Thursday, December 26, 2019

Human Trafficking Is A Rising - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 825 Downloads: 5 Date added: 2019/05/07 Category Society Essay Level High school Tags: Human Trafficking Essay Did you like this example? Skills and Strategies The skills and strategies which I applied to read this article were that I first read the article. By reading the article first time I got little idea what is it about. The words which were difficult for me to understand I searched its meaning in a dictionary which helped me a lot to understand article half way. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Human Trafficking Is A Rising" essay for you Create order I read the article 2-3 times loud to understand article better and underlined the important points which I wanted to include in my summary. After making key points I made a research regarding the article, tried to understand some difficult words in my own language which made the reading easy for me. I asked questions to myself, putting myself in that particular situation and found out answers to the critical thinking of article. Summary Human trafficking is a rising concern which involves the trade of human for various purposes like sex, slavery and forced labor. It is very unfortunate that even with developing technologies and security systems around the world there is ever increasing trade of especially women and children mostly from developing countries. According to the International Labor Organization around 2.3 million people are victims of trafficking. In this article, the author Vanessa talks about how humans are forced for prostitute services and slavery, economic globalization as a faciliatory of human trafficking, victims and predators. how to prevent human trafficking, prosecution and how to protect them self from human trafficking. Basically, she says that the root cause of human trafficking is poverty. Developing countries use women and children as their investment, sell them for prostitution and slavery at very less money to developed countries. The money they get from developed countries increases th e economy of the developing country. All this happens because of globalization, globalization increases a greater number of criminals and criminal activities. Worlds economy increases due to globalization. International labor organization estimates annual global profits $32 million. The needy people mostly become victims as they easily get attracted to the fake advertisements regarding jobs posted by predators and victims get trapped in their tricks. Many preventive measures and protection measures are taken to remove the root cause of trafficking like giving education, anti-trafficking laws enforcement, but still, predators always play safe and stay one step ahead of laws. They are having such a strong network that they dont get easily caught and human trafficking continues. Critical Thinking The author has explained how the effect of globalization is increasing the rates of human trafficking. Globalization which helps in growing the worlds economy, the author wants to remove the roots of human trafficking by educating people, by taking help of laws. I totally agreed with the present article that its true globalization does increase human trafficking, women and children are forced into such things by giving unlawful payments or benefits. It surely increases economic growth, but the crime rates increase. Criminals get encouraged more and more day by day, they want to earn more money easily. The connections of mafia people are strong that they dont even get caught. They continue doing such activities more frequently and exploit poor and needy people. Definitely, this activity should be removed from the roots. For example, the government of developing countries should give a fixed amount of wages to people who are below the poverty line. Educating people regarding such a thi ng, how to handle such situations and how to protect and prevent themselves from human trafficking should be taught free of cost. Yes, I have witnessed such a situation in a home country where innocent children are kidnapped and are tortured to beg at street lights. After kidnapping their body parts are damaged and parts like kidneys, eyes are sold. Some mafias are so clever that they run NGO for orphan children and use them wisely in exporting, importing and supplying drugs. When they feel a shortage of children they bring children from adoption houses. People even kidnap children to perform paranormal activities, to perform black magic. Some people have blind faith in such things and at the end dont get any profit by performing such activities. In fact, innocent people become victims and lose their life. Young girls under the age of 18 are sold and exported to men and are trained to entertain. The predator runs sex rachet so wisely that they dont even get caught. They export girls from one state to another state and from state, one border to another border during night time. Women are given schemes to earn mo re money by doing jobs and are later forced and assaulted. All this can be stopped only by educating people, making laws which really frightens predators, giving self-defense classes. The government should take some steps to make sure that how many NGO are fake and how many are registered. Securities should be so tight, that any kind of export should be caught easily, hidden cameras on roads should be placed to catch such activities.

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Homelessness And Homelessness Homeless Adults With...

I. Introduction Homelessness occurs all too often among those suffering from severe mental illness. In the following studies, some unsettling statistics are given, such as 20% of all schizophrenics are homeless, and schizophrenics are ten times likelier to become homeless than non-schizophrenics. People with mental health problems are often unable to keep a job, act responsibly with money and maintain overall stable lives if not supported properly. For those left on their own, they often succumb to homelessness. Schizophrenics, in particular, are at risk because of their paranoid tendencies and delusions, and issues keeping their finances stable. Despite the overwhelming statistical evidence, there is more to learn about the connection between schizophrenia and homelessness. What factors directly cause their homelessness and what can be done to prevent a decline into homelessness? II. Literature Review a. Trajectories of Recovery Among Formerly Homeless Adults with Serious Mental Illness Recovery from serious mental illness is an arduous but not unattainable goal. To better understand the recovery process, this study asked, â€Å"Are there changes in participant’s recovery trajectories over time?† and â€Å"What is the lived experience of recovery over time?†. Participants were recruited from two supportive housing programs in New York City. Participants had to have been homeless, abused substances, been newly housed through the program, been diagnosed with a DSM axis I diagnosisShow MoreRelatedCauses Of Homelessness1405 Words   |  6 Pageshelp the homeless population, we must understand their mental health and behavioral needs. The information they all share in common are the factors why a specific type of population became homeless. The interrelation of homelessness and mental illness are informed by many factors such as; the lack of support, extreme poverty, substance abuse, lack of affordable health insurance, and lack of affordable housing. The homeless population shares different struggles when dealing with homelessness and mentalRead MoreHomelessness Is The Common Reason Of Homelessness Essay1449 Words   |  6 PagesName ENG 111 4 December 2016 Homelessness in charlotte Over the past year, homelessness is rapidly increasing in America and across in the world. poverty and mental illness is the common reason of homelessness, these people face an extremely struggle just to live despite the fact that society turns its head from the problem. Homelessness is one of the tragedies that one can face, People who live at poverty level and have mental disorders are more likely to become homeless. its something that effectsRead MoreHomelessness : A Worldwide Public Health Crisis Essay1423 Words   |  6 PagesHomelessness: A Worldwide Public Health Crisis In the United States, there were approximately 564,708 people who were homeless on a single winter night in 2015 (Housing and Urban Development, 2015). Worldwide, acquiring an accurate picture of homelessness has proven challenging due to varying definitions country to country. Furthermore, data on homelessness has also proven to be extremely sparse in many parts of the world. The last worldwide survey was attempted by the United Nations. Based onRead MoreThe Link Between Homelessness And Mental Health983 Words   |  4 PagesWhat’s the issue? The lack of mental health services available to the mentally-ill and the deinstitutionalization of mental health hospitals have created a public health concern. These issues along with a failed continuum of care plans and a lack of community mental health services have been major contributing factors to homelessness. In addition, the strict guidelines for psychiatric hospitalization are critical when analyzing homelessness. In many cases, only the critically ill are meeting clinicalRead MoreMental Health For The Mentally Ill999 Words   |  4 PagesMental Health Brief What’s the issue? The lack of mental health services available to the mentally-ill and the deinstitutionalization of mental health hospitals have created a public health concern. These issues along with failed continuum of care strategies and a lack of community mental health services are major contributing factors to homelessness. In addition, the strict guidelines for psychiatric hospitalization are critical when analyzing homelessness among the mentally-ill. In many cases,Read MoreHomeless On A Single Winter Night Essay1507 Words   |  7 Pagesapproximately 564,708 people who were homeless on a single winter night in 2015 (Housing and Urban Development, 2015). Worldwide, acquiring an accurate picture of homelessness has proven challenging due to varying definitions country to country. Furthermore, data on homelessness has also proven to be extremely sparse in many parts of the world. The last worldwide survey was attempted by the United Nations. Based on the survey it was estimated that 100 mil lion people were homeless across the world (United NationsRead MoreHomelessness and Mental Illness704 Words   |  3 Pagesï » ¿ Homelessness and Mental Illness Issues Introduction How many people are homeless in the United States, why are they homeless, and what percentage of homeless people are negatively impacted by mental illness? These issues will be presented in this paper. Homelessness and Mental Illness Among the Homeless in America The Public Broadcast Service (PBS) defines a homeless person as lacking †¦a fixed, regular, and adequate night-time residence. Quoting the National Alliance to End HomelessnessRead MoreA Vulnerable Population: The Homeless in America919 Words   |  4 PagesPopulation: The Homeless in America Introduction Homelessness in America should be a growing concern. When discussing the United States current economic crisis comparisons with the Great Depression are becoming more and more common. Tent cities or makeshift shelters in specified areas or just beyond city limits are becoming familiar sites across the country. Each of these cities contains dozens if not hundreds of families struggling to just survive (Maide, 2010). Homelessness can be definedRead MoreHomelessness in American1645 Words   |  7 PagesHomelessness in America Homelessness in America has always been an issue but it has become an even bigger issue over the past years. With a world filled with global conflict, disappearing jobs, higher education cost, and increasing poverty in America, the homeless need our help more than ever. Just last year, the national poverty rate rose to include 13.2 % of the population. Also, 3.5 million people were forced to sleep in parks, shelters, under bridges or in cars. Hunger and homelessness areRead MoreThe Social Issues Of Homelessness1133 Words   |  5 PagesOver half of a million people within the United States are homeless, the largest part of that group belonging to the famed and familiar city: Los Angeles. But why is it that the majority of Americans seem so unaffected by the penniless, impoverished souls harboring the areas they often visit? It was once delivered by the famed businessman and religious leader, Joseph B. Wirthlin, in an address named Live in Thanksgiving Daily that The more often we the see things around us -- even the beautiful

Monday, December 9, 2019

Classical Realism for Marxism and Neoliberalism - myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theClassical Realism for Marxism and Neoliberalism. Answer: The concept of international relations has evolved over time. With this evolvement, it has led to the creation of various political theories such as Liberal Internationalism, Classical Realism, The English School, Marxism, Neoliberalism and others (Burchill et al. 2013). The foundation of the Classical Realism has been established after the sorrowful and tragic end of the Second World War. Classical Realism states the notion that the occurrence of international politics and political discord lies on the inherent features of human essence and identity. Order is regarded as the pivotal point of Classical Realism (Seifert 2013). Some proponents of Classical Realism believes that order helps in the molding of nations and by which humans can bring a positive transformation in the environment albeit in a ponderous process. The essay outlines the fact to demonstrate an explanation of a theory of international relations and to present a reflective writing in collaboration with the theory. Assumption is said to be an occurrence, which is inevitable, bound to happen, and does not require any attestation of facts. Assumption can be related to any things, establishments or even human beings. The theory of Classical Realism is based on many valid assumptions (Brown 2012). I believe, they are- According to their innate nature, human beings are self-centered and possess weak ethics. They cannot liberate themselves from the immoral act that they took birth to reflect on their actions. The impulsive craving for power and control over any person or entity is the most universal, persistent and menacing inborn nature of human and it surpasses all other nefarious tendencies of humans. The prospect of wiping out the impulsive craving for power among humans can be termed as an idealistic or utopian expectation. Utopian expectation involves the belief to expect for something quintessential or consummate. In fact, the belief seems too good to be true and is not always enforceable in reality. The famous political scientist, Thomas Hobbes summed up global politics as a fight for power and a struggle of everyone against everyone. The concept of global methodology states that all nations must develop strong and effective defense system to combat any potentially dangerous aggressive action committed by any foes. In terms of nation-building art, defense power holds more relevance than financial power. Financial power serves only as a requirement to procure national authority, influence and class. The prospective confederates can assist a nation to hone its capability to protect itself. However, its allegiance and steadfastness must not be conjectured. The nations must never blindly delegate the duty of self-defense to intercontinental corporations and must take steps to modulate global comportment. The fundamental objective of every nation must be to publicize national concern and interest and to secure sufficient leverage to facilitate the objective. Expansion of powers will only show its results when there is a presence of equilibrium of power, expedited by effort-less alliance networks. Many eminent political scholars have associated themselves with the theory of Classical Realism in International Relations. The propagators to the theory of Classical Realism are known as Classical Realists (Rossi and Sleat 2014). Each of the Classical Realists has left their marks upon the arena of International Relations with their big ideas. Niccolo Machiavelli has emphasized his concept of classical realism in his brilliant book, The Prince (Machiavelli 2014). Machiavelli states that state protection can be studied as a type of power which itself can contribute to the upkeep of state authority. Thomas Hobbes, another supporter of the classical realism theory stressed on the substantiality of order. The existence of order is paramount in the understanding of Classical Realism (Spragens Jr 2015). Order can aid humans to transform the world into a beautiful place by incessant evolvement, organization and adaption. Hans Morgenthau, who is considered to be a latter-day Classical Realist thinker, remarkably emphasizes upon the prevalence of a global ethical code that possesses the ethical obligation to steer reasonable and rational stagecraft (Levine 2013). Reinhold Niebuhr, the renowned American political analyst led to the formation of the movement of Christian Realism. He had played a major role in the sequences of the Second World War and had based his religious notions on Protestantism (Troy 2013). He was extremely well liked and charismatic in his native country- United States and also in the other continents. From the above discussion of the classical realists, I can understand that the Classical Realists differed in their views and opinions within the realm of Classical Realism. Their varied viewpoints and outlooks make the study of Classical Realism fascinating and unputdownable. Classical Realism has many striking strengths and similarly, inconspicuous weaknesses. According to me, the study of both strengths and weaknesses makes the theory of Classical Realism so arresting and contradictory. The strengths of Classical Realism are- Classical Realism helps to provides us with a valuable perception as to why the gory and brutality has miraculously lessened since the advent of the 20th century. It states the reason to be the inherent effort of the progressive democratic nations to bring the other nations into their liberal and advanced domain. Classical Realism identifies the necessary requirement for all the theories of International Relation to be in touch with the practical world and harsh reality (Frankel 2013). Classical Realism also links specific contextual scenarios for distinct occurrences. Classical Realism advocates peace and harmony and actively dissuades human beings from committing any acts of ruination or spoliation since it strongly upholds the notion of a utopian world. The theory of Classical Realism states to us that the possible abolition of disputes and acts of destruction is not related to the financial materialism but to the development of harmonious relation and comradeship among the modern states. The weaknesses of Classical Realism are- I believe that Classical Realism places undue emphasis on the assertion of power and authority. The cupidity of power cannot be evaluated or certified. Therefore, it challenges the authencity of Classical Realism. It places the foundation of Classical Realism on dubious grounds. The theory of Classical Realism also tends to undermine the role of important facilitators such as the intercontinental firms and global organizations. In fact, at times, I have seen that the external issues surrounding a state, such as governmental aggression, climactic disruptions and population effects, influences the affairs of the state more significantly, than the internal circumstances (Cox 2016). However, Classical Realism fails to take note of this fact and therefore it cannot provide weighty clarifications about the recent global events. The most mentionable weakness of Classical Realism is that it gives faulty commendation of the practice of law and justice. It is not necessary, that law and justic e will always act as a savior to all the problems faced by the global citizenry. There have been instances where the whole ordeal of law was altered by an influencing personality to suit his or her devious action. After the completion of this teaching period, I can say that my perspective on international politics has definitely undergone a huge change. Previously, I used to think that the cause of violent military actions could be attributed to the existence of deficiency in the defense system or due to boundary violation or other political intricacies. Now I have restructured my understanding in the lines of the assumptive conclusions of Classical Realism. The 21st century has been terrifically marked with violent and horrible occurrences of aggression, belligerence and war mongering. Certain instances, which can be cited, are the US invasion of Iraq, the Russian annexation of the region of Crimea in Ukraine and the horrific incidents of racial cleansing in the African countries (Kaldor 2013). I have learnt that the insatiable greed of power makes the human population to commit such acts of butchering and antagonism. Humans become blinded by their pleoxonia of power to such an extent that th ey fail to reflect upon the possible, disheartening consequences of their actions. Undoubtedly, humans are selfish and self-centered by nature. Due to this when a person reaches to the peak of indomitable power, he or she fails to think straight and fanatically tries to establish oneself in the minds and eyes of the public, as a God-like figure. This instinctive nature can be related to the character analysis of many famous political leaders and can also serve as a valid cause behind their regrettable exploitations. The scenario of global politics is also nothing but an incessant fight for attaining maximum domination and supremacy over countries and economies, alike. If I have to take an illustrative example to highlight my reflections on Classical Realism, nothing can be more appropriate than the Japanese aggression on the city of Pearl Harbor in America. The incident occurred on the fateful day of December 7 in the year 1941. It was the period of the Second World War (Prange, Goldstein and Dillon 2014). The whole world was deeply stupefied by this sudden and unexpected act of force and assault. America was a rising superpower at that time and the other countries would think twice to plan the destruction of such a strategic location in America. The attack committed by Japan was simply unbelievable and far-fetched. However, a follower of the theory of Classical Realism would not find it amusing because it directly correlates with the assumptions of its theoretical concept. This act of treachery by the comparatively less powerful Japan can be attributed to the notion of Classical Realism, which promotes the emergence of a utopian environment by am plifying the necessary ardor and frailties of humans and by dissuading inhumanity and ferocity. Additionally, Japan desired to attain full-fledged power to become one of the superpowers. At the end of this discussion, I have come to the conclusion that Classical Realism is in fact a very well thought and distinguishable theory of International Relations. Classical Realism is one of the oldest theories of International Relations, dated back in the era of the Second World War. It has been subjected to intense evolution over the years. Classical Realism has been propagated by the old generation thinkers as well as by the modern political intellectuals. Like all theories, Classical Realism has its share of strengths and weaknesses. However, it is one of the influencing theories of International Relations, which helps us to reflect effectively upon the global acts of bloodshed and genocide. References Brown, C., 2012. The practice turn, phronesis and classical realism: Towards a phronetic international political theory?.Millennium,40(3), pp.439-456. Burchill, S., Linklater, A., Devetak, R., Donnelly, J., Nardin, T., Paterson, M., Reus-Smit, C. and True, J., 2013.Theories of international relations. Palgrave Macmillan. Cox, R.W. ed., 2016.The new realism: Perspectives on multilateralism and world order. Springer. Frankel, B. ed., 2013.Realism: Restatements and Renewal. Routledge. Kaldor, M., 2013.New and old wars: Organised violence in a global era. John Wiley Sons. Levine, D.J., 2013. Why Hans Morgenthau was not a critical theorist (and why contemporary IR realists should care).International Relations,27(1), pp.95-118. Machiavelli, N., 2014. The prince and other writings. McKeogh, C., 2016.The political realism of Reinhold Niebuhr: a pragmatic approach to just war. Springer. Pouliot, V. and Mrand, F., 2013. Bourdieus concepts.Bourdieu in International Relations: Rethinking Key Concepts in IR, pp.24-44. Prange, G., Goldstein, D.M. and Dillon, K.V., 2014.December 7, 1941: the day the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Open Road Media. Rossi, E. and Sleat, M., 2014. Realism in normative political theory.Philosophy Compass,9(10), pp.689-701. Seifert, J., 2013.Back to'things in themselves': A phenomenological foundation for classical realism. Routledge. Spragens Jr, T.A., 2015.The politics of motion: The world of Thomas Hobbes. University Press of Kentucky. Troy, J. ed., 2013.Religion and the realist tradition: from political theology to international relations theory and back. Routledge.

Monday, December 2, 2019

THE PAINTER OF HIS OWN DISHONOUR Essay Example For Students

THE PAINTER OF HIS OWN DISHONOUR Essay A monologue from the play by Pedro Calderon de la Barca NOTE: This monologue is reprinted from Eight Dramas of Calderon. Trans. Edward Fitzgerald. London: Macmillan Co., 1906. SERAFINA: Poor argument! I rather draw that heWho ventures on such desperate acts can haveNo true respect for her he outrages,And therefore no true love. No, daring traitorBut Ill not strive to break the heart of flint,But wear it with my tears. Hear me, Alvaro,In pityin mercyhear me.This thing is done, there is no remedy,Let us not waste the time in arguingWhat better had been done; the stars so ruled itYea, providence that rules the stars. Well then,What next? Alvaro, I would speak of this;And ift be right I owe you any thing,Be it for this one boon, a patient hearing.Listen to meI never draw a breath but tis on fireWith Juans vengeance; never move a stepBut think I see his fierce eyes glaring at meFrom some dark corner of this desolate houseIn which my youth is buried. And what gain youBy all this crime and misery? My body,But not my soul; without possessing which,Beauty itself is but a breathing corpse,But a cold marble statue, unsuffusedWith the responsive hue of sympathy,Posses sd but not enjoyd.Oh, ill betide that villain love, not love,That all its object and affection findsIn the mere contact of encircling arms!But if this move you notconsider, AlvaroDon Juan is a noblemanas suchBound to avenge his honour; he must knowTwas you who did this monstrous act, for FloraWould tell him all. There is one remedy:Tis this, that you, despairing of my love,Which you can never gainforego me quite,And give me up to some cold convents cloister,Where buried I may wear away We will write a custom essay on THE PAINTER OF HIS OWN DISHONOUR specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

The 7 Types of Possessive Case

The 7 Types of Possessive Case The 7 Types of Possessive Case The 7 Types of Possessive Case By Mark Nichol The possessive case is used to indicate relationships between one person, place, or thing and another. However, it’s more accurate to call it by its alternate name, the genitive case (genitive means, essentially, â€Å"generation†), because in many uses, one person, place, or thing doesn’t actually belong to the other. The genitive is indicated one of two ways: A singular noun is followed by an apostrophe and the letter s (as with book’s), and an apostrophe alone follows a plural noun that ends in s or es (as with teams’ or arches’). The genitive form of an irregular plural noun, one in which a change in spelling, rather than s or es, marks the word as having a plural form (such as men), is treated as if the word were a singular noun (men’s). Here are examples of the seven categories of genitive use. 1. One type of genitive case is that denoting occupation, or ownership or possession, as in â€Å"She walked into Jane’s office† or â€Å"John’s car is being repaired.† (In all genitive forms, the noun to which the apostrophe or the apostrophe and the s are attached is called the dependent, or modifier, noun; the word with which it is associated is the head, or modified, noun.) 2. Another is relationship, as in â€Å"The school’s principal is retiring this year.† (This idea can also be represented by omitting the apostrophe and the s â€Å"The school principal is retiring this year† but the meaning is slightly different; in the latter sentence, the reference is to a person identified as the school principal, whereas the genitive form treats the school and the principal as separate entities.) In this category, the idea can be expressed in a phrase beginning with the head noun: â€Å"The principal of the school is retiring this year.† The previous type is not so flexible; â€Å"She walked into the office of Jane† is awkward, and constructions such as â€Å"She walked into the office belonging to [or occupied by] Jane† are usually unnecessarily verbose. 3. The genitive can also be used to express agency, or representation, as in â€Å"The board’s secretary consulted the minutes from the last meeting.† (The secretary is a member of the board but technically doesn’t belong to it.) â€Å"The secretary of the board consulted the minutes from the last meeting† is also correct, but as in the previous example, the emphasis is slightly different, and the first version is more concise. 4. Description is another function of the genitive, as in â€Å"She admired the fabric’s glossy sheen.† (Loosely speaking, the glossy sheen â€Å"belongs† to the fabric, but the phrase is, strictly, speaking, a description.) 5. Another category is that relating to the role of the person, place, or thing that serves as the subject of a sentence, as in â€Å"The officer’s report was conclusive.† (â€Å"The report of the officer was conclusive† has the same slight distinction of meaning as similar constructions in previous examples.) 6. Then there is the role of the person, place, or thing identified as the object of a sentence, as in â€Å"The baby’s delivery was uneventful† (which can be rendered â€Å"The delivery of the baby was uneventful† with a slight difference in the meaning). 7. The most troublesome genitive form is that in which a phrase including of is truncated, as in â€Å"He gave two weeks’ notice† in place of â€Å"He gave notice of two weeks†: Many writers mistakenly treat â€Å"two weeks† as simply a modifier of notice (â€Å"He gave two weeks notice†) rather than correctly including the apostrophe to indicate the genitive case. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:20 Great Similes from Literature to Inspire YouTaser or Tazer? Tazing or Tasering?The 7 Types of Possessive Case

Saturday, November 23, 2019

The evolutionary reason reading is hard †and why thats good news

The evolutionary reason reading is hard – and why thats good news This is why reading most documents feels like hard work There’s one thing about reports that people never seem to talk about. Even after 21 years, and training more than 50,000 people to write well, I really cant recall anyone bringing it up. And that secret is this: reading is hard. I don’t mean we find it difficult to read our email or text messages, or even social media. (Though there’s an awful lot more to doing that than you think.) No, I mean reading reports, official guides or any other vaguely technical document is hard. Hard reading is a feeling that’s familiar to us all. We’ve all been there. It’s Friday afternoon and you’re hunched over a dense document, trying in vain to decipher page after page of turgid text. Each sentence seems like an effort as you strain to wrap your head around just exactly what it is the author is meaning to say. More coffee hasn’t helped. You’re now on your third attempt to read the current paragraph and yet – somehow – the words just aren’t going in. And you’re still on the first page. It’s about as enjoyable and effortless as trudging around Ikea on a wet Saturday afternoon – with a hangover. And yet, those words that seem to get lost between the page and your brain are exactly the same ones that someone else thought were the best way to convey important information from their head to yours. Mind-boggling cost I’m not saying this is a new issue – far from it. But these days we have the technology to create these things in vast numbers. Just think how many times something very similar to the above scenario must play itself out in an organisation. The mind boggles at how much that must cost. Yet this is an opportunity as well as a challenge. Reports that are easy to read rise to the top and make way more impact than the rest. They stand out simply because they are different from the majority. And, rather than being a drain on mental resources, they leave us plenty of brain space to consider their implications and make quick decisions on what to do about them. Producing them is easier said than done though. If that were not the case, then everyone would write them and I would have no need to write this blog post. A report thats easy to read is the exception – simply because that’s the type that most people struggle to produce. But theres one important factor here thats easy to overlook. Reading anything is something of a miracle of biology. Understanding that is the key to getting your documents to the top and really making an impact. As you’re reading this, something incredibly complex is going on in your brain. You are looking at greyscale symbols on a screen and converting them into ideas. Abraham Lincoln called it ‘the greatest invention of the world’ – communicating thoughts to the mind through the eye. A human invention And yes, it is an invention. This is not something we evolved to do. We actually evolved to communicate vocally and face to face, over hundreds of millions of years. We’ve been communicating through symbols, what we now call reading, for less than five-and-a-half thousand years. That’s barely a heartbeat in evolutionary terms, and certainly not long enough to have evolved brain structures dedicated to the task. Instead, we take apparatus that we evolved for a whole variety of other situations and co-opt it into deciphering a seemingly endless string of squiggles and dots. We are utilising our brain’s structure for something it was never meant to do. (And on that Friday afternoon, it probably feels like it.) No artificial intelligence can match this feat, even now. You see proof of this every time you answer a website’s demand to confirm that you’re not a robot. That simple statement placed on the site as a graphics file rather than text is all it takes to differentiate you from a cyborg. Narrow focus: your eyes scan text by taking four or five narrow snapshots every second (Dahaene, 2009) Even capturing the words to process is incredible in itself. The fact that you seem to do it easily is just an illusion. In reality, as you are scanning this text, your brain is instructing your eyes to take four or five snapshots every second (known as saccades). There’s only one small area of your retina that has a high-enough resolution to take these pictures (called the fovea), which means that the snapshots themselves are small, too – occupying only about 15 per cent of your visual field. If you stop and freeze your gaze at any one point, you’ll see that you’re only actually focused on one or two words. Each word is then split into fragments, to be reassembled later. And that’s just the start of it. Next, the brain processes the words in the area that all primates – not just us but our monkey and ape cousins – use to recognise symbols and shapes. It’s no coincidence that the shapes most commonly found in nature are also the most common shapes across all written languages – T and L. These shapes (in various orientations) are the most frequent not just in those that use the Roman alphabet – such as English, French, German or Spanish – but Bengali, Thai, Chinese and even the hieroglyphs of the ancient Egyptians. We then cross-check this information against our database of words. Those we recognise get processed down one neural pathway; those we don’t, we mentally pronounce before checking to see if we recognise the sound pattern. We then choose which words we think we’re reading and that (finally) triggers the thought process. Its incredibly complex and to complete it in a fraction of a second takes a lot of brainpower. With most documents, it probably feels like it. You can almost hear the cogs grinding round as it happens. But not all reading feels like hard work. Sometimes you simply don’t notice the cognitive effort going on behind the scenes. In fact, there are many things we read that don’t feel like reading at all. We simply get lost in the flow (even if we didn’t intend to). And that’s the stuff we return to again and again. This doesn’t mean writing that material is easy, of course. Far from it. The old saying ‘easy read, hard write’ has never been more true than when it comes to writing good documents. Make it easier The trick is to write them with the brain in mind. Use good design to make them easy on the eye. Incorporate lots of white space. Use narrow columns that are easy for the eye to scan across and move onto the next line quickly. Use short, powerful words in between the technical ones. Note that this is not the same as eliminating all jargon. Jargon is fine as long as you’re sure that your audience will understand it. But don’t make the process of reading any harder than it needs to be by trying to impress your reader with flowery language. (As Leonardo da Vinci said, simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.) Instead, state things as simply as you can, so that the brain doesn’t have to waste cognitive energy on deciphering what you mean. Devise a structure that flows logically. Draw people in at the beginning with a captivating introduction and then keep your reader reading with a document that flows easily from beginning to end. And then finish as powerfully as you started, so that your interaction with the reader doesn’t stop there. You want them to continue thinking about what you’ve written long after they’ve closed the document. Your aim should be to get into their heads, to set up camp in their brains. Communicate your thoughts to their minds through their eyes in as straightforward a way as possible and you’ll really get them thinking. Take this approach consistently and your documents will be in the small minority that resonate with your readers. They may even thank you for it. But even if they don’t, they won’t forget it. And that will put you in a very strong position. References Dehaene, S (2009). Reading in the brain: the science and evolution of a human invention. London: Penguin Liversedge, SP, and Findlay, JM (2000). Saccadic eye movements and cognition. Trends in Cognitive Sciences 4(1): 6-14. Kemmerer, D (2015); The cognitive neuroscience of language. Hove: Psychology Press Rubin, GS, and Turano, K (1992). Reading without saccadic eye movements. Vision Research 32(5): 895-902. Spoehr, KT, and Smith, EE (1975). The role of orthographic and phonotactic rules in perceiving letter patterns. Journal of Experimental Psychology Human Perception and Performance 104(1): 21-34. Image credit: LookerStudio / Shutterstock

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 2

Marketing - Essay Example outside of the marketing function impact upon marketing efforts. The report, takes the help of Sam’s Tailor, a fashion retailer in the Hong Kong market, to apply relevant methods of market analyses to the company’s marketing mix in order to determine the relationship between external market factors and other business units like finance, human resources and production, and their role in enforcing marketing efforts. ... The report will attempt to investigate all the above factors in relation to a fashion retailer in the Hong Kong retail market. It has to be noted that since the report is based on analysis of a fabricated situation in said market, whilst relevant background information is provided on the chosen company, an assumptive format will be employed when applying theory to the situation(s) explored. I.1 The organisation, Sam’s Tailors: Known as a tourist’s must visit enterprise, whether the tourist is a celebrity or a common person visiting Hong Kong, Sam’s tailors has earned a great reputation since its establishment in 1957 for providing high quality tailored suits for men and women. The company operates on the core traditions of quality and value for money. Their concept of the 24 hour suit has traditionally drawn many famous names like Bill Clinton, and Michael Palin, who in fact had a suit made within 24 hours whilst he was shooting his BBC travel documentary, Ã¢â‚¬Ë œAround the World in 80 Days’ (www.samstailor.biz; http://www.time.com/time/asia/2004/boa/boa_body_tailor.html). The current owner, Manu Melwani, son of the founder Sam Melwani, is very particular about maintaining strong relationships with past and present customers, as he thoroughly believes that a good tailor needs to know a lot about his customers. He travels extensively to Europe and America, where the majority of his clientele are, in order to understand more of their daily habits, personalities and public opinions about them to create suits tailor made for their image. The core competencies are the amount of research that goes into studying the behaviours of a considerably small but elite customer base, and a small corporate structure

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Finance - Essay Example For this to effectively happen, all the staff should have a sense of ownership of the budget being put into use. In order for the management to efficiently perform the necessary management functions, the use of budgets becomes very fundamental (Hilton, 1994). Therefore, budgets are mostly used in the planning process. It therefore needs to be employed appropriately so as to facilitate communication and act as a motivational factor amongst the employees. In addition, budgets are also used as for control and performance evaluations and measurements. Apart from all that, budgets provide a target for each member to achieve as well as a focus for their efforts (Hopwood, 1974). It therefore calls for participation to be allowed so that those involved in budget setting can be allowed to freely discuss and be more receptive to the decisions made so that they can easily corporate in achieving the budget goals. One very important issue that Charles Ltd. should know is that; the way in which th e budgets are administered to the appropriate staff determines their effectiveness to help achieve the organizational goals. Janet was not made part of the group when setting the budget with which she was served, therefore she could less understand the importance of this budget as well as its usefulness. She ought to have been part of this budget from initiation for him to adopt it without any problem (Lamberton & Harvey, 1991). Instead, she was made to adopt a budget of which she did not feel part of its ownership from the start. It is therefore important for Charles Ltd. to recognize that budgets in an organization have two important uses; one, they are used as a forecasting tool to measure the performance of the company in a particular period of time, especially in a year, and the second use is where the budgets are used as a yard stick of the managerial performances. However, it is usually argued that, by using the budget for measuring managerial performance, it can as well be u sed as a tool for control in the organization (Schiff & Lewin, 1978). The current budgetary reporting system considers variances that evidently show both the efficiencies and inefficiencies of the budget. This is determined by considering whether the variances are either favorable or unfavorable. On several occasions, the variances seem unfavorable as can be explained by the differences between the budgeted and the actual figures in the table. The notes 1 and 2 also indicate that the variances are unfavorable. Considering that the budget report was made by the directors without making Janet and other supervisors and managers part of its setting, it becomes very difficult for these other staffs who were not involved to just accept and adopt it. Instead, the result would be that most of the staff would use the inefficiency side of the budget report to criticize it. Taking an example of Janet, she says she has no time for the paper work, maybe because she might not have been used to th e this system of budgetary reporting. By considering the report inaccurate and unfair, she may be feeling that the inefficiencies might have arisen due to the

Sunday, November 17, 2019

National Foundation for Educational Research Essay Example for Free

National Foundation for Educational Research Essay Over the last century different techniques have been used to organise children within schools according to what the public and government asked for and needed. For example after the Second World War the number and size of schools increased, the tripartite system of secondary education was introduced and there was increased competition for grammar school places Sukhnandan and Lee (1998 pg. 13). There was a drive for excellence and the 11 plus exam leant itself easily to the administration of streaming. However during the 1960s research was carried out that suggested streaming had negative social consequences for pupils, which could have been the catalyst for the shift of emphasis from excellence to equality. This resulted in a shift from streaming to mixed ability teaching that continued throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Ability grouping, in the form of setting and within class grouping, was sometimes used in higher year groups for linear subjects such as maths, science and modern languages but mixed ability was the main grouping method. The essay question implies that again there has been a shift, this time to setting. Boaler et al (1998) seems to imply that pressures from the government are to blame for this move; suggesting research (Gewirtz, Ball Bowe, 1993 cited in Boaler et al 1998) indicates some teachers regard the curriculum set out in the 1988 Education Reform Act as incompatible with mixed ability teaching implying that they have no choice. Todays Governments seem to be increasingly interested in achieving goals and raising standards, even if this means children missing out on the social advantages of mixed ability grouping. Setting seems to reinforce social divisions, as there are a higher proportion of boys, children of lower socio-economic status, children born in the summer and those of ethnic minority backgrounds in the lower sets (Boaler, 1997a, 1997b. Oakes, 1982. Sutton, 1966. Cited in Sukhnandan and Lee, 1998. ) whereas children in mixed ability classes tend to come from a range of different backgrounds. I find this quite extraordinary, as the Scottish Parliament has recently spent millions on an anti-racism campaign. Surely segregating the children, albeit unintentionally, will undermine the message sent out by this campaign? The essay will discuss the advantages and disadvantages research has told us concerning setting. It will begin with the discussion of the effect of teachers attitudes and expectations of the set that they are teaching. It will then discuss the limitations pupils face by being placed in sets. It will discuss the social gap created by teaching children in sets. It will also discuss the advantages to the teacher of teaching children in sets and the advantages to the pupils. The essay compares setting to mixed ability teaching on several occasions this is because mixed ability teaching was the technique used before the recommendation to use setting also there seems to only be limited research on the other forms of grouping. Research has shown there to be both advantages and disadvantages to setting. Boaler et al (1998) demonstrated many disadvantages to setting. In their paper they cited a worrying statistic Jackson (1963) 96% of teachers taught to streamed ability groups meaning they taught all the children without consideration into their individual differences. Boaler et al (1998) made reference to some of the experiences of pupils in setted mathematics classes, they reported that their teachers consistently made comments such as youre in the top set, you should be able to do this and youre in the bottom group your not going to learn anything. These attitudes are undoubtedly detrimental for the child. Boaler et al (1998) reported that children in higher sets were disadvantaged because their teachers had too high expectations of the children they were teaching, one third of the children taught in the highest sets felt they were being pushed to hard, that their lessons were paced too fast and they were under too much pressure to succeed because of their teachers expectations and the competitive ethos between pupils in higher sets. This was discovered to really upset certain children, Boaler et al, (1998) I mean I get really depressed it really depressed me, the fact that everyone in the class is like really far ahead and I just dont understand. It was reported that girls were the most affected by this citing the fact that although girls have been reported to be overtaking boys in all subjects boys still get the highest grades in mathematics (where the use of setting is dominant). The complete reverse was reported for those in lower sets, who felt that their lessons were too slow; they werent being challenged so lost interest. They believed that their teachers had no faith in them. This would then lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy, they have no option but to perform to the set that they are allocated, if they are not encouraged then they will languish in the bottom sets their entire school life. This causes a self fulfilling prophecy, if they are told that theyre incapable of anything more they will begin to believe it, so they wont try to do anything more. Even if the children in the lower sets worked to be moved up into the higher sets they are unlikely to be successful. Teachers teach the children in specific sets to different tiers of an exam, so those in lower groups will not learn the same things as those in higher groups so movement between the sets would be difficult. The idea that children are taught to specific tiers is generally problematic because children are allocated to sets up to three years before they sit the exam and as mobility is rare this can have detrimental effects on their attainment if they were aware that they could only get a low grade. Boaler et al (1998) reported that only some children actually knew the implications of this. The teachers high expectations of those in higher sets and low expectations of those in lower sets causes a further social gap between the sets, those in the top sets will be called boffins and those in the lower sets will be seen as stupid. This is further intensified by the allocation of better qualified and more experienced teachers to higher sets even though research suggests (Black and Wiliam, 1998, p42 cited in Boaler et al 1998) that this type of high quality teaching is more beneficial to those children in lower sets who need more guidance as they are more easily distracted. The lower ability children will recognise that the higher ability children are seen as better and again this will have detrimental effects on their self-esteem causing them to become interested in anti-educational activities where its cool to be alienated (Hallam article from TES website, Passmore 2002) and will heighten the rift between the ability groups. In a mixed ability class for example there is a reduced distinction between childrens ability, which is beneficial to the children. There is even the suggestion that children of lower ability use those of higher ability as role models. A further problem could be caused because of a distinction made between academic and vocational subjects. Only subjects such as Maths, Science, English and Modern Languages are set while subjects such as Art and Music are mixed ability as a general rule. Children who are good at art and music may not feel as valued as those who are good at maths. The emphasis for teachers seems to be applied to children in higher sets because they get taught by the best teachers and get taught in the best classrooms. Also the children who arent interested may distract other children in these mixed ability groups. Ultimately this will lower their self-esteem and have a negative effect on their attainment in and feelings for the subject. Of cause there must be advantages to setting otherwise the First Minister wouldnt have recommended it. One major advantage is that, compared to mixed ability teaching, its easier for teachers to implement as they can pitch work at a level that is more appropriate for the level the children are at. In mixed ability teaching a large majority of the class are unsupervised while setting lends itself to whole class teaching. This would appear to benefit those children in both higher and lower ability groups. Children in higher ability groups could be neglected and left to get on with their work in mixed ability classes while in sets these children will be given more attention, the children in with less ability will feel less inferior and more confident in groups of children with similar ability. Another benefit for high ability children is that low ability children who dont want to learn will not distract them. The government is aiming to raise standards so its understandable to want to give children of higher ability a better chance. Research (Kulik and Kulik, 1982. 1987. Cited in Sukhnandan and Lee, 1998. ) shows that gifted and high ability children achieve more when placed in sets than they do when placed in mixed ability groups. Its believed by some that high ability pupils benefit in groups with similar ability because it increases motivation by providing appropriate challenges and competition. There is also the implication that the children will be like-minded, facilitating the opportunity for them to discuss and bounce ideas between each other. Possibly the main reason why the First Minister recommended this form of ability grouping is because all the research conducted in this area conflicts resulting in there being no truly consistent findings on the effect of ability grouping for pupil achievement. His recommendation could therefore be based on the fact that setting is easier for teachers so it is more likely children will be taught effectively. His main concern appears to be with raising standards and setting is easier to manage and improve than mixed ability teaching as set guidelines can be given for the attainment targets for each set. The blame for these inconsistent findings has been given to the research methods used. Theres a suggestion made that the outcome of ability grouping isnt the only thing being tested. The quality of teaching, the teachers expectations, the pupils expectations and the materials available will all effect the pupils achievement. The evidence seems to produce more disadvantages to setting than advantages. The main ones being social rather than necessarily academic. However a child will perform better if they are happy and confident. Being labelled as set 6 is not good for a childs self esteem or confidence especially when teachers reinforce the idea that they are not as good as those in higher sets. This ultimately leads to a self-fulfilling prophecy, which eventually causes the child to lose all interest. If the First Ministers objective really is to raise standards then shouldnt he be focussing on these low ability children and trying to raise their attainment levels? High ability groups also suffer because of the expectation that they are more capable than they actually there. To improve this it might be necessary to re-teach teachers on pupil differences and explain that all the children within the set are not identical. For this to occur theyd have to be a reduction in the emphasis placed on meeting targets, teachers need the flexibility to return to areas that children are finding difficult. When all said and done isnt education for the benefit child? The First Ministers recommendation needs to be accompanied by guidelines for teachers on how they can avoid the negative effects of homogeneous grouping. These guidelines should include careful planning, using well-defined targets and remaining aware of the negative effects of ability grouping (GB. Scottish Office. HMI, 1996. Cited in Sukhnandan and Lee, 1998. ) There could also be a move away from emphasis on academic achievement to more recognition of non-academic achievements to restore the self-esteem of children in lower ability groups (Elton Report, 1989. Taylor, 1993. Cited in Sukhnandan and Lee, 1998. ) His recommendation was probably the right one considering the drive to raise standards and make teachers lives easier. Because of the lack of conclusive evidence for what type of grouping is more beneficial academically for the child he was right to choose the method that could be most easily implemented and controlled. However this lack of conclusive evidence means that more research needs to be carried out to discover what the best form of grouping is. To do this researchers will have to establish what is ultimately best for the child, possibly new ways of grouping could be developed or the old ways upgraded.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Democracy Rising? Essay -- International Politics

Since America's tragedy on September 11, 2001 the Middle East has been the epicenter of international attention. Cries for democracy and freedom in the region have permeated the western media. When Iraq was found to be devoid of the Weapons of Mass Destruction, bringing democracy to the country became the new reason for the war. Nearly every first world country in the world is a democracy if not in name then in practice. It would be forgivable to think that democracy is the cause of wealth, civil liberties, and all the things associated with first world countries, for there is almost no wealthy nation today that is not a de facto democracy. However while democracy is undoubtedly a tremendous invention of mankind and works well in many nations that, does not mean it is universally correct and should be applied to every nation in the world. For if democracy were forced upon many Middle Eastern nations it would not be a harbinger of increased civil liberties, wealth, and peace, b ut a step towards secular extremist regimes, far less friendly to each other and the west than their moderate authoritarian predecessors. In the early nineteenth century after world war one, the Ottoman Empire collapsed. It encompassed much of the middle east and Arab world, the League of Nations, a group of imperialist western nations which had fought on the winning allied side during the war had grand intentions of preventing future wars. However some of their actions are credited with directly leading to the second world war. One of their mandates that would have grim consequences for future generations was ratified in the Treaty of Lausanne of 1923, this treaty effectively divvied up the middle east into new colonies for the victorious Eu... ...rative Political Studies 43.11 (2010): 1442-1470. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 7 Dec. 2010. Falk, Richard. "America's Pro-Iraqi Neutrality." Nation 231.13 (1980): 398-401. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 7 Dec. 2010. Guida, Michelangelo. "The New Islamists' Understanding of Democracy in Turkey: The Examples of Ali Bulac and Hayreddin Karaman." Turkish Studies 11.3 (2010): 347-370. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 7 Dec. 2010. Tibi, Bassam. "Islamism and Democracy: On the Compatibility of Institutional Islamism and the Political Culture of Democracy." Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions 10.2 (June 2009): 135-64. Print. Weiffen, Brigitte. "The Cultural-Economic Syndrome: Impediments to Democracy in the Middle East."Comparative Sociology 3.3/4 (2004): 353-375. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 7 Dec. 2010.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Views on The Role of Public Opinion

The constitution in America has been changed with regards to the public opinion-related parts and stated, echoing the founding fathers, that the public in the modern world, due to the complexity of the modern world, are not interested in political issues, and are particularly ignorant of matters they do not have experience with, specially foreign affairs.According to Walter Lippmann, an American sociologist, ordinary people working only, with what he named, stereotypes are not capable of understanding politics. Which is quiet a discriminative theory. People understand their needs, their wants, and their needs for well-being; those should be the only policy and are the sole fundamentals of political economy. Politicians should not care about investment and whatever else. They should only care about the well-being of the peoples. That is why governments should be elected from the people, and by the people here I mean the working class.Because the working class is the core of the societ y, and the vast majority of the population. And without whom the rest of the population would not feed, dress, or even be able to work on the streets. Without the proletarians, all the capitalists’ farms, factories, businesses would stop and get bankrupt. And eventually people would starve if the proletarians stopped working. Imagine the mass of efficiency the proletarians have on any society. In conclusion, since the efficiency of the proletariat has been displayed, technocracy and popular governments is the answer opposing Lippmann’s theory.Lippmann added that the primary problem of popular governments is that the members are always violently prejudging matters, apathy, and preference curious trivial and dull important matters, and are hungry for side shows and three legged calves. And that even if they improved their characters they would not be of any aid to the governments because they do not spend enough time to study political issues they do not know about. And as if though Lippmann considers academic politicians live in another world or come from another planet, he continues to under-estimate the masses and the populace.And goes on even further and calls the masses shallow minded and think of unimportant matters. And that actually is the problem; Lippmann thinks that rational and educated peoples should be standing amongst noble and aristocratic ruling class. Meanwhile, what we think is that they should be standing amongst the working class, supporting them with their knowledge  and rationalism, against the government in their decisions that increases the suffering of the working class or the poor class, supporting the government when they work on the decreasing of such pains and sufferings.It would be a lot easier this way. While as matter of fact, technocratic governments would only think of making the average citizen’s life easier, because they, themselves, have suffered the everyday, equally as the average citizen before, and while, being in office. It would be a lot easier. Collaboration between the government and the people would be at its upmost.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Lets reform our schools Essay

Alcohol is dangerous for health because it causes intoxication. Every person is possess an inhibitory centre in their brains which prevents the person from doing things that he considers wrong. When a person drinks alcohol it inhibits the inhibitory centre which causes intoxication. For instance a person does not normally use abusive language while addressing his parents or elders. I he has to answer the call of nature, his inhibitory centre will prevent him from doing so in public; therefore he uses toilet. When a person consumes alcohol, the inhibitory centre itself is inhibited. The intoxicated person is found to use abusive and foul language and does not realize his mistake even if he is addressing his parents. Many even urinate in their clothes. Neither do they talk nor walk properly. They even misbehave. According to the National Crime Victimization Survey Bureau of Justice (U.S. Department of Justice) in the year 1996 alone everyday on an average 2,713 rapes took place. The statistics tell us that the majority of the rapists, were intoxicated while committing the crime. The same is true in cases of molestation. According to the statistics, 8% of the Americans commit incest in other words one in every twelve to thirteen persons in America is involved in incest. One of the major factors associated with the spread of AIDS, the most dreaded disease, is alcoholism. There are so many cases of adultery, rape, incent and AIDS found more among alcoholics. The statistics tell us that the majority of the rapists, were intoxicated while committing the crime. The same is true in cases of molestation. Due to that fact we come to know when someone consumes alcohol once and commits something shameful, it will remains with him for a lifetime. In a state of intoxication he commits rape or incest. Even if the act is later regretted, a normal human being is likely to carry the guilt throughout his life. Most of the people don’t know what could happen after the consumption of alcohol. The maximum number of deaths in the world related to any one particular cause is due to the consumption of alcohol. Millions of people die every year only because of intake of alcohol. There are so many ill-effects of alcohol such as Cirrhosis of Liver, Cancer of Oesophagus, Cancer of Head and Neck, Cancer of Liver, Cancer of Bowel, Oesophagitis, Gastritis, Pancreatitis, Hepatitis, Cardiomyophagitis, Hypertension, Coronary Artherosclerosis, Angina, Heart Attacks, Strokes, Apoplexy, Fits, Paralysis, Peripheral Neuropathy, Cortical Atrophy, Cerebellar Atrophy, Wernicke Korsakoff syndrome, Beriberi, even Pellagra occurs in alcoholic, and many other diseases are cause by alcoholism. Due to that fact alcoholism is a very serious risk and we all should be prevented by this evil desire. Consumption of alcohol is very dangerous for our health.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

The Impact of Race on Childrens Friendships

The Impact of Race on Childrens Friendships In his 1963 â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech† the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. longed for the day when â€Å"little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.† While in 21st century America, King’s dream is certainly possible, more often than not black children and white children remain strangers thanks to de facto segregation in the nation’s schools and neighborhoods. Even in diverse communities, however, children of color and white children tend not to be close friends. What’s responsible for this trend? Studies reveal that children internalize society’s views on race relations, which has largely given them the idea that it’s best for people to â€Å"stick to their own kind.† The older children get, the more likely they are not to socialize closely with peers of a different race. This paints a relatively bleak picture for the future of race relations, but the good news is that by the time youth reach college they aren’t as quick to rule out people as friends on the basis of race. Why Interracial Friendships Are Important Cross-race friendships have a number of benefits for children, according to a study on the subject published in the Journal of Research on Childhood Education in 2011. â€Å"Researchers find that children who hold interracial friendships tend to have high levels of social competence and self-esteem,† according to study lead Cinzia Pica-Smith. â€Å"They are also socially skilled and tend to have more positive attitudes about racial differences than their peers who do not have interracial friendships. Despite the benefits of interracial friendships, several studies have shown that even young children are more inclined to have intra-racial friendships than interracial ones and that cross-race friendships decrease as children age. â€Å"Children’s Perceptions of Interethnic and Interracial Friendships in a Multiethnic School Context,† Pica-Smith’s study of 103 children- including one group of kindergartners and first graders and another of fourth- and fifth-graders- found that younger children do have a more positive outlook on inter-group friendships than their older peers. In addition, children of color favor cross-racial friendships more than whites do, and girls do more than boys. Due to the positive impact cross-racial friendships have on race relations, Pica-Smith encourages educators to foster such friendships among the children in their classrooms. Kids on Race CNN’s report â€Å"Kids on Race: The Hidden Picture† made it clear that some children hesitate to form cross-race friendships because they’ve picked up cues from society that â€Å"birds of a feather flock together.† Released in March 2012, the online report focused on the friendship patterns of 145 African-American and Caucasian children. One group of study subjects fell between the ages of 6 and 7 years old and a second group fell between the ages of 13 and 14 years old. When shown pictures of a black child and a white child together and asked if the pair could be friends, 49 percent of young children said they could be while just 35 percent of teens said the same. Moreover, young African-American children were far more likely than either young white children or white teens to believe that friendship between the youths in the picture was possible. Black teens, however, were just four percent more likely than white teens to think cross-race friendship between the youths in the picture was possible. This indicates that skepticism about cross-race friendships rises with age. Also of note is that white youths in majority black schools were more likely than whites in majority white schools to view cross-race friendship as possible. Sixty percent of the former youths viewed interracial friendships favorably compared to just 24 percent of the latter. Diversity Doesnt Always Result in Interracial Friendships Attending a large, diverse school doesnt mean that children will be more likely to form cross-race friendships. A University of Michigan study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal in 2013 found that race is a bigger factor in larger (and typically more diverse) communities. The larger the school, the more racial segregation there is, says sociologist Yu Xie, one of the studys authors. Data on 4,745 students in grades 7-12 during the 1994-95 school year was collected for the study. Xie explained that in smaller communities the number of potential friends is limited, making it more difficult for students to find a person who has the traits they want in a friend and shares their racial background as well. In larger schools, however, its easier to find someone who will meet other criteria for a friend plus be of the same race, Xie says. Race plays a bigger role in a larger community because you can satisfy other criteria, but in a smaller school other factors dominate the decision who is your friend. Interracial Friendships in College While several reports indicate that interracial friendships wane with age, a study published in 2010 in the American Journal of Sociology found that first-year college students â€Å"are more likely to make friends with peers they share a dorm room or major with than they are to befriend those from similar racial backgrounds,† the Houston Chronicle reported. Researchers from Harvard University and the University of California at Los Angeles tracked the Facebook profiles of 1,640 students at an unnamed university to determine how they picked friends. The study suggested students are more likely to become friends with peers they see often, peers from the same state or peers who attended similar types of high schools than they were to become friends with peers who simply shared their same cultural background. â€Å"Race is important in the end,† explained Kevin Lewis, one of the study’s authors, â€Å"but it’s nowhere near as important as we thought.†

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

How Hard Is the SAT Spanish Subject Test

How Hard Is the SAT Spanish Subject Test SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips  ¿Estudias espaà ±ol? ¿Hablas espaà ±ol en casa?Are you wondering if you should take the SAT Subject Test in Spanish? Let's review what it covers and how students usually score so you can decide if the SAT Subject Test in Spanish is right for you. First, you have to know what's on the test. Step 1: Familiarize Yourself With the Spanish Subject Test Before you can decide if your language skills are up to the challenge, you should know all about the SAT Subject Test in Spanish- when it's offered, how it's structured, and what's on it. When Is the Spanish Subject Test Offered? There are two options for taking the SAT Subject Test in Spanish: the Listening test and the non-Listening, or Reading-only, test. Spanish with Listening is offered only on one test date in November, while the Reading version is offered on all the other test dates- in May, June, August, October, and December. To see the exact dates and figure out when you should take the tests, check out this article.Besides when they're offered, what are the differences between the Listening and Reading options? How Is the Spanish Subject Test Structured? Both tests ask 85 multiple choice questions in 60 minutes. Here's the breakdown of the Reading Subject Test: 33% vocabulary and structure 33% paragraph completion 33% reading comprehension The Listening test, on the other hand, has this structure: 40% listening (e.g. describing a picture, continuing a short conversation, or answering comprehension questions) 60% reading (vocabulary and structure, paragraph completion, and reading comprehension). As you can see, if you choose the Spanish with Listening Subject Test, your listening skills are a significant portion of the test. However, your Listening subscore will count half as much as your reading subscore, which I'll explain more below in the section about how the test is scored. Both subscores will be reported on your score report, but the reading will count more towards your overall scaled score. The Listening portion is 20 minutes long. You are required to bring a CD player to listening to the Subject Test. Read more about the CD player guidelines here. While the skills being tested differ, between the two tests, both cover similar content. What Does the Spanish Subject Test Cover? The tests cover the following areas of understanding. Different parts of speech Basic idioms Ability to fill in words or expressions within the context of a sentence Understanding of vocabulary and structure questions within paragraphs Understanding of main points, supporting ideas, themes, style, tone, and setting of passages, which may be drawn from fiction, news articles, historical works, letters, and advertisements This practice question, for example, tests your ability to fill in a word in the correct part of speech in the context of a sentence. Difficulty level: easy. Here's a similar sample question that tests your understanding of the subjunctive form. Difficulty level: hard. Try some more sample questions from the Spanish Subject Test here, and determine whether they feel easy or hard to you. This is one important action you can take to determine your language level. Mike knows enough Spanish to ask where the bathroom is, but not enough to express all the love that's in his heart. BreakPresents/YouTube. Step 2: Know Your Spanish Language Level College Board suggests that you should have three to four years of studying Spanish or two or more years of intensive study to take the SAT Subject Test in Spanish. If you're nearing the end of AP Spanish and are getting an A, then you are likely in a strong position to score highly on the Subject Test. If you're in Spanish 3, and have not studied Spanish intensively, like in AP classes, then you might not be ready yet. Again, trying practice questions will help give you a sense of the test and whether you feel your language skills are ready. Your Spanish teachers might also have advice on whether your high school curriculum has sufficiently prepared you for the Subject Test. If you're a native speaker, you should still study for the test to make sure you know grammar and other rules of the language. Don't worry about expressions unique to one country- the test is not supposed to have any region-specific sayings. Research your college to learn their Subject Test requirements and expectations. Some might be impressed with your high score on a language test. Others might prefer you opt for another test, if they already know that you're a native speaker of Spanish. For more on this, check out our expert guide: Which SAT Subject Test Should You Take? It's also important to consider how strong your reading vs. listening comprehension in Spanish is. The Spanish with Listening gives that extra dimension of understanding and may help with placement into a more advanced language level in college. The grading curve is often more competitive for the Listening test, as students who opt for that one are typically fluent or have particularly strong Spanish skills. So if you're really not confident in your listening comprehension, you probably want to steer clear of the Listening test. Let's take a closer look at what I mean when I talk about a competitive grading curve. Step 3: Consider the Grading Curve Along with your Subject Test score out of 800, you'll also get a percentile. This percentile compares you to other students who took the test. If you score in the 75th percentile, for example, then you scored higher than 75% of other students and lower than 25%. This table shows how the Spanish Subject Test scores converted to percentiles last year. You can see that the Spanish Subject Test with Listening is slightly more competitive. The same score is a slightly lower percentile on the Listening test than the Reading test. Check out this table, based on data from the College Board, and then scroll down for a discussion of what this data means for how difficult the SAT Subject Test in Spanish is. Score Spanish with Listening Percentile Spanish with Reading Percentile 800 94 92 790 91 90 780 86 87 770 82 84 760 78 80 750 74 77 740 69 74 730 66 70 720 62 67 710 58 64 700 55 60 690 51 57 680 46 54 670 43 50 660 40 47 650 38 44 640 35 41 Average (50th percentile) scores on the tests are in the upper 600s. Let's take a look at what you need to score in the 70th, 80th, and 90th percentile. Good Scores for Spanish Listening 70th percentile:750+ 80th percentile:770+ 90th percentile:790+ Good Scores for Spanish Reading 70th percentile: 730+ 80th percentile: 760+ 90th percentile: 790+ To score in a high percentile compared to other test-takers, you have to score quite high, between 750 and 800, on the tests. While this might sound like a tall order, it's actually well within your reach if you have the requisite Spanish language skills and take time to prepare for the Subject Test. Read this article for more on the average scores of the SAT Subject Tests and what constitutes a good score on each test (it's different for each one). This data can help you set target scores and design your study plan. Let's take a look at how the scoring works, so you can keep this in mind as you study for the test. Step 4: Know How the Spanish Subject Test Is Scored Unlike the general SAT, for the Spanish Subject test (and all other Subject Tests), you lose points for incorrect answers.Spanish Subject Test gives you 1 point for every correct answer, 0 points for skipped answers, and -1/3 point for wrong answers. These points add up to your raw score, which is then converted to a scaled score between 200 and 800 through a process called equating. Equating takes everyone's scores into account. As you saw above, the grading curve on language tests like Spanish is competitive. Some years, you might be able to get away with one or two wrong answers and still score an 800. Otherwise, you will likely lose about 10 points for every two questions you get wrong. As I mentioned above, the reading subscore counts twice as much as the listening subscore toward your composite scaled score. However, both subscores will be reported and viewable on your score report. If you are adequately prepared with AP Spanish, years of study, or out of the classroom fluency, then you are in a great position to score highly on the Spanish Subject Test and demonstrate your multilingual abilities to admissions committees. Even if you're confident in your fluency, it's always important to do some serious test prep and back up your understanding with the necessary grammatical knowledge and reading comprehension. Step 5: KnowWhen to Guess and When to Leave Answers Blank Too many random guesses could bring down your score, so you have to be smart on when to guess on a question(and risk a point deduction) and when to leave a question blank (with no change of getting it right). Here are some strategies to follow: If You Can't Eliminate Any Answer Choices If you're really stumped on a question and can't eliminate any of the options, don’t guess yet.Skip the question and for now and go back to it afteryou've finished the rest of the exam.What if you stillcan’t eliminate anyof the options?It may make sense to guess, but it also may not gain you any points. Here's an example: If you guess on four questions without eliminating any answer choices, odds are you'll get one question right and three wrong. This leaves you with a net of zero points on those questions (1 - (.3333 x 3)=0). However, total randomness is rare, and the test makers often design the wrong answer choices to seem correct so that you're more likely to choose them. This means the choices you decide on may not be random, and you may end up guessing incorrectly on more than three-quarters of the questions, leaving you with a net negative of points. This leaves you with a choice. You can either leave questions you can't eliminate any answer choices on blank, or you can do you best to make your answer choices completely random. One way to do this is to pick a letter (say "A") and select that answer choice for all the questions you're guessing on to make your choices as random as possible. If You Can EliminateOne or MoreAnswer Choices Once you can eliminate at least one answer choice, the math is much more in your favor to guess.Say you have six questions where you've been able to eliminate one answer choice for each. That leaves you with three answer choices per question. Odds are you'll guess correctly on two of the questions, and answer four incorrectly. That leaves you with a net positive of 2/3 a point (2 - (.333 x 4). It's not huge, but it's definitely better than nothing. Just remember to keep your guesses on the remaining answer choices as random as possible. Additional Note:If you take a practice test, I highly recommendmarking all the questions you guessedon so that you can later evaluate the success of your guessing strategies. This will also prevent you from just ignoring questions you got right by chance, whichyou should always revisitanyway. To Sum Up... The Spanish Subject Test has a competitive grading curve. You'll have to score in the high 700s to make it into a high percentile, so set high target scores and prep to achieve them. Make sure you're confident in your comprehension of Spanish, have studied it for at least the recommended amount of time, and have a strong grasp of grammar and vocabulary. If you have all these language skills, then the test should not be overly difficult for you. Instead, it will be a great opportunity to showcase your language skills to admissions committees and add a strong Subject Test score to your college applications.  ¡Buena suerte!  ¿Quà © ms? Need to brush up on your ser conjugations? We've got you covered with our chart of ser conjugations for every tense. Looking for a good SAT Spanish study notes? We've put together the best SAT Spanish Subject Test guide here. What are the easiest SAT Subject Tests to take? This article answers that question from a few different angles, including the content of the test and how competitive the grading curves for each one are. Are you applying to Ivy League schoolsor wondering if your test scores are good enough to get in? Check out this post on Subject Test Scores for the Ivy League and other selective colleges. When are you taking the SAT or ACT? Check out this study plan that helps you schedule your prep a year or more in advance of the tests. Need a little extra help prepping for your Subject Tests? We have the industry's leading SAT Subject Test prep programs (for all non-language Subject Tests). Built by Harvard grads and SAT Subject Test full or 99th %ile scorers, the program learns your strengths and weaknesses through advanced statistics, then customizes your prep program to you so that you get the most effective prep possible. Learn more about our Subject Test products below:

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Gap Analysis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Gap Analysis - Assignment Example Currently, Motorola has been on a declining verge for its total assets, operating income, revenue sales, and profitability (Motorola Solutions Inc., 2014). These outcomes have been noted by analysts to be the outcome of a collective set of organizational inadequacies which have been within the ranks of the organization for several years now (Literral, 2008) As a corporation which once used to be a global leader and strong competitor in the mobile phone industry, the desired state of Motorola was for it to continue recording growth both in terms of market capitalization and market size. The rationale for this positioning is that as an advantage of globalization, the use of modern technological tools such as mobile phones in transacting basic businesses and commerce has been increasing tremendously. This has given room to several companies in the mobile phone industry which did not use to be known as major global firms to take advantage to strategically grow and expand their business horizon (Literral, 2008). Based on the business principle of brand equity therefore, it was expected that Motorola would continue to compete effectively in this industry rather than be heard in the news for most appalling reasons that it has currently been heard for. As noted by Chau (2008), performance outcomes within organizations are a process rather than an event. What this implies is that the variables and factors that lead to an organization recording a certain level of performance is not something that happens overnight. Rather, it happens as a gradual process that is achieved through the collective efforts of all human resource within the organization. In the case of Motorola, most experts have blamed the current state to performance deficiencies that have come about as a result of poor innovative reasoning by employees (Literral, 2008). As the mobile phone industry is at the center of the

Friday, November 1, 2019

A Case Study on the Annual Report of Public Limited Company Essay

A Case Study on the Annual Report of Public Limited Company - Essay Example The business solutions of the company are designed to meet a diverse range of business including the construction industry, aviation, chemicals, and shipping. Shell product lines include fuels for home and commercial fuels, gas and fuel cards, motor and bike oils, industrial lubricants, marine fuels, Liquefied Petroleum Gas (or LPG), and other chemical products. The company also engages in major projects and innovative technology solutions (including coal gasification technology) while overseeing safety and environment performance. Shell’s strategic policy implementation emphasizes mainly on improving its performance and growth, both social and environmental (for instance, its emphasis on biodiversity (Schaltegger, Bennett, and Burritt, 2006, p. 595)). The main focus on its strategy development includes three fields: nearer-term performance focus, medium-term growth delivery, and maturing new generation project options. The company reports have announced its strategy for 2010 and beyond. Some of the key aspects of the new strategy are listed below (source: Shell Website). It is significant to note that the company’s strategy is centered on strong operating performance and sustained investment on organic growth. Looking at the energy scenarios to 2050, Shell’s forecasts are mainly focused on the energy challenge faced by the world today. The primary motto of the company is to provide more energy and less carbon. Shell strongly believes that the development and implementation of CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage) technology is important for greenhouse gas emission control and employee safety issues, which by 2050 can contribute significantly to CO2 management. Due to the weak global economy, the financial performance of Shell has been significantly affected in the fourth quarter of 2009.

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Capital Budget. Disney park in River County Research Paper

Capital Budget. Disney park in River County - Research Paper Example The activity center will be the major area of operation for workers and where equipment will be stored. Also, from this place, daily operations involved running and management operations will be conducted. The center is also expected to generate revenue of approximately $500, 000 dollars annually once it has been fully constructed. This center is also expected to offer services like restaurants and hotel resorts, swimming pools, natural scenery viewpoints among other luxurious services (Finkler, 2010). It has been stated earlier on that Disney Park in River County was abandoned a long time ago. What remains are obsolete structures, the bulldozer will therefore be used to demolish those structures as plans for construction of a new activity center. The lifespan of the bulldozer, 8 years, makes financial. This is because it will be used to do heavy duties and as a result it is prone to wear and tear than the other assets. The two garbage trucks are expected to serve for 10 years. It is expected that these trucks, costing $300, 000, will enable the attainment of the project’s purpose. In addition to that, they will also be used in maintaining the cleanness of the County (Bierman, Harold & Seymour, 2005). Furthermore, River County can lease or rent the trucks to private organizations leading to generation of revenue. It is therefore expected that within a period of 10 years the trucks will have served purposes worth of their purchase.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

The Development Of Punk Rock

The Development Of Punk Rock Punk rock first appeared during the 70s in the Bowery district of New York, it was basically a bunch of amateur bands who wanted to make music. Studio executives didnt care much for rock at the time, unless it was something hugely popular like Peter Frampton, Black Sabbath or Led Zeppelin, instead they focused on the saccharine sounds of disco. Most bands were made up of normal blue collar kids didnt have access to a musical education and as such they chose to make it up as they went along. But just as it seemed rock music was about to disappear in the spandex and hair of glam rock or the pomp and ceremony of prog rock, Punk rock was born. It was more a philosophy of how to get out and do things. Bands like the Ramones and Talking Heads had to play in an almost abandoned music venue called CBGBs because no other place would accept them. The Ramones toured America and the UK in 1977 and in their wake bored kids everywhere wanted to emulate them bought whatever instruments they could find and started to make their own sounds. Most had no real education and no musical values but they had a drive to change musics place in society and created many enduring, sometimes political pieces of musical art as they went. The powerhouse behind punk rock back in the late 70s and early 80s was a basic ethos .it had to be fun, and stimulating, you didnt have to have money to invest or a lot of time to spare to become a punk rocker but this was a situation most found themselves in : pennyless and bored. Because everything was cheap, clubs, tapes, instruments, magazines, records it was easy to promote your new band and you didnt have to follow any conformist rules, or try to please anyone but yourself. Originators of the sound While it would be incredibly difficult to write about all of the punk bands of the era there are a few who stand out above all as originators of this new sound that was about to change the social conscious much more than the hippy movement of the 60s. Taking a lead from Alvin Lucier whose seminal piece I am sitting in a room introduced the world to the subtle harmonics of repetition and the use of room reverb to act upon a sound bringing the idea that sound, looped would eventually transpire to into a pure sound called white noise were Lou Reed and John Cale. They formed The Velvet Underground in 1965. Reed had previously worked as a songwriter for Pickwick records, while Cale studied the viola, classically, giving both a solid basis in the traditional rules of songwriting but what they added to that was a drive to break all those rules which gave birth to the early concept for the band, which was to try to sustain single notes for 2 hours at a time, which while artistically perfect it was a sound that was not going to sell a lot of records. 1966 saw the pop artist Andy Warhol take over as manager and together they recorded The Velvet underground and Nico which was released in 1967 to mediocre reviews but it did however include, among other great tracks, the now cult classic track I am waiting for my man , a song written from the point of view of a heroin addict travelling across Harlem to buy 26 dollars of heroin and highlighted Reeds blossoming knack for writing realist lyrics and served as a precursor to punks social and political commentary. New York New York was to become home to the first punk-rock scene, and was the epicentre from which punk rock spread to later, like London and Southern California. In New York punk didnt have the immediate impact that British punk had, but its influence is immeasurable. The initial kick start for New York punk came from the New York Dolls, whose trashy Stones like guitar riffs and cross-dressing glam image raised eyebrows amongst the establishment. The New York Dolls helped to open doors for a host of bands such as the Ramones, clad in jeans and leather and who took the catchy hooks from early 60s bubblegum-pop and the girl-group sound of Phil Spectors production techniques, but played them as loud and fast as possible. The sound was basic and stripped-down in comparison to the rock giants of the time while their attitude brought a sense of fun back to music, this stood out in contrast to the music of the 70s. The Ramones quickly became regulars at CBGBs playing there 74 times in their first year as a band. Although the Ramones still embody the sound that most people class as punk rock, the New York scene was very diverse, like minded people brought together by the dream of reinventing rock and roll music. Television broadened their songs into intricate guitar duels. Blondies girl group pop and Talking Heads odd art school guitar driven pop were some of the first ventures into what would eventually be called new wave, but their direction placed them in the punk camp at the time. By the early 80s, most of the original scene had died down, the original bands began to become the mainstream or fade away or just simply die due to the excesses that often followed success as drugs, specifically heroin, were prevalent on the scene. Detroit Detroit 1967 was a desolate place due to the decline in the citys once proud motor industry, in which a young Jim Osterberg heard The Velvet Underground and hated them at first but he later said that: once it had sunk in it- gave me hope . Bringing the chaos of the velvet underground to the garage sound of the suburbs with the intent of sounding unlike anything ever heard before the stooges had arrived and Iggy pop was born, arguably the most electric front man in the history of music whose contortions, self-mutilation, stage diving and penchants for encouraging stage invasions by the crowd (of which I was once part of) all served as a theatrical backdrop to the apocalyptic sound of the band. Their first album titled the stooges hit in 1968, produced by the velvet undergrounds John Cale, it introduced the world to Protopunk through the classic I wanna be your dog and the iconic no fun which plays out like an anthem to boredom and disassociated youth. The stooges only released 3 albums during their initial run, the self-titled debut, Fun House and finally raw power in 1973 which was produced by David Bowie and is considered to be one of the cornerstones of early punk. The stooges disbanded In 1974 due to pops ever increasing heroin addiction but a few decades later and following a hugely successful solo career in 2000, a clean and sober, 60 year Iggy pop took the original line up back on tour and released a new album the weirdness . The stooges were introduced into the rock and roll hall of fame in 2010 and continue to tour today, even after the death of founding member Ron Asheton. Los Angeles The Los Angeles punk scene was the last of Americas big punk cities to develop but it wasnt as diverse or as adventurous as New York or Detroit or even London. Of all the cities with a punk scene L.A. has proved to be the longest-lasting. Punk mutated from hardcore to alternative rock, then back to a more pop oriented sound in the 90s and continued to thrive on the east coast. L.A. punks played a hard and fast brand of punk; most L.A. punk was very thrashy, with an overall tougher attitude than the arty New York scene or the amateur sound of London or Detroit. Leaning toward more aggressive punk, the west coast became the base for punks change to hardcore, with Black Flag leading this new scene into the 80s. Another important band to rise up from the Bay area scene in san Francisco was the Dead Kennedys, whose political lyrics and attitude ensured that they became one of the defining bands of the hardcore scene. Inspired by British punk the highly political views of lead singer Jello Biafra the Dead Kennedys became known as the most dangerous band in music as they frequently agitated Christians and right wing politicians. Their most famous song California Uber Alles was an uncompromising attack on the then governor of California, the very right wing, Jerry Brown, who was recently voted back into office following the departure of Arnold Schwarzenegger. London While England wasnt the birthplace of punk it was the place where punk had the greatest influence. It was seen as music of rage and rebellion. British punk was inspired by pub rock and glam rock, but the main influences were the original New York punks like the Ramones and the Velvet Underground. In a country caught in an economic downturn, punk invaded the fabric of society in England and was feared by the media and the establishment. The first and most influential English punk band was the Sex Pistols, who hit in 1976 and made an impact by inspiring every punk band that followed them. Their guitar riffs set the stage for British punk as an entity, and their politics and behaviour got them demonized in the media and attacked on the streets but it turned them into heroes among their fans. The other main British punk band was the Clash, who were the most politically idealistic group of the scene and also the most musically diverse. They incorporated rock and roll and reggae into a new sound and are known to this day as The only band that ever mattered .The Buzzcocks wrote moody punk-pop and went on to write one of the defining songs of the era in Teenage Kicks a triumphant anthem to youthful pleasure. The Sex Pistols and the Clash both signed with major labels as the indie style distribution of records had not been fully conceived yet, however, their DIY way of doing things helped to create an independent scene around the UK. The first wave of British punk ended with the Sex Pistols breakup in January 1978, but the scene remained intact until about 1982. By that time, the original punks had expanded their sounds into a number of subgenres like pop-oriented new wave, the arty post-punk scene, hardcore, and early alternative rock much as it had done in America but in England it was done with more intensity and darkness, for proof of this you need to look no further than the back catalogue of Joy Division easily one of the most intense bands to ever grace a recording studio, owing thanks for this to Ian Curtis dark desolate lyrics and instrumentation that seemed to reverberate from the bowels of fears greatest fears. No Wave and Post Punk After the initial punk breakout of 1977, a number of bands were inspired by the DIY. spirit of punk. Instead of just copying the sound of the Sex Pistols, many of these bands adventured into making more experimental music, taking leads from a range of artists and styles, such as Roxy Music or David Bowie, disco, dub and Krautrock. The result was Post-Punk, a more adventurous and arty form of punk, it wasnt any less angry or political but it was more musically complex and diverse. The most popular bands like Joy Division or the Cure created dark, electro oriented sounds with realistic lyrics of a dark broody past and melancholy future while others had a lighter guitar-based musical approach but their lyrics and music often used traditional pop/rock song structures. Post-punk eventually developed into alternative rock in the 80s but this brief period still resounds today in the music of Interpol and A Place to Bury Strangers. No Wave was a short-lived, avant-garde offshoot of 70s punk.it was based almost entirely in New York between78-82. Like the post-punk movement that was primarily in Britain, no wave drew from the arty side of punk. When British post-punk was mostly cold and desolate, no wave was harsh and confrontational. Most no wave bands were fascinated by the noise that could be produced by an electric guitar feeding back into the speakers, making it an important part of their music. Melody was not important as most no wave bands concentrated on producing a noisy racket. The best known no wave album is the compilation No New York which features songs from the Contortions, Teenage Jesus, DNA and Mars. Because of the harshness of the sound none of the no wave performers ever really broke out to wider audiences the exception here was Sonic Youth who fused no waves distorted noise with desolate lyrics and became underground legends after adding more melodic structure to an already chaotic sound. The Ethos of Punk and DIY From the mid70s, punk had emerged as a social and cultural phenomenon. Giving a voice to the hopelessness of its young audience in a time of economic upheaval not unlike what we experience today. Punk music was full of political views, opposition and controversy as a response to the bloated egos and rambling solos of many of the rock bands of the 70s.In England punk music was the means for a social attack on the British monarchy and the starched white shirts of the conformist old guard government. Angered by the system English Punk groups influenced a whole generation to question authority and speak out against what they saw in society to be rotten. Punk groups became the force which influenced the young generations of musicians. Through punk rock music, young people found a way to express themselves. The d.i.y. ethic was mainly reflected in their clothing, hairstyle and artwork.to the early punks the polished production values of the mainstream music was something to be ridiculed and punk rock soon became something that anyone could do. People did not have to be perfectly presented or trendy in order to perform punk music. The important thing was to be able to get up on stage and play from a place within you that spoke only of truth and passion for the music. American punk groups were less controversial than those in England but they satisfied the need in America for abrasive and anti-mainstream music. The underground punk movement of the 70s in America produced groups that either evolved from punk or applied its DIY ethics to different form of music and in doing so secured punks legacy in the alternative rock and Indie scenes. The punk era was a turning point for independent labels and the DIY ethos. Indie music evolved in the garages of America and England, where young people were figuring out what they really could do with their guitars and electronic equipment and that was to inform the people of injustices and inequalities in society that had previously been abandoned to the wolves in the hopes that they would simply be forgotten about and the government could simply continue fooling the people into thinking that everything was perfectly well in the world and the government was in control of everybodys future. Without punks questioning authority there was nobody questioning authority on a global stage and when that happens society as a whole diminishes, governments got away with genocide of their people and hid behind the veil of democracy and freedom, allowing all kinds of atrocities to happen both within their home nations and on foreign ground. In the 21st century with governments bailing out banks and rekindling wars at the cost of human suffering I think the time is right for another wave of the punk movement to begin. After all it has been over 30 years since the original movement and in time people forget and become complacent, we as a society cannot allow this to happen. We have a voice and we should choose to use it to shout from the rooftops pointing out the mistakes of governments, big business and anyone who choose to subvert the progress of the human race by squashing the poor into submission so they can further line their pockets with money acquired through bloodshed and fear .