Political Power Essay Example for Free

Political Power Essay Power could be defined as â€Å"the ability to bring about change† according to Beyond intractability. Org website (http://www.beyondintractability.org/essay/Power/). Power is the ability to influence the behavior of the others so as to make them do what one wants.   It entails authority and control.   Thus political power is the authority to control a society. Political power can be manipulated leading to negative use by the person or people holding it.   There are many bad uses of political power that can result from holding of the power by an irresponsible person. Such negative uses include dictatorship, corruption and oppression of the society.   Political power can also be used positively to bring benefit to the society. Political power can be used to foster development, to maintain peace and also to protect the society from external threats of invasion.   Despite the various harsh negative uses of political power, the positive uses shows that political power does not always lead to negative outcomes.   Political power can be effectively used to bring a lot of benefits to the society. Political power can be used to perpetrate corruption. People holding much political power can use it inappropriately to engage in corruption. This is particularly possible when much of the power is vested on a few individuals and there is no evaluation or a watchdog on how this power is used.   When they get enticed to use it for their personal gain at the expense of the society for which they are supposed to care. Corruption is abuse of office or power by a person so as he can benefit.   Corruption can take many forms all leading to great injustices to the society.   When political officers get into office, they do so promising the society that they will serve the interest of the society before their own personal gains.   However, after gaining political power they uphold their personal gain.   This can be done through misappropriation of funds whereby the offices holding the power spends public funds in a way that do not bring benefits to the society.   Example of misappropriation of funds may entail starting of projects that are not necessary to the society or buying luxurious facilities for their use at the expense of other more necessary facilities. Corruption can also be in the form of embezzlement o f public funds.   The political officers may use their power to get access to money belonging to the public through public corporations and use it for their own personal interests.   Facilities of such corporation can be wrongly used to serve the officer’s personal interests instead of their official use. Such actions lead to poor performance of such corporation leading to difficulties in meeting the essential needs of the society.   If funds belonging to a government institution, for example, a hospital are embezzled by a few officers, it means the hospital is not able to offer the services it is supposed to offer efficiently.   This will lead to great suffering of the members of the society which depend on such public facilities.   It is also very unfair to the society as they pay taxes so that they government can offer such services Corruption can also take the form of bribery.   This is mostly an administrative form of corruption but can be perpetrated by political officers also.   This involves the political officers asking for bribes from the members of society or organization so as they can be offered certain services. The is bribes may range from small gifts to massive amounts of money.   This form of corruption means the members of society are not able to get services without parting with other resources.   It also means there is segregation of some of the members of the society as, if they fail to raise the required bribes, they don’t get access to the resources they need. Corruption can also lead to extortion.   This entails use of political power by the political officers to obtain something by illegal threats.   The political officers may acquire interests in certain things or organization though issuing threats or force. Corruption has various costs to a country. If corruption is predominant in a country all the members of society are affected in one way or another.   The wealth of such a country is significantly affected leading to decrease in income.   The economy in a very corrupt state will be poor and businesses will not operate efficiently.   Consequently, the national income goes down affecting the ability of the government to offer essential services to the citizens.   This will inform produce a society with high rates of illiteracy and poverty. In the animal farm Napoleon used his political power to instigate corruption. He changed the rules from what had been collectively agreed to what suited his rule. He also used the dogs to threaten any other animal that opposed his rule. Napoleon and the other pigs also used the property of the farm for their own use which the other animals had not agreed upon. Another negative use of political power is establishment of dictatorship rule. Dictatorship is whereby the country is controlled by one or a few individuals who have absolute power.   Their rule is not limited by anyone, buy law constitution or social justices.   They do what they want. To gain dictatorship political officers use the little political power they have to gain more political power and later dictatorship. This is possible through oppression of nay efforts that try to limit their power.   This may include execution of people who take the bold steps of openly opposing the rule of these political powers. Dictators take control of all the operations of power in the country and personalize the rule. The dictatorship may also regulate all the actions by the citizens of a country and directs these actions against the will or consent of the citizens. Dictatorships are influenced by different factors that lead the political rules to misuse their political powers and establish dictatorships.   There are many countries that have been ruled by dictators or are still ruled by dictators.   An example of dictatorship is Stalinism which was a regime established by Joseph Stalin who lived between 1878 and 1953 in United Social Soviet Republic.   He was a dictator party leader whose tenure and campaigns costed lives of millions of people.   His rule had big negative impacts on USSR but also transformed it from a peasant society to an industrial nation http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/RUSstalin.htm). In George Orwell’s book (1996), the Animal Farm he depicts how people struggle collectively to oust bad rule but after gaining control, the few who are trusted with the political power misuse it and establishes an autocratic form of rule whereby they dictate on all the others. The pigs in the story, after chasing the oppressive farmer, took control of the farm and established a rule that oppressed the other animals.   The animals that questioned the rule were mistreated or executed (Orwell 1996). Napoleon used mudslinging to destroy the reputation of Snowball and later chased him from the farm. These represent how people who oppose a dictator are exiled after being falsely accused. This is typical of many African and Asian countries whereby after gaining independence form colonialism, the leaders who were trusted with political power went ahead to establish dictatorship.   Other examples of dictators include Idd Amin of Uganda, Hu Chi Minh of North Vietnam and Saddam Hussein of Iraq. Oppression of citizens and social injustices is another form of negative use of political power.   In this case, the leaders vested with political power bends the rules, and perpetrate actions that lead to oppression of citizens and social injustices.   The law or the constitution is not followed and injustice becomes inaccessible to the society. In political system where citizen are oppressed and social injustice are rife, a few people control all the branches of government. Though the legislative, executive and judiciary branches of the government may seem independent, this few individuals use their political powers to influence the operations of all these branches.   This results to much suffering of the citizens and as the justice system are faulty the citizen lack a forum through which their injustices can be addressed. In modern society this can be done through practices like imposition of rules that are aimed at oppressing the citizens, coercion to the citizens to carry out certain actions and even detention of some prominent people.   The individuals who do not support the action of those with the political power are mistreated, detained or exiled. In the Animal farm, George Orwell depicts how this is done when the pigs after assuming the leadership of the other animals change the rules and uses their power to mistreat, overwork, starve and oppress the other animals (Orwell 1996). Napoleon sold off one of the animals after he became old and less productive. This was an act of betrayal and oppression of the animal as he had also taken part in the fight for their independence. Political power can also be used for the benefits of the society. There are many countries that have benefited from positive use of the political powers to the benefit of the society.   One way political power can be used positively is fostering development can greatly be encouraged through use of political power to create the right environment for development.   Political powers can be used to enact laws, policies and strategies that are aimed at fostering development.   As the political systems influence much of the economic systems in a country, positive use of the political power can lead to positive influence on the economy of a country. The leaders vested with political power can use this pioneer to help enact laws or policies that will encourage investment and expansion of the economy.   This may be in the form of providing incentives to investors building effective infrastructures or providing a conducive environment for the economy to flourish.   In the animal farm the decision to build the windmill was a good idea aimed at bringing development in the farm and comfort to the animals (Orwell 1996). United States is a country that has massive political power that is used to foster developments. The country has a free market economy with policies encouraging conducive running of the economy.   A country like Japan has used their political power to build good infrastructures that facilitate expansion of their economy. Another positive use of political power is maintenance of peace. Political power can be effectively used to maintain peace and order in the country.   As peace is very crucial for co-existence and development in a country such use of political power can lead to great benefits to the country.   The political leaders can use their authority and influence in the society they rule to encourage and foster good co-existence between the citizens.    Political powers are needed to ensure that this happens.   The leader will use their authority to maintain order in the society and make sure that no one single citizen engages in practices that infringe the rights of others.   Laws are enacted to guide the actions of the citizens and certain strategies are taken to make sure that the laws are followed.   Political power is used to establish such a system. In Orwell’s Animal Farm the animal had collaborated to come up with rules that were aimed at maintaining good co-existence among the animals (Orwell 1996). This is done through establishment of a police force that maintains law and order and enactment of a court system that ensures that those who defy the rules are punished or forced to obey. Political power also establishes the judicial system that offers a forum through which the citizens can have their rights enforced.   All these actions bring peace by ensuring all the citizens get their rights and live harmoniously. Another positive use of political power is protection of the country from invasion. Political power is used in establishment of strategies of ensuring that a country is protected from external invasion.   This will ensure that the country is safe from threats and can concentrate on development. Political power can be utilized in different ways to protect a country from external attacks.   First the political leader can use their power and authority to help and lead in formation of policies aimed at protecting the country from possible attacks.   These policies may include security measures aimed at preventing such attacks.   The political powers can also establish armed forces that will maintain the security of the country and defend it in case of any external attacks. Weapons can also be acquired either through manufacturing or purchase form other countries aiming at providing a security measure to prevent or defend an attack.   Political leaders can also use their authority to established partnerships links with other countries aimed at fostering co-operation thus minimizing threat of attack from those countries.   These co operations may also be used as partners in maintenance of the peace of the country.   Such partners will collaborate in case of an attack or in strategies aimed at minimizing possibilities of an attack. In Orwell’s Animal Farm he depicted good use of political power when the animals united in their fight against Mr. Jones, the earlier owner of the farm. Because of this unity they were able to defeat Mr. Jones (Orwell 1996). Political leaders can use their authority to influence the practices of their country so as to prevent any actions that may trigger attacks from other countries.   Such actions may include neutrality in conflicts involving other parties. Countries in Europe have formed the European Union aimed at co-operation and collaboration in different issues.   This union unites the country hence minimizing the possibility of attack of one country by another.   There are many such unions that have been formed for such purposes including organization for economic co-operation and development (OECD) and the African Union (AU). Other countries in Europe and other places have formed NATO which is aimed at collaboration to prevent attacks form other countries.   All these efforts are aimed at protection of the individual countries and are established by political powers Political power can be used to instigate very bad and harmful activities in a country such as corruption, dictatorship and oppression of citizens. These activities lead to a lot of suffering and deterioration of economies of such countries.   However, political power can also be used to establish policies and practices for the benefit of a country. Political power is a key ingredient for development, peace and safety of a country.   Actually for country to be successful it must have a good and strong political powers that will help instigate the success.   Ã‚  Thus, it is evidence that political power does not always lead to negative outcomes.   It can be used effectively to produce many benefits to a society. Reference: Beyondintractability.org. Power. Retrieved on February 6, 2008 from http://www.beyondintractability.org/essay/Power/ Orwell G. (1996).Animal Farm. New York; New American Library. Spartacus educational. Joseph Stalin. Retrieved on February 6, 2008 from http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/RUSstalin.htm

Intrusion Detection System Using Node-Predictive Attack

Intrusion Detection System Using Node-Predictive Attack Intrusion Detection System Using Node-Predictive Attack Graph Model for Cloud Ambikavathi C Dr.S.K.Srivatsa Abstract- The role of Intrusion Detection System (IDS) in security world is considered as a key requirement for any computing model. This traditional methodology can add its own contribution of security to the distributed Cloud environment. The purpose of this paper is to clarify the steps that are needed to be taken in order to efficiently implement the IDS in cloud environment. The proposed system uses node predictive attack graph to correlate the newly occurred attacks with known attacks. The prediction steps are used to later monitor the environment and control the attacks. Keywords-Attack Graph; Cloud Computing; IDS ,; I. INTRODUCTION A. What is Cloud computing? Cloud computing is â€Å"a model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction†[1]. This cloud model is co mposed of three service models, four deploy ment models and five essential characteristics . The three service models are So ftware as a Service (SaaS), Platfo rm as a Se rvice (PaaS) and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). The four deployment models are private cloud, public cloud, hybrid cloud and community cloud. The five essential characteristics of cloud are on-demand self-service, broad network access, resource pooling, rapid elasticity and measured service. B. What is IDS? Intrusion detection systems are software or hardware systems that automate the process of monitoring the events occurring in a computer system or network, analyzing them for malicious activities or policy violations and produces reports to a management station. IDSs a rehost-based, network-based and distributed IDSs. Hos t based IDS (HIDS) monitors specific host machines, network-based IDS (NIDS) identifies intrusions on key network points and distributed IDS (DIDS) operates both on host as well as network [7]. IDS can be a valuable addition to the security arsenal. IDS performs the following functionalities : Monitoring and analyzing both user and system activities .Analyzing system configurations and vulnerabilities .Assessing system and file integrity.Ability to recognize patterns typical of attacks.Analysis of abnormal activity patterns.Tracking user policy violations.The extensive use of virtualization in implementing cloud infrastructure brings unique security concerns for customers or tenants of a public cloud service. Virtualization alters the relationship between the OS and underlying hardware. This introduces an additional layer virtualization that itself must be properly configured, managed and secured. Specific concerns include the potential to compromise the virtualization software, or hypervisor. So virtual machine security is essential in cloud environment. C. Attack Graph Attack graphs are used to determine how vulnerable their systems are and to determine what security measures to deploy to defend their systems. In the predictive attack graph, a node represents a host and an edge represents vulnerability. The predictive attack graph representation accurately forecasts the effect of removing vulnerabilities by removing edges from the attack graph. The predictive attack graph is the full attack graph with redundant paths removed. A path is considered redundant if the path contains the same vulnerability-host pair in two or mo replaces along the same attack path. In node predictive attack graph, a node can be host or a group of hosts, and an edge can be vulnerability or a group of vulnerabilities. The node predictive attack graph is a simplified version of the predictive attack graph. The node predictive attack graph’s purpose is to mitigate the effects of â€Å"firewall explosion.† Firewall explosion causes redundancy in the predictive gr aph. Thus, the node predictive attack graph mitigates this issue by merging nodes of the attack graph. Two nodes are merged if the attacker can compromise the two hosts from all hosts the attacker has already compromised. [16] Rest of the paper is organized as follows. Section II discusses about the related work done. Proposed system is described briefly in section III. Section IV, presents the implementation part of EIDS and section V concludes with references at the end. II. RELATED WORK In this section, we present related research to our proposed work: Intrusion detection in cloud and attack graph models. A. Anomaly based IDS Anomaly or behavior based detection [7] refers to techniques that define and characterize normal or acceptable behaviors of the system (e.g., CPU usage, job execution time , system ca lls). Behaviors that deviate fro m the expected normal behavior are considered intrusions. Generation of high false alarms is the major drawback of this type which leads to low detection efficiency. But it is able to detect new attack patterns. Here, Input parameter selection and analysis of ciphered data are tedious processes . It attains low throughput but high cost. Metrics and frame work to evaluate this IDS and compare with alternate IDS techniques is in need. Also it is poor in defending themselves from attacks. To avoid false alarms in anomaly based systems the system must be trained to create the appropriate user profiles. It requires extensive training to characterize normal behavior patterns. B. Signature based I DS Signature or Misuse based detection refers to techniques that characterize known methods to penetrate a system. These penetrations are characterized as a ‘pattern’ or a ‘signature’ that the IDS looks for. The pattern/signature might be a static string or a set sequence of actions[9]. It can only detect known attacks. Frequent updation is needed in the database for signatures of new attacks. The advantages of this IDS are, it generates less number of false alarms. A single signature can detect a group of attacks. It does not require extensive training. C. Fuzzy based IDS Fuzzy logic can be used to deal with inexact description of intrusions. It provides some flexibility to the uncertain problem of intrusion detection. Fuzzy logic techniques[5] are used for classification techniques. The classification algorithm is applied to audit data collected which learns to classify new audit data as normal or abnormal data. It allows greater complexity for IDS while it provides some flexibility to the uncertain problem of IDS. Most fuzzy IDS require human intervention to determine fuzzy sets and set of fuzzy rules . D. Artificial Neural Network based The goal of using ANNs for intrusion detection[5] is to be able to generalize data from incomplete data and to be able to classify data as being normal or intrusive. It is best because of it’s self learning capabilities , quick processing and can find small behaviour deviations. But it’s downside is it requires more tra ining sa mples and time consuming. E. Data Mining based IDS Some intrusion attacks are formed based on known attacks or variant of known attacks. To detect such signatures or attacks, signature apriori algorithm can be used, which finds frequent subset (containing some features of original attack) of given attack set. In Cloud, association rules can be used to generate new signatures. Using newly generated signatures, variations of known attacks can be detected in real time[5]. F. Profile based IDS In VM profile based IDS[12], a profile is created for each virtual machine in cloud that describes network behavior of each clouduser. The behavior gathered is then used for detection of network attacks on cloud. It detects the attacks early with robustness and minimum complexity. G. Entropy based IDS Entropy is, in general, used for measuring the data’s degree of impurity using a Threshold value. Entropy based anomaly detection system[14] is mainly proposed to prevent DDoS attacks. This is done in two steps. First users are allowed to pass through a router in network site. It detects for legitimate user using detection algorithm. Second again it passes through a router in cloud site. In this methodology confirmation algorithm is incorporated to detect the intruder by checking a threshold value. H. Multithreaded IDS Multithreading technique improves IDS performance within Cloud computing environment to handle large number of data packet flows. The proposed multi-threaded NIDS[8][4] is based on three modules named: capture module, analysis module and reporting module. The first one is responsible of capturing data packets and sending them to analysis part which analyzes them efficiently through matching against pre-defined set of rules and distinguishes the bad packets to generate alerts. Finally, the reporting module can read alerts and immediately prepare alert report. The authors conducted simulation experiments to show the effectiveness of their proposed method and compared it with single thread which presented high performance in terms of processing and execution time. However, the problem of detecting new types of attacks still needs many works to be done. I. Integrated model IDS It uses the combination two or more o f above techniques. It is advantageous since each technique has some advantages and drawbacks. Grid and Cloud Computing Intrusion Detection System (GCCIDS)[10] proposed the integration of knowledge and behavior analysis to detect specific intrusions. However, the proposed prototype cannot discover new types of attacks or create an attack database which must be considered during implementing IDS. A new integrated intrusion detection approach, called FCA NN[13] is proposed based on ANN and fuzzy clustering. Through fuzzy clustering technique, the heterogeneous training set is divided to several homogenous subsets. Thus complexity of each sub training set is reduced and consequently the detection performance is increased. J. Graph based IDS A graph is constructed in which nodes represent state of attack and edges represent the correlations between attacks. Queue graph, Dependency graph and Attack graph are the existing works done on IDS. To prevent vulnerable virtual machines from be ing compromised in the cloud, a multiphase distributed vulnerability detection, measurement, and countermeasure selection mechanism called NICE[2] is proposed, which is built on attack graph-based analytical models and reconfigurable virtual network-based countermeasures. III. PROP OSED WORK In this section, we describe how to construct and utilize node predictive attack graph model to handle vulnerabilities in cloud environ ment. Any attack has some set of predefined steps to incorporate it. An attack can only be accomplished when all its pre-conditions are met [11]. So that by keen monitoring the attack can be prevented. An attack graph is an abstraction that represents the ways an attacker can violate a security policy by leveraging interdependencies among discovered vulnerabilities. An attack graph can be generated from network configuration details and known vulnerabilities within the network. An attack path is a sequence of steps that starts from an attacker’s initial state to the attacker’s goal state (security policy violation) in an attack graph. Every virtual machine has it’s own logfile for recording the actions of that virtual machine. Th is logfile along with the knowledge base provides information for constructing attack graph. Fig. 1. Proposed Architecture IV. IMPLEMENTATION EIDS is implemented using Openebula[15] and OSSIM (Open Source – Security Information Management)[3] which comprises of traffic analyzers, vulnerability scanners. OS-SIM is embedded as a virtual mach ine in the c loud environment. The ro le of this virtual machine is to monitor all other virtual machines running in the environment. OSSIM provides a Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) solution. It is a one-stop solution and integrated the open source software’s NTOP, Mrtg, Snort, Open VAS, and Nmap. OSSIM is a cost effective solution in the area of monitoring network health and security of network/hosts compared to other propriety products[6]. A. Attack Analyzer Attack Analyzer is built on the top the traffic Analyzer of OS-SIM. It uses each virtual machine’s logfile to analyze and extract attack trace steps. Whenever an attack occurs it is added to the attack graph as a node along with its state and correlation function is invoked. Attack Graph Attack Graph Generator Alert System Knowledge Base Attack Analyzer B. Correlation function Correlation function correlates this new attack with known attacks and gives the prediction steps for this attack. These prediction steps for each attack are used to monitor the further attacks in future. C. Attack Graph Generator Each node in the graph defines an attack and the edge between nodes represent the correlation between that two attacks. V. CONCLUSION Defending distributed environment is difficult. Always prevention is better than cure. Prediction of Intrusions in prior enhances the security of cloud environment. So that predictive attack graph model is chosen for providing security to the distributed cloud environment. At any point the known attacks are correlated with each other to predict new attacks. REFERENCES: [1] NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology ) http://csrc.nist.gov/p ublications/nistp ubs/800-145/SP800-145.p df [2] Chun-Jen Chung, Pankaj Khatkar, Tiany i Xing Jeongkeun Lee, Dijian g Huan g, â€Å"NICE: Network Intrusion Detection and Countermeasure Selection in Virtual Network Systems†, IEEE Transactions On Dependable And Secure Computing, Vol. 10, No. 4, pp. 198 – 211, July /August 2013. [3] â€Å"OSSIM †, https://www.alienvault.com/ [4] Ms. Parag K. Shelke, M s. Sneha Sontakke, Dr. A. D. Gawande, â€Å"Intrusion Detection Sy stem for Cloud Comp uting†, International Journal of Scientific Technology Research Volume 1, Issue 4, M ay 2012. [5] M odi, C., Patel, D., Patel, H., Borisaniy a, B., Patel, A. Rajarajan, M ., â€Å"A survey of intrusion detection techniques in Cloud†, Journal of Network and Computer App lications. [6] â€Å"OSSIM †, http ://www.op ensourceforu.com/2014/02 /top -10-op en-source-security -tools/ [7] Amirreza Zarrabi, Alireza Zarrabi, â€Å"Internet Intrusion Detection Sy stem Service in a Cloud† IJCSI International Journal of Computer Science Issues, Vol. 9, Issue 5, No 2, Sep tember 2012. [8] I. Gul and M . Hussain, â€Å"Distributed Cloud Intrusion Detection M odel†, International Journal of Advanced Science and Technology, vol. 34, pp. 71-82, 2011. [9] R. Bhadauria, R. Chaki, N. Chak i, and S. Sany al â€Å"A Survey on Secur ity Issues in Cloud Comp uting†, Available at: http ://arxiv.org/abs/1109.5388 [10] K. Vieira, A. Schulter, C.B. Westp hall, and C.M . Westphall, â€Å"Intrusion Detection for Grid and Cloud comp uting†, IT Professional, Volume: 12 Issue: 4, p p. 38-43, 2010. [11] X. Ou and A. Singhal, â€Å"Quantitative Secur ity Risk Assessment of Enterp rise Networks†, Sp ringerBriefs in Comp uter Scien ce, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-1860-3_2,  © The Author(s) 2012 [12] Sanchik a Gupta, Padam Kumar and Ajith Abraham, â€Å"A Profile Based Network Intrusion Detection and Prevention System for Secur in g Cloud Env ironment†, International Journal of Distributed Sensor Networks, Feb 2013 [13] Swati Ramteke, Rajesh Dongare, Ko mal Ramteke, â€Å"Intrusion Detection System for Cloud Network Using FC-ANN Algorithm†, Int. Journal of Advanced R esearch in Comp uter and Communication En gineeringVo l. 2, Issue 4, April 2013. [14] A.S.Sy ed Navaz, V.San geetha, C.Prabhadevi, â€Å"Entropy based Anomaly Detection System to Prevent DDoS Attacks in Cloud†, Int. Journal of Computer Applications (0975 – 8887) Volume 62– No.15, January 2013 [15] â€Å"Op ennebula†, http ://opennebula.org [16] Nwokedi C. Idika, â€Å"Characterizin g and A ggregating Attack Grap h-based Security M etrics†, CERIAS Tech Rep ort 2010

Design of Traffic Light System

Design of Traffic Light System Contents Task 1 Design Specification Design 1 Complete Block Diagram of the traffic light system State diagram Table Circuit simulation using Multisim software, Task 2 Timing Counter Task 3 Figure 13 (Main red and amber sub amber) Task 4 Remake design LIST IN Tab;e Table 1(State diagramme) Table 2(D type Flip Flop) Table 3(design cost) Table 4(compare table) List in Figure Figure 1: traffic lights system Figure 2(block diagrammed) Figure 3(Moore model) Figure 4 (main red and sub green for 10s) Figure 5 (Main amber and sub red and amber for 2s) Figure 6(main red and sub green for 10s) Figure 7 (Asynchronous counter for timing counter) Figure 8(The Design is 30s counter for main road in Asynchronous counter) Figure 9 (The Design is 20s counter for side road in Asynchronous counter) Figure 10 Main green and sub red Figure 11 (Main amber and sub red and amber) Figure 12 (Main red and sub green) Figure 13 (Main red and amber sub amber) Figure 14(remake design) Design Specification Design specification prepared for a single main and sub -road junction in rural area is given below The green light for the main road will be stay ON for 30s. The green light for the side road will be stay ON for 20s. The amber caution light will say ON for 5s between changes from green to red. Main road and side road timing countdown should display in a 7segment display. Sequence change of the traffic lights show in the Appendix I. The traffic light system for a single main road and sub road junction in a rural area. Complete Block Diagram of the traffic light system Figure 2(block diagrammed) The FSM description stands for Finite state machines. the Finite state machines are the most common controllers of machines. Its In the example Traffic light, the intersection of a main road with a side road is controlled by two traffic lights. FSM has three inputs (T1, T2 and T3) AND six outputs (Rm, Am, Gm, Rs, As and Gs) In here Rm is Red light for main road Am is Amber caution light for main road Gm is Green light for main road Rs is Red light for sub road As is Amber caution light for sub road Gs is green light for sub road T1 time is 30seconds T2 time is 20seconds T3 time is 5seconds Complete Moore model state diagram for traffic light system State diagram Table P.State N.State INPUT Outputs Gm Am Rm Gs As Rs 1 0 0 0 0 1 T1 0 1 0 0 1 1 T3 0 0 1 1 0 0 T2 0 1 1 0 1 0 T3 Table 1(State diagramme) State Assignment in Gray code Here using gray code for states State transection table Here using D type flip flops for design a circuit P.S Q1 Q0 N.S Q1+ Q0+ INPUT Gm Am Rm Gs As Rs 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 T1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 T3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 T2 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 T3 0 0 Table 2(D type Flip Flop) Simplified equations for the system. From Laws of Boolean Algebra ( The equations are, Circuit simulation using Multisim software, Figure 4 (main red and sub green for 10s) Figure 5 (Main amber and sub red and amber for 2s) Figure 6(main red and sub green for 10s) Timing Counter Figure 10 Main green and sub red Figure 11 (Main amber and sub red and amber) Figure 12 (Main red and sub green) Figure 13 (Main red and amber sub amber) Task 4 Item name quantity Price (Rs) 2 pin AND gate IC 5 120ÃÆ'-5=600 3 pin AND gate IC 2 120ÃÆ'-2=240 2 pin OR gate IC 1 40ÃÆ'-4=40 3 pin OR gate IC 1 40ÃÆ'-1=40 2 pin XOR gate IC 1 40ÃÆ'-1=40 Dual JK FF IC 10 100ÃÆ'-10=1000 Dual D FF IC 1 100ÃÆ'-1=100 DCD 7 Segment decoder IC 5 100ÃÆ'-5=500 7 Segment display 5 50ÃÆ'-5=250 NOT gate IC 2 40ÃÆ'-2=80 Red color LED 2 5ÃÆ'-2=10 Amber color LED 2 5ÃÆ'-2=10 Green color LED 2 5ÃÆ'-2=10 wires 20m 15ÃÆ'-20=300 Power adaptor 2 150ÃÆ'-2=300 Total 3420 Table 3(design cost) Remake design Figure 14(remake design) Compare the cost Item name Previous cost (Rs) New cost(Rs) 2 pin AND gate IC 1ÃÆ'-120 = 120 1ÃÆ'-120 = 120 3 pin AND gate IC 1ÃÆ'-120 = 120 0 XOR gate IC 1ÃÆ'- 40 = 40 0 D type FF IC 1ÃÆ'-100 = 100 1ÃÆ'-100 = 100 Decoder IC 0 1ÃÆ'-100 = 100 NOT gate IC 1ÃÆ'- 40 = 40 2ÃÆ'- 40 = 40 OR gate Ic 1ÃÆ'- 40 = 40 1ÃÆ'- 40 = 40 total 460 400 Table 4(compare table) In new design cost is less than old design Reference à ¯Ã†â€™Ã‹Å"à ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Mano M.M,Michael D.C. (2008).Digital Design.New Delhi:PHI. à ¯Ã†â€™Ã‹Å"à ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Floyd,L.(2011).Digital Fundamentals.10th ed.India:Pearson. p271- 287. à ¯Ã†â€™Ã‹Å"à ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  http://www.topssrilanka.com/article24948-new-traffic-ligth-system-atbambalapitiya.html.Lasr à ¯Ã†â€™Ã‹Å"à ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2012/06/03/imp01.asp

Donne’s Poem Death Be Not Proud :: Death Be Not Proud Essays

Donne’s Poem Death Be Not Proud In the poem "Death Be Not Proud," written by John Donne death is personified. The personification of death creates a feeling that death is less powerful than we think. Donne creates and image of death that is not mysterious, not in control, and a slave of low status. He does this by undermining the idea of death as bound to the rules of "fate, chance, kings, and desperate men." He insists that death is no more powerful than any mortal is. Suggesting that death is not mysterious is the word slave. Directed to death, "thou art slave" forms an unthreatening stance of death because slaves are not threatening. This is due to the connections that go with the word slave. A slave is bound in submission to a master therefore having no say in what he or she can do. Death, in being personified into a slave that has many masters, is more extremely bound. This lack of freedom that death has in choosing its victims takes away any reason to be fearful of it. Power comes from being able to control something. Here death is the one being controlled by other outside forces that have power over how and when death can do its work. Death casts fear into mortals because it is unknown as to what happens in the afterworld. This poem creates a sense that we know who death is. For example we can see how death is a poor beggar on the street. This would make death a non-threatening person. He is a low class citizen that is just waiting for an opportunity to feast when his master allows. Donne produces this low-life death figure by associating him with "poison, war, and sickness." These are all things that less fortunate mortals deal with on a daily basis. These are dreadful things that are not good. Death personified is subject to these horrible circumstances therefore is very low in stature. If death can only reap his vengeance with such low standards governing him, then death is as low as what he works for. Death becomes less mysterious and something which we are not afraid of.

Popularity, Physical Appearance, and the American Dream in Death of a S

Popularity, Physical Appearance, and the American Dream in Death of a Salesman For most, the American Dream is a sure fire shot at true happiness.   It represents hope for a successful, fortune-filled future.   Though most agree on the meaning of the American Dream, few follow the same path to achieving it.   For struggling salesman Willy Loman, achieving this dream would mean a completely fulfilled existence.   Unfortunately, Willy's simplistic ideas on how to accomplish his goal are what ultimately prevent him from reaching it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Out of all of Willy's simplistic ideals, one major pattern we can notice is how Willy truly believes that popularity and physical appearance are what make people wealthy.   We are first introduced to this idea when Willy is speaking to his wife, Linda, about their son Biff.   "Biff Loman is lost," says Willy.   "In the greatest country in the world, a young man with such personal attractiveness gets lost."   In this quote, not only is Willy confused about how Biff's good looks can't help him get a job, but also because his son can't get a job in a country like Ame... ... things that made people successful in life, regardless of whether or not hard work was involved.   Because of these simplistic ideas, Willy went through life with a somewhat naive frame of mind, and was unable to reach his goal of achieving the American Dream. Works Cited Lewis, Allan. American Plays and Playwrights. New York, NY: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1970. 47. Miller, Arthur. "Death of a Salesman." Discovering Literature: Stories, Poems, Plays. Ed. Hans P. Guth and Gabriele L. Rico. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1997. 1211-82.

Fashion Trends in the Fifties Essay -- Fashion Retail Merchandising Es

Fashion Trends in the Fifties â€Å"It was different in the USA, where wartime restrictions had been quickly removed, and where the new ‘consumer society’ was forging ahead – helped by new developments such as the start of the credit card system in 1950. But these differing conditions produced a similar effect on fashion both in Europe and America – a tendency to prefer the safe and normal, a veering away from the radical and extreme. ‘Normal’ felt good, especially with the memory of the war still so fresh in many people’s minds† (Baker 6). Fashion is an important aspect to people’s lives, and is influenced by various parts of society. Sometimes there are practical reasons behind certain fashion trends, but there are some trends that have no apparent origin or purpose. Fashion can also influence other parts of popular or high culture, including music. â€Å"Rock n’ roll,† the music of the 1950’s, displayed young people’ s (17-25 year-olds) interest in clothes, as heard in such pop tracks as â€Å"White Sports Coat† and â€Å"Blue Suede Shoes† (Baker 12). Regardless of purpose or origin, â€Å"style [in the 1950’s] often meant super luxury, whether it was the use of lots of shiny chrome or lace, shimmering with sequins† (Baker 11). During the 1950’s, style was not only a portrayal of one’s sense of fashion – it was a portrayal of who you were. In the 1950’s, the role of a woman was to be in the home, and particularly in the kitchen. â€Å"Yet the usual media image of a housewife showed her not as a mother in comfortable trousers and sweater, or loose dress, suitable for such work, but as a doll-like figure dressed in rustling, full skirts, nipped waist and narrow-fitting bodice. Even her apron had deep frills and a heart-shaped top and pocke... ...er vests and chinos as leisurewear, then people were that much closer to being â€Å"normal.† Works Cited - Baker, Patricia. Fashions of a Decade: the 1950s. New York: Facts on File, Inc., 1991. An edition of a series that illustrates the most influential trends in twentieth- century fashion. Focuses on fashion as an integral part in the arts, technology, politics, and society. - Stott, Jon C., Raymond E. Jones, and Rick Bowers, eds. The Harbrace Anthology of Literature 2nd ed. Toronto: Harcourt Canada Ltd., 1998. An anthology of various literature, ranging from poetry, to prose, to plays. - Unknown Author. â€Å"Fashion 50s.† Yesterdayland Web Site. 2000. http://www.yeaterdayland.com/popopedia/shows/fashion/ (17 Mar. 2002). A web-site showcasing fashion trends throughout the decades of the twentieth-century.

Blood Promise Chapter Twenty-Seven

I didn't recognize the guy Sydney sent to meet us when we reached Novosibirsk, but he had the same golden tattoo that she did. He was sandy-haired and in his thirties-and human, of course. He looked competent and trustworthy, and as I leaned against the car, he laughed and spoke to the elderly couple like they'd been best friends forever. There was a professional and reassuring air about him, and soon they were smiling too. I'm not sure what he told them, maybe that I was his wayward daughter or something, but they apparently felt good enough to leave me in his hands. I supposed with their jobs, the Alchemist charm in action. When the old man and woman drove off, his demeanor shifted slightly. He didn't seem as cold as Sydney initially had, but there was no laughing or joking with me. He'd become distinctly businesslike, and I couldn't help but think of the stories of men in black, the people who cleaned up after extraterrestrial encounters in order to keep the world ignorant of the truth. â€Å"Can you walk?† he asked, eyeing me up and down. â€Å"Unclear at this time,† I replied. It turned out I could, just not very well. With his help, I eventually ended up at a town house over in a residential part of the city. I was bleary-eyed and barely able to stay on my feet by that point. There were other people there, but none of them registered. The only thing that mattered was the bedroom someone took me to. I mustered enough strength at that point to break free of the arm supporting me and do a face-plant right in the middle of the bed. I fell asleep instantly. I awoke to bright sunshine filling my room and voices speaking in hushed tones. Considering everything that I'd been through, I wouldn't have been surprised to see Dimitri, Tatiana, or even Dr. Olendzki from the Academy there. Instead, it was Abe's bearded face that looked down at me, the light making all of his jewelry gleam. For a moment, his face blurred, and all I saw was dark, dark water-water that threatened to wash me away. Dimitri's last words echoed in my head: That's what I was supposed to say†¦ He'd understood that I wanted to hear that he loved me. What would have happened if we'd had a few moments more? Would he have said those words? Would he have meant them? And would it have mattered? With the same resolve I'd mustered before, I parted the waters swirling in my mind, ordering myself to push aside last night as long as I could. I would drown if I thought about it. Now I had to swim. Abe's face came back into focus. â€Å"Greetings, Zmey,† I said weakly. Somehow, him being here didn't surprise me. Sydney would have had to tell her superiors about me, who in turn would have told Abe. â€Å"Nice of you to slither on in.† He shook his head, wearing a rueful smile. â€Å"I think you've outdone me when it comes to sneaking around dark corners. I thought you were on your way back to Montana.† â€Å"Next time, make sure you write a few more details into your bargains. Or just pack me up and send me back to the U.S. for real.† â€Å"Oh,† he said, â€Å"that's exactly what I intend to do.† He kept smiling as he said it, but somehow, I had a feeling he wasn't joking. And suddenly, I no longer feared that fate. Going home was starting to sound good. Mark and Oksana walked over to stand beside him. Their presence was unexpected but welcome. They smiled too, faces melancholy but relieved. I sat up in bed, surprised I could move at all. â€Å"You healed me,† I said to Oksana. â€Å"I still hurt, but I don't feel like I'm going to die, which I have to think is an improvement.† She nodded. â€Å"I did enough to make sure you weren't in immediate danger. I figured I could do the rest when you woke up.† I shook my head. â€Å"No, no. I'll recover on my own.† I always hated it when Lissa healed me. I didn't want her wasting the strength on me. I also didn't want her inviting spirit's side effects. Lissa†¦ I jerked the covers off of me. â€Å"Oh my God! I have to get home. Right now.† Immediately, three pairs of arms blocked my way. â€Å"Hold on,† said Mark. â€Å"You aren't going anywhere. Oksana only healed you a little. You're a long way from being recovered.† â€Å"And you still haven't told us what happened,† said Abe, eyes as shrewd as ever. He was someone who needed to know everything, and the mysteries around me probably drove him crazy. â€Å"There's no time! Lissa's in trouble. I have to get back to school.† It was all coming back to me. Lissa's erratic behavior and crazy stunts, driven by some kind of compulsion-or super-compulsion, I supposed, seeing as Avery had been able to shove me out of Lissa's head. â€Å"Oh, now you want to go back to Montana?† exclaimed Abe. â€Å"Rose, even if there was a plane waiting for you out in the other room, that's a twenty hour trip, at minimum. And you're in no condition to go anywhere.† I shook my head, still trying to get on my feet. After what I'd faced last night, this group wasn't that much of a threat-well, maybe Mark was-but I could hardly start throwing punches. And yeah, I still wasn't sure what Abe could do. â€Å"You don't get it! Someone's trying to kill Lissa or hurt her or†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Well, I didn't really understand what Avery wanted. All I knew was that Avery had somehow been compelling Lissa to do all sorts of reckless things. She had to be amazingly strong in spirit to not only manage those feats but also keep it hidden from Lissa and Adrian. She'd even created a false aura to hide her golden one. I had no idea how that magnitude of power was possible, particularly considering that Avery's fun-loving personality could hardly be called insane. Whatever her scheme, Lissa was at risk. I had to do something. Removing Abe from the equation, I looked up at Mark and Oksana pleadingly. â€Å"It's my bondmate,† I explained. â€Å"She's in trouble. Someone's trying to hurt her. I have to go to her-you understand why I have to.† And I saw in their faces that they did understand. I also knew that in my situation, they'd try exactly the same thing for each other. Mark sighed. â€Å"Rose†¦ we'll help you get to her, but we can't do it now.† â€Å"We'll contact the school,† said Abe matter-of-factly. â€Å"They'll take care of it.† Right. And how exactly would we do that? Call up Headmaster Lazar and tell him his party-girl daughter was actually corrupting and controlling people with psychic powers and that she needed to be locked up for Lissa's and everyone else's good? My lack of an answer seemed to make them think they'd convinced me, Abe in particular. â€Å"With Oksana's help, you'd probably be in good enough condition to leave tomorrow,† he added. â€Å"I can book a morning flight the next day.† â€Å"Will she be all right until then?† Oksana asked me gently. â€Å"I†¦ I don't know†¦Ã¢â‚¬  What could Avery do in two days' time? Alienate and embarrass Lissa further? Horrible things, but not permanent or life threatening. Surely, surely†¦ she'd be okay that long, right? â€Å"Let me see†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I saw Mark's eyes widen slightly as he realized what I was about to do. Then I saw nothing in the room anymore because I was no longer there. I was in Lissa's head. A new set of sights settled in around me, and for half a second, I thought I stood on the bridge again and was looking down into black waters and a cold death. Then I gained a grip on what I saw-or rather, what Lissa saw. She was standing on the ledge of a window in some building on campus. It was nighttime. I couldn't tell offhand which building it was, but it didn't matter. Lissa was on what appeared to be the sixth floor, standing there in high heels, laughing about something while the dark ground threatened below. Behind her, I heard Avery's voice. â€Å"Lissa, be careful! You shouldn't be up there.† But it had the same double meaning that permeated everything Avery did. Even as she said those words of caution, I could feel a reckless drive within Lissa, something telling her that it was okay to be where she was and not to worry so much. It was Avery's compulsion. Then, I felt that brushing of my mind, and the annoyed voice. You again? I was forced back out, back to the bedroom in Novosibirsk. Abe was freaking out, apparently thinking I'd gone into some catatonic fit, and Mark and Oksana were attempting to explain to him what had happened. I blinked and rubbed my head as I gathered myself, and Mark breathed a sigh of relief. â€Å"It's much stranger watching someone do that than it is doing it myself.† â€Å"She's in trouble,† I said, attempting to get up again. â€Å"She's in trouble†¦ and I don't know what to do†¦Ã¢â‚¬  They were right in saying there was no way on earth I could get to Lissa anytime soon. And even if I followed Abe's suggestion and contacted the school†¦ I didn't know for sure where Lissa was at or even if anyone there would believe me. I thought about jumping back in and trying to read Lissa's location from her mind, but Avery would likely throw me out again. From what I had briefly felt, Lissa didn't have her cell phone on her-no surprise. There were strict rules about having them in classes, so she usually left hers in her dorm room. But I knew someone who would have his. And who would believe me. â€Å"Does anyone have a phone?† I asked. Abe gave me his, and I dialed Adrian's number, surprised I had it memorized. Adrian was mad at me, but he cared about Lissa. He would help her, no matter his grudge toward me. And he would believe me when I tried to explain a crazy, spirit-induced plot. But when the other end of the line picked up, it was his voicemail that answered, not the man himself. â€Å"I know how devastated you must be to miss me,† his cheery voice said, â€Å"but leave a message, and I'll try to ease your agony as soon as possible.† I disconnected, feeling lost. Suddenly, I looked up at Oksana as one of my crazier ideas came to mind. â€Å"You†¦ you can do that thing†¦ where you actively go in someone's mind and touch their thoughts, right? Like you did to me?† She grimaced slightly. â€Å"Yes, but it's not something I like to do. I don't think it's right.† â€Å"Can you compel them once you're in there?† She looked even more disgusted. â€Å"Well, yes, of course†¦ the two things are actually very similar. But reaching in someone's mind is one thing and forcing them into some unwanted behavior is an entirely different matter.† â€Å"My friend is about to do something dangerous,† I said. â€Å"It could kill her. She's being compelled, but I can't do anything about it. The bond won't let me actively reach her. I can only watch. If you could reach inside my friend's head and compel her out of danger†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Oksana shook her head. â€Å"Supposing morals weren't an issue, I can't reach into someone who's not actually here-let alone someone I've never met.† I raked a hand through my hair, panic setting in. I wished Oksana knew how to walk dreams. That would at least give her the long-distance capability. All of these spirit powers seemed to be one off from each other, each having some additional nuance. Someone who could dream walk might be able to take the next step and visit someone awake. An even crazier idea came to me. This was a groundbreaking day. â€Å"Oksana†¦ you can reach into my mind, right?† â€Å"Yes,† she reaffirmed. â€Å"If I†¦ if I was in my bondmate's head at the time, could you reach into me and then reach into her mind? Could I, like, be the link between you guys?† â€Å"I've never heard of anything like that,† murmured Mark. â€Å"That's because we've never had this many spirit users and shadow-kissed around before,† I pointed out. Abe, understandably, looked completely lost. A shadow fell over Oksana's face. â€Å"I don't know†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Either it works or it doesn't,† I said. â€Å"If it doesn't, then there's no harm done. But if you can reach her through me†¦ you can compel her.† She started to speak, and I cut her off. â€Å"I know, I know†¦ you think it's wrong. But this other spirit user? She's the one who's wrong. All you have to do is compel Lissa out of danger. She's ready to jump out a window! Stop her now; then I'll get to her in another day or so and fix things.† And by fix things, I meant ruin Avery's pretty face with a black eye. In my bizarre life, I'd grown pretty used to people-especially adults-rejecting my outlandish ideas and proclamations. I'd had a hell of a time convincing people that Victor had kidnapped Lissa and an equally hard time making the guardians believe the school was under attack. So when situations like this happened, part of me almost expected resistance. But the thing was, as stable as they were, Oksana and Mark had been fighting with spirit for most of their lives. Crazy was kind of par for the course for them, and after a moment, she didn't argue any further. â€Å"All right,† she said. â€Å"Give me your hands.† â€Å"What's going on?† asked Abe, still totally clueless. I took a small amount of satisfaction in seeing him out of his league for a change. Mark murmured something to Oksana in Russian and kissed her on the cheek. He was warning her to be careful, not condemning her for her choice. I knew he'd want the same thing if she were in Lissa's place. The love that flashed between them was so deep and so strong that I nearly lost my resolve to do this. That kind of love reminded me of Dimitri, and if I allowed myself to think about him for even a moment more, I was going to relive last night†¦ I clasped Oksana's hands, a knot of fear coiling in my stomach. I didn't like the idea of someone being in my head, even though that was a hypocritical sentiment for someone who was constantly traveling into her best friend's mind. Oksana gave me a small smile, though it was obvious she was as nervous as me. â€Å"I'm sorry,† she said. â€Å"I hate doing this to people†¦Ã¢â‚¬  And then I felt it, the same thing that had happened when Avery pushed me out. It was like the actual physical sensation of someone touching my brain. I gasped, looking into Oksana's eyes as waves of heat and cold ran through me. Oksana was in my head. â€Å"Now go to your friend,† she said. I did. I focused my thoughts into Lissa and found her still standing on the window's ledge. Better she was there than on the ground, but I still wanted her off and back in the room before something bad happened. That wasn't for me to do, however. I was the taxi, so to speak. Oksana was the one who had to literally talk Lissa off the ledge. Only I had no indication the other woman had come with me. When I'd jumped to Lissa's mind, I'd lost that sense of Oksana. No more tickling of the mind. Oksana? I thought. Are you there? There was no response-not from Oksana, at least. The answer came from a very unexpected source. Rose? It was Lissa's voice that spoke in my mind. She froze her position in the window and abruptly cut off whatever she'd been laughing about with Avery. I felt Lissa's terror and confusion as she wondered if she was imagining me. She peered around the room, her eyes passing over Avery. Avery recognized something was going on, and her face hardened. I felt the familiar sense of her presence in Lissa's mind and wasn't surprised when Avery tried to shove me out again. Except-it didn't work. Avery kicking me out in the past had always felt like an actual shove. I got the impression that when she tried it now, it felt like hitting a brick wall to her. I wasn't so easy to push around anymore. Oksana was with me somehow, lending her strength. Avery was still in Lissa's line of sight, and I saw those adorable blue-gray eyes go wide with shock that she couldn't control me. Oh, I thought. It's on, bitch! Rose? Lissa's voice was there again. Am I going crazy? Not yet. But you have to get down, right now. I think Avery's trying to kill you. Kill me? I could feel and hear Lissa's incredulity. She'd never do that. Look, let's not argue it for now. Just get out of the window and call it good. I felt the impulse in Lissa, felt her shift and start to put one foot down. Then it was like some core part of herself stopped her. Her foot stayed where it was†¦ and slowly began to grow unsteady†¦ That was Avery at work. I wondered if Oksana, lurking in the background of this bond, could overpower that compulsion. No, Oksana wasn't active here. Her spirit powers had somehow gotten me into actively communicating with Lissa, but she was remaining passive. I'd expected to be the bridge and thought Oksana would jump to Lissa's mind and compel her. The situation was reversed, though, and I didn't actually have compulsion powers. All I had was legendary wit and powers of persuasion. Lissa, you have to fight Avery, I said. She's a spirit user, and she's compelling you. You're one of the strongest compulsion users I know. You should be able to fight her. Fear answered me. I can't†¦ I can't compel right now. Why not? Because I've been drinking. I mentally groaned. Of course. That was why Avery was always so quick to supply Lissa with alcohol. It numbed spirit, as demonstrated in Adrian's frequent indulgences. Avery had encouraged the drinking so that Lissa's spirit abilities would weaken and give her less resistance. There were a number of times Lissa hadn't been able to gauge exactly how much Avery was drinking; in retrospect, Avery must have been doing a fair amount of faking. Then use ordinary willpower, I told her. It's possible to resist compulsion. It was true. Compulsion wasn't an automatic ticket to world domination. Some people were better at resisting it than others, though a Strigoi or spirit user certainly complicated matters. I felt Lissa build up her resolve, felt her repeat my words over and over, that she had to be strong and step back off the ledge. She worked to push away that impulse Avery had implanted, and without knowing how, I suddenly found myself pushing on it as well. Lissa and I joined our strength together and started shoving Avery out. In the physical world, Avery and Lissa's gazes were locked as the psychic struggle continued. Avery's face showed hard concentration that suddenly became overlaid with shock. She'd noticed me fighting her too. Her eyes narrowed, and when she spoke, it was me she addressed and not Lissa. â€Å"Oh,† Avery hissed, â€Å"you do not want to mess with me.† Didn't I? There was a rush of heat and that feeling of someone reaching into my mind. Only it wasn't Oksana. It was Avery, and she was doing some serious investigation of my thoughts and memories. I understood now what Oksana meant about it being invasive and a violation. It wasn't just looking through someone's eyes; it was spying on their most intimate thoughts. And then, the world around me dissolved. I stood in a room I didn't recognize. For a moment, I thought I was back in Galina's estate. It certainly had that rich, expensive feel to it. But no. After a moment's examination, I realized this wasn't the same at all. The furnishings were different. Even the vibe was different. Galina's home had been beautiful, but there had been a cold, impersonal feel to it. This place was inviting and clearly well loved. The plush couch had a quilt thrown haphazardly in its corner, as though someone-or maybe two someones-had been cuddling underneath it. And while the room wasn't messy, exactly, there were scattered objects-books, framed photos-that indicated this room was actually used and wasn't just for show. I walked over to a small bookshelf and picked up one of the framed photos. I nearly dropped it when I saw what it was. It was a picture of Dimitri and me-but I had no memory of it. We stood arm in arm, leaning our faces together to make sure we both got in the shot. I was grinning broadly, and he too wore a joyous smile, one I'd hardly ever seen on him. It softened some of the protective fierceness that usually filled his features and made him look sexier than I'd ever imagined. A piece of that soft brown hair had slipped his ponytail and lay on his cheek. Beyond us was a city that I immediately recognized: Saint Petersburg. I frowned. No, this was definitely a picture that couldn't exist. I was still studying it when I heard someone walk into the room. When I saw who it was, my heart stopped. I set the photo back on the shelf with shaking hands and took a few steps back. It was Dimitri. He wore jeans and a casual red T-shirt that fit the lean muscles of his body perfectly. His hair was down loose and slightly damp, like he'd just gotten out of the shower. He held two mugs and chuckled when he saw me. â€Å"Still not dressed?† he asked, shaking his head. â€Å"They're going to be here any minute.† I looked down and saw that I wore plaid flannel pajama bottoms and a tank top. He handed me the mug, and I was too stunned to do anything but take it. I peered into it-hot chocolate-and then looked up at him. There was no red in his eyes, no evil on his face. Only gorgeous warmth and affection. He was my Dimitri, the one who'd loved and protected me. The one with a pure heart and soul†¦ â€Å"Who†¦ who's coming?† I asked. â€Å"Lissa and Christian. They're coming for brunch.† He gave me a puzzled look. â€Å"Are you okay?† I looked around, again taking in the comforting room. Through a window, I saw a backyard filled with trees and flowers. Sunshine spilled through onto the carpet. I turned back to him and shook my head. â€Å"What is this? Where are we?† His confused expression now turned into a frown. Stepping forward, he took my mug and set his and mine on the shelf. His hands rested on my hips, and I flinched but didn't break away-how could I when he looked so much like my Dimitri? â€Å"This is our house,† he said, drawing me near. â€Å"In Pennsylvania.† â€Å"Pennsylvania†¦ are we at the Royal Court ?† He shrugged. â€Å"A few miles away.† I slowly shook my head. â€Å"No†¦ that's not possible. We can't have a home together. And definitely not so close to the others. They'd never let us.† If in some crazy world Dimitri and I lived together, we'd have to do it in secret-somewhere remote, like Siberia. â€Å"You insisted,† he said with a small smile. â€Å"And none of them care. They accept it. Besides, you said we had to live near Lissa.† My mind reeled. What was going on? How was this possible? How could I be living with Dimitri-especially so near Moroi? This wasn't right†¦ and yet, it felt right. Looking around, I could see how this was my home. I could feel the love in it, feel the connection Dimitri and I had to it. But†¦ how could I actually be with Dimitri? Wasn't I supposed to be doing something else? Wasn't I supposed to be somewhere else? â€Å"You're a Strigoi,† I said at last. â€Å"No†¦ you're dead. I killed you.† He ran a finger along my cheek, still giving me that rueful smile. â€Å"Do I look like I'm dead? Do I look Strigoi?† No. He looked wonderful and sexy and strong. He was all the things I remembered, all the things I loved. â€Å"But you were†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I trailed off, still confused. This wasn't right. There was something I had to do, but I still couldn't remember. â€Å"What happened?† His hand returned to my hip, and he pulled me into a tight embrace. â€Å"You saved me,† he murmured into my ear. â€Å"Your love saved me, Roza. You brought me back so that we could be together.† Had I? I had no memory of that, either. But this all seemed so real, and it felt so wonderful. I'd missed his arms around me. He'd held me as a Strigoi, but it had never felt like this. And when he leaned down and kissed me, I knew for sure he wasn't a Strigoi. I didn't know how I could have ever deluded myself back at Galina's. This kiss was alive. It burned within my soul, and as my lips pressed more eagerly into his, I felt that connection, the one that told me there was no one else in the world for me except him. Only, I couldn't shake the feeling that I wasn't supposed to be here. But where was I supposed to be? Lissa†¦ something with Lissa†¦ I broke the kiss but not the embrace. My head rested against his chest. â€Å"I really saved you?† â€Å"Your love was too strong. Our love was too strong. Not even the undead could keep us apart.† I wanted to believe it. Desperately. But that voice still nagged in my head†¦ Lissa. What about Lissa? Then, it came to me. Lissa and Avery. I had to save Lissa from Avery. I jerked away from Dimitri, and he stared in surprise. â€Å"What are you doing?† â€Å"This isn't real,† I said. â€Å"This is a trick. You're still Strigoi. We can't be together-not here, not among the Moroi.† â€Å"Of course we can.† There was hurt in his deep brown eyes, and it tore at my heart. â€Å"Don't you want to be with me?† â€Å"I have to go back to Lissa†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Let her go,† he said, approaching me again. â€Å"Let all of it go. Stay here with me-we can have everything we ever wanted, Rose. We can be together every day, wake up together every morning.† â€Å"No.† I stepped further back. I knew if I didn't, he would kiss me again, and then I'd truly be lost. Lissa needed me. Lissa was trapped. With each passing second, the details about Avery were coming back to me. This was all an illusion. â€Å"Rose?† he asked. There was so much pain in his voice. â€Å"What are you doing?† â€Å"I'm sorry,† I said, feeling on the verge of tears. Lissa. I had to get to Lissa. â€Å"This isn't real. You're gone. You and I can never be together, but I can still help her.† â€Å"You love her more than me?† Lissa had asked me almost the same thing when I'd left to hunt Dimitri. My life was doomed to always be about choosing between them. â€Å"I love you both,† I replied. And with that, I used all of my will to push myself back to Lissa, wherever she was, and tear away from this fantasy. Honestly, I could have spent the rest of my days in that make-believe world, being with Dimitri in that house, waking up with him each morning like he'd said. But it wasn't real. It was too easy, and if I was learning anything, it was that life wasn't easy. The effort was excruciating, but suddenly, I found myself looking back at the room at St. Vladimir's. I focused on Avery who was staring me and Lissa down. She'd pulled out the memory that tormented me most, attempting to confuse me and tear me from Lissa with a fantasy of what I wanted more than anything else in the world. I'd fought Avery's mind trap and felt pretty smug about it-despite the ache in my heart. I wished I could communicate directly with her and make a few comments about what I thought of her and her game. That was out of the question, so instead, I threw my will in with Lissa's once more, and together, we stepped down off the ledge and onto the room's floor. Avery was visibly sweating, and when she realized she'd lost the psychic tug of war, her pretty face turned very ugly. â€Å"Fine,† she said. â€Å"There are easier ways of killing you off.† Reed suddenly entered the room, looking as hostile as ever. I had no idea where he'd come from or how he'd known to show up right then, but he headed straight toward Lissa, hands reaching out. That open window loomed behind her, and it didn't take a genius to guess his intentions. Avery had tried to get Lissa to jump by using compulsion. Reed was just going to push her. A mental conversation flew between Lissa and me in the space of a heartbeat. Okay, I told her. Here's the situation. We're going to have to do a little role reversal. What are you talking about? Fear flooded her, which was understandable, seeing as Reed's hands were seconds away from grabbing her. Well, I said, I just did the psychic power struggle. Which means you've got to do the fighting. And I'm going to show you how.