Tuesday, December 24, 2019

William Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet - 1550 Words

George Edward Woodberry once said, â€Å"Shakespeare is, essentially, the emanation of the Renaissance. The overflow of his fame on the Continent in later years was but the sequel of the flood of the Renaissance in Western Europe. He was the child of that great movement, and marks its height as it penetrated the North with civilization† (â€Å"George Edward Woodberry Quote†). The Renaissance, as Woodberry stated within his quote, would not have been as popular if it was not for William Shakespeare. He is a crucial part of the Renaissance. Not only did Shakespeare have an impact on the Renaissance, social class did as well. Social Classes have been building for many years and they made a tremendous difference during the Renaissance, to the point where the social classes controlled society. The Renaissance was a time period of rebirth and Shakespeare was taking advantage of that by contributing a majority of his pieces of writing, as well as his plays. One of his most k nown pieces of work is Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare uses the idea of social classes and portrays it throughout his play, Romeo and Juliet. He generates various characters and places them into different social ranks and standing. This impacts the play significantly and brings a new light and perspective on Shakespeare s writing. Shakespeare also illustrates the specific advantages each social class received during the this time period and within Romeo and Juliet’s time frame as well. During the Renaissance, thereShow MoreRelatedWilliam Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet1287 Words   |  6 PagesLizzy Baginski English Composition 2 Mr. Spera March 10, 2015 Romeo and Juliet Research Paper The movie Romeo and Juliet is a modern classic film that took place in 1996. Overall this is a timeless story that everyone should go and watch. This movie has an intriguing plot line that tells the story of two feuding families, The Montagues and The Capulets, and how the children of these two different families fall in love. The two children overcome various obstacles such as hiding their chemistry fromRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet 966 Words   |  4 Pages Beauty Over Gold â€Å"Beauty provoketh thieves sooner than gold.--William Shakespeare, 1623. In his book As You Like It, William Shakespeare pointed out the supremacy of love rather than the want of gold and wealth. Truly, beauty is more important to thieves than wealth. Many of the thieves in this world would rather have an elegant woman than to obtain precious rubies. After all, what good is a prosperous man if he doesn’t have a charming woman? Two famous men grab my attention who didn’t fear forRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet Essay1024 Words   |  5 PagesRomeo and Juliet is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately reconcile their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare s most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with Hamlet, is one of his most frequently performed plays. Today, the title characters are regarded as archetypal young lovers. Romeo and Juliet belongs to a tradition of tragic romances stretching back to antiquity. The plot is based on an ItalianRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet1124 Words   |  5 PagesThe play Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately reconcile their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare s most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with Hamlet, is one of his most frequently performed plays. Today, the title characters are regarded as archetypal young lovers. Romeo and Juliet belongs to a tradition of tragic romances stretching back to antiquity. Its plot is based onRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet861 Words   |  4 Pagesgreatly shown in the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. It was love at first sight with Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet. Meeting at a party and falling in love to get married without even spending quality time with each other. Romeo and Juliet couldn t tell there parents because the Capulets and Montagues are long term rivals. Both Romeo and Juliet had to find different ways and excuses to make this marriage work. A big problem was developed. Romeo kills Juliet s cousin and is banishedRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet1770 Words   |  8 Pagesof Romeo and Juliet. The story of two destined lovers who were killed by their own doing. But what if they weren t two destined lovers who got unlucky, but doomed partners that were never going to have a good-life to begin with.William Sha kespeare gives us a view of early signs of gang conflict in the early age of Verona, Italy. He gives us a perspective of the norms and customs of Italy during the Setting of William Shakespeare s most famous story. Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, givesRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet1616 Words   |  7 Pageslove can also cause some of life s most controversial battles. These battles could stem from lack of patience, disagreement of moral values, and in some cases, an absence of attraction overall. In Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, the issues that drive Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet s to each of their dreadful misfortunes are inevitable. When it comes to many of Shakespeare s plays, Aristotle s theory is used to describe them as tragedies. Romeo and Juliet is known by many as a tragedyRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet1264 Words   |  6 Pagestheater-going public the most important dramatist in English literature, Shakespeare oc cupies a well-known position in the world of talented authors. His canon contains thirty-seven plays, written in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. Additionally, throughout the years, they continue to sustain critical attention, with the majority of his works circling tragedies, one being Romeo and Juliet. William Shakespeare s Romeo and Juliet speaks to the timeless appeal of star-crossed lovers. Their loveRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet924 Words   |  4 PagesWilliam Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy that follows the so-called love of two teenagers. The two fall in love at a masked ball and have a secret marriage. Throughout the play, their actions show how ridiculous love is, and how it is a danger to anyone who become twisted in its choking grasp. However, in the death of the youth and survival of the elders, an alternative explanation for the tragic events may be found. Although Shakespeare seems to be mocking love throughout the play, itRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet967 Words   |  4 Pagesof ‘Romeo and Juliet’ written by William Shakespeare. Shakespearean time was between the middle Ages and the Industrial Revolution and it was branded by religious changes. William Shakespeare is widely known as the greatest dramatist of all time. Born April 1564, Shakespeare’s play ‘Romeo and Juliet’ is no doubt one of his most famous pieces. ‘Romeo and Juliet’ was first published in 1597 and its tragic story of banned love still captures the creativity of its audience today. ‘Romeo and Juliet’, although

Monday, December 16, 2019

A Writer’s Worst Writing Experience Free Essays

When a sales man cannot sell anything, when a basketball player cannot shoot hoops or when a painter cannot paint, the worst experience that any professional can have in the performance of his or her work is the inability to execute the same, which practically defeats the very essence of the profession. In the same token, a writer’s worst experience is the incapacity to write when the writer has nothing to write about. This occurs basically for two reasons: First is when the topic to be written about has no resource and second, when the writer especially creative writers, has no source of inspiration or objective to write about. We will write a custom essay sample on A Writer’s Worst Writing Experience or any similar topic only for you Order Now Writers conduct extensive research for the papers that they prepare. Whether a review of related literature or previous studies conducted on the topic of interest or an interpretation of an empirical observation or a summary of qualitative interview or statistical data, written documents must always have a basis whether from authoritative references or simple scientific observation. This is especially important for written documents that proposes an idea or urges its audience into action such as all forms of academic papers, advertisements or propaganda. In our modern world, the primary approach used in generating ideas is the scientific method of observable investigation and experimentation in generating conclusions. (Payne, G. and Payne, J. , 2004). In philosophy however, two major schools of thought basically delineate Epistemology or the study of human knowledge. Aside from the empirical approach that posits that perception is the prime source of knowledge on which is based the scientific approach, there is rationalism. Rationalism is principally founded on the Platonic philosophy that adhered that the mind or soul is ultimately the human faculty that interacts with the real world of abstract concepts from which is derived tangible particulars i. e. the factual world via the deductive process. (Engel, S. , 2001). This intangible reality is beyond our perception and can be attained through contemplation and reason. Following this idea, writers can also write original topics or ideas by reflection. Whilst in a derogatory sense, writers can actually generate ideas by philosophizing in a vacuum. Pragmatists however added that such philosophical writing must have practical purpose. Descartes’ Skeptical approach used doubting as the process of inquiry that allows a person to obtain relative certainty. The process of contemplation and reflection brings us to the next chief reason for having nothing to write about which is the lack of inspiration. Contemplation and reflection is difficult if not impossible if writers lack inspiration or objective. In the case of Descartes, his objective to prove the logical intuition of one’s existence and certification of one’s consciousness through self experience served as his inspiration. It is not a simple rational inquiry but is focused on discovery of the foundation of knowledge. For creative writers, the source of inspiration can be about anything i. e. a person, object, experience or a simple thought. This results to written forms of art such as poetry, stories or other written expressions of emotions and thoughts. However unlike other forms of art like painting or sculpture, writing as an art must always be geared to communicate ideas/ notions and express emotions. Hardly are there written forms of art that is for pure aesthetics or is created for its own sake. This is because writing is the textual representation of communication in which ideas are at its core. Without idea or message, there is no communication. In writing, this idea is tantamount to the topic. Without the topic, there is no writing. Thus, having no reference, source of such topic or the lack of inspiration to source that topic is the worst experience that a writer can ever have. How to cite A Writer’s Worst Writing Experience, Papers

Sunday, December 8, 2019

MEMS Technology for Application

Question: Discuss about the MEMS Technology for Application. Answer: Introduction Cochlea is a part which is inside the ear of the human that transmits the mechanical signal into the electrical signal and further this signal is processed by the brain. Sense cells are located in the basilar membrane which decomposes the mechanical signal into simple frequency components. So in this way, the signal is decomposed mechanically. A dysfunctional cochlea is the reason of the loss of hearing. Cochlea implanting is used to correct this disorder. Cochlea implant is an electronic device that decomposes and transmits the signals into the speech processors. The signal then further transmits to the electrodes by the coil of the innermost part of the implanting. These electrodes are finally connected to the nerves responsible for human hearing. The full implantable cochlear implant constructed for reducing the losses of energy in signals transmitting from outer part to innermost ear. More efficient devices have been investigating that would be replacing the implanting of cochlea r of standard. In these MEMS constructed membrane of thin size with different width along with its entire length for breakdown the acoustic signal is implanted. (Zak, Zdenek, Dusek, Pekarek, Svatos, Janak, Prasek, 2015) Approach and Methodology The completely implantable cochlear implanting is the fundamental base of an acoustic signal detection which is located at the inside of the middle of the ear space. This is further connected to the ear drum by some middle ear prosthesis. This type of implanting is designed as MEMS sensors arranged in array. This includes a number of active membranes along with elements of piezoelectric that are made up in the frequency range of hearing by human. (Liu, 2005) Sensing system which is the array made of the electromechanical filters works for the detection of acoustic frequency which is dominant. The acoustic wave actuated the MEMS sensors are propagating by the vibration of the prosthesis in the middle ear. This propagation of waves are look like to the cochlea which is inside of the human ear. ( Conde, Gaspar, chu,2003,) The cochlear implanting is fabricated as the array of piezoelectric membranes which having the different width for achieving different values of Eigen frequencies. The piezoelectric element senses the vibration of the membranes and which act as an active sensor to decompose the excited feed acoustic signals. This has great benefits over the common speech system which is an energetically costly mathematical decomposition of the acoustic signal. Our design use the fluid medium for transferring the pressure to the MEMS sensors through the middle ear just like the human ear biomechanics. The MEMS sensors represent the each and every mechanical filter which is consists of a SixNy square membrane with four piezoelectric AIN elements placed at the edge of the membrane. Usually the cochlear implants used are in the range of twelve to twenty four channels but in improve design of the MEMS cochlear implantation has twenty four active MEMS sensors. 2 measurement methods are used for the characterization of acoustic sensor. The 1st real eign frequency was calculated by the first method and the deformation of the diaphragm was driven by the vibration table in the measurement. (Sze, 1981) Results and discussion For the analysis of the mechanical membrane having the layer of piezoelectric and behavior electrodes, the modal in ANSYS environment is used. Both the output electrical signal and dynamic of membrane are calculated. The 1st eign frequencies of resonant membrane with various dimensions are calculated in ANSYS and CoventorWare. The Covent or Ware are not for the analysis of interaction of the acoustic fluid structure with silicon oil that is being used for implant. The calculation also includes the edge membranes that are fixed. The result calculated in the finite elements analysis ANSYS and CoventorWare is shown in the table. The lowest eignfrequency is 1kHz and 7 kHz for the smallest and largest membrane respectively. The range in between 1 kHz to 4kHz is very sensitive for the human ear. So the dimensions of resonant membrane should be in between 2x2 mm and 1x1 mm. (DUSEK, HADAS, Pekarek, Svatos, Jaromir, Prasek, Hubalek, 2015) Figures and Tables Schematic of the cochlea signal processing electronics (DUSEK, HADAS, Pekarek, Svatos, Jaromir, Prasek, Hubalek, 2015) The workplace setup for MEMS sensor measurement during acoustic stimulation (Svatos, Pekarek, Dusek, Zak, Hadas, Prasek, 2014) Eigen frequencies calculated in Ansys Conventor Ware for resonant diaphagrams with different dimensions (DUSEK, HADAS, Pekarek, Svatos, Jaromir, Prasek, Hubalek, 2015) Comparison of data measured by vibration and acoustic driven method (Svatos, Pekarek, Dusek, Zak, Hadas, Prasek, 2014) Conclusions The thin film membrane sensor is rely on the silicon germanium boron was characterized, fabricated for the potential of the application for pressure variations. At low deposition temperature, the fabrication is done to accomplish the reliability silicon technology. The Prototype model of a-SiGeB sensor will be used as an innovative cochlear implant of a simple sensor design. The electrical characterization had shown that a-SiGe: B films are very suitable for this sensor with its reads out electronics circuit due to its less resistivity. Thus, the device presented a good sensitivity compared with other piezo-resistive strain sensors. (Heredia, Ambrosio, Moreno, Zuniga, Jimenez, Monfil, Hidalga, 2012) References Liu C., 2005,Foundation of MEMS, chapter 6, Prentice hall, USA, Accessed 19 April 2017 Conde J.P., Gaspar J., chu V.,2003, thin solid films 427 ,181-186, Accessed 19 April 2017 Sze S.M., 1981, Physics of Semiconductor Devices, John Wiley and sons, USA , Accessed 19 April 2017 Heredia. A, Ambrosio. R, Moreno. M, Zuniga. C, Jimenez. A, Monfil. K, Hidalga. J, 2012, Thin film membrane based on a SiGe: B and MEMS technology for application in cochlear implants, Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids, Elsevire, Accessed 19 April 2017 Zak. J, Zdenek. H, Dusek. D, Pekarek. J, Svatos. V, Janak. L, Prasek. J, 2015,Model based design of artificial zero power cochlear implant, Mechatronics, Elsevier, Accessed 19 April 2017 DUSEK. D, HADAS. Z, Pekarek. J, Svatos. V, Jaromir. Z, Prasek. J, Hubalek. J, 2015, Design of an Artificial Micro electro mechanical Cochlea, Central European Institute of Technology, Bmo University of Technology, Technocka 10, ISSN: 1662-9779, Vols. 220-221, pp 345-348, Accessed 19 April 2017 Svatos. V, Pekarek. J, Dusek. D, Zak. J, Hadas. Z, Prasek. J, 2014, Design and fabrication of fully implantable MEMS Cochlea, 5th DAAAM International Symposium on Intelligent Manufacturing and Automation, DAAAM, Science direct, Proccedia Engineering 100 (2015) 1224-1231, Accessed 19 April 2017

Saturday, November 30, 2019

Rap and Moral character free essay sample

Susan Dwyer, the subject of concern is the consequences of listening to rap music and the effect it has on moral character. The author argues that rap music contribute to the corruption of moral character, It Is misogynistic, promotes violence and street crime. In this paper I will examine the authors claims, use of key concepts, and her reasoning. By doing so, I will be able to demonstrate that Dryers thesis is unjust and unsupported.In what follows, I will analyze the claims to show that the authors arguments are irrelevant and lack efficient evidence to support her thesis. Secondly, I will examine the authors reasoning to point out fallacious reasoning and lastly I will evaluate her use of key There are about 7 claims In the article. However, many of them were concepts. Only used to demonstrate and explain issues regarding rap and moral behavior. The author begins the argument by claiming rap music is both a sign of and contributes to a form of corruption of moral character. We will write a custom essay sample on Rap and Moral character or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This particular claim is empirical because the author did not offer her reader any type of verification or facts to prove her point. Dwyer failed to demonstrate how peoples moral character Is corrupted by listening to rap music. Many people enjoy listening to different types of music for different reasons. Rap music does not determine the persons character or behaviors. Rap music does not contribute too form of corruption of moral character. Rap music has come a long way and has been shaped by different skills of various rappers who reflect a blend of elements into fascinating wordplay.It has become very popular among young people; they listen to it as a form of entertainment and rap songs have eloped many people through tough times the same way Johnny Cash and country music helps people. Music Is music everyone has their own preference. Rap music can help people build a positive character; for instance, a rap song called ;till we meet again by Shawn Carter, a famous America rapper who lost his younger brother to gun violence. In his song lyric, he talked about how the death of his younger brother affected him emotionally and physically for many years.He turned to writing Rap as a healthy way to cope and escape from reality. Rap artists write vivid lyrics bout real life scenarios, situations and feelings that many can relate to and learn from. Rap songs can be Inspiring and can have a positive Impact on Individuals. On the contrary, the author might argue that rap music has a negative impact on peoples attitude and behaviors. Rap lyrics and videos are full of images of ;hoes and pimps, guns and violence. These degrading rap lyrics and videos are seen everywhere and in many peoples eyes this has become normal and entertaining.People that listen to and watch such material on a regular basis usually choose to live their lives In the fast lane. By seeing their favorite Icons possessing fancy cars, clothes, jewelry and lots of money, many of them join street gangs as a means to obtain these things. They start to rob, steal, vandalize, kill and destroy others. Quite frankly when people choose to live their life this way, they either end up behind bars or killed. On the whole rap music does not influence good behavior in people, it corrupts them and changes who they are as a person.Rap music does not Influence bad actions, but reflects on struggles In life and problems with the society as child poverty, violence against women and HIVE disease. As far as it goes, issues as such have affected many women and children around the world. He raises awareness through his music and by speaking in public. Kane is an advocate for women and children that are affected by this matter. He has raised thousands of dollars to support this cause. Rap music can send out positive messages about equality and change.The author has committed a few fallacious arguments in the article. One of the fallacies that stood out to me was the fallacy of presumption. It was stated as; people that choose to listen to and watch such material on a regular Asia are saying something about their own moral character, about what they value, about who they are. Seeking out such material is like seeking out and choosing to watch portrayals of atrocities, such as rapes and violence. This argument is invalid and unsound. The author is in the wrong for making such statement.Rap music is just like country and rock music. People enjoy listening to different types of music for various reasons, one of which can be for entertainment purposes. Listening to and watching rap music does not determine a persons moral character and who they are In contrast the author can take the position to defend that the s a person. Argument raised is valid and sound. People who enjoy listening to and watching such degrading videos, crass material, and violence are saying something about their character and what they value as a person.The authors use of key concepts in the article can be very offensive to the artist that produce the music and to the fans that listen to it. Many of the key concepts were about the harms of rap music on ones moral character. Several people, especially youth can relate to rap music and the lyrics. Many rap artists rap about their life stories in the lyrics. They write about their mint of view on life through their own lens and the way they see things. Many rap artists grow up in extreme poverty and harsh circumstances that would be difficult for some to understand.Their songs reflect the environment that they know and the things they see. For instance, Outpace Shaker was a famous rapper in the nineties; he grew up in poverty, his mother was addicted to crack cocaine and he did not have a father fugue in his life. By the time he was a teenager he was in and out of detentions centers; he was involved in selling drugs as a way to support himself and his family. His music lyrics inspired many young people around the globe. He wrote about people being killed in the ghetto and how rap music saved his life.Young males that grow up in poverty, without a father end up turning to rap as a positive outlet (escape) and look up to the artist as role model. Rap music changed the life of Outpace Shaker and inspired many young people around the globe. The author might argue that the key concepts used in the article are relevant and speak volume about what rap music can do to a person who believe and enjoy such material. For instance, teenagers have been turning to rap music to solve their problems; however t can be very destructive in the building of their moral character. They look up to the rappers that rap about violence, drugs and killing of cops as role model. Teenagers are easily influence by what they see and hear, however, music producers usually market these types of music to them. Rap music can also have a negative impact on language and speech. In many rap songs, the ;N word is used several times. Slang and ungrammatical sentences are also used. For example, ;imam be, we go party it ungrammatical sentences, the more they will use it in their daily speech. Rap music goes not change a persons moral character or behavior and lead to corruption. If that were the case, everyone that has been exposed to media, whether it is through television shows, magazines, movies or music would have a poor moral character. The author of this article does raise interesting arguments to be heard but that is all it is. The author makes some very bold statements without backing them up and providing the reader with facts or strong examples. Bad behavior, corruption of moral character, violence and crime have been around long before rap music and will be around long after rap music.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

An Introduction to Shakespeare Prose

An Introduction to Shakespeare Prose What is Shakespeare prose? How does it differ to verse? The difference between them is central to understanding Shakespeares writing - but it is not as difficult as you might think. Shakespeare moved between prose and  verse  in his writing to give his characters more depth and vary the overall rhythmic structure of his plays. His treatment of prose is as skillful as his verse. What Is Shakespeare Prose? Prose has: Run-on lines (unlike iambic pentameter)No rhyme or metric schemeThe qualities of everyday language You can easily spot dialogue written in prose because it appears as a block of text, unlike the strict rhythmic patterns of Shakespeare’s verse. Why Did Shakespeare Use Prose? Shakespeare used prose to tell us something about his characters by interrupting the rhythmic patterns of the play. Many of Shakespeare’s low-class characters speak in prose to distinguish them from the higher-class, verse-speaking characters. However, this should be treated as a general â€Å"rule of thumb†. For example, one of Hamlet’s most poignant speeches is delivered entirely in prose, even though he is a Prince: I have of late – but wherefore I know not – lost all my mirth, forgone all custom of exercise; and indeed it goes so heavily with my disposition that this goodly frame, the earth, seems to me a sterile promontory. This most excellent canopy the air, look you, this brave o’erhanging, this majestical roof fretted with golden fire – why, it appears no other thing to me than a foul and pestilent congregation of vapours.Hamlet, Act 2, Scene 2 In this passage, Shakespeare interrupts Hamlet’s verse with a heartfelt realization about the brevity of human existence. The immediateness of the prose presents Hamlet as genuinely thoughtful – we are in no doubt that, after dropping the verse, Hamlet’s words are solemn. Shakespeare Uses Prose to Create a Range of Effects To make dialogue more realisticMany short, functional lines like â€Å"And I, my lord,† and â€Å"I pray you leave me† are written in prose to give the play a sense of realism. In some longer speeches, Shakespeare allowed the audience to identify more closely with his characters by using the everyday language of the time.To create comic effectSome of Shakespeare’s low-class comic creations aspire to speak in the formal language of their superiors, but do not have the intelligence to achieve this and therefore become objects of ridicule. For example, the uneducated Dogberry in Much Ado About Nothing attempts to use more formal language but keeps getting it wrong. In Act 3, Scene 5, he informs Leonato that â€Å"Our watch, sir, have indeed comprehended two auspicious persons.† He means â€Å"apprehended† and â€Å"suspicious†.To suggest a character’s mental instabilityIn King Lear, Lear’s verse deteriorates into prose as the play unfolds to suggest his increasingly erratic mental condition. We can also see a similar technique at work in the above passage from Hamlet. Why Is Shakespeare’s Use of Prose Important? In Shakespeare’s day, it was conventional to write in verse, which was seen as a sign of literary excellence. By writing some of his most serious and poignant speeches in prose, Shakespeare was fighting against this convention. It is interesting that some plays like Much Ado About Nothing are written almost entirely in prose – an exceptionally brave move for an Elizabethan playwright.

Friday, November 22, 2019

3 Ways to Survive Your Bully Boss

3 Ways to Survive Your Bully Boss We’ve all had that boss. The narcissist. The Egotist. The Liar. The Manipulator. Bad bosses can span a wide variety of unhelpful traits. They can be self-serving, inaccessible, inconsistent, quick to blame, uninspiring, uninspired, unable to connect with people, negative, demeaning, overly demanding, bullying, and/or brutish. But they don’t have to get you down.Dealing with a bad boss can be discouraging- even detrimental to your career. But there are a few concrete things that you can do to make your situation better. Don’t let the negativity coming from your crazy boss get to you. Instead, follow this advice  to make your work environment a better, more peaceful and productive place:1. Don’t assume you’re to blame.Bullies are bullies. Your boss isn’t picking on you because of anything you are doing wrong. Your boss is the one doing wrong. Once you realize his or her bad behavior is a character trait, not a response to a flaw of yours, the n you can get to work solving the problem from another angle.2. Save it for the record.What happened when? If your boss is inappropriate or hostile via text or voice mail or in an email, save it! Documentation is your biggest ally. Keep a detailed journal or record of every incident, with the time and location and details about exactly what was said or done. Also make note of any witnesses. This evidence will be crucial should you ever need to take things up the ladder.3. Report your bully boss to HR.Call for backup. HR departments exist to help you if you’re being abused at work. You’re not just protecting yourself, you’re also saving future employees or coworkers the pain of having to go through the same ordeal. Present your evidence up the chain of command and keep your cool. You’ve done everything right and justice will be on your side.It will take time, but things will get better- and you’ll have done your part to make your workplace safer for everyone. Be confident and secure in yourself and stay strong in your fight for fairness.How to Survive a Bully Boss

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Should certain types of products be banned from advertised through Essay

Should certain types of products be banned from advertised through magazines billboards, commercials posters - Essay Example Advertising employs some mental pressure by attracting feelings of insufficiency on the targeted consumers, sometimes causing harm. It is, therefore, the responsibility of any advertising agency to adhere to the rules and regulations that are stipulated to shield the consumer from false and unsafe information. Some adverts still do not comply with the aforementioned rules and regulations hence leading to advertisement bans on some products (Cohen, 2011). This essay will analyse certain products that need to be banned from public domain and give appropriate reasons why they should be banned. Discussion The first product that should be banned is tobacco products like cigarettes. Tobacco manufacturers have been able to penetrate the market through a diverse media promotion campaigns including use of posters and billboards. Some of the countries have banned tobacco adverts, and it should be banned fully. The early 20th century adverts were more pronounced using large posters and billboar ds. Some of the companies had created slogans for different types of cigarettes and also acquired full support from renowned people. Some of these adverts went to the extent of using doctors and children in their attempts to lure new customers. At this time, smoking was fashionable, and there were fewer reports on health effects (Johnson, 2006). Today, tobacco has many serious complications. Tobacco is responsible for lung cancer and erectile dysfunction among its users, and approximately greater than half a million people die annually hence a lot of health costs to the tax payer. These tobacco bans will shield many children from the disastrous effects of advertising. A substantial young audience will also be salvaged from these adverts. Advertising to children is dangerous since their comprehension of personality and money is much undeveloped. They also know little on their desires and preferences and on utilization of their resources rationally to fulfill their needs. These advert s can, therefore, lead to false beliefs among them. To shield these immature children and youth, the advertisers should not deliberately deceive children and these adverts should be banned (Cohen, 2011). Secondly, slimming products should be banned from the public domain. Recently, the demand for these products has risen among the young teens, and the manufacturers have taken advantage of this scenario to deceive their customers (Srinivasan, 2009). Majority of these adverts gives the impression that slenderness is equal to beauty. Some have gone to use Photoshop drawings to bring out these impressions. These adverts mainly appeal to the teen girls who labour with body appearance issues, recognition and self esteem. When these teens look at how faultless and immaculate women look in those magazines and billboards, this motivates them to be like the models not knowing that it is just a marketing strategy employed by the manufactures in order to lure them to buy their products. This ma kes them make irrational decisions about these products which might end up being harmful to their health (Johnson, 2006). Thirdly, the category of products that should be banned is the fast and high fat content food. These foods if taken in small quantities do not pose any serious health challenge; however, majority of people recently have become obese hence increasing their susceptibility to lifestyle diseases like cancer. Health experts link these problems to consumption of high

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Business Policy and Strategic Management Research Paper - 3

Business Policy and Strategic Management - Research Paper Example The very reason as to why Starbucks has been able to generate the kind of competitive advantage within its industry is based upon the fact that its differentiation strategy has provided it an edge over others. A closer analysis of the history of the firm would suggest that the Starbucks started with selling of the coffee manufacturing equipments which were considered as finest in the industry. Its use of the Arabica beans- highest quality coffee beans in the world provides its coffee a unique taste and quality lacking in other products offered by the competitors. (Anders). It is also important to note that Starbucks marketing strategy has also duly supported the firm’s traditional superiority in offering high quality coffee over different destinations in the world through its strategic business partners. It is also important to note that the kind of growth achieved by Starbucks over the period of time is also based upon its overall organizational model and how it is integrated with its overall strategy.

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Smoking ban Essay Example for Free

Smoking ban Essay Smoking ban in almost all work places and public areas has made hotly debated issue of late. While many people approve of this legislation, some take issue with it for fear of their freedom being restricted. Nevertheless, from my personal standpoint, I am convinced that banning smoking has its pros and cons for the reasons illustrated below. On the one hand, it is irrefutable that cigar prohibition protects human’s health. To demonstrate, when having fewer chances of smoking, people, both smokers and non smokers, can avoid critical diseases, particularly lung cancer and ingesting blockage. Additionally, it may also prevent working environment from being spoilt, especially beneficial for non smokers, who find it impossible to concentrate sitting in smokes. A further point worth mentioning is by this ban we can reduce dramatically the rate of frequent absentees, when workers have to go out puffing a cigarette and therefore decrease work outcomes’ quality. On the whole, should prohibition against smoking in place, it will benefit not only smokers, non smokers’ health but also their working productivity. On the other hand, there still are some drawbacks luking in this new set of law. In smokers’ viewpoints, it is human’s right to decide to smoke wherever they want. Furthermore, if heavy smokers are kept from smoking for too long, chances are that it will render them unable to get down to work, not to mention being irritable and awkward to their colleuges. Last but not least, prohibiting people from smoking in offices, where they are for most of their waking time, threatens a dramatic drop in tobacco industry ‘ sales, which is contributing a large amount of money to taxations. Nonetheless, cigarette ban, in my view, is too strict and not utterly satisfactory in some cases. This is because there are many people who work alone in an office, which, in turn, means they will not harm others even if they smoke all days.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

The Insanity Defense :: A Crime Of Insanity

When someone commits a crime, he or she may use mental illness as a defense. This is called an insanity plea or insanity defense. What the insanity defense does is try to give the alleged perpetrator a fair trial. At least in extreme cases, society agrees with this principle. The problem is where do we draw the line. Under what circumstances is a person considered insane, and when are they not? The trouble with the insanity defense in recent years is the assumption that virtually all criminals have some sort of mental problem. One important point is that the crime itself, no matter how appalling, does not demonstrate insanity. Today, the insanity defense has become a major issue within the legal system. If the defendant is clearly out of touch with reality, the police and district attorney ordinarily agree to bypass the trial and let the defendant enter a mental hospital. On the other hand, if the defendant has no serious signs of mental illness, the defense attorneys will not attempt an insanity defense. This is because they know that juries are reluctant to accept it. Basically, the only way for a lawyer to prove his client’s insanity is to try to project what his client was thinking (or not thinking) at the time that the crime was committed. This is usually done by enlisting the testimonies of a psychologists or psychiatrists, who are known as â€Å"expert witnesses.† Both legal and mental health professionals have long struggled to establish a clear and acceptable definition of insanity. Insanity is a legal term, not a psychological or medical one. The Sarasons prefer to use the term â€Å"maladaptive behavior† instead of insane or insanity. Maladaptive behavior is, â€Å"behavior that deals inadequately with a situation, especially one that is stressful† (5). Adaptation is the way people balance what they do and want to do, and what the environment/community requires of them. Successful adaptation depends on a person’s stress (situations that impose demands on him or her), vulnerability (likelihood of a maladaptive response), and coping skills (techniques that help him or her deal with difficulties/stress) (5). Consider the recent school shootings as an example. Students who are teased and bullied are experiencing stress. Some students have low vulnerability and choose to talk about the situation with a parent or teacher, which is a good coping strategy.

Monday, November 11, 2019

How to measure employees’ performance Essay

Emulation of strategies incorporated amongst organizations is a tell-tale whereby the former company is performing admirably efficient and effective through well formulated resources allocation on its strategy. Of the many decisions a company must face to achieve success is how to measure employees’ performance and how to reward them (Kleiner and Gautreau 2001). For the avant-garde management accounting information system, it cannot live on financial measure alone because management can manipulate such data by cutting cost, investing less and hence forth. The accounting system requires a mix of non-financial and financial data to give a more balanced view of firm’s overall performance (Bushman et al. 1996). Research by Cumby and Conrod, 2001 indicates that non-financial information is highly value-relevant for knowledge-based industries and shown as an effective tool to evaluate an academic organization and demonstrate accountability to government and the public (Dorweiler and Yakhou 2005). Current non-financials could also predict organization’s future financial performance (Smith 2005; Amaratunga et al. 2001). Unlike usual performance measurements system decades ago, more importantly now, is to measure performances relative to organizations’ goals and strategies. Amongst other key issues in the development of performance measurement tools in past decades have been quandaries pertaining customer loyalty. The emerging new generation is more educated with their customer rights thus, more demanding. Declining customer loyalty is due to extensive choices. Hence, corporations have to focus strategy and behavior to not merely selling products/services, but also serving customers (Hope and Fraser 2001). Moreover, there has been a need to increase firms’ pace of innovation. Competitions have proliferated and firms must constantly refresh their strategies and methods; generating new business concepts and processes while coping with the changing nature of technology (Kaplan and Norton 2001). Additionally, prices are falling and costs ought to reduce to remain competitive and profitable. Hence, operation costs are challenged (Inman 2000). Furthermore, talented people are hard to find; even harder to attract. Firms then have to provide a challenging work environment that enables personal development (Hope and Fraser 2001). Large businesses were leading and performing well financially but by early 80s they were displaced as market leaders as competitors vie through quality, innovation, etc (Anthony 1998; cited by Kleiner and Gautreau 2001). Managing intellectual capital or Knowledge Management, is vital to gain competitive advantage at this era. Knowledge management being a long-term strategy, development of BSC helps the company to align its management processes and focuses the entire organization to implement it (Arora, 2002). By ‘implementing’ meaning turning the scorecard into a true management system and sustaining the system (Rohm and Halbach 2006). With BSC, intangible assets are valued (Marr and Adams 2004) while above issues have been addressed also. The scorecard actually balances external measures with the internal measures, financial with non-financial information and short-run with long-run performance drivers (Johnsen 2001; Cobbold and Lawrie 2002a). Strategy of firm in BSC is matched between internal capabilities and external relationships (Kay 1993; cited by Johnsen 2001). Strategy implementation is balancing internal and external demands. Management control and performance measurement are concerned with decision relevance, thus, performance indicators on the BSC are important to managers (Mayston 1985; cited by Johnsen 2001). Learning and growth perspective in BSC can sustain efficient employees while shareholders and customers’ needs are met by realigning values and sustaining good customer relationship in the customer perspective in BSC. Besides, business processes are innovated to keep up with the increasing pace of market uncertainties. BSC helps staff understand more, unlike before, how they could contribute to the strategic success of the organization as well as proven to be a valuable tool in linking vision and strategy to daily actions (CIMA 2001). BSC appears to be very effective and valuable for a divisional manager in a large US company (Mouritsen et al. 2005). The BSC has definitely helped in daily planning activities for different industries. The strength of the scorecard is that it has ascertained the reasons due to its ‘balanced-nature’ (Carmona and Gronlund 2003). In higher learning institutions, the European Foundation for Quality Management was used as performance measurement, do not reflect interests of all stakeholders and not linked to strategic management. Studies show that BSC is adopted instead (Cullen et al. 2003). Hotels also rely on non-financial and financial indicators with increasing confidence in strategic issues (Harris and Mongiello 2001). By using BSC, organizations can also minimize the negative consequences of risk (Scholey 2006) and identify cost reduction opportunities, resulting in overall improvement (Anand et al. 2005). Albeit Cobbold and Lawrie, 2002a claimed BSC to be complete as no additional perspective of believed worth is added, in reality, variations in basic BSC are common; some add a fifth perspective such as stakeholders, economic factors (Rohm nd; Lord and Shanahan 2006). Some express skepticism about the claimed positive results and commented that BSC is just a number crunching-exercise by accountants or just another latest management fad (Angel and Rampersad 2005). Norreklit, 2000 argued that 4 perspectives do not accommodate all intangible assets, changing the BSC framework may put the causal logic of BSC into question (cited by Marr and Adams 2004). She also argued that the BSC is not a strategic control model because of its rigidness and static focus (Lord et al. 2005). BSC has also been criticized because it is bias towards shareholders and fail to address to employees and suppliers (Smith 2005). Hoque, 2003 states that with wide ranges of measures, may lead to information overload. But findings show that BSC is not perceived to be a fad (Lord et al. 2005). There also appears to have no cause and effect dysfunctional organizational behavior as claimed, the only causal is the improved performance in one perspective leads to an increase in another (Lord et al. 2005). BSC is maturing and approached because of its flexibility (Lord and Shanahan 2006; Bible et al. 2006). It has been argued that BSC does consider employee satisfaction through the learning and growth perspective (Hoque 2003). Numbers of performance measures used were satisfactory and information overload was overcome through BSC (Yeniyurt 2003; McWhorter 2003; Arora 2002). However, BSC experiences difficulty in linking performance measures to strategy (Lord et al. 2005). Other issues include it does not tackle human resource and uncertainties issues usually done in PESTEL analysis (Smith 2005). In recent years, the Porter’s model had made its debut to help managers develop and implement long-term strategy (Sims 2001). The model is used to gain competitive advantage over another but does not define for the strategic unit or as a corporation (Sims 2001). It also does not take into account the dynamics of markets which is rapidly changing. Another development adopted by large number of companies is the Economic Value Added [EVA], which includes the cost of capital, hence creating value but was heavily criticized for not being different from traditional methods (Yeniyurt 2003). The Skandia Navigator [SN] was later developed to measure intellectual capital by adding human perspective to the financial, customer, process and learning perspectives (Roslender and Fincham 2001; Shaikh 2004). Although this opened new research fields on intellectual capital, the SN lacks incorporating financial and non-financial measures which is required to provide better performance measurement (Scarbrough and Carter 2001). Works have been done to modifying the traditional budgeting system-Beyond Budgeting Round Table [BBRT] emerged coping faster with changes and uncertainties of product and strategy lifecycles; leading to lower costs and value creation (Hope and Fraser 2001). Management By Objectives [MBO] by Drucker, 1954 is found consistent with BSC-retained emphasis on achieving financial objectives, focusing on marketing and customers and pursuing innovation (Johnsen 2001). MBO is more open-ended but lacks a valid performance measure while BSC is focused (Anand et al. 2005). BSC usage is higher than other management tools like TQM or ABC (Hendricks et al. 2004). BSC initially was a performance measurement tool, after placing strategy into it, BSC evolved to a strategic performance measurement system, illustrating flexibility and maturity (Bible et al. 2006; Cobbold and Lawrie 2002). Failure to focus attention and commit onto scorecard management and communicating them are reasons BSC whither and die albeit how successful the tool has been (Richardson 2004; cited by Hendricks et al.2004). In conclusion, it is important to realize the limitations of BSC. However, successful implementation by managers would bring about many benefits. Â   Amaratunga D, Baldry D and Sarshar M (2001) ‘Process Improvement through Performance Measurement’, Work Study, 50: 5, p. 179-188 Anand M, Sahay B and Saha S (2005) ‘Balanced Scorecard in Indian Companies’, Vikalpa: Journal for Decision Makers, 30: 2, p. 11-25 Angel R and Rampersad H (2005) ‘Do Scorecards Add Up?’, CA Magazine, p. 12-18 Arora R (2002) ‘Implementing KM-A Balance Scorecard Approach’, Journal of Knowledge Management, 6: 3, p. 240-249 Bible L, Kerr S and Zanini M (2006) ‘The Balanced Scorecard: Here and Back’, Management Accounting Quarterly, 7: 4, p.18-23 Bushman R, Indjejikian R and Smith A (1996) ‘CEO Compensation: The Role of Individual Performance Evaluation’, Journal of Accounting and Economics, 21: 2, p. 161-193 Carmona S and Gronlund A (2003) ‘Measures vs. Actions: the Balanced Scorecard in Swedish Law Enforcement’, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, 23: 12, p. 1475-1496 Cobbold I and Lawrie G (2002) ‘The Development of the Balance Scorecard as a Strategic Management Tool’, paper presented at the PMA Conference, 17-19, July, Boston Cobbold I and Lawrie G (2002a) ‘Classification of Balance Scorecards Based on their Intended Use’, paper presented at the PMA Conference, 17-19, July, Boston CIMA (2001) ‘The Balanced Scorecard-An Overview’, CIMA Technical Briefing, Harvard Business School Press, USA Cullen J, Joyce J, Hassal T and Broadbent M (2003) ‘Quality in Higher Education: from Monitoring to Management, Quality Assurance in Education, 11: 1, p. 5-14 Cumby J and Conrod J (2001) ‘Non-financial Performance Measures in the Canadian Biotechnology Industry’, Journal of Intellectual Capital, 2: 3, p. 1469-1930 Dorweiler V and Yakhou M (2005) ‘Scorecard for Academic Administration Performance on the Campus’, Managerial Auditing Journal, 20: 2, p. 138-144 Harris P and Mongiello M (2001) ‘Key Performance Indicators in European Hotel Properties: General Managers’ Choices and Company Profiles’, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 13: 3, p. 120-127 Hendricks K, Menor L and Wiedman C (2004) ‘The Balanced Scorecard: To Adopt or Not to Adopt?’, Ivey Business Journal, 11/12, p. 1-9 Hope J and Fraser R (2001) ‘Figures of Hate’, Financial Management, February Issue, p. 22-25 Hoque Z (2003) ‘Total Quality Management and the Balanced Scorecard Approach: A Critical Analysis of their Potential Relationships and Directions for Research’, Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 14, p. 553-566 Inman M (2000) ‘The Balanced Scorecard’, ACCA Students’ Newsletter, February Issue, p. 37-41 Johnsen A (2001) ‘Balanced Scorecard: Theoretical Perspectives and Public Management Implications’, Managerial Auditing Journal, 16: 6, p. 319-330 Kaplan R and Norton D (2001) ‘Transforming the Balanced Scorecard from Performance Measurement to Strategic Management: Part 1’, Accounting Horizons 15 Kleiner B and Gautreau A (2001) ‘Recent Trends in Performance Measurement Systems-The Balanced Scorecard Approach’, Management Research News, 24: 3/4, p. 153-156 Lord B and Shanahan Y (2006) ‘Management Accounting in the Corporate Sector: Recent Research’, Chartered Accountants Journal, 3, p. 29-31 Lord B, Shanahan Y and Gage M (2005) ‘The Balanced Scorecard: A New Zealand Perspective’, Pacific Accounting Review, 17:1, p. 49-77 Marr B and Adams C (2004) ‘The Balanced Scorecard and Intangible Assets: Similar Ideas, Unaligned Concepts’, Measuring Business Excellence, 8: 3, p. 18-27 McWhorter L (2003) ‘Does the Balanced Scorecard Reduce Information Overload?’, Management Accounting Quarterly, 4: 4, p. 23-27 Mouritsen J, Larsen H and Bukh P (2005) ‘Dealing with the Knowledge Economy: Intellectual Capital versus Balanced Scorecard’, Journal of Intellectual Capital, 6: 1, p. 8-27 Rohm H (nd) ‘A Balancing Act’, Perform Magazine, 2: 2, p. 1-8 Rohm H and Halbach L (2006) ‘A Balancing Act: Sustaining New Directions’, Perform Magazine, 3: 2, p. 1-8 Roslender R and Fincham R (2001) ‘Thinking Critically about Intellectual Capital Accounting’, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, 14: 4, p. 383-398 Scholey C (2006) ‘Risk and the Balanced Scorecard’, CMA Management, 6/7, p. 32-35 Shaikh J (2004) ‘Measuring and Reporting of Intellectual Capital Performance Analysis’, Journal of American Academy of Business Cambridge, 3, p. 439-448 Scarbrough H and Carter C (2001) ‘Towards a Second Generation of KM?-The People Management Challenge’, Education and Training, 43: 4/5, p. 215-224 Sims A (2001) ‘Generating Strategic Options’, CIMA Insider, September Issue, p. 24-26 Smith M (2005) ‘The Balanced Scorecard’, Financial Management, February Issue, p. 27-28 Yeniyurt S (2003) ‘A Literature Review and Integrative Performance Measurement Framework for Multinational Companies’, Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 21: 3, p. 134-142

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Research Qualitative Review

This paper will critique the qualitative study written by Peiters, et al. (2011), which looks at the journey and barriers older women diagnosed with breast cancer must hurdle to receive treatment. This research was to reveal the complexities of breast cancer diagnosis, treatment and life in general for women greater than seventy-years old. To achieve this task, Peiters, et al. , (2011) implemented the constructivist grounded theory. The data analysis approach appropriately utilized for this research was constructivist grounded theory. This theory allows for self reflection during data gathering and analysis, which divulges any influential prejudices that may arise from both researcher and study subject. Influencing this theory is symbolic interactionism which emphasizes ones’ ultimate ambition and the lifelong social synergy that transpires to achieve it (Peiters, et al. , 2011). The recruitment of participants was obtained by posting flyers in public areas in Southern California and two bordering states. The locations targeted were oncology departments, cancer support agencies, oncologist offices, churches, senior community centers, and retirement centers. Newspaper advertisements, as well were used to elicit participation. Purposive and snowballing techniques were utilized. Screening for eligibility, clearly defined, was done via telephone for inclusions which ended with eighteen women all over the age of seventy, completed treatment for treatment for breast cancer within the last three to fifteen months. Informed consent was obtained and interviews took place mainly in homes or apartments lasting up to two and a half hours. One limitation of the study was that second interviews stopped at only ten women and may have excluded valuable new incite to the study, although researchers claim that second interviews revealed no new data, hence implying data saturation. Adequate thick description was given of the participants, setting and study processes to ensure transferability (Polit & Beck, 2012). Interviews were guided by a questionnaire and responses were tape recorded, followed by verbatim transcription. Examples of interview questions were provided for the reader to convey effectiveness of the process (Polit & Beck, 2012). Other helpful tables provided were the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. Category schemes revealed are three barriers that theses breast cancer survivors faced, which were lack of information, preexisting co-morbidities and multiple health care appointments. These schemes prove logical for the study as they helped elaborate the purpose of the research. Multiple passages from the participants were extracted to give evidence of well interpreted data and emotional state of the participants. Data analysis was systematic initial coding, followed by focused coding using ATLAS. ti, version 6. to magnify reoccurring data. To create a audit trail, memos, field notes and diagrams were written. Two researchers, one of them being the principle investigator and the other well versed in grounded theory analysis, were responsible for coding and analyzing the data. In nursing the level of evidence provides assurance for the methods that were utilized for the study (Polit & Beck, 2012). This research would qualify as level VI, given that it is a single descriptive, qualitative, physiologic study specific to women aged seventy or older and their journey through life with breast cancer. The goals of this research are affirmed by the extensive detailed interviews of eighteen older women and their struggles with breast cancer. Each participant plummeted through barricades to recieveing health care. The importance of an oncology nurse navigator emerged as a valuable role to help clarify the process of obtaining services for healthcare. Meticulous care was taken in the transcription of taped interviews and explicit excerpts were bestowed to the reader to ensure trustworthiness.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

How to Use the Typical French Expression Ah bon

How to Use the Typical French Expression Ah bon The everyday French expression, Ah bon ?, pronounced  Ã‚  [a bo(n)],  is used primarily as a soft interjection, even when its a question, just as we say the equivalent in English, as in: Im going to the movies. Oh, really? The speaker is indicating interest and maybe a little surprise. Its the same in French. An Interjection With Many Meanings Ah bon,  literally means oh good, though  it  commonly translates into English as: Oh yes?Really?Is that so?I see. But there are a dozen more ways it could be correctly translated, too, depending on what you want to express. The expression ah bon, among the most common in the French language,  is, as we noted, really more of an interjection, and, in general, its used to acknowledge what another person just said, to reinforce a sentiment, or to ask for confirmation. Dont be fooled by  the use of bon. It doesnt carry the meaning of good here, so ah bon can be used when talking about both good things and bad things. Examples With ah bon, bon, ah, oh   Jai vu un film intà ©ressant hier. Ah bon ?  Ã‚  I saw an interesting movie yesterday. Oh, yes?  Nous avons dà ©mà ©nagà © aprà ¨s le dà ©cà ¨s de mon pà ¨re. Ah bon.  Ã‚  We moved after my father died. I see.Je pars aux États-Unis la semaine prochaine.  Ah bon?   Im going to the States next week. Really?  Jaimerais vraiment que tu viennes!  Bon, daccord. Id really like you to come! OK, I will.Bon, je reste.   Right, Ill stay.Il est venu. Ah bon  !   He came. Did he really ?Ils nen ont plus en magasin.  Ah bon  !  [with a ton of resignation] They dont have any more in stock. Oh well !Ah non alors  !   Certainly not !Ah oui  ?    Really ?  Pousser des oh et des ah To ooh and ah

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

The Best ACT Diagnostic Test and How to Use It

The Best ACT Diagnostic Test and How to Use It SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips An ACT diagnostic test is an important part of your ACT prep, but there’s a lot more to it than just answering a few questions and seeing how you score.A diagnostic test can be one of the best tools for shaping your ACT study plan, but you need to know where to find the right ones and how to take them properly. In this guide, we explain what an ACT diagnostic test is, why it’s such an important study tool, where you can find the best diagnostic tests, and every step you should take to get as much valuable info from your diagnostic test as possible. What’s an ACT Diagnostic Test and How Can It Help You? An ACT diagnostic test is a practice test that you take at the beginning of your studying. This is more than just any practice test though. You can use your diagnostic test results to figure out your strengths and weaknesses on the ACT, how well you’re currently scoring, and how much you need to improve.All of these are key pieces of information for developing an effective study plan that’ll get you the ACT results you're aiming for. Without an ACT diagnostic test, you’ll find it much harder to study effectively for the ACT because you won’t know how much progress you need to make or which areas you should be focusing on. We recommend that every person studying for the ACT take a diagnostic test early in their prep. What Are the Best ACT Diagnostic Tests? There are lots of free ACT diagnostic tests out there, but the best ones to take will always be official ACT practice tests.Official ACT practice tests are retired real ACTs, so they'll be very similar to the ACT you see on test day. This is key because, if your diagnostic test isn’t a good replica of the real ACT, your diagnostic test results won’t give you a very accurate idea of how well you’d score on the ACT, so you could end up studying too little, studying too much, or studying the wrong subjects. It’s key that your diagnostic test mimics the difficulty, content, and format of the real ACT.Fortunately, this is easy to do. There are lots of high-quality and free ACT diagnostic test pdfs out there.We actually have links to every free and official ACT practice test available online. Use one of these for your diagnostic. If you’re looking for a shorter free ACT diagnostic test, your options are somewhat limited. There are many unofficial practice quizzes available, but we don’t recommend them since they aren’t as high-quality as official resources.ACT Inc. offers short quizzes for each section of the exam. There are five quizzes for each exam section, and each quiz has five questions. If you choose to take some of these quizzes for your diagnostic test, know that you won’t be able to get an accurate score estimate from them since their format is so different from the format of the actual ACT.Instead, you can use the quizzes to get a general idea of the areas where you’re doing well and where you need to study more. How Should You Take an ACT Diagnostic Test? When you take your ACT diagnostic exam, it’s crucial to mimic real testing conditions as closely as possible so that you can get the most accurate score from your diagnostic.If you give yourself more breaks or time than you’d get on the real test, your diagnostic test results won’t be as useful. Here are the main rules you should follow when taking your diagnostic: Take the test with pencil and paper (You’ll be taking the real ACT this way, so we don’t recommend taking your ACT diagnostic online.) Take the test all in one sitting Keep strict timing for each section (don’t give yourself even one minute extra to complete a section!) Use only the breaks you’d get on the official exam (10 minutes after the Math section and 5 minutes before the Writing section if you’re taking it) Minimize distractions (no music, TV, people talking in the room, etc.) For a more in-depth look at the best way to take ACT practice tests, check out our guide specifically on the topic. How Should You Analyze Your ACT Diagnostic Test Results? Big Picture Questions After you’ve taken your diagnostic test, you’ll need to break down your test results to understand exactly what you need to work on and where you can improve. Here are three of the first questions you should ask yourself. Which Sections Were Your Best? Your Worst? After you’ve looked at your overall score, review your section scores for English, Math, Reading, and Science. How do they compare to each other? Are some section scores significantly higher than others?Students often divide their study time equally between each of the ACT sections or read entire prep books all the way through to make sure they’re learning everything they can. However, if your section scores vary widely, this isn’t the most efficient use of your time. You want to concentrate more study time on the section(s) where you need to make the biggest improvement. So if, say, your Science score is the lowest of your section scores, you’ll want to spend more time studying Science than you would studying for Math, English, or Reading. Which Types of Questions Did You Struggle the Most With? When your review the results of your ACT diagnostic test, you’ll be able to see not only which sections you were stronger or weaker on, but also which question types you struggled with the most.For example, the Science section has three different types of questions. Maybe you did pretty well on Data Representation questions but struggled on the Conflicting Viewpoints questions. The more detailed your analysis is, the more it’ll help you develop a study plan that effectively targets your weaknesses and helps you raise your score.We have guides that explain the different question types you’ll see on each section of the ACT: English, Math, Reading, and Science. Were You Pressed for Time? The ACT is strictly timed, and if you ran out of time on any section of your diagnostic, that’s absolutely something you need to focus on during your studying.Leaving just a few questions blank on each section because you didn’t have time to answer them can have a major impact on your score. The ACT expects you to answer many questions in a limited amount of time, and many students struggle with completing the test within the time limits.If you felt you knew most of the information being tested but just didn’t have the time to answer all the questions, working on your timing skills will be key to improving your ACT score. How Should You Analyze Your ACT Diagnostic Test Results? Nitty Gritty Questions Once you’ve looked at the big picture info you got from your diagnostic, it’s time for a more detailed analysis. To do this, you should go through every question you got wrong (or just guessed on) on your diagnostic ACT and figure out why you answered it incorrectly. For each question you answered incorrectly, think about why you got it wrong. There are generally four reasons people make mistakes on exams: Time Issue: You didn’t have enough time to answer the question. Question Comprehension Issue: You knew the information needed to correctly solve the question, but the question was too complicated, you weren’t sure what exactly was being asked, or you were tricked by the question. Procedural/Content Issue: You weren’t sure how to solve a question, or you didn’t have the background knowledge needed to solve it. Careless Error: You knew how to solve the question, but you made a silly mistake that caused you to choose the wrong answer. We give detailed explanations for how to overcome each of these issues in our guide to going over ACT questions you got wrong, but below are key solutions for each of the four issues. Time Issue To get a better handle of the ACT’s timing and maximize the amount of time you get on each section, there are several techniques to try.First, don’t get stuck on a single question and waste so much time on it you don’t have a chance to answer other questions. If you’ve stared at a question for 60 seconds and have no idea how to solve it, skip it and move on. You can always come back to it at the end of the section if you have more time.Second, for many questions, you’ll see some questions that are obviously incorrect. Do yourself a time-saving favor and cross these off in your booklet immediately. The faster you can eliminate wrong answer choices, the faster you can solve for the correct answer. Finally, one of the best ways to get faster on the ACT is to take lots of practice tests. By doing so you’ll become more familiar with the test and know what to expect and what shortcuts you can use to answer questions. Question Comprehension Issue This issue is especially common with people who read questions quickly in hopes of saving time. Even though you’ll be pressed for time on the ACT, spending an extra few seconds to figure out exactly what a question is asking you is well worth your time. Many students underline key parts of a question to make sure they’re not missing any important information when they read it.This can be particularly helpful for Reading and Science questions, where you’ll need to get your information from long passages. Knowing exactly what you’re looking for can help you save time and ensure you’re looking for the right information. Procedural/Comprehension Issue Both of these issues can be solved by building up your knowledge of what the ACT tests and how its questions are worded.For procedural problems, the best way to improve is to answer lot of practice questions so you become familiar with what ACT questions look like. ACT prep books can also give you insight into how to solve questions.For comprehension issues, you can brush up on the content the ACT tests by using class notes, textbooks on the material, or an ACT prep book. Careless Error In order to stop making careless errors, you need to figure out what’s causing them in the first place.Were you pressed for time? Then improving your time management skills will help.Did you get tripped up by one of the ACT’s common tricks, like only solving for x when you were supposed to solve for 2x? Reading prep books to learn common tricks can help you avoid making those mistakes again.Leaving yourself a few minutes at the end of each ACT section to go over your answers can also help you catch any careless mistakes you may have made. 6 Steps to Creating the Best ACT Prep Plan for You After you’ve taken your ACT diagnostic test and reviewed your results, you can use that information to create your ACT study plan. Below are the six steps to follow to create a study plan that’ll help you strengthen your weaknesses and get the ACT score you’re aiming for. #1: Set an ACT Goal Score Once you have the results from your ACT diagnostic, you need to set a target score so you know what your goal is when you take the actual ACT.To set a target score, first make a list of the colleges you want to apply to. Then find the average ACT scores of admitted students for each of those schools. (This info is usually available on each school’s class profile.)Find the highest average ACT score on your list. That's your goal score because reaching it will give you a good shot at getting into each of your potential schools. Once you have your goal score, compare it to your diagnostic score. Are they close? Far apart? Are there certain sections where you met your goal score but others where you didn’t?Having this info will help you determine your actions for the rest of the steps in your study plan. #2: Figure Out How Long You Need to Study How much you need to study for the ACT depends on the difference between your diagnostic test results and your goal score.Here are our estimates for the total number of hours you'll need to prep based on the ACT score improvement you want: Composite ACT Points You Want to Improve Hours of Study Needed 0-1 points 10 hours 1-2 points 20 hours 2-4 points 40 hours 4-6 points 80 hours 6-9 points 150+ hours Once you know how long you plan on studying, you can decide how many hours you want to study a week and work backwards to figure out how many weeks/months you’ll need to prepare and when you should take the ACT. #3: Get High-Quality Study Resources In order to have a great study plan, you’re going to need to use the best study materials out there.We’ve already discussed the importance of using official practice tests when you study for the ACT. Unofficial practice tests can sometimes vary greatly from the real exam, which means you’ll be taking tests that don’t help or, worse, prepare you for the wrong material. Always use official practice ACTs when you can. A prep book can also be one of the most useful tools for your ACT studying. They can be especially helpful at explaining tricky concepts and breaking down how to solve different types of ACT problems.Check out our guide to the top ACT prep books to learn which are the best prep books out there. #4: Focus on Your Weaknesses As we discussed above, it’s important for you to identify your weak areas and prioritize strengthening them. Once you know which subjects or question types you want to improve in, there are several ways to go about doing this: Reviewing content: either in a prep book or school notes Answer practice questions Asking for help if needed: If you’ve read through all your relevant notes on a subject, you may want to try asking a classmate who is also taking the ACT for help or look into getting a tutor. #5: Take Regular Practice ACTs Your ACT diagnostic isn’t the only practice test you should take before exam day. Regular practice tests will help you track your progress and get more familiar with the exam.We recommend taking three to six full-length practice ACTs before test day.There are currently five official practice ACTs available for free, so definitely make use of them. #6: Regularly Check Your Progress As you study for the ACT, you should regularly step back and analyze how things are going. Are you making the progress you’re wanting? If not, what do you think you should change about your study plan? Are you able to get in the number of study hours you want to? Where are you still struggling? How can you fix that issue? This is a key step to follow because if something’s not working, you’re not going to see the improvements you want, no matter how often you keep doing it.If you’re stuck you might consider looking at tutors or reading our list of the 18 best tips for the ACT to get some new study ideas. What's Next? Ready to get a perfect ACT score? Read our famous guide on what it takes, written by an expert 36 scorer. Looking for more ACT practice tests?Check out our massive collection of official and unofficial ACT practice tests. Not sure when you should take the ACT?Get a complete study plan for the ACT to figure out the best date for you. Want to improve your ACT score by 4 points? Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes your prep program to your strengths and weaknesses. We also have expert instructors who can grade every one of your practice ACT essays, giving feedback on how to improve your score. Check out our 5-day free trial:

Saturday, November 2, 2019

Views of Cultural Ecologists on Religion and Magic Research Paper

Views of Cultural Ecologists on Religion and Magic - Research Paper Example The history of religions tends to adopt an evolutionary view where it appears that the horizon of religion developed from the earth to heavens. The evolutionary approach mainly supported by cultural ecologists tends to support the connection between religion and ecology. Cultural ecologists focus on discovering the similarities and differences of different cultures with the interest of understanding why people live the way they do and why certain things are unique to some cultures. Ecologists present different views on religion with a particular consistent disagreement with the thinking of outsiders that the more isolated tribe style cultures believe in magic. This paper shows how cultural ecologists view religion and magic, how they relate, as well as why some cultures might believe in one, or both. According to Debnath (2003), the oldest layer of religion, under headings, such as natural religion, hunting magic and agrarian religion, is intimately linked to the relationship between humans and nature. One of the renowned cultural ecologists, Marvin Harris takes pleasure in finding concrete ecological pragmatism everywhere in the history of religion, from Aztec human sacrifice to the Hindu veneration of the cows. The ritual engagement with nature, whether in hunting magic or agricultural fertility rites, often contains an element of magic and thus the attempt to gain power nature. Cultural ecologists view magic as an attempt to gain power over nature, a concept that greatly differs from the religious views where nature appears to influence the way things are and they are not. From an ecological perspective, magic remains an old dream of humankind which has been partially fulfilled in the modern error (Olson, 2010). Religion and magic are viewed as cognitively instrumental, where they provide an explanation of the world in terms of superhuman agency to believers and by extension a religious or magical technique by which they can exert significant control over th eir surroundings. A distinctive difference between religion and magic revolves around the concept of reason and faith in which the reason belongs to the latter while faith and rituals belong to religion (Debnath, 2003). Reasons Why Some Cultures Accept either Religion or Magic or Both Cultural ecologists assert that good or evil fortune follows from one’s choices of habitation. For example, Feng-shui is recognized to have a strong magical or religious component, in which it was believed that cutting down the Feng-shui grove often translates into a disaster to town, and the more old the trees were found the more good luck it conferred to the town residents (Sutton & Anderson, 2009). The magical component associated with the tree is widely accepted in south China, serving to persuade millions of peasants to sacrifice personal gains for the long-term community benefit. This example explains the connection between magic and environment and its role in the conservation of the ecos ystems. The Chinese community widely accepts the concept of magic than any other part of the world owing to its close association to their environment and the perceived benefits in believing in certain magic components in the ecosystem. In many case, religion is widely accepted due to its detachment from the individual figure compared to magic which focuses on the capabilities of the person performing the magic. In addition, the concept of realism and the basis fiction that surround magic further