A Society full of Smarty Pants Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

A Society full of Smarty Pants - Term Paper Example It is believed that with the advent of technology people have been able to live a much happier life. When computers were invented, they were made to do fast calculations. Nowadays they have become an integral part of our lives. Computers have been able to make our lives happier and much more comfortable than what they were before. With the advent of the 21st century, computers were made to solve simple mathematical calculations. People realised that there was a requirement for a machine which would work alongside their profession as a means to enhance the productivity. It became important that a machine would be there which would work efficiently to make the calculations simpler and easier. In the lat 1980’s the first computer was launched for the usage of the public. It was invented by Apple, which boasted of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak as the chief architects and designers of machine. (Finn, Chester) Steve Jobs came up with the first computer software which was known as the Macintosh, introduced to the world in 1984. It was the first computer which had the graphical user interface installed as a pre requisite in the computer operating system. Steve Jobs was very intrigued b the way graphical user interface worked, and therefore tried his best to introduce it to the Macintosh. Nowadays, computers have become of an immense importance to the people worldwide. The biggest advancement with the technology of computers happened with the introduction fo the internet. The internet changed the shape of the lives of the people. It developed the whole knowledge base into one source of information and there was literally a parallel world running through the wires of the internet. Through the internet people have been able to be close to each other without having to call or send a post card. This has been developed by the coming of the E- mail system which has allowed people to send and receive mails from anywhere in the world without having to wait for it or to pa y any additional money for it. (Impact of Computers) Webcam has allowed people throughout the world to engage in video conversations without having the need to have a video phone. This has been a remarkable achievement considering the fact that there was a time when people would not see each other for aageas and now if one is away from the family then he can simply call his family on the web using the web cam and that would allows the couple to see each other’s faces without the hassles of the previous days. â€Å"Information is probably the biggest advantage internet is offering. The Internet is a virtual treasure trove of information. Any kind of information on any topic under the sun is available on the Internet. The search engines like Google, yahoo is at your service on the Internet. You can almost find any type of data on almost any kind of subject that you are looking for. There is a huge amount of information available on the internet for just about every subject kno wn to man, ranging from government law and services, trade fairs and conferences, market information, new ideas and technical support, the list is endless.†

Life and Margaret Atwood Essay Example for Free

Life and Margaret Atwood Essay This quotation was taken from Margaret Atwoods story, Homelanding. This story recounts many aspects of human existence from an outside view, as if it was being told to an alien race. This story tells about human appearance, sex (both difference and the act of), sunbathing, sleeping, death, and many other human functions in a scientific way. This story takes a step away from the normal way of describing these objects. For example, Margaret Atwood talks about eating and describes it by saying I destroy and assimilate certain parts of my surroundings and change them into myself. Most people who have had human contact their whole life consider eating putting food in their mouths, chewing, and swallowing. This quotation at the beginning of the story shows that the author knows that she is writing this for a human audience. She starts this off with the line, Where should I begin? This is more of a conversational style that draws the reader into this as if she was talking directly to the reader. The human reader is supposed to take the role of the alien race. The reader has to take a duality of being both a human and from an alien race who has no knowledge of anything human. The next line restates this with, After all you have never been there; or if you have you may not have understood the significance of what you say or thought you saw. An alien race would never have been to earth, yet the human reader has spent his whole life on earth if never stopping to think of the significance of what he is seeing. The next line is: A window is a window, but there is looking out and looking in. This can be seen in all the number of times that someone sees something in someone else that the person does not see in himself. For example, often a teacher is responsible for helping a student develop a talent that was there but the student did not know that he had it. This story is attempting to do the same and show the reader characteristics that mankind has but do not know it has. In the next line, this is reiterated with the statement, The native you glimpsed, disappearing behind the curtain, or into the bushes, or down the manhole in the mainstreetmy people are shymay have only been your own reflection in the glass. This shows the reader is the reflection in the glass and is seeing a portrait of himself in the story. Storytelling is often used to teach a lesson to the reader or listener. One of the most read examples of this is the Bible. Jesus often spoke in parables to help teach lessons to his listeners. This story attempts to make us take a step away from  ourselves and see ourselves in a different light so we could possibly understand ourselves better.

Dreams Can Come True :: essays research papers

Dreams Can Come True â€Å"I think my passion for [flying] started when I was in high school†, Gary Chambers told me as I sat down in his beautiful home in the hills of Serrano, a very upscale, gated community in El Dorado Hills, California. He was wearing a tropical shirt and bahama shorts with a pair of Teva sandals on his feet. He offered me a soda and then sat down across from me. We were sitting in matching black leather love seats with a tan and gray granite coffee table separating us. Despite the fact that he agreed to the interview and seemed eager to talk to me, he seemed uncomfortable during our conversation. He indicated to me that he wanted to get started right away. I was given the impression that he was a guy that did not like to waste time, but instead liked to get right down to business. I started asking him questions and I could see his eyes light up as he was talking about his zeal towards flying. He was like a burst dam flooding me with the story of his life and how he became hi s dream. He was just your typical high school kid until he decided to take Air Force ROTC (Reserve Officer Training Corps). Springing out of bed each day, showering and dressing as quickly as possible, he rushed out of the door, saying goodbye to his parents and hurried his way to school. The journey to school was not as bad for him as it was for other kids because he resided right down the street. He was not anxious to get to school, but eager to go to his Air Force ROTC class. Although he did not love the Air Force, his passion for flying was what motivated him to come to school early everyday and talk to the Colonel that was teaching the class. He was a dry sponge and he wanted to soak up all the flying knowledge that the Colonel had. Gary continued to probe the Colonel for erudition until he graduated.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After he finished high school, Gary moved on to college. He chose to matriculate at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago where he received his Batchelor’s Degree in civil engineering. The Air Force, he was hoping, would be able to give him the career he desired. Disappointingly, the position that Gary wanted was not available at that time through the Air Force.

Search for Freedom in Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Song of So

Search for Freedom in Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Song of Solomon, and Push       Many minority authors write about an individual's search for self which culminates in the realization of personal freedom. This has been an important theme in African-American literature beginning with the slave narratives to modern poetry and prose. The concept of freedom has a myriad of meanings which encompasses national political liberty to an individual's own personal freedom. Personal freedom is the ability to ignore societal and familial influences to find the true sense of self. Individuals are truly liberated when they are physically, mentally, and spiritually free. Sense of self is the enlightenment we possess when we psychologically realize and accept our true qualities and limitations. Attaining personal freedom is not a simple affair. It is a lifelong journey which is tedious and demanding with obstacles and setbacks which must be conquered. The search for personal freedom is exemplified in the following three novels, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Gi rl by Harriet Jacobs, Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison, and Push by Sapphire. The main protagonists, Linda Brent, Milkman and Precious, respectively, achieve personal freedom through attainment of knowledge, by confronting their families, and by overcoming the prejudices of society. Moreover, although the search for personal freedom is an individual journey, it cannot be achieved without assistance.    Knowledge is a primary factor in the attainment of personal freedom. This includes not only scholarly education but also awareness of historical heritage and familial legacy. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., in his introduction to The Classic Slave Narrativ... ...Carmean, Karen, Toni Morrison's World of Fiction, Troy: The Whitston Publishing Company, 1993. Jacobs, Harriet. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself. 1861. The Classic Slave Narratives. Ed. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.. New York: Mentor, 1987. 332-515. Morrison, Toni. Song of Solomon. New York: Plume, Peach, Norman. Modern Novelists Toni Morrison. Ed. Norman Page. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1995. Sapphire. Push. New York: Vintage Contemporaries, 1996. Storhoff, Gary. "'Anaconda Love': Parental Enmeshment in Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon." Style 31 No. 2 (Summer 1997). 290-309. September 18, 2001 <http.//p26688.cl.uh.edu:2071/cgi-bin/web>. Willbern, David. "Reading After Freud." Ed. G. Douglas Atkins and Laura Morrow. Contemporary Literary Theory. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1989. 158-179.   

Earth Science Essay

– Discuss stellar evolution (describing each stage in brief). What forces are opposing one another throughout the life of a star and how do they influence the various stages in the life cycle of a star Stellar evolution stars exist because of gravity. The two opposing forces in a star are gravity (contracts) and thermal nuclear energy (expands). Stage 1 Birth is where gravity contracts the cloud and the temperature rises, becoming a protostar. Protostars are a hypothetical cloud of dust and atoms in space which are believed to develop into a star. Astronomers are fairly certain of their existence. Protostars are formed about a million years after a gas clump from an interstellar gas cloud has started to rotate and from a disk. The protostar is simply the core of the disk that formed from the clump of gas that was compressed inside the gas cloud. The star becomes a stable main-sequence star, which are characterized by the source of their energy. They are all undergoing fusion of hydrogen into helium within their cores. The rate at which they do this and the amount of fuel available depends upon the mass of the star. Mass is the key factor in determining the lifespan of a main sequence star, its size and its luminosity. Stars on the main sequence also appear to be unchanging for long periods of time. Any model of such stars must be able to account for their stability. Ninety percent of a stars life is in the main-sequence. A red giant is a luminous giant star of low intermediate mass that is in a late phase of stellar evolution. The outer atmosphere is inflated and tenuous, making the radius immense and the surface temperature low, somewhere from 5,000 K and lower. The appearance of the red giant is from yellow orange to red, including the spectral types K and M, but also class S stars and most carbon stars. The burnout and death final stage of a star depends on its mass. After a low mass star like the Sun exhausts the supply of hydrogen in its core, there is no longer any source of heat to support the core against gravity. Hydrogen burning continues in a shell around the core and the star evolves into a red giant. When the Sun becomes a red giant, its atmosphere will envelope the Earth and our planet may be consumed in a fiery death. Meanwhile, the core of the star collapses under gravity’s pull until it reaches a high enough density to start burning helium to carbon. The helium burning phase will last about 100 million years, until the helium is exhausted in the core and  the star becomes a red supergiant. At this stage, the Sun will have an outer envelope extending out towards Jupiter. During this brief phase of its existence, which lasts only a few tens of thousands of years, the Sun will lose mass in a powerful wind. Eventually, the Sun will lose all of the mass in its envelope and leave behind a hot core of carbon embedded in a nebula of expelled gas. Radiation from this hot core will ionize the nebula, producing a striking â€Å"planetary nebula†, much like the nebulae seen around the remnants of other stars. The carbon core will eventually cool and become a white dwarf, the dense dim remnant of a once bright star. Reference Lutgens, F. K. & Tarbuck, E. J. (2011). Foundations of earth science (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall ES 1010, Unit 8, Question 12 – How do we calculate or determine the distances to stars? What units do we use and what are the limitations (if any) of the method used for such calculations? Measuring distance to stars has been considered a very difficult task. Stellar parallax is a method used to determine distance, the extremely back and forth shifting in a nearby star’s apparent position due to the orbiting motion of earth. The farther away a star is, the less its parallax. The light year is a unit used to express stellar distance, which is the distance light travels in a year, which is approximately 9.5 trillion kilometers (5.8 trillion miles). The parallax angles are very small. Proxima Centauri is the parallax angle nearest to the star. It is less than one second or arc, which equals 1/3600 of a degree. A human finger is roughly 1 degree wide. The distances to stars are so large that conventional units such as kilometers or astronomical units are often too cumbersome to use. Some limitations are that parallax angles of less than 0.001 arcsec are very difficult to measure from Earth because of the effects on the Earth’s atmosphere. This limits Earth based telescopes to measuring the distances to stars about 10.01 or 100 parsecs away. Spaced based telescopes can get accuracy to 0.001, which has increased the number of stars whose distance could be measured with this method. However, most stars even in our own galaxy are much further away than 1000 parsecs, since  the Milky Way is about 30,000 parsecs across. Reference Lutgens, F. K. & Tarbuck, E. J. (2011). Foundations of earth science (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall

Contrast and Comparison of meat and soy meat products essays

Contrast and Comparison of meat and soy meat products essays Have you ever wanted to be a vegetarian if you have you could still eat hamburgers with out the meat? It is called a veggie-burger. Have you ever wanted to know what the difference between a veggie-burger and hamburger, besides the fact that there is no meat? A hamburger and veggie burger is different in their quality, health products, " make-up" and the way they taste, but they are similar in where they are sold, health info, shape and the ways of eating them. Like I said, a hamburger and veggie burgers are different in their quality. Hamburgers are greasy and made with meat and they are more fattening, and veggie burgers are less fattening on the other hand. A hamburger is made of meat and a veggie burger is made of soy and mushrooms and other non-meat products. Also, hamburgers are sold at fast food restaurants, and veggie burgers on the other hang are mainly sold at stores only. Though there are many differences between hamburgers and veggie burgers, there are some similarities. They are similar in where they are sold, because they are both sold in stores. Both of them have a good amount of protein and both are circular. They are alike in the way you eat them also. (They are both eaten with a bun.) Now that you know more about veggie burgers and hamburgers you may want to be a vegetarian now. Or maybe you would like to stay the same and still eat meat. I hope you learned more about the differences and similarities. ...

Free Essays on The Medias Effects On Body Image On Females

The Media’s Effects on Body Image Of Females Eating disorder and dieting among teenage and college female’s rates are rising. Higher rates of eating disorders are being reported in certain subgroups such as dancers, models, actresses, and athletes (Barr Taylor, Sharpe, Shisslak, Bryson, Estes, Gray, McKnight, Crago, Kraemer, & Killen, 1998). In recent years, anorexia- nervosa and bulimia- nervosa have become more and more common (Papalia, & Olds, 1998). Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder distinguished by self-starvation. A typical person with anorexia nervosa diets and exercises obsessively and is withdrawn, depressed and appears to be a perfectionist (Papalia, & Olds, 1998). Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder in which a person binges and eats an excessive amount of food and then purges by induced vomiting, excessive exercise, fasting or any other form of removing the food and calories from the body. Most people with bulimia are obsessed with their weight and body image. Although they do not become unusu ally thin, they do tend to be depressed and ashamed of their eating habits (Papalia, & Olds, 1998). Many girls who suffer from an eating disorder like anorexia or bulimia also suffer from depression and lack of self-esteem. Anorexics tend to set very high standards for themselves and feel they always have to prove their competence. They also feel the only control they have in their lives is in the area of food and weight. (Thompson, 1996) Bulimics usually do not feel secure about their own self worth and tend to strive for approval from others. They see food as a source of comfort. Bulimics are more likely to admit they have a problem and seek help than anorexics. (Thompson, 1996) Many of the signs and symptoms for the two eating disorders are similar, fatigue, muscle weakness, mood swings, excessive exercising, and obsession with food, irregular menstruation and damage to vital organs. A person with ... Free Essays on The Media's Effects On Body Image On Females Free Essays on The Media's Effects On Body Image On Females The Media’s Effects on Body Image Of Females Eating disorder and dieting among teenage and college female’s rates are rising. Higher rates of eating disorders are being reported in certain subgroups such as dancers, models, actresses, and athletes (Barr Taylor, Sharpe, Shisslak, Bryson, Estes, Gray, McKnight, Crago, Kraemer, & Killen, 1998). In recent years, anorexia- nervosa and bulimia- nervosa have become more and more common (Papalia, & Olds, 1998). Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder distinguished by self-starvation. A typical person with anorexia nervosa diets and exercises obsessively and is withdrawn, depressed and appears to be a perfectionist (Papalia, & Olds, 1998). Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder in which a person binges and eats an excessive amount of food and then purges by induced vomiting, excessive exercise, fasting or any other form of removing the food and calories from the body. Most people with bulimia are obsessed with their weight and body image. Although they do not become unusu ally thin, they do tend to be depressed and ashamed of their eating habits (Papalia, & Olds, 1998). Many girls who suffer from an eating disorder like anorexia or bulimia also suffer from depression and lack of self-esteem. Anorexics tend to set very high standards for themselves and feel they always have to prove their competence. They also feel the only control they have in their lives is in the area of food and weight. (Thompson, 1996) Bulimics usually do not feel secure about their own self worth and tend to strive for approval from others. They see food as a source of comfort. Bulimics are more likely to admit they have a problem and seek help than anorexics. (Thompson, 1996) Many of the signs and symptoms for the two eating disorders are similar, fatigue, muscle weakness, mood swings, excessive exercising, and obsession with food, irregular menstruation and damage to vital organs. A person with ...

Habits and Traits of Jumping Spiders

Habits and Traits of Jumping Spiders When you look at a jumping spider, it will look right back at you with large, forward-facing eyes. They can be found throughout the world in the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia. Salticidae is the largest family of spiders, with over 5,000 species described worldwide. While more prevalent in the tropics, jumping spiders are abundant nearly everywhere in their range. Jumping Spider Traits Jumping spiders are small and scrappy carnivores. They are often fuzzy and measure less than a half inch in body length. Salticids can run, climb, and (as the common name suggests) jump. Prior to jumping, the spider attaches a silk thread to the surface beneath it, so it can climb quickly back to its perch if needed. Salticids, like most other spiders, have eight eyes. Their unique eye arrangement makes it easy to differentiate jumping spiders from other species. A jumping spider has four eyes on its face, with an enormous pair in the center, giving it an almost alien appearance. The remaining, smaller eyes are located on the dorsal surface of the cephalothorax (a structure combining the fused head and thorax). The Himalayan jumping spider (Euophrys omnisuperstes) lives at high elevations in the Himalayan mountains. They feed on insects that are  carried up the  mountain on the wind from lower elevations. The species name, omnisuperstes, means highest of all, so its not that surprising that specimens of this remarkable species have been found on Mount Everest at elevations of 22,000 feet. Fast facts: Jumping Spider Classification Kingdom: AnimaliaPhylum: ArthropodaClass: ArachnidaOrder: AraneaeFamily: Salticidae Diet and Life Cycle Jumping spiders hunt and feed on small insects. All are carnivorous, but a few species also eat pollen and nectar. Female jumping spiders build a silk case around their eggs and often stand guard over them until they hatch. (Youve probably seen these spiders with their eggs in corners of exterior windows or door frames.) Young jumping spiders emerge from the egg sac looking like miniature versions of their parents. They molt and grow into adulthood. Special Behaviors and Defenses As the common name suggests, a jumping spider can jump quite far, achieving distances more than 50 times its body length. If you examine their legs, however, youll notice that they are not strong or muscular in appearance. Rather than relying on muscle strength to leap, salticids are able to quickly increase the blood pressure in their legs, which causes the legs to extend and propel their bodies through the air. The size and shape of jumping spiders eyes give afford them excellent vision. Salticids use their enhanced sight to their advantage as hunters, employing their high-resolution vision to locate potential prey. Some jumping spiders mimic other insects such as ants. Others are able to camouflage themselves to blend into their surroundings, helping them sneak up on prey. Insects and spiders with heightened visual acuity often engage in elaborate courtship dances to attract mates, and jumping spiders are no exception to this rule. Sources Borror and DeLongs Introduction to the Study of Insects,  7th edition, by Charles A. Triplehorn and Norman F. Johnson.The Insects: An Outline of Entomology, 3rd edition, by  P. J. Gullan and P. S. Cranston.  Family Salticidae - Jumping Spiders, Bugguide.net. Accessed online February 29, 2016.Salticidae, Tree of Life Web Project, Wayne Maddison. Accessed online February 29, 2016.Tales of the Himalaya: Adventures of a Naturalist, by Lawrence W. Swan.

Profits hit by rate rises Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Profits hit by rate rises - Essay Example The increase in the accumulation of inventories however reduces the GDP as firms tend to avoid the "overhang of unsold inventories" as mentioned in the article. As real GDP converges to equilibrium i.e. aggregate planned expenditure starts to match real GDP, than the inventories of the firm start to draw down. If we take the scenario where inventories start to accumulate, a drift towards equilibrium would suggest that the planned expenditure exceeds real GDP hence in order to adjust the planned expenditure in line with the real GDP, inventories will start to reduce As discussed above, there are two components of aggregate expenditure i.e. autonomous expenditure and induced expenditures. Autonomous, investments, exports expenditure include government spending as well as autonomous consumption. The induced expenditure most involves private consumption including imports, savings, consumer expenditure etc. The autonomous expenditure does not vary with the changes in the real GDP therefore there is a very little impact of interest rises on this type of expenditure in short run. However, induced expenditure gets affected by the series of rises in interest rates.

Marketing Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Marketing Strategy - Essay Example The customer has become very choosy and thus he relies more on the communication messages that are put up on the web and other media forms, rather than relying on the TV and newspaper advertising which are some aspects that are a thing of the past (Palser 2007). The customer becomes active nowadays when he realizes that the Internet is a potent force and anything that is put up on it will surely make a huge difference within his life. Also there have other forms of advertising which have literally changed the face of the conventional ways of reaching to the intended target audience. These include the transit advertising forms, the street and pole signs, the road branding techniques, the balloon advertising and so on and so forth (Ha 2003). What all these advertising methods have brought forward is the fact that the customer has become very educated and that he does not need to have a TV or a newspaper to access details about the brand or service which is being highlighted, from the domains of the client in essence. The customer now knows that if he has missed TV and newspaper advertising, he can most definitely go on the web and easily access the same. He can go outdoors and see the street signs and hoardings and thus be in line with whatever is being offered to him all this while. The death of TV and newspaper advertising has happened over a period of time, and not in an overnight fashion (Stoff 2008). This has meant that the TV and newspaper owners had started to understand that their respective mediums have lost the battle as compared to the newer media outlets and methodologies which were making serious mark on the consumers’ minds. What is even more interesting is the fact that the consumers have now realized that the power of the contemporary forms of advertising within their lives has become very significant and that they would rely on

Discussion Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Discussion Questions - Essay Example Respond in 100+ words and thread from here for participation on a day you need it. In the process of conducting business, it is unfortunate that there will be times when letters must go out to customers with news they would rather not hear. I have a friend who works in a hotel where many items are left behind by guests. When the items cannot be located, a letter is forwarded from management informing the guest that the item has not been found. The letter is a form letter that an assistant, or sometimes a desk clerk who isn’t busy, will fill in and forward to the guest. The letters are sometimes done in bulk from a list. The first paragraph of the letter thanks the guest and offers hope that their stay was enjoyable. The second paragraph takes no responsibility for the item while assuring them that everything was done to find what was left behind. In the third paragraph, an offer is made to use the letter as proof of a 15% discount on the room rate during the next stay, encouraging further business and good will toward the guest. This is a very effective for m of increasing return business. 2. Here is something you may have seen on the Internet—examples of unclear writing from letters received by government agencies. I thought you might get a chuckle from reading the list. It will give you some stress-reducing laughs, but at the same time make you realize that you need to be careful in how you craft your sentences for your papers and other assignments. If you like you can respond to it in 100+ words for participation. If not, just enjoy, chuckle and remember to be precise in YOUR writing! :-) Learning to write clearly can be a challenge. Sentence structure is important in order to convey a clear message that has no room for misinterpretation. When a message is garbled in the translation, the intent and meaning of the communication may be either diminished or disintegrated. As well, the

Word-of-Mouth to Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Word-of-Mouth to Marketing - Essay Example Today word-of-mouth marketing includes several categories of communication such as buzz, blogs, and viral marketing where Internet communities and other interactive social media are utilised for word-of-mouth marketing. Influencer marketing is another form of word-of-mouth marketing wherein personalities who are believed to be highly influential over the target audience are made use of for promotion of products and services. Word-of-mouth marketing has gained a great deal of importance as a marketing technique due to its effectiveness, which in turn is due to its credibility. This is because word-of-mouth communication is considered to be honest and without any selfish motive. This credibility is what is made use of by marketers who use the technique of the word of mouth. People usually ask other people like their friends, family, colleagues and others, whom they trust, when they decide to purchase something and before they begin to look for what brand or label to buy. Word-of-mouth marketing is actually "giving people a reason to talk about your stuff, and making it easier for that conversation to take place" (Sernovitz, 2006, p.3). As simply put by Sernovitz (2006, p.3), "it is everything you can do to get people talking." People are more often than not buying a product not in response to the marketing campaigns of the product, but in response to what other people may be talking about the product. Research shows that people gather information from marketing materials and then talk the products over with their friends, family or other close associates. Then they make a decision about buying the product in response to what others say about the product (Silverman, 2001, p.6). Hence marketers have realized that the best way to increase sales of their products is by getting the customers to sell them. Word-of-mouth communication is now the focal point of marketing and the most effective method for sales promotion. Another factor that increases the significance of the word of mouth is that we are now in the information age where we are overwhelmed with more information than we can handle. This, in addition to busy schedules, leaves no time for extensive research, investigation and deliberation. Hence traditional advertising is on the decline and the word of mouth has become a necessary time saver (Silverman, 2001, p.10). Impact of the word of mouth in marketing There are several factors that render the word of mouth very powerful and effective. The most significant factor is that the word-of-mouth communication can be very influential and can persuade a prospective buyer to buy a product. Another factor is that the word of mouth communication is based on personal experience and therefore the possibility of expected result is very high. The independent nature of the word-of-mouth communication makes it more credible. Besides, while word-of-mouth communication is custom-made, relevant and complete, it is self-generating and self-breeding, growing exponentially and sometimes explosively (Silverman, 2001, p.37). It has unlimited speed and scope, and is "very inexpensive to stimulate, amplify and sustain" (Silverman, 2001, p.37). Word-of-mouth co

Introduction to Marketing and Communications Essay

Introduction to Marketing and Communications - Essay Example segments and what it takes to define those market segments properly and adequately; tweaking various elements of the marketing mix to position products for individual target markets. The intent is to provide a template that Mega Bastard Corporation can use to explore the marketing of all kinds of products from a good grasp of marketing management fundamentals and basic models and processes contained therein (Bray; Sarvary; Oxford Learning Lab). The marketing environment consists of those external factors to a firm that impact the ability of the firm to undertake marketing activities. These are external circumstances, conditions, and realities that firms must face up to, and must take as givens, in crafting marketing strategies, and in coming up with viable product and business ideas. The fundamental component of a survey of the marketing environment for Mega Bastard Corporation are the micro environment and the macro environment. As the names suggest, the macro environment relates to the big picture factors that impact firm activities, and a good model for capturing the macro environment is the PESTLE analysis, which is a shorthand for the political, economic, socio-cultural, technological, legal and environmental factors that impact business and marketing strategies. The micro environment factors on the other hand relate to more immediate factors that impact firm activities, relationships, and operations, and a good model that captures the relevant micro environmental factors are the Five Forces Framework or Model of Porter. These Five Forces model looks at the level of competition, the bargaining power of buyers, the bargaining power of suppliers, the threat of substitutes, and the threat of new entrants into an industry. In the context of Mega Bastard Corporation’s foray into bionic limbs, the Five Forces analysis and the PESTLE analysis would be able to determine the nature of the marketing environment within which any marketing plan must prove its mettle

Word-of-Mouth to Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Word-of-Mouth to Marketing - Essay Example Today word-of-mouth marketing includes several categories of communication such as buzz, blogs, and viral marketing where Internet communities and other interactive social media are utilised for word-of-mouth marketing. Influencer marketing is another form of word-of-mouth marketing wherein personalities who are believed to be highly influential over the target audience are made use of for promotion of products and services. Word-of-mouth marketing has gained a great deal of importance as a marketing technique due to its effectiveness, which in turn is due to its credibility. This is because word-of-mouth communication is considered to be honest and without any selfish motive. This credibility is what is made use of by marketers who use the technique of the word of mouth. People usually ask other people like their friends, family, colleagues and others, whom they trust, when they decide to purchase something and before they begin to look for what brand or label to buy. Word-of-mouth marketing is actually "giving people a reason to talk about your stuff, and making it easier for that conversation to take place" (Sernovitz, 2006, p.3). As simply put by Sernovitz (2006, p.3), "it is everything you can do to get people talking." People are more often than not buying a product not in response to the marketing campaigns of the product, but in response to what other people may be talking about the product. Research shows that people gather information from marketing materials and then talk the products over with their friends, family or other close associates. Then they make a decision about buying the product in response to what others say about the product (Silverman, 2001, p.6). Hence marketers have realized that the best way to increase sales of their products is by getting the customers to sell them. Word-of-mouth communication is now the focal point of marketing and the most effective method for sales promotion. Another factor that increases the significance of the word of mouth is that we are now in the information age where we are overwhelmed with more information than we can handle. This, in addition to busy schedules, leaves no time for extensive research, investigation and deliberation. Hence traditional advertising is on the decline and the word of mouth has become a necessary time saver (Silverman, 2001, p.10). Impact of the word of mouth in marketing There are several factors that render the word of mouth very powerful and effective. The most significant factor is that the word-of-mouth communication can be very influential and can persuade a prospective buyer to buy a product. Another factor is that the word of mouth communication is based on personal experience and therefore the possibility of expected result is very high. The independent nature of the word-of-mouth communication makes it more credible. Besides, while word-of-mouth communication is custom-made, relevant and complete, it is self-generating and self-breeding, growing exponentially and sometimes explosively (Silverman, 2001, p.37). It has unlimited speed and scope, and is "very inexpensive to stimulate, amplify and sustain" (Silverman, 2001, p.37). Word-of-mouth co

Improving Retention Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Improving Retention - Essay Example In these regards, it’s clear that the focus of thought is one of the primary actions to convert conscious awareness to stored memory. The next step in improving retention is to make consistent, yet spaced-out, efforts at retention. Bjork (2001) demonstrated that information that is researched in these consistent ways, rather than in steady state and fast ‘cramming’ methods, is not as well retained. Other methods that must be taken are to organize the material in tangible ways. Rather than sporadically attempting to retain various information elements, research has demonstrated that the mind functions much more efficiently when the information that is attempting to be retained is grouped into discernable categories. This allows the mind to group and process this information into memory with much greater efficiency. In addition to these methods of memory retention, there exist areas of memory retention that are more common knowledge. One such avenue within this fiel d of psychological memory retention is the mnemonic device. Mnemonic devices function as association tools that aid the mind in recalling and retaining information.

Reading of Jane Austen(TM)s short stories Essay Example for Free

Reading of Jane Austen(TM)s short stories Essay From a reading of Jane Austens short stories what do we learn about womens lives in the late eighteenth century? In Jane Austens a collection of short stories Love and Friendship, she shows us the lives of women in the late eighteenth century, and what they have to deal with. These short stories are written in epistolary (letter) form between women who were friends at the time, these letters show us what their lives were about and what was considered to be important to them. Jane Austen writes about marriage, status, personal views and the attitude to what she saw, she also uses humour in her letters showing us how shallow women were in that time. For young women in the late eighteenth century marriage was very important and a woman who did not get married was considered worthless, all women were expected to get married. There were many important reasons to get married for a woman living in this time, the most important reason being having money. If a woman had no money she would be considered as having a bad status, because women when they were with their parents had no possession of their own. In the three sisters Mary is not sure about marrying Mr Watts she does not like him but she still considers marring him because he has a lot of money. He has a large fortune and will make great settlements on me. I hate him more than anybody else in the world. This shows us the amount of money he has is more important than the relationship and how happy they will be together. She decides to marry him if he will give her all she wants, this shows us how shallow the women could be and what they will do for possessions, she demands a new carriage hung as high as the Duttons, and blue spotted with silver; and I shall expect a new saddle horse, a suit of fine lace, and an infinite number of the most fine jewelsmust always let me do just as I please and make a very good husband. This shows us all the things she expects to get in marring him they are all but one material goods. This shows us that women in the eighteenth century were very much focused on marriage and how much money they could get out of it. If a woman did not get married she would either have to live with her mother or a paid female companion. Another alternative was to be a governess to a wealthy family; this was not a good thing to be because you would be treated a little better than a servant, they would neither be on the same level as the servants or the family. Young women in the late eighteenth century were considered well educated if they had plenty of accomplishment, these were things like sewing, singing, reading and entertaining their guests at a dinner party. In Lesley Castle, Margaret Lesley was writing to Charlotte Lutterell tell her what they did to pass the time in Scotland and what they do is we read, we work, we walk and when fatigued with these employments we relieve our spirits, either by a lively song, a graceful dance or by some smart bon-mot and witty repartee. This shows us that they did not do any challenging or intelligent type of work. The women in the late 18th century were also polite this shows us that this mattered in this time; we can see they are polite because they write long pleasant letters to each other. Lesley Castle demonstrates that it is important to have accomplishments in this time and it allowed them to get into a good marriage which was the most important thing in a young ladys life in the late eighteenth century. Not many girls of the time attended school but the few that did attended boarding school, would not learn to be clever they would only learn things like sewing and singing. Margaret Lesley and Charlotte Lutterell both went to boarding school together, it is four years since my removal from school. School was mostly for boys, some girls went to boarding school but the education was not very good because they did not need lessons and the teachers did not know what to teach them. Women in the late eighteenth century did not own anything or have any property for themselves. A womans inheritance would be given to a distant male relative the woman would never be given the whole of the money. The only way women could get money was through marriage, Mary only wants to marry Mr Watts because he has a large fortune and will make great settlements on me. She also expects the pinmoney; two hundred a year. Which Mr Watts only want to be a hundred and seventy-five. When Mary agrees to marry Mr Watts she expects him to build her an elegant greenhouse and stock it with plants a room on purpose and a theatre to act plays in. she also expects to be allow out of the house all the time she insists on spending every Winter in Bath, every Spring in town, every summer in taking some Tour, and every Autumn at a watering place. Marys mother is set on not letting such an opportunity escape of settling one of my daughters so advantageously. This shows us that money was not only important to the woman but also important to the rest of their family, to ensure that the family would stay with money. It would also be in a mans interest to marry someone with lots of money because some of the family money would be given to him for marring into the family. Marriage was based on material goods not on a relationship. If you did not marry you would have no money and possessions you could have from your father. In Lesley castle Charlotte Lutterell is worried what will happen if by this second marriage sir George should have a second family, our fortunes must be considerably diminished those jewels which once adorned our mother Matilda would no longer sit at the head of her fathers table. This shows us how easy it is to loose money and financial security. Female friendship in the late 18th century come over as shallow, because they are always judging each other Margaret Lesley calls her mother-in-law an insignificant dwarf. Where their mother-in-law Susan Lesley calls Margaret and Matilda scotch giants and continues I am sure they would frighten you out of your wits. This show us that women in the 18th century judge each other and think they look better than each other. There is also a lot of rivalry between friends Mary in The Three Sisters, says how I will triumph over the Duttons and the two families were friends; this shows us that was even rivalry between friends and even though they were nice to them to their faces they were horrible behind peoples backs. Manners and etiquette were more important than actual friendship; Susan Lesley and Charlotte Lutterell are only friends even though they are feed up with each other because she is too polite and I am too civil to say they still write letters which are still as frequent and as affectionate. This show us that women in the late eighteenth century are very selfish, and their lives were very shallow. We have learnt from reading Jane Austens short stories that women in the late eighteenth century had very little choice to what they could do because they had to marry to ensure that they would still have enough money to live. Life in the late eighteenth century for women was very much everyone out for themselves and they all had to fight over having a rich man and material goods better than everyone elses. Jane Austen did not like living in this time we can tell this because of the humour she uses with the women to show how important money was to them in The Three Sister Mary is very indecisive whether she should marry Mr Watts or not. Today we find it hard to compare with how they lived in the late eighteenth century because it is so different to how we live now. I am glad that we live in a society today which is more accepting to women and how both male and female should be treated the same. I also believe that Jane Austen would prefer to live in the society that we live in today because Jane Austen always humours the women in her collection of short stories.

What Is The Takwa Settlement History Essay

What Is The Takwa Settlement History Essay The  Takwa  settlement is situated on the south side of  Manda Island, in the  Lamu District  in the coastal province of  Kenya. They are the ruins of a  Muslim  town which was abandoned around the 18th century. The Takwa site can be easely reached from  Lamu  town. The ruins were first excavated by James Kirkman in 1951. In 1972 the site was cleared again under the supervision of James de Vere Allen, the Curator of the Lamu Museum. Takwa was never a large place. It was founded around year 1500, and probably abandoned around 1700. Kirkman thought that it was perhaps a place were holy men or religious people retreated. The Great Mosque at Takwa is relatively well preserved. The other structure remaining of importance is the Pillar Tomb, which has an inscription with the date of 1681-1682. It is reported that when Takwa was abandoned, its inhabitants settled just across the bay at  Shela  on  Lamu Island. Twice a year the people of Shela come to the Pillar Tomb in Takwa to pray for rain. (Martin, p. 27) The Takwa Ruins were designated a Kenyan National Monument in 1982. mu Archipelago From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Lamu Archipelago Map of  Kenya  showing the islands Lamu Island Lamu Town  Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Shela Matondoni Kipangani Manda Island Manda Town à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¡ Takwa  Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¡ Manda Airport Pate Island Faza à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚   Pate Town Rulers of Pate -  Bwana Mkuu -  Bwana Tamu -  Fumo Madi Siyu Kizingitini Shanga à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¡ Kiwayu Island à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚   Administrative Centre à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¡Ã‚  Archaeological  site à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢Ã‚  World Heritage Site The  Lamu Archipelago  is located in the  Indian Ocean  close to the northern coast of  Kenya, to which it belongs. The islands lie between the towns of  Lame  and  Kiunga, close to the border with  Somalia, and is a part of  Lamu District. The largest of the islands are  Pate Island,  Manda Island  and  Lamu Island. Smaller islands include  Kiwayu, which lies in the  Kiunga Marine National Reserve, and  Manda Toto. Today the largest town in the archipelago is  Lamu Town, on  Lamu Island. The town is on the  World Heritage List. The archipelago contains several archaeological/historical sites of great significance, such as  Takwa  and  Manda Town  (both on  Manda Island) and  Shanga  (on  Pate Island). Some have been partially excavated in later years, shedding important new light on  Swahili  history and culture. The islands are reputed to be one of the westernmost ports of call of the great  Chinese  fleet of  Zheng He, or even to be the resting place of a wreck of one of his ships. No direct evidence has yet been discovered of his visit, although it is known that he visited  Mombasa, further down the Kenyan coast, in around 1415. [edit]References Allen, James de Vere:  Lamu, with an appendix on Archaeological finds from the region of Lamu by H. Neville Chittick.  Nairobi: Kenya National Museums. Lamu town is the oldest living Swahili town in Kenya, comparable to others such as Zanzibar in Tanzania. The town dates back to at least the 12th century. Since this time Lamu has flourished as a maritime trading centre whose main population, the Swahili, engaged in international trade, fishing and farming. The architecture of Lamu is uniquely Swahili, with its narrow streets, storied buildings, intricately carved wooden doors and numerous mosques. Lamu is also unique in that it is host to three museums and a Fort with an impressive exhibition space, namely:  Lamu Museum,  Lamu Fort  ,German Post Office Museum, and  Swahili House Museum. Lamu Museum can arrange guided tours to various archaeological and historical sites, whether to neighbouring Manda Island or further afield to Pate Island, where the ruins of the earliest known Swahili settlement of Shanga dated to the 8th century AD can be visited. Lamu Society The Lamu Society was formed in the early 1980s to offer a forum for ideas and projects that would encourage the conservation of the island communitys historic material culture. The Society has been instrumental in raising funds and assisting in the work required to document, preserve and restore aspects of earlier time periods and hence in the development of the  Lamu Museum. The Societys publications focus on the history and preservation of the islands cultural heritage, whilst its periodic newsletter informs members about events and ongoing aspects of interest. Religious Centre Since the 19th century Lamu has been regarded as an important religious centre in East Africa. Every year, thousands of pilgrims from the region flock to Lamu town for the famous  Maulidi,  or Milad-un-Nabi, celebrations that are held during the third month of the Muslim calendar to mark the birth of the Prophet Muhammed. The East AfricanMaulidi  is believed to have been started by Habib Swaleh Jamalely, a Comorian Arab who emigrated to Lamu and established himself as a scholar and doctor of traditional Arabic medicine. He was a pious man whose deeds are still emulated today, as exemplified by  Maulidi. The  Maulidi  celebrations are known to bring people from as far as the Comoros, Sudan and Democratic Republic of Congo. Lamu Heritage Attractions Lamu is a dominant cultural centre reputable for its historic past and traditional socio-cultural traditions. As such visitors to Lamu can enjoy a large and diverse collection of heritage and cultural attractions. At the district level, Lamu has the remains of many heritage sites. These range from towns, like Shanga, Patà © and Manda to hundreds of monuments, like Siyu Fort. Some of these sites, such as Manda, are easily accessible, while others are located in thick vegetation making access difficult. The development of access to these areas is currently being addressed by the sites management team. Lamu was listed as a World Heritage Site on the 14 December 2001. This landmark status came after 28 years of strict conservation of Lamu Old Town. As a national monument the town has many fascinating architectural characteristics, unrivalled by any other Swahili town along the East African littoral. The old town has approximately 532 houses. About 496 of these houses are privately owned, 23 are considered public and 13 are religious buildings mainly mosques. The town has survived the pressure of modern destruction and development by both government and private developers. The towns well-conserved architectural setting of narrow streets, divided by blocks of lined houses, has fascinated many visitors. Perhaps of most appeal are the stone walled houses in which flat roofs are supported by painted mangrove poles. The interior of a typical Lamu house is divided by two or three long galleries, with at least one or two self-contained rooms. The walls are covered with geometric plaster designs and wall niches. Lamu town has several buildings of importance including the Lamu Fort and  Yumbe  the former house of a Lamu Sultan. Aside from Lamus physical heritage the town has a rich living culture. For almost a century, each calendar year sees Lamu flooded with religious tourists from across the globe, here to attend the popular Maulidi Festival. About 20,000 religious tourists come to the town to attend this Festival, during the Islamic month of  Rabil awal. The climax of the Maulidi celebrations comes in the final week of this month. At this time various traditional Swahili dances from the neighbouring towns of Patà ©, Siyu, Ndau, Faza and Matondoni are hosted at the Riadha Mosque grounds to entertain the pilgrims. Taking advantage of the sombre week of  mfungo sita, (Rabil awal) Lamu Museum also arranges a series of cultural events, such as traditional dhow races,  bao  games, donkey races, henna painting and Islamic calligraphy competitions. Typically during the month of August, though occasionally occurring later in the year, Lamus second large festival is held. The  Lamu Cultural Festival  is organised by the Lamu Cultural Promotion Group. It is a three-day Swahili cultural festival that combines traditional dances, indoor and outdoor cultural activities and an exhibition of Lamus rich material culture. The Cultural Festival, like the Maulidi, also draws crowds as large as 20,000. Lamu Old Towns museums and fort are maintained and managed by the National Museums of Kenya. These are: the Lamu Museum, known for its exquisite Swahili ethnography exhibits; the Swahili House Museum, a restored 18th century house, reflecting the life of privileged Lamu Swahilis; the Lamu Fort, built in 1814 by Bwana Zeid Ngumi the last Sultan of Lamu; and the German Post Office Museum, showing the post office when it was operational in the late 19-20 th Century. Lamus material culture is best shown by its carved doors and traditional furniture which can be viewed all over the town. There are almost 18 woodcarving workshops in Lamu mainly producing Swahili doors, furniture and smaller artefacts, such as the miniature dhows that are popular with tourists. One of the busiest workshops in the town is the Skanda Woodcarving Workshop, this was opened about 50 years ago and is credited with having trained hundreds of woodcarvers who are now scattered all over Kenyas major towns. Visitors are welcome to view woodcarving classes at the workshops. There are also gift and curio shops scattered around the Old Town, selling quality local items. One of the reasons for Lamus inscription on the UNESCO heritage list is its unique social-cultural life, which has remained relatively unchanged for centuries. A traditionally conservative lifestyle is still maintained by many Lamu households. Lamus female Muslim population still predominately wear  bui buis,  and donkeys remain the major form of transport in the town. The ruins of Takwa are located on Manda Island, a 30 minute boat ride from Lamu town. Here one can witness the remains of a thriving 16th century Swahili trading post. Among the more notable features at Takwa is the unique Friday Mosque with a large pillar atop the qibla wall; while the significance of the pillar is not known with certainty, some believe it to symbolise the burial of a Sheikh below the wall. A days visit is quite a unique experience, and can be complimented by a picnic or overnight camping. Location   The ruins of Takwa are located on the southeastern corner of Manda Island opposite Lamu. A 30 minute boat ride from Lamu Town. Its geographical location on map is at Grid Reference 186 476, Sheet 180/4.   Historical background   Takwa ruins are the remains of a thriving 15th and 16th century Swahili trading town before it was abandoned in the seventeenth century. It is not only important because of its period of occupation but also because of its dense settlement and its relatively well preserved remains. The unique Friday Mosque with a large pillar a top the qibla wall is among the most notable features. This pillar is believed to symbolize the burial of a Sheikh be low the wall.   The position of the site at the narrowest location on the whole island, was most probably a strategy. Takwas position/location with shallow waters must have been of considerable importance especially during its peak, when many of the sails that came into view were likely to be hostile. Therefore access to the site must have been primarily from the shallow channel which could only admit vessels of shallow draft.   Takwa eventual abandonment in the 17th century was due to salination of the once fresh water and endless fighting between Takwa and Pate people. These ruins were gazetted as a National Monument in 1982 in Gazette notice No. 1514. At present, Takwa is open daily to the Public. It is a very pleasant place for a casual visit, which can be complimented by a picnic and overnight camping. Takwa is a settlement between three hundred and five hundred years old unmodified by subsequent constructions. The remains of the walled stone town of Takwa are located at a point where Manda Island is almost bisected by a tidal channel flanked by mangroves. Although Takwa is located only few hundred meters from the sea, there is neither a good harbour nor protected anchorage on the ocean side. The shallow channel was likely the best access to the site, as it is today, although only for vessels of shallow draft when the tides are favourable. A major aspect of the settlement is the town wall, of coral rag construction, which rose to a full height of about three meters and is best viewed intact in the southern areas of the site. The remains of Takwa within the wall cover about 5 hectares and consist of a mosque, houses, a well and structures with perhaps religious or commercial functions. In addition, there are the spaces created by the location of structures, such as courtyards, streets and other open areas. All structures were built of coral rag, quarried locally, and set in mortar made of earth, sand and lime. The street, although obscured by rubble today, is significant for the amount of town planning involved: at least five houses with sides on the street are directly aligned with it, and all in the plan are affected by it. Likewise the street leading south directly to the mosque is orientated with an error of less than one degree off contemporary magnetic north hardly an accident. It is interesting to consider that upon leaving the mosque, the faithful stepped onto a street aimed directly at Mecca. Pillar tombs are one of the unique architectural features of the East African coast, and Takwa is justifiably known for its fine example, located just a few meters past the north gate. An inscribed block is set into the north face of the tomb wall. The block calls to Allah, Muhammed, and the first four caliphs, AbuBakar, Umar, Uthman and Ali. At the bottom of the inscription is the Arabic date 1094, which measures that many years from Muhammeds hijrah, or move, from Mecca to Medina in A.D. 622. As the Muslim year 1094 began on December 31, 1682, this date corresponds to the Christian year 1683. The tomb is still considered sacred to the Muslim people of Shela, some of whom are believed to have come from Takwa and who visit the tomb twice a year to pray for rain. The Takwa mosque is located near the geographical centre of the site, reflecting the central place of Islam in the religious and social life of many in the community. The mosque is characterized by an unusual and striking pillar, which rises from the centre of its north wall. It is possible that the mosque is located on the site of the tomb of a revered person. The pillar, as a characteristic feature of the coast, may have been placed on the mosque in commemoration of the burial site. The ruined remains of about 55 structures occur north of the mosque, with about an equal number to the south. Takwa may have been abandoned due to hostility from nearby Pate, whose ascendancy began about three hundred years ago. Perhaps trade competition contributed to the site abandonment, or possibly Takwa became involved in the rivalry between Lamu and Pate, which might explain why some of the Takwa people asked to settle at Shela on Lamu Island. Another likely cause for abandonment was the inferior water supply, for the wells at the mosque and near the pillar tomb are salty today. It might have been easier for the Takwans to resist hostility from Pate than to endure the increasing salinity of their life-sustaining wells. Artefacts found during excavations in the 1979s include numerous pottery vessels both locally produced and imported for cooking and storage, a bread oven, glass beads, spindle whorls, a glass flask of unknown use, fragments of a smoking pipe, fish and mammal bones suggesting a varied diet, and finished iron implements and iron slag indicating blacksmithing on site. This is a rich inventory of artefacts but it nevertheless only reflects what has not perished in the archaeological record. No cotton or other cloth has survived. Almost all wood is gone, probably moved to Shela, which, considering contemporary woodcarving is likely quite a loss. Leather products such as purses, belts and sandals have all decayed, and particularly valuable items would have been removed as the people left Takwa. Even with the interesting picture of Takwa known from archaeological research, we are still unable to gain a complete piciture of the sites history. A safari to Takwa A visit to Takwa National Monument is a very pleasant way to spend a morning or afternoon, or even an entire day with overnight camping. Visitors may leave Lamu or Shela by sailing dhow or motorboat, cross Lamu Harbour to Manda Island and enter a narrow channel flanked by mangroves. Although at high tide boats and dhows can reach the very end of the channel, it is best to be prepared to wade a few meters through ankle or knee deep salt water. Far from being dangerous or uncomfortable, this approach makes you feel like an explorer, setting the mood for entrance into the serene and majestic ruins. Physical description and climate The Lamu Archipelago is a small group of island situated on Kenyas northern coast line, near Somalia. It is made up of Lamu, Manda, Pate and Kiwayu Islands. Lamu Town is the headquarters of Lamu District, one of the six districts of Kenyas Coastal Province, which borders the Indian Ocean to the east, the Tana River District to the south-west, the Garissa District to the north and the Republic of Somalia to the north-east. Temperatures range from 23 to 30 degrees celsius throughout the year. The hottest months are form December to April, while the coolest are from May to July. There are also long rains from mid-April to the end of June. Commerce brought the East African coast into contact with distant peoples and cultures as early as two thousand years ago. The earliest known historical records the 1st Century ADPtolemys Geography   talk of the coast, its inhabitants, and the trade. Arab merchants began to settle permanently between the 9th and 12th centuries, bringing with them a new religion, Islam. They referred to the people they found there by various names, including Swahili, which meant people from the coast. Over the years, the traders intermarried with the local people and some Swahilis trace their origins to the Arab world. The Old Town of Lamu is first mentioned by the Arab writer/traveller, Abu al Mahasini, who met a Qadhi (Muslim Judge) from Lamu when visiting Meca in 1441. Lamu flourished as an independent city-state and remained a thriving seaport through the turbulent Portuguese invasions, its Omani domination during the 17th century and battles with the neighbouring islands of Pate and Manda. Under Omani protection and with a slave based economy, Lamu remained prosperous for over two hundred years until the 19th century. It was during this period that Lamus inhabitants built most of the traditional coral stone houses and mosques that still stand today, using coral stone and mangrove timber from the archipelago, and employing skilled craftsmen from India. To the Muslim world the word Maulid (the Arabic word for birth) is often spoken in reference to the Prophet Muhammeds (Peace Be Upon Him) birth. However, in Eastern African and the Indian Ocean region, Maulidi or Milad-un-Nabii (Birth of the Prophet Muhammed, PBUH) is the holy celebration of the birth of Prophet Muhammed, which lasts the full month of Rabi al-Awal and a few weeks before and after. A Maulid itself is any ceremony in which the Prophet is venerated. For that reason, it is understandable why there is controversy over when and where the first Maulid was recited. The most consistent record states that the first public celebration took place in Egypt 400 years after the death of the Prophet in the eighth century during the Fatimid dynasty, after which Maulidi was celebrated in Mecca and since has caught on in many other countries in this part of the world. Again there is no precise record of when it began in East Africa, but it is clear Maulidi has been here for centuries. The person who is responsible for how Maulidi is presently celebrated is Swaleh ibn Alwy ibn Abdullah Jamal al-Lail or Habib Swaleh. Born in the Comoros Islands of an Arab father and Comorian mother, Swalehs family are Sharifs. He was the first to include instruments at the Maulids he hosted and was criticized for it. After some years, Swaleh was recognized as a man of the people and a respected leader in the community, and they began to follow his example and join in his celebration. At that time no Mosque allowed instruments to be played inside, so he founded the Riyada Mosque and the Mosque College in 1901. To this day, the students of Riyada College lead the recitation, and the Riyada itself is the heart of the festival continuing his legacy. Though it is a month-long celebration, the most important and observed time is sunset on the 11th of Rabi-al-Awal until dawn on the 12th. The Maulid is recited for that entire span of time, as it is on the actual date of the Prophets birth. During the last week of the month, in Lamu, there is a four-day long festival. This begins on the Tuesday and ends on Friday. Since 1990, the National Museums of Kenya has sponsored the gala in Lamu. They organize various community building competitions such as swimming, dhow races, henna competition, tug-of war, and donkey races. Amidst the festival, in homes and in mosques, the people of Lamu recite one of four Maulids: Sharaful-Anam, Maulid ya Dibei (ya Rama), Baranzanji, and Simt-al-Durar (String of Pearls). The Maulid ya Rama is written and recited in Kiswahili, the others in Arabic. The most commonly read are the Baranzaji, written by Imam as-Sayyid Jafar ibn Hassan ibn Abdal Karim al-Barazanji (1690-1766), and the Simt-al-Durar, the most recent, written by Khatib Habib Ali Ibn Muhammad al-Habshy (?-1915) from Saudi Arabia. These Maulids can best be described as religious poetry, based on the history and life of the Prophet, with lines and concepts from the Hadith and the Quran. A Maulid can be read at any important event or milestone. In the Swahili tradition, it may be read one to two weeks after the birth of a child, during the shaving ceremony. They are also performed at weddings and less frequently at funerals. Muslims all of the world add their own variations and culture to the recitation. Of all of the major cities and ports in this part of the world, East African Muslims choose Lamu to visit and observe this special time. The uniquely Swahili music, dance, and rituals here are unlike any others. Lamu is a town rich in culture, history, and traditions and will most likely continue to host the biggest Maulidi on the East African coast. Lamu From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Lamu Old Town* UNESCO World Heritage Site View of the seaside, Lamu Town State  Party   Kenya Type Cultural Criteria ii, iv, vi Reference 1055 Region** Africa Inscription history Inscription 2001  Ã‚  (25th  Session) *  Name as inscribed on World Heritage List. **  Region as classified by UNESCO. Lamu Archipelago Map of  Kenya  showing the islands Lamu Island Lamu Town  Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Shela Matondoni Kipangani Manda Island Manda Town à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¡ Takwa  Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¡ Manda Airport Pate Island Faza à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚   Pate Town Rulers of Pate -  Bwana Mkuu -  Bwana Tamu -  Fumo Madi Siyu Kizingitini Shanga à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¡ Kiwayu Island à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚   Administrative Centre à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¡Ã‚  Archaeological  site à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢Ã‚  World Heritage Site Lamu town  is the largest town on  Lamu Island, which in turn is a part of the  Lamu Archipelago  in  Kenya. Lamu town is also the headquarters of  Lamu District  and a  UNESCO World Heritage Site. Contents   [hide] 1  History 2  Economy 3  Sights 4  See also

A Comparative Analysis of “Cry Freedom” and “Island in the Sun” Essay

Racism and racial segregation are forms of discrimination based traditionally on unmerited economic, social and political orders. These principles transform and re-invent and continue to manifest themselves in modern societies causing severe mental scars and perpetuating deep inequality and poverty. Colonialism in the British Caribbean illustrated by the film â€Å"Island in the Sun† which is chronologically first, and Post Colonialism in Africa illustrated by â€Å"Cry Freedom† have similarities and stark differences. Both films are used to portray society’s social-political issues. From the marginalization of black people socially, politically and economically to the notable use of laws that exploit, ostracize and impede the advancement of blacks while dividing them in the process. The films are set apart by their notable differences, in â€Å"Cry Freedom†, apartheid laws which were developed after the 20th century were codified which set legal barriers of white domination and racial separation. Racial discrimination was systemized and banned marriages between blacks and whites, and sanctioned certain jobs for whites only. â€Å"Island in the Sun†, on the other hand attempts to trade unionize the workforce to help blacks to become empowered because up to that point blacks could not work in certain areas. While both films reflect different time periods they simultaneously reflect the clutch of colonial mindsets on mental realities within The Bahamas. In â€Å"Island in the Sun† we see the Caribbean in the 1950s, historically during this time there was ‘de jure’ racial segregation between the two diverse groups – blacks and whites. What black people could and could not do was very present in this film. Here we see the character David Boyhe a mixed-ra... ...uld result in a movement whose final triumph would be majority rule and the dismantling of the system of apartheid that inhibited Bahamian blacks socially, politically and economically (Martin and Storr 21). Works Cited Barlas, Robert. The Bahamas. TarryTown: marshall cavendish Benchmark, 2000. Bethel, Nicolette. "Engendering the Bahamas." College of The Bahamas Research Journal XIII (2003). â€Å"Cry Freedom†. Dir. Richard Attenborough. Perf. Denzel Washington. 1987. Martin, Nona. "I’se a Man. Political Awakening and the 1942 Riot in the Bahamas." Journal of Caribbean History, 41 (1&2) (2008): 3. McCartney, Donald M. Bahamian Culture and Factors Which Impact Upon It. Pittsburg: Dorrance Publishing Co, inc, 2004. Wolpe, Harold. "‘Capitalism and cheap labour-power in South Africa: From segregation to apartheid'." Economy and Society 1(4) (1972): 425-456.

Electronic Case (Corporate Finance) Essay

1. Tom believes the company should use the extra cash to pay a special one-time dividend. How will this proposal affect the stock price? How will it affect the value of the company? Electronic Timing, Inc. (ETI) needs to be careful on how it dispenses the extra cash as a dividend. Issuing the extra cash as a dividend would mean that the shareholders collectively will probably drop by the same amount because of the transfer of wealth from the company to the shareholders individually. Hence, the economic value of the company will also decrease. 2. Jessica believes that the company should use the extra cash to pay debt and upgrade and expand it existing manufacturing capability. How would Jessica’s proposals affect the company? Jessica’s proposal will support an expansionary policy for the company which can result to a higher growth rate for ETI. As to the company’s dividend policy, not issuing the extra cash as a dividend signals to the market that there are still better and more efficient uses of the cash than using it for dividends. 3. Nolan is in favor of a share repurchase. He argues will increase the company’s P/E ratio, return on assets, and return on equity. Are his arguments correct? How will a share repurchase affect the value of the company? A share repurchase if done correctly should be equivalent to the issuance of a cash dividend with the same amount as regards to effects on shareholders’ wealth. The way the share repurchases should be done in a way that it does not diminish or create shareholder wealth. Hence, Nolan’s argument that the company’s return and assets and return on equity will increase is not correct. However, the P/E ratio might go upwards for a time until the market corrects it. 4. Another option discussed by Tom, Jessica and Nolan would be to begin a regular dividend payment to shareholders. How would you evaluate this proposal? A plan to issue a regular dividend to shareholders is a start in establishing a dividend payout policy. A dividend policy signals to the market that the company is making a commitment to its shareholders and hence the company strategies will have to be aligned with that commitment. Therefore I would evaluate the proposal as regards the company’s ability to stick to it. For example, it adopts a stable dividend policy – will it be able to have cash to honor such policy year on, year off? Another factor would be does a regular dividend matter to ETI’s shareholders? Or do they prefer a different method of transferring wealth to them aside from a cash dividend? 5. One way to value a share of stock is the dividend growth, or growing perpetuity, model. Consider the following: The dividend payout ratio is 1 minus b, where b is the â€Å"retention† or â€Å"plowback† ratio. So, the dividend next year will be the earnings next year, E1, times 1 minus the retention ratio. The most commonly used equation to calculate the sustainable growth rate is the return on equity times the retention ratio. Substituting these relationships into the dividend growth model, we get the following equation to calculate the price of a share of stock today: What are the implications of this result in terms of whether the company should pay a dividend or upgrade and expand its manufacturing capability? Explain. The substituted dividend growth model is Dt=Dt-1(1+rb). This equation implies that the future dividends of the company are directly related to the amount of earnings it retains and the rate of return if makes from its investments. However, in order to attain the company’s targeted rate of return it also needs to retain more of its earnings in the company for upgrading or expanding its manufacturing plant rather than using it for cash dividends. In the expansionary phase, the company has to make trade offs – lower dividends for higher growth. 6. Does the question of whether the company should pay a dividend depend on whether the company is organized as a corporation or an LLC? No, an LLC can distribute earnings to its owners; however that distribution is not called a dividend, but rather distribution of cash or property to the partners. It is still a dividend in a different name.

Of Plymouth Plantation Essay

â€Å"Of Plymouth Plantation† is a manuscript of Bradford’s history starting in 1620. The first book was copied into the church records and preserved, but unfortunately the second part was presumably lost. The manuscripts were found in the residence of the Bishop of London and were published together for the first time in 1856. There seems to be immeasurable history in these books. William Bradford, the author of â€Å"Of Plymouth Plantation† gives a narrative of the voyage to Cape Cod. In the beginning of chapter 9, Bradford starts with a story of a young sailor whom had cursed and slighted the pilgrims for their weakness and constant sickness. However, that same sailor died from an unstated disease, giving the pilgrims peace as they no longer had persecution from any sailor. Bradford also mentions that young John Howland had fallen into the sea. Howland was under the water for a long time and as he held on to a topsail halyard, a rope that hangs overboard, he was pulled down to a deep level while the ship moved at a steady pace. After he was rescued Howland was sick for a long time, but survived in spite of his experience. As the Pilgrims finally reach Cape Code, Bradford explains the problems of the voyage which were part of the reason they had not made it all the way to Jamestown. The Pilgrims were elated to see land however they were also troubled because they had arrived during winter. Not only were land  conditions poor for farming at this time, but the ground was also hard. The few provisions they brought had been mostly for the journey, and not necessarily for the winter. Yet, due to the condition of the ship, the general consensus was to stay at Cape Cod. The Pilgrims arrived at Cape Cod aboard the Mayflower on November 11th, 1620. When they arrived, sixteen men, lead by Miles Standish, went on an exploration hoping to find a nearby river. In the process, they stumbled upon a small group of natives. However, the natives ran away when they caught sight of the Pilgrims. The Pilgrims followed the natives and consequently came across a former village where they took some of the provisions that were left there. They also came upon two more dwellings where they found some seeds, which they were thankful for. On December 6th, the Pilgrims set out in a shallop to explore further. As they were approaching land, they spotted a group of ten to twelve natives. The day was coming to an end, so the Pilgrims set up a barricade in case of attack. The next morning they set out to find the natives. They came upon the group of natives and saw that they were cleaning a fish. As the sun set, the Pilgrims set up another barricade for protection. As they were going to sleep they could hear wolves in the night, and they fired off their muskets to scare the wolves away. At day break, the Pilgrims found themselves under attack by the natives, which caused them to retreat from the area. However, the winter weather had gotten bad, and they had to spend some time on an island before heading back to the ship. On Monday, they were able to return to the ship. The party subsequently anchored in Plymouth where they began to build the colony’s first house. When reading these two chapters of Bradford’s manuscript, one would begin to appreciate the value of history. America’s possession of the first accounts, from Bradford’s perspective, of the Mayflower’s voyage to Plymouth is invaluable. In _American Historical Review_ David Read said, â€Å"William Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation could easily be categorized as yet another largely unread, dry-as-toast document from the days before things got really interesting in this country (p512).† Any reader would realize the piece of history which makes this logic absurd, nevertheless understanding that it is dry and very difficult to read. Bradford seems to ramble on about significant details; however this is a manuscript and not a professionally written book. One of the best-known sections of Bradford’s manuscript is chapter nine, which details the arrival to Cape Cod. The Pilgrims are struck by what they perceive as a desolate wilderness, utterly hostile and without comforts. Bradford emphasizes the tribulation they endured in sailing to this new land, and in his writings, Bradford wants the reader to understand that things did not get any better. Continuing in chapter ten, readers can see Indians being more problematic and viewed as a hostile force of nature to be reckoned with, ready to destroy the Pilgrims. In conclusion, the point of these chapters in â€Å"Of Plymouth Plantation† is to emphasize the struggles, hardships, and privations suffered by the Pilgrims in an attempt to show that they had been chosen for success by divine Providence. As David Partenheimer said in _Explicator_, â€Å"In any case, it is a remarkable moment in American literature when the New World is typologically conceptualized as the Promised Land for a chosen people despite a landscape of hell (p121).† Works Cited Bradford, William. â€Å"Of Plymouth Plantation.† _The Norton Anthology of American Literature_. 7th ed. Vol. A. Ed. Nina Baym. New York: W. W. Norton, 2007. 105-120. Print. Partenheimer, David. â€Å"Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation: 1620-1647.† _Explicator_ 56.3 (1998): 121. _Academic Search Elite_. Web. 17 Oct. 2014 Read, David. â€Å"William Bradford’s Books: Of Plymouth Plantation And The Printed Word (Book).† _American Historical Review_ 109.2 (2004): 512-513. _Academic Search Elite_. Web. 17 Oct. 2014.

Prom Nights from Hell Chapter Four

â€Å"Poor Sheeb, still locked in half-human form,† Jezebel teased. â€Å"I remember how good everything smells all the time. Ugh. And the temperature! Do the humans have to freeze everything with their wretched air-conditioning?† Sheba's face was smooth now, controlled. â€Å"I get by. There's plenty of misery to go around.† â€Å"That's the spirit! Just another few centuries, and you'll be in the big-time with me.† Sheba allowed a smirk to curl her lips. â€Å"Or maybe not quite so long.† One black eyebrow arched high against Jezebel's white forehead, raising almost to an ebony horn. â€Å"Is that so? Got something particularly evil up your sleeve, little sister?† Sheba didn't answer, tensing again as Jezebel sent her own thoughts snaking invisibly through the crowd inside the ballroom. Sheba locked her jaw, ready to strike back if Jezebel tried to undo any of her schemes. But Jezebel just looked, touching nothing. â€Å"Hmm,† Jezebel hummed to herself. â€Å"Hmm.† Sheba's fists clenched hard as Jezebel's search touched Cooper Silverdale, but again, Jezebel merely observed. â€Å"Well, well,† the horned demoness murmured. â€Å"Wow. Sheeb, I've got to say it, I'm impressed. You got a gun in. And a motivated hand-full of alcohol to weaken his free will!† The older demoness smiled with something that looked strangely like sincerity. â€Å"This is really evil. I mean, sure, a middle demon working homicide or mayhem or maybe riots could set something like this up at a prom, but a human-form child on misery detail? What are you, two, three hundred?† â€Å"Just one-eighty-six at my last spawn day,† Sheba answered brusquely, still wary. Jezebel whistled a tongue of flame through her lips. â€Å"Very impressed. And I can see that you aren't neglecting your assignment, either. That's one miserable crowd in there.† Jezebel laughed. â€Å"You've ended nearly every promising relationship, broken a few dozen lifelong friendships, made new enemies†¦ three, four, five fights brewing,† Jezebel counted, her mind with the humans. â€Å"You've even got the DJ listening to you! Such attention to detail. Ha-ha! I can count on one hand the humans who aren't completely wretched.† Sheba smiled grimly. â€Å"I'll get to them.† â€Å"Ghastly, Sheeb. Seriously nasty. You do our name proud. If every prom had a demoness like you involved, we'd own this world.† â€Å"Aw, Jez, you're making me blush,† Sheba said with heavy sarcasm. Jezebel laughed. â€Å"Of course, you've got a little help.† Jezebel's thoughts twisted in a circle around Celeste, who had just twisted herself around a new boy. Jilted girls cried, while the boys Celeste carelessly tossed aside flexed their fists and glowered wrathfully at their competition; burning with lust, each was determined that Celeste was finishing the night with him. Celeste was doing half the work tonight. â€Å"I use the tools available to me,† Sheba said. â€Å"What an ironic name! What an evil mind! Is she fully human?† â€Å"I passed her in the hall, just to check,† Sheba admitted. â€Å"Pure, clean human scent. Revolting.† â€Å"Huh. I would have sworn she had some demon in her ancestry. Good find. But, Sheba, asking a date? Pretty amateur, involving yourself physically that way.† Sheba's chin jabbed upward defensively, but she did not answer. Jezebel was right; it was crude and time-consuming to use one's human form rather than one's demon mind. However, it was the results that counted. Sheba's timely interference had kept Logan from discovering his true love. â€Å"Well, it in no way diminishes your accomplishments here tonight.† Jezebel's tone was conciliatory. â€Å"You pull this one off, and they'll put you in the baby demons' textbooks.† â€Å"Thanks,† Sheba snapped. Did Jezebel really think she could flatter Sheba into letting her guard down? Jezebel smiled, and her mists curled up on the edges, mirroring the expression. â€Å"A tip, Sheba. Keep them confused in there. If you can get Cooper to pull the trigger, then you might make some of these wannabe gangsters think they're under fire.† Jezebel shook her head in wonder. â€Å"You've got so much potential mayhem here. Of course, they'll bring in a riot demon if it really gets hot†¦ but you'd still get some of the credit for stirring it up.† Sheba grimaced, and glimmers of red flashed at her ears. What was Jezebel doing? Where was the trick? Her mind ran over and over the humans she was assigned to torment, but she could find no trace of Jezebel's distinct brimstone flavor in the ballroom. There was nothing but the misery Sheba had caused herself, and the few little pockets of repellent happiness that Sheba would attend to shortly. â€Å"You're certainly helpful tonight,† Sheba said, being deliberately insulting. Jezebel sighed, and there was something about the way her mists rolled back in on themselves that made her look†¦ embarrassed. For the first time, Sheba felt a hint of doubt about her assumptions. But Jezebel's motives had to be malicious. That's the only kind of motives demons had. With a rueful expression on her face, Jezebel asked quietly, â€Å"Is it so impossible to believe that I might want you to get promoted?† â€Å"Yes.† Jezebel sighed again. And again, the way her mists writhed in chagrin made Sheba uncertain. â€Å"Why?† Sheba demanded. â€Å"What do you get out of this?† â€Å"I know it's all wrong-or rather right-for me to be giving you advice you can work with. Not very evil of me.† Sheba nodded cautiously. â€Å"It's in our nature to trip up everyone, demons, humans-even angels if we get the chance. We're evil. Naturally we're going to backstab, whether it hurts our side or not. We wouldn't be demons if we didn't let envy, greed, lust, and wrath rule us.† Jezebel chuckled. â€Å"I remember-how many years ago was it? – Lilith almost got you booted back a few grades, didn't she?† Red fire smoldered in Sheba's eyes at the memory. â€Å"Almost.† â€Å"You handled it better than most. You're one of the very worst working misery right now, you know.† Flattery again? Sheba stiffened. Jezebel twisted her mists up with a finger, and then circled that finger so that the mists drew a smoky orb against the night sky. â€Å"There's a bigger picture, though, Sheba. Demons like Lilith can't see past the evil at hand. But there's a whole world out there, full of humans making millions of decisions every minute of the day and night. We can only be there to sway a fraction of those decisions. And sometimes, well, from where I'm standing, it feels like the angels are getting ahead†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"But, Jezebel!† Sheba gasped, shock breaking through her suspicion. â€Å"We're winning. Just watch the news-it's obvious we're winning.† â€Å"I know, I know. But even with all the wars and destruction†¦ it's odd, Sheba. There's still an awful lot of happiness out there. For every mugging I turn into a homicide, across town some angel has a bystander jumping another mugger to save the day. Or convincing the mugger to give up his wicked ways! Ugh. We're losing ground.† â€Å"But the angels are weak, Jezebel. Everyone knows that. They're so full of love that they can't concentrate. Half the time the stupid birdbrains fall in love with a human and trade their wings for a human body. Though why even an idiot angel would want this!† Sheba scowled down the length of her human form. So limiting. â€Å"I've never really understood the point of having to wear these around for half a millennium. I guess it's probably just to torture us, isn't it? The dark lords must enjoy watching us squirm.† â€Å"It's more than that. It's to make you really hate them. The humans, I mean.† Sheba stared at her. â€Å"Why would I need a reason? Hate is what I do.† â€Å"It happens, you know,† Jezebel said slowly. â€Å"The angels aren't the only ones to give it all up. There are demons who've traded their horns for a human.† â€Å"No!† Sheba's eyes widened, then narrowed in disbelief. â€Å"You're exaggerating. Now and then a demon shacks up with a human, but it's just to torment them. Just a bit of malicious fun.† Jezebel winced, swishing her mists into figure eights, but she didn't argue back. That's what made Sheba realize she was serious. Sheba swallowed hard. â€Å"Wow.† She couldn't imagine that. Taking all this delicious evil and throwing it away. Giving up a hard-earned pair of horns-horns that Sheba would destroy anything to have right now-and getting stuck with a weak, fully mortal body in return. Sheba eyed Jezebel's glistening onyx horns and frowned. â€Å"I don't understand how anyone could do that.† â€Å"Remember what you said about the angels? Getting distracted by love?† Jezebel asked. â€Å"Well, hate can be a distraction, too. Look at Lilith and her spiteful good deeds. Maybe it starts out with sticking it to the lesser demons, but who knows where it will lead? Virtue corrupts.† â€Å"I can't believe a few tricks against another demon could make you as stupid as a birdbrain,† Sheba mumbled under her breath. â€Å"Sheba, don't underestimate the angels,† Jezebel chastised. â€Å"You don't mess with them-you hear? Even a strong middle demon like me knows better than to lock horns with the feather-backs. They steer clear of us, and we steer clear of them. Let the Demon Lords deal with the angels.† â€Å"I know that, Jezebel. I wasn't spawned this decade.† â€Å"Sorry. I'm being helpful again.† She shuddered. â€Å"I just get so frustrated sometimes! Goodness and light on every side!† Sheba shook her head. â€Å"I don't see that. Misery is everywhere.† â€Å"Happiness is, too, sis. It's all over the place,† Jezebel said sadly. It was silent for a long moment as Jezebel's words lingered in the air. The sticky breeze washed across Sheba's skin. Miami was no hell, but it was comfortable at least. â€Å"Not at my prom!† Sheba retorted with sudden fierceness. Jezebel smiled widely-her teeth were black as the night sky. â€Å"That's just it-that's why I'm being so un-damnedly helpful. Because we need demonesses like you out there. We need the worst we can get on the front lines. Let the Liliths of the underworld mess around with petty tricks. Get me the Shebas on my side. Get me a thousand Shebas. We'll win this fight once and for all.† Sheba considered that for a moment, weighing the fierce purpose in Jezebel's voice. â€Å"That's evil in such a strange way. It almost sounds like good.† â€Å"Twisted, I know.† They laughed together for the first time. â€Å"Well, get back in there and destroy that prom.† â€Å"I'm on it. Go to hell, Jezebel.† Prom Nights from Hell Chapter Four Sibby Cumean started talking as soon as they got out of the airport. â€Å"How long have you been driving people around?† she asked Miranda. A year. â€Å"Did you grow up here?† â€Å"No.† â€Å"Do you have any brothers?† â€Å"No.† â€Å"Any sisters?† â€Å"N-no.† â€Å"Do you like driving?† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Do you have to wear that boring black suit?† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"How old are you?† â€Å"Twenty.† â€Å"Um, not.† â€Å"Fine. Eighteen.† â€Å"Have you ever had sex?† Miranda cleared her throat. â€Å"I don't think that question is appropriate.† She heard herself sound like Dr. Trope, the assistant head of school, with the voice he used to tell her he wasn't listening to another excuse about why she was late getting back to campus, rules were made for a reason and that reason wasn't so she could flout them for her amusement; and speaking of late, did she plan at some point to decide what she was going to do next year or just irresponsibly forfeit her place at the several top-tier colleges she'd been accepted to, making the school look bad and herself look worse; and really he didn't know what had gotten into her recently, where was the Miranda Kiss who was going to be a doctor and save the world, who was a credit to the school and herself, rather than the one who was on her way to being expelled-is that what you really want, young lady? A voice she knew well since she seemed to have been hearing it at least once a week since early November. â€Å"You're a virgin,† Sibby announced, like she was confirming a sad fact she'd long suspected. â€Å"That's not-â€Å" â€Å"Do you at least have a boyfriend?† â€Å"Not at this-â€Å" â€Å"A girlfriend?† â€Å"No.† â€Å"Do you have any friends? You're not really very good at conversation.† Miranda was beginning to understand why the girl's relatives hadn't come to the airport for her. â€Å"I have lots of friends.† â€Å"Sure. I believe you. What do you do for fun?† â€Å"Answer questions.† â€Å"Please never try to be funny again.† Sibby leaned forward. â€Å"Have you ever thought of wearing some black eyeliner? It would be an improvement.† B polite! â€Å"Thanks.† â€Å"Can you pull up?† â€Å"Um, we're at a stoplight.† â€Å"Just go forward a tiny-perfect.† Looking in the side mirror, Miranda saw that Sibby had rolled down her window and was leaning out, saying now to the guys in the jeep next to them, â€Å"Where are you boys going?† The guys answered, â€Å"A little moonlight surfing. Want to come, goddess?† â€Å"I'm not a goddess. Do you think I look like one?† â€Å"I can't tell. Maybe if you take off your shirt.† â€Å"Maybe if you give me a kiss.† Miranda hit the button to roll up the window. â€Å"What are you doing?† Sibby demanded. â€Å"You could have broken my hand.† â€Å"Put your seat belt on, please.† â€Å"Put your seat belt on, please,† Sibby mimicked, slumping back into the seat. â€Å"Oh my gods, I was just trying to be sociable.† â€Å"Until we get to your destination, no more socializing.† â€Å"Have you listened to yourself recently? You sound like you're eighty, not eighteen.† She scowled at Miranda in the mirror. â€Å"I thought you were a driver, not a jailer.† â€Å"It's my job to make sure you get where you're going in a safe and timely manner. That's printed on the card you'll find in your seat pocket, by the way.† â€Å"How is kissing some boys going to make me unsafe?† â€Å"A million different ways. What if they have an invisible mouth fungus? Or DeathLip.† â€Å"There's no such thing as DeathLip.† â€Å"Are you sure?† â€Å"You're just jealous because I know how to have fun and you don't. Virgin.† Miranda rolled her eyes but kept quiet, listening to cell phone conversations from the cars behind them, a woman telling someone that the gardener was on his way, a guy saying in a mystical voice, â€Å"I see a mysterious stranger coming for you, I can't quite tell if it's a man or a woman.† Another man talking to someone about how he wanted to take that bitch out of the will and it didn't matter if she was his mother's favorite dog- She was interrupted suddenly by Sibby shouting, â€Å"Inn-Out Burger! We have to stop.† B accommodating! Miranda agreed to let Sibby order her own at the drive-through, then regretted it when she heard the girl saying to the guy taking the order, â€Å"Do I get a discount if I let you kiss me?† â€Å"Okay, seriously, were you raised on Crazycake? Why do you want to kiss all these guys you don't even know?† Miranda asked. â€Å"There aren't that many boys where I come from. And what does knowing them have to do with it? Kissing is great. I kissed four boys on the airplane. I'm hoping to make it twenty-five before the end of the day.† She added the two working the drive-through lane when she got her burger. â€Å"Are all hamburgers that delicious?† she asked when they were on the road again. Miranda glanced at her in the rearview mirror. â€Å"You've never had a burger before? Where do you live?† â€Å"The mountains,† Sibby answered quickly, and Miranda picked up a slight rise in her heart rate, suggesting that she was lying and not used to it. Which seemed hugely unlikely-the not-used-to-it part-for someone who had a case of acute Boy Crazy like this girl. Her parents couldn't possibly let her run around- Oh So Very Much Not Your Problem, Miranda reminded herself. B discreet. Sibby tried to solicit kisses from four other guys as they drove. They were a mile from the drop-off point and Miranda was thinking that the ride could not be over soon enough when Sibby shrieked, â€Å"Oh my gods, a doughnut store! I've always wanted to try doughnuts, too. Can we stop? Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease?† They were already almost an hour late but Miranda couldn't deny anyone a doughnut. Even someone who said, â€Å"Oh my gods.† But pulling in, she saw a group of guys sitting at a table inside and decided that it would be dangerous to let Sibby near them if she wanted to get out of there in under forty minutes. â€Å"I'll go in and get them, you stay here.† Sibby had seen the guys, too. â€Å"No way, I'm coming in.† â€Å"Either your butt stays in the car, Kissing Bandit, or the doughnuts stay in the store.† â€Å"I don't think that's a nice way to talk to customers.† â€Å"Feel free to use my phone to file a complaint while I'm inside. Do we have a deal?† â€Å"Fine. But will you at least roll down the window?† Miranda hesitated. Sibby said, â€Å"Look, Grandma, I promise I'll keep my butt in the car, I just don't want to suffocate. Gods.† When Miranda came out, Sibby had wedged herself in the window with her body and legs outside the car and her rear hanging back into it, and was deeply involved in kissing a blond guy. â€Å"Excuse me,† Miranda said, tapping the guy on the shoulder. He turned around kind of hazy, looked her up and down. â€Å"Hello, dream girl. You want a kiss, too? I could do something really special with lips like yours. You wouldn't even have to pay me a dollar.† â€Å"Thanks, but no.† Looking at Sibby now. â€Å"I thought we'd agreed that-â€Å" † – my butt would stay in the car. Where, if you bothered to look, you would see it is.† Miranda turned away so Sibby wouldn't see her crack up. She handed Sibby the doughnuts and slid into the driver's seat. Once Sibby had wiggled back through the window, Miranda caught her eye in the rearview. â€Å"You were paying guys to kiss you?† â€Å"So what?† Sibby glared. â€Å"Not all of us can get kissed for free.† More glaring, then, â€Å"You barely have boobs. My boobs are bigger than yours. It makes no sense.† Sibby got quiet, not even eating her doughnut. From time to time she'd sigh dramatically. Miranda started feeling a little sorry. Maybe she had been acting like a grandma. She looked at How to Get-And Kiss-Your Guy on the seat next to her. Maybe you're jealous she's four years younger than you but has already kissed more guys in one day than you'll probably date in your whole life even if you get a boob job and live to be two trillion. Shut up, U-Suck channel. She should be nice, make conversation. â€Å"How many kisses is it total now?† Sibby kept her eyes on her lap. â€Å"Ten.† Looking up to add, â€Å"But I only paid six of them. And one of them I only gave a quarter.† â€Å"Nice work.† Miranda saw Sibby look up suspiciously, like she thought she was being made fun of, decide she wasn't, and start picking at her doughnut. After a while she said, â€Å"Can I ask you a question?† â€Å"You're asking permission now?† â€Å"For real, just please stop trying to be funny. It's painful.† â€Å"Thanks for the hot tip. Did you have a question or-â€Å" â€Å"Why didn't you want to kiss that boy back there? The one who wanted to kiss you?† â€Å"I guess he's not my type.† â€Å"What's your type?† Miranda thought of Deputy Reynolds-blue eyes and cleft jaw and shaggy blond hair, getting up every morning to go surfing. The kind of guy who always wore sunglasses or looked at you with his eyes half closed and was too cool for smiling. Then pictured Will with his dark, maple-syrup-color skin, short curly hair, huge boyish smile, and abs that rippled when he stood talking, shirtless, with the other players after lacrosse practice, body glimmering in the sun, his laugh ringing out and making her feel like she felt when she saw butter melting on perfectly cooked Belgian waffles. Not that she routinely jumped up onto the roof of the marine biology lab when no one was looking to watch this. (Weekly.) â€Å"I don't know, it's more a feeling than a type,† Miranda said finally. â€Å"How many boys have you kissed? A hundred?† â€Å"Uh, no.† â€Å"Two hundred?† Miranda felt herself blushing and hoped Sibby couldn't see. â€Å"Keep guessing.† They pulled up to the address she'd been given, an hour and fifteen minutes later than they should have, the first time she'd ever dropped a client off late. When Miranda opened the car door for her, Sibby asked, â€Å"Is kissing a boy who's your type really different than kissing just any boy?† â€Å"It's complicated.† Miranda was surprised at how relieved she was that she wouldn't have to go into it more, admit to this girl that, actually, she had no idea. The place looked more like a government safe house for witnesses than a home, she thought, walking Sibby to the door. It was like the dictionary definition of nondescript, sandwiched between a house with Snow White and the Seven Dwarves enacting the Nativity on the front lawn on one side, and one with a pink-and-orange swing set on the other. The only thing you noticed about this house was that there were thick curtains hanging in the front windows so you couldn't see in, and a six-foot-tall solid wood fence blocking off the backyard so you couldn't get in. The street was filled with noises-Miranda heard BBQs sizzling, conversations, someone watching Beauty and the Beast in Spanish-but this house was silent, as though it had been soundproofed. She registered a low humming coming from the side, like an air conditioner but not quite. Glancing up, she saw that none of the power lines connected to this house. None of the phone lines, either. A generator. Whoever lived here was living off the grid. All in all, the whole place was really cozy, if cozy meant creepy and cultish. And the woman who opened the front door? Exactly what you'd expect of someone creepy and cultish, Miranda thought. She had graying hair pulled back in a loose bun and was wearing a long skirt and kind of shapeless sweater. She could have been anywhere from thirty to sixty years old, it was impossible to tell because she was wearing a pair of huge bifocals with unflattering square frames that magnified her eyes and covered half her face. She looked completely harmless, like a schoolteacher who'd dedicated her life to caring for an aging relative and whose one indulgence was a secret crush on Mr. Rochester from Jane Eyre. Or almost like that. Like that was the look she'd been going for. But there was something wrong, some tiny thing that did not quite match, one tiny detail that wasn't right. So. Not. Your. Business. Miranda said good-bye, took her $1.00 tip-â€Å"Because you were really quite late, dear†-and drove away. She was half a block away when she slammed on the brakes and sprinted back to the house. Prom Nights from Hell Chapter Four Sibby Cumean started talking as soon as they got out of the airport. â€Å"How long have you been driving people around?† she asked Miranda. A year. â€Å"Did you grow up here?† â€Å"No.† â€Å"Do you have any brothers?† â€Å"No.† â€Å"Any sisters?† â€Å"N-no.† â€Å"Do you like driving?† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Do you have to wear that boring black suit?† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"How old are you?† â€Å"Twenty.† â€Å"Um, not.† â€Å"Fine. Eighteen.† â€Å"Have you ever had sex?† Miranda cleared her throat. â€Å"I don't think that question is appropriate.† She heard herself sound like Dr. Trope, the assistant head of school, with the voice he used to tell her he wasn't listening to another excuse about why she was late getting back to campus, rules were made for a reason and that reason wasn't so she could flout them for her amusement; and speaking of late, did she plan at some point to decide what she was going to do next year or just irresponsibly forfeit her place at the several top-tier colleges she'd been accepted to, making the school look bad and herself look worse; and really he didn't know what had gotten into her recently, where was the Miranda Kiss who was going to be a doctor and save the world, who was a credit to the school and herself, rather than the one who was on her way to being expelled-is that what you really want, young lady? A voice she knew well since she seemed to have been hearing it at least once a week since early November. â€Å"You're a virgin,† Sibby announced, like she was confirming a sad fact she'd long suspected. â€Å"That's not-â€Å" â€Å"Do you at least have a boyfriend?† â€Å"Not at this-â€Å" â€Å"A girlfriend?† â€Å"No.† â€Å"Do you have any friends? You're not really very good at conversation.† Miranda was beginning to understand why the girl's relatives hadn't come to the airport for her. â€Å"I have lots of friends.† â€Å"Sure. I believe you. What do you do for fun?† â€Å"Answer questions.† â€Å"Please never try to be funny again.† Sibby leaned forward. â€Å"Have you ever thought of wearing some black eyeliner? It would be an improvement.† B polite! â€Å"Thanks.† â€Å"Can you pull up?† â€Å"Um, we're at a stoplight.† â€Å"Just go forward a tiny-perfect.† Looking in the side mirror, Miranda saw that Sibby had rolled down her window and was leaning out, saying now to the guys in the jeep next to them, â€Å"Where are you boys going?† The guys answered, â€Å"A little moonlight surfing. Want to come, goddess?† â€Å"I'm not a goddess. Do you think I look like one?† â€Å"I can't tell. Maybe if you take off your shirt.† â€Å"Maybe if you give me a kiss.† Miranda hit the button to roll up the window. â€Å"What are you doing?† Sibby demanded. â€Å"You could have broken my hand.† â€Å"Put your seat belt on, please.† â€Å"Put your seat belt on, please,† Sibby mimicked, slumping back into the seat. â€Å"Oh my gods, I was just trying to be sociable.† â€Å"Until we get to your destination, no more socializing.† â€Å"Have you listened to yourself recently? You sound like you're eighty, not eighteen.† She scowled at Miranda in the mirror. â€Å"I thought you were a driver, not a jailer.† â€Å"It's my job to make sure you get where you're going in a safe and timely manner. That's printed on the card you'll find in your seat pocket, by the way.† â€Å"How is kissing some boys going to make me unsafe?† â€Å"A million different ways. What if they have an invisible mouth fungus? Or DeathLip.† â€Å"There's no such thing as DeathLip.† â€Å"Are you sure?† â€Å"You're just jealous because I know how to have fun and you don't. Virgin.† Miranda rolled her eyes but kept quiet, listening to cell phone conversations from the cars behind them, a woman telling someone that the gardener was on his way, a guy saying in a mystical voice, â€Å"I see a mysterious stranger coming for you, I can't quite tell if it's a man or a woman.† Another man talking to someone about how he wanted to take that bitch out of the will and it didn't matter if she was his mother's favorite dog- She was interrupted suddenly by Sibby shouting, â€Å"Inn-Out Burger! We have to stop.† B accommodating! Miranda agreed to let Sibby order her own at the drive-through, then regretted it when she heard the girl saying to the guy taking the order, â€Å"Do I get a discount if I let you kiss me?† â€Å"Okay, seriously, were you raised on Crazycake? Why do you want to kiss all these guys you don't even know?† Miranda asked. â€Å"There aren't that many boys where I come from. And what does knowing them have to do with it? Kissing is great. I kissed four boys on the airplane. I'm hoping to make it twenty-five before the end of the day.† She added the two working the drive-through lane when she got her burger. â€Å"Are all hamburgers that delicious?† she asked when they were on the road again. Miranda glanced at her in the rearview mirror. â€Å"You've never had a burger before? Where do you live?† â€Å"The mountains,† Sibby answered quickly, and Miranda picked up a slight rise in her heart rate, suggesting that she was lying and not used to it. Which seemed hugely unlikely-the not-used-to-it part-for someone who had a case of acute Boy Crazy like this girl. Her parents couldn't possibly let her run around- Oh So Very Much Not Your Problem, Miranda reminded herself. B discreet. Sibby tried to solicit kisses from four other guys as they drove. They were a mile from the drop-off point and Miranda was thinking that the ride could not be over soon enough when Sibby shrieked, â€Å"Oh my gods, a doughnut store! I've always wanted to try doughnuts, too. Can we stop? Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease?† They were already almost an hour late but Miranda couldn't deny anyone a doughnut. Even someone who said, â€Å"Oh my gods.† But pulling in, she saw a group of guys sitting at a table inside and decided that it would be dangerous to let Sibby near them if she wanted to get out of there in under forty minutes. â€Å"I'll go in and get them, you stay here.† Sibby had seen the guys, too. â€Å"No way, I'm coming in.† â€Å"Either your butt stays in the car, Kissing Bandit, or the doughnuts stay in the store.† â€Å"I don't think that's a nice way to talk to customers.† â€Å"Feel free to use my phone to file a complaint while I'm inside. Do we have a deal?† â€Å"Fine. But will you at least roll down the window?† Miranda hesitated. Sibby said, â€Å"Look, Grandma, I promise I'll keep my butt in the car, I just don't want to suffocate. Gods.† When Miranda came out, Sibby had wedged herself in the window with her body and legs outside the car and her rear hanging back into it, and was deeply involved in kissing a blond guy. â€Å"Excuse me,† Miranda said, tapping the guy on the shoulder. He turned around kind of hazy, looked her up and down. â€Å"Hello, dream girl. You want a kiss, too? I could do something really special with lips like yours. You wouldn't even have to pay me a dollar.† â€Å"Thanks, but no.† Looking at Sibby now. â€Å"I thought we'd agreed that-â€Å" † – my butt would stay in the car. Where, if you bothered to look, you would see it is.† Miranda turned away so Sibby wouldn't see her crack up. She handed Sibby the doughnuts and slid into the driver's seat. Once Sibby had wiggled back through the window, Miranda caught her eye in the rearview. â€Å"You were paying guys to kiss you?† â€Å"So what?† Sibby glared. â€Å"Not all of us can get kissed for free.† More glaring, then, â€Å"You barely have boobs. My boobs are bigger than yours. It makes no sense.† Sibby got quiet, not even eating her doughnut. From time to time she'd sigh dramatically. Miranda started feeling a little sorry. Maybe she had been acting like a grandma. She looked at How to Get-And Kiss-Your Guy on the seat next to her. Maybe you're jealous she's four years younger than you but has already kissed more guys in one day than you'll probably date in your whole life even if you get a boob job and live to be two trillion. Shut up, U-Suck channel. She should be nice, make conversation. â€Å"How many kisses is it total now?† Sibby kept her eyes on her lap. â€Å"Ten.† Looking up to add, â€Å"But I only paid six of them. And one of them I only gave a quarter.† â€Å"Nice work.† Miranda saw Sibby look up suspiciously, like she thought she was being made fun of, decide she wasn't, and start picking at her doughnut. After a while she said, â€Å"Can I ask you a question?† â€Å"You're asking permission now?† â€Å"For real, just please stop trying to be funny. It's painful.† â€Å"Thanks for the hot tip. Did you have a question or-â€Å" â€Å"Why didn't you want to kiss that boy back there? The one who wanted to kiss you?† â€Å"I guess he's not my type.† â€Å"What's your type?† Miranda thought of Deputy Reynolds-blue eyes and cleft jaw and shaggy blond hair, getting up every morning to go surfing. The kind of guy who always wore sunglasses or looked at you with his eyes half closed and was too cool for smiling. Then pictured Will with his dark, maple-syrup-color skin, short curly hair, huge boyish smile, and abs that rippled when he stood talking, shirtless, with the other players after lacrosse practice, body glimmering in the sun, his laugh ringing out and making her feel like she felt when she saw butter melting on perfectly cooked Belgian waffles. Not that she routinely jumped up onto the roof of the marine biology lab when no one was looking to watch this. (Weekly.) â€Å"I don't know, it's more a feeling than a type,† Miranda said finally. â€Å"How many boys have you kissed? A hundred?† â€Å"Uh, no.† â€Å"Two hundred?† Miranda felt herself blushing and hoped Sibby couldn't see. â€Å"Keep guessing.† They pulled up to the address she'd been given, an hour and fifteen minutes later than they should have, the first time she'd ever dropped a client off late. When Miranda opened the car door for her, Sibby asked, â€Å"Is kissing a boy who's your type really different than kissing just any boy?† â€Å"It's complicated.† Miranda was surprised at how relieved she was that she wouldn't have to go into it more, admit to this girl that, actually, she had no idea. The place looked more like a government safe house for witnesses than a home, she thought, walking Sibby to the door. It was like the dictionary definition of nondescript, sandwiched between a house with Snow White and the Seven Dwarves enacting the Nativity on the front lawn on one side, and one with a pink-and-orange swing set on the other. The only thing you noticed about this house was that there were thick curtains hanging in the front windows so you couldn't see in, and a six-foot-tall solid wood fence blocking off the backyard so you couldn't get in. The street was filled with noises-Miranda heard BBQs sizzling, conversations, someone watching Beauty and the Beast in Spanish-but this house was silent, as though it had been soundproofed. She registered a low humming coming from the side, like an air conditioner but not quite. Glancing up, she saw that none of the power lines connected to this house. None of the phone lines, either. A generator. Whoever lived here was living off the grid. All in all, the whole place was really cozy, if cozy meant creepy and cultish. And the woman who opened the front door? Exactly what you'd expect of someone creepy and cultish, Miranda thought. She had graying hair pulled back in a loose bun and was wearing a long skirt and kind of shapeless sweater. She could have been anywhere from thirty to sixty years old, it was impossible to tell because she was wearing a pair of huge bifocals with unflattering square frames that magnified her eyes and covered half her face. She looked completely harmless, like a schoolteacher who'd dedicated her life to caring for an aging relative and whose one indulgence was a secret crush on Mr. Rochester from Jane Eyre. Or almost like that. Like that was the look she'd been going for. But there was something wrong, some tiny thing that did not quite match, one tiny detail that wasn't right. So. Not. Your. Business. Miranda said good-bye, took her $1.00 tip-â€Å"Because you were really quite late, dear†-and drove away. She was half a block away when she slammed on the brakes and sprinted back to the house. Prom Nights from Hell Chapter Four I laughed. â€Å"But you girls go on, knock yourselves out,† he said. â€Å"I've actually got an errand to run.† â€Å"You're leaving?† Yun Sun said. â€Å"What about the pizza?† I said. He opened his wallet and laid a twenty-dollar bill on the coffee table. â€Å"It'll be here in thirty minutes. My treat.† Yun Sun shook her head. â€Å"And again I say: You're leaving?. You're not even staying to eat?† â€Å"There's something I need to do,† he said. My heart constricted. I ached to keep him here, even if just for a little longer. I darted back to the kitchen and pulled Madame Z's corsage-no, my corsage-out of my bag. â€Å"At least wait till I've made my wish,† I said. He looked amused. â€Å"Fine, wish away.† I hesitated. The den was warm and cozy, pizza was on the way, and I had the two greatest friends in the world. What else did I truly want? Duh, the grasping part of my brain told me. Prom, of course. I wanted Will to ask me to prom. Maybe it was selfish to have so much and still want more, but I pushed that line of reasoning away. Because look at him, I thought. Those kind brown eyes, that lopsided smile. Those ridiculously angelic curls. The entire sweetness and goodness that was Will. He hummed the Jeopardy! theme song. I raised the corsage. â€Å"I wish for the boy I love to ask me to prom,† I said. â€Å"And there you have it, folks!† Will cried. He was far too euphoric. â€Å"And what boy wouldn't want to take her to prom, our fabulous Frankie? Now we'll just have to wait and see, won't we, whether her wish will come-â€Å" Yun Sun cut him off. â€Å"Frankie? Are you okay?† â€Å"It moved,† I said, cringing away from the corsage, which I'd flung to the floor. My skin was clammy. â€Å"I swear to God, it moved when I made the wish. And that smell! Do you smell it?† â€Å"Noooo,† she said. â€Å"What smell?† â€Å"You smell it, Will. Don't you?† He grinned, still on whatever high he'd been on since†¦ well, since Madame Z warned him away from heights. A clap of thunder rumbled, and he shoved my shoulder. â€Å"Next you're going to blame the storm on the evil wish fairies, aren't you?† he said. â€Å"Or, no! You're going to go to bed tonight, and tomorrow you'll tell us you found a hunched and skulking creature on your comforter, smiling a twisted smile!† â€Å"Like rotting flowers,† I said. â€Å"You honestly don't smell it? You're not playing with me?† Will dug his keys out of his pocket. â€Å"See you on the flip side, homies. And, Frankie?† â€Å"What?† Another boom of thunder shook the house. â€Å"Don't give up hope,† he said. â€Å"Good things come to those who wait.† I watched through the window as he dashed to his truck. The rain was coming down in sheets. Then I turned to Yun Sun, a balloony feeling pushing everything else away. â€Å"Did you hear what he said?† I grabbed her hands. â€Å"Oh my God, do you think it means what I think it means?† â€Å"What else could it mean?† Yun Sun said. â€Å"He's going to ask you to prom! He's just†¦ I don't know. Trying to make a big production out of it!† â€Å"What do you think he's going to do?† â€Å"No idea. Hire a skywriter? Send a singing telegram?† I squealed. She squealed. We jumped about in a frenzy. â€Å"Got to hand it to you, the wish thing was brilliant,† she said. She flicked her finger to indicate giving Will the push he needed. â€Å"And the rotting flowers? Verrrry dramatic.† â€Å"I honestly did smell it, though,† I said. â€Å"Ha-ha.† â€Å"I did.† She looked at me and shook her head, amused. Then she looked at me again. â€Å"Well, it must have been your imagination,† she said. â€Å"I guess,† I said. I picked the corsage up off the floor, holding it gingerly between my thumb and forefinger. I took it to the bookshelf and dropped it behind a row of books, glad to have it out of sight. The next morning I trotted downstairs, hoping foolishly to find†¦ I don't know. Hundreds of M spelling out my name? Pink hearts sketched in silly string on the windows? Instead, I found a dead bird. Its tiny body lay on the welcome mat, as if it had flown into the door during the storm and bashed its brains in. I scooped it up with a paper towel and tried not to feel its soft weight as I delivered it to the outside trash bin. â€Å"I'm sorry, little bird, so pretty and sweet,† I said. â€Å"Fly to heaven.† I dropped in the corpse, and the lid slammed shut with a bang. I returned inside to the sound of the ringing phone. Probably Yun Sun, wanting an update. She'd left with Jeremy at eleven last night, after making me swear to tell her the minute Will made his bold move. â€Å"Hey, sweetie,† I said, after glancing at the caller ID and seeing that, yep, I was right. â€Å"No news yet-sorry.† â€Å"Frankie†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Yun Sun said. â€Å"I've been thinking about Madame Z, though. Her whole don't-mess-with-fate mumbo jumbo.† â€Å"Frankie-â€Å" â€Å"Because how could Will asking me to prom lead to anything bad?† I walked to the freezer and grabbed a box of frozen waffles. â€Å"Spit's going to fly from his mouth and land on me? He'll bring me flowers, and a bee'll zip out and sting me?† â€Å"Frankie, stop. Didn't you watch the morning news?† â€Å"On a Saturday? I don't think so.† Yun Sun made a gulping sound. â€Å"Yun Sun, are you crying?† â€Å"Last night†¦ Will climbed the watertower,† she said. â€Å"What?!† The watertower was easily three hundred feet tall, with a sign at the bottom prohibiting anyone from ascending. Will always talked about climbing to the top, but he was such a rule-follower that he never had. â€Å"And the railing must have been wet†¦ or maybe it was lightning, they don't yet know†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Yun Sun. What happened?† â€Å"He was spray painting something on the tower, the stupid idiot, and-â€Å" â€Å"Spray painting? Will?† â€Å"Frankie, will you shut up? He fell! He fell off the watertower!† I gripped the phone. â€Å"Jesus. Is he okay?† Yun Sun was unable to talk for sobbing. Which I understood, sure. Will was her friend, too. But I needed her to pull it together. â€Å"Is he in the hospital? Can I go visit him? Yun Sun!† There was wailing, and then a shuffling sound. Mrs. Yomiko took over. Prom Nights from Hell Chapter Four â€Å"You don't understand.† Lila tosses back her long blond hair. â€Å"He's not a tick, Mary. Sebastian loves me too much to bite me. But I know I can change his mind. Because he wants to be with me forever, as much as I want to be with him forever. I know it. And after tomorrow night, we will be together forever.† â€Å"What's tomorrow night?† Adam wants to know. â€Å"The prom,† I say woodenly. â€Å"Right,† Lila prattles on. â€Å"Sebastian's taking me. And though he doesn't know it yet, he's going to give in to me there. Just one bite and I'll have eternal life. Come on, you guys, how cool is that? Wouldn't you want to live forever? I mean, if you could?† â€Å"Not that way,† I say. Something inside of me aches. Aches for Lila, and aches for all the girls who've gone before her. And will come after her, too, if I don't do something about it. â€Å"He's meeting you at the dance?† I force myself to ask her. It's hard to speak, because all I want to do is cry. â€Å"Right,† Lila says. Her face still has the same vacant expression she wore inside the club, as well as earlier today in the lunchroom. â€Å"He'll never be able to resist me-not in my new Roberto Cavalli gown, with my neck all exposed beneath the silver light of the full moon†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I think I'm going to throw up,† Ted volunteers. â€Å"No, you're not,† I say. â€Å"You're going to take Lila home. Here.† I reach into my satchel and pull out a crucifix and two containers of holy water, then hand them to him. â€Å"If Drake shows up-although I don't think he will-throw these at him. Then get yourself home, after you've dropped off Lila.† Ted looks down at what I've shoved into his hands. â€Å"Wait. That's it?† he wants to know. â€Å"We're just going to let him kill her?† â€Å"Not kill,† Lila corrects him cheerfully. â€Å"Turn me. Into one of his kind.† â€Å"We aren't going to do anything,† I say. â€Å"You guys are going to go home and leave this to me. I've got it under control. Just make sure Lila gets back safely. She should be all right until the dance. Evil spirits cannot enter an inhabited house unless invited!† I narrow my eyes at Lila. â€Å"You didn't invite him inside, did you?† â€Å"Whatever,† Lila says, tossing her head. â€Å"Like my dad wouldn't go too ballistic if he found a guy in my room.† â€Å"See? Go home. You, too,† I add, to Adam. Ted takes Lila by the arm and begins to lead her away. But Adam, to my surprise, stays where he is, his hands buried deep in his pockets. â€Å"Um,† I say to him. â€Å"Is there something I can do for you?† â€Å"Yes,† Adam says calmly. â€Å"You can start at the beginning. I want to know everything. Because if what you're telling me is true, if it weren't for me, you'd be a speck on the wall in the club back there. So start talking.† Adam If you had told me just an hour or two ago that I'd be ending my evening with a trip to Mary-from-U.S.-History-class's penthouse apartment over in the East Seventies†¦ well, I'd have told you that you were high. But that's exactly where I find myself, following Mary past her sleepy doorman (who doesn't raise so much as an eyebrow at her crossbow), and then up the elevator to her place, which is decorated in mid-nineteenth-century Victorian chic-at least as near as I can judge, considering all the furniture looks like it came out of one of those boring miniseries my mom likes to watch on PBS, featuring girls named Violet or Hortense or whatever. There are books everywhere-and not Dan Brown paperbacks, either, but big, heavy books, with titles like Demonology in Seventh-century Greece and A Guide to Necromancy. I look around, but I don't see a plasma screen or an LCD. Not even a regular TV. â€Å"Are your parents professors or something?† I ask Mary as she throws down the crossbow and heads to the kitchen, where she pulls open the fridge and reaches for two Cokes, one of which she hands to me. â€Å"Something like that,† Mary says. This is what she's been like the whole way to her place: not exactly brimming with the explanations. Not that it matters, though, since I already told her I'm not leaving until I get the whole story. The thing is, I really don't know what to think about all this so far. On the one hand, I'm relieved Drake isn't who I thought he was-Mary's ex-boyfriend. On the other hand†¦ a vampire?. â€Å"Come on,† Mary says, and I follow her because†¦ well, what else am I supposed to do? I don't know what I'm doing here. I don't believe in vampires. I think Lila's just gotten herself involved with one of those freaky goth dudes I saw on Law & Order that one time. Although Mary's question-â€Å"Then how do you explain his disappearance from the dance floor into thin air like that?† – bugs me. How did the guy do that? Then again, there are tons of questions like that one that I don't have the answers for. Like this new one that occurred to me: How can I get Mary to look at me the way Lila looked at that guy, Drake? Life is full of mysteries, as my dad likes to say, many of which are also wrapped up in enigmas. Mary leads me down a dark hallway toward a partly open door, from which light spills. She taps on the door, then says, â€Å"Dad? Can we come in?† A gruff voice says, â€Å"By all means.† And I follow Mary into the strangest room I've ever seen. At least in a penthouse apartment on the Upper East Side. It's a laboratory. There are test tubes and beakers and vials everywhere. Standing in front of some of them is a tall, white-haired-professor type in a bathrobe, messing around with a concoction in a clear container that's bright green and vigorously generating large amounts of smoke. The old dude looks up from this and smiles as Mary comes into the room, his green-eyed gaze-a lot like Mary's-darting toward me curiously. â€Å"Well, hello,† the guy says. â€Å"I see you've brought a friend home. I'm so glad. I've been thinking lately that you spend far too much time alone, young lady.† â€Å"Dad, this is Adam,† Mary says casually. â€Å"He sits behind me in U.S. History. We're going to my room to do homework.† â€Å"How nice,† Mary's father says. It doesn't seem to occur to him that the last thing a guy my age is likely to be doing in a girl's bedroom at two in the morning is homework. â€Å"Don't study too hard, now, children.† â€Å"We won't,† Mary says. â€Å"Come on, Adam.† â€Å"Good night, sir,† I say to Mary's dad, who beams at me before turning back to his smoking beaker. â€Å"Okay,† I say to Mary as she leads me down the hall once more, this time to her room†¦ which is surprisingly utilitarian for a girl's bedroom, containing only a large bed, a dresser, and a desk. Unlike in Veronica's room, everything is put away, except for a laptop and an MP3 player. I take a quick look at Mary's play list when she's busy rifling around in the closet for something. Mostly rock, some R&B, and a little rap. No emo, though. Thank God. â€Å"What's going on? What's your dad doing with all that stuff?† â€Å"Looking for a cure,† Mary says from the closet, her voice muffled. I've moved across the ornate Persian carpet toward her bed. There's a framed photo on her nightstand. It's of a pretty woman, squinting into the sunlight and smiling. Mary's mother. I don't know how I know it. I just do. â€Å"A cure for what?† I ask, picking up the photo for a closer look. Yep, there they are. Mary's lips. Which, I haven't been able to stop noticing, are kind of curled up at the ends. Even when she's mad. â€Å"Vampirism,† Mary says. She emerges from the closet holding a long red dress. It's wrapped in clear plastic from the dry cleaner's. â€Å"Uh,† I say, â€Å"I hate to be the one to tell you this, Mary. But there's no such thing as vampires. Or vampirism. Or whatever it is.† â€Å"Oh yeah?† The ends of Mary's mouth are curled up even more than usual. â€Å"Vampires were just made up by that guy.† She's laughing at me. I don't mind, though, because it's Mary. It's better than her ignoring me, which is what she's done for most of the time I've known her. â€Å"That guy who wrote Dracula. Right?† â€Å"Bram Stoker did not make up vampires,† Mary says, the smile vanishing. â€Å"He didn't even make up Dracula. Who's an actual historical figure, by the way.† â€Å"Yeah, but a dude who drinks blood and can turn into a bat? Come on.† â€Å"Vampires exist, Adam,† Mary says quietly. I like how she says my name. I like it so much that I don't even notice at first that she's staring at the photo I'm holding. â€Å"And so do their victims.† I follow the direction of her gaze. And nearly drop the photo. â€Å"Mary,† I say. Because it's all I can think of to say. â€Å"Your†¦ your mom? Is she†¦ did she†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"She's still alive,† Mary says, turning to throw the red dress, in its slippery clear plastic bag, onto the bed. â€Å"If you can call it living,† she adds, almost to herself. â€Å"Mary†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I say in a different tone of voice. I can't believe it. And yet I do. There's something in her face that makes it clear she's not lying. Also something that makes me long to wrap her in my arms. Which Veronica would say is sexist. But there you go. I let go of the lip I've started chewing. â€Å"Is that why your dad-â€Å" â€Å"He wasn't always like that,† she says, not looking at me. â€Å"He used to be different, when Mom was here. He†¦ he thinks he can find a chemical cure for it.† She sinks onto the bed beside the dress. â€Å"He doesn't want to believe that there's only one way to get her back. And that's killing the vampire who made her into one.† â€Å"Drake,† I say, sinking down onto the bed beside her. It all makes sense now. I guess. â€Å"No,† Mary says with a quick shake of her head. â€Å"His father. Who happened to stick with the original family name of Dracula. His son just thinks Drake sounds a little less pretentious and more modern.† â€Å"So†¦ why were you trying to kill Dracula's kid, if his dad is the one who†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I can't even bring myself to say it. Fortunately, I don't have to. Mary's shoulders are hunched. â€Å"If killing his only kid doesn't get Dracula to come out of hiding so I can kill him, too, I don't know what will.† â€Å"Won't that be, uh†¦ kind of dangerous?† I ask. I can't believe I'm sitting here talking about this. But I can't believe I'm in Mary-from-U.S.-History's bedroom, either. â€Å"I mean, isn't Dracula, like, the head of the whole operation?† â€Å"Yes,† Mary says, looking down at the photo I've laid between us. â€Å"And when he's gone, Mom will finally be free.† And Mary's dad won't have to worry about finding a cure for vampirism anymore, I think, but don't say out loud. â€Å"Why didn't Drake just, uh, turn Lila tonight?† I ask. Because this has been bothering me. Among other things. â€Å"I mean, back at the club?† â€Å"Because he likes to play with his food,† Mary says emotionlessly. â€Å"Just like his dad.†