The executive branch

Table of Contents Changes in constitutional powers and functions Economic changes Public welfare Regulation Technology Conclusion Works Cited US Executive is one of the primary constituent of the centralized government. It consists of numerous offices that play significant roles in running the branch. The President’s office, his vice and some of the departmental offices are some of the most prime administrative offices in the branch (Brown and Graham, 1). Since the branch was formed, many changes have taken place, in the effort of improving its efficiency.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The executive branch specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Changes in constitutional powers and functions As years passes by, the US constitution keep on changing following the numerous modifications done by the congress (the law-making body). This has immensely affected the roles and powers of the executive branch, since t he offices have to meet their constitutional job requirements. Furthermore, change in legal functions alters the structures the executive branch, since they will have to introduce other offices, to assist in meeting the newly introduced requirements. For instance, some of the executive functions and terms were altered by the congress under the twentieth amendment. The interlude between election and inaugural ceremony was altered, and thus the president alongside with his vice had to surrender their offices in January 20th (noon), the year after general elections. This is because; initially, the period between election and inauguration was quite stretched i.e. approximately four months after voting. Furthermore, the amendment also stated that, incase the presidential-elect passes away, then the vice president elect will assume the president’s position and thus sworn as the new president of US. There were also some modifications under the 22nd amendment that extensively affecte d the executive offices (Wright, 64). The amendment transformed the number of times a citizen can hold a presidential office; the number was changed to a maximum of two terms in office (Findlaw). The succession of the president was changed, in one of the amendment clause i.e. the vice will assume the president’s role, incase the president quits his position or dies. Furthermore, the amendment states that any position in the vice’s office will be appointed by the president; however, the appointee shall not assume the office until he or she is approved by the congress. Economic changes A country’s economy keeps on shifting from one position to another thus influencing various crucial institution and bureaus, including the executive branches. In the past year, United States experienced several economic changes; for instance, the recessions, depressions, crunches and other similar economic difficulties. This experience has made United States alter some of its execut ive departments, as a strategy to curb the economic changes. As a result, some executive departments were removed, while others introduced; some were modified while others replaced.Advertising Looking for essay on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More For instance, commerce and labor department were split to form two autonomous departments (Infoplease). This move was an economic strategy for the improvement of commerce in the country i.e. to enhance local and international trade. Being a victim of several hash economic environment, the US government has incorporated several junior offices in their departments that assist in projecting its business environment. Public welfare Education department was formed to operate independently, after the amalgamation of several learning programs, from different bureaus. This change was effected in the late seventies as a progress to provide quality education to all students, regardle ss of their backgrounds. Following the terrorist attack in 2001, several offices were merged to form a sovereign protection department i.e. the homeland security department (infoplease). The prime function of this department was to up the security of United States, and also to protect their citizens against unnecessary threats. As early as 1939, the federal security agency was changed following the demands to improve human healthiness and well being. The Agency was transformed to a healthcare department i.e. health and human services department, which was expected to up the standards of health in the country. Some of the numerous function of this health care department was to provide health services to all citizens regardless of their background, abilities or situation; finance healthcare institutions such as Medicaid; conduct healthcare researches and so on. Early in the 60’s, the united states were subjected to numerous housing challenges especially in urban centers. This p ressured the government to create an executive department that would solely address matters pertaining housing and the growth of cities. Consequently, a department in the name of housing and urban development was created as a substitute for the home finance and housing sub-division. The department was formed to offer several services to the ordinary citizens i.e. offer inexpensive housing services; uphold community development and many more others (Infoplease). The department of labor underwent several transitions before it finally stood out as a sovereign department. Initially, labor functioned as an agency under a certain executive department prior to its operation in the labor and commerce department (Henry, 375). Early in the 90’s, labor was separated from the department and thus operated as an autonomous executive department. The change was influenced by the undying effort of guarding workers against overexploitation.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample o n The executive branch specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Regulation Several executive offices have been altered following the government’s attempt to regulate the activities of certain crucial offices. For instance, the national military bureau was transformed following the need to regulate its mandate. The name of the bureau was transformed and named as the department of defense, which was accompanied by numerous changes in its functions. Some of the functions dispensed to this department included flood control; the control and regulation of the navy, marine and other such like agencies. Executive department such as the department of agriculture was established following the need to regulate food prices and input costs. The need to regulate commerce in United States is one of the numerous factors that led to the split of labor and commerce department. Several aspects such as local trade, international trade, and technological g rowth had to be regulated adequately. However, this proved tricky without the sovereign existence of commerce department. As a result, the department of trade and labor was split to form two autonomous departments. Technology Over the years, United States has grown technologically, with the introduction of numerous ideologies and hi-tech devices. However, these inventions and innovations possess a number of negative and positive impacts, which can influence a country in various capacities. In the attempt to control these impacts, the executive experienced a stretch in their duties and thus increasing their scope. In other words, the executive had to perform extra roles due to technological advancements i.e. to develop policies that regulate their use. The advances in technology, which are eventually incorporated in different departments, have immensely influenced the executive structures. Several offices have been created as a solution for the management of these high-tech equipment s in different executive departments. For instance, the defense department has several technological departments that contain several offices responsible for developing and managing technical weapons. Conclusion The functions and names of offices in the executive branch have changed over the years, due to several factors. Some of the reason that influenced changes in departmental names and operations include economic changes, technological changes, a shift in public welfare demands and the need for office regulations. Some of the offices in the branch, which have grown and changed over the years, include the president office, executive departments and the vice president office. Works Cited Barrett, Henry. The President’s Cabinet, Studies in the Origin, Formation and Structure of an American Institution. Charleston: BiblioBazaar, LLC, 2009 375.Advertising Looking for essay on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Brown, Elizabeth and Graham, David. Leading the executive branch: strategies and options for achieving success. Santa Monica: Rand Corporation. 2007 1. Findlaw. Amendment to the constitution of United States of America. London: Thomson Reuters business. 2010. Web. Available at:Â  https://constitution.findlaw.com/amendments.html Infoplease. Executive department. Berkeley: Pearson education 2007. Web. Available at:Â  https://www.infoplease.com/history-and-government/executive-departments-and-agencies/executive-departments Wright, John. The New York times Almanac 2002. New York: Routledge. 2001 64. This essay on The executive branch was written and submitted by user Zaniyah W. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

How to Make Glow-in-the-Dark Alum Crystals

How to Make Glow-in-the-Dark Alum Crystals Alum crystals are among the quickest, easiest, and most reliable crystals you can grow. Did you know you can make them glow in the dark by adding a common household ingredient to the crystal growing solution? Glow in the Dark Alum Crystal Materials Fluorescent highlighter pen (I used yellow, but you can use another color for different colored glowing crystals. Check to make certain the highlighter will glow under an ultraviolet or black light. Pretty much all yellow highlighters glow, as do most other colors. Many blue pens will not glow.)Alum (sold as a pickling spice)Water Grow Glowing Alum Crystals Carefully cut open the highlighter and remove the strip that contains the ink. You may want to wear gloves since highlighter can stain your fingers.Pour 1/2 cup of hot tap water into a clean container.Squeeze the highlighter strip into the water to color it with the fluorescent ink. Discard the ink strip when you are finished.Slowly stir in alum, a little at a time, until it stops dissolving.Loosely cover the jar with a coffee filter or paper towel (to keep dust out) and allow the jar to sit undisturbed overnight.The next day, you should see small alum crystals at the bottom of the container. If you dont see crystals, allow more time. You can let these crystals grow, though they will compete with each other for material. Alternatively, you can use one of these crystals to grow a large single crystal. Growing a Large Single Crystal If crystals are present, pour the alum solution into a clean jar. Collect the small crystals, which are called seed crystals.Tie nylon line around the largest, best-shaped crystal. Tie the other end to a flat object (e.g., popsicle stick, ruler, pencil, butter knife). You will hang the seed crystal by this flat object into the jar far enough so that it will be covered in liquid, but wont touch the bottom or sides of the jar. It may take a few tries to get the length just right.)When you have the right string length, hang the seed crystal in the jar with the alum solution. Cover it with the coffee filter and grow a crystal.Grow your crystal until you are satisfied with it. If you see crystals starting to grow on the sides or bottom of your jar, carefully remove your crystal, pour the liquid into the clean jar, and put the crystal in the new jar. Making the Crystal Glow When you are satisfied with your crystal, remove it from the crystal growing solution and allow it to dry. Just shine a black light (ultraviolet light) on the crystal to make it glow. Depending on the ink you used, the crystal may glow under fluorescent light or sunlight. You can display your crystal or store it. You can wipe dust from a display crystal using a cloth, but avoid dampening it with water or else you will dissolve part of your crystal. Crystals kept in storage may be wrapped in paper for added protection from dust and changed in temperature and humidity. True Glow in the Dark Crystals If you want the crystals to really glow in the dark (no black light), then you stir phosphorescent pigment into a solution of alum and water. Usually, the glow will remain on the exterior of the crystal rather than get incorporated into the crystal matrix. Alum crystals are clear, so another way to make the crystals glow is to mix phosphorescent pigment with clear nail polish and simply paint regular alum crystals. This also protects the crystals from damage by water or humidity, preserving them.

One question Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

One question - Essay Example As a result, the scenery location has been labelled the Dead Sea. Based on all the assumptions made on how strange the sea is my curiosity of the entire scenery is quite wanting. Therefore, embarking on a journey to the place will be intriguing and fulfilling. Being known as a unique scenery and having a remarkable history regarding its formation, there are a lot of attractions that are attributed to the place. To start with, there are numerous hills that are really big, there dragonflies, numerous palm trees and above all the sea turns into the colour of weak tea when the wind on the shore shoves. It sounds quite strange that all these aspects are appealing, but my notion on nature will make the journey to be exciting, as I would get the opportunity to clarify the existence of all these aspects. I spend most of my free times exploring abandoned places that bring about the beauty of the environment we live in. Therefore, as a hobby this journey will instil a lot of knowledge. Apart from the Salton Sea Recreational Center, which is accessible to the public, majority of the places surrounding the sea are quite dangerous and are labelled the no go zones. It is only the Navy seals and the Marine that use the place to act as their training base. A challenge that is quite unavoidable in Salton Sea is the smell that is emitted by the sea. Research indicates that most of the visitors who have had the opportunity to explore the place were disturbed by the irritating smell and some were scared of the dragonflies that were in numbers. Being an area that is rare to visit and based on the mystery surrounding it the issue of security may be a challenge once on location. My knowledge regarding Salton Sea is based on the thorough research I have conducted and my perception based on my findings indicates that Salton Sea is indeed a strange place. Nevertheless, when I embark on my journey, I intend to learn more from what I already know and I intend to explore the entire

TARP Report...Project Scope Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

TARP Report...Project Scope - Case Study Example As such, the paper addresses the issue of lack of diversity in the group with reference to its functional and cultural skills. Such are the key elements, which hinders the group from achieving success in terms of having diversified projects, as well as having the ability to appeal to people from other cultural backgrounds. The current demographic composition of the group depicts a gap, which needs filling so that the group is not limited to a given clientele. Thus, No Kurfew Entertainment will have the ability of attracting different artists from different cultural backgrounds. No Kurfew Entertainment group has music makers, visual artists, creative writers, photographic and videographic talents. However, these persons have other responsibilities in the group. Thus, it becomes impossible for the individuals to achieve a high level of specialization, which will contribute towards their achievement of success. Thus, the project is limited to providing solutions and recommendations on how No Kurfew Entertainment group can achieve internal diversity in terms of functional skill and talent. These will ensure that the group has the potential of penetrating the market of entertainment industry in a creative manner while sustaining a diverse culture. Such includes supporting the creativity culture, which results in the improvement of the production level of the group. The provided recommendations are for the No Kurfew Entertainment to consider without being coerced in any issue. This is because the primary focus is the provision of professional consultancy services on how No Kurfew Entertainment can fix its problem of cultural diversity. Nevertheless, the recommendations will contribute in ensuring that the group increases its clientele, promotes brand development, retains and recruits employees, improves the work performance of employees and the productivity level increases significantly. The provided recommendations do not

Is it democratic or undemocratic that smaller states can make big Essay

Is it democratic or undemocratic that smaller states can make big changes - Essay Example 1-20). According to some scholars, the advantages given to these small states are a key part of the constitution, and that the stakeholders should not worry of this trend. On the other hand, some perceive this situation as a difficult case that cannot have an immediate solution. They see this as infringement of the voting power of citizens which significantly impacts on the democracy of the senate (Liptak par. 1-20). The substantial population differences between large and small states are a key cause for demographic gap that leads to a wide variance in the political power. The issue of the filibuster in the senate also threatens democracy according to some scientists. This gives the senators in these small states to magnify their power using the filibuster greater than the senators of large states. Since the small states senators form the majority in the senate, they have the tendency of blocking or shaping the legislation passed in the senate. This ends up bringing benefits to the conservatives contrary to the liberals. Some critical bills in the senate like the carbon emission, immigration and campaign spending, suffer rejection due to the number of a small state senators. The federal state role in injecting funds to the small states has done a lot to assist those residents in these states. This has made these states enjoy more political power that other states contrary to the constitution that stipulates equal political voice irrespective of the population (Liptak par. 1-20). Some scholars still insist that it is democratic for these small states to enjoy these privileges so as to prevent them from sidelining by the majority. They emphasize that, without an appropriate strategy, to protect the minority states, all the wealth will end up in the prosperous states. Another argues that urban areas already have key

Examining The Use Of Motion Capture Film Studies Essay

Examining The Use Of Motion Capture Film Studies Essay Motion capture is a technique that records movements for fields like entertainment, sports, and medicine; it is the process of animating a virtual character through the means of capturing live motion of a human. Motion capture is normally used in games to animate characters and other objects by recoding motion from the human character that normally involves tracking sensors that has been placed in major body parts that require maximum motion and detecting their locations in three dimensional spaces. Motion capture captures human body, facial expressions, camera and lighting positions, and other elements. It measures position and direction and recording by computers. Motion capture for computer animation requires the use of human motion to be implanted onto the motion of the compute. There are two classes of motion capture technology, they are the on-line motion capture devices, and off-line motion capture devices. The on-line motion capture device wherein its main technology is based on magnetic sensors thatare mainly used for virtual reality and online television shows with artificial characters. The off-line motion capture device on the other hand wherein its main technology is based on optical motion capture from different camera views, off-line motion capture devices allow capturing of large motions that are important to maintain outstanding visual effects, it also allows the acquiring of delicate motion to properly convey motion. Motion capture is limited to movements that are possible, but it creates natural movements than manual animation and it saves more time. Before motion capture was even possible, rotoscoping was used and is still being used by some traditional animation studios to copy motion from films to cartoon characters. Many cartoon studios use rotoscoping, but only a few admit that they use it because they consider it cheating and a desecration of the art of animation. (Menache, 2000, p.2).In the Walt Disney film Snow White, Snow White herself and her prince were rotoscopedin 1937. The rotoscoping device was invented on 1915 by Max Fliescher to make production of cartoon films automated. The rotoscoping device projected live action film frame by frame then places on a lighted table to allow the artists to trace the image into paper. The idea of copying human motion for animated characters is of course, not new, they decided to use rotoscoping to create realistic human motion. Motion capture started in bio mechanic research then moved to education, sports, computer animation, and finally video games as technology evolved and is s till evolving until now. Rotoscoping today is still being used in visual effects and character animation. It was originally developed in the early days of cell animation; it can be considered a form of time-delayed motion capture. (Kerlow, 2003, p.338). Two dimensional rotoscoping is used for hand drawn cartoons, while the three dimensional rotoscoping gave birth to what we now call motion capture. Motion is anything that forms a before and after position, without this, motion is not even possible. Motion capture first requires a motion that is recorded for the skeleton fitting post-processing, second the artist will repeat and repeat the motion that should be taken until the director is satisfied, third is the post processing which its first stage is motion tracking which is used to detect the motion through the joints, and the last stage is the anatomic conversion, it produces the character s motion without interrupting the original motion. There are twocategories of human motion: pose estimation and tracking. Pose estimation is formulated as the inference of the articulated human pose from a single image. (Sigal, 2006, p. 3) Tracking is formulated as inference of the human pose over a set of consecutive image frames throughout the image sequence. ( Sigal, 2006, p.3)Motion capture cannot be produced when the human character cannot exhibit that certain motion, and if the motio n was not captured. Once the captured session or data did not meet its requirements or standards, it cannot be fixed for motion capture can only produce and capture live motion, instead the user should recapture the motion where the data went wrong. Captured motion must first be developed in many ways before being applied to robots that are human like. Proper alignment of body parts is essential in order to get the proper animation of the model, or else something might go wrong in the future. Motion capture is a software that captures human motion to make computer games and computer animation more realistic and true to life by requiring the user or the character to place magnetic sensors in any part of the body that detect individual position and orientation relative to the generator. There are different types of motion capture system: Electrical motion capture, Magnetic motion capture, and optical motion capture. Electrical motion capture uses technology that tracks motion from sensors using magnetic fields, normally one sensor per body part is enough, a magnetic motion capture, on the other hand, is a technique that is based on receivers that detect magnetic fields. In order to capture the human character s motion, magnetic motion capture uses magnetic sensors that measure relationships in space to a nearby transmitter magnetically,a magnetic sensor measures the position and orientation that is in relation to a transmitter, it requires the human character to wear magnetic sensors around his/her body that are capable of measuring their relationship to a centrally located magnetic transmitter (Alonso, N.D, p.55), and lastly, optical motion capture system, it is a motion capture system that is very accurate and is typically based on a single computer. It is usually used for medical applications and is usually places near the joints for humans and animals. An optical motion capture system does not need wirings because they depend on optical markers that are tracked visually. Optical systems plan positions of cameras in order to track down information. All most all of the optical capture systems can track reflective markers. An optical marker is a reflective ball that allowsa camera to track motion in space. In order to create the 3D position of the object, the system combines information of the different shots taken from different views from different cameras. Optical motion capture has been used to recover the fidelity of the motion of strolling adults, playing children and other lifelike activities. (Boulic, N.D. p.1) The motion capture system is also classified as the outside-in, inside-out, and inside-in system. These systems are where the capture sources and sensors are placed. The outside-in system is placed on the body and by collecting data; it uses external sensors, examples of which are camera based tracking devices. The inside-out system on the other hand collects external sources from sensors that are placed on the body. Lastly, the inside-in system, which sensors and sources are placed on the body, examples of which are electromechanical suits. Applications that have big benefits from motion capture are industries like medicine, sports, entertainment, and the law. Motion capture is also used in other fields like crash test dummies wherein motion capture is required for automobile safety tests. Non-entertainment applications for motion capture on the other hand are sports, medicine, and physical rehabilitation. Motion capture in medicine is used for gait analysis, which is useful in medicine for it makes it easy to detect certain abnormalities and changes by accurately separating the different mechanism during the cycle ofwalk by generating biomechanical data. Gait analysis is also used to determine treatment for pathological conditions. It is also used in applications like joint mechanics, sports medicine, prosthetic design, and analysis of the spine. Motion capture in sports is used to improve the performances of the athletes to analyze and study their movements to improve them and reserve them for future use. There are some motion capture studios that specialize in capturing motion for anything sport related especially for golf, which is very essential to golfers because every inch of his/her swing is analyzed to find and improve on areas, also is compares his/her swing to that of a professional. Motion capture in sports is better than actually videotaping the movement because the normal speed of a video tape is at 30 frames per second, while motion capture is capable of recording higher frequencies, meaning much more motion is recorded. Motion capture in the entertainment industry is the segment with the highest (of not the largest) profile especially for video games which is the most widespread and the most accepted in the entertainment application. Motion capture for video games is a very used system that requires live human motion. As game engines become faster, motion capture is also maturing. (Menache, 2000, p.34). Motion capture for films mainly involves stunts that are not humanly possible, by using realistic motion and extras like large crowds which are digitally generated to simulate a large number of crowds. Motion capture in law, on the other hand, is mainly used for evidence. The evidence used provides aid and support to help the jury understand the statement of facts and opinion form the witness, by means of action and facial expressions in order to get the case solved. Out of 50 people, 8 disagreed to the statement that motion capture is useful in fields like medicine and the entertainment industry, 6 people agreed, and 21 people were uncertain. This is probably because people do not know much about motion capture that they don t notice it in certain field. Before deciding to use motion capture, the user should think if the decided motion is possible for a human or an animal to handle. Also, the user should state the expectations and the demands as early as possible so that all of the user s concerns are addressed. The user should also think about the amount and size of markers to be used depending on a given situation so that the markers won t fall off or move around during the session knowing that a performer needs to wear markers that are near joints to easily identify motion. In order to capture simultaneous motion information, the user should equip the human character with the typical tight fitting black motion capture suit so that the markers will not move rather than just attaching invisible adhesive tape to get the natural look of the clothes as it moves. In order to create a virtual character, one must first identify the performer s motion. Always remember that motion capture takes time to produce and that you cannot fix a mist ake, instead you must redo it. If you decide to do facial and body motion for a character, you will need two separate setups, but you may also have one setup for each character, always remember that motion capture requires a frame of reference. Before getting a human actor to perform all the motion for the motion capture, a script and a blue print must be done first. After which, provide the human actor with the script and the blue prints in advance and tell everything about the character to the human character to avoid misunderstandings in the future. Rehears the motions first without the motion capture sensors so that the human actor will get familiarized and comfortable with his/her role; once the actor is already comfortable and is familiar with the role, get the human actor comfortable with the motion capture sensors that will be all around his/her body soon, always remember that preparations are still needed whether you have an in-house system or are hiring service provider. (Menache, 2000, p.88) in order to create motion capture, one needs to have experience. Out of 30 people, a majority agreed to the statement, while a minority either disagreed or were uncertain about the statement.This is probably because when crea ting something, one must have an experience, or else nothing productive will happen. Motion capture must be and must always be precise about the sizes of the character. If the computer model has different proportions from the subject, weird things may occur, an example is that a feet entering the floor because the characters legs are longer than that of the human actors legs. Motion capture requires motion that follows the laws of physics, otherwise it cannot be presented.12 out of 30 people are uncertain about this statement, this may imply that they are not sure whether it is possible to make motion out of anything that do not follow the rules of physics, 16 out of 30 people on the other hand agreed that movements that do not follow the laws of physic cannot be presented maybe because they believe that there will be a lot of errors if this happen, and 5 out of 30 people disagreed thinking that motion capture can generate any kind of motion impossible or not. Motion capture requires live motion, meaning it can only work in real time, although 9 out of 30 people were uncertain whether this statement is true or not, this is probably because some people do not know how motion capture works, but a whopping 23 out of 30 people agreed that motion capture only works in real time.Motion capture system is very expensive and 23 out of 30 people agreed so, it requires hard work and is time consuming for the actors and the technicians, although 21 out of 30 people were uncertain on whether motion capture is easy.Dogs, horses or any animal with four feet can be difficult to capture. 18 out of 30 people agreed that applying motion capture to 4 legged animals could be hard because animals don t actually perform all the time the way we want them to because animals, even tamed one are still considered wild and unpredictable, although 12 out of 30 people were uncertain and 3 out of 30 people disagreed thinking that animals obey every command as long as you treat them well and give them a doggie treat every time they do things correctly. Motion capture technique s are well known for preserving the distinctive signature of the real movement (Amaya, 1996, p.1) coming from the human actor. In spite of this, motion capture involves the use of special equipments; this requires the entire motion session to be recapped once a motion session is different from the already captured one. What I basically did was I looked for scholarly articles on the internet, gave out surveys, looked for books in the library that were related to my topic, and placed interesting or related texts on my note cards and paraphrasing them so that writing the actual research paper would be easy considering that you will just copy what is on the back of the note cards. A majority of the people who took part in my research paper were students from Computer Science in De La Salle University, and a minority came from Psychology Students from the same University. The results were reasonable and I would have said the same randomly if I did not research about the topic. The result s mean that motion capture is applied in our everyday lives whether we know it or not. Compared to the 2nd research, the 1st research was all about the opinion of other people on how they know about motion capture. Though impressive in its ability to replicate movement, the motion capture process is far from perfect. (Boulic, 1998, p.1)

Personal or Narrative Essay: My Environmental Practices Essay

Now it’s your turn to write a personal or narrative essay. For this kind of personal writing, you are using the first person perspective. Keep your writing informal. You can make connections to your readings, referring to specific relevant details from the â€Å"Ten Things† article, or anything else you have read on how to reduce your negative impact on the environment. In your composition, feel free to share how you feel now about your own environmental practices, any insights you have gained, and ideas you have for the future. Write a five paragraph personal essay or narrative about the connection between your lifestyle choices and how they impact the broader environment. There are three steps to this assignment: Step A: In the first hour after waking up in the morning, make note of everything you use, and the country where it was made. Makes notes also on your connection to these places, and the people in these places, through the things you use. Step B: Make notes on what your best environmental practice might look like, related to the use of these items. In your opinion, is what you are doing right now enough? How might you do more? What is stopping you? For ideas on what else you could be doing to improve your own environmental practices, refer to your answers from Lesson A: Activity 1: â€Å"Ten Things You Can Do. † Step C: Choose to write either a personal essay, or a narrative. Note that personal essays almost always involve some form of narrative, while narrative essays, often written in first person, tell a story from beginning to end; though this does not mean they merely entertain—they explain something to the reader as well. Recall the following characteristics of the narrative and personal essay: Narrative Essay: A narrative essay is a story that describes a sequence of events, in this case, nonfiction. Remember the following elements of narrative essays: makes a point, introduced in the first paragraph has a beginning, middle, and end events are chosen to support the essay’s point includes the devices of story: plot, character, setting, climax, and ending has a consistent point of view (the authors’ –i. e. yours! ) includes feelings about events starts as close to the inciting incident (the event that begins the story) as possible includes only what is necessary to advance the action Personal Essay: The personal essay constitutes a struggle for emotional and intellectual honesty. In writing a personal essay, you show a vulnerability and the courage to admit self-contradictions in the search for truth. Remember the following elements of the personal essay: almost always written in first person makes a point, introduced in the first paragraph, expressed in a thesis statement almost always some autobiographical content or component constructed of personal opinions, hopes, beliefs, doubts, confusions intimate, personal tone—admit the reader into your inner thoughts, musings—as if your reader is â€Å"eavesdropping on a mind in solitude† voice is conversational in style and tone, as though you are addressing a small audience approach is contemplative, but can be humourous, not of very strong emotions, such as rage or bitterness returns to the point in the concluding paragraph with a new perspective Personal/Narrative Essay Checklist: 1. Have you chosen a topic you can be sincere about? Manufactured sincerity doesn’t fly in a personal essay or first person narrative. 2. Have you included some autobiographical component? 3. Are you seeking out a truth in your essay?