ETMA05 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

ETMA05 - Essay Example Under each respective heading a review of the advantages and disadvantages of litigation and ADR will be provided. The section titled â€Å"The ADR Process† will focus on exploring the issues which should be considered before making a decision whether or not ADR is suited to a particular case. This section mainly focuses on the Civil Procedure Rules 1998, particularly the overriding objective, which provides assistance in determining whether or not a case is suited to the ADR process. The section titled â€Å"Civil Trial† considers the advantages and disadvantages of litigation as a form of dispute resolution. Conclusion In the Conclusion, the findings will be summarised then an opinion shall be formed. This is in respect of what issues a solicitor should consider with a client before deciding if the case is suited to the ADR process. The conclusion refers to the main points in the Introduction and draws a close to the detailed points made in the main body of the essay. Question 2 Introduction Alternative dispute resolution (‘ADR’) is the term given to a variety of methods of resolving disputes other than by initiating court proceedings. Some examples of ADR are negotiation, mediation, arbitration, conciliation and adjudication. The various different forms of ADR vary considerably in terms of the procedure they adopt and the outcomes they are able to produce. For instance, arbitration is more akin to the court process, as it can produce a decision which is binding on the parties. Mediation, on the other hand, is more flexible in the approach which is adopted and the outcome can only be determined by mutual agreement between the parties. Irrespective of which form of ADR is used however, ADR now plays an important role in the English legal system. The important role ADR now enjoys largely results from a major review of the civil court rules and procedures in March 1994, which was carried out by Lord Woolf. The principal objective of th e review was to improve access to justice, whilst reducing the costs associated with litigation, thereby making the system more lay person friendly by reducing complexities, and removing unnecessary differences between practice and procedure. The review resulted in the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (‘CPR’), which came into effect on 26th April 1999. Albeit, even prior to the introduction of the 1998 Rules, it became apparent that ADR was going to play an important part in the new civil justice landscape. ADR is now an entrenched and integral part of the new civil justice system. The new civil justice system therefore operates on the premise that, inter alia, litigation ought to be avoided wherever possible. Where litigation is deemed necessary, however, Lord Woolf’s opinion was that the procedure ought to be less adversarial and more cooperative. ADR is a process that neatly fits into this new civil procedure framework. In fact, under the new CPR a party/person who fails to seriously consider ADR at the pre-trial stage could expose that party to a penalty at the costs stage of the litigation process. It follows therefore that legal representatives are under a professional duty to consider ADR, as an alternative to litigation, as a means of reaching an amicable settlement. Collectively all methods of resolving disputes

The mechanisms that underlay the repairs of DNA damages Thesis

The mechanisms that underlay the repairs of DNA damages - Thesis Example Cytarabine is used in the treatment of acute cases of lymphomas and leukemia. The key mutants to be acted upon are deoxyribonucleoside kinase and deoxycytidine kinase. Using S. pombe provides a greater advantage as it can be easily manipulated both physically and genetically. It also helps to understand the DNA repair mechanism in higher eukaryotes. In its natural form, yeasts do not contain a particular transporter and the particular kinase used to phosphorylate nucleoside analogues. Therefore, in this project, the S. pombe in use is adapted in that it contains deoxynucleotide kinase (dmdHK) which is found in Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) and is important for their phosphorylation (the addition of a phosphate molecule on to a protein molecule or any other organic molecule). It also contains the human membrane transporter (hENTI) which allows the nucleoside analogue to directly interfere with the processes taking place within the cell. 2.1.0 Material used in the practical 2.1.1 S. pombe strains The S.pombe strains used in this practical are listed below: WT: h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 URA4aim Swi10: (h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 swi10::KanMX URA4aim) Removal of damage in nucleotide excision repair. exo1: (h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 exo1::URA) Removal of damage in mismatch repair. rhp14: (h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 rhp14:: KanMX URA4aim). Recognition of damage in the process of nucleotide excision repair. rad50: (h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 rad50:: KanMX URA4aim) of the MRN(Mre11,Rad50,Nbs1) complex, for repair of double strand breaks. rad32D65N: (h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 rad32D65N URA4aim). Mre11 nuclease dead, lacks the activity of Mre11 in double strand breaks repair. 2.1.2 Medias Liquid 2.1.2.1 EMM+Glut {(EMM broth without nitrogen 109.2 g + Glutamic acid 15g) liquid + Granulated agar 10g} solid . 2.1.3: Preparing Agarose gel: first PCR Procedure: 1. With the use tape, seal all the borders of a dry and cle an glass plate. This is important for forming mold. 2. Prepare 50ml 10X TBE (Tris-boric acid-EDTA) buffer for the preparation of the gel. 3. Add 0.8% of powdered Agarose to the TBE (Tris-boric acid-EDTA) buffer in an Erlenmeyer flask. The buffer should occupy less than 50% of the total flask volume. 4. Heat the solution in a water bath or a microwave oven to facilitate the dissolving of all the Agarose grains. During the heating process, part of the buffer will evaporate. As such it is important to add more buffer solution in order to return the solution to the original volume. 5. After heating, cool the solution to 60Â °C and immerse the solution in an ethidium bromide solution once the gel solidifies. Ethidium bromide helps to intercalate DNA thus making it visible under ultra violet light. 6. Place the comb 1.0 mm above the place consequently allowing for the formation of a complete well once the Agarose solidifies. It is important to avoid air bubbles that may form between or u nder the teeth of the comb. Seal the plate with small quantities of the Agarose solution through a Pasteur pipette. Once the plate is sealed, transfer the gel in to the glass plate. It is important to swirl the gel in the flask to ensure uniformity in the temperature before pouring it out into the plate to prevent the gel for hardening unevenly. 7. The gel is expected to have

Shaping, Joining and Surface Treatment Analysis

Shaping, Joining and Surface Treatment Analysis MANUFACTURING  PROCESS  SELECTION Introduction: Process selection is a key responsible are in an industry where the specification from the customers is analysed and the suitable process for the desired product is isolated from the other manufacturing processes. This selection process in a company is very important as this determines the futuristic profit for the industry or the quality of the products thats been produced from the plant. In order to analyse the importance and economics of the various processes in manufacturing industry, most of the companies these days uses CES software which explains all the details a company should think about before starting the manufacturing process. CES software details the important information on the history of the materials used for manufacturing process and suitable analysis based on their economics and environmental impact. In this report, from CES mainly, the process universe is analysed based on the three process such as SHAPING, JOINING and SURFACE TREATMENT. Figure 1 CES database with process universe Part 1 Manufacturing processes: From the CES (Cambridge engineering selector) software, process universe database few of the processes were selected and analysed in detail using CES database and the sources outside CES in order to investigate these processes. Joining, Shaping and Surface treatment are the three manufacturing processes that were analysed in this report. JOINING Introduction: This process describes the methods of joining parts together using various tools and methods in order to form certain assemblies which provides useful functions mechanically. At the very beginning joining process was very simple and basic like sewing using threads to stitch clothes, using paper clips, press studs and shoe laces. When it comes to fastening two objects or bodies together, all possible options should be considered in manufacturing processes in industries. Some of the basic classification of joining process are using Adhesives, Fasteners, Mechanical welding and Thermal welding. In industrial manufacturing process, joining process is widely divided into either permanent or non-permanent joining between two objects or surfaces. One of the common process in joining metals is to fasten two parts or castings in order to merge the two surfaces of the objects. Metal objects like body armours were assembled using metal rivets. Before metal welding was introduced, riveting the metals bodies played an important role in joining manufacturing process. BRAZING Brazing is one of the basic methods used to join two pieces of metals together. The process starts with isolating the two parts of steel that are to be brazed and by cleaning the parts using wire wool or emery cloth would remove all the greases on the surfaces. A paste that is made from borax flux powder and water is applied along the joint. This prevents the process of oxidation on the surfaces as this inhibits the brazing procedure being successful. And when the compressor attached to the brazing torch is turned ON, this pressurises the gas and the air, and then the gas-air is turned ON slowly, feeding the gas through the small nozzle and this is then ignited at the end of nozzle using a match. Figure 2 Brazing torch Once the torch is set and the hottest part of the brazing torch (tip of the blue part of the flame) is used to merge the two parts of the steel surfaces. Two pieces of the steel are placed on top of the rotating mount where it is easily accessed from all the directions. In order to lift the steel off the rotating mount, fire bricks are used and hence the heat produced can flow all over the surface rather than on one spot. The surfaces of the steel and the joining metal were given a gentle heat to raise the temperature in order to expand the metal edges and ready for brazing. Figure 3 Brazing process setup The flame is then moved forward and backward in order to focus the hottest part of the flame until the steel part becomes red hot. Then a brazing rod (copper zinc alloy) is then pushed gently along the edges of the steel surfaces and when the temperature is right the rod will melt in the gaps to fill them and merge the metal and steel surfaces. The rod is fed until it runs along the joint is brazed in order to join them together. When this is complete, the steel is allowed to cool slowly by quenching in water because cooling the metal quickly may break or crack the joint or it may become distorted. Figure4heatingprocessFigure 5 Brazed material Types of materials Brazing is the process which is widely used to heat exchangers, bicycle frames, boilers, copper pipes, and pipework fittings and to repair castings and assemble machine parts. Metals, Ceramics and dissimilar materials are normally brazed using this process in industries. A variety of alloys are used in brazing the materials by using the alloys for filtering. Some of the materials that are used as common filters are, Silver Copper Nickel alloy Gold silver Copper silver Aluminium silicon Copper zinc Most commonly, the brazing materials come as in the form of rod, powder, ribbon, paste, wire and preforms such as stamped washers. Characteristics of the components Brazing process will be able to fit within the sectional thickness of range from 0.1mm to 30mm. some might cover the points beyond this range, however, this may affect the increase in cost and time for the process in order to take place. The minimum section thickness is always determined by the process and the materials used within the certain manufacturing companies. Nominal tolerance for the brazing process is in the range from 0.05mm to 0.5mm and the resulting processed materials may be outside the tolerance range but this might affect the time for processing and the cost for the manufacturers. Some accuracy like precision or the surface roughness can be determined by the nature of the process. Economics of the process Brazing can be done manually and by using automated machines which is using the furnace. Generally manual process takes time and using the torch to braze a material requires certain skill level. On the other hand, automated furnace brazing requires no skill and no labour costs. Therefore, this brazing process is cheap and tools are fairly cost worthy as well and it is very economical for small runs in certain companies. Yet this process allows high production rates when the whole process is automated at large or industrial scale. SHAPING Introduction: Shaping is a process that was developed over time from ancient times when machines were involved in manufacturing processes. However, these types of shaping machines are not widely used in the current manufacturing industries although they had very substantial development. This process was used to cut metal tools and other parts in early days on the flat surfaces, yet these were used as a drawback in this times. Shaping produces the flat surfaces by moving a single point in a reciprocating or zigzag motion. The forward stroke is the cutting edge motion and the reverse motion is finished with high velocity motion in order to include the sideways feeding motion. CERAMIC MOLD CASTING Ceramic mold casting is a process which uses high temperatures in order to cast certain parts of machines or even tools, used in various machineries. This process is also like plaster mold casting but instead of using plaster to create metal parts or castings, ceramic casting uses refractory mold materials for casting. In an industrial level the parts used as cutting machinery or metal molds die for metalworking or even the metal impellers can also be manufactured using this type of casting processes. Nature of the process This process kicks off with preparing the platform for pouring the material for molding. A mixture of fine grain ZIRCON (ZrSiO4), aluminium oxide, fused silica, bonding agents and water which creates a ceramic slurry solution for the mold to be dipped in or immersed in this solution. When the mold is set in the slurry solution in the platform, the pattern is then removed and the casted mold is then left off to dry. Then using high flamed torch, the mold is then fired in order to melt or heat off the excess cast around the mold. This firing the mold process will also burn off any unwanted waste materials on the mold and make it rigid and hardened for the future polishing process. In order to add more strength and rigidity the mold is then baked in an oven over a certain time period or even heated in the furnace. The firing process leaves the mold with few cracks and lines which then adding the mold extra permeability and collapsibility for the metal processing that comes later in the industrial scale manufacturing process. Figure 6 ceramic casting process Once the mold was prepared the two halves were then joined together for assembly and be ready to pour the casting or molten material into the molds. The two halves also called as cope and drag section are then backed up with the fireclay materials for additional molding strength. Often in these types of processes in manufacturing industry, the ceramic mold is preheated in the oven in order to pour the molten metal into the cast. The metal casting is poured and let to solidify, in ceramic molding process in industries, like in other expandable mold processes, the ceramic mold is destroyed in the removal process of the metal casting. The ceramic mold itself can be a shell, for small manufacture processing components, or a box less block mold, for large industrial components, or even a composite mold combines both the shell which then backed up with a cheaper material like the large components that are produced in large quantities. The insulating nature of the ceramic mold prevents the molds from decaying or decomposing and prolongs the lifespan of the cycle time however the manufacturing ceramic casting process lends itself to mechanization and rapid output of molds. Types of materials Ceramic casting process plays a vital role in casting metal components such as tools used for forging and extrusion and even die casting. This process also used in the glass production. Some of the materials that has been processed in this way are, Aerospace parts and components Marine fitting tools Propellers for ships and small turbines Complex gearing parts Pumps and valves Pipes and precision machinery parts Impellers Characteristics of the components Mass range for this casting process is from 0.2kg to 50kg of weight and this is determined by the capacity of the casting mold or the caster, the press that the mold undergoes and the machine tools, etc. this can also often be extruded or extended with the help of additional process of fabricating. 1.5mm to 999mm is the range of the sectional thickness of the materials or the casting mold that is being used in the casting process in the industrial scale of manufacturing process. This is determined by the fluid flow in castings or the plastic constraints used in the molding process or the melt flow length in injection molding, etc. this process can generally be further outside the range resulting increase in cost for material and time for the process to take place in an industry. The range of tolerance for this casting process is from 0.38mm to 0.8mm in length or measurement as the achiever tolerance can be refined by secondary machining operations such as precision grinding and polishing in order to remove the extra unwanted materials and keep the accuracy nearly to 100%. 1.6 µm to 3.2 µm is the range of roughness for this process as this is controlled by smoothness of the molds or casting surfaces. Economics of the process Ceramic mold casting is relatively expensive. The tools costs cover a range from small, simple to large, complex molding materials and they vary in size shape and structure. To be able to cast parts at higher accuracy elements eliminates the need for machinery which reduces the cost for automated process but this casting is mainly monitored with watchful eyes and that increases labouring costs and training men in different aspects of skills development. The long preparation time taken in molds increasing makes the manufacturing production rates at very low intervals and increasing demands for new molds with certain improvements. SURFACE TREATMENT Introduction: Surface treatment can be used in various ways in order to clean or polish the surface of the materials using various techniques. This includes polishing or grinding the metals as well as smoothening the outer surface of the body of the materials used in manufacturing. Surface treatment of the metals involves the creation of a barrier that can protect the metal parts like a wall around the body in order to prevent corrosion or other chemical or environmental damages. The surface layer forming on a metal that is scheduled for chemical coating is created due to a chemical reaction which is non electrolytic in nature in order to achieve great and precision results in industrial manufacturing process. GRINDING Grinding is a slow process that polishes the surface of a material yet not removing a large sized part from the object or cutting the big edge off the material. In the past, this process was only used to machining processes or final dimension accuracy treatments by finishing the surface of the materials. But the developed or renowned new processes are changing the thought process thats been used over the years of time. Utilizing new grinding techniques, incredible material removal rate has increased up to 300mm3/smm, which is equal to 28 cubic inches per minute. This process allows the tough edges in aerospace markets, where the materials are made up of tough alloy or nickel to be removed and polished. Nature of the process Grinding process normally associated with the tools thats been used in the process of grinding. A grinding tool is used to grind down or polish metals or glass surfaces. Grinder is more like a sander which uses the abrasive surface of the grinder to remove the minute particles on the materials. Grinding process actually sharpens the wheel that is attached to the grinder by braking those particles and creating new grinding points in the wheel. A grinding wheel is made from several chemical and mineral ingredients, this composition of particles may vary according to the purpose of the wheel that is used in the industry like whether to grind metals or polish ceramic glasses. Figure 7 bonding particles in grinding wheel making process For metals they use the grinding wheel made from aluminium oxide granules to create that very abrasive surface of the wheel. For non-metals components, silicon based particles are used in the making of surface of the grinding wheels. These particles are added in weighed scales and by using resin bonding agents these particles are then bonded in shape to form the grinding wheels which are then used in the grinders for appropriate uses. Figure 8 grinding process with grinding wheels Types of materials Grinding also used to cut hardened steel, which produces very smooth surfaces. Surface pressure is minimum in grinding, which is suitable for light or small works that will spring away from the cutting tool in the other machining processes. It can be classified into rough and precision grinding. Rough grinding eliminates the primary layer of the materials that are with the huge or big part of the edges and extra addition of materials. This prepares the materials for further grinding with precision and increased accuracy. Surface grinding uses a rotating abrasive wheel to remove material which creates a flat surface. Pistons, pins, gears and shafts are some of the materials prepared by this grinding process. Rivets, valves and pipe fittings and lenses and mirrors for precision optical equipment. Characteristics of the components Surface smoothness of the materials used under grinding process achieve the high precision. The maximum temperature attained during this process is ranges from 70 to 370 C, this is due to the interaction between the grinding wheel and the material that is being grinded in the process. Unfortunately, the grinding process does not even out all parts of the material which indicates whether the treatment reaches its maximum precision level. At this process the curved surface coverage is very poor. Economics of the process The tools used for grinding process are fairly cheap and affordable. This is for manual polishing tools only with the approximate range of price from capital cost being  £90 to  £1000 and tooling cost ranges from  £8 to  £200 however this results in the production rates being very low as this is a manual process. Automatic machining processes can be expensive for both capital (ranges from  £1800 to  £1,000,000) and tooling machines (ranges from  £900 to  £10,000) but this shows higher production rates in manufacturing. PART 2 In depth case study analysis Using CES software the following charts are drawn and one of the given case study is analysed with the help of CES software. Manifold Jacket Figure 9 Manifold Jacket hollow 3D model The part shown above is called manifold jacket, is used in aerospace shuttles and vehicles. This component is made from nickel and it weighs about 7 Kg as this is a large 3D hollow dimensioned component it has a thickness of 2 5 mm with a precision tolerance of 0.1 mm. In this process of manufacturing case study, we only going to manufacture 10 units as this limited usage in the industry. Table 1 design requirements Manifold Jacket Material class selection Mass range Vs Material class The required material for this manifold jacket comes from a non-ferrous alloy. The chart below explains the class of materials fall in the range from 5 to 10 Kg of mass range of the chosen material (Non-ferrous alloy). From CES software the chart was created by labelling Y-Axis (Mass range Kg) and X-Axis (Material class Non-ferrous alloys). Then certain range as given above (5 to 10 Kg) was isolated using the box tool and the processes that satisfies the approximate length and mass are then labelled in the chart. The box in the chart isolates the processes which can shape these alloys and can handle the desired mass range of 5 10 Kg. Mass range was the Y axis and it was selected from the Process universe > Shaping > Mass range from the chart dialog box. Material class on the X-axis was chose from the advanced features and under Tree > Material universe > Metals > Non-ferrous alloys. In order to choose the limit to isolate the required process selection, a box was drawn in the chart body and right clicked on to Properties > Specified range 5 10 Kg in under the mass range sub heading. Then the chart was then zoomed in according to label the processes. By clicking and dragging on each of the coloured lines the desired processes can be identified. Chart 1 mass range VS nonferrous alloy Thickness Vs Shape class The chart below shows the relationship between the range of section thickness of the chosen materials and to see which processes can produce a 3D hollow shape of the material with transverse features. The chart was plotted by choosing range of thickness for Y-axis and hollow 3D with transverse features on the X-axis. By selecting Chart > Y axis > Range of section Thickness was selected in order to plot the graph and X axis > Advanced > Tree > Shape > 3D shaping > Transverse features. A box was marked in the chart by selecting box tool in order to isolate the processes that are capable of making that desired 3D hollow feature with the transverse feature as well. This box was in the range of section thickness from 2 mm to 5 mm. the processes outside the desired range are in different colour since these processes failed to produce the desired results within the certain limitation and ranges specified by the manufacturing company or industry. Chart 2 range of section thickness VS hollow 3D with transverse features Tolerance Vs Primary shaping process The process selection chart below refers to the interaction between the tolerance that the selection process can have and the trueness of the primary shaping process that is responsible for the formation of this manifold jacket. This chart was plotted using CES by selecting Chart from the process universe and under Shaping process > Y axis > Tolerance (mm) and on the other hand for X axis > Primary shaping process was selected on the same dialog box as both are under shaping process sub heading. Few processes that can be used to make this product within the limited tolerance and accuracy of the ranges are then isolated from the chart using a box tool and drawing the box for only the processes that can satisfy which means whatever lies on the box after TRUE phase and the applicable tolerance was specified. The tolerance level for these processes ranges from 0.1 mm and whatever above this tolerance and belong to the true phase then these processes can be used to manufacture the desired product with the possible tolerance output. Chart 3 tolerance VS primary shaping processes Economics Vs Discrete The chart below was plotted against the Economics of the batch size of 10 units thats been produced from the manufacturing processes. This chart explains the cost for the manufacturing process and see how much this process cost for the company would in order to produce 10 units of the desired products. Using the box tool from CES, 10-unit scale was isolated from the chart and the processes which can produce the certain amount of products are labelled outside the chart. Economics batch size in units is plotted in Y axis by selecting form Chart > Y axis > Economics batch size and for the X axis from the shaping process universe > X axis > Discrete was selected. Only the true section of the chart which can produce the desired materials can be isolated and units of 10 were boxed in order to see which processes can achieve this manufacturing process. Table 2 processes of the manifold jacket Chart 4 economics of the batch size VS discrete Methodology and conclusion Before even the part was made, it was important to meet the customer requirements and produce a report on how the production is going to take place and how this might satisfy the customers needs in order to make the production more efficient and effective. To make Manifold jackets it seems that Electroforming and investment casting are the right processes with the suitable economics and even for small number of units the casting works out just fine. These types of products are used in small number of units such as in aerospace vehicles and shuttles therefore it doesnt have to be produced in vast quantities. But in order to produce in bulk operations this process could cost very high and more expensive when it comes to the process being automated as the machines for these types of processes could cost effective and hard to maintain. If the process is manual this could cost much worthy for the company as in training staffs and more labour could result in expensive treatments. When it comes to large scale production of the desired products Electroforming is the only solution and for the manual process side, Investment casting emerged as a suitable solution. However, before any of these decisions been made, a brief analysis of the investment and profit report such as a cost analysis report is advisable in order to proceed with the project in future. And the analysis from the labours also advised in order to maintain a constant and continuous production in line in the factory in near future. PART 3 Environmental Impact of Process Selection ECO AUDIT TOOL To evaluate the environmental impact of the designed product and to analyse the ways to reduce this effect on the environment, ECO-AUDIT tool in CES software is used. This concept is achieved by focusing on energy usage and CO2 footprint of the materials used in the process of manufacturing. The product design forms the objective for the methods used and this resulted from a class of material selection. The objective is dependent on both product application and dominant phase, when the use phase is dominant the objective for a car would be minimize mass, whereas for a boiler, it would be to minimise thermal loss from the manufacturing process. Eco audit tool helps us to perform small or large quick audit before even we begin the report. This part of the CES software helps you to track and focus on the environmental requirements and simple and quantitative reports are being produced in order to demonstrate the compliance. This way it saves money by identifying the early stage corrections and before even the resources were submitted. Methodology of ECO Audit tool The methodology system in ECO audit helps us to easily interact with the tools and get some environmental impact of the manufacturing processes or the materials used for the manufacturing process quickly and effectively. This way you can track the product sustainability, comply with the customers target or the companys and even help us with more ideas in order to improve the design for manufacturing. If the goal is to minimise the environmental impact of the processes performed in the environment we need a quick and effective means of valuable report in order to judge the performance or the quantitative assessment. The whole processes in the ECO audit methodology can be summarised by the following image which clearly explains the steps and analysis of the process. Figure 10 methodology of ECO Audit process Advantages It helps us to make quick and early decisions based on the corrections and solutions given by the eco audit tool and this saves the company a plenty of time and money by identifying the mistakes in early designs and early stages. In order to use this software, the company or the industrial personnel does not need a specific knowledge therefore this product can be used across the company by anyone making this software more accessible for everyone and engineers can be supported by this software and take advantage by using this to make changes in their environmental audition report. It also helps the company to demonstrate the progression towards sustainability goals thats been set or achieved for the customers and some of the investors from other companies and sectors through benchmarks and some other better quantitative measures made. Case study Glass bottle We are trying to find out all the information regarding this product. For this we can use ECO audit tool which can tell us about the life cycle of this product, transport and uses for this product. This tool also clarifies the information for the energy consumed by this product and the CO2 emission for this product. We now analyse the design and the materials used in order to form this bottle including the cap of the bottle and also analyse where the bottle actually transported from and the net weight of the product or the balance weight that this product can maintain. Product manufacture The name of the product is Glass bottle with the aluminium cap that can be filled with 1 litre of mineral water which could also mean that the net weight of the materials and the whole product is 1Kg. Table 3 materials in manufacturing the product All the materials that the bottle was made up of can be recycled which indicates that the whole product is very Eco friendly and very beneficial to the environment. Transport The bottle itself was manufactured in France and it has been transported 550 km to UK with the help of

Asian-American Stereotypes Essay -- essays research papers Asians Ethn

Asian-American Stereotypes Overview Asian stereotypes are a product of prevailing myths propagated by various media, from books, plays, movies, television, to even historical propaganda. Generally speaking, the stereotyping of Asian women often swing to extreme types: the docile, subservient sexual object, or the dragon lady. Asian Americans only make up a small percentage of the United States population and live mostly on the west and east coasts of mainland United States and Hawaii. Consequently, the rest of the American population will most likely get their exposures to Asian Americans through television and movies. Popular media exposure to Asian Americans lacks one-on-one acquaintance with Asian Americans. It hinders the process that could help Americans from other racial backgrounds realize that the stereotypical characters in Hollywood movie productions are unjust and biased. Furthermore, these popular movies do not reflect the true individuality of the typical Asian American living in America. Hollywood has a tradition of portraying Asian women as exotic, subservient, compliant, industrious, and more than often, eager to please. These race and class stereotypes of Asian American women give the impression of what Asian American women are really like to other Americans as well as to Asian Americans themselves. This perpetuates race and class inequalities of Asian Americans by allowing these belittling Asian characteristics to appear repeatedly in society. The beliefs that Asian American women are weak or passive and allow themselves to be sexually and emotionally abused by men also prevail in common media. These stereotypes of a submissive, obedient Asian woman made up of sexual desires waiting to be rescued by a man were formed by mesmerized, ignorant Westerners who were not viewing Asians as people, rather as objects for their enjoyment. These Hollywood images of ?easy women? have spilled over into mainstream images of Asian women. In result, Asian women are viewed for the ir sexual desire and hyper-femininity As mysterious and sexual, Asian women cannot be taken seriously by society. Ideally, these women are depicted as geisha girls, Oriental massagers, comfort women and prostitutes. With their main objective being to submit to their dominator?s every desire, Asian women are seen as sexually desirable. The stereotype remains that all of th... ...nd that many non-Asian students at UCI had not even heard of terms such as ?Dragon Lady? or ?China Doll.? Though they did know the connotations behind the stereotypes, they were not familiar with the actual label. The Asian men in our study already knew those terms, most likely because they were raised within the Asian culture, which provides a biased viewpoint.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In conclusion, it is very obvious that the stereotypes that Hollywood creates about certain nationalities, ethnicities, races, and gender that are ingrained and prevail in the minds of many Americans. Though some can be as comical or entertaining, they should not be tolerated or continued. By allowing media to feed us with knowledge of the unknown only perpetuates the ignorance behind such atrocities like racism and hate related violence. The research conducted for this paper shows that these false stereotypes about Asian Americans cross all borders. Young Asian American males at UCI can identify the same false perceptions of Vietnamese American women that we find in the media, because that is where those ideas are taught. Until the media eliminates these negative stereotypes of all people, ignorance will prevail.

Chapter 16 Professor Trelawney’s Prediction

Harry's euphoria at finally winning the Quidditch Cup lasted at least a week. Even the weather seemed to be celebrating; as June approached, the days became cloudless and sultry, and all anybody felt like doing was strolling onto the grounds and flopping down on the grass with several pints of iced pumpkin juice, perhaps playing a casual game of Gobstones or watching the giant squid propel itself dreamily across the surface of the lake. But they couldn't. Exams were nearly upon them, and instead of lazing around outside, the students were forced to remain inside the castle, trying to bully their brains into concentrating while enticing wafts of summer air drifted in through the windows. Even Fred and George Weasley had been spotted working; they were about to take their O.W.L.s (Ordinary Wizarding Levels). Percy was getting ready to take his N.E.W.T.s (Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests), the highest qualification Hogwarts offered. As Percy hoped to enter the Ministry of Magic, he needed top grades. He was becoming increasingly edgy, and gave very severe punishments to anybody who disturbed the quiet of the common room in the evenings. In fact, the only person who seemed more anxious than Percy was Hermione. Harry and Ron had given up asking her how she was managing to attend several classes at once, but they couldn't restrain themselves when they saw the exam schedule she had drawn up for herself. The first column read: Monday 9 o'clock, Arithmancy 9 o'clock, Transfiguration Lunch 1 o'clock, Charms 1 o'clock, Ancient Runes â€Å"Hermione?† Ron said cautiously, because she was liable to explode when interrupted these days. â€Å"Er — are you sure you've copied down these times right?† â€Å"What?† snapped Hermione, picking up the exam schedule and examining it. â€Å"Yes, of course I have.† â€Å"Is there any point asking how you're going to sit for two exams at once?† said Harry. â€Å"No,† said Hermione shortly. â€Å"Have either of you seen my copy of Numerology and Gramatica?† â€Å"Oh, yeah, I borrowed it for a bit of bedtime reading,† said Ron, but very quietly. Hermione started shifting heaps of parchment. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had plenty of opportunity to speak to Hagrid. â€Å"Beaky's gettin' a bit depressed,† Hagrid told them, bending low on the pretense of checking that Harry's flobberworm was still alive. â€Å"Bin cooped up too long. But still†¦we'll know day after tomorrow — one way or the other –â€Å" They had Potions that afternoon, which was an unqualified disaster. Try as Harry might, he couldn't get his Confusing Concoction to thicken, and Snape, standing watch with an air of vindictive pleasure, scribbled something that looked suspiciously like a zero onto his notes before moving away. Then came Astronomy at midnight, up on the tallest tower; History of Magic on Wednesday morning, in which Harry scribbled everything Florean Fortescue had ever told him about medieval witch-hunts, while wishing he could have had one of Fortescue's choco-nut sundaes with him in the stifling classroom. Wednesday afternoon meant Herbology, in the greenhouses under a baking-hot sun; then back to the common room once more, with sunburnt necks, thinking longingly of this time next day, when it would all be over. Their second to last exam, on Thursday morning, was Defense Against the Dark Arts. Professor Lupin had compiled the most unusual exam any of them had ever taken; a sort of obstacle course outside in the sun, where they had to wade across a deep paddling pool containing a Grindylow, cross a series of potholes full of Red Caps, squish their way across a patch of marsh while ignoring misleading directions from a Hinkypunk, then climb into an old trunk and battle with a new Boggart. â€Å"Excellent, Harry,† Lupin muttered as Harry climbed out of the trunk, grinning. â€Å"Full marks.† Flushed with his success, Harry hung around to watch Ron and Hermione. Ron did very well until he reached the Hinkypunk, which successfully confused him into sinking waist-high into the quagmire. Hermione did everything perfectly until she reached the trunk with the Boggart in it. After about a minute inside it, she burst out again, screaming. â€Å"Hermione!† said Lupin, startled. â€Å"What's the matter?† â€Å"P-P-Professor McGonagall!† Hermione gasped, pointing into the trunk. â€Å"Sh-she said I'd failed everything!† It took a little while to calm Hermione down. When at last she had regained a grip on herself, she, Harry, and Ron went back to the castle. Ron was still slightly inclined to laugh at Hermione's Boggart, but an argument was averted by the sight that met them on the top of the steps. Cornelius Fudge, sweating slightly in his pinstriped cloak, was standing there staring out at the grounds. He started at the sight of Harry. â€Å"Hello there, Harry!† he said. â€Å"Just had an exam, I expect? Nearly finished?† â€Å"Yes,† said Harry. Hermione and Ron, not being on speaking terms with the Minister of Magic, hovered awkwardly in the background. â€Å"Lovely day,† said Fudge, casting an eye over the lake. â€Å"Pity†¦pity†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He sighed deeply and looked down at Harry. â€Å"I'm here on an unpleasant mission, Harry. The Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures required a witness to the execution of a mad Hippogriff. As I needed to visit Hogwarts to check on the Black situation, I was asked to step in.† â€Å"Does that mean the appeal's already happened?† Ron interrupted, stepping forward. â€Å"No, no, it's scheduled for this afternoon,† said Fudge, looking curiously at Ron. â€Å"Then you might not have to witness an execution at all!† said Ron stoutly. â€Å"The Hippogriff might get off!† Before Fudge could answer, two wizards came through the castle doors behind him. One was so ancient he appeared to be withering before their very eyes; the other was tall and strapping, with a thin back mustache. Harry gathered that they were representatives of the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures, because the very old wizard squinted toward Hagrid's cabin and said in a feeble voice, â€Å"Dear, dear, I'm getting too old for this†¦.Two o'clock, isn't it, Fudge?† The black-mustached man was fingering something in his belt; Harry looked and saw that he was running one broad thumb along the blade of a shining axe. Ron opened his mouth to say something, but Hermione nudged him hard in the ribs and jerked her head toward the entrance hall. â€Å"Why'd you stop me?† said Ron angrily as they entered the Great Hall for lunch. â€Å"Did you see them? They've even got the axe ready! This isn't justice!† â€Å"Ron, your dad works for the Ministry, you can't go saying things like that to his boss!† said Hermione, but she too looked very upset. â€Å"As long as Hagrid keeps his head this time, and argues his case properly, they can't possibly execute Buckbeak†¦.† But Harry could tell Hermione didn't really believe what she was saying. All around them, people were talking excitedly as they ate their lunch, happily anticipating the end of the exams that afternoon, but Harry, Ron, and Hermione, lost in worry about Hagrid and Buckbeak, didn't join in. Harry's and Ron's last exam was Divination; Hermione's, Muggle Studies. They walked up the marble staircase together; Hermione left them on the first floor and Harry and Ron proceeded all the way up to the seventh, where many of their class were sitting on the spiral staircase to Professor Trelawney's classroom, trying to cram in a bit of last-minute studying. â€Å"She's seeing us all separately,† Neville informed them as they went to sit down next to him. He had his copy of Unfogging the Future open on his lap at the pages devoted to crystal gazing. â€Å"Have either of you ever seen anything in a crystal ball?† he asked them unhappily. â€Å"Nope,† said Ron in an offhand voice. He kept checking his watch; Harry. knew that he was counting down the time until Buckbeak's appeal started. The line of people outside the classroom shortened very slowly. As each person climbed back down the silver ladder, the rest of the class hissed, â€Å"What did she ask? Was it okay?† But they all refused to say. â€Å"She says the crystal ball's told her that if I tell you, I'll have a horrible accident!† squeaked Neville as he clambered back down the ladder toward Harry and Ron, who had now reached the landing. â€Å"That's convenient,† snorted Ron. â€Å"You know, I'm starting to think Hermione was right about her† — he jabbed his thumb toward the trapdoor overhead — â€Å"she's a right old fraud.† â€Å"Yeah,† said Harry, looking at his own watch. It was now two o'clock. â€Å"Wish she'd hurry up†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Parvati came back down the ladder glowing with pride. â€Å"She says I've got all the makings of a true Seer,† she informed Harry and Ron. â€Å"I saw loads of stuff†¦Well, good luck!† She hurried off down the spiral staircase toward Lavender. â€Å"Ronald Weasley,† said the familiar, misty voice from over their heads. Ron grimaced at Harry and climbed the silver ladder out of sight. Harry was now the only person left to be tested. He settled himself on the floor with his back against the wall, listening to a fly buzzing in the sunny window, his mind across the grounds with Hagrid. Finally, after about twenty minutes, Ron's large feet reappeared on the ladder. â€Å"How'd it go?† Harry asked him, standing up. â€Å"Rubbish,† said Ron. â€Å"Couldn't see a thing, so I made some stuff up. Don't think she was convinced, though†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Meet you in the common room,† Harry muttered as Professor Trelawney's voice called, â€Å"Harry Potter!† The tower room was hotter than ever before; the curtains were closed, the fire was alight, and the usual sickly scent made Harry cough as he stumbled through the clutter of chairs and table to where Professor Trelawney sat waiting for him before a large crystal ball. â€Å"Good day, my dear,† she said softly. â€Å"If you would kindly gaze into the Orb†¦Take your time, now†¦then tell me what you see within it†¦.† Harry bent over the crystal ball and stared, stared as hard as he could, willing it to show him something other than swirling white fog, but nothing happened. â€Å"Well?† Professor Trelawney prompted delicately. â€Å"What do you see?† The heat was overpowering and his nostrils were stinging with the perfumed smoke wafting from the fire beside them. He thought of what Ron had just said, and decided to pretend. â€Å"Er –† said Harry, â€Å"a dark shape†¦um†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"What does it resemble?† whispered Professor Trelawney. â€Å"Think, now†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Harry cast his mind around and it landed on Buckbeak. â€Å"A Hippogriff,† he said firmly. â€Å"Indeed!† whispered Professor Trelawney, scribbling keenly on the parchment perched upon her knees. â€Å"My boy, you may well be seeing the outcome of poor Hagrid's trouble with the Ministry of Magic! Look closer†¦Does the Hippogriff appear to†¦have its head?† â€Å"Yes,† said Harry firmly. â€Å"Are you sure?† Professor Trelawney urged him. â€Å"Are you quite sure, dear? You don't see it writhing on the ground, perhaps, and a shadowy figure raising an axe behind it?† â€Å"No!† said Harry, starting to feel slightly sick. â€Å"No blood? No weeping Hagrid?† â€Å"No!† said Harry again, wanting more than ever to leave the room and the heat. â€Å"It looks fine, it's — flying away†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Professor Trelawney sighed. â€Å"Well, dear, I think we'll leave it there†¦A little disappointing†¦but I'm sure you did your best.† Relieved, Harry got up, picked up his bag and turned to go, but then a loud, harsh voice spoke behind him. â€Å"IT WILL HAPPEN TONIGHT.† Harry wheeled around. Professor Trelawney had gone rigid in her armchair; her eyes were unfocused and her mouth sagging. â€Å"S — sorry?† said Harry. But Professor Trelawney didn't seem to hear him. Her eyes started to roll. Harry sat there in a panic. She looked as though she was about to have some sort of seizure. He hesitated, thinking of running to the hospital wing — and then Professor Trelawney spoke again, in the same harsh voice, quite unlike her own: â€Å"THE DARK LORD LIES ALONE AND FRIENDLESS, ABANDONED BY HIS FOLLOWERS. HIS SERVANT HAS BEEN CHAINED THESE TWELVE YEARS. TONIGHT, BEFORE MIDNIGHT†¦THE SERVANT WILL BREAK FREE AND SET OUT TO REJOIN HIS MASTER. THE DARK LORD WILL RISE AGAIN WITH HIS SERVANT'S AID, GREATER AND MORE TERRIBLE THAN EVER HE WAS. TONIGHT†¦BEFORE MIDNIGHT†¦THE SERVANT†¦WILL SET OUT†¦TO REJOIN†¦HIS MASTER†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Professor Trelawney's head fell forward onto her chest. She made a grunting sort of noise. Harry sat there, staring at her. Then, quite suddenly, Professor Trelawney's head snapped up again. â€Å"I'm so sorry, dear boy,† she said dreamily, â€Å"the heat of the day, you know†¦I drifted off for a moment†¦.† Harry sat there, staring at her. â€Å"Is there anything wrong, my dear?† â€Å"You — you just told me that the — the Dark Lord's going to rise again†¦that his servant's going to go back to him.† Professor Trelawney looked thoroughly startled. â€Å"The Dark Lord? He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named? My dear boy, that's hardly something to joke about†¦Rise again, indeed –â€Å" â€Å"But you just said it! You said the Dark Lord –â€Å" â€Å"I think you must have dozed off too, dear!† said Professor Trelawney. â€Å"I would certainly not presume to predict anything quite as far-fetched as that!† Harry climbed back down the ladder and the spiral staircase, wondering†¦had he just heard Professor Trelawney make a real prediction? Or had that been her idea of an impressive end to the test? Five minutes later he was dashing past the security trolls outside the entrance to Gryffindor Tower, Professor Trelawney's words still resounding in his head. People were striding past him in the opposite direction, laughing and joking, heading for the grounds and a bit of long-awaited freedom; by the time he had reached the portrait hole and entered the common room, it was almost deserted. Over in the corner, however, sat Ron and Hermione. â€Å"Professor Trelawney,† Harry panted, â€Å"just told me –â€Å" But he stopped abruptly at the sight of their faces. â€Å"Buckbeak lost,† said Ron weakly. â€Å"Hagrid's just sent this.† Hagrid's note was dry this time, no tears had splattered it, yet his hand seemed to have shaken so much as he wrote that it was hardly legible. Lost appeal. They're going to execute at sunset. Nothing you can do. Don't come down. I don't want you to see it. Hagrid â€Å"We've got to go,† said Harry at once. â€Å"He can't just sit there on his own, waiting for the executioner!† â€Å"Sunset, though,† said Ron, who was staring out the window ill a glazed sort of way. â€Å"We'd never be allowed †¦'specially you, Harry†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Harry sank his head into his hands, thinking. â€Å"If we only had the Invisibility Cloak†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Where is it?† said Hermione. Harry told her about leaving it in the passageway under the one-eyed witch. â€Å"†¦ if Snape sees me anywhere near there again, I'm in serious trouble,† he finished. â€Å"That's true,† said Hermione, getting to her feet. â€Å"If he sees you†¦How do you open the witch's hump again?† â€Å"You — you tap it and say, ‘Dissendium,'† said Harry. â€Å"But –â€Å" Hermione didn't wait for the rest of his sentence; she strode across the room, pushed open the Fat Lady's portrait and vanished from sight. â€Å"She hasn't gone to get it?† Ron said, staring after her. She had. Hermione returned a quarter of an hour later with the silvery cloak folded carefully under her robes. â€Å"Hermione, I don't know what's gotten, into you lately!† said Ron, astounded. â€Å"First you hit Malfoy, then you walk out on Professor Trelawney –â€Å" Hermione looked rather flattered. They went down to dinner with everybody else, but did not return to Gryffindor Tower afterward. Harry had the cloak hidden down the front of his robes; he had to keep his arms folded to hide the lump. They skulked in an empty chamber off the entrance hall, listening, until they were sure it was deserted. They heard a last pair of people hurrying across the hall and a door slamming. Hermione poked her head around the door. â€Å"Okay,† she whispered, â€Å"no one there — cloak on –â€Å" Walking very close together so that nobody would see them, they crossed the hall on tiptoe beneath the cloak, then walked down the stone front steps into the grounds. The sun was already sinking behind the Forbidden Forest, gilding the top branches of the trees. They reached Hagrid's cabin and knocked. He was a minute in answering, and when he did, he looked all around for his visitor, pale-faced and trembling. â€Å"It's us,† Harry hissed. â€Å"We're wearing the Invisibility Cloak. Let us in and we can take it off.† â€Å"Yeh shouldn've come!† Hagrid whispered, but he stood back, and they stepped inside. Hagrid shut the door quickly and Harry pulled off the cloak. Hagrid was not crying, nor did he throw himself upon their necks. He looked like a man who did not know where he was or what to do. This helplessness was worse to watch than tears. â€Å"Wan' some tea?† he said. His great hands were shaking as he reached for the kettle. â€Å"Where's Buckbeak, Hagrid?† said Hermione hesitantly. â€Å"I — I took him outside,† said Hagrid, spilling milk all over the table as he filled up the jug. â€Å"He's tethered in me pumpkin patch. Thought he oughta see the trees an' — an' smell fresh air — before –â€Å" Hagrid's hand trembled so violently that the milk jug slipped from his grasp and shattered all over the floor. â€Å"I'll do it, Hagrid,† said Hermione quickly, hurrying over and starting to clean up the mess. â€Å"There's another one in the cupboard,† Hagrid said, sitting down and wiping his forehead on his sleeve. Harry glanced at Ron, who looked back hopelessly. â€Å"Isn't there anything anyone can do, Hagrid?† Harry asked fiercely, sitting down next to him. â€Å"Dumbledore –â€Å" â€Å"He's tried,† said Hagrid. â€Å"He's got no power ter overrule the Committee. He told 'em Buckbeak's all right, but they're scared†¦Yeh know what Lucius Malfoy's like†¦threatened 'em, I expect†¦an' the executioner, Macnair, he's an old pal o' Malfoy's†¦but it'll be quick an' clean†¦an' I'll be beside him†¦.† Hagrid swallowed. His eyes were darting all over the cabin as though looking for some shred of hope or comfort. â€Å"Dumbledore's gonna come down while it — while it happens. Wrote me this mornin'. Said he wants ter — ter be with me. Great man, Dumbledore†¦.† Hermione, who had been rummaging in Hagrid's cupboard for another milk jug, let out a small, quickly stifled sob. She straightened up with the new jug in her hands, fighting back tears. â€Å"We'll stay with you too, Hagrid,† she began, but Hagrid shook his shaggy head. â€Å"Yeh're ter go back up ter the castle. I told yeh, I don' wan' yeh watchin'. An' yeh shouldn' be down here anyway†¦If Fudge an' Dumbledore catch yeh out without permission, Harry, yeh'll be in big trouble.† Silent tears were now streaming down Hermione's face, but she hid them from Hagrid, bustling around making tea. Then, as she picked up the milk bottle to pour some into the jug, she let out a shriek. â€Å"Ron, I don't believe it — it's Scabbers!† Ron gaped at her. â€Å"What are you talking about?† Hermione carried the milk jug over to the table and turned it upside down. With a frantic squeak, and much scrambling to get back inside, Scabbers the rat came sliding out onto the table. â€Å"Scabbers!† said Ron blankly. â€Å"Scabbers, what are you doing here?† He grabbed the struggling rat and held him up to the light. Scabbers looked dreadful. He was thinner than ever, large tufts of hair had fallen out leaving wide bald patches, and he writhed in Ron's hands as though desperate to free himself â€Å"It's okay, Scabbers!† said Ron. â€Å"No cats! There's nothing here to hurt you!† Hagrid suddenly stood up, his eyes fixed on the window. His normally ruddy face had gone the color of parchment. â€Å"They're comin'†¦.† Harry, Ron, and Hermione whipped around. A group of men was walking down the distant castle steps. In front was Albus Dumbledore, his silver beard gleaming in the dying sun. Next to him trotted Cornelius Fudge. Behind them came the feeble old Committee member and the executioner, Macnair. â€Å"Yeh gotta go,† said Hagrid. Every inch of him was trembling. â€Å"They mustn' find yeh here†¦Go now†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Ron stuffed Scabbers into his pocket and Hermione picked up the cloak. â€Å"I'll let yeh out the back way,† said Hagrid. They followed him to the door into his back garden. Harry felt strangely unreal, and even more so when he saw Buckbeak a few yards away, tethered to a tree behind Hagrid's pumpkin patch. Buckbeak seemed to know something was happening. He turned his sharp head from side to side and pawed the ground nervously. â€Å"It's okay, Beaky,† said Hagrid softly. â€Å"It's okay†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He turned to Harry, Ron, and Hermione. â€Å"Go on,† he said. â€Å"Get goin'.† But they didn't move. â€Å"Hagrid, we can't –â€Å" â€Å"We'll tell them what really happened –â€Å" â€Å"They can't kill him –â€Å" â€Å"Go!† said Hagrid fiercely. â€Å"It's bad enough without you lot in trouble an' all!† They had no choice. As Hermione threw the cloak over Harry and Ron, they heard voices at the front of the cabin. Hagrid looked at the place where they had just vanished from sight. â€Å"Go quick,† he said hoarsely. â€Å"Don' listen†¦Ã¢â‚¬  And he strode back into his cabin as someone knocked at the front door. Slowly, in a kind of horrified trance, Harry, Ron, and Hermione set off silently around Hagrid's house. As they reached the other side, the front door closed with a sharp snap. â€Å"Please, let's hurry,† Hermione whispered. â€Å"I can't stand it, I can't bear it†¦.† They started up the sloping lawn toward the castle. The sun was sinking fast now; the sky had turned to a clear, purple-tinged gray, but to the west there was a ruby-red glow. Ron stopped dead. â€Å"Oh, please, Ron,† Hermione began. â€Å"It's Scabbers — he won't — stay put –â€Å" Ron was bent over, trying to keep Scabbers in his pocket, but the rat was going berserk; squeaking madly, twisting and flailing, trying to sink his teeth into Ron's hand. â€Å"Scabbers, it's me, you idiot, it's Ron,† Ron hissed. They heard a door open behind them and men's voices. â€Å"Oh, Ron, please let's move, they're going to do it!† Hermione breathed. â€Å"Okay — Scabbers, stay put –â€Å" They walked forward; Harry, like Hermione, was trying not to listen to the rumble of voices behind them. Ron stopped again. â€Å"I can't hold him — Scabbers, shut up, everyone'll hear us –â€Å" The rat was squealing wildly, but not loudly enough to cover up the sounds drifting from Hagrid's garden. There was a jumble of indistinct male voices, a silence, and then, without warning, the unmistakable swish and thud of an axe. Hermione swayed on the spot. â€Å"They did it!† she whispered to Harry. â€Å"I'd — don't believe it — they did it!†

A Whack on the Side of the Head – Paper

Creativity can be the source of fame and success, but tapping into this resource can be difficult for some. Some say that you are either born with or without creativity, while others argue that it is learned and absorbed throughout a person’s lifetime. In either case, there has to be a trigger that can jump-start the creative process for those who are in need a creative spark. Roger von Oech’s A Whack on the Side of the Head is a short book describing how to figuratively â€Å"whack† some creativity into people.Roger von Oech states that there are ten mental blocks that hinder creativity, and sometimes, all people really need is a whack on the head to think differently and more clearly about their current situations. Members of society do not have a need to be creative for most of what they do, but for when people need to â€Å"think something different† these mental locks need to be identified and opened. Without unlocking the mind of its creative hindran ces, new technologies and inventions would cease to exist.Roger von Oech’s book discusses the various techniques and tips to whack people’s thinking, and tries to enlighten his readers with mentally stimulating puzzles and theories. A Whack on the Side of the Head is primarily sectioned into the ten mental locks that von Oech feels are forcing people to think â€Å"more of the same† in multiple situations. Each lock must be identified and overcome to progress toward a more creative and fulfilling lifestyle. The first mental lock is looking for the right answer. The educational system has taught us to always look for the single, correct answer.This is acceptable in most academic situations, but the problem with applying this â€Å"one right answer† philosophy in real world applications is that people stop searching for answers once they have found one that works. There are multiple solutions to problems, and just because one seems correct, it may not be th e most correct. Looking for the second and third right answers can lead to more efficient and innovative production. The second mental lock is thinking that something isn’t logical. There are two ways of thinking, hard and soft. Things with a hard side have one correct answer, while soft sided thinking has many correct answers.Also, there are two main phases in the creative development of ideas. The first phase is the imaginative phase, where one generally plays with ideas and asks many â€Å"what if† and â€Å"what rules can I break† type questions. On the other hand, practical thinking evaluates and executes ideas by asking questions such as â€Å"what is the deadline† and â€Å"who can help us? † Soft thinking is quite effective in the imaginative phase when searching for new ideas, while hard thinking is best used during the practical phase when one is preparing to carry and idea into action.Both thinking techniques should be used to produce mo re and better ideas, even when a certain style of thinking does not seem logical. The next creativity lock is always following the rules. Roger von Oech doesn’t become cliche by saying â€Å"rules are meant to be broken† but he does insist that some rules should be challenged. In an ever-changing world, some rules are outdated and should adapt the appropriate, current way of living. For example, basketball used to have a jump ball after every basket. In 1938, after almost a half decade of basketball, this ruling finally was changed in order to make game play more continuous.It just made sense to break and change this rule for so long, but no one ever suggested it. One should be flexible with the rules. Breaking and bending the rules won’t necessarily lead to creative ideas; it is one possibility. Many rules outlive the purpose to which they were intended, and thus should be occasionally challenged. Always being practical is an encumbrance to creativity. This wor ld was built by practical people, but they knew when to unleash their creative side and achieve an imaginative frame of mind. The author proposes asking â€Å"what if? questions throughout your day to try to spark some creativity. These questions can then be used as stepping stones towards a new idea, and although the questions will not always yield brilliance, they will surely make someone more productive. Another strange, yet effective, manner of being impractical is imagining yourself as the idea. Let’s say, for example, that you are in charge of designing a new parking meter. You could ask questions such as â€Å"What does it feel like when my time has expired? † or â€Å"What would I look like if I took credit cards? These silly questions could actually initiate a completely new design of debit card system parking meters. Being impractical not only allows ourselves to think differently, but it can almost always lead to new ideas. Roger von Oech’s fifth me ntal lock is thinking that play is frivolous, as well as pausing your mind. One must break free from their dull tactics and allow themselves to play with an idea. Having fun is one of the most positive motivators in the workplace and it is contagious, causing others around you to want to get in on the action.By playing and having fun, one can rid any preconceived notions about the proper way to do things and truly direct productive and creative thinking towards a new idea. Along with fun, taking a break to let your mind unwind can be useful in trying to solve a problem. Many times, people will have a problem on their mind all day but will never come up with a solution. Then on their drive home, while thinking about absolutely nothing, an idea, almost magically, pops into their head and they have their solution. Software developer Rick Tendy says, â€Å"I never try to solve a problem by solving it. By putting your problem on the mental back burner, one can put the problem into persp ective, it allows the seed of the problem to grow over time, and lastly, it allows a person to approach the same problem later with new assumptions and focus. The next creative lock is saying to yourself â€Å"That’s not my area. † One shouldn’t rely too heavily on specializations when creating an idea. When this happens, a person many not only delimit their problems to too small an area, they may also stop looking for ideas in other fields.These people will stop searching for an answer because it is â€Å"an administrative problem† or â€Å"only a computer person would know this. † One has to look outside their area of expertise to find solutions. For example, if you are an engineer with a problem, it might be beneficial to think of how an artist or a teacher would find a solution. By looking at a problem from different perspectives, a whole new realm of creativity can be unlocked. ADD MORE. Trying not to be foolish is major way to limit creativit y and get stuck in a routine of being sensible with decisions.Conforming to society may make people feel safe and secure, but not one single invention has come from this thinking. Someone has to be foolish, by either consulting a fool or being the fool themselves. Roger von Oech says that a fool keeps people from always thinking the same things. In other words, even though they may be a fool, they bring a new way of thinking that is full of interesting and silly ideas. People must let their â€Å"stupid monitor† down and allow themselves to play with dumb ideas and see if they work. However, you must be prepared to laugh at yourself and not be worried about being embarrassed.Just like having fear of being wrong, one can’t expect to have silly ideas and most of them not work. The next creative mental lock is avoiding ambiguity. Creative minds think ambiguously and they let ideas be open to interpretation. Just because everyone has the same notions and ideas regarding a certain problem, doesn’t mean that it is correct, or the most correct. Avoiding ambiguity is an especially good idea in practical situations where the consequences of misunderstanding would be serious. In imaginative situations, however, this manner of thinking stifles your imagination and ingenuity.There is a place for ambiguity, perhaps not so much while evaluating and executing ideas, but certainly when you are searching for and playing with them. Another way to be ambiguous is to let an oracle decide, or in other words, use a random outside source. Let random, unexpected information stimulate your imaginations. Native American Indian medicine men used to let wet rawhide dry in the sun, and the resulting wrinkles in the leather would be their new hunting map where the wrinkles represented new trails for the hunters to follow.Ambiguity was used to solve the Native Americans problem of diminishing game on their current hunting trails, and can be used today in the same manner . The next mental lock incorporates many other locks. This lock is thinking â€Å"to err is wrong† or that one must be correct all of the time to have a positive result. You must be wrong to be creative. Inventors do not get things right the first, second, tenth, hundredth, and so on time. They may go years without finding the correct solution, but they are allowing narrowing in on the answer but allowing themselves to fail.Thomas Edison said that he knew 1,800 ways to â€Å"not† make a light bulb. Christopher Columbus thought he was finding a shorter route to India. One of Madame Curie’s failures was radium. Failures give us an opportunity to try a new approach. Maybe you find a new way to â€Å"not fail† which leads to a new idea. If you make an error, use it as a stepping stone to an idea you might have otherwise not discovered. As Woody Allen says, â€Å"If you’re not failing every now and again, it’s a sign you’re not trying any thing very innovative. † The last lock is simply thinking that you are not creative.If you want to be more creative, believe in the worth of your ideas, and have the persistence to continue building on them. With this type of attitude, you will be open to take more risks, learn how to fail, search for more than one answer, and occasionally break some rules. By giving yourself a creative license, you allow yourself to be silly, imaginative, and foolish even if that isn’t typically you. By applying all of the mental lock remedies, you will be on your way to a great idea, and by doing so, you will be able to whack yourself into creativity. ADD MORE.Now once you have an idea, you must use it. Someone can be the most creative person in the world and have millions of terrific ideas, but if those ideas aren’t carried into fruition, it is almost pointless. People who are successful in the creative process can master four key roles to allow themselves to move from incepti on into deployment. Each of these four roles embodies a different method of thinking. The first is the explorer who searches for new information and resources. The explorer pokes around in new areas and seeks out a variety of different information.The next role is the artist, whose responsibilities are to turn these resources and information into new ideas. The artist follows their intuition, asks â€Å"what if? ’ questions, and breaks or creates rules of their own. The third role is the judge who evaluates the merits and validity of the idea. The judge runs risk analyses, questions assumptions, and listens to their gut. The judge ultimately makes a decision on the idea. The last role is the warrior, whose sole responsibility is to carry an idea into action. You must have the courage and desire to do what is necessary to make your idea a reality.By mastering these roles, Roger von Oech says you will be a master of creativity. Roger von Oech has conducted creativity seminars with renowned companies such as CBS, Coca- Cola, GE, HP, and IBM to name a few. These companies all hired his services because they know of the true value of creativity throughout any phase of organizational behavior, individual, group, and organization. Organizational performance depends on individual performance from the entire work force. Hiring and molding creative workers is an excellent way to increase efficiency and boost morale in the office.Managers seek creative individuals for two basic reasons. One, they bring fresh thoughts which lead to better productivity. Secondly, they are frequently much better workers as they are not solely preoccupied with results, but rather the steps involved in achieving these results. Anyone can find an answer once, but what truly makes creative individuals an asset to an organization is their desire to find multiple correct answers in any scenario. Just as individuals are important, how groups of individuals collaborate with their creative m inds and ideas is beneficial to any company.Without a creative team of workers, a group would only be as strong and adaptive as its most intuitive member. For example, if a manager organizes a team of mostly uncreative workers, one can expect that this group will get its work done, but not offer any alternatives or advanced results. On the contrary, a group comprised of many creative minds will not only produce the desired results, they may in fact find better ways of solving problems and perhaps challenge rules to make the production more efficient.With creative mental locks slowing down idea creation, it can be seen as imperative to mold individuals into creative workers. Lastly, the entire organization will benefit from its employees ridding themselves of these deterring mental locks. This creative behavior processes give life to an organization. An organization thrives on its ability to be adaptive to change, and its ability to create the changes themselves. Apple revolutionized the concept of digital media with their iPod, and it was due to creative individuals who had disregard for the way other companies were thinking.This type of thinking is the mother of invention, which brings about a happy workforce, increased revenue, and job satisfaction. Improvements of individual, group, and organizational performance are an output of creative organizational behavioral changes and developments. This â€Å"whack in the head† thinking keeps the workplace from being monotonous and predictable, a characteristic that every organization hopes to avoid. In a society where companies race to put out the next best â€Å"tech toy,† it is crucial for any organization to heed Roger von Oech’s advice.Not only must every level of the organization be creative, they must have the will and desire to carry out their ideas into action. Creativity is a resource that will be valuable forever. Those organizations that have it will continue to be innovative, while those without will be forgotten about. The future will basically be dictated by innovative minds, and their ability to carry out brilliant ideas. A Whack on the Side of the Head was written more than 25 years ago, but all of the information is timeless.Organizational behavior has been, and always will be structured around the creative minds of the individuals, the camaraderie of the organization, and the overall effectiveness of the organization. Roger von Oech’s book demonstrates an importance on creativity that is sought after by every organization. The study of organizational behavior is a careful application of how people in groups and individuals act within an organization. Although creativity is only a single characteristic of people, it may be one of the most valued when groups are systematically studied.As stated before, the basic goal of any company is to take an idea or problem, and solve it with as little resources as possible. CEOs, program managers, and floor man agers alike could all benefit from this book both for personal development and to help their employees unlocked their minds. There will always come a time in the workplace where an individual or group will get stuck on a problem that will result in a negative effect all around them. By being creative, employees will be stimulating their mind and playing with ideas which lead to higher office morale.Interactions of workers is the whole principle behind organizational behavior, and more creative these workers are, the more positive and productive these individuals will be within their groups. A Whack on the Side of the Head has several practical applications in the workplace. Upon reading the book, a manager can use the knowledge attained to help employees solve problems by pinpointing which mental lock they need to overcome. Furthermore, these managers will also know the remedies that are stifling their workers. This book is a simple, yet enjoyable, read that can be processed on many levels.For the younger audience, this book is meant to create a future of limitless creativity by molding the mind. For the older, professional audience, this book retrains the mind to thinking differently and breaks old suffocating habits. WRITING STYLE. A Whack on the Side of the Head is a wonderful book for those looking to merely be more creative recreationally, or do so for the betterment of an organization. From an organizational behavior standpoint, Roger von Oech’s work will improve interactions individually, within a group, and among an entire organization by allowing new and exciting ideas flow freely from these now unlocked brains.