Alices Adventures in Wonderland A Child Lost in a World of Adults essays

Alices Adventures in Wonderland A Child Lost in a World of Adults essays Lewis Carrolls Wonderland is a queer little universe where a not so ordinary girl is faced with the contradicting nature of the fantastic creatures who live there. Alices Adventures in Wonderland is a childs struggle to survive in the condescending world of adults. The conflict between child and adult gives direction to Alices adventures and controls all the outstanding features of the work- Alices character, her relationship with other characters, and the dialogue. Alice in Wonderland is on one hand so nonsensical that children sometimes feel ashamed to have been interested in anything so silly (Masslich 107). The underlying message of Alices Adventures in Wonderland is a rejection of The character of Alice is not at all like what you would find in a typical childrens book. The character of Alice herself is a bit puzzling, even to the modern child, because it does not fit a stereotype. How much more unusual she must have seemed to Victorian children, used to girl angels fated for death (in Dickens, Stowe, and others), or to impossibly virtuous little ladies, or to naughty girls who eventually reform in response to heavy adult pressure... But Alice is neither naughty nor overly nice. Her curiosity leads her into her initial adventure and most of the latter ones in the book... (Leach 119). As Alice makes her way through Wonderland , she is faced with many pompous personalities that have their own ways of thinking and do not understand why Alice does not agree with their views. Alice takes into consideration what each character says. After becoming quite confused and disgruntled she learns that everyone in Wonderland is in fact mad. Once she has learned this she politely rejects all offers made by characters and tells them how things are in her mind. More often than not, she is chastised for her opinions, but soon ...

Sophie essays

Sophie essays Sophies World, by Jostein Gaarder, is a fantasy novel that explores the history of philosophy. It takes place in Norway in the 1990s. Some of the themes in the book are philosophy and free will. Dreams in the book often foreshadow events that occur later. Sophie is the primary narrator but point of view begins to switch between Sophie and Hilde. Albert Knags point of view is also told in a few pages of the novel. The story comes to a climax when Sophie and Alberto disappear from the party. The falling action is when Hilde gives Albert Knag a taste of his own medicine, while Sophie and Alberto explore life as a spirit. The characters are Sophie, Alberto, Hilde, Albert Knag, Sophies mother, Joanna, Hildes mother, Sophies father, Jeremy, and Hermes. Sophie is the main character. She is a creation of Albert Knags, and is meant to be a birthday present for Hilde. She is the same age as Hilde and their birthdays are on the same day. She learns from Albert but she thinks by herself. She is critical of everyone around her. She is very mature for her age and is quite the little philosopher. Although Alberto knows more about philosophy than Sophie, when they escape Albert Knags mind and gain an existence of their own, as spirits existing within Hildes world, Sophie gets along better. Alberto is Sophies philosophy teacher. He is a true philosopher in the fact that he thinks he knows nothing. He values time spent with company that can teach him something. In the beginning he is the one teaching Sophie but in the end they treat each other as equals. He holds onto his ability to think as the one thing that makes him human. He is great at reasoning and thinking things out. Hilde is Albert Knags daughter. She is why Sophie and Alberto were created. She is compassionate. She is willing to believe in things no matter what anyone else thinks, like Sophie. On her fifteenth birt...

When Bad Things Happen to Good People by Harold Kushner Essay

When Bad Things Happen to Good People by Harold Kushner - Essay Example In spite of all the misfortunes, Job remains faithful and loyal to God. He does not denounce God, but he insists that he wants more explanation for the misfortunes. His friends such as Bildad, Zophar and Eliphaz claim that it is his fault. However, Job is not convinced with that explanation. The three friends criticized and accused Job for his problems. It is evident that the friends were jealous of Job since he was a man of God and they were Satan’s followers. His three friends pretended to be sorry for what Job was going throughand wept before Job. God came in the form of tornado to speak to Job. He questioned Job’s whereabouts concerning his creation. God also questioned Job’s power and knowledge of animate nature. Finally, God questioned Job’s audacity to correct Him. Job responded by saying that he was unworthy and not significant to question God’s ways and will. After some time, God reappears in the form of a whirlwind and challenged Job to prepare himself like a man ready for a battle. God questioned him if he was convinced of his righteousness than God’s. Job responded by confessing his foolish ways and words. He agrees that God’s ways are the best. Job ends up

Factors in High-Impact Innovation Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Factors in High-Impact Innovation - Term Paper Example Jewkes contextualized his research by noting the underlying mythology about high-impact innovation, which is basically that it requires a lot of manpower, a lot of resources, a lot of money and fancy equipment, and complex bureaucratic support (Jewkes). While not proving the inverse of this notion, his findings indicated more variability than popular assumptions support. In examining an impressive range of high-impact innovations, more than half were done by individuals, working independently and with few resources, either in isolation or within an organization in which they had freedom to experiment and analyze on their own initiative without having to cooperate in a team (Jewkes). Inventing can be a group process, of course, but the kind of individuals who contributed some of the most important discoveries and basic products of the 19th and 20th centuries were not even assigned to a project to do so and, in various intriguing cases, were not even formally qualified in the area they explored, discovered or invented within. Sometimes it was an accident and other times individuals were pursuing interests rather than careers. (Jewkes) Furthermore, it seems that many such individuals are not people who negotiate a career field and social skills that would endear them to a team or get them appointed to a formal position in the area to which they greatly contributed. They are often people who question every assumption, however consensual (Jewkes). They are eccentric and want to be left alone to explore their own curiosity. Many such individuals can be characterized as loners. The work of inventing has private elements to it. Thinking and creative â€Å"messing around† with ideas and materials needs a climate of unconstrained thinking, uninterrupte3d reflection and working autonomy. It can call forth heroic effort. The group dynamics of a team can constrain thinking and redirect creative ideas, or even humiliate them. Cooperation may overly-structure the proce ss and conflict may weaken it. Jewkes notes that the human mind, working alone, can organize and synthesize ideas far more efficiently than a team. There is a loss of creative power when the individual has to adjust to team members. Perhaps these are clues to why so many initial innovations came from lone individuals (Jewkes). Jewkes distinguishes between initial pioneering discoveries and inventions and the development of those discoveries and inventions (Jewkes). Development will generally benefit from the resources and monetary investment, as well as additional input and expertise that can be found in a university setting or in a larger organization. While inspiration and exploration is often initially a private matter, development and exploitation is often a more cooperative and planned one. Some stunning chemical innovations were accomplished by General Motors (Freon refrigerant and tetraethyl lead), but their pattern was more typical of the lone hero, since they are not a chem ical company, but a motor engineering company, and since their innovation involved an element of chance (Jewkes). Large companies have contributed significant innovations out of strong research programs, maybe because research itself has a private, lone hero aspect which can be done with a certain amount of autonomy by an individual or a small team, and merely funded and later expanded by the larger organizati

Business Simulation Games Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Business Simulation Games - Essay Example The blending of content curricular and design simulation technology gives the students risk-free opportunities that test various strategies that drive corporate activities. Our participation in such games gave us a chance of integrating strategic and financial strategies for their virtual businesses (Blazic, Ribeiro & Arh 2012, p. 13).  Serious computer games from a part of the new and emergent educational environment based on sophisticated technologies and elements of entertainment (William & Klass 2007, p. 4). For this case, there is a need to define a serious computer game. A serious game is one whose primary function is to provide education of any type rather than entertainment. The games provoke active learner involvement and as such, they form one of the best learning platforms for the students. There are unique properties of the games that define their relevance to the education system because they attract concentrations that other methods fail to do. This paper is, therefor e, a personal report of the strategies of a game played for group work projects. The paper has eleven parts, which altogether outline the strategies that the game employed and their relevance of the game to real-life situations. After the introduction, the ten remaining parts will proceed in the sequence outlined. Next, there shall be a competitive strategy, external overview analysis, internal summary analysis, the decisions taken, the results, and strategic directions. The remaining parts will discuss the underlying strategic principles, the key learning outcomes and finally, the reflections and conclusion.

Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer Process

Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer Process Attempts at cloning a mammal can be traced back to 1979, where the scientist Steen Willadsen successfully cloned a sheep embryo using nuclear transfer [1]. Since then numerous attempts have been made to replicate these results. Notably the birth of Dolly the sheep (1996) was a major development in this field; as she was the first mammal to be cloned from a fully differentiated somatic cell, using somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) [2]. This essay will describe the process of somatic cell nuclear transfer in light of mammalian cloning and the risks it poses to mammalian reproduction. The fertilization of mammalian gametes through natural reproduction is limited by the ability to preserve desirable traits after the extinction of an individual. Moreover, the reproductive success of natural fertilization is limited by the gestation length, estrus cycle, the efficiency of insemination during intercourse and Hayflick limit [3]. Furthermore, these limitations are chiefly important in livestock agriculture; where desired traits and alleles are more favourable for propagation. SCNT enables us to extract the nucleus of a fully differentiated somatic cell (diploid cells) and introduce it into an enucleated mature oocyte which is allowed to develop into an embryo; that is genetically identical to the host cell [4]. Other variations to this method are practised even though they all rely on the same principles. By this process, the limitations stated above become insignificant as specific mammals with the desired traits can be cloned to preserve the genome. However, this technique is still undeveloped and the success in producing cloned offspring is low. The success rate of SCNT is dependent on several factors; namely, selecting the right donor cell that will be most efficient to the nuclear transfer. In this process, fully differentiated somatic cells are selected based on their cell-cycle state and age. The G0 phase is most desired when selecting the donor cell as it has been shown to be the most effectual donor [5]. Conversely, deprivation of nutrient to the donor cells growing in vitro can also induce the cells to adopt the G0 resting phase. The age of donor cells also contribute to the success of cloning, the more aged the donor cell the less efficient SCNT becomes. Additionally, donor cells that are derived from more genetically diverse species are favoured, as it has been shown that cells obtained from inbred animals are less likely to be successful in cloning [6]. However, these factors are only relative to the limited species that have been examined and more factors may come to light as other species such as primates are subjected to SCNT. Once the donor somatic cells are identified, they are normally extracted from the skin of the donor mammal, using needle aspiration and avoiding unnecessary strain on the donor animal. Oocytogenesis is the process in which females produce oocytes. SCNT uses mature oocytes in metaphase-ll which are collected from the ovaries of the required animal [7]. The mature oocytes are enucleated using micromanipulation which penetrates the zona pellucida and removes the nucleus. There are two alternative routes which can be adopted when manipulating the process of the insemination of the nucleus donor cells into the mature oocytes. First, the Honolulu technique (developed by Wakayama) which uses brain cells, cumulus cells and sertoli cells as donors that are naturally in the G0/G1 phase. The nucleus of the somatic cell is aspirated and directly micro-injected into the oocyte using a piezo-impact pipette; which penetrates the zona pellucid and delivers the nucleus into the enucleated oocyte [8]. The oocytes are subsequently activated by exposing them to a medium containing Sr+2 that also contains cytochalasin-B which acts to prevent the formation polar bodies. Figure. 1[9] shows a diagrammatic representation of the Honolulu technique, highlighting that the nucleus is directly inserted into the mature oocyte. Secondly, the Roslin technique (used to create Dolly the sheep) cultures donor cells in vitro and deprives them of nutrients; forcing the cells to adopt the G0 phase. Subsequently, the enucleated oocyte is aligned next to the donor cell; such that the oocyte and donor cell are parallel to one another. Pulsating electrical currents are applied to fuse the oocyte and donor cell together, by inducing pore formation of the cell membrane [10]. Figure.1In the Honolulu and Roslin techniques the use of chemicals and electrical pulses induce the activation of the oocyte, which can subsequently develop into an embryo which is implanted into a surrogate host for progeny development. The activation of the oocyte induces major reprogramming of the differentiated donor nuclei back to its totipotent state [11]. This process is extremely intricate and the full biochemical mechanisms are not fully understood. However, extensive research has been completed in understanding an overview of oocyte reprogramming and epigenetic modification. The introduction of a somatic nucleus into the oocyte causes rapid deacetylation of histones on lysine residues, catalysed by histone deacetlase. Moreover, the donor chromatins also experience demethylation [12], which is also a method that is used to dedifferentiate the nuclei back to totipotent state. Aberrant or incomplete DNA reprogramming is thought to be a major contributor to abnormal development in embryos and clones which can explain why only 1% of SCNT are successful in producing fully developed clones. Figure.2The efficiency of the Honolulu technique and the success rate of cloning have been shown to be superior to the Roslin technique [12]. However, the overall success rate of cloning, irrespective of the method used is still considerably low, with only 1% success rate. Figure. 2 [13] shows the percentage of embryos surviving prior to implantation with surrogate and post implantation. Moreover, there are several risks associated with clones derived from mammalian SCNT. These risks also have ethical implications that follow. Phenotypic abnormalities that are associated with clones derived from SCNT ranges from aberrant telomere length (which can lead to premature ageing) to large offspring syndrome and irregular placenta development during embryonic growth. The telomere length and ageing of clones are thought to be directly correlated. Telomeres are situated on the ends of chromosomes and consist of numerous repetitive DNA bases that function to stabilise and prevent deterioration of the chromosome [14]. Experimental observations show that some species of mammals are prone to shorter telomere lengths in comparison with a control. It is also thought that the telomeres are not fully restored to the original length during SCNT. Such implications can suggest that the sizes of the somatic cell telomeres are inherited by the clones; therefore producing clones that have already aged [15]. Dolly lived until she was 6 years of age (half the age of an average sheep) and was shown to have shorter telomeres in comparison to a control (19 kb vs. 23 kb) implying that she died prematurely. However, shorter telomeres in clones are not universally applicable as in mice, bovine and cattle all showed similar lengths to their respective control, if not lon ger [16]. The occurrence of shorter telomere lengths in some species suggests that the donor cell species and genetic background govern it. Nevertheless, the exact cause of short telomere length is still not yet fully comprehendible, yet some studies indicate that it might be caused by incomplete reprogramming [17]. Large offspring syndrome (LOS) is characterised by larger than normal clones that have oversized organs and aberrant limb formation which all can lead to an increase in prevalence of organ defects and cardiovascular difficulties. These characteristics have been observed in cattle and can contribute to higher abortions rate and deformities in skeletal structure. However, offspringà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s derived from cloned mammals diagnosed with LOS, were shown not to have LOS [18]. This suggests that again irregular epigenetic reprogramming during SCNT is a contributor to LOS as the progeny of the clones (which are born naturally) fail to have LOS. Embryos that are derived from SCNT have been shown to have abnormal/enlarged placenta development (placentomegaly) during embryonic growth. The abnormalities occur in both bovine and mice [19] and can cause the developing fetus to die during pregnancy. The aberrant placenta in mice is shown to have an increased amount of insulin- like growth factor which can cause LOS in clones. Moreover, failure for the placenta to develop accordingly during the pregnancy of clones can cause immune-mediated abortion [20]. The risks to mammalian reproduction stated above can produce clones that are phenotypically defective which raises ethical concerns. The abnormalities in clones can cause harmful side effects and can lead to cloned mammals suffering. We have seen that some mammals show premature ageing which can ultimately lead to premature death. The welfare of these clones seems to be disregarded in the experiments that are conducted. Moreover, there are concerns that a small proportion of cloned animals can enter our food chain, which is thought to be unsafe. However, recent studies show that consumption of cloned animals is safe to homosapeins [21]. The prospect of human SCNT also has deep ethical implications. Current legislation in all countries prevents SCNT in humans. Nonetheless, the proposed benefits that SCNT offers (therapeutic cloning) may one day outweigh the ethical concerns. If this occurs, it would shake the foundations of tradition, as humans can be à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢producedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ asexually with their genomic sequence known [22]. This can lead to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"gene discrimination by other non cloned humans, and by cooperate companies who can prevent human clones (that may be prone to specific dieses) from obtaining insurance, for example. In conclusion, Somatic cell nuclear transfer has been successfully used to clone mammals from fully differentiated somatic cell. However, this technique is largely inefficient and a major Impediment is that only 1% of somatic cells successfully developed into clone. The lack of understanding on oocyte reprogramming can be contributed to the inefficiency of this technique. Moreover, this has lead to some clones showing abnormal phenotypic features which has major ethical implications. Nevertheless, somatic cell nuclear transfer shows great promise in the fields of medical therapeutics, agriculture and conservation once all aspects of its process are understood.

Early American Settlements :: essays research papers

How Much is Too Much? In order for any society to be successful there must be some kind of law and order. Without some established rules and regulations little would get done and there would be chaos and confusion. But in turn there is another side to the spectrum. At what point are the rules too much? There comes a point in which enforcements are overbearing and hinder the people under them. This often seems to be the case in early American times. Though these early laws benefited the foundation of church and state into a more united community, the often caused many hardships to the citizens under them. In studying laws in early American settlements it seems logical to look at Jamestown first. Jamestown had its problems from the beginning. One of the main ones was the colonists lack of desire to work. The work schedule of the day was considered easy even by modern day standards. Colonists were only required to work 6 hours a day, while the rest was reserved for personal leisure time. This from a colony that was practically starving to death. This is one of the few examples in which the laws in early colonial America were actually not harsh enough. But this was all about to change. By 1611 things were not good in Jamestown. Many more people had died than had survived the harsh east coast winters. People were still frolicking in the streets instead of working hard to ensure their survival. Then Sir Thomas Dale arrives in May of 1611. He was sent to bring discipline among the disorganized colonist, and discipline he brought. He published a set of rules now known as "Dales Laws." Many of these rules called for harsh punishments for what today would be thought of as relatively minor wrong doings. But where these rules too harsh? They did after all end up saving the colony. But at what price? Is it worth killing a man over petty theft of a hoe or axe if it leads to the eventual survival of his society? These are all hard questions with no definite anwsers. But one thing is for sure, had it not been for Dale and his strict enforcements the colony of Jamestown would have certainly perished. Two other early colonies that deserve mention were the Pilgrim colony at Plymouth and the Puritan settlement in Massachusetts Bay. The colonists which resided here were unlike the early settlers of Jamestown in that order was always a primary concern of theirs.