Walt Whitman Essays (491 words) - Assassination Of Abraham Lincoln

walt whitman A World of Politics Thesis: Walt Whitman was a man who used his thoughts on political issues concerning the Civil War within his writings because of many experiences he had encountered. Whenever ever the term political writing comes up, most people would think of Walt Whitman. Walt Whitman was one of the most popular political writers of all times. Nearly everyone agrees that Walt Whiman is America s greatest poet (Unger 331). Whitmans ideas and attitudes were chiefly those of the Romantic Movement (Foerster 719). Some of Whitmans most popular writing were Leaves of Grass, A Song of Myself, and Drum-Taps. Leaves of Grass is a poem mostly concerning Whitmans childhood and memories, this is one of Whitmans fewer poems that does not contain politics. A Song of Myself is a poem where Whitman expresses himself as a homosexual, this is also one of his fewer poems concerning politics. Drum-Taps was written during the time Whitman was serving as a doctor during the Civil War. Drum-Taps consists of what Whitman himself had seen and experienced during the Civil War. I. Beginning of a great career Vacca 2 A. Growing up 1. Raised by grandparents a. They filled him with a love of nature and humankind b. Grandmother told Walt tales of the Revolution 2. Worked as an editor of a newspaper a. Learned many current politics b. Was kicked out because of an anti-slavery post B. Published his first poem Leaves of Grass 1. A great success 2. People either disliked or liked it II. Influenced by Lincoln and the Civil War A. Aided as a doctor for the wounded 1. Helped his brother George out when he was wounded 2. Wrote Many poems on what he saw a. Drum-Taps b. Sequel to drum-Taps B. A strong supporter of Lincoln 1. Wrote three poems concerning Lincoln a. O Captain! My Captain! b. Hushd be the Camps Today Vacca 3 c. This Dust Was Once the Man 2. Believed Lincoln was the greatest president of all time III. Whitmans thoughts and ideas A. Whitman id not care about the means of achieving a truly democratic society B. Whitman believed that the true story of the Civil War would never get into the books. C. Did not believe in slavery a. Reasons for supporting Lincoln b. Was despised by people because of his beliefs D. Whitman believed that the present theory of our army and navy is sensible and true, then the rest of America is an ummigrated fraud E. Whitman believed that America, for all its troubles, alone possessed the prerequisites for a great moral and religious civilization Many Critics believe that Whitmans Civil War experiences destroyed him as a poet, because in the post war years he rarely wrote with his earlier inspiration and produced few great poems (Moore 8). But Whitman would not have been known for his political writings if it wasnt for the Civil War. Whitmans poetry was a celebration of the common man, of American democracy, and of sexuality, conveyed through a revolutionary and rhapsodic free verse (7). After the war, he would celebrate the democracy itself, not merely the poet (Miller 133). Bibliography miller

Expert Guide to the ACT Format What You Need to Know

Expert Guide to the ACT Format What You Need to Know SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips If you want to do well on the ACT, it’s not enough to just study test content. You have to know the test inside and out, including what questions to expect, what reading passages to anticipate, and what topic areas you’ll encounter the most. Being this familiar with the test will help you improve your score in a significant way - it’s much more effective than just focusing on test content. In this post, I’ll go over everything you need to know about how the ACT is written, including format, content, and question types. At the end, I’ll tell you exactly what you can do to successfully incorporate this knowledge into your ACT study plan. Why Is Familiarity With the ACT Format Helpful? The ACT is an incredibly predictable test. Although there have been a few recent changes, the test format has (in general) stayed pretty consistent over the past few decades. This works to your advantage for a few very important reasons: Familiarity with the test helps you focus on, and improve on, your weaknesses. The ACT is super predictable when it comes to test content and format, down to the number of questions that test a certain concept. If you’re familiar with the test format and structure as you study, you can narrow your focus to very specific question types and content areas that may be bringing down your score. It helps you improve your ACT strategy, which is just as important as preparing for test content. The ACT writes the test sections, questions, and answer choices in a very particular and consistent style. Familiarizing yourself with the basic structure and format of the ACT is like getting to know the test inside-out - if you can get inside the mind of a test writer, you’ll have a huge advantage on the test. The more experience you have with this style, the better you’ll be able to anticipate which answers are correct and incorrect on test day It helps you work on time management, an important part of succeeding on any standardized test. Knowing the general layout of the test, in addition to knowing what your own strengths and weaknesses are, is an integral part of ACT time management. If you can’t finish the questions on time, you won’t do well, no matter how well you know the material. Finally, the fewer surprises you encounter on test day, the better. When you know exactly what to expect when you take the ACT, you can focus on the most important part of the test: demonstrating what you know in order to get a great score. Knowing the test format and structure inside and out may help alleviate test-taking anxiety, a verycommon problem that impacts many students’ scores. The Basics: The Structure of the ACT The ACT has four mandatory multiple-choice sections which are always presented in the same order: (1) English, (2) Math, (3) Reading, and (4) Science. There’s also an optional (5) Writing section for a total of five test sections. The total test time without the Writing section is 2 hours and 55 minutes. The total test time with the Writing section is 3 hours and 35 minutes. Here’s what you can expect in terms of number of questions, time limit, time per question, and question type for each of the ACT sections: English Number of questions 75 Time limit 45 minutes Approximate time per question 36 seconds Question type Multiple choice with four answer choices Math Number of questions 60 Time limit 60 minutes Approximate time per question 1 minute Question type Multiple choice with five answer choices Reading Number of questions 40 Time limit 35 minutes Approximate time per question 52 seconds Question type Multiple choice with four answer choices Science Number of questions 40 Time limit 35 minutes Approximate time per question 52 seconds Question type Multiple choice with four answer choices Writing Number of questions 1 Time limit 40 minutes Approximate time per question 40 minutes Question type Essay prompt Content and Skills: What Does the ACT Test? The next step in familiarizing yourself with the ACT is knowing exactly what concepts, skills, and content will be tested on the exam. If you know what content will appear, and you know exactly how it will be tested, all of your bases will be covered (remember, the fewer the surprises on test day, the more you can focus on what’s important). The ACT is pretty transparent about test content. Here, I’ll go over what you’ll need to prepare for each section and what these sections will actually look like. English On this section you’ll be presented with passages. You’ll either have to choose the correct version of a sentence within the passage or will have to answer more broad questions about the construction of the passage itself (you’ll see a couple examples shortly). The ACT English section tends to heavily favor a few main grammar and style rules, and just lightly touches on the other minor ones. This means (unless you’re aiming for a very high score), you can focus primarily on these main rules as you prepare for the test. There are two main types of English questions: ones that test usage and/or mechanics, and ones that test rhetorical skills. Below you’ll find approximate breakdowns for the number of each question type you’ll see on the test. When it comes to Usage and Mechanics (about 40 out of a total of 75 questions), the main grammar rules tested on the ACT are: Correctly forming and joining sentences (20.5% of grammar questions) Correct use of commas, dashes, and colons (17.7% of grammar questions) Correctly using nonessential clauses and relative pronouns (9.6% of grammar questions) Correct verb tense and form (9.6% of grammar questions) When it comes to Rhetorical Skills (about 30 out of a total of 75 questions), the main rhetorical rules tested on the ACT are: Logical transitions (18% of rhetorical questions) Adding information (16.7% of rhetorical questions) Conciseness (15.5% of rhetorical questions) Replacing and re-wording information (15.5% of rhetorical questions) Most of the questions on ACT English test this content by asking you to choose the most correct version of a sentence within a passage - you’ll have to choose among four answer choices in this section. For example: A question where you choose the correct version of a sentence. Some questions are formatted a bit differently, and instead ask you about a passage as a whole. For example: For more information on this section, check out our ultimate ACT English prep guide. Math The math section is a little different from other ACT sections. Some math questions are stand-alone - they won’t be linked to any other questions in the section - whereas others are linked â€Å"sets.† You’ll have to choose from five multiple-choice responses instead of four (which obviously makes things more difficult). Math questions are also roughly arranged in order of difficulty. You can generally split the section into three zones: Questions 1-20: Easy Questions 21-40: Medium Questions 41-60: Hard Difficulty is determined by the amount of time you’ll need to solve a problem, the number of steps required, the number of math concepts you must employ, and the likelihood that you’ll be familiar with the material. Learn about how to take advantage of this organization of question by difficulty. Because they’re arranged by difficulty, these questions are also roughly arranged by content, with â€Å"easier† math concepts (i.e. ones you’ve spent more years studying) at the beginning of the section and â€Å"hard† concepts (i.e. ones you’re less familiar with) at the end. Generally, you’ll see more algebra questions toward the beginning and more geometry and trig toward the end of any ACT math section. Here’s a breakdown of the topics you’ll see on ACT math for a general overview: Pre-algebra: about 20-25% of questions Elementary algebra: about 15-20% of questions Intermediate algebra: about 15-20% of questions Coordinate geometry: about 15-20% of questions Plane geometry: about 20-25% of questions Trigonometry: about 5-10% of questions Read our more detailed guide to ACT math content for more information. Now, on to some examples. Most questions on this section are stand-alone questions, meaning they’re in no way related to any other question on the section. A stand-alone question may look like this: You might see some sets of math questions on the ACT where two or more questions are related to each other, or refer to the same figure. Here’s an example of what a prompt like that would look like: For more information on this section, check out our ultimate ACT math prep guide. Reading The ACT Reading test is made up of four different subsections. Each of these subsections has either one long passage or two shorter, paired passages. In this section, every question will ask you to respond to or interpret the passages. The Reading section will present you with one reading passage for each subsection, and the types of passages you’ll see will always be in the same order: Prose Fiction/Literary Narrative Social Science Humanities Natural Science The ACT tests this content with a variety of question types. Fortunately, we have a general idea of how often each question type shows up on the average Reading section - with this information, you can think more critically about question types that you may need to spend more time preparing. Here’s a typical section breakdown by question type: Question Type Average Number of Questions Percentage of Questions Big Picture 4 10% Little Detail 18 45% Vocabulary in Context 3 8% Development and Function 9 22% Inference 6 15% All Questions 40 100% The info above isn’t helpful if you can’t identify the sorts of questions you’ll see on the Reading section, right? Here are the main question types you’ll see on the English section, followed by examples: Big Picture - Deal with the main point of the passage or the narrator’s overall point of view. These types of questions require you to look at the passage holistically rather than focusing on one specific section. Little Picture/Detail - Ask about a small piece of factual information in a passage. They are the most straightforward questions because they’re so literal - you just have to find the correct information. Vocabulary in Context - Ask about the meaning of a word in the context of the passage. They may also reference something in the passage and ask you to choose a vocabulary word that best describes it. Development and Function - Ask about how a certain paragraph, sentence, or phrase functions in the context of the passage, how the argument in the passage was developed, or how the author structured the passage. Inference - Ask you to make inferences based on a logical extension of information found in a passage. Check out our guide to ACT Reading questions for more detailed information and examples. Science The ACT Science section consists of several â€Å"passages† where you’ll have to respond to short paragraphs, charts, graphs, tables, or some combination thereof - they’re not like the passages in the Reading section where you just respond to a wall of text. All of these passages are just different ways of presenting data for you to interpret. Because of the way the section is formatted, you’ll see sets of questions, like you sometimes see on Math, rather than stand-alone questions. The passages themselves may be on a variety of topics, including: Biology Chemistry Earth/space sciences Physics Just like with the Reading section, it’s not necessary for you to have specific background knowledge in these topic areas - you just need the skills to interpret the passages correctly. There are three main passage formats. Each format will present data in a different way - a set of multiple-choice questions after each passage will ask you to interpret and/or analyze this information. Here’s what to expect for each format: Format #1: Data Representation This format presents one or more sets of data in some sort of graphical representation. What you’re asked to do: understand, evaluate, and interpret information presented in graphs, tables, or charts Number of questions: About 15 (38% of total ACT Science questions) Here’s what a â€Å"passage† may look like in a Data Representation format: And here’s what a multiple-choice question may look like in response to the Data Representation format: Passage Format #2: Research Summaries This format presents the results of two or more experiments, usually with text in addition to graphs or charts. What you’re asked to do: understand, evaluate, and analyze one or more experiments Number of questions: About 18 (45% of total ACT Science questions) Here’s what a â€Å"passage† may look like in a Research Summaries format: Here’s what a multiple-choice question may look like in response to the Research Summaries format: Passage Format #3: Conflicting Viewpoints This format presents several different conflicting scientific hypotheses, usually in a text passage. What you’re asked to do: understand and evaluate conflicting viewpoints, theories, or hypotheses on a specific topic Number of questions: About 7 (17% of total ACT Science questions) Here’s what a â€Å"passage† may look like in a Conflicting Viewpoints format: Here’s what a multiple-choice question may look like in response to the Conflicting Viewpoints format: For more information and example questions on the ACT Science section, check out our ultimate prep guide. Writing The ACT Writing section is completely optional - that being said, I’d encourage you to do some research before deciding not to take it (as tempting as that may be)! Students have 40 minutes to plan, write, and edit an essay in response to one writing prompt. Prompts tend to address contemporary issues (e.g. the pros and cons of living in an increasingly automated society). So what exactly do these prompts look like? Well, students are provided with three diverse perspectives on a particular issue. After reading these perspectives, students are asked to develop their own take on the topic and explain the relationships between the original perspectives. Put simply, your jobs are to: Take a position on a topic (and defend it) Address all the diverse perspectives presented to you Explain the relationships between those three perspectives Here’s an example of what an ACT writing prompt looks like: Check out our complete guide to ACT writing and scoring for more information. Using ACT Formatting: How to Prep for the ACT Earlier in this post, I mentioned that familiarizing yourself with the ACT format can help you in a few important areas: Identifying your weaknesses Coming up with a strategic game plan Improving time management Alleviating stress that comes with surprises on test day Here, I’ll address exactly what you can do (in all four of these areas) to use knowledge of ACT format and structure to your advantage. Identify Your Weaknesses When you know exactly what will be tested on the ACT, and exactly how it will be tested, you can use your practice materials to hone in on sections, content areas, question types, and passage types that give you more trouble than others. This strategy only works if you invest a significant amount of time in working through and then analyzing ACT practice materials. Official ACT practice tests are the best for this - ideally, you’ll down under realistic testing conditions with an official practice test to get a baseline score. As you work through your practice material, keep careful track of where you’re losing points - doing a post-mortem on your work is the most important thing you can do to improve your score. I’d encourage you to set up a spreadsheet for easy mistake tracking. For each ACT practice section, for example, you’ll want to ask yourself: Which questions am I getting wrong? Which types of questions am I getting wrong? Do I lose more points on a particular type of passage? (E.g. perhaps Research Summary passages in ACT Science give you a hard time) Do I lose points at the end of a section because I run out of time? Do I lose points in a particular content/knowledge set area? (E.g. maybe you have trouble with absolute value in ACT math) Come Up With a Strategic Game Plan Once you have a better idea of where you need to improve, you can come up with an ACT study plan that’s catered to your weaknesses. If you have a baseline score, you’ll have a sense of how many points you’d like to bring your score up. Here’s a general guideline for how long you need to study based on your improvement goals: 0-1 ACT Composite Point Improvement: 10 hours 1-2 ACT Point Improvement: 20 hours 2-4 ACT Point Improvement: 40 hours 4-6 ACT Point Improvement: 80 hours 6-9 ACT Point Improvement: 150 hours+ Read more about putting together a study plan that works for you. Improve Time Management If you know what to expect on the ACT, you’ll be better able to work through the test on the fly. If you know what slows you down (e.g. a particular question type or content area) you can plan on doing speed drills during practice or skipping (and then returning) to those questions on the test. For example, reading passages - like the ones you’ll find in ACT Science and ACT Reading - tend to slow down a lot of students. If you know that this is a personal sore spot, you should read our guides to time management on ACT Science and ACT Reading. If you have an idea of what to expect, you’ll be that much better at navigating the stressful time limits of the test. Alleviate Stress Coming up against unexpected obstacles - especially when you’re in a time crunch - is pretty stressful for most people. By engaging in regular practice with official ACT prep materials, you’re doing yourself a huge favor by taking the stress of unexpected content and formatting out of the equation. For more info on alleviating stress, read our guide on what to expect and how to prepare for the ACT test day. What’s Next? Now that you have all this great information about the ACT and how it’s structured, you might be interested in learning more about some other logistical issues - like how it’s scored. Read first about the scoring system with our complete guide to ACT scores. Then, figure out what target score you should be aiming for. For expert tips, read our famous guide on how to get a perfect score on the ACT. Want to improve your ACT score by 4 points? Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep classes. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our classes are entirely online, and they're taught by ACT experts. If you liked this article, you'll love our classes. Along with expert-led classes, you'll get personalized homework with thousands of practice problems organized by individual skills so you learn most effectively. We'll also give you a step-by-step, custom program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Try it risk-free today:

Prominent economist Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Prominent economist - Essay Example Ken went ahead to prove the existence of the theory in a practical aspect coming up with critical theorems. He did proof the existence of the theorem. Most significantly, he came up with the social choice theory, while in his PHD research he came up with the Arrow impossibility theorem. In essence, his research in health care economics revealed startling results, with close relation to insurance, its market value, and marginal share costs (Pauly, 2001). Most significantly, his distinguished position as a professor in Stanford Operations Research Department gave him more energy to provision of solutions to linear programming. As a mathematical economist, he came up with diverse policies with different implications in the economic field. He did oppose the governmental urge to support the ushering in the supersonic passenger plane. He has been the chairperson of national Institute of Medicine committees, whose core aim is to advocate for affordable malarial treatments in Asian and African countries. Essentially, his articles and published works are reckoned all over. He has over a hundred articles, twenty-two books as an author or co-author, an editor to 24 books, done forty-one non-technical articles and overwhelming 226 research publications. With the summed up achievements, it is no doubt that Kenneth remains an icon and a hero in the economics

Oil drilling in the ANWLR Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Oil drilling in the ANWLR - Essay Example The necessity of oil in driving the local economy cannot be understated. Many Americans need it for fuelling their vehicles, farm and industrial machinery. According to the ANWR website, a majority of Americans continue to experience the burden of expensive gasoline prices. This ironically occurs in a country with over 21 billion barrels of unexploited oil reserves but still spends billions of dollars in importation of oil (Arctic Power). However, past polls conducted by the ‘Dittman Research Corporation’ among the Alaskan populace, showed that over 78% are in support of oil exploration and development in the ANWR (Arctic Power). The opponents against oil drilling in ANWR argue that it would destroy and deface the natural landscape as well as threaten wildlife survival (Natural Resource Defense Council). However, the argument is further from the truth due to several reasons. Foremost, technology advancement has led to the development of oil drilling equipment that cause less â€Å"footprints† on the surface. Consequently, oil drilling in Prudhoe Bay would affect less than 60% of the natural landscape (Arctic Power). Moreover, the argument on disturbance or extinction of wildlife is fallacious since past drilling projects on Alaska have not harmed wildlife in the area. Furthermore, the drilling plans for ANWR are scheduled to occur during winter months when wildlife activity is scarce (Corne & Gelb). The other alternative proposed to oil drilling has been the investment in alternative and renewable sources of energy by Congress. It is a fact that investment in renewable energy is far much cheaper compared to oil exploration and development. However, the possibility of Congress devoting more investment to renewable energy at the expense of oil is quite a challenge. Foremost, a significant portion of Congress members benefit from oil

Critically assess the merits of the international intervention in Essay

Critically assess the merits of the international intervention in Kosovo - Essay Example It is an open truth that the sovereignty of every country is regarded as its most cherished asset (Warhurst, 2007; Alothman et al, 2010). This not withstanding, countries and states have not always had their sovereign rules to be intact. This is because of the international conventions and regulations that bind various nations and spell out some accepted codes of existence. In most cases, when these codes are broken, leading to all kinds of humanitarian crisis in individual countries, the resultant consequence has been for the international world to intervene to defend the interest of the ordinary person. A similar situation is what was experienced in Kosovo when the international body, led by the media cried out on what was supposedly a humanitarian crisis in Kosovo. The international intervention in Kosovo in 1999, which was largely led by the United States and NATO have come under intense scrutiny and review by scholars, the legal fraternity, historians, and the media. Even though the NATO and the United States had their own reasons and justifications for undertaking the international intervention they took in Kosovo, not much of these commentators who have researched and analyzed the events in the lead up to the intervention and the events specifically involved in the events seem to be convinced by the actions taken by the international bodies who staged their interventions in Kosovo. It is from this perspective that the present essay is being written to critically assess the merits of the international intervention in Kosovo. ... Indeed, from the estimates of these two bodies, Kosovo was experiencing a humanitarian crisis and so it was important to intervene to ensure that the lives of ordinary people were protected and secured (Pybus, 2001; Ankomah, 2005). This is basically the factor that led to an international intervention in Kosovo. Prior to the major intervention, the international community, led by NATO and the United States had actually said that the crisis in Kosovo was as a result of the Serbian nationalism. In this regard, they justified their merit in the intervention as a need to protecting the selected few, of whom crime and acts of atrocities were being perpetuated against (Macklin, 1996). Analysts say that there have been cases of humanitarian crisis boiling up in some countries before the 1999 Kosovo crisis, which received no international interventions. The case of Kosovo was therefore supposed to be a different one and thus justifiable to subjecting it to critical analysis as to why the int ervention was necessary. But whenever this need for justification is posed to NATO, they are quick to defend the merit in the intervention, saying that there was a specific target in this case, who were the Serbs. From their estimation and argument therefore, if it had been a war within one sided front, the international intervention would not have been so necessary but for the fact that there was a united force rising against a weaker opposition, delaying on the intervention would have caused the growing human tragedy to continue (Maddox, 2005; Cliff, 2009). The outcome of the intervention The outcome of the international intervention has generally been criticized as one that did not yield the expected promise with which it was started (Papadakis, 2000). One of such schools

Modelling Tool for Photonic Crystal Device Issues

Modelling Tool for Photonic Crystal Device Issues Chapter 4 SIMULATION DETAILS OF THE PROJECT In the past 10 years, photonic crystals (PCs) have attracted much scientific and commercial interest. The research and design work for PCs starts from accurate modal analysis of the device. Once the modes are found, structure can be simulated for that particular mode and the results of power spectra can be observed at the detector. In this chapter we will discuss about the modelling tool used for solving various problems related to photonic crystal device mentioned in next chapters. In our work, Opti-FDTD v11.0, a proprietary of Optiwave is used as a simulating tool to fulfill this purpose. 4.1 Introduction to FDTD Opti-FDTD is a user-friendly graphical interface that allows the designing of photonic devices in an efficient manner. It provides accurate computer aided simulations with the proper analysis of results. It is a powerful and highly integrated software package which is based on the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. FDTD technique implies the solution of maxwell equations with finite-difference expressions for the space and time derivatives. FDTD schemes are especially promising for the investigation of PBG structures, as they provide an opportunity of analyzing the spatial distribution of the electromagnetic field in PBG structure. Opti-FDTD enables to design, analyze and test nonlinear photonic components for wave propagation, scattering, reflection, diffraction and other nonlinear phenomenon. The method allows for the effective simulation and analysis of structures with sub-micron details. Such fine scale implies high degree of light confinement and a large refractive ind ex contrast of materials to be used in design. Since FDTD method calculates electric and magnetic field at all points of computational domain, it is required for the domain to be finite. For this purpose, artificial boundaries are inserted in the simulation space. In FDTD perfectly matched layer (PML) acts as a absorbing layer for wave equations. In numerical methods, it truncates the computational regions while simulating problems. 4.2 Design Tools of Opti-FDTD Opti-FDTD is used to design photonic devices, simulate and analyze results. Design tools are available in toolbars and menu options. These tools include waveguide primitives, editing and manipulation tools, and special layout regions. Fig 4.1. Main layout of Opti-FDTD Designer Design tools of Opti-FDTD include designer, simulator and analyzer. 4.2.1 Opti-FDTD Designer This section created the desired layout on a wafer that is saved in a file with the extension .fdt. Opti-FDTD designer is opened from the start menu. This section enables a user to work on multiple layouts of project at the same time. One can store and retrieve projects using .fdt files. In addition to the standard cut, copy, and paste editing functions, we can: Scale elements or groups of elements swap overlapping elements snap elements to a grid of the layout zoom into or out of the project layout link elements together The main elements required to perform simulation of layout design include wafer, waveguide and input field. Wafer is the work area of design in Opti-FDTD. Each layout consists of only one wafer. It is a planar substrate on which we place and design the waveguides and cavities. The option of wafer properties is found in edit menu to modify the length, width and material of the wafer. Light wave propagates in Z-direction i.e. along the horizontal path on the screen. Discretization mesh is formed along the X-direction which corresponds to vertical path on the screen. Wafer is a necessary element for running a simulation. While starting a new project, the default material of wafer is air. Fig 4.2. Wafer coordinate system Waveguides are the building blocks of photonic circuits. Path perpendicular to the waveguide center defines the width of the waveguide. The default waveguide profile is air which can be changed while creating a new design. One can resize, rotate and move waveguides anywhere in the layout. Waveguide changes its color after selection. The orientation and shape of a waveguide can also be changed by dragging start/end handles. Properties of a waveguide can be viewed by double clicking it in the project layout. This opens the dialog box of waveguide properties where user can make required changes. Some major waveguide options provided by software include circular, elliptical and linear waveguides. From user point of view, waveguides can also be created by making some cells off in the photonic structure. Such a waveguide allows propagation of electromagnetic wave with minimum attenuation. The input field is an essential element in design to allow simulation to run. Its position is at an input plane which can be moved throughout the layout. It defines the light that enters the simulated structure. Geometric position of the input field and its orientation can be defined in the input field dialog box. Options available for input fields in the software are modal, gaussian, rectangular and user defined. The concept of input field is purely geometrical. It is a position and direction which defines a plane completely. Multiple input fields can be positioned on multiple input fields simultaneously. In a 2D design, input plane can be horizontal (perpendicular to X-axis) or can be vertical (perpendicular to Z-axis). Input field parameters must be defined carefully. The time domain parameters of input field can be specified as continuous wave or gaussian modulated continuous wave. Both the cases demand an input wavelength for the carrier wave. In Opti-FDTD all dimensions are defined in units of ÃŽ ¼m. Multiple input planes are distinguished with the help of ‘label’ facility provided by the software. Input wave can move in positive or negative direction depending on the option selected in the tab of wave configuration. An enable input field check box selects the input plane to be considered in calculation. Figures below show the placement of vertical and horizontal input plane. Fig 4.3. A vertical input plane for 2-D photonic crystal structure Fig 4.4. A horizontal input plane for 2-D photonic crystal structure Layout design in Opti-FDTD software includes profile designer, initial properties and layout designer. Profile designer define the material properties (refractive index of material) and channel profile. Initial properties set initial simulation domain properties including dimensions and material. Layout designer help to draw the lattice type (rectangular or hexagonal) and define the properties of the structure. 4.2.2 Opti-FDTD Simulator Opti-FDTD provides two types of FDTD simulations 32-bit simulation (performed by 32-bit simulators) 64-bit simulation (performed by 64-bit simulators) Opti-FDTD simulator monitors the progress, while the simulation is running. The simulation results are stored in a file with extension (.fda). After launching a 2-D simulation from Opti-FDTD designer, Opti-FDTD simulator displays the results of 2-D simulation. Fig. 4.5 shows the results of 2-D simulation for the structure shown in Fig. 4.3. Fig 4.5. 2-D simulation results (image map) in Opti-FDTD simulator Opti-FDTD simulator window contains output window and graph window. 4.2.2.1 Graph Window While running a 2-D simulation, a simulation window with several tabs appears. The first tab is the refractive index tab (Refr_Idx). Fig. 4.6 shows the refractive index distribution for the structure in Fig. 4.3. Fig 4.6. Refractive index distribution (image map) with palette Opti-FDTD simulator provides several types of views for graphs that include height plot and image map. Fig. 4.5 shows the image map of simulated field Ey. The height plot of the refractive index distribution of structure is shown in Fig. 4.7. Fig 4.7. Height plot of refractive index distribution 4.2.2.2 Output Window The output window contains notification and error tabs which display notifications regarding the status of simulations or any error that occur during simulation. Opti-FDTD simulator does not show this window by default. It can be accessed from tools menu. Figure below shows an example of output window. Fig 4.8. Output Window Simulation parameters can be accessed in Opti-FDTD_Simulator by selecting simulation > simulation parameters. For changing any of the parameters one should use Opti-FDTD_Designer. These parameters can’t be changed in simulator. Observation points can be used to obtain DFT and FFT transform. Observation line is used to observe power spectrum of the transmitted electromagnetic field. Opti-FDTD simulator provides the facility of PWE (plane wave expansion) solver. Fig 4.9. Simulation parameters dialog box Fig. 4.9. Simulation parameters dialog box The simulator provides tools for post-processing data analysis. Structure below shows the workflow of PBG structure analysis. Waveguide layout designer which provides necessary tools for designing a PBG crystal structure. After designing, PWE band solver simulation parameters are configured and PWE calculation is launched. After calculations results are automatically saved in .PND file and data is used for post-processing analysis. Fig. 4.10. Flow chart of PBG structure analysis The PWE band solver contains two windows including band diagram graph window and processing image window. PWE band solver graph window displays data of each eigen values based on each k-vector. During simulation, data is updated continuously from currently running calculations. Progress of calculations can be seen in the window. After completion of calculations, band diagram can be plotted either as band-gap data graph or line-connected data point graph. Fig. 4.11 shows a PWE band solver graph display for the structure shown in Fig. 4.3. Fig. 4.11. PWE band solver graph window Processing message window consist of notification and error tabs. This window displays textual information related to the activities performed in band solver. It provides notification on the k-vector value, tolerance, iteration number and time and date when results were being observed. Fig. 4.12 shows the notification window for the above-mentioned band solver. Error window displays notifications about processing errors. Fig. 4.12. Processing message window 4.2.3 Opti-FDTD Analyzer Opti-FDTD provides the facility to view power spectrum. Observation points are used for this purpose. To view the spectrum, observation area analysis can be accessed from tools menu. Fig. 4.13 shows the observation area analysis dialog box. Fig. 4.13. Observation area analysis dialog box The flow chart below summarizes the full procedure of designing, simulating and analyzing. Following algorithm is used to generate the flow chart. Create a new project Open Opti-FDTD designer Initialize the project Open waveguide profile designer Define the material Define 2-D channel profile Set up initial properties Create a design Draw a PBG crystal structure Set up the lattice properties Insert input plane Set up the input plane Insert observation lines Observe refractive index distribution Observe the refractive index distribution Set up observation lines Run the simulation Set up the simulation parameters Run 32-bit simulation Fig. 4.14. Flow chart of processing of photonic crystal structure using Opti-FDTD [ Courtesy: Ref. [28] ] Analyze the simulation results Open Opti-FDTD analyzer Observe power spectrum Export results The block diagram illustration of the same is depicted in Fig. 4.15. Fig. 4.15. Opti-FDTD block diagram [ Courtesy: Ref. [28] ] Opti-FDTD analyzer first loads the files and processes it to simulator. Simulator runs the proposed design and exports data to other file formats [30]. Further chapters provide the methodology to improve the performance of photonic crystal biosensors. They also explain the application of such device in the emerging field of DNA photonics. A comparative account is also prepared between the performances of photonic crystal biosensor and surface plasmon resonance biosensor which proves the superiority of PC biosensors over SPR devices.

Examining for Aphasia Essay -- Language

Introduction Examining For Aphasia was created in 1954 by John Eisenson in New York (Eisenson, 1954). It was one of the first tests for assessing language impairment (Benson & Ardila, 1996) and provides a guided approach for evaluating language disturbances and other disturbances closely related to language function (Eisenson, 1954). The materials and procedures were developed originally for use with a group of patients in an army hospital who had aphasia and related disturbances (Eisenson, 1954, p. 32). Continued use of the original inventory resulted in refinements and improvement and testing of civilian patients has ‘shown the applicability of various parts of the test as well as of the examination as a whole’ (Eisenson, 1954, p. 32) Purpose The purpose of Examining for Aphasia (EFA) is to examine adolescents and adults whose language abilities have become impaired after normal language functioning had been established, with its main purpose being to ascertain the type and level of the language dysfunction (Eisenson, 1954). It aims to help the clinician discover what abilities remain, and to form the basis of a program of retraining. Eisenson (1954) states that results of the examination 'enable the clinician to obtain an overall view of the patient's strengths and weaknesses, as well as determine the 'level of ability within a given area of language function' (Browndyke, 2002). Construction The examination is divided into two main parts. The first includes items to test abilities and to reveal disturbances in the patient’s capacity to deal with concrete materials, visual representation, and symbols which are presented to the patient for simple recognition or for evaluations (Benson & Ardila, 1996); that is their ability ... ...yke, J. (2002). Aphasia Assessment Retrieved 9 May 2012, from http://www.neuropsychologycentral.com/interface/content/resources/page_material/resources_general_materials_pages/resources_document_pages/aphasia_assessment.pdf Eisenson, J. (1954). Examining for aphasia : a manual for the examination of aphasia and related disturbances. New York: Psychological Corporation. Kagan, A., Simmons-Mackie, N., Victor, J. C., & Aphasia Institute. (2010). Assessment for living with aphasia (pp. 1 instructional manual (26 p.), 25 record booklets (24 p.), 21 pictographic booklet (43 p. on easel), 21 rating scale card, 21 probe question card, 25 score sheets, and 21 instructional DVD). Toronto: Aphasia Institute. Skenes, L. L., & McCauley, R. J. (1985). Psychometric review of nine aphasia tests. Journal of Communication Disorders, 18(6), 461-474. doi: 10.1016/0021-9924(85)90033-4

Marketing Opportunities

Company Profile BBQfun is one of Queensland's specialty retailers. The BBQfun brand is synonymous with barbeque retailing and is built on the strong foundation of selling barbeques and outdoor lifestyle itmes to Queensland consumers since 2009. BBQfun’s product range is primarily focussed on barbeques and outdoor lifestyle products, incorporating both local and important goods. BBQfun operates two store in Queensland, one in Brisbane and one at the Gold Coast. BBQfun provides to customer great value products, excellent customer service, continuously improvement and innovation and is trusted by more than 10,000 customers in Queensland.Situation analysis The retail market changed over the last few years, it became more competitive than ever before. Therefore consumer buying patters changed as well. BBQfun increased they market share until 2010 steadily to $10m. Since 2010, sales dropped dramatically because of changes in the retail market, technology and changed consumer behavio r. BBQfun has moderate pricing, extensive and high-quality product range, excellent customer service and offer three year product guarantees as only one in the market.BBQfun has identify the basic market need is for quality, fashionable and unique outdoor lifestyle items. Market characteristics Queensland has a population growth of 5% (2. 5% in 2012 ABS) annual. New homes buyer and renovated houses growing steadily from a base of 50,000 per year. Unfortunately the low unemployment rate of 4,7% grow to 5. 4% in 2012 in Queensland. Therefore Queensland has now the second highest rate in Australia. BBQfun is targeting the geographic area of Brisbane with a total population of 2m people and also the direct area with a radius of 30km around the store.The aimed total targeted population is estimated at 450,000 people. Typical customer are males and females, age between 20 and 50 years. Amongst them is a high number of young professionals who working in the CBD of Brisbane and having compl eted under-graduated or post-graduated studies. The average disposable income is over $70k. Market needs BBQfun has identify the basic market need is for quality, fashionable and unique outdoor lifestlye items. Customer requirements Consumers like to have a wide range of different products and options.The store should be easily access-able with a minimal inconvenience for the customer. BBQfun has a great reputation for customer service which is always valued by consumers within this market. Consumer asking for price transparency to compare with competitors and payment plans. Products with warranty increasing consumer popularity. Market trends The trends in the market leads to quality, uniqueness and wider selection. Consumers who are in search for high quality items learn to appreciate value over price. Consumers like to have a vast selection or high diversity of products with varying price ranges.They are also looking for specialistic products which stand-out from the mass-producti ve crowd. Market Growth In 2009 the national outdoor lifestyle market reached 3 million dollars with an estimated growth of at least 6% over the next few years. Research demonstrates that consumers will be having a greater disposable income within the mere future with the assumption that on average two persons will be living under the same household. The economic forecast also states that interest rates will stay steady and will have no effect on disposable income. There is also an increasing popularity of T.V lifestyle programs which provides free-marketing to BBQfun. The market trend also shows that consumers are interested in high quality imports that remain affordable. Market Competition There are three major existing national competitors: The Yard, BBQ’s R Us and Outdoorz. The Yard is only become a threat to BBQfun if the business decision to enter the e-commerce market. Advantageously, The Yard does not trade in Queensland and currently has no marketing promotional acti ons. All of their products are good quality, Australian-made but highly priced.BBQ’s R Us is definitely a threat competitor who has a broad range of outdoor lifestyle products. Their main focus is on cheap imports and on already established markets. They have a strong replacement segment which is highly valued by consumers. However, their trading is mainly based in Adelaide and Melbourne which assist our market-share in Brisbane. BBQ’s R US are considering on entering the e-commerce market. Outdoorz has Australian-made outdoor lifestyle product with good value prices making them highly competitive to BBQfun.They have a few stores situated in every major city and the quality of their products range from low to medium. Alike BBQ’s R Us, Outdoorz has a strong focus on their replacement segment. They are gaining market strength in Brisbane and have a large advertising budget. If Outdoorz considers e-commerce marketing strategies, they will become a major threat out of the three. BBQfun’s local competition are mainly independent retailers. Our local competitors have products ranges that varied according to the owner’s preferences. They mostly sell Australian manufactured goods with an average item sale of $250/piece.All these independent retailers have a market share of 48% and a growing rate of 8% per year. Situation analysis summary BBQfun trades on a highly competitive growing market. Competitors fighting hard for every single market share. BBQfun is in a fortune situation to enter a niche market with only a few competitors and has also great potential to expand national wide. BBQfun has created an outdoor lifestyle range which is differentiated and superior to competitors. They offering a high quality range of products which costumer can see and test in stores.BBQfun offered to customer some great deals such as flexible payment plans, three year guarantee which is unique in the market, broadest range of products in the market, expert and friendly customer service and the most remarkable services that are better than anybody else. The marketing strategy will show how BBQfun can take advantage of this situation and increase significant they market share. Marketing strategy The advertising budget is $180k for the year 2012. The marketing campaign will mainly focus on print advertising such as magazines, direct mails and local newspaper.It is also consider a radio advertisement. Previous years showing a high increase of sales after publishing articles in the BrisNews magazine. That will be consider as the most successful strategy. The aim of the marketing strategy is to increase the loyalty customer from 10,000 to 16,000 and to establish a brand recognising in Queensland so that two out three people recognise BBQfun. BBQfun like to increase they growth rate at at least 10% within the next year and continuously growing the gross profit margin. Target marketThe target market is divided in three segments: new b uilds, renovations and replacements. A customer survey shows that BBQfun most loyal costumers are new builds. These group present 30% out of all costumers. All three segments groups are willing to buy online and pay for delivery. New builds are service, quality and price focus as well as loving to buy Australian made. They are loyal reader of the BrisNews magazine. Renovator usually living in other parts of the country and for them is service and quality the more important than price.Those consumer are loyal to print and online version of the Aspire Outdoor magazine. Replacement costumer are different. they love to support australian jobs and looking for good quality as well. Costumer service is not so important than price. These group are reader from BrisNews magazine as well. Marketing mix BBQfun pricing strategy is comparable prices for comparable quality. The value and quality are more important than the price but this will be backed up with a three year guarantee. BBQfun has tw o stores in Queensland which can be easily access and has large car parking arrangements.The most successful campaign will be ads and insert in the BrisNews, this along will reach 40% of loyal costumer, as well as informal articles and reviews. In-store promotion will take place and competitions with prizes to exotic destinations. BBQfun philosophy is ‘customer is king’ whatever needs to be done to make the customer happy must occur. This creates a loyal costumer base and those costumer are happy to recommend BBQfun to friends. Marketing strategy summary The aim is to build such a good reputation and brand awareness that BBQfun will be position as the premier outdoor lifestyle store in Queensland within five years.The marketing strategy to reach that aim is to first create customer awareness regarding their services offered, develop that customer base and building costumer loyalty and referrals. The message BBQfun will communicate is that BBQfun offers the widest, most exotic, easy access outdoor lifestyle products in Brisbane. Marketing methods: direct mail, ads and inserts in BrisNew magazine and flyers in the letterbox. The marketing mix will send messages to consumers about the excellent high quality products with a three year guaranty which is unique.It’s necessary to let consumer know the stores are easily accessible and there are lots of car parking available. This will happen through ads, inserts and article in BrisNews magazine, following the BBQfun philosophy ‘customer is king’. Potential new markets Export markets One of the first questions is to ask which country or countries do BBQfun export to first? Should BBQfun start with the USA, being the largest of the English speaking, common law based countries? Or perhaps the UK, because BBQfun is familiar with the culture and the customer?Or maybe BBQfun should capitalise on the Chinese opportunity, because it’s the highest growth market? The selection of BBQfunâ €™s first export market needs to be based on a well crafted pre-export plan and a carefully developed set of criteria. It needs to include a delicate balance surveying multiple initial market opportunities against BBQfun current level of resources, experience, and desired short and long-term business goals. Only then can BBQfun commence the culling process that enhance the business into the handful of optimal markets BBQfun can consider initially exporting to.No company can expected to ace their first attempt in exporting to a new market. Consequences of  failing in a market can be damaging both short-term and long-term. Short-term consequences are better known, such as the waste of resources and time, opportunity cost, and cash-flow. In particular, is the flow-on damage these consequences can cause to your domestic business in the form of distraction and cash drain, and the general apathy that can then develop towards establishing new export markets going forward.But it is th e long-term consequences that are lesser known and under appreciated, in particular for companies who are trying to build a sustainable and valuable brand or reputation, with the view to selling their brand or company down the line. One is the penalty in valuation BBQfun may incur when the time comes to  sell your brand or services. Large acquirers, in particular multinationals who have a presence in several of your target export markets, may not pay BBQfun the same value for an unsuccessful export market that they may pay you for your booming domestic one.The following are just some of the benefits of exporting: depending upon BBQfun export strategy BBQfun may have access to overseas capital to fund your business growth in addition to the benefits of greater volume exporting to the ‘other’ hemisphere can greatly assist to smooth out the normal peaks and troughs of supplying the domestic market there maybe ‘residual markets’ overseas for products and serv ices that are in decline in the domestic market The mere process of overcoming the numerous hurdles of exporting can sharpen BBQfun’s commercial acumen and improve your business sustainability.Maximise exporting benefits BBQfun domestic business operations can also derive significant benefit from developing overseas markets as follow: Exposing BBQfun products/services to overseas competition forces BBQfun to compare they product offering and in so doing BBQfun may enhance they product or service to be more competitive. This can assist BBQfun competitive edge in their domestic market by either increasing market-share or improving margin—or in preventing overseas competitors competing in their market.As BBQfun’s product may need to be enhanced to market overseas—so may they marketing message and materials. Different markets require information presented in different ways (in addition to using new languages). The information gained this way can provide a rea ch stream of innovative introductions into BBQfun’s domestic market. To successfully access export markets may require changes to internal systems and processes—all of which can/should be used to enhance service delivery in the domestic market.Typically expanding into export markets requires bringing additional skills into the business and this can be achieved through training, hiring qualifies staff or outsourcing support. Is BBQfun export ready? Notwithstanding the above developing overseas markets is not for the fainthearted—penetrating new markets with different languages, cultures and currencies requires time, skills, concerted effort and cash (working capital). If done incorrectly chasing export markets can potentially negatively impact the domestic business.The first step is to evaluate your readiness for export. To address this question you must answer the questions: Does BBQfun has or can get access to appropriate skills? Does BBQfun has the capacity no w (product or service delivery) to service export markets? Is that capacity scalable, what are the limitations? Will developing export markets draw resources, skills, money and capacity? Typically export markets involve a longer payment cycle and a reduced margin plus volumes can be significant.Can BBQfun fund this additional working capital or can it source the appropriate funds? Has BBQfun researched target markets in depth and been able to identify how the value proposition of they product or service differs from local and other international competition? BBQfun has great potential to expand to foreign markets. Marketing opportunities Business development strategies seek to match marketing opportunities to the organisation's resources (what it can do) and its objectives (what management wants to do).It is useful to have a framework for thinking about the broad kinds of marketing opportunities we seek to find. The Ansoff’s model is one of the best tools for organisations to develop market and product expansion strategies. [pic] All organisations must find new attractive marketing opportunities to grow. But the challenge lies in determining which marketing opportunity offers the most long-term success. Marketing mix Product New products have been introduced and some discontinued. BBQfun offered australian made and imported products with the focus of australian made.This is a positive balances on current demands of customer. This means customers getting a wider range of different products and they can decide on quality and price. Price Price is an important part of a retail marketing mix. If BBQfun’s customers cannot afford the products, they are unlikely to frequent your store. Most of the products in BBQfun’s store should be in a comfortable range for their target audience base. To get this information, BBQfun will need to perform an audience analysis to get an idea of median income and spending power.To create a sense of desire and to g ive an option for a splurge, BBQfun can also sell some itmes that are priced just out of your target customer’s normal price range. Place In retail, the design of the store and the way BBQfun present their products is an important part of the marketing mix. The display should fit BBQfun image so that customers encounter a cohesive experience. In a high-end retailer, products are often placed father apart to create a sense of scarcity and exclusivity; in a computer store, display models are set at waist height to allow testing.Placement can help bring certain products to attention and promote itmes BBQfun want to sell more of. Promotion Promotion is the most recognisable part of the marketing mix. It involves all of the marketing activities BBQfun does to let their customers know about the products they offer. For a retail outlet, BBQfun might advertise in newspapers and on the radio, start a social marketing campaign, use marketing emails, hand out flyers or plan grand-openin g events. BBQfun promotional campaigns should be targeted to they customer base.Choose publications that they read, stations they listen to or watch, and copy or graphic design that will resonate with them. ecommerce Australia’s bricks and mortar retailers have been doing it tough of late. But then, it is getting hard to remember a time when they weren't. But while news reports are filled with stories of companies such as Borders, Blockbuster and Premier Retail closing stores, many of Australia's online retailers are going from strength to strength. But with competitors just a click away, they also know that staying ahead of the game in online retail is a never-ending race.Different research showed that three quarters of Australia's online retailers planned to increase their investment in technology in the following year, spending more on core systems, mobile solutions, back office integration, and multi-channel retail strategies. Which ultimately should benefit consumers in terms of range and service. Business-to-Business marketing B2B marketing is about meeting the needs of other businesses, though ultimately the demand for the products made by these businesses is likely to be driven by consumers in their homes.Put very simply, business-to-business marketing is the marketing of goods and services to businesses in order to keep those companies operating. The biggest differences between business-to-business and business-to-consumer marketing are the types of goods and services being marketed and the types of entities the goods and services are being to marketed to. B2B marketers promote goods and services that will help other companies run. Some of the things businesses produce for other businesses include equipment, components, raw material, processing services and supplies.In addition, because B2B marketers target only other companies, they have a significantly more targeted market than business-to-consumer marketers. Even when marketing very specific products for a fairly small subset of individuals, the latter type of marketer has a far larger audience than the former. Many B2B marketing is driven by costumer demand. If there are no consumer to purchase a product, there is no reason for a business to exist in order to make it. If that business does not exist, it will obviously not need the products and services offered by another business.Also, the goals of businesses and consumers are often the same. When choosing a company for goods and services, most consumers and businesses will make a decision based upon price, quality, delivery time and their history with the business. Other considerations might be the availability of the product or service and the quality of customer service if something goes wrong. B2B marketing is currently one of the fastest-growing areas of marketing. As technology brings more businesses together, companies are beginning to court each other far more aggressively.And as technology makes the world a s maller place, it becomes more important for marketing and sales professionals to understand and implement the principles of B2B marketing. Direct marketing Direct marketing is a channel-agnostic form of advertising that allows businesses to communicate straight to the customer, with advertising techniques that can include text messaging, email, interactive consumer websites, online display ads, fliers, catalog distribution, promotional letters, and outdoor advertising. Direct marketing messages emphasize a focus on the customer, data, and accountability.Characteristics that distinguish direct marketing are: Marketing messages are addressed directly to the customer. Direct marketing relies on being able to address the members of a target market. Addressability comes in a variety of forms including email addresses, mobile phone numbers, Web browser cookies, fax numbers and postal addresses. Direct marketing seeks to drive a specific â€Å"call to action. † For example, an adver tisement may ask the prospect to call a free phone number or click on a link to a website. Direct marketing emphasizes trackable, measurable responses from customers — regardless of medium.Direct marketing is practiced by businesses of all sizes. A well-executed direct advertising campaign can prove a positive return on investment by showing how many potential customers responded to a clear call-to-action. General advertising eschews calls-for-action in favor of messages that try to build prospects’ emotional awareness or engagement with a brand. Even well-designed general advertisements rarely can prove their impact on the organisation’s bottom line. Direct marketing is attractive to many marketers because its positive results can be measured directly.For example, if a marketer sends out 1,000 solicitations by mail and 100 respond to the promotion, the marketer can say with confidence that campaign led directly to 10% direct responses. This metric is known as t he ‘response rate’ and it is one of many clearly quantifiable success metrics employed by direct marketers. In contrast, general advertising uses indirect measurements, such as awareness or engagement, since there is no direct response from a customer. Marketing opportunities summary and recommendations Direct marketing campaignBecause of a limited marketing budget it is recommended to continue the already successful direct marketing campaign. BBQfun can prove a dramatic increase of sales immediately after articles in BrisNews were published. BBQfun might think about to do the same for the Gold Coast store surrounding area. It is also important to continue with targeting the locals living around the stores with direct mail, flyers and local advertising. The advantages for BBQfun using direct marketing are clear: Direct measurement of success: sending 1000 mails, response is 200 = 20% direct response, sending emails, BBQfun can monitor open rates and click rates.BBQfun c an use this through offering specials to consumer. Measuring results by product line, use historical data. If BBQfun usually sell 1,000 units of a particular product a month, and during the campaign response period they sell 1,050, BBQfun has an indication of effectiveness. (When using historical data, be sure to take seasonal variations in sales activity into consideration. ) Specific targeting: directly sending information to individuals, BBQfun can specifically target the demographic they wish to reach. This can enhance response rates as the information is relevant to BBQfun.This also gives BBQfun the opportunity to personalise each interaction, such as addressing emails with the name of the customer or individual. Cheap and quick production: depending on which form of direct marketing you select to use, it is generally cheap and quick to produce. Email campaigns, for example, have little cost, do not take much time to create and are delivered to people’s inboxes instantan eously. Potential to build list of potential or existing customers: if BBQfun regularly engage with potential or existing customers, they can build a database of contacts for future use.This makes targeting even easier for future marketing campaigns, giving BBQfun a pool of prospects to market to. The Internet has made it easier for marketing managers to measure the results of a campaign. This is often achieved by using a specific website landing page directly relating to the promotional material. A call to action will ask the customer to visit the landing page, and the effectiveness of the campaign can be measured by taking the number of promotional messages distributed (e. g. , 1,000) and dividing it by the number of responses (people visiting the unique website page).Another way to measure the results is to compare the projected sales or generated leads for a given term with the actual sales or leads after a direct advertising campaign. e-commerce campaign We are living in the In formation age. Internet has changed our lives and these changes are irreversible. The more people get on to internet and search for information, the more opportunities begin to develop for e commerce. There is no choice for BBQfun but to get on to the e-commerce way. Advantages of e-commerce: Internet being a world wide web, opens up the world as a market to the businesses.Businesses can reach out to millions of customers in an instant which is not possible in any conventional mode of marketing. One of the most significant advantages that e- commerce offers is the cost. The cost of marketing online across the globe is minuscule when compared to the actual cost of marketing in the conventional ways. The cost per transaction works out to be very cheap. E-commerce promotes paperless offices and processes thus contributing to savings in terms of resources too. And also looking at e-commerce from a marketing perspective brings the product or the service closer to the customer.It enables the customer to view, read, download and experience the product. The other significant difference from conventional marketing is that the online marketing enables the marketing company to customise its sales pitch or product offering to the customer. As against the conventional modes which target consumers and markets at large, with internet marketing and E Commerce it is possible to target every single individual making it more personalised and customised offer. Ways BBQfun can measure the success of they e-commerce site:Number of orders processed through the site: this is an simple metric to measure on a weekly or monthly basis. Plot the results on a graph and it is easy to see how orders flow through the site and how quickly they e-commerce presence is growing. Number of customers using the site: measuring how many people have registered to use or are using an e-commerce site demonstrates adoption of the channel and the credibility and usability of a site. This metric is a critic al e-commerce measure for a brand new site or for a company expanding into the world of e-commerce for the first time.Average cart total: analyzing the average cart totals and whether the totals are trending up or down will help BBQfun qualify the success of their site merchandising and promotional efforts. When average cart totals spike, BBQfun can figure out why so that you can repeat a successful promotion in the future. Cart abandonment rate: the number of carts that are abandoned on the site is a clear indicator of how the site is performing. Taking a closer look at exactly when customers bail out will tell BBQfun where the problem is and keeping tabs on abandonment rate will help BBQfun fix issues before they become major problems.Percentage of total revenue: when looking at the total revenue, what percentage is attributed to e-commerce? Measuring this percentage periodically will give BBQfun a sense of they overall adoption rate and the success of the site. These and many mor e advantages make obvious BBQfun sense for to market their products and services online. Both marketing strategies will increase the sales figures and the market share, grow the business, strength the reputation of BBQfun and give BBQfun the opportunity to expand to national and international markets as well and everything with a low budget.Sales prediction Least squares method Year |Sales (y) |Coded time (x) |XY |X2 | |2012 |11,000,000 |1 |11,000,000 |1 | |2013 |12,000,000 |2 |24,000,000 |4 | |2014 |15,000,000 |3 |45,000,000 |9 | |2015 | | | | | |Total ? |38,000,000 |6 |80,000,000 |14 | |Mean xy |12,666,667 |3 | |4. 67 | | b = 80,000,000 – ( 3 x 3 x 12,666,667 ) = ( 80,000,000 – 114,000,003 ) 14 – ( 3 x 4. 67 ) = (14 – 14. 01 ) b = – 34,000,003 – 0. 01 b = 3,400,000,300 a = 12,666,667 – ( 3,400,000,300 x 3 ) = 12,666,667 – 10,200,000,900 = – 10,187,334,233 y = a + bx Sales prediction for 2015 is $ Apply marketing opport unities to BBQfun E-commerce marketing Entering the e-commerce market is essential because of the change with technological advancements where most organisations and businesses are deciding to follow the trend. E-commerce marketing will help expand BBQfun to sell products internationally and nationally and make new markets and target audiences discoverable. This will result in financial growth with new sales and consumers.BBQfun already has existing storage places therefore are logistically prepared to enter the e-commerce market. BBQfun stock regulations could be managed in the future in respect to sales and marketing research. E-commerce strategies will help with discovering new markets and new target audiences. There are no real costs involved where delivery can be paid for and managed by the company. However, website design, management and IT solutions will have some cost. The website design will need to incorporate yellow colours or bright summer-time themes.Yellow itself is a neutral colour that will appeal to both our male and female consumers. The website needs to be written concisely and in easy terms. After successfully applying e-commerce marketing strategies the next step is to cover B2B marketing in order to achieve brand recognition and increase sales. B2B and e-commerce marketing strategies both align with BBQfun’s business strategies and therefore assist the company in reaching aims. Direct marketing BBQfun already has implemented a direct market strategies through direct mail and local adversing in the BrisNews magazine.Most successful campaign was getting articles written in the BrisNews magazine where BBQfun experienced immediate sales after the articles were published. BBQfun should build on this strategy further by trying to get more publications with popular outdoor lifestyle related magazines in printed and online formats. Where these publications need to be highly tailored to the target audience. Expansion in the direct mailing p rogram to a national level will expand the business further and increase customer loyalty and reputation.There is low cost involvement in expanding the direct marketing segment where distribution, flyer/advertisement design and article placements will increase subtly. All flyers, mail and online material will need to aligned with the corporate design. The corporate design apparent in direct mailing will present a young, refreshing, exotic lifestyle to appeals to our target audience. All suggested strategies applied to BBQfun will lead the company to be a strong/healthy growing business and national and international recognized.

Medical Anthropology Paper-Tay Sachs Disease Essay Example

Medical Anthropology Paper Medical Anthropology Paper-Tay Sachs Disease Paper Medical Anthropology Paper-Tay Sachs Disease Paper A normal infant has the ability to develop healthy motor functions due to the synthesis of certain enzymes vital for clearing harmful materials that can interrupt the growth process. However, babies that inherit the gene coding for Tay-Sachs disease experience motor function disorders. Tay-Sachs disease is a rare genetic disorder inherited by individuals that causes the degradation of their central nervous system. This condition is not treatable. Moreover, it progresses continuously from infancy until early childhood, a point where the patient fails to survive. The disease occurs within a defined population, commonly found among eastern European Ashkenazi Jews. The said disorder results from genetic mutations whose effects are manifested from infancy and are highly fatal for affected babies. In addition, it is acquired through genetic inheritance and is detectable prior the childs birth (Lowden 575). The disease is due to a mutation at chromosome number 15 which results in a dysfunction of the lysosomal enzyme acid hydrolase. Deficiency of Beta Hexosaminidase A is characteristic among afflicted patients. This enzymatic absence can be attributed to the occurrence of a founder effect, which accounts for the unusually high frequency of an allele that is an identical copy carried by the individual who founded the population (Slatkin 282). Currently, there are neither treatments nor drugs that would cure Tay-Sachs disease. However, studies have shown that it is possible to prevent the manifestation of Tay-Sachs among potential patients. This leads to the interests of researchers in screening for the probability of passing this disease from heterozygous parents to offspring (Lowden 575). History The disease derived its name from a British ophthalmologist named Warren Tay (1843-1927) and an American neurologist named Bernard Sachs (1858-1944). Tay first provided the characteristic description of retinal cherry-red spot in the eyes while Sachs provided the earliest descriptions of the cellular modifications occurring among afflicted patients. It was also Sachs who first concluded that this disorder is acquired through inheritance from parental genes through studies conducted among numerous patients. His research revealed that this disease notably occurs among Ashkenazi Jews of Eastern European origin (www. ntsad. org). In the year 1900, Sachs collaborated with Dr. Isadore Strauss, who then served as Mount Sinais director of pathology. Their concerted work provided additional descriptions of Tay-Sachs patients, which included observations on the diseases neuropathology. By the middle part of the 1920s decade, Mount Sinai Hospital had finally established a laboratory for neuropathological studies headed by Dr. Joseph Globus. Through this program, scientists were able to identify that autonomic neurons in bowel mucosa are involved. This was used as a diagnostic test, as direct enzymatic assays were not yet discovered. These observations were highly used in determining Tay-Sachs cases and other associated genetic disorder â€Å"through the use of morphological studies of rectal biopsies† (Desnick and Kaback 18). Succeeding years relatively added few descriptions on the morphology of Tay-Sachs disease. But with the onset of the electron microscope during the 1960s, Terry and Korey were able to find numerous bodies bounded by membranes in the cytoplasm of neurons of patients with Tay-Sachs disease. The researchers used a formalin fixed brain specimen, where the tissues were poorly preserved. But the granular bodies that they detected were consistent with brain tissues that were not previously fixed in formalin but immediately placed in a frozen state. In 1963, Terry collaborated with a researcher named Weiss and their studies revealed that the disease is characterized by these granular bodies in the neuronal cytoplasm. Their research team discovered the nature of the lipids that accumulate within neurons, microglial cells, and pericytes. According to their biochemical findings, these deposits possess a ganglioside nature (Desnick and Kaback, 22). Also during the 1960s, an enzyme assay test was developed by Kaback in order to screen heterozygous individuals carrying the allele for Tay-Sachs disease. This test was proven reliable, as it statistically demonstrates low percentage of errors and false positives. The test historically started the determination of potential genetic diseases among offspring. This is essential in preventing diseases and eventually leading to close eradication of the disease among Ashkenazi Jews. Now, it is possible to identify whether couples are at risk in having a child afflicted with the disease (Kaback 255). These efforts of Kaback, together with his team, led to the mass screening of potential disorders among individuals. This program was carefully organized and on May of 1971, approximately 18, 000 adults with Ashkenazi Jewish descent volunteered to be screened for possible heterozygosity. The said screening proved efficient and accurate in determining populations which are potentially at risk. In addition, the screening lasted and from 1969 until 1998, a total of 48,864 heterozygotes were already screened (Kaback 256). Clinical Description The degree of severity of Tay-Sachs manifestation can vary depending on the type of disease. An autosomal recessive disease, Tay-Sachs can cause â€Å"paralysis, dementia, and early death to a chronic adult form† (Genes and Disease 23). These adults afflicted by Tay-Sachs typically manifest psychosis and even neural dysfunction (Genes and Disease 23). Other manifestations of this disease include blindness and deafness early in life. Babies born with Tay-Sachs disease may develop normally during their first 3-6 months, but would eventually deteriorate mentally. They experience delay in mental progression as they experience loss of motor abilities. By the end of their first 12 months, patients rapidly regress mentally and physically. They are exposed to complications in swallowing, as well as in chest, and lung functions (Hauser 2171). Symptoms of this disease include cherry-red macular spots (see Figure 1), or a highly pronounced macular fovea centralis, and an enlarged heart. Babies with this genetic disorder experience disabled motor skills as they could poorly manage to control their heads, fail to crawl, sit and develop visual attention. They also characteristically assume a position that resembles those of frogs. Babies, supposedly at the stage of rapid development, lose their ability to maintain focus and eye contact, when Tay-Sachs starts to manifest. They also exhibit declining environmental interactions while gradually becoming unresponsive. They also develop inattention towards external stimuli until they reach a state that otherwise described vegetative. Hyperacusis, seizure, and macrocephaly are typical of Tay-Sachs disease (Kasper et al. 2318; lysosomallearning. com). There are three forms of Tay-Sachs disease. This includes the classic infantile, the juvenile form, and the adult form. Infants afflicted with Tay-Sachs do not produce Hexosaminidase A, while adults with this disease produce minimal enzymatic levels. Babies born with this disease experience both paralysis and muscle atrophy by six months of age and do not survive longer than five years. Most common ages when children manifest juvenile Tay-Sachs disease are those from 2 to 10 years old. The symptoms of patients are comparable to those with classic infantile form, but with a slower process. They develop dysarthria or speech problems, dysphagia or swallowing complications, ataxia or imbalance, and even spasticity. Patients generally die by their 15th year of age. The effects of the adult version are relatively milder than the classic infantile form, which attributes to their late onset in life. These individuals are otherwise known to possess chronic Tay-Sachs disease. Those with the adult-onset Tay-Sachs disease usually manifest symptoms by their adolescent stage, but it is also possible that these appear during childhood. Unlike babies with Tay-Sachs disease, adults with this disease do not experience blindness or deafness. Although the motor abilities are not completely degenerated, these individuals continuously experience mental weaknesses, including comprehension and memory problems. But different cases present various severity, as some can exhibit â€Å"slurred speech, muscle weakness, muscle cramps, tremors, unsteady gait and sometimes mental illness† (marchofdimes. com). Persons afflicted vary in life expectancy and some may not even to demonstrate the disease. Doctors determining the presence of this disease in individuals must consider investigating the following. Erythrocyte content of both carriers and afflicted individuals are considerably lower concentrations of sphingomyelin. Also, using the enzyme assay, serum or other cell cultures without or with less activities of Hexosaminidase A are a significant consideration. If these tests demonstrate abnormalities, then a DNA analysis must immediately be conducted. This is highly beneficial in determining other members of the family that are heterozygotes for this disorder. This has important implications in child-bearing options of couples and in diagnosing the disease prior a child’s birth. MRI are also commonly used in searching for cerebellar atrophy while electromyelogram is also used in detecting denervation and reinnvervation in individuals with adult-onset of this disease (Tidy; Zaroff 2283). Pathogenesis The most essential organelle involved in Tay-Sachs disease is the lysosome. The biogenesis of this organelle is comprised of different steps synthesizing the following: lysosomal hydrolases, membrane constitutive proteins, and new membranes. The formation of lysosomes is initiated by the fusion of trans-golgi network and late endosomes. With the acidification of vesicles in progression, trans-Golgi network vesicles develop towards maturity. This process creates a gradient that promotes the facilitation of ligand and receptor dissociation. This is highly dependent on the pH levels of the system. Here, lysosomal hydrolases are also activated (Kasper 2318). Any form of interference or abnormalities in these steps of lysosomal biogenesis could result to enzymatic impairment and lead to lysosomal storage disorder. â€Å"Following leader sequence clipping, complex oligosaccharide modification occur during transit through the Golgi, including the mannose-6-phosphate modification of high-mannose oligosaccharide chains of many soluble lysosomal hydrolases† (Kasper 2318). Using various kinds of signals, the lysosomal integral or associated membrane proteins are sorted to the membrane or interior of the lysosome. Concurrently, other processes occur such as phosphorylation, sulfation, proteolytic processing, and macromolecular assembly of heteromers. These are all very crucial steps to ensure the normal functioning of enzymes. Defects of these processes could lead to multiple enzyme or protein deficiencies (Kasper 2318). These mentioned steps are all common for lysosomal storage diseases. But the final pathway is when particular macromolecules, under normal circumstances have high flux of these substrates, within tissues and cells accumulate. When enzymatic deficiency occurs, the most common and major cause are point mutations or genetic rearrangements at a locus that encodes a single lysosomal hydrolase (Kasper 2318). These consequently result in diseases that are passed on from one generation to another. An example of lysosomal storage disorder is the Tay-Sachs disease. This complication is considered an autosomal recessive disorder that is acquired through genetic inheritance. A lysosomal acid hydrolase, ? -N-Hexosaminidase A is a heterodimer composed of alpha and beta subunits. A point mutation occurring at the ? -chain subunit results in an enzymatic deficiency of ? -N-Hexosaminidase A (Myerowitz 3955). The disorders that arise from the mutation of the alpha subunit cause the dysfunction of ? -N-Hexosaminidase A activity. This also includes the abolition of the alpha and beta isozyme activities through the action of the remaining beta subunit (see Figure 2). Tay-Sachs disease is described as one of the earliest versions of human genetic sphingolipidoses where patients suffer from the accumulation of GM2-monosialoganglioside in neurons due to the mentioned ? -N-Hexosaminidase A deficiency (Ohno and Suzuki 18563). The comparison between a healthy neuron and a neuron affected by Tay-Sachs disease is illustrated in Figure 3. The abnormality of the ? -subunit can be attributed to the major deletion found at the 5 end of the gene coding for ? -N-Hexosaminidase A ? chain. It was also discovered that in the coding sequences of ? subunits in relatively mature stages, point mutations occur that consequently result to the synthesis of unique enzymes of GM2-gangliosidosis. In cases of Ashkenazi Jews, patients were observed to possess splicing defects located at the 5 end, where intron 12 is usually donated. This splicing complication was described by employing methods such as cloning, genomic sequencing, and identification of abnormal cDNAs (Ohno and Suzuki 18563). Tay-Sachs is actually a â€Å"group of disorders† (Myerowitz 3955) with varying degree of severity and biochemical parameters. Severity ranges from mild to fatal while the parameters include â€Å"residual enzyme activity, immunoprecipitable ? -chain polypeptide, and detectable ? -chain mRNA† (Myerowitz 3955). These mentioned variations are part of differential ? -chain genetic lesions. In the case of Ashkenazi Jews, this disease has a single clinical course that leads to early childhood death and same biochemical profiles. Scientists hypothesized that the severe form of this disease is caused by a single mutation (Myerowitz 3955). It has been established that Tay-Sachs is the result of accumulation of Ganglioside GM2 due to the cells inability to degrade these granular bodies. In the absence of GM2 activator protein, â€Å" the GalNAc and NeuAc in GM2 are refractory to hexosaminidase A and sialidase respectively† (Li et al. 10014). In the study, it was found that in analyzing the conformatino of these GM2, a rigid and compact structure of the oligosaccharide head group was revealed. This is concluded to be the factor responsible for the resistance of GM2 from degradation or enzymatic hydrolysis (Li et al. 10014). All these abnormal processes are primarily attributable to mutations that occur on chromosome 15. Mutations include insertions and deletions of different base pairs, splice site mutations, point mutations, and other forms. With every modification resulting from mutation processes result in the alteration of the protein or enzymatic product, which causes the inhibition of its function. One of the most commonly observed and noted mutations are those of the Ashkenazi Jews where four base pairs are inserted in exon 11. The result is the classic infantile Tay-Sachs disease that can also be found in other ethnicities (Ohno 18563). Etiology This disease is commonly passed on from carrier parents to their offspring. Children that possess both alleles for Tay-Sachs manifest and suffer from the disease. The human body is composed of 23 pairs of chromosomes, therefore 46 chromosomes in total. These chromosomes contain genetic instructions that always come in pairs, from both maternal and paternal inheritance. But when these genes experience alterations or any form of modification, a mutation occurs and the gene loses its normal functions. Since each individual has two chromosomes, those with only one copy of the dysfunctional gene will be able to continue to function correctly as the normal gene would compensate for the impairment of the other. But if an individual acquires two recessive alleles, the individual will manifest the symptoms characteristic of the disease (Branda et al. 174; www. dnadirect. com). In cases when both parents are heterozygous for the Tay-Sachs gene, there is a 25% probability of passing the disease to the offspring, while a 50% probability of bearing a carrier individual and a 25% chance of a phenotypically and genotypically normal child (see Figure 4). In situations when only one parent is a carrier, there are 0% chances of having an afflicted child. However, they still have a 50% risk of having an offspring carrying the gene for Tay-Sachs (Branda et al. 174; www. dnadirect. com). Epidemiology Tay-Sachs disease is one of the most renowned genetic disorders associated with a certain population. This is a metabolic disorder typically acquired through genetic inheritance and occurs most frequently among Ashkenazi Jews of Eastern Europe. However, the disease is not confined within this group as it is also found among French Canadians that inhabit the South-eastern portion of Quebec and among Cajuns that live in the South-western part of Louisiana (Genes and Disease 23). One of the causes that scientists propose on the emergence of this disease is founder effect. Founder effect is a potential cause for a high frequency allele within a population in isolation. This is the case if the allele selectively remains in neutrality and if it has identical copies of the original carrier that founded the subpopulation. This is also applicable in conditions where an allele simply arose by later mutating (Slatkin 282). In explaining the phenomenon of the occurrence of high frequency alleles, experts have always employed this founder effects hypothesis. Most disease associated alleles are likely to be non-neutral. However, even alleles with mild deleterious effects could gain high levels of frequency due to founder effects. Today, another explanation is widely accepted in the scientific community in accounting for Tay-Sachs disease. This is the heterozygote advantage. This hypothesis is basically supported by the fact that most disease associated with alleles result from sphingolipid storage dysfunction. This outcome is not commonly observed in the general population. These two hypotheses were highly acknowledged prior the 1990s. But until recently, the heterozygote advantage was questioned and the founder effect has gained a relatively greater acceptance. This is due to several research studies conducted that argued in favour of founder effects as the actual cause of lipid storage diseases in the Ashkenazi Jewish population. The heterozygote advantage is unlikely as some non-lipid storage diseases (NLSDs) are due to dominant instead of recessive alleles and that these NLSDs do not benefit from the presence of disease associated alleles (Slatkin 282). The study on the debate between genetic drift and selection were further investigated by Risch et al. (p. 812). It has been established that Ashkenazi Jews have higher tendencies to acquire lysosomal storage diseases (LSDs), and in this study, four were found to occur at high frequencies. It was suggested that this condition is a result of having natural selection, otherwise termed as carrier advantage, as an impetus. The researchers compared the LSDs and NLSDs in terms of their levels of mutations, allelic frequency distribution, and mutation coalescence dates. It was found that there were no differences in the distribution nor any regular distribuion patterns were observed between LSDs and NLSDs occurring in different geographic areas. But the scientists discovered a more interesting concentration of two particular Tay-Sachs mutations in central and eastern Europe. Such an observation is an indication that genetic drift or the founder effect is the driving force that affected the population. It is the primary determinant of the genetic mutations that occur in Ashkenazi Jews (Risch et al. 812). Treatment and Screening An effective treatment or cure is currently not available for Tay-Sachs disease. Due to this, scientists are exploring on various possibilities that would enable them to formulate the appropriate treatment and management of this disease. Through intensive research projects using therapeutic approaches and clinical trials, experts have discovered a potential cure. This is by employing enzyme replacement therapy in order to compensate for the deficiency of ? -N-Hexosaminidase A absent among afflicted infants and even among adult patients. But this proposal entails several complications as it can affect the brain neurons that receive protection from the blood-brain barrier. Other current studies include gene therapy, pharmacological chaperone therapy, and neural stem cell therapy. Another alternative research is conducted on stem cell transplantation employing the blood of umbilical cord, but all these mentioned potential cure are still under the process of scientific research (www. nstad. org). These stem cell research studies investigate the potential of transplanting bone marrow in treating classic Tay-Sachs disease. These stem cells are immature cells that can differentiate into any form of cell (see Figure 5). In this case, scientists are seeking to produce blood cells from these stem cells either from a bone marrow donor or umbilical cord blood. But this remains unsuccessful in causing the reversal of brain damage that is fatal for afflicted patients. Drug options are also being explores by medical experts, which includes the miglustat drug. This has the ability to cause fatty build up reduction in the brain cells of Tay-Sachs disease patients (Escolar et al. , 2; Bembi 278; marchofdimes. com). The enzyme replacement therapy proposal is basically applicable to most lysosomal storage disorders. The objective is to perform an enzymatic replacement, a procedure comparable to that of injecting insulin to diabetics. The problem in this procedure is that HEXA enzymes are relatively too large to penetrate the blood-brain barrier. This causes the development of blood vessel junctions in the brain, which leads to neuronal cell damage. Alternate pathways were also tested such as injecting the enzyme to the cerebrospinal fluid, but this treatment is still left ineffective (www. freepatentsonline. com). As mentioned in the historical background of this disease, screening for potential carriers is very essential in preventing the manifestation of Tay-Sachs. This is very vital for populations such as Ashkenazi Jews, French Canadians, Louisiana Cajuns, and even Pennsylvania Dutch. This procedure is recommended to be conducted prior conceiving an offspring. But even after the end of an individuals childbearing years, it is still important to be screened for ones status as a carrier as it would make a tremendous difference in the lives of immediate family and close relatives (www. nstad. org). Prenatal tests are currently available such as amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling. These tests determine the existence of the disease prior a childs birth. Typically conducted between the 15th and 20th week of pregnancy, women can choose amniocentesis where a needle is inserted to the mothers abdomen to obtain amniotic fluid samples. Fetal cells are contained within this fluid and therefore can be tested whether they possess ? -N-Hexosaminidase A. Another test usually conducted between the 10th and 12th weeks of pregnancy is CVS. This is done through the retrieval of placental cells either through tube insertion on the vagina or needle penetration through the maternal abdominal area. Again, the objective is to obtain fetal cells that would be tested for the presence of ? -N-Hexosaminidase A. If these tests reveal the absence of ? -N-Hexosaminidase A, the infant will eventually manifest the classic Tay-Sachs disease. These tests are currently being offered especially to couples who are positive for carrying the allele, and most often to those who resort to in vitro fertilization (www. marchofdimes. com). Conclusion One of the clinical considerations of this disease is that it is caused by an organelle dysfunction, particularly lysosomes. Most cells have a limited life span and therefore must be continuously replaced. Without the proper amount of lysosomal enzymes as typically attributable to a genetic disorder, the result is an abnormal accumulation of glycogen and lipids that could destroy the tissue. This case is demonstrated by Tay-Sachs disease, together with other disorders such as Gauchers disease and glycogen storage. Due to this accumulation, myelin sheaths are destroyed which would lead to the different clinical manifestations of Tay-Sachs disease. (Van de Graaff 370). The Tay-Sachs gene occurs one in every 30 Ashkenazi Jews, making almost 3% of this population as carrier of this disease. Due to lysosomal storage dysfunction, the individual becomes deficient of an enzyme called Hexosaminidase A, which codes for the metabolism of lipid molecules in cellular systems. This fatal neurodegenerative disease has an infantile form and manifests through symptoms such as macrocephaly, loss of motor skills, increased startle reaction, and a macular cherry red spot. Patients exhibiting ataxia and dementia, the juvenile-onset form of Tay-Sachs causes the death of afflicted individuals between ages 10 and 15. The adult onset of this disease is characterized by â€Å"clumsiness in childhood, progressive motor weakness in adolescence, and additional spinocerebellar, lower motor neuron symptoms, and dysarthria in adulthood† (Kasper 2318). Patients commonly demonstrate psychosis and their intelligence continuously declines. Bembi, B. â€Å"Substrate Reduction Therapy in the Infantile Form of Tay-Sachs Disease. † Neurology, 66 (2006): 278-280. Branda KJ, Tomczak J, Natowicz, MR. 2004. â€Å"Heterozygosity for Tay-Sachs and Sandhoff diseases in non-Jewish Americans with ancestry from Ireland, Great Britain, or Italy. † Genet Test 8 (2004):174-180 Desnick, R. , and Kaback, M. Tay-Sachs Disease. Ed. USA: Academic Press, 2001. â€Å"Tay Sachs Disease. † 29 January 2008 dnadirect. com/patients/tests/ashkenazi/tay_sachs. jsp. Escolar, Maria L. , Michele D. Poe, James M. Provenzale, Karen C. , Richards, M. D. , June Allison, R. N. , Susan Wood, P. N. P. , David A. Wenger, Daniel Pietryga, Donna Wall, Martin Champagne, Richard Morse, William Krivit and Joanne Kurtzberg, M. D. â€Å"Transplantation of Umbilical-Cord Blood in Babies with Infantile Krabbes Disease. † The New England Journal of Medicine, 352 (2005):2069-2081. â€Å"Compositions and method for treating lysosomal storage disease. † 30 January 2008 freepatentsonline. com/6066626. html â€Å"Cord Blood. † 4 February 2008 cordbloodusa. org/articles-a1-Cord_Blood. htm. â€Å"Genes and Disease. † Bethesda (MD): National Library of Medicine (US), NCBI. 29 January 2008 ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/books/bv. fcgi? rid=gnd. section. 238. Hauser SL, Longo DL, Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine. Ed. 14th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1998; p. 2171. Kasper, D. L. , A. S. Fauci, D. L. Longo, E. Baraunwald, S. Hauser, S. L . Jameson, Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine 16th Ed. USA: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. 2005. Li, Y. , S. Li, , A. Hasegawa, H. Ishida, M. Kiso, A. Bernardi, P. Brocca, L. Raimondi, and S. Sonnino. â€Å"Structural basis for the resistance of Tay-Sachs Ganglioside GM2 to enzymatic degradation. † The Journal of Biological Chemistry, 274:10014-10018, 1999. Lowden, J. A. â€Å"Role of the physician in screening for carriers of Tay-Sachs disease. † CMA Journal 119 (1978):575-585. â€Å"Tay-Sachs Disease. † 29 January 2008 marchofdimes. com/professionals/14332_1227. asp. Myerowitz, R. â€Å"Splice junction mutation in some Ashkenzi Jews with Tay-Sachs disease. † Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 85 (1998):3955-3959. â€Å"National Tay-Sachs and Allied Diseases Association. † 29 January 2008 ntsad. org/. National Eye Institute. 4 February 2008 nei. nih. gov/resources/eyegene/redeye. jpg Society for Neuroscience. 4 February 2008 sfn. org/SiteObjects/published/0000BDF20016F63800 FD712C3158BA55/0000BDF200000