Museum and media studies at wildwalk Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Museum and media studies at wildwalk - Essay Example The strings that hold us all together are many - and more than that, they are common threads that date back to centuries and generations long gone. I would like to assert that there is a great deal of importance attached to the study and preserving of our history and roots.While the subjects are vast, the elements of such studies form a large platform for determining the socio cultural and geographical implications of recorded history and work in the same context. In this regard, museums are more than just buildings that house pieces for children to enjoy on a field trip. This thought was accentuated during a recent visit I paid to the Wildwalk based in the centre of Bristol. As far as the conception of museums and their aims go, they work to reproduce ideologies in order to lend credibility and authenticity to the existing order of things. Also, museums have been seen as instruments of social reform, which shows a variety of pattern. The first is that the objects in museums can exceed their designated roles as documents or specimens by revolving around the strategic placement to make them give out a certain message in terms of sounds and images. This conforms to the notion of the Wildwalk adopting a certain standard of media culture. The primary role here is to correlate people and material things, so that the museum becomes an important site for the development of new forms of experience, memory and knowledge. In this case, it has adopted an approach that is an amalgamation of the naturalism and simulation theories. In case of naturalism, it has been found that the heritage industry gained a boost when Thatcher's time saw the commemoration of Britain's past when its industrial sector faced a decline in the 1970s. In order to keep the tourist inflow steady, there was a new interpretation of the past heritage and glory in terms of commoditization of a museum and its objects which have helped remove conflict within communities that have lost out on this heritage. (Bird et al, 1993) So far media culture was represented only in fields like film, music and television. But during the latter half of the twentieth century, this concept began to make its foray into various aspects that adhered to the public sphere. Museums now place special emphasis on the conept of media culture owing to the fact that it provides a strong conetxt for the study and presentation of facts pertaining to various material and socil behaviour. In this way, media in museum studies provides an impetus to link cultures and origins. This a point of interest for scholars and visitors alike owing to the fact that the use of media for learning and experiencing something new has been proven as an effective tool. (Piror, 2006) This demonstrates the fact that museums can be theorized as a form of media. To take the case of both historical and contemporary examples, one would have to admit that these examples are clear in international instances as well. Take for example, the play of curiosity and the related use of media to satisfy the same through the avant-garde exhibition design of Lissitzy and Bayer. Also, the use of media has seen the age of experimental museums that have been ushered in by the likes of Paul Otlet and Otto Neurath. Further, science centres hold their own in terms of immersive and virtual museums with major developments such as Guggenheim Bilbao, Tate Modern in London and the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C. (Piror, 2006) Based in nuances of iconography, the media aspect of Wildwalk is replete in the fact that it is a rainforest crammed with all kinds of live animals, plants and multimedia exhibits, which are waiting to be experienced. We use the word experience because here, one is in close contact with the nuances of the the awe inspiring diversity of the natural world in its spelndor. With an impetus to place facts and information in one's knowledge base through the use of creativity in media

An Analysis on the Design Phase of Euro Shuttle Wagons Project Essay

An Analysis on the Design Phase of Euro Shuttle Wagons Project - Essay Example Euro tunnel shuttle service is a shuttle transport service that expresses street vehicle by rail through the channel tunnel. The wagons used for the shuttle have a large loading capacity.The Tunnel project usually has a very tight timescale and heavy liquidated damages (LDs) linked with delays and so this one. Eurotunnel’s success rate is dependent on the timeframe of the tunnel being finished and ready to start its operations in particular season, otherwise, interest payments would start to devastate the profit of the project.There are many aspects of design, construction and operation of the Euro Channel Tunnel Wagons project that needs approval from the Intergovernmental Commission (IGC), a body of British and French civil servants. The main focus of project manager during development phase of the project is and should be on safety, defence, security and environmental issues, as IGC takes these issues as criteria to evaluate the performance of channel tunnel project.The saf ety clause was not clearly defined at the start of the project and was later gradually defined; this was not only because of the unfamiliarity of tunnel channel to safety regulators but also because of the allegation of events such as the UK Kings Cross Fire in November 1987. Due to lack of safety, changes are required to meet IGC considerations and the effect of those changes was not only delays but it also had impacted on other related elements of the project and characteristics of the product, and on the image of TML.

Effect of Solanezumab on Alzheimer’s Disease

Effect of Solanezumab on Alzheimer’s Disease Solanezumab Introduction Alzheimer’s disease is chronic neurodegenerative disease which has a slow development which worsens over a period of time (Alzheimers Disease 2009). This disease is commonly linked with the overabundance of aggregated amyloid-beta (AÃŽ ²) peptide within the cerebral cortex and hippocampus (Doody et al. 2014). Solanezumab an Alzheimer’s drug is a monoclonal IgG1 antibody which is used against the mid-domain of the AÃŽ ² peptide (Alzforum.org 2015). This paper will cover aspects of this drug such as its development, chemical structure and mechanism of action and looking at issues the drug had during its development, regulatory approval and its post market surveillance. Development The development of this type of antibody is different from other monoclonal antibodies which are being tested currently. Comparing it to that of another drug called bapineuzumab, which binds to the N-terminal, Solanezumab was created to bind to the soluble AÃŽ ² peptide because it was predicted to it being far more effective than binding to the N-terminal portion of a molecule (Imbimbo et al. 2012). In the In Vitro studies which were undertaken for this drug, the parent’s antibody m266 which binds to the AÃŽ ² had been tested in a dialysis system involving the antibody solution in the bottom chamber which was divided by a dialysis membrane from the top chamber which had the human CSF. It was seen that a great amount of CSF AÃŽ ² was sequestered when the bottom chamber had PBS plus m266 at 48.91% as compared to PBS with a nonspecific mouse IgG being at 2.18% (Imbimbo et al. 2012). The result demonstrated in relation to AÃŽ ² binding that m266 was not able to bind to AÃŽ ² depos ited in parenchyma and cerebral vessels (Imbimbo et al. 2012 cited from [49]). Class of drug and Mechanism of action Solanezumab as defined by the WHO’s International Nonproprietary Names for Pharmaceutical Substances (INN) is an neuroprotectant (WHO 2007). Neuroprotection as dictated by Rafi and Aisen (2009) is the mechanism by which neurons are protected from degeneration; their use can be seen in patients who have suffered recent ischemic injury or a result from neurodegenerative diseases. It is seen that solanezumab’s mechanism of action is different to that of other passive immunotherapies. This is due to it targeting the central domain of AÃŽ ² peptide, which has been proposed as more effective in clearing N-terminal truncated or modified forms of AÃŽ ² peptide (Siemers et al. 2010). This has separated this drug from others such as bapinezumab which targets the N-terminal of the molecule exclusively (Samadi and Sultzer 2011). In the murine model, the M266 antibodies are seen to enter the cerebral spinal fluid at a concentration of 0.1% compared that that of in plasma, as with patients with AD, a single injection intravenously of the dose of .5, 1.5, 4 and 10 mg/kg resulted in the maximum plasma concentration for solanezumab (Bruno P Imbimbo, et al. 2012). Furthermore the mean total half-life of the drug was found to be 334 hours (14 days) after an injection of .5mg and 631 to 709 hours (26 to 30 days) when injected with 1.5, 4, or 10 mg which indicated that the lowest dose half-life compared to that of the high doses was most likely due to the drug concentrations falling below quantification limits, thus possibly preventing complete characterization of the terminal elimination phase for the dose given (Imbimbo et al. 2012 cited from Siemers et al. 2010). Chemical Structure Solanezumab is a humanized IgG1 derivative of the m266 AÃŽ ² monoclonal antibody of a mouse in which binds to the central region of the human AÃŽ ² peptide (Stefan DÃ ¼bel 2014). This antibody was produced inside A/J mice using a synthetic AÃŽ ² peptide conjugated with an anti –CD3 immunoglobin (Bruno P Imbimbo, et al. 2012). (Expand a bit more here) Identifying issues during drug development, regulatory approval or post marketing surveillances Currently 9 studies have carried out concerning the Solanezumab drug, 5 of which have been completed and the other 4 which are recruiting or currently active in their research (ClinicalTrials.gov 2015). The most well regarded and referenced is the Phase 3 Trials which were carried out by Eli Lilly in 2014 which looked at using Solanezumab for mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease. In in murine model of the preclinical trials for the drug were tested for their safety and effectiveness. It was seen that the mice treated with the murine version of solanezumab called m266.2 were at risk to develop cerebral microhemorrhaging as compared to mice treated with 3D6 which the bapinezumab model for mice (Samadi, seltzer 2011 cited from [50]). The reasoning for this result was predicted to be that of the different binding paths of the drugs where solanezumab binds to the AÃŽ ² peptide exclusively as bapinezumab binds to both AÃŽ ² plaque and the n-terminal of the AÃŽ ² peptide (Samadi, seltzer 2011 cited from [43]). Phase I studies showed that when 19 test subjects were subjected to a single dose of solanezumab containing either .5,1.5,4.0 or 10 mg/kg that serious adverse side effects occurred in 4 , 1 in which had a placebo (add in results for this phase 1)( Samadi , Sultzer 2011). The events that occurred was syncope, fatigue and vertigo occurring from the does size given, although it was noted that these effects were not fault of the drug given (Imbimbo et al. 2012 cited [55]). The results of the study had shown that there altogether no changes in the cognitive scores which would indicate that the drug did not provide any benefit. In the phase II study was conducted looking at the drug being given over a period of 12 weeks. The various issues that occurred in these studies was that 8 patients had suffered from serious adverse side effects from the drug, these included cardiac, neurological and even gastrointestinal issues (Farlow et al. 2012). The table Figure (1) gives a summary to the adverse events that occurred between the placebo and varying dosage groups of the patients receiving the drug. (expand) When looking at the cognitive measurements in the patients to assess their cognitive abilities, the results showed that between the drug and the placebo, no important differences were seen on the 11 item or 14 item scores. Table figure (3) demonstrates these results showing these differences. This table can then indicate that there was no suggestion that any significant clinical benefit occurred. The Phase III trials which involved 2 double blind trials which the patients were treated with either the drug or the placebo given periodically over a period of 18 months. The outcomes were measured using the 11 item and 14 items cognitive scores to which the previous phase studies had used. The results showed that for the baseline characteristics that there were no differences between the control and drug group but for the cognitive and clinical outcomes they The adverse events that occurred during this trial were that cardiac arrhythmia occurred in 5% of patients who received the drug and 3.7% in the placebo (Doody et al. 2014). As well as the cardiac issues, 33 deaths had occurred, 24 in which were in the group who received Solanezumab In the discussion section of the studies they mention that from both the studies that were undertaken, none of them had shown any benefit that Solanezumab and the current studies have failed to show treatment effects on the hippocampal , total brain volume or the amyloid accumulation (Doody et al. 2014). Doody et al. (2014) goes on to mention that although the study did not show the efficacy of the drug being tested that further studies into the drug will be required to assess the particular approach they’ve taken. It can be seen a major issue concerning all the studies which were carried out is the lack of efficacy. As can be seen for all the results for the phase studies that all of them showed no significant improvement when it was concerning the 11 item and 14 item scores for the patients. Conclusion Solanezumab has also proven to provide a poor efficacy for the patients in which has taken it. The phase studies in which have been reported demonstrate this result occurring which can give evidence toward this particular monoclonal antibody to be ineffective as slowing the progression of Alzheimer’s. Although there was seen adverse side effects in the studies which may call for concern , it has been properly ruled out that the issues were not related to the drug as can be seen in the table results when comparing the control to the drug groups. To summarise solanezumab is not created the same as compared to other monoclonal antibodies, when discussing their binding site on the AÃŽ ² peptide, although this drug has proven to have a poor efficacy, it has shown that it causes minimal adverse side effects in comparison to other monoclonal antibodies currently being tested. If more study was to be taken place into altering the drug, in attempt to improve efficacy whilst minimising the adverse effects, it may come into market someday to help people. References Bruno P Imbimbo, Simone Ottonello, et al. Solanezumab for the treatment of mild-to-moderate Alzheimers disease. 2012. Stefan DÃ ¼bel, Janice M. Reichert. Handbook of Therapeutic Antibodies. John Wiley Sons, 2014. http://informahealthcare.com.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/doi/full/10.1517/14712598.2011.578573 https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?term=solanezumabSearch=Search https://books.google.com.au/books?id=CiCOAwAAQBAJpg=PA336dq=solanezumabhl=ensa=Xei=fj5fVdixGMHbmAWRkYC4CAved=0CCwQ6AEwAw#v=onepageq=solanezumabf=false https://books.google.com.au/books?id=cTsTAAAAQBAJpg=PA165dq=solanezumabhl=ensa=Xei=fj5fVdixGMHbmAWRkYC4CAved=0CCcQ6AEwAg#v=onepageq=solanezumabf=false https://books.google.com.au/books?id=svHsBQAAQBAJpg=PA907dq=solanezumabhl=ensa=Xei=fj5fVdixGMHbmAWRkYC4CAved=0CB0Q6AEwAA#v=onepageq=solanezumabf=false http://www.alzforum.org/therapeutics/solanezumab

War on Drugs: Germany compared to the Netherlands Essay -- Drug Enforc

The War on Drugs One of the key aspects to consider when evaluating domestic political actors preferences towards policies pertaining to illegal drug use in both the Netherlands and Germany is to evaluate their ideological differences. The Netherlands attitude towards drug policy revolves around limiting the negative impacts illegal drug use has on society by implementing laws catered towards decriminalization. On the other hand, Germany considers drugs a detriment to society and promotes legislation that proactively restricts the flow of supply and demand of illegal drugs within the country. Now that both countries ideological differences have been brought to light, we must also consider the origins of those ideas and how they transcended into public policy. One of the significant driving forces behind the shaping of any policy are those political actors who reside in the country. The objective of any political actor is to influence public preference by sponsoring changes in policy. Just like the U nited States, both Germany and the Netherlands have organizations within their own country that promote policies to the public in an attempt to sway their opinion on an issue. The investigation of political actors in Germany and the Netherlands will allow one to obtain a greater understand of why their stance on illegal drug use is the way it is. German policies reflect a hard-line approach on drug enforcement. Non-governmental organizations such as the Jeunesse Anti Drogue promote, â€Å"Stiffer penalties for individuals charged with the sale of illegal drugs within the proximity of a school† (Jeuness Anti Drogue 2005). Many organizations similar to Jeunesse provide a supportive platform for parties such as the National Democratic Party... ..., we are able to better understand why policies differ from country to country. Works Cited 1. German Youth Against Drugs. 2005. Jeuness Anti Drogue.2005. (Accessed February 3, 2012). 2. Netherlands Drugs Policy Foundation. 2009. Stichting Drugsbeleid. (Accessed February 3, 2012). 3. Startseite Der Webseite. 2006. Des Verein Fà ¼r Drogenpolitik (Accessed February 3, 2012). 4. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. 2005. German Non-Governmental Organizations (Accessed February 3, 2012). 5. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. 2005. Netherlands Non-Governmental Organizations (Accessed February 3, 2012).

The Hunters: Moonsong Chapter Twenty

This is way worse than the obstacle course, thought Matt. And building a house out of newspaper. And the firewalk. This is definitely the worst pledge event yet. He twisted the toothbrush in his hand to real y get into the little niche running along the bottom of the paneling on the Vitale Society's pledge room wal s. The toothbrush came out black with ancient dirt and dangling cobwebs, and Matt grimaced in disgust. His back was already sore from hunching over. â€Å"How's it going, soldier?† Chloe asked, squatting down next to him, a dripping sponge in one hand. â€Å"Honestly, I'm not sure how scrubbing out this room is going to help us develop honor and leadership and al the stuff Ethan keeps talking about,† Matt said. â€Å"I think this might just be a way to save a couple of bucks on a cleaning service.† â€Å"Well, they say cleanliness is next to godliness,† she reminded him. Chloe laughed. He real y liked her laugh. It was sort of bubbly and silvery. Internal y, he gave himself a little eye rol . Bubbly and silvery. She had a nice laugh, was al he meant. They'd been spending a lot of time together since Christopher's death. Matt had felt like nothing could be as bad as living with al of Christopher's stuff when Christopher himself was gone, but then Chris's parents came and packed it up, gently patting Matt on the back as if he deserved some kind of sympathy when they had lost their only son. And with just empty space where Christopher's things had been, everything was a mil ion times worse. Meredith, Bonnie, and Elena had tried to comfort him. They wanted so badly for him to be okay again that he'd felt guilty he wasn't, making it harder for him to be around them. Chloe had taken to coming by the room, hanging out with him or getting him to come to the cafeteria or wherever with her, keeping him in touch with the world when he felt like locking himself away. There was something so easy about her. Elena, the only girl he'd ever loved – before now, part of him whispered – was much more work to be around. Inside, he flinched at his own disloyalty to Elena, but it was true. Now he was starting to wake up and take an interest in things again. And he kept noticing with fresh surprise the cute dimple Chloe had in her right cheek, or how shiny her curly dark hair was, or how graceful and pretty her hands were despite the fact that they were often stained with paint. So far, though, they were just friends. Maybe †¦ maybe it was time to change that. Chloe snapped her fingers in front of his face, and Matt realized he had been staring at her. â€Å"You al right, buddy?† she asked, a little frown wrinkling her forehead, and Matt had to restrain himself from kissing her right then. â€Å"Yeah, just spacing out,† he said, feeling a flush creep over his cheeks. He was smiling like a goof, he knew. â€Å"Want to help with these wal s?† â€Å"Sure, why not?† Chloe answered. â€Å"I'l soap down the wal part, and you keep doing whatever you're doing there with that little toothbrush.† They worked companionably together for a while, Chloe now and then accidental y-on-purpose dripping soapy water onto the top of Matt's head. As they worked further along the paneling, the niche under the baseboard got deeper, until it was not so much a niche as a gap. Matt slid the toothbrush underneath to scrub – man, but it got grimy down there – and felt something shift. â€Å"There's something under here,† he told Chloe, pressing his hand flat against the floor and working his fingers into the gap. He slid his hands and the toothbrush around, trying to shimmy whatever was down there toward them, but he couldn't quite get a grip on it. â€Å"Look,† said Chloe after a moment, â€Å"I think the paneling might slide up here.† She wiggled the section of wood until it gave a raucous screech and she was able to work it up. â€Å"Huh,† she said, puzzled. â€Å"Wow, it's like a secret compartment. Seems like it hasn't been opened for a while, though.† Once she managed to ease the paneling up, they could see the space behind it was smal , only a foot or so in height and width and a few inches deep. It was ful of cobwebs. Inside was something rectangular, wrapped in a cloth that had probably once been white but was now gray with dust. â€Å"It's a book,† Matt said, picking it up. The grime on the outside of the cloth was thick and soft and came away on his hands. Unwrapping it, he found the book inside was clean. â€Å"Wow,† Chloe said softly. It looked old, real y old. The cover was flaking dark leather, and the edges of the pages were rough as if they'd been hand cut instead of by a machine. Tilting the book a little, Matt could see the remains of gilt that must have once been the title, but it was worn away now. Matt opened it to the middle. Inside, it was handwritten, black ink inscribing neat strong strokes. And total y indecipherable. â€Å"I think it's Latin. Maybe?† said Matt. â€Å"Do you know Latin at al ?† Chloe shook her head. Matt flipped back to the first page, and one word popped out at him. Vitale. â€Å"Maybe it's a history of the Vitale Society,† Chloe said. â€Å"Or ancient secrets of the founders. Cool! We should give it to Ethan.† â€Å"Yeah, sure,† Matt said, distracted. He turned a few more pages, and the ink changed from black to a dark brown. It looks like dried blood, he thought, and shuddered, then pushed the image away. It was just some kind of old ink, faded brown with time. One word he recognized, written three – no, four – times on the page: Mort. That meant death, didn't it? Matt traced the word with his finger, frowning. Creepy. â€Å"I'l show it to Ethan,† Chloe said, jumping up and taking the book from him. She crossed the room and interrupted Ethan's conversation with another girl. From the other side of the room, Matt watched Ethan's face break into a slow smile as he took the book. After a few minutes, Chloe returned, grinning. â€Å"Ethan was real y excited,† she said. â€Å"He said he'l tel us al about it after he gets someone to translate the book.† Matt nodded. â€Å"That's terrific,† he said, pushing the last of his unease away. This was Chloe, lively, laughing Chloe, and he would try not to think about death or blood or anything morbid around her. â€Å"Hey,† he said, pushing away the dark thoughts, focusing on the golden highlights in her dark hair. â€Å"Are you going to the party at McAl ister House tonight?† Maybe not pulled back, Elena thought, looking critical y at herself in the mirror. She tugged the barrette out of her hair and let her golden locks tumble, sleek and flat-ironed, down around her shoulders. Much better. She looked good, she noted, running her eyes dispassionately over her reflection. Her strappy short black dress accentuated her rose-petal skin and pale hair, and her dark blue eyes seemed huge. Without Stefan, though, what did it matter how she looked? She watched her own mouth tighten in the mirror as she pushed the thought away. However much she missed the feeling of Stefan's hand in hers, his lips on hers, however much she wanted to be with him, it was impossible for now. She couldn't be Katherine. And her pride wouldn't let her just mope around, either. It's not forever, she told herself grimly. Bonnie came up and threw her arm around Elena's shoulders, regarding them both in the mirror. â€Å"We clean up nice, don't we?† she asked cheerful y. â€Å"Ready to go?† â€Å"You do look amazing,† Elena said, looking at Bonnie with affection. The shorter girl was practical y glowing with excitement – eyes sparkling, smile bright, cheeks flushed, mane of red hair flying out seemingly with a life of its own – and her short blue dress and strappy high-heeled shoes were adorable. Bonnie's smile got bigger. â€Å"Let's get going,† Meredith said, al business. She was sleek and practical in jeans and a soft fitted gray shirt that matched her eyes. It was hard to know what Meredith was thinking, but Elena had overheard her murmuring to Alaric on the phone late at night. She figured that Meredith, at heart, might not be into the party either. Outside, people walked quickly in large, silent groups, glancing around nervously as they went. No one lingered, no one was alone. Meredith stopped midstride and stiffened, suddenly aware of a potential threat. Elena fol owed her gaze. She was wrong: one person lingered alone. Damon was sitting on a bench outside their dorm, his face tipped toward the sky as if he was basking in the sun despite the darkness of the evening. â€Å"What do you want, Damon?† Meredith said, warily. Her voice wasn't actual y rude – they'd gotten past that, working together this summer – but it wasn't friendly, and Elena could feel her bristling beside her. â€Å"Elena, of course,† Damon said lazily, rising and smoothly taking Elena's arm. Bonnie looked back and forth between them, puzzled. â€Å"I thought you weren't going to spend time with either of them for a while,† she said to Elena. Damon spoke quietly into Elena's ear. â€Å"It's about the Vitale Society. I've got a lead.† Elena hesitated. She hadn't told her friends about the hints she and Damon had found that the Vitale Society might be more than a myth, or that they might be connected to her parents in some way. There wasn't real y anything much to go on yet, and she didn't feel quite ready to talk about the possibility that her parents might have been mixed up in some kind of dark secret or how she felt, seeing the images of them when they were young. Making up her mind, she turned to Meredith and Bonnie. â€Å"I've got to go with Damon for a minute. It's important. I'l explain it to you guys later. See you at the party in a little bit.† Meredith frowned but nodded, and she steered Bonnie toward McAl ister House. As they went, Elena could hear Bonnie saying, â€Å"But wasn't the whole point†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Keeping his hand tucked firmly under Elena's arm, Damon led her in the opposite direction. â€Å"Where are we going?† she asked, feeling too aware of the softness of Damon's skin and the strength of his grip. â€Å"I saw a girl wearing one of those pins from the photo,† Damon answered. â€Å"I fol owed her to the library, but once she got inside, she just disappeared. I looked everywhere for her. Then, an hour later, she came out the library doors again. Remember when I said we needed to look for answers somewhere other than the library?† He smiled. â€Å"I was wrong. There's something going on in there.† â€Å"Maybe you just didn't see her?† Elena wondered aloud. â€Å"It's a big library, she could have been tucked away in a study carrel or something.† â€Å"I would have found her,† Damon said briefly. â€Å"I'm good at finding people.† His teeth shone white for a moment under the streetlights. The problem was that the library was so normal. Once they were inside, Elena looked around at the gray-carpeted floors, the beige chairs, the rows and rows of bookshelves, the buzzing fluorescent lights. It was a place to study. It didn't look like any secrets were hidden here. â€Å"Upstairs?† she suggested. They took the stairs rather than the elevator and worked their way down from the top floor. Going from floor to floor, they found †¦ nothing. People reading and taking notes. Books, books, and more books. In the basement, there was a room of vending machines and smal tables for study breaks. Nothing unexpected. Elena paused in a hal way of administrative offices near the vending machine. â€Å"We're not going to find anything,† she told Damon. His face twisted in frustration, and she added, â€Å"I believe you that there's something going on here, I do, but without any leads, we don't even know what we're looking for yet.† The door behind her, marked Research Office, opened, and Matt came out. He looked tired, and Elena felt a quick flash of guilt. After Christopher's death, she and Meredith and Bonnie had meant to stick close to Matt. But he was always busy with footbal or class and didn't seem to want them around. She realized with a shock that she hadn't talked to him in days. â€Å"Oh, hey, Elena,† Matt said, looking startled. â€Å"Are you going to the party tonight?† He greeted Damon with an awkward nod. â€Å"Mutt,† Damon acknowledged, giving a half smile, and Matt rol ed his eyes. As they chatted about the party and classes and Bonnie's new semiboyfriend, Elena cataloged her impressions of Matt. Tired, yes – his eyes were a little bloodshot, and there was grimness to his lips that hadn't been there a few weeks ago. But why did he smel so strongly of soap? It wasn't like he was particularly clean, she thought, inspecting a grubby trail tracing down Matt's cheek to his neck. It looked like something had been dripped on his head. It was almost like he had been cleaning something. Something real y dirty. Struck by a new thought, she glanced at his chest. Surely he wouldn't be wearing one of the V pins? As if aware of what she was wondering, Matt pul ed his jacket more tightly around him. â€Å"What were you doing in that office?† she asked him abruptly. â€Å"Uh.† Matt's face was blank for half a second, and then he glanced up at the door, at the sign saying Research Office. â€Å"Research, of course,† he said. â€Å"I've got to go,† he added. â€Å"I'l catch you at the party later, okay, Elena?† He had half turned away, when Elena impulsively put out her hand to catch his arm. â€Å"Where have you been, Matt?† she asked. â€Å"I've hardly seen you lately.† Matt grinned, but he didn't quite meet her eyes. â€Å"Footbal ,† he said. â€Å"Col ege bal ‘s a big deal.† He gently pul ed away from her restraining hand. â€Å"Later, Elena. Damon.† They watched him walk away, and then Damon nodded toward the door Matt had come out of. â€Å"Shal we?† he said. â€Å"Shal we what?† Elena asked, puzzled. â€Å"Oh, like that wasn't suspicious,† Damon said. He put his hand on the knob, and Elena heard the lock snap as he forced it open. Inside was a very boring room. A desk, a chair, a smal rug on the floor. Maybe a little too boring? â€Å"A research office without books? Or even a computer?† Elena asked. Damon cocked his head to one side, considering, then, with a swift movement, pul ed aside the rug. Below it was the clear outline of a trapdoor. â€Å"Bingo,† Elena breathed. She stepped forward, already bending down to try and pry it open, but Damon pul ed her back. â€Å"Whoever is using this could stil be down there,† he said. â€Å"Matt just left, and I doubt he was alone.† Matt. Whatever was going on, Matt knew about it. â€Å"Maybe I should talk to him,† Elena said. Damon frowned. â€Å"Let's wait until we know what we're dealing with,† he said. â€Å"We don't know what Matt's involvement is. This could be dangerous for you.† He had taken hold of her arm again and was pul ing her gently, steadily out of the room. â€Å"We'l come back later.† Elena let him lead her away, grappling with what he'd said. Dangerous? she thought. Surely Matt wouldn't be doing anything that would be a danger to Elena?

Internet Makes Life Better Essay

Nowadays, with the development of the Internet, our life becomes more convenient than any time in the past. With the click of the mouse, you can find everything on the Internet including shopping, communication, entertainment, study, and so on. Do you know how many percent of people on the Earth have access into the Internet? – 21% In the United States, 74% of American adults use the Internet. 94% of students in the US are using the Internet. 60% of American adults use broadband connections at home.55% of American adults connect to the internet wirelessly, either through a WiFi or WiMax connection via their laptops or through a handheld device like a smart phone. Because of the Internet, we can do shopping without going to the store which is located far away. Online shopping is the process whereby consumers directly buy goods or services from a seller in real-time, without an intermediary service, over the Internet. It is a form of electronic commerce. We can talk with a people who are away 10,000 miles with high quality of voice and images. Brought us closer to people those are in another part of the world: video calls with Skype, Online support calls so I don’t have to drive 2 hours to a client site. Telephone: Voice over IP or VOIP Besides, we can find tons of information by one click on Google.com, Yahoo.com, and so on. Other conveniences of the Internet: Online banking. Driving Directions .We can work or study from anywhere in the world. In conclusion, I believe the Internet makes life better. I cannot live one day happily without Internet.

Introduction to Utility Maximization

Introduction to Utility Maximization As consumers, we make choices every day about what and how much to buy and use. In order to model how consumers make these decisions, economists (reasonably) assume that people make choices that maximize their levels of happiness (i.e. that people are economically rational). Economists even have their own word for happiness: utility: the amount of happiness gained from consuming a good or service This concept of economic utility has some specific properties that are important to keep in mind: sign matters: positive utility numbers (i.e. numbers greater than zero) indicate that consuming a good makes the consumer happier. Conversely, negative utility numbers (i.e. numbers less than zero) indicate that consuming a good makes the consumer less happy. bigger is better: The greater the utility number, the more happiness the consumer receives from consuming an item. (Note that this is consistent with the first point since large negative numbers are smaller, i.e. less than, small negative numbers.) ordinal but not cardinal properties: Utility numbers can be compared, but it doesnt necessarily make sense to perform calculations with them. In other words, while it is the case that a utility of 6 is better than a utility of 3, it is not necessarily the case that a utility of 6 is twice as good as a utility of 3. Similarly, its not necessarily the case that a utility of 2 and a utility of 3 would add to a utility of 5. Economists use this concept of utility to model consumers preferences since it stands to reason that consumers prefer items that give them higher levels of utility. The consumers decision regarding what to consume, therefore, boils down to answering the question What affordable combination of goods and services gives me the most happiness? In the utility maximization model, the affordable part of the question is represented by a budget constraint and the happiness part is represented by what are known as indifference curves. We will examine each of these in turn and then put them together to arrive at the consumers optimal consumption.