James Decartes Essays - Vampire The Masquerade, Sven,

James Decartes World War I left many families dead, creating large numbers of orphans. Jamaie (later to become James) Decartes was one of those orphans. His father died in the trenches in France, and his mother was stolen away, never to be seen again. James was 14 when this happened, he hid under floor boards when his mother was taken away. His humble french hometown village, was over run with german foot traffic, traveling to and from the front line. James ?decided this was no life for him, so he ran south, towards Switzerland, which he knew wasn't involved in the war, trying to seek asylum. He traveled by the cover of night, seeking charity from locals, and trying dodge the german military machine. James refused to be beaten by the germans, he would sabotage trucks, and other equipment, to do his part for his country. His spirit was undominatable, which is probably why his sire Sven Troile took notice of him. Sven had recently left Russia, due to the war, and the hardships with kindred politics t here. Sven sought to establish a brujah presence in the toreador dominated france after the war. For this Sven would need help, taking notice of James, he watched over him and his travel, not letting himself be known. James may very well have died, if it weren't for Sven, but James didn't know that. Eventually James made it to switzerland, being a neutral party in the war, the soilders would not let him enter the country. Confused as to what to do than, he started towards spain, but feared that he would find no security there. Along his way towards spain, he met up with a swiss farmer outside the country lines (through some persuasion down the road from sven), he was invited to be smuggled inside the country. This is when he first met Sven, whos very presence awed James. James, who was still young and impressionable, quickly latched onto Sven's magnetic personality. James thought Sven was hiding for the war also, which gave him more room. Sven promised James they would go back to Fr ance when the war was over, and James was eager to return home and make a name for himself. Sven and James lived out the war in Bern, Switzerland, enjoying the night life, which James never questioned, as he had become accustomed to it, as he viewed it as safer at night for people illegally in the country. No one ever asked any questions, as Sven's swiss was nearly perfect. During their stay in Switzerland, Sven continually dropped hints about his true nature and society, to make it easier for James to figure out. After the war, when James was 18, He and Sven returned to France. They went to a city called Loire, a large growing metropolis in western France. James saw less of Sven than, as Sven always had ?business to attend too'. James worked for a man Sven new, named Bennito Turen (an Italian man), down at the shipping docks. After a year of service to Bennito, he got angry, James did not know why, but he did. Bennito was beat James near death (james couldnt believe how strong benn ito was), when Sven showed up. James wasnt sure why, maybe it was because his head had been hit, but Sven seemed to move with blinding speed, and hit with amazing power. Sven beat Bennito down, and into the water, and came to James. Not knowing any other way to save James, Sven embraced him, his wounds healing, and the power of unlife throbing through his now undead veins. James was shocked by his transformation, but not angered. He had expected something like this to happen, througout his traveles with Sven. Over the next year, Sven taught all he could to James, who proved to be a very apt student. James, not only learning scholarly things from Sven, he taught himself how to fight. He never wanted to be beaten again, like he was by Bennito, whom James found out was also a vampire, called a Giovanni. He lived in france with Sven learning all he could know for 8 years. But as James wasnow a Brujah,

Golden Eagle Facts

Golden Eagle Facts The golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) is a large diurnal bird of prey whose range extends across the Holarctic region (a region that encircles the Arctic and encompasses areas within the Northern Hemisphere such as North America, Europe, northern Africa, and northern Asia). The golden eagle is among the largest birds in North America. They are among the most popular of national emblems of the world (they are the national bird of Albania, Austria, Mexico, Germany, and Kazakhstan). Fast Facts: Golden Eagle Scientific Name: Aquila chrysaetosCommon Name(s): Golden eagleBasic Animal Group:  BirdSize: 2.5 to 3 feet tall, a wingspan of 6.2 to 7.4 feet  Weight: 7.9 to 14.5 pounds  Lifespan: 30 yearsDiet:  CarnivoreHabitat:  Mexico through western North America to Alaska with occasional appearances in the east; Asia, northern Africa, and Europe.Population:  Global breeding population is 300,000Conservation  Status:  Least Concern Description Golden eagles have powerful talons and a strong, hooked bill. Their plumage is mostly dark brown. Adults have a shiny, golden swatch of feathers on their crown, ​nape, and sides of their face. They have dark brown eyes and long, broad wings, Their tail is a lighter, grayish brown as are the undersides of their wings. Young golden eagles have white patches located at the base of their tail as well as on their wings.   When viewed in profile, golden eagles heads appear  relatively small while the tail seems quite long and broad. Their legs are feathered their full length, all the way to their toes. Golden eagles either occur as solitary birds or are found in pairs. Anton Petrus/Getty Images Habitat and Distribution Golden eagles inhabit a wide range that stretches throughout the Northern Hemisphere and includes North America, Europe, northern Africa and the northern parts of Asia. In the United States, they are more common in the western half of the country and are only rarely spotted in the eastern states. Golden eagles prefer open or partially open habitats such as tundra, grasslands, sparse woodlands, scrublands and coniferous forests. They generally inhabit mountainous regions up to 12,000 feet in elevation. They also inhabit canyon lands, cliffs, and bluffs. They nest on cliffs and in rocky outcrops in grasslands, shrublands, and other similar habitats. They avoid urban and suburban areas and do not inhabit dense forests. Golden eagles migrate short to medium distances. Those that breed in the far northerly regions of their range migrate further southward during the winter than those that inhabit lower latitudes. Where climates are milder during the winter, golden eagles are year-round residents. Diet and Behavior Golden eagles feed on a variety of mammal prey such as rabbits, hares, ground squirrels, marmots, pronghorn, coyotes, foxes, deer, mountain goats, and ibex. They are capable of killing large animal prey but usually feed on relatively small mammals. They also eat reptiles, fish, birds or carrion if other prey is scarce. During the breeding season, pairs of golden eagles will hunt cooperatively when pursuing agile prey such as jackrabbits. Golden eagles are agile avian predators that can dive at impressive speeds (as much as 200 miles per hour). They dive not only to catch prey but also in territorial and courtship displays as well as regular flight patterns. Reproduction and Offspring Golden eagles construct nests out of sticks, vegetation and other materials such as bones and antlers. They line their nests with softer materials such as grasses, bark, mosses or leaves. Golden eagles often maintain and reuse their nests over the course of several years. Nests are usually positioned on cliffs but are also sometimes located in trees, on the ground or on high man-made structures (observation towers, nesting platforms, electrical towers). The nests are large and deep, sometimes as much as 6 feet wide and 2 feet high. They lay between 1 and 3 eggs per clutch and eggs incubate for about 45 days. After hatching, young remain in the next for about 81 days. W. Perry Conway/Getty Images Conservation Status There are large and stable populations of golden eagles in multiple locations around the world, and thus the species has a status of Least Concern. Much of the reason for their success is the result of conservation projects to protect both the birds and their habitats. The golden eagle has been a federally protected species since 1962, and several international groups dedicate themselves to the welfare of golden eagles and eagles in general. Bald or Golden Eagle? Juvenile bald eagles look very similar to golden eagles. They are about the same size with a similar wingspan, and, until bald eagles reach about a year of age, they have the same brown feathers covering their entire bodies. Juvenile bald eagles do have mottled underbellies, and they dont shine in the same way that golden eagles do- but its tough to spot these differences in a bird in flight. Its not until after their first year of life that bald eagles start to show their distinctive areas of white plumage. Because of this similarity, its common for birders (especially in the eastern part of the United States) to believe theyve spotted a golden eagle when theyve actually seen a juvenile (and more common) bald eagle. Sources â€Å"Golden Eagle.†Ã‚  National Geographic, 24 Sept. 2018, www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/g/golden-eagle/.â€Å"Golden Eagle.†Ã‚  San Diego Zoo Global Animals and Plants, animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/golden-eagle.â€Å"Golden Eagle Demographics.†Ã‚  American Eagle Foundation, www.eagles.org/what-we-do/educate/learn-about-eagles/golden-eagle-demographics/#toggle-id-2.â€Å"Is That Golden Eagle Actually a Bald Eagle?†Ã‚  Audubon, 3 July 2018, www.audubon.org/news/is-golden-eagle-actually-bald-eagle.

A Definition of Speech Community in Sociolinguistics

A Definition of Speech Community in Sociolinguistics Speech community is a term in sociolinguistics and linguistic anthropology used to describe a group of people who share the same language,  speech  characteristics, and ways of interpreting communication. Speech communities may be large regions like an urban area with a common, distinct accent (think of Boston with its dropped rs) or small units like families and friends (think of a nickname for a sibling). They help people define themselves as individuals and community members and identify (or misidentify) others. Speech and Identity The concept of speech as a means of identifying with a community first emerged in 1960s  academia alongside other new fields of research like ethnic and gender studies. Linguists like John Gumperz pioneered research in how personal interaction can influence ways of speaking and interpreting, while Noam Chomsky studied how people interpret language and derive meaning from what they see and hear. Types of Communities Speech communities can be large or small, although linguists dont agree on how theyre defined. Some, like linguist  Muriel Saville-Troike, argue that its logical to assume that a shared language like English, which is spoken throughout the world, is a speech community.  But she differentiates between hard-shelled communities, which tend to be insular and intimate, like a family or religious sect, and soft-shelled communities where there is a lot of interaction. But other linguists say a common language is too vague to be considered a true speech community. The linguistic anthropologist  Zdenek Salzmann describes it this way: [P]eople who speak the same language are not always members of the same  speech community. On the one hand, speakers of South Asian English in India and Pakistan share a language with citizens of the U.S., but the respective varieties of English and the rules for speaking them are sufficiently distinct to assign the two populations to different speech communities... Instead, Salzman and others say, speech communities should be more narrowly defined based on characteristics such as pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, and manner of speaking. Study and Research The concept of speech community plays a role in a number of social science, namely sociology, anthropology, linguists, even psychology. People who study issues of migration and ethnic identity use social community theory to study things like how immigrants assimilate into larger societies, for instance. Academics who focus on racial, ethnic, sexual​ or gender issues apply social community theory when they study issues of personal identity and politics. It also plays a role in data collection. By being aware of how communities are defined, researchers can adjust their subject pools in order to obtain representative sample populations. Sources Morgan,  Marcyliena H. What Are Speech Communities? Cambridge University Press, 2014.Salzmann,  Zdenek. Language, Culture, and Society: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology. Westview, 2004Saville-Troike, Muriel. The Ethnography of Communication: An Introduction, 3rd ed. Blackwell, 2003.

Histroy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Histroy - Essay Example Henry IV killed Rudolph and this increased the conflict between Henry IV and George VII. These issues caused the tone and the language with which the two used to express themselves. From the story, it is clear that Henry IV and Gregory VII chose to use the language they used because they were wounded by pride and large ego. With pride and ego, Gregory VII says that â€Å"of the pope alone all princes shall kiss the feet.† This statement signifies how the pope was burning with so much pride and ego. Similarly, Henry IV had his own pride and ego that drove him to want to retaliate. In his letter to Gregory VII, he says, â€Å"Hildebrand, at present not pope but false monk.† (Ernest 396) This shows how much pride he feels. Here, he condemns Gregory as a usurper. Secondly, the two leaders chose to use the words they used because they wanted to receive the ceremony and honor at the top of the medieval hierarchy. They wanted to be celebrated by the people as achievers and to be seen as heroes and better than others. That is why Gregory exalted the title of a pope while he was a pope, and Henry IV referred to himself as a king and condemning Gregory VII as an

Santa Fe Grill Restaurant Survey Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Santa Fe Grill Restaurant Survey - Essay Example The mean values for X22 and X32 are 4.82963 and 0.348148148 respectively. To determine if the two mean are significantly different with an equal variance, a t-statistical analysis is undertaken. The one tail results give a t-critical of 1.647649 while the two tails gives a t-critical result of 1.964318. However; going by the one tail, the t-critical is 1.647649 compared with a significance level of 0.00, we accept the null hypothesis that the two means are statistically significant. According to the book page 498, this analysis was supposed to compare the level of satisfaction between male and female-considering the mean. However, from the results there is no substantial support for the null hypothesis to ascertain that the two means are equal, and hence we conclude that male customers are significantly more satisfied than female customers. The mean values of X21, X22 and X23 are 4.82963, 4.464198 and 3.785185. The null hypothesis is to test if the mean of the variables are significantly different. The p-value=3.59 while the significant level ÃŽ ±=o.05; therefore we accept the null hypothesis that the mean of the variables are significantly different (p-value>0.05). That is, the mean perceptions of males between the two restaurants do not differ significantly on satisfaction or likelihood of returning. Most customers at the restaurant do not like to party as this is revealed by 14 out of 450 strongly agreed to like partying. However, it is worth noting that some customers are influenced by friends before deciding on what to take while reasonable prices also influences the customer’s decision to take a meal at the restaurant. Among the respondents, at least half agreed that attractive interior and excellent food are some of the driving factors that they consider before entering a restaurant. This is something that Santa Fe Grill Restaurant has to contend with if it wants to maximize its profits and revenues. According to the frequency

Music of India :: essays research papers

The Music of India Indian music is a very varied type of music which ranges from classical to film, more commonly known as pop. Both types are extremely popular throughout the Indian society in all classes. Music is apparent in Indian culture as a way of expression. The history of Indian music extends back many centuries. Traditionally in that period, there were various kingdoms, in which the power was held equally by the king and the temples. This was the division of music. The temples presented religious music to all that wanted it while the kings patronized the separate artists. Music also formed a major part of the theatre. It was very famous as nearly all of India's people had access to it. There were full scale musicals in the ancient Indian theatres. This tradition has been carried into till the recent days, where Bollywood (the Indian Hollywood) films are very music-friendly. Music is an integral part of the movies that are being made. But many movies are now being targeted at the Western society, movies with less music. This is killing India's musical background. Indian music is a mix of many different types of music. Five hundred years ago, India was ruled Muslims, when it had been influenced by local territories such as the recent Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. Classical music is a very prominent feature in most Indian people's lives. It is heard for pleasure. The term "Indian Classical Music" refers to two different, but related, age old, traditions. Both of them are very popular and come from two very different areas in India. The North Indian style is called "Hindustani", which translates to India, and South Indian tradition, also known as "Carnatic". Indian music is different from Western music in two major ways: 1. All of Indian classical music is melody, and 2. Indian music is never written down, and cannot be played off a written score. If it was played off the score, it would lose its authenticity. Over centuries, the artists learn to play or sing by listening to the song. As the artist learns the song and plays it, he adds his own authenticity to the song. In this way, the work of numerous generations has been put together to make a singular song that has been made seamless over the years. This is how Indian music has survived over the years. Hindustani classical music is based upon the 12 note scale.

Copyright Law and University Policy

The pressures of academic success can be overwhelming to the conscientious student.   Children are ingrained from the earliest ages that each test score will decide their future.The idea of the â€Å"permanent record† looms over them at every academic turn, and this pressure leads directly to the decision by some to cheat.   According to a study by the Center for Academic Integrity, it was reported that more than 70 percent of high school students in the United States admitted to serious cheating in 2005 (Paulos, 2007, p. 11).This staggering number is evidence that academic dishonesty is not a problem relegated to a few bad apples, but it is a widespread epidemic that deserves closer analysis.   After all, three out of four U.S. high school students cannot be bad students without regard for academic success.Quite to the contrary, many of these students who cheat do so because they do care about their academic success and often find themselves struggling to make the grade s, rather than learn the material.   Even more than the fact that students cheat, is the design of the educational system that puts measuring education above providing one.   But, the problem is not an easy one to remedy, especially with all the new methods of cheating available to students.However, regulations exist not only at the national level, but also at the university level, as copyright laws and academic integrity policies make copying the work of another a serious offense; the only difference between the two is that copyright law seeks to protect the work of its creator for financial reasons, while academic integrity policies are most often designed simply to dissuade or punish students that copy the work of others.Technology has taking cheating to a level previously unknown in education.   The Internet offers students the ability to copy and paste information into a paper, whether a phrase, a paragraph, or a doctoral thesis.While some students are aware that they are plagiarizing, there are equal amounts that simply do not understand the rules of plagiarism.   According to author Sean Price, the rules of plagiarism are not always clear-cut: â€Å"Many younger writers make this mistake because they don’t understand plagiarism’s ground rules.And learning these rules can be confusing†¦ It’s OK to borrow a well-known phrase, like ‘To be or not to be’ and not cite its source. Someone could start a story with, ‘To be or not to be on the swim team.’ That’s simply putting a twist on a famous line, not pretending it’s yours† (Price, 2005, p. 17).   Some students also borrow too heavily from a source without meaning to, but ignorance is not an acceptable excuse for lack of academic integrity.And, for every student who plagiarizes accidentally, there are many more who do so intentionally.   For both the unintentional copiers and the deliberate plagiarists, academic policies suc h as those employed at UMUC attempt to illuminate what is acceptable and what is not.