Critical and Rational Analysis of Technology Change Models Essay

Critical and Rational Analysis of Technology Change Models - Essay Example Humanity only has a vague idea of the future, and anticipations and expectations change as new aspects of technology are introduced ("Technology and Change"). There are times when technology change may seem foreseeable but the way it has taken the world by surprise cannot simply be underrated. It has, indeed, created a plethora of advanced skills and expertise. Today's technological advances have it possible for individuals to explore the universe in a blink of the eye ("Technology and Change"). It created a vast and wide understanding of the world around us and instigated a deep-down comprehension of why life has to evolve in such a way that it has to shed its skin from the past and continue to live for the future. Everyday, we see technology change happen on our streets, at our homes, in school, or in the office. We always see technology change in our lives. However, in spite of its clear existence, many people cannot simply accept what type of changes technology has to offer. This is because in some ways, it happens so abruptly that they cannot instantly grasp what it has to offer or what good it can provide them. Modern technology has given humanity the chance to use highly advanced and innovative devices that makes life a bit easier, replacing obsolete and primitive devices that were in use not so long ago. These modern devices and methods all have the potential to make life easier if used properly ("Technology"). And perhaps they were. What used to be an innovative and practical change that created a life full of immediacy and modernization are now feeble and staggering, needled by wrong dispositions, crippled by self demoralization, overwhelmed with selfishness or drained of energy by war and violence, or otherwise threatened by a global phenomenon known as nuclear war. More than ever before, it has become clear that the torch of technology change will be passed to the next generation at a time sooner than we would like to think, or accept, signaling that cycles and passages relentlessly revolve even when we are not aware of it - or particularly when we are not aware of it. However underhanded and terrifying it can be, the way technology change has thrived in human history has always been and will always is a part of it. With the explicit impact of technology change, people do not have any choice but to go with the flow. Hence, they have undeniably submitted their selves to such events and blindly accepted the fact that technology is here to stay. There are various organizations existing today that promotes technological change in spite of the possible repercussions it may bring ("Technology and Systematic Change"). Even if it comes to the point of being both a sociological and technological issue, it may never be denied that it is a part of social change. One of these organizations, nsba.org, states that:Boards of education need to recognize that technology integration is as much aboutchange as it is about technology. How board members feel about change and theirattitudes about people's ability to change or not to change are crucia ("Technology andSystematic Change") Those that support technology and technological change state that in order for technology to truly serve its purpose to society, it has to be integrated and incorporated into social institutions such as educational units. This will

Police and Lethal Force Essay Example for Free

Police and Lethal Force Essay Police work entails expectedly many opportunities for misuse of authority or the excessive use of force which is not necessary when in the line of duty (Strack 1994; ACLU 1991). This is a primary issue that concerns policing and the grave and abusive conduct of men in uniform whether they are in the United States or elsewhere in the world (Police culture and behavior 2008).   There are various factors that are usually pointed at whenever this happens; police officers already in the brink of burn out are a primary reason. However, the mental or psychological state of an officer is usually in question if this use of lethal force occurs.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Why is this considered an issue? It is a given usually, that a police officer is knowledgeable of the â€Å"force continuum† (www.policetest.info) which is a kind of scale that guides an officer in graduated level with which what method or approach will he resort to under any given circumstance (see appendix A).   This shows that by his mere presence alone, the officer realizes, the suspect may be alerted or threatened and succeeding responses by the two individuals (i.e., if it involves two people only) are then again graded and evaluated by the officer according to the force continuum. Precisely because reports are aplenty concerning police brutality which happens when a suspect is frisked and/or confronted with a criminal activity and many of these instances that the persons of interest or suspects do not even have any weapon of sorts with them, nor were they in the position challenging the person in authority. The case of Rodney King in 1991 became a platform for many of these reforms that were made eventually, to respond to public clamor for justice regarding perpetrators the like of which Rodney King had suffered from.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Studies show that in most organizations where reforms have been initiated, what was important was the regular monitoring of the activities of police officers ensures that these men minimize their propensity to exercise the capability of employing lethal or deadly force against any citizen or any suspect unless merited. This is not just to safeguard any suspect or citizen whether they are coming from the expected â€Å"marginalized groups† where the most likely victims are men of color, older or aging citizens, women and children but even these same men in uniform from their own tendencies to act with anger or rage and resort to these means (ACLU 1991). â€Å"To serve and to protect† can mean both ways when interpreted in the light of these reforms: it means serving and protecting the men themselves who are employed to do the same to the general public. Affirming their code of ethics now and then may be a small thing but it is still a major part of reminding officers why they are in the force and the accountability that is necessary in the deterrence of themselves committing a crime needlessly. Appendix A    The Force Continuum More Force Deadly Force Less Lethal Pepper Spray, Baton, Taser Empty Hand Control Verbal Commands Less Force Officer Presence Source: http://www.policetest.info/FORCE_CONTINUUM_POLICE_USE_OF_FORCE.htm Works cited: Strack, Lorr M.1994. Personality profile of police candidates. Journal of Clinical Psychology; 50(2):200-7. www.pubmed.gov. _____ Police culture and behavior. Accessed March 12, 2008. file:///G:/A%20POLICE/Police%20Culture.htm American Civil Liberties Union. On the Line: Police Brutality and its remedies. New York. April 1991. Retrieved March 12, 2008 http://www.aclu.org/police/gen/14614pub19971201.html _______ Police Oral Boards and Use of Force Continuum. Retrieved March 12, 2008 http://www.policetest.info/FORCE_CONTINUUM_POLICE_USE_OF_FORCE.htm

Analysis Of Blood Smears

Analysis Of Blood Smears The aims of this experiment are to study the morphology and characteristic of blood; distinguish the disproportion of blood when suffering from different diseases and identified the differences between animal and human blood. To achieve the aims, smears of horse blood are prepared and compare with human blood. Then the prepared human blood smears are observed under electron microscope. INTRODUCTION Blood performs a lot of important functions within the body; it contributes homeostasis to the body and playing major role in defence system by phagocytises activity. On an average male adult who weights 70kg has a blood volume of about 5 litres, about 1/12th of the body weight. Blood consists 55% of blood plasma 45% of hematocrit in men, 58% blood plasma and 42% of hematocrit in women. Hematocrit packed with erythrocytes, leukocytes and platelets (Sherwood 2010). Erythrocytes are the most abundant blood cells with about 4-6 millions/mm3 in blood. Erythrocytes are commonly known as red blood cells. In mammalian, erythrocytes are free of nucleus to allow more room for haemoglobin and are biconcave in shape. Hence, vertebrates erythrocytes have a nucleus. Haemoglobin is the main contained in erythrocytes; it carries oxygen to the tissues, collects and transports the unwanted carbon dioxide away, conveys nutritive substances like amino acids, sugars and mineral then gathers the waste materials that want to eliminated through the renal filter, carries hormones, enzymes and also vitamins to their sites of action (Sherwood 2010). Leukocytes or white blood cells are much less abundant than red blood cells but bigger in size. They responsible for the defence of organism or eliminate harmful foreign material and make up the immune system of the body. The density of leukocytes in the blood is 5000-7000/mm3. There are two categories of leukocytes which are granulocytes and agranulocytes. Granulocytes is due to the presence of granules in cytoplasm and agranulocytes is the absent of granule in the cytoplasm. The granules are difference in different types of granulocytes and make it easier to distinguish among them. The granulocytes distinguish themselves as neutrophil, eosinophil and basophil. Agranulocytes distinguish themselves as lymphocytes and monocytes. Beside of the granules, shape of the nucleus help in recognition of leukocytes (Underwood 2004). The proportion of neutrophil amongst leukocytes is about 50-70%. Its main function is phagocytes bacteria and always present in large amount within the pus of wound. Unfortunately, these cells dead after phagocytes due to unable to renew the lysosomes that used in digesting microbes. Well, eosinophils only 2-4% amongst leukocytes, they attack parasites and phagocytes antigen-antibody complexes. Basophil is 0.5-1%, it secrete anti-coagulant and vasodilator substances as histamines and serotonin. It takes part in phagocyte activity but the main function is secreting substances that mediate the hypersensitivity reaction. Lymphocyte own 20-40% proportion of leukocytes, its little cell that compact with round nucleus. Lymphocytes populate the lymphoid tissues (Bajanowski 1997), lymphoid organs (thymus, spleen, lymphoid nodules, and palatine tonsils) as well as the lymph that circulate in the lymphatic vessel (Underwood 2004). Monocytes cooperate in immune defence although they are only 3-8% of leukocytes volume and its the precursors of macrophages (Sherwood 2010). They are large blood cells, which mature in the bone marrows before enter to the blood circulation and they only stay for 24-36 hours then will migrate into the connective tissue, where they become macrophages and move within the tissues. Monocytes migrate very rapidly to site if presence of an inflammation and intense phagocytory activity. Beside phagocytory activity, monocytes involve in secreting lysozime, interfereons and other defensive substances (Underwood 2004). Platelets or thrombocytes are fragments of cells in the blood with diameter about 2-3ÂÂ µm; hence they are much smaller than erythrocytes. Their density in the blood is only 200000-300000/mm3. They are responsible for blood clotting to prevent blood loss from broken vessels. The blood vessel constricts to reduce blood flow and loss. Platelets then aggregate at the point of the broken vessel and produce a plug to stop blood loss. To this purpose, they aggregate and release serotonin to reduce the diameter of lesion vessel and slow down the haematic flux to promote the blood coagulation (Sherwood 2010). Plasma is the most abundant liquid component of blood with a yellowish colour. It makes up approximately 55% of total blood volume. Plasma is alkaline and it functional to maintains the pH of the blood at approximately 7.4. It also maintains the osmotic balance of body cells. The composition of plasma is 90% water and 10% of dry matter like glucose, lipids, protein, glycoprotein, hormones, amino acids and vitamins (Sherwood 2010). The morphology and characteristics of blood will be study by preparing the horse blood smears samples that with and without stained. Blood smears stained by haematoxylin and eosin are easier to identify under microscope during this experiment. Blood smears of different pathologies will be investigated and identified by taking noted the numbers of cells present, shape and sizes of different types of cells and remark with drawing. METHODS First part of this experiment involved preparation of horse blood smear samples. A small drop of horse blood is placed at one end of a slide and placed a cover slip at the edge of the blood then dragged gently through the slide in order to produce a thin blood smears. The blood smear needs to be essentially thin until the blood is hardly visible; this is to ensure that individual cells were easily determined. If the smear appear red that mean it is not thin enough or too thick, this may be hard to observe through the microscope and do the cells count as packed cells is hard to see clearly under microscope. Second slides are prepared by using exactly the same way as the first one. Both slides placed immediately into a container containing ethanol for 2 minutes. Ethanol is a colourless substance and used as a fixative, it helps to preserve cell smear samples so that cells do not denature. It does not damage the cells at all, just helps to maintain them for analysis. After the use of ethanol, the slide then dried by just slanting it on a piece of tissue. Dap and rubs are not allowed, as it will destroy the thin film of smear. The unstained smear was considered ready for analysis. It was placed a side waiting for investigation progress. The second remaining slide then stained with haematoxylin and eosin. Haematoxylin is widely used in medical diagnosis; it is a blue substance stain that used to stained nuclei of cells into blue or purple colour. The nuclear staining is followed by other structures of the cells bodies with eosin stain that stain the granules of the cytoplasm in shades of red, pink and orange. Stained process performed by dipped the slide in a staining container containing haematoxylin for 2 minutes and rinse gently with water followed by dipped in another staining container containing eosin for 30 seconds and again rinse gently with water. A drop of mountant is applied on the smear and then covered with a glass coverslip. Mountant is a medium used for mounting a slid for microscopy purposes. The staining times varied slightly because the specimen was leave in the haematoxylin longer when the colour looks pale or pink and leave in the eosin for longer when it looks very dark blue. Both slides are completed and viewed under microscope. Unstained and stained smears were then observed under the microscope initiate by x10 magnification to find the cells and upgraded to higher definition of x40 magnification for details observation. Observation started with stained smears followed by unstained smears, as stained smears is easier to determine the cells. Both smears were drawn accordingly and labelled all the particular structures of interest. Commend are made upon on how the stained smear differs from unstained smear. In second part of the experiment, human blood smears are observed. Stained human blood smears taken from patients who suffer from no known pathology, sickle cell anaemia, eosinophilia, acute lymphocytic leukaemia and iron deficiency anaemia were observed. A textbook includes of brief description and expectation of what to see from the pathological blood smears are provided during the practical. In this session, each slide provided is observed under microscope. Always started with x10 magnification and moved to x40 magnification while drawing. First, normal human blood smear is observed in order to identified elements in normal blood, then go onto the pathology smears and compared found morphology that identified in horse blood in part A. The cellular elements of each smear were drawn, labelled and recorded any differences observed in pathological smears when compared to normal blood smears. The relative numbers of each cell type are counted. RESULTS: Part A: Horse blood smears Figure 1 illustrated stained horse blood smear under microscope of x40 magnification. The blood cells are stained with haematoxylin and eosin. One monocyte, one small lymphocyte, one neutrophil and bundle of erythrocytes (red blood cells) are seen. Nuclei of the leukocytes were purple-blue in colour due to the haematoxylin staining and the cytoplasm of the leukocytes appeared pink due to eosin staining. The erythrocytes are more abundant compared with leukocytes. Renown, erythrocytes are boconcave disc that absent of nuclei and mitochondria. Figure 2 shows the unstained horse blood smear. The blood cells appeared to be transparent and hard to determine the differences between the erythrocytes and most of the leukocytes except monocyte, as it is greater in size. Part B: Human blood smears Figure 3 shows the human blood smear with no known pathology. Erythrocytes, leukocytes (neutrophils, monocytes, lymphocytes, basophil) and platelets are presented. The smear make out with more abundant of erythrocytes (R.B.C) than leukocytes and they all appeared healthy. The leukocytes were blue-purple in colour surrounded by numerous erythrocytes that were pinkish in colour. Most of the leukocytes seen are neutrophils; this proves the theory stated leukocytes making up with 50-70% of neutrophils. The neutrophils were intermediate in size, lymphocyte was smaller and monocyte was larger. Their cytoplasm appeared pink in colour. The nucleus of neutrophil lobed with clumps of chromatin. Figure 4 shows human blood smear with sickle cells anaemia. Abnormal red blood cell morphology and sickle cells are seen. Figure 5 shows human blood smear with eosinophilia deficiency. Abnormal or sickle red blood cells appeared. Eosinophil and monocytes are broken. Several of smudge cells presented. Figure 6 shows the blood smear for acute lymphocytic leukaemia. The erythrocytes are not as densely pack as in the smear of human blood with no pathology. This observation clearly illustrated the presented of several lymphocytes in the smear and it appeared larger than erythrocytes. Where acute lymphocytic leukaemia is a blood cancer where the body produces a large numbers of lymphocytes. Figure 7 shows the smear for human iron deficiency anaemia. The erythrocytes are pallor in appearance. Some of the erythrocytes were larger in size. Besides that, smudge cells and different types of leukocytes seen in this smear. There are lymphocytes that small in size and also neutrophils. DISCUSSION Many diseases, disorders, and deficiencies can distinguish by observation of blood cells distribution and appearances (Bain 2005). Disproportionate numbers of leukocytes, presence of immature leukocytes, too high or too low of platelets counts, and deformed of red blood cells are all signs of serious diseases. Somehow, blood smear provides the primary evidence of a specific diagnosis. Monocytes of horse blood smear in fig. 1 are greater in size compare with human blood smear in fig.3. The comprehensive kinetic force between erythrocytes of horse blood is stronger and produced closely attached long chain of erythrocytes. The erythrocytes in fig.1 and 3 appeared normal, uniformed in size and do not have a nucleus as most other cells do. They are round and flattened like a donut with a depression in the middle. Due high density of haemoglobin presented inside the erythrocytes (Sherwood 2010), they appear pink to red in colour with a pale centre. While there are some erythrocytes in fig. 4, 5, 6 and 7 had significant different in shape and irregularities that indicate severe problems. The histological section with stained are more visible and can be noted that the nuclei of the cells appeared purple-blue with stained of haematoxylin (Bain 2005); cytoplasm appeared pinkish with stained of eosin. Unstained leukocytes are colourless and hard to determine as they lack haemoglobin (Bain 2005). The stains enhanced the illustration of the leukocytes and make it easier to distinguish. Granulocytes and agranulocytes were differentiated by observed their cytoplasm. Granulocytes are neutrophil, eosinophil and basophil that has granule in their cytoplasm and its cytoplasm is visible when staining, while agranulocytes are lymphocytes and monocytes that absents of granule in their cytoplasm where their cytoplasm appeared transparent although stained. Neutrophils are cells that have cytoplasm with pink granules, intermediate in size with lobed clumped nucleus, can be identified by observing their nuclei; their nuclei are segmented into 2-5 lobed of different shapes. They composed majority of leukocytes and function to phagocytosis . Eosinophils will easily recognize with their large, red-orange granules. Unfortunately, they arent found from the smears because they are generally low in number. Eosinophils most often become elevated in number when the individual are facing with allergies or parasitic infections. Basophils (figure 1) had large black granules and least often seen from the smears as they are only 1% of leukocytes. Increased numbers of basophiles are not often encountered but may be elevated in certain leukaemia, chicken pox, ulcerative colitis, or after an immunization. Monocytes are the largest cell amongst leukocytes with diameter of 12-20 ÂÂ µm and are often referred as phagocytes. They engulf particles such as cellular debris and bacteria. LHYPERLINK javascript: optionsdisplay(../../../glossary/lymphocyte.html)ymphocytes are smaller and have a homogeneous cytoplasm and a smooth, round nucleus. These cells are responsible for the production of antibodies or immunoglobulin (Bajanowski 1997). There are two types of lymphocytes, B and T cells and they mediated within each other. B cells induce production of antibodies; T cells destroy specific cells (Bajanowski 1997). Figure 4 illustrated human sickle cell anaemia. Sickle cell anaemia (SCA) affects millions of people worldwide (Charlotte 2010). SCA is disorders of erythrocytes that caused difficulty to haemoglobin molecules when delivers oxygen to cells throughout the body (Peterson 2009). The change of the amino acid results in haemoglobin that responds to the oxygen deficiency by stacking filaments and clustering in red blood cells containing the mutated protein in such a way that their shape is distorted (Sherwood 2010). Eosinophil usually hardly noticeable in blood smears indicates the response of the body to abnormal cells, parasites, or substances that cause an allergic reaction. Donor of the blood smear illustrated in figure 5 may have eosinophilia disorder as broken eosinophil is presented. Eosinophilia is commonly happened to people who have asthma, hay fever, food allergic or parasitic infections such as intestinal worms (Sherwood 2010). In the acute lymphocytic leukemia sample shown in figure 6, there was a noticeable increase in the number of lymphocytes seen. The erythrocytes are pallor and lymphocytes appeared larger than erythrocytes and this is due to a disease of lymphoid cells causing uncontrolled production of lymphocytes (Underwood 2004). Acute lymphocytic leukaemia is a disease where the physical changes take place within the cell (McClain 1990), a reduced count of red blood cells with a raised level of leukocytes. This may leads to an accumulation of blast cells in the bone marrow and causes bone marrow failure (McClain 1990). All the red blood cells in the iron deficiency anaemia sample appeared pale in colour. This usually caused to people with poor diet that contains little iron especially vegetariansbecause the main dietary source of ion is red meat. Besides that, diseases of the small intestine such as gluten intolerance can reduce its ability to absorb iron (Sherwood 2010).

Graduation Speech: We Can Be Heroes -- Graduation Speech, Commencemen

Class of 2012, as we sit here this evening, I would like you to take a look at the classmates sitting around you. Many students have given countless hours of time, energy, and passion to worthy cuases that they have been a part of throughout high school. However, those aren't the only students deserving of recognition this evening. We have students here tonight, who have taken a stand for what they believe in, not even hesitating to compromise their reputations. I believe there are many ordinary heroes wearing caps and gowns tonight. Many of you are heroes because you challenge yourselves to be more accepting of those around you. Some of you heroes woke up every day and came to school with the desire to reach out to those hurting and in need of a friend. Other heroes went the extra mile to make someone feel important, encouraging them and offering hope they may not otherwise have experienced. One of our deepest needs as humans is to be valued. The need to be needed is often more powerful than the need to survive. Every one of us has a deep longing to write our signature on the world. As individuals, we are each equipped with unique gifts and talents to share with our family, our community, and our world. Nelson Mandela once said, "As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others." When we open ourselves to become all that we were created to be, we allow those around us to be themselves, empowering them to be a unique individual and to use the talents they possess. It doesn't matter if we are brilliant, beautiful, or incredibly charismatic. We can make a difference by just being who we are. We simpl... ...ctivities, while encouraging us to be our best. These acts of love and many more are what make you our heroes. Class of 2012, I challenge you to recognize the heroes in your life, and continue to be heroes yourselves. Author Charles Swindoll said, "We need heroes. I mean genuine heroes, authentic men and women who are admired for their achievements, noble qualities, and courage. Such people aren't afraid to be different. They risk. They stand a cut above." Swindoll's message speaks so highly of those who are heroes and those who have the potential to be heroes. So, here is my challenge to you. Rise above your fears, take risks, and don't let your abilities collect dust. Instead, live life passionately, dream big, and seek every day in ways small and large to write your signature on the planet. But be careful ... you may just empower someone else to do the same.

Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Essay

Response to Prompt 1 In the novel Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Henrietta had cells removed from a tumor on her cervix without her knowledge or consent. Henrietta’s family also had no idea that the cells were being removed or the advances they would soon make in medical research. What the doctors and researchers did not realize is that in taking the cells from Henrietta, they were degrading the family and violating her dignity. By definition, dignity is â€Å"nobility or elevation of character; worthiness†. (â€Å"Dignity†) When George Grey took the cells from Henrietta, he was not considering her dignity or her worthiness. He was considering the benefits for himself and for medical research. At the end of chapter eight, we learn that Grey had never visited Henrietta while she was sick. Grey would receive the cells from an assistant and keep doing his research, almost as if the cells did not come from a living, breathing human being. â€Å"There is no record that George Grey ever visited Henrietta in the hospital, or said anything to her about her cells. And everyone I talked to who might know said that Grey and Henrietta never met. Everyone, that is, except Laure Aurelian, a microbiologist who was Grey’s colleague at Hopkins.† (page 66) By Grey never visiting Henrietta, he violated her dignity. As a patient, white or black, she deserved to meet the man that was taking her DNA and sending it to other laboratories for more research. Today, that would be illegal. But back in 1950, it was acceptable. Additionally, the doctors and researchers at John Hopkins violated Henrietta’s dignity by keeping critical information from her and the family about her cancer and the removal of her cells. If Henrietta had been given the right to know her diagnosis and treatment options, she could have made a more informed decision, thereby maintaining her dignity. â€Å"There’s no indication that Henrietta questioned him; like most patients in the 1950s, she deferred to anything doctors said. This was a time when â€Å"benevolent deception† was a common practice – doctors often withheld even the most  fundamental information from their patients, sometimes not giving them a diagnosis at all.† (page 63) Black people were given less opportunities to demand their dignity, and Henrietta was no exception. And when it came to white doctor’s treatment of black patients, the same rules applied. â€Å"This was 1951 in Baltimore, segregation was law, and it was understood that black people didn’t question white people’s professional judgement† (page 63)

Discuss Nick Hornby s presentation of Marcus in chapters 1-10 of ‘About a Boy’ Essay

Nick Hornby’s novel, ‘About a boy’ is a story about two boys. A 12 year old, named Marcus, who has a suicidal mother. And a 36 year old child-like-man called Will Freeman. Will, has never worked in his life, he was been living of the royalties of a song that his father had wrote for Christmas, over 70 years ago. Marcus is very much a ‘mummy’s boy.’ He is so close to his mother that his taste in music and clothes are identical. When he starts his new school, he realises that he is an easy target for bullies as his hair is cut ‘dodgy’ by his mum and he has a tendency to sing aloud in class†¦. When we see Marcus in chapter one, we see a naive teenager. On the very first page of the book, Marcus’ mum Fiona suffers from a break up. â€Å"Have you spilt up now?† This very quote shows the naivete of Marcus. This childish questions, suggest that Marcus has not developed any level of maturity and has no means of comforting his mother. However, with this in mind, Marcus has a very logical way of thinking, and there are there are two valid reasons for this bold statement. When we do see the break up incident, Marcus realises that when people begin to do things together (almost like a family) they should gel and stay together. â€Å"He’d once shared a toilet with Roger, when they were both busting for a pee after a car journey. You’d think that if you’d peed with someone you ought to keep in touch with them somehow.† This logical thinking by Marcus suggest that he had thought about future with his mum and Roger, and that Roger would stay because of the family relationship that they all shared. The second reason why I believe he has a logical process is the pizza incident happens. When the break up argument began, they had just orders three pizzas. As we know Marcus and Fiona are ‘vegetarians’, but Roger wasn’t, so one of the pizza contained peperoni. â€Å"We’ll throw it away then?† Fiona suggests, but Marcus being Marcus, he promotes that they should â€Å"Pick the peperoni off.† This suggests that instead of throwing away a perfectly good pizza, Marcus thinks that they can still eat the pizza without the peperoni topping. Although Marcus is still very naive, we see a very different side of Marcus on the very past page of chapter 1. He is very protective of his mum. When they have fished eating and arguing, Marcus finds the TV remote and â€Å"Zapped through the channels. He didn’t want to watch any of the soaps, because soaps were full of trouble, and he was worried that the trouble in the soaps would remind his mum of the trouble she had in her own life.† This quote suggests that because of his mother’s break up’s and troubles, he did not want the TV reminding her of anything, which really shows how protective he is over his mother. Marcus has just moved house, which unfortunately means he starts a new school. In the first few chapters, we see life for Marcus in school, and it wasn’t going to be easy. He is different from his peers. There times in the book, which really shows how apart he is from everyone. Firstly, he arrives for school. EARLY. Not a typical act from a teenager. â€Å"He got to school early, went to the form room, sat down at his desk.† This is one of vey first examples, of why he is very different. Not many teenagers would willingly want to come to school early. The way he dresses, and the way he looks is another issue. â€Å"He was usually wearing the wrong shoes or the wrong trousers, and his haircut was wrong all the time.† This would mean that he would be an easy target for bullies. However, worst is still to come. â€Å"A song had slipped out yesterday during English.† When he had an English lesson, Marcus unexpectedly sang a song whilst the teacher was reading. As a kid, this really ‘sealed the deal’ for Marcus. Luckily, Marcus had found a few friends who were also outsiders like him. They were Nicky and Mark. Marcus meet them by an after school computer club. However, their relationship with each other was very timid. â€Å"He was being left out deliberately† Marcus was waiting his turn on the Gameboy, at this point in the book. Although he hasn’t done anything wrong, he was still singled out. Suddenly, things to a turn for the worse for their relationship. At lunchtime, a few bullies, who had been tormenting Marcus before, came up to Marcus and his friends, and began insulting them. When they had gone, Mark spoke out and said. â€Å"Marcus, we don’t want you hanging around with us anymore.† This shocked Marcus. He knew that if they were to hang out with him, they would all get bullied. These so called ‘friends’ that Marcus had, had been unsupportive and nothing like Marcus. This shows how different Marcus really is; he cannot fit in with people who are so similar to him. As have mentioned before, Marcus is overprotective over his mum, because of their closeness and the strong relationship they have. In the fifth chapter, we see Marcus worrying about his mother. This is caused by the constant crying habit his mom has developed. This had frightened him. â€Å"One Monday morning his mother started crying before breakfast, and it frightened him.† In this scenario in the book, Marcus understands that his mum is going through a tough time but he does not know what to say or do. â€Å"He didn’t know what to say.† So instead, when we went for his weekly shop, he stuck to the ‘economy sized packets of cereal, because he knew that is he had brought banded name, then his mum would be angry. This again shows how protective he is over his mum. With this in mind, he had realised that there was â€Å"an advantage of her terrible depression.† Without her knowing he bought the branded ‘Coco-Pops.† This shows that he was still taking advantage out of his mother’s sadness. In the final few page of chapter 7 we see an intense moment between Marcus and Fiona. Marcus finally confronts Fiona about her constant depression and the fact the she hasn’t been looking after him. â€Å"All you do is make my meals and I could do that. The rest of the time you just cry. That’s†¦ that’s no good. That’s no good to me.† This shows that Fiona does not know how to look after a child. However, Marcus does not help or resolve the matter; instead he heads off to his room. â€Å"He went upstairs to his room and played NBA Basketball with the earphones on.† This shows a level of immaturity and a certain lack of social skill. Fiona claims that â€Å"we’re not doing each other any good† to Marcus. This again is more evidence to prove that Fiona simply cannot look after Marcus. When we see Will in chapter eight, he describes Marcus as being â€Å"the weird kid.† Will thinks this about Marcus because of the way he acts. For example, when they were at the back of a car together, Marcus began ‘humming tunelessly’. This would not be a normal act performed by a teenager, and this led Will into believing he is strange. There is more evidence for Will to believe Marcus is weird. â€Å"‘You know Michael Jackson, right? He makes a million pounds a minute,’ said the weird kid.† When Marcus said this, Will thought he was making things up, which again led Will to believing he is weird. At the park, Marcus accidently killed a duck in the lake. In this part of the book, Marcus changes his mind about Will in a matter of minutes, from despising him, and then realising that he was one his side. â€Å"Who did this Will think he was?† Will was trying to be sarcastic about the matter, but Marcus, did not find it funny. Then, all of a sudden â€Å"Marcus looked up at him; maybe he didn’t hate him after all.† Will then made the incident look like it had affected them in front of the park-keeper. Marcus had changed his view about him, in a flash, without him doing anything. All of this suggests that Marcus has mixed opinions on will, on moment he is the hero, and the next he is just a stranger, In chapter nine, we sadly see a suicide attempt from Fiona. The events leading up to this moment, is very intense. On the day of the suicide attempt, Marcus is at Regent Park for a picnic with Suzie and Will. Whilst Will and Suzie were talking, Marcus was feeding the ducks, with loaf hard bread that Fiona had made, he had then accidently thrown the whole loaf in to the lake and a killed a duck. Hence the ‘Dead duck day.’ All of a sudden Marcus could see Fiona across the lake waving and smiling at him, he turned around to tell Suzie but when he looked back she was gone. â€Å"It was then that Marcus saw-or thought he saw-his mum. She was standing in front of them, blocking the path, and she was smiling. He waved and turned around to tell Suzie that she’d turned up, but when he looked back his mum wasn’t there.† This part of the book is based on symbolism. I think it represents symbolism because there is a link between what happened with the Dead duck and the fact that she was there, meant that it was a way of saying bye to Marcus. It was almost like a premonition for Marcus, that something was about to happen. â€Å"A new part of his life began, bang, without any warning at all.† When I saw this part in the book, it really surprised me. I wasn’t aware of how Fiona was so depressed, that caused her to a terrible act like this. As a reader, I would say that Fiona’s depressions was only recognised as just her crying most the time, I was not sure she would have gone to that greater length, and commit suicide. It is obvious that Marcus was hit hard by the fact that his mother had committed suicide. At the end of chapter nine, it reads â€Å"he knew the moment he walked in that it was something he’d have to think about forever.† At this point in the book, we see Marcus’ character really open out. This continues as we read on. When they reach the hospital, Marcus is in the waiting room, reflecting on other people troubles and compares this to his mum. â€Å"My mum’s not like these people. Supposing they think she is, though?† he believes that the hospital might treat her as being just a normal druggy.

The Phonogram WH

The Phonogram WH The Phonogram WH The Phonogram WH By Maeve Maddox A reader commenting on Wile vs While wrote: Modern speakers and writers have a problem with W words such as while and wile (another example: whale, wale, and wail) because there is no longer a distinction made between the way wh and w are pronounced. Not all American speakers distinguish between the sounds of whine and wine, but many still do. There are advantages to teaching the distinction, even in regions where the difference has been lost in the local dialect. Wh represents the sound one makes when blowing out a candle: [wh]. The number of English words that begin with wh is not large, and even speakers who distinguish between the initial sounds of Wales and whales do not pronounce wh as [wh] in every word that begins with the wh spelling. For speakers of dialects that still distinguish between the pronunciation of which and witch, the following words begin with the aspirated sound [wh]: whack whale wharf what wheat wheel wheeze when where whet whether which whiff Whig while whim whimper whip whirl whisk whisker whisky whisper whit white whoop why In the following words, the spelling wh represents the sound [h]. who whom whole whose wholly whore What linguists call the â€Å"wine-whine merger† is no doubt destined to prevail in the United States. Nevertheless, teaching the aspirated sound of wh is an aid to spelling mastery. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Spelling category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:12 Types of LanguageWhat is Dative Case?50 Plain-Language Substitutions for Wordy Phrases