Role Of Womens Rights In Afghanistan

Role Of Womens Rights In Afghanistan Do you think that Afghan nation from the outset needs only men to serve it? Before Islam, women were treated like slaves or property. Their personal consent concerning anything related to their well-being was considered unimportant, to such a degree that they were never even treated as a party to a marriage contract. Women were used for one purpose, and then discarded. They had no independence, could own no property and were not allowed to inherit. In times of war, women were treated as part of the prize. Their condition was unspeakable. In addition, the birth of a daughter in a family was not an occasion for happiness, but was regarded as embarrassment. The practice of killing female children was uncontrolled. With the arrival of Islam a verse came from the Quran criticizing those who practiced female infanticide: And when the news of (the birth of) a female (child) is brought to any of them, his face becomes dark, and he is filled with inward grief! He hides himself from the people because of the evil of that whereof he has been informed. Shall he keep her with dishonor or bury her in the earth? Certainly, evil is their decision (An-Nahle 16:58-59). Afghanistan is the only country in the world where women are symbolized to all other countries. Afghan womens current situation is not only the result of Taliban, but there exists a history over the centuries of Afghan womens situation. Afghanistan is a country that lost all its economical infrastructures passing three decades of war, has been faced with Economical, Social and cultural problems. One of the major problems that Afghans are suffering is violence against womens rights. Taking in to consideration that many activities have been accomplished since 2001 by international and governmental organizations but statistic show that problems have been remained and vast number of women are still suffering from violence. Many of women are deprived from education. A few women participate in political and social activities. As observed in Kabul, a woman suffers from violence every 30 minutes and 3% of women participate in governmental decision making activities. Only 11 percents of women were candidates in the 2010 parliamentary elections. Some of the challenging facts Afghan women faces in daily life are listed as following: Every 30 minutes, an Afghan woman dies during childbirth, 87 percent of Afghan women are illiterate, 30 percent of girls have access to education in Afghanistan, 1 in every 3 Afghan women experience physical, psychological or sexual violence, 44 years is the average life expectancy rate for women in Afghanistan, and 70 to 80 percent of women face forced marriages in Afghanistan (The Plight of Afghan Woman) Since the fall of the Taliban in late 2001, many people would agree that the political and cultural position of Afghan women have improved substantially. The recently adopted Afghan constitution states that the citizens of Afghanistan whether man or woman- has equal rights and duties before the law. So far, women have been allowed to return back to work, the government no longer forces them to wear the all-covering burqa, and they even have been appointed to top positions in the government. Although many people believe that women have equal rights to men, but Afghan women, especially in the rural areas of Afghanistan are not equally treated and their rights are violated. Women are not allowed to get education, women are forced into early age marriage and they have no right to work equally with men and take part in social activities. In many societies today, especially in Afghanistan, a woman is only valued and considered important if she performs the functions of a man, while displaying her feminine attractions to the public. If women get involved in politics, they would stop marrying, having children, and the human race would greatly be affected. Women are emotional creatures, and incapable of making a sound political decision. Afghan men, Typically among Pashtun families, parents believe that their daughters going to school is an immoral act, such as: being friend with the boys and then claiming to marry with the boy of their own choice. They have the ideas saying that their daughters may adopt non-cultural behaviors at school, such as: changes in their clothing, adapting modern clothing and ways of thinking, which are not accepted in Afghan culture. In most afghan families, relatives and friends advise each others for not letting their daughters attend school. A girl is considered as a financial burden on her parents; therefore, parents give their daughters to men who are in their fathers age to receive marriage cost and lessen their home expenses. In the most provinces of Afghanistan, girls are sold to men without knowing a girls consent, and then these girls are used as labors by her husband and in-laws family for carrying physical loads of the whole family. First, its known that education, especially for girls is among basic requirements for an improved life standard in any society, however 85 percents of women and girls are illiterate in Afghanistan. The United States of America International Aid (USAID) allocated fund to address this challenge that constitute the lowest educational level in the country, and girls are facing many problems in this area. Womens education is a foundation for building womens human capital and a requirement for their meaningful participation, effective leadership, and enjoyment equal of rights. Although, the womens right to education is legally protected by law, the Afghan women have been long deprived of their right to education and still the participation of girls and women in various levels and fields of education is limited and they face numerous constraints. Access to equal education opportunity still is a dream for many women. Despite of educational improvements in recent years, women still face a num ber of obstacles in their way to education such as early marriage; restricted movement; cultural barriers, security, transport constraints, shortage of qualified female teachers especially in rural areas, poor school infrastructure and facilities and the lower value attached to girls and womens education. In Afghanistan, the number of girls going to school is less than half the number of school boys and even in some provinces, like Zabul, this percentage is 3%; though the numbers of male and female populations aging between 6-18 year old dont have a considerable difference. Another problem in terms of education in Afghanistan is the number of female schools including elementary and high schools that has decreased considerably. In Kandahar, for example, there are 255 elementary schools, whilst 20 high schools exist in the city. In central region of the country there are 256 elementary schools and only 27 high schools, which show unwillingness of girls to study (Commission). Nearly 10 00 girls schools have been destroyed. Girls and teachers have been killed in a return of the Taliban reign of terror. Only 18% of Afghan women have skilled medical personnel present when they give birth (Feminism, Womens Rights Articles Issues). In Paktia province last year, a shura of elders decided that a 25-year-old man who sexually abused a 7-year-old relative girl should pay compensation to the childs family. They also decreed the girl should marry her rapist when shes older (The Star). Due to fear of Taliban or local warlords, girls cannot go outside their homes. If they go to schools, they are burnt, acid is thrown on their faces, or Taliban kill their family members. Almost in all provinces of Afghanistan girls are sexually abused and harassed. Girls are kidnapped on their way to school. They are kidnapped for different purposes by the Taliban or local warlords, to make money by selling them or to use for smuggling, or marry them by force. Second, forced marriages constitute the other serious problems of women in Afghanistan which is exercised on different ways and forms as to payment of huge dowry, underage marriage, engaging in the very early days when a child is born. Widows are still considered as a heritage and are not allowed to marry other man willingly. Forced marriage is considered to be one of the main cases of women rights violation in all over the country. For instance, only in Helmand Province 144 cases of forced marriage is registered by the Commission so far this year, mostly exercised as badal (girls exchange in families for marriage) and huge payment of dowry. In many parts of Afghanistan, marriages have taken place with threats by the powerful people, gunmen or in repayment for depts. Another reason considerably increases the number of early age marriages is the poverty in Afghan families. Third, in Islam, the value and importance of women in society and the true measure of their success as human beings, is measured with completely different criteria: their fear of Allah (SWT) and obedience to Him, and fulfillment of the duties he has assigned them, particularly that of bearing, nurturing and teaching children. Islam is a practical religion, and responds to human needs and life situations. Many women need, or wish, to work for various reasons. For example, they may possess a needed skill, such as a teacher or a doctor. While Islam does not prohibit women working outside the home, it specifies that the following restrictions be followed to safeguard the dignity and honor of women and the purity and stability of the Islamic society. Muslim women are not forbidden from going out in the community, working, or visiting relatives and female friends, if there is no objection from their guardian/husband and they are covered and behave and speak according to Islamic guidelines and, if necessary, escorted by their Mahram (male relative). However, a womans home should be the main base that she works from. Allah (SWT) instructed the wifes of the Prophet (SAW): O wives of the Prophet! You are not like any other women. If you keep your duty (to Allah), then be not soft in speech, lest he is whose heart is a disease (of hypocrisy or evil desire for adultery, etc.) should be moved with desire, but speak in an honorable manner. And stay in your houses, and do not display yourselves like that of the times of ignorance, and offer prayers perfectly (Iqamat-as-Salat), and give Zakat and obey Allah and His Messenger. Allah wishes only to remove Ar-Rijs (evil deeds and sins, etc.) from you, O members of the family [of the Prophet (SAW)], and to purify you with a thorough purification (Quran Al-Ahzab 33:32-33). Afghanistans social development can only be ensured through democracy and the reduction of poverty, the success of both being assured through full participation of women, especially in rural Afghanistan. Afghanistan has always had elite and middle-class women who asserted their rights and walked towards modernization. But a lot of most Afghan women in rural areas have been one of oppression through tribal customs and dictates. Womens rights are human rights. They are not simply American, or western customs. They are universal values which we have a responsibility to promote throughout the world, and especially in a place like Afghanistan. It is not only the right thing to do; it is the smart thing to do.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Internet in Business

Advantages and Disadvantages of Internet in Business 50 years ago people started using the Internet in the world. With the development of internet, there arisen many accessories by the internet. The Taobao website is one of the commonly used websites in China, Which plays a leading role in Chinese e-commerce industry. People buy products online through Taobao. The Taobao Company made significant profits in recent years. In this report, it is going to display the advantages of using the Internet in Taobaos business. in the first part. In this part, the report mention about the Taobao GDP contribution, new management mode build up and job opportunities provided. In the second part, the report illustrates that the disadvantage of using the Internet in Taobaos business, in this part of view, the report points out the time-wasting, risk in internet shopping and negative impacts of business efficiency. This essay aims to analyze the advantages and the disadvantages of using the internet in Taobaos business. The advantages of using the internet in Taobaos business The first advantage is the GDP contribution by Taobao internet business. According to the online auction statistic from Chinese Network Information Center (CNNIC) in 2006, there were totally 12.27 million internet users in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou which are the top three cities in China. The data which included 3.3 million people who experienced the internet online transactions. It shows that there are huge internet-shopper populations in China, especially for the economic-booming cities. Taobao plays a leading role in e-commerce industry and gain plenty of loyalty customers, most of willing to introduce Taobao to their friends who attempt to go shopping in the internet. Under the large user volume, Taobao gives the reason why it can create GDP increasing. According to the data from 2008 China Online Shopping Report, Taobao occupied 67% of Chinese C2C market in 2005. Furthermore, in 2007, it owned 70.4% of online customers. Taobao could have more than 10 million RMB businesses only in one month. Taobao could bring more than 1 billion RMB to Chinese GDP. As the income, expenditure and output influence the GDP increase, thus, with Taobao development, more GDP increase could be bring. Nowadays, Taobao became an essential part of Chinese GDP increase. Taobao started Chinese internet shopping business model. Hoskins (2002) points out that the internet is absolutely cheaper than other traditional media. The internet market can cover the whole world customer. The internet business may generally replace the traditional businesses. Because Taobao belongs to e-commerce, the communication of the organization is not as same as those companies who operate in a specific space. In order to make communication sufficiently under business operation, Taobao is forced on the three main areas of management. First, Taobao create an online communication tool which is called Aliwangwang for Taobaos buyers and sellers. According to Trites (2008), Aliwangwang, which is ranked as the most satisfied service of Taobao, because the third party is unnecessary for the communications between sellers and buyers? Second, Taobao designed a new feedback system. Li el at. (2007) display that the sellers will give the feedbacks within a period of 14 days, the sellers reputation will be influenced by buyers feedbacks. If a seller got 10% dissatisfied feedback, the system will shut down the booth in two months. (Source: Research on Chinese C2C E-Business Institutional Trust Mechanism: Case Study on Taobao and Ebay.cn, 2007) In the figure 1 which displays above, it is clearly shows that the feedback mechanism in Taobao. All sellers in Taobao have to be evaluated by this feedback data, if any sellers more than 30% negative total negative feedback data, it means they could lost the chance to do business in Taobao. Third, the design of Taobaos website is attractive, the fashionable website design style always catch young peoples eyes, even a part of elder customers are willing to suffer Taobao because the website design style. Taobao divided products into different categories, such as men, women, baby, and electronic products. After click the guild link, the customer can find more details for the selling goods. It is easily and efficiently to find the products what they want. According to China Economic Analysis (2002), China has 7% unemployment rate almost reached the national unemployment rate warming level. Taobao provided job opportunities to the unemployment population. According to Li el at (2009), Taobao provided more than 600 thousands job opportunities. Among 570 thousand people enjoyed the employment chances provided by Taobao. Many sellers in Taobao traded their business as their careers and many of them had better lives depends on Taobao business. Under the stiff competition, there are a large of unemployment people with business vision but cannot find a job in top business companies. They use Taobao to fulfill their dream, some of them have their own clothes manufacturing factory after they started business in Taobao. For example, in 2009, the unemployment in Jiangsu Province located in the south of China has serious unemployment rate which shows 3.09 %. The data from the local government shows that Taobao offered 5.7 million job opportunitie s directly and more than 10 million job opportunities indirectly. Such as the development of Delivery Company, the needs of delivery employee must be increase.(Pan, 2001) The disadvantages of using the internet in Taobaos business Young people spend too much money on Taobao internet shopping. Because the selling prices in Taobao are cheaper than in the other places. According to Pan (2001), pricing has a significant influence for selling goods but with negative coefficient and absolute value. Because buyers cannot identify the goods visually, the high price goods are harder to sell. Beside, Majority of young people cannot afford the high price products which are sold in other shops. For this reason, they prefer to shop at Taobao. Moreover; many sellers on Taobao, who work as part-time, spend too much time on their business. When they concentrate on their Taobao business, their assignments form the company maybe delays. It is difficult to avoid the risks for the seller and buyer on Taobao. Kiang el at. (2009) discovers that the buyers have to accept the high risks for purchasing online. For this reason, this leads to a significant obstacle in internet commercial business. Credit card fraud problems, is caused by people who make business on the internet, are continuously increasing. Only after information flow, capital flow and logistics finished backflow, the business deal could be regarded as a completed transaction (Zhang, 2008). For the sellers risk, they have to responsible for some missing goods, even though the delivery companies compensate 50% of goods price. For customers risk, it is hard to post customers some electronic devices. Meanwhile, this kind of products is easy to be broken down. If the customers discovered the damage of the products, after they receive broken goods, they could not return the goods to the seller. The internet shopping makes the efficiency of Taobao decrease. According to Ray (2002), the organizational effectiveness has a significant influence on recruiting talented people and company development. According to Worthys (1962) organizational structure theory, there are two organization structural performances which are the flat organization structure and the tall organizational structure. Whatever the organization belongs to, the communication is always the important part of organizational development. Taobaos employees are separated in the whole of the world. The communication between employee and superior is difficult that the other companies. Even though when some problems arise, the employees can use the internet to communicate with Taobao headquarters. Because of the long distant, plenty problems cannot be solved immediately. Taobao have no too much hierarchical management level, but personally, it belongs to tall organization structure because the communication hard to tra nsmit to the top manager as fast as possible. For this reason, the organizational effectiveness could be influenced. The talented people could be affected by companys performance. Taobao could loss the technical support from those talent people. Conclusion This essay analyzes the advantages and the disadvantages of using the internet in business. The essay uses Taobao e-commerce website as an example. Based on the data from eight resources, the essay divides the whole article into two parts, the advantages of using internet in business and disadvantage of using internet in business. To analysis the reason why Taobao could rapidly increase in resent year and gain more market share. For positive influences, the first the report shows that Taobao is devoted to increase the Chinese GDP under large internet user number, and then the report analyze the new management mode running and management in Taobao. The last, decrease the unemployment rate in China be point out in the essay and how Taobao plays a key role in this social problems. In negative aspect, many people spend too much time and money on online shopping, because the young people do not how to balance their finance. Besides, internet business brings more risks between sellers and buyers, the report introduce the risk could arise in which aspect. Furthermore, internet business could influence the effectiveness of Taobao, the report analysis the reasons and explain the relationship between the talent people and organization efficiency.

A Critique of the Ending of Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray :: Picture Dorian Gray

A Critique of the Ending of Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray Truly, suspense is a positive attribute – up to a certain point. Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray ends with too many loose ends. What did Alan Campbell do to Dorian that was â€Å"stern, harsh, offensive†(Wilde 125)? It appears that whatever Campbell did was quite serious: when Dorian threatens to send a letter to someone regarding Campbell’s past misconduct, Campbell agrees to get rid of Basil’s corpse, which is a serious crime in itself. Why does Oscar Wilde not resolve this mystery? This case in isolation is not of too much consequence, but Wilde does not reveal what Dorian’s crimes are either. Certainly, there are hints of Dorian’s decadence, rumours that he â€Å"had been seen brawling with foreign sailors in a low den in the distant parts of Whitechapel, and that he consorted with thieves and coiners and knew the mysteries of their trade† (103). Nevertheless, details on Dorian’s crimes are vague. Past f riends and acquaintances fall from their graces upon contact with Dorian; thus, to the townspeople, Dorian’s crime seems only to be the ability to spread misfortune and decadence like wildfire while maintaining his high social status. It is blatant from the beginning of the novel that homoerotic energies permeate the story. Basil has always been intrigued, obsessed, and fascinated by the beautiful, perfect Dorian Gray. Nonetheless, Basil dies in Chapter XIII of The Picture of Dorian Gray – that is, he dies near the middle of the story. This death is premature, because the romantic relationship between Basil and Dorian is not explored even though it is apparent that just before he dies, Basil still feels love and tenderness towards his protà ©gà © Dorian. Although Dorian does not seem to have any romantic interest in Basil, he does need Basil as a guardian angel until the end of the story. Dorian is akin to Faustus in Marlowe’s â€Å"Doctor Faustus,† for he naà ¯vely lusts after knowledge and sells his soul to Mephistopheles – Lord Henry in The Picture of Dorian Gray – to obtain this knowledge. In â€Å"Doctor Faustus,† the good angel is a recurring figure that stays with Faustus until near Faustus’ death, forever urging the Doctor to repent. Basil, however, is a shadowy figure and is not able to give Dorian good advice until the end of the story.

The Representation of Medieval Women In The Canterbury Tales :: Literary Analysis, Geoffrey Chaucer

The Representation of Medieval Women In The Canterbury Tales Geoffrey Chaucer, and English writer and civil servant, began writing his most famous work The Canterbury Tales in 1386 (Chaucer iii). The story is about a group of pilgrims who journey together to Canterbury to seek the shrines of St. Thomas à ¡ Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, who was killed by order of Henry II in 1170 (1). During this pilgrimage, each character is introduced and is given a chance to tell a story to pass the time. In â€Å"The Knight’s Tale,† and â€Å"The Wife of Bath’s Prologue,† Chaucer represents two very different type of medieval women by representing women who differ in power over men and virtues. In â€Å"The Knight’s Tale,† Chaucer describes a woman’s power over men as residing in her beauty. The story is told by a courageous and chivalrous knight who lives by a code of â€Å"truth, honour, freedom, and all courtesy,† (Chaucer 2), therefore, he represents women in a respectable way. He does through the description of his main female character. He describing her as, â€Å"[S]he is sweeter than any flower that blows,† (31) and, â€Å"Like a heavenly angel’s was her song,† (32). Emily is young and beautiful and her beauty makes men immediately fall in love with her. In the tale, two Theban cousins were imprisoned by Emily's brother in law, Thesà «us, after a battle in Thebes, and locked away in a tower. In this tower, both cousins catch a glimpse of Emily and fall madly in love with her. They ultimately fight a battle over her. Through this, Chaucer shows the power of beauty and the influence that it may have on men. Also in â€Å"The Knight’s Tale,† the knight helps represents medieval women through Emily’s virginity and purity. The knight proceeds with his story and tells how both cousins fought for Emily as their bride, but Emily did not want to be anyone’s bride. She prayed in the temple to the goddess Diana,before the two cousins battled for her hand in marriage, and pleaded to Diana, â€Å"Chaste goddess, well indeed thou knowest that I/ Desire to be a virgin all my life/ Nor ever wish to be man’s love or wife,† (Chaucer 63). Emily wishes to be a maiden to better serve her deity and her religion. For Emily, virginity is virtuous, and for that reason she wishes to remain a virgin.

Toni Morrisons Sula - The Fire Within Sula Essay -- Sula Essays

The Fire Within Sula  Ã‚   Sula by Toni Morrison is a compelling novel about a unique, self-confident woman.   As in many other books, each secondary character in the story serves as a vehicle to explain the main character.   Hannah, Sula's mother, is dominated by the element of air; she is free spirited, frivolous and child-like.   On the other hand, the element of fire is prevalent in Sula, who is impulsive, hot-tempered and passionate.   Despite the differences between the two, Hannah's lifestyle intrigues and influences her daughter.   The effect Hannah has on Sula is reflected in many of her daughter's perspectives and actions.   As a result of the ubiquitous presence of fire within her, in contrast to her mother's blithe spirit, Sula carries all of Hannah's immorality and actions to a more extreme level.   Both women have promiscuous tendencies, do not have close friendships with women, and become easily irritated by Eva.   The difference is that Sula's fiery character leads her to act mo re cruelly than her mother.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Hannah's attitude towards men is peculiar, for she feels no possessiveness towards them, and enjoys having multiple lovers.   The presence of air in Hannah is evident from her relations with the opposite sex.   "Her flirting was, low and guileless...the smile-eyes, the turn of the head-all so welcoming, light and playful." (42).   Hannah's sweet, guileless flirting presents her as an innocent woman, and her playful manner demonstrates her child-like ways.   Her amiability and charisma are evident because "...Hannah rubbed no edges, made no demands, made the man feel as though he were complete and wonderful just as he was...he (the man) swooned in the Hannah-light simply because he was." (43).   Hannah is len... ...feeling no obligation to please anybody unless their pleasure pleased her." (118).   Sula is stronger than Hannah, and makes no attempts to conciliate the society's opinions towards herself.   She follows her animal instincts, and lacks the sense of responsibility.   Although Sula and Hannah are both shunned by society, Sula is even more of a pariah than her mother.  Ã‚   While the people of the Bottom consider Hannah to be "sooty," (29), they decide that Sula is the devil.   The intense hostility people feel about Sula directly relates to her impulsive, vengeful and hot-tempered character.  Ã‚  Ã‚   Sula's life is a fun house mirror image of Hannah's-quite similar, but bent into a slightly different shape and tainted with malice.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      Works Cited: Morrison, Toni. Sula. New York: Knopf, 1974. Toni Morrison's Sula - The Fire Within Sula Essay -- Sula Essays The Fire Within Sula  Ã‚   Sula by Toni Morrison is a compelling novel about a unique, self-confident woman.   As in many other books, each secondary character in the story serves as a vehicle to explain the main character.   Hannah, Sula's mother, is dominated by the element of air; she is free spirited, frivolous and child-like.   On the other hand, the element of fire is prevalent in Sula, who is impulsive, hot-tempered and passionate.   Despite the differences between the two, Hannah's lifestyle intrigues and influences her daughter.   The effect Hannah has on Sula is reflected in many of her daughter's perspectives and actions.   As a result of the ubiquitous presence of fire within her, in contrast to her mother's blithe spirit, Sula carries all of Hannah's immorality and actions to a more extreme level.   Both women have promiscuous tendencies, do not have close friendships with women, and become easily irritated by Eva.   The difference is that Sula's fiery character leads her to act mo re cruelly than her mother.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Hannah's attitude towards men is peculiar, for she feels no possessiveness towards them, and enjoys having multiple lovers.   The presence of air in Hannah is evident from her relations with the opposite sex.   "Her flirting was, low and guileless...the smile-eyes, the turn of the head-all so welcoming, light and playful." (42).   Hannah's sweet, guileless flirting presents her as an innocent woman, and her playful manner demonstrates her child-like ways.   Her amiability and charisma are evident because "...Hannah rubbed no edges, made no demands, made the man feel as though he were complete and wonderful just as he was...he (the man) swooned in the Hannah-light simply because he was." (43).   Hannah is len... ...feeling no obligation to please anybody unless their pleasure pleased her." (118).   Sula is stronger than Hannah, and makes no attempts to conciliate the society's opinions towards herself.   She follows her animal instincts, and lacks the sense of responsibility.   Although Sula and Hannah are both shunned by society, Sula is even more of a pariah than her mother.  Ã‚   While the people of the Bottom consider Hannah to be "sooty," (29), they decide that Sula is the devil.   The intense hostility people feel about Sula directly relates to her impulsive, vengeful and hot-tempered character.  Ã‚  Ã‚   Sula's life is a fun house mirror image of Hannah's-quite similar, but bent into a slightly different shape and tainted with malice.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      Works Cited: Morrison, Toni. Sula. New York: Knopf, 1974.

Value Chain Analysis-Army Recruiting Company

Value Chain Analysis: Army Recruiting Company Foundation for Business intelligence Before he passed away in 1999, satirical novelist, Joseph Heller, wrote in his book Catch-22, â€Å"I had examined myself pretty thoroughly and discovered that I was unfit for military service† (Heller, 282). While in this instance, the individual was missing a leg and therefore not eligible for service, this quote has been used at times by those that have a fear or misunderstanding of the United States Armed Forces.Despite this, there is a requirement to maintain the volume of Soldiers within the United States Army and that recruiting companies develop a desire to join within the communities where they are located. Understanding the Companies valued processes allows for analysis of what operations are already being performed well and what areas can be improved to increase desire to join. As an Army Recruiting Commander it is my job to ensure that the Company I lead is producing the best product for our customers. It is described as customers because there are two entities that this company serves.The more obvious of the two is the United States Government. We receive a mission for the year, as to the Government’s goals for the quantity and quality of new enlistments to the United States Army. While it is important to this customer to receive a certain number of these enlistments at various phase lines through the year, the type of enlistment is just as vital to customer satisfaction. For best results, the enlistee should not only show educational aptitude, but also be a malleable or trainable product before they arrive to Basic Training.This customer’s requirements for success require that the company provides them an on time, quality product, in determined quantities. The other customer that this Company serves is in fact those very people that are enlisting to serve Customer Number One. Less than one half of one percent of the American population has chose n to serve in the Army during the past decade (Miles, 3). Though this number is likely to remain low, growing pressure from competing Department of Defense Agencies such as the U. S. Navy or National Guard, requires us to illustrate to the customer exactly why they should choose us as a provider.Where Customer Number One requires a high tempo turn over for their product, it is more important to this customer that service meets their specific timeline. Some customers need to begin their Army Career as soon as possible due to financial or familial responsibilities. Others have requirements to complete, such as graduating from high school or college, therefore requiring a suspended leave date. In addition to a customized timeline, it is important to understand the specific reasons why they would choose to enlist in the first place.Understanding this allows the Company to tailor the right package of benefits and job selection that meets the customers desires and replaces the need to see k opportunities with other Department of Defense Agencies. In order to meet the requirements of the Companies two customers, there are certain activities that must be accomplished. Though there are other processes that support the Company’s operations, the critical activities for mission success are marketing and research, prospecting, input management, and output management.These activities are necessary to complete services for both sets of customers and are continuously being completed. It is generally likely that many of these activities are being conducted simultaneously in order to reach final goal of a quality Soldier prepared to ship to Basic Training with a customized package of job and benefits. It is said that the first rule of sales is that people must like and trust you (Klivans, 1). Though we typically try to distance Military Recruiting from sales, this principal still applies.For many people there is a negative connotation when considering the Armed Forces as a career choice for themselves or those that they influence. Generally, this is due to lack of knowledge of what the Army or other Department of Defense Agencies is like aside from aggrandized portrayals of violence from movies, television, and news. In order to combat this ignorance, the Company has become very successful at utilizing marketing within the local area. We effectively utilize advertising and public affair in order to engage the population and inform them about the military, its benefits, and the opportunities that are available.More than 43 percent of the recruiters for the entirety of Department of Defense within the area belong to my Company. Due to this, we are able to conduct branding operations across a larger swath of area than the other services. Participation in schools and providing branded materials for on the spot dialogue or future appointments at a recruiting center allows the company to diverge potential applicants away from other services increasing com pany production.Finally, utilization of friendly influencers such as, coaches, guidance councilors, and church leaders adds to our value as they provide the message about the Army’s worth without the supposed bias. These marketing and branding activities lay the framework for mission success and market domination, but prospecting is where the literal rubber meets the road. As with the marketing, the number of recruiters in the area allows for a larger area to be covered and more school visits per day, but its knowing where and how to target potential applicants that allow for greater success.Company recruiters conduct no less than four school engagements and multiple days either calling or visiting qualified leads identified from responses to our area marketing. Each phase line, which is generally about a month, we utilize historical data to identify key â€Å"must win† zip codes. By looking back at the last two years of recruiting data, we identify these key areas whe re enlistments are more likely to come from as well as what time of the year is generally the best to prospect in these areas. The analysis of historical data also helps with understanding the approach that should be utilized when discussing a potential enlistment.We utilize this to understand when to offer the action and adventure of the Combat Services or money for college and medical degree programs. This alone plays a significant part in our success and claiming more than 40 percent of the total market share of all enlistments in our key areas. At this point we should have satisfied all of the requirements for customer number two. They are given the red-carpet treatment and provided with the specialized bonuses, job placement, and Basic training dates that meets their aptitude and preferences.They then become the input for fulfilling the obligation to Customer Number One. Though each enlistee has the customized packet and has general satisfaction from the process, it is still po ssible to have an enlistee change their mind about shipping and is taken as a loss. The acceptable standard for loss rate from the United States Army Recruiting Command is ten percent with no losses inside of 35 days (USAREC, 7). Losses that occur are generally due to pregnancy, police record, drug use, or loss of influencer support.To combat losses, Future Soldier Leaders are assigned and conduct weekly training with the enlistees. During the training these leaders provide enlistees with information and training necessary to become successful at Basic Training and in their military careers. At the end of each training the enlistees are given a safety brief to remind them of potential risks to shipping and what mistakes will cost them. This action has reduced the loss rate of the Company to approximately eight percent with significant reductions in pregnancy, drug use, and police record losses.However, loss of influencer support continues to be the primary reason for loss and genera lly result in a loss being taken well inside of the thirty day window. Losses taken before ship date due hurt the overall effectiveness rating of the Company. What also becomes a challenge is getting the enlistee to ship on time to basic training. The most important part of getting an applicant out the door is time flow management. There is an expectation that the Company can enlist a Soldier, prepare him or her for basic training, and get them out to their unit in a few weeks.Currently, the average â€Å"flash to bang,† amount of time between initial contacts during prospecting to shipping to Basic Training, is just under 50 days. Though this is above the standard timeline for stated Command policies, this timeline is faster than all other recruiting Companies in this area. Issues that extend the flash to bang timeline typically are contract renegotiations for individuals that are unsatisfied in their specialized package. Also, individuals that fail to complete school requir ements at the expected graduation time require an extension to their original ship date.In order to increase the success of the Company it is important to understand not only the areas where success is being achieved but what items can be adjusted to maximize efforts as well. For instance, though having a higher recruiter share allows for us to cover a larger area during the marketing and prospecting phases, the Marine Corps and Air Force manage to recruit a significant number of high aptitude Seniors even in our â€Å"must win† zip codes. Both services supply one specialized message and target specifically those individuals looking for careers in technology and engineering.Providing more focus on Army careers in STEM, (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) is needed to lessen efforts by other services. Also, adjustments need to be made during the input management phase in order to diminish losses inside of 30 days to include more involvement with enlistee influencers to en sure no loss of support. Finally, contract renegotiations should be kept to a minimum. Ensuring that a thorough understanding of our customers motivators and fully address in initial package and limiting renegotiations that would extend Flash to Bang timeline are needed steps.Engendering support to join the United States Army will continue to be a daunting task. In order to make certain continued satisfaction from the two customer groups requires understanding of working processes and potential areas to improve. Through utilization of higher recruiter numbers to cover larger area, developing good marketing and prospecting processes, ensuring proper training and management through Basic Training ship date and applying fixes to deficient areas, the Army Recruiting Company can continue to meet the demands from our customers.Works Cited Heller, Joseph. Catch-22. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1961. Print Kilvans, David. â€Å"The First Rule of Sales. † Ezine Articles. N. P. , 03 O ctober 2007. Web. 02 March 2013. . Miles, Donna. â€Å"Survey Shows Growing Gap Between Civilians, Military. † American Forces Press Service. Department of Defense, 28 November 2011. Web. 02 March 2013. . USAREC Regulation 601-95. (2002). Delayed Entry and Delayed Training Program. Washington DC. Department of the Army. 12 August 2002. PDF File.

Alkaloids Case Study Essay

Alkaloids are the most diverse group of secondary metabolites and over 5000 compounds are known. They are most commonly encountered in the plant kingdom, but representatives have been isolated from most other orders of organisms ranging from fungi to mammals. For years, there has been interest in their pharmacological activities, and for a long time selected plant products (containing alkaloids) have been used as poisons for hunting, murder, euthanasia, a euphoriants, psychedelics, and stimulants (e.g. morphine and cocaine) or as medicines (e.g. ephedrine). Many of our modern drugs now contain the same compound or synthetic analogues, and the pharmacological and toxicological properties of these compounds are thus of immense interest and importance. Almost two centuries have elapsed since Serturner isolated the first organic base clearly recognised as such, a crystalline substance that he obtained from the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, and called morphine. The name alkaloid is applied to the members of a class of natural products of basic nature, and is derived from the name â€Å"vegetable alkali† first applied to these substances. They all owe their basic nature to an amino nitrogen. It is more difficult than at first might be supposed to define the term alkaloid. The work was coined in 1818 by Meissner and implies a compound similar to an alkali, referring to the basic properties of this class of substance. Meyer’s Konversations- Lexikon of 1896 states, â€Å"Alkaloids (plant bases) occur characteristically in plants and are frequently distinguished by their remarkable physiological activity. They contain carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen and in most cases oxygen as well; in many cases they resemble the alkalisà ¢â‚¬ . Modern dictionary definitions only differ in minor details from those of the older nontechnical literature. A definition due to Pelletier in 1982 includes cyclic nitrogen- containing molecules which are true secondary metabolites (i.e. of limited occurrence and produced by living organisms. Simple acyclic derivatives of ammonia and simple amines are thus excluded, and the additional requirement, that the nitrogen atom must have a negative oxidation state, excludes nitro and nitroso compounds. As for other natural products, no uniform system of nomenclature has so far been devised for alkaloids. In most cases the name of the alkaloid has been derived from the plant name. Thus, papaverine was called after the Papaver species from which it was isolated. The names cocaine (from Erythoxylum coca) and atropine (from Atropa belladonna) are other examples. Frequently several alkaloids are obtained from the same plant, and the names devised for them will depend on the inspiration of the natural products chemist who isolated them. Alkaloids as a class have interested organic chemists partly on account of their physiological action on the animal organism, and partly on account of the complex structural and synthetical puzzles that they pose. The chemistry of the alkaloids is but a branch of the wide chemistry of nitrogenous heterocyclic compounds, but the methods by which the structures of individual bases are deduced from degradative evidence and confirmed by total synthesis are typical of the methods applied for these purposes whole field the chemistry of natural products are illustrative of the general fundamental principles of organic chemistry. Structural types Alkaloids are usually classified according to the amino acids (or their derivatives) from which they arise. Thus, the most important classes are derived from the following Amino acids: * Ornithine and Lysine * Aromatic amino acid phenylalanine and tyrosine * Tryptophan and a moiety of mevalonoid origin Also a number of compounds are also derived from: * Anthranilic acid * Nicotinic acid This classification however, fails to include the alkaloids derived from a polyketide or a terpenoid, with the incorporation of a nitrogen atom, ultimately from ammonia. Examples are Conine and batrachotoxin which are often known as ‘pseudoalkaloids’. Other compounds covered by Pelletier’s definition also exist. Examples are the antibiotic cycloserine, mitomycin C, mushroom toxin muscimol and the purine alkaloids such as caffeine. There is another classification of the alkaloids according to the location of the nitrogen atom in certain structural features: 1. Heterocyclic alkaloids 2. Alkaloids with exocyclic nitrogen and aliphatic amines 3. Putrescine, spermidine and spermine alkaloids 4. Peptide alkaloids 5. Terpene and steroidal alkaloids Classifying the whole range of alkaloids according to this system result in them being dividing them up unequally as the great majority fall into the heterocyclis group and the smallest group is the putrescine, spermidine and spermine alkaloids. Occurrence Of the more than 5000 alkaloids known, most occur in flowering plants, although the distribution is far from uniform. Thus, although 40% of all plant families have at least one species containing alkaloids, when the 10000 plant genera are considered, only about 9% of these have been shown to produce alkaloids. Increasing numbers of alkaloids have been isolated from animals, insects, and microorganisms. Although mammalian alkaloids are rare, two examples are (-)-castoramine (a) from the Canadian beaver; and muscopyridine (b) from the musk deer. Both compound have a role in communication as territorial marker substances. Insects produce a variety of structural types which include the 2,6- dialkylpiperidines of the fire ant (c), the tricyclic N-oxides of the ladybird (d) and the quinazolines of the European milliped (e). Tese compounds are used for defence. During the last three decades Marine organisms have been investigated. Amongst the alkaloids are the exceedingly complex Saxitoxin (f) produced by a red coloured dinoflagellate. The ‘red tides’ contain mass aggregations of such organisms, and food poisoning when he toxic alkaloids are passed along the food chain to man. The Japanese puffer fish is highly valued as a culinary delicacy, but it is hazardous because its liver and ovaries contain the highly toxic tetrodotoxin. Fungi also produce alkaloids, and these too, present potential hazards as food contaminants. The ergot alkaloids, for example, Chanoclavine (g) produced by the fungus Claviceps purpurea, were a frequent soure of misery and death during the Middle Ages through the contamination of rye bread. Some of these were neurotoxic whilst others caused vasocontriction. During the last 40 years most of these non plant alkaloids have been isolated and their structures elucidated. The introduction of modern chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques facilitated this. Isolation Work on the constitution of alkaloids is often prefaced by the problem of their isolation from plant material or from residues after commercially important constituents have been removed. The isolation of each alkaloid is an individual problem there are a variety of procedures which may be entitled to generic rank. There are few plants which produce a single alkaloid so the main problem is the separation of mixtures. Many alkaloids are basic and occur as salts of 2-hydroxybutane-1, 4-dioic acid (malic acid), or of 1,3,4,5-tetrahydroxycyclohexane (quinic acid). They can thus be extracted into acid solution using aqueous hydrochloric, tartaric, or citric acids. Neutral alkaloids such as colchicines or piperine, which are in fact amides, remain in the organic phase, whilst most other alkaloids are isolated after basification and extraction into ethyl acetate. Steam distillation can be used also be used with low molecular weight alkaloids; but almost invariably sudsequent purification of the crude alkaloid mixtures is effected by chromatography using silica or alumina, and then recrystallisation of the partially purified compounds from solvent systems like aqueous ethanol, methanol/chloroform, or methanol/acetone. Structure elucidation Classical era: The classical era for structural studies on alkaloids was the 19th Century, though this could be extended to the 1930’s (advent of x-ray crystallography) or even to the 1970’s (advent of high resolution NMR facilities and modern methods of mass spectroscopy. Two case histories will be discussed, those of morphine and atropine. Opium has been used by man for thousands of years, so it is not suprising that the major active ingedient, morphine, was the first alkaloid to be isolated in pure state (by Serturner in 1805). It was not until 1923 that Sir Robert Robinson established the stucture of morphine. Chemical evidence for the structure is as follows: Standard showed that the nitrogen atom was fully substituted, and that the phenolic hydroxyl was present as it gave a positive FeCl3 test. Two hydoxyls were present as a diacetate and dibenzoate could be formed. Both compounds contained one olefinic double bond as codeine absorbed one. It was found that a reduced phenanthrene with a two-carbon bridge containing a tertiary nitrogen atom (with methyl as on substituent) was present, and the structure of morphine and codeine were first proposed in 1923 and 1925 respectively by Robinson and Gulland. Synthesis of morphine was carried out in 1956 by Gates. Atropine on the other hand, is not generally a natural product but arises through racemisation of (-)-hyoscyamine (see (a) below) and purification, and is thus ( )-hyoscyamine. (-)-hyoscyamine is the most common tropane alkaloid. In 1833 atropine was isolated from Atropa belladonna. Hydrolysis with warm barium hydroxide solution produced racemic tropic acid and tropine. Degradative studies and then through synthesis found the structure of tropic acid: Exhaustive degradation of tropine, carried out by Willstlter between 1985 and 1901, provided evidence for the bicyclic structure of tropine. The most widely used process in degradative studies of alaloids is exhaustive methylation, known as Hofmann degradeation. . This involves the pyrolysis of a quaternary ammonium hydroxide to form and olefin an a tertiary base: To ensure the complete removal of the nitrogen atom when it constitutes part of a ring, two degrdations must be carried out. When exhaustive methylation of of cyclic compounds might be expected to give 1,4-dienes, the alkaline conditions of the reaction may result in the migration of one of the double bonds to give a 1,3-diene. For example, the exhaustive methylation of N-methylpiperidine gives 1,3-pentadiene (piperylene) and not 1,4-pentadiene. The diene is then easily hydrogenated to form a saturated hydrocarbon. If Hofmann degradation fails to bring about ring fission of cyclic amines, Emde degradation, invoving catalytic reduction of a quaternary salt by sodium amalgam or sodium in liquid ammonia, may be applied. For example, attempted Hofmann degradation of N-methyltetrahydroquinoline methoxide results in regeneration of the parent base, while Emde reduction with sodium amalgam affords the ring-opened amine. Alkaloids containing diphenyl ether linkages, for example, bis-benzylisoquinoline, are cleaved into two fragments by reduction with sodium in liquid ammonia. For example, the structure of the alkaloid dauricine was established by reductive cleavage of O-methyl-dauricine. Modern era: During the last 30 years, structure elucidation has benn facilitated by the use of mass spectroscopy, and 1H and 13C NMR techniques. It is now possible to determine the structure in days with a few milligrams or less of pure compound. It took 118 years to determine the structure of morphine. The mass spectrum data for morphine is highly informative and is shown below and would have helped enormously years ago. Once the structure of an alkaloid is known, partial or total synthesis can be attempted. Biosynthesis It is possible to determine the amino acid from which an alkaloid is derived just by looking at the structure. Before availability of radio-isotopes 14C and tritium, and more recently the stable isotopes 13C and 15N it was only possible to speculate about the likely biosynthetic pathways. This was sometimes successful as for example, the suggested pathway to the isoquinoline alkaloid is as follows: It is possible to divide the biosynthesis of the alkaloids into two categories according to whether products are obtained from the amino acids ornithine and lysine, or the aromatic amino acids phenylalanine, tyrosine, tryptophan. Alkaloids derived from ornithine and lysine: Pyrrolidine alkaloids – hygrine, cocaine, tropinone, hyoscyamine etc Piperidine alkaoids – piperine, (-)-lobeline etc Quinolizidine alkaloids – sparteine, cytosine, (-)-lupinine etc Pyridine alkaloids – nicotine, anabasine, anatabine etc Alkaloids derived from phenylalanine and tyrosine: Monocyclic compounds – hordenine etc Tetrahydroisoquinoline alkaloids – morphine, codeine, thebaine, noscapine (narcotine), papaverine, heroin etc Alkaloids derived from tryptophan: Simple indole derivatives: psilocybin, dimethyltryptamine, physostigmine etc Complex indole derivatives : harmaline, echinulin, ergonovine etc No class of naturally occurring organic substances shows such an enormous range of structures as the alkaloids with over 5000 known. It would be impossible to discuss each one of these within the time limit. Therefore, this project is concerned with the following alkaloids: Morphine ( including codeine and heroin), Cocaine, Nicotine and Caffeine (including theophylline). These alkaloids are present in enormous quantities in the world and seem appropriate to be discussed due to the current interest in their effects particularly when used illegally. They are some of the most well known alkaloids. Morphine (Codeine and Heroin) When the unripe seed capsules of the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is cut or pricked, a viscous liquid is exuded. After the exudates dries and darkens with exposure to air, a hard but still partly sticky mass is obtained. This is opium, which has been used for many centuries by some for medicinal purposes. Opium is important as a painkilling drug in its own right, but is also the source of other analgesic drugs such as morphine and heroin. Mankind had discovered the use of opium by the time of the earliest written records. In fact, the first recorded use of opium as a painkiller was around 6000 years ago by the Sumerians, and the Babylonian and Egyptian writings contain many references to the value of opium preparations for the relief of pain. Thomas Sydenham, the 17th Century pioneer of English medicine wrote, â€Å"Among the remedies which it has pleased Almighty God to give to man to relieve its sufferings, none is so universal and so efficacious as opium†. Nowadays, alt hough opium is no longer regareded as a universal analgesic, it is still a very important source of morphine. The pharmacologically active constituents of opium have been employed in medicine for many thousand of years. During the 19th century these constituents were isolated as pure chemical entities. Morphine is a naturally occurring substance and is the major constituent of opium, constituting about 10% (sometimes up to 20%) of its weight. Morphine was first isolated in 1805 by Friedrich Sertrner. However, its basic structure was not correctly determined until 120 years later. Morphine provides symptomatic relief of moderately severe to severe pain. Morphine acts as an anesthetic without decreasing consciousness, and it is one of the most powerful analgesics known. However, it also suppresses the repiratory system, and high doses can cause death by respiratory failure. Its analgesic properties are related to the ability of the molecule to fit into and block a specific sit on a nerve cell. This eliminates the action of the pain receptor Cocaine Cocaine is obtained from coca leaves (Erythryloxum coca) and has the formula C17H23O4N and a molecular weight of 303.39. The anaesthetic properties of cocaine were first recognised by Koller in 1882, but it has now been largely replaced in the clinic by synthetic analogues due to its widespread abuse as a narcotic. It is, however, still much used as a stimulant by Andean Indians. After chewing the leaves, they are easily fatigued and can go on for long periods without food. Cocaine is shipped and sold in the form of the water-soluble hydrochloride salt, which may be ingested through the nasal passages by ‘snorting’ orally and intravenously. There are severe physical and psychological side effects of the drug, such as brain seizures, respiratory collapse, heart attack, paranoia, and depression. Cocaine may be hydrolysed by acids or alkalis to methyl alcohol, benzoic acid, and (-)-ecgonine, C9H15O3 N; only partial hydrolysis, to benzoyl- (-)-ecgonine, C16 H19O4 N, and methyl alcohol when the alkaloid is boiled with water. Cocaine can be regarded as being derived from ornithine. Willsttter worked on a tortuous synthesis (of about 20 steps) of tropinone between 1900 and 1903, but in 1917 Robinson reported his ‘one-pot’ synthesis and also provided what was probably the first example of a formal retrosynthetic analysis. He stated: ‘By imaginary hydrolysis at the points indicated by the dotted lines, the substance may be resolved into succinaldehyde, methylamine and acetone’. The yield of this reaction was poor but Schpf and Lehmann reported optimised conditions (buffered solution at pH5 and 25C) which allowed 85% yield. A variety of mechanisms are possible and the one shown below envisages a reaction between the enol form of acetone dicarboxylate and the condensation product from succinaldehyde and methylamine. Willsttter made his own contributions based on this type of chemistry, and completed simple synthesis of tropinone in 1921 and a synthesis of cocaine in 1923. The synthesis of cocaine is as follows: A Robinson- type reaction yielded the expected azabicyclo structure but with a fortuitous axial stereochemistry for the carbomethoxyl group. Racemic cocaine was formed after separation of the diastereoisomeric products on the reduction of the ketone and benzoylation of the mixture of alcohols. An important aspect of Robinson’s route is that it represented the first biomimetic synthesis of an alkaloid. He provided inspiration for others to consider possible biosynthetic pathways, before planning their synthetic routes to alkaloids. Nicotine Nicotine, present in dried tobacco leaves of the plant nicotiana tabacum in 2-8% concentration, is the active ingredient in cigarettes and other tobacco products. The reason tobacco is used by so many people is because it contains this powerful drug nicotine. When tobacco is smoked, nicotine is absorbed by the lungs and quickly moves into the bloodstream, where it is circulated throughout the brain. All of this happens very rapidly. In fact, nicotine reaches the brain within 8 seconds after someone inhales tobacco smoke. Nicotine can also enter the blood stream through the mucous membranes that line the mouth or nose, or even through the skin. Smoking and chewing tobacco have been connected to heart and lung disease and cancer, mainly a result of the presence of carcinogens, carbon monoxide and other toxins. Nicotine affects the entire body. Nicotine acts directly on the heart to change heart rate and blood pressure. It also acts on the nerves that control respiration to change breathing patterns. In high concentration, nicotine is deadly. In fact, one drop of purified nicotine on the tongue will kill a person. It’s so lethal that it has been used as a pesticide for centuries. So why do people smoke? The mode of action of nicotine is complex. Ingestion of the molecule may stimulate or calm the user and it may affect his or her mood, appetite, and cognition. There appears to be little doubt that nicotine is an addictive drug, and the debate about how to regulate its availability is ongoing. Nicotine is part of the pyridine alkaloids and is the chief alkaloid of tobacco. It can therefore be classed as a tobacco alkaloid. Nicotine has the empirical formula C10 H14 N2, a molecular weight of 162.26 and was first observed by Vanquelin in 1809 and isolated 19 years later by Posselt and Reimann. Its structure is as follows: It is a colourless liquid with a boiling point of 246.1-246.2C and is miscible in all proportions with water below 60 and above 210. It is less soluble between these temperatures. When oxidised with chromic acid it yields an amino acid, C6H5O2N, which may be decarboxylated to pyridine–carboxylic acid. Nicotine is therefore a 3-substituted pyridine and that the substituent is a saturated group containing five carbon atoms and one nitrogen atom. The alkaloid forms a crystalline addition compound with zinc chloride, and when this is heated with lime pyridine, pyrrole and methylamine are obtained, suggesting that the structure be as above (1). This was supported by the degradation of the alkaloid to N-methylproline (1) to (5) (below), the oxidation of dibromocotinine (6) to nicotinc acid, malonic acid and methylamine (6) to (7). Also, by the reductive hydrolysis of bromocotinine to methylamine and the dihydroxy-acid (8). The structure of nicotine was finally confirmed by synthesis. Three syntheses of nicotine have been recorded. The first was based on the discovery that N-acetylpyrrole is transformed by heat to C-acetylpyrrole shown to be ?-acetylpyrrole. Pictet and Crepieux applied this reaction to N- pyridylpyrrole (3) (below) obtained by the reaction of -aminopyridine1 with mucic acid (2). The compound 31- pyridyl-2-pyrrole (4) was formed. An attempt to methylate the pyrrole nitrogen by heating the potassium derivative with yielded (5) (methiodide of 31- pyridyl-N-methyl-2-pyrrole). Distillation of this with calcium oxide gave nicotyrine (6). Selective hydrogenation of the pyrrole nucleus with a palladium-carbon catalyst converted nicotyrine (6) to nicotine with about a 25% yield. PICTET’S SYNTHESIS: Pictet’s classical synthesis involves two steps at high temperatures, one of which is a rearrangement. It cannot therefore be regarded as unambiguous. However, a second synthesis by Spth and Bretschneider involves no rearrangement at high temperature and are thus structurally specific. SPATH’S SYNTHESIS: (1) (Above) was converted into (2) via electrolytic reduction, which on treatment with potassium and methyl sulphate gave (3) (N-methylpyrrolidone). Ethyl nicotinate was then condensed with (3) in the presence of sodium ethanoate and the resulting -pyridyl-1- -(N1 – methyl-?1- pyrrolidonyl) – ketone (4) was hydrolysed with fuming hydrochloric acid at 130. The derived amino ketone (5) was reduced with zinc and sodium hydroxide to the corresponding alcohol (6), which was converted to nicotine on treatment with hydrogen iodide and potassium hydroxide. A third synthesis of nicotine by Craig was also carried out: CRAIG’S SYNTHESIS: Nicotinonitrile (1) (above) was reacted with ?- ethoxypropylmagnesium bromide. The product of the reaction (2) (3-pyridyl-?-ethoxypropylketone) formed an oxime (3), which was reduced to an amino derivative (4). On heating to 150-155 with 48% hydrobromic acid this was converted to nornicotine (5), which in turn was methylated to nicotine. The pyridine ring in nicotine is derived from nicotine acid, which itself is derived from aspartic acid and glyceraldehyde-3- phosphate: The remaining steps en route to nicotine are shown below: Caffeine The purine system occurs widely in nature. Two purines, adenine and guanine, are constituents of the nucleic acids; adenine is a component of coenzymes I and II, of flavin adenine dinucleotide and of adenosine with 3 distinguished compounds: caffeine, theophylline and theobromine. They are physiologically active constituents of coffee, cocoa, and tea. The compounds have different biochemical effects, and are present in different ratios in different plant sources. These compounds are very similar and differ only by the presence of methyl groups in two positions of chemical structure as shown below: They are easily oxidised to uric acid and other methyluric acids, which are also similar in chemical stucture. CAFFEINE – 1,3,7- trimethylxanthine SOURCES – Coffee, tea, cola nuts, mate, guarana EFFECTS – Stimulant of the central nervous system, cardiac muscle and respiratory system, diuretic, delays fatigue. THEOPHYLLINE – 1,3 – dimethylxanthine SOURCES – Tea EFFECTS – Cardiac stimulant, smooth muscle relaxant, diuretic, vasodilator. THEOBROMINE – 3,7- dimethylxanthine SOURCES – Principle alkaloid of the cocoa bean (1.5-3%), cola nuts and tea. EFFECTS – Diuretic, smooth muscle relaxant, cardiac stimulant, vasodilator. Theophylline has a stronger effect on heart and breathing than caffeine. For this reason it is the drug of choice in home remedies for treating asthma, bronchitis and emphysema. Theophylline found in medicine is made from extracts from coffee or tea. Theobromine is weaker than caffeine and theophylline – has one tenth of the stimulating effect. When isolated in pure form, caffeine is a white crystalline powder that tastes very bitter. Recreationally, it is used to provide a ‘boost in energy’ or a feeling of heightened alterness. It’s often used to stay awake longer. Caffeine inhibits the action of an enzyme, phosphodiesterase, whose job it is to inactive a molecule called cyclic adenosine monophosphate (AMP). Cyclic -AMP is involved in the formation of glucose in the bloodstream. Deactivation of phosphodiesterase by caffeine frees cyclic – AMP to do its job, more glucose appears, and we feel more energetic. Caffeine is an addictive drug. Among its many actions it operates using the same mechanisms that amphetamines, cocaine and heroin use to stimulate the brain. Caffeine’s effects are milder but it is manipulating the same channels and that it is one of the things that give caffeine its addictive qualities. It is one of the most widely used drugs. More than 90% of the population Britain consume it everyday and its long-term effects are of current interest. Purines are usually synthesised by Traube’s method in which a 4, 5 – diaminopyrimidine is treated with formic acid or, better, sodium dithioformate.4, 5- diaminopyrimidines are themselves obtained from 4- aminopyrimidines by nitrosation followed by reduction or via diazonium coupling of activated methylene compounds followed by cyclisation and reduction. Two examples are as follows: Uric acid (an 8-Hydroxypurine) are made using ethyl chloroformate in place of formic acid: Uric acid is then the starting material for other purines: Summary The term alkaloid refers to any Nitrogen containing compound extracted from plants, although the word is used loosely and some compounds of non-plant origin are also commonly known as alkaloids. The name is derived from their characteristic basic properties (alkali-like), which are induced by the lone-pair of electrons on nitrogen. The basic nature of the alkaloids, in conjunction with their particular three-dimensional architecture, gives rise to often-potent physiological activities, e.g. the narcotics morphine and heroin. The laboratory synthesis of an alkaloid can be a challenging problem. The goal nowadays is not only to synthesise the natural product, but also to do so from simple molecules by a short elegant pathway. Such syntheses have practical importance because many alkaloids are desirable drugs. Large amounts of these alkaloids are often difficult to obtain from natural sources. A simple synthesis can provide an alternative supply of such a drug. The 19th century was the heyday for structural studies on the alkaloids and the 20th century was notable for the large number of elegant syntheses that have been accomplished. Virtually all of the major alkaloids have now been synthesised.