Merits And Demerits Of Qualitative And Quantitative Procedures Psychology Essay

Merits And Demerits Of Qualitative And Quantitative Procedures Psychology Essay Research methods are technique(s) for gathering data (Harding, 1986) and are generally dichotomized into being either quantitative or qualitative. It has been argued that methodology has been gendered (Oakley, 1998), with quantitative methods traditionally being associated with words such as positivism, scientific, objectivity, statistics and masculinity. In contrast, qualitative methods have generally been associated with interpretive, non-scientific, subjectivity and femininity. Quantitative Research Techniques and Procedures Qualitative analysis is a process that is often the precursor to quantitative, statistical work; a process to make the tacit underpinnings of an issue explicit; a process you can use to deepen your understanding of complex social and human factors that cannot be understood with numbers; a process that helps you figure out what to count and what to measure (Kerlin, 1999, p. 1). A common way of conducting quantitative research is using a survey. Surveys usually involve filling in a questionnaire. There are, of course, many different kinds of quantitative research besides the survey. Observational research involves watching or observing various behaviors and patterns. More complicated forms of quantitative research are experimental research or mathematical modelling research (Peter J.P. Donnelly J.H, 2000). In the social sciences, quantitative research refers to the systematic empirical investigation of quantitative properties and phenomena and their relationships. The objective of quantitative research is to develop and employ mathematical models, theories and/or hypotheses pertaining to phenomena. The process of measurement is central to quantitative research because it provides the fundamental connection between empirical observation and mathematical expression of quantitative relationships. Quantitative research is used widely in social sciences such as psychology, sociology, anthropology, and political science. Research in mathematical sciences such as physics is also quantitative by definition, though this use of the term differs in context. In the social sciences, the term relates to empirical methods, originating in both philosophical positivism and the history of statistics, which contrast qualitative research methods. Qualitative methods produce information only on the particular cases studied, and any more general conclusions are only hypotheses. Quantitative methods can be used to verify, which of such hypotheses are true. Qualitative Research Techniques and Procedures Qualitative research is a generic term for investigative methodologies described as ethnographic, naturalistic, anthropological, field, or participant observer research. It emphasizes the importance of looking at variables in the natural setting in which they are found. Interaction between variables is important. Detailed data is gathered through open ended questions that provide direct quotations. The interviewer is an integral part of the investigation (Jacob, 1988). This differs from quantitative research which attempts to gather data by objective methods to provide information about relations, comparisons, and predictions and attempts to remove the investigator from the investigation (Smith, 1983). According to Andrew (2007), qualitative research is a method of inquiry appropriated in many different academic disciplines, traditionally in the social sciences, but also in market research and further contexts. Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons that govern such behavior. The qualitative method investigates the why and how of decision making, not just what, where, when. Hence, smaller but focused samples are more often needed, rather than large samples. According to Andrew (2007), qualitative research is used to denote approaches which are supported by a set of hypotheses concerning the way the social world functions. It deduces many of its basic principles from the perspective that there are fundamental differences between the science of human world and science of natural world and consequently needs to use distinctive methods. Here, attention is focused upon looking at the world through the eyes of studied objects and upon evolving concepts and theories which are grounded in the collecting data. So, qualitative research connected with own accounts of the individuals of their attitudes and behavior. The significance of qualitative research consists in setting stress on describing, understanding complex phenomena. It investigates, for instance, the relationships and patterns among factors or the context in which the activity happens. It is concentrated on understanding the full many-dimensional picture of the subject of investigatio n. Qualitative methods produce information only on the particular cases studied, and any more general conclusions are only hypotheses (informative guesses). The aim of qualitative research is to deepen our understanding about something, and usually this means going beyond the numbers and the statistics. Qualitative research helps us to give reasons why the numbers tell us what they do. It is often contrasted to quantitative research and they are very often used together to get the bigger picture of what we are trying to find out. Qualitative research helps us flesh out the story. Face-to-Face Interviews and Focus Groups The most common forms of qualitative research are face-to-face interviews and focus groups. Face-to-face interviews are just that: Meeting someone in person and discussing various issues. The informant or person you are interviewing may be an expert in a particular field (e.g. the editor of a newspaper) or they may be someone who is affected by the issues you are researching (e.g. someone who is HIV positive or who reads the media). Focus groups involve discussions with two or more participants. While questions for focus groups need to be prepared to guide and focus the discussions, the responses are often free-ranging, as the participants are encouraged to explore the issues at hand in an in-depth way. While focus groups and interviews will help you develop explanations for quantitative data, sometimes they can provide you with quantitative data themselves Basic Differences between Quantitative and Qualitative Research Techniques Quantitative and qualitative research methods differ primarily in: their analytical objectives the types of questions they pose the types of data collection instruments they use the forms of data they produce the degree of flexibility built into study design The key difference between quantitative and qualitative methods is their flexibility. Generally, quantitative methods are fairly inflexible. With quantitative methods such as surveys and questionnaires, for example, researchers ask all participants identical questions in the same order. The response categories from which participants may choose are closed-ended or fixed. The advantage of this inflexibility is that it allows for meaningful comparison of responses across participants and study sites. However, it requires a thorough understanding of the important questions to ask, the best way to ask them, and the range of possible responses. Qualitative methods are typically more flexible that is, they allow greater spontaneity and adaptation of the interaction between the researcher and the study participant. For example, qualitative methods ask mostly open-ended questions that are not necessarily worded in exactly the same way with each participant. With open-ended questions, participants are free to respond in their own words, and these responses tend to be more complex than simply yes or no. In addition, with qualitative methods, the relationship between the researcher and the participant is often less formal than in quantitative research. Participants have the opportunity to respond more elaborately and in greater detail than is typically the case with quantitative methods. In turn, researchers have the opportunity to respond immediately to what participants say by tailoring subsequent questions to information the participant has provided. Merriam (1988) provided a basis for differentiating qualitative and quantitative research techniques based on their characteristics. Characteristics of Qualitative and Quantitative Research Point of Comparisons Qualitative Research Quantitative Research Focus of research Quality (nature, essence) Quantity (how much, how many) Philosophical roots Phenomenology, symbolic interaction Positivism, logical empiricism Associated phrases Fieldwork, ethnographic, naturalistic, grounded, subjective Experimental, empirical, statistical Goal of investigation Understanding, description, discovery, hypothesis generating Prediction, control, description, confirmation, hypothesis testing Design characteristics Flexible, evolving, emergent Predetermined, structured Setting Natural, familiar Unfamiliar, artificial Sample Small, non-random, theoretical Large, random, representative Data collection Researcher as primary instrument, interviews, observations Inanimate instruments (scales, tests, surveys, questionnaires, computers) Mode of analysis Inductive (by researcher) Deductive (by statistical methods) Findings Comprehensive, holistic, expansive Precise, narrow, reductionist However, there is a range of flexibility among methods used in both quantitative and qualitative research and that flexibility is not an indication of how scientifically rigorous a method is. Rather, the degree of flexibility reflects the kind of understanding of the problem that is being pursued using the method. Merits of Quantitative Analysis The use of surveys permit a researcher to study more variables at one time than is typically possible in laboratory or field experiments, whilst data can be collected about real world environments. The usefulness of a survey is that the information you get is standardized because each respondent the person who fills out the questionnaire is answering the exact same questions. Once you have enough responses to your questionnaire, you can then put the data together and analyze it in a way that answers your research question or what it is you want to know. Since case studies follow a structured format, different situations can be compared or analyzed comparatively. Case studies are typically short (often no more than 5 pages long) and usually only contain the essential information needed to present a situation and, if necessary, to describe and properly analyze a problem. Quantitative data can determine when students have achieved or failed a task, and they can provide national ranking, percentiles, and allow researchers to conduct comparison analyses. Nevertheless, they cannot provide the total picture of why a particular student has either succeeded or failed (Burnaford et al., 2001; Gall et al., 1996 and Mc Bride Schostak, 2000). In quantitative research, the researcher neither participates in nor influences what is being studied; thus, he/she examines the circumstances objectively. In some qualitative research, the researcher may play a more subjective role and participate by being immersed in his/her research. That is, the observer may be the teacher or the facilitator. This role is often the case with when action research, case studies, and focus groups are used in educational research. Advantages of surveys Good for comparative analysis. Can get lots of data in a relatively short space of time. Can be cost-effective (if you use the Internet, for example). Can take less time for respondents to complete (compared to an interview or focus group) Specific concrete example; Can help with problem solving; Are often interesting to read. Demerits of Quantitative Analysis A key weakness of quantitative analysis is that it is very difficult to realise insights relating to the causes of or processes involved in the phenomena measured. There are, in addition, several sources of bias such as the possibly self-selecting nature of respondents, the point in time when the survey is conducted and in the researcher him/herself through the design of the survey itself. It could be argued that the quantitative researcher is more precise, but the response would be that with people it is not possible to be so precise, people change and the social situation is too complex for numerical description. Quantitative research has a tendency to clarify where clarification is not appropriate. (Mc Bride Schostak, 2000, pp. 1-2) Disadvantages of Surveys Responses may not be specific. Questions may be misinterpreted. May not get as many responses as you need. Dont get full story. Can take time to develop; Depending on format, may need some level of good writing skills; Do not usually give broad overview of issue at hand. Merits of Qualitative Techniques The approaches of the qualitative research differ from the methods of the quantitative research. Quantitative methods have their aim in dividing into clearly defined parts, or variables. When we research an issue which we know how to quantify, for example, what can be quantified for sure, we may leave out the factors which are crucial to the real understanding of the phenomena under study (Andrew, 2007). Qualitative methods are helpful not only in giving rich explanations of complex phenomena, but in creating or evolving theories or conceptual bases, and in proposing hypotheses to clarify the phenomena. Besides, value of the qualitative research consists in validity of the information received; people are minutely interviewed so as the obtained data would be taken as correct and believable reports of their opinions and experiences. Its major disadvantage is that small group of interviewed individuals can not be taken as representative (Andrew, 2007). Case studies involve an attempt to describe relationships that exist in reality, very often in a single organization. Case studies may be positivist or interpretivist in nature, depending on the approach of the researcher, the data collected and the analytical techniques employed. Reality can be captured in greater detail by an observer-researcher, with the analysis of more variables than is typically possible in experimental and survey research. Another type of qualitative analysis is site visits. Site visits help you understand your research better; site visits (e.g. when you visit an organization, a manufacturing plant, a clinic or a housing project) are very useful and sometimes even necessary ways of gaining additional insight and making your theoretical information concrete in your mind. They allow you to observe what is going on, and to ask questions you may not have thought about. Qualitative research has a phenomenological focus that can provide an enriched and detailed description of the participants actions and/or viewpoints (Veronesi, 1997). Advantages of Face-to-Face Interviews Can allow for in-depth knowledge sharing; Helps to develop the bigger picture; Helps with analysis of results; Good for networking (e.g. you may be referred to other people to interview). Advantages of Focus Groups Good for community participation (grassroots input); Helpful in developing ideas and sharing latent, or hidden, knowledge spontaneously; Enables you to get information from a number of individuals simultaneously. Advantages of Site Visits and Observation Demerits of Qualitative Analysis Case studies can be considered weak as they are typically restricted to a single organization and it is difficult to generalize findings since it is hard to find similar cases with similar data that can be analyzed in a statistically meaningful way. Disadvantages of Face-to-Face Interviews Can be time consuming; May be difficult to arrange an interview time; Can be difficult to compare and analyze information. Disadvantages of Focus Groups Can be difficult to set up; Participants may need to be paid; Need to be sensitive to who the facilitator is; May need a translator; Sometimes difficult to organize and analyze information. Disadvantages of Site Visits and Observation Take time; Can be expensive (depending how far you need to travel); With observation in particular, you need to be careful how you interpret what you see. With site visits, you may want to make sure you have a guide so that you can ask questions However, the disadvantage of the quantitative as well as qualitative research is that they do not always underpin understanding of multi-dimensional pictures (Andrew, 2007).

Slough by Sir John Betjeman Essay -- Poems Poetry Analysis

Sir John Betjeman’s poem, Slough, opens with a wonderful, dramatic stanza. There is huge tension between the ideas of cows grazing and the idea of death. Even in the opening line there is conflict ‘friendly bombs’ is a contradiction in terms, as bombs are almost never thought of as friendly, and Betjeman’s use of this defines what a bad place. Another tool Betjeman employs is rhythm; the stanza is at a steady, predefined pace until the last line where the rhythm is broken with the word ‘Death’, which gives a powerful image of Slough. In the second stanza, Betjeman cleverly compares people’s ‘minds’ and ‘breath’ to tinned products, giving everything a feeling of sanitised dullness, without fresh air. He also uses the form here, listing the everyday tinned items and then adding ‘tinned m...

Tata Nano †a Study on Business Challenges in India

TATA NANO – A STUDY ON BUSINESS CHALLENGES IN  INDIA Introduction Tata Nano, pet project of the chairman of the Tata Group Mr. Ratan Tata was a car which was expected to change the face of automobile sector in India. In the highly competitive small-car market of India, Tata Nano promised to set the bar so high that it would become extremely difficult for the competitors to match. The dream of owning a car for as little as Rupees 1 lakh (Rs. 100,000 – roughly USD2500) was too tempting for millions of Indians who cannot afford even a small car.The kind of extensive media coverage Tata Nano received right from the day it was announced through the entire period until the first units were handed over to the owners was something that its competitors dreamed of. However, after two years of launch, the Tata Nano manufacturing plant at Sanand in Gujrat, India is running at around 20% utilization. People’s Car- It is a common sight in india to see an entire family of fou r travelling on a two-wheeler in heavy traffic and bad road conditions all through the year. Car Ownership across countries – Present and FutureAs can be seen from the IMF report above, car ownership in India is expected to grow exponentially in the coming decades. India’s Growth in GDP Per Capita Combining the predictions about car ownership in India with the growth in GDP per Capita in India, we can clearly see why the automobile sector, especially the small car market is one of the most competitive sectors in India at present. In a market like this, a car like Tata Nano had the potential to sell like hot cakes. But it didn’t. Let us now try and understand why Tata Nano was not able to meet industry expectations. Reasons for SetbacksTata Nano (Photo credit: Wikipedia) Too Many Crises – Since its launch with great fanfare in 2009, the Nano has survived from one crisis to another. There was opposition to Tata’s original plans to site the factory in West Bengal, as discussed later, forcing a last-minute scramble to switch the site to Sanand. It opened last summer, but not enough cars came off the production line to fulfill the early orders. To make matter worse, a few cars catching fire on road, raising fears about the Nano’s safety. Price –Nano’s price, which was supposed to be its USP, is apparently one of the major reasons behind its low sales.For majority of Indians, owning a car is not about utility or mobility; it is a dream, ambition and status symbol; just like a house. So, the low price of Nano does not turn it into an asset. It becomes more like a commodity. Also, the initial marketing and promotion of Nano gave the average consumer the idea that owning a Nano would somehow be a confirmation of their poverty, and not a way to get out of it. Ironically, a big number of Nano’s buyers buy Nano as their second or third car after already owning another car. This segment is not the segment initi ally targeted by Tata.Resale-The re-sale car market gives stiff competition to the Nano. A 3-4 year old used car originally costing 3-4 lakh in on-road price (like Chevrolet Spark and Maruti Alto) can pose a stiff challenge to Nano given the relative price-parity that emerges when it comes to re-sale. For instance, Nano’s Mumbai on-road price for Std BSIII model pegged at 1. 51 lakhs is a few walks away from the Rs. 2 lakh plus used-car-version ‘Spark’. People, who may go for the advanced model Nano Cx BSIII, may consider opting for ‘Spark’ or ‘Alto’ given that the said Nano model costs around 1. 2 lakh rupees. In fact, Nano seems to have failed to pose a challenge to the market players in this re-sale car niche segment. Needless to say, there is not much value extracted from a Nano upon resale either. Rescuing Nano – To improve Nano’s market performance, Tata motors is trying to expand to other regions searching new market s for Nano. Given its modular design, Nano can be assembled and manufactured in practically everywhere on the planet. Hence, Tata is looking at SAARC nations, Latin America and other regions, where the economic conditions are similar to India.Also, Tata is contemplating coming up with Nano electric models and even a Nano diesel version After suffering setbacks with the initial market response, Tata Motors hired Carl-Peter Forster, a former boss of General Motors Europe as head of Tata Motors in February 2010. After taking charge, Forster realized that he will have to reinvent the Nano business model. There was no real national distribution scheme, very little marketing and advertising, and no effective system of consumer finance. The irony was that many rural Indians never got to hear bout or have the opportunity to see the car that was supposed to help transform their lives. Issues with Nano The Nano’s marketing problems began with its product positioning. The price crept up by around 15%, putting it out of the reach of first-time buyers with no regular employment or payslips to back an application for credit. And by emphasising its cheapness rather than its basic but appealing qualities, it deterred slightly better-off consumers who could afford one but aspired to more sophisticated vehicles, such as those from Tata’s biggest rival, Maruti, the leader in India’s small-car market.Political Controversies – Nine months after the Tata Nano was unveiled to much fanfare, and with only weeks before the first car was scheduled to roll off the assembly line, Tata announced it was pulling out of West Bengal where work was near complete on the assembly plant. Company Chairman Ratan Tata noted that Tata Motors had already invested 15b rupees (US$343m) in the small car project. But they had forgotten a vital detail which is a must for big investors looking to start big-idea investments on land owned by poor, mostly illiterate peasants in devel oping countries.At the bottom of the Singur peasant resistance was the need for a land reform that enables peasants to have real choices on whether to continue farming or do something else. For Tata Nano, the government of West Bengal persuaded more than 10,000 peasants in Singur to accept compensation for 1000 acres of farmland on which the Nano plant would be built. However, almost right from the start, as many as 2000 peasants refused the compensation, and demanded their land back. Farmers complained that the state communist government forcibly took their land to give to Tata.With the help of the opposition parties, peasants opposed to the land acquisition filed petitions in court. In January, a Calcutta High Court threw out all the complaints, ruling that there was â€Å"no violation of the Land Acquisition Act or any other regulation† by the West Bengal government in acquiring the land. But never ever underestimate the tenacity of angry peasants. When legal avenues were shut, Singur peasants took to the streets, organising daily protests and roughing up workers employed of the Nano factory.As the protesters grew more menacing, Ratan Tata was forced to acknowledge the possibility of never seeing a single Nano roll off the plant in Singur. While Tata was contemplating the future of his pet project, ad one of the most audacious projects in the history of Tata Motors, Narendra Modi – the Chief Minister of the Indian state of Gujrat approached him and promised to provide all support needed for Tata to move the plant form Singur to Sanand. Finally, Tata decided to move to Sanand and the first Nano rolled off the assembly lines at Sanand soon after.Yet, even as it managed to relocate and hit the market with slight delay, Tata needs to reflect on what happened in Singur to avoid running into the same problem elsewhere. Part of the problem was lack of clear and transparent negotiation between peasant representatives, Tata and the government of West B engal. Although the West Bengal government gave peasants compensation package that was way above the going rate, the lingering perception among the peasant was that a huge chunk of the money was creamed off by corrupt government officials.To avoid this perception, true or false, Tata should have negotiated directly with peasants, by-passing the West Bengal government. Secondly, even as Tata boasted of an initial start-up of 250,000 Nanos from the Singur plant, providing thousands of jobs to residents, it failed to make Singur residents take ownership of the plant. To the people of Singur, wealthy Tata was coming to grab their land to make billions of dollars for itself. Nano on Fire –  To make matters worse, three Nanos have caught fire because of some reason or the other since its launch raising serious questions about its safety and severely damaging its Brand Equity.Though Tata Motors has not commented on the reasons behind the fires, there has been strong word-of-mouth negative publicity towards the car. Recommendations Tata Nano has been a very interesting case about studying business in India and other emerging markets. It has seen some very interesting highs and lows which are unique to the Indian market. However, following recommendations can be made: 1. Clean up the Brand Image – Nano first of all needs to re-establish itself as a credible brand. This might be the hardest thing to do given the beating the brand image has taken because of the fires.Nano would need to aggressively work on its PR and show how the accidents are not because of flaws in Nano’s design but because of some unfortunate external factors. 2. Define a clear Marketing Strategy – Nano needs to have marketing strategies to target its real consumer segment which is the masses of India and showcase the Nano as an aspirational product for them instead of coming across as an accessory for the rich. 3. Focus on Other Countries – Export Nano to Indonesi a, Eastern Europe and also Brazil as well as Southeast Asia where it can be sold without the bad name it has earned in India. . Use Shareholder base of Tata – Tata Motors have a shareholder base of around 350,000 right now. It could be utilized to boost Nano sales through discounts etc. 5. Rework on Pricing – when Nano started, a major challenge was to prove whether it was possible to manufacture a car which can be sold at the price of Rs. 1 lakh. That point has been proven. The real challenge now is creating profitable car business. If Tata starts pricing its Nano in a range where it is more cost-effective, it would first, reduce the losses Tata incurs per car, as well as give the brand a facelift.

Tenars Psychic Growth Essays - Analytical Psychology, Earthsea

Tenars Psychic Growth Essays - Analytical Psychology, Earthsea Tenar's Psychic Growth ?For most people the years of youth are characterized by a state of gradual awakening in which the individual slowly becomes aware of the world and of him or herself,? states Carl Jung in Man and his Symbols (pg. 168). This is usually accomplished through dreams or real events that foresees the future in a symbolic form. Tenar, later named Arha, was a little girl when she was taken to Atuan to become the new High Priestess. There she was taught the ways of the High Priestess, as she was to become one when she grows older. In Atuan, young Arha journeys through her mind and progresses through her psychic growth in order to leave her childhood. Along this road she encounters many characters that guide and mislead her as she grows. As one reads Tombs of Atuan, one may recognize that the story of Arha and her passage from darkness of her childhood world to the light of her mature world is structured around Carl Jung?s dream theories. When Tenar became the ?Chosen One? for the High Priestess in Atuan, she was compelled to adjust to this new life and new surrounding. She was brought up in the Kargish lands with her family of many siblings and a mother and a father, but Atuan was a whole new place with mostly women training to be priestesses. As Jung puts it, ?When a child reaches school age, the phase of building up the ego and of adapting to the outer world begin.? (pg. 168). As Tenar was to become the next High Priestess she was led to live in loneliness as she was different from the rest of the priestesses in Atuan. She was made to live in her own dwelling, the Small House where no one else was to sleep in. Jung describes this phase of the building up of the ego, as the time when children feel different from their contemporaries, and this feeling of uniqueness brings sadness, that is part of the loneliness of children. During Tenar?s first years in Atuan she wanted to discover herself by contradicting the rules of becoming a High Priestess. Tenar and her counterpart, Penthe, decided to evade their chores of weaving in the Big House and slipped out to the outer walls of Atuan, but their attempts to have fun were foiled by the High Priestess of the Twin Brothers, Kossil. Arha desired to figure out why she was there, and what her purpose was in Atuan. This process of self realization or coming to terms with one?s inner self is known as individuation, which begins with a wounding of the personality and suffering (pg 189). This wounding of the personality is caused by something external, and thus the ego, being obstructed from its growing, denounces God or someone of authoritative figure, and in Tenar?s case it would be Kossil. Tenar suffered a personality shock when Thar says, ?It is not fitting that you are seen climbing and running with other girls. You are Arha.? Implying that Tenar is not to associ ate with the other girls of Atuan. She is supposed to stay in solitude. Jung describes this as a time when everything is all right, but underneath the surface [Tenar] is suffering from boredom that makes everything seem meaningless and useless. What was all this teaching for? Why did Arha, or Tenar, undergo something that seemed so endless and meaningless. It wasn?t until Arha was introduced to the ?Ring of Keys? that things changed. Arha was acquainted with something new from her personality that she didn?t know was part of the High Priestess?s duty. Le Guin correlates this part to Jung?s idea that: ?Through dreams one becomes acquainted with aspects of one?s own personality that one has preferred not to look at too closely.? This was his idea of the ?realization of the shadow?. Arha never looked into the idea that she would actually be able to have the keys to the Undertomb which would later lead to the Labyrinth. These keys unlocked the entrance to the shadow, the Labyrinth, surrounding her young, small ego. The Labyrinth exemplified her shadow, the unconscious and unknown personal attributes of oneself. As soon

Free Essays on After The First Death

Kate extraordinary bravery and weakness The term terrorism is a word that catches a lot of people’s eyes. For instance the terrorists that attack America last week, September 11, 2001; the time frame was around eight thirty Central Time, this was the â€Å"Attack on America,† by terrorists from a foreign country. It is kind of like what’s going on in the book After the First Death, where terrorists have hijacked a school bus. Which a girl by the name of Kate was driving the bus with a lot of little children on it. She was substituting for her uncle the day of the hijacking. Artkin and Miro were the two that hijacked the bus. Miro had the intentions of killing a man today, but Kate was on the bus. The killing of a man was the way of reaching manhood. Kate was the typical All-American cheerleader but she had a slight bladder problem. Throughout the novel Kate is brave but at the same time confused. Kate has a very unique side to her. Kate is driving the bus to the location that Artkin and Miro wanted her to drive. Kate wasn’t used to taking demands from people, but in this situation she did. The weakness that Kate has is a weak bladder. The bladder problem comes about on the way to the abandoned bridge that, â€Å" her pants were wet- her panties†¦she gripped the steering wheel†¦but these things didn’t matter.† Whenever she gets nerves like in this situation of the hijacking her bladder problem comes up. Why does Comier give her a bladder problem? â€Å"She felt like crying the way she had when she was a little girl and crying solved things, brought rescued.† She felt like crying the way she used to when she was a little girl because she thought she would have gotten rescued. Kate was a very brave person in the hostage situation, she knows that she has to show no fear in for her and the children’s benefit. â€Å"She rips at the edge of the tape.† She tries to make an escape because she’s thinking that she really doe... Free Essays on After The First Death Free Essays on After The First Death Kate extraordinary bravery and weakness The term terrorism is a word that catches a lot of people’s eyes. For instance the terrorists that attack America last week, September 11, 2001; the time frame was around eight thirty Central Time, this was the â€Å"Attack on America,† by terrorists from a foreign country. It is kind of like what’s going on in the book After the First Death, where terrorists have hijacked a school bus. Which a girl by the name of Kate was driving the bus with a lot of little children on it. She was substituting for her uncle the day of the hijacking. Artkin and Miro were the two that hijacked the bus. Miro had the intentions of killing a man today, but Kate was on the bus. The killing of a man was the way of reaching manhood. Kate was the typical All-American cheerleader but she had a slight bladder problem. Throughout the novel Kate is brave but at the same time confused. Kate has a very unique side to her. Kate is driving the bus to the location that Artkin and Miro wanted her to drive. Kate wasn’t used to taking demands from people, but in this situation she did. The weakness that Kate has is a weak bladder. The bladder problem comes about on the way to the abandoned bridge that, â€Å" her pants were wet- her panties†¦she gripped the steering wheel†¦but these things didn’t matter.† Whenever she gets nerves like in this situation of the hijacking her bladder problem comes up. Why does Comier give her a bladder problem? â€Å"She felt like crying the way she had when she was a little girl and crying solved things, brought rescued.† She felt like crying the way she used to when she was a little girl because she thought she would have gotten rescued. Kate was a very brave person in the hostage situation, she knows that she has to show no fear in for her and the children’s benefit. â€Å"She rips at the edge of the tape.† She tries to make an escape because she’s thinking that she really doe...

Unforgettable day Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Unforgettable day - Essay Example Together with my family in the silence, I understood for a moment the deadness that people feel in the primeval desert. It was very difficult to imagine and see a place without human existence. I almost believed that the primitive land will be grateful after the departure and absence of the tourist as the desert, and its creations will return to their ancient states undisturbed by the anxious and brooding men. I stood on the open, out of the underworld. A thousand feet below me were a curving ridge of sandstone that was existing to the eye, a tiny feature that was lost in the vastness of the canyon systems. Far in the east was an isolated storm that was boiling over the desert as a mass of clouds that was bordering the earth surface with trailing curtains of rain and lightning. A land where there is few signs of life and were rivers flow unseen through the trenches in the rock. Other scenery consisted of golden dunes, desert lakes, alluvial fans, plateaus, playas and desert animals i .e. snakes, camels and birds. Strolling on with my family, it seemed that the strangeness and wonder existence of the desert was really emphasized here by the comparative scarcity of the fauna and flora. Desert life is not overcrowded place but plants here are scattered abroad in simplicity and sparseness. The living organism stood out bold and brave with a generous gift of space defined between each tree, bush or stem of grass existing vividly against the lifeless rocks and sand. In the desert, there is no any shortage of water. Rather, water in the desert is extremely in the appropriate amount creating a perfect ratio between water and rock insuring the generous space between plants and animals, cities and town. Really the desert is quiet a very different place from other parts of the nation. As a family, we were to spend the night in two tents in the desert. I was afraid but the presence of my brothers who were elder than me mad me stronger. We played soccer in the evening

Elements of Lean Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Elements of Lean Paper - Essay Example We can therefore refer to lean manufacturing as a business model as well as collection of tactical methods which emphasizes on waste elimination and at the same time delivering quality products that are cost effective on timely basis. In this study we are going to explore the elements and core disciplines of lean manufacturing and services in software development organization. The previous emergence of Agile software development methods as well as the lean principles have brought about the thinking of lean for the interest of the software community (Kaikkonen et al, 2014). Based on lean thinking, five principles are revealed by Kaikkonen et al (2014) in the discussion of lean principles. These principles also happen to be the core elements of lean in software development, the elements are; flow, value, value stream, pull, and perfection. These elements are relevant in the creation of a lean enterprise with the concepts of value as the heart of lean thinking. With value stream, value adding and wasteful activities are necessary for bringing a product or even service into existence. This is achievable when focus is put on improvement efforts. When value adding activities are carried out smoothly, the element of flow comes in. This is to mean that at every given point of the value stream, maximum value from the perspective of the product is added. Another el ement in this case is the pull; it simply means that any upstream process would not result as product of goods and services until a signal to do so is issued from the downstream. These three principle elements and the other two generate massive gains in the software development organization. Elements required by the organization to move towards the lean environment are waste and value as they happen to be the heart of lean thinking (Kaikkonen et al, 2014). Based on lean, value is viewed from the perspective of the customer as anything they appreciate. On the general business perspective it can be typically