Sherlock hectives of holmes is a better detective then piorot and Essay

Sherlock hectives of holmes is a better detective then piorot and spade other detectives of his times - Essay Example Hercule Poirot was a Belgian detective who appeared in Agatha Christie’s novel Murder on the Orient Express to investigate the murder of a gangster named Ratchet or Cassetti. The case seems to be very confusing as some obscure clues are found during the investigation. The victim, Cassetti had previously murdered three members of the Armstrong family and their worker. As the case progresses some shocking things reveal which seem to involve thirteen of the passengers including the conductor in the murder of Cassetti. Poirot however does not inform the police about those guilty as he feels that they are justified. Samuel Spade, more commonly known as Sam Spade, appeared in The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett who was consulted by Miss Wonderly to follow Floyd Thursby who is later murdered shortly after Sam Spade’s partner, Miles Archer. It is then revealed that Miss Wonderly lied to Sam Spade and is found to have been guilty for the murders along with other players who a re trying to acquire the Maltese falcon. All the detectives differ in the style in which they approach the investigation and various cases however Sherlock Holmes of all seems to have a far more organized and scientific method of analyzing clues (Ginzburg and Davin, 6-7). Sherlock Holmes seems to have great observation and this is illustrated in A scandal in Bohemia when Holmes tells all the details about Dr. Watson when they meet (Doyle, A Scandal in Bohemia, 3). Holmes accurately identifies how Dr. Watson wanted to be a practicing doctor but could not due to the wound he got during his participation in the Afghan war. Also, that Dr. Watson got himself wet and that his servant girl does not do her work well. Holmes seems quite shocked as this true but he does not understand how Holmes was able to tell because he changed his clothes after the walk in the country (Doyle, A Scandal in Bohemia, 3). In The Red Headed League as well, Holmes demonstrates an excellent observation as he cor rectly identifies that Mr. Wilson was a laborer, takes tobacco, is a freemason, etc (Doyle, The Read Headed League, 3). He also deduces some important details from the hat in The Blue Carbuncle (Doyle, The Blue Carbuncle, 9). Holmes cleverly observed the minor details of cases so as to efficiently analyze clues to determine meaningful answers to the crimes. This method of noticing minor details was developed by Giovanni Morelli in art history (Ginzburg and Davin, 7). Hercule Poirot seems to be a very competent detective as he effectively speculates the clues so as to determine all the players in the murder of Cassetti. Poirot often has to interview the witnesses in order to gather information and does not rely much on observation of evidences and clues (Christie, 41). Sam Spade, on the other hand, does demonstrate critical thinking which helps him resolve the case regarding the murder of Archer and Thursby however he does not reflect superb observation skills in terms of clues (Hamm ett, 115). While every detective correctly investigated the cases which they are consulted to solve, there are some major differences in the style of investigation among the various detectives. Sherlock Homes presents a very effective method of information collection and evidence interpretation using an excellent observation. At many instances Dr. Watson seems to be surprised at Holmes’

Examine Malaysias Inflation Rate Economics Essay

Examine Malaysias Inflation Rate Economics Essay Based on the topic given, we are ordered to examine the Malaysias inflation rate over the past 10 years by knowing the factors that contribute the inflation and the measures taken by the Malaysias government to overcome or combat the inflation. In general, inflation  is a rise in the general  level of prices  of goods and services in an economy over a period of time. When the price level increases, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Meanwhile, inflation rate is the annually increase of percentage in the price of goods and services. When the price level rises rapidly, the inflation rate is high, and when the price level ri Examine Malaysias inflation rate over the past 10 years and discuss its trends. Inflation can be defined as one of the phenomena of general price level rises steadily in the long run and no limitations. For the past 10 years of Malaysias inflation, we decided to analyze from the year 2003 until year 2012. The graph shows the inflation rate in Malaysia from the year 2003 to 2012. It can clearly be seen that there has been a highest rate in year 2008 by 5.4 percent while the lowest rate by 0.6 percent in year 2009 then Malaysias inflation rate became normalized to the 3.2 percent in year 2011. According to The Department of Statistic Malaysia, which is one of the department that responsible to analyze the inflation rate in Malaysia was recorded the average 1.70 percent in October 2012. While, in year 2003 indicates the inflation rate was 1.1 percent. After that, the slow growth shows the difference between year 2003 and 2004 was 0.3 percent. It is mean that in year 2004, the rate of inflation increase to 1.4 percent. Then, it rises considerably over year 2005 by 3.0 percent. It is shows that starting in year 2005, the inflation rate increased rapidly from year 2004 which is the difference was about 1.6 percent. Continually in year 2006, it has been a steady increased, with around 3.6 percent rate of inflation. Suddenly, the rate falls by 2.0 percent in year 2007 because of the certain factors that can affect the rate of inflation. Next, the rate rose dramatically by 5.4 percent in 2008 due of the increasing in fuel prices on that time. The rate does not longer because in 2009 it decreased by 0.6 percent. Malaysias inflation rate starts continuously slightly increased to 1.7 percent in year 2010. The rate slowly goes up in 2011 by 3.2 percent. However, the inflation rate in Malaysia was recorded at 1.30 percent in September of 2012. To sum up, the overall years from 2003 to 2012, it shows that the trend for inflation rate over the past 10 years is fluctuated trend. From starting year at year 2003 to 2006, the graph shows slowly increased and achieved the highest rate between these four years in year 2006. After that, the graph drops in year 2007 and rise largely in year 2008. In year 2009, the rate of inflation falls dramatically and starts increased back in 2010 and 2011. But the rate still decreased in September 2012. As a conclusion, the lowest rate was 0.6 percent in year 2009 while the highest rate was showed as much 5.4 percent in 2008. In whatever way, the government has decided to decrease the inflation rate and became normalized in 2011. What may be some of the factors that contribute to the inflation rate trend? In Malaysia, inflation rate shows the fluctuated of the inflation rate trend. It was indicated that the highest inflation rate between years 2003 to 2012 was 5.4 percent in 2008. By the way, during year 2009, the rate was dramatically goes to 0.6 percent and the trend was normalised back to the 3.2 percent in year 2011. By referring the Keynesian theory, the three type of inflation which is demand-pull inflation, cost-pull inflation, and built-in inflation. Based on the inflation rate trend between 2003 to 2012 in Malaysia, there are may be some of the factors that contribute to this inflation trend, such as the factor that can affected the aggregate demand and aggregate supply that nearly can affect the inflation in many ways. For example, quantity of money that government print, the interest rate, the government expenditure, the tax cut, the increasing of Purchase Power Parity and an increase in money prices of raw material and wage rate. In this country, the inflation rate measures a board rise or fall in prices that consumers pay for a standard basket of goods. The highest inflation rate was at 5.4 percent in 2008 because of the increasing in raw material such as fuel prices. When the fuel prices increased, then the firms will decrease their supply of goods and services. This will lead to the increase in price of other goods and services that will contribute to the inflation in the country. This situation proved when the world price of fuel was increase, the price of goods such as household goods will also increase. In addition, the fuel price is decided by the government, however, government must take it seriously when decide to increase the fuel price. This may cause two negative effects towards the consumers. Firstly, for instance, as a big population of Malaysian society owns a car, the increase in a fuel price, will increase the cost of the car users. Secondly, the overall operating cost of doing business in Ma laysia will also increase due to the higher cost of fuel. The quantity of money that the government print will increase the money supply which one of the major factors that contribute to the inflation. This is because the higher the money supplied, the higher the inflation rate. For example, if the government cuts the interest rate, this will cause the quantity of money increase. Since a lot of money in the market, the production of goods will decrease because the demand of the products is higher. Most of government today control their money supply. As more money offered in the market, the highest the inflation especially through printing more bills. The printing of new money allows goods to be purchased without the real exchange. On the other hand, when the money supplied is higher in the economy, this make the consumption and investment also increase and there are more job opportunities and this will encourage the growth of economy in the country. An increasing in money wage rate also contributed to the inflation. As many of labour work in the country, then the higher the wage for one unit of force. Therefore, to increase the output of the country, the more of labour will be used and the higher the marginal cost of labour, the price had to be raised. As the wages are high, aggregate supply in the economy will decrease and this will contributed to the inflation occurs. In addition, the increasing of purchase power parity (PPP) is also one of the factors that contribute to the inflation rate trend. Purchase power parity means the equal value of money. When there were increasing in purchase power parity, consumers demand of the goods and services is also increase. However, the goods and services offers in the market become less. Moreover, the other factors are the increasing in the government expenditure and the tax cut from the government. Firstly, an increasing in government expenditure. Government expenditure can be divided into two, which are operating expenditure and development expenditure. An increasing in the government expenditure can encourage the increasing in the aggregate demand and at this time, the price level will continually increase. Secondly, the tax cut. If the government cut the tax, then demand will increase due to the cut in price of goods and services, the continuous increase in aggregate demand in the economy and have reached full employment will impact, the price level will increase. Hence, any factor that increases aggregate demand can cause inflation. However, in the long run, the government can overcome this problem by increasing the quantity of money in circulation faster than real growth rate of the economy. All of all, it can be said that, all the factors stated above can contribute to the inflation occurs. Based on the inflation trend between the last ten years, the trend shows fluctuated trend over the ten years. Generally, during the past ten years, the inflation is already become lower and moderate inflation after our country faced the high rate of inflation, called hyperinflation during the economic crisis. Hyperinflation is caused by an excessive growth of the money supply and refers to the growth of higher price level and the growth is continuously increased. The rate of inflation in Malaysia may at low or moderate inflation that contribute the fluctuation trend during the last ten years. This trend occur when the money supply growing faster than the rate of economic growth. Measures undertaken There are some measures are undertaken by our government in order to combat inflation in Malaysia. One of the actions taken by our government is supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the market. Small and medium enterprises are important for every country because they can help to boost up a countrys economic growth. As we know one of the factors that cause inflation is demand-pull inflation which means a demand of a good or service increases in the market, but the supply of the particular good and service remain the same due to the number of supplier is limited in producing the product and service. Therefore the price of the product or service will rise as the demand is higher than supply and this will cause the consumers need to pay more in order to satisfy their needs. Hence inflation occurred. In order to solve this problem, our Malaysia government is implementing Special Government Funds for small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The main purpose of these funds which provided by our government is to develop and nurturing more small and medium enterprises in our country in order to increase the productivity of products and services in Malaysia. In year 2007, Malaysia has provided 105 Special Government Funds for small and medium enterprises with a total amount of RM31.8 billion. For example, our central bank, Bank Negara Malaysia has allocated a total of RM 6.75 billion is small and medium industries 2, RM 2.85 billion in new entrepreneurs and also RM 1.30 billion in food industries. Besides that, Micro Enterprise Fund (MEF) has launched by our central bank in year 2008 and this is to help those enterprises which started up with a small capital and less employers able to operate their business in the business market. Bank Negara Malaysia has approved to use RM4.2 million to help mirco enterprises and there are 241 micro enterprises get benefits from Micro Enterprise Fund (MEF) in year 2008. Through these fund provided by our government, there are more mirco, small and medium enterprises producing products and services in the market. Therefore, productivity of Malaysia will increase and it solved the problems of demand-pull inflation. Moreover, our central bank, Bank Negara Malaysia applied monetary policy to combat inflation. Deposit interest rate is also one of the ways to combat the inflation in our country, Bank Negara Malaysia is responsible to set a most suitable interest rate on a specific time for money saver. For example, when there is high inflation rate in our country, Bank Negara Malaysia will need to adjust the deposit interest rate to higher rate in order to encourage people to save more their money in the bank and indirectly to reduce the quantity amount of money in the market which can prevent the value of our money to become less value. Besides that, since the interest rate has increased, this will discourage investors and firms to borrow money from the banks. Therefore, it will reduce the investment and consumption in the market and consequently the inflation rate will decrease. Year 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Average interest rate 2.69 2.84 3.51 3.50 3.51 2.11 2.56 2.88 Based on the graph and table above, we can see that as our countrys inflation rate increases, the interest rate offered by the bank increases as well in order to encourage people to save money in the bank to reduce the quantity of money in the market in order reduce the inflation rate. Due to the economic Stimulus Package, the interest rate is still high even though the inflation rate in year 2007 has decrease from year 2006. Conclusion

Tax Dollars Should Fund Religious Schools Essay -- Argumentative Persu

Tax Dollars Should Fund Religious Schools The issue of whether or not to use tax dollars to provide private schools with vouchers has been controversial for many years now.   Many people feel that it is our governments obligation to provide private institutions with the proper funds, while others believe that if private schools inherit our tax dollars then it is violation of our constitution as it promotes a particular religion.   I think it is our government's responsibility to provide each and every school with tax dollars, regardless of its orientation.   Many reasons, especially popularity and success rates provide substantial evidence that private schools should be funded by government vouchers. The main concern of those who oppose the use of government money for private schools is whether or not it would be constitutional.   In the past, many Supreme Court cases have proven that school vouchers for private schools are constitutional.   For example in Board of Education vs. Allen it was established that providing funds for private schools does not violate the Establishment C...

My Leadership Style Essay

According to the leadership assessment, I am more of task-oriented leader than a people-oriented leader, though I scored high in both areas, therefore I have a healthy balance of both which is important for a leader in any company. My leadership style allows me to get my work completed in an organized fashion, while being open to other ideas; I can focus on the small projects while continuing to see the big picture or vision. Because I score higher on the task-oriented side, I can be more autocratic in my thinking. This will limit my ability to show my apathy for my staff and employees Furthermore, I am also a transformational and charismatic leader. I am most effective in smaller organizations that have direct interactions with my staff. According to Robbins, this helps to make me effective as a leader, which will give a company â€Å"low turnover, higher productivity, lower employee stress, and burnout, and higher employee satisfaction.† Furthermore, Robbins shared that this leadership style is not effective with those who are â€Å"highly individualistic and do not readily cede decision-making authority.† Since I am able to communicate with my staff the expectations, visions ad engage my staff, I also have a Charismatic leadership style. I continuously focus on the end goal, big picture and tie that big picture to the work of my staff, making it attainable to my staff. One of the major downsides to charismatic leadership is that it can be situational, according to Robbins. Role in Company The role I would like to pursue within the company is that of a managerial supervisor. According to Robbins, organizations need strong leadership and  strong management for optimal effectiveness. I feel that because I have leadership and managerial traits and characteristics, I would be a great candidate for that particular role. In a managerial supervisory role, I am a direct leader. I work directly with my staff on a one-on-one basis and in a team format; I will have more influence directly on my staff. As the managerial supervisor, I am able to support, recognize, develop, plan, and coach/mentor my staff while monitoring, setting goals, and overseeing day to day operations. This is evident because of my healthy balance of task and people orientation. Leadership theories applicable to my leadership approach The Big Five Trait Leadership Theory is applicable to my leadership approach because research has shown that the big five personality factors are strong indicators for job success and performance. I scored high in the areas of extroversion and conscientiousness. The positive factors about scoring high on conscientiousness’s is that overall, those with high marks in this area have better job performance and those are more reliable, thorough, organized, angle to plan, and persistent according to the assessment. These traits are consisted with those of task-oriented leaders. However, the Leadership Substitute Theory would be counter indicated for the areas of subordinate, task, and group/organizational characteristics. This is because my staff could need little direction from me as their supervisor if they have extensive experience. Also, when staff repeats their task over and over, they become proficient and don’t need feedback, but are building their own motivation. As a task-oriented, transformational, and charismatic leader, I would struggle more with staff who are more independent or did not work well in the group. I like to give freedom to my staff, but my style makes it necessary to know what is going on in the jobs at all times. Conclusion My leadership style is transformational, charismatic with my main focus on task-oriented management. I work hard to inspire my staff, while also meeting deadlines. I focus better when I’m working with a team rather than individuals who do their own thing. Research has shown that my leadership style is an asset to many companies if utilized in the right way. This is why I would like a position that allows me to shine, take the lead of a team, while focusing on the companies â€Å"big picture.† References Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2011). Organizational behavior (14th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education. Yuki, G. (2010). Leadership in organizations (7th Ed.) Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.

Chapter 6 Talons and Tea Leaves

When Harry, Ron, and Hermione entered the Great Hall for breakfast the next day, the first thing they saw was Draco Malfoy, who seemed to be entertaining a large group of Slytherins with a very funny story. As they passed, Malfoy did a ridiculous impression of a swooning fit and there was a roar of laughter. â€Å"Ignore him,† said Hermione, who was right behind Harry. â€Å"Just ignore him, it's not worth it†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Hey, Potter!† shrieked Pansy Parkinson, a Slytherin girl with a face like a pug. â€Å"Potter! The Dementors are coming, Potter! Woooooooooo!† Harry dropped into a seat at the Gryffindor table, next to George Weasley. â€Å"New third-year course schedules,† said George, passing then, over. â€Å"What's up with you, Harry?† â€Å"Malfoy,† said Ron, sitting down on George's other side and glaring over at the Slytherin table. George looked up in time to see Malfoy pretending to faint with terror again. â€Å"That little git,† he said calmly. â€Å"He wasn't so cocky last night when the Dementors were down at our end of the train. Came running into our compartment, didn't he, Fred?† â€Å"Nearly wet himself,† said Fred, with a contemptuous glance at Malfoy. â€Å"I wasn't too happy myself,† said George. â€Å"They're horrible things, those Dementors†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Sort of freeze your insides, don't they?† said Fred. â€Å"You didn't pass out, though, did you?† said Harry in a low voice. â€Å"Forget it, Harry,† said George bracingly. â€Å"Dad had to go out to Azkaban one time, remember, Fred? And he said it was the worst place he'd ever been, he came back all weak and shaking†¦They suck the happiness out of a place, Dementors. Most of the prisoners go mad in there.† â€Å"Anyway, we'll see how happy Malfoy looks after our first Quidditch match,† said Fred. â€Å"Gryffindor versus Slytherin, first game of the season, remember?† The only time Harry and Malfoy had faced each other in a Quidditch match, Malfoy had definitely come off worse. Feeling slightly more cheerful, Harry helped himself to sausages and fried tomatoes. Hermione was examining her new schedule. â€Å"Ooh, good, we're starting some new subjects today,† she said happily. â€Å"Hermione,† said Ron, frowning as he looked over her shoulder, â€Å"they've messed up your timetable. Look — they've got you down for about ten subjects a day. There isn't enough time.† â€Å"I'll manage. I've fixed it all with Professor McGonagall.† â€Å"But look,† said Ron, laughing, â€Å"see this morning? Nine o'clock, Divination. And underneath, nine o'clock, Muggle Studies. And –† Ron leaned closer to the timetable, disbelieving, â€Å"look — underneath that, Arithmancy, nine o'clock. I mean, I know you're good, Hermione, but no one's that good. How're you supposed to be in three classes at once?† â€Å"Don't be silly,† said Hermione shortly. â€Å"Of course I won't be in three classes at once.† â€Å"Well then –â€Å" â€Å"Pass the marmalade,† said Hermione. â€Å"But –â€Å" â€Å"Oh, Ron, what's it to you if my timetable's a bit full?† Hermione snapped. â€Å"I told you, I've fixed it all with Professor McGonagall.† Just then, Hagrid entered the Great Hall. He was wearing his long moleskin overcoat and was absent-mindedly swinging a dead polecat from one enormous hand. â€Å"All righ'?† he said eagerly, pausing on his way to the staff table. â€Å"Yer in my firs' ever lesson! Right after lunch! Bin up since five getting' everthin' ready†¦hope it's OK†¦me, a teacher†¦hones'ly†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He grinned broadly at them and headed off to the staff table, still swinging the polecat. â€Å"Wonder what he's been getting ready?† said Ron, a note of anxiety in his voice. The Hall was starting to empty as people headed off towards their first lesson. Ron checked his schedule. â€Å"We'd better go, look, Divination's at the top of North Tower. It'll take us ten minutes to get there†¦Ã¢â‚¬  They finished breakfast hastily, said goodbye to Fred and George and walked back through the hall. As they passed the Slytherin table, Malfoy did yet another impression of a fainting fit. The shouts of laughter followed Harry into the Entrance Hall. The journey through the castle to North Tower was a long one. Two years at Hogwarts hadn't taught them everything about the castle, and they had never been inside North Tower before. â€Å"There's — got — to — be — a — short — cut,† Ron panted, as they climbed the seventh long staircase and emerged on an unfamiliar landing, where there was nothing but a large painting of a bare stretch of grass hanging on the stone wall. â€Å"I think it's this way,† said Hermione, peering down the empty passage to the right. â€Å"Can't be,† said Ron. â€Å"That's south. Look, you can see a bit of the lake outside the window†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Harry was watching the painting. A fat, dappled-gray pony had just ambled onto the grass and was grazing nonchalantly. Harry was used to the subjects of Hogwarts paintings moving around and leaving their frames to visit each other, but he always enjoyed watching them. A moment later, a short, squat knight in a suit of armour had clanked into the picture after his pony. By the look of the grass stains on his metal knees, he had just fallen off. â€Å"Aha!† he yelled, seeing Harry, Ron and Hermione. â€Å"What villains are these, that trespass upon my private lands! Come to scorn at my fall, perchance? Draw, you knaves, you dogs!† They watched in astonishment as the little knight tugged his sword out of its scabbard and began brandishing it violently, hopping up and down in rage. But the sword was too long for him; a particularly wild swing made him overbalance, and he landed facedown in the grass. â€Å"Are you all right?† said Harry, moving closer to the picture. â€Å"Get back, you scurvy braggart! Back, you rogue!† The knight seized his sword again and used it to push himself back up, but the blade sank deeply into the grass and, though he pulled with all his might, he couldn't get it out again. Finally, he had to flop back down onto the grass and push up his visor to mop his sweating face. â€Å"Listen,† said Harry, taking advantage of the knight's exhaustion, â€Å"we're looking for the North Tower. You don't know the way, do you?† â€Å"A quest!† The knight's rage seemed to vanish instantly. He clanked to his feet and shouted, â€Å"Come follow me, dear friends, and we shall find our goal, or else shall perish bravely in the charge!† He gave the sword another fruitless tug, tried and failed to mount the fat pony, gave up, and cried, â€Å"On foot then, good sirs and gentle lady! On! On!† And he ran, clanking loudly, into the left side of the frame and out of sight. They hurried after him along the corridor, following the sound of his armor. Every now and then they spotted him running through a picture ahead. â€Å"Be of stout heart, the worst is yet to come!† yelled the knight, and they saw him reappear in front of an alarmed group of women in crinolines, whose picture hung on the wall of a narrow spiral staircase. Puffing loudly, Harry, Ron, and Hermione climbed the tightly spiraling steps, getting dizzier and dizzier, until at last they heard the murmur of voices above them and knew they had reached the classroom. â€Å"Farewell!† cried the knight, popping his head into a painting of some sinister-looking monks. â€Å"Farewell, my comrades-in-arms! If ever you have need of noble heart and steely sinew, call upon Sir Cadogan!† â€Å"Yeah, we'll call you,† muttered Ron as the knight disappeared, â€Å"if we ever need someone mental.† They climbed the last few steps and emerged onto a tiny landing, where most of the class was already assembled. There were no doors off this landing, but Ron nudged Harry and pointed at the ceiling, where there was a circular trapdoor with a brass plaque on it. â€Å"‘Sibyll Trelawney, Divination teacher,'† Harry read. â€Å"How're we supposed to get up there?† As though in answer to his question, the trapdoor suddenly opened, and a silvery ladder descended right at Harry's feet. Everyone got quiet. â€Å"After you,† said Ron, grinning, so Harry climbed the ladder first. He emerged into the strangest-looking classroom he had ever seen. In fact, it didn't look like a classroom at all, more like a cross between someone's attic and an old-fashioned tea shop. At least twenty small, circular tables were crammed inside it, all surrounded by chintz armchairs and fat little poufs. Everything was lit with a dim, crimson light; the curtains at the windows were all closed, and the many lamps were draped with dark red scarves. It was stiflingly warm, and the fire that was burning under the crowded mantelpiece was giving off a heavy, sickly sort of perfume as it heated a large copper kettle. The shelves running around the circular walls were crammed with dusty-looking feathers, stubs of candles, many packs of tattered playing cards, countless silvery crystal balls, and a huge array of teacups. Ron appeared at Harry's shoulder as the class assembled around them, all talking in whispers. â€Å"Where is she?† Ron said. A voice came suddenly out of the shadows, a soft, misty sort of voice. â€Å"Welcome,† it said. â€Å"How nice to see you in the physical world at last.† Harry's immediate impression was of a large, glittering insect. Professor Trelawney moved into the firelight, and they saw that she was very thin; her large glasses magnified her eyes to several times their natural size, and she was draped in a gauzy spangled shawl. Innumerable chains and beads hung around her spindly neck, and her arms and hands were encrusted with bangles and rings. â€Å"Sit, my children, sit,† she said, and they all climbed awkwardly into armchairs or sank onto poufs. Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat themselves around the same round table. â€Å"Welcome to Divination,† said Professor Trelawney, who had seated herself in a winged armchair in front of the fire. â€Å"My name is Professor Trelawney. You may not have seen me before. I find that descending too often into the hustle and bustle of the main school clouds my Inner Eye.† Nobody said anything to this extraordinary pronouncement. Professor Trelawney delicately rearranged her shawl and continued, â€Å"So you have chosen to study Divination, the most difficult of all magical arts. I must warn you at the outset that if you do not have the Sight, there is very little I will be able to teach you†¦Books can take you only so far in this field†¦Ã¢â‚¬  At these words, both Harry and Ron glanced, grinning, at Hermione, who looked startled at the news that books wouldn't be much help in this subject. â€Å"Many witches and wizards, talented though they are in the area of loud bangs and smells and sudden disappearings, are yet unable to penetrate the veiled mysteries of the future,† Professor Trelawney went on, her enormous, gleaming eyes moving from face to nervous face. â€Å"It is a Gift granted to few. You, boy,† she said suddenly to Neville, who almost toppled off his pouf. â€Å"Is your grandmother well?† â€Å"I think so,† said Neville tremulously. â€Å"I wouldn't be so sure if I were you, dear,† said Professor Trelawney, the firelight glinting on her long emerald earrings. Neville gulped. Professor Trelawney continued placidly. â€Å"We will be covering the basic methods of Divination this year. The first term will be devoted to reading the tea leaves. Next term we shall progress to palmistry. By the way, my dear,† she shot suddenly at Parvati Patil, â€Å"beware a red-haired man.† Parvati gave a startled look at Ron, who was right behind her and edged her chair away from him. â€Å"In the second term,† Professor Trelawney went on, â€Å"we shall progress to the crystal ball — if we have finished with fire omens, that is. Unfortunately, classes will be disrupted in February by a nasty bout of flu. I myself will lose my voice. And around Easter, one of our number will leave us for ever.† A very tense silence followed this pronouncement, but Professor Trelawney seemed unaware of it. â€Å"I wonder, dear,† she said to Lavender Brown, who was nearest and shrank back in her chair, â€Å"if you could pass me the largest silver teapot?† Lavender, looking relieved, stood up, took an enormous teapot from the shelf, and put it down on the table in front of Professor Trelawney. â€Å"Thank you, my dear. Incidentally, that thing you are dreading — it will happen on Friday the sixteenth of October.† Lavender trembled. â€Å"Now, I want you all to divide into pairs. Collect a teacup from the shelf, come to me, and I will fill it. Then sit down and drink, drink until only the dregs remain. Swill these around the cup three times with the left hand, then turn the cup upside down on its saucer, wait for the last of the tea to drain away, then give your cup to your partner to read. You will interpret the patterns using pages five and six of Unfogging the Future. I shall move among you, helping and instructing. Oh, and dear,† — she caught Neville by the arm as he made to stand up, â€Å"after you've broken your first cup, would you be so kind as to select one of the blue patterned ones? I'm rather attached to the pink.† Sure enough, Neville had no sooner reached the shelf of teacups when there was a tinkle of breaking china. Professor Trelawney swept over to him holding a dustpan and brush and said, â€Å"One of the blue ones, then, dear, if you wouldn't mind†¦thank you†¦Ã¢â‚¬  When Harry and Ron had had their teacups filled, they went back to their table and tried to drink the scalding tea quickly. They swilled the dregs around as Professor Trelawney had instructed, then drained the cups and swapped over. â€Å"Right,† said Ron as they both opened their books at pages five and six. â€Å"What can you see in mine?† â€Å"A load of soggy brown stuff,† said Harry. The heavily perfumed smoke in the room was making him feel sleepy and stupid. â€Å"Broaden your minds, my dears, and allow your eyes to see past the mundane!† Professor Trelawney cried through the gloom. Harry tried to pull himself together. â€Å"Right, you've got a crooked sort of cross†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He consulted Unfogging the Future. â€Å"That means you're going to have ‘trials and suffering' — sorry about that — but there's a thing that could be the sun. Hang on†¦that means ‘great happiness'†¦so you're going to suffer but be very happy†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"You need your Inner Eye tested, if you ask me,† said Ron, and they both had to stifle their laughs as Professor Trelawney gazed in their direction. â€Å"My turn†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Ron peered into Harry's teacup, his forehead wrinkled with effort. â€Å"There's a blob a bit like a bowler hat,† he said. â€Å"Maybe you're going to work for the Ministry of Magic†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He turned the teacup the other way up. â€Å"But this way it looks more like an acorn†¦what's that?† He scanned his copy of Unfogging the Future. â€Å"‘A windfall, unexpected gold.' Excellent, you can lend me some. And there's a thing here,† he turned the cup again, â€Å"that looks like an animal†¦yeah, if that was its head†¦it looks like a hippo†¦no, a sheep†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Professor Trelawney whirled around as Harry let out a snort of laughter. â€Å"Let me see that, my dear,† she said reprovingly to Ron, sweeping over and snatching Harry's cup from him. Everyone went quiet to watch. Professor Trelawney was staring into the teacup, rotating it counterclockwise. â€Å"The falcon†¦my dear, you have a deadly enemy.† â€Å"But everyone knows that,† said Hermione in a loud whisper. Professor Trelawney stared at her. â€Å"Well, they do,† said Hermione. â€Å"Everybody knows about Harry and You-Know-Who.† Harry and Ron stared at her with a mixture of amazement and admiration. They had never heard Hermione speak to a teacher like that before. Professor Trelawney chose not to reply. She lowered her huge eyes to Harry's cup again and continued to turn it. â€Å"The club†¦an attack. Dear, dear, this is not a happy cup†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I thought that was a bowler hat,† said Ron sheepishly. â€Å"The skull†¦danger in your path, my dear†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Everyone was staring, transfixed, at Professor Trelawney, who gave the cup a final turn, gasped, and then screamed. There was another tinkle of breaking china; Neville had smashed his second cup. Professor Trelawney sank into a vacant armchair, her glittering hand at her heart and her eyes closed. â€Å"My dear boy — my poor dear boy — no — it is kinder not to say — no — don't ask me†¦.† â€Å"What is it, Professor?† said Dean Thomas at once. Everyone had got to their feet, and slowly they crowded around Harry and Ron's table, pressing close to Professor Trelawney's chair to get a good look at Harry's cup. â€Å"My dear,† Professor Trelawney's huge eyes opened dramatically, â€Å"you have the Grim.† â€Å"The what?† said Harry. He could tell that he wasn't the only one who didn't understand; Dean Thomas shrugged at him and Lavender Brown looked puzzled, but nearly everybody else clapped their hands to their mouths in horror. â€Å"The Grim, my dear, the Grim!† cried Professor Trelawney, who looked shocked that Harry hadn't understood. â€Å"The giant, spectral dog that haunts churchyards! My dear boy, it is an omen — the worst omen — of death!† Harry's stomach lurched. That dog on the cover of Death Omens in Flourish and Blotts — the dog in the shadows of Magnolia Crescent†¦Lavender Brown clapped her hands to her mouth too. Everyone was looking at Harry, everyone except Hermione, who had gotten up and moved around to the back of Professor Trelawney's chair. â€Å"I don't think it looks like a Grim,† she said flatly. Professor Trelawney surveyed Hermione with mounting dislike. â€Å"You'll forgive me for saying so, my dear, but I perceive very little aura around you. Very little receptivity to the resonances of the future.† Seamus Finnigan was tilting his head from side to side. â€Å"It looks like a Grim if you do this,† he said, with his eyes almost shut, â€Å"but it looks more like a donkey from here,† he said, leaning to the left. â€Å"When you've all finished deciding whether I'm going to die or not!† said Harry, taking even himself by surprise. Now nobody seemed to want to look at him. â€Å"I think we will leave the lesson here for today,† said Professor Trelawney in her mistiest voice. â€Å"Yes†¦please pack away your things†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Silently the class took their teacups back to Professor Trelawney, packed away their books, and closed their bags. Even Ron was avoiding Harry's eyes. â€Å"Until we meet again,† said Professor Trelawney faintly, â€Å"fair fortune be yours. Oh, and dear,† — she pointed at Neville, â€Å"you'll be late next time, so mind you work extra-hard to catch up.† Harry, Ron, and Hermione descended Professor Trelawney's ladder and the winding stair in silence, then set off for Professor McGonagall's Transfiguration lesson. It took them so long to find her classroom that, early as they had left Divination, they were only just in time. Harry chose a seat right at the back of the room, feeling as though he were sitting in a very bright spotlight; the rest of the class kept shooting furtive glances at him, as though he were about to drop dead at any moment. He hardly heard what Professor McGonagall was telling them about Animagi (wizards who could transform at will into animals), and wasn't even watching when she transformed herself in front of their eyes into a tabby cat with spectacle markings around her eyes. â€Å"Really, what has got into you all today?† said Professor McGonagall, turning back into herself with a faint pop, and staring around at them all. â€Å"Not that it matters, but that's the first time my transformation's not got applause from a class.† Everybody's heads turned toward Harry again, but nobody spoke. Then Hermione raised her hand. â€Å"Please, Professor, we've just had our first Divination class, and we were reading the tea leaves, and –â€Å" â€Å"Ah, of course,† said Professor McGonagall, suddenly frowning. â€Å"There is no need to say any more, Miss Granger. Tell me, which of you will be dying this year?† Everyone stared at her. â€Å"Me,† said Harry, finally. â€Å"I see,† said Professor McGonagall, fixing Harry with her beady eyes. â€Å"Then you should know, Potter, that Sibyll Trelawney has predicted the death of one student a year since she arrived at this school. None of them has died yet. Seeing death omens is her favorite way of greeting a new class. If it were not for the fact that I never speak ill of my colleagues –† Professor McGonagall broke off, and they saw that her nostrils had gone white. She went on, more calmly, â€Å"Divination is one of the most imprecise branches of magic. I shall not conceal from you that I have very little patience with it. True Seers are very rare, and Professor Trelawney†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She stopped again, and then said, in a very matter-of-fact tone, â€Å"You look in excellent health to me, Potter, so you will excuse me if I don't let you off homework today. I assure you that if you die, you need not hand it in.† Hermione laughed. Harry felt a bit better. It was harder to feel scared of a lump of tea leaves away from the dim red light and befuddling perfume of Professor Trelawney's classroom. Not everyone was convinced, however. Ron still looked worried, and Lavender whispered, â€Å"But what about Neville's cup?† When the Transfiguration class had finished, they joined the crowd thundering toward the Great Hall for lunch. â€Å"Ron, cheer up,† said Hermione, pushing a dish of stew toward him. â€Å"You heard what Professor McGonagall said.† Ron spooned stew onto his plate and picked up his fork but didn't start. â€Å"Harry,† he said, in a low, serious voice, â€Å"You haven't seen a great black dog anywhere, have you?† â€Å"Yeah, I have,† said Harry. â€Å"I saw one the night I left the Dursleys'.† Ron let his fork fall with a clatter. â€Å"Probably a stray,† said Hermione calmly. Ron looked at Hermione as though she had gone mad. â€Å"Hermione, if Harry's seen a Grim, that's — that's bad,† he said. â€Å"My — my uncle Bilius saw one and — and he died twenty-four hours later!† â€Å"Coincidence,† said Hermione airily, pouring herself some pumpkin juice. â€Å"You don't know what you're talking about!† said Ron, starting to get angry. â€Å"Grims scare the living daylights out of most wizards!† â€Å"There you are, then,† said Hermione in a superior tone. â€Å"They see the Grim and die of fright. The Grim's not an omen, it's the cause of death! And Harry's still with us because he's not stupid enough to see one and think, right, well, I'd better kick the bucket then!† Ron mouthed wordlessly at Hermione, who opened her bag, took out her new Arithmancy book, and propped it open against the juice jug. â€Å"I think Divination seems very woolly,† she said, searching for her page. â€Å"A lot of guesswork, if you ask me.† â€Å"There was nothing woolly about the Grim in that cup!† said Ron hotly. â€Å"You didn't seem quite so confident when you were telling Harry it was a sheep,† said Hermione coolly. â€Å"Professor Trelawney said you didn't have the right aura! You just don't like being bad at something for a change!† He had touched a nerve. Hermione slammed her Arithmancy book down on the table so hard that bits of meat and carrot flew everywhere. â€Å"If being good at Divination means I have to pretend to see death omens in a lump of tea leaves, I'm not sure I'll be studying it much longer! That lesson was absolute rubbish compared with my Arithmancy class!† She snatched up her bag and stalked away. Ron frowned after her. â€Å"What's she talking about?† he said to Harry. â€Å"She hasn't been to an Arithmancy class yet.† ****** Harry was pleased to get out of the castle after lunch. Yesterday's rain had cleared; the sky was a clear, pale gray, and the grass was springy and damp underfoot as they set off for their first ever Care of Magical Creatures class. Ron and Hermione weren't speaking to each other. Harry walked beside them in silence as they went down the sloping lawns to Hagrid's hut on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. It was only when he spotted three only-too-familiar backs ahead of them that he realized they must be having these lessons with the Slytherins. Malfoy was talking animatedly to Crabbe and Goyle, who were chortling. Harry was quite sure he knew what they were talking about. Hagrid was waiting for his class at the door of his hut. He stood in his moleskin overcoat, with Fang the boarhound at his heels, looking impatient to start. â€Å"C'mon, now, get a move on!† he called as the class approached. â€Å"Got a real treat for yeh today! Great lesson comin' up! Everyone here? Right, follow me!† For one nasty moment, Harry thought that Hagrid was going to lead them into the forest; Harry had had enough unpleasant experiences in there to last him a lifetime. However, Hagrid strolled off around the edge of the trees, and five minutes later, they found themselves outside a kind of paddock. There was nothing in there. â€Å"Everyone gather 'round the fence here!† he called. â€Å"That's it — make sure yeh can see — now, firs' thing yeh'll want ter do is open yer books –â€Å" â€Å"How?† said the cold, drawling voice of Draco Malfoy. â€Å"Eh?† said Hagrid. â€Å"How do we open our books?† Malfoy repeated. He took out his copy of The Monster Book of Monsters, which he had bound shut with a length of rope. Other people took theirs out too; some, like Harry, had belted their book shut; others had crammed them inside tight bags or clamped them together with binder clips. â€Å"Hasn' — hasn' anyone bin able ter open their books?† said Hagrid, looking crestfallen. The class all shook their heads. â€Å"Yeh've got ter stroke 'em,† said Hagrid, as though this was the most obvious thing in the world. â€Å"Look –â€Å" He took Hermione's copy and ripped off the Spellotape that bound it. The book tried to bite, but Hagrid ran a giant forefinger down its spine, and the book shivered, and then fell open and lay quiet in his hand. â€Å"Oh, how silly we've all been!† Malfoy sneered. â€Å"We should have stroked them! Why didn't we guess!† â€Å"I — I thought they were funny,† Hagrid said uncertainly to Hermione. â€Å"Oh, tremendously funny!† said Malfoy. â€Å"Really witty, giving us books that try and rip our hands off!† â€Å"Shut up, Malfoy,† said Harry quietly. Hagrid was looking downcast and Harry wanted Hagrid's first lesson to be a success. â€Å"Righ' then,† said Hagrid, who seemed to have lost his thread, â€Å"so — so yeh've got yer books an'†¦an'†¦now yeh need the Magical Creatures. Yeah. So I'll go an' get 'em. Hang on†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He strode away from them into the forest and out of sight. â€Å"God, this place is going to the dogs,† said Malfoy loudly. â€Å"That oaf teaching classes, my father'll have a fit when I tell him –â€Å" â€Å"Shut up, Malfoy,† Harry repeated. â€Å"Careful, Potter, there's a Dementor behind you –â€Å" â€Å"Oooooooh!† squealed Lavender Brown, pointing toward the opposite side of the paddock. Trotting toward them were a dozen of the most bizarre creatures Harry had ever seen. They had the bodies, hind legs, and tails of horses, but the front legs, wings, and heads of what seemed to be giant eagles, with cruel, steel-colored beaks and large, brilliantly, orange eyes. The talons on their front legs were half a foot long and deadly looking. Each of the beasts had a thick leather collar around its neck, which was attached to a long chain, and the ends of all of these were held in the vast hands of Hagrid, who came jogging into the paddock behind the creatures. â€Å"Gee up, there!† he roared, shaking the chains and urging the creatures toward the fence where the class stood. Everyone drew back slightly as Hagrid reached them and tethered the creatures to the fence. â€Å"Hippogriffs!† Hagrid roared happily, waving a hand at them. â€Å"Beau'iful, aren' they?† Harry could sort of see what Hagrid meant. Once you got over the first shock of seeing something that was half horse, half bird, you started to appreciate the Hippogriffs' gleaming coats, changing smoothly from feather to hair, each of them a different color: stormy gray, bronze, pinkish roan, gleaming chestnut, and inky black. â€Å"So,† said Hagrid, rubbing his hands together and beaming around, â€Å"if yeh wan' ter come a bit nearer†¦Ã¢â‚¬  No one seemed to want to. Harry, Ron, and Hermione, however, approached the fence cautiously. â€Å"Now, firs' thing yeh gotta know abou' Hippogriffs is, they're proud,† said Hagrid. â€Å"Easily offended, Hippogriffs are. Don't never insult one, 'cause it might be the last thing yeh do.† Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle weren't listening; they were talking in an undertone and Harry had a nasty feeling they were plotting how best to disrupt the lesson. â€Å"Yeh always wait fer the Hippogriff ter make the firs' move,† Hagrid continued. â€Å"It's polite, see? Yeh walk toward him, and yeh bow, an' yeh wait. If he bows back, yeh're allowed ter touch him. If he doesn' bow, then get away from him sharpish, 'cause those talons hurt.† â€Å"Right — who wants ter go first?† Most of the class backed farther away in answer. Even Harry, Ron, and Hermione had misgivings. The Hippogriffs were tossing their fierce heads and flexing their powerful wings; they didn't seem to like being tethered like this. â€Å"No one?† said Hagrid, with a pleading look. â€Å"I'll do it,† said Harry. There was an intake of breath from behind him, and both Lavender and Parvati whispered, â€Å"Oooh, no, Harry, remember your tea leaves!† Harry ignored them. He climbed over the paddock fence. â€Å"Good man, Harry!† roared Hagrid. â€Å"Right then — let's see how yeh get on with Buckbeak.† He untied one of the chains, pulled the gray Hippogriff away from its fellows, and slipped off its leather collar. The class on the other side of the paddock seemed to be holding its breath. Malfoy's eyes were narrowed maliciously. â€Å"Easy now, Harry,† said Hagrid quietly. â€Å"Yeh've got eye contact, now try not ter blink†¦Hippogriffs don' trust yeh if yeh blink too much†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Harry's eyes immediately began to water, but he didn't shut them. Buckbeak had turned his great, sharp head and was staring at Harry with one fierce orange eye. â€Å"Tha's it,† said Hagrid. â€Å"Tha's it, Harry†¦now, bow.† Harry didn't feel much like exposing the back of his neck to Buckbeak, but he did as he was told. He gave a short bow and then looked up. The Hippogriff was still staring haughtily at him. It didn't move. â€Å"Ah,† said Hagrid, sounding worried. â€Å"Right — back away, now, Harry, easy does it –â€Å" But then, to Harry's enormous surprise, the Hippogriff suddenly bent its scaly front knees and sank into what was an unmistakable bow. â€Å"Well done, Harry!† said Hagrid, ecstatic. â€Å"Right — yeh can touch him! Pat his beak, go on!† Feeling that a better reward would have been to back away, Harry moved slowly toward the Hippogriff and reached out toward it. He patted the beak several times and the Hippogriff closed its eyes lazily, as though enjoying it. The class broke into applause, all except for Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, who were looking deeply disappointed. â€Å"Righ' then, Harry,† said Hagrid. â€Å"I reckon he migh' let yeh ride him!† This was more than Harry had bargained for. He was used to a broomstick; but he wasn't sure a Hippogriff would be quite the same. â€Å"Yeh climb up there, jus' behind the wing joint,† said Hagrid, â€Å"an' mind yeh don' pull any of his feathers out, he won' like that†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Harry put his foot on the top of Buckbeak's wing and hoisted himself onto its back. Buckbeak stood up. Harry wasn't sure where to hold on; everything in front of him was covered with feathers. â€Å"Go on, then!† roared Hagrid, slapping the Hippogriffs hindquarters. Without warning, twelve-foot wings flapped open on either side of Harry, he just had time to seize the Hippogriff around the neck before he was soaring upward. It was nothing like a broomstick, and Harry knew which one he preferred; the Hippogriff's wings beat uncomfortably on either side of him, catching him under his legs and making him feel he was about to be thrown off; the glossy feathers slipped under his fingers and he didn't dare get a stronger grip; instead of the smooth action of his Nimbus Two Thousand, he now felt himself rocking backward and forward as the hindquarters of the Hippogriff rose and fell with its wings. Buckbeak flew him once around the paddock and then headed back to the ground; this was the bit Harry had been dreading; he leaned back as the smooth neck lowered, feeling he was going to slip off over the beak, then felt a heavy thud as the four ill-assorted feet hit the ground. He just managed to hold on and push himself straight again. â€Å"Good work, Harry!† roared Hagrid as everyone except Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle cheered. â€Å"Okay, who else wants a go?† Emboldened by Harry's success, the rest of the class climbed cautiously into the paddock. Hagrid untied the Hippogriffs one by one, and soon people were bowing nervously, all over the paddock. Neville ran repeatedly backward from his, which didn't seem to want to bend its knees. Ron and Hermione practiced on the chestnut, while Harry watched. Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle had taken over Buckbeak. He had bowed to Malfoy, who was now patting his beak, looking disdainful. â€Å"This is very easy,† Malfoy drawled, loud enough for Harry to, hear him. â€Å"I knew it must have been, if Potter could do it†¦I bet you're not dangerous at all, are you?† he said to the Hippogriff. â€Å"Are you, you great ugly brute?† It happened in a flash of steely talons; Malfoy let out a high pitched scream and next moment, Hagrid was wrestling Buckbeak back into his collar as he strained to get at Malfoy, who lay curled in the grass, blood blossoming over his robes. â€Å"I'm dying!† Malfoy yelled as the class panicked. â€Å"I'm dying, look at me! It's killed me!† â€Å"Yer not dyin'!† said Hagrid, who had gone very white. â€Å"Someone help me — gotta get him outta here –â€Å" Hermione ran to hold open the gate as Hagrid lifted Malfoy easily. As they passed, Harry saw that there was a long, deep gash on Malfoy's arm; blood splattered the grass and Hagrid ran with him, up the slope toward the castle. Very shaken, the Care of Magical Creatures class followed at a walk. The Slytherins were all shouting about Hagrid. â€Å"They should sack him straight away!† said Pansy Parkinson, who was in tears. â€Å"It was Malfoy's fault!† snapped Dean Thomas. Crabbe and Goyle flexed their muscles threateningly. They all climbed the stone steps into the deserted entrance hall. â€Å"I'm going to see if he's okay!† said Pansy, and they all watched her run up the marble staircase. The Slytherins, still muttering about Hagrid, headed away in the direction of their dungeon common room; Harry, Ron, and Hermione proceeded upstairs to Gryffindor Tower. â€Å"You think he'll be all right?† said Hermione nervously. â€Å"Course he will. Madam Pomfrey can mend cuts in about a second,† said Harry, who had had far worse injuries mended magically by the nurse. â€Å"That was a really bad thing to happen in Hagrid's first class, though, wasn't it?† said Ron, looking worried. â€Å"Trust Malfoy to mess things up for him†¦Ã¢â‚¬  They were among the first to reach the Great Hall at dinnertime, hoping to see Hagrid, but he wasn't there. â€Å"They wouldn't fire him, would they?† said Hermione anxiously, not touching her steak-and-kidney pudding. â€Å"They'd better not,† said Ron, who wasn't eating either. Harry was watching the Slytherin table. A large group including Crabbe and Goyle was huddled together, deep in conversation. Harry was sure they were cooking up their own version of how Malfoy had been injured. â€Å"Well, you can't say it wasn't an interesting first day back,† said Ron gloomily. They went up to the crowded Gryffindor common room after dinner and tried to do the homework Professor McGonagall had given them, but all three of them kept breaking off and glancing out of the tower window. â€Å"There's a light on in Hagrid's window,† Harry said suddenly. Ron looked at his watch. â€Å"If we hurried, we could go down and see him. It's still quite early†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I don't know,† Hermione said slowly, and Harry saw her glance at him. â€Å"I'm allowed to walk across the grounds,† he said pointedly. â€Å"Sirius Black hasn't got past the Dementors yet, has he?† So they put their things away and headed out of the portrait hole, glad to meet nobody on their way to the front doors, as they weren't entirely sure they were supposed to be out. The grass was still wet and looked almost black in the twilight. When they reached Hagrid's hut, they knocked, and a voice growled, â€Å"C'min.† Hagrid was sitting in his shirtsleeves at his scrubbed wooden table; his boarhound, Fang, had his head in Hagrid's lap. One look told them that Hagrid had been drinking a lot; there was a pewter tankard almost as big as a bucket in front of him, and he seemed to be having difficulty getting them into focus. â€Å"‘Spect it's a record,† he said thickly, when he recognized them. â€Å"Don' reckon they've ever had a teacher who lasted on'y a day before.† â€Å"You haven't been fired, Hagrid!† gasped Hermione. â€Å"Not yet,† said Hagrid miserably, taking a huge gulp of whatever was in the tankard. â€Å"But's only a matter o' time, I'n't, after Malfoy†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"How is he?† said Ron as they all sat down. â€Å"It wasn't serious, was it?† â€Å"Madam Pomfrey fixed him best she could,† said Hagrid dully, â€Å"but he's sayin' it's still agony†¦covered in bandages†¦moanin'†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"He's faking it,† said Harry at once. â€Å"Madam Pomfrey can mend anything. She regrew half my bones last year. Trust Malfoy to milk it for all it's worth.† â€Å"School gov'nors have bin told, o' course,† said Hagrid miserably. â€Å"They reckon I started too big. Shoulda left Hippogriffs fer later†¦one flobberworms or summat†¦Jus' thought it'd make a good firs' lesson's all my fault†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"It's all Malfoy's fault, Hagrid!† said Hermione earnestly. â€Å"We're witnesses,† said Harry. â€Å"You said Hippogriffs attack if you insult them. It's Malfoy's problem that he wasn't listening. We'll tell Dumbledore what really happened.† â€Å"Yeah, don't worry, Hagrid, we'll back you up,† said Ron. Tears leaked out of the crinkled corners of Hagrid's beetle-black eyes. He grabbed both Harry and Ron and pulled them into a bone-breaking hug. â€Å"I think you've had enough to drink, Hagrid,† said Hermione firmly. She took the tankard from the table and went outside to empty it. â€Å"Ah, maybe she's right,† said Hagrid, letting go of Harry and Ron, who both staggered away, rubbing their ribs. Hagrid heaved himself out of his chair and followed Hermione unsteadily outside. They heard a loud splash. â€Å"What's he done?† said Harry nervously as Hermione came back in with the empty tankard. â€Å"Stuck his head in the water barrel,† said Hermione, putting the tankard away. Hagrid came back, his long hair and beard sopping wet, wiping the water out of his eyes. â€Å"That's better,† he said, shaking his head like a dog and drenching them all. â€Å"Listen, it was good of yeh ter come an' see me, I really –â€Å" Hagrid stopped dead, staring at Harry as though he'd only just realized he was there. â€Å"WHAT D'YEH THINK YOU'RE DOIN', EH?† he roared, so suddenly that they jumped a foot in the air. â€Å"YEH'RE NOT TO GO WANDERIN' AROUND AFTER DARK, HARRY! AN, YOU TWO! LETTIN' HIM!† Hagrid strode over to Harry, grabbed his arm, and pulled him to the door. â€Å"C'mon!† Hagrid said angrily. â€Å"I'm takin' yer all back up ter school an' don' let me catch yeh walkin' down ter see me after dark again. I'm not worth that!†

SCARED SHITLESS Professor Ramos Blog

SCARED SHITLESS Imagine being in a foreign country, it’s raining, you are cold, you do not have the slightest idea of where you are at, and people are screaming at you in a language you do not understand. This is how my first day in Germany went. It was September of 2018, I was eighteen years old when my grandma had taken me to Munich, Germany for my high school graduation gift. My grandma and I had just dropped our stuff off at our hotel and wanted to walk around for a bit. We had taken the subway from near our hotel to the center of town. We got off of the train and made our way to the surface. When we got to the surface, it was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. I could hear my grandma say, â€Å"Oh my God.†, under her breathe as she looked up in amazement. There was a huge beautiful church with gold statues all over it. There were also statues of kings that used to rule and knights on horses. There were flowers all over the church as well that were blooming with vib rant shades of pink and blue. After checking the church out, we walked around Marienplatz, which is the center hub of Munich, just getting the feel for where we would be staying at for the next two weeks. It was about thirty five degrees out and there was a downpour of rain. My grandma and I had no idea where we were headed, but we were just going with the flow. We had seen a great deal of wonderful places until we made a wrong turn. We turned right in the center of a huge Syrian protest that was going on. We tried to quickly make our way out of a possible disastrous situation by moving along the outside of the crowd. People were waving around Syrian flags while there were other people with megaphones chanting phrases in Arabic while the crowd chanted along. We could see police on the other end of the square with riot gear on carrying sub machine guns trying to control the crowd, but it was not working. The crowd was getting even angrier. As we were swiftly walking through the crowd, there were men screaming at my grandma and I had no idea why. It’s pouring rain, we were cold, we were scared, we had no idea where we are at and there are people screaming at us in Arabic and German. What a great way to celebrate. As my grandma and I were now making our way out of the crowd when we finally spotted a familiar sight. It was the subway tunnel we had come out of when we first arrived. We now had an idea of where we were at and headed to the subway. I had noticed my shoe was untied, so we stopped so I could tie it. That is when we saw 3 police officers walking our way. I did not think anything of it since we had done nothing wrong. I quickly tied my shoe and we headed to the subway. Before we walked down the stairs leading to the train, we turned around and looked to see if they were still following right behind us and sure enough, there they were. As we made our way down the stairs, my grandma whispered to me, â€Å"What should we do?† We came up with two options: turn around and talk to them or just keep going and see if they even stop us. Of course in the heat of the moment, we chose to keep going and avoid a situation that might not even happen. As we were headed to the train, just as we thought we were in the clear, we could see even more men with Syrian flags getting off of the train. Some of them were screaming and chanting and harrassing people that passed by them or even simply looked at them. We looked back yet again and the police were still behind us. In that very moment, I was glad they were. I knew they would protect us if something were to happen to us or anyone near us. One of the protestors ended up getting in a scuffle with a German man, so the police officers that were following us, now had to intervene in the situation. We still have no idea why they were following us for so long. Our train had finally arrived. As we got on the train, yet another pair of police officers got on at the same time. Again, we thought nothing of it since we have still yet to do anything wrong or to even get their attention. My grandma and I found a couple of spots to sit at in the back corner of the train. We just sat there, silent, cold and our clothes soaking wet. We both looked up at each other at the same time and she cried as I laughed. We both had very different reactions to stress and fear. Just as our emotions and adrenaline were settled, the same police officers that got on the train with us were now staring at us walking our way. All I could think was, â€Å"Oh great.† They came up to my grandma and I and were trying to talk to us. Of course we could not understand them since we do not speak German. â€Å"Do you speak English?†, we kept repeating. It was apparent they did not because they just kept raising their voices at us to the point where they were scre aming in our faces. For the second time within two hours, we were getting yelled at in a foreign language. Finally a nice young lady stepped in that spoke both English and German. She turned to us and calmly said, â€Å"They want to see your train tickets.† So we pulled our tickets out and handed them over. The police officers checked our tickets, handed them back and then walked away. I don’t know how the young lady was so calm in such a hectic situation, but I’m grateful she was. We finally made it to our stop and walked back to our hotel. We headed straight to the bar in the lobby. As my grandma and I had sat down at the bar and grabbed our well overdue drinks, my grandma turned to me and said, â€Å"What a fucking day†, and proceeded to take a sip of her drink. This was the most surprising thing that had happened all day to me because I have never heard my grandma use profane language in my whole life. The very next day, we went on a tour of the city, who could’ve guessed who our guide was. It was the same young lady that helped us on the train. We ended up having a wonderful trip and we did not let the ordeal discourage us from having fun.

Statistics on Victoria, the Capital of British Columbia, Canada

Statistics on Victoria, the Capital of British Columbia, Canada Victoria is the capital city of the province of British Columbia, Canada. Victoria is a gateway to the Pacific Rim, is close to U.S. Markets, and has many sea and air links that make it a business hub. With the mildest climate in Canada, Victoria is known for its gardens and is a clean and charming city. Victoria holds many reminders of both its native and British heritage, and views of totem poles combine with afternoon tea. The focus of downtown Victoria is the inner harbor, overlooked by the Parliament Buildings and the historic Fairmont Empress Hotel. Location of Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island.See a  map of Victoria Area 19.47 sq. km (7.52 sq. miles) (Statistics Canada, 2011 Census) Population 80,017 (Statistics Canada, 2011 Census) Date Victoria Incorporated as a City 1862 Date Victoria Became the Capital City of British Columbia 1871 Government of the City of Victoria After the 2014 election, Victoria municipal elections will be held every four years rather than three. Date of the last Victoria municipal election: Saturday, November 15, 2014 Victorias city council is made up of nine elected representatives: one mayor and eight city councillors. Victoria Mayor Lisa HelpsVictoria City Councillors Victoria Attractions Major attractions in the capital city include: Parliament Buildings, home of the BC Legislative AssemblyButchart GardensRoyal BC MuseumMaritime Museum of BCFairmont Empress HotelTrans Canada Trail Weather in Victoria Victoria has the mildest climate in Canada, and with an eight-month frost-free season flowers bloom year-round. The average annual rainfall for Victoria is 66.5 cm (26.2 in.), far less than in Vancouver, BC or New York City. Summers in Victoria are pleasantly warm and dry with an average maximum temperature in July and August of 21.8 °C (71 °F). Victoria winters are mild, with rain and the occasional light snow. The average temperature in January is 3 °C (38 °F). Spring can start as early as February. City of Victoria Official Site City of Victoria Capital Cities of Canada For information on the other capital cities in Canada, see Capital Cities of Canada.

How to Ask for a Graduate School Letter of Recommendation

How to Ask for a Graduate School Letter of Recommendation Recommendation letters are a critical component of your graduate school application, yet are entirely dependent on other people―your professors. How you request a letter influences professors responses and ultimately the quality of your recommendation. How to Request a Recommendation Letter Dont request a recommendation letter by email.Dont spring it on the faculty member. Dont ask before or after class, in the hall, or at any other seemingly random time.Arrange an appointment, explaining that you wish to discuss your plans to apply to graduate school. This gives the professor a heads up and a chance to think about whether he or she can write a helpful letter on your behalf.Don’t ask, â€Å"could you write a letter?† Instead ask, â€Å"Do you feel that you are able to write a helpful letter supporting my application to graduate school? Ask whether the faculty member feels that he or she can write a helpful letter. You don’t need any old letter―you need a good letter.Prepare. Be prepared to discuss the type of degree you seek, programs to which you are applying, how you arrived at your choices, goals for graduate study, future aspirations, and why you believe the faculty member is a good candidate to write a letter of your behalf.Remember to tell the professor the application due date. This may influence his or her decision. What Your Professor Needs to Write Your Letter Time.  Give the faculty member enough time to write a good letter. Writing a letter of recommendation isnt easy. Ask at least a month before the due date. Earlier is better given that faculty need to adjust their schedule.Don’t make faculty rush as it will result in an average or even mediocre letter. When every recommendation letter an admissions committee receives is stellar, an  average letter will hurt your application.Understand that even if you give a professor a month to write your recommendation letter he or she might not submit it until just before the deadline. Its a sad reality: Profs procrastinate too.Give the professor what he or she needs to write an informed letter, including recommendation forms, transcript, essays, and other essential information. Dont forget to include relevant links and emails for online applications.If your prof requests hard copies, print out information for each program so that faculty member has the information they need to tailor th eir letter of recommendation to the program (very effective, if they choose that route). Be neat. Place all of your documentation in a folder and neatly label each item. Clip each recommendation form to supporting documentation, relevant admissions essays, and a stamped envelope. Use a sticky note to mark the deadline on each. Neatness counts because it makes professors’ jobs easier and sends the message that you are organized.If your prof requests electronic documents, place all files into one folder and organize them by using descriptive titles. Again, be neat. Seek Advice and Pay Attention Ask for input on your choices and overall advice. If the faculty member offers to review your admissions essay, take him or her up on it―and use their advice to improve your essay.Pay attention to signals that a faculty member does not want to write a letter on your behalf. Anything other than a glowing letter can harm your application. You dont want a lukewarm letter―it’s the kiss of death.Take no for an answer. If a faculty declines to write you a recommendation letter, dont push. He or she is actually doing you a favor.

World War I and II Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

World War I and II - Essay Example The First World War can be attributed to change in distribution of power in the international system and the many alliances which had been formed prior to the war to protect interests of different states (Dickson, 2011). This enabled all the European states to be drawn into the war making it the greatest war ever fought. However, there are many other causes which led and intensified the war. These include; arms race, nationalism, imperialism and militarism among others. The great powers involved in the war included Britain, Italy, France, Germany, Russia, and the Austria-Hungary Empire. The Second World War on the other hand, was as a result of dissatisfaction with the conditions of the peace treaty signed after the First World War and struggle for power by states. However, there are other important factors that contributed to the war such as the great depression of 1930s, the rise of totalitarianism, policy of appeasement, failure of the League of Nations as well as ideologies such as anti-communism, fascism, nationalism, and militarism among others (Dickson, 2011).... eaders followed social Darwinist ideas which view war as â€Å"the only powerful force of nature through which stronger nations prevail over the weaker ones in an international struggle of the fittest.† The international system culture was also that of tolerance to war; disputes between nations were better settled through war rather than negotiation and this created a good environment for nations to wage war against each other in order to maintain or gain power over others. Dickson (2007) argues that the culture of tolerance enabled European powers to assert their power and influence. This is what led Germany to support Austria-Hungary in its quest for war against Serbia after it failed to honour an ultimatum issued by Austria-Hungary demanding justice. Austria-Hungary had severed relations with Serbia as it had a lot of influence on the Balkans hence had long planned to wage war against Serbia. The war was supposed to be small scale but due to the alliance system, the war esc alated to a great magnitude. The alliance system began with Bismarck’s desire to unify Germany with the confederate states hence the war with Austria in the north and France in the south. The two were defeated by Prussia and the confederate states united to form the German empire. The loss of Alsace and Lorraine to Prussia left France yearning for revenge against Germany and was just waiting for an opportunity to attack. Germany’s desire to become a world power led it into acquiring more states and hence needed protection against the other powers. It thus started forming alliances with other powers so as to guard against any attacks from France or Russia. Germany formed an alliance with Austria-Hungary and Russia but Russia withdrew later hence the dual alliance to aid each other in case of

Critical Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Critical Review - Essay Example From this, five study cohorts were organized with each cohort grouped in two: one group receiving CBT and the other one receiving ST. Data on all participants assessed at baseline, post-treatment, 3 month, and 12-month follow-up on measures of symptoms, mood, self-esteem, insight, social functioning, and hospitalizations by research assistants blind to treatment group were treated with importance and analysed utilising the general linear models (GLM) comparing outcomes (continuous variables) across time for the two treatment groups and also for categorical outcomes. Primary results of the study which centre on the beliefs as to the severity of voices and global auditory hallucinations were measured utilising the Psychotic Symptom Rating Scales for auditory hallucinations (PSYRATS) and the Belief about Voices Questionnaire—Revised (BAVQ-R), while the secondary outcomes which include psychotic symptoms, self-esteem, social functioning, insight, depression, and hospitalization we re measured through interview and self-report utilising Social Functioning Scale (SFS); the Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II); the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES); and the Beck Cognitive Insight Scale (BCIS). Results of the study indicate that both interventions are beneficial although on different outcomes: Enhanced ST was specifically effective in reducing auditory hallucinations, while group CBT was found specifically effective in reducing general psychotic symptoms. The inconsistency of these results with other recent group CBT studies – Barrowclough et al. (2006), Bechdolf et al. (2004) nor Wykes et al. (2005) – may be attributed to the basic differences of the participants in this study from those previous current studies which may have resulted to differences in a number of variables. More importantly, although enhance ST and group CBT have proven effective in different outcomes, the positive impact of enhanced ST on beliefs about auditory hallucinations

Corporate Balanced Scorecard Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Corporate Balanced Scorecard - Research Paper Example The balanced scorecard has long been integrated with management to make sure that the appropriate level of control is taken into consideration while obtaining corporate goals has become a primary factor to engage in maximizing operation. In various departments of an organization, the corporate balanced scorecard is a remarkable tool to help improve or ensure substantial operation that would lead to the company’s competitive advantage. For instance, in marketing department, it is important to make sure that significant information should be obtained from customers to guarantee high level of customer satisfaction and to make sure repeat purchase or positive word of mouth on certain product or service offerings. For this reason, it is important for companies to collect information from the customers in order to identify the level of customer satisfaction. In the balanced scorecard, the actual level of customer satisfaction should be set as the evaluative measure to know if there has been a good effort created that must have contributed to the actual level of performance concerning customer satisfaction. ... vel of satisfaction it serves primarily to the marketing department, because it is appropriate and substantial response with considerable haste could contribute to the actual level of customer satisfaction to be generated by the organization. Balanced scorecard is therefore a very important tool that would help enhance corporate performance. There are many things organizations should learn about it as a primary tool to help them realize adding a higher value for their customers, financial standing, learning and growth and internal business process. The purpose of this paper is therefore to explore the literature concerning corporate balanced scorecard, and the summary of information of organization using it. In finding these, there would be significant basis on certain conclusion why corporate balanced scorecard is used by specific organization. So it is important that the primary information about an organization should be well evaluated in order to find out at which point corporate balanced scorecard has been making sense in its actual purpose and usage. There are many literatures linked with the balanced scorecard and it is the intention of the proponent to integrate them into the actual discussion of this report. Furthermore, the integration of information concerning the organization using the corporate balanced scorecard is also taken into account in understanding possible implications of performance measurement and control. Literature review on corporate balanced scorecard The balanced scorecard was introduced by David Norton and Robert Kaplan in 1992 as they were interested to study performance measurement that would include tangible assets for value creation (Kaplan, 2008). They were primarily inspired to know about measurement for driving performance

The Issue of Validity in Qualitative Research in Education Essay

The Issue of Validity in Qualitative Research in Education - Essay Example Research methods appeared to be applied in the field of education only in recent times. Among these methods we can also notice the qualitative research method though even now its application remains limited. Many researches like Johnson /1995, p.5/ believe that â€Å"qualitative techniques are powerful tools for intensifying our understanding of teaching and learning†. He also agrees to the fact that these methodologies received ever growing popularity and acceptance over the last years. Yet it should be mentioned that although qualitative methods are very useful still many researches know little of them and the usage of these methods present great difficulties to them /Stallings, 1995, p.31/. Scholars believe that the main benefit in usage qualitative methods in education is more complete description of a phenomenon. The final objective of usage of qualitative method is better understanding of the information through giving additional details and appealing to the reader’s experience / Stake, 1978, p.5/. Qualitative research is used in the education process for several reasons. First of all qualitative research assist in understanding new of badly investigated phenomenon /Strauss & Corbin, 1990, p.42/. Secondly, qualitative research helps to comprehend new details about the phenomenon, which is already investigated. And finally qualitative research provides more deep and profound information which can’t be done by quantitative methods / Hoepfl/. Still the benefit of the qualitative method to the education can not be fully and explicitly defined. For example, Lancy believes that â€Å"...topic, theory, and methodology are usually closely interrelated in qualitative research† /Lancy, 1993, p.18/. Other researchers like Glesne and Peshkin claim that qualitative research covers many â€Å"philosophical orientations to interpretive research† and deals with a bride range of disciplines like educational criticism, ethnography, case

Quiz1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Quiz1 - Essay Example However, halting the talks means that the world losses the gains that would have come from multilateral trade. The rules responsible for governing antidumping laws and other important rules in trade are managed by the world trade organization WTO and the preferential trade agreements, but in case of conflicts, the WTO’s rules prevailed over the PTA. This means that countries like the U.S impose rules on other weaker partners that are rejected by other economies such as the Indian and the Chinese economies (Bhagwati). Without the multilateral trade agreements, templates developed by big economies such as the U.S rule over other countries. Additionally, the templates extend to other fields outside trade like the environmental issues as well as the labor standards. The U.S is seeking major emerging economies with similar ideas about trade so that they can form their own templates. When such ideas are combined, they will benefit the stronger trading partners and oppress the other members. Moreover, third world countries will have little influence on overall ideas suggested by the developed countries. This implies that the hegemonic countries like the U.S will benefit from the agreements alone. Such interests have made these developed countries to halt the talks that may take time to reach an

DQ 7 m 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

DQ 7 m 5 - Essay Example Whereas it is believed that all traits of leadership cannot be taken as a concrete path but can be observed as per situation and according to the system of an organization. In the article, â€Å"What a Racquet?† it is briefed that the success of Wilson’s Company is based on the approach towards observing leadership style in his organization. The main reason of its successful journey is the charismatic approach. Charismatic Leadership is based on the leader’s exceptional insights and foresightedness to understand and predict all the consequences if certain things lack, therefore immediate measures are taken to avoid loss before hand (Raelin, J. A. (2003). Weber refers Charismatic Leadership as a more spiritual belief or connection between a leader and his followers. Author refers Jim Baugh as a charismatic leader because he possibly worked for the reasons of failures and he worked his best to come up with a product which fulfills the customers’ demands with perfection. In my opinion, he firstly worked on the issues which can cause major loss if not addressed initially and immediately, like knowing the customer’s demand before designing a product can assure sales or concentrating on the key point of marketing a product can publicize to acknowledge mass majorities (John Bell, 1997) Charismatic Leadership is something which is not produced artificially after training, but it’s a niche of a person which can be groomed but cannot be infused. Meindl says that it is a social contagion, which is slightly arguable because there are many options or business tactics which are common and can be observed easily like Jim Baugh did but Leaders sometimes skip them though they are proved to be good leaders with appropriate sense of leadership. It is because they lack foresightedness or their instincts are not approaching for the things that should be done before to avoid negative repercussions. (David Obstfeld, 2005) Sensemaking is

Quiz1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Quiz1 - Essay Example However, halting the talks means that the world losses the gains that would have come from multilateral trade. The rules responsible for governing antidumping laws and other important rules in trade are managed by the world trade organization WTO and the preferential trade agreements, but in case of conflicts, the WTO’s rules prevailed over the PTA. This means that countries like the U.S impose rules on other weaker partners that are rejected by other economies such as the Indian and the Chinese economies (Bhagwati). Without the multilateral trade agreements, templates developed by big economies such as the U.S rule over other countries. Additionally, the templates extend to other fields outside trade like the environmental issues as well as the labor standards. The U.S is seeking major emerging economies with similar ideas about trade so that they can form their own templates. When such ideas are combined, they will benefit the stronger trading partners and oppress the other members. Moreover, third world countries will have little influence on overall ideas suggested by the developed countries. This implies that the hegemonic countries like the U.S will benefit from the agreements alone. Such interests have made these developed countries to halt the talks that may take time to reach an

INTERPOL etc. communications between international law enforcement Essay

INTERPOL etc. communications between international law enforcement agencies - Essay Example These law enforcement agencies are to some extent, geographically restricted in their ability to apply law enforcement powers. The LEA may be capable of applying its powers within a nation, for instance, the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, or within a partition of a country, such as the Australian state's Queensland Police, or, across a group of nations, like global organizations such as the Interpol. These law enforcement agencies that operate across an assemblage of countries help out in law enforcement activities, rather than directly enforcing laws by smoothing the progress in the sharing of information necessary for law enforcement between other enforcement agencies within different countries. In the forefront of battling international criminal elements is the Interpol. Founded and established in Vienna, Austria in 1923, The International Criminal Police Commission works for the objective of instigating global collaboration of criminal police forces (Deflem, 2000, pp. 601-640). Essentially, the ICPC was instituted as an international cooperative set-up of national police organizations with systems for worldwide telegraphic and radio communications and a journal published on a regular basis which conveys significant information among its member-states. By 1940, the Commission embodied more than 40 states, which included many known European powers like France, Germany, and Italy as well as some non-European countries, such as Bolivia, Iran, and Cuba. Basically, the International Criminal Police Organization-Interpol is the only worldwide organization of its kind with 177 member nations of which the General Secretariat is located in Lyons, France. The most important task of Interpol is to prop up police forces and the services of its member countries in their effort to thwart crimes and to carry out criminal investigations as competently and successfully as possible. So as to provide this support to member countries, Interpol conducts all its activities within the following three fundamental functions (UN, 2006, PP. 2-4): Secure international police communications services The essential prerequisite for worldwide police collaboration is to enable police personnel to communicate with each other safely and in real time globally, So as to give the international law enforcement community the best channels of communication, Interpol has crafted and executed a high-tech, global communications structure, commonly dubbed as the I-24/7. It facilitates the transmission of significant data about individuals and crimes, including photographs, fingerprints and DNA profiles, to its member countries, in a safe method within a matter of seconds. Currently, 183 of its 184 member countries are connected to this system. Operational data services and databases Once law enforcers can communicate globally, they need access to information to aid in their investigations or to take the necessary steps to deter transgressions and felonies. Hence, Interpol developed and maintains an extensive array of global databases, covering major data like names of criminals and suspected individuals, search requests for wanted persons, fingerprints,

Risk and Crisis Management

Risk and Crisis Management JAMES WALKER INTRODUCTION Risk and Crisis Management deal with threats to organizations. The organizations mitigate threats by applying management programs. Risk Management deals with threats prior to the event occurring while crisis management deals with threats when it unfolds or after the event occurs. Crisis examples would be natural occurrences, faulty equipment, human error, conflicts, intentional efforts, and imperfect leaderships. (Department of Homeland Security, 2009) (Shrivastava and Miglani, 1988) For this assignment, it will discuss following: the difference between risk and crisis management and the role of the National Response Framework (NRF) and the National Incident Management System (NIMS) plays, do I consider crisis management a part of risk management, and describe the possible types of crisis faced by my organization and which is important to be prepared for and why. RISK AND CRISIS MANAGEMENT The definitions of Risk and Crisis Management do vary, but generally the two deal with how organizations plan, prepare, and mitigate. Crisis Management is processes that are allocated to manage unexpected incidents that threat organizations, operations, and individual or group of people. (Australian Government, 2010) A crisis does happen without warnings and it is utmost important that plans are in place to be able to execute quickly (reactive) such actions to remedy situations or decrease the impact of a crisis to reestablish normality. Risk Management is a continuous process which threats are emphasized and solutions are in place to mitigate or avoid the risks (proactive). No matter how well prepared the procedures are for risk management, a requirement for any organizations or groups need to have a crisis management plan in place. (Australian Government, 2010) The NRFs role to crisis and risk management is providing the guidance for the Nation to all responses to occurrences and it is created upon scalable, flexible, and adaptable coordinating structures to associate roles and responsibilities. Furthermore, it gives the authorities and best customs for managing incidents or occurrences (Policy for Crisis Management). (Department of Homeland Security, 2009, 2013, and 2015) For NRF to support the role of crisis and risk management, it is comprised of core documents, the Emergency Support Functions (ESF), Support and Incident Annexes, and Partner Guides. The core documents discuss the responses, roles, and responsibilities for our nation to include response actions, organizations, and planning requirements. (Department of Homeland Security, 2009, 2013, and 2015) The ESF is the resources and abilities from Federal and State that are functional areas that are needed for a response such as Transportation, Law Enforcements, Mass Care, and Firefig hting to name a few. Support Annexes are the essential support aspects that are common to occurrences or incidents such as Financial Management and Coordination from private sectors. The Incident Annexes are the aspects how to respond to incident categories such as Biological, Nuclear, Radiological, Cyber, and Mass Evacuation. Lastly, the Partner Guides give the references to discuss the key roles and actions for Local, Tribal, State, Federal, and Private-Sector response teams. (Department of Homeland Security, 2009, 2013, and 2015) The NIMS works hand in hand with the NRF. NIMS role in crisis and risk management is to give the guidance for command and management structures of incidents to organizations or people. It provides the methodical and proactive tactics at all levels of governments to include private sectors to work efficiently to prevent, protect, respond, recover, and mitigate incidents or occurrences no matter the cause, location, size, and the complexity. (Department of Homeland Security, 2008 and 2009) (FEMA, 2013 and 2016) The question to think about is crisis management a part of risk management. A good risk management process minimizes loss when occurrences arise. A good crisis management is essential, but it should not be replaced for risk management processes. Regardless having a robust risk management process, occurrences or crisis will happen and cannot be predicted. The preparation to deal with and act immediately is essential when it comes to the two being a part of each other (plan, prepare, and mitigate). (Department of Homeland Security, 2009) (FEMA, 2013) (James and James, 2008) A good structure for risk and crisis management process maximizes the ability to act and minimizes losses. Crisis and Risk Management would discipline a broader context of management for identifying, assessing, understanding, and coping with the occurrences. Additionally, they would influence the preventing, alleviating, and overcoming different types of crisis. In the end, risk management assesses the threat levels and allows for ways to avoid the potential threats. Crisis Management deals with threats prior, during, and after the occurrence. (Australian Government, 2010) (Department of Homeland Security, 2009) (FEMA, 2013) TYPES OF CRISIS IN MY ORGANIZATION Crises in telecommunication organizations arise all the time. Telecommunications have four threats associated such as compliance, operational, strategic, and financial threats. Compliance deals with the laws, regulations and corporate governance. Operational is the impacts on the processes, systems, and people to include the overall value of the organization. Strategic relates to our customers and investors to include competitors. Lastly, Financial is the instability to keep up with technology, fixing hardware failures, updates on software and have the proper training for the employees. (EY, 2014) (MSG, 2017) The threats have crisiss that are underlined. The number one crisis is the new roles of involving industry ecosystems. The realization and understanding the importance of the new growth opportunities, customer satisfaction, and competitors to keep up with technology is a big issue and it is the driver in todays digital world (new technologies). The Compliance threat has crisiss dealing with controlling new structures and essentials in privacy and security. Additionally, the mentioned would be the second importance in a telecommunication organization. The obedience with policy and security is not regulated to protect our data. It is the reason we have the breaches in our ecosystems. (EY, 2014) (MSG, 2017) The crises in Operation threats have organizational agility especially dealing with diverse ecosystems and fostering innovation. Furthermore, the issues with data integrity to drive growth and efficiency including performance measurements. The crises in Strategic threats have customer satisfaction issues, new services available, and simplicity and flexibility to include adopting new innovation methods to improve the networks (ecosystems). The crises in financial is always going to be dealing with competitors with new technologies to improve the heterogeneous network landscape for the diverse networks. (EY, 2014) (MSG, 2017) CONCLUSION Risk and Crisis Management deals with threats to organizations. The organizations mitigate threats by applying management programs. Risk Management deals with threats prior to the event occurring while crisis management deals with threats when it unfolds or after the event occurs. Crisis examples would be natural occurrences, faulty equipment, human error, conflicts, intentional efforts, and imperfect leaderships. (Department of Homeland Security, 2009) (Shrivastava and Miglani, 1988) The NRFs role to crisis and risk management is providing the guidance for the Nation to all responses to occurrences and it is created upon scalable, flexible, and adaptable coordinating structures to associate roles and responsibilities. Furthermore, it gives the authorities and best customs for managing incidents or occurrences (Policy for Crisis Management). For NRF to support the role of crisis and risk management, it is comprised of core documents, the Emergency Support Functions (ESF), Support and Incident Annexes, and Partner Guides. (Department of Homeland Security, 2009, 2013, and 2015) The NIMS role in crisis and risk management is to give the guidance for command and management structures of incidents to organizations or people. It provides the methodical and proactive tactics at all levels of governments to include private sectors to work efficiently to prevent, protect, respond, recover, and mitigate incidents or occurrences no matter the cause, location, size, and the c omplexity. (Department of Homeland Security, 2008 and 2009) (FEMA, 2013 and 2016) My organization deals with telecommunication and crises are always arising all the time. Telecommunications have four threats associated such as compliance, operational, strategic, and financial threats. The number one crisis that falls under compliance is the new roles of involving industry ecosystems. The realization and understanding the importance of the new growth opportunities, customer satisfaction, and competitors to keep up with technology and it is the drive for todays digital world (new technologies). (EY, 2014) (MSG, 2017) The crises dealing with controlling new structures and essentials for privacy and security with the networks would be the second issue. It is the second importance in a telecommunication organization. The obedience with policy and security is not regulated to protect our data. It is the reason we have the breaches in our networks. (EY, 2014) (MSG, 2017) BIBLIOGRAPHY Australian Government (2010). AS/NZS ISO 31000 (2009), Risk Management-Principles and  Guidelines, Retrieved from: http://www.finance.gov.au/sites/default/files/COV_Risk_Management_Fact_Sheet_FA3_23082010_0.pdf, August 2010. Department of Homeland Security (2012). Department of Homeland Security Strategic Plan:  Fiscal Years 2012-2016, Retrieved from: https://www.hsdl.org/?viewdid=700830. 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