Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Summary and Response on Growing Up in America

Amanda Stivala Composition 1030-72 Summary and Response 9/24/12 Growing up in America one doesn’t really question our customs or the daily lives of the people here. Everyone kind of has a precedent for our everyday live and no one really tries to break the mold on that. Poranee Natadecha- Sonsel argues that Americans are unlike many other countries because they have a certain individualism about everything they do in their culture.In her article, â€Å"The Young, the Rich, and the Famous: Individualism as American Cultural Value†, the author reiterates over and over again that the way Americans value their individualism really impresses her. She names a few examples of American individualism such as conversational topics, privacy, and family life. Ms. Sponsel further evaluates each subtopic thus shedding more light on her argument. One of the author’s many arguments about American individualism is how they converse with other people. Associated essay: †On Compassion†She notes that when asked the time old question of, â€Å"How are you? † , Americans most of the time have one set response only and don’t reveal much information about how they really are that day. Ms. Sponsel seems taken back by how Americans don’t really appear to care about how the other person is feeling and just blurt out the automated response of, â€Å"I’m good, how are you? ’. She often references the customs of her culture back in Thailand and how very different it is from American culture.She notes how open they are with everyone they talk to and pretty much tell their whole life story to everyone they meet. America’s individualism set’s them apart from many other countries, not just Thailand and every country has their own way of doing things. Ms. Sponsel is a well educated anthropologist, so it is her job to study a culture and watch how it operates which is why America’ s such individual culture really shocks her. America has a culture unlike any other where privacy is a main component. She emphasizes that even from a young age privacy is introduced into our lives.She points out that unlike other more traditional countries, America is one of the few countries where an infant is given their own room separate from their parents and are progressively taught to become independent emotionally and economically from their families. She once again references Thailand and their family cultures by saying that in Thai families all of the members of the family stick together and take care of each other and the children of the family really aren’t given independency until they get married and move out.Ms. Sponsel tries to show the extreme differences between the two cultures to emphasize America’s individualism. In response to Ms. Sponsel’s article about American individualism, I do agree for the most part with that she has to prove when sh e says that America is very different from the other cultures throughout the world especially the Thai culture she constantly compared America to. What she fails to recognize however, is that America is a cultural melting pot.Most Asian countries are homogenous and really haven’t become integrated, so sure it’s easy to have one steady flow of the same culture there. However, in America we have so many different cultures so it’s really difficult to conform to one specific race’s cultural norms. Some of her sub arguments in relation to her main point are a little far fetched to me though.. One of Ms. Sponsel’s big issue is that Americans are very private especially in the home and with their own families. I don’t understand why she is stunned that American children are taught to become independent at such a young age.The younger you learn that, the better equipped you will be for the real world once you become an adult and then you won’ t have to rely on your parents to help you with everything. The Thai culture that Ms. Sponsel always refers back to seems to not want their children to be independent at all, let alone leave the house and move out when they married adults. Americans have such a busy and fast paced life, being sheltered from that type of individualism would affect their lives in very negative ways.One really prime example of how her culture can show evidence of being overprotective of their children unlike Americans can be is, when Ms. Sponsel said that when she was working at an East-West summer camp one of the supervisors brought their 10 month old child and when the baby tried to walk it fell right down. Naturally the baby started crying, but it wasn’t the baby’s parents that went to go help the baby, it was all the Asian students. The parents knew that the baby would be fine so they left it alone and eventually he got up and started walking again.It’s a perfect example of how American’s individualistic culture norms are just totally opposite of other cultures, we know that one day that baby is going to have to get up and get over it so why not start at a young age so they get used to it instead of coddling them like the Asian culture or any other culture different than our would have done. Overall, I do see some very valid points provided by Ms. Sponsel about Americans and their odd sense of individualism, but also on the contrary she does have some faults where she overlooks some key aspects in her argument.

Review of New Types of Relation Extraction Methods

This is explained by the fact that patterns do not tend to uniquely identify the given relation. The systems which participated in MUCH and deal with relation extraction also rely on rich rules for identifying relations (Fought et al. 1 998; Gargling et al. 1998; Humphreys et al. 1998). Humphreys et al. 1998) mention that they tried to add only those rules which were (almost) certain never to generate errors in analysis; therefore, they had adopted a low recall and high precision approach. However, in this case, many relations may be missed due to the lack of unambiguous rules to extract them.To conclude, knowledge-based methods are not easily portable to other domains and involve too much manual labor. However, they can be used effectively if the main aim is to get results quickly in well-defined domains and document collections. 5 Supervised Methods Supervised methods rely on a training set where domain-specific examples eave been tagged. Such systems automatically learn extractors for relations by using machine-learning techniques. The main problem of using these methods is that the development of a suitably tagged corpus can take a lot of time and effort.On the other hand, these systems can be easily adapted to a different domain provided there is training data. There are different ways that extractors can be learnt in order to solve the problem of supervised relation extraction: kernel methods (Shoo and Grossman 2005; Bunches and Mooney 2006), logistic regression (Kamala 2004), augmented parsing (Miller et al. 2000), Conditional Random Fields CRY) (Calcutta et al. 2006). In RE in general and supervised RE in particular a lot of research was done for IS-A relations and extraction of taxonomies.Several resources were built based on collaboratively built Wisped (YOGA – (Issuance et al. 2007); Depended – (Rue et al. 2007); Freebase – (Blacker et al. 2008); Wicking (Instates et al. 2010)). In general, Wisped is becoming more and more popula r as a source for RE. E. G. (Opponent and Strobe 2007; Unguent et al. AAA, b, c). Query logs are also considered a valuable source of information for RE and their analysis is even argued to give better results than other suggested methods in the field (Passes 2007, 2009). 5. 19 Weakly-supervised Methods Some supervised systems also use bootstrapping to make construction of the training data easier. These methods are also sometimes referred to as â€Å"huckleberries information extraction†. Bring (1998) describes the DIPPER (Dual Iterative Pattern Relation Expansion) method used for identifying authors of the books. It uses an initial small set of seeds or a set of hand- constructed extraction patterns to begin the training process. After the occurrences of needed information are found, they are further used for recognition of new patterns.Regardless of how promising bootstrapping can seem, error propagation becomes a serious problem: mistakes in extraction at the initial stag es generate more mistakes at later stages and decrease the accuracy of the extraction process. For example, errors that expand to named entity recognition, e. G. Extracting incomplete proper names, result in choosing incorrect seeds for the next step of bootstrapping. Another problem that can occur is that of semantic drift. This happens when senses of the words are not taken into account and therefore each iteration results in a move from the original meaning.Some researchers (Korea and How 2010; Hove et al. 2009; Korea et al. 2008) have suggested ways to avoid this problem and enhance the performance of this method by using doubly- anchored patterns (which include both the class name and a class member) as well as graph structures. Such patterns have two anchor seed positions â€Å"{type} such as {seed} and *† and also one open position for the terms to be learnt, for example, pattern â€Å"Presidents such as Ford and {X}† can be used to learn names of the presidents .Graphs are used for storing information about patterns, found words and links to entities they helped to find. This data is further used for calculating popularity and productivity of the candidate words. This approach helps to enhance the accuracy of bootstrapping and to find high-quality information using only a few seeds. Korea (2012) employs a similar approach for the extraction Of cause-effect relations, where the pattern for bootstrapping has a form of â€Å"X and Y verb Z†, for example, and virus cause Human-based evaluation reports 89 % accuracy on 1500 examples. Self-supervised Systems Self-supervised systems go further in making the process of information extraction unsupervised. The Knolling Web II system (Edition et al. 2005), an example of a self-supervised system, learns â€Å"to label its own training examples using only a small set of domain-independent extraction patterns†. It uses a set of generic patterns to automatically instantiate relation-specif ic extraction rules and then learns domain-specific extraction rules and the whole process is repeated iteratively. The Intelligence in Wisped (IPP) project (Weld et al. 2008) is another example of a self-supervised system.It bootstraps from the Wisped corpus, exploiting the fact that each article corresponds to a primary object and that any articles contain infusions (brief tabular information about the article). This system is able to use Wisped infusions as a starting point for training 20 the classifiers for the page type. IPP trains extractors for the various attributes and they can later be used for extracting information from general Web pages. The disadvantage of IPP is that the amount of relations described in Wisped infusions is limited and so not all relations can be extracted using this method. . 1 Open Information Extraction Edition et al. (2008) introduced the notion of Open Information Extraction, which is opposed to Traditional Relation Extraction. Open information e xtraction is â€Å"a novel extraction paradigm that tackles an unbounded number of relations†. This method does not presuppose a predefined set of relations and is targeted at all relations that can be extracted. The Open Relation extraction approach is relatively a new one, so there is only a small amount of projects using it. Texturing (Bank and Edition 2008; Bank et al. 2007) is an example of such a system.A set of relinquishment's lexicon-syntactic patterns is used to build a relation- independent extraction model. It was found that 95 % Of all relations in English can be described by only 8 general patterns, e. G. â€Å"El Verb E â€Å". The input of such a system is only a corpus and some relation-independent heuristics, relation names are not known in advance. Conditional Random Fields (CRY) are used to identify spans of tokens believed to indicate explicit mentions of relationships between entities and the whole problem of relation extraction is treated as a problem of sequence labeling.The set of linguistic features used in this system is similar to those used by other state of-the-art relation extraction systems and includes e. G. Part-of-speech tags, regular expressions for detection of capitalization and punctuation, context words. At this stage of development this system â€Å"is able to extract instances of the four most frequently observed relation types: Verb, Noun+Prep, Verb+Prep and Infinitive†. It has a number of limitations, which are however common to all RE systems: it extracts only explicitly expressed relations that are primarily word-based; relations should occur between entity names within the same sentence.Bank and Edition (2008) report a precision of 88. 3 % and a recall of 45. 2 Even though the system shows very good results the relations are not pacified and so there are difficulties in using them in some other systems. Output Of the system consists Of tepees stating there is some relation between two entities, but there is no generalization of these relations. Www and Weld (2010) combine the idea of Open Relation Extraction and the use of Wisped infusions and produce systems called Weepers and Weeps . Weepers improves Texturing dramatically but it is 30 times slower than Texturing.However, Weeps does not have this disadvantage and still shows an improved F-measure over Texturing between 1 5 % to 34 % on three corpora. Fader et al. 201 1) identify several flaws in previous works in Open Information Extraction: â€Å"the learned extractors ignore both â€Å"holistic† aspects of the relation phrase (e. G. , is it contiguous? ) as well as lexical aspects (e. G. , how many instances of this relation are there? )†. They target these problems by introducing syntactic constraints (e. G. , they require the relation phrase to match the POS tag 21 pattern) and lexical constraints.Their system Revere achieves an AUK which is 30 % better than WOE (Www and Weld 201 0) and Texturing (Bank and Denton 2008). Unshackles et al. (AAA) approach this problem from another angle. They try to mine for patterns expressing various relations and organism then in hierarchies. They explore binary relations between entities and employ frequent items mining (Augural et al. 1993; Syrians and Augural 1 996) to identify the most frequent patterns. Their work results in a resource called PATTY which contains 350. 69 pattern sunsets and substitution relations and achieves 84. 7 % accuracy. Unlike Revere (Fader et al. 201 1) which constrains patterns to verbs or verb phrases that end with prepositions, PATTY can learn arbitrary patterns. The authors employ so called syntactic- ontological-lexical patterns (SOL patterns). These patterns constitute a sequence of words, POS-tags, wildcats, and ontological types. For example, the pattern â€Å"persons [ads] voice * song† would match the strings my Heinousness soft voice in Rehab and Elvis Presley solid voice in his song All shook up.Their approach is based on collecting dependency paths from the sentences where two named entities are tagged (YACHT (Hoffa et al. 2011) is used as a database of all Ones). Then the textual pattern is extracted by finding the shortest paths connecting two entities. All of these patterns are transformed into SOL (abstraction of a textual pattern). Frequent items quinine is used for this: all textual patterns are decomposed into n-grams (n consecutive words). A SOL pattern contains only the n-grams that appear frequently in the corpus and the remaining word sequences are replaced by wildcats.The support set of the pattern is described as the set of pairs of entities that appear in the place Of the entity placeholders in all strings in the corpus that match the pattern. The patterns are connected in one sunset (so are considered synonymous) if their supporting sets coincide. The overlap of the supporting sets is also employed to identify substitution relations between various sunsets. . 2 Di stant Learning Mint et al. (2009) introduce a new term â€Å"distant supervision†. The authors use a large semantic database Freebase containing 7,300 relations between 9 million named entities.For each pair of entities that appears in Freebase relation, they identify all sentences containing those entities in a large unlabeled corpus. At the next step textual features to train a relation classifier are extracted. Even though the 67,6 % of precision achieved using this method has room for improvement, it has inspired many researchers to further investigate in this direction. Currently there are a number of papers ring to enhance â€Å"distant learning† in several directions. Some researchers target the heuristics that are used to map the relations in the databases to the texts, for example, (Takeouts et al. 01 2) argue that improving matching helps to make data less noisy and therefore enhances the quality of relation extraction in general. Hay et al. (2010) propose us ing an undirected graphical model for relation extraction which employs â€Å"distant learning' but enforces selection preferences. Ridded et al. (2010) reports 31 % error reduction compared to (Mint et al. 2009). 22 Another problem that has been addressed is language ambiguity (Hay et al. 01 1, 2012). Most methods cluster shallow or syntactic patterns of relation mentions, but consider only one possible sense per pattern.However, this assumption is often violated in reality. Hay et al. (201 1) uses generative probabilistic models, where both entity type constraints within a relation and features on the dependency path between entity mentions are exploited. This research is similar to DIRT (Line and Panatela 2001 ) which explores distributional similarity of dependency paths in order to discover different representations of the same semantic relation. However, Hay et al. (2011) employ another approach and apply IDA (Belie et al. 2003) with a slight modification: observations are re lation tepees and not words.So as a result of this modification instead of representing semantically related words, the topic latent variable represents a relation type. The authors combine three models: Reel-LAD, Reel-LDAP and Type-LAD. In the third model the authors split the features of a duple into relation level features and entity level features. Relation level features include the dependency path, trigger, lexical and POS features; entity level features include the entity mention itself and its named entity tag. These models output clustering of observed relation tepees and their associated textual expressions.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen

The play â€Å"A doll’s house† is written by Henrik Ibsen and was adapted into a film in 1973. It deals with gender discrimination in the Victorian age. It highlights specifically the paths women of the West have treaded to find respect and equality. Ibsen makes it possible to imagine the barbarities that existed within the law and society of those times. Through the years, controversial writings like these, have intentionally or unintentionally forced women to rise up and reclaim their rightful legal and civil rights. In the Victorian Period law dictated that property; children and income belonged solely to men. Divorce or Separation was unthinkable. Women who worked were frowned upon by society. Their status was equivalent to the slaves, criminals or the insane. The main role of a woman was to reproduce children, keep the house clean, and feed the children while their husbands worked. It is sad that although women in the developed world have found equal rights in this century through various equal rights acts and amendments however the women of the developing world still lack basic rights and struggle everyday between gender power relationships. The entire film takes place at Mr. and Mrs. Torvald Helmer’s Apartment. The film is set in Norway in the late 1800’s during Christmas time. This one room shows various shades of hypocrisy, discrimination, arrogance and dishonesty exhibited by society. The room is a microscopic vision of the world. It shows the plight and suffering of every woman in every household all around the world. The fact that Nora does not leave the room throughout the film shows how she is entrapped in this Victorian Doll House. The protagonist of the film is Nora, a Victorian middle class woman. She is ruled by her husband and complete oblivious to her state of unfulfillment. She is thrown into a difficult situation and to protect her husband and family commits forgery. Unaware of the legal consequences she tries dishonestly to obtain a loan. She sits on a puffy pink cloud thinking that her special status would always protect her and her kids in the eye of the state. However, the law expects her to know better. The hypocrisy of the system hits Nora and she tries to break out of her Victorian Doll like shell. She desires a life less frivolous, so she decides to work independently and earn money. She starts enjoying this new found freedom. Her relationship with her husband also spirals downwards and sows the seed of doubt and self reflection. Ibsen broke boundaries when he ended the original play with Nora rebelling against her husband, her father and ultimately the patriarchal society. However, the controversial ending caused shock and disagreement and forced him to change the ending. He later on lived to regret the change. The theme of the play made audiences agree that women should get equal pay for equal work; equal rights to enjoy an independent self sufficient life; rights to child custody and divorce; equal stature in legal matters; Equal access to knowledge. It is unfortunate that Victorian times were so suffocating that Nora had to leave her husband or she would continue to be treated as nothing more than a mere rag doll. She was just an inanimate object, dispensable by others and deserved no respect, rights or esteem. Works Cited Page: Johnston, Ian. (July 2000). On Ibsen's A Doll's House. Johnstonia. Retrieved April 3rd 200. http://www.mala.bc.ca/~johnstoi/introser/ibsen.htm Gillis, G. J. and Westhagen, Jen. SparkNote on A Doll’s House. 2 Apr. 2007 .          A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen The play â€Å"A doll’s house† is written by Henrik Ibsen and was adapted into a film in 1973. It deals with gender discrimination in the Victorian age. It highlights specifically the paths women of the West have treaded to find respect and equality. Ibsen makes it possible to imagine the barbarities that existed within the law and society of those times. Through the years, controversial writings like these, have intentionally or unintentionally forced women to rise up and reclaim their rightful legal and civil rights. In the Victorian Period law dictated that property; children and income belonged solely to men. Divorce or Separation was unthinkable. Women who worked were frowned upon by society. Their status was equivalent to the slaves, criminals or the insane. The main role of a woman was to reproduce children, keep the house clean, and feed the children while their husbands worked. It is sad that although women in the developed world have found equal rights in this century through various equal rights acts and amendments however the women of the developing world still lack basic rights and struggle everyday between gender power relationships. The entire film takes place at Mr. and Mrs. Torvald Helmer’s Apartment. The film is set in Norway in the late 1800’s during Christmas time. This one room shows various shades of hypocrisy, discrimination, arrogance and dishonesty exhibited by society. The room is a microscopic vision of the world. It shows the plight and suffering of every woman in every household all around the world. The fact that Nora does not leave the room throughout the film shows how she is entrapped in this Victorian Doll House. The protagonist of the film is Nora, a Victorian middle class woman. She is ruled by her husband and complete oblivious to her state of unfulfillment. She is thrown into a difficult situation and to protect her husband and family commits forgery. Unaware of the legal consequences she tries dishonestly to obtain a loan. She sits on a puffy pink cloud thinking that her special status would always protect her and her kids in the eye of the state. However, the law expects her to know better. The hypocrisy of the system hits Nora and she tries to break out of her Victorian Doll like shell. She desires a life less frivolous, so she decides to work independently and earn money. She starts enjoying this new found freedom. Her relationship with her husband also spirals downwards and sows the seed of doubt and self reflection. Ibsen broke boundaries when he ended the original play with Nora rebelling against her husband, her father and ultimately the patriarchal society. However, the controversial ending caused shock and disagreement and forced him to change the ending. He later on lived to regret the change. The theme of the play made audiences agree that women should get equal pay for equal work; equal rights to enjoy an independent self sufficient life; rights to child custody and divorce; equal stature in legal matters; Equal access to knowledge. It is unfortunate that Victorian times were so suffocating that Nora had to leave her husband or she would continue to be treated as nothing more than a mere rag doll. She was just an inanimate object, dispensable by others and deserved no respect, rights or esteem. Works Cited Page: Johnston, Ian. (July 2000). On Ibsen's A Doll's House. Johnstonia. Retrieved April 3rd 200. http://www.mala.bc.ca/~johnstoi/introser/ibsen.htm Gillis, G. J. and Westhagen, Jen. SparkNote on A Doll’s House. 2 Apr. 2007 .         

Monday, July 29, 2019

Wide Sargasso Sea - Bertha Mason as a victim of Racial Oppression Essay

Wide Sargasso Sea - Bertha Mason as a victim of Racial Oppression - Essay Example It is the most successful novel of Rhys that consists of three parts and each of these parts is written using the narrative voice of different characters of the stories. The novel basically deals with the theme of racial discrimination and the roughness of displacement and integration. It deeply and sensitively describes the cultural barriers that exist between the whites and the blacks and explains the insecurities and adjustment problems that commonly arise when the people from different cultures are set to live together and use to hold certain prejudice for each other. Rhys touchingly describes the intricate relations of oppressor and oppressed through the depiction of the marital relations of the main character Antoinette that has been drawn from the character of Bertha Mason in Jane Eyre. The novel has been plotted in Jamaica and depicts the time after the liberation of the slaves in Caribbean. That was the depressed era when the tension over the issue of the racial inequity and hatred was on the peak level in Caribbean. The main character of the story is a lady Antoinette who spent her childhood in the West Indies and frequently faced the problems related to the ethnic prejudice and shrewdness. She neither succeeded to adjust among the white Europeans nor among the black Jamaicans whom she belongs but due to her white Creole heiress she remained different to them as well.

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Accounting Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Accounting - Assignment Example According to data revealed from the New York Stock Exchange, the company is traded under the ticker symbol of WMT. Currently it yields a price earnings ratio of 15.48 with a beta coefficient of 0.24. With 3,810,170,000 of outstanding shares, the company has a market capitalization of USD 202.47 billion. The performance of Wal-Mart has improved steadily over the last three years. In the year 2007 the company reported an annual turnover of $344759 million which has risen to $401211 million in the year 2009. This marks an increase of nearly 16 percent. The operating cost of the company has remained stable at approximately 95 percent for the last three years. Wal-Mart has been successful in managing the operating costs of the company. There has been a rise in the interest cost on debt of the company that has moved up from $1549 million in 2007 to $1896 million in 2009 which is a rise of nearly 22 percent. This is due to the rise in the debt component of the company. The net income of the company has steadily moved up over the years. In 2007 the company reported a net income of $11284 million that increased to nearly $13400 million in 2009, an increase of nearly 18 percent. The cash position of the company has improved significantly over the previous year. Cash and cash equivalents of the company was $5569 million in 2007 and this increased to $7275 million at the end of the financial year 2009. The current ratio represents the ability of a company to meet its short term liabilities out of its current assets. Investors view current ratio as a measure of the liquidity condition of a company. As per the theories this ratio should be 2:1 which means the company retains current assets which are double the amount of current liabilities, but the bench mark varies from industry to industry. Wal-Mart’s current ratio has improved in 2009 as compared to 2008, hence the company has enhanced its liquidity position and the risk associated with short term solvency

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Unites States Current Account Deficit Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Unites States Current Account Deficit - Essay Example Other government funded interests such as education, military and infrastructure will suffer greatly as well. Why these statements are valid along with imparting a general overview of the national debt so as to illuminate the crisis is this paper’s purpose. If Congress does not control its overspending through measures such as passing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution and adhering to it, the country’s economic future is in deep peril. The President submits a proposed budget to Congress in early February for the coming fiscal year that runs from October 1 to September 30 (Executive Office, 2002). The President’s budget request to Congress accomplishes two main objectives. First, it relays the President’s opinion of how much should be taken in via taxation and how much should be spent. Second, it prioritizes the President’s present and future federal funding desires. â€Å"The budget typically sketches out fiscal policy and budget priorities not only for the coming year but for the next five years or more† (Coven & Kogan, 2006). When Congress receives the President’s budget, it usually conducts hearings to discuss many of the requests before developing a budget resolution. This is the budgetary parameters that Congress will work within when making their determinations regarding taxes and spending. The budget resolution, drafted by both Senate and House Budget Committees includes b oth mandatory and discretionary spending goals (Executive Office, 2002). Following committee approval, the resolution is submitted for a vote and possible amendments by the entire membership of the Senate and House. Afterwards, a joint House-Senate committee is convened to resolve any disparities in the resolution of the two versions passed by each house of congress. The resulting joint report is sent back to

Friday, July 26, 2019

Critically Discuss the View That Women's Careers Are Not The Result of Assignment

Critically Discuss the View That Women's Careers Are Not The Result of Free Choice - Assignment Example Women were seen making selective career decisions, acquiring professional education, enhancing their skills and eagerly working to support their families along with their husbands. Gradually with the passage of time, women were observed participating actively in different fields. According to United States Department of Labor, around 74 percent of women are working full time in different part of States. However, we cannot ignore that opting for a particular career is solely a woman’s decision but a woman’s career choice could be an outcome of the influence of different social factors. Childhood Socialization and Family influence: Gender roles and expectations of the society start establishing even before the child can actually understand his/her identity or learn about his/her personality. From early childhood, females are dressed in gender specific colors (pink) and they are given gender specific toys (dolls) to play with. This is a clear example of how our society beh aves and discriminate children on the basis of their gender from an early childhood stage. We know that social play an important role in developing a girl’s view of her identity and her future role in the society as a home maker. From an early childhood, girls are either intentionally or unintentionally forced by the families to be polite and soft, to have motherly nature and to spend more of their time in servicing other people. Perhaps, this is one of the main reasons that these girls are encouraged to pursue careers such as teaching, nurses, secretary or enter in other humanitarian services. However, the limit to this discrimination doesn’t end here. Even in schools, girls who opt for science and mathematics as their subjects of interests are often ridiculed by their peers. It is a common thought in our society that girls are weaker in science and mathematics and hence, these subjects are not â€Å"made† for them to study with keen interest (Mendoza, 2011). T o abide by all the rules and principles set by the society according to gender roles in sometimes harsh to follow. As a result, it has been observed that majority of the girls are found weaker in subjects like science and mathematics and when they enter high school, their command on these subjects is weaker than their male peers. Therefore, these girls find it hard to obtain a degree or pursue a career based on such subjects. On the other hand, recently different schools and teachers have stressed upon girls to break the traditional approach in making a career choice for themselves and by developing their interest in subjects like mathematics and science. Traditional Role Models: In the past, women were given limited career choices which resulted in limited approach in their future generations about the women with outstanding careers. It has been observed that women are more likely to get influenced by other successful women in traditional pink collar jobs. Such influence encourages these women to select and excel in the same career. Therefore, instead of creating a different career path for themselves; these women follow the footsteps of other successful women and adopt the traditional career choice. As a result, society has greatly diminished the role and contributions of those women who adopted their careers on the basis of science and mathematics. With the passage of time, girls started perceiving that they would be more successful in adopting traditional pink

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Sunny Cottage Holidays (SCH) Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Sunny Cottage Holidays (SCH) - Assignment Example Cottage owners on the other hand advertise with SCH based on the brand image of the agent, trust and comfort levels they enjoy with the company. The agency requires that marketing and communication strategies be employed keeping the following criteria in view. Short term communication objectives †¢The target segment of SCH is in various stages of hierarchical responses. Communication strategy must be employed to first create and increase awareness about cottage holidays rather than general holidays and brand awareness on the SCH package. This must be done through attractive advertising strategy, good media planning and promotional exercises. Differentiation between SCH and its competitors must be clearly specified. †¢Next the agency must focus on providing more information on SCH to the customer. The ‘comprehension’ phase should allow development of website, direct mailers etc that provides information about the holiday packages. †¢Endorsements by experts or feedback photos and comments from satisfied SCH customers are other tools that the agency can explore to convince customers. Conviction must be the third important stage of the exercise. †¢Desire to purchase must be generated through a strong promotional mix that includes good publicity and irresistible offers for the target segment. †¢Finally the campaign must motivate customers into action which can be measured by number of phone calls/ emails querying about the packages. Feedback forms and lucky coupons are other options. The market and competition The market for independent family holidays in cottages is fast growing, as many prefer 'their space' rather than being part of a group. A growing 58% people prefer the getaway to the countryside for relaxing weekends and planned vacations. The competition can be classified as, Local specialists: Most cottage agents are local specialists who focus on tourists coming to specific parts of UK. For example, the Wales cottage holidays agency in Wales has a comprehensive listing of holiday cottages in all parts of Wales. Its website and brochure are its main advertising arsenal. Other such area specific cottage agents include Cumbria cottages (the Lake district), Classic Cottages (for Devon and Cornwall), Mann's Holidays (North West Wales), Nefyn Holidays (Lleyn Peninsula and Snowdonia National Park), Marsdens Cottage Holidays (North Devon) and Holiday Homes & Cottages (South West). Their main medium is a coloured brochure which is often mailed to customers. General specialists: A small segment of general specialists offer holidays across UK. For example, Recommended cottage holidays agency offers a range of cottages across UK. It has a colored brochure that lists the various cottages and a website that allows customers to check availability and make reservations. Its main target market is large families and focuses on family/corporate reunions. It promotes itself as an economical holiday provider that offers a good range. Other UK cottage holiday providers include names of Hoseasons Holidays (well established and offers a great range) and Sykes cottages. The target market: customers Instead of opting for mass marketing, the company must undertake target marketing and must form one or more market segments relevant to buying behaviour. The sub groups or niche markets within its identified target segments can be identified as under. Geographic and Demographic segmentation: Customers are usually couples aged 25 onwards

Mobile phone uses & gratification Literature review

Mobile phone uses & gratification - Literature review Example Exploring how to manage the distractions by creating an application for the mobile that moderately controls the media. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) reported in 2002 that there were already about one billion mobile phone users around the world.The popularity of mobile phones, however, was attributed to wireless technology as telephone applications empower peoples from all walks of lives to use it anywhere and anytime (Bates et al., 2002). Aside from mobility and accessibility, mobile phones are preferred by many due to enlarged scope of information content via the Personal Communication Systems or PCS. Services include delivery of weather updates, news headlines, traffic, locations, internet access, among many others that consumers require. It has rapidly changed the way people live, work, and interacts with one another more than the landlines before them (Wei & Lo, 2006). Socio-Psychological Impact Wei & Lo (2006) explored the role of the mobile phone in individua l’s family ties and social connectedness and suggested that phones which were considered a commodity of the past has come a long way. The wireless phones today have several purposes aside from instant verbal communication between users – the caller and the receiver. Designers provided many components and collaborations in order to produce the finished product with various features. The Qualcomm noted that â€Å"†¦enormous strides have been made in the delivery of data to mobile devices. In particular, cellular telephony networks have matured into robust delivery mechanisms for Internet data, and a rich variety of services are being offered around the world,† (Qualcomm, 2006, P) Wireless phone hardware and software evolved in parallel with internet capabilities and graphic art media so that it has become inevitable for many groups of businesses, engineers, artists and even the consumers cooperating with one another (Kaye, 2006). The Smartphone from IBM has b een cited as an â€Å"information appliance† that has a phone and a personal digital assistant or PDA. The features include a calendar, an address book, world clock, calculator, note-pad, e-mail, and games. This should not be surprising because such features were in mobile phones for more than a decade now as progression continues towards maximizing capabilities. The Operating Systems used are Symbian, Palm OS, Windows, BREW, Linux, and other new generations of programs that are capable of integration with current systems. Similar applications are developed with variations of games; access of internet and memory capabilities for various media downloads and uploads. Kaye (2006) has noted that mobile phone entertainment has been used by gaming companies to demonstrate new games to attract users in purchasing the full software. Games together with ringtones, and wallpapers were seen to generate more revenue. â€Å"In Europe and other regions, ringtones are a billion-dollar busi ness, yet sales were only in the low millions in the United States during 2003,† (Kaye, 2006). Recent developments in mobile phones include cameras and MP3 players as companies collaborate on the product â€Å"to deliver a worthy product to consumers.† Apple company with subsidiary iTunes were cited to cooperate with Motorola the phone hardware and Cingular, a U.S. wireless phone carrier, to deliver quality downloads on phone music player. Clutter is reduced on the part of the consumer as MP3 player and mobile phone become one (Kaye, 2006). Likewise, images can now be sent, downloaded, captured or uploaded on the internet and elsewhere through the mobile phone (Kaye, 2006). Mobile phones have a basic photographic quality of up to 2 mega pixels per image and even video capture and sharing fit for tiny screens of mobile phones. Nokia released the mobile phone with camcorder capabilities for amateur film-maker or for those who can and will afford it, and others soon follow ed suit (Kaye, 2006). More

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Case Study Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Case Study Assignment - Essay Example nt that would justify entering the China market would put to rest any counterarguments and indicate that Google’s move was still consistent with their unofficial company motto: â€Å"Don’t Be Evil†. Google could address the arguments that entry into the China market and abiding with the government’s law for censorship is the only logical, viable, and ethical solution for providing services to the China market and allowing access to the Google search engine, as against totally preventing their entry. Google could justify that among a magnanimous amount of information that could be accessed, only a few controversial issues where explicitly identified by Chinese government and they do justice to the government and to their Chinese clientele through abiding by these regulations. B. Being silent is another strategy that would still indicate that Google does not need to explain their entry into the China market since obviously, the organization has made every possible cost-benefit analysis and justifications that led to the decision. By being silent, Google affirms conformity to the same corporate mantra and as long as they do not violate any international law, the organization adheres to ethical, moral and legal standards. The focus is to advertise their focus on serving the global market to indicate that they are more concerned of unifying the world, than, being contributory to restrictive access. Actually, they could issue a public statement to justify their entry to the China market and at the same time design a promotional campaign that Google focuses on serving the global market by addressing the distinct needs and requirements of varied

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Saint Albertus Magnus ( Year 1193-1280 ) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Saint Albertus Magnus ( Year 1193-1280 ) - Essay Example He is also referred to as the â€Å"Doctor of the church†. This is one title that was bestowed amongst the greatest men in the Roman Catholic Church (Attwater, 2003). It should be observed that the name is bestowed on only 33 people who have led and given their life to their respective missions globally. He was a very knowledgeable man who had received his education at a very tender age. As early as he could, he mastered the teachings of the famous philosopher Aristotle. In many instances, he is quoted as a very resilient man who shunned his own family for the sake of the mission. This is especially after his family denounced him for joining the parish. He is also on record saying that if it were not for the Virgin Mary, he would not be in the mission. This is because he states that he had an encounter with her. It is during this encounter that she convinced him to give his life to the mission. This is what convinced him to give his life to the church. It is also because of hi s great mind that Saints like Aquinas graced the world. He is responsible for the moulding of Thomas Aquinas into a philosopher and theologist of great repute. This enabled the latter to be one of the greatest men in the church. His profound teachings and guidance are said to have effectively steered Aquinas to the paths that he crossed. He was a very humble and efficient leader who always wanted what was best for the people. He always put his needs last (Emsley, 2001). During his time period, Albertus contributed greatly to all walks of life. He is said to have healed the world with his profound wisdom. His wisdom enabled him to write very many information materials that gave way to many theories and analogies. These theories are still in use today. He wrote books on Biology, Religion and Psychology and many other fields. His thoughts and opinions on the many subjects projected the fact that Albertus was a genius. He had the ability to understand the universe, all that was around i t and what was required to ensure that the field of knowledge was robust with new ideas and knowledge (Magnus, 2003). His humility is something that was emulated all over the world. He was offered a horse that would enable him to move freely within the Dominican Republic. In his lifetime, Albertus never rode the horse. He was known to walk as he went on the various activities that he had to conduct. This created a chance for very many ordinary people to interact freely with him. This is because in many instances, the people walked to and from their various activities. This gave him more resilience to spread the gospel in many parts of the world that he travelled to. It also gave him a chance to share his wisdom with those that chose to walk with him (Collins, 2010). Albertus time period received a great contribution form this powerful mind. He contributed greatly to the general area of science, philosophy and psychology amongst others. He created a very wide gap as many of his count erparts in the parish acknowledged that he was indeed a man of great repute. Saint Albertus Magnus contributed significantly to history. He was so great and many people marvelled at him even in death. It is said that after his death, many of the people that came to view his body were actually healed of any diseases that they had. They were healed from many of their diseases and ailments. The healing ability from the saint came in the form of his body fragrance. Historically, it is also said

Monday, July 22, 2019

Traits of a Functional Manager Essay Example for Free

Traits of a Functional Manager Essay A managers role in any organization is the planning, organizing, leading, and controlling of human and other resources to achieve organizational goals efficiently and effectively. (Jones,2011,pg. 4). Now that we have all of the hoopla out of the way and we have a word for word description of what management is, we will now discuss exactly what a managers role is as far as the employee goes and then maybe touch on what a manager should do, and how he should act to be effective. Management of 25 years ago has changed drastically throughout the years. Management, especially upper management, ruled the roost and usually had a reputation for being feared or somebody who could administer discipline with no remorse. This is the management of long-ago. Even though we describe the role of the manager in a typical organization today, there are still certain traits that a manager should have and with these traits a manager will excel in applying the four functions of management. A managers role in a company or organization is spelled out above, but in laymans terms a manager is expected to directly control or lead employees by example and organization to make sure that the job is done right. This would include directing certain employees or subordinates to make sure there is plenty of material available to aid in production of a product. A manager must also make sure that an employee running the machine has the raw material available and that the machine is set up within specs to put out a salable, prime product. After the product is manufactured a manager must also make sure that the product is delivered to either the next process, quality inspection, or shipping. This will depend on the type of product being made and exactly what is being produced. A manager is also required to make sure that the hours of the employees are accounted for and remunerated accordingly. Depending on what type of management, a human resources manager would be concerned with making sure that the organization has employees that are correctly skilled to the right level to aid in the manufacture of the organizations product. A manager can have many roles in an organization, this is why there are different levels of management ranging from first line managers, middle managers, top managers, and the CEO or owner of the organization. If all the management and employees work together as one, an organization or company should run like a well oiled machine. One of the traits that I think that a manager should possess and will excel him at his job is agreeableness. In order to be a decent manager you must be high on the level of agreeableness. If you attain this level you will be well-liked, and get along very well with others including other managers. This would be a big plus while maintaining the four functions of management. In the planning stage of any project is definitely a lot better to deal with people if you had a question concerning that project. People will be more apt to talk with you in depth about planning a project or even a company from the base stages and so on if you were a likable person. If you werent well-liked, well I know if I dont like somebody I am very less likely to even talk with the person let alone answer questions in depth. Thats just plain old psychology 101. In all stages of business management you are a well-liked person that people like to talk to, the organizing, leading, and controlling of employees and resources in any organization will flow like water. The reason for this is in all the stages of management there are other employees and even other managers that you will have to deal with in order to organize, lead, or control a situation in the organization. It is much better to deal with these people with a happy face as the text states, The great leaders of tomorrow realized that putting on a human face and communicating with their employees isnt easy if you have a reputation as a subdued, distant or intimidating person. (Walmsley,2003,para. 8). Another management trait that is way up there in my opinion is conscientiousness. This is the tendency to be careful, scrupulous and persevering. (Jones,2011,pg. 80). Of course this is what the text says but how I would describe it would be a person who sees the job through with a keen eye for detail and organization. Managers who have a high level of conscientiousness are a big plus for any organization due to the fact that any tasks that are given to them will be seen through completely to the end with meticulous detail. In the four stages of business management, conscientiousness would be a plus for every stage individually. The planning stage goes without saying because a person who is meticulous and pays attention to details will leave no rock unturned when it comes to planning any stage of an organization. This rings true in the organizing part of management also. An organized manager is one who will have all his ducks in a row, that is knowing exactly where every timecard or order form is. He will know every step of the production process and make himself available. Being very scrupulous according to definition is a big plus in any organizing tasks. In leading employees, a manager should be very careful in how they make statements or handle employees. The careful part of the definition would take care of this to a T because in being a manager one must always be careful when dealing with employees or subordinates due to the fact that you never really know whats going on in another persons life. Body language and demeanor can be read but being careful what you say or how you lead will get the job done. This would be the same instance in controlling the situation and organization, whether it be a person, subordinate, or even another manager, if you are careful how you attack the situation you will surely persevere. The final trait that I would like to propose that all management should possess is extroversion. If a person is highly extroverted they have a tendency to experience positive emotions and moods and feel good about oneself and the rest of the world. (Jones,2011,pg. 47). In other words a person who is an extrovert or has a high level of extroversion has a tendency to be outgoing, friendly, and socially forthcoming. He would be the one you would like to talk to a party, but in the same instance he would also be the one you would like to discuss a work related problem with. Communication is the horse in which all extroverts ride. He is a manager who will be there when he is needed and even discuss personal problems when queried. A manager who is highly extroverted will be a highly skilled communicator, capable of problem solving. Extroverts dont necessarily have to be intelligent due to the fact that upper-level extroversion is based on positive emotions and moods. Extroverts will also exhibit a high level of agreeableness due to the fact that they are usually well-liked. In regards o the four functions of management, the extrovert would probably be the first one to the management planning meeting and have nothing but great things to say as the outcome. An extrovert will be the first one to congratulate you on a job well done. He would be the one that brought a boost to the moods of anybody else in the meeting. Even though an extroverted manager may bring light to different situations when it comes to social interactions such as meetings or company dinners, they may or may not be organized but in my opinion they would have a high level of control over their subordinates or employees in which they manage. An extroverted manager would be a great leader because of their feel-good attitude and positive emotional imprints. They would definitely possess traits that people would follow and in turn would disperse a feeling of satisfaction with the job. And according to many texts but primarily Singh Ashish, Satisfaction with job has always been an area of concern for both practicing managers and academicians, primarily because of the reason that job satisfaction significantly affects major organizational outcomes, such as individual performance, organizational productivity, employee absenteeism and employee turnover. (Singh,2011,para. 1) This sounds like a very positive reason to have someone capable of spreading a high level of job satisfaction. There are many other personality traits that would be positive in a managers role. Even though we describe the role of the manager in a typical organization today, there are still certain traits that a manager should have and with these traits a manager will excel in applying the four functions of management. Other than those described previously, self-esteem, locus of control whether by internal or external and openness to experience are a few that, depending on which side of the scale you are on, would be positive as a manager trait also. The three that I feel are the most relevant are listed above as agreeableness, conscientiousness, and extroversion. If a manager possessed all three of these traits, some in moderation of course, I would for sure have a tendency to hire him or her as fully competent in fulfilling the job of a management position.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

The Chemistry of Swimming Pools

The Chemistry of Swimming Pools Pool chemistry is the application of chemistry to maintain safe and clean water (Hann, 1997). This is achieved by regulating numerous factors which include: the pH, the quantity of disinfectant and the buffers used to resist pH changes. The normal pH range of a swimming pool needs to be between 7.2 and 8.0, although a range between 7.2 and 7.8 is more practical as some disinfectants such as chlorine are most effective for this range (Hann, 1997). The Importance of pH The pH scale (see figure 1) is a measure of the concentration of hydrogen ions (H+) in a solution and is a logarithmic scale based on 10 (Zumdahl, 2007). Furthermore, it is represented by the equation: pH = -log[H+] (Zumdahl, 2007), and since the scale is logarithmic, this means that a pH increase of one value represents a H + concentration increase of tenfold. The pH scale ranges from one, which is very acidic, to fourteen which is very alkaline. A value of seven is neutral, meaning that a solution is neither acidic nor basic (Hann, 1997). The pH scale (Environment Canada, 1992) A strong acid dissociates completely in water to produce H+ ions in the form of H3O+ (hydronium ion), whereas a weak acid does not dissociate completely, causing a lower H+ concentration to form (Zumdahl, 2007). Since an acid dissociates in water to produce H+ ions it is known as an H+ donor and a good example of this is the strong hydrochloric acid (HCl). This acid easily dissociates in water to form H+ and the following equation represents this dissociation. HCl(aq) + H2O(l)  ® H3O+(aq) + Cl-(aq) Because HCl is easily dissociated, it means that equilibrium lies far to the right, favouring the products. On the contrary, a weak acid does not easily dissociate in water, meaning that a reaction involving a weak acid would not favour products or reactants. In contrast to an acid, a base dissociates in water to form OH- and is known as an H+ acceptor. The role of acids and bases for the maintenance of the pH of pool water is important for a number of reasons. A pH that is too high or low (above 8 or below 7.2) will cause irritation to the skin (Gothard, 2006). As well as this, disinfectants such as bromine and chlorine require an optimum pH between 7.2 and 7.6 in order to function most efficiently (Hann, 1997). Thus, an increase or decrease in pH will cause these disinfectants to work less efficiently. Another reason for the regulation of the pH balance is to prevent the formation of scale or water hardness deposits. These deposits are usually composed of magnesium and calcium which can become damaging to the functioning of a pool as it affects the filter system, heater and the piping (Hann, 1997). Maintenance of the pH levels Factors such as, the removal or addition of pool water; waste from swimmers such as urine; and the addition of chemicals, affect the pH of the water. In order to have a pH level that is desirable, specific chemicals need to be added to the water, although it is also possible to reach a desired pH balance by adding extra water to the pool (Hann, 1997). By adding additional water this will cause the pH concentration to lower, which helps to balance the pH. However, it is not always possible to do this as different factors affect the pH, and so pool chemicals are needed. Two main chemicals are used to lower the pH of pool water: sodium bisulfate and muriatic acid (hydrochloric acid). These chemicals both have a low pH which means that they act as a pH reducer. A decrease in pH occurs because the chemicals react in the water to produce more hydrogen ions, hence increasing the acidity. The choice of which chemical to use depends on the size of a pool. Sodium bisulfate is usually used for small pools (about 190 000 litres) as it is less acidic than muriatic acid, thus a safer alternative (Hann, 1997). On the other hand, muriatic acid is used for larger pools to reduce the pH because it is a more acidic. Furthermore, to raise the pH of pool water, sodium carbonate is most commonly used (Perkins, 2000). It is known as a pH increaser because it produces hydroxyl ions (OH-) which increases the pH of the pool water. Chlorine also has an effect on the pH of water; however, it is used more commonly for disinfection purposes. Chlorine for Disinfection of Pool Water A safe and clean pool requires the use of a disinfectant to stop the spread of transmittable diseases (Hann, 1997). The most common disinfectants used are chlorine-based products as chlorine is relatively inexpensive and is very effective in killing bacteria and other harmful organisms (Perkins, 2000).Chlorine gas (Cl2) is never used on its own for disinfecting pool water because it is very toxic, and so would pose many risks. Therefore, compounds containing chlorine are used instead and there are three main types: Calcium hypochlorite [Ca(OCl)2 ­], sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) and chlorinated isocyanurate. When these compounds are added to the water a reaction occurs, forming a chemical called hypochlorous acid (HOCl) which is an oxidising agent and hydrochloric acid (HCl). Since hydrochloric acid is formed, this will mean that the pH of the pool water decreases slightly. Cl2 + H2O  ® HOCl + HCl The hypochlorous acid kills the bacteria in the water by oxidation and the HOCl can easily become dissociated to from hydrogen ions (H+) and hypochlorate ions (ClO)-. HOCl à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬  H+ + ClO- Both the hypochlorous acid and the hypochlorite ions are considered as free chlorine, which is the chemical species responsible for killing bacteria in the water; however, the hypochlorous acid is far more efficient (Daniels, 1973). The dissociation of the hydrochlorous acid is an equilibrium reaction, meaning that the reaction can occur in either direction. Furthermore, the pH of the water affects the direction in which the reaction proceeds, thus influencing the effectiveness of the disinfectant. An increase in pH would mean that there are more H+ ions which would cause the reaction to proceed to the right, meaning that less hypochlorous acid is present in the water. Moreover, a decrease in pH will cause the reaction to proceed to the left, meaning that more hypochlorous acid is produced which increases the effectiveness of the chlorine as a disinfectant. To be able to determine the pH of a solution, the use of acid/ base indicators are needed. The role of acid/base indicators In order to keep the pH of pool water in the correct range it is necessary to use an acid/base indicator to test the pH. An acid/base indicator is a substance that gives an accurate indication of the acidity or alkalinity of a solution (Dice, 2008). Also, an indicator is a weak acid represented by HIn (Zumdahl, 2007) and it can be written as an equilibrium expression: HIn (colourless) à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬  H+ + In- (pink) where the In- is the basic form of the indicator. The HIn and the In- both show a different colour which corresponds to the pH of the solution. As an example, the indicator phenolphthalein is colourless in an acidic solution and pink in a basic solution. This means that the HIn represents the colourless molecules, whereas the In- represents the pinkmolecules. Since an indicator is in equilibrium, an acidic solution would cause an increase in H+ concentration, hence shifting equilibrium to the left. Likewise, in a basic solution the OH- ions cause a decrease in H+, which shifts equilibrium to the right. The equation for an indicator can be written as an equilibrium constant expression. Ka = [H+] [In-] / [HIn] This expression can be rearranged to form an equation which is very useful in finding the end point of an indicator, which is the point at which colour change occurs. Ka / [H+] = [In-] / [HIn] The ratio between the In- and the HIn will show the colour of the indicator; for example if there is one In- pink molecules for every one hundred colourless it means that the solution will appear colourless. However, for the human eye to detect the colour change, the colour change occurs at a pH where the ratio of In- to HIn is 1:10 for an acidic solution, whereas for a basic solution the change will occur at a ratio of 10:1 (Zumdahl, 2007). There are a variety of indicators all of which are useful for specific pH ranges, and so it is important to use an appropriate indicator for measuring pool water pH. The following table (figure 2) displays four different acid/base indicators that could be possibly used to assist with pool management. Four Possible Indicators for Testing pH of a pool (figure 2) Indicator pH range Colour shown for Acidic Solution Colour shown for Basic Solution Ka pKa (-log10Ka) Bromthymol Blue 6.0-7.6 Yellow Blue 1.0 x 10-7 7.0 Cresol Red (alkaline) 7.2-8.8 Yellow Reddish-purple 1.0 x 10-8.32 8.32 Phenol Red 6.8-8.4 Yellow Red 1.0 x 10-7.9 7.9 Phenolphthalein 8.3-10 Colourless Pink 1.0 x 10-9.3 9.3 From the table it can be seen that phenol red, cresol red and bromthymol blue would all be useful indicators as their pH range is quite close to the pH range of a pool which is 7.2-7.8. Since phenolphthaleins range is 8.-10, this indicator would be the least effective as is not very close to the pool range, whereas the other indicators each have similar ranges that are within the range. To verify the pH at which an indicator changes colour, the equation from above can be used: Ka = [H+] [In-] / [HIn] Sample calculation for the indicator phenol red: x 10-7.9 = [H+] [In-] / [HIn] First, the pH at which the indicator will change for an acidic solution will be found. For an acidic solution the colour change will be visible when [In-] / [HIn] = 1/10 : x 10-7.9 = [H+] (1) / (10) [H+] = (1.0 x 10-7.9) x 10 = 1.26 x 10-7 pH = -log(1.26 x 107à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ) = 6.9 pH = 6.9, which is close to the actual value of 6.8. This means that at this point, the colour change will be yellow. The pH at which the colour change occurs in a basic solution can also be calculated, however, the ratio of In- to HIn will be 10:1 as there must be more In- molecules for a colour change to occur. x 10-7.9 = [H+] (10) / (1) [H+] = (1.0 x 10-7.9 )/ 10 = 1.26 x 10-9 pH = -log(1.26 x 10-9) = 8.90 pH = 8.9, which is the point at which the colour change will be red. However, the value is not exactly the same as the actual value because it is an approximation and is not exact. Phenol reds pH range is the closest to the pools range when compared to the other three indicators, which means that it is the most appropriate for testing pool water. Acid/base indicators are not only important for determining the pH of a solution, but are also significant for finding a pools buffering capacity, as the pH of a solution must be known. Buffer solutions To assist in the maintenance of pool pH, it is necessary to use a buffer solution. A buffer solution is any solution which resists fluctuating changes in pH, making it easier to keep pool water in the appropriate pH range (Hann, 1997). The buffering ability of a pool is dependent on the total alkalinity, which is the measure of the quantity of alkaline substances present in the water (Hann, 1997). Calcium carbonate is the main compound which makes up the total alkalinity and when it is dissolved in water it produces carbonate ions which act as a buffer. CaCO3 (s) à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬  Ca2+ + CO32- The carbonate ions work as a buffer because they neutralise the H+ ions formed when an acid is added. To determine the buffering ability of a solution, the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation can be used. This equation is derived from the equilibrium constant for the dissociation of a weak acid which is given by the equation: Ka = ([H+] [A-]) / [HA] where A- is the conjugate base, and HA is a simple acid. By taking the logarithm of both sides and rearranging it will give the following equation: -log [H+] = -logKa + log ([A-]/[HA]) Since, -log [H+] = pH and -logKa = pKa, the equation can be written as: pH = pKa + log ([A-]/[HA]) This equation is known as the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation and can be used in regards to pool chemistry to be able to calculate the buffering capacity, which is the quantity of hydroxide ions (OH-) that can be absorbed by the solution before a significant pH change occurs. Additionally, the magnitude of [HA] and [A-] determine the buffering capacity of a solution. The most effective buffer is one that has a ratio of one, as this will cause no change in pH (Zumdahl, 2007). The following calculation will show a possible application of buffer chemistry for the pool. pH = pKa + log ([A-]/[HA]) A concentration of 0.002M Hydrochloric acid is added to a solution with a pH of 7.6 and a calcium carbonate concentration of 2.11 x 10-8M. Hypochlorous acid is also present in the water and its pKa is 3.5 x 10-8. 7.6 = 3.5 x 10-8 + log ([2.11 x 10-8]/[0.002]) = 7.46 Therefore, the pH of the solution has decreased, which means that the solution does not have the best buffering capacity. The best buffer solution would need to have a ratio of 1:1 which would cause the pH to stay about the same. Conclusion The chemistry involved in the management of backyard swimming pools is an important aspect and needs to be understood in order to maintain a safe swimming pool environment. A pH range between 7.2 and 7.8 is recommended and so an understanding of how to lower and raise the pH is essential. Chlorine can be used as a disinfectant of pool water; however, it needs to be known that the reaction forms hydrochloric acid which lowers the pH. Thus, an addition of a pH increaser such as sodium carbonate is needed as this increases the number of OH- molecules in the water, which increases the pH. Furthermore, the use of pH indicators is necessary in controlling the pH, as they give an accurate reading of the pools pH. However, each indicator has a different pH range and so it is important to choose the appropriate indicator for the pool. Also, a pools buffering ability is significant in keeping the pools pH in balance. Poor buffering capacity means that an addition of an acid or a base will caus e the pH to dramatically fluctuate, making it difficult to manage a pool. Total alkalinity is the measure of a pools buffering ability and calcium carbonate is often used to increase the buffering ability.

Electronics Arts Company Analysis

Electronics Arts Company Analysis Electronic Arts (EA) is an American developer, marketer, publisher, and distributor of computer and video games. The gaming industry where the company operates is one of the most competitive and dynamic industries. Perform a PEST analysis and five forces analysis on the industry as well as SWOT analysis and suggest an appropriate strategic course for Electronic Arts. 1.0 Introduction Electronic Arts, Inc. (EA) is a worldwide developer, dealer, publisher and distributor of video entertainments. The organization was an initiate of the early home computer amusements organization and was remarkable for encouraging the designers and programmers in charge for its games. Initially, EA was a home computing amusement publisher. EA developed via achievement of several successful developers. It had grown to be one of the worlds biggest third party publishers. (Wikipedia ,2010) Presently, it is mainly successful goods are sports games available under its EA Sports label, entertainments based on trendy film authorizes such as Harry Potter and games from long-running franchises like Medal of Honor, Need for Speed, The Sims, Battlefield and the presently games in the Burnout and Command and Conquer series. With the majority of its sports instruction series being industrial by EA, and the worlds biggest enlargement studio EA Canada which they are also the distributors of the Rock Band series. (Wikipedia ,2010) 2.0 PEST analysis tools PEST can be described as political, economic, social, technological issues, which are applied to evaluate the marketplace for a company or organizational unit. The PEST analysis headings are a structure for analysis a position, and can also be applied to evaluate a plan or position, trend of a business and marketing proposal. It is a helpful implement for understanding marketplace situation, in which they are working, and the opportunities and threats that be positioned within it. (Strategylabs, 2010) The models issues will vary in significance to a particular company based on its business and the products it manufactures. Moreover, issues which are more probable to alter in the outlook or more related to a specified business will carry greater meaning. Additionally, EA who create a large range of goods can find it more helpful to evaluate one division of its organization at a time with the PEST model, hence concerning on the particular issues appropriate to that one division. (Researchmarkets, 2009) By understanding the situation in which EA function exterior to the divisions, they know how to take benefit of the opportunities and diminish the threats. Particularly, it is a functional tool for understanding threats linked with market development or decline and as such the situation, prospective and trend for them. It is finding out where they are in the circumstance of what is occurring exterior that will at several point cause what is happening within of the business. (Modelbenders, 2009) 2.1 Five forces analysis Porters five forces analysis contracts with issues external a business that influence the environment of rivalry within it, the forces inside the organization that control the approach in which firms compete, and accordingly the organizations likely productivity is accomplished in Porters five forces model. An industry has to realize the dynamics of its businesses and marketplaces in order to compete successfully in the market. It described the forces which make rivalry, competing that the competitive atmosphere is formed by the relations of five dissimilar forces acting on a company. It seems at five solution parts specifically the threat of entrance, the power of consumers, the power of providers, the threat of substitutes, and competitive challenges. (Emerald Insight Staff , 1993) Understanding the environment of each of these forces gives associations the essential approaching to allow them to make the right plans to be successful in their marketplace. It is a simple tool that supports EA understanding where power lies in a business situation. It also assists to recognize both the strong point of their current competitive situation, and the strength of a situation of them is looking to move into. With an understandable recognizing of where power lies, it will allow EA to get fair benefit of its strengths, develop weaknesses, and avoid taking incorrect stages. Consequently, to concern this planning instrument efficiently, it is vital to know the position and to look at each of the forces separately. (Modelbenders, 2009) 2.2 SWOT analysis SWOT analysis is a strategic planning system applied to assess the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats concerned in a plan or in an industry venture. The interior issues can be analysis as strengths or weaknesses depending upon their force on the companys goals. The exterior issues can comprise macroeconomic matters, technological alter, legislation, and socio-cultural transforms, as well as alters in the market or competitive situation. (Strategylabs, 2010) In many rival analyses, EA make completed outlines of each competitor in the marketplace, concerning particularly on their virtual competitive strengths and weaknesses utilizing SWOT analysis. EA will observing each competitors price structure, sources of earnings, resources and competencies, competitive situation and manufactured goods isolation, degree of vertical combination, historical reactions to business enlargements and other issues. (Emerald Insight Staff , 1993) Another instance is EA, which is a great example of how computer amusements business can utilize a SWOT analysis to shape out a strong company strategy. They have known that its strength was selling openly to customers and keeping its prices lower than those of other competitors. EA put together a company strategy that integrated mass customization and just-in-time manufacturing and allowing consumers enjoy their computer amusements with complete imagination in the games world. (Researchmarkets, 2009) 2.3 The analytical tools in solutions It helps EA in discovery the true resolution that best meets their requirements and can play a dynamic role in the accomplishment as well as support. To make easy this development, they have recognized strategic deal with key vendors. The growing resolutions portfolio presents customers with leading skill by world-class partners and developed in the marketplace. EA suggests proven resolutions that provide stability, scalability and the elasticity needed to maximize effectiveness and performance in a extremely competitive atmosphere. (Sadler, Philip , 1993) EA bring value to their customers by joining that recognize how with an entire suite of feature rich resolutions that offers the best functionality part. Thus, the system to develop the productivity and efficiency of company analysts, EA must continue to enlarge the width and strength of their data storehouses, which will diminish the number of data sources that analysts need to entrance directly. They must also equip analysts with improved analytical tools that manage the way they do. (Coate, Patricia , 2007) In line with the ever growing complexity of the competitive marketplace EA has abilities far beyond those of the conventional intermediary, letting them to manage as their customers reliance risk partner with resources to contain every part of their business. They give the firm with the most proper resolutions, through consultancy services, systematic tools and risk goods that continue and improve their customers situation in the market. (Sadler, Philip , 1993) 3.0 Conclusion Any company must seek to understand the nature of its competitive environment if it is to be successful in achieving its objectives and in establishing appropriate strategies. If a company fully understands the nature of the analysis, and particularly appreciates which one is the most important, it will be in a stronger position to defend itself against any threats and to influence the forces with its strategy. The situation is fluid, and the nature and relative power of the forces will change. Thus, the need to monitor and stay aware is continuous. (Coate, Patricia , 2007) Some issues during the implementation of these analyses strategic are crucially important for organizations to build long-term business strategy and sustaining competitive advantages rather than simply list the forces. Successful use of the analysis includes identifying the sources of competition, the strength and likelihood of that competition existing, and strategic recommendations for the action a company should take in order to develop barriers to competition. (Researchmarkets, 2009) It is important to make sure that the sources are reliable and relevant to the current condition of the organization. It has to be viable, reliable and valid, in order to conduct a good analysis of the model. For this purpose, the gathered data and information has to be checked and be applied to the current business conditions. Further limitations could be present in the nature of market forces that reduce the applicability of the information sources to present situations and the amount of detailed information required. (Wikipedia, 2010) 4.0 Reference Question 1 Wikipedia (2010), Electronic arts, retrieved on February 12,2011 from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_Arts Strategylabs (2010), Analysis of electronic arts, Retrieved on February 13,2011 from www.strategylabs.net/search-swot-analysis-of-electronic-arts_p8.asp Researchmarkets (2009), Swot analysis , Retrieved on February 12,2011 from www.researchandmarkets.com/reports//electronic_arts_swot_analysis Modelbenders (2009), Electronic arts, Retrieved on February 12, 2011 from www.modelbenders.com/papers/Smith_Game_Impact_Theory.pd E-library Emerald Insight Staff (1993), 1st ed., Strategic Management,    Emerald Group Pub lishing Ltd Sadler, Philip   (1993), 1st ed., Strategic Management , Kogan Page Ltd. Coate, Patricia (2007), 1st ed., Focus on strategic management ,   Emerald Group Publishing Ltd Question 2 Suggest why different approaches to strategy development might be appropriate in different organizations such as a university, a fashion retailer and a high technology company. Introduction A business strategy naturally is an article that obviously expressive the way an industry will pursue and the steps it will take to accomplish its objectives. In a quality of business plan, the business approach results from objectives created to support the stated assignment of the business. In the examination step of business plan development, one of several processes is applied to evaluate a firms market, resources, barriers to achievement and specific advantages. The aim of strategic examination is to classify what a business needs to achieve, the strengths it can bring to bear on achieving the objective and weaknesses that require to be addressed prior to combination and accomplishment. (Sadler, Philip   ,1993) Strategic consideration methodologies can comprise estimating the business circumstances, several of competitive situations, verifying what market forces are at work and ranking competitors, among others. Integrating a business approach typically is one of many steps in a larger production planning process. A business strategy starts with an overall vision. From the vision, a mission statement for the industry is constructed, regularly the shorter and more accurate the better. A mission guides to specific objectives the business will accomplish to complete its mission and that in turn guides to approach to attain goals. Specific plans are regularly then developed to support the business plan. (Coate, Patricia ,2007) Corporate strategy It is verifying the greatest plan to be competitive in the market. It assists to classifies, evaluates, and clarifies the main issues  facing productions to deliver insights corporations can apply to develop performance and achieve a competitive advantage. It is focused with the overall principle and scale of the business to meet stakeholder outlooks. This is an essential level since it is seriously influenced by investors in the production and performs to lead strategic decision-making throughout the business. Corporate strategy is frequently stated openly in an operation statement. The associations have a vision and a plan for accomplishing that vision. They apply that strategy through everything they accomplish. These great associations are able to make and capture value and situation themselves for better value. (Businessdictionary,2009) 2.1 Business unit strategy Strategic business unit (SBU) is focused more with how an industry competes profitably in an exacting marketplace. It focuses strategic decisions about option of goods, meeting wants of clients, gaining benefit over rivals, developing or making new opportunities. It is known as a business unit within the overall corporate identify which is distinguishable from other business because it serves a defined external market where management can conduct strategic planning in relation to products and markets. (Wikipedia ,2010) The unique small business unit advantages that a firm insistently promotes in a constant manner. When organizations become truly large, they are greatest thought of as being collected of a number of productions. These organizational units are large enough and standardized enough to exercise organize over most strategic issues influencing their performance. They are controlled as self contained planning units for which distinct business strategies can be enlarged. A strategic business unit can include an entire organization, or can basically be a smaller division of an organization set up to execute a specific job. The SBU has its own business approach, goals and rivals and these will frequently be dissimilar from those of the parent organization. (Wikipedia ,2010) Operational strategy It is focused with how each division of the business is managed to bring the company and business unit level strategic way. It concerns on problems of resources, progressions, and groups. The operating strategy intends to close the strategic gap between business strategy and accomplishment. It transforms the strategic objectives into obviously described achievement aims and aligns the implementation process to the value intention. The operating strategy consists of several parts starting with the operating business form as the basis for development, function, and technical and human performance style. An operating business form is the associations crucial logic for constantly accomplishing its principle goals. The desired outcome is to have a tactical to carry out the operating strategic plan. (Tmginconline ,2009) A number of the key essentials comprise classify required decisions and correlated issues for business process such as key production processes, managing approaches. Additionally, it gives creative ideas for operating problems and to make new value opportunities. It is a model to close business development gaps and to understand business value. It can be described as the business development direction based on the general vision. For example, key decisions and leading values for key business processes and managing approaches. (Tmginconline ,2009) 2.3 Olympia College Olympia College was established to meet the rising require for private top education in the country and is an associate of the well-known Raffles Education Group. There are choices of analysis of the strategic plan process within Olympia College. The operational strategy shows that direction into generating strategic competitive advantage in the development. Therefore, they can get a new system to structure their business functions and make sure the successful enlargement of their business in the competitive market. (Olympia ,2010) Strategic planning is a long range planning procedure that helps in setting the direction of Olympic College. The strategic plan originates from the colleges mission and strategic vision and gives detailed actionable strategies for moving towards planned outcomes. Moreover, they have to help student improvement toward objective completion. It is more purposeful and successful in their efforts to bring education at a distance, finalize and realize a long range distance education plan. (Olympia ,2010) However, they have to exploit community entrance to Olympic College, particularly for enlarge and apply an on-going enrollment management structure that informs instructional plans, student support services, and facilities planning. They are concerning attention on learning and to assist students, ability, personnel, and administrators perceive themselves as a society of beginners, encourage a college wide culture of measurement that embraces the consideration of learning outcomes and encourages the study of teaching and learning. (Olympia ,2010) 2.4 Padini Holdings Berhad Padini sells ladies shoes and accessories, childrens clothes, maternity wear and accessories through different subsidiaries. They can apply the business unit strategy to formulate and execute the plans that will give a competitively greater fit the situation and accomplish the organizational objectives. However, it can assist Padini to emphasize attention on a particular regional market or consumer group. The long term plan of Padini also wants to do the interior and exterior review to strengthen the situation in the global market. ( Padini, 2010) It shows a fashion viewpoint of each will covers a complete range of goods intended at a targeted customer. The corporation will carry on upgrading the image of its goods while emphasizing value and standard. It is successful grip in the productive but competitive womens footwear market. There are strategies to strengthen its dominant situation with enhanced production lines and increased competence. Having successfully impressed its brand names into the perception of Malaysian consumers, Padini is moving to turn its different labels into regionally familiar fashion leaders. It aims to fulfill the potential of the export market, particularly in the Asian region, and will also step up in foreign country marketing for its goods. ( Padini, 2010) 2.5 Dell INC. Dell Inc. is the top retailer of computer systems in the market. Dell sells desktop personal computers, notebook computers, network servers, and a diversity of computer software. They can apply the corporate strategy as a direction in which its production operations work together to get particular objectives. They implement that strategy for accomplishing their vision to build up a strong communication suppliers and customers relationships in the future. It helps Dell to find out the best strategy to be competitive in the marketplace. Thus, it will guide them to improve the work performance and gain a competitive advantage. (Dell, 2010) Dells objective is to generate loyal clients by providing better experience at a great value. They are devoted to direct relationships, giving best goods with standard based technology outperforming the rivalry with value and an advanced client experience. Dell is the association which is recognized worldwide for its approach of direct selling to the customers and business customers due to which it has obtained greater profits and has grabbed large market share from its rivals. As the business develops with the period of time it is largely enterprise strategy is becoming stronger, complicated and established. (Dell, 2010) Conclusion Nowadays, competitive market a strategy that assures a constant approach to offering the goods or services in a system that will outperform the competition is significant. However, in performance with defining the marketing strategy associations should also have a well defined method for the day to day progression of executing it. A cost leadership strategy is based on the idea that the associations can manufacture and market a high quality goods or services at a lower cost than their rivals. These low costs must transform to profit margins that are higher than the manufacturing average. Some of the circumstances that must exist to support a cost leadership strategy comprise an on-going accessibility of working capital, excellent process engineering abilities, and close management of work, goods designed for easiness of manufacturing and low cost distribution. (Emerald Insight Staff ,1993) It is important to know the market segment as described by the viewpoint characteristics associations have chosen as the objective for their offering. It is based on the criticality of the prospects require, their approach about alteration, the importance of the benefits, barriers that exist to integrating the offering into daily procedure and the reliability of the offering. The prospective for market penetration involves whether they are selling to past clients or a new outlook, how aware the forecasts are of what they are presenting, rivalry, growth rate of the manufacturing and demographics. The prospects willingness to give for product value is established by their understanding of competitive pricing, their capability to give and their want for characteristics such as value, stability and dependability, ease of utilize, consistency and steadiness. (Coate, Patricia ,2007)

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Symbolism Essay :: essays research papers

Throughout Elizabeth Winthrop’s short story, â€Å"The Golden Darters,† are symbols of how Emily, the main character, is growing up. The most obvious symbols are Emily piercing her ears, her father’s table where he works on the flies, and the golden darters.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A symbol of Emily growing up is the fact that she pierced her ears, even after her parents forbid it, telling her she had to wait until she was seventeen. This shows defiance toward her parents, but also shows her becoming more dependent and able to make decisions on her own. Emily’s father’s workstation, or table, where he made the flies symbolizes the world her father was in. It was in a secluded corner of the house, isolated from much contact with anyone but her father. Her father was trying to keep Emily like the table in a way, wanting to isolate her from the world of â€Å"boys† and everything else that comes with growing up. Another symbol of Emily growing up were the golden darters, or streamers, which were the first fishing lures that Emily and her father made together. He described them as â€Å"a big flashy fly.† After Emily gets her ears pierced, she uses the golden darters to make herself look â€Å"flashier.† The purpose of the lures was to attract fish, but Emily was using them to attract members of the opposite sex. What was meant to be a typical fishing lure is now becoming a sexual lure. Twelve-year-old Emily is obviously trying to grow up, but her father is not ready for that yet. When she shows the new earrings to her father, he is not pleased with what he sees. He is not ready for his daughter to become a woman, yet there she is, standing in front of him, looking like one. It seems as though he is angry that she used the lures the way she did, but he really doesn’t know how else to express his feelings. When he says, â€Å"that is not the purpose for which the flies we re intended,† he meant just that; the flies were not meant to be anything more than fishing lures.

Friday, July 19, 2019

The Country of Pointed Firs Essay -- Literary Analysis

The Country of Pointed Firs transcends the boundaries of a traditional story in attempt to grasp the realism of the country landscape in a more generous form. The book contains little to no drama, but instead focuses on description of dialect, landscape, and gesture. The narrator meditates upon the unchanged time of Dunnet Landing to describe the quality of landscape and permanence in scenes of country life. Her trip serves as a revaluation of continuance—a fixed pattern of social order and existence within the village community. Furthermore, the narrator's outsider perspective justifies the practice of defining characters in external conditions. The Country of Pointed Firs is written in local color containing character portraits and genre scenes. Local color, in a sense, is a miniature form of literature in which the writer works with anecdote and caricature. Incidentally humor derives from occurrences of real life. The local color form is appropriate to the nature of the nar rator's experience of country life in Dunnet Landing. Jewett's art of perspective informs her pictorial style with a deeply refined sense of texture. The reader is made to feel the narrator's final judgments in the closing chapter of â€Å"The Backward View,† which states an end of the narrator's return to Dunnet Landing. The concluding scene is a moment of farewell between the narrator and Dunnet Landing as she stands at the crossing of two paths—the village life and the city to which she must return. The narrator sits upon a hill and oversees her surroundings, closely observing Mrs. Todd whose distant figure â€Å"looked mateless and appealing† (129). Mrs. Todd's attitude of sorrow and isolation reveals deeper insights into her character. Though Mrs. Todd earlier â€Å"... ...n Mrs. Todd came back and found her lodger gone. So we die before our own eyes; so we see some chapters of our lives come to their natural end† (129). The closed and quiet summer of village life has come to a swift end. The narrator departs as the tide sets in, leaving Dunnet Landing in its air of isolated stillness. The narrator's precise observations allow the reader to find insight in small moments of village life. Jewett presents a world seemingly unchanged with a mixture of remoteness and a â€Å"childish certainty of being the center of civilization† (1). The narrator's nostalgic recount of village life has about it the mood of a dream, a life remembered and not put down until long afterwards. Jewett's pictorial conventions create a feeling of impermanence akin to nostalgia assembled into long, gracefully rambled sentences authenticating her own regional style.

Thursday, July 18, 2019

The Key To Master Writing is to Write a Lot :: English Writing Teacher Student

â€Å"Write a lot.† Could this idea be the foundation of a sound writing pedagogy? It seems almost too simple. It also seems solidly in line with Peter Elbow’s ideas for the â€Å"teacherless class†and therefore, if we believe Berlin’s formulation from â€Å"Rhetoric and Ideology in the Writing Class†, perhaps part of a pedagogic philosophy that can easily marginalize certain students or be â€Å"co-opted by the agencies of corporate capitalism† (697; in Cross-Talk). But I’m thinking more in terms of establishing writing for students as something that ought to be done in volume in order to build it as a habit. In my own experience as a student, this never happened. Nor did I hear about the social implications of writing or the power structures inherent in the classroom, ideas that might pique student interest in writing’s possibilities and demystify the classroom enough to make students want to write more. Now I think these elem ents could be the keys to better writing. Elbow opines, â€Å"If you are serious about wanting to improve your writing, the most useful thing you can do is keep a freewriting diary† (9). When I recently read Writing Without Teachers for the first time, the assertion that writing a lot is a good thing hit me as if it was completely new. And I think of myself as a writer! But some reflection showed me that my education, from grade school through college, had done very little to actually encourage me to write with any sort of regularity, or to revise what I did write. And so I produced little actual writing - just enough to get by. If this was the case for me, it may well have been the case for others. And if, regardless of our particular philosophical approach to instruction, we are in agreement as teachers of writing that we are trying to get students to write †better† (however we understand that), then shouldn’t establishing writing as a habit be a priority? It is unlikely that any teacher of writin g thinks that less, and not more, practice makes a better writer. How might we encourage regular writing for students? Are daily journal entries a good idea, as Elbow suggests? Anecdotal evidence from our class suggests that some teachers find journal writing effective, while others are convinced that assigning a ten-minute freewriting exercise really would tend to produce pages full of the sentence â€Å"I hate this assignment† repeated over and over. The Key To Master Writing is to Write a Lot :: English Writing Teacher Student â€Å"Write a lot.† Could this idea be the foundation of a sound writing pedagogy? It seems almost too simple. It also seems solidly in line with Peter Elbow’s ideas for the â€Å"teacherless class†and therefore, if we believe Berlin’s formulation from â€Å"Rhetoric and Ideology in the Writing Class†, perhaps part of a pedagogic philosophy that can easily marginalize certain students or be â€Å"co-opted by the agencies of corporate capitalism† (697; in Cross-Talk). But I’m thinking more in terms of establishing writing for students as something that ought to be done in volume in order to build it as a habit. In my own experience as a student, this never happened. Nor did I hear about the social implications of writing or the power structures inherent in the classroom, ideas that might pique student interest in writing’s possibilities and demystify the classroom enough to make students want to write more. Now I think these elem ents could be the keys to better writing. Elbow opines, â€Å"If you are serious about wanting to improve your writing, the most useful thing you can do is keep a freewriting diary† (9). When I recently read Writing Without Teachers for the first time, the assertion that writing a lot is a good thing hit me as if it was completely new. And I think of myself as a writer! But some reflection showed me that my education, from grade school through college, had done very little to actually encourage me to write with any sort of regularity, or to revise what I did write. And so I produced little actual writing - just enough to get by. If this was the case for me, it may well have been the case for others. And if, regardless of our particular philosophical approach to instruction, we are in agreement as teachers of writing that we are trying to get students to write †better† (however we understand that), then shouldn’t establishing writing as a habit be a priority? It is unlikely that any teacher of writin g thinks that less, and not more, practice makes a better writer. How might we encourage regular writing for students? Are daily journal entries a good idea, as Elbow suggests? Anecdotal evidence from our class suggests that some teachers find journal writing effective, while others are convinced that assigning a ten-minute freewriting exercise really would tend to produce pages full of the sentence â€Å"I hate this assignment† repeated over and over.