Black Friday Descriptive Essay

There are experiences in life that create an everlasting impact on our character. Seeing first hand what kind of intestinal fortitude one possesses can be both rewarding and humbling. Black Friday is the 1st day used by Special Forces Assessment and Selection to test the individuals who volunteer to serve in the elite Army Special Forces Green Berets. Just as many people before me pushed themselves to the absolute limit; I was about to experience my own test of will. Camp Mackall airfield is located a mile or so from the main training area.The airfield is surrounded on all sides by the thickest pine forest, one that you would think wasn't by accident. The thick summer humidity sucked the oxygen from the air. Amazingly the dew and fog never quite leave the airfield, as if to create a more somber atmosphere. The landing strip itself looks dilapidated and left more as a reminder of a different time. WWII era trucks, rusted and worn, are locked behind a fence as a constant reminder of th e pain that will come week three. The smell is almost pleasant, like a candle, creating a false sense of comfort that will soon be shattered.The trainig begins before dawn, the time wasn't known since watches weren't allowed. The rustling of 400 eager souls, ready for the pain we all knew was coming, filled the air. Loud bullhorns and exploding ordnance coming from every direction drowned out all attempts to organize the mass of candidates. The jog to the airfield was slow but purposeful, and didn't take very long. Once gathered on the airfield some final instructions were given, groups were made and dispersed evenly throughout the field.Like gathering for a little game, Green Berets from all over Fort Bragg position themselves with fold out chairs awaiting the excitement of other peoples torment. Some even have food, which adds to the misery of not having normal food for seven days. A local fire truck comes screaming by horns blazing and lights flashing, and parks just to the right of the mass of candidates. I find myself, rifle in hand, closest to the fire truck wondering what is next. The fun begins with an instructor briefly explaining the first â€Å"exercise.†The simple task soon felt like a mountain that never seemed to stop rising. Shortly after I hit the dirt, face first the fire truck begins to point the high pressure hose at me forcing me to either endure the sting or move faster. I crawl for what seemed like forever until I heard a horn signaling this station was done, for now. I stand up and move to the next station, simple rifle exercise was the task. With the rifle only weighing five pounds the movement seemed easy; lift over the head, then down to the midsection, then back up again.By the hundredth repetition the rifle might as well have weighed a hundred pounds. Next was logs, four hundred pound logs smooth and smelling of past candidates sweat. The task was to lift the log up, as a team, and then lower to the opposite shoulder. This is the first event that tested everyone’s determination and reason for attending the course, sadly candidates began to quit. The weight of the log, and frustration with fellow candidates, contributed to grown men saying they couldn't take it.The beautiful pine forest backdrop was replaced with bright simulated machine gun fire, exploding ordnance and instructors gawking at every sign of weakness. It was somewhere between burpee long jumps and kettle bell swings that I caught a glimpse of a sight that I can still picture today. The fire hose was spraying into the air creating a mist, the muzzle flashes from the machine guns flashed brightly. The three hundred candidates continued moving with such vigor reminding me of why I was there,which gave me the boost I needed to endure several more hours of pure pain.The jog home was quiet and quick, grown men eager for good meals ready to eat (MREs). The pure joy of being pushed to the point of total discomfort and breaking thru a mental barrier radiated from every man there. As abruptly as it began the day simply just ended. Nothing else about Balck Friday is special except the good ole fashioned gut check. The pain, distractions and ridicule were meant to weed out the weak and retain the strong. Realizing this made me appreciate making it thru and now possessing the tools needed to overcome life’s obstacles. Black Friday Descriptive Essay There are experiences in life that create an everlasting impact on our character. Seeing first hand what kind of intestinal fortitude one possesses can be both rewarding and humbling. Black Friday is the 1st day used by Special Forces Assessment and Selection to test the individuals who volunteer to serve in the elite Army Special Forces Green Berets. Just as many people before me pushed themselves to the absolute limit; I was about to experience my own test of will. Camp Mackall airfield is located a mile or so from the main training area.The airfield is surrounded on all sides by the thickest pine forest, one that you would think wasn't by accident. The thick summer humidity sucked the oxygen from the air. Amazingly the dew and fog never quite leave the airfield, as if to create a more somber atmosphere. The landing strip itself looks dilapidated and left more as a reminder of a different time. WWII era trucks, rusted and worn, are locked behind a fence as a constant reminder of th e pain that will come week three. The smell is almost pleasant, like a candle, creating a false sense of comfort that will soon be shattered.The trainig begins before dawn, the time wasn't known since watches weren't allowed. The rustling of 400 eager souls, ready for the pain we all knew was coming, filled the air. Loud bullhorns and exploding ordnance coming from every direction drowned out all attempts to organize the mass of candidates. The jog to the airfield was slow but purposeful, and didn't take very long. Once gathered on the airfield some final instructions were given, groups were made and dispersed evenly throughout the field.Like gathering for a little game, Green Berets from all over Fort Bragg position themselves with fold out chairs awaiting the excitement of other peoples torment. Some even have food, which adds to the misery of not having normal food for seven days. A local fire truck comes screaming by horns blazing and lights flashing, and parks just to the right of the mass of candidates. I find myself, rifle in hand, closest to the fire truck wondering what is next. The fun begins with an instructor briefly explaining the first â€Å"exercise.†The simple task soon felt like a mountain that never seemed to stop rising. Shortly after I hit the dirt, face first the fire truck begins to point the high pressure hose at me forcing me to either endure the sting or move faster. I crawl for what seemed like forever until I heard a horn signaling this station was done, for now. I stand up and move to the next station, simple rifle exercise was the task. With the rifle only weighing five pounds the movement seemed easy; lift over the head, then down to the midsection, then back up again.By the hundredth repetition the rifle might as well have weighed a hundred pounds. Next was logs, four hundred pound logs smooth and smelling of past candidates sweat. The task was to lift the log up, as a team, and then lower to the opposite shoulder. This is the first event that tested everyone’s determination and reason for attending the course, sadly candidates began to quit. The weight of the log, and frustration with fellow candidates, contributed to grown men saying they couldn't take it.The beautiful pine forest backdrop was replaced with bright simulated machine gun fire, exploding ordnance and instructors gawking at every sign of weakness. It was somewhere between burpee long jumps and kettle bell swings that I caught a glimpse of a sight that I can still picture today. The fire hose was spraying into the air creating a mist, the muzzle flashes from the machine guns flashed brightly. The three hundred candidates continued moving with such vigor reminding me of why I was there,which gave me the boost I needed to endure several more hours of pure pain.The jog home was quiet and quick, grown men eager for good meals ready to eat (MREs). The pure joy of being pushed to the point of total discomfort and breaking thru a mental barrier radiated from every man there. As abruptly as it began the day simply just ended. Nothing else about Balck Friday is special except the good ole fashioned gut check. The pain, distractions and ridicule were meant to weed out the weak and retain the strong. Realizing this made me appreciate making it thru and now possessing the tools needed to overcome life’s obstacles.

Second language anxiety Essay

In formal researches, foreign language anxiety has clearly been shown to have a negative effect on performance in the foreign language classroom (Aida, 1994; Horwitz, Horwitz, & Cope, 1986; MacIntyre & Gardner, 1991). However, Sparks and Ganschow (1991) have argued to the contrary that, rather than affective factors such as motivation, anxiety or attitude, and foreign language learning are affected by the native language factors. Sparks, Ganschow and Javorsky (2000) contend that some sort of cognitive handicap is the cause of both low proficiency in a second language (L2 hereafter) and the accompanying anxiety. Anxiety in Speaking Public speaking anxiety is very common among both universities students and also the general population. It is a feeling of panic associated with physical sensations that are all too painfully familiar to those affected such as increased heart and breathing rates, increased adrenaline, over-rapid reactions, and a tension in the shoulder and neck area. Almost 20% of university students face the problem of public speaking anxiety (McCroskey, 1977). He also defined anxiety in broad-based as â€Å"an individual’s level of fear or anxiety associated with either real or anticipated communication with another person or persons†. The apprehension of speaking before a group of individuals remains a problem in the twenty-first century. According to Krannich (2004), the fear of delivering a speech or a presentation ranks as the number one fear among most people, including students as well as adults from many diverse backgrounds. Ayres, Hopt and Peterson (2000) referred communicati on or speaking anxiety related with the delivering of speech or the fear or anxiety associated with anticipating the delivery of a speech.

What Does It Take to Get into the University of Massachusettsâ€Amherst?

Located in picturesque Western Massachusetts and ranked as one of the top public universities in the country, the University of Massachusetts—Amherst is known for attracting bright students who pursue rigorous research and academics. Notable alumni include Jack Welch, Catherine â€Å"Cady† Coleman, Bill Pullman, Natalie Cole, and many others. One unique facet of the university is that it participates in the Five College Interchange, which allows you to take courses at nearby colleges including Amherst, Smith, Hampshire, and Mount Holyoke. What does it take to get into Massachusetts’ flagship public university? Read on to find out. You will apply to UMass Amherst via the Common Application unless you fall into one of the following categories: Students in the above categories can find the appropriate application links here . As part of your application, you will need to submit your: * In this case, you should submit scores for the essay portions as per the university’s recommendation. UMass Amherst discourages submitting other supplementary materials. There are some special procedures for individual programs such as art and architecture. UMass Amherst requires the following high school academic work (number indicates units): College of Engineering, School of Management, and computer science major applicants must have completed an advanced math course, such as precalculus, trigonometry, or calculus. College of Engineering applicants must have taken chemistry and physics as well. Last year, UMass Amherst had a 59% admissions rate, with 41,612 applicants and 5,010 matriculating freshmen. The average combined SAT score for the class of 2021 was 1268, and the average GPA was 3.89. Keep in mind that despite the seemingly high acceptance rate, you are still facing stiff competition and will need to set yourself apart, especially if you intend to pursue a particularly rigorous program; for individual colleges and programs, such as Commonwealth Honors College, the acceptance rate is much lower. Estimating your chance of getting into a college is not easy in today’s competitive environment. Thankfully, with our state-of-the-art software and data, we can analyze your academic and extracurricular profile and estimate your chances. Our profile analysis tool can also help you identify the improvement you need to make to enter your dream school. Emphasize innovation. UMass Amherst boasts a student body of â€Å" bright, bold, unconventional thinkers.† With rigorous yet rewarding opportunities, the school promotes intellect and creative thinking. Demonstrate your leadership experience and commitment to learning through work beyond the classroom. As with most prestigious colleges, you should show extracurricular activities in your area of interest, such as independent research for science majors. Know your strengths. UMass Amherst has 11 colleges and schools for undergraduates including: You should apply to the school that is best suited to your talents and interests, not the one that has the highest admissions rate. Your application should demonstrate leadership, extracurriculars, and strengths in areas associated with the college. For example, if you apply to the college of engineering, you should have a strong math and science background and extracurriculars in those subjects as well. You will need to put down a first- and second-choice major on your application. This is not set in stone, but you will be accepted to a specific school, so it should be the one most aligned with your strengths. Also, remember to meet the minimum coursework requirements for your intended major. Have a hook . UMass Amherst emphasizes diversity. This is exemplified in Campus Pride rating the university as one of the best campuses for LGBTQ students and its status as a top school for veterans, currently serving over 400. You don’t have to be part of a minority group to be accepted to UMass Amherst, but you should have something that sets you apart. Are you a nontraditional student with a unique story to tell? Explore that in your essay. Do you have a special talent, such as playing an interesting instrument? Make sure to include any extracurriculars in which you’ve participated or honors you’ve been awarded to that end. Being denied admission to any college, particularly one of your top choices, is disappointing. Still, it’s important to take a step back and regroup. If you get rejected from UMass Amherst, here’s what you can do: Take a gap year or transfer in. If you had your heart set on UMass Amherst or received bad news from the other colleges on your list, one option is to take a gap year and reapply next admissions cycle. If you do decide to go this route, make sure you have a productive plan for the year. You might undertake a research project, volunteer, study to improve your SAT scores, or take classes at a local college. Do know, however, that this path is risky, as taking a gap year won’t ensure your acceptance the second time around. You could also begin your studies at another institution with the hopes of transferring. UMass Amherst accepted more than 1,300 transfer students in 2016, meaning acceptance isn’t out of the question. Keep it in perspective. Even if UMass Amherst was your top choice, chances are, you’ll find a way to make a college that did accept you work. College really is what you make of it, and if you put effort into adjusting to another school by joining clubs, working hard in your classes, and cultivating a social life, you’ll likely find that you can make a fulfilling college experience for yourself, even if you end up at a college that wasn’t your top choice. When you sign up for our program, we carefully pair you with the perfect admissions specialist based on your current academic and extracurricular profile and the schools in which you’re interested. Your personal application specialist will help you with branding, essays, and interviews, and provide you with support and guidance in all other aspects of the application process.

Compare Jamestown to New England Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Compare Jamestown to New England - Essay Example Many figure the town as having no pride, no positive history and as a death-haunted town marked by misery. On the hand, New England had a more Nobel idea about the town. The empire was a town of prosperity both economically and in spiritual nourishing, with morals and values that severely contradicted the state of Jamestown. Therefore, to solve the social moral decay and miseries in Jamestown brought about by economic prosperity, and as a way to salvage the face of the church of Engalnd, there sprouted a separatist group that founded a new society, which gave rise to New England. The Spanish empire in America was desirable with successful institutions and good-looking models that had great influence on the English entry model in the new colony around Jamestown and the larger Massachusetts area. The British had three elements in their mission: to conquer and take the land of the American Indians, to search for gold, which bolstered trade, and protecting the native local â€Å"savages † from the brutality of the Spanish colonizers (Lin 380). The English had misconceptions about the Spanish model of colonization, which involved overthrowing the native leaders and installing Spanish governors while maintaining the Indian political system in place (Lin, 380). The approach resulted to immense wealth for the Spanish King. This created a misconception among English leaders who tried to emulate the same model in Jamestown. They mainly conquered large areas, just as the Spanish incorporated the Indians in the English society, using them for labor and to survive, which made the English extra rich from ample resources in the colonies (Lin 380). The British colony was therefore based in Jamestown, Chesapeake Bay region. However, the Spanish model did not succeed as expected as the British had misconceived ideas about the nature and political system of the Indian Americans. In 1603, King James 1 of England, jealous of the Spanish success in the new world, sought to est ablish his own colonies in sprawling areas of North America that were untapped. The king issued the Virginia Company a charter, empowering it to own in excess of six million acres of land in North America, and this was how the British established its colony, where the King hoped the empire would benefit England from its immense resources, and ensure the English poor masses had an ideal destination for employment. This led to mass relocation of the poor from Britain to Jamestown, to position them for employment in the new empire. However, new empire was riddled with all forms of evils, with the Virginia Company directors finding an easy way to reap and create immense riches. There were massive looting and corruption cases, besides severe ravaging disease epidemics among the newcomers in the new territory. The increasing farming practices in the new British colonies gave rise to slavery, towards feeding the yawning labor gap in new firms. Therefore, Massachusetts became the first regi on to legalize use of slaves in British farms. Within a few years upon entering into America, the British stripped the blacks off any human dignity and used them as slaves, resulting to immense suffering of the blacks. The farmers whipped slaves; the clergy drawn from the England Church preached that slavery was the will of God, while the scientists proved that the blacks were inferior type of human race, even when converted to Christianity (McBee 25). Corruption and the moral decay in the church displeased many who formed

The Lex Mercatoria Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Lex Mercatoria - Essay Example In Europe Lex Mercatoria contained procedures and traditions which were familiar to the merchants and dealers. The contemporary Lex Mercatoria discovers its potency in the national rule, as stated by Thomas Charbonneau (1998): "It is not surprising that the strongest advocates of the new law merchant are from civil law jurisdictions where general legal principles constitute the primary source of law and specialized courts have long handled commercial disputes at an intermediary level of the legal system. Nor is it astonishing that the most virulent critics of Lex Mercatoria and delocalization are steeped in the common law tradition of narrow rules and holdings, where decisional law is the foremost source of law and courts are its oracles." (pg37) Regarding the Lex Mercatoria there is some difficulty to understand as to what Lex Mercatoria contents are, but it is certainly described as the rule managed among the dealers and the foreign officers, part of it being authentic rule and the rest of it being the substantiation and the course of actions. The Lex Mercatoria is described as the set of laws; generally lots of definitions are related to the Lex Mercatoria and the national law. Dissimilarity between Law Mercatoria and national law might be made on the basis of a self-governing and an authoritativeness concept. The self governing concept examines that the Lex Mercatoria has an independent nature, which is autonomous from several methods of regulation. Goldman B (1986) defined Lex Mercatoria as "A set of general principles, and customary rules spontaneously referred to or elaborated in the framework of international trade, without reference to a particular national system of law."(pg116) The advocates of the Lex Mercatoria do not entirely have the same opinion regarding the source from where the Lex Mercatoria is taken, or concerning the comparative significance of the sources is observed as something which is acceptable. There is an extensive gap linking the sources for instance average figure indenture and the characteristics of commercial regulation. Mostly the people regard Lex Mercatoria as content because it is described as a law among the merchants and their dealers. The Lex Mercatoria is regarded as a list of rules rather than a method. There are various rules related to the Lex Mercatoria which makes it an autonomous system of laws. The set of laws are articulated more distinctively; in any case they cannot be originated from any universal simplification of nationwide laws. Critical analysis of Lex Mercatoria: The UNIDOT principle of Lex Mercatoria describes the means to create universal set of laws of global profitable agreement. The UNIDROIT principle gives the foremost sign that there is a physically powerful inter link among the UNIDROIT principle and the Lex Mercatoria. The UNIDROITS's duty of conquering the inadequacy of local rules for the declaration of the global dealing and trade by making a latest Lex Mercatoria was highlighted in the report of the UNIDROIT. The fundamental objective of this plan was to expand a compilation of rule and set of laws comprising of the Lex Mercatoria. Berger defined the Lex Mercatoria is relation to the UNIDROIT principles as: "An internationally useful method of construction inspired

Aviation Maintenance Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Aviation Maintenance - Article Example With the use of X2 technology to trounce the design related challenges in the aircraft industry.The aircraft keep up with the advancing technology by being designed in a way that it can be flown by wire. So far the electronic control of the aircraft has shown superb performance than the human-directed, this is despite the fact the system has been in use for a short period. At the same time, there is increased acceleration and deceleration speed which is of the essence in the military planes more so for the fact that the aircraft at some point may be subjected to sudden landing and taking off for the security purposes. The new innovative ways of production and employment of the innovation in the aviation industry give room for more advanced and reliable products that meet the advanced needs of the clients. The aircraft in its form flies faster and for longer distances than the less technologically advanced planes in use. At the same time, there is increased the higher limit of the loa d.However, with increased technology and production of new technologically advanced aircraft, there is a need also to have an increased number of the maintained technology experts. With an increased surge of the new aircrafts, the world over with few people to maintain the same has made the industry and the maintenance of the modern aircrafts unbearable in terms of maintenance costs. Therefore, must a company to roll out technicians as well now that there is a shortage even for the present workload.

Ancient and Medieval Cultures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ancient and Medieval Cultures - Essay Example Also God spoke to man through dreams and visions in the book of Genesis. After the destruction that happened at the time of Noah, God promised himself that he will never bring similar destruction ever to mankind. God and man had a close, clear cut fellowship in the book of Genesis. Man and woman were very innocent when God created them. It is not given anywhere that they had any sexual feelings before committing sin. Sex came into picture only after man committed sin. Adam and Eve could realize their nakedness only after they committed sin. Man lost his naà ¯ve nature only when he displeased God. So the most important consequence of the sin committed by man was that he lost his innocent nature and sexual nature started appearing in him. When God created man, God gave him certain special blessings but woman was not given any special blessings like that. God created woman because man needed a perfect match for him. In short woman was created for the sake of man. Man got life out of the breath of God but woman was created from man. Also man was given the responsibility of taking care of Eden Garden. It was woman not man who committed sin first. Devil knew that it would be easy to influence woman than man. All these reveal the inferior nature of woman. Before committing sin Adam was found to be a complete man with all the blessings of god. God gave him many rights and made him the king of Eden. He had every right over nature and over all living and non-living beings of this world. He was given the responsibility of protecting Eden Garden. He was given full right over all resources of Eden garden. He was the master of the nature and everything it constitutes, and was not a mere part of it. God created everything for man only. He had more rights than the powerful angels who serve God. God punished Cain for killing his brother Abel, and Cain had to be a cursed fugitive roaming all