The Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck (1902 - 1968) Essays

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (1902 - 1968) The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (1902 - 1968) Type of Work: Social / political criticism Setting Oklahoma and California; 1930s Principal Characters Tod Joad, a recent parolee in his mid-twenties Ma and Pa Joad, a strong, middle-aged Oklahoma couple Noah Joad, their strange eldest son Al, their wild sixteen-year-old Rose of Sharon, eldest Joad daughter, married and pregnant Gramma and Grampa Joad, an earthy old couple Jim Casy, a preacher and, later, a labor agitator Other Joad children Story Overveiw As Tom Joad hitchhiked his way home after a four-year stay in prison for killing a man in a fight, he met up with Jim Casy, a former preacher who was returning from a sojourn in the "wilderness," where he had been soul-searching. Tom invited Jim to walk with him on the dusty road to the Joad family farm, and to stay for dinner. Arriving there, he saw that "the small unpainted house was mashed at one corner, and it had been pushed off its foundations so that it slumped at an angle." The farm was deserted. Muley Graves, a near-by tenant farmer, told Tom that his family had moved to their Uncle john's house: " . . . They was going to stick it out when the bank come to tractorin' off the place." A long drought was making barren ground out of what had once been fertile farmland. Early the following morning Tom and Casy walked the eight miles to Uncle John's farm. As they approached, Tom saw his Pa working on a truck in the yard. Pa's "eyes looked at Tom's face, and then gradually his brain became aware of what he saw." With Tom's homecoming, the Joad family unit was complete. Now Ma and Pa, the pregnant oldest daughter Rose of Sharon, and her husband Connie, Grampa, Gramma, and all the rest started packing: they were all "goin' to California" to start over as fruit pickers. Like thousands of other displaced tenant farmers, the Joads, spurred on by the promise of good wages and sunshine, sold what they could, bought a used car and headed out on Highway 66, "a people in flight, refugees from dust and shrinking land, from the thunder of tractors and shrinking ownership." After the supplies and tools were loaded into the old Hudson, which teen-aged Al load had converted into a truck, the Joad family and Casy (twelve people in all) squeezed into what little space was left and started west. During the first overnight stop, Gramma suddenly was hit by a stroke and died. They buried him on the roadside. Soon the loads met up with the Wilsons, a married couple with a broken-down car. After Al had fixed the vehicle, Ma and Pa joad invited the Wilsons to travel with them. "You won't be no burden. Each'Il help each, an' we'll all git to California," Ma said. The two groups "crawled westward as a unit", suffering along the way from too little money, not enough food, dilapidated vehicles, profiteering junk dealers and overpriced replacement parts. Eastward-bound migrants warned the travelers that working conditions in California were bad; but they still pressed on toward the "promised land." Crossing the border into California, the family camped next to a river that ran parallel to the town of Needles. They'd wait until nightfall to cross the desert. As Tom, Noah and Pa sat down in the shallow river water to wash off the road grime, they were joined by an itinerant father and his son who aprised them of the treatment they could expect in California: "Okie use'ta mean you was from Oklahoma. Now it means you're a dirty sonof-a-bitch. Okie means you're scum." Later that day, Tom's aloof and backward brother Noah notified him that he was staying to live by the river, and then wandered away. That evening, after saying good-bye to the Wilsons, the Joads began the last leg of their journey. Early during the desert crossing, Gramma quietly died, but Ma waited until they reached Bakersfield before she told anyone. After another roadside burial, the family drove on into a "Hooverville" - one of many designated migrant camps opened during the Depression. Like other Hoovervilles, it was a haotic community; "little gray tents, shacks, and c cars were scattered about at random." But the Joads elected to stay. On their first evening in the camp, two men in a shiny sedan drove up, a labor contractor and a local sheriff. The contractor had come out to offer jobs to the migrants, but when he declined to reveal the actual

Evaluating Essay Samples Using CRAAP

Evaluating Essay Samples Using CRAAPWhen using a CRAAP source evaluation essay sample you can use the method of choice and still be accepted to grad school. Evaluating essays is an extremely important aspect of having any type of job. The fact that you have completed a full year of college and finished four semesters of classes will open up doors to higher paying jobs in this field. There are a number of professional writing services out there who will work with you on improving your writing skills and you can find out more about them at various websites.Although it is important to make sure that your work is well written, it is also important to look at it from a variety of different things. You must consider what sort of audience you are writing for. Do they have standards when it comes to writing? Most of these are looking for opinionated writers who they can discuss the ideas they have in a discussion forum or even a blog which will mean that they can get a lot of information abo ut the topic and you will not be the only one talking.A great source of information to work from is an actual text. Use a different way of approaching the same topic as your source essays if you are going to be using one. If you want to submit something to an article marketing site you would use the text as a platform and then include links to websites you have used when submitting articles. This will help the marketing article site to find and highlight your information which will help increase your chance of getting published on the website.The most important thing to remember is that a CRAAP can be used over again if you are doing this on a consistent basis. However, when you use this you have to make sure that you write the information in such a way that it can stand on its own when a person is writing an evaluation. It is very important to make sure that the actual text will stand on its own and you can do this by including links to other information that will allow them to gai n further information about the topic.In a CRAAP you can also include things such as personal experiences you may have had in the past and references to previous awards and achievements. These can be found within the paragraph and they will be especially useful if you want to show that you are an educated individual.The main point that you want to remember is that you want to use the evaluator to help you promote yourself in a way so that you can get more job opportunities and therefore more money. The evaluator should encourage you to apply for the jobs that you want and in order to ensure that this happens you must write well, this can be hard but it is something that you need to get through to.Using a CRAAP can help you understand how to write an effective evaluation so that you are guaranteed to get accepted to a graduate program. These can be used on an online source and this is the perfect way to find out more about the reviews and the techniques.

Two-Factor Authentication Essay Essays

Two-Factor Authentication Essay Essays Two-Factor Authentication Essay Essay Two-Factor Authentication Essay Essay Harmonizing to the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council. verifying someone’s individuality online involves at least one of a few factors. These factors are the undermentioned: Information the PersonKnows This could be a username and password combination. societal security figure. a PIN they chose. or something else that the individual could cognize but others wouldn’t. Something the individual is able to PhysicallyPosses A good of this is the person’s ATM card. A more unafraid physical factor could be a usage brassy device with a key on it. The concluding factor that can be used is something alone to that individual merely. aBiometric Fingerprints and Rental Scans are illustrations of this. The difference between individual and multi-factor hallmark is that individual factor would merely utilize one of these. like a username/password combination. which could be easy stolen through a assortment of methods both local and remote to that person’s physical location ( keygrabbers. web whiffing. Trojans. observation. beastly force onslaughts. or merely loose lips ) . Multi-factor hallmark requires at least one other input. Therefore an illustration of two-factor hallmark would be holding to come in your username and a watchwordand besidesyour ATM card figure and security codification from the dorsum. or a fingerprint scanandcome ining your ATM card figure. or even all three for three factor hallmark. The FDIC feels that fiscal establishments should be utilizing two-factor hallmark. There have been a figure of recommendations made to the fiscal establishment industry. and most big Bankss and investing houses are now utilizing two-factor. The bank should decidedly be utilizing multi-factor hallmark. Two-factor hallmark will non merely protect their clients. but it will assist protect them against liability in the event that one of their clients does hold their individuality stolen. Since they are a little bank. budget will be a serious consideration when doing the switch to two-factor hallmark. A method that has been used in the authorities and military. and that is now easy accessible is the usage of a hardware consecutive figure generator. This involves the usage of a little ( cigarette lighter sized ) device that generates a new alone figure every few proceedingss. It is based off of a algorithm the bank computing machine knows and each individual has their ain alone seed figure. so each person’s Numberss are alone to them. When they log in. they are asked for a username/password combination and the figure off their hardware key. Harmonizing to the FDIC this is now one of the most normally used engineerings used by online banking services. Sing that the bank is little. the above suggestion of a hardware key that generates erstwhile watchwords is truly the best option. However. USB fingerprint readers are non excessively expensive now. and utilizing biometries like this could be an option particularly for concern clients. The top of the hardware key is that you can convey it with you wherever you go. but that brings up the downside that it can be stolen. Your fingerprints can non be stolen so easy. Either manner. two-factor hallmark should be implemented every bit shortly as possible to protect the bank and their clients.

Statistical Estimation of Healthy Life Expectancy Research Paper

Statistical Estimation of Healthy Life Expectancy - Research Paper Example Model selection was performed using the software Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 11.01. Values for Mallows' Cp were computed manually based on values derived from the computerized models. Scatter plot of the models are, however, performed in Microsoft Excel (2003) for more presentable rendition. To facilitate estimation of the most significant predictors of healthy life expectancy (HALE), one-variable linear regression was performed on each of the 22 predictor variables. To assist in the refinement of the first multi-variable model, a scatter plot of p vs. Mallows' Cp is shown in Figure 1. It may be gleaned from the scatter plot in Figure 1 that four predictor variables X2, X9, X20, and X22 are outliers, while the rest of the other predictor variables were concentrated in the area on the plot encircled in red. The predictors were divided into three blocks: (1) block 1 variables consist of those assumed from the results of the one-variable regression models which can most significantly predict HALE; (2) block 2 variables were those assumed to be moderate predictors of HALE; and (3) block 3 variables were those assumed to be least significant predictors of HALE. Criteria used in grouping the results of... Model selection was performed using the software Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 11.01. Values for Mallows' Cp were computed manually based on values derived from the computerized models. Scatter plot of the models are, however, performed in Microsoft Excel (2003) for more presentable rendition. Preliminary Analysis To facilitate estimation of the most significant predictors of healthy life expectancy (HALE), one-variable linear regression was performed on each of the 22 predictor variables. To assist in the refinement of the first multi-variable model, a scatter plot of p vs. Mallows' Cp is shown in Figure 1. Figure 1. Scatter plot of p vs Mallows' Cp It may be gleaned from the scatter plot in Figure 1 that four predictor variables X2, X9, X20, and X22 are outliers, while the rest of the other predictor variables were concentrated in the area on the plot encircled in red. Modeling and Analysis The predictors were divided into three blocks: (1) block 1 variables consist of those assumed from the results of the one-variable regression models which can most significantly predict HALE; (2) block 2 variables were those assumed to be moderate predictors of HALE; and (3) block 3 variables were those assumed to be least significant predictors of HALE. Criteria used in grouping the results of the one-variable regression models were: (1) computed values of Mallows' Cp which most closely approached the value of p; (2) coefficient of determination (R2), delimited to those capable of predicting the variance in HALE by at least 50% (R = > 0.500); (3) highly correlated, based on the Pearson correlation coefficient (0.70 < r < 1.00); and (4) values of the sum of squares of the residuals are to be less

Language Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Language - Research Paper Example The ability to produce a clear and concise meaning of what an individual means to relay allows for the better understanding and by extension relations of the participating individuals (Kennison, 2013). The importance of language to man and the emphasis on its development can be seen by the general portrayal of the past progress that was made from Cave men to the modern man that is seen today. In most instances the cave man is shown as an individual with ability to speak and form clear words and communicates mostly with grunts and gestures in the same manner that an ape for example would do (Kennison, 2013). As man continues to evolve and develop as a species the change is seen not only in the posture (that straightens into an upright position) but in their ability to communicate with one another as well (Fitch, 2010). The emphasis of language as one of the crucial elements of evolution lays the foundation for the argument that it is an important part of the human element and is thus involved in one way or another in daily life and in studies such as the humanities and social sciences (Trask, 2007). However to fully grasp the involvement between language and these studies it is critical to comprehend the key concepts of language such as the various definitions that are available. The understanding of these elements would serve to produce a good depiction of the relationship between these two subjects. Textbook Definition The textbook definition of language can be seen as the simplest manner of explanation for the description of the subject (that is, language). This description aims at cutting across the various sub-topics that arise in this matter and present an accurate representation of the meaning of the word (Kennison, 2013). The text book definition of language in this case can be the use of a complicated system of communication by human beings to relate messages to one another in various manners of forms such as spoken and written word as well as gestures in some cases (Fitch, 2010). A language can be termed as any manner of communication that meets this description and there are a large number of languages of languages that have been developed around the world. However, it should be eminent that the textbook definition of language would not be able to fully assist in the relation of the modern day approach to humanities and social sciences and the subject. It is however important in the progression of one’s understanding of the subject so as matter to allow for a clearer perception of the other available definitions of language (Trask, 2007). It is crucial that one first learns the basics of the topic before delving further into the connection that exists between the studies that have been mentioned and the involvement of language in their development and progression. The further definitions of language can be seen to originate from different viewpoints that have been studies in relation to the topic in an attempt to explain the various fundamentals that govern this subject. Language in Relation to Social Structure The human language can be seen to be unique in a number of aspects that are lacking in other species of animals that populate this planet. This is due to the number of properties that can be found in it when studied closely (Trask, 2007). Some of these include elements such as recursivity, productivity and displacement. These are all elements that are not found in

Prioritizing the IT Project Portfolio Essay Example for Free

Prioritizing the IT Project Portfolio Essay Project portfolio management is the management process tailored to aid the organization gain and review important information concerning all its projects, which are then sorted and prioritized according to some criteria like strategic value, cost, effects on resources and others (Greer, 2009). IT project portfolio management has certain objectives that must prompt its undertaking. However, the evaluation must start with the IT strategy first and not the goals and objectives of the business or organization. The IT strategy should be the linking chain in the business strategy that governs the service or product strategy, which in turn should be able to drive the IT strategy. The following are examples of the strategies of a CRM company. In determining the IT project to undertake, the business strategy must first be analyzed and understood. For example, an organization’s business strategy may be to see a customer base increased by a certain percentage within a specific period. In the business strategy, all the necessary requirements for accomplishment of the strategy must be put in place. An IT organization may provide increase functionality through business analytics as well as executive dashboards. What follows should be the product strategy. An IT firm may want to work with business intelligence software organization to improve analytical capacity of the CRM software. The identification and undertaking of such strategies should be within a time frame. In this linkage chain, the product strategy should be governed and driven by the organization’s business strategies (Greer, 2009). However, the product strategy should be the driving force behind the IT strategy which should come third in this link chain of strategies. An organization’s IT strategy could be to develop a new software platform which would enable easy integration between the organization’s software and the business intelligence software company as well as with other companies. The IT strategy should then be the driver of our IT project prioritization (Machevarapu, 2006). As an IT project a company may undertake to create a Web service-based platform which provides a universal data transmission and exchange between the business intelligence software and the CRM software. This chain should be able to inform us whether the IT projects are in line with our IT strategy and by extension our business strategy. However it would be difficult to verify the specific values our IT projects have on our business. In order to determine particular values of IT projects to the organization in a hierarchical analysis of the strategies, one needs to specifically look at the four drivers that motivate our strategic analysis. The first and the most important of these drivers is the potential reduction in expenses. One of the motivating factors should be the reduction of cost in our business operation. In this case our CRM integration should be able to offer a new platform that would helps us reduce the cost of creating links to other software sellers or vendors. This is because our CRM is formulated on a Web services standard (Entrekin, 2006). Our second and essential motivation should then be the potential revenue increase our project would bring to the business. As a business outfit, our concern should be how to minimize cost and improve our capital base and therefore every project undertaken should be aligned to our business strategy of seeing an increase in revenue. According to Entrekin (2006) in our IT project prioritizing, an increase should be expected in our overall revenue because we would expect a larger client base that would consider our CRM software. The third driver should be the impact of our IT project on our product as well as on our competitors. The project should not only improve our products but should put us above our competitors. This should be our strategic undertaking so that our software platform project directly impacts our CRM product and hence improve the organization’s competitive position. The final and most important driver of our IT project should be the legality of our undertaking. We have to be aware of the various laws and regulatory measures required of IT projects (Greer, 2009). If the laws are in favor of our project, then we have to move swiftly to accomplish our project that would enhance our business strategies. Security of data is an important component of the new CRM software platform and because such data as social security numbers are sensitive, the federal laws for example, permit their storage within the CRM system. Strict compliance with the IT laws would enable us undertake projects that are tenable and are in line with our IT strategy and by extension our business goals and objectives (Entrekin, 2006). Every IT project must be evaluated against the four discussed drivers in order to determine their value as well as priority to the organization. Again, it is important to note that the drivers are not and should be analyzed in isolation from each other. But they should be intertwined in a meaningful and repeatable process in the prioritization process. Analysis of any IT project must therefore be considered under each and every one of these drivers in order to come up with a comprehensive and exclusive value-base project (Entrekin, 2006). Prioritization management is a process and creating a prioritization model would have to take up-bottom approach which then breaks down every driver into different parameters. This process requires a concerted effort of all business leaders from all departments in order to get the insights of the business focus as well as performance measurements. From the example above, the CRM company leaders undertook to break down into four parameters the â€Å"expense reduction† driver. These were customer service expenses, back office efficiency gains, customer acquisition and retention and others (Machevarapu, 2006). This step is followed by scoring every project across all the parameters, in a down-up approach in order to find out the overall score of our project. This process requires a presentation of statements to the business leaders and gauging their degree of agreement with particular criteria assigned to the scoring range in a scale of 1-10. For instance, in the CRM company project, the leaders were asked whether they considered the project to be profitable or not in terms of savings. A score of 1 meant no saving while that of 10 meant a saving in the tune of millions. The bottom-up rating in this case will give us the final scores which will definitely prioritize the project or not. The third step in the prioritization process would be to adjust the 2 prioritization levers through assigning of weights to every driver as well as their particular parameters in accordance with the current priorities in business. Our weights would then be adjusted correspondingly as the priorities change, so that our scores for every IT project remain in line with our business strategies. Such levers must be set in relation to business priorities through out the project portfolio and never changed among projects (Machevarapu, 2006). After the projects have been scored, sorting to determine those that are feasible may be undertaken. The cutoff points in this case may be related to the total number of such projects a business can absorb, the available funds for investments or any other constraints the organization may be facing. The most important thing to every manager is that all prioritization models look well on paper. However, there are no perfect ones and getting accurate results may be the greatest challenge. One cause of this is that most people would try to manipulate the outcomes. It is therefore important that every manager learns some basic steps towards understanding prioritization. For example, one needs to learn about what constitutes a project, which projects are to be subjected to strategic analysis, and which ones are not and finally learning to limit the number of projects undertaken by a particular department.

Bread Givers :: essays research papers fc

Clashing of Wills Conflict between generations is a common them to many novels. In the novel"Bread Givers", by Anzia Yezierksa, the clashing of wills of two generations is one major theme. We see clashes through culture, generations, community, religion,generations, and many others. The most prominent clash of wills is that of the protagonist Sara with her father Moisha or Reb Smolinsky. Some may say that these two characters clash because of their differences. Others might say that it their similarities that cause the clash between them both. It seems that it is a combination of their similarities and their differences that cause their clash and, in fact, binds them closer than any of the other characters. At the beginning of the novel we learn that Sara’s father has nick named her blood and iron recognizing the fact that she has a strong will. It is Sara’s strong will that causes the most of the conflict with her and her father. Sara gets her strong will and drive from her father. She is not like her sisters who follow the cultural expectations of early marriage, but she, instead, has greater ambition for her life. Sara plans to get an education which is not in her fathers plan for her life. Reb wants Sara to marry like her other sisters, and live a "holy" life according to the Torah. Sara’s will to educate herself, and Reb’s will to have Sara married is what causes the conflict in their relationship. Like Sara’s blood and iron will, Reb also is driven for his daughters to live their life according to the Torah. It is the strong will of these two characters that cause their connection. While Reb is bound to the laws and traditions of the Torah, Sara is bound to the drive to be educated or make herself a better, more successful person. One incident that exemplifies the strong will of both these characters is found at the beginning of the novel. The rent collector for the landlord comes to the apartment to collect rent, but Reb does not have the money. The two argue and Reb finally hits the collector, who is Jewish, and shouts, "I’ll teach you respect for the Holy Torah" (p. 18). Reb is then taken off to jail for assault. Then Sara decides since none of her sisters are bringing in enough money, that she would go out and make some.