The International Telecommunication Union ( Itu ) Defines...

Today our society has evolved beyond the expectations of our founding fathers. Humans flying through the air from destination to destination, being able to send information almost instantaneously, to receiving high definition photos of the furthest celestial bodies known in our solar system, our technology has literally and figuratively rocketed the human race into the future. While our technology becomes increasingly more advanced so does the ability to steal information from these systems. Cyber Security is one of the biggest threats our nation faces as we become more dependent on the use of technology in our day to day lives. What is Cyber Security? The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) defines Cyber Security as â€Å"Cybersecurity is the collection of tools, policies, security concepts, security safeguards, guidelines, risk management approaches, actions, training, best practices, assurance and technologies that can be used to protect the cyber environment and organization and user’s assets. Organization and user’s assets include connected computing devices, personnel, infrastructure, applications, services, telecommunications systems, and the totality of transmitted and/or stored information in the cyber environment.† (ITU, 2008) Cyber-attacks have become ever prevalent in our society as the use of cell phones, emails, and computers become our primary source of sending and receiving information. To fully understand Cyber Security, we must delve into the history ofShow MoreRelatedThe International Telecommunication Union ( Itu ) Defines Cyber Security1547 Words   |  7 P agesthese systems. Cyber Security is one of the biggest threats our nation faces as we become more dependent on the use of technology in our day to day lives. What is Cyber Security? The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) defines Cyber Security as â€Å"Cybersecurity is the collection of tools, policies, security concepts, security safeguards, guidelines, risk management approaches, actions, training, best practices, assurance and technologies that can be used to protect the cyber environment andRead MoreCyber Crime Costs And Its Effects On The World Essay1854 Words   |  8 Pagestheft, hactivism, cyberterrorism, cyberextortion, online fraud and financial crimes committed on the Internet, has became a more and more severe problem for people around the world. According to Forbes.com, Cyber Crime Costs Projected To Reach $2 Trillion by 2019. From 2013 to 2015 the cyber crime costs quadrupled, and it looks like there will be another quadrupling from 2015 to 2019. Juniper research recently predicted that the rapid digitization of consumers’ lives and enterprise records willRead MoreEssay on Cyber Crime and Cyber Law2728 Wor ds   |  11 Pagesand internet enable the business organizations to execute the Electronic commerce business model, which has become very popular. Computers and Internet are a powerful source in the success of globalization and international business. Computers are being used worldwide and due to this, cyber crimes are increasing continuously with a rapid growth (Cheeseman, 2006). These types of crimes have become a matter of importance for the consumers as well the business firms because it involves large evictionRead MoreCyber Crime2238 Words   |  9 PagesAnalysis of Cyber Crime awareness among youth Abstract: Cyber crime is emerging as a serious threat. Worldwide governments, police departments and intelligence units have started to react. One of the many approaches to enable students and other peoples to protect themselves from the ever-increasing amount and range of cybercrime. This is relevant to students studying different aspects of undergraduate and postgraduate computing. This paper discusses the views of youngRead MoreTypes Of Hackers And Cloud Computing Essay2269 Words   |  10 Pagesprovider of cloud, third party organization and even the customer for gaining more access for propagating attacks against integrity, confidentiality as well as information availability within the service of cloud. Despite the insider and the external cyber con artists can be conspicuously distinguished, their ability for executing successful attacks is which segregates them as a risk to the vendors and customers alike. In the environment of cloud attackers might be distinguished into 4 kinds includingRead MoreA Swot and Pest Analysis10002 Words   |  41 Pages robust educational system to generate tech-savvy future employees and low cost of phone calls. Singapore has continuously improved in order to prepare to deal with new threats and challenges such as the significant increase in the number cyber crimes, security and privacy concern. KEYWORDS: e-Filling, e-Government, e-Information, e-Litigation, e-Payment, e-Procurement, e-Service, e-User, G2B, G2C, G2E. ASIA-PACIFIC SOCIAL SCIENCE REVIEW 103 E-GOVERNMENT IN SINGAPORE—A SWOT AND PEST ANALYSIS Read MoreEthics of Information Communication Technology (Ict)27618 Words   |  111 Pagesadvancement, political stability, religious causes, the campaign against terrorism, or for personal greed and interests. Violations of these rights have created new problems in human social systems, such as the digital divide, cybercrime, digital security and privacy concerns, all of which have affected people’s lives either directly or indirectly. It is important that the countries of the Asia-Pacific region come up with an assessment of the situation, followed by guidelines for action to combatRead MoreWireless Technology Essay16392 Words   |  66 Pagesunderstand that wireless technology increases the chances for people to steal your information. So having a better understanding of the various types of wireless security will increase your ability to enjoy this technology with limited fear. The issue that there is no wire for people to access does provide a greater chance for security issues. When you are operating on a wireless network, your communication can be monitored by anyone who is in the area. Another issue is limiting access to yourRead MoreOnline Banking42019 Words   |  169 PagesInternet Banking Table of Contents Chapter–1– Introduction 0 Chapter–2– Internet Banking a new medium 7 Chapter--3 - International experience 19 Chapter -4 -The Indian Scenario 33 Chapter- 5- Types of risks associated with Internet banking 41 Chapter- 6- Technology And Security Standards For Internet - Banking 49 Chapter -7 - Legal Issues involved in Internet Banking 74 Chapter- 8- Regulatory and supervisory concerns 84 Chapter–9 - Recommendations 98 Annexure 1 111 Annexure 2 112 The International Telecommunication Union ( Itu ) Defines... Today our society has evolved beyond the expectations of our founding fathers. Humans flying through the air from destination to destination, being able to send information almost instantaneously, to receiving high definition photos of the furthest celestial bodies known in our solar system, our technology has literally and figuratively rocketed the human race into the future. While our technology becomes increasingly more advanced so does the ability to steal information from these systems. Cyber Security is one of the biggest threats our nation faces as we become more dependent on the use of technology in our day to day lives. What is Cyber Security? The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) defines Cyber Security as â€Å"Cybersecurity is the collection of tools, policies, security concepts, security safeguards, guidelines, risk management approaches, actions, training, best practices, assurance and technologies that can be used to protect the cyber environment and organization and user’s assets. Organization and user’s assets include connected computing devices, personnel, infrastructure, applications, services, telecommunications systems, and the totality of transmitted and/or stored information in the cyber environment.†(ITU, 2008) Cyber-attacks have become ever prevalent in our society as the use of cellphones, emails, and computers become our primary source of sending and receiving information. To fully understand Cyber Security we must delve into the historyShow MoreRelatedThe International Telecommunication Union ( Itu ) Defines Cyber Security1551 Words   |  7 Pagesth ese systems. Cyber Security is one of the biggest threats our nation faces as we become more dependent on the use of technology in our day to day lives. What is Cyber Security? The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) defines Cyber Security as â€Å"Cybersecurity is the collection of tools, policies, security concepts, security safeguards, guidelines, risk management approaches, actions, training, best practices, assurance and technologies that can be used to protect the cyber environment andRead MoreCyber Crime Costs And Its Effects On The World Essay1854 Words   |  8 Pagestheft, hactivism, cyberterrorism, cyberextortion, online fraud and financial crimes committed on the Internet, has became a more and more severe problem for people around the world. According to Forbes.com, Cyber Crime Costs Projected To Reach $2 Trillion by 2019. From 2013 to 2015 the cyber crime costs quadrupled, and it looks like there will be another quadrupling from 2015 to 2019. Juniper research recently predicted that the rapid digitization of consumers’ lives and enterprise records willRead MoreEssay on Cyber Crime and Cyber Law2728 Wor ds   |  11 Pagesand internet enable the business organizations to execute the Electronic commerce business model, which has become very popular. Computers and Internet are a powerful source in the success of globalization and international business. Computers are being used worldwide and due to this, cyber crimes are increasing continuously with a rapid growth (Cheeseman, 2006). These types of crimes have become a matter of importance for the consumers as well the business firms because it involves large evictionRead MoreCyber Crime2238 Words   |  9 PagesAnalysis of Cyber Crime awareness among youth Abstract: Cyber crime is emerging as a serious threat. Worldwide governments, police departments and intelligence units have started to react. One of the many approaches to enable students and other peoples to protect themselves from the ever-increasing amount and range of cybercrime. This is relevant to students studying different aspects of undergraduate and postgraduate computing. This paper discusses the views of youngRead MoreTypes Of Hackers And Cloud Computing Essay2269 Words   |  10 Pagesprovider of cloud, third party organization and even the customer for gaining more access for propagating attacks against integrity, confidentiality as well as information availability within the service of cloud. Despite the insider and the external cyber con artists can be conspicuously distinguished, their ability for executing successful attacks is which segregates them as a risk to the vendors and customers alike. In the environment of cloud attackers might be distinguished into 4 kinds includingRead MoreA Swot and Pest Analysis10002 Words   |  41 Pages robust educational system to generate tech-savvy future employees and low cost of phone calls. Singapore has continuously improved in order to prepare to deal with new threats and challenges such as the significant increase in the number cyber crimes, security and privacy concern. KEYWORDS: e-Filling, e-Government, e-Information, e-Litigation, e-Payment, e-Procurement, e-Service, e-User, G2B, G2C, G2E. ASIA-PACIFIC SOCIAL SCIENCE REVIEW 103 E-GOVERNMENT IN SINGAPORE—A SWOT AND PEST ANALYSIS Read MoreEthics of Information Communication Technology (Ict)27618 Words   |  111 Pagesadvancement, political stability, religious causes, the campaign against terrorism, or for personal greed and interests. Violations of these rights have created new problems in human social systems, such as the digital divide, cybercrime, digital security and privacy concerns, all of which have affected people’s lives either directly or indirectly. It is important that the countries of the Asia-Pacific region come up with an assessment of the situation, followed by guidelines for action to combatRead MoreWireless Technology Essay16392 Words   |  66 Pagesunderstand that wireless technology increases the chances for people to steal your information. So having a better understanding of the various types of wireless security will increase your ability to enjoy this technology with limited fear. The issue that there is no wire for people to access does provide a greater chance for security issues. When you are operating on a wireless network, your communication can be monitored by anyone who is in the area. Another issue is limiting access to yourRead MoreOnline Banking42019 Words   |  169 PagesInternet Banking Table of Contents Chapter–1– Introduction 0 Chapter–2– Internet Banking a new medium 7 Chapter--3 - International experience 19 Chapter -4 -The Indian Scenario 33 Chapter- 5- Types of risks associated with Internet banking 41 Chapter- 6- Technology And Security Standards For Internet - Banking 49 Chapter -7 - Legal Issues involved in Internet Banking 74 Chapter- 8- Regulatory and supervisory concerns 84 Chapter–9 - Recommendations 98 Annexure 1 111 Annexure 2 112

The History, Climate, Biodiversity of the Galapagos Islands

The Galapagos Islands are an archipelago located about 621 miles (1,000 km) from the continent of South America in the Pacific Ocean. The archipelago is composed of 19 volcanic islands that are claimed by Ecuador. The Galapagos Islands are famous for their variety of endemic (native only to the islands) wildlife that was studied by Charles Darwin during his voyage on the HMS Beagle. His visit to the islands inspired his theory of natural selection and drove his writing of On the Origin of Species which was published in 1859. Because of the variety of endemic species, the Galapagos Islands are protected by national parks and a biological marine reserve. Also, they are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. History The Galapagos Islands were first discovered by Europeans when the Spanish arrived there in 1535. Throughout the rest of the 1500s and into the early 19th century, many different European groups landed on the islands, but there were no permanent settlements until 1807. In 1832, the islands were annexed by Ecuador and named the Archipelago of Ecuador. Shortly after that in September 1835 Robert FitzRoy and his ship the HMS Beagle arrived on the islands, and naturalist Charles Darwin began to study the areas biology and geology. During his time on the Galapagos, Darwin learned that the islands were home to new species that only seemed to live on the islands. For example, he studied mockingbirds, now known as Darwins finches, which appeared to be different from each other on different islands. He noticed the same pattern with the tortoises of the Galapagos and these findings later led to his theory of natural selection. In 1904 an expedition from the Academy of Sciences of California began on the islands and Rollo Beck, the expeditions leader, started collecting various materials on things like geology and zoology. In 1932 another expedition was conducted by the Academy of Sciences to collect different species. In 1959, the Galapagos Islands became a national park, and tourism grew throughout the 1960s. Throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s, there was a period of conflict between the islands native population and the park service. However, today the islands are still protected, and tourism still occurs. Geography and Climate The Galapagos Islands are located in the eastern part of the Pacific Ocean, and the closest landmass to them is Ecuador. They are also on the equator with a latitude of about 1Ëš40N to 1Ëš36S. There is a total distance of 137 miles (220 km) between the northernmost and southernmost islands, and the total land area of the archipelago is 3,040 square miles (7,880 sq km). In total, the archipelago is made up of 19 main islands and 120 small islands according to UNESCO. The largest islands include Isabela, Santa Cruz, Fernandina, Santiago, and San Cristobal. The archipelago is volcanic, and as such, the islands were formed millions of years ago as a hot spot in the Earths crust. Because of this type of formation, the larger islands are the summit of ancient, underwater volcanoes and the tallest of them are over 3,000 m from the seafloor. According to UNESCO, the western part of the Galapagos Islands is the most seismically active, while the rest of the region has eroded volcanoes. The older islands also have collapsed craters that were once the summit of these volcanoes. Also, much the Galapagos Islands are dotted with crater lakes and lava tubes, and the overall topography of the islands varies. The climate of the Galapagos Islands also varies based on the island and although it is located in a tropical region on the equator, a cold ocean current, the Humboldt Current, brings cold water near the islands which causes a cooler, wetter climate. In general, from June to November is the coldest and windiest time of the year and it is not uncommon for the islands to be covered in fog. By contrast from December to May, the islands experience little wind and sunny skies, but there are also strong rain storms during this time. Biodiversity and Conservation The most famous aspect of the Galapagos Islands is its unique biodiversity. There are many different endemic birds, reptiles and invertebrate species and the majority of these species are endangered. Some of these species include the Galapagos giant tortoise which has 11 different subspecies throughout the islands, a variety of iguanas (both land-based and marine), 57 types of bird, 26 of which are endemic to the islands. Also, some of these endemic birds are flightless such as the Galapagos flightless cormorant.There are only six native species of mammal on the Galapagos Islands, and these include the Galapagos fur seal, the Galapagos sea lion as well as rats and bats. The waters surrounding the islands are also highly biodiverse with different species of shark and rays. Also, the endangered green sea turtle, hawksbill sea turtle commonly nest on the beaches of the islands.Because of the endangered and endemic species on the Galapagos Islands, the islands themselves and the waters s urrounding them are the subjects of many different conservation efforts. The islands are home to many national parks, and in 1978 they became a World Heritage Site. Sources: UNESCO. (n.d.). Galapagos Islands - UNESCO World Heritage Center. Retrieved from: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1Wikipedia.org. (24 January 2011). Galapagos Islands - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gal%C3%A1pagos_Islands

Improving Motivation - 948 Words

Diagnosing and Improving Motivation Motivation is a multi-faceted process, and it is important to understand that all of these facets need to be running smoothly in order for workers to be motivated to perform at high levels. If just one component is low, motivation to perform well will also be low (Pritchard amp; Ashwood, 2008). When a manager finds motivation within their team to be low, it is important to take immediate and complete action. A four-step process that includes planning, evaluation of current motivation levels and diagnosis of the problem(s), identifying possible solutions, and finally going forward with the appropriate solutions and measuring results. In the case study: â€Å"Diagnosing and Improving Motivation†¦show more content†¦She was fantastic at change management and motivating her four sales mangers in the process of motivating their individual teams. She began by changing the sales force’s customer service emphasis. Her first initiativ e was to find out which customer targets her sales people felt were most important and then sent each of her four managers to speak with key consultants from their marketing, compliance, service, and accounting departments to get a handle on what sales components were important to them (Pritchard amp; Ashwood, 2008). What I found most impressive was that Jessica noticed that her mangers were overwhelmed by the breadth the information they received from these meetings and quickly put out the fire by assisting them in finding the information’s key components allowing them to organize their information and initiate a plan as a team. The plan was put into action and Jessica looked into a commissions reimbursement program that rewarded the highest achievers on a larger scale. It worked and within After two of her key managers were promoted off of her team, Jessica would need to start the program all over again with their replacements. With all of the previous experience behind her, this should be quite easy. Since the programs beginning was only a few months back, this would be a perfect time to shuffle groups a little and put the lesser motivated sales people on the new teams with a few high performers to bounce ideas off of. SheShow MoreRelatedLack Of Motivation For Improving Enterprises782 Words   |  4 Pagesorganizations, are vital resource for improving enterprises’ market competitiveness if they are satisfied and loyal to their jobs. However, many Chinese stated-owned enterprises didn’t realize that they need employees to success. The above-mentioned phenomenon might arise in lack of motivation both in hygiene factors and motivation factors that proposed by Herzberg (1959). Hygiene factorsï ¼Å¡ Inadequate financial motivation is the first hygiene factor that influence motivation. With the development of the companyRead MoreImproving Self-Motivation in Employees Essay2027 Words   |  9 Pagesemployee motivation as a fundamental building block in the development of successful businesses. A motivated workforce represents both a competitive advantage as well as a strategic asset in the current corporate world, which is why the issue of building self-motivation in employees has sparked interest in managers. It not only improves the business side of the organization, but does so by keeping employees’ needs met, which improves their well-being. First, the issue of employees’ motivation will beRead MoreReasons For Improving The Level Of Commitment And Employee Motivation Among The Staff At The Radio Station846 Words   |  4 PagesCurrently, there is the need to help improve the level of commitment and employee motivation among the staff at the radio station. Long-term In the long-run, there will be the need to alter the organizational structure to set up clear and efficient lines of command, developing a clear mission and vision that would guide the activities of the firm and enhancing the working conditions at the radio station by improving the nature of their working relationship by offering long-term contracts. Q7. WhatRead MoreD! - Suggest with Justifications, Ways of Improving Motivation for Staff Who Work in the Nhs834 Words   |  4 Pagesjustifications, ways of improving motivation in an organisation setting. Motivation plays a vast part in the NHS as the people are the NHSs most important asset therefore staff need to make sure they are well motivated to ensure that jobs are done efficiently. Motivation is the desire to work that little bit harder. The NHS will try to improve motivating staff in order to achieve a desired goal and sustains certain goal directed behaviours. The NHS could offer improve motivation by their reward systemsRead MoreImproving Student Engagement And Motivation916 Words   |  4 Pagesattention. Furthermore, engaging the learner by utilizing activities that capture their attention and build on their previous knowledge and interests will be beneficial to the students’ growth in the course. Facilitating student engagement and motivation, teachers are encouraged to provide constant and consistent feedback which includes questions and activities which spark reflection (Larsen, 2012). Additionally, the use of reflection was found to be a critical element to designing an effectiveRead MoreImproving a Teams Motivation, Satisfaction, and Performance982 Words   |  4 PagesImproving a Teams Motivation, Satisfaction, and Performance. LDR/531 Improving a Teams Motivation, Satisfaction, and Performance Team collaboration is a challenge organizations encounter because of varies personalities, cultures, and beliefs. According to Web Finance, Inc. (2012), a team is defined as â€Å"a group of people with a full set of complementary skills required to complete a task, job, or project.† A team is structured in an organization, usually separated into different teams to fulfillRead MoreImproving Motivation Amongst HSS (Hospital Shared Services) Employees1880 Words   |  8 Pagesorganization. These four factors are well known among the bottom of the chain to cause a lack of motivation. Lack of motivation within HSS can lead to call-offs, tardiness, minimal job input, and negative biases toward the organization. Once this occurs, the organizational goals of the security company will not be fulfilled and may become noticed amongst corporate leaders at each hospital. Lack of motivation can also lead to a huge profit loss, such as no renewed contracts at certain hospital which leadsR ead MoreThe Impact of Motivation on Workers Productivity in Aquasafe Spring Water Factory1523 Words   |  7 Pages 1. INTRODUCTION MAJOR theories of motivation are classified as those dealing either with exogenous causes or with endogenous processes.where as the latter help explain motivation the former identity levers for improving worker motivation amp; performance.key stratagies for improving work motivation were distilled from the exogenous Thiories .illustrative programs are described for implementing those stratagies ,programs that aim at creating organizations in which workers are bothRead MoreComparison of Two Companies and Their Approach to Staff Motivation818 Words   |  3 PagesThe management of MS was more confident to give the information about their current motivation, empowerment and training development. These tend to look like that the organisation is doing right. The comparison of both interviews, MS were more helpful in term of providing information and straight forward for interview request and received straight way. Conversely Lidl have taken long to respond to my request for interview, once I have received, unfortunately they were not willing to offer. I hadRead MoreCorrelation Between Employee Motivation And Job Performance Essay1011 Words   |  5 PagesMathew, Ushus; Johnson, Johney Introduction The human resource is vital for any organization, as it is important to manage organizational employee happiness. Motivation has long been seen as a positive indicator of job performance. What are some great ways to motivate an employee to increase job performance? A performance review can act as motive for an employee to improve his/her productivity. Therefore, when an employee sees his goals clearly defined and is measured against the set goals and objectives

Racial Segregation And The Us Education System Essay

Students of color in the United States struggle to access higher education, as a result of institutional racism and discrimination. This is troubling because college education is considered a way to increase opportunity and chances of success with finding employment and earning a high salary. This disparity can be attributed to the history of racial segregation in the US education system, which has produced differences of opportunity between students of color and white students (Chaisson 2004). It is difficult for students of color in higher education; specifically those who attend predominantly white institutions (PWI’s), because they must confront systemic racism at these institutions as well as in the larger US society. How can we combat these disparities? Is equal opportunity and equality in higher education is the answer? Seemingly this would be the solution, but Brower (2004) argues that it is not enough to have legal equal access to education because, â€Å"for those e ntering college, 56 percent of black Americans, compared to 36 percent of white Americans, never graduate.† (pg. 96). Although this statistic directly focuses on African American college populations, it has implications for all students of color. This begs the question, what makes students of color and white students so different? Based on the sociohistorical context of higher education in the US, the variable that changes the success of a college student and their likelihood to graduate is race. Studies haveShow MoreRelatedRacial Segregation And Racial Discrimination1645 Words   |  7 Pagesrole in the political system throughout United States government. The terminology race has been changed repeatedly throughout history. African American history of racial segregation created a clear view of how most racial minorities have been treated throughout history and views and differences amount racial majority. This paper primarily focus will be the treatment or experience racial minority faced throughout this historical revolution. African American are not the only racial minority who has beenRead MoreSegregation Of Modern American Schools : How It Affects The Students1283 Words   |  6 Pages Segregation in Modern American Schools: How it affects the Students, Why it occurs, and Strides needed to Integrate Hanna Podwin University of North Georgia â€Æ' Segregation in Modern American Schools: How it affects the Students, Why it occurs, and Strides to Integrate Introduction This essay will be on the Segregation in Modern American Schools, how it affects the students, why it occurs, and the strides need to integrate. I picked this topic because I came from a town that was predominantly whiteRead MoreThe Case Plessy V. Ferguson1512 Words   |  7 Pageshalf of 20 th century saw a domination of racial segregation since the decision favored the already established segregation in both South and North states. It was not until 1954 that the decision was overturned by another landmark Supreme Court case, Brown v. Board of Education, which declared â€Å"separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.† Even though the decision had little immediate impact, but in the long term, it has changed the racial relation in the States as the equality ofRead MoreImpact Of Education On The American Education System1671 Words   |  7 PagesEducation has overtime developed from an institution that lacked what was necessary to properly education men, women and children, to what is now a fairly decent system that prepares people from all across the world. For minorities, or underrepresented ethnic groups in America this is a different case. My focused are of research pertains to the history of education and how policies and the quality of it has transformed. While we have grown over the decades to provide education for all groups of peopleRead MorePlessy V Ferguson Case Study829 Words   |  4 Pagesv. Ferguson and the Brown v. The Board of Education. During these cases there were strong disagreements about racial segregation and how people shouldn’t be based on color. These two cases were based off the 14th Amendment of how people shouldn’t be judged. During the Plessy v. Ferguson case, there was a act called the Separate Car Act in 1890 which white and blacks had to be separated into different railroad cars. During the Brown v. Board of Education case, blacks and whites were separated intoRead MorePlessy V. Ferguson And Brown V Board Of Education1359 Words   |  6 PagesMaximiliano Sanchez Victoria Professor Linda Holt Comprehensive Law Studies 3 October 2017 Plessy v. Ferguson and Brown v. Board of Education Picture this: a world with no color. Would racism still exist? Or would people be discriminated based on other things such as height, weight, or the sound of their voice? We may never know the answer to these questions. Racism is still alive in the United States, but it is not as severe and oppressive as it was during the era of the Jim Crow laws. The 13thRead MoreModern Racism And The Middle Class Essay1565 Words   |  7 Pagesand place in society racial inequality. Modern racism has kept many blacks from receiving jobs and has kept them from many opportunities. Income inequality is an issue and it has been pushed aside for long enough it is now too big to avoid and it is time to therefore address it. It is due to such an act that the need for government assistance has increased, poverty levels are at an alltime high as are unemployment rates; and education levels are continuing to drop. The racial inequality African AmericanRead MoreSummary Of Ghosts Of Ole Miss 1225 Words   |  5 PagesMeredith would encounter, he would not give up or give in to institutional racism. The want to keep Ole Miss segregated by those there did not hinder his success. In an attempt to end racial segregation, the Supreme Court ordered the admittance of James Meredith to the campus. This action was a clear defiance of racial segregation. This resulted in an abundant amount of not only riots but also casualties. Meredith paved the way for other African-Americans to be able to become a part of Ole Miss. JamesRead MoreThurgood Marshall Essay1578 Words   |  7 Pageshe fought for Civil Rights and social justice in the courts and believed that racial integration is best for all schools. Very early in his professional life Marshall broke down racial barriers and overcame resistance despite the odds. He then became a role model of the disciplined leader, although he didn’t have the religious qualities or charisma as Martin Luther King. However, in terms of achievements, most of us would agree that he should be ranked next to Martin Luther King Jr. ThurgoodRead MoreThe Court Case that Changed the World: Brown v. Board of Education1078 Words   |  5 PagesBrown v. Board of Education is a story of triumph over a society where separating races simply based on appearances was the law. It is a story of two little girls who has to walk through a railroad switchyard in Topeka, Kansas in 1950 just to attend school. With lunch bags and backpacks in hand, they make their way to the black bus stop which is a distance of the tracks. They have to walk this distance, pass the buses filled with white children because they are unable to attend the nearby white

Dragonhaven CHAPTER TWO Free Essays

string(73) " and I know it, and I don’t know when I’ll have time either\." Billy must have been working on Dad. Billy misses Mom almost as much as Dad and I do, and I think he knew that Dad barely being able to let me out of his sight any more was starting to make me kind of nuts. (No comments on the â€Å"starting to† please. We will write a custom essay sample on Dragonhaven CHAPTER TWO or any similar topic only for you Order Now ) Dad had offered to get me another dog but I just wasn’t ready for that yet. I didn’t know how to think about having a new dog; I’d had Snark since almost before I could remember anything. It would be like getting a new mom: no. (I spent some time worrying about this too. If there was ever a man who needed a wife to pry him out of his obsession occasionally, it was Dad. Except I couldn’t deal with this either – worrying about Dad or worrying about the idea of a new mom. I can worry about anything, but as an idea it never really got very far because Dad didn’t notice women. He’d notice people if he had to, but if any of them was occasionally single and female it didn’t register.) Anyway. I was keeping the homeschooling admin happy (speaking of checker-uppers) but I was spending way too much time blowing up aliens with a lot of other people online who apparently didn’t have lives either. But my family had been cut down by fifty percent and there was like a cold wind blowing through that freaking great hole. On a computer you don’t have to notice who’s missing. I was almost beginning to forget Smokehill, in a way. I hadn’t changed my mind about dragons, and I was still going through the motions (most of them), it was more like seeing everything through the wrong end of the telescope. The only stuff up close was just me and the hole, and a dad who only noticed scientific abstracts and problems about the Institute that got in his face and screamed at him, except that at the same time I had to be like the lucky charm he kept in his pocket or something and always there. So it seemed like it came out of nowhere – I’d stopped asking – when I finally got permission to hike out overnight alone. This is maybe the single thing I’d been wanting to do all my life. I’d always planned to grow up and study dragons like Mom and Dad, but that was a ways off yet. Presumably I’d get my butt out of the park for a few years to go to college . . . and then I’d think about living somewhere with a lot of other people around . . . all the time? We get to close the gates at night here. So then sometimes I’d think I’d chicken out and just stay here and apprentice to the Rangers. Most of our federal parks make you go to school for that too, but that’s one of the things Old Pete set up when he set up Smokehill, our Ranger system. Billy had told me he’d take me if I decided that’s what I wanted to do. He’s never been away from the park overnight since he was born (both his parents were Rangers). His idea of a holiday is to hike into the park somewhere he hasn’t been before, and stay there awhile, beyond the reach of f.l .s. (I admit I’d have to think about it, whether I’d choose hanging around too close to grizzlies and Yukon wolves, or f.l.s. Billy likes the really wild places. But maybe if I was his apprentice I’d feel more competent. I’d rather rather hang out with grizzlies and Yukon wolves, if you follow me.) When the f.l. percentages were unusually bad I was sure I wanted to be a Ranger, but the rest of the time I wanted to have some PhDs like my parents because it meant more people would listen to me. I still wanted to be able to protect our dragons as well as study them and the head of the Institute is the head of the Rangers, as dumb as that is. And when the congressional subcommittee guys come here to stick their noses in and make stupid remarks, Billy has always left it up to Dad and goes all Son of the Wilderness silent and inscrutable if he’s introduced to them. (It’s proof of how much he thought of my parents that he would babysit the Institute when Dad and Mom took me and Snark for one of our summer hikes in the park. One of the higher-strung graduate students actually left with a nervous breakdown after one of those holidays. Apparently Billy didn’t let her weep on his shoulder the way Mom had. Dad used to call her Fainting in Coils.) But my PhDs were a long way off. I read a lot but I’m not so bright that any of the big science universities were begging to have me early. But I was a pretty fair woodsman for almost fifteen. I’d had the best teachers – our Rangers – and I grew up here, which is a big advantage, like you’re supposed to be able to learn a second language really easily if you start when you’re a baby. My French and German are lousy, but I’ve learned the language of Smokehill – some of it anyway. Before Mom disappeared I was going to have my first overnight solo after my twelfth birthday. Then she disappeared and we sort of stopped breathing for five months and then they found her. After that, as I say, Dad could barely let me out of his sight and he could never get away from the institute himself because he’s doing both his and Mom’s jobs. And then one day out of the blue Dad calls me into his office (I go in flexing my hands from joystick Paralysis) and says, â€Å"Jake, I’m sorry. I’m not paying the right kind of attention to you and I know it, and I don’t know when I’ll have time either. You read "Dragonhaven CHAPTER TWO" in category "Essay examples"† He glanced back at his desk which was a wild tangle of books, notebooks, loose papers, charts, bits of wood and stone and Bonelands fossils, coffee cups and crumbs. The Institute (of course) can’t afford a lot of support staff so we do all our own cleaning and cooking. Although we’d shared it when Mom was still around Dad and I stopped doing any about a month after she didn’t show up at her checkpoint. We had started to try to do it again but if it weren’t for eating with the Rangers sometimes I might have forgotten food ever came in any shape but microwave pouches or that cooking ever involved anything but punching buttons. And cleaning? Forget it. I can run the dishwasher – hey, I can run the washing machine, are you impressed? – but my expertise ends there. Dad rearranged one of the coffee mugs on the pile of papers it had already left smeary brown rings on. â€Å"I’ve been talking to Billy. You did really well in your last standardized tests, did I tell you?† He hadn’t. I’d thought he should’ve had the results by now and had begun to worry. I’d been trying to be extra careful since Mom died because I knew social services was just aching to take me out of my weird life at the Institute, but I could have missed something important because since Mom died I just did miss stuff, and sometimes it was important. â€Å"And I know† – he hesitated – â€Å"I know you’ve been keeping up with your woodcraft.† The one thing he would let me out of his sight to do without a huge argument was go out for a day with one of the Rangers – as long as we were back the same night. And it was the one thing that would turn the telescope I was looking through around too. For a few hours. â€Å"You’re fourteen and a half.† Fourteen years, nine months and three days, I wanted to say, but I didn’t. â€Å"And – well – Billy says you’re more than ready to – uh – â€Å" Tie my shoes without someone supervising? I thought, but I didn’t say that either, not only because my shoes have Velcro straps. I knew Dad was doing the best he could. So was I. â€Å"Well, I wondered, would you like to take your overnight solo? I know you were – we were – † He hesitated again. â€Å"Your first solo is overdue, I know. And Billy says you’ll be fine. And the weather looks like holding. SO â€Å"Yes,† I said. â€Å"I’d love to.† I tried not to sound sarcastic. I almost forgot to say thanks. Almost. But I did say it. If I’d been twelve I’d’ve gone whooping out of the Institute offices to the Ranger offices which are right across the tourist center lobby and reception area, and probably telling everyone on the way, Nate in the ticket booth, Amanda in the gift shop, poor Bob doing detention in the cafe, Jo and Nancy answering questions as they shepherded gangs of tourists to and from the bus stop, and anybody else I recognized, but I was nearer fifteen than fourteen and it had been a long almost-three years in a lot of ways. I walked slowly through Nancy’s busload (ID-ing the f.l.’s among them at first glance), waved at Nate, and told Dan, at the front Ranger desk, that whenever Billy had a moment I’d like to talk to him. â€Å"He’s hiding down at the caves,† said Dan. â€Å"You could go find him.† I’ve forgotten to tell you about the caves. As soon as the first geologist set foot near Smokehill they knew there had to be caves here. The Native Americans had known for a long time, but after a bad beginning they’d kind of stopped telling the European pillagers anything they didn’t have to, so Old Pete may be the first whiteface to have done more than guess. The caves near the Institute aren’t very good ones compared to what there is farther in, like under the Bonelands, but these little ones near the front door were busy being developed for tourists, so they weren’t going to be much use for hiding in much longer. Getting the work done was a huge nuisance and everybody who lived here hated it, but we are always desperate for money (I should just make an acronym of it: WAADFM, like some new weird alternative radio station), so we were going ahead with it. Of course in the short term this meant money we badly needed elsewhere was getting spent on making the caves touristproof . . . and tourists coming to the caves was going to mean more staff to keep an eye on them and more upkeep because tourists are incredibly destructive even when they’re behaving themselves, but the grown ups (including a lot of bozo outside consultants – for cheez sake, what does some pointy head from Baltimore or Manhattan know about a place like Smokehill?) all seemed to think it was going to be worth it in the end, if we lived that long. Dad had told me that the caves were going to fund him hiring another graduate student, maybe even full-time, because he didn’t think he was ever going to get one o therwise. I was sure hiring anybody was a bad idea because it would mean we could, and everybody would cut our grants accordingly. Billy was sitting by one of the little pools near the entrance. As soon as my eyes adjusted to the dark – the construction crews had gone home for the day, and turned off all the lights – I could see both his lantern and its reflection in the water. I went up to him as quietly as I could, but the caves are totally quiet except for the drip of water (and the bats) and on the pebbly path with the inevitable echo I sounded like someone falling through a series of windows CRASH CRUNCH CRASH only without the screaming. If you’ll pardon the expression from someone who wants to grow up to be a scientist, there’s something almost magical about our caves, even the little boring ones near the park entrance. Maybe all caves are like this and I just don’t know the analytical squashed-flat-and-labeled word for it. But there’s a real feeling of another world, another world that needs some other sense or senses to get at it very well, in our caves. I suppose you could say it’s something about underground, lack of sunlight, nothing grows here but a few creepy blind things and sometimes even creepier rock formations, but that doesn’t explain it. Cellars aren’t magical. The old underground bomb shelter that’s now a really boring museum in Wilsonville isn’t magical. Our caves are magical. It could have been the weird shadows that lantern light throws but the moment Billy looked up I knew he was worried about something besides more tourists. I was used to Dad worrying. He’d been worried about something since Mom disappeared, and once she died it’s like his worry metastasized and now he worried about everything – and I worried about the holes it made in him, all the gnawing worry. If I lost any more family there wouldn’t be any left. As I looked at Billy I wondered what I was missing. Like that the world’s total Draco australiensis numbers were still falling and there had been only a few hundred left when they died out in the wild. Like that even with the zoo Smokehill was barely surviving. I knew both of these things. But dragons are so hard to count maybe they were wrong about there being fewer of them. Maybe they were just getting even harder to count. And Smokehill had always barely survived, from Old Pete on. But Dad’s a worrier. Billy isn’t. â€Å"What’s wrong?† I said. Billy shook his head. He was a good grown-up, but he was still a grown-up, and grown-ups rarely talk about grown-up trouble to kids. Eric took the question â€Å"What’s wrong?† from a kid as a personal attack, even when it was something like a zoo-food shipment not arriving when it should and it was perfectly reasonable to be worried. I’d often wished Dad would talk about missing Mom to me more. Not only because then I could talk to him back. We could barely mention her at all. At least Billy didn’t lie to me. â€Å"Nothing you can do anything about. Nothing I can do anything about either. That’s what’s wrong.† He shook his head again and then looked at me, visibly changing the subject. â€Å"What’s up?† I thought again of how I’d’ve felt if this’d happened three years ago. It was almost hard to get the words out. â€Å"Dad says I can do my first solo. Hike into the park and stay overnight.† I felt as if I needed to apologize for interrupting him for such a lame reason. It could have waited. â€Å"Dan told me I could find you here.† Billy nodded. My solo wasn’t news to him – Dad would have discussed it with him first. Even though I knew this was logical and responsible and necessary and all that it made me feel about four instead of almost fifteen. I wasn’t really tying my shoes by myself. Dad and Billy were both watching me. I wished Snark was there. Snark was my responsibility. And furthermore he didn’t seem to mind. That’s being a dog, I guess, not minding being totally dependent on someone who may talk over your head to someone else about you and not let you in on it till everything’s already been decided. â€Å"I’m going to Northcamp, day after tomorrow,† said Billy. â€Å"If you want to come with me you can hike on from Northcamp alone and meet me back there the next day.† Northcamp was one of the permanent camps, and it was five days’ hike from the Institute, after the first day in a jeep as far as the jeep track went. I didn’t get that far in very often – never in the last almost-three years. This was a really nice offer. â€Å"Great,† I said, trying to mean it and almost succeeding. â€Å"Thanks.† Billy gave me a look that suggested that he knew what I was thinking, and it made me wonder if he felt about his troubles – whatever they were – not so much different from how I felt about mine. Maybe we both needed a dog. But by the time we were ready to leave, I was up for it, maybe as much as I’d’ve been if I was only twelve and Mom was there to wave me off: Dad didn’t – waving wasn’t his style – besides, he was at his desk, like he was always at his desk. I don’t mean that as bad as it sounds – we’d had breakfast together and he cross-examined me about what I was going to do in the park by myself and what to do if anything happened. We both knew that if I didn’t know it all already he wouldn’t be letting me go, but it was a ritual, like waving. The answer to most of those if-anything-happens questions was â€Å"call Billy on the two-way, and stay put,† so it wasn’t like it was as grisly as Dad’s cross-examinations when they were on stuff like algebra and Latin. I suck at languages but Latin’s the worst. Maybe â€Å"call Billy and stay put† should have made me feel more like a kid too, but it didn’t. That’s how everybody goes into the park, with a two-way, and someone – a Ranger – always there to listen on the other end. Even Billy didn’t go anywhere without someone to check in with. Anyway Dad gave me a hug on the way to his desk and told me to come see him the minute I got back, which should be about two weeks from now. Of course Billy would make me call Dad every day while we were gone, but that was okay too. Our jeeps were as beat-up and held together with string as everything else at the Institute but the best Land Rover in the world wouldn’t get far in Smokehill. Katie drove us in with Martha, deeply envious, in the backseat with me (Eleanor didn’t come: one of her few weaknesses is getting carsick, although riding in the back of a Smokehill jeep is more like walloped-by-tornado sick) and late afternoon they let us off by the Lightning Tree, which is one of our landmarks, and a lot of walking trails going all over the park start there. Another way to look at it is that it’s maybe one of the (few) good things about never having any money – we couldn’t afford to put in any more road even if we wanted to. â€Å"Good luck,† Martha said quietly. Martha was born polite, it’s like she knew she was going to have Eleanor as a little sister in less than six years and needed to get practicing being nice immediately. Martha is two and a half years younger than me so she was maybe close to her first solo, if she wanted to. I knew she was envying me right now. Maybe it was just the idea of getting away from Eleanor for two weeks. Billy and I did about six more miles before we camped for the night, and that’s good going, believe me. I slept like a log, and woke up as stiff as one too, from sleeping on the ground. I didn’t do it enough. Billy’s older than Dad, but he didn’t creak out of his sleeping bag. I did. Four days later I felt about four years older when we made it in Northcamp and I got to sleep in a bed again. The grim little bunk beds at all our permanent camps aren’t very welcoming, but they look pretty good after five nights on the ground. So does the hot water after you get the generator going. Northcamp smelled funny the way any building does that’s been shut up for too long – a little dusty, a little moldy, a little mousy – but we cranked open the windows and got a fire going in the woodstove (and the mice living in the kindling box were not happy, speaking of mousy) and it was pretty nice. I admit I had a few butterflies in my stomach the next morning – in spite of Billy’s cornmeal pancakes, which I swear must be the best in the world – but five days’ camping with Billy had reminded me that I still knew how to do everything I needed to know how to do, and I was ready to go by sunup and I went. I wanted to cover some ground. I wanted to make as much of a thing of my first solo as possible, so they’d let me do it again. Which meant I had to make the right kind of thing of my first solo or they’d never let me do anything again. I wanted to come out here for weeks and study dragons. I wanted to come out here for weeks and find some dragons to study. I had my radio and a compass (and a squirtgun and a flare), the weather was perfect, and I’d been drilled since I was tiny to recognize Rangers’ marks. And while Northcamp was a long way into the park by my standards, the area was well used and well designated by the Rangers. There was no way I could get lost if I even half kept my head. There were no grizzlies around here, and you only had to think about wolves later on in bad winters. It was, in the old Institute joke, a walk in the park. I really poured it on. I covered twenty miles that day. I knew it because I got to Pine Tor, which is nineteen and three-quarters miles from Northcamp, and another Ranger landmark. (I’d never seen it before except on the charts.) Yes, it was stupid of me, and even I knew it. Sure, I was walking on broken trail, but the emphasis is more on the â€Å"broken† than the â€Å"trail.† Northcamp is a long way from the Bonelands but it’s still all pretty ankle-breaking going. And if I missed getting back to Northcamp next day because I was too tired and beat up, it would be a huge black mark against me, and all the grown-ups would give me lectures, especially Dad, and they’d all be disappointed, which is the worst thing grown-ups do to kids – can’t they just yell at you and get it over with? – and it would be a long time till they let me go out alone again. Like maybe next century or when pigs fly, etc. But I had to go as fast and a s far as I could. I’m not going to try to explain it because I can’t. But I had to. I’d get back to Northcamp the next day somehow. The thing that makes it seem the dumbest is what was I tearing over all that landscape for? I was so busy watching where to put my feet and for the next Rangers’ mark that I barely looked around. I could have steamed by any number of dragons – or grizzlies – and never noticed. And our park is beautiful. Wild and strange and alien and not very friendly to humans, but very, very beautiful, if you aren’t freaked out by it. Lots of people are. Some people find the Institute as much as they can handle – the institute with its smell of dragon, and shed dragon scales on sale in the gift shop, and the five million acres out back sort of looming. Even as wilderness parks go, Smokehill is pretty uncivilized. It’s supposed to be, but it can still kind of knock you over with it. I didn’t see anything that day but ordinary eastern Smokehill landscape, and little stuff like squirrels, and a few deer and wild sheep. But the weirdest thing is that by the time I got to Pine Tor I had this huge harrowing sense of urgency, instead of feeling good and tired and pleased with myself – and maybe deciding to go a last leisurely quarter-mile farther to make it twenty miles and then find a nice place to camp didn’t register with me at all. I was so wired I couldn’t stand still, despite how tired I was. I had to keep going. Where? What? Huh? I have to say I’d made unbelievable time. That sounds like bragging but it’s important for what happened. I got to Pine Tor and it was still afternoon. I stood there, panting, looking around, like I was looking for a Rangers’ mark, except I’d already found the one that was there. I wasn’t even very interested in the fact that Pine Tor itself looked just like Grace’s – Billy’s wife – drawing of it and so it was like I had seen it before. It was like I was waiting. . . Waiting. . . I knew what the smell was immediately, even though I’d never smelled it before. The wind was blowing away from me or I’d’ve smelled it a lot sooner. My head snapped around like a dog’s and I set off toward it, like it was pulling me, like it was a rope around my neck being yanked. No, first I stopped and took a very close look at where I was. Pine Tor is big, and I needed to be able to find not just it again, but the right side of it. I was about to set off cross country, away from the Rangers’ trail and the Rangers’ marks – the thing I was above all expressly forbidden to do – and I had to be able to find my way back. Which proves that at least some of my brain cells were working. It wasn’t very far, and when I got there I was glad the wind was blowing away from me. The smell was overwhelming. But then everything about it was overwhelming. I can’t tell you . . . and I’m not going to try. It’ll be hard enough, even now, just telling a little. It was a dead – or rather a dying – dragon. She lay there, bleeding, dying, nearly as big as Pine Tor. Stinking. And pathetic. And horrible. She wasn’t dying for any good reason. She was dying because somebody – some poacher – some poacher in Smokehill – had killed her. If everything else hadn’t been so overpowering that alone would have stopped me cold. I was seeing my first dragon up close. And she was mutilated and dying. She’d got him too, although it was too late for her. When I saw him – what was left of him – I threw up. It was completely automatic, like blinking or sneezing. He was way beyond horrible but he wasn’t pathetic. I was glad he was dead. I was just sorry I’d seen him. It. There were a couple of thoughts trying to go through my head as I stood there, gasping and shaking. (I was shaking so hard I could barely stand up, and suddenly my knapsack weighed so much and hung on my back so clumsily it was going to make me fall down.) We don’t have poachers at Smokehill. The fence keeps most of them out; even little halfhearted attempts to breach it make a lot of alarms go off back at the Rangers’ headquarters and we’re allowed to call out a couple of National Guard helicopters if enough of those alarms go off in the same place. (Some other time I’ll tell you about getting helicopters through the gate.) It’s happened twice in my lifetime. No one has ever made it through or over the fence before a helicopter has got there – no one ever had. Occasionally someone manages to get through the gate, but the Rangers always find them before they do any damage – sometimes they’re glad to be found. Even big-game-h unter-type major assho-idiots sometimes find Smokehill a little too much. I’d never heard of anyone killing a dragon in Smokehill – ever – and this wasn’t the sort of thing Dad wouldn’t have told me, and it was the sort of thing I’d asked. Nor, of course, would he have let me do my solo if there was any even vague rumor of poachers or big-game idiots planning to have a try. The other thing that was in my head was how I knew she was female: because of her color. One of the few things we know about dragon births is that Mom turns an all-over red-vermilion-maroon-with-orangebits during the process, and dragons are green-gold-brown-black mostly, with sometimes a little red or blue or orange but not much. Even the zoos had noticed the color change. Old Pete had taken very careful notes about his mom dragons, and he thought it was something to do with getting the fire lit in the babies’ stomachs. It’s as good a guess as any. But that was why the poacher’d been able to get close to her, maybe. Dragons – even dragons – are probably a little more vulnerable when they’re giving birth. Apparently this one hadn’t had anyone else around to help her. I didn’t know why. Old Pete thought a birthing mom always had a few midwives around. You don’t go near a dying dragon. They can fry you after they’re dead. The reflex that makes chickens run around after their heads are cut off makes dragons cough fire. Quite a few people have died this way, including one zookeeper. I suppose I wasn’t thinking about that. I was thinking about the fact that she was dying, and that her babies were going to die because they had no mother, and that she’d know that. I boomeranged into thinking about my own mother again. They wanted to tell us, when they found her, that she must have died instantly. Seems to me, if she really did fall down that cliff, she’d’ve had time to think about it that Dad and I were going to be really miserable without her. How do I know what a mother dragon thinks or doesn’t think? But it was just so sad. I couldn’t bear it. I went up to her. Went up to her head, which was like nearly as big as a Ranger’s cabin. She watched me coming. She watched me. I had to walk up most of the length of her body, so I had to walk past her babies, these little blobs that were baby dragons. They were born and everything. But they were already dead. So she was dying knowing her babies were already dead. I’d started to cry and I didn’t even know it. When I was standing next to her head I didn’t know what to do. It was all way too unreal to want to like pet her – pet a dragon, what a not-good idea – and even though I’d sort of forgotten that she could still do to me what she’d done to the poacher, I didn’t try to touch her. I just stood there like a moron. I nearly touched her after all though because I was still shaking so hard I could hardly stay on my feet. Balance yourself by leaning against a dragon, right. I crossed my arms over my front and reached under the opposite elbows so I could grab my knapsack straps with my hands like I was holding myself together. Maybe I was. The eye I could see had moved slowly, following me, and now it stared straight at me. Never mind the fire risk, being stared at by a dragon – by an eye the size of a wheel on a tour bus – is scary. The pupil goes on and on to the end of the universe and then around to the beginning too, and there are landscapes in the iris. Or cavescapes. Wild, dreamy, magical caves, full of curlicue mazes where you could get lost and never come out and not mind. And it’s hot. I was sweating. Maybe with fear (and with being sick), but with the heat of her staring too. So there I was, finally seeing a dragon up close – really really up close – the thing I would have said that I wanted above every other thing in the world or even out of the world that I could even imagine wanting. And it was maybe the worst thing that had ever happened to me. You’re saying, wait a minute, you dummy, it’s not worse than your mom dying. Or even your dog. It kind of was though, because it was somehow all three of them, all together, all at once. I stared back. What else could I do – for her? I held her gaze. I took a few steps into that labyrinth in her eye. It was sort of reddish and smoky and shadowy and twinkling. And it was like I really was standing there, with Smokehill behind me, not Smokehill all around us both as I stood and stared (and shuddered). The heat seemed to sort of all pull together into the center of my skull, and it hung there and throbbed. Now I was sweating from having a headache that felt like it would split my head open. So that’s my excuse for my next stupid idea: that I saw what she was thinking. Like I can read a dragon’s expression when I mostly can’t tell what Dad or Billy is thinking. Well, it felt like I could read her huge dying eye, although maybe that was just the headache, and what I saw was anger-rage-despair. Easy enough to guess, you say, that she’d be feeling rage and despair, and it didn’t take any creepy mind-reading. But I also saw . . . h ope. Hope? Looking at me, as she was looking at me (bang bang bang went my skull), a little hope had crept into the despair. I saw this happen. Looking at me, the same sort of critter, it should have seemed to her, as had killed her. And then she died. And I was back in Smokehill again, standing next to a dead dragon, and the beautiful, dangerous light in her eye was gone. And then I did touch her. I forgot about the dead-dragon fire-reflex, and I crouched down on the stinking, bloody ground, and rested my forehead against a tiny little sticky-out knob of her poor ruined head, and cried like a baby. Cried more than I ever had for Mom – because, you know, we’d waited so long, and expected – but not really expected – the worst for so long, that when the worst finally arrived we couldn’t react at all. Twenty rough miles in a day and crying my head off when I staggered to my feet again, feeling like a fool, I was so exhausted I barely could stand. And while none of this had taken a lot of time, still, it was late afternoon, and the sun was sinking, and I needed to get back to Pine Tor tonight if at all possible. I began drearily to drag myself back the way I had come. I had to walk past all the little dead dragonlets again. I looked at them not because I wanted to but to stop myself from looking at the poacher’s body. Which is how I noticed that one of them was still breathing. A just – born dragon is ridiculously small, not much bigger than the palm of your hand. Old Pete had guessed they were little, but even he didn’t guess how little. I’m not even sure why I recognized them, except that I was already half nuts and they seemed to be kind of smoky and shadowy and twinkling. The color Mom goes to have them and get their tummies lit up lasts a few hours or as much as half a day, but no one – not even Old Pete – had ever seen the babies or the fire-lighting actually happening and maybe that’s not really when they’re born or lit at all, and it’s just Mom’s color that makes humans think â€Å"fire.† But I did recognize them. And I could see that the smokiest, twinklingest of the five of them was breathing: that its tiny sides were moving in and out. And because no one knows enough about dragons one of the things I’d read a lot about, so I could make educated guesses just like real scientists, was marsupials. If I hadn’t known that dragons were marsupial-ish I think I probably still wouldn’t have recognized them, nuts or not. They look kind of lizardy, to the extent they look anything, because mostly what they look is soft and squidgy just-born things often look like that, one way or another, but dragons look a lot worse than puppies or kittens or even Boneland ground squirrels or just-hatched birds. New dragonlets are pretty well still fetuses after all; once they get into their mom’s pouch they won’t come out again for yonks. This baby was still wet from being born. It was breathing, and making occasional feeble, hopeless little swimming gestures with its tiny stumpy legs, like it was still blindly trying to crawl up its mom’s belly to her pouch, like a kangaroo’s joey. I couldn’t bear that either, watching it trying, and without thinking about it, I picked it up and stuffed it down my shirt. I felt its little legs scrabble faintly a minute or two longer, and then sort of brace themselves, and then it collapsed, or curled up, and didn’t move any more, although there was a sort of gummy feeling as I moved and its skin rubbed against mine. And I thought, Oh, great, it’s dead now too, I’ve got a sticky, gross, dead dragonlet down my shirt, and then I couldn’t think about it any more because I had to watch for the way to Pine Tor. The moon was already rising as the day grayed to sunset, and it was a big round bright one that shed a lot of light. I could use all the breaks I could get. I made it back to Pine Tor and unloaded my pack but I didn’t dare sit down because I knew once I did I wouldn’t get up again till morning at least. I was lucky; Pine Tor is called that for a reason and in a countryside where there isn’t exactly a lot of heavy forest (pity you can’t burn rock) I was really grateful that I didn’t have to go far to collect enough firewood. The moonlight helped too. I hauled a lot of wood back to my campsite, being careful not to knock my stomach, because even if the dragonlet was dead I didn’t want squished dead dragonlet in my shirt. I hauled and hauled partly because I was so tired by then I couldn’t remember to stop, and partly because if the dragonlet was still alive I had a dim idea that I needed to be able to keep it warmer than my own body temperature, and partly because if it was dead I didn’t want to know and hauling wood put off finding out. There’d been too much death today alread y. I got a fire going and started heating some water for dinner. There’s plenty of water in most of Smokehill (except where there isn’t any at all), and pretty much anywhere within a few days’ hike of the institute has streams all over it running through the rocks and tough scrub so it’s less a matter of finding it than of trying not to find it at the wrong moment and get soaked (or break something in our famous fall-down-and-break-something streambeds). I pulled out a packet of dried meat and threw the meat in the water. We don’t buy freeze-dried campers’ supplies in shiny airtight envelopes from the nearest outdoor-sports shop – there isn’t one nearer than Cheyenne, and the outdoors isn’t a sport to us. We live here. Besides, we couldn’t afford it. We dry our own stuff. One of the suggestions for the gift shop was that we sell some of our own dried meat but the Rangers already have enough to do, although the point y-head tourist consultant guy seemed to think that tourists would go for wild sheep and wild goat and bison and stuff as exotic. Exotic. I ate at a McDonald’s once, and I thought their hamburgers tasted pretty exotic. But what I was thinking as the water got hot and I could smell the meat cooking is that we’ve always shared the dragons’ dinners. Old Pete had figured out what dragons liked best of what he could offer them while he still had them in cages and fortunately there was enough of it that could live here. This wouldn’t be a dragon haven if dragons only thrived on rhino and Galapagos tortoise, neither of which would do well at Smokehill. And Old Pete ate what the dragons ate because the dragons were the important thing. We still do and they still are. This smelled like deer, but would sheep be any better? I’d just picked up the first couple of packets. I didn’t care. So I sat there and looked at my supper and thought, Even if it’s still alive, how am I going to feed it? We don’t know anything about dragon milk, or dragon juice, or whatever, even if Mom makes it from eating wild sheep and so on. I put my hand into my shirt and the dragonlet woke up at once, if it had been asleep, wriggled around like crazy, and managed to attach itself to one of my fingers, sucking so hard it hurt. So it was still alive and it was hungry. If I’d been thinking clearly I’d’ve known it was alive, though, because it was so hot. It was hot enough that when I unbuttoned my shirt to get it out there was a red mark on my stomach. It didn’t like being out of my shirt; it let go of my finger and started, I don’t know, mewing, kind of, a tiny, harsh sort of noise that I didn’t want to think sounded like a scream of absolute terror, and trying to burrow back where it came from. I was tired, and hungry myself, and my head really hurt, and I was all wound up about what had happened, and about the fact that I had landed myself with an orphan dragonlet that I hadn’t a clue how to take care of, and how it was all going to be my fault when it died and I already felt as if everything that had happened was my fault – even though I knew that was stupid – and when it died too I’d never forgive myself and go crazy or something. I was way out of my depth. I wasn’t a mother dragon and I didn’t have a clue. Oh yes and what I was doing was totally illegal. Don’t ask me who makes the laws or why they don’t like get together sometimes and notice if the laws make any sense. But while it’s illegal to hurt or kill a dragon it’s more illegal to try and save a dragon’s life. Dad tried to explain it to me once, that it’s about non-interference-like the way big parks (including this one) let lightning-started fires go ahead and burn everything up because it’s part of the natural cycle. Okay. Maybe. But people get bent about dragons in ways they don’t get bent about other natural cycle stuff. Apparently the witless wonder who was pushing for the dragon legislation got so bent about the anti-harming-a-dragon part of the bill that he pulled all the stops out getting really vicious language into the anti-preserving-a-dragon’s-life part of the bill. The result is that trying to raise a baby dragon would be like the most illegal thing you could possibly do, next to assassinating the president maybe, and is probably one of the extra reasons the Institute has to beg for money, because we might do something illegal with it, like learn how to save dragons. Well it would all be over soon and it would be dead and I would be crazy and Dad would have to put my gross baby-dragon-yucky clothes through the washing machine because I would be in a padded cell and couldn’t do it myself. I rebuttoned my shirt except for one button over the belt, muttering to myself, or to it, and tucked the dragonlet back in, tail first and belly up, with its head near the opening. It stopped struggling and lay there like it was peering out through the gap and looking at me. Its eyes were open – unlike a puppy or a kitten’s – but they were blurry like they didn’t see much, like a baby bird’s. They were also a funny purplish color. It was really ugly all over, not just the eyes, sort of bruise colored, not just purplish but also yellowish and greenish, as well as smushed-looking and crusty with dried whatever. â€Å"You are the ugliest damn thing I have ever seen in my entire life,† I said to it, clearly, like I wanted it on the record what I thought, and I swear its blurry purple eyes tried to track where the sound was coming from and it made a little grunt like an acknowledgment. Have you ever tried to raise a baby bird or a raccoon or something? Something, you know, easy. They die a lot. We’re way too good at raccoons – that’s Eric again – since our successes are now bringing their great-great-great-grandkids for evening handouts behind the institute – but we all still sweat when the Rangers bring in new orphans. And even with Eric’s voodoo and all the info every bird society or raccoon society or beetle society (that’s a joke) can give us (actually we wrote some of it), so you know exactly what to do and you do it . . . they still die. A lot. And it hurts. And that’s when you even know what they eat and for stuff that is at least already, you know, born. Which a new dragonlet isn’t, not really. I locked open my camping spoon and dipped up some of the meat broth, gave the dragonlet my finger to suck again, which it was happy to do, and poured some broth in the gap between its mouth and my finger. You’d think I’d know better, but remember I was pretty deranged. Of course most of the broth went all over me and the dragonlet, but some of it must have gone down its throat because it choked and gargled and then I knew I had killed it. I whipped it out of my shirt again and held it up head down in the air and it gacked and gagged and then started mewing again and trying to get back in my shirt. Poor awful little monster. I’d be crying here again in a minute. This time I unbuttoned my sleeve and stuck it in tail first (against the thin skin on the underside of my forearm and let me tell you its body heat hurt) till only its face was showing, and I cupped my hand around its head and it subsided, and I swear it looked traumatized, ugly and weird as it was. I was still muttering. Now I was saying things like â€Å"it’s okay, stupid, relax.† I’m not sure if I was talking to myself this time, or the dragonlet. I stuck a finger from my cupping hand in sort of the side of its mouth to give it something to suck on and tipped just a drop or two of broth into its mouth. (This was way more awkward than I’m telling you.) It went gulp and went on sucking. Oh hurrah. A lot of your orphans just won’t try to eat and that’s that. So the dragonlet wasn’t going to die of starvation, it was going to die of being poisoned or of not getting enough of some kind of vitamin because deer broth isn’t anything like close enough to dragon milk. As I say, no one knows what goes on in those pouches. I fed it broth till its belly was stretching my sleeve. It was almost beginning to look kind of cute to me. I was in a bad way. But you do get like this with your orphans. If they eat you feel all . . . mothery. (Mom had been really good with the orphans – maybe almost as good as Eric. I remember getting old enough to ask her, kind of anxiously, if taking care of me had been as bad as the stuff at Eric’s orphanage. She’d laughed and said oh no, I was much, much worse.) I slid the dragonlet out of my sleeve again and it was either falling asleep because it was full and happy or slipping into its final coma, but it didn’t struggle so much this time. I pulled my shirt off and wrapped it up in that because I had a clean shirt in my backpack, and if one of us was going to have the clean shirt I’d rather it was me, and then I put it as near the fire as I thought I could without making dragonlet toast, or anyway setting my shirt on fire. I looked at the inside of my wrist where it had been lying. The skin there is even thinner than on your stomach, and it was actually burned. Jeez. So I got the wound salve out that is part of the basic kit Billy makes you carry, like waterproof matches and a hatchet to make kindling and a pot to boil water, and put some on, and then I had dinner, which took about three minutes because I was so hungry and tired and shaky. But by the time I’d finished eating, make that bolting, the wretched dragonlet was mewing again, and trying to get out of the shirt. â€Å"Oh, give me a break,† I said. I thought maybe I’d put it too close to the fire, so I picked it up, and it went floppy instantly, but then the moment I put it down again it was mewing and thrashing, to the extent that something the size of your hand and with legs an inch and a half long and is maybe three or six hours old can thrash. â€Å"You’re ugly and you smell,† I said. So fatalistically I put it back inside my clean shirt and it scuffled a little like you might thump your pillow with your fist, and then went to sleep. Which made one of us. It had managed to relieve itself on my old shirt, so that was really delightful, and I got my jackknife out and hacked off the dirtiest bits and then sort of tucked the rest of the old shirt around its rear end where it was asleep inside my new shirt and leaving fresh red marks on my stomach. I lay down gingerly on my side clutching it with my other hand so that the old shirt around its rear end wouldn’t fall off and wondering if I’d get any sleep at all because what if I rolled over on it? Not merely squished dragonlet but squished full-of-deer-broth dragonlet. By then I was probably a little hysterical. I did sleep but I didn’t sleep much. Every time it moved I woke up, and I suppose my brain had been working in my sleep or something because by the first time it woke me up I’d figured that a dragonlet probably had to be fed every ten minutes or something because if it was in its mom’s pouch it would probably be permanently stuck on a nipple for the first six months or so, which is what happens with the ordinary true-mammal marsupials we know about and makes sense. And a lot of ordinary orphans you do have to feed round the clock. (Maybe Eric’s personality was just the result of chronic sleep shortage, although all of the-human-adults took turns for the middle of the night, and Mom and Katie and Jane never got anything like Eric gets, even on no sleep. Although Dad got a little scratchy.) I was trying to remember how long they think the full-time pouch span is for a dragon, but if I’d ever known I’d forgotten and it didn’t really matte r at the moment since this was only the first night. Every time it wiggled I woke up, groggily – now I was definitely talking out loud to keep myself awake – and the first time I had to pour the rest of the broth back into the pot and heat it in the embers because it’s not a good idea to leave food around even in summer when there’s plenty of other stuff to eat for anything wandering by But after the first time I thought the hell with it and just put the top on the pot and left it in the fire, and I know this completely destroys your respect for me as someone who should be allowed to go on his first solo, and you’re right, but you weren’t there. And it was still a horrible night (even though nobody tried to eat our broth and then have us for dessert), and I used almost all of the firewood I’d collected after all, keeping the fire going. And to the extent I did sleep, it was like I was afraid to move at all, so I woke up every time in exactly the same position because it suited trying to hold the damn dragonlet in the position it liked, and by morning when I stopped even pretending to sleep my whole right side was like paralyzed and I had a headache like you wouldn’t believe, although really I’d had the headache since everything happened yesterday afternoon. And to think a few days ago I’d been feeling that just relearning to sleep on the ground was tough. I may have slept as much as an hour that last spell before dawn. When I tried to sit up I yelped like a dog when you’ve stepped on its tail. But I felt the dragonlet stir. My stomach felt scalded so I already knew it was still alive. It was probably hungry again too. I hurt too much to be hungry. â€Å"You still there, Ugly?† I said. I got the fire going properly again (nice hot embers, I thought resentfully, regularly blown on and fed sticks – the dragonlet would have been fine lying next to the fire all night) and put some more water on to heat and threw another chunk of meat in. At home Dad makes me eat vegetables but when I’m in the park I turn carnivore. Billy never makes me eat vegetables even though most of the year he can usually find green stuff to eat wherever he is. Even I know about waterweed. I just don’t eat it. And I bet dragons don’t either. I wasn’t going to endanger the dragonlet’s fragile welfare by threatening it with vegetable matter. It had done some more on my old shirt, so I cut those bits out. I needed to get back to the Institute soon because I was running out of shirt. Then we did the broth thing again and while in one way it was easier because I was getting in practice it didn’t seem to want to open its mouth any wider than it absolutely had to and now in daylight again the corners of its mouth looked sort of, well, chapped, maybe. So I put some wound salve on it and wondered if maybe that would poison it, and some more on the inside of my wrist, and then I cruelly let it lie near the fire in a nice warm pile of ashes (I checked) while I cleaned up in the hope that it would do some of its business before I had to wrap it up in what remained of my old shirt again and put it next to my stomach, and it did. So that was something. But it had also mewed and thrashed while I left it – it had added a sort of high-pitched peep to its repertoire on its second day of life – so by the time I finally did put it back inside my shirt it was exhausted and went to sleep instantly. At least I assume that’s what it was doing when it did its pillow-punching trick and didn’t move for a while. By now I could feel it breathing – I don’t know if it was breathing better or I was learning the mom marsupial drill – and, of course, it was burning holes in the skin of my stomach. I can’t begin to tell you what a long day that was. I was aching all over, particularly my head, and tired into my bones. I don’t think I’d ever realized what that phrase meant before. It’s a good thing I’ve been trained since I was a toddler to follow Rangers’ marks because I was doing it mindlessly, not thinking because I couldn’t think. There was no thinking left in me. And it’s ridiculous to say that something the size of a day-and-a-half-old dragonlet weighed, but it did. It weighed more than my backpack did somehow. I suppose it was just that I couldn’t stop worrying about it. I worried about whether or not it could breathe, because I had to tuck my sweatshirt in over my shirt to make sure it didn’t fall out while we were moving, but mostly it wasn’t anything so logical. It was just worry worry worry about everything. Worry on legs. Worry walking. Worry staggering and lurching. I didn’t anything like cover twenty miles that day. I think I did about ten, which under the circumstances is amazing. I decided after the first stop to feed my new responsibility that if it could live with human body heat it could probably live with human-body-heat food, so I put the pot of broth under my shirt too. The idea that I had to stop and make a fire every half hour was a whole lot too much. And I was sure I should be feeding it more often than every half hour anyway, I just couldn’t. Fortunately the broth pot was small. Mind you my shirt had not been made to hold both a dragonlet and even a small pot of broth so I had to tuck the pot sort of down my pants which made walking harder, and cradle the dragonlet with one hand so it didn’t fall down the hole, and the pot leaked. Well, so did the dragonlet. After a while I stopped paying attention. Ordinarily I don’t think I’d’ve been able to ignore getting increasingly covered with runny infant dragon poop but there was nothing ordinary about that day. If I hadn’t kept telling myself â€Å"Billy will know what to do† I’d never have been able to make myself keep moving at all. When sunset came I pulled myself together enough to look for the next Ranger mark so I’d know exactly which way to go in the morning. Besides, camping near one was almost like company. Human company. I knew that tomorrow was going to be even worse than today had been. I mopped myself up as well as I could out of the nearby rill while a new pot of water was heating over the fire. I didn’t even try to put the dragonlet down this time. Sometimes I think personal hygiene is kind of overdone but I would have loved a hot bath. And lots of soap. I had to clean up carefully, moving the dragonlet around so it didn’t get any nasty cold water on it, and it wasn’t thrilled with the operation anyway, from the amount of scrabbling and peeping, but when it was broth time again it settled right down and started to suck and swallow. I felt kind of funny about that. I mean, it was already learning the system. It was a dragon for pity’s sake. But at two days old it was already learning what to do, and I was pretty sure a finger and a camping spoon wasn’t the system it was born to expect. I’d tried using a piece of shirt (more shirt gone) as a nipple, but that didn’t work so well, or it couldn’t suck the broth out of the cloth, or something; the cloth .just got soggier and soggier and it kept letting go to try and grab one of my fingers again. So we went back to the old system. My finger was getting almost as sore as my stomach. But when I thought about how much worse tomorrow was going to be, it never crossed my mind to hope the thing would die and let me off. How to cite Dragonhaven CHAPTER TWO, Essay examples

Theoretical Developments in Marketing †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the Theoretical Developments in Marketing. Answer: Introduction Firms that outsmart their rivals by providing improved or new services to consumers have been noted to keep their service development processes from being ad hoc. According to Anderson (2007), these client-focused firms tend to advance with particular intentions via a set of well-planned stages of service innovation. Primarily, these steps involve idea generation, instituting clear objectives, concept development, prototyping, customer feedback, service design, and launch. All these are comprised in a service blueprint. Shostack (2012) defines a service blueprint as a visual/pictorial, sequential representation of a clients experiences of some specific services or products alongside organizational processes that are designed to back the experiences. Service blueprints are beneficial in several ways. They provide an overview of a companys capabilities so that workers can associate what they do with the services perceived as an essential whole (Anderson, 2011). This encourages a client -oriented determination among workers (Chi Gursoy, 2009). They also help in the identification of a companys fail/weakness points which may be revamped for a companys quality improvement strategies (Bitner, 2011). Service blueprints provide the basis for detecting as well as evaluating a companys revenue, capital invested, and cost elements (Cardozo, 2005). This paper will, using the case of Virgin Australia (VA) airline, discuss the usage of service blueprints to help in meeting the objectives of a company. VA is the second largest airline in Australia after Qantas and the largest by definitions of the size of a fleet (Kim Lee, 2009). Currently headquartered in Bowen Hills in Brisbane, the company was co-founded by Brett Godfrey and Richardson Branson in 1999 (Gregson, Hampson, Junor, Fraser, Quinlan Williamson, 2015), having only two airplanes operating in one route (Fraser, Quinlan Williamson, 2017). The company, however, got empowered when Ansett Australia collapsed in 2001(Flie Kleinaltenkamp, 2004). Since then, the company has grown and is currently serving 29 cities within Australia, developing moment by moment. Owing to the large number of clients that the company had, VA increased their number of return flights from the initial 7 to 10 (Kim Lee, 2009) and also expanded their coverage to include all major Australian cities (Bitner, 2011). Not only did they increase their internal coverage, the company also expanded their flights to oversee countries, most specifically the United States. Initially, only the United and Qantas airlines competed for the US-Australia transpacific marketplace (Anderson, 2011). This extension helped the company to satisfy its ardent customers need who always had to use other airlines when travelling across the Pacific Ocean to the U.S. Another reason that catapulted VAs success is the taking over of the leadership of the company by John Borghetti after Brett Godfrey stepped down in 2010. The movement of Borghetti from Qantas to Virgin influenced the movement of other Qantas staff. With the expertise that was carried, VA got a new set of organizational restructuring and make-ups that significantly impacted on its service provision to its clients (Kim Lee, 2009). The arrival of a new CEO also led to the rebranding of the company, creating a new impression that served to entice more and more clients. See the appendix for the companys blueprint. Virgin Australias Blueprints Front and Back Stages An exchange between consumers and businesses has continually been an integral component of commerce in any business. Notwithstanding the type of products or services offered by an organization, communication between a business and its customers will occur inevitably (Cardozo, 2005).VA, as a commercial organization, uses a website to communicate and interface with their clients (Keiningham, Morgeson, Aksoy Williams, 2014). The website serves a wide range of customers since it allows for usage in different major world languages like English and Chinese. From a glance, the companys website is considerably straightforward. It clearly shows the major services provided by the company just immediately after accessing the websites homepage. This allows easy and quick access to the companys important information that may be needed by its potential clients (Chi Gursoy, 2009). Additionally, the website contains details of all the experiences that should be expected by the airlines clients, de stinations accessible by the airline, possible plans for appropriate bookings, and seasons that may be appropriate for clients. These help the airlines customers to make informed decisions regarding the kind of services and quality they can get from the company (Cunningham, Young Lee, 2009). Generally, the companys website is accessible, functional, informative, and there are quick responses to the companys clients since data can be accessed just at a press of button. Nevertheless, the problem regarding the companys front stage is that the features revealed on the companys website stop there. Whereas it may be the companys objective to achieve all that are shown on its website, some of the features shown on their website are not currently being offered by the company (Gregson et al., 2015). There are only data regarding the same but the activities are not taking place. The company can attract more clients if only they made the features on their website more flexible and interactive than they are (Anderson, 2011). Keiningham et al. (2014) note that a direct interaction (an audio visual connection between the clients and the company) with the companys clients can be significantly enticing to the clients. Nonetheless, it is regretted that they are missing in the companys website. Furthermore, while the interface offers a detailed description of the services offered by the airline and the regions within which the company operates, a potential custome r can still find it dull. This can make them turn to their main rival airline company, Qantas, to meet their needs. Apparently, the back stage of the VA forms the very detailed front stage of the company. The VA depends chiefly on the technical skills as well as the competence of its staff to meet the need of their. Within the work lines of the companys staff, repeatability or return of their clients for more accesses is significant to the companys revenue (Chi Gursoy, 2009). By returning for services, the company gets to appreciate that their services are esteemed by their clients (Cunningham et al., 2009). As such, the companys staff have to endeavor to offer proper and modern class of services that will appeal to their clients. According to Fraser et al. (2017), the return/repeatability of clients implies that the companys staff has effectively outsourced the operations displayed on the companys front stage, particularly the companys website. VAs airline company, thus, has a fit-with-reference both to the back stage and front stages proportions that are needed in their service provision processes and overall operations. Cardozo (2005) argues that the website interface gives the (potential) clients of the company ideas regarding the operations of the company, the services offered, and channels via which they can contact the company. It is, therefore, the duty of the companys back stage to meet the needs of the companys clients as well as keep them gratified since this will determine whether the clients will remain loyal to the company in the future as well. Virgin Australias Moments of Truth In recent times, companies with robust networks of frontline salespersons have concentrated significant amounts of money as well as effort toward retaining their present clients (Shostack, 2012). Regardless of whether a company has a physical or digital presence or even both, their contact centers/interfaces have to increasingly deal with their clients during crucial moments of truth and the manner in which this experience is perceived is critical for a companys brand reputation, profitability, and loyalty (Gregson et al., 2015). Moments of truth are defined as those exchanges when clients dedicate a significant quantity of energy so that they can meet a gratifying outcome (Fraser et al., 2017). VA has several moments of truth. First, the company has begun developing interactive interfaces through which they will be able to link up with their clients (Chi Gursoy, 2009). They are currently developing a customer-connect interface of their present contact centers as well as a newly developed reach-from-home platforms. These will help the company to service both its prospective as well as current clients within and without Australia (Keiningham et al., 2014). The platform will similarly allow the company to provide services within a period of 24/7. In their attempt to warrant the best client experience, Cunningham et al. (2009) point out that they are also implementing a hybrid technology of proactive website chat functions, non-static website forms, virtual assistance, distance agent option, as well as voice biometrics capabilities that will allow for customers auto recognition. Furthermore, the company was launched in August 2000. At this time, the company only operated between Sydney and Brisbane, serving only a limited number of clients. According to Shostack (2012), the timing of the entry ofVA into the Australian airplane industry was of a great fortune to the company since it was filling a vacuum that was left by the failed Ansett Australia in 2001. This gave VA a challenge of meeting the interests of Ansetts former customers. Australia aircrafts, thus, compelling the company to tirelessly work to advance their objectives. Another moment of truth for the VA is with regard to the taking over of the leadership of the company by John Borghetti after Brett Godfrey stepped down in 2010. The movement of Borghetti from Qantas (where he served as the executive general manager) to Virgin (as the CEO) influenced the movement of other Qantas staff. Having carried with them the expertise that they had to their new work place, the Virgin got a boost and provided both services that significantly convinced Virgins clients that Virgin was the best in the industry. The arrival of a new CEO also led to the rebranding of the company so that a new impression could be given to the companys clients. Virgin Australias Determinants of Satisfaction/Dissatisfaction The airline industry is among the competitive industries in the world. With its customers at the center of all their processes, the industry endeavors to improve the quality of the services and flight safety that they offer to their clients (Peyton, Pitts Kamery, 2003). Just like any other airline, the VA is equally affected by customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction as these have the effect of determining whether the company will retain its current customers and entice new clients or lose them (Anderson, 2007). Generally, there are ten quality values that influence peoples satisfaction/dissatisfaction behaviours: timelines, quality, value, ease of access, inter-departmental collaboration, efficiency, obligation to the clients, environment, innovation, and an organizations front-line service behaviours. The study that was conducted by Flie and Kleinaltenkamp (2004) offers a foundation for VAs customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction measurement by employing the gap between the organizations performance and the clients satisfaction. According to Oliver (1980), the factors that determine VAs satisfaction/dissatisfaction include: check-in procedures, ticketing and reservations, in-flight services, and luggage handling. Different people expect to be treated differently whenever they use the VA airlines. As aforementioned, the airline offers different travel classes in their airplanes. Travelers in VAs business class are often charged higher relative to those in the economy category. Peyton et al. (2003) posit that the highly-charged seats imply that the quality of check-in procedures, ticketing and reservations, in-flight services, and luggage handling offered to them should be higher than the ones offered to the economy class travelers. Ideally, clients who pay more expect higher/better s ervices. Using the gap model to explain this, Anderson (2007) points out that clients often compare their anticipations with the real performance offered by their service providers. This depends on whether the performances provided meet or surpass their anticipation (positive disconfirmation) or are below their anticipations (negative disconfirmation). The later leads to customers dissatisfaction while the former leads to their satisfaction. To meet these factors, the service quality gap model (SERVQUAL), a form of gap model, is used. The SERVQUAL plays two main roles: identification of gaps between a companys actual services that are offered at different stages of the companys service delivery and the customers expectation (Akan, 1995) and closing up the gaps as well as improving the customer service (Oliver, 1980). As such, by the SERVQUAL model, the service quality of VA can be determined by recognizing the breaches that exist between the companys clients anticipations of the type and qual ity of services offered to them and their views of the real VAs performance of services. VAs service quality measurement can be gauged on five different dimensions. First is tangibility. Tangibility connotes the physical features that are related to a service counter (Akan, 1995). The second dimension is reliability. This gauges a companys ability to provide dependable as well as accurate services, thereby, ensuring right and consistent performance of services (Lovelock, 2013). Reliability is significant since the higher the reliability of an airline, the more the number of travelers that it gets. The third dimension is empathy. Empathy refers to a companys readiness to provide all its customers with their individual services (Peyton et al., 2003). Assurance is another dimension that can be used to gauge VAs quality of service. Assurance denotes different characteristics that provide a companys clients with confidence (Flie Kleinaltenkamp, 2004). These may include a companys particular service, polite, knowledge, and trustworthy behaviours towards their employees (Akan, 1995). Lastly is responsiveness, which refers to a companys willingness to help its clients by offering them with efficient and fast service performances. Generally, studies have shown that companies that have greater/better tangibility, empathy, responsiveness, assurance, and reliability receive more travelers or have more customers (Oliver, 1980). As such, it will be in order for VA to meet all these dimensions of the SERVQUAL model for it to continue competing in the airline industry. A Service-Recovery Strategy Plan for Virgin Australia For the past years, VAs executives have associated their fluctuating performance in the industry with the type of service-recovery strategy that they have always employed to enhance their customer loyalty (Lovelock, 2013). However, for it to outperform Qantas, the company should reorganize its strategy towards winning the trust of its customers. They should employ a strategy that will encompass all activities surrounding the comfort of their clients right from baggage drop, check-in, plane conditions, boarding, in-flight services like entertainment, shopping, as well as foods and beverages till the point of disembarkation. The company should, therefore, have a service-recovery that: offers quick actions/responses to incidents, provides sufficient explanations underlying the occurrence of incidents, offers fair treatment to their passengers in cases of incidents, cultivates associations/closeness between the companys staff and the their passengers, enables VAs staff to learn from their past recovery experiences, and tracks complaints by their clients in the event of incidents. According to Lovelock (2013), this service-recovery model functions by improving peoples psychological behaviours between an organizations staff and customers. This is because the strategy is customer-focused and cost effective (Flie Kleinaltenkamp, 2004), having the objective of satisfying clients needs when airlines are on board, identifies as well as rectifies the challenges during incidents without negative implications (Lovelock, 2013). Conclusion To this end, it can be concluded that VA has a robust service blueprint. This is attributed to the fast success that it realized just after being launched in 1999. For the company to continue realizing its objectives, they must take into account factors, like check-in procedures, ticketing and reservations, in-flight services, and luggage handling for their customers. This will go a long way to affect customers satisfaction levels and behaviours. They can, therefore, remain competitive by employing the five discussed dimensions of the SERVQUAL gap model: reliability, responsiveness, empathy, tangibility, and assurance. 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