BP (British Petroleum) Refining Strategy in Europe Essay

BP (British Petroleum) Refining Strategy in Europe - Essay Example Many companies that deal in oil refinery use different processes and strategies in order to produce high quality products that can be used in different factory processes and automobiles. In the process of refining (Krippendorff 2013, 82), an oil depot or tank farm has to be located near the oil refinery plant so that storage of the incoming crude stocks can be persevered before being refined as well as the products arising from the refinery process. BP utilises one of the most efficient technology in the refinery field known as Fischer-Tropsch (FT) technology (Singh & Harvey 2010; Hicks &Nelder 2008, 45). According to BP (2013), the technology is crucial in helping the company to convert various feedstocks such as crude residues, heavy crude residues, coal and biomass into clean and quality fuels such as jet fuel, diesel and naphtha. Fischer-Tropsch technology makes refining process efficient and reliable while ensuring production of superior products that passes all performance-related tests used in respective industries (Maitlis & Klerk 2013; Klerk 2011, 17). According to BP (2013), the company is committed to minimising its contribution to greenhouse gases that emanate from its refinery processes. By adopting Fischer-Tropsch technology, the company has greatly minimised pollution arising from poor refining processes (Johansson 1993, 27; Maczulak 2010, 36). The Fischer-Tropsch technology has often been used with much success at BP Refinery in many of the countries that it has been used. The strategy involves various processes like the multi tubular fixed bed reactor. This reactor has various types of tubes that have small diameters with special catalysts surrounded by boiling water that removes the heat of the reaction (Great Britain 2010, 29). This reactor is very suitable when operating at low temperatures with upper limits reaching up to 530 K. The excess temperature arising from the system results in carbon deposition and can block

The water cycle Essay Example for Free

The water cycle Essay Directly relative to the hydrologic cycle is the effect of urbanization in the impervious cover (IC). As mentioned earlier in this paper, the lower the rate of impervious area, the higher will be the rate of water infiltration which means that water run-off is relatively low. Obviously, urbanization requires the construction of more sidewalks, driveways, parking lots and more houses which make the soil impervious. The next chapter of this paper discusses in detail the specific effects of urbanization to the hydrologic cycle. Powered by solar energy and gravity, the movement of water in our environment is a continuous cycle. The water cycle also referred to as the hydrological cycle is just one of the vital natural cycles that typically involves the changing of the states of water from liquid, vapor and ice as it moves on, above and below the surface of the earth (Gore, Pamela 2005). 1Water also transforms through the processes of vaporization or evaporation (liquid to gas), condensation (gas to liquid), melting or fusion (solid to liquid), and sublimation (gas to solid, or the reverse). The cycle involves the soil, the plants, and the bodies of water, the air and the sun. Playing an important role in the climactic patterns, changes in the hydrologic cycle are revealed in the changes in the world’s climate and the seal level. As what researchers and scientists have been claiming decades ago, human intervention of which urbanization is the most evident, has played a great role in the significant changes in the cycle. In order to clearly present the validity of such claim, it is helpful for us to look back at the normal cycle of water. Figure 3. 1 shows the normal hydrologic cycle as presented by the U. S. Geological Survey. At first look, it seems that humans are not directly involved in the cycle but if we are to examine each phase of the cycle, we will be able to extract information that will link human activities to each phase of the cycle. Scientists consider the earth as a â€Å"closed-system† which means that almost its entire elements contained therein just move in different cycles and that the earth neither lose nor gain significant amount of matter (Global Hydrology and Climate Center). In terms of the hydrologic cycle, water is distributed globally and recycled continuously, which is the same cycle way back millions of years ago. Figure 3. 1 The Water Cycle. Source: U. S. Geological Survey The cycle of water involves six major processes: (1) evaporation, (2) transpiration, (3) horizontal transport of water, (5) precipitation and (6) water flowing as run-off. In the process of evaporation, the liquid state of water from the surface of the bodies of water and from the soils transforms into gas or vapor. Water also transforms into gas state through the process of transpiration where a certain amount of water from the plants are released in the air through the leaves of plants. In another phase of the cycle, water also travels in the cycle as atmospheric water in a horizontal direction in forms of water droplets, ice crystals or vapor. The process of precipitation takes place in the air wherein the atmospheric vapor undergoes condensation and sublimation that will then fall to the earth as hail, snow, sleet and rain. In any of these states, 3precipitation that reaches the earth flows through one of four major routes. As suggested by the arrows in figure 1. 1, precipitation may fall down the earth and runs off to the bodies of water like ponds, wetlands and lakes. Precipitation may also follow the route of river and creeks after running off over the land. Water that runs over the land may run through as surface water while some amount will serve as groundwater. Because this amount of water was not able to infiltrate into the ground, the same will return to the atmosphere either through the process of transpiration or evaporation. Scientists define surface water as water that stands or flows on the surface of the earth and also referred to as run-off (White, Iain 2007). Current practice on considers run-off as dangerous to human health and these are usually driven out of the land surface as quickly as possible into sewers or man-made drainage systems. This practice however alters the normal hydrologic cycle as infiltration is lessened which directly affects the processes of transpiration and evaporation. Through the process of infiltration, water sips or absorbed by the ground surface of the earth and so these volume of water is called surface water. On the other hand, groundwater is that volume of run off that sips in the ground and flows through the cracks in the soil, sand and through the spaces between beds of rocks. Depending on the sizes of spaces between rocks and soil, groundwater will be stored in such spaces called aquifers. Aquifers are water-bearing rocks because of their characteristics of high porosity and permeability of which sandstones and gravels are excellent examples (Gore, Pamela 1995). In contrast, rocks, which are not porous like shale, are called aquicludes and so they cannot store water. However, highly jointed aquicludes may also become aquifers because water can also be contained in rock joints. The water that was not absorbed by the plants, or stored in aquifers will eventually into the bodies of water such as the ocean or creeks. The cycle then continues as such water then goes back to the atmosphere through evaporation or transpiration which scientists safely referred to as Evapotranspiration (ET). The amount of water is not well distributed globally as there are areas there are arid lands like Phoenix and Saudi Arabia compared to more permeable areas like some countries of Asia. This is primarily because the types and number of water reservoir of countries varies. Figure 4. 1 will give us the idea that since much of the world’s water is stored in the ocean reservoir, it follows that countries which do have much of such bodies of water have the highest volume of water distribution. If we are to express figures in percentage, we will come up with 97% accounting for water in the ocean and the three percent is distributed among the reservoirs in the soils and the cryosphere in forms of ice caps and glaciers particularly in the areas of Antarctica and Greenland. It is important to note that the total amount of water in the different reservoirs remains nearly constant with the natural landscape and impervious groundcover held in its close original state (NEMO California Partnership, 1997). In the research made by NEMO National Network (California Partnership) in cooperation with the California local government units and the local Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), shallow and deep infiltration of water is 50% while 40% of the water is processed during evapotranspiration. Illustration of the relationship of water run-off and infiltration (NEMO) In this scenario, only 10% of water turns out to be run-off. As the rate of imperviousness increases due to alteration or removal of the natural groundcover, the rate of infiltration consequently decreases. This then results to a higher percentage of run-off water and a lower percentage of water processed during evapotranspiration. The question therefore is: in what ways does infiltration rate increases or decreases and how are human activities relate to this process?

Work Life Balance Programs Cost Or An Investment Management Essay

Work Life Balance Programs Cost Or An Investment Management Essay Work-life balance programs are fast gaining popularity in developed countries, even though they are viewed as novelties in Malaysia. Work-life balance programs can be defined as any benefits, policies or programs that help employees find ways to manage the demands of the workplace and life outside work (Ortega, 2006) or strategies, policies, programs and practices initiated and maintained in workplaces to address flexibility, quality of work and life, and work-family conflict (Bardoel et al, 2008). In other words, work-life balance programs are designed as a two pronged approaches to achieve meaningful achievement and enjoyment in everyday life (Joshi et al, 2002). There are many forms of work-life balance programs such as flex-time, child-care facilities at work, gyms and concierge services and paid vacations. Many reasons are cited for the introduction of work-life balance programs at the workplace, the most common being that it increases productivity as well as employee loyalty. While these are all valid justifications, the costs of having work-life balance programs should not be ignored. Therefore, do the benefits of work-life balance programs outweigh the costs? Going further, should these programs be considered a cost or an investment to the firm? While it may be easier to estimate the returns on investment of a project, it is difficult to financially quantify the impact of work-life balance programs. Thus, companies have to resort to a series of performance measurement tools that are indirectly related to financial return. The best performance indicators are in terms of human resource management. One of the benefits of work-life balance programs can be seen through recruitment. Successful work-life balance programs are powerful marketing tools for attracting new employees who are drawn to the company not just for good remuneration, but other perks too. Work-life balance programs also help to create a better relationship between employer and employee that can be mutually beneficial. One of the main sources of workplace stress is unreasonable demands made on employees time. Thus, programs that assist employees to better manage their time lead to greater job satisfaction. This is evident in the healthcare industry where employees have to work alternative hours in a very stressful and emotionally draining environment. Work-life balance programs in the healthcare industry like wellness programs and child care facilities bring balance and perspective to the lives of employees (Ortego, 2006). This leads to greater productivity, lower job turnover and absenteeism, greater esprit-de-corps and more loyalty towards the employer. In terms of operating costs, retaining employees reduces the cost of training new employees and the time it takes to train new staff to be competent. In fact, there is some evidence to support the argument that compan ies that offered work-life balance programs outperformed those that did not (Joshi et al, 2002). To evaluate if such programs are good investment, we need to examine them from three metrics, which are efficiency, effectiveness and impact (Bardoel et al, 2009). Efficiency metrics are those that measure the cost of work-life balance programs to ascertain the return on investment (ROI). Effectiveness measures are those that indicate how work-life balance programs affect the capacity and actions of employees in targeted talent pools. The third type of measure concentrates on the real impact of work-life balance programs on organizational performance by measuring the value added to an organization by a work-life balance program. Interestingly, research has found that managers often collect data on efficiency, but not on effectiveness and impact factors. This is a major limitation because efficiency measures do not reveal the value added to such programs. The second group of metrics termed effectiveness metrics, assess the outcomes related to the intended effects on individuals of work-life balance programs, for example through employee satisfaction surveys. Again, surveys are useful but they do not gauge whether such programs have positively impacted performance. Though financial ratios such as ROI are typically used to assess core competency, it should be remembered that ROI focuses on financial indicators whereas work-life balance programs use non-financial indicators. Impact metrics measure the ability of work-life balance programs to improve the quality or availability of a particular talent pool, for example to achieve competitive advantage by lowering absenteeism and turnover. To illustrate this cost versus investment dilemma, let us examine three types of work-life balance programs childcare, office gymnasium and flexible work hours. Childcare facilities are provided to entice workers from dual-income households where both parents work. There are many forms of childcare facilities such as in-house child care facilities, after school programs, subsidized child care, and referral services. The main benefit of having such a facility is to help employees cope with the demands of caring for their young children and their jobs and reduce stress among employees as they are assured about the safety of their children (Ortego, 2006). When employees are happy and well-adjusted, it is believed that they become more productive and can contribute more to the company. Other fringe benefits include tax reliefs and exemptions to employers (Deery, 2008), though this is only available in a few countries. On the other hand, the costs of maintaining such childcare facilities are numerous. They include the cost of setting up the facility, the cost of employing qualified staff to care for the children and other operating costs. Also, there is no empirical evidence to support the argument that such facilities promote productivity (Michel et al, 2009). In some cases, the employee might spend more time at the childcare facility instead of at work. In addition, it is almost impossible to quantify the ROI of a childcare facility. Another popular form of work-life balance program is the office gym. A gym is provided because it is believed that exercise promotes good health and reduces job stress. In turn, healthy employees are more productive and there are fewer cases of absenteeism due to poor health (Stimpson, 2008). However, running a gym is potentially expensive. Equipment must be bought, a special room must be prepared and in some cases, physical trainers must be employed. Setting up an office gym must also be done with caution as not all employees would enjoy working out to keep fit. Some may prefer other forms of exercise like swimming, jogging or playing tennis or some may not bother to exercise at all. Hence, it would be a waste of resources to set up a gym when few employees utilize it. There must be proper rules as to when the gym can be used to avoid abuse. In addition, if the gym is open beyond office hours, the cost of operation must also be considered. Finally, the cause and effect relationship of setting up an office gym and increased productivity are largely conjectural. The third type of work-life balance program mentioned earlier is flex-time. This is a form of work schedule that allows employees to select the hours they will work, for example a condensed work week or a shift (Deery, 2008). Flex-time is particularly attractive to those who have to juggle work with other demands like caring for aged parents or looking after young children if childcare facilities are not provided at the workplace. Flex-time is also beneficial for the company in terms of decreasing overhead costs. If employees work different schedules that do not overlap, equipment such as computers and desks can be shared. Companies that do business with firms in different time zones will also benefit as they are able to operate for longer hours and do not have to pay overtime Bourne et al, 2009). Nevertheless, there are some problems associated with flex-time including difficulty of communicating with employees who work outside regular office hours. There are also concerns about sta ff abusing flex-time. If the flex-time schedule is not structured properly, it could lead to the office being staffed sparsely during peak hours (Burke, 2005) and this is unacceptable. In conclusion, from a purely financial perspective, it would appear that work-life balance programs are more of a cost than an investment to the firm. These programs rely on qualitative measures to estimate their success whereas investments rely on quantitative indicators and attempting to reconcile both is problematic to say the least. However, it would be unfair to dismiss work-life balance programs as facile and unprofitable. Just because something cannot be measured with crude financial instruments does not mean it does not exist. The benefits of work-life balance programs on the happiness and well being of employees are well documented. When employees are happy, they become more productive and this ultimately benefits the organization. Therefore, companies should adopt work-life balance programs as long as they are not a severe financial burden. Question 2 Do you think work-life programs can increase retention? Why or why not? How could you assess whether such a program were a good investment? One of the key reasons cited for the proliferation of work-life balance programs is that they contribute to increased retention of employees. Before we answer how work-life balance programs do so, we first need to examine some of the key reasons for employee turnover. It is widely acknowledged that conditions at the workplace affect job turnover. There are many reasons why employees quit because of conditions at the workplace such as long hours, conflict with colleagues and superiors, lack of appreciation shown by employers and unclear job descriptions. For example, long hours at work and increased work intensity both contribute to adverse physical and psychological conditions and lead to negative family functioning (Burke, 2005). Workplace stress can be caused by long working hours, excessive workloads, weekend duties, inadequate physical activity and an unhealthy lifestyle. All these lead to a reduction in the quality of health. When employees are severely overworked and excessively strained, they experience symptoms of fatigue, depression, musculo-skeletal pains, sleeping disorders and an increase in chronic diseases (Tsui, 2008). When the situation becomes too stressful, employees leave their jobs, even opting for those that pay far less but involve less stress. If workplace stress is prolonged, it leads to burnout. Lee and Shin (2005, cited in Deery, 2008) examined the psychological dimensions of job burnout and concluded that it consisted of three components namely emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and diminished personal accomplishment. Burnout is potentially fatal as it increases the risk of coronary diseases, stroke and suicidal tendencies. Employees who lack time to spend with their family or maintain a social life are more likely to be emotionally exhausted, which impact negatively on their job satisfaction and eventually cause them to leave their organizations (Karatepe and Uludag, 2007 cited in Deery, 2008). The following diagram illustrates the relationship between stress and how retention can be improved by work-life balance programs: (Source: Deery, 2008) Also, employees quit their jobs because of dissatisfaction. The top reason why Americans leave their jobs is because they do not feel appreciated (Ortega, 2006). This dissatisfaction may stem from having inadequate job descriptions and unreasonable demands made by employers. Some may be insufficiently trained to perform their jobs or lack sufficient re-training when their job description changes. To compound the matter, there is no assistance for employees when they encounter technical problems when their jobs change and management is indifferent to their plight. All these contribute to stress and increased dissatisfaction with work. Obviously, remuneration is another factor that leads to job dissatisfaction. Employees become unhappy with their jobs when they feel they are inadequately compensated for their efforts based on comparisons of the remuneration of their peers within the organization or within the industry. In the absence of other benefits that work-life balance programs of fer, there is little incentive for employees to remain within a company if they can earn more elsewhere. Female employees are faced with additional problems that their male counterparts do not experience. Despite advances in promoting equal rights for women at the workplace and the gradual acceptance that the traditional roles of both men and women have and need to evolve to reflect the changing times, female employees still feel they have to shoulder the traditional burden of being the perfect housewife and mother, in addition to proving that they are as capable as men at the workplace. Therefore, women are more vulnerable than men to suffer from stress caused by the conflict of managing the roles of employee, wife and mother (Michel et al, 2009). Often, it is because the workplace is inattentive or even hostile to the problems faced by female employees that compel them to leave the workplace when they start a family or when the demands of their family changes. These are some of the primary causes of employee turnover. High turnover is unacceptable, particularly amongst skilled or knowledge-based workers. Particularly in western countries which have declining birth rates and a tendency for job-hopping, the need to retain key staff is essential. Retaining existing internal resources such as good staff, is crucial to maintain an organizations success (Bourne et al, 2009). High employee turnover breaks the continuity of operations and this will adversely affect efficiency. For instance, when an employee leaves, there is bound to be a break in service until a qualified replacement is found and trained. High staff turnover can foster a culture low in morale and loyalty. From a financial viewpoint, there are two major costs associated with turnover which are replacement costs and preventative costs. Replacement costs are the costs of recruiting, selecting and training replacements; loss of output or efficiency during this process; possible wastag e; spoilage and efficiency due to inexperienced staff (Burke, 2005). On the other hand, preventative costs are the costs of retaining staff through pay, benefits and work-life balance programs. Hence, there is greater pressure for employers to strike a balance between eliminating unproductive employees and formulating new and innovative ways to attract and retain talent. There is some evidence to support the postulation that work-life programs can increase retention, provided that the main cause of workplace stress is juggling work-life balance (Osif, 2009 and Joshi et al, 2002). One, work-life balance programs like wellness and physical fitness programs help reduce the symptoms of stress and promote greater physical health. On the other hand, counseling and support groups help employees to manage their stress. While it is impossible and perhaps not desirable to eliminate all forms of stress at the workplace, such programs can contribute a great deal in managing negative stress. When employees are better able to cope with the demands of the workplace, they are less likely to suffer from burnout and less likely to leave. Secondly, work-life balance programs like flex-time are much welcome by working mothers and employees who may want to further their studies and work at the same time. Additional flexibility in terms of working hours will ensure that employees are not compelled to leave because they cannot work the traditional office hours. This will lead to greater retention. Thirdly, in a bid to retain the best and brightest, companies have to resort to novel ways such as work-life balance programs. Assuming that remuneration is similar between two companies, additional perks will go a long way to making a company the desired place to work. Even if a company offers slightly less salary than its competitors, some employees will be enticed to remain there because of the programs and fringe benefits others do not offer. Finally, companies need to show that they value their employees who often have to sacrifice so much for work. While the traditional viewpoint is to provide financial incentives, very often it is the non-financial gestures that make employees feel valued. For example, having office parties or company vacations may be more personal and sincere gestures to show appreciation when the company performs exceptionally well rather than just provide generous bonuses. In that sense, work-life balance programs can be viewed as the minor intangibles that collectively show whether the employee is valued or not. On the other hand, having work-life balance programs does not alleviate an employees woes if they are caused by other stress factors. For instance, if unhappiness at work is because of lack of sufficient training, then overcoming it would be to provide the necessary training. Findings suggest that training quality is positively related to training satisfaction, job satisfaction and the intention to stay in the company. Thus, this type of training is important as a means of retaining employees. In addition, there is no guarantee that such work-life balance programs will increase retention. No substantial longitudinal study has been conducted to ascertain the effectiveness of such programs in leading to long-term retention of staff, and the costs may outstrip the advantages in the long-run, particularly when the economy is bad and the company needs to cut expenses. In conclusion, there is some evidence that supports the notion that work-life balance programs can increase retention (Turner et al, 2009). Introducing flexible working hours and arrangements, providing better training, breaks from work and better work support all enhance employee retention by resolving some of the work-life conflicts faced by employees. Nevertheless, these programs can only be regarded as good investments if they are proven to improve retention of quality staff in the long term and contribute to the overall profitability of the firm. Question 3 Besides flextime arrangements, wellness programs, child-care options and fitness centers, describe three other common mechanisms to improve employees motivation and retention. Present steps to implement such mechanisms in a typical organization. A company can motivate employees through work-life balance programs. Apart from the ones described earlier, other programs like sabbatical leave, paternal leave and work naps are some of the other mechanisms that can improve employees motivation and retention. While sabbatical leave is normally associated with academic institutions, the scope of sabbatical programs is quite extensive, but basically they provide unrestricted time away from work so that the employee can do what he or she wants. For example, the employee can opt to take sabbatical leave to learn how to paint, travel extensively abroad or for further education. Sabbaticals are viewed as a means to allow critical talent time to recharge and people generally return supercharged and more productive than before (Pagano and Pagano, 2009). Basically, there are three defining characteristics of sabbatical leave. One, the time away is planned. Two, it is extended generally for at least four weeks with some firms offering up to three months and three, the employee is expected to return after the break. There is some psychological basis for providing sabbatical leave. Such a work-life balance program is viewed as a form of work motivation. Specifically, it fulfils Maslows Hierarchy of Needs theory. According to Maslow, needs are arranged in a hierarchy from the most basic to the highest level (Baron, 1998). There are five hierarchies of needs which are (in ascending order) physiological needs (the need for food, water and sleep), safety needs (need for security), social needs (need to belong), esteem needs (the need to develop self-respect) and self-actualization needs (the need for self-fulfilment). Therefore taken in this context, taking a sabbatical leave to fulfil a longstanding desire is a form of self-fulfilment that will ultimately benefit the individual. However, employers generally tend to negatively view sabbatical leave of this nature as an indulgent form of fantasy and a waste of both time and money to the company. Yet, harbouring unfulfilled desires will adversely affec t productivity as the employee will feel frustrated. In addition, even the best job can seem monotonous after a while and sabbatical leave should be viewed as a way of gaining fresh perspective and overcoming work fatigue. There are some problems when instituting sabbatical programs which is why companies tend to avoid them. The first problem is lack of top management support. Top management must see the merits of such a program to implement it successfully. Secondly, there is a problem of scheduling. Too many employees taking sabbatical leave at the same time is a serious threat to business, especially during busy seasons. From the employees viewpoint, sabbatical leave can be problematic in two main respects. One, the employee may be worried that if he or she is away for too long, the company may decide that it can do without them. Two, returning to work after a lengthy sabbatical can be very stressful and intense since there will be a lot of unfinished work to attend to (Turner et al, 2009). However, sabbatical programs can be successful if well implemented. First, the company should determine the objectives of such a program, be it to re-energize employees, attract new employees or improve work culture. Two, the company should study the market to see what other companies are offering to come up with better programs. Three, employees should be involved in the decision making process to gain their input and insights. Four, the program should be developed by preparing a sabbatical leave policy. This should include support documents like departure checklists, timelines and scheduling requirements. Five, the program should be piloted to ascertain its effectiveness and adjusted if necessary (Pagano and Pagano, 2009). Frederick Herzberg developed a theory of motivation called the Two-factor theory that is similar to Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. According to Herzberg, job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction acted independently of each other (Baron, 1998). Hence, there are factors at the workplace that cause job satisfaction, whilst there are other factors that cause dissatisfaction. The positive satisfaction factors are collectively termed motivators. These include recognition of a job well done, a sense of achievement and personal growth. Hence, they reflect Maslows hierarchy of needs. However, Herzberg describes another set of factors called hygiene factors. Hygiene factors do not provide positive satisfaction such as company policy, and working conditions, but their absence could cause dissatisfaction. Therefore, work-life programs can be regarded as hygiene factors, the absence of which causes job dissatisfaction. While it is common for most companies to provide paid maternity for their female employees, few in Malaysia extend paternity leave to male employees, though it is common practice in Scandinavian countries. This is a fringe benefit that is being increasingly sought after by more and more employees. As the traditional roles of men and women evolve, more fathers now want to have a more hands-on approach to parenting. This means being with their wives during childbirth and tending to the needs of mother and child during the crucial period following birth. The Family and Medical Leave Act in America allows for a minimum of 12 weeks paid paternity leave while those in Scandinavian countries allow leave to be extended for up to three years (Joshi et al, 2002). While it is unlikely that Malaysian fathers will want to take such a long time off from work, more would like to spend a week or two with their recuperating wives and new infants. Therefore, providing paternity leave acts as a form of motivator to encourage male employees to remain with the company (Robbins and Judge, 2007). Implementing paternal leave at the workplace should not be too difficult as the procedure is similar to maternity leave. Hence the same documents for record keeping can be used. Taking a nap at work would seem extremely unprofessional and unproductive. Yet, some researchers conclude that taking short naps at work, termed power naps may actually increase alertness and productivity. The scientific argument in support of power naps is that it is designed to replenish down time during out circadian rhythm which normally occurs during the afternoon. Some of the benefits of power naps include increased memory, response time and cognitive skills. Taking power naps may be linked to the drive theory which is a theory of motivation that suggests that behavior is pushed from within by drives stemming from basic biological needs like sleep (Baron, 1998). The problems associated with permitting power naps at the workplace include the duration of the nap, scheduling and top management support. It is generally believed that a power nap of fifteen to twenty minutes is sufficient to yield the abovementioned benefits (Robbins and Judge, 2007). Anything longer than that will result in the employee falling into deep sleep which would result in sleeping difficulty at night. However, the company must decide when it is permissible for employees to nap. Some allow employees to nap during their lunch break while others prepare a schedule. While it is not necessary to prepare special sleeping areas since employees are perfectly capable of sleeping at their desks, it is important to ensure that such naps do not interrupt the flow of work. Customers must also not see employees napping as it would create a negative perception of the company. However, if implemented correctly, power naps may be amongst the cheapest and most beneficial forms of work-life balance programs. In conclusions, these are but a few examples of the many work-life balance programs that can be designed to provide motivation and improve retention of employees. Deciding on which to choose will depend on the size and nature of the organization, its work culture and the target benefits of such programs. Top management should keep an open mind about these initiatives for if conducted in the correct manner, the desired results can be obtained.

Discovering Alcott :: Louisa May Alcott Writers Essays

Discovering Alcott When I was a child, I spent all my free time reading. I loved the Nancy Drew series of mysteries and even read a few Hardy Boys. I also read every other book available in our house, especially the children’s book I read to my younger brothers and sisters. Each of them had a favorite book. Those books were read over and over at bedtime or to entertain them while my mother was busy. As I grew older, the responsibility of reading to the other children passed to my younger sister, Cathy. I looked forward to summer vacations because that meant more time to read books that I chose. There was no library in our small town but my mother had lots of books. I also had a two friends, girls who were the only child in their families, and they had all the latest books, ones my family could not afford. I had the privilege of borrowing books from them. When I was eleven years old, I discovered Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. I was a child who noticed details so the author’s name immediately intrigued me. Louisa was my grandmother’s name. I could not remember this grandmother but she was my mother's mother and May is my mother’s middle name, so I felt this had some significance. I was sure that Louisa May Alcott had written something especially intended for me. I did not underestimate how important she would be to me. In addition to our regular household chores of cleaning, babysitting, bed making and helping with cooking, washing and ironing, my older sister, Marian, and I were old enough now to help with canning and freezing fruits and vegetables. We were aware that this must be done in order to feed the family through the winter. We felt our mother’s worry about being able to provide for us so endured the hot, muggy kitchen when we, or at least I, would much rather have been curled up in a quiet corner with a book. I was intrigued from the first page of Little Women because it was about four girls and they were talking about being poor. I could feel and understand their worries. Not only that, one of them reminded the others that they were lucky, they had each other, something my own mother often told us we should appreciate. As the story continued I could not help comparing them to my own family. Discovering Alcott :: Louisa May Alcott Writers Essays Discovering Alcott When I was a child, I spent all my free time reading. I loved the Nancy Drew series of mysteries and even read a few Hardy Boys. I also read every other book available in our house, especially the children’s book I read to my younger brothers and sisters. Each of them had a favorite book. Those books were read over and over at bedtime or to entertain them while my mother was busy. As I grew older, the responsibility of reading to the other children passed to my younger sister, Cathy. I looked forward to summer vacations because that meant more time to read books that I chose. There was no library in our small town but my mother had lots of books. I also had a two friends, girls who were the only child in their families, and they had all the latest books, ones my family could not afford. I had the privilege of borrowing books from them. When I was eleven years old, I discovered Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. I was a child who noticed details so the author’s name immediately intrigued me. Louisa was my grandmother’s name. I could not remember this grandmother but she was my mother's mother and May is my mother’s middle name, so I felt this had some significance. I was sure that Louisa May Alcott had written something especially intended for me. I did not underestimate how important she would be to me. In addition to our regular household chores of cleaning, babysitting, bed making and helping with cooking, washing and ironing, my older sister, Marian, and I were old enough now to help with canning and freezing fruits and vegetables. We were aware that this must be done in order to feed the family through the winter. We felt our mother’s worry about being able to provide for us so endured the hot, muggy kitchen when we, or at least I, would much rather have been curled up in a quiet corner with a book. I was intrigued from the first page of Little Women because it was about four girls and they were talking about being poor. I could feel and understand their worries. Not only that, one of them reminded the others that they were lucky, they had each other, something my own mother often told us we should appreciate. As the story continued I could not help comparing them to my own family. Discovering Alcott :: Louisa May Alcott Writers Essays Discovering Alcott When I was a child, I spent all my free time reading. I loved the Nancy Drew series of mysteries and even read a few Hardy Boys. I also read every other book available in our house, especially the children’s book I read to my younger brothers and sisters. Each of them had a favorite book. Those books were read over and over at bedtime or to entertain them while my mother was busy. As I grew older, the responsibility of reading to the other children passed to my younger sister, Cathy. I looked forward to summer vacations because that meant more time to read books that I chose. There was no library in our small town but my mother had lots of books. I also had a two friends, girls who were the only child in their families, and they had all the latest books, ones my family could not afford. I had the privilege of borrowing books from them. When I was eleven years old, I discovered Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. I was a child who noticed details so the author’s name immediately intrigued me. Louisa was my grandmother’s name. I could not remember this grandmother but she was my mother's mother and May is my mother’s middle name, so I felt this had some significance. I was sure that Louisa May Alcott had written something especially intended for me. I did not underestimate how important she would be to me. In addition to our regular household chores of cleaning, babysitting, bed making and helping with cooking, washing and ironing, my older sister, Marian, and I were old enough now to help with canning and freezing fruits and vegetables. We were aware that this must be done in order to feed the family through the winter. We felt our mother’s worry about being able to provide for us so endured the hot, muggy kitchen when we, or at least I, would much rather have been curled up in a quiet corner with a book. I was intrigued from the first page of Little Women because it was about four girls and they were talking about being poor. I could feel and understand their worries. Not only that, one of them reminded the others that they were lucky, they had each other, something my own mother often told us we should appreciate. As the story continued I could not help comparing them to my own family.

Essential Functions of a Project Manager Essay

The Essential Functions of a Project Manager A project manager (PM) is a facilitator. The ideal project manager does whatever it takes to ensure that the members of the project team can do their work. This means working with management to ensure they provide the resources and support required as well as dealing with team issues that are negatively impacting a team’s productivity. The project manager must possess a combination of skills including the ability to ask penetrating questions, identify unstated assumptions, and resolve personnel conflicts along with more systematic management skills. This person is responsible for initiating, planning, executing, controlling and closing a project. The actions of a project manager should be almost unnoticeable and when a project is moving along smoothly people are sometimes tempted to question the need for a project manager. However, when you take the skilled project manager out of the mix, the project is much more likely to miss deadlines and exceed budgets. The project manager is the one who is responsible for making decisions in such a way that risk is controlled and uncertainty minimized. Every decision made by the project manager should ideally be directly benefit the project. A successful PM must simultaneously manage the four basic elements of a project: resources (people, equipment, material), time (task duration, dependencies, critical path), money (costs, contingencies, profits), and most importantly, scope (project size, goals, profit). All these elements are interrelated. Each must be managed effectively. All must be managed together if the project, and the project manager, is to be a success. The Scope element of a project is the most important and it is the first and last task for a successful project manager. First and foremost you have to manage the project scope. The project scope is the definition of what the project is supposed to accomplish and the budget (of time and money) that has been created to achieve these objectives. It is absolutely imperative that any change to the scope of the project have a matching change in budget, either time or resources. If the project scope is to build a building to house three widgets with a budget of $100,000 the project manager is expected to do that. However, if the scope is changed to a building for four widgets, the project manager must obtain an appropriate change in budgeted resources. If the budget is not adjusted, the smart project manager will avoid the change in scope. Usually, scope changes occur in the form of â€Å"scope creep†. Scope creep is the piling up of small changes that by themselves are manageable, but in aggregate are significant. It is necessary to make sure any requested change, no matter how small, is accompanied by approval for a change in budget or schedule or both. A PM cannot effectively manage the resources, time and money in a project unless you actively manage the project scope. When the project scope is clearly identified and associated to the timeline and budget, the PM can begin to manage the project resources. These include the people, equipment, and material needed to complete the project. A successful PM must effectively manage the Resources assigned to the project. This includes the labor hours of the designers, the builders, the testers and the inspectors on the project team. It also includes managing any labor subcontracts. However, managing project resources frequently involves more than people management. The project manager must also manage the equipment used for the project and the material needed by the people and equipment assigned to the project. Managing the people resources means having the right people, with the right skills and the proper tools, in the right quantity at the right time. It also means ensuring that they know what needs to be done, when, and how. And it means motivating them to take ownership in the project too. Managing direct employees normally means managing the senior person in each group of employees assigned to your project. These employees also have a line manager to whom they report and from whom the usually take technical direction. In a matrix management situation, like a project team, the PM’s job is to provide project direction to them. Managing labor subcontracts usually means managing the team lead for the subcontracted workers, who in turn manages the workers. The equipment a PM has to manage as part of the project depends on the nature of the project. A project to construct a frozen food warehouse would need earth moving equipment, cranes, and cement trucks. For a project to release a new version of a computer game, the equipment would include computers, test equipment, and duplication and packaging machinery. The project management key for equipment is much like for people resources. They have to make sure workers have the right equipment in the right place at the right time and that it has the supplies it needs to operate properly. Most projects involve the purchase of material. For a frozen food arehouse, this would be freezers, the building HVAC machinery and the material handling equipment. For a project to release a music CD by a hot new artist, it would include the CD blanks, artwork for the jewel case, and press releases to be sent to deejays. The project management issue with supplies is to make sure the right supplies arrive at the right time. All the skill in managing resources won’t help, however, unless the PM can stick to the project schedule. Time management is critical in successful project management. Time management is a critically important skill for any successful project manager. Project managers who succeed in meeting their project schedule have a good chance of staying within their project budget. The most common cause of blown project budgets is lack of schedule management. Fortunately there is a lot of software on the market today to help manage project schedule or timeline. Any project can be broken down into a number of tasks that have to be performed. To prepare the project schedule, the project manager has to figure out what the tasks are, how long they will take, what resources they require, and in what order they should be done. Each of these elements has a direct bearing on the schedule. If a task is omitted, the project won’t be completed. If the length of time or the amount of resources required for the task is underestimated, the schedule will be missed. The schedule can also be blown if a mistake in the sequencing of the tasks is made. The PM needs to build the project schedule by listing, in order, all the tasks that need to be completed. Assign duration to each task. Allocate the required resources. Determine predecessors (what tasks must be completed before) and successors (tasks that can’t start until after) each task. The difficulty in managing a project schedule is that there are seldom enough resources and enough time to complete the tasks sequentially. Therefore, tasks have to be overlapped so several happen at the same time. Project management software greatly simplifies the task of creating and managing the project schedule by handling the iterations in the schedule logic. When all tasks have been listed, resourced, and sequenced, it is noticeable that some tasks have a little flexibility in their required start and finish date. This is called float. A line through all the tasks with zero float is called the critical path. All tasks on this path, and there can be multiple, parallel paths, must be completed on time if the project is to be completed on time. The Project Manager’s key time management task is to manage the critical path. Be aware, that items can be added to or removed from the critical path as circumstances change during the execution of the project. Installation of security cameras may not be on the critical path, but if the shipment is delayed, it may become part of the critical path. Conversely, pouring the concrete foundation may be on the critical path, but if the project manager obtains an addition crew and the pour is completed early it could come off the critical path (or reduce the length of the critical path). Regardless of how well you manage the schedule and the resources, there is one more critical element called managing the budget. Often a PM is evaluated on his or her ability to complete a project within Budget. If the project resources and project schedule is managed effectively, this should not be a problem. It is, however, a task that requires the project manager’s careful attention. Each project task will have a cost whether it is the cost of the labor hours of a computer programmer or the purchase price of a cubic yard of concrete. In preparing the project budget, each of these costs is estimated and then totaled. Some of these estimates will be more accurate than others. A company knows what it will charge each of its projects for different classifications of labor. Commodities like concrete are priced in a very competitive market so prices are fairly predictable. Other estimates are less accurate. For instance, the cost of a conveyor system with higher performance specifications that normal can be estimated to be more expensive, but it is hard to determine whether it will be 10% more or 15% more. For an expensive item, that can be a significant amount. When the estimated cost of an item is uncertain, the project budget often includes a design allowance. This is money that is set-aside in the budget â€Å"just in case† the actual cost of the item is wildly different than the estimate. Unusual weather or problems with suppliers are always a possibility on large projects. Companies usually include a contingency amount in the project budget to cover these kinds of things. So a project budget is composed of the estimated cost, plus the contingency and design allowance, plus any profit. The project manager’s job is to keep the actual cost at or below the estimated cost, to use as little of the design allowance and contingency as possible, and to maximize the profit the company earns on the project. To maximize the chances of meeting the project udget, the PM must meet the project schedule. The most common cause of blown budgets is blown schedules. Meeting the project schedule won’t guarantee the project budget is met, but it significantly increases the chances. And above all, management of the project scope is detrimental. PM should not allow the project scope to â€Å"creep† upward without getting budget and/or schedule adjustments to match. Successful project management is an art and a science that takes practice. The ideas presented above can give a basic understanding of project management, but consider it is only the beginning. In order to have a successful career in project managements, it is necessary to talk to successful project managers, read, and practice to acquired experience and confidence.

Societal Marketing Essays

Societal Marketing Essays Societal Marketing Essay Societal Marketing Essay Societal marketing based on ethics, honesty, trust, reciprocal relationship with the community and secondary focus on profitability is the pivot in the field of business which will influence uplifting changes in the interest of the organization as well as change the character of the nation. It is the need of the time, when the impact of industrialization, cut throat competition and materialism is at its peak. Societal marketing emerged in the early 1970s, promising a more socially responsible and ethical model for marketing. (2007)â€Å"The societal marketing concept holds that the organization’s task is to determine the needs, wants, and interests of target markets and to deliver the desired satisfactions more effectively and efficiently than competitors, in a way that preserves or enhances the consumers and the societys well-being†. (Kotler, Philip. Marketing management: analysis, planning, implementation and control 8th ed. Prentice-Hall, 1994) ( Webber, 2001)Globali zation and International investment on the rise, the premier business publication Forbes magazine undertook the responsibility of evaluating the world trend in investment and marketing on some sound ground rules which would govern their role in the arena of international player in the world market. â€Å"It sought out many of the worlds top institutions of sociological and economic theory, gathered the results of surveys, statistical studies, and socio-economic data on each of the 135 countries in its index, assigning relative per cent-rankings for each of the chambers largely qualitative principles. The magazine then aggregated scores across 10 separate categories to develop the first Forbes Capital Hospitality Index (FCHI). The Forbes Capital Hospitality Index measures macroeconomic indicators like GDP growth and international trade, along with societal factors affecting investment, including poverty, bureaucracy, technological advancement, and corruption.† (Ravindran, 2006 )Bankers will remember 2006 as the year a new king was crowned: Bank of America, once a scrappy North Carolina regional, replaced Citigroup as the nations most profitable bank. Today BofA (nyse: BAC news people ) earns the most per quarter and is first in deposits, credit and debit card transactions, small business banking, Internet banking and, with the recent acquisition of US Trust from Charles Schwab (nasdaq: SCHW news people ), private banking as well. But Bank of America continues to grow like a small bank: Analysts expect earnings to rise 9% a year for the next five years, and it earns a healthy 17% return on equity and 1.4% on assets. BofA hasnt gotten sloppy, either.Under Lewis the net margin has increased from 13% in 2001 to 18%. Shareholders have seen a 26% return over the past 12 months. Theres empirical evidence that we changed for the better, he says, and our customers saw it.The banking environment is hitting a rough patch- rising short-term rates and loan default s will hurt interest income- but Bank of America isnt big into mortgages (not yet), and its huge retail business means steady profits from fees. Lewis says hell focus next on small business, premier-level banking and capital markets in Asia and Europe. The analysts say hell also go after mortgages, and, apparently, retail brokering. The bank recently started giving away stock trades for free for qualifying customers. ( Beller , 2006)Social marketing can be used in public health campaigns (e.g., to reduce smoking and alcoholism, safe sex, and increasing physical fitness), environmental campaigns (e.g., fighting pollution, promoting recycling, saving water and power), education campaigns (to encourage literacy), and the protection of individual/group rights (e.g., racial and gender equality, gay and lesbian rights). (Kindra Stapenburs, 1998)Societal marketing based on ethical and philanthropic principle can achieve this dynamic change within a society, community and a country by rais ing the awareness of the citizens about the costs of the corruption to the country, addressing the concern about institutions within a country, increasing understanding regarding the factors of corruption within public behavior.The premier business publication said: As access to capital markets around the world becomes commonplace for individual investors and multinational institutions alike, the race is on for countries to attract the foreign investment capital needed to fuel the engines of growth at home. Addressing this need for a one-stop reference, Forbes began with a list of principles employed by the US Chamber of Commerce when considering international investments. FORBES has listed Denmark, Finland, Iceland, the US, the UK, Singapore, Australia, Estonia, Ireland, and New Zealand as the top 10 countries in the world in terms of capital hospitality. (Ravindran, 2006);

Fight Club †Analysis

Fight Club – Analysis Free Online Research Papers Reading in-between the lines: An analysis of Fight Club A novel by Chuck Palahniuk A film directed by David Fincher You are not your job. You are not how much you have in the bank. You are not the contents of your wallet. You are not your khakis. You are not a beautiful and unique snowflake. What happens first is you cant sleep. What happens then is theres a gun in your mouth. And what happens next is you meet Tyler Durden. Let me tell you about Tyler. He had a plan. In Tyler we trusted. Tyler says the things you own, end up owning you. Its only after youve lost everything that youre free to do anything. Fight Club represents that kind of freedom. First rule of Fight Club: You do not talk about Fight Club. Second rule of Fight Club: You do not talk about Fight Club. Tyler says self-improvement is masturbation. Tyler says self-destruction might be the answer. The novel Fight Club, by Jack Palahniuk was published in 1996 and released as a motion picture starring Brad Pitt and Edward Norton in October of 1999. Both the novel and motion picture proved to be very successful in their release to the public for one simple reason: Fight Club is a reflection of the suffering experienced by the Generation X male who feels trapped in a world of the grey-collar (or service) working-class, a world filled with materialism and distractions, a group of men raised in single-parent families often devoid of a male role-model, and a world where there is no great cause for the average North American male to fight for. Whether consciously, or subconsciously, the average Generation X male of modern society can relate to and understand Fight Club, which makes both the novel and motion picture such an important proclamation regarding the state of our modern culture. In Fight Club, we meet our main character who comes to us without a name. He can be referred to as Jack but his name is not important. He comes to us without a name because he represents any man, any one of those Generation X males living in our society at present. Jack is a thirty-year old man employed as a recall coordinator for a major automobile company. He lives in a condo that is furnished with all the comforts of modern society, namely mass-produced furnishings that can be found in the homes of millions across North America. Jack owns a car and has obtained a respectable wardrobe for himself over the course of time. Despite all of these things, Jack is not satisfied with his life. He feels unhappy, unfulfilled, and trapped in the depths of chronic insomnia. Jack asks his doctor for help with his insomnia and receives the response that if he wants to see real pain, he should attend some of the support groups at a local church. So Jack attends these support groups, in fact he st arts to attend them religiously using pseudonyms and pretending he belongs. Jack frequents groups for men with testicular cancer, groups for sufferers of brain parasites, and blood parasites among other groups for disease sufferers, and suddenly Jack finds he can sleep again. The support groups give Jack a sense of belonging, a sense of being important to others as he expresses on page 107 of the novel: This is why I loved the support groups so much. If people thought you were dying, they gave you their full attention. If this might be the last time they saw you, they really saw youPeople listened instead of just waiting for their turn to speak. And when they spoke, they werent telling you a story. When the two of you talked, you were building something, and afterward you were both different than before. It is implied that Jack feels frustrated with others in his life, feeling as if they are too caught up with their own preoccupations to truly care about how Jack feels, what is happening to him, and what he needs and wants in life. It is implied that the average Generation X male also feels this way and has difficulty coping in a society where people are too busy to listen. Jacks attendance at the support group meetings continues to fill one of the voids in his life until he meets the character of Marla Singer, who has begun to frequent all of the support group meetings, just as Jack does. Jack becomes enraged with the presence of Marla, as he sees her as a symbol of the lie he has been living and fears that through Marla, he will be exposed as a faker. Jack confronts Marla and they agree to share the meetings, by dividing them up between them. As long as Jack is not confronted with the sight of Marla he feels comfortable in continuing his attendance at the meetings, and carrying out the role of a person living at deaths door. During Jacks attendance at his weekly parasitic brain dysfunction group, he also discovers another way of dealing with some of his problems, through the use of guided meditation. During the meeting a member steps forward to lead the group on a journey of the mind, during which those participating are mentally lead through various coloured doors, which lead to a cave, which contains their power animal. This animal is a symbol of their personal power to overcome all obstacles they encounter in life. Jack discovers that his power animal is a penguin that offers Jack the verbal suggestion to slide. The fact that Jacks power animal is a penguin is actually extremely significant. Through analysis of the penguin, it is noted that penguins, though part of the bird species, cannot fly. Jack is part of the human species, yet he does not grasp what he can do. He feels restricted by his walls and has essentially made himself a cave to dwell in where the simple decisions of everyday life have bee n robbed from him. The penguin is also symbolic in that penguins are also very drone-like. There has always been the old joke that penguins appear as if they are wearing little black and white suits, which would symbolize the suit and tie environment that Jack works in each day, an environment that Jack feels to be stifling. The last important detail about the penguin is that penguins are content in their atmosphere and travel in flocks. They do not stray far from their homes and baby penguins stick close to their mothers. This is especially reflective of the life that Jack leads. Jack feels as if he is just one of the masses travelling in a flock and not thinking for himself. He also has issues with his upbringing, as it is later revealed that Jack was raised by his mother in a single-parent family, having been abandoned by his father at a young age. The next major event that occurs in Jacks life, although he is unaware of it at the time, is meeting Tyler Durden. It is interesting to note that the author seems to have carefully chosen the name of this character, as an analysis of the name Tyler Durden reveals that in antiquated English, Tyler means gatekeeper or house builder, and Durden has the root dour meaning hard, as in durable, both which are descriptive of his personality. Although the novel and motion picture do not project the same circumstances under which Jack and Tyler meet, it is most interestingly projected in the novel. Jack awakes on a beach in the summertime to find Tyler pulling driftwood out of the surf and dragging it to the beach, then implanting the logs in the sand, forming a semi-circle. Tyler asks Jack what time it is and draws a line in the sand with a stick. Tylers creation is explained in the novel (page 33) as follows: What Tyler had created was the shadow of a giant hand. Only now the fingers were Nosferatu-long and the thumb was too short, but he said how at exactly four-thirty the hand was perfect. The giant shadow hand was perfect for one minute, and for one perfect minute Tyler had sat in the palm of perfection hed created himselfOne minute was enough, Tyler said, a person had to work hard for it, but a minute of perfection was worth the effort. A moment was the most you could ever expect from perfection. This scene is especially important and foreshadows the future for Jack and Tyler. It is indicative of Tylers personality, and goal (that later surfaces) of achieving just a moment of what he considers to be perfection in society. The giant hand symbolizes the world, and Tyler sitting within the giant hand symbolizes his wish to control the future of the world for just one tiny perfect moment. Shortly following Jacks discovery of Tyler, he partakes on an extended business trip. Upon his return he discovers that his precious condominium containing all the comforts of home that he has grown to love dearly has been destroyed in an explosion. It is explained to Jack that the cause of the explosion is unknown, however it is suspected that the cause was a gas leak, and that there is nothing left of his personal possessions. Jack is forbidden to enter the condo unit, and is advised to find a place to stay. On his way out of the lobby of the building, Jack is approached by the doorman, whose words profoundly echo the current problems facing modern society with respect to our obsession with materialism (page 45/46): A lot of young people try to impress the world and buy too many things, the doorman said A lot of young people dont know what they really want. If you dont know what you really wantyou end up with a lot you dont. Tyler Durden later reveals to Jack that this is a problem of which he is especially concerned, a problem which he believes each person in society should become enlightened to, and work on correcting through the abandonment of material possessions. When Jack discovers he has lost his home and all his possessions he suddenly feels a sense that he is truly alone. He does not consider calling family, or staying in a hotel, but instead debates calling Marla Singer whom he barely knows, and then decides impulsively to call Tyler Durden. It is implied through this decision, that Jack is not close with any family that he may have and that he does not have any (or few) friends. Jack and Tyler agree to meet at a local bar to have a few drinks and discuss what has happened. Jack expresses his grief over the loss of his condo and all his belongings to which Tyler replies that it is a good thing that all of that baggage is gone, and that Jack is better off without all of his stuff. He explains (page 44): You buy furniture. You tell yourself this is the last sofa I will ever need in my life. Buy the sofa, then for a couple of years youre satisfied that no matter what goes wrong, at least youve got your sofa issue handled. Then the right set of dishes. Then the perfect bed. The drapes. The rug. Then you are trapped in your lovely nest, and the things you used to own, now they own you. Tyler is stating here that people in modern society have become so consumed with what they own and what they dont own (but wish they did), that they have lost track of what is really important in life. People have become obsessed with consumerism, forgetting that objects do not bring ultimate happiness, and you cannot take them with you when you die. Tyler is offering Jack the wisdom that it is actually a blessing that he is now free of all the distractions he has accumulated, so that he can now turn the focus onto himself, and what is really important in his life. At the end of the evening Jack and Tyler find themselves outside the bar and they discuss that Jack should stay with Tyler. Tyler suggests to Jack that asking to stay with him must have been his real motive for calling him. Once it is agreed upon that Jack will stay or live with Tyler, Tyler asks Jack for one favour. He asks Jack to hit him as hard as he can. Jack is shocked by Tylers request and asks why he would ever ask such a thing. Tyler explains to Jack that he has never been in a fight before, and listed his reasons (page 52) as: not wanting to die without any scarsbeing tired of watching only professionals fight, and wanting to know more about himself. Jack finally agrees to his request and they proceed to get into a physical brawl with each other, no holds barred. Eventually the bar closes; patrons come out and gather around to watch the fight. This is how Fight Club was born. Somehow Tyler and Jack had managed to leave an impression upon their fellow grey-collar brothers wh o had been watching them carry on, and came up with the idea that the sort of fighting that they had engaged in as an act of self-discovery, could be beneficial to others for the same reason. It was decided that Fight Club would be formed and meet periodically in the parking lot of the same bar where they had engaged in their first fight. Following this first fight Tyler and Jack fall exhausted and discuss what just occurred. Jack asks Tyler what it was that he had really been fighting during the brawl, to which Tyler replies my father. This is a very important underlying theme within Fight Club, the theme of Generation X males in modern society being raised more commonly in a single-parent family, often with their mother as their only role model. There is a sense of anger towards the father figure for abandoning the family, and even greater implications that men raised predominately by women have been forced to stifle their natural aggressive tendencies and take on a more unnatural, passive nature. This is supported by the need for characters in the novel/motion picture to engage in physical aggression through Fight Club as a release for these pent up feelings. Jack explains his own relationship with his father as follows (page 50/51): Me, I knew my dad for about six years, but I dont remember anything. My dad, he starts a new family in a new town about every six years. This isnt so much like a new family as its like he sets up a franchiseWhat you see at Fight Club is a generation of men raised by womenMy father never went to college so it was really important I go to college. After college, I called him long distance and said, now what? My dad didnt know. When I got a job and turned twenty- five, long distance, I said, now what? My dad didnt know so he said, get married. Im a thirty-year-old boy, and Im wondering if another woman is really the answer I need. It is especially important to note that Jack is analyzing himself in the above excerpt, acknowledging his lack of maturity, and that he would be most likely to look for a woman who would act as a mother-figure instead of a partner or mate. Jack is implying here that many men in his situation (raised in a single-parent family by their mother) instinctively look for someone to take care of them in a relationship, as they know only what their mother or female role-model has taught them, and are lacking the knowledge of what it means to be a man in a relationship, due to a lack of a male parental figure or role model. There is also an underlying idea in Fight Club that a male role model symbolizes God in a young mans formative years, and when abandoned by the male role model, the young man will develop a sense of being abandoned by God as well. This is described in Chapter 18 of the novel (page 140/141): If youre male and youre Christian and living in America, your father is your model for God. And if you never know your father, if your father bails out or dies or is never at home, what do you believe about God?What you end up doing is you spend your life searching for a father and God. What you have to consideris the possibility that God doesnt like you. Could be, God hates us. This is not the worst thing that can happen.We are Gods middle children, according to Tyler Durden, with no special place in history and no special attention. Unless we get Gods attention, we have no hope of damnation or redemption. It is an interesting theory that possibly the Generation X males lack of connection with God and religion could be due to a lack of the male parental figure in their lives. It is observable that these individuals may be feeling that they are the unwanted children, cast aside and neglected by all father figures in their lives, and this had lead them to a sense of hostility which manifests through the aggressive fighting they partake in at Fight Club meetings. Tyler Durden, self-proclaimed inventor of Fight Club soon decides to set a rule structure for their meetings so that they do not get out of hand. He sets the rules as follows (page 48/49): The first rule about Fight Club is you dont talk about Fight ClubThe second rule about Fight Club is you dont talk about Fight ClubThats the third rule in fight club, when someone says stop, or goes limp, even if hes just faking it, the fight is overOnly two guys to a fight. One fight at a time. They fight without shirts or shoes. The fights go on as long as they have to. Those are the other rules of Fight Club. It is interesting to note that the character of Tyler Durden is completely opposed to societal rules and regulations. Regardless of this, he sees a need for rules in his club, in order to prevent chaos from occurring, and people from getting injured beyond repair or killed. The Fight Club has been officially established now as a therapy session for grey-collar workers, which Tyler Durden believes cleanses it of negative, meaningless violent intentions. This Fight Club, now established as a group therapy session, soon replaces Jacks need to attend the other group sessions at the church. Fight Club has provided its members with a place to fight their fears, fears that they have been cheated and abandoned by their father and God, fears that they are not good enough, strong enough or smart enough, fears that they will never be able to understand why they feel so trapped in their lives and unsatisfied, and also the fear of being alone, of pain, of brutality, of defeat, of losing control, and of inevitable death. It has become an outlet for anger and fear, a rite of masculinity, and frees them temporarily from their enslavement by modern society. The more members realize all these things, the more they break the first and second rule of Fight Club, sharing the experience with more and more fellow brothers who feel just as they do. Fight Club soon moves to the basement of the bar, and eventually new, independent chapters surface across the city as more and more men become aware of what Fight Club can offer them. While Fight Club is developing and growing, Jack discovers that Tyler has entered into a sexual relationship with Marla whom he met at the support group meetings in the church. Jack discovers that Tyler has rescued Marla from an attempted suicide through the overdose of prescription medication (Marla had phoned the house that Jack and Tyler were currently sharing and Tyler had gone to her place to save her from herself). Jack becomes enraged when he discovers that Tyler and Marla are involved in a relationship. It is during this time that Jack has found some old magazines in the house, which use clever words to personify body parts such as I am Jills colon. Jack takes to describing his anger at Marla and Tylers relationship through the use of these clever analogies (page 59): I am Joes raging bile duct. I am Joes grinding teeth. I am Joes inflamed, flaring nostrils. I am Joes white knuckles. I am Joes Enraged, Inflamed Sense of Rejection. Jack takes to speaking about his feelings as if he is observing someone else, making them less personalized, and taking less responsibility for them. Marla also expresses feelings that she is having by stating them as if she is observing another person. This becomes clear when Tyler explains his rescue of Marla to Jack. When Marla tries to overdose, she calls the paramedics, and Tyler takes her out of her suite just before they arrive. As he is dragging her away, she is calling back to the paramedics, expressing her true feelings about herself (page 61): The girl is infectious human waste, and shes confused and afraid to commit to the wrong thing so she wont commit to anythingThe girl in 8G has no faith in herselfand shes worried that as she grows older shell have fewer and fewer options. In this description of Marlas feelings, it can be observed that the problems facing Generation X males are affecting females as well, who also feel a sense of insecurity, unhappiness, and dissatisfaction towards life. It is important to note that Marla is just as lonely and friendless as Jack, however the novel/motion picture does not address how females can deal with these emotions and problems, somehow minimizing their struggle. Jack continues to come to work each day as Fight Club progresses. He shows up at work, proudly displaying his wounds and scars that he has obtained through fighting, like a badge of honour. He sarcastically describes his personal progress that he is shoving in the faces of his co-workers as follows (page 64): Im saying HELLO to everybody at work. HELLO! Look at me. HELLO! I am so ZEN. This is BLOOD. This is NOTHING. Hello. Everything is nothing, and its so cool to be ENLIGHTENED. Like me. Here Jack is swelling with a sense of pride in his personal progress, at the same time showing a sense of bitterness towards his co-workers who do not understand the wonderful personal journey he is on, and are doing nothing to enlighten themselves. Jack also begins to send messages to his co-workers in the form of haikus (page 63/64/67): Worker bees can leave Without just one nest Flowers bloom and die Even drones fly away A bird can call the world home Wind brings butterflies or snow The queen is their slave Life is your career A stone wont notice These haikus symbolize different stages in Jacks progress. The first haiku is a message to his co-workers that they are not really trapped by their boring, unfulfilling careers (even though it may seem that way), and that they can choose to leave and change their lives if they want to. It is implied that if they choose this path, then their boss will become their slave instead of them being enslaved by their boss. The second haiku is a message that material possessions are unimportant, as the whole world is literally a home. It is also saying that living and being free is more important than the materialistic ideals and stifling careers they currently consider to be important. The third haiku is a statement that all beautiful and living things do eventually die, but those who are strong or stone-like will not be affected by the fear of inevitable death, and instead will embrace and understand it. As time passes, Jacks boss becomes more and more aware of what Jack has become involved in. His boss discovers the Rules of Fight Club that Jack has accidentally left in the photocopier at work, and confronts Jack about the matter. Jacks reaction to his boss discovery shows how he is becoming more and more influenced by the strong personality of Tyler Durden, as he reacts in a manner which is completely unlike the Jack he was before Fight Club (page 97): I say, it sounds like some dangerous psychotic killer wrote this, and this buttoned-down schizophrenic could probably go over the edge at any moment in the working day and stalk from office to office with an Armalite AR-180 carbine gas- operated semiautomaticThe guy, I say, is probably at home every night with a little rattail file, filing a cross into the tip of every one of his rounds. This way when he shows up to work one morning and pumps a round into his nagging, ineffectual, petty, whining, butt-sucking, candy-ass boss, that one round will split along the filed grooves and spread open the way a dumdum bullet flowers inside you to blow a bushel load of your stinking guts out In the above excerpt, Jack is again describing his feelings as if he were speaking about someone else; he creates a clever message to his boss that says leave me alone, or else. It is especially interesting that Jack refers to himself as a schizophrenic, which will be analyzed further later on. Here Jack is saying things to his boss that many men have dreamed of, but never dared. He is finding that he is becoming more and more empowered and caring less and less about societys rules and taboos. During this time Tyler has also begun to teach Jack the art of soap making. Jack and Tyler begin making soap from human fat that they have obtained from the discard bins of liposuction clinics and selling this primo soap to the upper class department stores in their city. Both Tyler and Jack find delight in selling rich women their fat asses back to them. Soap is a very important symbol in Fight Club, as Tyler explains that soap ultimately symbolizes heroism, and human sacrifice. This becomes known in the following excerpt (page 76/77/78): In ancient historyhuman sacrifices were made on a hill above a riverThe sacrifices were made and the bodies were burned on a pyreAfter hundreds of people were sacrificed and burneda thick white discharge crept from the alter, downhill to the riverRain fell on the burnt pyre year after year, and year after year people were burned, and the rain seeped through the wood ashes to become a solution of lye, and the lye combined with the fat of the sacrifices, and a thick white discharge of soap crept out from the base of the altar and crept downhill toward the riverWhere the soap fell into the riverafter a thousand years of killing people and rain, the ancient people found their clothes got cleaner if they washed them at that spotIt was right to kill those peopleYou have to seehow the first soap was made of heroesthink about animals in product testing. Think about the monkeys shot into space. Without their pain and sacrificewe would have nothing. Tyler shows how soap was obtained through the suffering and sacrifice of humanity and that this is ultimately how all human progress is obtained. He wants Jack to realize that even though this may be disturbing, it is a fact of life. As chapters of Fight Club have continued to spread across the city, Jack soon discovers that Tyler has an even bigger plan that will take members to a new level of therapy and personal enlightenment. Tyler has begun a new area of the club called Project Mayhem in which members of the club are assigned tasks and challenges through which they will obtain new knowledge of themselves. Members are assigned tasks such as starting a fight with a stranger and letting the stranger win. The goal of a task such as this is to spread the feeling of empowerment obtained through fighting to other individuals beyond Fight Club. Soon Project Mayhem has progressed even further, and Jack discovers that there are suddenly members on his front porch who have brought personal items as directed by Tyler and are willing to endure a three day waiting period without food, water or sleep in order to gain access to the house. Often Tyler shouts words of discouragement to the waiting member, telling them that th ey are too old, or too fat, or not what he is looking for. Tyler explains to Jack that he is testing these members and is considering them as applicants for the next phase of Project Mayhem. He explains the rationale for making them endure the three-day test as follows (page 129): This is how the Buddhist temples have tested applicants going back for bah-zillion yearsYou tell the applicant to go away, and if his resolve is so strong that he waits at the entrance without food or shelter or encouragement for three days, then and only then can he enter and begin training. Jack soon discovers that Tyler has installed army-style bunk beds in the basement of their house and is attempting to build his own personal army. As more and more applicants endure the test, they are given access to the house and begin training in Tylers army. These new space monkeys, (this is a reference to Tylers explanation of human sacrifice in the previously quoted excerpt) are given specific tasks such as cooking, soap making and cleaning, and begin to recite mantras which Tyler has taught them, almost as if they have been brainwashed (page 134): When I come home one space monkey is reading to the assembled space monkeys who sit covering the whole first floor. You are not a beautiful and unique snowflake. You are the same decaying organic matter as everyone else, and we are all part of the same compost pile. Our culture has made us all the same. No one is truly white or black or rich anymore. We all want the same. Individually, we are nothing. Here Tyler has created a group mentality or cult way of thinking to bring all of the space monkeys residing in the house to the same degree of enlightenment. He is training them to think and feel the same, as well as work towards one common, collective goal. Like Fight Club, Project Mayhem also has similar, established rules which must be followed and also include complete and total trust in Tyler Durden, without question. This is similar to a religion in that there are established rules to be followed, however one should never question Gods intentions or actions, but trust completely and have faith. Project Mayhem soon begins to carry out acts of vandalism and disturbance throughout the city such as drawing a huge happy face on the side of a large building and lighting fire to the eyes to make them glow. Through these acts of vandalism the grey-collar space monkeys of Project Mayhem are delivering a message of defiance to society, stating that they no longer care about the establish ed rules and distractions, and now live by their own set of rules which are considered by most to be counter-culture. Tylers ultimate goal that he is trying to accomplish through Project Mayhem soon becomes apparent to Jack. He realizes that Tylers wish is to destroy all that society currently is and revert back to ancient times when the world had not yet discovered technology, money didnt exist, and material possessions were unimportant. Only the necessities of food, water, clothing and shelter were valued. Tyler reveals his goal to Jack as follows (page 125): Its Project Mayhem thats going to save the world. A cultural ice age. A prematurely induced dark age. Project Mayhem will free humanity to go dormant or into remission long enough for the Earth to recover. Imaginestalking elk past department store windows and stinking racks of beautiful rotting dresses and tuxedosyoull wear leather clothes that will last you the rest of your lifeyoull climb up through the dripping forest canopy and the air will be so clean youll see tiny figures pounding corn and laying strips of venison in the empty car pool lane of an abandoned superhighway It is interesting that reverting back to a primitive hunter-gatherer sort of society is so attractive to Tyler and that he truly feels this to be the solution to all of lifes problems. It is implied that in modern society men do not have the means to act out their instinctive nature which is to hunt, gather, and reside without rules, completely free, and that this is what men subconsciously long for. As Project Mayhem progresses, Jack discovers that Tyler is suddenly present less and less and that Jack has begun to sleep more and more. He feels a sense of being out of the loop as far as Project Mayhem is concerned as he is involved less and less in what is occurring. Jack views Tylers absence as an act of abandonment on Tylers part and becomes bitter and angry towards Tyler. He realizes that Tylers absence has begun to affect him much in the same manner that his fathers abandonment has affected him in his life. Jack discovers a bunch of plane ticket stubs in a drawer in Tylers room and sets out on a quest to find Tyler, flying to each destination listed. In each city that Jack lands, he frequents all the local pubs and bars, only to discover to his horror that Fight Clubs have popped up all over these major cities. He speaks to the heads of each division that he comes across and is confused that they seem to know him, and often wink at him or refer to him as Tyler Durden. Jack be comes maddened in his obsession to find Tyler and to discover how he is linked to the new Fight Clubs that have surfaced across North America. In exhaustion one night, he lies down to sleep and awakens to find Tyler is there in his hotel room beside his bed. This is the scene in the novel/motion picture where Jack has a profound and important moment of clarity the moment when Jack realizes that he and Tyler are one and the same, and that Tyler is only a manifestation of Jacks frustrations in his life. Jack has invented Tyler because Tyler is everything that Jack wants to be, but isnt, and only Tyler has the means to accomplish what Jack really wants to change about society. This moment of clarity is explained as follows (page 167/168): Tyler said, Were not two separate men. Long story short, when youre awake, you have the control, and you can call yourself anything you want, but the second you fall asleep, I take over and you become Tyler Durden.This is a dream, Tyler is a projection. Hes a disassociative personality disorder. A psychogenic fugue state. Tyler Durden is my hallucination. It was previously noted that when Jack had the disturbing conversation with his boss upon the discovery of the Fight Club rules, Jack had referred to himself in the second-party as schizophrenic. It is as if Jack knew subconsciously all along that he was experiencing a mental crisis of sorts, but he did not clearly understand what was occurring or why. During this important conversation between Tyler and Jack it is also made clear that Tyler has discovered a way to accomplish his goal for the correction of societys flaws. Tyler has created through Project Mayhem an operation in which important financial buildings in strategic cities across North America have been wired with explosives, set to go off when the buildings are completely unoccupied. This has been strategically planned and is now operating solely in the hands of space monkeys. Tyler explains that the idea is to blow up all financial institutions so that the debt record will be erased and everyone can start from zero, compl etely freed. Jack becomes completely enraged with this plan, and sets out to stop it only to discover that things have progressed too far and it is too late. Jack decides that the only way to fix the problem now is to rid himself of Tyler Durden. In one of the last scenes, Jack attempts to explain to Marla what has been happening, and expresses his feelings regarding Tyler (page 174): I love everything about Tyler Durden, his courage, his smarts. His nerve. Tyler is funny and charming and forceful and Independent, and men look up to him and expect him to change their world. Tyler is capable and free and I am not. It becomes apparent at this point that Jack does understand why he has created Tyler, but at the same time realizes that he cannot go on functioning under a split personality. In the final scene Jack has a gun in his hand and is standing at the top of a building, waiting for the great explosion that has been set to take place. He puts the gun in his mouth, and before pulling the trigger states (page 205) Im not killing myselfIm killing Tyler. In his final moment Jack does not seem to acknowledge the fact that by killing Tyler, he truly is killing himself as they are one and the same. Jack proceeds to pull the trigger in a symbol of final sacrifice for the good of all humanity, as in his final moment he seems to consider what he (or Tyler) has accomplished to be unjust and immoral. The ending is different in the novel than in the motion picture. In the novel, Jack dies and sits in heaven discussing with God what he has done, and how God and him disagree about humanity. In the motion picture Jack lives and succeeds in killing Tyler by blowing off the side of his face. Despite which ending is chosen, the final summary of Fight Club is that the Generation X males and females (as shown through the character of Marla) are dissatisfied, unhappy, confused and lost. Many people find that it is impossible to obtain a job or career where they are not part of the service industry (or grey-collar working class) in some way, shape or form. As societys priorities have become more and more materialistic and consumer-driven, people are finding themselves more and more distracted and alone with their possessions, rather than with others. Relationships fail because of an increase in the number of single-parent families, in which there is predominately only a mother to act as a role model men no longer know what it means to be a man, and how to act in a relationship. Women no longer understand how to treat men in a relationship and cannot relate to or understand the male species. There is no great war or depression for the current generation to fight for instead there is a great war of the spirit and the great depression has become peoples lives. What Fight Club shows is a break down of our modern culture and suggests that things can only be improved through drastic measures. It suggests that the answer might be to abandon all of the materialism and greed that has consumed our culture and resort back to the old days when everything was simple and things were only accomplished to meet the basic necessities for human survival. Perhaps now that so many members of Generation X have been witness to the wisdom offered between the lines of Fight Club, this will stick in the backs of their minds. Perhaps these people will not accomplish a better society through such drastic measures, but instead will invoke a slow, proactive change in society by realizing what the problems are, and embarking on their own journeys of self-discovery with the intention of living their lives only for that which truly mattershappiness. Research Papers on "Fight Club" - AnalysisThe Fifth HorsemanQuebec and CanadaUnreasonable Searches and SeizuresWhere Wild and West MeetHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows EssayPETSTEL analysis of India19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraStandardized TestingInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into Asia

Chlamydomonas Lab Report Essays

Chlamydomonas Lab Report Essays Chlamydomonas Lab Report Paper Chlamydomonas Lab Report Paper Essay Topic: Whiplash The power stroke consists of beating stiffly in one direction, while during the recovery stroke the cilium is pulled back in floppy fashion close to the cell surface, thereby offering little resistance. Once in position, it straightens out and the stiff power stroke begins again. Human cilia or flagella are found in traditionally in three locations of the human body. In men, sperm is composed of a head and a tail, a tail that functions as flagella. In women, the fallopian tubes are lined with cilia projections, which help carry eggs and what creates resistance for sperm entering the vagina for fertilization. Both men and women (and all other mammals) have cilia in two other places in their bodies. One location is somewhat familiar: cilia coat the trachea and bronchial tubes leading down into the lungs. Cilia are also present in the brain and spinal cord. Cilia line the canals and ventricles, the empty spaces in the brain. The cerebral fluid in the brain and nervous system is kept in motion by the numerous cilia projections. Human cilia is very useful for multiple processes in the body, but when cilia is damaged, certain processes will not occur and defects will arise due to the lack of recesses. Cilia defects occur often in humans due to the defects in the cilia projections around the body. Cilia can suffer from genetic disorders, which are called caliphates. Caliphates usually involve proteins that localize to the primary cilia (the sensory organelles), which can cause genetic disorders such as primary cilia disease duskiness (PC) or nonproliferations or Senior-Looked syndrome. Polycyclic kidney disease can occur when there is defect in the cilia of the renal tube cells. Another genetic disorder called Barded-Bided syndrome (BBS) occurs hen the mutant gene products are in the components in the basal body and cilia. The symptoms of these diseases include physiological defects such as kidney failure, defective mucus clearance, neurosurgery deficits, and obesity. Defects in cilia or flagella in men sperm can lead to male infertility if the sperm cannot successfully move up the fallopian tube. Lack of functional cilia in female Fallopian tubes can cause octopi pregnancy, which is when the embryo implants outside of the uterine cavity. The cause of cilia defects is not really known other that genetic mutations. The cilia defects can get passes down from generation to generation. Symptoms for defects are not particularly known, but are circumstantial from defect to defect. Chlamydeous is a green plant that reproduces asexually and sexually. Chlamydeous is known for a number of different characteristics. First of all, Chlamydeous is a haploid organism. This means that it only has one allele, thus only showing one genotype for the cell. This characteristic makes it very easy during experiments to know why certain traits and description are a certain way and it makes it easy to test for variables. Chlamydeous are also known for having a generation time of two weeks (from mating of one generation to when this next generation can mate), meaning that it is easy to see results on a generation of Chlamydeous if it was test with a certain protein, as compared with the control. Chlamydeous has two interiorly inserted whiplash flagella that are similar to human cilia and contain the same flagella as humans. Chlamydeous also is not a new model organism, meaning that there are many different mutant strains that have unique characteristics from one another. Those unique characteristics sometime mimic environments inside the body and can be used to see how the body will react to the variable without actually affecting a patient. Victor Stool and his colleagues recognized that cilia play critical roles in animal physiology and development. They need to identify the gene products necessary for cilia assembly and function by running a proteomics analysis of human cilia. However, the proteomics analysis of human cilia is limited in its ability to detect low-abundance proteins. Comparative genomics was used to identify genes mound only in the genomes of organisms with cilia and flagella and was successful. This study was then implemented to find the low-abundance proteins of human cilia. Stool now found a use for the Chlamydeous because one, it has similar flagella or cilia to humans, two, most known components of cilia and flagella are strongly induced during flagella regeneration in Clampdowns and three, most of the identified human cilia disease genes have orthogonal in Chlamydeous that have been shown to be involved in flagella assembly. During process of flagella regeneration, it has been shown that many known legal components are transcriptional induced, with most transcripts reaching maximum accumulation between 30 to minis. Supplied with the Chlamydeous genome, Stool and his team set out to analyze the RNA transcriptional profile observed during flagella regeneration to identify flagella genes that have its RNA transcription activated in response to flagella regeneration. HASPS is the protein that our lab group took interest in. HASPS was up- regulated during flagella regeneration and chosen as a protein of interest. Hasps are called 70 kiloton heat shock proteins and are a family of heat hock proteins. Hasps are important for protein folding and essentially protects the cell from stress. HASPS-A or pithier, is an inhibitor of app-mediated optimism and app-dependent gene transcription such as cyclic G, app/waft, and MD expression. Our group wants to know if pithier acts as an inhibitor in the case of flagella regeneration in Chlamydeous. Based on the findings of last years Bio 111 lab group, they could not fully determine if fitting because on some cases flagella did fully regenerate, but on others it did not. Methods Chlamydeous Defoliation and Fixation Chlamydeous cells were defalcated using the pH shock method. Specifically acetic acid was added to the Chlamydeous growth medium in order to obtain a pH of 4. 5 resulting in the defoliation of the Chlamydeous cells. Defalcated cells were then immediately divided into one of three conditions. The two inhibitor conditions mixed 1 ml of cells with either a low (10 um) or high (100 um) dose of HASPS-A. In the third, control condition 1 ml of cells was mixed with 10 LU of ethanol. HASPS-A was dissolved in an ethanol vehicle; therefore, ethanol was added to the control condition in order to ensure that this ethanol id not become a confounding variable in the study. Immediately following the division of cells into the three conditions, 50 LU_ of each group was then fixed with equal parts Logos fixative. Logos fixative was used to kill, stain, and immobilizers the Chlamydeous cells to allow for measurement of the flagella regeneration. This first group of fixed cells represented time 0 of the study. This process was repeated every 15 minutes for a total of 90 minutes yielding 7 time points for each condition. As Chlamydeous is a photosynthetic organism the live samples were kept under deal light conditions in between data collection in order to ensure proper biological functioning. Non-Defalcated Chlamydeous One set of Chlamydeous was left untreated with acid in order to determine normal flagella length. These cells were also fixed with equal amounts Logos Fixative. However, non-defalcated Chlamydeous samples were only collected at one time point yielding a single baseline flagella length. Counting and Measuring Chlamydeous Flagella Lengths The Vicissitude program was used to photograph the first 20 Chlamydeous cells located on fixed slides from each time interval.