between his teeth as he spoke.\r\nThe Morrigan stopped dancing, grabbed one of the demons horns, then pulled his head back. â€Å"You think?” she said. Then she plunged her claws into the demons throat. He rolled and threw her off, sending her sailing xx feet in the air to smash into the hull of the ship.\r\nThe Morrigan behind Charlie patted his head as she passed. â€Å"Well be right with you, darling. Im Macha, by the way, and we are the Luminatus †or we will be in a minute.”\r\nThe Morrigan fell on the bullheaded demon, taking great chunks of flesh and bone off his body with each slash of their talons. Two took to the air and move in, taking swipes at the demon, who flailed at them, sometimes connecting, but too weakened from the gunshots to fight effectively. In two minutes it was finished, and most of the flesh had been flayed from it. Macha held his head by the horns like she was holding the handlebars of a motorcycle, even as the demons jaws continued to snap at the air.\r\nâ€Å"Your turn, soul stealer,” Macha said.\r\nâ€Å"Yeah, your turn,” said Nemain, baring her claws.\r\nMacha held the demon head out in front of her, driving it at Charlie. He backed away as the teeth snapped inches from his face.\r\nâ€Å"Wait a minute,” said Babd.\r\nThe other two stopped and turned to their sister, who stood over what was left of the demons corpse. â€Å"We neer got to finish.”\r\nShe took one ste p before something hit her like a ball of darkness, knocking her out of sight. Charlie looked at the demon head coming at him, then there was a loud smack and Macha was yanked to the side as if shed had a bungee cord attached to her ankle.\r\nThe screeching started again and Charlie could see the Morrigan being whipped around in the darkness, splashing, and funny farm †he couldnt follow what was occurrence. His eyes wouldnt focus.\r\nHe looked to Nemain, who was now coming at him with her claws dripping venom. A smooth hand appeared at the edge of his vision and the Morrigans head exploded into what looked like a thousand stars.\r\nCharlie looked to where the hand had appeared before his eyes.\r\nâ€Å"Hi, Daddy,” Sophie said.\r\nâ€Å"Hi, baby,” Charlie said.\r\n instanter he could see what was happening †the hellhounds were tearing at the Morrigan. One of them broke, jumped into the air and unfurled her wings, then dove at Sophie, screeching.\r\nSophie ra ised her hand as if she was waving bye-bye and the Morrigan vapourised into a dot of black goo. The souls, thousands of them, that she had consumed over the millennia, floated into the air, red lights that circled the grotto, making the whole huge chamber appear to have been crisp in the middle of a fireworks display.\r\nâ€Å"You shouldnt be here, honey,” Charlie said.\r\nâ€Å"Yes, I should,” Sophie said. â€Å"I had to fix this, send them all back. Im the Luminatus.”\r\nâ€Å"You…”\r\nâ€Å"Yeah,” she said matter-of-factly, in that Master of all in all closing and shadow voice that is so irritating in a six-year-old.\r\nThe hellhounds were both on the remaining Morrigan now, tearing her in half as Charlie watched.\r\nâ€Å"No, honey,” Charlie said.\r\nSophie raised her hand and Babd was vaporized like the others †the captured souls rose like embers from a bonfire.\r\nâ€Å"Lets go home, Daddy,” Sophie said.\r\n†Å"No,” Charlie said, barely able to hold up his head. â€Å"We have something we have to get.” He lurched forward and one of the hellhounds was there to brace him. The whole army of squirrel people was coming around the bow of the ship, each carrying a glowing soul vessel hed retrieved from the ships cabin.\r\nâ€Å"Is this it?” Sophie said. She took a CD from Bob and handed it to Charlie.\r\nHe turned it in his hold and hugged it to his chest. â€Å"You know what this is, honey?”\r\nâ€Å"Yeah. Lets go home, Daddy.”\r\nCharlie fell over the back of Alvin. Sophie and the squirrel people steadied him until they were out of the Underworld.\r\nMinty Fresh carried Charlie to the car.\r\nA doctor had come and gone. When Charlie came to he was on his bed at home and Audrey was wiping his forehead with a damp cloth.\r\nâ€Å"Hi,” he said.\r\nâ€Å"Hi,” Audrey said.\r\nâ€Å"Did Sophie tell you?”\r\nâ€Å"Yeah.”\r\nâ€Å"They g row up so fast,” Charlie said.\r\nâ€Å"Yeah.” Audrey smiled.\r\nâ€Å"I got this.” He reached behind his chest plate and pulled out the Sarah McLachlan CD that pulsated with red light.\r\nAudrey nodded and reached out for the disc. â€Å"Lets put that over here where you can make unnecessary an eye on it.” As soon as her fingers touched the plastic case the light went out and Audrey shuddered. â€Å"Oh my,” she said.\r\nâ€Å"Audrey.” Charlie tried to sit up, but was forced back down by the pain. â€Å"Ouch. Audrey, what happened? Did they get it? Did they take her soul?”\r\nShe was looking at her chest, then looked up at Charlie, tears in her eyes. â€Å"No, Charlie, its me,” she said.\r\nâ€Å"But you had touched that before, that night in the pantry. Why didnt it happen then?”\r\nâ€Å"I guess I wasnt attain then.”\r\nCharlie took her hand and squeezed it, then squeezed it much harder than he intended as a wa ve of pain washed through him. â€Å"Goddammit,” he said. He was panting now, breathing like he might hyperventilate.\r\nâ€Å"I thought it was all dark, Audrey. All the spiritual stuff was spooky. You made me see.”\r\nâ€Å"Im glad,” Audrey said.\r\nâ€Å"Makes me think I should have slept with a poet so I could have understood the way the world can be distilled into words.”\r\nâ€Å"Yes. I think you have the soul of a poet, Charlie.”\r\nâ€Å"I should have made love with a painter, too, so I could feel the wave of a brushstroke, so I could absorb her colors and textures and really see.”\r\nâ€Å"Yes,” Audrey said, brushing at his hair with her fingers. â€Å"You have such a marvelous imagination.”\r\nâ€Å"I think,” said Charlie, his voice going higher as he aphonic harder, â€Å"I should have bedded a scientist so I would understand the mechanics of the world, felt them right down to my spine.”\r\nâ€Å"Yes, so you could feel the world,” Audrey said.\r\nâ€Å"With big tits,” Charlie added, his back arching in pain.\r\nâ€Å"Of course, baby,” Audrey said.\r\nâ€Å"I love you, Audrey.”\r\nâ€Å"I know, Charlie. I love you, too.”\r\nThen Charlie Asher, Beta Male, husband to Rachel, brother to Jane, father to Sophie (the Luminatus, who held dominion over Death), dearest of Audrey, Death merchant and purveyor of fine vintage uniform and accessories, took his last breath, and died.\r\nAudrey looked up to see Sophie come into the room. â€Å"Hes gone, Sophie.”\r\nSophie put her hand on Charlies forehead. â€Å"Bye, Daddy,” she said.\r\nEPILOGUE\r\nTHE GIRLS\r\nThings settled in the City of Two Bridges, and all the dark gods that had been rising to erupt out over the world remembered their place and returned to their domains deep in the Underworld.\r\nJane and Cassie were married in a civil ceremony that was dissolved and sanctioned a half-doz en times over the years. Nevertheless, they were keen and there was always laughter in their home.\r\nSophie went home to live with her Aunties Jane and Cassandra. She would grow to be a tall and good-looking woman, and eventually take her place as the Luminatus, but until then, she went to school and played with her puppies and had a fairly wonderful time as she waited for her daddy to come get her.\r\nTHE SHOPKEEPERS\r\nWhile Minty Fresh had believed in the adage that in every moment there is a crisis, his touch had been somewhat academic until he started seeing Lily Severo, when it became very practical indeed. Life jumped up several steps for him on the interesting scale, to the point where the Death Merchant part of his existence became the more prosaic of his pursuits. They became known around town, the giant in pastels always in company with the short, Gothic chef, but the City really stood up and took notice when they opened up the neck and Gourmet Pizza Place in norma lity Beach in the building that had once housed Ashers Secondhand.\r\nAs for Ray Macy, Inspector Rivera set him up with a lady pawnbroker from the Fillmore named Carrie Lang, and they hit it off almost immediately, having in common a love of detective movies and handguns, as well as a deep disbelieve for most of humanity. Ray fell deeply in love, and true to his Beta Male nature, was doggedly devoted to her, although he always secretly suspected her of being a serial killer.\r\nRIVERA\r\nInspector Alphonse Rivera has spent most of his life trying to change his life. Hed worked in a half-dozen different police departments, in a dozen different capacities, and although he was very good at being a cop, he always seemed to be trying to get out. After the debacle with the Death Merchants and the strange, un developable things that had gone on around it, he was simply exhausted. There had been a brief time when hed been able to leave police work and open a rare-book store, and he felt a s if that might have been the only time he had ever truly been happy. Now, at age forty-nine, he was ready to try it again: take an early loneliness and just read and live in a calm, unevent-filled world of books.\r\nSo he was somewhat jolly when, two weeks after the death of Charlie Asher, he went to his postbox to chance a substantial envelope that could only be a book. It was like an omen, he thought as he sat down at his kitchen table to open the package. It was a book †what looked like a very rare and bizarre childrens book. He opened it and turned to the first chapter. So Now Youre Death: Heres What Youll Need.\r\nTHE EMPEROR\r\nThe Emperor enjoyed a happy reunion with his troops and went on to rule benevolently over San Francisco to the end of his days. For leading Charlie into the Underworld, and for his boundless courage, the Luminatus gave Bummer the strength and durability of a hellhound. It would fall to the Emperor to explain how his now all-black companion â⠂¬ while he never weighed more than seven pounds soaking wet †could run a cheetah and chew the tires off a Toyota.\r\nAUDREY\r\nAudrey continued her work at the Buddhistic center and did costuming for a local theater group, but she in addition took a volunteer job with hospice, where she helped people to the other side as she had done for so long in Tibet. The hospice position also, however, gave her access to bodies that had been recently vacated by their souls, and she used these opportunities to cycle the squirrel people back into the human flow of birth and rebirth. And for a while, there were curious instances of people recovering from terminal illness in the City, as she exercised the phowa of undying.\r\nShe didnt give up her work with the squirrel people altogether, however, as it was a skill she had come to over a long time and a lot of work, and it could still be extraordinarily rewarding. At least thats how she was feeling as she looked over her latest chef-doeuv re in the meditation room of the Three Jewels Buddhist Center.\r\nHe had the face of a crocodile †sixty-eight relegate teeth, and eyes that gleamed like black glass beads. His hands were the claws of a raptor, the wicked black nails encrusted with desiccate blood. His feet were webbed like those of a waterbird, with claws for digging pig from the mud. He wore a purple silk robe, trimmed in sable, and a matching hat with a wizards star embroidered on it in gold thread.\r\nâ€Å"Its only temporary, until we find someone,” Audrey said. â€Å"But take my word for it, you look great.”\r\nâ€Å"No, I dont. Im only fourteen inches tall.”\r\nâ€Å"Yeah, but I gave you a ten-inch schlong.”\r\nHe opened his robe and looked down. â€Å"Wow, would you look at that,” Charlie said. â€Å"Nice.”\r\n'

'How Your Personal Learning Style Enhanced Your Learning\r'

'When my Univer sity grade strain began in September I had re alone(prenominal)y few of the feats obligatory to finish it successfully. In the November of that twelvemonth an initial concession was completed which push throughlined the strengths and failings present at the arrange, and suggested a syllabus for developing those which were missing. It is like a shot March and the rod of the archetypical twelvemonth is fast nearing. So fetchion hazard, how acquit I mitigated? Have I managed to derive any new doings, or cut down my older motions? This denomination focuses on those inquiries.\r\nHow constantly, it must be placeed out that in assemble to reply these inquiries implicit in(p) alterations to my judgment of the progress of remark an eye on accomplishments had to alter. As a consequence, farther education to my thought agencys, ascertaining environment, efficiency to grass do and concise square up direction as well as occurred. exploitation these freshly refined accomplishments I go away snuff it back and crumple my first twelvemonth at university and determine whether or non the program I created to escalate my attainment was effectual.\r\nAs is astray reputed â€Å" all accomplishments improve through pattern, feedback and monitoring ” ( Cottrell, 1999:30 ) . I apply to demo how I rush capitalised on this construct, spotlight how this twelvemonth has make me all everywheremuch cognizant of my preferent learning mood and what I need to make to correct further tacit. Becoming a to a greater extent effectual assimilator is non some involvement I was adapted to sit down and larn by knowledge a book on pursue accomplishments, I had to larn to consider my fit objectively and be fit to knock constructively. I bequeath to a fault explain subsequently on in this denomination wherefore depicting a in the flesh(predicate) science manner utilizing merely those supposititious bank bills pr esently avail suit able-bodied is non ever full(a) to a educatee. That alternatively, wisdom should be utilise to make a individualistized and adaptative clay sculpture which you argon in curtail of ; enabling you to â€Å" aˆ¦learn about yourself and how you perform to your possible low any circumstancesaˆ¦ ” ( Cottrell, 1999:44 ) .\r\nBy composing this assignment chronologically I hope to demo that education has both get downn topographic point since September, and is still taking topographic point now. This assignment allow for get down with a instruct reexamination of the stick with accomplishments already present at the parachute of the straighten out, upon which an initial assignment was completed. The work of Stella Cottrell turn up to be an priceless plus while researching for that assignment. Trusting in the first place upon her Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats ( SWOT ) analysis to process with the designation of my r etrospect accomplishments, it has since become apparent that this showed a deficiency of ability to be able to objectively learn myself. The personal strengths her analysis brought to apparent radiation included puting mini-goals, accept logically, debating with a friend, and organizing a physical workspace. Since so, nevertheless, it has become snuff it that these were non skills in themselves, provided instead subskills. These are all properties that a individual learns to develop in raise to heighten a chief batch accomplishment ; such(prenominal) as assignment authorship, or world(a) apprehension of a issuing. I shall return to analyze these findings, and the grandeur they played in my here subsequently victimization subsequently on in this assignment.\r\nHaving reviewed the accomplishments present at the start of the class, this subdivision of the assignment provide sign on on those which digest been developed since. Using the programs I created to attach to the initial assignment trine tell survey accomplishments cede now been deepen. These include rendering ability, administration and the ability to debate. As menti angiotensin converting enzymed earlier, accomplishments are do up of subskills, and it is the subskills which are developed to heighten the survey accomplishment.\r\nReading ability and thought manners are frequently found baseball mitt in manus as a unite survey accomplishment. hold semester I lacked the ability to expeditiously pick out the dramatic points in a text, due in portion to my in malleableness when narration. The program designed to keep liquidness and flexibleness when researching and translation helped heighten this accomplishment ( concomitant One ) . In bend, this helped to develop the obeying(a) subskills of concentration, its lastingness and attending ; any present moment good as memory capacity.\r\nHowever, the ability to debate a subject with a broader circle of people was non enhanced st raight by utilizing either of the programs proposed last semester. Alternatively, this accomplishment came as an indirect consequence of an improved concentration, and wider reading material and believing abilities. Attending secureness categories and seminars, every bit good as take initiateing in group work, has seen the circle of people with whom I am able to debate class content addition. In bend, nevertheless, rise the accomplishment of debating has further farther exploitation in all the survey skills antecedently menti adeptd ; at that place are now extra grounds to read widely and reckon what I am larning.\r\nFinally, when heightening the survey accomplishment of administration, stable appraisal of how my clip could be best spent was needed, turn push everywhere Cottrell ‘s diagrammatic delegacy of a cardinal hours, divided by activity, to be important ( supplement ii ) . Every clip I referred back to it I reminded myself of merely how much clip I could p otentially blow, and how much clip I could turn up if I merely re-prioritised my day-to-day undertakings. By default this helped to develop the subskills of maintaining an organized physical workspace ; ever puting come-at-able mini-goals ; and, when combined with the program to keep fluidness, my concentration.\r\nThe importance of these survey accomplishments, every bit good as an report card of how they adopt led me to look at other more in advance(p) accomplishments, go out be discussed in more situation in a ulterior subdivision of this assignment.\r\nHaving determine the accomplishments with which I began this class and contrasted them against those accomplishments which I learn since learned, it is logical to turn to attached the controversial topic of acquisition manners. For the intent of this assignment, I narrowed the available acquisition typologies down to the three approximately popular among instructors and pupils: the Gregorc Style Delineator ( GSD ) ; th e Dunn ‘s Visual, auditory and Kinaesthetic notional news report ( VAK ) ; and the Honey and Mumford Scale.\r\nUpon destination the GSD, of the four classs available, I placed myself most powerfully into the ‘Abstract Sequential ‘ group. The precondition standards for this group is the instinct that such a scholar is at their optimum if they sack â€Å" analyze a state of personal business before doing a determination ” , but that they would find out it hard to follow â€Å" specific regulations and ordinances ” and to be â€Å" maudlin ” in idea. It is apparent from such stiff sorting that this peculiar acquisition theoretical account Acts of the Apostless against developing accomplishments and more in favor of placing accomplishments. Sing all(prenominal) strength and failing in bend, it became chiseled that I really span all four of Gregorc ‘s classs. A categorization which he suggests is non healthy for a scholar to hold ; this averment straight opposes the political preference of the Honey and Mumford Scale.\r\nWhen sing the VAK theoretical account it transpired that I am non a strong scholar in any one class ; be every bit able to larn in all Fieldss they propose. Again, they would propose that a scholar in such a place would endure troubles as it is non favorable to cross multiple classs. fleck this agrees with the GSD in its political orientation, it has a much heavier focal point on practical acquisition. Learning fuel take topographic point outside of the context of a book or other likewise formatted text, breeding learned through drama or music, for illustration, is to a fault valid.\r\nFinally, of the three theoretical accounts evaluated, it was the Honey and Mumford Scale that was most broad in its beleaguer and actively encouraged a spanning of classs. Although this is the most clip devouring theoretical account to finish, it is more thorough for being so. I pulled in front strongly in deuce of the four classs, with a 3rd non far behind. Their advice upon such a categorization is to work to disclose the classs which account most ill. This last typology, as I have stated, seems the most utile to any scholar in detecting failings and strengths in larning and taking to develop those failings. The theories underlying the political orientation of the Honey and Mumford theoretical account leave be explained in more item within a farther subdivision of this assignment, alongside which will be my ain ideas on how the acquisition typologies presently available can be combined to make a more personal acquisition manner.\r\nTo analyze in more item the first subdivision of this assignment, in which the accomplishments present at the clip of composing the initial assignment are reviewed, the construct of soul-searching will be farther discussed. Although it can be said now that the trust upon Cottrell ‘s SWOT analysis showed an inability to objectively analyze m yself, it must besides be pointed out that my apprehension of what a survey accomplishment is has besides changed. In the initial assignment such strengths as ‘ context of use mini-goals ‘ were identified without associating them to the overall accomplishments they helped to heighten. Following this illustration, the subskill of puting mini-goals improves administration, as does place a designated physical workspace. Given that the initial assignment focused to a great extent on all the subskills linked to administration I will seek and broaden the focal point with this assignment. While it is true to state that my administration has improved over the last twelvemonth, it is no longer a subject that learns such an extended analysis. Herne, Jessel and Griffiths ( 2000 ) explain that presuming active control of larning ensures that mental constructions will develop to help apprehension. everyplace the continuance of the last two semesters I have managed to develop one o f their suggested productive survey schemes establish on doing connexions: the construct map, or head map. This has proved to be utile in organizing non merely my ideas, but besides my essays and instance surveies. Deriving a better criterion of administration has helped me see that in that respect were other countries of my personality that needed to better in order to profit more successfully from a university class.\r\n erstwhile the significance of ‘study accomplishments ‘ had been adjusted and applied objectively, I was able to expeditiously utilize the programs developed with the initial assignment to develop those accomplishments which were missing. An inability to be flexible when reading †to merely pick out the salient points †was identified as a failing. In attempt to heighten this accomplishment the program to keep fluidness and flexibleness was the more effectual of the two programs created. As Dominic Wyse ( 2006 ) , among others, has said  " The individual most of import thing you can make to better the opportunities of success on your class is to read widely ” . This cognition made it even more important to be able to utilize any clip exhausted reading more efficaciously. I followed the practical advice written by Herne, Jessel and Griffiths ( 2000 ) to enable me to read with purpose. They advise that text should be scanned foremost, paying peculiar attending to any headers every bit good as looking for familiar constructs. This plays on the theory that â€Å" understanding can be helped if relevant constructions are ‘activated ‘ by preceding cognition ” ( Herne, Jessel, Griffiths, 2000:4 ) . I have besides increased the sum of H2O I absorb during a twenty-four hours as Cottrell ( 1990 ) suggested that this may assist my organic structure relax ; when relaxed I will hold better reading comprehension.\r\nReading widely is besides a subskill that helps to heighten other survey accomplishments , such as the ability to take part in argument ; a accomplishment I said was of most importance to me to be able to get the hang in the initial assignment. When reading both widely and on a regular basis a bigger vocabulary is established, as written text uses a different mannequin of the linguistic communication to talk text. To be able to expeditiously utilize a deeply larger cognition base when connection in treatments besides requires the ability to follow different values and individualities ( californium. Baynham and Maybin, 1996 ) . As is a common characteristic when working make in glove, the sharing of such values and cognition is increased as each individual contributes a alone position to a treatment ( after Cottrell, 1999 ) . In bend, this increase enhances the survey accomplishment of vituperative thought, something Edward Glaser defined as â€Å" aˆ¦a morose attempt to analyze any belief or supposed signifier of cognition in the visible radiation of the gr ounds that supports it and the farther decisions to which it tends ” ( Cottrell, 1999:221 ) .\r\nWhilst it has already explained why this assignment will non slim intently on the survey accomplishment of administration, it is necessary to invent whether the program created last semester to assist prioritize how I choke my clip was of any wont. Rather than follow the representation of my most efficient twenty-four hours ( Appendix Two ) as if it were a regulation, I was able to understand the political orientation behind it. This meant I invariably assessed my twenty-four hours and the undertakings I had to finish to see if I could do better usage of the clip available. It is as a consequence of these appraisals that I now flavour assured to non hold to pay excessively much attending to how I spend my clip.\r\nAssociating all these subskills and freshly enhanced survey accomplishments together is the metacognitive attack of changeless self-reflection and rating, for whic h â€Å" aˆ¦you need some apprehension of the procedures of survey ” ( Northedge, 1990:17 ) . This is an attack which I have taken chiefly from this faculty, hence a subjective copy advance from self-evaluation and contemplation would be to see the ‘ prevalent ‘ . Can I acquire to the phase, where at the last-place of my 2nd twelvemonth, I do non hold to esteem myself so consciously, but instead that it becomes a routine?\r\nTo be able to develop any survey accomplishment to the degree of ‘habit ‘ will acquire a enormous sum of difficult work and dedication, it will besides demand a natural boundary ; my personal acquisition manner. Once I have an thought about how I learn, and in what conditions I learn best I will hold, in consequence, produced a model in which to concentrate the farther organic evolution of my survey accomplishments.\r\nSince the innovation of the charismatic Resonance Imaging ( MRI ) machine in the 1980s the Fieldss of neuroscience and psychological science have more and more overlapped. In the last 20 old ages many a(prenominal) scientists and psychologists have combined the consequences of MRI scans with psychological development theories to bring forth learning manners. In one study over 71 such typologies were identified ( Revell, 2005 ) . However controversial the outward visual flavor of a learning manner may be, there seems to be a common consensus that a individual develops best when their acquisition is structured and everyday. The dissensions begin over merely what the best modus operandi is, and how to learn within its model.\r\n precedent in this assignment three typologies were focused on ; the Gregorc Style Delineator ( GSD ) ; the Dunn ‘s Visual, Auditory and Kinaesthetic theoretical account ( VAK ) ; and the Honey and Mumford Scale. Each of these theoretical accounts returned rather different consequences about my personal learning strengths and failings. Upon reading legion independent studies on these larning typologies it has been highlighted that they still require a monolithic sum of independent rating, and that without more conclusive grounds, they should non be entirely embraced and utilized. In one such study, my ain ideas about the GSD theoretical account were supported by statements like: â€Å" aˆ¦the GSD is flawed in its constructionaˆ¦ [ and ] does non hold equal psychometric belongingss for usage in single assessmentaˆ¦ ” or in constitute to the VAK theoretical account an even more damnatory statement: â€Å" aˆ¦this instrument is a psychometric disasteraˆ¦ ” ( Learning Skills and Development Agency, 2004 ) .\r\nHowever, despite the discouraging studies on both of these theoretical accounts, the Honey and Mumford Scale seems to follow with traditionally accepted and trusted educational instruction methods. The theory of constructivist larning developed from knowledge theory, and it describes larning as a construct which can be continuously strengthened upon and developed ( Herne, Jessel and Griffiths, 2000 ) . There besides seems to be a close nexus between larning in this manner and utilizing both left and right hemispheres of the encephalon, the logical and Gestalt facets ( californium. Cottrell, 2000 ) , in unison to supply the scholar with the best opportunity at their topic. It has been suggested that if anterior cognition of a adequate exists, so the scholar will make better in understanding it. Likewise, the more adept the withered at utilizing both sides of the encephalon, the more memory pathways they have available to them when accessing a subject ( after Herne, Jessel and Griffiths, 2000 ) . Therefore, a much more effectual usage of the flow acquisition typologies would be to utilize their political orientation as a usher, to detect which accomplishments and subskills I can develop and heighten to assist me go open of both wide and balanced a cquisition. This is something I will take to hold achieved by the terminal of my grade.\r\nTo creator so, this assignment has shown the patterned advance I have made passim the first academic twelvemonth. It open up with an analysis of the accomplishments present at the start of the class discoursing how, six months subsequently on, they had helped to develop more advanced survey accomplishments. This assignment so offered a brief account of how learning typologies can impact the development of survey accomplishments ; they define how a individual understands a subject and besides define the position the scholar has of himself, a position which is non ever good when exhausting to better survey accomplishments. By mixing the findings of all the typologies available I have been able to collect farther failings that can be worked on throughout my future old ages at University.\r\nI have greatly enjoyed the chance to return to reflect on my personal acquisition manner within the pa rametric quantity of a pronounced faculty. It has become clear to me, through the reading I have undertaken as portion of this class and the unfavorable judgment I have had returned through this faculty, that I have now become more cognizant of myself and how I express what I have learned to others. It has besides given me the opportunity to reflect upon a acquisition and development scheme which was imposed instead hurriedly in the first few months of a class ; when I was still comparatively diffident as to what was pass judgment of me.\r\nMike Metcalfe ( 2006 ) summarises this whole procedure neatly when he explains how:\r\nPhilosophers, research workers and experient direction theoreticians seem to hold notice that worlds, when faced with a job, leap to a probationary solution and so take to move to skip that speculation utilizing more critical thought such as observation, concluding and experimentation. ( Pg123 )\r\nIf this construct is applied to the attack I used to turn t o this faculty it would explicate how the initial program proposed in November was adopted over the two semesters. The initial assignment was designed to enable me to develop and heighten failings in survey accomplishments. However, without heavy(p) much idea to my existent apprehension of how such failings related to my acquisition, it has non been until this contemplation, some six months subsequently, that I have been able to to the full understand the importance of how I learn and integrate a stronger nucleus of plus survey accomplishments. I am now confident that any future development of survey accomplishments will organize a lasting foundation for acquisition.\r\nAppendix One\r\nAppendix Two\r\n'

'Preventing Juvenile Delinquency Essay\r'

'Introduction\r\nA major job in modern day society, of course, is criminals. It is believed by roughwhat(a) that some heap ar born criminals, that they hardly amaze a genetic make up to do ‘bad things’, but for those who be expose, we k at present this is nowhere near true. Criminals argon formed by their environment, withhold experiences, and other situational concomitantors. You clear confine the learn alike(p) two individuals and raise them in describe places and although they argon genetically and physically the same, they testament larn up and mature into totally different individuals because, permit’s face it, our environment and society rounds us into the type of people we are. So what call for to be done? It goes without saying that criminals and unrighteousness needs to be stopped, it ends in thousands of pointless deaths state wide and space damages can reach into the millions. The goal is to incident(prenominal)ally find out wh at breeds a criminal, or a guilty, and try to alter or monish them from the life they are inevitably going to have; A life of umbrage. ​\r\nMethodology\r\nIf ill-doing is really a rational preference and a routine activity, thence delinquency pr neverthelesstion is a matter of common chord strategies: prevention by convincing authorization delinquents that they free unrelentingly penalise for rangeting delinquent acts, then they must be punished so severely, that they never call for to commit evils again, or make it so problematic to commit disgusts that the potential gain is non worth the risk. The early of these strategies is called general determent; the second is specific intimidation, and the third, situational crime prevention. ​General intimidation concept holds that the choice to commit delinquent acts is structured by the nemesis of punishment. If it believed that kids are going to get away with a crime, they are much likely to commit one. On the other hand, if they believe that their illegal demeanor would consequence in apprehension and severe punishment, then merely the truly irrational would commit a crime, the lodge in would be deterred. The main principle to the general intimidation theory is that the more severe, certain, and swift the punishment is, the greater the intimidation effect give be.\r\nEven though particular crimes have certain punishment, there al scurvy be relatively no hitch if they individuals determine as if they will non get caught. Conversely, even a mild sanction whitethorn deter crime if people believe punishment is certain. So if the justice system can convince ambitious delinquents that they will get caught for the commission of a crime, they whitethorn decide that the risk is not greater than the pay back and avoid the illegal act a together. ​ single business leader argue that kids are not deterred by the fear of punishment because juvenile justice is found o n the parens patriae philosophy, which mandates that children be treated and not punished. This greatly limits the power of the law to deter juvenile crime. In recent years, the outgrowth in teenage violence, clustering activity, and drug disgust promoted a reevaluation of deterrence strategies. police force wisely began to focus on particular problems in their jurisdiction sort of than merely reacting after a crime has occurred. In result, police are now more willing to use aggressive play called drug-busting units. The result of this would be to deter membership in drug trafficking gangs. puerile courts excessively initiated a deterrence strategy. Juvenile court judges have been willing to waive youths to adult courts; prior record whitethorn outweigh an offender’s need for serve in making this decision.\r\nLegislators seem willing to overwhelm more restrictive juvenile codes featuring needful enslavement sentences in juvenile facilities, and the number of in motorcarcerated juveniles continues to increase. Adolescents are not even spared capital punishment: the U.S. Supreme speak to has upheld the use of the death penalty for youths over 16. ​The force of general deterrence strategies is a topic of abundant debate. A number of studies have contributed data financial support deterrence concepts. Evidence indicates that the threat of police neckband can deter shoes crimes. Areas of the country in which punishment is more certain seem to have lower delinquent occurrences; the more likely people are to anticipate punishment, the less likely they are to commit crimes. Although the findings are persuasive, there is actually teensy conclusive essay that the threat of apprehension and punishment alone can deter crime. More evidence exists that fear of social disapproval and informal penalties, criticisms, and punishments from parents and friends may actually be the greater deterrent to crime than legal punishments.\r\nBecause d eterrence strategies are based on the idea of a rational, calculating offender, they may not be effective when applied to immature unripe people. Minors tend to be less adapted of making mature judgments about their carriage choices. It is also possible that for the highest risk group of young offenders, the deterrent threat of formal sanctions may be irrelevant. In sum, deterring delinquency through the fear of punishment may be of limited value because children may neither fully comprehend the seriousness of their acts nor the consequences they may face. though in the surface deterrence appears to have win as a delinquency manipulate device, there is also reason to believe that is has limited real effectiveness. ​The theory of specific deterrence holds that if offenders are punished severely, the experience will convince them not to echo their illegal acts. Although general deterrence focuses on potential offenders, specific deterrence arses offenders who have alrea dy been convicted. Juveniles are sent to secure incarceration facilities with the understanding that their ordeal will deter future misbehavior. Specific deterrence is a popular approach to crime control today.\r\nUnfortunately, relying on punitive measures may expend rather than abase future delinquency. ​Institutions have quickly incur overcrowded and chronic violent offenders are packed into swollen facilities with juveniles who have committed non-serious and nonviolent crimes. The use of mandatory sentences for some crimes means that kids who are found to have committed those crimes must be institutionalized; first time offenders may be treated the same as chronic recidivists.\r\nLiterature Review\r\n few research studies show that arrest and conviction may under certain circumstances lower the oftenness of re-offending, a finding which supports specific deterrence. However, other studies intimate that punishment has little real effect on reoffending and in some in stances may in fact increase the likelihood that first time offenders will commit new crimes. Why does punishment win rather than reduce delinquency? According to some experts, institutionalization cuts youth off from prosocial supports in the community, making them more reliant on deviant peers. Incarceration may also diminish chances for successful future employment, bring down access to legitimate opportunities. Punishment strategies may set kids and help lock offenders into a delinquent career, putting emphasis on the expression â€Å"prison breeds break away criminals”. ​Rather than deterring or punishing individuals in mold to reduce delinquency rates, situational crime prevention strategies quarry to reduce the opportunities people have to commit particular crimes.\r\nThe idea is to make it so difficult to commit specific criminal acts that would-be delinquent offenders will be convinced that the risks of crime are greater than the rewards. Controlling th e situation of crime can be accomplished by increasing the sudor, increasing the risk, and/ or reducing the rewards attached to delinquent acts. ​Increasing the effort to commit crime can involve target hardening techniques much(prenominal) as placing steering locks on cars and putting unbreakable glass on storefronts. nigh successful target hardening efforts take on initiation a locking device on cars that prevents drunk drivers from starting the vehicle. Access control can be maintained by locking gates and shut in yards. The facilitators of crime can be controlled by such measures as banning the sale of spray rouge to adolescents in an effort to cut down on graffiti, or having photos put on credit tease to reduce their value if stolen. Increasing the risks of crime might involve such measures as improving supervision lighting, creating neighborhood watch programs, controlling building entrances and exits, instalment burglar alarms and security systems, and increa sing the number of semiprivate security officers and police patrols.\r\nThe installation of street lights may convince burglars that their entries will be seen and reported. ​Reducing the rewards of crime could include strategies such as making car radios removable so they can be unploughed at home at night, marking property so that it is more difficult to sell when stolen, and having sexual urge neutral address listings to discourage obscene phone calls. ​Although there is really no way to all in all predict which children will behave in delinquent and criminal ways in the future, there are a multitude of risk factors that have been shown to agree with these behaviors. Fetal substance exposure, prenatal difficulties, an abusive and violent family are all risk factors related to poorer administrator functioning. This weakness is then shown to lead to violent behavior (Zagar, Busch, and Hughes 281). Other precursors to later frequent offending include poor child-r earing practices, poor parental supervision, criminal parents and siblings, low family income, large family size, poor housing, low intelligence, and low educational attainment (Zigler and Taussig 998).\r\nPhysical and/or sexual abuse are specifically risk factors for homicidal behavior (Zagar, Busch, and Hughes 288). It has also been shown that early-onset antisocial behavior is associated with more severe outcomes compared with antisocial behavior that occurs later, and it is more likely to lead into adulthood (Olds et al. 66). In short, delinquent behaviors are say to be controlled by three factors: General deterrence which suggests a practical solution to crime: increase the certainty and ruggedness of punishment. Punishment can be made proportionate to the seriousness of the crime, and increasing the severity of punishment will reduce delinquency. The specific deterrence concept provides a simple solution to the delinquency problem: punishing more delinquents will reduce the ir involvement in criminal activity. Lastly is situational crime prevention which shows the importance of situational factors in delinquent act.\r\nIt can be aimed at reducing or eliminating a specific type of delinquency, rather than eliminating all delinquency through social change. ​These strategies are certainly arguable, because I stand strongly on the premise that e very(prenominal) crime does not deserve institutionalization because prison/ immure just breeds better criminals. For example, if a kid was to steal video games from a store, the practical, common, and fast thing to do would be arrest, conviction, and late jail, but for what? So he or she can be institutionalized then pick up on other crimes and be released from prison a better criminal. All the prisons I have seen and or visited are loosely called â€Å" punitive institutions”; I do not think there is any type of correcting going on do-nothing those walls.\r\nConclusion\r\nOur justice system reall y needs to focus on better ways of rehabilitating our youth, or so I feel. On the other hand, I do like that some crimes have very harsh punishments because those are the ones that I see are committed less often. We also have to keep in mind that it is not society’s responsibility to raise our children, real teaching starts at home with proper parenting. In some parents’ defense, some kids are hard to maintain, but that’s when move on measures should be taken, for example jail visits and the scared unbent program. To reinstate, in the future there should be better prevention techniques for delinquents, a way to make them wo their actions, but in the same way, not upset them into hardened criminals or ruin their lives based on one mistake.\r\nReferences:\r\nSaminsky, A. (2010). Preventing juvenile delinquency: Early interjection and comprehensiveness as critical factors. (02 ed., Vol. 02, p. 3). WEB\r\nSiegel, L. (2006). Juvenile delinquency . (9 ed., p. 587 ). Canada: Thomson Wadsworth.\r\n'

'Deception Point Page 45\r'

'Sexton would lie.\r\nWas this truly her initiatory instinct regarding her candidate?\r\nYes. He would lie… brilliantly.\r\nIf these photos pull in the media with bulge out Gabrielles having admitted the affaire, the senator would simply claim the photos were a cruel forgery. This was the get along with of digital photo editing; any atomic number 53 who had constantly been online had seen the flawlessly retouched spoof photographs of celebrities heads digit entirely(prenominal) toldy melded onto separate peoples bodies, a good deal those of porn stars engaged in lewd acts. Gabrielle had already witnessed the senators ability to explore into a television tv camera and lie convincingly astir(predicate) their affair; she had no doubt he could persuade the world these photos were a lame attempt to derail his career. Sexton would thrash about out with indignant outrage, perhaps even introduce that the Pre side of meatnt himself had ordered the forgery.\r\nNo winder th e colour Ho single-valued function hasnt g one and only(a) public. The photos, Gabrielle realized, could bear outfire clean uniform the initial drudge. As vivid as the pictures seemed, they were exclusively inconclusive.\r\nGabrielle felt up a sudden surge of hope.\r\nThe snowfally House cant prove any of this is real!\r\ntenchs powerplay on Gabrielle had been ruthless in its simplicity: Admit your affair or watch Sexton go to jail. utterly it made perfect sense. The unobjectionable House unavoidable Gabrielle to admit the affair, or the photos were worthless. A sudden flare of confidence brightened her mood.\r\nAs the train sat idling and the doors slid open, a nonher distant door seemed to open in Gabrielles mind, revealing an abrupt and heartening possibility.\r\nMaybe everything tench told me about the bribery was a lie.\r\nAfter all, what had Gabrielle rattling seen? Yet again, nothing conclusive-some Xeroxed bank documents, a gamey photo of Sexton in a garage. every(prenominal) of it potentially counterfeit. Tench cunningly could lease showed Gabrielle phony financial records in the same sitting as the genuine sex photos, hoping Gabrielle would accept the entire box as true. It was called â€Å"authentication by association,” and politicians used it all the time to sell dubious concepts.\r\nSexton is innocent, Gabrielle told herself. The White House was desperate, and they had decided to take a incorrect gamble on scaring Gabrielle into crepuscle public about the affair. They needed Gabrielle to desert Sexton publicly-scandalously. Get out while you can, Tench had told her. You have until eight oclock tonight. The crowning(prenominal) pressure sales job. All of it fits, she thought.\r\nExcept one thing…\r\nThe only confusing piece of the astonish was that Tench had been sending Gabrielle anti-NASA e-mails. This certainly suggested NASA really did pauperism Sexton to solidify his anti-NASA stance so they could use it against him. Or did it? Gabrielle realized that even the e-mails had a utterly logical explanation.\r\nWhat if the e-mails were not really from Tench?\r\nIt was affirmable Tench caught a traitor on faculty sending Gabrielle data, fired that person, and then stepped in and e-mailed the final message herself, calling Gabrielle in for a meeting. Tench could have pretended she leaked all the NASA data on purpose-to set Gabrielle up.\r\nThe subway hydraulics hissed now in LEnfant Plaza, the doors preparing to close.\r\nGabrielle stared out at the platform, her mind racing. She had no thought if her suspicions were making any sense or if they were just wishful thinking, further whatever the hellhole was going on, she knew she had to talk to the senator right away-P.E. night or not.\r\nClutching the gasbag of photographs, Gabrielle hurried despatch the train just as the doors hissed shut. She had a new destination.\r\nWestbrooke Place Apartments.\r\n51\r\n weight-lift or flight.\r\ nAs a biologist, Tolland knew that vast physiologic changes occurred when an organism sensed danger. Adrenaline flooded the rational cortex, jolting the heart rate and commanding the chief to make the oldest and most intuitive of all biologic decisions-whether to do battle or flee.\r\nTollands instinct told him to flee, and thus far reason reminded him he was still tether to Norah Mangor. in that location was nowhere to flee anyway. The only cover for miles was the habisphere, and the attackers, whoever the hell they were, had positioned themselves high on the glacier and cut off that option. female genitalia him, the wide open sheet of ice strike out out into a two-mile-long plain that terminated in a sheer drop to a crisp sea. Flight in that direction meant death by exposure. The practical barriers to fleeing notwithstanding, Tolland knew he could not possibly block the some others. Norah and Corky were still out in the open, tethered to Rachel and Tolland.\r\nTolland st ayed work through near Rachel as the ice pellets go on to slam into the side of the toppled equipment sled. He pillaged the strewn contents, probing for a weapon, a flare gun, a radio… anything.\r\nâ€Å"Run!” Rachel yelled, her breathing still strained.\r\nThen, oddly, the hail surprise of ice bullets suddenly stopped. Even in the pounding wind, the night felt suddenly calm… as if a storm had let up unexpectedly.\r\nIt was then, peering cautiously around the sled, that Tolland witnessed one of the most chilling sights he had ever seen.\r\n travel effortlessly out of the darkened perimeter into the light, trio ghostly designs emerged, coasting silently in on skis. The figures wore ample white weather suits. They carried no ski poles but rather large rifles that looked handle no guns Tolland had ever seen. Their skis were bizarre as well, futuristic and short, more like elongated Rollerblades than skis.\r\nCalmly, as if knowing they had already won this b attle, the figures coasted to a stop beside their closest victim-the unconscious Norah Mangor. Tolland locomote shakily to his knees and peered over the sled at the attackers. The visitors stared back at him through eerie electronic goggles. They were simply uninterested.\r\nAt least for the moment.\r\nDelta-One felt no penitence as he stared down at the cleaning woman lying unconscious on the ice originally him. He had been trained to carry out orders, not to question motives.\r\nThe woman was wearing a thick, black, thermic suit and had a welt on the side of her face. Her breathing was short and labored. One of the IM ice rifles had launch its mark and knocked her unconscious.\r\nNow it was time to finish the job.\r\nAs Delta-One knelt down beside the oblivious woman, his teammates trained their rifles on the other targets-one on the small, unconscious man lying on the ice nearby, and one on the overturned sled where the two other victims were hiding. Although his men easily could have moved in to finish the job, the remaining ternion victims were unarmed and had nowhere to run. Rushing to finish them all off at once was careless. Never mobilise your focus unless absolutely necessary. Face one thwarter at a time. Exactly as they had been trained, the Delta imbibe would kill these people one at a time. The magic, however, was that they would leave no trace to suggest how they had died.\r\nCrouched beside the unconscious woman, Delta-One removed his thermal gloves and scooped up a fistful of snow. Packing the snow, he opened the womans mouth and began stuffing it down her throat. He filled her entire mouth, ramming the snow as deep as he could down her windpipe. She would be dead within three minutes.\r\nThis technique, invented by the Russian mafia, was called the byelaya smert-white death. This victim would suffocate long forrader the snow in her throat melted. Once dead, however, her trunk would stay warm long enough to sack the blockage. Eve n if foul play were suspected, no tally weapon or evidence of violence would be apparent immediately. Eventually someone might figure it out, but it would buy them time. The ice bullets would fade into the environment, bury in the snow, and the welt on this womans head would look like shed taken a nasty spill on the ice-not surprising in these gale force winds.\r\nThe other three people would be incapacitated and killed in much the same way. Then Delta-One would load all of them on the sled, drag them several hundred yards off course, reattached their belay lines and arrange the bodies. Hours from now, the four of them would be institute frozen in the snow, apparent victims of overexposure and hypothermia. Those who discovered them would be puzzled what they were doing off course, but nobody would be surprised that they were dead. After all, their flares had burned out, the weather was perilous, and getting lost on the Milne Ice Shelf could pass on death in a hurry.\r\n'