Maritime Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

Maritime Policy - Essay Example According to the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF), flags of convenience can be defined as: ‘where beneficial ownership and control of a vessel is found to lay elsewhere than in the country of the flag the vessel is flying’ (ITF, 2007, Pg.1). There are two main modes of registering shipping vessels: closed and open registers. Closed registers are the conventional form whereby the ship owners and the majority of crew emanate from the registering country. Open registers or ‘flags of convenience’ are however those registrations, which are open to any nationality subject to the registering country’s regulations that are often very relaxed to attract as many ship-owners as possible. Open registers are further subdivided into two more categories: Open National Registers and Open International Registers. Under Open National Registers, the ships are obliged to follow the trading regulations of the flag-state encompassing employment and tax guidelines. In Open International Registers, the ships are less stringently regulated enjoying tax exemptions on their profits, easy employment terms for their international crews, lax company regulations and relaxed safety standard enforcement (O’Keefe, 2002, p. 4). Although flag states are required to ensure that ships registered in their domain follow the requisite international laws in addition to administrative control, technical and social issues, however most of those licensing the flag of convenience (FOC) rarely bother to monitor the operations of the vessels. The United Nations has blamed these states for exacerbating marine accidents and compromising maritime security and safety (Gianni, 2008). According to the United Nations Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea (UNICPOLOS) in Gianni (2008), ‘many shipping accidents and resulting loss of life and marine pollution are not the result of

The Bedrock of our Lives Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Bedrock of our Lives - Essay Example Indeed, in the fast-paced movement of the modern world, we need family to keep us grounded and give us a place to call home. First of all, our family has been with us from the start and has seen us through our development in life. Before we could get started in our careers, before we become successful people in whatever fields of endeavour we explore, before we meet all our friends, our family was there to guide us through the early stages of our life. That means that they accept us no matter what, despite our shortcomings. We all have heard stories of young people who left their homes to rebel against their parents, blaming them for some imagine grievance, and believing that they can make it in the world. Some of them fare well, earning money and establishing themselves in a good career. Some, however, find themselves involved in all sorts of vices and moving in the wrong crowd. Either way, at some point in their lives, they will find themselves drawn back home – a place of f amiliarity and safety, a place that has accepted them for who they are. The truth is that family reminds us of a more innocent time in our lives, it takes us back to our childhood when things were so much simpler and safer. The second point that I make when I say that family is most important is that a large part of a person’s emotional state is determined by whether or not he or she has a happy family. It is easy to take our families for granted when we are successful, when we are surrounded by friends, when we immerse ourselves in other preoccupations. The truth of the matter is, however, when we lose our families or when family relationships break up, it is one of the biggest causes of depression and even suicide. In an important study conducted by Jerry Jacobs and Joseph Teicher entitled â€Å"Broken Homes and Social Isolation in Attempted Suicides of Adolescents† (1967) it was found that that after looking at the life-histories of patients who had attempted to com mit suicide and comparing it to the life-histories of those who had not committed suicide, a great proportion of those in the former group come from broken homes or had unhappy family relationships. So you see, this means that while it is easy to take family relationships for granted when our family is stable and whole, when the links that bind are broken, it causes a great sense of personal devastation – indeed, to the point that it can drive one to commit suicide. It is clear therefore, that more than any other thing, family is the most important thing in life. Thirdly, our families have our back, no matter what. That is the power of relationships within the family. One may have plenty of friends to spend good times with, but how many people will stick by your side during the bad times? If, in the middle of the night, you find yourself in the unfortunate situation of being arrested and thrown to prison, chances are, the first person you would call is a family member. That i s because of the absolute certainty we have that our family is going to be there not only in the good times but also in the bad. They cheer for us when we are at our best, and give us steady and unconditional comfort when we are at our worst. They say that life is a competition: we are constantly competing with other people for a variety of things, be it a job promotion, academic honors, winning affection from the opposite sex. Some people, therefore, will want to bring you down in order to get ahead. Our families, however, are our safe haven from the mini-olympiads playing out in the

Block Versus Traditional Scheduling Essay Example for Free

Block Versus Traditional Scheduling Essay This is a proposal to the study to investigate the affect of school scheduling on the student body. The short introduction will establish a purpose to view the students’ reaction to the block or traditional class schedule as the cornerstone of their success in their learning endeavor. Such study will promise to learn what has to be done to improve the student morale and to increase their effectiveness as learners, that is which specific scheduling type is instrumental in doing so. Since this is just a proposal to the study, and no actual study has been done, the readers will find no actual data sets yet. Introduction Intensive or short-term classes, also known as block scheduling have risen out of search for alternative ways to the traditional scheduling. Such classes are presented in segregated units and might have a different construction from a high school to college. Students might be exposed to six specific classes, two hours each for the duration of a quarter with another set of six classes following the next quarter. Daniels (2000) and Queen (2000) presented a study in which she objectified the contrast between block and traditional schedules. She confirmed that block scheduling became common on high school and college levels during the last decade. Post high school institutions explain infiltration of the block scheduling by incoming in a large numbers of non-traditional students. To serve such students better and to adapt to their schedules, the post secondary institutions initiated time-shortened courses, however more intensive, fitting two sets of class load in one semester. Per Daniels’ research, half of surveyed post secondary institutions have been using some sort of block scheduling (also see Stodden, Galloway, L. , Stodden, 2003). In the surveyed institutions the block schedule did not have a unified formation, either. Some moved to so-called quarter hours in which each student would take several classes for each quarter (three months) four quarters a year including a summer session(s). Other institutions provided scheduling that formed even more intensive course load. Marric College in Sacramento, California, in particular has students enroll into two courses lasting six weeks. Each class would last four hours and be offered once a week. Justification of study Such tendency became widespread and included many Nation’s high schools. Many educators Mcleskey Welle (2000) expressed a concern that a lack of uniformity among the schools and at times controversial findings might jeopardize the quality of instructional delivery. Some evidence suggests that the instruction must me at least 10 to 12 weeks short and presented a few times during the week in order to provide some significant impact on learning. It does appear that high school and postsecondary institutions are more concerned of quantity of classes being offered rather than the quality of the instruction. After all, the argument that acceleration of the course load provides mode intense study opportunity is limited in that there is not enough time to study the subject matter deeper. Purpose There is no doubt that such diversity of schedule types in many different schools does not benefit uniformity of the instruction (Jenkins, Queen Algozzine, 2002). The very fact that different schools, even within the same district, may exercise different type of scheduling appears to be disturbing. Despite the fact that a number of researchers offered study-type investigations into the dilemma, it is still very difficult to find the concrete results based on two high schools within the same school district: one with block scheduling and another with traditional. Even when found there was no study available to test the students’ comfort level and presence or absence of stress when subjected to either block or traditional scheduling. Hence, the purpose of this study is to attempt to derive more narrow and directed conclusions with the following Null Hypothesis: HO: Participants did not experience any stress level or discomfort when subjected to one quarter of block scheduling HA: Participants experienced significant (p. 5) manifestation of discomfort and/or stress when exposed to block scheduling. To provide the quantitative opportunity, this researcher suggests devising a scale that would quantify the participants’ stress reaction to the stimuli. For example: 1 – No physiological/biological/psychological symptoms experienced during or after one block of classes is given. 2 – Some symptoms are experienced but do not produce any noticeable symptoms. 3 – Symptoms cause some psychological or physical manifestations that can be observed and recorded (non-natural posture, felt awkwardness, feeling/being clumsy, to some degree irritated). 4 – Extreme nervousness, body perspiration, observable irritation presentation, failing classes, cutting classes, feeling ill often. Definition of Theoretical Constructs and Research Design The research will measure levels of stress during and/or after attending classes in the students in block scheduling versus the students in traditional scheduling. There are plenty of stated theories under the guise of stress research, however, this researcher found none that would examine the psychological state of students in and under block schedule versus their peers who are in the traditional scheduling. 1) degree of the schedule control/pressure on the students 2) degree and specific direction of initial reaction of students. 3) the degree of the school homeostatic reaction in its attempt to maintain status quo Negative attitude toward scheduling can be viewed as following states-of-being: a) self-pity b) helplessness c) low self-afficacy d) irritation 5) increased clumsiness The degree of school control/pressure can be quantified on nominal scale: 1 – feel no pressure/stress. Like classes and attend them with pleasure. Feel free to manifest my creativity. Am aware that every of my creative ideas are manifested in the productive process of my education. 2 – freedoms of creativity somewhat limited. There is a limited time to express myself. Some of my ideas/concepts are not heard/considered. Small degree of the schedule influence on my life outside the school is felt at times (more homework). 3 – feel pressure from the higher pressure of scheduling. My ideas/concepts are not considered most of the times. Feeling that sharing my ideas can lead me in to trouble. Feeling not important to the school (or my class). Feeling not appreciated. 4 – feel constant (daily) pressure from the scheduling. Feeling being controlled (puppet-like state) by the scheduling. No ideas are being considered (or no time at all to share). Feel invisible. Perceive the message from teachers, â€Å"You are the small nut in the big mechanism. You must do your part consistently and efficiently, without aberration. † Feeling trapped, depressed, and unhappy. Missing days of school due to â€Å"illness. † The degree of initial reaction to the scheduling type can be quantified as follows. A – Absence of any stress. Study duties seem easy and comfortable to perform. No anger or any negative feelings toward the teachers. B – Minimum stress level. Most days are comfortable and pleasant. Occasional and minimum negative reaction toward the teachers. C – Moderate stress. Three out of five school days are not comfortable and are stressful. Being critical to the teachers. Often complaining and/or expressing negative feelings to other students. Fear of negative opinion of the teachers. D – Daily stress. Not comfortable performing schoolwork. Feeling of constantly being watched. Covert and at times overt feelings of hostility toward teachers. Strong urge to become instrumental in changing things around or drop out. Complain with open hostility. The degree of the organizational homeostatic reaction in its attempt to maintain status quo can be quantified as follows (in case if the participants answered 3/4 or C/D in previous scales): i) No events occur. Nothing to make stressed situation more stressful. ii) Some events do occur. All events, however, are under control and none are long-lasting. iii) Events that occur are unpleasant and might be somewhat threatening in nature. Most bear unpleasant conversations/explanations with teachers. Most â€Å"fire† can be put down but require some effort. Some have the potential to become cause for administrative actions and other sanctions. iv) Events are very serious in nature. Most are felt like the cause of a complete failure or even drop out. May have the potential of causing disturbance in classes. Very difficult for the â€Å"fire† to be put down and requires a significant amount of effort. v) Events result in separation from the school: suspension. This researcher proposes to use p . 05 as the probability value. He will solicit two randomly selected groups with 30 students in each: one would be under the current block schedule and another under traditional one within the same school. Mitchel Jolley (2004) suggested an effective randomizer that might work well in this scenario. The fact that two very different by nature of business schedules should cause different reactions from students and will contribute to more complete understanding of the schedule affect on the student body. The survey (pre-test) will be administered to all 60 participants in both groups. The data will be tabulated to form the initial quantity (starting point) from which this researcher will operate. The purpose of the survey is to find out (to quantify) the initial psychological state of each student in two groups. The same survey will be administered in the midterm (six weeks later) and at the conclusion of 12-week research period. Data will ve compared, contrasted, and tabulated. Contributions This researcher believes that this study will provide a new and fresh approach to the study of scheduling influence on the students. If allowed to experiment the school’s administration will have an opportunity to learn how each type of scheduling will affect students and to develop the student body with the least amount and manifestation of stress and with the highest possible morale and study ethics. As the result, the study productivity will increase and the quality of the learning will improve 100 fold. References Daniel, E. L. (2000). A Review of Time-Shortened Courses across Disciplines. College Student Journal, 34(2), 298. Retrieved May 15, 2007, from Questia database: http://www. questia. com/PM. qst? a=od=5001760249 Jenkins, E. , Queen, A. , Algozzine, B. (2002). To Block or Not to Block: Thats Not the Question. The Journal of Educational Research, 95(4), 196+. Retrieved May 15, 2007, from Questia database: http://www. questia. com/PM. qst? a=od=5000642089 Mitchell, M. L. , Jolley, J. M. (2007). Research design explained (6th ed. ). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Queen, J. A. (2000). Block Scheduling Revisited. Phi Delta Kappan, 82(3), 214. Retrieved May 15, 2007, from Questia database: http://www. questia. com/PM. qst? a=od=5001115634 Stodden, R. A. , Galloway, L. , Stodden, N. J. (2003). Secondary School Curricula Issues: Impact on Postsecondary Students with Disabilities. Exceptional Children, 70(1), 9+. Retrieved May 15, 2007, from Questia database: http://www. questia. com/PM. qst? a=od=5002033905 Weller, D. R. , Mcleskey, J. (2000). Block Scheduling and Inclusion in a High School. Remedial and Special Education, 21(4), 209. Retrieved May 15, 2007, from Questia database: http://www. questia. com/PM. qst? a=od=5001073229

Identity Changes in The Count of Monte Cristo :: The Count of Monte Cristo

Identity Changes in The Count of Monte Cristo The Count of Monte Cristo is a very sourceful book with characters creating different and new identities. Fernand changes to Count de Morcerf during the time of Dantes' imprisonment, Mercedes changes to Countess de Morcerf after her marriage to Fernand, Cadderouse changes to M. Pilletin, Benedetto changes to Andrea Cavalcanti to disguise and murders Cadderouse, and last but certaintly not least Edmund Dantes with the various identity changes. Even though these characters names are just being changed or in Dantes' case, changing their names, this still means creating various identities. In every identity change, there is a different name or "alias" as some people call it, and with every name comes a different identity. Dantes had to create a different personality to go with each new character to keep himself disguised. Just like anyone else who may be popular, people feel the need to change their identities for many different reasons, some more commonly used than others. People who ch ange their identities may feel the need to change their identity, because it lets you be someone different, it's unique, it defines who you really are or who you want to be, it allows you to hide or get away from yourself and others, and many other reasons. For these reasons or at least some of them, I feel that Dantes, the main character of this book creates a new identity so many times. The main reason I believe that he changed his identity so many times was to hide himself Edmund Dantes from the people he confronted. As I stated before, Edmund Dantes created these different identities to hide from the other characters that he confronted in the book. He confronted many people whom he had confronted in the past. Appearing as Dantes would have probably caused more conflict between him and those characters. For example: I believe the first identity change came after he escaped from prison and found the treasure. Dantes had disguised himself into the priest Abbe Busconi. He had an encounter with Fernand earlier in the book (p. 88-89) and did not want him to recognize that he was Edmund Dantes, the man who was once engaged to Mercedes. Therefore, I feel that he was hiding himself from Fernand as disguising himself as a priest at this time and could have believed that Fernand would confess to him about being involved with the conspiracy of getting Dantes locked up. Identity Changes in The Count of Monte Cristo :: The Count of Monte Cristo Identity Changes in The Count of Monte Cristo The Count of Monte Cristo is a very sourceful book with characters creating different and new identities. Fernand changes to Count de Morcerf during the time of Dantes' imprisonment, Mercedes changes to Countess de Morcerf after her marriage to Fernand, Cadderouse changes to M. Pilletin, Benedetto changes to Andrea Cavalcanti to disguise and murders Cadderouse, and last but certaintly not least Edmund Dantes with the various identity changes. Even though these characters names are just being changed or in Dantes' case, changing their names, this still means creating various identities. In every identity change, there is a different name or "alias" as some people call it, and with every name comes a different identity. Dantes had to create a different personality to go with each new character to keep himself disguised. Just like anyone else who may be popular, people feel the need to change their identities for many different reasons, some more commonly used than others. People who ch ange their identities may feel the need to change their identity, because it lets you be someone different, it's unique, it defines who you really are or who you want to be, it allows you to hide or get away from yourself and others, and many other reasons. For these reasons or at least some of them, I feel that Dantes, the main character of this book creates a new identity so many times. The main reason I believe that he changed his identity so many times was to hide himself Edmund Dantes from the people he confronted. As I stated before, Edmund Dantes created these different identities to hide from the other characters that he confronted in the book. He confronted many people whom he had confronted in the past. Appearing as Dantes would have probably caused more conflict between him and those characters. For example: I believe the first identity change came after he escaped from prison and found the treasure. Dantes had disguised himself into the priest Abbe Busconi. He had an encounter with Fernand earlier in the book (p. 88-89) and did not want him to recognize that he was Edmund Dantes, the man who was once engaged to Mercedes. Therefore, I feel that he was hiding himself from Fernand as disguising himself as a priest at this time and could have believed that Fernand would confess to him about being involved with the conspiracy of getting Dantes locked up.

John Lewis Christmas Marketing Campaign Essay

This year’s advert, entitled â€Å"The Journey†, hopes to do as well if not better than its predecessor. The ? 6 million campaign created by Adam+EveDDB tells the story of a snowman who travels across rivers, mountains, roads and cities to get the perfect gift for the snowwoman who stands with him in the garden. * The advert could’ve been seen on channel 4 just before Christmas and then it was easily accessible on internet(facebook, youtube, etc). John Lewis also was running a snowman hunt, with six snowmen figures hidden around stores. If customers find them all they could win a price, including a  £10,000 holiday, Sony laptop, spa days and gift hampers. John Lewis has also run social media activity including competitions to win a holiday to New Zealand, where the ad was filmed, and for a family to get their garden ‘snowed up’ for Christmas day. John Lewis hopes to make a â€Å"confident statement† in its Christmas marketing this year through its TV, press, outdoor and in-store activity as well as the Annual, a glossy print title that brings together its Editions magazine and Christmas catalogue into one publication for the first time. The Twitter campaign uses the hashtag #snowmanjourney to track its experiential campaign that is photographing the snowman in different towns around the country. John Lewis has also press released many articles regarding their Christmas advert, in store sales, and competitions. John Lewis P&R department has also write a book that tells the story of the snowman and his journey which is also part of the high profile Christmas campaign, short afterwards the book became one of the most selling books for children. John Lewis has attributed a lift in its crafts offering to its Christmas ad campaign. Items on sale include a ‘Knit Your Own Snowman’. * The campaign was created to persuade more and more customers to come in the store and buy gifts for their loved ones during Christmas time. John Lewis’s advert also delivered strong Christmas, and warm feeling to the viewers so they are also creating the brand. They want to tell and insert John Lewis’s brand in many people’s life. Craig Inglis the Marketing Director at John Lewis said â€Å"the campaigns are not just an investment in making people feel Christmassy, they have commercial effectiveness at eart. † Adverts starring the character proved a big hit – with more than three million views on YouTube. * The target market were people who had families, people who lad loved ones, relatives, and people who had someone one special in their lives, because Christmas it is all about spending time with the loved ones, giving them gifts and have a great time. Also they targeted at other organ ization’s customers for example Marks&Spencer, Boots, etc. Also people who wanted to their bedrooms as they had big sales in their home department. Sales figures Sales for the retailer are up 7. 6% year on year for the week ending 17 November with a strong performance in electrical and home technology driving the growth with a 22. 2% jump in sales. In the five weeks over Christmas John Lewis recorded a 44. 3 per cent rise in its ‘Click and Collect’ service, which allows shoppers to buy products online and then collect them from one of the group’s Waitrose supermarkets, compared with figures from 2011. Total web sales reached ? 684. 8 million in the five weeks to 29 December. Electrical and home technology sales were up by 30. 9 per cent on 2011 with tablets being the retailer’s star festive performer. Fashion and beauty sales rose 10. 4 per cent with home products increasing by 6. 2 per cent. In the last full week before Christmas John Lewis posted sales of ? 157. 8 million, a rise of 26. 5 per cent from last year. A record ? 31. 7 million was then taken on 27 December, the start of the retailer’s clearance sale. Conclusion Overall I think the Christmas campaign has been extremely successful. The reason why I am saying this is because comparing the sales figure from last year and this year they achieved a record this year by stepping over the ? 150 million revenue. Also looking at the promotional mix they have done pretty well again, as we have new products which are the snowman book and the snowman toys, sales offers in their stores at certain products. Their PR department did very well as they came with articles just before launching the advert letting people know when and where will they be able to see the advert. The personal selling was great as well as when going to the check out they would ask the customers if they found everything they need and also if they would be interested in buying the snowman book, etc. Direct marketing was great as well as there was a twitter account where you could fallow the snowman’s adventure, and competitions on Facebook and in store. An improvement I would say it would be that maybe the customers where interested in more sales promotions and more direct marketing would convince customers to buy more products and come to John Lewis more often. Although the Advert did cost a huge amount of money that is nothing compared to the ? 157. 8 million revenue they made last year. Another reason why I think that the campaign was successful was that the advert they made has been voted as the year’s most favourite TV advert. And finally the last reason why I am sure that the campaign was extremely successful was that none of the directors of John Lewis expected a record breaker sales figure.

Karen Tei Yamashitas Tropic of Orange Essay example

â€Å"Visualize Child Protective Services (CPS) walking up to your home to take your children away from you. Now picture this, picture what the children feel like escorted away from their parents left to wonder where they will end up.† Says Larry in the beginning of our interview. â€Å"Many children experience these thoughts as they walk out the front door of what they call home.† What can we do to ease the anxiety of these young children taken away from parents? Kinship care is one viable option that can ease the worry for children. However, kinship care is not the only placement for children who are taken away from their homes. Other out-of-home placements include group homes, residential treatments, private child welfare institutions, shelters,†¦show more content†¦In that household there were also other cultures present. According to the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS), the fiscal year of 2010 reported 254,375 children ente ring into foster care. Studies are beginning to show that kinship care is the way to go for children of all ages. Reports are also finding that in some states kinship care is now exceeding non-kinship foster care. Such findings show that the United States is beginning to see the value of placing children in a familiar environment. Larry and his adopted brothers, one being Chinese, and one being Anglo, grew up with one another until Larry was around 10 years old. Larry, being the oldest amongst the two, saw them as his real brothers. â€Å"We used to play war games at home with plastic guns.† I was responsible for their mistakes at home, and at school, they were my only family.† Most children do not get to decide whether they will enter the foster care system. This decision is made for them. Furthermore, they definitely do not get to decide where they will live. There are a myriad of reasons why children are removed from their home. For example, parents who battle with substanceShow MoreRelated Yamashitas Tropic of Orange Essay2444 Words   |  10 PagesYamashitas Tropic of Orange This paper studies Yamashita’s Tropic of Orange as a magical realist text and examines the implications for such a style on the notion of the urban. Specifically, I will explore how Yamashita uses magical realism to collapse boundaries and socially transform Los Angeles into an embattled utopia for the disenfranchised. First, however, magical realism is a loaded term and some definitions are in order. In addition to important recent innovations in the form and itsRead MoreThe Tropic Of Orange By Karen Tei Yamashita1530 Words   |  7 PagesRunning Through the Six: Multiculturalism + Diversity in The Tropic of Orange Without a doubt, the cast assembled in Karen Tei Yamashita’s novel The Tropic of Orange is one of the most diverse in any novel I have ever read for a class. Unlike the typical fair of the â€Å"mostly white with a couple brown people sprinkled in† casts I normally see, Yamashita really takes it to the next level incorporating characters from almost all walks of life and several that boast many different nationalities. ItRead MoreEssay on The City of Los Angeles1470 Words   |  6 Pagesnine million reside in the city (US Census Bureau). Immigrants from all over the world move to Los Angeles because of the wide opportunities the city provides through the numerous schools and various employment occupations. In the novel Tropic of Orange by Karen Tei Yamashita we are introduce to Bobby Ngu’s and his story which subsidizes the reason to immigrate. Ngu from Singapore experienced some tough times back home with his family and his father tells him, â€Å"you gotta h ave a future? Better go to

HIV Uses Trojan Horse Method to Infect Cells

Like all viruses, HIV is not able to reproduce or express its genes without the help of a living cell. First, the virus must be able to successfully infect a cell. To do so, HIV uses a veil of human proteins in a Trojan horse manner to infect immune cells. To go from cell to cell, HIV is packaged in an envelope or capsid made from viral proteins and proteins from human cell membranes. Like the Ebola virus, HIV relies on proteins from human cell membranes to gain entrance into a cell. In fact, Johns Hopkins scientists have identified 25 human proteins that have been incorporated into the HIV-1 virus and aid its ability to infect other body cells. Once inside a cell, HIV uses the cells ribosomes and other components to make viral proteins and to replicate. When new virus particles are formed, they emerge from the infected cell cloaked in a membrane and proteins from the infected cell. This helps the virus particles avoid immune system detection. What Is HIV? HIV is the virus that causes the disease known as acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, or AIDS. HIV destroys cells of the immune system, making an individual infected with the virus less equipped to fight off infection. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), this virus may be transmitted when infected blood, semen, or vaginal secretions come in contact with an uninfected persons broken skin or mucous membranes. There are two types of HIV, HIV-1, and HIV-2. HIV-1 infections have mostly occurred in the United States and Europe, while HIV-2 infections are more prominent in West Africa. How HIV Destroys Immune Cells While HIV may infect different cells throughout the body, it attacks white blood cells called T cell lymphocytes and macrophages in particular. HIV destroys T cells by triggering a signal that results in T cell death. When HIV replicates within a cell, viral genes get inserted into the genes of the host cell. Once HIV integrates its genes into T cell DNA, an enzyme (DNA-PK) uncharacteristically sets off a sequence that leads to the death of the T cell. The virus thereby destroys the cells that play a major role in the bodys defense against infectious agents. Unlike T cell infection, HIV infection of macrophages is less likely to lead to macrophage cell death. As a result, infected macrophages produce HIV particles for a longer period of time. Since macrophages are found in every organ system, they can transport the virus to various sites in the body. HIV-infected macrophages may also destroy T cells by releasing toxins that cause nearby T cells to undergo apoptosis or programmed cell death. Engineering HIV-Resistant Cells Scientists are attempting to develop new methods for fighting HIV and AIDS. Stanford University School of Medicine researchers has genetically engineered T cells to be resistant to HIV infection. They accomplished this by inserting HIV-resistant genes into the T-cell genome. These genes successfully blocked the entry of the virus into the altered T cells. According to researcher Matthew Porteus, We inactivated one of the receptors that HIV uses to gain entry and added new genes to protect against HIV, so we have multiple layers of protection -- what we call stacking. We can use this strategy to make cells that are resistant to both major types of HIV. If it is shown that this approach to treating HIV infection could be used as a new type of gene therapy, this method could potentially replace current drug therapy treatment. This type of gene therapy would not cure HIV infection  but would provide a source of resistant T cells that could stabilize the immune system and prevent the de velopment of AIDS. Sources: NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Scientists discover how HIV kills immune cells; Findings have implications for HIV treatment. ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 5 June 2013. (www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/06/130605144435.htm).Herbein G. and Kumar A. The macrophage: a therapeutic target in HIV-1 infection. Molecular and Cellular Therapies. Published 2 April 2014. (http://www.molcelltherapies.com/content/2/1/10).Stanford University Medical Center. Immune cells engineered in lab to resist HIV infection, study shows. ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 22 January 2013. (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130122101903.htm).