The Development of Wave Energy in China

Introduction With the growing concern over the emission of greenhouse gas and the depletion of fossil in roughly a hundred years (Guo, 2010), greater emphasis are placed on the utilization the renewable clean energy, such as solar energy, wind energy, hydro energy, biomass energy. Wave power, as one of inexhaustible clean energies, stands out prominently due to high efficiency and low capital cost. As a result, Sea wave power has been increasingly viewed in many countries as a competitive and promising energy resource(You, 2003).China’s engagement in the study of wave energy conversion since 1970’s has made significant progress in fueling China’s fast growing economy. And there is still great potential of further exploitation of wave energy as about 7? 1010 W of wave energy is technological accessible in the near shore of China. Development and deployment of wave power help phase in the energy structure swift ‘from coal-dominance to more shares of clean energy typesâ₠¬â„¢ to tackle the problem of energy crisis and environmental pollution in a cost-effective manner (reference from Beijing Foreign Affairs Office).This term paper focuses on the conditions, progress and challenges of utilizing wave energy in China. Firstly it discusses the physical concepts of sea wave energy, including the basic process, relative merits and several common converters. The main part then elaborates on the reasons and situations for China to exploit wave power. It finally concludes from the progress of utilization that wave power has a vast developing foreground and an infinite market potential in China. Physical Features of Wave PowerAs one of the mechanical waves, the ocean waves are generated by wind blowing vastly enough over the sea surface and transferring energy from wind to wave(Guo, 2010). Specifically, the formation of waves is due to ‘the tangential stress on the interface between the wind and sea’(Guo, 2010), intensified by ‘the wind blo ws on the upwind side of the wave which cause pressure different between upwind and downwind of wave(Guo, 2010). While energy transformation takes place in macrocosm and transverse aspect, changes of energy magnitude exist in microcosm and longitudinal regard.Under the action of wind and gravity, the particle moves in circle in deep water while moves elliptically in shallow water. Dimensions of particle trajectories decrease exponentially as the depth increase in both deep water and shallow water(Guo, 2010). Typically these paths will become very small at a water depth larger than a few wavelengths in the deep water (Chow, 2012), which means that the larger orbits on the sea surface contain more wave energy than those in the deeper location.Consequently, ‘the wave energy is stored in the ocean worldwide and highly concentrated near the ocean surface’(Guo, 2010). The above-mentioned kinetic energy and potential energy generated by sea surface waves is referred to as ocea n wave energy(â€Å"Wave Energy Development,† 2006). Huge amount of energy is stored in waves, consisting of 94% energy of the ocean stored in the waves and the other 6% in tidal energy(Guo, 2010). Generally speaking, wave power cannot convert to electricity directly like wind energy. Wave energy should first be captured and converted into useful mechanical energy and then use this form of mechanical energy to generate electricity’(Guo, 2010), which might cause energy loss during conversion. Three determinants of energy output are wave height, wave speed, wavelength, and water density. †¦ Relative Advantage and Disadvantages The technology of producing electricity from sea waves is innovative and a leading method worldwide.Environmental pollution and global warming as a result of fossil fuel consumption have turned people to make use of largest world resource to create electricity, namely, sea waves. Comparing with other renewable clean energies, wave power has re lative high-lightened merits as follows(Kloosterman, 2010): High Density Wave power is the densest power among renewable energy resources, namely about 5kW/m to 100kW/m(Guo, 2010). The high density of wave power implies that considerable amounts of electricity may be yielded at relatively small sites. Certain ContinuityThe second feature that makes wave power suitable for electricity production is that the wave power can produce electricity continuously Unlike most of renewable energy resources (Guo, 2010). By contrast, nuclear power plants and hydroelectric stations are hi ghly susceptible to earthquake damage and China is hit by more than 4 typhoons a year on average, making the building of wind farms extremely difficult but wave electrical devices promising(Aviv, 2008). High Efficiency Besides high density and continuity in production, wave energy also is characterized by its high efficiency.According to S. D. E, wave energy has the potential to provide 4 times more energy per sq uare meter than wind, leading to rendering 500 times more than the electricity requirements of the whole world population if fully harnessed which ‘offers a solution to the severe global shortage of electricity that is estimated to cost billions of dollars’(Aviv, 2008). Multi-purpose Utilization Plenty of other purposes can be realized by wave energy besides providing electricity. The low temperature water in deep seas can replace Freon for the refrigeration of air-conditioners in summer.Desalination of sea water on islands lacking of fresh water can also be achieved by wave power. As with You (2003), ‘Multi-purpose utilization of wave energy can increase its commercial values’. Some Drawbacks As a rather new field with most of the technology under development, the practical efficiency of the wave power device is not high enough. Basically, wave power is ready to be used at low speed and high force and the motion of forces is not in a single direction, rais ing difficulties for most electric generators that operate at higher speeds and turbines that need a constant, steady flow(â€Å"Powered by the Sea,†).Conversely, the cost for construction is high. Since the devices used for capturing the sea waves, ‘the structure need to be withstanding the rough weather and the corrosive sea water’(Guo, 2010). ‘The total cost includes the primary converter, the power take-off system, the mooring system, installation and maintenance cost, and electricity delivery costs(â€Å"Powered by the Sea,†)’, boosting costs of generation in this way.Also, the wave power electricity generation is highly dependent on the sea characteristics, putting limits of the construction of wave power devices exclusively to the high wave power density coastlines(Guo, 2010). Moreover, wave electricity devise can exert potential negative influence on the marine environment. Large-scale implementation of wave energy converts (WECs) is l ikely to introduce an anthropogenic activity in the ocean(Patricio, 2009). This in turn may contribute to underwater noise which is detrimental to certain marine fauna with acoustic sensibility.Proper and continuous monitor of the noise can help abate the negative effect on marine species. Consequently, the advantages of wave energy far outweigh its drawbacks which mostly can be mitigated with further technological development. Potential Worldwide and in China ‘The realistically usable worldwide resource of wave energy has been estimated to be greater than 2 TW’, equivalent to an annual amount of 6000TWh(Wikipedia). The practical potential to harness the wave power to generate electricity would be much less given some constraints like technical and economic difficulties(Guo, 2010).Waves generate approximately 2,700 gig watts of power. According to Wikipedia, of those 2,700 gig watts, only about 500 gig watts can be utilized with the technology currently. This huge poten tial and applicability of wave power concentrate especially on the regions along coastlines, including the western seaboard of Europe, the northern coast of the UK, and the Pacific coastlines of North and South America, Southern Africa, Australia, and New Zealand(Wikipedia).South-eastern China has an obvious comparative advantage in regard of wave resources, with excellent conditions for mineralization, and there are 130 types of minerals with proven reserves. Recent Progress of utilization of wave power in China Although the first known patent on wave energy conversion was issued as early as 1799, extensive researches have not been carried out until the early 1970s(â€Å"Wave Energy Development,† 2006). Extracting the power of the waves is ‘moving out of the realms of sea mythology and into scientific reality’(â€Å"Powered by the Sea,†).Representative countries that pioneered in this field are United Kingdom,Norway,Portugal,China,India and so on(You, 200 3). ‘Various kinds of wave energy conversion devices have been proposed and many prototype wave power stations have been constructed, such as Salter duck, clam, Cockerel raft, oscillating water column (OWC)(You, 2003). ’ Had it not been due to certain technical and economic constraints, the huge reserve of power stored in oceans covering 71% of the earth’s surface is bound to have a promising foreground.For example, most of the studies on other influencing devices have been called off in light of low conversion efficiency and poor sustainability, leaving the OWC system of wave energy conversion to be the major direction of researches(You, 2003). Therefore, wave power generation is not currently a widely employed commercial technology comparing with other renewable green energies(â€Å"Powered by the Sea,†). In tune with the world trend, China is in the first rank of countries in studying wave energy conversion at present with a history also dated back to 1 970s. Actually, the application of wave power in a real sense started in 1982(Guo, 2010).Developments in establishing small marine wave power devices like lighthouse or small power devices equipped in ships laid foundation for the completion of the first wave power station in 2005 with capacity of 50kW and yields roughly 26MWh every year(Guo, 2010). The next milestone is also established in 2005 which is the largest wave power station in china with capacity of 100kW. Both of the power stations are located in the southern province Guangdong with 4,300 km in costline. China has established Department of Energy in 2009, and will focus on development of renewable energy include wave power.Glorious past contributes to the present development of wave energy in China. It is one of the most influencing countries in studying wave energy conversion at present. Up to now, three types of facilities utilizing wave power have been developed, including shoreline OWC wave power plants, floating OWC buoys and pendulous wave power plants(You, 2003). Besides, one of the two power plants in Guangdong province is under construction with 150kW capacity and the other one of 500Kw capacity is planed to start in the near future(Psenak, 2012).A third plant was built in Yangjiang City in 2011. Applicability of different wave power technologies in China can be summarized into five kinds, that is Oscillating water column(OWC), Pelamis wave power converter, Oyster wave power conerter, wave dragon converter and Finavera wave power converter(Guo, 2010). The main disadvantages with OWC are low efficiency and high capital cost, which canbe addressed with the development of OWC technology. According to the Chinese wave power company, the estimated total efficiency of the OWC system can reach 20%(Guo, 2010).Although covering the shortages of OWC, Pelamis wave power convertor with long and narrow (snake-like) shape pointing into the waves, is not suitable for China as it can only be applied to hi gh power density area. The same situation applies to the Finavera power converter. The Oyster system ‘consists of a hinged mechanical flap connected to the seabed at a depth of 10 metres. Each passing wave moves the flap which drives hydraulic pistons to deliver high pressure water via a pipeline to an onshore turbine which generates electricity’(â€Å"Powered by the Sea,†).Unlike Pelamis wave power converter, ‘Oyster wave converter has relative low limitation in wave power density and it is near-shore fixed in shallow water’(Guo, 2010). Moreover, the capital cost of Oyster wave power convertor is lower than OWC systems. It is considered suitable for China, according to Guo(2010). The wave dragon technology is not mature enough to be put into practice in full size. †¦ The future of wave power in China Chinese policy is open to developing comprehensive renewable energy resources, including wind power, solar power and wave power.Although wave powe r is currently the least used in China, it is widely believed that wave power has a big potential because of some advantageous natural conditions(Guo, 2010). †¦good wave climate in Guangdong, Fujian and some other provinces. The potential capacities of wave power in China are 500GW approximately(Liu). Wave energy is considered to be the large useful wave power resource in China. The technologies of wave power have been developed for a long time, though not very mature due to the high cost of the existing wave power plant.Continous experiments with new equipments to harness ocean wave energy as well as efforts to attract sizeable foreign investments would be the major goals of this giant developing country(â€Å"Wave Power Projects in US, Scotland and China â€Å", 2010). It is reasonably estimated that the cost for wave power generation will decrease to a rational level if wave power is largely used for commercial generation(Guo, 2010). As analyzed preceedingly, the on land O yster systems suit China best and improved OWC will be the most widely adopted wave power generation system in China.According to Guo, ‘if they are combined with newer systems off-shore wave power generation system such as Wave Dragon and Pelamis, these will form the future Chinese wave power generation system'. In this way, the time volatility of wave energy can also be smoothed by interconnection of large numbers of devices(Falnes, 1991). Hence, wave energy is expected to have a great potential to be economically competitive with the development of new designs and technical improvements over time(Falnes, 1991).Establishing, operating and maintaining the convert facilities of wave energy is set to provide a major boost to coastal societies for the country. Aviv, T. (2008). Sea Wave Power Plants Available in China Retrieved from http://www. renewableenergyworld. com/rea/news/article/2008/07/sea-wave-power-plants-available-in-china-53176 Falnes, J. L. , J. (1991). Ocean wave en ergy. Energy Policy, 19(8), 768-775. Guo, L. H. (2010). Applicability and Potential of Wave Power in China. 48. Retrieved from http://hig. diva-portal. org/smash/record. jsf? pid=diva2:327695 Kloosterman, K. (2010).SDE Makes Wave Power in China: Where It's Completing 1 MW Power Plant Deal. Retrieved from http://www. greenprophet. com/2010/04/sde-wave-energy-china/ Patricio, S. , Soares, C. & Sarmento, A. (2009). Underwater Noise Modelling of Wave Energy Devices. 9. Retrieved from http://www. see. ed. ac. uk/~shs/Wave%20Energy/EWTEC%202009/EWTEC%202009%20(D)/papers/151. pdf Powered by the Sea. New Scientist / Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://www. globalenvironmentalsociety. net/index. php? option=com_content&view=article&id=57:powered-by-the-sea&catid=25:news&Itemid=113 Psenak, L. (2012). Two wave power plants underway in China.Retrieved from http://www. renewable-energy-technology. net/marine-hydro/two-wave-power-plants-underway-china Wave Energy Development. (2006). Retrieved from http://www. fp7-standpoint. eu/index. php/en/wave-energy/wave-energy-development Wave Power Projects in US, Scotland and China (2010). Retrieved from EconomyWatch website: http://www. economywatch. com/renewable-energy/wave-power-development. html Wikipedia. Wave Power. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Wave_power You, Y. G. , Zheng, Y. H. , Shen, Y. M. , Wu, B. J. & Liu, R. . (2003). Wave Energy Study in China: Advancements and Perspectives. China Ocean engineering, 17(1), 101-109.

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BU1010 Final Assessment - Essay Example And as result today the Central and Eastern European block and the Baltic States are knocking at the doors of European Union (IMF, 2000). The centrally planned economies existed in Soviet Union. The problem in the central economies was its inability to generate wealth and raise the living standard. The production and distribution would come from central government, deciding for the states, what to produce and how to distribute in what quantities. The workforce was assumed to be fully employed and salary was predetermined, regardless of the potential of the worker (Greenspan, 1997). In these economies there was no effective market clearing mechanism, the result was huge surplus of unwanted goods by population on one side and shortage of goods, which were in needed. This imbalance in demand and supply led to rationing the quota, as the quantity of the goods was limited. As production and planning was followed through state orders rather than by market demand, the finance had no control over the actions that were remotely planned by the center without following the market rules (Greenspan, 1997). In such economies, there was nothing like credit, interest or market values, as every thing belonged to the state. Due to the lack of a developed financial system, these economies as a consequence wasted their resources as much as much five to seven times more than Western European economies, yet without any productive result, which led to the dismemberment of Soviet Union and the rest of Eastern Bloc in early 1990s (Greenspan, 1997). The macroeconomic stabilization process after initial burst of high inflation stabilizes the inflation and allows the liberalization to take place, which keeps a tight control over the state budget and growth of money allowing the growth of progressive fiscal system to develop. These economies had no financial

Week 3-Terence Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Week 3-Terence - Coursework Example The main reason for these companies to adopt this technology is to have them make decisions that favor the entire global market. Having a globally distributed team comes with the challenge of mistrust among some team members. However, there are some factors that the management can rely on to create trust among these team players in different parts of the world (Allison, 2013). The first factor to be considered is having directed and reflected knowledge to be shared among the team members. Directed messages will always tell the exact information being conveyed. Due to this, members trust their fellows since there are no irrelevant stories to hide the reality. Having the information that the team share reflected in some reference point also boosts trust. Social communication is another factor that is helpful in building trust in team members who will never meet face-to-face. In this level of communication the workers will discuss informal factors such as how their holidays or weekend were spent. In the process of doing this they get to know each other more and the trust is created. For example, a worker based in America can chat with his fellow in Asia discussing the summer holidays. In the process, these workers will trust each other (Carmody, 2012). The ability of the team to combine resources despite the distance between them is also crucial for trust to exist. In this case, the team members at different points in the world they operate from get to coordinate themselves and share what the team needs to accomplish its goals. If they can do this then eventually the members will create trust among themselves (Chesebro, 2012). One of the new technologies that organizations are nowadays adopting to improve communication among their team members who are globally distributed is the groove virtual office. The technology relies on the ability of the Microsoft software that can connect many servers from different parts

Foreman (1991) states that we must change our personal life-styles to Coursework

Foreman (1991) states that we must change our personal life-styles to make them more harmonious with natural diversity. Discuss to what extent humans are able to do this - Coursework Example Although this knowledge has been passed through generations in form of art, ceremonies, dances, stories and direct instructions, the indigenous practices to preservation of natural diversity have faded immensely due to globalization, industrialization and colonization. Today, the knowledge has been incorporated in formal education in subjects such as social studies, geography and science. Furthermore, there are many documentaries advocating for the harmonious co-existence between humanity and the natural environment by imploring on the human beings to make lifestyle changes to accommodate the natural thriving of the ecosystem. Foreman’s defines of protection of the ecosystem advocates for the principle of self-realization that one is part of the natural ecosystem. In this case, defending the land and protecting natural diversity is equivalent to protecting human life and the future generation. In support of this, he illustrates that, â€Å"when we fully identify with a wild place, then, monkey wrenching becomes self-defence, which is a fundamental right† (Foreman, 140). Destruction of the earth and disturbance of the ecosystem is taken as an insult. Edward Abbey, in the prologue to Foreman’s Ecodefence, compares the destruction of natural diversity with a situation of burglary. In the event of the burglary, â€Å"the householder has both the right and obligation to defend himself, his family and his property by whatever means are necessary. This right and this obligation is universally recognized, justified, and even praised by all civilized human communities.†(Abbey, 3). By co ncurring the argument posited by Abbey, it is an acknowledgement that when earth, which is our land and our home, faces destructive threats, then it is out obligation and our right to guard it by application of all means that are effective. As such, this study seeks to explore the extent

Bahrains Uprising Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Bahrains Uprising - Essay Example Several years have seen discontent on the rise among the people as well as growing demands for freedom of speech, independence of the judicial system, the release of political prisoners, and a new constitution. The source of discontent is clear at the beginning of the Bahraini uprising at the period of Arab spring, but the mode of propagation of the discontent could be debated from different viewpoints with major contention focusing on whether social media had a significant impact in the Bahraini uprising (Wehrey, 2013). Howard and Hussain (2011) addressed the issue of social media in the uprising giving a number of opinions while Wehrey (2013) gives his views on the Pearl Roundabout uprising in his 2013 article titled ‘Bahrain’s Decade of Discontent’. Howard and Hassan (2011) are of the opinion that digital media is what helped in turning community-specific, localized and individualized dissent from its original setting into movements that were designed for share d grievances and which provided an opportunity for action. Wehrey (2013), on the other hand, purports that while digital activists in the Middle East are to be credited with some accomplishments like documenting police brutality, the underlying social, religious, political, and historical aspects engrained in the uprising far outweigh the impact of social media in sparking the protests. The viewpoints regarding the impact of social media in the Bahraini Uprising may differ, but certainly, common ground exists based on the shared passion for overall change in the regime from the current oppressive one to a more democratic one. The shared concern expressed in both articles is the necessity for reforms in the political system of Bahrain. The social upheavals in Bahrain are a result of a series of collective issues that have led the people to seek change in power dynamics.  

War in Iraq and the US Economic Growth- History of the war in Iraq Essay Example for Free

War in Iraq and the US Economic Growth- History of the war in Iraq Essay Iraq was also known as occupation of Iraq began in 2003 march 20th led by United States. The president of US then George W. Bush, the Prime minister of United Kingdom by then Tony Blair, Prime minister of Spain by then Jose Maria Aznar, and domestic foreign supporters accused Iraq of possession of weapons of mass destruction, which was against the 1991 agreement to unconditionally give them up. This triggered one of the most historically long wars since the Vietnam War. It’s estimated that the war has caused as many deaths and resources as the Vietnam War. (BBC news 26 Nov 2007). The war is still on but key figures in the war have already been eliminated. Among them are sadaam Hussein and his sons. Impact of the War on US Economy As Wall Street reports the most recent advances of the battle, in Iraq, Economist are on the other hand worried that the war might be affecting employment, consumer confidence, and a service industry show down. According the government realized labor figures on April 4 statistics showed that economy had lost 108,000 jobs in March, more than the expected number which was 36,000. More so, the unemployment rate was steady at 5. 8% following discouragement of more people (hopes for quick war April 2003). The increase in unemployment not only affects the individuals but also the economy at large since the government invests a lot on charity in order to take care of citizens who cannot afford basic needs In addition, the crime rates are increasing at a faster rate. As manufacturers on the other hand lay off workers, there is a fall in the institute for supply management’s index for non manufacturing businesses in the service industry. This industry indicates 85% of US economic activities. Thus a fall basically means that a big percentage of economic activities are reducing. Consumer confidence has also been greatly reduced. According to study from university of Michigan consumer confidence was lowest in 9 years. With consumers hope gone people tend to do minimal buying especially of high worth assets. This brings about less money in supply and hence a slow movement of economic progress due to minimal economic activities. Economic growth has slowed in the US. This is due to the softness of the economy. Long term goals of the government to attack Iraq remain unclear. This is slowing the US economy because a large portion of money has already been injected in the war, placing other government plans to broaden the economy at a stand still. Little or no help is likely to be coming from other nations to rebuild Iraq. The Bush Administration alienated so many of its European allies with its unilateral action; it also put European bidders so far from USA government contracts for reconstruction projects. This means the only people who might benefit from such contracts are the Americans. Britons can not hence fund the Americans to do what will only benefit Americans. Financial markets are taking a dark view due to the engagement of the government in war that has brought a budget deficit. This is leaving the state money in circulation less than normal. As a result the prospective investors in stock Market cannot access enough liquidity to invest. With a country’s stock index going town, economic growth is mostly low due to the fact that many economies growth is determined partly by economic activities and financial performance. The war in Iraq might be of negative impact too. Now that uncertainties from war in Iraq have not ended and souring oil prices are trying though not yet the uncertainties might not be eliminated in a short time and the war might not be economic benefit to US. With the US government suffering a budget deficit, it might be difficult for the economy to move forward. Analyst approximated $100 billion, to rebuild and secure Iraq. Such and expenditure added to the already existing deficit will not only slow the entire economic growth of American but also drag it behind. Since the start of the Iraq war, the price of oil shot up from $37 a barrel to over 90$ a barrel. Consistent disruptions from the war have affected oil prices; however one cannot argue that the Iraq war is wholly responsible for the rise in the oil prices. Oil prices have brought negative financial status in the US by transferring approximately $124 billion from US to other oil producing companies in different counties between 2003 and 2008. (Jeannine Averssa Economics writer Tue. Nov. 13) High oil price can slow economic growth of a particular country especially by slowing the spending and rate of investment by consumers and business. This is through limiting the circulation of money. When people reduce the spending power, financial institutions like banks don’t get to lend more hence the bank loans, sale of government securities and activities economic development automatically slows down. Interest changed on money borrowed to by the US Government according report had over $850 billions. Recently the debts interests hit $9 trillion. With an economy’s money being moved out at such rates economic growth of any particular economy has to be slowed (Associated press 2007) U. S decided that it will keep its short term interests rates unchanged. The US federal reserve (Fed) said in a statement that the hesitancy of the US economic expansion appears to owe importantly to oil price premiums and other aspects of geographical uncertainties. † The fed has stressed that policy makers couldn’t assess the risks of future US economy given all the uncertainties over the Iraq situation. (Xinhua News Agency march 22, 2003). This is a dangerous report for any particular economy since the central government is responsible for giving confidential report concerning the governments’ position economically. This means the fed is genuinely foreseeing a dark if not unpredictable future. The Iraq war has also created division among US residents and between bush administrations and opposition leaders. This is being reflected on the economic growth of the country. Currently the US is divided between those who feel that the Bush administration is right, and those that totally oppose it, especially those parents whose sons died in Iraq war and those whose sons are still in Iraq. As a result of the division team spirit has been lost for the country. This is affecting the nation economically since productivity rate is low. However, Bush administration, is trying out economic recovery strategies; like conducting a highly responsible fiscal policy, like taxing the richest individuals heavily. However, economists urge that tax cuts are for more political than they are simulative. Effects in Our Economy today â€Å"People pointed out how war against Iraq may not be compensated for soon enough by other oil producing countries. This is because most members of organization of petroleum exporting countries do not have much additional production capacity. The decline in world prices for oil may not go down as people expect. † (JEANNINE 2000) The Iraq war has hence led to our economy being affected by the oil prices moving up. The hiking of oil prices, in the global economy has resulted to high commodity prices all over the world Economists will urge that many commodities that incur transportation cost in order to be sold, will raise price with a rise in oil prices. This shifts the entire living standards high without increasing the income of individuals. The war in Iraq has hence worsened humanity’s standards of living globally. War in Iraq has also reduced the funding of 3rd world countries by developed countries. Countries that received aid from US for instance have had their economies run bankrupt since the US is facing a deficit budget also. This calls for other stable economies like Japan to cost share by lending to poor countries. the intervention of these other countries brings about extra cost on their side and thus what could have been done say by Japan cannot be done simply because it used the cash to help. This is lowering the chances for innovation by technologically improved countries like Japan and generally lowering the standards of living instead of improving them. Total global energy supplies are declining yet the worlds economy cannot grow beyond its energy budget. The Iraq war has affected this negatively since the world’s civilization will decline with its energy budget. This will happen has the American President instructs his citizens to hold on. If this happens oil will be available still as it will remain in the ground. But then it will be useless as the cost of extracting it will move than the cost selling the oil itself. Conclusion Many theories and suggestions have been advanced regarding the impact of Iraq war and magnitude. Considering the many articles written different opinions aired via media and internet, yes their might be an advantage of the Iraq war to our general economy or the US economy to be more specific, but so far the war seems to have been more of a disaster than problem solving decision. Works cited JEANNINE AVERSA Cost of Iraq war could surpass $1 trillion .Report Puts Hidden war Costs at $1. 6T, AP Economics Writer Tue Nov 13, 6:21 PM ET Global Interdependence: The war in Iraq and the u. s Economy Markets buoyed by hopes for quick war,, but long term outlook is dim. Date Posted on Global Envision: April 16, 2003 Martin Wok. Chief economics correspondent. MSNBC. Updated 4:25 p. m. PT, Fri. , March. 17, 2006 I. f stone . An institute for the rest of us. Institute for policy studies. 1963 Dean Baker. The economic impact of Iraq war and higher military spending. Center for economic and policy research Washington . 2000

Investigation of outdoor play in early years

Investigation of outdoor play in early years Outdoor Play in Early Years In whose best interest? This review examines the definition of play and outdoor play as well as the perspectives of the early years pioneers spanning over two centuries who has shaped our understanding of outdoor play such as Friedrich Froebel, Maria Montessori, Margaret McMillan, Susan Isaacs and Majorie Allen, better Known as Lady Allen of Hurtswood. It will also seek to address how outdoor play can be optimised in early years setting to improve childrens learning and development outcomes. The scope of this review includes debates surrounding outdoor play, concerns and the advantages of using the outdoor environment. This review would also analysis previous researches on outdoor play and evidence which suggests that outdoor play improves childrens development and well-being. Play is a difficult concept, and by its very nature cannot be pinned down or precisely defined. There is nothing tangible, predictable or certain about childrens play, and this makes thinking about play more difficult and sometimes uncomfortable for those who like things neat and orderly. Play sits uneasily in a culture of standards, measurable outcomes, testing targets and quality control. While most of us know play when we see it, academics have had trouble defining it (Johnson, Christie, Yawkey, 1999). Play involves a free choice activity that is non-literal, self-motivated, enjoyable and process oriented. Critical to this definition is the non-literal, non-realistic aspect. This means external aspects of time, use of materials, the environment, rules of the play activity, and roles of the participants are all made up by the children playing. They are based on the childs sense of reality (Wardle, 1987, p. 27). Children do not play for a reward-praise, money, or food. They play because they like it.(p. 28). Children who compete to make the best wooden ship are not playing. Children who are told they must use the block with an A on it to create a word are not playing, and children who are asked to label the colours of their paints, instead of using them to create a picture, are not playing. Article 31 in the United Nation Convention on the rights of the Child stipulates that play is a fundamental right of all children (Human Rights Directorate, 1991 cited in Steampfli 2008) and that play is essential for children to develop intellectually, physically, emotionally, and socially. Through play children learn to express their thoughts and feelings, develop language and social skills and become aware of cultural diversity in their community. Filer, (2008), describes creative outdoor play as play which gives children the opportunity to use their imaginations, helps promote original thinking, flexibility, adaptability, empathy and the ability to generate multiple solutions to a problem. She express play as the most important activity that children will take part in outside as it is a means through which they find stimulation, well-being and happiness in order to grow physically, emotionally and intellectually. She express that the outdoor environment is well suited to meeting childrens needs for all aspects of play and is the most relevant way of offering learning based upon first-hand experiences and individual interests. Waite et al. (2006) cited in Waller, T (2007) journal article point out, outdoor learning is not a single entity but comprises many different sorts of activity with distinct purposes. Outdoor environments afford opportunities for a balance between adult-led structured activities and giving children access to interesting outdoor spaces. Friedrich Froebel(1782-1852) emphasised the importance of the garden and the educational importance of learning out of doors more than a century ago. To Froebel, the garden was both literal and metaphorical. He used the word kindergarten, a garden for children, rather than the word school and saw the kindergarten as a place where the child could develop in harmony with nature. Educators would provide a rich environment for growth, and would tend, nurture and cultivate each child just as a good gardener would tend a young plant. Froebel believed in a divine unity and connectedness between all living things, and it was therefore important for children to be close to nature in the outdoor environment. Through gardening and play outdoors children learnt about nature and about the growth of plants and animals, but they also learnt to care for and take responsibility for nature, and gradually to recognise their own place in the natural world. Childrens freely chosen game games outdoors wer e a source of fascination to Froebel. He saw in such games evidence of childrens growing sense of justice, self- control, comradeship and fairness. (Tovey, 2008). Forest Schools which are closely associated with the Danish early years programme is inspired by the ideas of Froebel, traditionally favoured play, movement and fresh air (Stigsgaard, 1978, cited in Maynard, 2007), while a sense of connection with nature and the environment has been linked to the Danish notion of an ideal childhood (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 2001 cited in Maynard, 2007). The development of young childrens understanding about the natural environment is seen as being an important aim of all day-care facilities (OECD, 2000 cited in Maynard, 2007). For Maria Montessori (1869 -1952), working in a poor inner city community in Rome, Italy it was not the garden, but the house that was the enduring metaphor for her approach to early childhood. The environment, she argued, should allow children to be like the masters in their own houses, that is it should be child-sized, offer independent movement and be well organised with everything in its place. It was not nature, but science and her notion of scientific pedagogy, which was a guiding principle. Using Froebels metaphor of the gardener she argued that behind the good cultivatorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.stands the scientist. This is a very different philosophy from Froebels garden where weeds were valued as much as the flowers. It was Montessori, who pioneered the idea of open access from indoors to outdoors and free choice and self direction, but choice was restricted. Unlike Froebel, Montessori did not believe the natural materials were educative and, therefore, she made no provision for pla y materials like sand and water. Rather she argued that structured materials, which had been subject to the perfecting hand of a higher intelligence (Montessori 1983 cited in Tovey 2008), were necessary to identify the real or true nature of the child. Margaret McMillan (1860-1931) was a socialist politician. Her experience of running an open air camp for children in the slums of Deptford, South of London, where disease was rife, convinced her that time spent outdoors could dramatically improve childrens health and that the youngest children should be the focus of attention. She developed an open air nursery school for children, and literally designed and built a garden for children. The garden was central and the indoor spaces were merely shelters for use in very bad weather. Everything, she argued could take place outdoors, play, sleep, meals, stories and games. She argued that there was no need for artificial didactic apparatus to stimulate childrens senses in isolation when real first-hand experience offered richer and more meaningful opportunities. A nursery garden must have a free and rich place, a great rubbish heap, stones, and flints, bits of can, and old iron and pots. Here every healthy child will want to go, taking out things of his own choosing to build with. (McMillan 1919 cited in Tovey 2008). Susan Isaacs (1885-1948) worked in a very different social context from McMillan. She opened the malting House School in Cambridge in 1924, a school for highly advantaged children of professional parents. It was an experimental school that had two aims: to stimulate the active enquiry of the children themselves rather than to teach them and to bring within their immediate experience every range of fact to which their interests reached out (Issacs 1930 cited in Tovey 2008:46). Children were given considerable freedom for Isaacs argued that play has the greatest value for the child when it is really free and his own (Isaacs 1929 cited in Tovey 2008:46). The garden included grass, fruit trees, a climbing frame, slides, movable ladders, trees for climbing, flower and vegetable garden with individual plots for each child and a range of animals. The garden provoked childrens curiosity and enquiry. It offered challenge and risk and children had considerable freedom to try things out, to question, to experiment and to follow wherever their curiosity led. However, this freedom also had constraints. Eg. Children were allowed to climb on the summer house roof, but only one child at a time was allowed. Like Froebel and Montessori before her she argued that freedom brought responsibility, but it also empowered the children to develop skills to be safe. Isaac view of childhood is one of passion. Young children had a pas sion for finding out about and striving to understand the world. Although she tried to observe children in free conditions she also recognised, unlike Montessori, that it was impossible to discover the natural child. Marjorie Allen (Lady Allen of Hurtwood) 1897-1976 featured less in education literature but nevertheless deserves an important place as a pioneer of outdoor play areas for young children. She was active in campaigning for better provision for young children and became president of the nursery school association, and a founder member of the worldwide organisation Mondiale Pour LEducation Prescolaire (OMEP). She designed play areas for many nursery schools including gardens with sand pits and paddling pools on roof tops of blocks of flats in Camden, London. She is associated most for bringing the idea of adventure or junk playgrounds to Britain. She argued that children seek access to a place where they can dig in the earth, build huts and dens with timber, use real tools, experiment with fire and water, take really great risks and learn to overcome themà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.(Allen cited in Rich et al 2005:46) She was damning in her criticisms of conventional playgrounds that are static, dull, unchallenging, and which do not account for young childrens drive to explore, imagine, create and to seek companionship. The tendency for ordering a complete playground from a catalogue is greatly to be deployed: this lack of enterprise spells dullness and monotony and only the manufacturers benefit (Allen 1968 cited in Tovey 2008:50). Lady Allens vision for challenging outdoor play environments, her belief that children with disabilities were entitled to equally rich and exciting environments, and her knowledge, from careful observation, of the impact of design on childrens play is still influential today particularly in the playwork field. These developmental emphasis on play and playgrounds for nursery school playgrounds and kindergartens was later reinforced by the work of early 20th century child research centres and figures such as Piaget (1951), Vygotsky (1978) Bruner, et al (1976), and Huizinga (1950). The developmental emphasis continues in the early 21st century. Until recently, preschools were relatively unaffected by contemporary high stakes testing and continued to focus on play as a primary vehicle for learning and development.(Frost 2006). A research study by Clements (2004) reveals that children today spend considerably less time playing outdoors than their mothers did as children. The study reveals several fundamental reasons for this decline, including dependence on television, digital media, and concerns about crime and safety. The study also conveys findings related to the frequent use of electronic diversions. Maynard (2007) also linked the growing interest in Forest School to a concern that childrens outdoor play is in decline. Parents, it is suggested, are reluctant to let their children play outside as they once did for fear of strangers, traffic or violence and as a result, it is also suggested, childrens play revolves around organized recreational activities or is home-centred and focused on computers, video games and television. This, it is maintained is having a negative impact on childrens social and emotional competence while also contributing to an epidemic of child obesity. Maynard Waters (2007), in their journal also identified recent years reports about the use and abuse of the outdoor environment have rarely been out of the media. These reports, often backed by the latest research findings, have focused on concerns about environmental damage as well as issues such as stranger danger, childrens lack of physical activity, the rising levels of childhood obesity, as well as a more general lack of connectedness with nature. A view which agrees with Froebel who sees garden as a spiritual place where children could grow and develop in harmony with nature, and begin to sense their own place in the natural world. It was a place for creative and imaginative play. There is growing public policy interest in childrens play. Politicians and opinion formers are interested in exploring how good play opportunities can help improve quality of life and safety in neighbourhoods, tackle obesity and promote childrens well being, support children development and build community cohesion. Alongside, there is a growing view that good play experiences are not only an essential part of every childhood, but also a key public responsibility and an expression of our social obligations towards children. (Filer, 2008:14). Dr Aric Sigman, of British Psychological Society, recommends that children under three should be banned from watching TV, and older children, aged 3-5, should be restricted to viewing one hour a day of good quality programmes. Children spend more time looking at the screens than they do outside doing real things, which is detrimental to their health and well being, particularly in the long term. He recommends that children should be outside experiencing real life and real things (Sigman, 2005 cited in Filer 2008). One way in which government has attempted to address these concerns has been to raise awareness of, for example Healthy Schools programme, Food in Schoool programme, School Fruit and Vegetable scheme, Physical Education, School Sport and Club Links programme (DSCF, 2008) The introduction of Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum (EYFS) in September 2008 in England for children from birth to five (DSCF, 2008) emphasise the need for the provision of regular outdoor experience. However, Waller (2007), in his article identified that a clear pedagogy for the use of the outdoors as a site for learning has not been established and, as (Fjortoft, 2001 cited in Waller 2007) and (Waite et al.2006 cited in Waller 2007) point out, there has been relatively little research on what actually happens in outdoor environments. The EYFS now recognises that the environment plays a key role in supporting and extending childrens development and learning under theme 3: enabling environments which is line with the Macmillans theory which allowed children free access to play areas and gardens and was not predicated upon a fixed time schedule. The importance of outdoor learning is also emphasised in the effective practice: outdoor learning as below: Past generations of children benefited from extended amounts of unsupervised time outdoors, and as adults they look back fondly at these early experiences. Indeed it is widely recognised that such experiences make a positive impact and as adults we are aware that it shaped many aspects of our own development and healthà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Despite this cultural shift away from outdoor play and learning, it remains essential to childrens health, development and well-being. Consequently, it is vital that early years settings maximise childrens opportunities to be outdoors: for some it may be their only opportunity to play freely and safely outsideà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Outdoor learning encompasses all that children do, see, hear or feel in their outdoor space. This includes the experiences that practitioners create and plan for, the spontaneous activities that children initiate, and the naturally occurring cyclical opportunities linked to the seasons, weather and nature. (DCSF, 2007) It is evidenced that a lot of recent and old research into outdoor play are in agreement that it is beneficial for children to be outside experiencing real life, real things, in order to grow and develop holistically. Most of the researches also concluded outdoor is a place where the child could develop in harmony with nature, a place to begin to sense their own place in the natural world and a place for creative and imaginative play. Good play experiences are seen as an essential part of every childhood which would lead to improve quality of life, tackle obesity and promote childrens well being. However, Majorie Allen criticized the conventional playgrounds seen at majority of the nursery and pre school these days as static, dull, unchallenging, and which do not account for young childrens drive to explore, imagine, create and to seek companionship. Finally, according to the literatures, one of the main advantages of using the outdoor environment is that it provides children with th e space to move freely. (Fjortoft 2001, 2004 cited in T.Maynard et al 2007) report on research from Scandinavia, which demonstrates that children who play in flexible, natural landscapes appear to be healthier, have improved motor fitness, balance and co-ordination, and demonstrate more creativity in their play. It can be concluded based on the literature review above that experiences of the outdoor play and learning suggests that early years practitioners should recognise the significant potentials of outdoor learning highlighted above, in addition to developing outside play opportunities within their gardens; they should also consider giving children regular opportunities to experience wild natural environments. CONTENT Page No ABSTRACT 1 INTRODUCTION 2-3 LITERATURE REVIEW 4-14 METHODOLOGY/RESEARCH DESIGN 15-16 ANALYSIS/FINDINGS 17-20 CONCLUSION 21-22 REFERENCES 23-25 APPENDICES NARRATIVE OBSERVATION A-C TRACKING OBSERVATION D-E SANDRINGHAM SCHOOL PICTURES F-J BLOOMING GARDEN PICTURES K-M ABSTRACT: I have worked in different setting during my course and I have noticed that outdoor play is not particularly well planned by the practitioners. It seems to be seen as an opportunity for the staff have a break and for the children to let off steam. Play is childrens natural way of doing stuff to build for children to build self-esteem and social skills and the philosophy behind the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum supported this very much. The aim of my study is to look at how children participate in outdoor play in Sandringham school environment compared with regular setting with limited outdoor space with fixed and movable apparatus such as climbing frames, slides and bikes etc as well as to encourage practitioners to reflect on their practices. My research draws on observation (both narrative and tracking method) of one nursery located in London borough of Newham- Sandringham Schools nursery in London and a regular nursery with fixed garden apparatus in Redbridge b orough, Uphall School. My observation was used to find out how children attending both school nurseries react during outdoor session and how practitioners assist the children in extending and stimulating their learning and development. The play experiences of children at my own school Sandringham School nursery in comparison with the children at Uphall Schools nursery clearly indicate that children at Uphall school nursery spend less time playing outdoors than those at Sandringham schools nursery. The study reveals that children at my school at Sandringham schools nursery are engaged in depth active learning with their peers and practitioners, objects, allowing the children to use their imagination more creatively. For example, during my observation, a child uses a tree branch to sweep an area under a large tree, which she described as Goldilocks grandmas house. INTRODUCTION In searching for my research topic, I have drawn on my experiences and interest during my placements. It struck me fairly quickly from observations in my various placement that outdoor play space in most of the settings is still just about physical development and not given the equal status to indoor play it deserves in terms of the planned experiences that are provided for young children. Majority of the settings outside play area are small with static, dull, and unchallenging equipments, and do not allow young childrens drive to explore, imagine, create and to seek companionship. Practitioners should promote and enhance the development of playground that offer a rich, multi sensory environment that is meaningful, imaginative and stimulating for all young children, providing them with real experiences that help embed their early learning and holistic development and not just their physical development. Parents and practitioners agree from conversation with them that outdoor play is a natural and critical part of childs well being, health and development and the importance of outdoor play is also reflected in recent government policies such as the Every Child Matters agenda (2003) and Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS, 2008) curriculum embraces outdoor learning as it enables the children to follow their interest, make choices, forge links between their learning and develop ideas over time. This study will evaluate the effectiveness of opportunities provided for children under five to learn in the outdoors, in a garden, or other open air space e.g. in Sandringham school nursery environment and a regular day nursery setting. The research aimed to investigate the impact that the type of outdoor play experiences in the two settings has on all areas of learning and development for children under five. In this study I will use (Filer, 2008) definition of outdoor play a creative outdoor play as play which gives children the opportunity to use their imaginations, helps promote original thinking, flexibility, adaptability, empathy and the ability to generate multiple solutions to a problem. She expresses play as the most important activity that children will take part in outside as it is a means through which they find stimulation, well-being and happiness in order to grow physically, emotionally and intellectually. Outdoor play also offers play spaces that enable children to create play spaces themselves and to exercise greater choice over materials, location and playmates. Being outdoorsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦..offers opportunities for doing things in different ways and on different scales than when indoors. It gives children first-hand contact with weather, seasons and the natural world and offers children freedom to explore, use their senses, and be physically active and exuberant. (EYFS card 3.3 cited in Hitchin, 2007) METHODOLOGY The research takes place in two different borough schools nursery in their early years settings in England over a period of 4 months. Setting 1: This is my own schools nursery based separate building for the infants school building, this is located in a most multicultural state in town in Forestage, London area of the UK. Children aged 3 years to 5 years old attending the nursery on a half day and the next lot come for the afternoon session. The garden is a large part of it concrete and the other part was gated and covered with tree barks, with plastic climbing frame and slide, large tree on the other end of the gated part end bench under the tree and a large plastic turtle shape sand and water tray. On the paved area, there is a large wind chime resting on the fence and the other areas are left free for obstacle activity, easel, construction blocks, bicycles etc. Setting 2: This is a school based in borough of Redbridge, In order to establish childrens involvement levels in the two settings, I considered issuing questionnaires to both parents and practitioners. On discussing this with my School mentor, it transpires that the result will only give parents/ practitioners view on outdoor play and not necessarily give an answer to childrens level of learning and development physically, emotionally, imaginatively, and creatively through outdoor play. In conjunction with the setting staffs, I have collected data using participant observations in the form of tracking observation method which was handed out to the practitioners to follow selected children during outdoor play at each of the setting to find out the childrens interest while outdoor as well as direct observation method conducted by myself in the form of narrative observation to assess childrens involvement levels in two different outdoor environments. Observation is an important, if underrated, form of assessment. It may seem subjective, but it has a great deal of potential. Assessments can be made when the children are actively engaged in outdoor play and therefore the process on interaction with other children and adult can be observed. According to Creswell (2002) observations in a setting requires good listening skills and careful attention to visual detail. It also required management of issues such as the potential deception by people being observed and the initial awkwardness of being an outsider without initial personal support in a setting (Hammersley Atkinson, 1995). ANALYSIS/FINDINGS The results indicates that there is quality adult-child verbal interactions at the sandhringham school than the other setting which was my main concern and according to EPPE (2004) and REPEY (2002) research findings which identified that more sustained shared thinking was observed in settings where children made the most progress. Sustained shared thinking occurs when two or more individuals work together in an intellectual way to solve a problem, clarify a concept, evaluate an activity, extend a narrative etc. For example, a child sat under a large tree with few other children with an adult and she told the adult this is a forest, where the wolf is hiding and waiting me, Ill be the goldilocks and you can be the bad wolf and the adult engaged the child in open-ended questioning which is associated with better cognitive achievement according to the EPPE research findings. The forest was later turned into grandmas house they used drapes and plastic cover and securely pinned and another child sweeping off the dry leaves I am sweeping my grandmas room, because she is unwell and I need to help keep it clean. Where as at my other setting, the adults intervened mainly to ensure the safety of the children by encouraging a child to participate in an activity. For example, during an obstacle activity, the adult encouraged the child to walk on the blocks and offered a hand to boost the childs confidence. An interesting observation is that there are a lot of initiated activities at the Sandringham school with interventions by practitioners when invited by the child to extend the child/rens thinking. Opportunities are provided for adult initiated group activities which according to EPPE (2004) research findings are most effective vehicles for learning. For example, a game of silence ball? hide and seek game where the children have to listen to where the voices responding to their call is coming from to help them locate the people hiding. This game promotes listening skills. However, majority of the activities at the other setting is usually free play with mainly fixed climbing frames and slides, large wind chime, and selection of choices made available by the adult such as sand and water tray, lego blocks on a carpet or tray, writing materials, dressing up clothes, balls and books which is alternated on a daily basis. There is mostly child to child verbal interaction. The children in Sandringham school are engaged in more creative and imaginative play such as finding treasures, digging, treasure hunting lifting logs to look for worms which was in line with Friedrich Froebel (1782-1852) who described garden then as a spiritual place where children could grow and develop in harmony with nature, and begin to sense their own place in the natural world. It was a place for creative and imaginative play for investigation and discovery for songs, music and ring games. Froebel was perhaps unique in amongst the pioneers in linking garden design to his philosophy of childrens learning and in recognising the holistic nature of young childrens learning. He saw in such games evidence of childrens growing sense of justice, self- control, comradeship and fairness which I also noticed during my observation at the sandringham, school setting. For example, each child is given opportunity to lead with an adult when doing the head count before entering and leaving the forest school. A child was upset because she wanted to lead on this occasion and the adult explained to her that she has had a turn last week and that everyone has to have a go before it could be her turn again and this helps the children to develop sense of fairness and justice. The staff leading at the sandringham school seemed to have good knowledge and understanding of the curriculum as well as knowledge of child development and they have gained additional training on forest school approach, which I assume has helped the adult in facilitating childrens learning. For example, the children learn to use natural materials such as sticks to make a shelter, two other children uses large paint brushes with water to paint the wooden fence. Another girl went to paint a tree, which a boy was climbing on and he said no Amisha, its going to be slippery. Other activities observed at Sandringham school arethey are climbing, move over obstacles, carrying logs from one area to the other, eating outdoors, getting dirty while digging or hiding, opportunity to wander freely without constant adult supervision in a large space with lots of nature to see and explore at their own pace. All these will support the childrens emotional, social development, environmental awareness a nd spiritual wellbeing. It also encourages active learning, improve creativity and critical thinking. From my observation of children at the other setting with garden equipment from a sale, the older children mostly run around the small garden or climb on the plastic frame and slide which I agree with Allen, M (1897-1976) spells dullness and monotony and only the manufacturers benefit. Marjorie Allen 1897-1976 also criticized the conventional playgrounds seen at majority of the nursery and pre-school these days as static, dull, unchallenging, and do not account for young childrens drive to explore, imagine, create and to seek companionship. However it is interesting to note during each observation at the other school that the tree bark that covers the garden floor offered scope for children with learning difficulty. For example, the children use the tree bark to represent food served by one child to the other children and as they received each said thank you. While at the sandrigham school, a space under the tree was transformed into a Grandmas house, Vygosky (1978) cited in Tovey 2007 argued that such play leads to higher level thinking because children are using objects symbolically. The act of transformatio

Performance Appraisal Of HBL Commerce Essay

Performance Appraisal Of HBL Commerce Essay Performance Appraisal means to evaluate employees present performance and according to the standards given.At HBL performance appraisal is formal interaction between supervisor/ Manager and employees in an organized way. At HBL performance Appraisal conducted annually for all the employees. Appraisal is conducted by line manager and directors are appraised by CEO which further appraised by the chairman of the bank. If we look towards the branches of banks located in different areas, each branch manager evaluate the performance of their employees of their particular branch by keep on connecting with line manager which evaluate employees who conducted these performance evaluation. Line manager forward to regional office where he sends to human resource department where all appraisals are finalized and issued. HBL use KPIs or targets which they give annually to employees as a criteria such as business results, customers and employees) to appraise their employees and measure their employee performance by observation the achieved targets out of 100% which is standard or a benchmark that is quality of work, team work, goal fulfillments, performance, customer services, behavior with colleagues and supervisors/managers and growth. HBL process of performance appraisal system is they define their expectations, and then they measure or evaluate and provide feedback and hence their performance recorded. They judge their employee on achieving the annual targets which have provided them to achieve, even managers evaluate the performance of employee by behavior of employees and punctuality and how productive they are, how knowledgeable employees are or are they satisfying their employees by giving time to them and the way they dress up. HBL has assigned different weight ages out of 100, employee doing more than 100 or achieving target more than the benchmark that is an excellent job employee performing but if employee performing average discussion takes place between manager and its subordinate if employee becomes defensive, manager could easily sort out through his managerial skills. HR is responsible for training of supervisors to improve their appraisal skills. HBL use GRAPHICAL RATING SCALE METHOD or RANKING METHOD for appraising performance of an employee. HBLs Graphic Rating Scale method appraisal form contains three sheets; one is FORM B1, FORM B2, and FORM B3. Form B1: contains information about employees or the criteria through which employee should appraise. Form B2: contains two points through which they evaluate performance, i.e., FACTORS through which they determine if employee is productive or how the job is performing or the employee knows how to use technology he is being assessed and to see how responsive is an employee towards customers and motivated or dedicated to work and even employees are appraised through the factor of their own personality, i.e., how punctual employee is, behavior, personal hygiene. Even another criteria is determined on the B2 Form is the level of achievement s points being 4 the highest or 1 the least in form of grading A the highest which is 4 and D the lowest consider 1. FORM B3: This form contains the supervisor comments or evaluate the overall performance by given the grading(A,B,C,D) and appraise the comments in the form of agree/disagree then after evaluation is finalized in form signatures take by supervisor who conducted and send to the Hr department. HBL even use Ranking method to appraise their employees in which ranks employee from best to worst on the characteristics and skills. It is the most popular method, in which firstly, list all subordinates to be rated and in this method those names are not included which are well enough to rank. In ranking form indicates the employee measures on highest and lowest, then, choose the next highest and the next lowest. HBL also use Forced Distribution Method is also call bell curved. In this method you place given percentages of ratees into different performance categories. By forced distribution method as demonstrated by manager for example that manager must rate its employees under him according to following distribution: 10% low, 20% below average, 40%average, 20% above average, 10%high.. It reflects the normal curve, a small percentage of group is to be placed on (best and worst performers) larger percentages of ratees are placed toward the middle of the performance distribution. It is used for high executive level Vice president and above him in HBL.A separate bell curve is developed according to function/branch category/division and group. http://managementpocketbooks.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/image5.png MBO (Management By Objectives) also used by HBL in which objectives are told to the management and employees what targets they have to achieve. This method is easy to evaluate the performance of employees according to the goals and objectives have been told to them and how much they achieved. HBL use MBO to increase performance. MBO includes tracking and feedback  in the process to reach objectives and also for pay for performance. Steps of MBO: STEP1: Review organizational objectives HBLs objective is to make customer satisfy and to create value for them. STEP2: Set Objectives To earn profit for the organization STEP3: Monitor progress †¢Less complaints †¢Timely service is provided †¢Monthly revenue and cost STEP4: Evaluate performance How efficiently or effectively employee achieve his goals and targets Then his/ her appraised with the goals allocated as benchmark to achieve   STEP5: Give rewards †¢Promotion †¢Special salary increase †¢Cash price Problems HBL goes through while making performance appraisal are the employee participation, feedback-seeking and unclear goals and standards, regency effects. Promotable or UN -promotable appraisal interviews both conducted in HBL. PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM http://www.da.ks.gov/pmp/images/circle.png Performance management is the process to identify, measure, and develop the performance of the employees in an organization. Basically we are trying to figure out how well employees perform and then to ultimately improve that performance level. When used correctly, performance management is a systematic analysis and measurement of worker performance (including communication of that assessment to the individual) that we use to improve performance over time. Performance management at HBL is a forward looking process for setting goals and regularly checking progress towards achieving those goals. At HBL it is a continual feedback process whereby the observed outputs are measured and compared with the desired goals. Performance management ensures that goals are consistently being met. Performance management at HBL is to evaluate employees to reach their goals and through which company performs better .In HBLs performance management model employees are given opportunities to work on harder projects, paired less-skilled employees with expert employees and employees can direct and make decisions. At HBL growth does not matter but performance does. Tools used by HBL for performance management are: Developmental goal setting Ongoing performance monitoring Ongoing feedback Coaching and support Performance appraisal Rewards, recognition, and compensation At HBL if employee performing good he gets an increment of 10% annually. They monthly evaluate the performance which is effective for the employees to work best. Managers and Supervisors keep on giving their constructive feedback to increase employees performance. HBL performance management system covers all employees under the function sales, operational, finance, Hr, administration. Purpose of Performance Management System To access the performance Basis for reward (Increment Bonus) Basis for promotion Placement Ascertain training and development needs The results of process measured by with the will help in measuring the performance, based on balanced measure approach and to standardize format across the organization, which is the ranking method or graphical rating method, it depends on employee performance on average, below average, low or good. HR performance Management System helps in increasing profit and Reducing Hr turnover.HR measured their satisfaction level through exit interview which can be good, excellent or poor. There is no involvement of stakeholders in ensuring performance management system. PROBLEMS AND RECOMMENDATIONS There are some flaws in the appraisal system of the bank. In appraisal form of the bank the supervisor enjoy great powers. No body can check his evaluation. The Appraise and appraiser does not sit before each other when supervisor evaluates the performance of the employees. An employee does not have the right to appeal against the supervisor on how he had been marked. . RECOMMENDATION The appraisal form should be based according to the Relevance material, Reliability Acceptability. The employees should have right to appeal against the supervisor if he thinks that he is wrongly evaluated.

The P2P Piracy Prevention Act Attacks Consumers Essay example -- Techn

The P2P Piracy Prevention Act Attacks Consumers Peer-to-peer (P2P) networks have had a staggering growth in the past few years. Since Napster, dozens of P2P networks have been created in its imitation. Due to the growing accessibility of broadband, which increases the speed of downloads, P2P networks generate nearly 1.8 billion downloads per month. Popularity and acceptance is still continually growing. As many users see P2P software as just file sharing, entertainment industries and other big companies see it as copyright infringement and stealing from copyright owners without their rightful authorization or compensation. These companies complain that P2P file sharing threatens the survival of the industries and believe that there should be a law passed to protect the livelihood of the copyright holders. For some time now companies, copyright owners and Congress have tried to develop a security standard to protect copyrighted works from unauthorized reproduction and distribution, but they have not yet found a thoroughly effective solution. They know that shutting down all P2P networks is not the right response since file sharing is valuable to some extent since its method of sharing and transferring information supports a variety of efficient business models. Instead they want to deal with the copyright infringements that P2P networks facilitate. An option that copyright owners have considered toward protecting their works from circulating in P2P networks is to use a variety of technological tools to prevent piracy. Such tools would be capable of blocking, decoying and redirecting the connections of unauthorized copyrighted file transfers. However, federal and state laws such as the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of ... ...ew models and adapting to newer ideas than trying to save their old ones. It is also up to the consumers to persuade these companies that they are willing to pay for entertainment as long as they can keep up with their demands. Works Cited Delio, Michelle. Wired News. July 27, 2002. The Dark Side of Hacking Bill. http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,54153,00.html Frequently Asked Questions about the P2P Piracy Prevention Act http://www.house.gov/berman/p2p_faq.html Maguire, James. Opinion: P2P War Gets Nasty. Yahoo! News. May 13, 2003. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nf/20030512/tc_nf/21489 P2P Piracy Prevention Act. Be Spacific. http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/002639.html">http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/002639.html Regan, Keith. Report: Many File-Swappers Buying Legit Music. E-Commerce Times. May 8, 2003 The P2P Piracy Prevention Act Attacks Consumers Essay example -- Techn The P2P Piracy Prevention Act Attacks Consumers Peer-to-peer (P2P) networks have had a staggering growth in the past few years. Since Napster, dozens of P2P networks have been created in its imitation. Due to the growing accessibility of broadband, which increases the speed of downloads, P2P networks generate nearly 1.8 billion downloads per month. Popularity and acceptance is still continually growing. As many users see P2P software as just file sharing, entertainment industries and other big companies see it as copyright infringement and stealing from copyright owners without their rightful authorization or compensation. These companies complain that P2P file sharing threatens the survival of the industries and believe that there should be a law passed to protect the livelihood of the copyright holders. For some time now companies, copyright owners and Congress have tried to develop a security standard to protect copyrighted works from unauthorized reproduction and distribution, but they have not yet found a thoroughly effective solution. They know that shutting down all P2P networks is not the right response since file sharing is valuable to some extent since its method of sharing and transferring information supports a variety of efficient business models. Instead they want to deal with the copyright infringements that P2P networks facilitate. An option that copyright owners have considered toward protecting their works from circulating in P2P networks is to use a variety of technological tools to prevent piracy. Such tools would be capable of blocking, decoying and redirecting the connections of unauthorized copyrighted file transfers. However, federal and state laws such as the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of ... ...ew models and adapting to newer ideas than trying to save their old ones. It is also up to the consumers to persuade these companies that they are willing to pay for entertainment as long as they can keep up with their demands. Works Cited Delio, Michelle. Wired News. July 27, 2002. The Dark Side of Hacking Bill. http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,54153,00.html Frequently Asked Questions about the P2P Piracy Prevention Act http://www.house.gov/berman/p2p_faq.html Maguire, James. Opinion: P2P War Gets Nasty. Yahoo! News. May 13, 2003. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nf/20030512/tc_nf/21489 P2P Piracy Prevention Act. Be Spacific. http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/002639.html">http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/002639.html Regan, Keith. Report: Many File-Swappers Buying Legit Music. E-Commerce Times. May 8, 2003

Narrators Role in Fitzgeralds The Great Gatsby and Kerouacs On The R

Narrator's Role in Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby and Kerouac's On The Road Over the last fifty years, since the release of On The Road in 1957, it has not been uncommon for critics to draw parallels between Kerouac’s semi-autobiographical novel and Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, released thirty-two years previously. It is for certain that both the novels share many similar traits, both examine concepts of American ideals and The American Dream, both are heavily influenced by the jazz age of the time, but nothing binds the novels closer to one another than the authors’ use of the first person narrative and that narrators relationship with their leading character. It is perhaps the most common reading to see both Jay Gatsby and Dean Moriarty awarded iconic status by their corresponding narrators. The connotations concerning the epithet found in the very centre of Fitzgerald’s title alone can bring an image to the reader’s mind of one of history’s great leaders, putting Gatsby in league with characters such as Alexander the Great, Catherine the Great, Peter the Great and Frederick the Great. It would seem obvious from the title that Gatsby is one beheld with admiration and respect by the narrator. The relationship between Kerouac’s Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarty is often viewed in much the same light. The importance of Dean to Sal is visible from his very first paragraph, where he states that, â€Å"the coming of Dean Moriarty began the part of my life you could call my life on the road†. Within a short time period, Sal allows his life to be turned in a completely different direction by someone who is basically a stranger. This willingness to uproot and follow somebody else’s lifestyle pays a great complim... ... with the door flapping, and roar off to the next available spot, arc, pop in, brake, out, run. It would be easy to substitute the car in this instance with a woman to come up with a justifiable description of Dean’s attitude towards women. Just in the way Sal admires and enthuses about his car-parking abilities, describing him as, â€Å"†¦the most fantastic parking-lot attendant in the world†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Sal admirers and enthuses about his sex life. In 1991, Eagleton published an essay with a Marxist sentiment declaring that, much like Nick, â€Å"Sal is suffering from ideology – a false consciousness that is imposed on them by the hegemonic social order†. This adds to the link between the two narrators concerning their feelings towards their leading characters; in particular the manner in which they both admire the achievements made by Gatsby or Dean in their love lives.

Bloodsucking Fiends: A Love Story Chapter 6

Chapter 6 The Animals The daytime people called them the Animals. The store manager had come into work one morning to find one of them hanging, half-naked, from the giant red S of the Safeway sign and the rest of them drunk on the roof, pelting him with Campfire marshmallows. The manager yelled at them and called them Animals. They cheered and toasted him by spraying beer on each other. There were seven of them now that their leader was gone. They wandered into the store around eleven and the manager informed them that they were getting a new crew chief: â€Å"This guy will whip you into shape – he's done it all, his application was four pages long.† Midnight found the Animals sitting on the registers at the front of the store, sharing worries over a case of Reddi Wip. â€Å"Screw this hotshot from back East,† said Simon McQueen, the oldest. â€Å"I'll throw my fifty cases an hour like always, and if he wants more, he can do it himself.† Simon sucked a hit of nitrous oxide from the whipped cream can and croaked, â€Å"He won't last longer'n a fart on a hot skillet.† Simon was twenty-seven, muscular and as wiry-tense as a banjo string. He was pockmarked and sharp-featured, with a great mane of brown hair that he kept out of his face with a bandanna and a black Stetson, and he fancied himself a cowboy and a poet. He had never been within six-gun range of a horse or a book. Jeff Murray, a has-been high school basketball star, pulled a can of whipped cream from the open case and said, â€Å"Why didn't they just promote one of us when Eddie left?† â€Å"Because they don't know their ass from a hot rock,† Simon said. â€Å"Can up,† he added quickly. â€Å"They probably did what they thought best,† said Clint, a myopic, first trimester born-again Christian, who, having recently been forgiven for ten years of drug abuse, was eager to forgive others. â€Å"Can up,† Simon repeated to Jeff, who had upended the whipped cream can and was pushing the nozzle. Jeff inhaled a powerful stream of whipped cream that filled his mouth and throat, shot from his nostrils, and sent him into a blue-faced choking fit. Drew, the crew's pot supplier and therefore medical officer, dealt Jeff a vicious blow in the solar plexus, causing the ex-power forward to expel a glob of whipped cream approximately the size of a small child. Jeff fell to the floor gasping. The glob landed safely on register 6. â€Å"Works as good as the Heimlich maneuver† – Drew grinned – â€Å"without the unwanted intimacy.† â€Å"I told him to hold the can up,† Simon said. There was a tap on the glass at the front of the store and they all turned to see a skinny dark-haired kid in jeans and flannel waiting by the locked door. He wore a price gun low on his right hip. â€Å"That would be our hotshot.† Simon went to unlock the door. Clint grabbed the case of whipped cream and shoved it under a register. The others ditched their cans where they could and stood by the registers as if awaiting inspection. They were sensing the end of an era; the Animals would be no more. â€Å"Tom Flood,† the new guy said, offering his hand to Simon. Simon did not take his hand, but stared at it until the new guy withdrew it, embarrassed. â€Å"I'm Sime; this is Drew.† Simon waved the new guy in and locked the door behind him. â€Å"We'll get you a time card.† The new guy followed Simon to the office, pausing to look at the glob of whipped cream on register 6, then at Jeff, still gasping on the floor. â€Å"Can up,† the new guy said to Jeff. Simon raised an eyebrow to the rest of the crew and led the new guy into the office. While he was digging in the drawers for a fresh time card, the new guy said, â€Å"So, Sime, do you bowl?† Simon looked up and studied the new guy's face. This could be a trap. He stepped back and squared off like a gunfighter at high noon. â€Å"Yeah, I bowl.† â€Å"What do you use?† â€Å"I like a twelve-pound Butterball.† â€Å"Net or no net?† â€Å"No net,† Simon said. â€Å"Yeah, nets are for grannies. I like a fourteen-pound self-basting, myself.† Tommy grinned at Simon. Simon grinned back and offered his hand to shake. â€Å"Welcome aboard.† He handed a time card to Tommy and led him out the office. Outside, the crew waited. â€Å"Dudes,† Simon announced. â€Å"This is Tom Flood.† The crew fidgeted and eyed Tommy. â€Å"He's a bowler.† The crew let out a collective sigh of relief. Simon introduced them each, tagging them each with what they did. â€Å"That's Jeff on the floor, cake-mix aisle, plays basketball. Drew, frozen food and budmaster. Troy Lee, glass aisle, kung-fu fighter.† Troy Lee, short, muscular, wearing a black satin jacket, bowed slightly. â€Å"Clint,† Simon continued, â€Å"cereal and juices; he's buddies with God.† Clint was tall and thin with curly black hair, thick horn-rims, and a goofy, if beatific, smile. Simon pointed to a stout Mexican in a flannel shirt. â€Å"Gustavo does the floors and has forty kids.† â€Å"Cinco ninos,† Gustavo corrected. â€Å"Excuse the fuck out of me,† Simon said. â€Å"Five kids.† He moved down the line to a short, balding guy in corduroys. â€Å"Barry does soap and dog food. His hair fell out when he started scuba diving.† â€Å"Fuck you, Sime.† â€Å"Save your money, Barry.† Simon moved on. â€Å"This dark-skinned fellow is Lash, dairy and non-foods. He says he's studying business at Frisco State, but he's really a gunrunner for the Bloods.† â€Å"And Simon wants to be Grand Dragon for the Klan,† Lash said. â€Å"Be good or I won't help you with your master's feces.† â€Å"Thesis,† Lash corrected. â€Å"Whatever.† â€Å"What do you do, Sime?† Tommy asked. â€Å"I am on a quest for the perfect big-haired blonde. She must be a beautician and she must be named Arlene, Karlene, or Darlene. She must have a bust measurement exactly half that of her IQ and she must have seen Elvis sometime since his death. Have you seen her?† â€Å"No, that's a pretty tall order.† Simon stepped up, nose to nose with Tommy. â€Å"Don't hold back, I'm offering a cash reward and videotape of her trying to drown me in body lotion.† â€Å"No, really, I can't help you.† â€Å"In that case, I work the can aisle.† â€Å"When's the truck due?† â€Å"Half an hour: twelve-thirty.† â€Å"Then we've got time for a few frames.† There are no official rules for the sport of turkey bowling. Turkey bowling is not recognized by the NCAA or the Olympic Committee. There are no professional tournaments sponsored by the Poultry Farmers of America, and footwear companies do not manufacture turkey bowling shoes. Even the world's best turkey bowlers have not appeared on a Wheaties box or the  «Tonight » show. In fact, until ESPN became desperate to fill in the late-night time slots between professional lawn darts and reruns of Australian-rules football, turkey bowling was a completely clandestine sport, relegated to the dark athletic basement of mailbox baseball and cow tipping. Despite this lack of official recognition, the fine and noble tradition of â€Å"skidding the buzzard† is practiced nightly by supermarket night crews all over the nation. Clint was the official pinsetter for the Animals. Since there was always wagering, Clint's religion forbade his playing, but his participation, in some part, was required to ensure that he would not squeal to the management. He set ten-quart bottles of Ivory liquid in a triangle pattern at the end of the produce aisle. The meat case would act as a backstop. The rest of the crew, having chosen their birds from the freezer case, were lined up at the far end of the aisle. â€Å"You're up, Tom,† Simon said. â€Å"Let's see what you got.† Tommy stepped forward and weighed the frozen turkey in his right hand-felt its frigid power singing against skin. Strangely, the theme from Chariots of Fire began playing in his head. He squinted and picked his target, then took his steps and sent the bird sliding down the aisle. A collective gasp rose from the crew as the fourteen-pound, self-basting, fresh-frozen projectile of wholesome savory goodness plowed into the soap bottles like a freight train into a chorus line of drunken grandmothers. â€Å"Strike!† Clint shouted. Simon winced. Troy Lee said, â€Å"Nobody's that good. Nobody.† â€Å"Luck,† Simon said. Tommy suppressed a smile and stepped back from the line. â€Å"Who's up?† Simon stepped up and stared down the aisle, watching Clint set up the pins. A nervous tick jittered under his left eye. Strangely, the theme from The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly began playing in his head. The turkey was heavy in his hand. He could almost feel the giblets pulsing with tension – the Butterball version of the Tell-Tale Heart. He strode to the line, swinging the turkey back in a wide arc, then forward with an explosive yell. The turkey rocketed, airborne, three quarters of the way down the aisle before touching down and slamming through the soap bottles and into the base of the meat case, smashing metal and severing wires in a shower of sparks and smoke. The store lights flickered and went out. The huge compressors that ran the store's refrigeration wound down like dying airliners. The smell of ozone and burned insulation filled the air. A moment of dark silence – the Animals stood motionless, sweating, as if waiting for the deadly sound of an approaching U-boat. Battery back-up modules switched on safety lights at the end of each aisle. The crew looked from Simon, who stood at the line with his mouth hanging open, to the turkey, sticking, blackened and burned, in the side of the meat case like an unexploded artillery shell. They checked their watches: exactly six hours and forty-eight minutes to exact repairs and stock the shelves before the manager came in to open the store. â€Å"Break time!† Tommy announced. They sat on a row of grocery carts outside the store, their backs against the wall, smoking, eating, and, in the case of Simon, telling lies. â€Å"This is nothing,† Simon said. â€Å"When I was working a store in Idaho, we ran a forklift through the dairy case. Two hundred gallons of milk on the floor. Sucked it up in the Shop-Vac and had it back in the cartons ten minutes before opening and no one knew the difference.† Tommy was sitting next to Troy Lee, trying to get up the courage to ask a favor. For the first time since arriving in San Francisco, he felt as if he fit in somewhere and he didn't want to push his luck. Still, this was his crew now, even if he had padded his application a bit to get the job. Tommy decided to dive in. â€Å"Troy, no offense, but do you speak Chinese?† â€Å"Two dialects,† Troy said around a mouthful of corn chips. â€Å"Why?† â€Å"Well, I'm living in Chinatown. I kinda share a place with these five Chinese guys. No offense.† Troy clamped a hand over his mouth, as if appalled with Tommy's audacity. Then he jumped to his feet into a kung-fu stance, made a Bruce Lee chicken noise, and said, â€Å"Five Chinese guys living with you? A pasty-faced, round-eyed, barbarian pig dog?† Troy grinned and dug in the bag for another handful of chips. â€Å"No offense.† Tommy's face heated with embarrassment. â€Å"Sorry. I just wondered if – I mean, I need an interpreter. There's some weird shit going on at my place.† Troy vaulted back to his seat on the carts. â€Å"No problem, man. We'll go there in the morning when we get off – if we don't get fired.† â€Å"We won't get fired,† Tommy said with confidence he didn't feel. â€Å"The union – â€Å" â€Å"Jesus,† Troy interrupted and grabbed Tommy's shoulder. â€Å"Check this out.† He nodded toward Fort Mason at the edge of the parking lot. A woman was walking toward them. â€Å"She's out a little late,† Troy said; then, to Simon, he shouted, â€Å"Sime, skirt alert.† â€Å"Bullshit,† Simon said, checking his watch. Then he looked in the direction where Troy was pointing. A woman was, indeed, walking across the parking lot toward them. From what he could tell at that distance, she had a nice shape. Simon climbed down from the carts and adjusted his black Stetson. â€Å"Stand back, boys, that redhead is down here for a reason, and I'm packing that reason right here.† He patted his crotch and fell into an affected bow-legged gait toward the woman. â€Å"Evening, darlin', you lost or just in search of excellence?† Jeff, who was sitting beside Tommy opposite Troy, bent over and said, â€Å"Simon is the master. That guy gets more pussy than all of the Forty-Niners put together.† Tommy said, â€Å"Doesn't look like he's doing that well tonight.† They couldn't hear what Simon was saying to the woman, but it was obvious she didn't want to hear it. She tried to walk away from him, and Simon stepped in front of her. She moved in another direction and he cut her off, smiling and chattering the whole time. â€Å"Leave me alone!† the girl shouted. Tommy leaped off the carts and ran toward them. â€Å"Hey, Simon, lighten up.† Simon turned and the woman started away. â€Å"We're just getting acquainted,† Simon said. Tommy stopped and put his hand on Simon's shoulder. He lowered his voice as if sharing a secret. â€Å"Look, man, we've got a lot to do. I can't afford to lose you all night while you show this babe the meaning of life. I need your help, dude.† Simon looked at Tommy as if he'd just exposed himself. â€Å"Really?† â€Å"Please.† Simon slapped Tommy on the back. â€Å"I'm on it.† He turned back toward the store. â€Å"Break's over, dudes. We've got some wrenching to do.† Tommy watched him go, then broke into a run after the woman. â€Å"Excuse me!† She turned and eyed him suspiciously, but waited for him to catch up to her. He slowed to a walk. As he approached her he was surprised at just how pretty she was. She looked a little like Maureen O'Hara in those old pirate movies. His writer's mind kicked in and he thought, This woman could break my heart. I could crash and burn on this woman. I could lose this woman, drink heavily, write profound poems, and die in the gutter of tuberculosis over this woman. This was not an unusual reaction for Tommy. He had it often, mostly with girls who worked the drive-through windows at fast-food places. He would drive off with the smell of fries in his car and the bitter taste of unrequited love on his tongue. It was usually good for at least one short story. He was a little breathless when he reached her. â€Å"I just wanted to apologize for Simon. He's – he's†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"An asshole,† she said. â€Å"Well, yes. But – â€Å" â€Å"It's okay,† she said. â€Å"Thanks for coming to the rescue.† She turned to walk away. Tommy swallowed hard. This was why he had come to the City, wasn't it? To take a few risks? To live on the edge. Yes. â€Å"Excuse me,† he said. She turned again. â€Å"You're really beautiful. I know that sounds like a line. It is a line. But – but it's true in your case. Thanks. ‘Bye.† She was smiling now. â€Å"What's your name?† â€Å"C. Thomas Flood.† â€Å"Do you work here every night?† â€Å"I just started. But yes, I will be. Five nights a week. Graveyard shift.† â€Å"So you have your days free?† â€Å"Yes, pretty much. Except when I'm writing.† â€Å"Do you have a girlfriend, C. Thomas Flood?† Tommy swallowed hard again. â€Å"Uh, no.† â€Å"Do you know where Enrico's is on Broadway?† â€Å"I can find it.† He hoped he could find it. â€Å"I'll meet you there tomorrow night, a half hour after sunset, okay?† â€Å"Sure, I guess. I mean, sure. I mean, what time is that?† â€Å"I don't know; I have to get an almanac.† â€Å"Okay then. Tomorrow evening then. Look, I've got to get back to work. We're sort of in the middle of a crisis.† She nodded and smiled. He shuffled awkwardly, then walked away toward the store. Halfway across the parking lot he stopped. â€Å"Hey, I don't know your name.† â€Å"It's Jody.† â€Å"Nice meeting you, Jody.† â€Å"See you tomorrow, C. Thomas,† she called. Tommy waved. When he turned around again, the Animals were all staring at him, slowly shaking their heads. Simon glared, then turned abruptly and stormed into the store.