Anatomy and physiology of the human body Essay

Each week, the discussion questions will examine issues in the reading. This thread is meant to foster a better understanding of the anatomy and physiology of the human body and how that knowledge is applied to in real life situations. Discussion responses should be on topic, original, and contribute to the quality of the discussion by making frequent informed references to lesson material. Initial discussion responses should be around 100 words; responses to your classmates or instructor should be around 75 words. Make two or more responses to classmates that are thoughtful and that advance the discussion of each topic. Your initial response is to be made no later than Saturday 11:59 PM of the current unit. Additional responses are to be made no later than Tuesday 11:59 PM of the current unit. Your posts are to be substantive, referenced and free of grammatical and spelling errors. When you are ready, respond to one of the topics below. Please be sure to specify which topic you are responding to. 1. Discuss the different types of blood vessels and how their structure is uniquely suited to their functions. 2. Choose a major region of the body (for example, the thorax) and discuss the arteries and veins of that region. 3. Discuss the positive and possible negative effects of exercise on the cardiovascular system. 4. Identify and discuss the primary factors involved in the generation and regulation of blood pressure and explain the relationships among these factors. 5. Explain why a pressure difference must exist between the aorta and the right atrium. 6. Explain hepatic portal circulation. How is it different from normal circulation, and what advantages are gained from this type of circulation? This is a fun topic for a fitness trainer. The cardiovascular system is complex, but it’s even more complex when you start to factor in exercise while explaining it. Aerobic fitness is an important component of physical fitness. When your muscles need oxygen, your aerobic (cardiovascular) system must be able to efficiently deliver it to them. When your body has waste products that need to be expelled (e.g. carbon dioxide and metabolic waste products), your heart-lung complex must be up to the task. These two tasks form the functional basis of aerobic fitness. Positive effects include increasing your level of available energy, aid in relieving depression, reduce the risk of heart disease, increase the good (HDL) cholesterol. Everyone needs to be able to efficiently take oxygen into their lungs and blood and pump it to their working muscles where it is utilized to oxidize carbohydrates and fats to produce energy. If you are concerned about your health, particularly the risk of heart disease, you need to accept the fact that aerobic training can have a critical effect on the quantity and quality of your life. Some negative effects of exercise on the cardiovascular system can include a possible heart attack or stroke. Some people can tend to push themselves to hard or they can start off working out by pushing their heart a little harder than it’s used to. It’s not a very good idea to go out and try to run a marathon if you’ve spent most of your life sedentary. I used to be one of those people until I found out in 2007 that I had Tachycardia (a heart rate that is too fast). I had to adjust my workouts to accommodate the situation to include slowing down my runs and taking longer rest intervals when lifting weights.

Child Abuse and Neglect Essay

â€Å"Every year 3.3 million reports of child abuse are made in the United States involving nearly 6 million children (a report can include multiple children). The United States has the worst record in the industrialized nation – losing five children every day due to abuse-related deaths.† stated by Sara O’Meara. That’s a very depressing fact, especially because the United States has the worst record. That fact is solely based on the cases that were reported. Can you imagine all the ones that weren’t? There is so much information on this topic, but it seems that nothing is changing to stop child abuse and neglect. This is a huge problem even though there are many strategies to improve this issue it’s still not helping enough. Child abuse is a horrifying subject to bring talk about, but it needs to be approached. Child abuse and neglect has been going on for centuries. It came to be noticed in the early 1870’s by a young girl, Mary Ellen Wilson, who was being whipped by her foster mother. After her case went before a judge citizens formed the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. A child abuse came again in 1962 when people read an article in Journal of the American Medical Association. This article described the symptoms of child abuse and it stated that child abuse could be medically diagnosable. â€Å"Within ten years, every state had statutes known as â€Å"mandatory reporting† law. Mandatory reporting laws require certain professionals – doctors and teachers for example—to report to police suspected child abuse situations. A 1974 federal law further bolstered efforts to eliminate child abuse by funding programs to help individuals identify and report child abuse and to provide shelter and other protective services to victims.† Stated on the Department of Children and Families website child abuse is defined as â€Å"a non-accidental injury to a child which, regardless of motive, is inflicted or allowed to be inflicted by the person responsible for the child’s care, includes any injury which is at variance with the history given, maltreatment such as, but not limited to, malnutrition, sexual molestation, deprivation of necessities, emotional maltreatment or cruel punishment.† Physical Abuse is the most noticeable on a child because you can see it. Some examples are broken bones, fractures, bruises, cuts, burns, and more. Not all children will admit they’re being abused. Ways to tell that they are could be that the injuries are frequent, the child is afraid of touch, or seems to be afraid to go home. It’s much more difficult to tell is a child is being sexually abused or emotionally abused, but being abused in these aspects are just as heartbreaking and appalling. Children are being raped, not being fed properly, talked down too, being rejected of love, being left alone at a young age, and other awful things. It’s not only abuse that can happen to a child, but there is also neglect. There can be physical, educational, and emotional neglect that can occur in a child’s life. Some examples of physical neglect are when parents or guardians don’t get proper health care for their children or don’t watch their children with proper supervision. These factors can really harm a child as much as people don’t want to believe it. Educational neglect is when the child isn’t enrolled in school or if a parent or guardian doesn’t want to put their child in a special needs program even if they need to be in one. It’s understandable that some people don’t want to put their children in a special needs program because they’re embarrassed or think they can fix the child on their own. Well listen up parents, it’s known as neglect if the child isn’t helped in the proper way. Emotional neglect is extremely cruel because it’s when a parent doesn’t give the love a child needs to grow or allows a child to do drugs in the house, or drink underage. There are many examples I have left out in all three neglectful ways of being a parent or guardian because to be honest there is way too many to list. An extensive body of research provides promising and best practices on what works to improve child safety and well-being outcomes and reduce the occurrence of child abuse and neglect. These efforts are essential as child abuse and neglect have pervasive and long-lasting effects on children, their families, and the society. Department of Children and Families provide safety and services. They do professional investigations and appropriate evaluations on physical abuse, emotional neglect, sexual abuse, medical, or educational neglect. Please make sure to report child abuse or neglect as soon as possible because the life of this child is very important and your phone call could make a huge difference. After your report is complete, DCF begins their investigation within two hours of your call if there is a serious risk of physical harm to a child, and within three days for all other reports. Their number is 1-800-842-2288. Another good resource for providing help is American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). â€Å"The AAP has a research program that helps to improve the methods of health care to children. It’s a professional membership organization of 60,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical sub-specialists and pediatric surgical specialists. The mission of the American Academy of Pediatrics is to attain optimal physical, mental, and social health and well-being for all infants, children, adolescents and young adults. To accomplish this, AAP shall support the professional needs of its members. It has 1,800 pediatricians in the research program and it is the longest-running research programs in the U.S. AAP is looking out for the health care of all aged children and is a great resource to get children the health care they need.† There is also ways a person can help the abused or neglected child themselves before calling for professional help. It’s important to look into strategies on how to help an abused or neglected child and to also get the abuser the help that he/she needs to stop this cruelty. When you notice a child has been being abused or neglected a person can approach the child and ask them to explain their story. When the child tells their story try not to look horrified or shocked and don’t talk down about the abuser. If the child is not ready to tell their story don’t push the child to do so because it may drive them away. A child is not the only one who needs help when being abused, the abuser does also. The major reasons for physical and psychological mistreatment of children within the family often are parental feelings of isolation, stress, and frustration. Parents need to learn to cope with their feelings. Support groups through local community organizations often are helpful first steps to diminish some of the isolation or frustrations parents are feeling. People truly need to keep their eyes wide open and stop being oblivious to child abuse and neglect. As horrific it may seem the statistics show that 6 million children a year are being affected by child abuse and neglect. Please remember it’s not always easy to spot because it’s not just physical abuse that can happen to a child it’s so much more. Every type of abuse or neglect hurts whether it’s physical or not. Get in contact with Department of Children and Families or another child abuse and neglect group that you can contact if you suspect child abuse or neglect, it’s very important. Child abuse and neglect has been going on for centuries! Let’s try and stop it for happening to these innocent children!

Implementing ISO 9000 and Investor in People initiatives in working Essay

Implementing ISO 9000 and Investor in People initiatives in working place. Business Initiatiaves - Essay Example In today’s competitive world, every organisation wants to stay ahead of others, for which they strive to run more efficient businesses aimed at achieving maximum benefits using minimum resources. This has led to a formal, structured business process in which an organisation first sets a vision derived from its core values and ethics, develops a business plan based on its goals and priorities and then formulates business strategies to achieve the goals and hence put the business plan in action. A major business plan can often redefine the direction in which the organisation will proceed in the near or distant future (Bianca, 2013). There are several motivators that can cause an organisation to formulate a business plan and develop strategies to implement the plan such as, market-related motivators like, improving customer satisfaction, evolving with changing market dynamics and targeting a new market segment, competition-related motivators like, increasing market share, expandi ng product line, diversifying business, improving product quality, mergers and acquisitions, outperforming competitors and toppling market leaders, economic motivators like, job cuts and pay cuts, increasing market share and sales volume, reducing operational and manufacturing costs and improving productivity, operations-related motivators like, increasing productivity of employees, improving working environment and work culture and adopting new technology, environment-related motivators like, discontinuing using toxic chemicals, reducing pollution and carbon footprint, lowering energy consumption and adopting biomaterials as well as brand-equity motivators like, increasing brand visibility and recognition, creating brand loyalty and improving brand perception and brand image. Sometimes, multiple motivators may closely interact together. For instance, an organisation may decide to reduce its carbon footprint, improve the environment and be eligible for receiving special tax incentiv es from the government. Another organisation may want to introduce several new lines of products to target new market segments, create brand equity and generate more revenues. This means that at the core, every new move that an organisation makes is primarily tied to its commercial benefits. Almost all business plans and strategies are designed privately by organisations in consultation with internal employees. Such parties often tend to focus only on the desired outcomes and ignore the associated negative implications. This leads to achieving the desired goals at the cost of several other exploitations which not only backfire at the organisations, but also harm the entire society. The growing list of poor business plans and strategies of organisations around the world has prompted governments to undertake several measures that help organisations to take a holistic approach during chalking out initiatives, so that all the parties involved (such as, employees, customers and investors ) reap the benefits together. This has led to the creation of several business standards that draw from benchmark business practices in their respective industries and these standards are promoted to organisations for adoption. The adoption of a business standard helps an organisation to

Nursing Children and Childbearing Families Essay - 1

Nursing Children and Childbearing Families - Essay Example It can also lead to abortion and still birth (RCOG, 2008). b) Folate supplementation prior to conception reduces the risk of neural tube defects like spina bifida. It is recommended to take this B-group vitamin, much before conception to third month of pregnancy. Seven out of ten cases of neural tube defects can be prevented by taking folate supplementation. It important to take folate before conception because neural tube formation occurs during initial weeks when pregnancy is most often not confirmed. The recommended dose for supplementation is 400 micrograms per day (RCOG, 2009). Question 2. a) Breast feeding has several advantages to the baby and the mother. Advantages to mother include decreased risk of certain diseases like osteoporosis and cancers, faster return of uterus to prepregnancy state, natural contraception and psychological sense of confidence as the mother provides completed nourishment for her baby. For the baby, the benefits include complete nutrition that is easi ly digestible, safe, warm and palatable, protection from infectious diseases because of presence of antibodies in the milk especially in the colostrum, enhancing of mother-child bonding and attachment and decrease in the risk of atopic dermatitis, asthma and other chronic illnesses. b) Breast feeding protects the babies from developing allergies. The main immune factor that is responsible for the benefits is a substance called secretory immunoglobulin A (IgA) that's present in large amounts in colostrum. Babies fed on cow's milk or soy milk or even other formula feeds tend to have increased risk of allergies. The IgA forms a protective layer on the intestinal wass preventing undigested proteins from causing allergic reactions. Another important characteristic of breast milk that helps the baby is that it enhances cognitive development in infant because of breast-feeding, prolonged skin contact, the reduction in maternal stress with feeding, and the improved mother-infant interaction . Breast milk also has some brain growth factors which help in the growth of brain and development of intelligent skills (WHO, 2011). Question 3. a) Positive effects of early discharge include recovery of mother and child in a familiar atmosphere of home, decreased risk of iatrogenic infections and decreased health care costs (NICE, 2007). Negative effects include increased risk of readmission due to feeding problems, unopened bowels, reflux-related problems and neonatal jaundice and increased risk of mortality due to choking episodes and other illnesses like viral illness (NICE, 2007). b) Recovery in a familiar home environment decreases stress for the mother and also family members because of increased availability of resources and comfort at home. In the hospital, the child and mother can contract infections from other patients and this can increase the duration of hospital stay and health care costs. Feeding is not established until third or fourth day after delivery and feeding problems can be stressful both for the mother and the baby and can in turn lead to decreased milk production. This becomes a vicious cycle. Improper feeding techniques can cause choking in the baby or even hypoglycemic episodes. Presence in the hospital allows health professionals help the mother and tackle any complications immediately. Exaggerated physiological jaundice and jaundice due to ABO incompatibility are more often detected on the third or fourth da

Budget Process (finance) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Budget Process (finance) - Essay Example It is important to understand the term 'environment' under which the budgetary system has to operate in the modern business set up. 'The term environment is much used. Some people associate it with value system or value code. However in strategic terms, it is used to indicate the context within which the manager and the organization operates.'(Murdock and Scutt, page 280)2. With regard to budgetary operations in this competitive environment, the proponents of budgets argue that 'budgets are established to provide a benchmark for evaluating performance. For cost centers these budgets typically seek to achieve efficiency and control by specifying the expected cost levels. Moreover, those who support budgetary system also argue that budgets are very effective even in modern competitive business environments and help the business to grow discounting the adversities the business face from competitions. Those who favor budgetary controls also stress that since a budget shows expected perfo rmance of the organization, the management is pre informed about coming financial and production difficulties. Based on such anticipation management can always take corrective actions to overcome the difficult situation. They also point out that once a budget is presented it provides a yardstick to measure the actual performance. In this way there is certain strength in budgetary control system that budgets emphasize while clarifying the responsibilities of managers; and such an attribute of budgets is always beneficial to the organization. There is other side of the picture as well. Budgets are supposed to be means of internal control. 'But the leadership dictates top down the amount of sales and therefore allowed costs for the different cost centers, based on past experiences. The responsibility centers try to negotiate about their targets in a bottom up process. Usually there is a compromise between parties in the hierarchical ladder. As a consequence, this procedure fails to focus on shareholders value , because compromises tend to be comfortable from all sides , but not challenging or at least not completely focused on profit maximizing.'(Sven Rohm, page 15)4 Accordingly instead of servicing the organization as internal control instruments, budgets actually provide boost to disarray the control system; and it is not possible to keep check on the checking systems. Competitive business environment is place for perfections and such parameters change frequently with new style and inventions in this competitive fields. 'Budget is always based on estimates. The estimates cannot be accurately made in this dynamic world, although many statistical techniques are available' (National Association of Accountants, page 377)5. Further, 'budgetary control system is lopsided managerial device; in as much as in qualitative aspects of managing cannot be fully and precisely made a part of it.'(Principles of Management, page 253)6. The most important weakness of budgeting is that 'budgets are usually based on historical trends which may not continue.'(Kumar & Mittal, page 538)7. That gives an impression that budgeting is a control tool of

Ethics and Corporate Responsibility in the Workplace and the World Essay

Ethics and Corporate Responsibility in the Workplace and the World - Essay Example 151). As such, case studies are a valuable tool to gauge the ethical behavior of a company and to determine what course of action should be taken as future events dictate. PhramaCare is a factitious company, yet the situation presented can be considered likely to happen to almost any type of company, anywhere in the world. This paper will detail various ethical issues ranging from the treatment of indigenous populations to the methods of handling and dealing with whistleblowers. All the while, decisions made will be analyzed and potential consequences discussed. PharmaCare’s Treatment of Colberia’s Indigenous Population Regardless of the economic or political reasons governing a firm’s entry into another country, they have the ethical responsibility to act in the best interests of their host. In this case, PharmaCARE failed to abide by this code of responsible conduct. While there has always and will always be a disparity of wealth existent in the world, PharmaCA RE’s lack of compassion in dealing with the indigenous population of Colberia is particularly egregious. Rather than doing their small part in raising the standard of living among the people, they succeeded at continuing to keep the people of the country mired in poverty while they reaped the benefits. A responsible company sees their employees as partners, and even shareholders. As they contribute to the success of the company, they should be properly compensated. Naturally, few would argue that the people of Colberia should receive the same wage as those in the Western world, but they are certainly entitled more than $1 a day, particularly given the backbreaking work they were partaking in. In the end, however, there is little wrong with the executives of PharmaCARE living in luxurious compounds in Colberia. This is a standard practice with international corporations, as many employees leave their home country for years at a time, so they are granted living conditions simil ar to those that they are used to. This is does not excuse, however, the unethical treatment in terms of salaries and working conditions that the company was engaging in. Actions To Take Against Donna, Tom, and Ayesha Deciding to fire workers is often a painful decision, and one that potentially carries legal ramifications. Since New Jersey is not a right to work state, the situation becomes a bit more muddled. Without having the benefit of reading the contracts of employment for each respective employee, it is difficult to make a determination as to the legality of these particular firings, but in essence they could be termed legal. Donna had begun to develop poor attendance records and, even though she made the claim that it was due to mold in the work environment, Allen could argue otherwise. By properly documenting reported absences, if Donna lacks adequate proof the work environment causing her absentee rate to rise, the firing may be legally justified. It is also generally acc epted that companies can protect their reputation against employees who set out to damage it in the public. If the claims made by Tom end up being true, he would certainly have a case against an unjust termination. Barring that, however, Allen would likely prevail in a legal proceeding based on the comments he would make about the company in public. Likewise, Ayesha would need to prove that she was fired based on religious discrimination. If Allen can prove otherwise and demonstrate a history of poor performance, once again he could justify the legal

Management Practive in Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Management Practive in Business - Essay Example The planning process focuses on the realistic view of the business expectation. The presence of proper planning process in an organization helps the management of the organization in maintaining a focus towards the overall growth and development of the business. The planning process also helps the organization in providing a framework for the business and provides the organization with a benchmark for measuring the performance of the organization (Reilly, Minnick & Baack, 2011). Considering the importance of planning in the business organization, the planning process in Liberty mutual insurance is being analyzed critically. The first step maintained by Liberty Mutual insurance in their planning process is in setting the basic target of the organization which includes clarification of the vision, mission and goals of the organization. The vision of Liberty mutual insurance involves providing every one with the same amount of opportunity to live their dreams. The mission of the organiz ation states that the organization is in the process of value creation for the citizens with the help of the effective and profitable life insurance plans. The goals of the organization are also made clear and it aims at becoming a leading provider of life insurance services in the global market by focusing attention towards the customer satisfaction. The organization also aims at enhancing the value of stakeholders by achieving reputations in the market through the business practices. In matters of implementation of any strategic decision in the organization; the mission, vision and goals are kept in mind. Before planning for any changes in the organization, careful market research is conducted and due importance is provided to the needs of the customers. During the decision making process ideas are taken from all levels of the management and clear analysis of the views of the employees are done. The various departments within the organization are assigned with the responsibility o f managing their own department and integration within different department is maintained. As the goals of the organization, includes the creation of values to the customers, careful steps are being adopted to make the products of the organization popular among the customers by addressing their needs in a proper manner. The management also is looking for expansion in the international markets, by conducting studies regarding the market feasibility of various economies. Leading: Leadership is one of the important attribute of good managers and the process of overall leading of the employees to attain their goals and objectives often determines the success of an organization. The process of leading the employees in the organization starts after the goals are set by the management (Canada, 2009, p.22). In Liberty mutual Insurance, the workings of the organization is strengthened by the presence of effective leadership quality of the key personnel who constantly dedicates their best in helping the employees to attain their goals set by the organizations. One important characteristic of the leaders in the organizat

The analytical essay of the movie The History Boys Assignment

The analytical essay of the movie The History Boys - Assignment Example The essay explores the dramatic elements, theme, and meanings of the film, specifically for four main characters, Hector (Richard Griffiths), Irwin (Stephen Campbell Moore), Dakin (Dominic Cooper), and Posner (Samuel Barnett). Their sexuality produces inner conflicts that intersect with outer conflicts with social norms, norms that the basic institutions of society, specifically schools and religion, define and control. The dramatic action is the pursuit of knowledge in education and life and the changes that come from â€Å"knowing† and â€Å"becoming.† The theme of the film is that the purpose of education is to not teach what is known, but to help students know the unknowns about their society and their identities because this mindset makes them critical of knowledge and truth and sensitive to the vast gender and knowledge imbalances in society. Dramatic action occurs through the action of characters on their inner and outer conflicts about their identities and their knowing of the purpose of education to their identities. Education is supposed to help students and teachers learn what they do not know yet, so that they can become whole individuals. The through action of Irwin is that he changes because he learns that as a teacher, he should not forget his own personal growth. After Dakin and his friends learn that they all passed their respective university entrance tests, he confronts Irwin and offers an indecent sexual proposal. Dakin makes a strong remark on how different Irwin is as a history teacher and as a man because he is more confident and more of a risk-taker as a teacher than as a gay man (Cusack & Hytner, 2006). Irwin is clearly struggling with his gay identity, which he seems to be ashamed of. After the sexually-charged confrontation with Dakin, however, he becomes more spontaneous with his identity, when he rides with Hector on the latter’s motorcycle. The riding act means that Irwin is no longer ashamed of his identity be cause the purpose of education for him is to learn who he is. Dakin has action through understanding that he does not have to know his exact gender to be comfortable with himself because gender and education are both fluid complex processes in life. When he talks to Irwin about the sexual tension between them, Dakin underlines that he is not completely gay: â€Å"I'm not, but it's the end of term; I've got into Oxford; I thought we might push the boat out† (Cusack & Hytner, 2006). Dakin’s main conflict is his rigid sense of heteronormativity, which involves the validity placed on heterosexual relations. In reality, he struggles with his bisexuality. Both Irwin and Dakin are unravelling their sexual identities that they have repressed, and it is their education about sexuality that releases them from the bondage of heteronormative gender norms. Hector and Posner have the same gender conflicts, being gay in a world of masculine education. Posner struggles with his sexual ity that he does not want to control, while Hector struggles with his sexuality that he wants to control, but prefers not to because of his justifications that they are mere sexual baptismal rites. Posner confesses to Irwin that he is gay and in love with Dakin, and that he does not want his gay sexuality to be a phase (Cusack & Hytner, 2006). His inner struggle is more connected with his sexual insecurity because of his social circumstances. Posner is aware of the prejudice against gay people: â€Å"

Research literature review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Research literature review - Essay Example The clinical application of this property has been of much interest to biomedical researchers in the recent years. Though the potential of stem cell research has been confirmed to have much clinical relevance, many social and spiritual controversies have been raised due to the developments in this field. Pierret and Friedrichsen (2009, 79-87) have analyzed the sociological aspects of stem cell research. Their study has urged serious discussion, both among college students and other social elements, on the ethical issues pertaining to stem cell research (Pierret & Friedrichsen 2009, 79-87). The authors have developed a new course termed ‘Stem cells and Society’ to attract the attention of students towards scientific realities in the research and also to the moral issues related to it. (Pierret & Friedrichsen 2009, 79-87). The study has also critically analyzed the ethical controversies that had erupted in relation to similar scientific innovations (Pierret & Friedrichsen 2009, 79-87). The purpose of our study, though, is not to argue about one particular stand point but to discuss both the view points and finally to allow readers to draw their own opinions and conclusions. In addition the process has been facilitated by providing an integrative review that details previous research, theories, explanations and answers and then counteracting them with questions and objections so that at the end of our research readers can make their own rationalistic conclusion. Stem Cells, as defined by The National Institute of Health, are cells that have the ability to develop into different cell types within the body. Two facets make them incredibly important: Firstly, they can renew themselves during cell division and secondly, when grown under certain conditions, they can achieve specialised functions. These cells differentiate and form almost all the

Laertes to be cordial with everyone Essay Example for Free

Laertes to be cordial with everyone Essay This line tells us once again that the man who listens more but talks less is more prosperous and successful. He also tells Laertes to control his temper if anyone rebukes him. Even here Shakespeare has used personification as he describes ear and voice as things that can be given. When he says take each mans censure he is telling Laertes to hear out everybodys opinion but not to voice his own regarding anything. Shakespeare uses the words give and take almost everywhere in this speech. Polonius also says, Beware of entrance to a quarrel. This is an important lesson for Laertes and for the reader too. It is important to Laertes because he is going away to a foreign country where he does need friends not enemies. The word, beware signals a warning, which shows us the importance of the usage of this word. The word, entrance means starting. It is important it highlights the way Shakespeare highlighted certain actions by using more figurative language. He tries to tell us and Laertes that it is not not not not important not to start a quarrel nor should anyone enter a quarrel. This can be compared to the next phrase in which he also tells Laertes to be cordial with everyone. Polonius also asks Laertes to stay away from the common folk when he says, Be thou familiar, but by no means vulgar. This line means that he should be familiar with everyones habits and thoughts but not be too friendly. He is also trying to tell Laertes to be pleasant with his dealings with people but not to be too cheap among common people. It is this moral value that we can only partly accept and learn. It is correct that we should be pleasant in our dealing with people but the fact that we should not mix with the common people is wrong. It shows us that the higher class of people in the Victorian era did not respect or accept the commoners as a part of society. This is in fact the only place where we have to learn the opposite. We should learn that it is not a disgrace to blend in with people who have less money or less food. We can see that Shakespeare has used a strong word, vulgar, in describing the lower class of people. The use of this word shows us the feelings of the aristocrats. It tells us how we should respect all kinds of people however poor they may be. It also adds to the lesson that if he has to stay away from all kinds of quarrels and fights he should be warm and cordial in his dealings with everyone. During the speech Polonius also communicates the importance of saving. This is expressed when he says, Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy, But not expressed in fancy; rich, not gaudy For the apparel oft proclaims man. In this line we come to learn a very important lesson that is even important in our daily lives today. Polonius imparts to his son not to wear any attire that is expensive, extravagant flamboyant ostentatious. He should always be moderate reasonable in his spending and only buy things that are within his limits or that which his purse can buy. We see Shakespeare use of figurative language in this line as he personifies the purse to something that is capable of buying things. However it is important to understand that Polonium also meant for his son to dress well For the apparel oft proclaims man as the quote signifies. Further in the speech, Polonius also tells Laertes something that has become one of the most famous lines in our time. Laertes is advised by his father to be, neither a borrower nor a lender is. This, of course has a lot of moral value whether it be in the Victorian era or the modern era. It shows us that Polonius tells Laertes to guard against excessive spending. He should never spend money to an extent that he will be in depth and will need to borrow money. He should not even help anyone during their times of need. This shows us that Polonius was indeed a very selfish character and also tries to tell his son to be so too. In a way he is noble also because he lives within the limits of what he can buy and imparts this knowledge to his son. This can be compared to the previous lesson in which he tells Laertes not to buy fancy or rich things so as to spend all his wealth. We can see how Shakespeare links the two ideas to seem as though they are the same. The word, costly, in the first idea and the word, borrower in the next makes the association. It is important for us to realize the importance of wealth in our lives as Shakespeare does and tries to convey this to us. He also tries to show us the consequence when he says, For loan oft loses both itself and friend. This piece of knowledge tells us just how one must socialize. It also shows us that borrowing or lending money can be disastrous for a friendship. It is quite obvious that Shakespeare is trying to convey to us the importance of a good friendship that is not plagued by money. Another lesson that Polonium gives to his son is- this above all: to thane own self be true, and also says that if Laertes does follow this then he canst not then false to any man. This piece of wisdom is quite important in society today. It is our conscience that we should answer to at the end of the day and not any one else. If we are true to our conscience then we will be true to everyone around us. Here again Shakespeare stresses on the fact that we should not lie, quite contrary to the opinion that he promotes lying when Polonius tells Laertes to keep silent about certain aspects. This truly displays the way he has portrayed his genius. He manages to tell us to be diplomatic but not to lie. The lessons learnt from these speeches apply to our everyday life also as they highlight how we should act and our moral values and conscience also comes into question here. Both Laertes and Hamlet are loving sons to their parents. In fact Laertes is a foil to Hamlet. Both are young men who have had their fathers murdered and both seek revenge. The difference between them is that while Laertes is hot blooded , active and seeks immediate revenge Hamlet thinks over the moral rightness and wrongness of his actions but the end result is the same-that by seeking revenge, by taking Gods justice into their own hands and by seeking to destroy another human life both young men are killed . So what is Shakespeares message and advice to us? Not to seek revenge? Not to take the law into your hands however justified it may be? But to avenge your fathers death and to destroy the murderer of your father, is it not the duty of a son and a matter of honor? This is something that Shakespeare does not give a conclusive solution to. He leaves it to us, people of different societies and different periods to make our choices and decisions based on our moral rules and the traditions and practices and conventions of the society that we belong to. But what Shakespeare seems to underline is that destroying another human life whether justifiably or not will have its consequences. Hamlet also explores the theme of friendship and loyalty. Among the hundreds of young men that Hamlet could have as his friends he finds that only Horatio is to be trusted and valued. He has complete faith in Horatio. It is to Horatio alone that Hamlet confides all his secrets. Even on his return secretly from England after tricking Rosencrantz and Guildenstern; it is to Horatio that Hamlet narrates the whole sequence of events. At the end of the play when Hamlet lies dying and Horatio shows his loyalty to his beloved friend by preparing to die with him I am more an antique Roman than a Dane. Heres some liquor left. Hamlet lays upon him the duty of clearing his wounded name. He enjoins upon Horatio the sacred task of making the world aware of why and how Hamlet came to meet his end If thou didst ever hold me in thy heart, Absent thee from felicity awhile, And in this hash word draw thy breath in pain, To tell my story. In contrast Hamlets friendship with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are shown as false and contemptible. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are young men who tried to take advantage of their friendship for Hamlet. They turned out to be Claudiuss spies and professed friendship with Hamlet for self advancement. And so Hamlet when he discovered the nature of the message that they were carrying to the king of England he substituted Claudiuss order with a fake one according to which it was instructed that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern be put to sudden death , Not shriving time allowed. Hamlet shows no regret or remorse for his deed. Infact he declares they are not near my conscience. Thus what Shakespeare is perhaps trying to teach us is that true and loyal friends are rare and precious. They are to be valued and honored. For every true friend that we have we may have double the number of false friends who will plot our downfall if it is to their advantage. Shakespeares message is therefore is to be wary of such false friends. Hamlet also contains lengthy discourses on man and how he is in every way the crown of creation. Shakespeare has used his wealth of poetic genius and shows his incredible mastery over poetic expressions when he describes the beauty of the earth and man as an exquisite piece of art. Looking at the star studded sky he waxes poetic. He calls the sky This most excellent canopy, Brave oerhanging firmament, This majestically roof fretted with golden fire. Man itself is a piece of work that is to be admired and appreciated. Hamlet is full of admiration of this exquisite creation of nature and exclaims What a piece of work is a man, how noble in reason, how infinite in faculties, in form, and moving how express and admirable, in action how like and angle , in apprehension how like a god. Later in a discussion with Horatio Hamlet talks of who is an ideal man. According to him the perfect man is in whom passion and reason are so well co meddled that they are not a pipe for fortunes finger to sound what stop she please. Hamlet considers Horatio as such an ideal man and through Hamlets intelligent, detailed and perceptive analysis Shakespeare is telling us about how man can become a paragon of animals by balancing emotions and reason. Hamlet is greatly empresses by Fortinbras and his adventures when he is told of how the Norwegians risked the lives of 20,000 men for a little patch of ground that hath in it no profit but the name. Hamlet comes to the conclusion Rightly to be great, is not to stir without great argument, but greatly to find quarrel in a straw when honors is at stake. Hamlets character changes during the course of the play. Towards the end especially after his violent confrontation with his mother we see the mellowing of Hamlet and how he slowly seems to be at peace with himself. Perhaps it is the fact that Gertrude and Hamlet has reached something of a better understanding that has given him this peace, because after the closet scene we see Gertrude being more supportive of Hamlet. She does not confide in Claudius the truth about Hamlets madness that he is not really mad but Only mad in craft. Hamlet acknowledges the presence of a higher power in our lives. It may have been his escape from death not once but twice that has built up a stronger Christian faith in him. He had on an impulse rashly, And praised be rashness for it- let us know our indiscretion sometimes serves us well, opened the official document entrusted with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern and made the astonishing discovery that Claudius himself has passed the order That on the supervise, no leisure bated, No, not to stay the grinding of the axe, My head should be struck off. On the same voyage he had escaped death a second time from the hands of the pirates. It is these experiences that had also had a chastening effect on him. Through Hamlet Shakespeare invites us to strengthen out faith in the omniscient when he says Theres a divinity that shapes our ends, rough-hew them how we will. Later in the same scene Hamlet reaffirms this that There is a special providence in the fall of a sparrow. This faith is established when he continues by saying the readiness is all which means that since no one knows what happens after death , it does not matter whether we die early or not. In a way Hamlet was committing himself in Gods hands and he shows an extraordinary wisdom, humility and maturity which are a lesson to all of us. In Act 5 Scene 1 Hamlet is seen in a mood of contemplation with the skull of Yorrick. Through the image of the skull Shakespeare conveys a powerful message. The picture of the young prince contemplating Yorricks skull is a universally recognized icon. The singing grave digger has a profound impact both on Hamlet and on us. He is amusing and terrifying at the same time because he is so full of life and so at home with death . His profession is dealing with something that we would not want to think about and very often struggle to make sense of. The grave digger is the one who has dug grave in which Ophelia is to buried. Soon he will deal with Hamlet, Laertes, with the king and the Queen and finally he will deal with us all whether we are somebody or nobody . Thus the grave digger is the assistant of that Great Leveller- Death. Hamlet says Alexander died, Alexander was buried, Alexander returneth to dust; dust is earth; of earth we make loam. Long before Alexander and Caesar, Claudius and Hamlet came into the world. The grave digger was busy and he will be at his work long after their brief exits and entrances. He has been there from the beginning of human history and will be busy until the final trumpet. Thus through the image of the skull and the grave digger Shakespeare presents a reminder to us about our mortality. Hamlet is the longest as well as the most complex of all Shakespeares plays. Hamlet the introspective, contemplative, intellectual and highly perceptive university scholar offers us a deep and profound examination into the nature of human life. The play deals with such eternal themes as death, the meaning and purpose of mans life, the choices that are available to him and the choices that he should be able to make. Shakespeare does not offer any solutions either foe us or for Hamlets own problems. What he does is point out the strength and draw backs of each of the choices that Hamlet and we have made or are likely to make. In this way the play is not simply a plot with characters enacting certain specified rules but it is a manual about life providing us with knowledge, information, wisdom and values that would be an education for life through the medium of drama and therein lies Shakespeares greatness.

Quantitative Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR)

Quantitative Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR) QUANTITATIVE REAL TIME POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION (RT-qPCR) Primers All primer sequences were designed using the online tool Primer 3-BLAST (NCBI) and the primers were obtained from Sigma Aldrich, Bangalore, India. Relative expression of transforming growth factor beta (TGF- ÃŽ ²), myosin heavy chain beta (ÃŽ ²-MHC), endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) and glyceraldehydes-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) was studied. Forward and reverse primers for the above genes were used for amplification. Table 5. PCR Primer details RNA isolation All glasswares were rinsed with diethyl-pyrocarbonate (DEPC) treated water to inhibit RNases. Total RNA was isolated using guanidium thiocynate-chloroform-phenol method of Chomczynski and Sacchi (1987). Total RNA isolation kit (BioUltra, Sigma Aldrich,USA) was utilized for this study After cleaning with saline, heart and aorta tissues were homogenized in denaturing solution with freshly added ÃŽ ²-mercaptoethanol. After homogenization 2M sodium acetate solution (pH. 4.0), water saturated phenol and chloroform: isoamyl alcohol (49:1) was added. The mixture was shaked vigorously and allowed to cool on ice for 15 minutes. The mixture was centrifuged at 10,000 Ãâ€" g for 20 minutes at 4 oC. The aqueous phase was transferred in a fresh tube and an equal volume of ice cold isopropanol was added. RNA was precipitated by placing the sample at -20 oC for one hour. Then the mixture was centrifuged at 10,000 Ãâ€" g for 20 minutes at 4 oC. The pellet was washed with 70% ethanol and RNA was stored in DEPC water at -80 oC. RNA quality and quantity was assessed by nano-drop spectrometer. Real time PCR amplification SYBR Green Quantitative RT-qPCR Kit was used in this study and the PCR experiment was carried out in eppendorff realplex mastercycler. 1 µg RNA was reverse transcribed by using Molone murine leukemia virus (M-MuLV) reverse transcriptase as per manufactures instructions. Then the amplification program (94 oC – 45 seconds, annealing – 45 seconds, extension 72 oC- 1 minute) was applied with specific annealing temperature. The annealing temperatures of TGF-ÃŽ ², ÃŽ ²-MHC, eNOS and GAPDH were 58, 52, 55, and 55 oC, respectively. The specificity of the primers was confirmed by resolving the PCR products in 1.5% agarose gel electrophoresis. The relative fold change of expression was calculated by normalized the expression with GAPDH. The RT-qPCR results were quantified using the ‘threshold line’ and the ‘cycle threshold’. The ‘threshold line’ is the point at which the reaction reaches a fluorescent intensity above background. The cycles at which the samples reach this level is called the ‘cycle threshold’ (Ct). The statistical analysis of the RT-qPCR results was calculated by using the à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Ct = (Ct value of gene of interest – Ct value of GAPDH). Relative gene expression was obtained by à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Ãƒ ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Ct methods (à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Ct sample – à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Ct of control), with the use of the control group as a calibrator for comparison of all unknown sample gene expression levels. The relative gene expression fold change was derived from 2–à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Ãƒ ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Ct (Schmittgen and Livak, 2008). IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL LOCALIZATION (IHC) Immunohistochemistry (IHC) IHC was performed as described by Rocha et al., (2009) using Super Sensitive Polymer-HRP Detection System kit, from Biogenex, USA. The Super Sensitive Polymer-HRP Detection System is a atypical detection system using a non-biotin polymeric technology that makes use of two major components: a Poly-HRP reagent and super Enhancerâ„ ¢. As the system is not based on the biotin-avidin system, the problems associated with endogenous biotin are completely eliminated. The detection of antigens in tissues by immunostaining is a two-step process. The first step involves the binding of an antibody to the antigen of interest and the second step involves the detection and visualization of bound antibody by one of a variety of enzyme chromogenic systems. The choice of detection system will dramatically impact the sensitivity, utility and ease-of-use of the method. Procedure Paraffin-embedded tissue was cut to obtain sections of about 4  µm thickness. The mounted paraffin-embedded slices are deparaffinized in xylene and rehydrated using an ethanol/H2O gradient. Heat mediated antigen retrieval step was carried out for 10 min and then the slides were allowed to cool to room temperature for another 20 min. This was followed by peroxidase block treatment (to block endogenous peroxidase enzyme activity) for 10-15 min and then power block treatment (to block non-specific binding of antibodies to highly charged sites) for another 15 min. The sections were incubated with the concerned diluted primary antibody solution (for 2 h (1:200)) followed by treatment with the super enhancer solution (for 30 min) and super sensitive Poly-HRP solution (for 30 mins). After colour development with DAB and counterstaining with haematoxylin, the sections were observed under the microscope and photographs were taken. TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPIC STUDY The ultrastructure of the heart specimen was examined by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) according to the method of Lang (1987), by the technique of thin sectioning. Reagents Glutaraldehyde solution: 3% Osmium tetroxide: 2% osmium tetroxide in 10 mM sodium phosphate buffer, pH -7.4 Ethanol: 75%, 95% and 100% Uranyl acetate: 1% Lead citrate: 3% Sodium phosphate buffer: 0.1 M, pH 7.4 Procedure Immediately after the sacrifice, the heart tissues were dissected and fixed with a solution of 3% glutaraldehyde for 2 hours at room temperature and washed thrice with phosphate buffer to remove glutaraldehyde. Post-fixation was done by a solution containing 2% osmium tetroxide in 10mM sodium phosphate buffer and left overnight. Then, the osmium tetroxide solution was removed and replaced with 75% ethanol. This reduces the remaining osmium tetroxide to osmium dioxide, which forms a precipitate in the alcohol. After 10 minutes, the alcohol was replaced with a few ml of 75% ethanol. After 30 minutes, the alcohol was replaced with 95% ethanol and left for 30 minutes. This solution was replaced with 100% ethanol and washed thrice and then dried in acetone. After dehydration, the tissues were equilibrated for 30 minutes in 1:1 mixture of epoxy propane and the embedding medium, epon 812 (also called epikote resin-812). A mixture of the resin and two hardening agents, dodecyl succinic anhydride and methyl anhydride were used. A diamine catalyst generally N-benzyl-N-diethylamine was added just before use. The 1:1 mixture was poured off and replaced with full strength resin. This step was repeated several times to ensure full infiltration of the embedding medium. The tissue was then transferred to a beam capsule with a wooden stick and the capsule was filled with fresh resin mixture. The wooden stick was used to tease the specimen down to the center of the bottom of the capsule. Next, the block holder was placed with the specimen in hot air oven at 60 °C for 48 hours to polymerize the resin completely. Once the blocks are hardened, they are ready for sectioning. The ends of the specimen blocks were trimmed using glass knives and ultra thi n sections were cut using an LKBUM4 ultramicrotome. The sections were picked upon carbon grids and post-stained with combined uranyl and lead stain and rinsed with distilled water and dried. After drying, the grids were examined under a Philips EM201C transmission electron microscope (Philips, Eindhoven, Netherlands). WESTERN BLOT ANALYSIS Western blotting was performed to analyze the expression pattern of eNOS in the aorta and reperfused hearts according to method of Laemmli (1970). Principle Following the protein estimation, the samples were separated using SDS-PAGE gel electrophoresis and the separated molecules are blotted onto a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane. After blocking, the primary antibody was added and allowed to bind to the protein followed by washing (which removes non specifically bound antibody); then an enzyme-labeled secondary antibody was added, to detect the primary antibody. The location of the secondary antibody was determined by adding an appropriate substrate for the enzyme conjugated to the secondary antibody. Reagents Acrylamide stock: 30% acrylamide, 0.8% N,N†²-methylene bisacrylamide Separating gel buffer: 1.5 M Tris, pH 8.8 Sample buffer: 0.5 M Tris, pH 6.8 Sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS): 10% Ammonium per sulfate (APS): (10%) N,N,N,N-tetramethylethylenediamine (TEMED) Separating gel overlaying solution: Water-saturated isobutanol Sample Buffer: Tris (0.5M, pH 6.8)-2.5 mL SDS (10%)-4.0 mL Glycerol (100%)-2.0 mL ÃŽ ²-Mercaptoethanol-0.8 mL (or 1 M DDT-0.5 mL) Bromophenol Blue (0.1%)-300  µL Distilled water (400  µl) to 10.0 mL Running gel buffer Tris-6.05 g Glycine: 28.80 g 10% SDS: 10.0 mL or (1.0 g) Distilled water to 1000 mL Staining solution Coomassie brilliant blue R250- 300 g Methanol-80 mL Acetic acid-20 mL Distilled water-100 mL Destainning solution Acetic acid-100 mL Methanol-300 mL Distilled water: 1000 mL Procedure The aortic tissues were homogenized in an ice-cold radio immuno precipitation buffer (RIPA) (1% Triton, 0.1% SDS, 0.5% deoxycholate, 1 mM/L EDTA, 20 mM/L Tris (pH 7.4), 150 mM/L NaCl, 10 mM/L NaF, and 0.1 mM/L phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF)). The homogenate was centrifuged at 10,000 Ãâ€" g for 20 min at 4 °C to remove debris and the supernatant was used to determine the protein concentration of the lysates using the BCA protein assay kit (Merck, India). Transfer of proteins to membrane Samples containing 50 ÃŽ ¼g of total cellular proteins were loaded and separated using 10% SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Following electrophoresis, the proteins were transferred from the gel to a membrane by using semi-dry blotting system (AA Hoefer, SEMIDRY BLOTER, USA). Before assembling the transfer system, soaked PVDF membrane in methanol for 10 minutes and blotting papers in cold transfer buffer. Prepared sandwich, blotting paper, membrane, gel and blotting paper, were placed in the transfer apparatus and few drops of transfer buffer was added and subjected to an electric current 20 V for 1 h under cold condition. After the transfer, the sandwich was removed from the transfer system. Membrane was stained with 0.5% ponceau in 1% acetic acid to confirm equal loading and then washed with distilled water. The PVDF membrane were blocked with 5% blocking solution (containing 5% BSA in 0.5 M Tris-buffered saline, pH 7.5) for 2 h to reduce the non-specific protein binding sites and then incubated with primary antibody (anti-eNOS), in blocking solution with gentle shaking overnight at 4 °C. After this, the membranes were washed with TBST (Tris-buffered saline and 0.05% Tween-20 (TBST)) thrice for 10 minutes interval and then incubated with respective secondary antibody anti-mouse IgG (Sigma-Aldrich, USA) conjugated to horseradish peroxidase. Then the membranes were washed with TBST thrice for 10 minutes interval. The reaction was developed with a DAB detection system (Merck, India). Bands were scanned using a scanner and quantitated by Image J, a public domain Java image processing software, Wayne Rasband, NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA. H9c2 cardiomyoblast cell culture Rat embryonic cardiomyoblast derived H9c2 cells was obtained from National Centre for Cell Science (NCCS), Pune, India. Cells were cultured in Dulbecco’s modified Eagle’s medium (DMEM) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum and a combination of penicillin-streptomycin (1%) in a humidified 5% CO2atmosphere at 37 °C. The assay was performed by seeding H9c2 cells in the concentration of 1Ãâ€"104 cells/well in 96-well plate. In vitro oxidative stress and mitochondrial transmembrane potential study In order to evaluate the cytotoxic effect, viability was checked with MTT assay on D-carvone (25–100  µM) treated H9c2 cells. For assessment of protective potential of D-carvone against oxidative stress, different concentrations of D-carvone (0.1, 1 and 10  µM) were incubated with H9c2 cells for 2 h, and then co-incubated with 500  µM/L H2O2 for further 18 h (Jia et al., 2012; Zhang et al., 2011). For viability analysis, MTT solution (5 mg/mL) was added to each well, and incubated for 4 h at 37 °C. After incubation, optical density (OD) was measured on a microplate reader at 570nm. With the 10  µM dose of D-carvone, the level of intracellular ROS formation was quantified with fluorimetry using redox-sensitive fluorescent probe 2, 7-dichlorodihydrofluorescin diacetate (DCFH-DA). Further, to examine mitochondrial membrane permeability transition (MPT), H9c2 cells were incubated with 5 mg/mL Rhodamine 123 (Rh123) at 37 °C for 30 minutes (Park et al., 2003). The images were acquired using the Olympus IX71 inverted à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡uorescence microscope. Ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) protocol D-carvone was dissolved in 1% DMSO (vehicle) and administered orally to rats using an intragastric tube daily for 7 days. The rats were randomly divided into four groups of six rats per group: (i) control group pre-treated with vehicle alone for 7 days (isolated rat hearts subjected to continuous perfusion). Isolated rat hearts obtained from the following three groups were perfused with a modified Krebs buffer solution for 10 minutes to stabilize the cardiac functions and then subjected to 30 minutes of global ischemia, followed by 60 min of reperfusion: (ii) I/R hearts pre-treated with vehicle alone for 7 days (Control (I/R)); (iii) I/R hearts pre-treated with D-carvone (I/R + D-C 10 mg/kg body weight); (iv) I/R hearts pre-treated with D-carvone (I/R + D-C 20 mg/kg body weight). Langendorff isolated heart preparation The animals were anaesthetized with an intramuscular injection of ketamine (75 mg/kg body weight). After thoractomy, the hearts were rapidly excised and placed in cooled (4 °C) Krebs Henseleit bicarbonate solution [composition (in mM): 118 sodium chloride (NaCl), 4.7 potassium chloride (KCl), 1.2 magnesium sulphate (MgSO4), 1.2 potassium dihydrogen orthophosphate (KH2PO4), 2.3 calcium chloride (CaCl2), 25.0 sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3), 11.0 glucose]. composition (in mM): 118 sodium chloride (NaCl), 4.7 potassium chloride (KCl), 1.2 magnesium sulphate (MgSO4), 1.2 potassium dihydrogen orthophosphate (KH2PO4), 2.3 calcium chloride (CaCl2), 25.0 sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3), 11.0 glucose. The heart was then attached to the cannula through aorta and retrogradely perfused with the Krebs solution maintained at 37 °C and continuously gassed with a mixture of 95% O2 5% CO2. Perfusion pressure was kept constant at 80 mmHg. The ischemia and reperfusion protocol was followed as described previously (Khan et al., 2006; Senthamizhselvan et al., 2014). An elastic water-filled balloon was introduced into the left ventricle through a left atrial incision and connected to a Pressure Transducer (AD Instruments) linked with a PowerLab data acquisition unit (AD Instruments). The balloon volume was adjusted to achieve a stable left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (LVEDP) of 5-10 mmHg. The percentage rate-pressure product [RPP = (LVSP-LVEDP) Ãâ€"HR] and percentage coronary flow was assessed as described previously (Esterhuyse et al., 2005; Ferrera et al., 2009; Swaminathan et al., 2010). Coronary effluent was collected for the estimation of LDH activity. Macroscopic enzyme mapping of infarcted myocardium (Triphenyl Tetrazolium Chloride test) TTC (triphenyl tetrazolium chloride test) test used for a section of the heart tissue. Lie et al. (1975) method was used for the triphenyl tetrazolium chloride test (TTC) analysis acclimated for the macroscopic enzyme mapping appraisal of the infarcted myocardium was completed. A freshly prepared solution of 1% TTC in phosphate buffer was prewarmed at 37-40 °C for 30 minutes in a darkened glass. To remove the excess blood, the heart tissues were washed rapidly in cold water without macerating the tissue. After removing epicardial fat, the left ventricle was taken separately. To obtain slices not more than 0.1-0.2 mm in thickness, the heart was transversely cut across the left ventricles. The heart tissue slices were kept in the covered, darkened glass dish containing prewarmed solution of TTC and the dish was kept in an incubator and heated to 37-40 °C for 45 minutes. The heart slices were turned over thrice and made certain that it remains fully immersed in the TTC solution. At the end of the incubation period, kept the heart slice in fixing solution to fix the tissue. Colour photographs of slices were obtained by a camera with macro lens. The expected reaction of the TTC test was as follows: normal myocardium (LDH enzyme active) turned to bright red, infarcted myocardium (LDH enzyme deficient) turned to uncolored white.

Catcher In The Rye Theme Essay :: essays research papers

Turning your back on the world is not good A major theme of J.D. Salinger’s novel, â€Å" The Catcher in the Rye,† is turning your back on the world is not good. The teenage boy Holden Caulfield demonstrates this theme in the story with the constant negativity he receives as result of his negative attitude. When someone turns their back on the world the consequences are bad. Holden shows this by slacking off leading to his expulsion from school. â€Å" They gave me frequent warning to start applying myself†¦but I didn’t do it. So I got the ax.† Holden proves this theme once more by vandalizing in a fit of rage over the death of his little brother Allie. â€Å"I was only thirteen†¦I broke all the windows in the garage.† Even when Holden does not express his negativity physically he expresses them mentally. â€Å"I’m always saying â€Å"Glad to’ve met you† to somebody I’m not at all glad I met.† â€Å"I felt more depressed much more depressed than sexy.† When a young man turns his back on sex there is definitely something wrong. Even chances for great friendships are ruined when Holden turns his back on a former roommate. â€Å"But I roomed with him for about two whole months, even though he bored me till I was half crazy, just because he was such a terrific whistler†¦.† A chance for romance is ruined also when Holden is annoyed by the supposed inane conversation of his date Sally. â€Å"You give me a royal pain in the ass†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The characters in the book are not oblivious to the fact of Holden’s back turning and negativity.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Holden’s little sister Phoebe could see that he turned his back on school after Holden sneaked in her room early for holiday break. â€Å"You did get kicked out!† His old teacher and good friend Mr. Antolini saw that he had a tendency to turn his back on the world too. â€Å"†¦I can very clearly see you dying nobly, one way or another, for some highly unworthy cause.† Holden finally realizes too that turning his back on people isn’t good. â€Å"Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody.† All the examples of Holden’s back turning in the story show how negativity pushes people away.

Romanticism in Germany :: European Europe History

Romanticism in Germany Romanticism was a European cultural revolt against authority, tradition, and Classical order (the Enlightenment); this movement permeated Western Civilization over a period that approximately dated from the late 18th to the mid-19th century. In general, Romanticism is that attitude or state of mind that focuses on the individual, the subjective, the irrational, the creative, and the emotional. These characteristics of Romanticism most often took form in subject matters such as history, national endeavor, and the sublime beauties of nature. According to historians, the mind-set of the Romantics was completely contradictory to the straightforwardness, impartiality, and serenity of 18th century Classicism. By the 19th century, Romanticism and Classicism had clearly been established and recognized as a major split in art. Masses of Europeans found the concepts of Romanticism appealing and the engagement of these concepts resulted in the reshaping of nineteenth century Germany. The Romant ic Movement played a significant role in intellectual life, influencing the country's nationalistic fervor. Nationalism was born with the French Revolution. Nationalism refers to the belief that the state and the nation should coincide as a single entity. It is best described in the equation 'people = nation = state.' In 1789 the people of France, defined themselves as the nation, took control of the state and the nation state was created. The sense of nationhood was intensified by the internal attempts to overthrow the revolution and by the experience of the war. Victories abroad instilled a feeling of national pride and of national duty. At first the fraternal wish was to free other subject peoples. Then later to civilize Europe by the export of French ideas and by the further control of foreign territory, which was an aim particularly, associated with the Napoleonic Era (1799-1815). Napoleon claimed that the sole purpose of regulating alien territory was to free Germans and Italians, but whilst he reconstructed the frontiers of the European states, he did very little to encourage nation alism directly. Nationalism developed as a reaction to French rule in the geographical areas of Germany. A general feeling of humiliation blanketed the populace of Germany after the invasion and people began to rise up against the empire of Napoleon I. The spirit of nationalism took a stronghold in Germany. Writers began to expound common culture, heritage and language that defined Germans. Works from Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), one of the earlier well respected German philosophers and writers of the time played a significant role in the development of the patriotic insurrection. Romanticism in Germany :: European Europe History Romanticism in Germany Romanticism was a European cultural revolt against authority, tradition, and Classical order (the Enlightenment); this movement permeated Western Civilization over a period that approximately dated from the late 18th to the mid-19th century. In general, Romanticism is that attitude or state of mind that focuses on the individual, the subjective, the irrational, the creative, and the emotional. These characteristics of Romanticism most often took form in subject matters such as history, national endeavor, and the sublime beauties of nature. According to historians, the mind-set of the Romantics was completely contradictory to the straightforwardness, impartiality, and serenity of 18th century Classicism. By the 19th century, Romanticism and Classicism had clearly been established and recognized as a major split in art. Masses of Europeans found the concepts of Romanticism appealing and the engagement of these concepts resulted in the reshaping of nineteenth century Germany. The Romant ic Movement played a significant role in intellectual life, influencing the country's nationalistic fervor. Nationalism was born with the French Revolution. Nationalism refers to the belief that the state and the nation should coincide as a single entity. It is best described in the equation 'people = nation = state.' In 1789 the people of France, defined themselves as the nation, took control of the state and the nation state was created. The sense of nationhood was intensified by the internal attempts to overthrow the revolution and by the experience of the war. Victories abroad instilled a feeling of national pride and of national duty. At first the fraternal wish was to free other subject peoples. Then later to civilize Europe by the export of French ideas and by the further control of foreign territory, which was an aim particularly, associated with the Napoleonic Era (1799-1815). Napoleon claimed that the sole purpose of regulating alien territory was to free Germans and Italians, but whilst he reconstructed the frontiers of the European states, he did very little to encourage nation alism directly. Nationalism developed as a reaction to French rule in the geographical areas of Germany. A general feeling of humiliation blanketed the populace of Germany after the invasion and people began to rise up against the empire of Napoleon I. The spirit of nationalism took a stronghold in Germany. Writers began to expound common culture, heritage and language that defined Germans. Works from Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), one of the earlier well respected German philosophers and writers of the time played a significant role in the development of the patriotic insurrection.

home improvement :: essays research papers

Home Improvement   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To construct a sitcom, like Home Improvement, there are certain media concepts that the show must take into consideration before building a set, and script. The medium that is chosen determines the format of the text, money limits construction, and the audience limits construction, as well as the lifestyles, and values of the audience. The writers of the show have to determine what dialogue is used in the script, for example the language and word choice that is used. The script also includes choosing a plot, setting, character’s, and narrator’s. To add to this list, the show could not be made possible without a recording environment, such as cameras, a studio to work in, lighting, sound effects, props, costumes, equipment for colouring, and fonts for messages.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The audience has a lot to do with the success of the show. The writers for Home Improvement have to look at the show as a audience member would. If it does not run smoothly and does not show an environment that the audience may not find interesting, can affect the popularity of the show.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Home Improvement is about, a five member normal family that is faced everyday problems, involving either the children or the adults. Tim Taylor, (played by Tim Allen) is a clumsy, hilarious man, who is in love with tools, hosts a television show called â€Å"Tool Time,† while â€Å"raising three hormonally - charged boys into responsible adults,† Brad, ( Zacery Ty Bryan ) and Randy, ( Jonathan Taylor Thomas ) who are always chasing the girls, and Mark ( Taran Noah Smith ) as quoted from an ABC PRIMETIME article, along with the help of his understanding wife Jill (played by Patricia Richardson .) Jill and Tim seem to have a healthy relationship between the two of them.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Meanwhile, Wilson, the Taylor’s unusual neighbour, serves as a teacher or a guide for Tim, or anyone else who has a problem. Wilson is always there when Tim needs to talk.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Al Borlan, ( Richard Karn ) is Tim’s best friend, and also his co-worker on the television show â€Å"Tool Time.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Heidi, is the â€Å"Tool Time Girl† who always introduces Tim Taylor for the show â€Å"Tool Time.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Every episode the audience expects a on-going scenario, for example Tim always getting hurt or Al always to be joked upon, these are the parts of the show, that the views keep wanting to come back to watch.

Relationships in Love Medicine

Rachel Robinson April 15, 2013 Multicultural Literature Christian Davis Relationships in Love Medicine Love Medicine is a series of short stories that was written by Lousie Erdrich in 1984 and covers a time span of 60 years. Love Medicine is set in North Dakota on an Indian reservation known as Turtle Mountain. Although the novel is fiction, the cultural, social, and economical aspects depicted are very realistic. Hertha Sweet Wong describes Love Medicine as â€Å"Metafiction, ironically self-conscious in its mode of telling, concerned as much with exploiting the process of storytelling as with the story itself. (35) Erdrich’s Love Medicine is not so much based on plot as on several key relationships. These relationships include; the love triangle between Marie, Nector, and Lulu; June and how her death made an impact on other characters and Lipsha a key figure to understanding the novel. June is introduced at the beginning of the novel by telling the story of her death. Altho ugh June is dead through the entire novel her memory lives on as her family and friends recall memories they shared with June and even some of their own memories throughout the novel. June will figure throughout the novel as a touchstone for the other characters† (Sweet Wong 57) June’s death affected all of the characters in the novel. June is â€Å"†¦the erratic and once vivacious beauty of the family†¦Ã¢â‚¬  as described by Sweet Wong. (38) June left behind her husband Gordie and her son King, along with her lover Gerry whom she also had a son with named Lipsha. Every character in the book is impacted by June’s death. June is said to be â€Å"the catalyst for the narrations that follow, stories that trace the intricate and often antagonistic relationships in the two families from which she came† (Sweet Wong 38).Junes son, King, buys a car with the money he receives from his mother’s death. The car is a shiny new sports car, which the o thers do not go near to because they are afraid that it is a ghost. June’s death also affected her niece Albertine’s relationship with her family. Albertine’s mother did not invite Albertine to the wedding but instead sent her a letter explaining to her that her Aunt June was dead and already buried. Albertine was very upset with her mother and refused to speak with her because of the way she handled the situation.Lipsha Morrissey is June’s abandoned son and is arguably the key figure to understanding the whole novel. Lipsha is the one who makes the love medicine, from which the title of the novel comes from. Lipsha’s first attempt at using the love medicine was for his grandparents who were on the verge of splitting because his grandfather, Nector, does not love his grandmother, Marie, anymore. Lipsha fails in getting a blessing from the priest and a nun and therefore makes the medicine incorrectly. He then tries to give it to his grandfather but he refuses to take it suspecting foul play.Lipsha knows that the medicine will not work unless both his grandmother and grandfather take the medicine so his grandmother, who also wanted to resolve the relationship, forces her husband to eat the heart. She forces it down his throat and Lipsha’s grandfather ends up chocking and dying from it. This causes Lipsha to realize that his meddling with the love medicine was very dangerous and not something to take lightly. Lipsha is a key figure to the novel because he shows how the love medicine is very dangerous.Lipsha learned a lesson through his actions of meddling with the love medicine. Lipsha shows us what happens when the love medicine is misused. â€Å"I could tell him it was all my fault for playing with power I did not understand. Maybe he'd forgive me and rest in peace† (212-13). Lipsha acts based upon how he feels rather than what is logical. He really understands the meaning and purpose of life. Lipsha sees how his grandmother, Marie, is hurting and helps her out. Nector has a confusing and complex relationship with two women, Lulu and Marie that unfolds throughout the novel.According to Hertha Sweet Wong, â€Å"Nector also articulates the strategy he will follow throughout the course of his life: he goes consistently with the current never fighting very strongly if at all† (62). Although Nector married Marie he loves Lulu and cannot get pass these feeling for her. Nector’s marriage with Marie is pretty happy until he realizes he is still in love with Lulu. Nector begins having an affair with Lulu that lasts for five years. Although the affair is intended for Nector to finally get what he has yearned for his whole life it suddenly turns into a complicated mess.What started as a carefree affair with the love of his life turned into a strict scheduling of when he as to see Lulu and get time away from Marie. The relationship became serious and turned into something that Nector need ed. He made Lulu into what seemed like a second wife and turned this care free love into a chore. Nector became controlling over Lulu and wanted her to only be his. Everything increased in complexity when Lulu had Nectors child. Nector gets fed up with the double relationships tries to leave Lulu. Once he realizes he cannot bear to be without her he decides to tell Marie he is leaving her for Lulu.To add to the complexity of the situation, Nector accidentally burns down Lulu’s house in the middle of all of this. With the mess of events Nector caused he ends up staying with Marie until he is out in a retirement home at an old age. At this retirement home Nector has very poor memory. Lipsha tells us of how Nector begins an affair with Lulu once again at the retirement home. Marie is desperate for Nector to remain faithful to her and searches for a way for him to be forced to. Her solution is to ask for help from Lipsha to make love medicine that will keep Nector faithful.Lipsha messes up in the process of making the medicine and Nector ends up dying from it. This seemed to be the only way to ultimately resolve the conflict between the women. â€Å"Love Medicine is a powerful novel. It develops hard, clear pictures of Indian people struggling to hold their lives together, hanging on to the edge of the reservation or fighting to make a place for themselves in bleak mid-western cities or devising ingenious ways to make more break for freedom, but its most remarkable quality is how it manages to give new form to oral tradition† (Sweet Wong 42).The characters in Love Medicine intermingled and interacted with each other in a way that takes priority over the plot of the novel. June was not alive throughout the novel but her death and figure played a very significant role in the novel. â€Å"June’s loss will underscore each character’s sense of identity when the tribal community and, concomitantly, each character’s potential for survi val† (Sweet Wong 57) Lipsha is a very important, if not the most important, character in the novel.Lipsha was the one who made the love medicine and intermingled in the other people’s love lives. Nector’s love triangle with Lulu and Marie is a complicating mess that is a key part to the novel. Nector was never satisfied with what he got and always wanted more. In the end he could not have what he wanted and ended up with neither of the women. All Marie wanted was for Nector to stay faithful to her but Nector’s heart belonged to Lulu.

Discrimination and Extreme Prejudice Essay

RaStereotyping is a way of thinking about groups of people. It ignores the differences of the group, while emphasizing its similarity. One belief, that is a stereotype, is that red-haired people are hot tempered. Another belief is that Scottish people are stingy. Such thinking ignores many even-tempered redheads and generous Scottish people. Stereotyping emphasizes many differences between groups while ignoring their similarities to other people. It ignores that many blond and brown-haired people also lose their tempers. Stereotyping overlooks the fact that many American, Brazilians and French people are stingy. Stereotyping redheads or Scottish people usually does little harm. It typically leads to friendly kidding and good-natured jokes. Simple-minded stereotyping can be dangerous. The danger lies in exaggeration of differences in color, nationality, religion and language. We exaggerate the differences, ignoring what we share as human beings and become prejudiced. Prejudice is nourished by fear as it grows out of exaggeration. It is a profoundly negative emotion bearing the fruit of hatred. Racism is a form of extreme prejudice that leads to physical and psychological violence. Racists can be any color: white, black, brown, red or yellow. A white racist thinks all blacks are alike, while a black racist thinks all Hispanics are alike. In addition, a Hispanic racist may think all Native Americans are alike. The ethnic boundaries of racism â€Å"pigeon hole† another group, while having no boundaries of its own. It only requires a tangible object that can be pointed at, discriminated against, spat upon and attacked. The differences are not important because the attack comes from fear. Racism is expressed in labels including: â€Å"chink†, â€Å"nigger†, â€Å"honky†, â€Å"wop, â€Å"kike† and â€Å"Gook†. Such is the power of stereotypical, simple-minded thinking. My brother was a small child when my family moved from Oklahoma to California, at the end of â€Å"The Depression†. Farmers had advertised in newspapers and flyers that there was plenty of work and good pay, luring families (like mine) from the overworked â€Å"dust bowl† farms. Many native Californians were angry that the â€Å"Okies† were arriving in such large numbers. As my brother entered his new school, he experienced stereotyping, by teachers and classmates. They teased him because he had an accent and wore â€Å"Okie† overalls. He worked hard at trying to fit in, even changing his accent. Though my brother made good grades and was a great athlete, the name calling continued and he remained the subject of many â€Å"Okie† jokes. As he entered high school, the stereotyping became prejudice. The hatred felt for him and others from Oklahoma became evident in the game, â€Å"Get the Okie†, where captured victims were thrown into garbage cans (where they belonged). My brother, who is over 65 years old, suffers from the prejudice he experienced as a young man, remembering the names of those who tormented him. He never understood the hatred directed at him, just because he came from another state.

Descriptive

Mikala Williams Writing Sample Word Count: 469 On the campus of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore there are a plethora of beautiful buildings that signify greatness. The architecture of the buildings is brilliant and gives the campus a sense of exquisiteness. The thoughts that go through the minds of incoming freshman could only be about what there roommate will be like, if they will be able to manage their classes and so on. The living conditions in the dorms are respectable and are suitable for any residential student.But not only is the atmosphere of a campus highly anticipated by incoming freshman, housing and dorms are also apart of the excitement. As a freshman here at UMES, I was assigned to live in a building known as University of Terrace, on the third floor. The dorm is an all girl freshman dorm and is located on the farthest end of the entire campus, getting to classes is quite a walk. Because â€Å"UT† is newest dormitory on campus, it was built away from th e buildings where most classes are held. The dorms are almost perfect in size, not too small or too large.The more space the more miscellaneous things that would become clutter. A bathroom, which isn’t exactly what I’d call home, connects two rooms. First opening the wooden door and pushing the metal handle down, it was cold and didn’t have a â€Å"homey† feeling. Surrounded by white brick walls floored with flattened carpet that seems to go with almost any color. As far as a working space, it’s pretty simple. It includes a basic wooden desk and cushioned chair under it. Once I unpacked and â€Å"spiced up the place† a bit, the room didn’t look too bad.As with every housing building there are rules to be abide by and upheld. My building’s Residential Assistant, better known as RA’s, made it apparent that all residences are required to follow the rules and procedures. Every Tuesday, RA’s conduct weekly room inspect ions, to make sure that residences adhere to keeping the bathrooms and rooms clean and neat. Another great facet of the dorm is that the air-conditioning and heating systems work wonderfully. Although, there are some defects with the dorm regulations.As ar as visitation hours are concerned residence cant just have anyone the rooms. Male visitors can only stay until 2a. m. , but female visitors can stay for three nights in a row. All in all, the housing at UMES is generally a great experience. It’s not too much of a problem that the visitation hours aren’t that great, but that would be a great asset to living in UT. In regard to great assets, the conditions are livable and as long as maintained, that aspect should remain. Even though there are some downsides to staying in the halls, overall the experience is a good one, indeed. Descriptive Shaun Bankston Chris Chandler English 101-526 Descriptive Essay 27 September 2012 The Greatest Sport in the World American NFL football is the greatest sport in the world. Many would ask why I think this. The Gridiron as we all know it is a very magnificent, strategic, and violent sport. Football can easily catch the unknowing eye of anybody. American football is the greatest sport in the world because of the tailgating, my personal opinion, and the strategy of the game.Through rain or shine, day or night, hail or sleet it really doesn’t matter what the weather is to tailgate. No matter what Mother Nature throws at tailgaters, tailgating is all about having fun. A great NFL stadium tailgate is a slight to behold. Tailgating also offer unhealthy, fatty, and grilled food in its godly goodness. People tend to bring elephant size tents with multiple fat screen televisions when tailgating. The only thing on tailgaters minds are football and partying.Tailgaters can even play footbal l with complete strangers and have their own Tailgating Bowl. The majority of American NFL football games are played on Sunday’s. My anticipation for Sunday NFL games is like a kid waiting to open up his presents on Christmas morning. My first time being inside the New Orleans Superdome which is now the Mercedes-Benz Superdome is one of the greatest feelings ever. The crowds were always loud, sounding like twenty eight wheelers revving up at the same damn time.Looking over the saints’ fans can be described as a black and gold sea. The feeling of being at an American NFL football game is like nothing else in the world. It’s like your parents buying you that brand new car you always wanted for your 18th birthday. American Football in my eyes is the most exciting sport in the world. Nearly every football fan thinks he or she can coach a NFL team. No other sport requires so much thinking. Football is a game of strategy and tactics. There are plays and counter-plays, rather than players running themselves illy for 90 minutes straight. Football is like Violent Chess. It's a smart and hard-hitting game, a combination that other sports lack. Due to the NFL tailgating, my personal opinion, and the strategy of the game, Football is the greatest sport on the planet. Football has a lot to offer. What I mean by that is it teaches kids about working as a team and can also teach leadership as well as discipline. Which nowadays is a tough lesson to teach? That in its self is the biggest reason why this sport is so great.

Management Information Systems Essay

Information Systems Failure: The Case of Computer-Aided Dispatch (Cad) System at London Ambulance Service 1. Introduction The LAS covers a geographical area of just over 600 square miles and handles emergencies for a resident population of 6.8 million people. The CAD project is one of the most frequently quoted UK-based examples of information systems failure that took place in early 1990s. The prominence of this particular case is due to the ‘safety critical’ nature of this system and the claim that 20-30 people may have lost their lives as a result of CAD failure. 2. Description of the Manual Dispatch System The manual dispatch system consists of: a) call taking, b) resource identification, and c) resource mobilization. Call Taking: Emergency calls are received by ambulance control. Control assistants write down details of incidents on pre-printed forms. The location of each incident is identified and the reference co-ordinates are recorded on the forms. The forms are then placed on a conveyer belt which transports them to a central collection point. Resource Identification: Other members of ambulance control collect the forms, review the details on the forms and decide which resource allocator should deal with each incident. The resource allocator examines the forms for a particular sector, compares the details against information recorded for each vehicle and decides which resource should be mobilized. The status information on these forms is updated regularly from information received via the radio operator. The resource is recorded on the original form which is then passed on to a dispatcher. Resource mobilization: The dispatcher either telephones the nearest ambulance station or passes instructions to the radio operator if an ambulance is already mobile. A number of problems exist with the manual dispatch system. Most problems are related to the time-consuming and error-prone nature of activities such as: identification of the precise location of an incident, the physical movement of paper forms, and maintaining up-to-date vehicle status information. Therefore, a Computer- Aided Dispatch (CAD) system was considered as a solution to overcome these problems. 3. The Computer-Aided Dispatch System 3.1 Purpose The objective of the CAD system was to automate many of the human-intensive processes involved in the manual despatch system. 3.2 How the CAD system was intended to work The essential features of the CAD system are shown in Figure 1 which illustrates how the system was intended to work in practice. British Telecom (BT) operators would route all 999 calls concerning medical emergencies to LAS headquarters. A total of 18 ‘receivers’ were then expected to record on the system the name, telephone number and address of the caller, and the name, destination address and brief details of the patient. This information would then be transmitted over a LAN to an ‘allocator’. The system would pinpoint the patient’s location on a map. The system was also expected to monitor continuously the location of every ambulance via radio messages transmitted by each vehicle. The system would then determine the nearest ambulance to the patient. Figure 1: The structure of CAD system at LAS Experienced ambulance ‘dispatchers’ were organized into teams based on three zones (south, north-east, and north-west). Dispatchers would be offered details of the three nearest ambulances by the system and the estimated time each would need to reach the scene. The dispatcher would choose an ambulance and send patient details to a small terminal screen located on the dashboard of the ambulance. The ambulance crew would then be expected to confirm that it was on its way. If the selected ambulance was in an ambulance depot then the dispatch message would be received on the station computer. The ambulance crew would always be expected to acknowledge a message. The system would automatically alter HQ of any ambulance where no acknowledgement was made. A follow-up message would then be sent from HQ. The system would detect messages that would tell HQ when the ambulance crew had arrived, when it was on its way to a hospital and when it was free again. 3.3 How the CAD system was built The CAD system was built as an event-based system using a rule-based approach and was intended to interact with a geographical information system (GIS). The system was built by a small software house called Systems Options using their own GIS software (WINGS) running under Microsoft Windows. The GIS communicated with Datatrak’s automatic vehicle tracking system. The system ran on a series of network PCs and file servers supplied by Apricot. 4. Events that Identified the Flaws of the CAD System On the night of the 26th October 1992 (Monday), things started to go wrong at the HQ of LAS. A flood of 999 calls apparently swamped operators’ screens and many of those calls were being wiped off screens for unknown reasons. Claims were later made that 20 to 30 people may have died as a result of ambulance arriving late on the scene. Some ambulances took over three hours to answer a call while the government’s recommended maximum was 17 min utes. Mr. John Wilby, the chief executive officer of LAS resigned within a couple of days of this event. A number of Members of Parliament called for a public inquiry. The Health Secretary initiated an inquiry and the findings were eventually published in an 80-page report in February, 1993, which immediately became headline news in both the computing and the national press. 5. Findings of the Inquiry The inquiry found evidence of poor management practice, high technological complexities and unfavorable operating environment involved in the implementation of the CAD system in LAS. Systems Options, the company responsible for developing the major part of the CAD system had no previous experience of building similar type of systems. This company, which had won the  £1.1 million contract for the development of the CAD system in June 1991, was found to have substantially underbid an established supplier (McDonnellDouglas). Hence, Systems Options was under serious pressure to complete the system quickly. The managing director of a competing software house wrote various memoranda to LAS management in June and July 1991 describing the project as ‘totally and fatally flawed’. It appeared that Mr. Wilby ignored what amounted to an over-ambitious project timetable. Furthermore, an audit report by Anderson Consulting which called for more finance an d longer time scales for the CAD project was suppressed by the project managers. The board of management of LAS was even misled by the project team over the experience of Systems Options and the references supplied by Systems Options were not thoroughly investigated. Due to the extreme time pressure to develop the CAD system within the allocated timeframe, the project team responsible for developing the system practically did not follow any standard systems development approach. As a result, the resultant software was incomplete and unstable. In January 1992, phases one and two of the project began live trials. In March 1992, phase two of the trials was temporarily suspended due to the discovery of system errors. In October 1992, phase three was terminated after two days of reported chaos described above. Questions were raised about the complexity of the technical system. In the manual dispatch system, communication between HQ and ambulances is conducted via telephone or voice radio links. In the CAD system, links between communication, logging and dispatching vi a a GIS were meant to be automated. The automation was completed but no performance testing was thoroughly performed due to the rushed approach to meet the deadline. The system was lightly loaded at start-up on the 26th October, 1992. Any problems, caused by the communications systems (e.g. ambulance crews pressing wrong buttons, or ambulances being in radio black spots) could be effectively managed by staff. However, as the number of ambulance incidents increased, the amount of incorrect vehicle information recorded by the system also increased. This had a knock-on effect in that the system made incorrect allocations on the basis of the information that it had. For example, multiple vehicles were sent to the same incident, or the closet vehicle was not chosen for the dispatch. As a result, the system had fewer ambulance resources to allocate. At the receiving end, patients became frustrated with the delays to ambulances arriving at incidents. This led to an increase in the number of calls made back to the LAS HQ relating to already recorded incidents. The increased volume of calls, together with a slow system and an insufficient number of call-takers, contributed to significant delays in answering the telephones which, in turn, caused further delays to patients. At the ambulance end, crews became increasingly frustrated at incorrect allocations and this led to an increased number of instances where they failed to press the right status buttons. The system therefore appears to have been in a vicious circle of cause and effect. There was also an apparent mismatch of perspectives among LAS management, HQ staff, and ambulance staff. The system has been described as being introduced in an atmosphere of mistrust by staff. There was incomplete ownership of the system by the majority of LAS staff. The hardware and software suppliers involved in this project reported low staff morale and friction between LAS management and workforce. In other words, an atmosphere of hostility towards the computing systems was observed. One of the reasons for low staff morale was that control room staff lacked previous experience of using computer systems. 6. Conclusion In summary, no single element of the case can be regarded as the sole cause for the failure of the CAD system in LAS. The description demonstrates that failure of information systems projects tend to be multi-faceted in nature. Discuss Questions: a) Discuss the CAD system in terms of Interaction Failure. b) What lessons can be learned from the failure of the CAD project in LAS?