The Blue Sword CHAPTER FOURTEEN

She woke up with a jolt, hearing her name, â€Å"Harry,† and for a moment she did not know where she was, but was convinced she was a prisoner. It was only Jack, standing in the doorway of the bedroom. She sighed and relaxed, conscious that much of her panic was caused by the fact that her right hand had closed only on bedclothes. Jack was looking at her quizzically; the white-knuckled right fist was not lost on him. â€Å"It's right here,† he said, nodding to his left, where Gonturan hung from a peg on the wall, next to silver-hiked Dalig and long Teksun. She unbent her fingers one by one, and with her left hand smoothed the bedding. Senay and Terim sat up and quietly began pulling on their boots, and Narknon lay down with an offended grunt over the pillow Harry had just vacated. There was food on the table again, and silent Ted stood to one side, poised and waiting to fill a plate or a cup. Harry came into the front room with her left arm close to her side and her hand across her stomach; Gonturan was hanging over her right shoulder. â€Å"Jack,† she said, â€Å"do you suppose I could borrow a – a belt from you? I seem to have †¦ lost mine.† Jack looked at her and then at the saffron- and blue-sashed waists of her two companions. â€Å"Lost?† he said, knowing something of Hill sashes. â€Å"Lost,† said Harry firmly. Ted put down his coffee-pot and went off to search for a leather Outlander belt. The sky was red when two dozen grim Outlanders set out beside three Hillfolk, one wearing a brass-buckled Outlander belt, heading north and west away from the Outlander fort. â€Å"We include one first-rate bugler,† said Jack cheerfully. â€Å"At least we'll know whether we're coming or going.† His men were dressed in the Homelander uniform of dull brown, with the red vertical stripe over the left breast that indicated Damarian duty. Harry permitted herself a twinge of nostalgia for her first sight of those uniforms, in the little clattering train, sitting opposite her brother. She asked, â€Å"Is it indiscreet, or merely putting a good face on it that you're wearing your proper uniforms?† Jack replied, staring toward the mountains, â€Å"It is that most of us have little useful clothing that is not of army issue.† He turned to her and smiled. â€Å"And besides, familiarity also breeds comfort. And I think, just now, we might do well to think of morale whenever we can.† They jogged steadily, with much jingling of tack from the fort horses; Harry had forgotten how noisy bits and chains and stirrups were, and felt that the Northerners would hear them coming from behind the mountains. They stopped just before dawn, in a valley at the beginning of the foothills. â€Å"Tonight,† said Senay, â€Å"we must go east into these hills, for there my village is.† Harry nodded. Jack looked uneasy. â€Å"Harry,† he said, â€Å"I'm not sure my lot will be very welcome in Senay's home town. If you like, we can ride a little farther along the way, so as not to lose time, and meet you near the pass – at the foot of the final trail to it, perhaps.† â€Å"Mm.† Harry explained this to Senay, who looked at Jack and then Harry with surprise. â€Å"We will all ride together,† she said. â€Å"We are comrades.† Harry did not need to translate. Jack smiled a little. â€Å"I wonder if Corlath would approve.† Terim had caught the king's name, and asked Harry what was said. â€Å"He would say the same, of course,† Terim replied. â€Å"It is true we are often enemies, but even when we are enemies, we are nearer each other than we can ever be to the Northerners, at least so long as only human blood runs in our veins. It is why this war is so bitter. We cannot occupy the same land. It has always been thus.† â€Å"We don't occupy the same land particularly well ourselves, however human we may be,† said Jack, and when Terim looked inquiringly at him, Jack put it in Hill-speech. Terim chewed his lip a minute. â€Å"Yes, we fight, and usually we do not love each other; but we are still the same. The Northerners are not. You will see. Where their feet step, it will be as if our land were sown with salt.† Jack looked at Harry, and Harry looked at Jack. â€Å"I am not sure of this,† she said. â€Å"I know the wizardry their folk produce is different than the Hillfolk's, and †¦ I know that any possibility of a part-blood Northerner is looked on with disgust and †¦ fear. You call someone half-North, thidik, and they may be forgiven for trying to kill you. Evidently,† and Harry's voice was very even, â€Å"Hill and Outlander blood is supposed to cross more gracefully.† As Jack stared at his horse's neck, Senay leaned toward him, and touched his horse's mane. â€Å"We are like enough, Jack Dedham; we all follow Harimad-sol.† Jack smiled. â€Å"We all follow Harimad-sol.† Harry said, â€Å"Jack, you are not following me. Don't you start.† Jack looked at her, still smiling; looked up, for his stolid gelding Draco was a hand and a half shorter than Sungold. But he did not answer. They rested most of the day and started off again an hour before sunset, following Senay's directions. The desert was behind them now, and so neither the sun nor the conspicuousness of traveling through empty country would force them to march only by night. It was near midnight when two men stepped into the path before them, and held up torches that suddenly burst into fire. Everyone blinked, and the Outlander horses tossed their heads. Then a voice behind one torch said sharply, â€Å"Who are you, who travel to the town of Shpardith?† Senay replied, â€Å"Thantow, have you forgotten me so quickly?† Thantow walked forward, holding his torch high, and Senay dismounted. â€Å"Senay you are,† he said, and those near behind could see him smile. â€Å"Your family will be pleased to see you return to them,† although his eyes wandered over them, and the jingling of bits was very loud in Harry's ears. â€Å"These are my comrades,† Senay said simply, and Thantow nodded. He muttered a few words to his companion, who turned and trotted off, the light of his torch bobbing dizzily till he disappeared around a bend of the rocky way. Harry dismounted, and Narknon reappeared from the darkness to sit under Sungold's belly and watch the goings-on, and make sure she wasn't being left out of anything interesting. Senay turned to Harry and introduced her reverently as â€Å"Harimad-sol,† whereupon Thantow swept her a very elegant Hill bow, which included the hand gestures of respect, and Harry tried not to shuffle her feet. They all moved forward again, and after a few minutes the narrow path opened up. It broadened slowly till it turned into a round patch of grass encircled by a white path that gleamed mysteriously in the torchlight. A little breeze wandered around them, and the smell was like roses. Thantow led them around the white path, and at the end of the circle opposite was a tall building of brown and grey stone, built into the mountainside, with moss and tiny, carefully cultivated trees bordering its roof. In the windows of this building lights were appearing. As they approached nearer, the wooden door crashed open, and a child in what was probably a nightgown came flying out, and unerringly sprang into Senay's arms. â€Å"You've been gone weeks and weeks,† the child said accusingly. â€Å"Yes, love, but I did tell you I would be,† said Senay, and the child buried her face in Senay's diaphragm and said, â€Å"I missed you.† Three other people emerged from the still-open door. First was a tall old man carrying a lantern, and limping on one leg; a younger woman strode behind him, then hurried forward to say, â€Å"Rilly, go inside.† Senay gently disengaged the reluctant Rilly, who backed up, one foot at a time, toward the house, not caring whom she might run into, till she bumped into the doorframe, fell through it, and disappeared from view. The young woman turned back to Senay, and embraced her long and silently. When the old man came up to them, he called Senay daughter. Harry blinked, for this man was certainly the local lord, the sola, of this place; but then, to be able to send his daughter so far to the laprun trials, perhaps it was not surprising. The third person was a young man, Senay's brother, for they both looked like their father; and he patted her arm awkwardly and said, â€Å"How was it?† He looked about sixteen. Senay smiled at him. â€Å"I was well defeated,† she said, in the traditional phrase, â€Å"and I wear my sash so,† and her fingers touched the torn rent. Harry sighed. â€Å"This is Harimad-sol,† Senay said, â€Å"who wielded the sword that cut my sash. She took the trials.† The old man turned to look at her sharply, and Harry met his gaze, wondering if he would comment on her obviously Outlander cast of features under the Hillman's hood; but he looked at her a moment, the lantern light shining in her eyes, and then bowed himself, and said, â€Å"My house is honored.† Only then did his eyes drop to the blue hilt just visible beyond the edge of her cloak. He turned to look at the rest of them, and his quiet face gave nothing away as he looked at two dozen Outlander cavalry standing uneasily at his threshold. â€Å"These are my comrades,† Senay said again, and her father nodded; and the woman, Senay's stepmother, said formally, â€Å"They are welcome.† Terim and Jack followed Harry and Senay into the house, while Jack's men and horses were led along the stone ridge of mountainside that the sola's house was built against, to a long low hall. â€Å"It is the village meeting-place,† Senay explained. â€Å"Many of our Hill towns have them, near the sola's house, for there we can all come together to talk or to celebrate; and when it is necessary we can shelter our friends and stable their horses.† Harry nodded slowly. â€Å"And if you must †¦ defend?† The old man smiled without humor. â€Å"There are caves, and twisting paths that lead pursuers to walls of stone or cliffs; and we can disappear if we must. You would not have come easily to this place if Senay had not guided you. The Hills are not good country for conquerors; there are too many holes in them.† â€Å"Yes,† murmured Jack. The room they entered was a large one; there were rugs on the floors and walls, and a long low table beside a long window, although it was closely curtained now. â€Å"Rilly,† said her mother firmly, â€Å"you may stay up for a short while, but you must put your robe and your boots on.† Rilly disappeared again. Servants entered the room bringing malak and small fat cakes, and Rilly reappeared and snuggled down by Senay, who put an arm around her. Harry waited, wondering if she would have to explain their errand; but Senay said with the same simplicity as she had explained the Outlanders as her comrades: â€Å"We go to stop the Northerners who come through the Madamer Gate. Who is there that can come with us?† Sixteen riders joined them in the morning when they set out once more, and Harry began to feel a trifle silly riding at the head of what was becoming at least a company if not an army. But it was obviously expected of her to ride first, chin in the air, staring forthrightly ahead. It's better than one mad Outlander on a Hill horse, she thought. What would I have done if Senay and Terim hadn't followed me, if Jack hadn't been at the fort? â€Å"Jack,† she said. â€Å"Mmm?† â€Å"Have you ever seen Ritger's Gap?† â€Å"No. Why?† â€Å"I am wondering, in a foresightful commanding sort of way, how ridiculous a few dozen of us strung out across it are going to look when – if – the Northerners do in fact decide to use it.† Jack grimaced. â€Å"Not very – silly, I mean. I believe it's a very narrow place; there's a valley spread out on the far side of it, but the gap itself we should be able to bottle up for some time, even the few of us.† Harry expelled her breath. â€Å"I do keep thinking how much of a fool's errand this is.† Jack smiled. â€Å"A noble and well-meaning fool's errand at least.† That night Harry dreamed: Ritger's Gap, the Madamer Gate, was a thin cleft of rock, no more than two-horse width; on the south side was a small rocky plateau, which then fell away abruptly into the forested mountainside. On the north was a wide bowl of valley with some dull brush and loose rock covering it; uneven footing, she thought in her dream, and no protection. Not a battlefield of choice. The valley led slowly up to the final narrow gap in the rock. She turned in her dream, and saw a little string of riders, the leader on a tall chestnut horse that gleamed like fire in the sun, striding up the path to the rocky plateau. She had seen these riders before, toiling up that mountainside. The familiarity of the vision comforted her; perhaps she had, after all, made the right choice when the path had forked. Perhaps she would justify Luthe's faith in her. And Corlath? She woke with a start. There was the greyness before true dawn in the sky, but she arose nonetheless and began to stir the fire. She noticed, with a flash of fear and anger, that her hand trembled; and then the fire burned up, and in its red heart she saw two faces. First was Corlath's. He stood quietly, staring at something she could not see; and he looked sad, and the sadness wrung her heart as though she were the cause of it. Then his face became the flames of a campfire again, but they flickered and rearranged themselves and became the face of Aerin, who smiled wryly, and it came into Harry's mind that perhaps Aerin had something to do with Senay and Terim following her, and Jack having sent Richard alone to argue for the General Mundy. Harry smiled a little, weakly, herself, at the face in the fire. Aerin looked away, as if something had caught her attention, and there was a blue glint at her side, which might have been Gonturan's hilt, or only the snapping of a small fire. â€Å"Do we ride out early, then?† said Jack, his voice rough with sleep. â€Å"Yes,† said Harry. â€Å"I don't like my dreams – and I †¦ suspect that I am supposed to pay attention to some of my dreams.† Their voices caused other sleepers to stir, and by the time the sun rose up over the crest of the Hills on their right, they had ridden some miles. â€Å"We will be there by tomorrow,† said Harry at their midday halt; and the grimness of her own voice surprised her. She was sitting on the ground as she spoke, and Narknon came to her, and wrapped herself around her shoulders and back like a fur cloak, as if to comfort her. There was a scuffle, suddenly, to one side, and Harry whipped around, one hand on Gonturan. A tall woman strode out from the trees, two of Jack's soldiers, looking tousled, slightly annoyed, and slightly afraid, standing on her either side. One of them held half a loaf of bread and the other a drawn dagger; but he held it like a bread knife. The woman was dressed in brown leather; there was a woven blue belt, sky blue, a color that comforted the eye, around her waist, and a dull crimson cap on her head; and she wore a quiver of arrows over her shoulder and carried loosely in her hand a long bow, with blue beads the color of her belt twisted just below the handgrip. â€Å"I am Kentarre,† she said. â€Å"Forgive the abruptness of my arrival.† â€Å"The filanon,† breathed Senay, standing stiffly at Harry's side. â€Å"The who?† muttered Harry; and then to the tall woman, â€Å"You have just proven to us that we need to post sentries, even to eat a mouthful of bread. We thought ourselves alone here, and our haste to our own ends has made us careless.† â€Å"Sentries, I think, would not have stopped me, and you see – † and Kentarre held up her bow – â€Å"I come in peace to you, for I cannot notch an arrow before any of your people might stop me.† She spoke Hill-speech, but her accent was curious, and the inflections were not predictable. Harry found she had to listen closely to be sure she heard correctly, for she was not that accustomed to the Hill tongue herself. Perhaps it was her attention that caught the unspoken â€Å"even† before â€Å"I cannot notch an arrow,† and she smiled faintly. Kentarre stood quite still, smiling in return. Narknon came to sit, in her watch-cat disguise, at Harry's feet. She gave Kentarre one of her long clear-eyed looks and then, without moving, began to purr. One mark in your favor, thought Harry, for Narknon's judgment is usually pretty good. â€Å"What do you wish of us?† she said. Kentarre said, â€Å"We have heard, even in our high Hilltops, where we talk often to the clouds but rarely to strangers, that she has come who carries the Lady Aerin's sword into battle once more; and we thought that we might seek her, for our mothers' mothers' mothers followed her long ago, when Gonturan first came to Damar in the hands of the wizard Luthe. So we made ready for a long journey; and then we found that Gonturan, and the sol who carries her, were coming to us; and so we waited. Three weeks we have waited, as we were told; and you are here; and we would pledge to you.† In the last sentence Kentarre's lofty tone left her, and she looked, quickly and anxiously, into Harry's face, and color rose to her cheekbones. Harry was doing some rapid calculations. Three weeks ago she had sat in a stone hall and eaten breakfast with a tall thin man who had told her that he had no clear-cut fortune for her, but that she should do what she felt she must do. Harry met Kentarre's gaze a little ruefully. â€Å"If you knew so well when we would be here, perhaps you know also how pitifully few we are and how heedless an errand we pursue. But we would welcome your help in holding the Northerners back for what time we may, if such is also your desire.† The last finger of the hand holding the bow gently spun one of the blue beads on its wire; and Harry thought that Kentarre was not so much older than herself. â€Å"Indeed, we do wish it. And if any of us remain afterward, we will follow you back to your king, whom we have not seen for generations, for in this thing perhaps all of what there is left of the old Damar must come together, if any of it is to survive.† Harry nodded, thinking that perhaps Kentarre's people would be convinced to go without her when the time came, for Corlath was likelier to be pleased to see them without his mutineer in their midst; but such thoughts were superfluous till they found out if any of their number would survive a meeting with the Northerners. Kentarre turned and stepped briskly back into the woods. â€Å"The filanon,† Senay murmured again. â€Å"The which?† Harry said. â€Å"Filanon,† she repeated. â€Å"People of the trees. They are archers like none else; it is said they speak to their arrows, which will turn corners or leap obstacles to please them. They are legends now; even my people, who live so near their forests, have believed that they no longer exist, even if the old tales are true, and once the filanon, with their blue-hung bows, did live high in the mountains where no one else went.† She paused a moment, and added, â€Å"Very rarely one of us has found one of the blue beads; they are thought to be lucky. My father has one that his father found when he was a little boy. He was wearing it the day the gursh – boar – gored him, and he said that it would have had him in the belly, and killed him, if the blue bead had not turned the beast at the last.† Jack said, â€Å"Tell me, Captain, do you always take in the loose wanderers you find in the woods if they offer to fall in with you?† Harry smiled. â€Å"Only when they tell stories that I like. Three weeks ago I was talking to a †¦ wise man who told me that †¦ things would happen to me. I am inclined to believe that this is one of them. Besides, Narknon likes her.† Jack nodded. â€Å"I prefer to believe you. Although I have my doubts about your tabby's value as a judge of character.† He blinked at her once or twice. â€Å"You're different, you know, than you were when you still lived with us Outlanders. Something deeper than the sunburn.† He said this, knowing its truth, curious to see its effect upon the young woman he had once known, had once watched staring at the Darian desert. Harry looked at him, and Jack was sure she knew exactly what was passing through his mind. â€Å"I am different. But the difference is a something riding me as I ride Sungold.† She looked wry. Jack chuckled. â€Å"My dear, you are merely learning about command responsibility. If you were mine, I'd promote you.† They finished their noon meal without seeing anything more of Kentarre; but as they mounted, many of them looking nervously around for more tall archers to burst from the bushes upon them, the materialization suddenly took place. Kentarre stood before Harry with a dark-haired man at her elbow; he carried a bow too, but among the blue beads at its grip was one apple-green one; and his tunic was dun-colored. Then Harry without turning her head saw that the path was lined with archers; she nodded blandly as if she had expected them to appear like this – which in fact she rather had – and moved Tsornin off. Kentarre and the man fell in with her and Jack and Senay and Terim, and the rest of the archers followed after the last horses had passed. Kentarre walked with as free and swinging a pace as Sungold. There were about a hundred of her new troop, Harry found, when they stopped again. With them were about twenty hunting-cats: bigger-boned, with broader flatter skulls than Narknon's, and more variety of color than Harry had seen among Corlath's beasts. Narknon herself kept carefully at Harry's heels: even the indomitable Narknon seemed to feel discretion was the better part of valor when faced with twenty of her own kind, and each of them a third larger than herself. Harry and her company found a little rock bowl, sheltered from the northwest wind that had begun to blow that afternoon, and all of them clustered in it, around several small fires. The archers unstrung their bows and murmured to or over their arrows, and the others watched them surreptitiously. Bows seemed as outlandish to the sword-bearers as feathers on one of their horses. Jack's men felt absently for revolvers that weren't on their hips. At dawn they set off again, and now Harry felt that she rode into her dream; perhaps she would wake up yet and find herself in the king's tent, with unknown words on her lips and Corlath's hands on her shoulders, and pity in his eyes. They rode, the archers striding long-legged behind them, up a narrow trail into the mountain peaks; up the dark unwelcoming slopes to the border of the North. The cold thin air bit at their throats, and the sun was seen as scattered falls of light through the leaves. The ground underfoot was shaly, but Tsornin never stumbled; his ears were hard forward and his feet were set firmly. Harry tapped her fingernail on the big blue stone in the hilt of Gonturan and thought of a song she'd sung as a child; the tune fluttered through her mind, but she couldn't quite catch the words. It made her feel isolated, as though her childhood hadn't really happened – or at least hadn't happened as she remembered it. Perhaps she'd always lived in the Hills; she'd se en Sungold foaled, and she had been the one first to put a saddle on his young back, and had trained him to rear and strike as a warhorse. Her stomach felt funny. They reached Ritger's Gap, the Madamer Gate, before sunset, spilling out across the little plateau that lay behind it, with trees at its back and only bare rock rising around it to the mountaintop, a few bowlengths above them. There was a long shallow cave to one side, where the mountain peak bent back on itself, and low trees protected much of the face of it. â€Å"We'll sleep in something resembling shelter tonight,† said Jack cheerfully. â€Å"At least as long as the wind doesn't veer around and decide to spit at us from the south.† Harry was listening to the northern breeze; it sneered at her. â€Å"It won't,† she said. Jack cocked an eyebrow at her, but she said no more about it. The plateau was loud with the panting of men and horses; they had hurried to arrive, just as her dream had told her they would, or must; the last hour, men and horses had had to scramble up, side by side. Harry leaned against Sungold's shoulder, grateful for the animal solidity of him; he turned his head to chew gently on her sleeve till she petted him. After a minute of staring around her she slowly followed Narknon as the cat paced up to the Gap itself and stared into the valley beyond. Even Narknon seemed subdued, but perhaps it was the day's hard miles. Two riders abreast could pass the narrow space in the rock, perhaps, but their knees would touch. On this side of the Gap, the plateau sloped up to the shoulders of the narrow cleft and down the other side, where men and clever-footed horses might climb. Harry stared through, and became conscious of Sungold's warm breath on the back of her neck. Narknon leaped down from her perch beside the cleft, turned her back on it, and began to wash. Harry stood in the Gap itself, and leaned against the spot Narknon had vacated. A pebbly slope dropped down away from her to a scrub-covered valley between the mountain's arms; there was a lower valley wall on the far side, but it fell away into foothills. Harry felt her sight reaching away, into the harsh plain beyond the dun-colored valley and scattering of low sharp hills; and on the edge of the plain she saw a haze that eddied and drifted, like a tide coming in, exploring the shore before it, reaching out to stroke the little hills before it swe pt over them. Harry turned and went back to her company. She said to no one in particular, â€Å"They will be here tomorrow.† It was a silent camp that night; everyone seemed almost superstitiously afraid to polish a dagger one last time in too obvious a fashion; much quiet checking of equipment went on, but it was a shadowy sort of motion. No one met another's eyes and there was no bright ring of metal on metal. Even footfalls were muffled. Jack's bay gelding Draco and Harry's Sungold had become friends over the days of carrying their riders side by side. The Outlander horses were always set out on a picket line while the Hill horses wandered where they would, never far from the human campsite; and Sungold and Draco stood nose to nose often, murmuring to each other perhaps about the weather and the footing of the day past; perhaps about the eccentricities and preoccupations of their riders. Tonight they stood near together with their heads facing the same way – watching us, Harry thought, looking back at them; or watching that awful northwest wind. Sungold nicked one ear back, then forward again, and stamped. Draco turned his head to blow thoughtfully at his companion, and then they both settled down for a nap, one hind leg slack, their eyes dim and unfocused. Harry watched enviously. The north wind gibbered. â€Å"Draco, who knows almost as much about battles as I do, has told young Sungold that he should get a good night's sleep. I, world-weary warrior that I am – that's hard to say after too many hours in the saddle – am about to say the same thing to you, my brilliant young Captain.† Harry sighed. â€Å"Do stop calling me Captain. Carrying Gonturan is enough; and she's not your legend.† â€Å"You'll get used to it, Captain,† said Jack. â€Å"Would you deny me one small amusement? Don't answer that. Go to sleep.† â€Å"Perhaps if I could stand on three legs and let my eyes glaze over, it would help,† she replied. â€Å"I do not feel like sleeping and I †¦ dread dreaming.† â€Å"Hmm,† said Jack. â€Å"Even those of us who aren't compelled to believe in what we dream aren't happy about dreams the night before a battle, but that's †¦ inevitable.† Harry nodded, then got up to unroll her blanket and dutifully laid herself down on it. Narknon couldn't settle either; she paced around the fire, wandered over to touch noses with Sungold, returned, lay down, paced some more. â€Å"I'll send Kentarre and her people into the woods on either side of the Gap, looking down on the valley; we can all mob together here – and see what comes.† â€Å"Splendid,† said Jack from his blanket, as he pulled off his boots. â€Å"I couldn't arrange it better myself.† Harry gave a breathless little laugh. â€Å"There isn't much to be organized, my wise friend. Even I know that.† Jack nodded. â€Å"You could send us through that crack in the rock two at a time, to get cut in pieces; I would then object. But you aren't going to. Go to sleep, General.† Harry grunted. Harry's eyes stayed open, and saw the cloud come across the moon, and heard the whine of the north wind pick up as the clouds strangled the moonlight. She heard the stamp of a horse from the picket line, and an indeterminate mumble from an uneasy sleeper; and Narknon, who had finally decided to make the best of it by going to sleep, snored faintly with her head on Harry's breast. And beyond these things she heard †¦ other things. She had set no sentries, for she knew, as she knew the Northerners would face them tomorrow, that they were not necessary. It was a small piece of good fortune that every one of her small company might have the chance of sleep the night before the battle, and it would be foolish not to accept any good fortune she was offered. But as she lay awake and solitary she heard the stamp of hooves not shod with iron, the shifting of the bulk of riding-animals that were not horses, the sleeping snores of riders that were not human. Then her mind drifted for a few almost peaceful minutes; but she heard a rustle, and as her drowsy mind slowly recognized the rustle as a tent flap closing she heard Corlath's voice say sharply, â€Å"Tomorrow.† She sat up in shock; Narknon slithered off her shoulder and rearranged herself on the ground. Around her were the small dead-looking heaps of her friends and followers, the red embers of campfires, the absolute blackness of the curve of rock and the shifting blackness that was the edge of the trees. She turned her head and could faintly see the silhouette of horse legs, and she heard the ring of iron on a kicked rock. Jack was breathing deeply; his face was turned away from the dying fire glow, and she could not see his expression; she even wondered if he were feigning sleep as a good example for her. She looked at Narknon, stretched out beside her; her head was now over Harry's knees. There was no doubt that she was sincerely asleep. Her whiskers twitched, and she muttered low in her throat. Harry lay down again. The wind sniggered around the rocks, but overhead it flung itself, laughing shrilly, through the mountains, into the quiet plains of Damar, bearing with it the inhuman whispers and moans of the Northern army. Harry shivered. A finger of breeze touched her cheek and she recoiled; it ran over her shoulder and disappeared. She pulled the blanket over her face. She must have slept, for when she pushed the blanket away from her face again the mountain was edged with dawn and her mouth tasted sticky. She sat up. Narknon was still asleep. Jack's eyes were open. He was staring grimly at nothing; she watched his eyes pull into focus to look at her. He sat up, saying nothing, and put his elbows on his knees, and rubbed his hands over the grey stubble of hair on his head. Other bodies were stirring. There was a small spring-fed pool in a fist of rock where the front of the shallow cave was sheltered by the trees; one of Jack's men filled a tin at it and brought it to one of Kentarre's archers, who had produced a slender tongue of flame from last night's ashes. Harry stared dreamily at the little fire till something black came between her and it, which proved to be Jack, kneeling down at their own bed of embers. Harry got up, kicking her blankets off, and went to fetch another tin of water. Jack smiled at her when she returned. She tried to smile back; she wasn't sure how successful she was. While they waited for the water to boil, Harry walked to the Madamer Gate and stared through it. The top of her head stood above the rock cleft, and the north wind howled down on her; her scalp felt tight and cold. The haze still hung where she had seen it the evening before, at the beginning of the foothills; but this morning she felt she could see flashes of color and motion within it. The color was the color of fear. The wind chewed into her and she went back to the cave. They were all sitting, hunkered down around their tiny fires; and they were all watching her; or all but Jack, who was shaving. She admired the steadiness of his hand as he bent over a ragged bit of mirror propped against a rock on the ground. She stopped just before the shadow of the cave began. â€Å"Stay out of the wind while you can,† she said. â€Å"It's not †¦ the right sort of wind.† Terim looked up, as if he could see the shape of the wind itself, and not only the way it shook the leaves and bounced pebbles from the rockfaces. â€Å"The Northerners send their wind to chill us,† he said. Harry remembered the creeping touch on her face the night before. â€Å"Yes,† she said slowly. â€Å"To chill us – but I think also to discover us. I prefer that we tell it no more than we must.† At midmorning Harry saddled Sungold, unrolled the tops of her boots and lashed them to her thighs, settled her leather vest with particular care across her shoulders, and Gonturan against her hip. Shield and iron-bound helm hung ready from the front of the saddle; Sungold turned to look at her. The saddle looked strange, unbalanced, without the bulky knapsacks strapped around it. Draco chewed his bit, and Tsornin pointed an ear briefly at the sound. Shortly before noon Harry sent Kentarre and her archers and their big soft-footed cats out beyond the Gate, into the last trees on the mountains' shoulders rising above the haggard valley. Harry watched anxiously, for the covering of stunted trees was not good, and she felt that every blue bead would be visible; but the archers disappeared as if they were no more than thrown pebbles. Harry was sure that whatever approached them knew the Gate was held against them – knew and smiled at the tale the wind brought; but she could do no more. Jack saw them for the first time just before Kentarre led her archers away. He was staring through a narrow black spyglass; his hands were as steady as they had been with his razor. Harry could keep hers from chafing and plucking at each other only by thinking about it constantly; she clamped them on her sword belt. They felt damp. Harry had been watching those coming toward them all morning and it took her a moment to understand Jack's sudden grunt of comprehension. The fog had flowed into the mouth of the valley, and now it resolved itself into a mass of dark moving shapes which still seemed to cast more shadow than they should, for they were very near. â€Å"Mount,† said Harry. The wind chuckled wildly as it tore at their hair, and pinged madly off metal as helms were settled in place, and dragged at the fingers of gloves, and sword tips, and horse tails. Sungold stood with his nose in the Gate; Draco stood at Harry's knee, stolidly, ears pricked. Harry could feel Tsornin tremble, but it was impatience; and she bit her lip in shame for herself and pride for her horse. Terim's horse tossed its head anxiously and switched its tail; Terim's face beneath the helm was unreadable. Narknon reappeared from wherever she had spent the morning, licking her chops; she hadn't been satisfied with porridge this morning. She polished her whiskers carefully, then came to the head of the column, to sit between Tsornin and Draco. â€Å"Narknon, my dear,† said Harry, â€Å"why don't you go sleep by the fire for now, till †¦ till we come back? This isn't your sort of hunting.† Narknon looked up at her, perfectly aware that she was being addressed; then she lowered her gaze again and stared out across the valley. â€Å"The filanon's cats went with them,† said Jack. â€Å"You'll hurt her feelings if you try to leave her behind.† Harry said fiercely, â€Å"This is not the time to make silly jokes.† â€Å"On the contrary, Captain,† replied Jack. â€Å"This is exactly the time.† Harry swallowed and looked out at the Northerners again. At the front of the army before them was a rider on a white horse. The horse was magnificent, as tall as Sungold, with the same proud head and high tail; red ribbons fluttered from its forelock and crest. His reins were golden glints against its snowy neck; and the rider's heavy sword was a great golden bar at his side. Beside him a dark rider on a mud-colored beast carried a banner: white, with a red bird on it, a bird of prey with a curved beak. â€Å"No army can move that fast,† said Jack. â€Å"No,† said Harry. The white horse screamed and Sungold answered, rearing; Harry punched his neck with a closed fist, and he settled back, but his haunches were tensed under him, waiting to hurl them forward. â€Å"Very well,† said Harry. â€Å"We will go to meet them now.† A rain of arrows fell from the sky into the dark sea at their feet, and some of the dark many-shadowed shapes fell, and weird cries drifted up to the watchers at the Gate. â€Å"At least arrows pierce them,† Harry heard Terim say. Sungold's ears lay flat to his head, and he pranced where he stood. Harry could hear the horses moving up close behind her; Senay and Terim stood with their horses' front feet half up the rock slope on either side of the Gap. â€Å"Jack,† said Harry. â€Å"You wait here; we'll come back when we're ready for a breather, and you can argue with them for a while.† â€Å"As you say, Captain,† said Jack. And he whispered, â€Å"Good luck, Harimad-sol.† Harry gestured to Jack's trumpeter, and they sallied out under a banner of bright brass notes, for they carried no other. Sungold leaped down the slope, and the white stallion reared and neighed; his rider turned him and galloped to one side, and the lightless mass of the army surged up the sides of the valley. War-cries rang in harsh throats, twisted by ill-shaped tongues. The ground before the Gate was in Harry's favor, for there was little room to maneuver, and no room for the overwhelming numbers of the Northerners to sweep around their small adversaries and crush them. Each side must fight on a narrow front; it was a question merely of how long the Hillfolk had the strength to fight, for there were always replacements for any Northerner who fell or grew weary. Harry pulled Gonturan from her scabbard and swung her once, shrilling through the air, splitting the northern wind into fragments that fell, crying, under Sungold's feet. â€Å"Gonturan!† yelled Terim. â€Å"Harimad-sol and Gonturan!† called Senay, not to be outdone; and then the Hillfolk met the Northerners. Sungold plunged and struck with teeth and hooves as Gonturan cut and thrust; and Harry felt the yellow wave rising in her mind and was glad of it, for her intellect was of little use, and that the wrong sort, just now; and she noticed that Gonturan was wet with blood, but that the blood seemed an odd color. Clouds massed to cover the sun, but they kept breaking up and drifting away again, and the Hillfolk fought more strongly for this proof that the black army was not all-powerful. Harry was dimly aware that Draco's head was at her knee again, and there was a momentary lull when her right arm could drop and her small shield rest heavily on her leg, and she said, â€Å"Where did you come from?† â€Å"It looked as if you never would come back and give us a chance, and we got tired of waiting,† said Jack; and then the battle swelled around them again, and the clank of metal and the bash of blows rose up and smothered them. There was a smear of blood along Sungold's neck, and as he tossed his head, foam flew backward and ran down Harry's forearm. Those they fought were hard to see clearly, even from as close as a sword stroke. Harry saw better than most and still she could not say why she was sure that those she faced were not all human. Some glittering eyes and swift arms were human enough; but others seemed to swing from curiously jointed shoulders and hips, and the eyes were set oddly in odd-shaped skulls – although perhaps the skulls were all right, and the helms were deliberately misshapen. Some of the horses too were true horses; but some had hides that sparkled like scales, and feet that hit the ground unlike hooves, and teeth that were pointed like a dog's. Minutes passed and Gonturan had a life of her own; and the next time Harry saw Jack, Draco crashed into them from one side and Jack's stirrup caught at her ankle; and he yelled, â€Å"You might think of retiring for a few minutes, Captain; we've upset them, and we deserve it.† Harry looked around puzzled, but it was true; her handful had driven the dark army back; they were halfway down the valley again. â€Å"Oh,† she said. â€Å"Umm. Yes.† â€Å"Back!† shouted Jack, standing in his stirrups. â€Å"Back to the Gap!† The trumpeter picked it up, for he had followed Jack when the colonel struggled to reach Harry, as he had followed Colonel Dedham often before in years and battles past; and never yet had he received a wound that hindered his playing, although the border skirmishes he was acquainted with had little prepared him for this day. He was tired and bloody now, and it took him a moment to fill his lungs to make his trumpet speak; but then the notes flew out again, over the heads of the combatants, and Harry's company collected themselves to fall back to the Gap. Harry saw Senay near at hand, and then the others, one at a time, turning, half aware, in their saddles, hearing the notes of the retreat; some picking up the cry and throwing it farther; the filanon had a long clear singing note that they passed among themselves. As the Hill and Outlander horses wheeled to gallop away and Harry prepared to fol low them, suddenly the white stallion was before her. This one almost looked like a real horse, she thought; but its teeth were bared, and they were the sharp curved fangs of a flesh-eater. Its bit came to a sharp point on each side of its jaw, so it could slash an opposing horse with a sideways twist of its head. Its long ears were flat to its skull, and its blue eyes rolled. It reared and screamed its stallion scream again, and Sungold answered; but when her horse's front feet hit the earth again, he leaped forward; and Harry saw the other stallion's rider sweep his golden sword up in challenge. Gonturan glittered in the sunlight; but when they met, the blow was of more than physical strength. The other rider's sword drew no blood, but Harry reeled in her saddle; the noise the sword had made against her fresh-stained and pitted shield sent waves of fear through her, and her yellow war-rage went grey and dim. Sungold reared and shrieked; the white stallion was not quick enough, and when the chestnut swerved away there was blood on the other's neck and shoulder and rein. This seemed to drive the white horse mad, and it came again; Harry heard through the deadening thunder in her ears that the other rider laughed. She raised her eyes to where his should be, under his blazing white helm, and saw spots of red fire; below that, teeth were bared in a grin in a jaw that might once have been human. The power that washed over that face, that rolled down the arms and into the sword and shield, was that of demonkind, and Harry knew she was no match for this one, and in spite of the heat of Gonturan in her hand her heart was cold with fear. The two stallions reared again, and reached out to tear each other; the white stallion's neck was now ribboned with blood, like the real ribbons he wore in his mane. Harry raised her sword arm, and felt the shock of the answer; the hilts of the swords rang together, and sparks flew from the crash, and it seemed that smoke rose from them and blinded her. The other rider's hot breath was in her face. His lips parted and she sa w his tongue; it was scarlet, and looked more like fire than living flesh. Her arm was numb. The contact lasted only a moment; Sungold wrenched himself and his rider free, and Harry's legs held her on his back from habit, while she struggled only not to drop her sword. Sungold bit the white stallion just above the tail, and the horse kicked; too late, for Sungold again twisted out of the way and bit him again on the flank, and the blood flowed from the long wicked gash. The white stallion threw up his head and lunged forward, away from his enemy. Harry heard the rider laugh again, although he made no attempt to rein his horse around for another attack; an attack that Harry knew would be her last defense. He could wait. He knew the strength of his army and the size of the force that chose to try and block it, for the wind he sent had told him. But it was then, as the white stallion ran from them, and the banner-bearer turned to follow its leader, that from the black ground-swell a long stripy body rose and flung itself snarling at the mud-colored beast. Sungold was leaping forward again before Harry was aware of her legs closing around him; for it was Narknon. The cat slashed at the rider, and dropped away again, and then sprang at the beast's face and seized its nose in her teeth; purple blood welled out and poured down Narknon's matted sides. The beast reared, trying to tear at the cat with its clawed forefeet, but Narknon twisted in mid-air. The beast came to the ground again as its rider made a sword cut at the cat, but it missed, for Gonturan got in its way. And the beast reared up once more, mad with pain, and flung itself over backward; and neither beast nor rider rose again, and the red-and-white banner was trampled underfoot.

Knowledge Organisation and Learning

1. Introduction The medical industry today has transformed in recent years as a result of the inclining demography scale. This has led the government to rethink of the country’s healthcare expenditures whether they are able to meet with the demand to the health and medical industry (Group 2011). Pinnacle hospital is structured with a holistic healthcare features that will be establish with the most advance technologies and high standard of service to patients, locals and overseas. Moving towards the growing ageing populations, the main emphasize will be on enforcing of the health awareness of the public. . Objective The team objective is to identify the future knowledge workers role and skills requirement so as to be a successful workers in future 2020. 3. PESTEL Analysis in year 2020 In analysing the external environment, the team has applied using the PESTEL tool to analyse each of the components of the external environment and identify the changes that will be establish in 2020. 3. 1) Political factors In 2020, the government will be spending approximately $10 million per year on healthcare. Higher subsidies granted to lower-income families with illness.Furthermore, the government have also planned to ramp up the infrastructure and manpower by recruiting 20,000 healthcare workers and 3,700 hospital beds, creating more jobs opening (HSA 2007-2011). Government will also look into working closely with private hospital on bed leasing (source: MOH healthcare 2020 Masterplan). 3. 2) Economic factors Population will increase, hence, the standard of living will increase as well. The government remains stable and provides strong support in funding capitals to healthcare sector that attracts more foreigners to opt for medical advice in Singapore and higher recruitment (Channelnewsasia, 2013). . 3) Social Issues such as more ageing population in 2020, with over 25% of its population above the age of 65 years old, parallel to several other developed countries aro und the world that has a distended grey population. As more foreigners are coming into Singapore, Singapore will be a multi racial country with English as a common language that is universally recognize. 3. 4) Technological In future, new invention will be coming in, thus, the technology will be advancing. There will be robotic system to assist in surgeon for effective and efficient surgery.Furthermore, there will be web-cam system installed for the patients to interact with their love ones. Patients may monitor their health condition simply with an affordable personal pocket size device consist of sensors, actuators and mechanisms. It also helps to alarm the hospital in any case of emergency instead of reaching a phone to dial for emergency. 3. 5) Ecology In 2020, solar panels will be able to substitute the usage of electricity. Implementing the solar energy system will be useful to conserve energy and save high cost of electrical maintenance for the hospital.Organics products will be use instead of chemical content to patients with allergy. 3. 6) Legal More Act to implement the control, licensing and inspection of private hospitals, medical clinics, clinical laboratories and healthcare establishments (Attorney General's Chambers, 2011). 4. Current Roles and Knowledge The team has selected four of the major roles in Pinnacle hospital to analyze their skill and knowledge acquired to comply with the duties they handle. They are: the Doctors, Nurses, Operation Manager and Customer Relation Executive. 4. 1) DoctorsThe doctors are expertise in their medical field as they are required to diagnose the patients’ illness and vital to make complex decisions. Moreover, doctors are trained and required to be skillful and knowledgeable in handling major/minor op surgery. 4. 2) Nurses Nurses have many multiple roles in the hospital. They are to perform the role of assisting the doctors in surgery, checking of patient’s records, being a caretaker and passing o f information to both doctors and patients. They also have to handle some minor cases of patients such as washing wounds and injection.Therefore, nurses have to obtain these basic skills in their medical practice. 4. 3) Operation Manager Operation manager are mainly in-charge on policy change and ensure effective communication and collaboration among departments. In addition, operation manager have to ensure there is enough resources in the hospital and make sure the hospital is running smoothly. 4. 4) Customer Relation Officer For a Customer Relation Officer, they are required to help to manage the front desk with various admin support and enquiries from the patients.They also have to collect information and data of the patient’s problems and concern. 5. Future Roles and Knowledge Acquiring skills for the following roles in the year 2020: 5. 1) Doctors Technology seems to be advanced in year 2020. Robots will be the doctors' assistants in operation theatre, which will enhanc e the efficiency of the surgeon. In any case of technical fault, the doctors will be the one to fix the problem. Therefore, the doctors are required to obtain new skills in technology so as to fix the minor problem of the robot if anything goes wrong.Basic knowledge in operating of the robot is necessary. It is to ensure that the robots are in good condition to assist the doctors in surgeon smoothly. 5. 2) Nurses Nurses are formerly assistance to doctor to retrieve patient’s record and in Op theater. In 2020, ?With centralized database, nurses are to train to use the system effectively to obtain patients’ record ? Cloud-based text messaging system that nurses will have to send out update the status of patient undergoing surgery to family or friends to reduce the waiting time. Nurses will learn to communicate with patients via online consultation web with patient’s family members who well-versed in IT to ensure correct details are conveyed and no error made. 5. 3 ) Operations Manager Currently, routine check will all be taken over with centralised method and will be fully automatic via sensors system. Mini tracking device will be issued to patients whom admitted to hospitals. Moreover, they will require maintaining and tracking the patients’ attendance and do arrangement for land transfers for overseas Patients. 5. ) Customer Relations Officer In Customer Relations Officer, most commonly the officers face with communication barrier. In 2020, these cases will be resolved via the following: ? officers has to be train to be more linguistic as more foreigners are expected to seek medical help ? Officers can be train to educate patients on the use of e-booking online as it reduce waiting time and crowding the holding area. 6. Conclusion In conclusion, the demographic graph is inclining towards ageing population as such it is necessary to create more health awareness.With advance technology implemented in hospital, each staff are required t o attend the training according to the skills they acquired to be hands-on with centralized database system and able to assist more patients from overseas whom are seeking medical advice in Singapore. It is hoped that Singapore could become a world-class originator of innovative, aged-friendly technology, products and devices. The ageing issue requires the integration and strategic alignment of new technologies, personal responsibility and public policy.

Online Transactions Are Better Than Conventional Manual

Online transactions are better than the conventional manual transactions Online transaction or online banking, which is a process of entering into transactions by a particular client and the bank using modern technology. Nowadays, with modern technology such as computer and mobile phone, people can do the online transaction at anytime and from anywhere. However, do we really know whether online transaction is beneficial? Even though most people think that online transaction is more risky than manual transaction.I strongly agree that online transactions are better than the conventional manual transactions. This is because online transactions are very convenient, and it is also unlimited service day and night. Online transactions are very convenient to all. Online banking is a easy process. You can do any transaction that you wish to do with the banks or clients, no matter you are in office or home. Besides that, online transaction can be a easy way to us to make bill payment. Through this system, you can pay the bills by transfer funds between accounts.Therefore, you do not have to queue up to pay your bills. This also can help you to save more time to do other things. The system also will keep the transaction records so that you can easily refer your transaction. This also can help in reduce the use of paper. Thus, online transactions are quite convenient to all. Another reason why online transactions are better than conventional manual transactions are because online transaction system is unlimited service day and night, it is operates 24 hours per day.The online transactions are always available seven days a week, 24 hours daily and 365 days a year. Every transactions can be done by using your computer or mobile phone and internet connection. In addition, online transactions do not have time constraint. Online transactions unlike the manual transactions, which are you need to do transactions during the office hours. With online transactions, we do not need to run off from our works to go the bank. As mentioned before, online transactions are available all the time can help you to cut off the time to go to banks.Nevertheless, some people think that manual transactions can avoid system trouble. This is because online transaction is relies on internet connection. Without internet connection, you cannot access to do online transactions. Due to slow internet connectivity, this can creates a problem that whether your transaction was successful or not. However, I strongly disagree with all these views. I think bank have precautions to help their customers to solve this kind of problems due to the internet connection or server down. For instance, 24 hours customer service hotline.Assistance is provided by bank to those customer who have facing problems during online transactions. In conclusion, online transactions are better than the conventional manual transactions because online transactions are very convenient and unlimited service day and n ight. Therefore, we should not have all negative views towards online transactions as online transactions are very useful and convenient to all especially businessmen and businesswomen. Having presented by my arguments, I once again totally agree on the statement that â€Å" Online transactions are better than the conventional manual transactions. †

MGT 4880 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

MGT 4880 - Essay Example It is much easier to work on a single aspect of corporate operations if you understand how that one role fits in to the larger picture of the corporate goals. By taking a class on Business Strategy and Policy, I will be able to understand the processes central to operational success and apply those principles to my current duties. In that way, the grand strategy of the organization can be gainfully supported by my own actions. Further, as I gain understanding of the interrelationships between departments, functions, stakeholders, and employees, I will be empowered to be a part of the solution at whatever company or level I am working. Such a class will assist me in selecting future positions. Beyond my current employment, a class in Business Strategy and Policy will equip me to make good career decisions in the future. The reason for this is that I will know my own strengths, weaknesses, and plans for my future; I can match those personal items with the needs and processes of any organization I am considering for employment. For example, if I know that I am interested in operations management because I am a dependable person, pay attention to small details, and have the discipline to carry out day-to-day requirements in order to bring efficiency and profitability, then an organization which has no strategic plan at all would not be a good fit for me. Understanding this fundamental principle of good management will allow me to recognize corporate security when I see it. Once the class on Business Strategy and Policy has taught me a solid basis for how to strategize, plan, and execute those plans in the modern work place, I will be able to know when a potential employer is deficient in their processes. Taking a position with such a company would only lead to personal frustration and a stagnant career. Therefore, such a class could prevent me from making a terrible mistake. Such a class will assist me in choosing wise investments. The reason for this is clear; I will be able to recognize those organizations which have engaged in the proper planning of their business-as well as the appropriate execution of policy to support that plan-and invest accordingly. Like any other stakeholder or shareholder in a company, I want my investments to perform well. For that to happen, the companies I choose to invest in must be competitive within the marketplace, efficient in their operations, and innovative in their marketing and product development. Utilizing the things I learn in the Business Strategy and Policy class, I will be able to see the evidence of such sound management before I ever commit a penny of my money to the company. If I can deduce that management has a good plan and has paired that with an innovative product and efficient operations, I can invest with peace of mind. Such a class will help me plan my career. Finally, a class in Business Strategy and Policy will allow me to understand where my own interests lie, and where those interests may best fit within the current workplace. I can utilize the basic principles of planning a business and then focus the wisdom of those lessons on my own career as though it were, itself, a business. In this way, I

Sustainable development for Iraqi oil and gas in the light of Dissertation

Sustainable development for Iraqi oil and gas in the light of international law with particular reference to Kurdistan region - Dissertation Example Chapter two describes the process of the evolution of the concept of sustainable development from the 1972 Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm, where the first United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) has been created, to the today’s more comprehensive and profound understanding of sustainable development as a â€Å"specific call to prioritize improvements in the well-being of the very worst-off now and in the future† (Paul 2008: p.579). Nowadays strong sustainability development of non-renewable resources, which oil and gas resources are relating to, implies that such resources should be recognised as a specific form of natural capital, and should not be exhausted for short-term benefits only (Ayres et al. 1998: p.4). In addition, chapter two gives an overview of the philosophical and theoretical dimensions of the sustainable development. This overview, made on the basis of the existing academic and professional literature, provides useful information r egarding the research in hand and helps to define the ways and concepts of reaching sustainable development in the oil and gas industry through different perspectives. ... l extent, they help to realise a process of shift from a policy of the development of environment without regard to possible negative consequences, to a political culture, which takes into consideration all current and future needs and interests of governments, communities and individuals. Chapter three views these principles in relation to the sustainable development of petroleum resources, in particular. It is emphasised that sustainable use of petroleum resources requires taking into account the criticality of these resources, the availability of technologies that intend to minimise depletion and the likelihood of other resources or technologies that can substitute for petroleum resources (WCED 1987: The Concept of Sustainable Development, Para.12). In other words, the principles of sustainable development are considered in this chapter so that they should be used to prevent â€Å"resource-use activities and projects by actors from within and outside the State† (Bottriell & French 2005: p.5). Chapter four â€Å"Strategic issues of the sustainable development of Iraqi oil and gas† explores the constitutional and legal strategies for the sustainable development of Iraqi oil and gas industry. The general assumption underlying the investigation within this chapter is that the national strategies should address the concept of sustainable development, complying with the international environmental law, on the one hand, and dealing with specific issues related to national and regional environmental legislations, on the other hand (Boer et al. 1998: p.1-3; Bosselmann 2008: p.145-148). Besides, at the national level, it is considered that the concept of sustainable development should be addressed both from the perspective of regulations related to particular environmental

Garden art through the ages Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Garden art through the ages - Article Example Art history has the major objective of determining the originality of various works of the art. Anciently, anything produced using a machine would not qualify as art but in the modern time the scope of the study has increased including the study of computer aided images. The history of art depends on the artifacts. There is an established way of generating a date when a given art was done based on a certain artifact that is available. The artwork was done a long time ago, but the artifact is a presentation of the evidence of the artistic activity that took place. There are certain questions of concern to the art historian, and the first question is the age of the art. The dates when the artwork was done can be established in a number of ways. The historian can use the physical evidence of the material that was used to decorate a particular artwork. For example, certain paints then he or she can easily guess the age of the artwork from the existing artifact that is based on a given fact that the given material that was used did not exist at a certain time anciently. Therefore, the historian can easily trace the age of the art by checking on the artifact that is existing. An earliest possible date and latest possible date for the use of certain material such as certain type of inks can be established by the historian. There are materials that are used by artists at the current time and those that were used in the olden times and therefore it becomes very easy for the historians to come up with a conclusive age of the artwork based on material used to construct the artifact. The historians also rely on documentary evidence. This is because it provided a hint of the date when a given article was written about a certain artwork that manifests in the form of physical artifact that exists. This means that if a historian wants to know the age of an artifact, he or she only looks for the historical books where the ancient artists

Legal and Ethical Actions of NovaGold Resources Inc Term Paper

Legal and Ethical Actions of NovaGold Resources Inc - Term Paper Example Similar class action lawsuits were also filed in the Supreme Court of British Columbia and in the Ontario Superior Court of justice in Canada. The $28.0 million settlement was covered by insurance companies and the company did not have to payout from own resources under the terms and conditions. (Marketwire 2011) NovaGold commenced environmental studies in 1996, which consisted of Meteorology, wetlands delineation related to mineral resource estimates, aquatic studies in the main drainages, water quality studies, and some waste rock characterization. This was further expanded to terrestrial wildlife and avian surveys, detailed aquatic studies, ambient air monitoring and cultural site surveys. NovaGold is equipped fully to overcome any challenges, even though it may require more time and with the progress of work, it will start showing in the share price. NovaGold clearly understands its community responsibilities and following all environmental norms would work to get all necessary p ermits to make the project most successful and only one of its kind in the world. (Safehaven 2010) Stocks of NovaGold are traded on NASDAQ, AMEX, and New York Stock Exchange. Revenue and Income From the latest results available for the year ended Nov 30, 2010, of NovaGold Resources Inc., it is seen that revenue has fallen to C$0.6M. Surprisingly, cost of goods sold has not gone down proportionately and it has remained at C$46.3M. Losses have gone up to the tune of C$-203.5M. (NovaGold Financials 2010) Basic Financial Ratios & Industrial Comparison Return on Assets: Net Income/ Total Assets stands negative at -5.17%, on industrial comparison it stands as the 60-80th percentile. A. Return on Capital: Given as after-tax operating income by the book value of invested capital and that comes to -5.55%, on industrial comparison it stands as the 60-80th percentile. B. Return on Equity: Net Income/Shareholder's Equity stands at -34.48%, on industrial comparison it stands as the 40-60th perce ntile. Credit Ratios: A. Current Ratio: given by Current Assets/Current Liabilities stands at 5.3 times; on the industrial comparison, it stands as the 60-80th percentile. B. Quick Ratio: given as Current Assets-Inventory/Current Liabilities stands at 5.1 times; on the industrial comparison, it stands as the 60-80th percentile. Margin Ratios: A. Gross Margin: given as Revenue-Cost of goods sold/Revenue that stands at -7631.22%, on industrial comparison it stands as the 0-20th percentile. B. EBITDA Margin: -9295.16%, on industrial comparison it stands as the 0-20th percentile. Debt-Equity Ratio: Total Debt/ Total Equity stands at 20.5, on industrial comparison it stands as the 60-80th percentile. Total Liabilities/Total Assets: 23.8, on industrial comparison it stands as the 60-80th percentile. (NovaGold Resources) Sales Forecast: NovaGold is a company doing exploration activities in the field of precious metals and necessary development of mineral properties in Alaska, Canada, Briti sh Columbia and the United States. The Company spearheads its operations through wholly owned subsidiaries, partnerships, and joint ventures.

Collective Action for Social Movements Assignment

Collective Action for Social Movements - Assignment Example Although the African-American struggle for civil rights became apparent in the 1950s and 1960s when the most dramatic progress in the battle for equality and justice was made the struggle had been on-going for decades. This struggle would be traced in the actions of people like Ida B. Wells (1862-1931), an African-American journalist, editor of Memphis Free Speech, who became a brave crusader against lynching. In 1895, Ida wrote â€Å"The Red Record† which recorded the number of Africans lynched over a three-year period (Jones, 2011). In her own way, Wells and others who shared her ideas demonstrated resilience in fighting injustice. Other individuals in the early days included Frederick Douglass (1818-1895), an African American a former slave; he had made an eloquent appeal for the African-American struggle (Jones, 2011). In retro respect, before the mostly proclaimed heroes of the African-American civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s there had been other preceding active participants. These prepared ground for future efforts and helped demonstrate the depth of injustice against the African-Americans. In the 1950s and 1960s the civil rights movement took a more pro-active approach and benefited from more informed and aggressive activist who were able to mobilize the African-Americans and to some extent some whites. These individuals included Martin Luther King, Jr., W.E.B. Du Bois, Rosa Parks and Malcolm X. Even though they provided leadership they could not singlehandedly stem discriminative practices existent at the time. Fortunately, they realized this and focused on ensuring collective effort (Ling, 1998). The primary means of agitation was not through boycotts or public demonstration at lunch counters but through discursive methods. Activists largely utilized the black press to create discursive realm of political action. African Americans were able to develop political capacity and formed

The Element of Style Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

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To What Degree May We Argue That The Essential Elements of Contemporary Diplomacy Were Present in Ancient Times - Essay Example The diplomats are solely charged with the duty of issuing peace-making strategies, negotiating on wars, trade ties and the human rights protection. Diplomats normally negotiate the international treaties prior to the endorsement by the nation-wide politicians. Generally, diplomacy is then employment of various actions to gain a mutually acceptable mitigation to a common challenge between different states. This research paper explains the traces of the presence of diplomacy in the ancient times. Indeed diplomacy existed among states in the ancient times. This is traced back in the emergence of the Hiberno-Roman relations agreements to solve issues arising between these two states1. This Hiberno-Roman relations specifically points out the ancient relationships tilted mainly towards economic and cultural ties between the Greece and her neighbouring states. This relationship was between the ancient Roman Empire and Ireland (Hibernia)2. This diplomatic relation lasted from the time of Julius Caesar until the beginning of the 5th century AD. This diplomatic relation was because of the fierce nature of the Ireland state by the Roman Empire. Ireland was the only nation of the Western Europe that was not ruled by the Rome. The diplomatic relation acquired in the Hiberno-Roman treaty greatly gained these two states. These agreements improved the commercial status of these two states. The cultural ties as well were improved between these states because of the cultural exchange that e merged because of this diplomatic treaty. Another empirically based trace of ancient diplomacy is traced in the foreign relations in the imperial china and her neighbouring states. The imperial China state had a long tradition of foreign ties. This is well captured in the ancient times since the Qin dynasty to Qing dynasty respectively during this era3. The diplomatic relations emerged between china and her neighbouring states because of its

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What is Art for Me Essay Example for Free

What is Art for Me Essay Art is everywhere. It can be tangible or intangible. It can be seen, sometimes heard. It has several forms. Also, there are several ways on how a person can be pleased about a piece of art. One of the things I have learned from this course, HUM 1, is that art in its simplest form is still art. Yes, people may see things differently but there will always be something that will suit our taste. Art surpasses the view of what can be seen and at times, it values beauty over functionality. Art can truly be judged by you, the individual, as far as you, yourself, are concerned, by only one measure. It is not a static but an energy measure. Do not ask what the art is or ought to be, for this is debatable and will inevitably lead to an endless argument. Ask only what it does – not what it does to somebody else, for this again is only hearsay, but what it does to you. No matter how good a painting may be by any and all theoretical aesthetic standards, if it does not do something special to you, then you will seemingly be uninterested about it. Now, let’s take a look at art and the technological advancements our world is bringing forth. When you think deeper, you’ll get to realize both the good and bad sides. The good thing about it is that art joins the flow of evolution and thus it is not outdated. A bad thing is that there are a lot of masterpieces that are wrongly claimed by people who are not the artist to be credited for. Well, obviously, art is something that is timeless. It develops and further develops. The way art is becoming is art itself. It is vital to appreciate art critically but with an open mind, because there are still patterns that are important to follow when we want to discover what it is made of or why was it created. Everything depends on the significance or the meaning the artist wants to give and the impact that he wants to give to the spectators. They might start with different things in mind but when a connection between them is established, rest assured that they’ll both understand what the artwork’s story really is.

Antenna Systems For Radar Applications Information Technology Essay

Antenna Systems For Radar Applications Information Technology Essay The project will examine a variety of beam forming techniques which can be used in order to make radar electronic beam steering feasible. Commonly used mechanical rotating antennas for a 360 degrees views coverage are difficult to operate and expensive to implement. Thus, electronic beam forming is an attractive solution. This report is mostly interested in radar applications performing in 24 GHz frequencies, which can be used by car industries, in order to avoid obstacles on the road, for example, or security radars, covering 360 degrees views. Radar 2.1. Radar Definition Radar means radio detection and ranging, determining thus the original and still significant application of radar. The main reason for using radar is to estimate certain characteristics, such as the position, motion and presence of the specific surroundings in which the user is interested. Radar is actually a sensor which transmits electromagnetic energy into the surroundings and detects energy which is reflected by objects. If a directive antenna transmits electromagnetic energy through a narrow beam it is easy to predict the bearing of an object because of the energy reflected of it. The time needed for the transmission and reception of the energy represents the distance between the radar and the object. [21] Kinds of Radar There is a great variety of radars. Some radars provide navigation aid and safety on small boats and their size might be less than 15cm. Others are widely used by the police in order to measure the speed of the vehicles. Moreover, there are some radars so large as to cover many kilometers of land, long arrays of antennas and they all work together in order to supervise the flight of astronomical bodies or space vehicles. In addition, there are many radars at airport, with a more common size and rotating antennas. Finally, there are several radars, more complex, for mobile use. [21] Radars can be classified in many categories. As much as the waveforms are concerned, radars can be classified in 2 categories, they can be either Continuous Wave (CW) or Pulsed Radars (PR). CW radars use different antennas for transmission and receiving, and they emit electromagnetic energy continuously. Unmodulated CW radars precisely determine the target radial velocity and angular position, while information about the target range have to use some form of modulation in order to be gathered. In order to search and track target velocity, primarily unmodulated CW radars are used. Pulse Radars (PR) use a series of pulsed waveforms, mostly with modulation and can be separated based on the Pulse Repetition Frequency (PRF) in 3 categories, high, medium and low PRF radars. CW and PR radars are both able to determine target range and velocity by using different forms of modulation. [23] Continuous Wave Radar (CW) CW radar sets continuously transmit a high-frequency signal. Then, the received signal is permanently processed. In such a system, two problems have to be solved: avoid a direct connection between the transmitted and received energy (feedback connection), conduct the received echoes into a time system capable of doing run time measurements. A feedback connection can be prevented by: spatial separation   between the transmitting and receiving antenna frequency dependent separation  by the  Doppler-frequency  during the measurement of speeds. [4] Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave Radar (FMCW) CW radars are not capable of measuring distance, because the timing mark necessary lacks, preventing thus the system to time precisely the transmit and receive cycle and exchange the measured round-trip-time into range. This problem can be solved by using phase or frequency shifting techniques. As far as the frequency shifting method is concerned, a signal is used, which continuously changes in frequency around a specific reference, in order to identify stationary objects and measure the range. In order to achieve an up-and-down or a sawtooth-like alternation in frequency, Frequency-Modulated  Continuous  Wave radars (FMCW) are used, changing the frequency in a linear fashion. By constantly changing the frequency, there will be a difference between the frequency of the echo signal and the one transmitted. Thus, the difference  transmitters frequency shift will be relative to round trip time  and so the range  of the target too. The frequencies can be examined, when a reflec tion is received, and by comparing the received echo with the actual step of transmitted frequency, a range calculation like using pulses can be done. Consequently, the range of the stationary objective is given by comparing the transmitted and received frequencies. It is difficult to make a broadcaster able to send out random frequencies cleanly, and as an alternative, this frequency-modulated continuous-wave radar, use an easily changeable ramp of frequencies up and down. If the frequency modification is linearly over a broad area, by making a comparison among frequencies within this region, the distance can be easily determined. It is possible to measure only the complete value of the difference and thus, the results with increasing frequency modification signify a decreasing frequency change at a static scenario. [4] Characteristics e of FMCW radar: measuring the distance is potential by comparing the definite frequency of the received signal to a given reference (regularly direct the transmitted signal) the time required for transmitting a signal as longer than the duration of the measurement of the installed maximum range of the radar [4] By selecting the appropriate frequency deviation per time unit, the radar resolution can be different, and choosing the frequency shift duration, the maximum range can be varied. For instance, if the linear frequency of radar increases over 1  ms duration, the time-limited maximum range might be 150  km. If the maximum frequency deviation is 65 MHz, then stay about 433 Hz per meter for the filter for analysis. It is important that the amount of frequency modulation is considerably greater than the estimated Doppler shift otherwise, the outcome will be affected. The most common and easy way to modulate the wave is by linearly increasing the frequency. In this way, the transmitted frequency will change at a continuous rate. If a single antenna is used, a ferrite circulator has to separate the transmit and receive. However, using to different antennas, one for transmission and one for reception, is easier and cheaper to perform. On a ordinary substrate transmitting and receiving ant enna are placed exactly above each other as an antenna array. The direction of the linear  polarization  is rotated against each other by 180  degrees. An extra shielding plate reduced a direct cross talk (i.e. a direct coupling of both antennas) usually. From this direct coupling, arises a signal, which is suppressed due to the same frequency, since the measurement is performed to as a frequency difference between transmit and receive signal. [4] Radar Beamforming In order to create a beam with the appropriate and desired characteristics, radar beamforming, which combines signals from a set of sources, is essential. As much as an RF antenna system is concerned, each source may be a single array element or a subarray. A steerable beam is able to control the combination process electronically. Moreover, it can be replicated so as to create various independent beams, limited by hardware difficulty, complication and losses. [22] 3.1. Analog Beamforming A feed system is a network used in order to connect the antenna input to its radiators. The main reason for using such a system is to transmit power to the elements or collect signal from them. (transmit mode, or receive mode). While being on transmit or receiving mode, the required phase and amplitude excitations needed for the radiation performance must be maintained. The feed network is able to scan the beam, select among different antenna beam shapes and communicate with active sectors, by containing several switches and other devices, appropriate to execute such processes. Moreover, the feed network may contain amplifiers and other active devices. There are also many new developments, such as Switch matrix systems, Butler matrix feed systems and Vector transfer matrix systems, but the most significant are the RF lens feed systems. [1] 3.1.1. RF Lens One of the biggest problems when using a transmission line feed network is that amount of losses. Therefore, systems which are based on RF/optical principles are preferred. There is a large variety of RF Lens and many RF/optical feed systems also incorporate different types of beam scanning functions. RF refractive lenses are similar to their classical optical counterparts, which function by using the refraction amongst different materials. When using constrained lenses, the waves are forced to follow some specific paths, like in a geodesic lens. Another type of lens is the bootlace lens which in which the signals between the input surface and the output surface are routed on transmission lines. Occasionally, a conformal array feed uses different combinations of lens types, or lenses and matrices. Small array antenna elements are used by an RF lens as input/output probes that couple to the lens region. These probes exist in an array environment which is characterized by reflections a nd mutual coupling and the associated design problems. In particular in circular lens designs, there can also be standing waves caused by reflections from the opposite side of the lens. Another problem is the variation of the element phase center with frequency. [1] Rotman Lens A Rotman lens is a parallel-plate structure used as the beam forming network (BFN) for a linear array of radiating antenna elements. It is easy to form a beam forming network suitable for use with a planar array, by stacking numerous lenses. Rotman lenses are preferred because of the advantages that they offer, such as ease of manufacture, light weight, low cost, monolithic construction and availability of many beams at the same time. Rotman lens is capable of extremely wide-band operation, because it is a true time-delay device which produces frequency-independent beam steering. Because of these characteristic, Rotman lens is a possible candidate for use in multi-beam satellite-based applications. [2] The electrical area that a Rotman lens occupies is very large (usually hundreds of square wavelengths) and because of this, an entirely precise analysis is not possible. The planar circuit approximation applies to structures which are electrically thin in one dimension, like parallel-plate lenses. The effort required for their analysis is reduced to that of solving a (line) integral equation for the relationship between the RF voltage and current at the periphery of the structure. [2] The R-2R Lens The R-2R lens feed (Figure 1) has feed ports on the perimeter of a parallel-plate lens with radius R, in order to illuminate the output ports on the opposite side of the lens. These output ports are linked to the element ports on the 2R radius circular array with cables of equal length. The number of feeding ports is half the number of element ports. This type of arrangement allows all feed points to be ideally focused, resulting in a plane-phase front. In order to scan the antenna beam at angle ÃŽÂ ¦, the feed point has to be moved an angle 2ÃŽÂ ¦. One illumination taper can be achieved, by combining three to four adjacent feed ports, resulting in lowered sidelobes. [1] Figure1: The R-2R lens feed system [1] It is essential to add several switches on the lens ports, in order to scan the beam. One has to be allowed to use numerous beam ports at the same time in order to achieve a multiple beam generation. This problem could be solved by using half the lens for beam ports and connect the other half to a 90 ° arc array. R-2R lens are considered to be a special case of the Rotman lens, which is typically used for linear array feeds. Furthermore, for circular arcs up to 90 °, the Rotman lens can be used. Actually, the curvature does not have to be circular, as the design in general, curvature of lens input and output lines, cable lengths, and so on can be optimized together with the array shape. It is possible to achieve ideal focusing in the Rotman lens only for three beam directions. [1] The R-kR Lens The R-kR lens feed system has as much ports on the lens as there are radiators on the circular array. In order to cover 360 ° views, the lens ports have to be used more than once, both as feeding points and for connecting to the radiating elements. In order to achieve this, switches are used, circulators (Figure 2), or two lenses at the same time. The radiators placed on radius R are connected by cables of the same length to the ports of the circular lens with radius kR. When k is about 1.9, a planar phase front for rays within a sector of about 120 ° is obtained. This shows that the lens is nearly two times the size of the circular array, thus, it cant fit inside the circular array if it is not filled with a dielectric with permittivity more than 4. If broadband radiators are used, the R-kR lens-fed circular array can be very broadband. The bandwidth could be limited by using switches or circulators. The phase center of the radiators is a design parameter of critical importance and must be located on the design radius R. [1] Figure 2: The R-kR lens, here with circulators. [1] In order to limit the focusing performance, several types of element have a phase center which is able to change position with frequency. [1] Mode-Controlled Lenses A radial transmission line which forms a circular parallel-plate lens is possible to act like a circular array feed. If it is excited by several probes placed close to the center, the modes generated will direct the energy toward a part of the lens periphery. Therefore, by controlling the modes using phase shifters or a hybrid network connected to the input probes commutates the excitation. Then it is easy to connect these pick-up probes to the radiating elements, via additional phase shifters if needed. [1] Luneburg lenses In order to achieve wide angle scanning, the Luneburg lens, is the appropriate and desired device. As far as land mobile operations are concerned, an antenna able to scan in a two-dimensional (2D) plane is required, particularly if the scan angle is large. The Luneburg Lenses are used in order to provide single or multiple mechanically scanned beams, at microwave frequencies. Nevertheless, because of the advent of phased arrays the lenses are now usually used for radar applications as a wide angle passive reflector. This is why nowadays there are appropriate lens configurations which can be established by permitting the inclusion of controllable dielectric material into a Luneburg Lens so as to make the lens suitable for electronic scanning at 24 Ghz. [1] Digital Beamforming When performing beamforming in the digital area, it is called digital beamforming. The realization can demand huge volumes of digital information to be processed at extremely high rates, but current improvements in processing hardware have made Digital Beamforming a useful alternative to RF combining in many ways. Moreover, it has allowed the formation of systems which were not practical with legacy technologies. Below are presented the benefits of Digital Beamforming. [22] Simplicity of hardware If the RF and analog hardware becomes a minimal device, collecting data, it would be an ideal case. Then, all the difficult and complicated process of the signal is done in firmware, which is a more flexible and gainful way of processing comparing to RF plumbing. In addition, it is possible that the overall size of the system, as long as its weight, will be reduced a lot, and this is particularly significant in airborne systems. [22 Replication Digital beamforming is the best option when many independent beams are needed. By using digital beamforming, it is easy to form each beam completely digitally, without any analog or RF hardware further required. The quantity of beams like these is then partially limited by power, speed and synchronization of the processing elements, which become even more cost-effective and flexible each year. [22] Scanning and Tracking It is not possible to steer electronically each beam (e.g., to track a moving source). However, by using the precisely same stream of digital samples from each antenna element, it is potential to turn each independent beam to a different source. Thus, it is easy to reduce extremely difficult receiver scenarios to firmware buildings blocks which are now usual. [22] Flexibility These digital systems can be adapted without any difficulty to varying requirements, such as multipath combination, application bandwidth, tracking requirements or interference rejection. A SMOP (Simple Matter of Programming) is able to perform numerous adaptations. [22] Radar An array antenna which is a low Cost Transmit/Receive one provides agile beams to track multiple targets at the same time. [22] Anything that can be done by using an analog beam forming can easily be done digitally too. Choosing to do everything digitally might lead to several difficulties because of the extreme requirements on data transmission, storage, and signal processing. However, nowadays such problems are easily solved because of the rapid growth of computer power, either software or hardware. When using an analog reception beam forming, the element signals are combined with weights determined by feed networks and/or phase and amplitude controlled receiver modules. In digital computer, it is possible to do the same operations on the element signals just by converting analog signals to digital ones. Thus, the formation of many receive beams can take place at the same time, without feed losses, which are common when using analog systems. Moreover, the element modules in the digital systems have low noise amplifiers (LNA) preceding the analog-to-digital conversion. A lossless beam forming is created as t he LNAs set the signal-to noise ratio, so that it is not affected by transmission losses. The advantages of a digital beam forming in this case are not so obvious. After the transmission of the beam, it is not possible to change the beam shape or to perform any other signal processing. Nevertheless, digital synthesis of the transmitted waveform on the element level combined with DBF on reception can offer remarkable system capabilities in terms of, for example, LPI (low probability of intercept) radar with jamming resistance. A wide transmission beam illuminating the area of interest and multiple, narrow, digitally formed receive beams has also been suggested for LPI systems-ubiquitous radar and OLPI radar (Omnidirectional LPI). There are many aspects which can best be performed digitally, such as the need for amplitude and phase control, polarization control, switching of the active sector, compensating for element patterns in the beam steering algorithms and calibration. A DBF ant enna system has a combination of numerous subsystems and components. Receiver channel imbalance, , A/D converter offset errors, amplitude and phase errors and frequency dependent errors are some of the possible imperfections in these subsystems and component which can influence the performance of the overall system. The type and requirements of each processing used influence the importance of such imperfections. Usually, array calibration and special error correction schemes are included in the antenna system design. [1] 3.3. Beamforming Transmitter Architectures Several beamforming transmitter architectures exist, suitable for integrated circuit implementation as well as many well-known topologies for separate implementations of phased array transmitters. The goal is topologies appropriate for performance in consumer products at 24 GHz. Electrical beamforming is achievable if the phase of the signal to each antenna element in the array is separately set. Moreover, a larger number of patterns can be achieved and the sidelobe level can be reduced compared to uniform power distribution if the power to each antenna element is set individually. [3] 3.3.1. Baseband Phase Shifting In the baseband phase shifting architecture the phases and amplitudes of the signals are created in the digital baseband. The phase control is very accurate, but the architecture demands an entire signal path between the baseband and the antenna for each element (Figure 3). Also, the architecture can be called digital array, because the beamforming is being performed in the digital domain. Such an architecture lead in a large hardware cost and power spending because there are many signal paths, but also in big flexibility. As a result, this architecture is perhaps very complex for radar at 24 GHz. In order to transmit individual information in various directions, in MIMO systems (multiple input multiple output), the flexibility of the architecture with parallel paths is available too. [3] Figure 3: Transmitter architecture for baseband phase shifting [3] 3.3.2 Local Oscillator Phase Shifting Phase shifting can occur in the LO path as well (Figure 4) Moreover, it is likely to use phase shifters in the signal path, at IF or RF. Whether performing the phase shift at LO or RF or place them at different places, the same amount of hardware is achievable. If they are placed in the LO path, amplitude variation among dissimilar phase settings is less significant if the mixers are driven hard. In this way, amplitude variation in the LO path will not influence the signal path a lot. Thus, it is easier to implement the phase shift in the LO path. [3] Figure 4: Transmitter architecture for phase shifting in the local oscillator path, polar modulation [3] 3.3.3. Offset Local Oscillator Phase Shifting If the power amplifier and local oscillator are used at the same frequency, injection pulling is possible to occur. It might not be easy to accomplish a sufficient isolation so as to avoid the corruption of the oscillator signal by the PA. To moderate this on an architectural level, offset LO phase shifting may be used as shown in Figure 5. Beamforming transmitters have applications like radar (24 GHz and 77 GHz) and WLAN (60 GHz) which are placed at high frequencies. It is valuable to use the lowest frequencies possible on the chip, and multiply the frequency close to the PA. A reduced VCO frequency makes allows a wider tuning range, and the increasing MOS varactor quality factor. [3] Figure 5: Offset local oscillator phase shifting for beamforming transmitter [3] 3.3.4. Ring Oscillator Based Phase Shifting A ring oscillator which has a tunable phase shift among the oscillating elements is used in such architecture (Figure 6). The tuned oscillators in the ring are separately detuned from their center frequency. The LC-loads is capable of sustaining up to +-90 degrees phase shift. It is important that the phase shift around the ring is constantly equal to 360 degrees, or a multiple thereof. The phase shift among consecutive elements is zero degrees if each oscillating element is non-inverting, and no excess phase shift is introduced in the loop. By putting an excess phase shift of KÃŽÂ ´ degrees it will have as a result a phase shift of ÃŽÂ ´ degrees in each of the equal K oscillators in the loop. [3] Figure 6: Transmitter architecture for variable phase ring oscillator in a phase locked loop [3] 3.3.5. Radio Frequency Phase Shifting The phase shifting which is the most hardware efficient, including numeral building blocks, is to carry it out just before the power amplifier. The power amplifiers are the only circuit components that have to be duplicated (Figure 7). The disadvantage is that the phase shifting is being performed at the highest frequency and signal level in the system. When an envelope modulation scheme is used, the linearity of the phase shifters may be a problem while noise is not as significant when the power level is high. It might be useful to implement the phase shifters at the highest frequency. If transmission lines are used as separate phase shifters, they become shorter with frequency. This is an ordinary architecture in radar systems. Several fixed phase shifts are in that case implemented and switches controlled by selection logic determine the phase shift. Certainly, the transmission lines are linear and thus, these phase shifters can easily be used in envelope modulated systems. Moreover, the delay is stable over a wide bandwidth. A set of fixed phase shifts is then implemented and switches controlled by a selection logic choses the phase shift. Of course the transmission lines are linear so these phase shifters can very well be used in envelope modulated systems. Another advantage is that the delay is constant over a wide bandwidth. [3] Figure 7: Transmitter architecture for phase shifting in the radio frequency path. [3] Applications for 24GHz Radar Sensors Modular 24 GHz Radar Sensor for Digital Beamforming on Transmit and Receive In order to increase the angular resolution, numerous switched transmitters are preferred, as they need less hardware effort. The FMCW radar sensor is the best solution, providing up to eight transmitters, switchable ones, and eight receiving channels which provide parallel receiving, and they all allow digital beadforming. An innovative switching technique via switchable amplifiers is preferred. [5] Four Channel 24-GHz FMCW Radar Sensor with Two-Dimensional Target Localization Capabilities Results on the angular measurements are improved when using an FMCW radar sensor, compared to standard beamforming methods, as far as the target localization is concerned. Furthermore, the determination of other characteristics required will be allowed, such as the range or velocity. [6] . 24-GHz Automotive Radar Transmitter with Digital Beam Steering in 130-nm CMOS (Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) Many Pas are connected to different antenna elements so as to control the steering of the beam. The output phases of the PAs are controlled separately through 360 degrees by binary weighting of quadrature phases. The circuit has 18 PAs,and each one of them delivers 0 dBm to the antenna, ensuring an output power of 13 dBm. The antenna array, which is constituted of 18 elements, will be 11 cm at 24 GHz and will have 12 dB directivity and a half power beam width of 5 degrees. [7] Design and Performance of a 24-GHz Switch-Antenna Array FMCW Radar System One transmitter, one transmitting antenna, four receiving antennas, one receiving channel and an SP4T switch (single-pole four-throw) are the elements which compose a 24-GHz FMCW radar system. In order to increase the inter-connection loss and create a compact whole size, radio-frequency (RF) and intermediate-frequency (IF) circuits are integrated in the antennas. The receiving antennas are sporadically switched to the receiving channel. Beamforming methods are used in order to evaluate the performance of such a developed system, by estimating the angle, velocity and range. [8] Imaging Radar Sensor Front-End with a Large Transmit Array Automotive applications need medium range imaging radars, such as the 24 GHz imaging radar front-end. In this radar, a large switched transmit antenna array is combined with a coherent FM-CW architecture. It permits two dimensional electronic scanning in range and cross range with excellent crass range resolution over a wide angle of new using very low EIRP. The advantage of using such radar is that it requires just a small number of active millimeter wave components. [9] Novel Photonic Rotman-Lens Design for Radar Phased Array Antennas A new microwave photonic implementation of a Rotman-lens is proposed in this project, providing superior performance and functionality. The scanning unit presented is an optical element, where photo-detectors attached to the transmitting/receiving antennas are the interfaces, doing conversions among the RF signals and their particular optical waves. Actually, the optical module is a photonic Rotman lens, designed like its RF complement. Despite the advance of practicing the solution in a photonic module, the recommended photonic Rotman lens superior design is able to realise a linear phase profile with a varied slope at the output of the lens for any potential spot at the input to the lens. This is contrary to what is presently accessible with the usual RF Rotman lens, where output phase front linearity is achieved for a small quantity of input spots. A better performance is achieved by increasing the curves of the photonic input and output surfaces of the lens, having an off-centere d elliptical profile, and not the typically used spherical curvatures. [10] Virtual Antenna Beamforming (VAB) for Radar Systems by Using Orthogonal Coding Waveforms An original way of creating virtual transmitting and receiving radar antenna beams at the same time is to use orthogonal coding waveforms from the antenna elements and deal out digitally their echoes at the receiver. Many virtual transmitting-receiving radar antenna beams can be produced at the same time by using the same quantity of beamforming filters with no any increase on the transmitted power or antenna gain or resolution loss. Both virtually formed antenna beams and common phased arrays of equal size are able to achieve the same antenna gains and spatial resolutions. Since the antenna radiation pattern can be completed almost isotropic, the original system has low probability of intercept (LPI) property. While the transmitting and receiving beams are both virtually implemented through digital filtering, expensive radiation phase shift used in phased arrays is unnecessary for beam scanning in this actual system. [11] Compact Two-Layer Rotman Lens-Fed Microstrip Antenna Array at 24 GHz A new way of realizing a compact Rotman lens-fed antenna array is presented in this paper. The lens-fed antenna has the construction of two layers, which is an original option of reducing the Rotman lens size. This is performed at 24 GHz approaching automotive sensing radar. The lens has a metal layer on the top, a dielectric, a regular ground, a dielectric, and a metal layer on the bottom, in sequential order. The antennas are put on the top layer, while the layout of the lens body is positioned on the bottom layer. They are both connected electrically via slot transitions. This structure, composed of two layers, offers many advantages, because it reduces the entire size of the lens, as well as the total loss of the delay lines, as the lines can be as short and straight as possible. This two-layer Rotman lens-fed antenna array is evaluated in terms of scattering parameters and beam patterns. [12] Cylindrical arrays with electronic beam scanning In order to provide a continuously 360 degrees scan by the directional pattern of a cylindrical array using electronic means, there are several methods proposed. It is important that the circular aperture distribution related to the far-field directional pattern is subjected to rotation comparative to the fixed array. With the intention of synthesizing appropriate forms of directional pattern, there are various techniques describing the independent control of the amplitude and phase of the aperture distributio