The Kite Runner Redemption

What is the worst thing you have done to a friend or family member? Have you lied to them? Stolen from them? After the dreadful deed, did they forgive you? More importantly, did you forgive yourself? Regret and redemption are very important themes in the book The Kite Runner. Having regret for something can affect your whole life, as seen with the character, Amir. Through the development of Amir and his childhood friend, Hassan, Amir has to live with his regret and hope for redemption for the rest of his life. From the beginning of the story The Kite Runner, it is apparent that Amir did something wrong from the very first page. Amir says, â€Å"Standing in the kitchen with the receiver to my ear, I knew it wasn’t just Rahim Khan on the line. It was my past of unatoned sins. † (1). The reader understands that Amir had done something wrong in the winter of 1975. Later, we figure out what this â€Å"something† was; he watched Hassan get raped. It was after Amir had just won his kite race and Hassan had gone to fetch the winning kite. He then came across the bullies of the neighborhood: Assef, Kamal, and Wali. Assef tried to take the kite, but like a loyal friend, Hassan would not let him. Assef then let Hassan keep the kite, but only to pay the price of being raped. Amir stood behind a wall and watched it all happen without saying one word. This is probably one of the most important scenes in the whole book; Amir’s actions from this shaped how he grew up and lived the rest of his life with regret. After Amir watched Hassan get raped, nothing was the same. He was filled with guilt and regret. He felt like a coward. â€Å"I ran because I was a coward. I was afraid of Assef and what he would do to me. I was afraid of getting hurt. † (77). He could not turn and help his friend because he was scared, and he wanted the approval of his father for once; he thought bringing home the kite would win Baba over. Little did he know that he ruined the rest of his life by doing this. Amir was filled with such regret that he had to get rid of Hassan one way or another. He could not stand the secret that he had from that night and wanted the pain to go away. Amir changed his and Hassan’s relationship that night. Even after Amir framed Hassan and got him to leave, Amir’s guilt did not go away and he was forever regretting all the decisions he had been making up to this point. Amir and Baba ended up going to America to try to get away from their past and get the redemption they both were longing for. After living life in America, Amir received a phone call from his old friend, Rahim Khan. Rahim Khan had been looking for some redemption of his own because he had been keeping a secret from Amir his whole life; Hassan was actually Baba’s son and Amir’s half brother. Hassan had died and Rahim wanted Amir to retrieve Hassan’s son, Sohrab. Amir still carried around the guilt from the winter of 1975 and decided this was his chance to redeem himself. As Rahim Khan said, â€Å"There was a way to be good again. † (2). This was Amir’s way to be good again. Amir had been looking for redemption his whole life. Retrieving Sohrab would rid himself of this. Amir also outstepped his coward personality when he was faced to a battle with Assef. This part of the book was one of the other most important scenes. Amir came out with Sohrab and he finally got the redemption that he was seeking for since the day he watched Hassan get raped. Throughout the book there were many examples of redemption. It mostly occurred in Amir as we saw his relationship with Hassan grow throughout the book. Amir had such guilt that he had to drive Hassan away; this proved how much of a coward he really was. After that day, he always carried around the guilt of betraying his friend and finally absolved himself by finding his redemption when retrieving Sohrab. Even though his decision of being a coward affected his life miserably, it still shaped him into the man that he was at the end of the book. Hosseini, Khaled. The Kite Runner. New York: Riverhead Books, 2003.

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Though they worked together for a year, Peterson struggled to bridge the distance between Www and herself. Over lunch, Peterson praised Wow's efforts to broaden his professional skill set by attending weekend sales seminars and networking with colleagues to better understand the business. These efforts, she noted, surely contributed to his success in retaining his large, but only, client. Peterson then reminded Www of her concerns. â€Å"Fred, I'd Like to remind you that your primary focus should be on new business. It seems as If you re spending too much time managing your one client, and that's not your job. Peterson continued, â€Å"As Vive mentioned before, I'd like to be kept abreast of your development efforts, so I know when and if you need help from me, or someone else In the company. I expect you to summarize your efforts every few days on our online sales tool, like everyone else on the team. If you spent more time in the office, I'd have a better sense of your business. Plus, I'm confident you'd glean some helpful selling techniques from your colleagues. † Finally, Peterson questioned the value of the expensive add-on services Www had sold to his client so early In the relationship.Www assured Peterson that all revenue booked?including additional services? originated at his client's request. He emphasized that the networking heed done in the Chinese community was about to pay off: he expected to sign three major new clients In the coming quarter. Www then stated that, because he was about to become the most successful sales executive In the Plano office, he needed his own sales assistant to answer his phone and perform administrative tasks. Peterson hoped her face didn't register her dismay at Wow's request.Only the most senior salespeople at Accountancy, some of whom Juggled more than 30 accounts, had their own sales assistants. The rest of Accountancy's salespeople shared assistants. What was Www thinking? Solely as a basis for class discus sion and not as an endorsement, a source of primary data, or an illustration of effective or ineffective management. Although based on real events and despite occasional references to actual companies, this case is fictitious and any resemblance to actual persons or entities is coincidental. Copyright 0 2013 President and Fellows of Harvard College.To order copies or request permission to produce materials, call 1-800-545-7685, write Harvard Business Publishing, Boston, MA 02163, or go to http://www. Hobs. Harvard. Deed. This publication may not be digitized, photocopied, or otherwise reproduced, posted, or transmitted, without the permission of Harvard Business School. This document is authorized for use only by Chugging You in Fall 2014 Engaging and Empowering People taught by Bobbie Ships Texas Christian University from September 2014 to October 2014. 913-560 | Wendy Peterson Accountancy: Background Accountancy was founded in 1988 by Will Gleason, a former accountant, and TravisH arriman, a software engineer. Gleason, a senior executive at a large national accounting firm, felt that many of the back-office accounting functions his firm provided to clients could be automated. Gleason envisioned, and Harriman built, a back-office accounting software product designed for what they felt was an undeserved market: small- and medium-sized businesses, especially those with ambitious growth targets. It was easy for businesses to adapt the Accountancy product as their needs changed or expanded, thanks to the modular design of the software and a comprehensive suite of add-on options.Gleason cultivated relationships with local investors and venture capitalists to gain exposure to possible clients. The founders believed that their competitive advantage would come not only from their superior software but also from their strong client relationships, a combination that companies making off-the-shelf accounting products or large accounting firms were unlikely to replicate. The founders also believed that a flat organizational structure and collegial culture would minimize office politics, strengthen employee morale, and heighten company performance.Soon their business model began to pay off. The product was â€Å"sticky': once businesses implemented the software (a one-time installation cost between $25,000 and $100,000 depending on the scope of desired services) and trained employees on its use, they were likely to renew their annual contracts. Accountants client renewal rate was 25% above the industry average, and most clients retained services for at least four years. In 2010, the firm earned nearly $100 million in revenues, and employed more than 400 employees in ten regional offices located in southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas.That same year, however, the proliferation of inexpensive, off-the- hell accounting software, combined with a faltering economy, drove down revenues; three of its regions. The founders retired and the new CEO was determined to reignite the company's growth. He replaced the vice presidents of sales in a number of offices with the company's most enterprising young sales directors. Each was given aggressive growth targets. If the revenue goals were met or exceeded, the new leaders and their sales teams would receive a substantial bonus.Wendy Peterson was one of the promoted employees. She was named vice president of sales for Accountants Plano, Texas, office. After consultation with her superior, one of four regional senior vice presidents of sales, she agreed to grow the revenues of her underperforming office by 40% in two years. Accountancy Sales Organization Salespeople (generally referred to as sales executives) invested a significant amount of time getting to know clients and their businesses before submitting an initial proposal and turning the account over to a dedicated service team.Once a member of the sales team signed or renewed a client contract, day-to-day responsibility f or product implementation and service transferred to an Accountancy account service am. Sales executives communicated with account service teams to keep abreast of implementation challenges and of potential add-on services that their clients might need. For new salespeople, the initial focus was outreach. Although some of the salespeople came from competitors, most came from sales or product management positions in other software or services Wendy Peterson | 913-560 companies.New salespeople were expected to mine and leverage their personal networks and to research, cold-call, and cultivate their own lists of local prospects. Unlike most of Accountants employees, who were salaried, annual compensation for sales employees (about 20% of the company's employees) included a base salary component (50% of annual compensation) and a commission component (50% of annual compensation). Escalating incentives existed for exceeding target revenue goals.If sales employees met or exceeded their an nual financial targets and stated professional development goals, they were eligible for base salary increases. Although the salespeople mostly operated independently of each other, there were regional sales employee received a flat bonus payment ($7,000 in 2010). Total insemination ranged from $100,000 for first-year salespeople to $1 for Accountants most experienced sales managers. Background Peterson Joined Accountancy after graduating at the top of her Ivy League university class in 2000 with a degree in economics.A tireless worker with a curious mind, she excelled as a Junior manager on a series of account service teams and earned stellar reviews from both clients and colleagues. By age 28, Peterson was managing account service teams herself. Said Peterson: After six years working on and managing client engagements, I was ready for a change; sales seemed a challenging, and potentially curative, opportunity. I was nervous, though, about fitting in with the sales organization; af ter all, I'd never worked in direct sales or closed new business.So I read books on varying sales strategies, attended weekend sales seminars, and requested to shadow two of the most successful sales directors (a small number of sales executives were promoted to the title of sales director to reflect their exceptional performance or tenure) in my office for the first month. Vive often been described as a â€Å"doer†?if I see a chance to help, I don't Just suggest an idea and wait for someone else to take charge. I like to do things myself. After Joining Accountants sales team it struck me that our senior sales staff benefited most from recurring revenue from our largest, longstanding customers.Their business was steady and required little effort. Junior-level sales executives like me, on the other hand, worked overtime to land new accounts and earned far less than experienced sales directors. As the pressure from management to drive new business increased, I spearheaded a vol unteer mentoring program between Junior and senior sales professionals. The more experienced professionals imparted sales and client management wisdom to their Junior counterparts, in return for â€Å"free† assistance on large accounts.Camaraderie spiked and, I think, an unexpected benefit was that focusing on new business again invigorated senior members of the sales team. I was one of the few sales employees who brought in lots of new business to Accountancy in 2008 despite the global financial crisis; soon after I was promoted to manage the Plano sales organization. To me, the Plano team I inherited seemed disengaged; I believed that changing the culture?by making my team closer and the office more collegial?would boost productivity and revenues. Under my direction, our performance improved, and the team exceeded 2010 targets for new business by 15%.

The Role of Dna Technology in Crime Investigation Essay Example

The Role of Dna Technology in Crime Investigation Essay Example The Role of Dna Technology in Crime Investigation Essay The Role of Dna Technology in Crime Investigation Essay DNA profiling DNA profiling (also called DNA testing, DNA typing, or genetic fingerprinting) is a technique employed by forensic scientists to assist in the identification of individuals on the basis of their respective DNA profiles. DNA profiles are encrypted sets of numbers that reflect a persons DNA makeup, which can also be used as the persons identifier. DNA profiling should not be confused with full genome sequencing. It is used in, for example, parental testing and rape investigation. Although 99. 9% of human DNA sequences are the same in every person, enough of the DNA is different to distinguish one individual from another.DNA profiling uses repetitive (repeat) sequences that are highly variable called variable number tandem repeats (VNTR). VNTRs loci are very similar between closely related humans, but so variable that unrelated individuals are extremely unlikely to have the same VNTRs. The DNA profiling technique was first reported in 1984by Sir Alec Jeffreys at the Univer sity of Leicester in England, and is now the basis of several national DNA databases. Dr. Jeffreyss genetic fingerprinting was made commercially available in 1987, when a chemical company, ICI, started a blood-testing center in England.DNA profiling process The process begins with a sample of an individuals DNA (typically called a reference sample). The most desirable method of collecting a reference sample is the use of a buccal swab, as this reduces the possibility of contamination. When this is not available (e. g. because a court order may be needed and not obtainable) other methods may need to be used to collect a sample of blood, saliva, semen, or other appropriate fluid or tissue from personal items (e. g. toothbrush, razor, etc. ) or from stored samples (e. g. banked sperm or biopsy tissue).Samples obtained from blood relatives (biological relative) can provide an indication of an individuals profile, as could human remains which had been previously profiled. A reference sam ple is then analyzed to create the individuals DNA profile using one of a number of techniques, discussed below. The DNA profile is then compared against another sample to determine whether there is a genetic match. * RFLP analysis The first methods for finding out genetics used for DNA profiling involved restriction enzyme digestion, followed by Southern blot analysis.Although polymorphisms can exist in the restriction enzyme cleavage sites, more commonly the enzymes and DNA probes were used to analyze VNTR loci. However, the Southern blot technique is laborious, and requires large amounts of undegraded sample DNA. Also, Karl Browns original technique looked at many minisatellite loci at the same time, increasing the observed variability, but making it hard to discern individual alleles (and thereby precluding parental testing). These early techniques have been supplanted by PCR-based assays. PCR analysis With the invention of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique, DNA prof iling took huge strides forward in both discriminating power and the ability to recover information from very small (or degraded) starting samples. PCR greatly amplifies the amounts of a specific region of DNA, using oligonucleotide primers and a thermostable DNA polymerase. Early assays such as the HLA-DQ alpha reverse dot blot strips grew to be very popular due to their ease of use, and the speed with which a result could be obtained.However they were not as discriminating as RFLP. It was also difficult to determine a DNA profile for mixed samples, such as a vaginal swab from a sexual assault victim. Fortunately, the PCR method is readily adaptable for analyzing VNTR loci. In the United States the FBI has standardized a set of 13 VNTR assays for DNA typing, and has organized the CODIS database for forensic identification in criminal cases. Similar assays and databases have been set up in other countries. Also, commercial kits are available that analyze single-nucleotide polymorphi sms (SNPs).These kits use PCR to amplify specific regions with known variations and hybridize them to probes anchored on cards, which results in a colored spot corresponding to the particular sequence variation. * STR analysis The method of DNA profiling used today is based on PCR and uses short tandem repeats (STR). This method uses highly polymorphic regions that have short repeated sequences of DNA (the most common is 4 bases repeated, but there are other lengths in use, including 3 and 5 bases).Because unrelated people almost certainly have different numbers of repeat units, STRs can be used to discriminate between unrelated individuals. These STR loci (locations on a chromosome) are targeted with sequence-specific primers and amplified using PCR. The DNA fragments that result are then separated and detected using electrophoresis. There are two common methods of separation and detection, capillary electrophoresis (CE) and gel electrophoresis. Each STR is polymorphic, however, th e number of alleles is small. Typically each STR allele will be shared by around 5 20% of individuals.The power of STR analysis comes from looking at multiple STR loci simultaneously. The pattern of alleles can identify an individual quite accurately. Thus STR analysis provides an excellent identification tool. The more STR regions that are tested in an individual the more discriminating the test becomes. From country to country, different STR-based DNA-profiling systems are in use. In North America, systems which amplify the CODIS 13 core loci are almost universal, while in the UK the SGM+ system (which is compatible with The National DNA Database), is in use.Whichever system is used, many of the STR regions used are the same. These DNA-profiling systems are based on multiplex reactions, whereby many STR regions will be tested at the same time. The true power of STR analysis is in its statistical power of discrimination. Because the 13 loci that are currently used for discriminati on in CODIS are independently assorted (having a certain number of repeats at one locus doesnt change the likelihood of having any number of repeats at any other locus), the product rule for probabilities can be applied.This means that if someone has the DNA type of ABC, where the three loci were independent, we can say that the probability of having that DNA type is the probability of having type A times the probability of having type B times the probability of having type C. This has resulted in the ability to generate match probabilities of 1 in a quintillion (1 with 18 zeros after it) or more. However, DNA database searches showed much more frequent than expected false DNA matches including one perfect 13 locus match out of only 30,000 DNA samples in Maryland in January 2007.Moreover, since there are about 12 million monozygotic twins on Earth, that theoretical probability is useless. For example, the actual probability that 2 random people have the same DNA depends on whether t here were twins or triplets (etc. ) in the family, and the number of loci used in the test. Where twins are common, the probability of matching the DNA is 22 in 1000, or about 2. 2 in 100 will have matching DNA. In practice, the risk of contaminated-matching is much greater than matching a distant relative, such as a sample being contaminated from nearby objects, or from left-over cells transferred from a prior test.Logically, the risk is greater for matching the most common person in the samples: everything collected from, or in contact with, a victim is a major source of contamination for any other samples brought into a lab. For that reason, multiple control-samples are typically tested, to ensure that they stayed clean, when prepared during the same period as the actual test samples. Unexpected matches (or variations) in several control-samples indicates a high probability of contamination for the actual test samples.In a relationship test, the full DNA profiles should differ (e xcept for twins), to prove that a person wasnt actually matched as being related to their own DNA in another sample. * AmpFLP Another technique, AmpFLP, or amplified fragment length polymorphism was also put into practice during the early 1990s. This technique was also faster than RFLP analysis and used PCR to amplify DNA samples. It relied on variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) polymorphisms to distinguish various alleles, which were separated on a polyacrylamide gel using an allelic ladder (as opposed to a molecular weight ladder).Bands could be visualized by silver staining the gel. One popular locus for fingerprinting was the D1S80 locus. As with all PCR based methods, highly degraded DNA or very small amounts of DNA may cause allelic dropout (causing a mistake in thinking a heterozygote is a homozygote) or other stochastic effects. In addition, because the analysis is done on a gel, very high number repeats may bunch together at the top of the gel, making it difficult to resol ve. AmpFLP analysis can be highly automated, and allows for easy creation of phylogenetic trees based on comparing individual samples of DNA.Due to its relatively low cost and ease of set-up and operation, AmpFLP remains popular in lower income countries. DNA family relationship analysis Using PCR technology, DNA analysis is widely applied to determine genetic family relationships such as paternity, maternity, siblingship and other kinships. During conception, the father’s sperm cell and the mother’s egg cell, each containing half the amount of DNA found in other body cells, meet and fuse to form a fertilized egg, called a zygote.The zygote contains a complete set of DNA molecules, a unique combination of DNA from both parents. This zygote divides and multiplies into an embryo and later, a full human being. DNA does not change once it is formed at conception. At each stage of development, all the cells forming the body contain the same DNA- half from the father and hal f from the mother. This fact allows the relationship testing to use all types of all samples including loose cells from the cheeks collected using buccal swabs, blood or other types of samples.While a lot of DNA contains information for a certain function, there is some called junk DNA, which is currently used for human identification. At some special locations (called loci) in the junk DNA, predictable inheritance patterns were found to be useful in determining biological relationships. These locations contain specific DNA markers that DNA scientists use to identify individuals. In a routine DNA paternity test, the markers used are Short Tandem Repeats (STRs), short pieces of DNA that occur in highly differential repeat patterns among individuals.Each person’s DNA contains two copies of these markers- one copy inherited from the father and one from the mother. Within a population, the markers at each person’s DNA location could differ in length and sometimes sequence, depending on the markers inherited from the parents. The combination of marker sizes found in each person makes up his/her unique genetic profile. When determining the relationship between two individuals, their genetic profiles are compared to see if they share the same inheritance patterns at a statistically conclusive rate.For example, the following sample report from this commercial DNA paternity testing laboratory Universal Genetics signifies how relatedness between parents and child is identified on those special markers: |DNA Marker |Mother |Child |Alleged father | |D21S11 |28, 30 |28, 31 |29, 31 | |D7S820 |9, 10 |10, 11 |11, 12 | |TH01 |14, 15 |14, 16 |15, 16 | |D13S317 |7, 8 |7, 9 |8, 9 |D19S433 |14, 16. 2 |14, 15 |15, 17 | The partial results indicate that the child and the alleged father’s DNA match among these five markers. The complete test results show this correlation on 16 markers between the child and the tested man to draw a conclusion of whether or not the man is the biological father. Scientifically, each marker is assigned with a Paternity Index (PI), which is a statistical measure of how powerfully a match at a particular marker indicates paternity.The PI of each marker is multiplied with each other to generate the Combined Paternity Index (CPI), which indicates the overall probability of an individual being the biological father of the tested child relative to any random man from the entire population of the same race. The CPI is then converted into a Probability of Paternity showing the degree of relatedness between the alleged father and child. The DNA test report in other family relationship tests, such as grandparentage and siblingship tests, is similar to a paternity test report. Instead of the Combined Paternity Index, a different value, such as a Siblingship Index, is reported.The report shows the genetic profiles of each tested person. If there are markers shared among the tested individuals, the probability of biological relationship is calculated to determine how likely the tested individuals share the same markers due to a blood relationship. * Y-chromosome analysis Recent innovations have included the creation of primers targeting polymorphic regions on the Y-chromosome (Y-STR), which allows resolution of a mixed DNA sample from a male and female and/or cases in which a differential extraction is not possible.Y-chromosomes are paternally inherited, so Y-STR analysis can help in the identification of paternally related males. Y-STR analysis was performed in the Sally Hemings controversy to determine if Thomas Jefferson had sired a son with one of his slaves. * Mitochondrial analysis For highly degraded samples, it is sometimes impossible to get a complete profile of the 13 CODIS STRs. In these situations, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is sometimes typed due to there being many copies of mtDNA in a cell, while there may only be 1-2 copies of the nuclear DNA.Forensic scientists amplify the HV1 and HV2 regions of the mtDNA, then sequence each region and compare single-nucleotide differences to a reference. Because mtDNA is maternally inherited, directly linked maternal relatives can be used as match references, such as ones maternal grandmothers daughters son. A difference of two or more nucleotides is generally considered to be an exclusion. Heteroplasmy and poly-C differences may throw off straight sequence comparisons, so some expertise on the part of the analyst is required. tDNA is useful in determining clear identities, such as those of missing people when a maternally linked relative can be found. mtDNA testing was used in determining that Anna Anderson was not the Russian princess she had claimed to be, Anastasia Romanov. mtDNA can be obtained from such material as hair shafts and old bones/teeth.. DNA databases There are now several DNA databases in existence around the world. Some are private, but most of the largest databases are government controlled. The United States maintains the largest DNA database, with the Combined DNA Index System, holding over 5 million records as of 2007.The United Kingdom maintains the National DNA Database (NDNAD), which is of similar size, despite the UKs smaller population. The size of this database, and its rate of growth, is giving concern to civil liberties groups in the UK, where police have wide-ranging powers to take samples and retain them even in the event of acquittal. The U. S. Patriot Act of the United States provides a means for the U. S. government to get DNA samples from other countries if they are either a division of, or head office of, a company operating in the U. S.Under the act, the American offices of the company cant divulge to their subsidiaries/offices in other countries the reasons that these DNA samples are sought or by whom. When a match is made from a National DNA Databank to link a crime scene to an offender who has provided a DNA Sample to a databank that link is often referred to as a cold hit. A cold hit is of value in referring the police agency to a specific suspect but is of less evidential value than a DNA match made from outside the DNA Databank. Considerations when evaluating DNA evidenceIn the early days of the use of genetic fingerprinting as criminal evidence, juries were often swayed by spurious statistical arguments by defense lawyers along these lines: given a match that had a 1 in 5 million probability of occurring by chance, the lawyer would argue that this meant that in a country of say 60 million people there were 12 people who would also match the profile. This was then translated to a 1 in 12 chance of the suspect being the guilty one. This argument is not sound unless the suspect was drawn at random from the population of the country.In fact, a jury should consider how likely it is that an individual matching the genetic profile would also have been a suspect in the case for other reasons. Another spurious statistical argument is based on the false assumption that a 1 in 5 million probability of a match automatically translates into a 1 in 5 million probability of innocence and is known as the prosecutors fallacy. When using RFLP, the theoretical risk of a coincidental match is 1 in 100 billion (100,000,000,000), although the practical risk is actually 1 in 1000 because monozygotic twins are 0. % of the human population. Moreover, the rate of laboratory error is almost certainly higher than this, and often actual laboratory procedures do not reflect the theory under which the coincidence probabilities were computed. For example, the coincidence probabilities may be calculated based on the probabilities that markers in two samples have bands in precisely the same location, but a laboratory worker may conclude that similar- but not precisely identical- band patterns result from identical genetic samples with some imperfection in the agarose gel.However, in this case, the laboratory worker increases the coincidence risk by expanding the criteria for declaring a match. Recent studies have quoted relatively high error rates which may be cause for concern. In the early days of genetic fingerprinting, the necessary population data to accurately compute a match probability was sometimes unavailable. Between 1992 and 1996, arbitrary low ceilings were controversially put on match probabilities used in RFLP analysis rather than the higher theoretically computed ones. Today, RFLP has become widely disused due to the advent of more discriminating, sensitive and easier technologies.STRs do not suffer from such subjectivity and provide similar power of discrimination (1 in 10^13 for unrelated individuals if using a full SGM+ profile) It should be noted that figures of this magnitude are not considered to be statistically supportable by scientists in the UK, for unrelated individuals with full matching DNA profiles a match probability of 1 in a billion is considered statistically supportable (Since 1998 the DNA pr ofiling system supported by The National DNA Database in the UK is the SGM+ DNA profiling system which includes 10 STR regions and a sex indicating test.However, with any DNA technique, the cautious juror should not convict on genetic fingerprint evidence alone if other factors raise doubt. Contamination with other evidence (secondary transfer) is a key source of incorrect DNA profiles and raising doubts as to whether a sample has been adulterated is a favorite defense technique. More rarely, chimerism is one such instance where the lack of a genetic match may unfairly exclude a suspect. Evidence of genetic relationship Its also possible to use DNA profiling as evidence of genetic relationship, but testing that shows no relationship isnt absolutely certain.While almost all individuals have a single and distinct set of genes, rare individuals, known as chimeras, have at least two different sets of genes. There have been several cases of DNA profiling that falsely proved that a mother was unrelated to her children. Fake DNA evidence The value of DNA evidence has to be seen in light of recent cases where criminals planted fake DNA samples at crime scenes. In one case, a criminal even planted fake DNA evidence in his own body: Dr. John Schneeberger raped one of his sedated patients in 1992 and left semen on her underwear.Police drew what they believed to be Schneebergers blood and compared its DNA against the crime scene semen DNA on three occasions, never showing a match. It turned out that he had surgically inserted a Penrose drain into his arm and filled it with foreign blood and anticoagulants. In a study conducted by the life science company Nucleix and published in the journal Forensic Science International, scientists found that an In vitro synthesized sample of DNA matching any desired genetic profile can be constructed using standard molecular biology techniques without obtaining any actual tissue from that person.Development of artificial DNA In August 2 009, scientists in Israel stunned the forensic sciences and raised serious questions concerning the use of DNA by law enforcement as the ultimate method of identification. In a paper published in the journal Forensic Science International: Genetics, the Israeli researchers demonstrated that it is possible to manufacture DNA in a laboratory, and thus falsify DNA evidence. The scientists fabricated saliva and blood samples, which originally contained DNA from a person other than the ostensible donor of the blood and saliva.The researchers also showed that, using a DNA database, it is possible to take information from a profile and manufacture DNA to match it, and that this can be done without access to any actual DNA from the person whose DNA they are duplicating. The synthetic DNA oligos required for the procedure are common in molecular laboratories. Dr. Daniel Frumkin, lead author on the paper, was quoted in The New York Times as saying, You can just engineer a crime scene any biol ogy undergraduate could perform this. Dr.Frumkin perfected a test that can forensically differentiate real DNA samples from fake ones. His test uses epigenetic modifications, in particular, DNA methylation. Seventy percent of the DNA in any human genome is methylated, meaning it contains methyl group modifications within a CpG dinucleotide context. Methylation at the promoter region is associated with gene silencing. The synthetic DNA lacks this epigenetic modification, which allows the test to distinguish manufactured DNA from original, genuine, DNA.It is unknown how many, if any, police departments currently use the test, which appears to be a serious issue in light of Frumkin’s claim that the DNA manufacturing procedure is within the grasp of any undergraduate biology student. No police lab has publicly announced that it is using the new test to verify DNA results, while FSI Genetics says that any forensic laboratory doing DNA identification should adopt this test to auth enticate its results as real DNA. Cases In the 1950s, Anna Anderson claimed that she was Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia; in the 1980s after her death, samples of her tissue that had been stored at a Charlottesville, Virginia hospital following a medical procedure were tested using DNA fingerprinting and showed that she bore no relation to the Romanovs. In 1986, Richard Buckland was exonerated despite having admitted to the rape and murder of a teenager near Leicester, the city where DNA profiling was first discovered. This was the first use of DNA finger printing in a criminal investigation. In 1987 it was the first time genetic fingerprinting was used in criminal court where a man accused of unlawful intercourse with a mentally handicapped 14-year-old female who gave birth to his baby. In 1987, in the same case as Buckland, British baker Colin Pitchfork was the first criminal caught and convicted using DNA fingerprinting In 1987, Florida rapist Tommy Lee Andrews was t he first person in the United States to be convicted as a result of DNA evidence, for raping a woman during a burglary; he was convicted on 6 November 1987 and sentenced to 22 years in prison. In 1988, Timothy Spencer was the first man in Virginia to be sentenced to death through DNA testing, for several rape and murder charges; he was dubbed The South Side Strangler because he killed victims on the southside of Richmond, Virginia. He was later charged with rape and 1st degree murder and was sentenced to death. He was executed on April 27, 1994. David Vasquez, initially convicted of one of Spencers crimes, became the first man in America exonerated based on DNA evidence. In 1992, DNA evidence was used to prove that Nazi doctor Josef Mengele was buried in Brazil under the name Wolfgang Gerhard. The Role of the Forensic Geneticist Forensic genetics is the study of DNA characteristics and patterns. The scientific knowledge base of a forensic geneticist can have different applications i n fields such as law enforcement and anthropology. One of the functions of a forensic geneticist is to examine and profile DNA evidence from a crime scene in order to determine the presence of a suspect.In another discipline such as anthropology, the geneticist may study historical human migration patterns by comparing DNA in diverse racial groups. Because DNA marking and profiling has a small margin of error, its results can be questioned. * Criminal Forensics All DNA contains sequences of nucleotides which have a unique recurring pattern for each person. A forensic geneticist first obtains a sample of DNA from a sample of tissue, bodily fluid or hair. The repeating nucleotide sequences found in the sample are then cut with specialized proteins and isolated.The sample is then probed by special DNA molecules which have been extracted from a known donor. If the probe DNA matches the sample nucleotides collected from a crime scene, then it theoretically places the donor at the scene i tself. * Victim Identification DNA can also be used to identify human remains where decomposition has left the body unrecognizable, or where dental records do not exist. Typically DNA from the unknown remains is matched with a sample of verified DNA from a missing person, or can be compared against possible family members.Genetic matching are also tools in paternity tests. Forensic Genetics has also been employed in identifying victims of war crimes located in mass graves. * Forensic Anthropology One of the most recent fields in anthropology has been the study of ancient human migrations. Using mitochondrial DNA (which is only passed down through the mother) and Y-chromosomal DNA (inherited through the father) forensic geneticists have been able to chart the course of human migrations out of the Africa over the last 60,000 years.This is accomplished by examining mutations of the two kinds of DNA, which occur rarely and only over an average number of generations. The divergence of mu tations in different existing ethnic groups can be compared and a rough chronological and geographical chart of migration is then laid out. * Accuracy in Criminal Investigation Findings by an Arizona crime lab analyst suggest that even if an overall DNA profile is unique to an individual, certain portions of it are similar to family members, and possibly (by coincidence) to unrelated individuals.This has the potential to challenge the widespread belief that DNA profiling is a foolproof tool in criminal investigations. Doubts can potentially be raised about whether a DNA profile for a suspect really belongs to that individual. How genetic engineering or DNA technology may help in crime investigation? agriculture? and medicine? DNA technology can help with crime investigation to help find a criminal who has left bodily fluid at a crime scene. They use DNA tests to find a match. Genetic engineering can be used in agriculture to create a crop that is superior to other crops.It can make a plant stronger and larger, etc. Genetic engineering in medicine is being used to help a couple who is trying to have a baby. If the one of the parents has a disease (such as Huntingtons, Parkinsons, etc. ) to create a baby that doesnt have the disease. The children are called designer babies. Law the Genetics of Identity: The Science of DNA Fingerprinting New Noteworthy, 2007 In Law and The Genetics of Identity, The DNA Files looked at DNA forensics, privacy and the law.There are many ways in which experts use genetic techniques for identification purposes, from identifying missing persons to solving criminal investigations. DNA evidence arguably has become the best-known type of forensic evidence, made more recognizable by popular television programs (including three CSIs and four Law Orders). Although the forensic tools used on TV allow detectives to solve horrendous crimes in under an hour, real-life techniques do require a few days. A DNA profile is a composite of about 13 areas of highly variable short tandem repeats (STRs) that characterize each individual.While humans share a vast majority of our DNA sequence with one another, some sections of our non-coding DNA are unique. Using DNA profiling techniques, it is possible to establish a likely match. The International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) was created in 1996 as a result of the conflicts related to Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Republic of Croatia, and Republic of Serbia from 1991 to 1995. The ICMP uses DNA as a means to identify victims of war atrocities and natural disasters. As of April 2006, the ICMP had helped identify 902 people who had died in the 2004 South Asian tsunami.In 2005, the ICMP partnered with Louisiana health officials to perform DNA tests on 256 bone samples from Katrina victims. Forensic specialists created DNA profiles from these bone samples then sent the data to Louisiana authorities for matching with family members DNA samples there. In recent years, researchers and policing organizations also have made significant inroads in criminal investigation methods. New forensic polymerase chain reaction (PCR), STR, and mtDNA techniques have sped up analysis of a DNA profile extracted from crime scene evidence.What once took between 6 and 8 weeks now takes between 1 and 2 days. Scientists hope that someday it will take only a few hours to generate a DNA profile from a sample. According to President George W. Bushs DNA Initiative in 2003, one of the biggest problems facing the criminal justice system today is the substantial backlog of unanalyzed DNA samples and biological evidence from crime scenes, especially in sexual assault and murder cases. Timely analysis of these samples can help police arrest and detain potentially violent offenders or solve no-suspect cases.While timely analysis is important, identifying the correct person is even more important. Opponents of DNA profiling point out that case-specific issues and problems often damage the quali ty and relevance of DNA test results. The increased use of genetic technologies in crime investigation has contributed to many forensic databases, including two run by the Federal Bureau of Investigation: the Automated Fingerprint Identification System, which catalogs millions of fingerprints, and the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS).CODIS was once reserved for those convicted of violent offenses, but the 2004 Justice for All Act expanded the database so states can now upload profiles of almost anyone charged with any crime. In 2006, the FBI opened its DNA database to kinship DNA matching. A DNA sample from a crime scene that fails to be an exact match to any profile in a forensic database can now be used to find possible relatives that are in the database. Opponents fear that partial matches violate protection by the U.S. Constitution against unreasonable search and seizure and undermine the principle of presumptive innocence. Genetic techniques can also be used to exonerate a per son convicted of a crime. As of October 2007, the Innocence Project, founded by Barry C. Scheck and Peter J. Neufeld at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University in New York, had helped exonerate 208 people in the United States using DNA testing, including 15 who served time on death row.Byron Halsey, for instance, who narrowly escaped the death penalty when he was convicted in 1988 of the brutal sexual assault and murder of two young children in New Jersey, was fully exonerated in July 2007 based on DNA evidence. DNA can also help bring closure to cases that have gone cold. In 2006, after almost 30 years of dead ends, investigators in Virginia used carefully preserved blood taken from a 1977 crime scene in order to identify and arrest a suspect in the killing of Henry William Long.Questions surrounding the social, ethical, and legal issues of using genetic technologies in crime investigation persist. In a few cases, geographic and ethnic genetic testing have been applied to criminal investigations to help narrow the suspect search field. Critics fear that the information gathered and stored in this type of testing could be used for research on topics such as the genetic correlates of ethnicity or criminal behavior, fueling flawed science and dangerous prejudices. These

Top 5 Tracking Apps for Your 2017 Goals

Top 5 Tracking Apps for Your 2017 Goals If you’re anything like me, you come up with a ton of great resolutions and goals for the new year in a flurry of year-end cheer and optimism, then lose steam somewhere around†¦ February. That’s because all the good intentions in the world can’t necessarily compete with day-to-day distractions and realities. That’s why a good organizational tool is capital-E Essential. There are many different goal-tracking apps and forms you can use to keep you going throughout the year. These free (or low-cost) resources can mean the difference between hitting those goals and re-making them for next year because things didn’t pan out quite the way you intended.1.  AsanaCategory: Web-based productivity toolPrice: free to download and use, with optional in-app purchasesAsana is a project-tracking app that can organize any goal or project into broad tasks, with more granular subtasks. You can make notes on every piece of the project, as well as due dates, and Asana will email you reminders about upcoming milestones. If you have other people involved (as in a work project or a social plan), you can â€Å"assign† various tasks and subtasks to others. Asana is handy for creating specific, manageable goals throughout the year. Also, when you check off a task as â€Å"complete,† you may see a unicorn flashing across the screen to celebrate. How can you go wrong with unicorns?The website (as well as optional mobile apps) is free to use, but premium subscribers can create unlimited projects and receive additional data analysis.2.  GoalsOnTrackCategory: Goal tracking softwarePrice: $68/year membershipGoalsOnTrack is a full-service goal-setting and action plan tool. Whether you’re planning a project in the workplace or managing logistics for a family vacation, GoalsOnTrack offers a system for setting SMART goals to keep things chunked and realistic, creating an action plan that will carry you through the timeline you set, a nd printing out day planner sheets to keep you in the loop on a daily basis.An account costs $68 per year (approximately $5.67 per month), but there is a 30-day risk free trial available.3.  StridesCategory: Mobile appPrice: free to download and use, with optional in-app purchasesYou like dashboards? Strides has dashboards. Lots of dashboards. Strides gives you charts and real-time data on your smartphone or tablet, with reminders to help you form (and stick to!) good habits. Strides is totally flexible- you can track your progress on the go, and have your goal information at your fingertips no matter where you are. It also offers four different types of trackers: Target (specific one-time goal), Average (ongoing periodic goal), Milestones (specific goal with multiple steps), and Habit (ongoing general goal).4.  Coach.MeCategory: Mobile appPrice: free to download and use, with optional premium subscriptions for personal coachingIf encouragement and public accountability are what you need to stay on top of your goals, then Coach.Me might be the right tool for you. The app itself features tracking and goal-setting tools that you can use on your own. Coach.me also has a robust community where users can share goals and offer support and feedback. Both the trackers and the community are free to use when you set up an account. If you’d like to take it to the next level and get expert help on your goals, you can subscribe for varying price points to have regular interactions with a personalized coach.5.  IrunurunCategory: Mobile appPrice: free to download and useIrunurun keeps you accountable to your goals by offering progress meters and giving you points for each bit of progress you make. Ideally, by the time you hit your goal, you’ve got a score of 100. It may not offer you ice cream when you hit a goal, but you get the satisfaction of hitting that triple-digit milestone. The hard numbers can help you focus on particular tasks or habits that wil l ultimately get you to that endpoint.Even if a productivity app isn’t for you, there are plenty of online forms and templates you can print out and keep on your fridge, at your desk, next to your bathroom sink, wherever you want it to go:Goal Setting for SuccessSmart Goals GuideTechnoriGoal Setting BasicsTidy FormsNow that you have your 2017 goals in hand and the tools to organize them, go forth and succeed!

Biography of Ronald E. McNair (Ph.D.) - NASA Astronaut

Biography of Ronald E. McNair (Ph.D.) - NASA Astronaut Each year, NASA and members of the space community remember the astronauts lost when the space shuttle  Challenger  exploded after launch  from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida on January 28, 1986.   Dr. Ronald E. McNair was a member of that crew. He was a decorated NASA astronaut, scientist, and talented musician. He perished along with the spacecraft commander, F.R. Dick Scobee, the pilot, Commander M.J. Smith (USN), mission specialists, Lieutenant Colonel E.S. Onizuka (USAF), and  Dr. Judith.A. Resnik, and two civilian payload specialists, Mr. G.B. Jarvis and Mrs. S. Christa McAuliffe, the teacher-in-space astronaut. The Life and Times of Dr. McNair Ronald E. McNair was born October 21, 1950, in Lake City, South Carolina. He loved sports, and as an adult, he became a 5th-degree black belt karate instructor. His musical tastes tended toward jazz, and he was an accomplished saxophonist. He also enjoyed running, boxing, football, playing cards, and cooking. As a child, McNair was known to be a voracious reader. This led to an often-told story that he went to the local library (which served only white citizens at the time) to check out books. The tale, as recalled by his brother Carl, ended with a young Ronald McNair being told he couldnt check any books out and the librarian called his mother to come get him. Ron told them hed wait. The police arrived, and the officer simply asked the librarian, Why dont you just give him the books?   She did.   Years later, the same library was named in Ronald McNairs memory in Lake City.   McNair graduated from Carver High School in 1967; received his BS in Physics from North Carolina AT State University in 1971 and earned a Ph.D. in physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1976. He received an honorary doctorate of Laws from North Caroline AT State University in 1978, an honorary doctorate of Science from Morris College in 1980, and an honorary doctorate of science from the University of South Carolina in 1984. McNair: the Astronaut-Scientist While at MIT, Dr. McNair made some major contributions in physics. For example, he performed some of earliest development of chemical hydrogen-fluoride and high-pressure carbon monoxide lasers. His later experiments and theoretical analysis on the interaction of intense CO2 (carbon dioxide) laser radiation with molecular gases provided new understandings and applications for highly excited polyatomic molecules. In 1975, McNair spent time researching laser physics at   E’cole D’ete Theorique de Physique, Les Houches, France. He published several papers in areas of lasers and molecular spectroscopy and gave many presentations in U.S. and abroad. Following his graduation from MIT, Dr. McNair became a staff physicist with Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu, California. His assignments included the development of lasers for isotope separation and photochemistry utilizing non-linear interactions in low-temperature liquids and optical pumping techniques. He also conducted research on electro-optic laser modulation for satellite-to-satellite space communications, the construction of ultra-fast infrared detectors, ultraviolet atmospheric remote sensing. Ronald McNair: Astronaut McNair was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in January 1978. He completed the one-year training and evaluation period and qualified for assignment as a mission specialist astronaut on space shuttle flight crews. His first experience as a mission specialist was on STS 41-B, aboard Challenger. It was launched from Kennedy Space Center on February 3, 1984. He was part of a crew that included spacecraft commander, Mr. Vance Brand, the pilot, Cdr. Robert L. Gibson, and fellow mission specialists, Capt. Bruce McCandless II, and Lt. Col. Robert L. Stewart. The flight accomplished proper shuttle deployment of two Hughes 376 communications satellites, and the flight testing of rendezvous sensors and computer programs. It also marked the first flight of the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU) and the first use of the Canadian arm (operated by McNair) to position EVA crewman around Challenger’s payload bay. Other projects for the flight were the deployment of the German SPAS-01 Satellite, a set of acoustic levitation and chemical separation experiments, Cinema 360 motion picture filming, five Getaway Specials (small experimental packages), and numerous mid-deck experiments. Dr. McNair had primary resp onsibility for all of the payload projects. His flight on that  Challenger mission  culminated in first landing on the runway at Kennedy Space Center on February 11, 1984. His last flight was also aboard Challenger, and he never made it to space.  In  addition to his duties as a mission specialist for the ill-fated mission, McNair had worked up a musical piece with French composer Jean-Michel Jarre. McNair intended to perform a saxophone solo with Jarre while on orbit. The recording would have appeared on the album Rendez-Vous with McNairs performance. Instead, it was recorded in his memory by saxophonist Pierre Gossez,  and is dedicated to McNairs memory. Honors and Recognition Dr. McNair was honored throughout his career, beginning in college. He graduated magna cum laude from North Carolina AT (‘71) and was named Presidential Scholar (‘67-’71). He was a Ford Foundation Fellow (‘71-’74) and a National Fellowship Fund Fellow (‘74-’75), NATO Fellow (‘75). He won the Omega Psi Phi Scholar of Year Award (‘75), Los Angeles Public School System’s Service Commendation (‘79), Distinguished Alumni Award (‘79), National Society of Black Professional Engineers Distinguished National Scientist Award (‘79), Friend of Freedom Award (‘81), Who’s Who Among Black Americans (‘80), an AAU Karate Gold Medal (‘76), and also worked up Regional Blackbelt Karate Championships. Ronald McNair has a number of schools and other buildings named for him, plus memorials, and other facilities. The music he was supposed to play onboard Challenger does appear on Jarres eight album, and is called Rons Piece.   Edited by Carolyn Collins Petersen.

The Importance of Culture in Language Teaching, and the Implications Essay

The Importance of Culture in Language Teaching, and the Implications for the Role of the Teacher - Essay Example Language includes speech, written characters, numerals, symbols, and gestures of nonverbal communication. Language, of course, is not an exclusively human attribute. Even though they are incapable of human speech, primates such as chimpanzees have been able to use symbols to communicate. However, even at their most advanced level, animals operate with essentially a fixed set of signs with fixed meanings. By contrast, humans can manipulate symbols in order to express abstract concepts and rules and to expand human cultures. In contrast to some other elements of culture, language permeates all parts of society. Certain cultural skills, such as cooking or carpentry, can be learned without the use of language through the process of imitation. However, it is impossible to transmit complex legal and religious systems to the next generation by watching to see how they are performed. An individual, for instance, could bang a gavel as a judge does, but one would never be able to understand legal reasoning without language. Therefore, people invariably depend on language for the use and transmission of the rest of a culture. While language is a cultural universal, differences in the use of language are evident around the world. This is the case even when two countries use the same spoken language. For example, an English-speaking person from the United States who is visiting London may be puzzled the first time an English friend says "I'll ring you up." The friend means "I'll call you on the telephone." Similarly, the meanings of nonverbal gestures vary from one culture to another. Whereas residents of the United States commonly use and attach positive meanings t the "thumbs up" gesture, this gesture has... This essay stresses that some teachers and researchers have found it effective to present students with objects or ideas that are specific to the culture of study but are unfamiliar to the students. The students are given clues or background information about the objects and ideas so that they can incorporate the new information into their own worldview. An example might be a cooking utensil. Students would be told that the object is somehow used for cooking, and then they would either research or be informed about how the utensil is used. This could lead into related discussion about foods eaten in the target culture, the geography, growing seasons, and so forth. The students act as anthropologists, exploring and understanding the target culture in relation to their own. In this manner, students achieve a level of empathy, appreciating that the way people do things in their culture has its own coherence. This report makes a conclusion that from the above account of culture and its relationship with language, it becomes easy to understand that culture is the most important element in learning the second language. Language is a tool to communicate with people. When we learn a foreign language, we mean to discover new horizons of culture, ideology and the way of life of the people of target language. Hence, without having good knowledge of their culture, the knowledge of their language seems useless because in the absence of cultural awareness, we cannot communicate with them effectively. That is why the study of the culture into the language teaching is so much imperative.

Rhetoric anlysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Rhetoric anlysis - Essay Example rb indicates that Catton’s style does not emphasize on action images, but on descriptive images that aim to illustrate the paradox of being different, and yet being alike. Another example of atypical syntax is: â€Å"Daring and resourcefulness they had too† (paragraph 15). It is a typical because the predicate â€Å"Daring and resourcefulness† was put first before the subject â€Å"they.† The unique quality of writing emphasizes descriptions of the greatness of these two generals, and how they truly captured the diverse characters of the American identity. Catton focuses more on the backgrounds of the two generals and how they served as the metaphor of their people because they are more important than statistics and dates in representing the greatness of two people uniting for a great common cause. For instance, Catton says that â€Å"Lee†¦himself was the Confederacy† (paragraph 6) and Grant was â€Å"the Westerner† (paragraph 11). By making each general stand for the people they were fighting for, Catton successfully creates a patriotic tone that can unify Confederates and Union supporters because, if their generals, the epitome of who they are and what they stand for, can set aside their differences to attain common interests, then these two groups of people can also do the same. The single sentence in paragraph 3 provides the thesis of the essay. It argues that these two generals are truly different, but they must collide in order to pave a new direction for the country. The purpose of using a single sentence is to emphasize the thesis and to set the tone of writing and attitude of the speaker toward the values and ideals that Lee and Grant represent, individually and jointly. These coordinating conjunctions give special coherence to the paragraphs because they provide the signal posts for talking about differences or similarities between the two generals and the lives they represent. They also support the patriotic, conversational tone that Catton uses, so