Rhetorical Reading Strategies And The Construction Of Meaning

In Christina Haas and Linda Flower’s article â€Å"Rhetorical Reading Strategies and the Construction of Meaning†, they present three different strategies readers use when reading a paper or an article, and the importance of each. An experiment was constructed to show those strategies in action, and what each type of reader does while using the strategies. Beginner readers used content strategies, where they tried to grasp the basics of the article, or were â€Å"concerned with content or topic information† (Hass and Flower 175). This strategy was the easiest and least in-depth. The next strategy was function/feature, here readers dug a little deeper and tried to interpret the text more, or â€Å"frequently named text parts, pointing to specific words,†¦show more content†¦Lakoff and Johnson state, â€Å"[w]e have found, on the contrary, that metaphor is pervasive in everyday life, not just in language but in thought and action† (3). They are saying that metaphors are used all the time and not just when people talk, but when they think and in what they do. This is exactly true because after learning about metaphors, and getting a better understanding of them, I have realized how much I, and others, apply them to everyday life without even realizing it, or trying to. Using a metaphor to describe Haas and Flowerâ €™s reading concepts will therefore make for a better grasp of what the concepts mean. Lakoff and Johnson’s analytical tools consist of linguistic evidence and highlighting and hiding. When using linguistic evidence, the writer is providing the reader with words associated with their metaphor that is used in both parts. For example, Lakoff and Johnson use the metaphor â€Å"argument is war† (4), and they give the readers linguistic evidence like â€Å"I demolished his argument† (4) and â€Å"I’ve never won an argument with him† (4) to present the readers with evidence on why this metaphor works. When a writer uses the highlighting tool, they are pointing out the obvious areas that thought of with the metaphors. When a writer uses hiding, they are doing the exact opposite. Here they point out the areas that are not thought of with the presented metaphor. The first way a reader reads, and the most basic way, isShow MoreRelatedRhetorical Reading S trategies And The Construction Of Meaning By Christina Haas And Linda Flower Summary1798 Words   |  8 PagesReading Deeper than the Words In Christina Haas and Linda Flower’s article â€Å"Rhetorical Reading Strategies and the Construction of Meaning†, they point out, and break down, the three reading strategies that are used by students when reading a passage, or paper. An experiment was constructed to show what each of these strategies are like while being used and what the reader may ask, or get out of, a certain excerpt. Even though Haas and Flower do not mention George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, or evenRead MoreUse Of Monosyllabic Language On Everyday Life1477 Words   |  6 Pagesexact opposite of abstract terms, or terms that are not available to our senses. Because concrete terms can be seen, touched, smelled, tasted, or heard, the meanings are concise and not open to human interpretation. You don’t want to hide your points, so it is better to use more concrete terms than abstract terms in your writing. This rhetorical device makes it much easier to visualize the story because concrete terms are things we possibly encounter in everyday life. Monosyllabic: Monosyllabic languageRead MoreE La America Needs Its Nerds T MC4826 Words   |  27 PagesQuestion 2, Form B) Teacher Overview Skill Focus Remember Understand Apply Analyze Close Reading Grammar Reading Strategies Annotation Determining Author’s Purpose Determining Fact and Opinion Determining Main Idea Generalization Inference Paraphrase Prediction Seminar/Discussion Summary Literary Elements Analogy Detail Diction connotation denotation vocabulary Imagery Point of View Rhetorical Shift Tone tone determined through diction, imagery, detail, point of view, figurative languageRead MoreNatural Writing As A Construct982 Words   |  4 PagesNatural; Reading and Writing Are Not†, it says, â€Å"A related fact should be self-evident: Reading and writing are acquired skills for which the human brain is not yet fully evolved (liberman, Shankweiler, Liberman, 1989). Human brains are naturally wired to speak; they are not naturally wired to read and write† (Moats Tolmoan, 1). The article states that the brain is capable of learning how to read and write but spoken language is hard-wired inside the human brain. Writing along with reading and skillsRead MoreThe Difference Between Originality And Plagiarism918 Words   |  4 Pagesacknowledging that borrowing, the writer is plagiarizing†(Wardle Downs 395). Throughout Porter’s text, he explores intertextuality, the principle that all writing and speech—indeed, all signs—arise from a single network: what Vygotsky called â€Å"the web of meaning†(Porter 396). He states that it is not possible to create a text that does not contain previous sources. Therefore he does not believe that you can be original. A text written by Nancy Sommers, I Stand Here Writing, describes her intention of teachingRead MoreThe Analytical Strategy And Its Appraisal846 Words   |  4 Pages5. The analytical strategy and its appraisal Analytical strategy includes organising, managing and analysing the data collected throughout the research. In this article, the researchers have used narrative and rhetorical analysis for the transcripts. All of the interviewees are describing their work and personal life as stories throughout the interview. Some of the interviewees, Richard and Phil have used headline solution and repetition to create identifies of middle managers (Thomas and LinsteadRead MoreMax s Father Has Full Time Employment933 Words   |  4 Pageswith Alabama Power about interest in employment. He has no plans to attend secondary education after graduation. He stated that he would need his (CDL) Commercial Drivers License to work for Alabama Power. He also said that they prefer some construction and heavy equipment experience. Max is working at Chic-fil-a in Roebuck, Alabama. He has been employed there for a short amount of time, 3-4 months. He enjoys his work position and likes that they are closed on Sundays. I asked him if he getsRead MoreWhy Are University Writing Courses Required For College Students?2789 Words   |  12 Pageswith each of the classes that they take. While these classes all require different skills to be successful in them, they also share some of the same required skills as well. One of the most important skills to have as a student is to have strong reading and writing skills. While students may use mathematics, problem solving, and reasoning skills, the most important skill they will use is writing. Students often question why they need to take a university writing course. Statements such as, â€Å"WhyRead More The Relationship of Photographs, History, and Memory Essay5378 Words   |  22 Pagesthought and imagination in the production of society--as reflected in the earlier work of Louis Althusser (1970), Maurice Godelier (1984) and perhaps more significantly, Cornelis Castoriadis (1975), suggests yet another role for photography in the construction of a social and cultural reality. Photographs in capitalist societies contribute to the production of information and participate in the surveillance of the environment where their subjective and objective qualities are applied to the private usesRead MoreStudy Guide Literary Terms7657 Words   |  31 Pages AP Literary and Rhetorical Terms 1. 2. alliteration- Used for poetic effect, a repetition of the initial sounds of several words in a group. The following line from Robert Frosts poem Acquainted with the Night provides us with an example of alliteration,: I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet. The repetition of the s sound creates a sense of quiet, reinforcing the meaning of the line 3. allegory – Where every aspect of a story is representative, usually symbolic

Lethal Encounters Englishmen And Indians During Colonial...

â€Å"My people are few. They resemble the scattering trees of a storm-swept plain...There was a time when our people covered the land as the waves of a wind-ruffled sea cover its shell-paved floor, but that time long since passed away with the greatness of tribes that are now but a mournful memory.† (Chief Seattle, Chief Seattle’s Speech). Lethal Encounters Englishmen and Indians in Colonial Virginia by Alfred Cave is a book that extensively describe Britain’s and Spain’s initial colonization of America. The book mainly focuses on the facts and primary entries of Native Americans and pioneers, and their initial thoughts thoughts about each other. Albert Caves book, Lethal Encounters Englishmen and Indians in Colonial Virginia, discussed many issues between those indigenous to America and the pioneers, including; racism, imperialism, culture clash, religion, and war. When the English settlers began their colonization of America, they were unsure on how to approach the indigenous people. They were not prepared for a war initially, nor did they have all of the supplies required to survive. In chapter one of, Lethal Encounters Englishmen and Indians in Colonial Virginia, Albert Cave describes Sir Walter Raleigh’s decisions about the Roanoke colonial and Indian policies. Raleigh instructed the settlers to treat the Natives with ‘kindness and generosity’ (Cave, Lethal Encounters Englishmen and Indians in Colonial Virginia, pg 11). The English settlers recognized the

Walmart and Target a Closer Look at Strategic Interaction Free Essays

Main Paper Walmart and Target: A closer look at strategic interaction Maastricht University School of Business and Economics Maastricht, 4th December 2011 Bastian Hauk, BH ID number: i6034999 Study: International Business Course Code: EBC1009 Economics Business Group Number: 31 Economics Tutor: Khan Writing Tutor: Hetty Bennink Writing Assignment: Main Paper Table of Contents Page 1. Introduction 2. Economic Principle: Game Theory 3. We will write a custom essay sample on Walmart and Target a Closer Look at Strategic Interaction or any similar topic only for you Order Now Applied Economic Principles 3. 1. Theory of Game for simultaneously Decision Making 3. 2. The extended Version for consecutive Decision Making 4. Conclusion References 4 6 7 8 2 2 1 Introduction In the United States of America there are only two very well-known discount retailers: Target and Walmart. Both are currently operating all over the country which places each of them among the biggest corporations in the United States. Nearly every American has been to at least one of them because they sell almost everything and E. Basker described this service â€Å"one-stop shopping† (2007). In 2007, Walmart operated more than 3,400 stores across the USA and a survey showed that by the end of 2005 46 percent of Americans lived within 5 miles of the nearest store; within 15 miles even 88 percent (Basker, 2007). Target operated 1,750 stores in January 2011 (Target Corp. , 2011). Since their wide range of products is quite similar they are large competitors. Thus, they are constantly waging price war against each other. In addition, they make use of strategic interaction and especially of game theory which is a mathematical model describing a decisionmaking process and showing how the players make different decisions that potentially affect each other’s interests (von Stenge, Turocy, 2001). This paper analyses strategic interaction between Walmart and Target with respect to the game theory and the extended version. In order to do so it introduces first the theoretic background of strategic interaction. Afterwards it applies game theory and the extended version to this case in order to show the impact of strategic interaction on both discount retailers. It concludes by stating the importance of strategic interaction to optimal decision making and its relevance for Walmart and Target. 2 Economic principles: game theory and extended version The theory of games describes certain concepts in which several players influence each other’s decisions in situations of conflict and competition (Moffatt, 2011). In order to apply game theory there must be at least two players. The three basic elements of a game are the player, the strategies he can choose from and the payoffs the players receive from each combination of strategy. The payoff matrix describes the outcomes in a certain game for each possible combination of strategies as shown in Figure 2. 1. 2 Player One Strategy 1 Strategy 1 Outcome Player 1 Strategy 2 Outcome Player 1 Outcome Player Two Strategy 2 Player 2 Outcome Player 1 Outcome Player 2 Outcome Player 1 Outcome Player 2 Figure 2. 1: Payoff matrix for a two player game Outcome Player 2 If one player used a dominant strategy, his choice yields a higher payoff, regardless what the other player does and as a result he has no incentive to change his strategy. For this example, player one’s dominant strategy would be strategy one if he received a higher outcome no matter which strategy player two chooses, but only if he then receives the highest payout. There are also some particular outcomes; for example the Nash equilibrium which occurs when any combination of strategies is the best strategy with the best possible outcome for all players (McDowell, Thom, Frank, Bernanke, 009). An outcome created by two dominant strategies which is worse than the outcome created by two dominated strategies is called prisoner’s dilemma. The prisoner’s dilemma only occurs when each player’s dominant strategy results in a smaller payoff than it would have if they had chosen the dominated strategy. Game theory also assumes that the decisions are made simultaneo usly. To illustrate a game in which the players decide interdependent, the economist uses the extended version of game theory which is displayed with a game tree (McDowell, Thom, Frank, Bernanke, 2009). Company 1 Decision: Action A or Action B Action A Company 2 Decision: Action C or Action D Action C Outcome 1 Outcome 2 Action D Action B Company 2 Decision: Action C or Action D Action C Outcome 3 Outcome 4 Action D Figure 2. 2: Decision tree Figure 2. 2 is an example of a game tree. Company 1 first decides which action they will take, which can be either A or B. Company 2 then has the choice how they want to react and whether they take action C or D. The best outcome can only be achieved with a backward nduction as a result of evaluating the results first and afterwards predicting the other player’s strategy. For example, outcome 3 would be the best outcome for company 2 if company 1 chose action B and therefore company 2 chooses action C. Outcome 2 would gain the highest p rofit for company 2 if company 1 took action A. 3 Applied Economic Principles 3. 1 Theory of game for simultaneously decision making As stated in the introduction this two very large American retailers are competitors and have a very similar customer base. The income of Targets customer base is slightly higher but it is not relevant for strategic interaction (Neuman, 2011). Theory of game helps to understand the different prices and how the different price strategies affect consumer behavior. This example is not based on any specific data. However, it is logic for somebody willing to buy a certain good to substitute the same good with an identical one if the price is lower and there are not any additional efforts to make. By applying game theory, the three basic elements have to be clear. 4 Walmart and Target are the players. Different pricing of a certain product -a television- are the strategies while the different profits are the results of each combination of the strategies. Both companies have two pricing strategies: either to charge a low price of â‚ ¬300 or a high price of â‚ ¬500. They have to make the decision simultaneously, for instance before they release the television to the market. It is important to know that the customers are also willing to purchase the television for the high price. Target High Price (â‚ ¬500) High Price (â‚ ¬500) Walmart Walmart earns â‚ ¬10,000 profit Low Price (â‚ ¬300) Walmart earns â‚ ¬15,000 profit Figure 3. : Payoff matrix for Walmart and Target Figure 3. 1 shows a potential payoff matrix for this strategic interaction. It shows all possible outcomes for the two pricing strategies. Walmart and Target would both make â‚ ¬10,000 profit if they charged the high price and â‚ ¬7,500 profit if they charged the low price. If Walmart chose the low pricing strategy and Target used the high pricing strategy Walmart would gain â‚ ¬15,000 compared to the â‚ ¬5,000 profit Target would make. Target also makes â‚ ¬15,000 profit using the low price if Walmart decides to charge the high price. What does that mean for both companies? Since both of them would earn a higher profit by setting the price low in this scenario, both companies would choose â€Å"Low Price† as a dominant strategy. On the contrary, â€Å"High Price† would be the dominated strategy. Nash equilibrium can be found when both companies pick the â€Å"low price† strategy because they don’t have an incentive to change their strategy. This payoff 5 Low (â‚ ¬300) Target earns â‚ ¬15,000 profit Walmart earns â‚ ¬5,000 profit Target earns â‚ ¬7,500 profit Walmart earns â‚ ¬7,500 profit Target earns â‚ ¬10,000 profit Target earns â‚ ¬5,000 profit matrix also shows that the strategy combination of â€Å"high price† and â€Å"high price† would be the best possible outcome for both firms. But rather than applying the dominated strategy Walmart and Target use the dominant strategy. This dilemma is called prisoner’s dilemma. Those dilemmas exist quite often and there are many reasons why they exist, for instance, both companies do not want the other one to make a higher profit or even to have the chance to receive a higher profit. 3. 2. The extended version for consecutive decision making Therefore Target and Walmart react and might change the strategy they had choosen. Both competitors often change their strategies. Although Singh (2006) stated that prices at Walmart are about 15 percent lower than in traditional supermarkets, Neuman (2011) proved by comparing almost 60 items that Target’s prices were a bit lower than Walmart’s. It is hard to rely on data which are released with a 5 year time difference but it shows that both firms constantly adjust the prices to be competitive. High Price Target High Price Walmart Low Price â‚ ¬10,000 for Target â‚ ¬10,000 for Walmart â‚ ¬15,000 for Target â‚ ¬5,000 for Walmart â‚ ¬5,000 for Target â‚ ¬15,000 for Walmart â‚ ¬7,500 for Target â‚ ¬7,500 for Walmart High Price Low Price Target Low Price Figure 3. 2: Decision Tree for Walmart and Target 6 Since the decisions of both companies are not made simultaneously the reacting firm -in this case Target- has to find out what action to take in order to receive the highest profit for either move Walmart makes. Walmart moves first and selects either strategy. Target is in the position to decide and how it wants to react. Thus, Target uses backward induction. First it evaluates the best results for each action Walmart uses; â‚ ¬15,000 profit if Walmart sets a high price and â‚ ¬7,500 profit if Walmart sets a low price. Afterwards it chooses the strategy how to get to that profit. Finally Walmart moves and selects the low or the high price strategy and Target is able to react sufficiently. Assume that Walmart chooses the high price strategy then Target sets low prices and due to that Target earns the highest possible profit. Conclusion Walmart and Target are large competitors on the American retailer market and therefore strategic interaction is very important for them. Both companies know the ways to decide how to act concerning different strategies. Both companies know that it is necessary for them to react and choose the best strategy. In the first example both companies simultaneously introduce a television to the market. Their do minant strategy is to set a low price because both of them hope that the other company chooses the high price strategy. This is one example of a free market wherein the customers always choose the low price if available. Walmart and Target would earn a larger profit if both set the high price. In the other case Walmart moves first and afterwards Target chooses the strategy which leads to the highest outcome. The reacting company’s best strategy in the extended version of game theory is always the low price strategy. On the contrary, when two companies have to decide simultaneously it is not always the best choice to choose the low price strategy although it is their dominant strategy. References Basker, E. (2007). The Causes and Consequences of Wal-Mart’s Growth. The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 21 (3), 177-198. McDowell, M. , Thom, R. , Frank, R. , Bernanke, B. (2009). Principles of Economics, 2nd European Edition. Maidenhead, UK: McGraw-Hill Education. Moffatt, M. (2008). What are Game Theory and Bargaining Theory? Retrieved December 4, 2011, from http://economics. about. com/cs/ studentresources/f/game_theory. htm Neuman, S. (2011). Target Takes Aim At Walmart, With Some Success, NPR. Retrieved December 4, 2011, from http://www. pr. org/2011/08/19/139793948/target-takes-aim-at-walmartwith-some-success Singh, V. , Hansen, K. , Blattberg, R. (2006). A Market Entry and Consumer Behavior: An investigation of a Wal-Mart Supercenter. Marketing Science, 25 (5), 457-476 Target Corp. (2011). Target Annual Report 2010. Minnesota, US: Target. Retrieved December 7, 2011 from http://www. sec. gov/Archives/edgar/data/27419/000104746911002032/a2201861z10k. htm#bg11101a_main_toc Turocy, T. L, von Stenge, B (2001). Game Theory. Academic Press Limited, 2 (2), 69-73. 10. 1080/07430170152379371 doi: 8 How to cite Walmart and Target a Closer Look at Strategic Interaction, Essay examples

Buzzwords and Labels free essay sample

In Merriam Webster Collegiate Dictionary poverty is defined as the state of one who lacks a usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possessions. We all have heard the terms used to describe the underclass, but are these buzzword or labels harmful to our society? In the reading Deconstructing the Underclass written by Herbert Gang, discusses the effects of buzzwords or labels. I believe that although buzzwords and labels may seem harmless, they are very Judgmental and undeserving.When asked, what types of people is included in the underclass? People automatically think, black, Hispanic, or even singe mother. This is a direct Judgment on race or character. These labels are dangerous because they can be used to persuade others. I think that when you label, that it is very possible to turn Into self- fulfilling prophecies. How would you feel, if you thought society would much rather throw you away? Planners have tried to implement programs to help the underclass with their robbers, mostly being economic. We will write a custom essay sample on Buzzwords and Labels or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page But there are a lot of factors Involved; no one program has been effective in decreasing poverty. Although, I do think that planners have to be careful, they tend to define neighborhoods as being predominately underclass. Therefore posing another problem of social Isolation. In which, people are making a better way of life, move out of this labeled area, and the area becomes more and more isolated with the underclass. I think that the underclass fit Into two of the five themes. Historically and Geographically/Globally Contextual, In the past underclass have lived on the poor side of town. Therefore making a certain area over periods of time more Isolated. And Power of Relations comes Into play, who has more than whom. The definition of poverty should go beyond money; It should Include the needs of a person In order to survive. Unfortunately, I dont have many Ideals on how to solve the problems of the underclass. But I do feel how we label people does effect our society.

Success Secret A High Emotional IQ Essays - Life Skills

Success Secret: A High Emotional IQ This article keys in on a different type of intelligence called emotional intelligence. Psychologist Daniel Goldman wrote the book titled "Emotional Intelligence" in 1995. Emotional intelligence Consist of: self -awareness, impulse control, persistence, confidence and self -motivation, empathy And social deftness. Coleman has published a later book on this topic, which is the sequel titled "Working With Emotional Intelligence''. The book zeros in on how these qualities of emotional intelligence can make or break a persons career. We are all being judged everyday where out in the world, either by our bosses, co-workers, family, or friends. So in fact, it is very important we stay on top of our performance and the way we carry ourselves. Most corporations today look for communication skills, interpersonal skills, and initiative skills in a person all those things have to do with emotional intellect. There are actual course that are designed to help people strengthen the weakness that a person has Within themselves. For instance, Weatherland School of Management at Case Western Reserve University has developed one. Most people that take the course show an 86% improvement. There Are even follow-ups three years later and the percentage is still high. Through my eyes emotional Intellect does mean a whole lot more than book smarts. Your own life experiences and what you've Learned from them makes you who you are inside. For example if a person does three years in prison, And comes out they should have learned a lot. They will now be more aware of how they are carrying Themselves on a daily. They will have come from a side of life where freedom was robbed from them So in fact, they will appreciate life more and be more patient about things. It is all about how you Carry yourself through life, not how much you know in those made up books. If your not aware of Yourself than who will be. It's your mind, body, and soul it's only right that you are knowledgeable Of those three elements of yourself. If your not fully aware of them than you won't see the real Potentials within yourself.

The Unsolved Case of the Oakland County Child Killer

The Unsolved Case of the Oakland County Child Killer The Oakland County Child Killer (OCCK) is an unknown responsible for the unsolved murders of four or more children, two girls and two boys, in Oakland County, Michigan, in 1976 and 1977. The Murders From February 1976 to March 1977, in Oakland County, Michigan, four children were kidnapped, held for up to 19 days, and then murdered. The killer would then dress them in their freshly pressed clothing, and leave their bodies carefully positioned on blankets of snow or laying in full sight next to a road. The murders resulted in the largest murder investigation in U.S. history at that time, but it failed to produce a suspect. Mark Stebbins In the afternoon on Sunday, February 15, 1976, 12-year-old Mark Stebbins of Ferndale, Michigan,  disappeared after  leaving  the American Legion Hall to go home to watch television. Four days later, on February 19, his body was found around 12 miles from his home, laying in a snowbank in a parking lot in Southfield. He was dressed in the same clothes that he had was wearing on the day that he was abducted, but they were cleaned and pressed. An autopsy determined that he had been with an object and strangled to death. Rope burns were discovered on his wrists, indicating that his hands had been tightly bound. Jill Robinson In the late afternoon of Wednesday, December 22, 1976, 12-year-old Jill Robinson of Royal Oak, got into an argument with her mother and decided to pack a bag and run away from home. It was the last day that she was seen alive. The next day, on December 23, her bicycle was discovered behind a store located on Main Street in Royal Oak. Three days after, her body was found lying on the side of Interstate 75 near Troy within full sight of the Troy police station. An autopsy determined that Jill had died from a shotgun blast to her face. Like Mark Stebbins, she was fully clothed in the clothing that she had worn when she disappeared. Placed next to her body, police found her backpack which was intact. Like Mark, her body appeared to be carefully placed on a pile of snow. Kristine Mihelich On Sunday, January 2, 1977, at around 3 p.m., 10-year-old Kristine Mihelich of Berkley, went to the nearby 7-Eleven and bought some magazines. She was never to be seen alive again. Her body was discovered 19 days later by a mail carrier who was on his rural route. Kristine was fully dressed and her body positioned in the snow. The killer had also closed Kristines eyes and folded her arms across her chest. Although her body was left along a rural road in Franklin Village, it was left in full view of several homes. An autopsy later revealed that she had been smothered. The Task Force Following Kristine Mihelich’s murder, authorities announced that they believed that the children had been murdered by stalking the area. An official task force was formed specifically to investigate the murders. It was made up of law enforcement from 13 communities and led by the Michigan State Police. Timothy King On Wednesday, March 16, 1977, at around 8 p.m., 11-year-old Timothy King left his Birmingham home with $0.30 cents to buy candy, his skateboard tucked under his arm. He was headed to a drugstore near his house in Birmingham. After making his purchase, he left the store through the back exit which led to a parking lot where he seemed to disappear into thin air. With yet another case of an  abducted and likely murdered child on their hands, the authorities decided to perform a massive search throughout the entire Detroit area. Television news stations and Detroit newspapers heavily reported about Timothy and the other murdered children. Timothy Kings father appeared on television, pleading with the kidnapper to not hurt his son and to let him go. Marion King, Timothys mother, wrote a letter that said she hoped she would see Timothy soon so that she could give him his favorite meal, Kentucky Fried Chicken. The letter was printed in â€Å"The Detroit News.† On the night of March 22, 1977, Timothy Kings body was found in a ditch alongside a road in Livonia. He was fully clothed, but it was obvious that his clothes had been cleaned and pressed. His skateboard had been placed next to his body. An autopsy report showed that Timothy had been sexually assaulted with an object and smothered to death. It was also revealed that he had eaten chicken before he was murdered. Before Timothy Kings body was found, a woman came forward with information about the missing boy. She told the task force that on the same night that boy went missing, she saw him talking to an older man in the parking lot behind the drugstore. She described Timothy and his skateboard. Not only had she seen Timothy, but she also got a pretty good look at the man he was talking to, as well as his car. She told the authorities that the man was driving a blue AMC Gremlin with white stripes on the side. With her help, a police sketch artist was able to do a composite drawing of the older man and of the car he was driving. The sketch was released to the public. Profile of the Killer The task force developed a profile of the based on descriptions given by witnesses who saw Timothy talking to a man on the night that he was abducted. The profile described a white male, dark complected, age 25 to 35, with shaggy hair and long sideburns. Because the person seemed to be able to gain the trust of children, the task force believed that the killer was possibly a police officer, doctor, or a clergyman. The profile went on to describe the killer as someone who was familiar with the area and probably lived alone, possibly in a remote area, since he was able to for several days without friends, family or neighbors knowing. The Investigation Over 18,000 tips came into the task force, and all of them were investigated. Although there were other crimes that the police discovered while doing their investigations, the task force had not gotten any closer to capturing the killer.   Allen and Frank Detroit psychiatrist Dr. Bruce Danto  and a member of the task force team received a letter a few weeks after Timothy King was murdered. The letter was written by someone who called themselves Allen. and claimed to be the of his roommate Frank who was the Oakland County Child Killer. In the letter, Allen described himself as guilt-ridden, remorseful, scared, suicidal, and on the brink of losing his mind. He said that he had been with Allen on many road trips looking for boys, but that he was never present when Frank abducted the children or when he murdered them Allen also wrote that Frank drove a Gremlin, but that he had junked it in Ohio, never to be seen again. To offer investigators a motive for the murders, Allen said that Frank killed children while fighting in Viet Nam and was traumatized by it. He was taking revenge on rich people so that they would suffer like he did while in Viet Nam. Allen wanted to work out a deal and offered to turn over incriminating pictures that could be used as evidence against Frank. In exchange, he wanted the Governor of Michigan to sign an agreement that would give him immunity  from prosecution. Dr. Danto agreed to meet Allen at a bar, but Allen did not show up and he was never heard from again. In December 1978 the decision was made to discontinue the task force and the state police took over the investigation.

Law risk #7 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Law risk #7 - Essay Example The institutionalized peace and truce of God was then Christianized into Crusades. The people are given scriptural provisions that refer to peace and truce of God but these provisions are ‘to be controlled by the law of the church,’ which goes ahead to call for the Crusades (Munro 5-8). Urban justifies violence against the Muslim world. He calls upon ‘the shepherds to guard on all sides the flock committed’ to them for if they are not careful the wolf may carry the flock away, and God would reduce the reward stored for them. The justification is also evidenced when he tells the people that being the salt of the world, it is necessary for them to correct the wisdom of the foolish people, failure to which they would be denied the loving presence of God. He further urges that although the people have promised to keep peace amongst them, they have a greater task of applying the strength of their righteousness towards the brethren who live in Romania where the Turks and Arabs are attacking. The unjust, robbers and mercenaries are told by Urban to fight the barbarians (Thatcher

The Failure of The War Powers Resolution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Failure of The War Powers Resolution - Essay Example The joint resolution only allowed the president to take such an action, on the event that there is a war emergency that the army should respond to. Other instances include, should the US, its territories or its interests be attacked (David & Larry, 1996 p22). As the provision of the law, the president should notify the congress once his intention to place the armed forces into war, within a span of 48 hours. More to this provision is the fact that the armed forces are prohibited from remaining in the war zone abroad for a period exceeding two months. After the expiry of the first two months, the army is granted 30 more days within which all its soldiers and operations should be withdrawn for the territory (Gareth, 2007 p19). Since this joint resolution was passed by majority two thirds of the congress, then the president has no veto powers over the legislation and thus has just to agree with the terms as provided. However, some presidents of the US have superseded these provisions, a nd engaged in war, without strictly adhering to the legislation, under some circumstances. Notable are the examples of presidents Bill Clinton and Obama, whereby in 1999, Clinton authorized the bombing of Kosovo, in total disregard of these legislative provisions. In 2011, president Obama went ahead and approved to enforce a no-fly zone policy over Libya, as was required by the UN (Dinan, 2006 W6). While President Obama held the view that the legislation did not provide restrictions for such actions, many of the US presidents have also held the same viewpoint, arguing that the legislation is against the US constitution. As per the US constitution, the congress is mandated with the powers of declaring war, supporting the armed forces and also the budget for such wars, and making all the necessary legislations that oversees the execution of such wars. The institution of presidency on the other hand is mandated to lead the armed forces and repel any attack that may face the US (Glen, 2 011 p28). As a privilege added to this institution, the president can agree to or reject a declaration of war issued by the congress, as he deems necessary. Therefore, there has been a struggle between the congress and the US presidents on the constitutionality of such provisions, as provided for by The War Powers Resolution. This has seen the provisions undermined by the presidents, through taking such war actions without consulting the congress. Thus, a question arises as to which institution, among the congress, the Supreme Court and the president is responsible for this failure. The failure of The War Powers Resolution can be traced to the side of congress. These failures are both in the way the congress enacted the legislation and in its failure to enforce the enacted law subsequently, where it would be necessary to contain the actions of the presidents (Rumsfeld, 2011 p14). Though some US presidents have totally overruled the provisions of the legislation, there is a possibili ty that the congress could nave contained such undermining, through their legislative and consequent enforcement powers. Thus, even though the institution of presidency can be blamed for such failures through undermining the requisite laws, the congress bears the greater burden of failure. The major failure of the War Powers Resolution, as a legislation is in its objective, under section 2a, where the law meant to seek a collective judgment in matters pertaining to wars

Literature review ( Dehydration associated with the use of diuretics) Research Paper

Literature review ( Dehydration associated with the use of diuretics) - Research Paper Example In spite of having a related African heritage, the citizens of African nationality who live in the West Indies and Africa have lesser rates of hypertension than do African Americans. This means that researches into how diuretics affect African Americans are vital in establishing if the rate of mortality due to hypertension in this ethnic group can be checked. Past researches have indicated that there is a higher incidence of hypertension in African Americans than among Whites. One of the major reasons for this has been given as the higher rate of cardiovascular sicknesses among African Americans. The long list of supposed causes for this frequency suggests that the genuine reasons are still unidentified (Sacks and Campos 2010). Biological disparities in the systems concerned in the environment or blood pressure control, as well as the lifestyle habits of African Americans are viewed as being among the probable causes of high blood pressure. The greater frequency of hypertension in African Americans living in the United States and not Africa seem to indicate that behavioral as well as environmental characteristics can also be considered as reasons for the heightened rates of hypertension among African Americans (Sacks and Campos 2010). They could also imply that there are mechanisms that increase the blood pressure in African Americans th at are dormant in the Africans that reside in Africa. Disparities in the individual experiences of the environment between Caucasian and African Americans have also been given as a reason for the difference in the experience of hypertension. Aspects like dietary habits, socioeconomic status, stress, existence of social networks, and health behaviors are also believed to influence the prevalence of hypertension. Among the outcomes of differential nutritional habits, surplus adiposity surfaces as a natural candidate to clarify the higher frequency of hypertension among African Americans, who have a 51%

Asthma Case Study Essay

Asthma Case Study Essay This essay is written as a case study referring to a patient from my practice area. As I will be reflecting on my practice in relation to the case study, use will be made of first person writing where appropriate. Hamill (1999) supports the use of first person writing in academic essays such as case studies and suggests it develops self-awareness, reflection, analysis and critique. As this essay is focused on a specific patient from my practice area it is important to consider issues of confidentiality. Therefore, throughout neither my practice area nor the patient name will be identified. However to be able to discuss key issues in relation to the patient I will refer to their age, gender and lifestyle, and use a false name to aid the flow of writing. Introduction Asthma affects 5.2 million people in the UK: 1.1 million children and 4.1 million adults according to Asthma UK in their 2004 report. However, depending which report one reads, this number can almost double to 10.1 million (Masoli et al 2003). This wide variation of prevalence maybe explained by the different studies and reports used to gather the data and differing inclusion criteria used. There is nevertheless agreement on the fact that the numbers of cases of asthma are increasing. Asthma UK (2004) reports a 400,000 increase in the number of adults with asthma in the UK between 2001 and 2004. The rising patterns of asthma prevalence however are not explained by current knowledge of causes of asthma, but are paralleled by increases in other allergic conditions such as eczema and rhinitis (Masoli et al 2003). There is currently no agreed definition of the disease. Widely documented in the literature however, is the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (1992) definition who describe it as, a chronic inflammatory disorder of the airways causing widespread but variable airflow obstruction†¦Obstruction is often reversible, either spontaneously or with treatment. The severity of the condition varies significantly (Rees and Kanabar 2000) from mild intermittent asthma, to a distressing disabling condition which results in time off work or school, disturbed sleep, restriction of social and leisure activities and anxiety (Hyland 1998). The main aim of asthma management is to control symptoms, minimise asthma exacerbations and optimise quality of life (Scullion 2005). As a student of the Acute Care Pathway Degree, one of the specific learning outcomes for my pathway is to be able to manage programmes of care for patients with chronic diseases (St Martins College 2006). Hyland (1998) states that the Advanced Nurse Practitioner has become a major provider of asthma care in the UK. Watkins, Edwards and Gastrell (2003) agree, and suggest that currently the management of long-term conditions, including asthma, are a core component of a Advanced Nurse Practitioners work. Therefore it is crucial that I have an understanding of this condition and be able to review patients effectively (Wiggins 1999) using evidence based guidelines, and to have the confidence to provide advice on the management of their condition. I aim to improve my understanding and asthma management skills through critically reviewing key issues of patient care as a case study. The key issues I intend to focus on relating to a specific patient are: Treatment of Asthma in the Emergency Department Patient education Patient concordance Initially this essay will examine my current practice in relation to asthma management through reflecting on my present level of knowledge and understanding, discussing the level of care I can provide for patients with asthma at the moment. I then intend to give a brief outline of the patient chosen for this study, explaining the reasons for that choice and the rationale behind the key issues highlighted for discussion. A critical review of the key issues will follow using up to date evidence based literature and considering relevant policies. The conclusion will summarise the main points, reflect on what I have learned from this module and consider ongoing learning requirements in relation to asthma management. Reflection on current practice At the time of writing I have so far completed 16 hours in practise, Therefore my first few days in practice were spent adjusting to this new and very different area of nursing. Nevertheless I have had the opportunity to observe my mentor assessing patients with asthma and recently have become more involved in the review of these patients, with supervision. Prior to starting the course I did feel I had some understanding of the disease process of asthma from working in the Emergency Department, albeit very fundamental, and some basic knowledge of the management. Some of this understanding comes from personal experience but also through my previous experience working in dermatology. Often patients presenting with atopic eczema would also be asthmatic, there is a well known link between these conditions (Hyland 1998). Some of the advice given in eczema management, for example allergen avoidance, will also be relevant in asthma management (Rees and Kanabar 2000). Using Benners (1984) novice to expert model I would classify myself at present as an advanced beginner. This is someone who has a marginally acceptable performance with some background experience but who still requires supervision. I feel this accurately describes my current ability in practice in relation to asthma management. With supervision I am able to undertake an assessment using a template for guidance, check medication usage, check symptoms and carry out peak flow assessment. However I still find the array of inhalers confusing and dont feel confident in interpreting the information gleaned during assessment into planned care within the time constraints of the clinic. When I have the time to reflect on the information and review the guidelines away from the patient I feel more confident. I need however to be able to make the transition from an advanced beginner to a competent practitioner, increasing my level of proficiency to no longer requiring supervision but being aware of my own limitations. I feel with more experience in practice and by working through this case study I should be able to achieve this. Rationale for choice of patient and key issues Rolfe, Freshwater and Jasper (2001) suggest that choosing an event or incident to reflect upon or analyse is concerned with anything that happens to us that we want to write about for some reason. It is the significance of the experience within our daily lives which helps us choose one experience over another. Having decided to focus on asthma as the topic for my case study, when I looked back at the patients I had seen with asthma, it was the above episode of care which held the most significance for me. Pharmacological management The aims of the pharmacological management of asthma are to control symptoms, prevent exacerbations and achieve the best possible lung function while minimising side-effects and long-term sequelae (Scullion 2005). National clinical guidelines developed in 2003 by the British Thoracic Society (BTS) and Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) were produced in collaboration with, amongst others, Asthma UK and the Royal College of Physicians of London, and have more recently been updated in 2005. They are widely accepted as the Gold Standard of evidence-based asthma care for health care professionals working in the UK (Levy and Pearce 2004). Patient education and concordance The issues of education and concordance will be discussed together as they are inextricably interlinked. It is difficult for the health professional to achieve concordance with the patient without providing education about their disease and its management (Levy and Pearce 2004). It is estimated that one quarter of asthma patients in the UK have a compliance rate of 30% or less (Das Gupta and Guest 2003). The term compliance in health care has become less fashionable recently due to it implying that a patient is perhaps ineffectual and hasnt followed the health professionals instructions (Hyland 1998). Whereas in reality the reasons for non-compliance are complex (Holgate and Douglass 2006) and not necessarily the fault of the patient, for example, not being shown how to use their inhaler device properly (Carter et al 2005). Nevertheless non-compliance is thought to contribute to between 18% and 48% of asthma deaths (Asthma UK 2003). Concordance is the term used to describe a negotiat ed agreement between health professional and patient with regard to the management of their condition (BTS/SIGN 2005). However even when concordance seems to have been achieved a patient still may not adhere to the agreed plan of care for many reasons (Weller and Booker 2006). Ensuring patients are well informed about how their medication works has been shown to improve adherence and control (Boulet 1998). They need to be aware of the risks of taking and of not taking their medication (Levy and Pearce 2004). The latter is of particular concern in asthma in that persistent inflammation of the airways may lead to irreversible obstruction (Rees and Kanabar 2000). Written personalised asthma action plans have been shown to improve outcomes of care (BTS/SIGN 2005). They reinforce verbal education and set out for patients what to do if their symptoms worsen (Roberts 2002). Conclusion Asthma is a frequently seen chronic condition in the Emergency Department and one that Advanced Nurse Practitioners are expected to be involved in the management of (Hampson 2002). Therefore as am Acute Care Pathway Degree Student, I need to develop my knowledge and skills in this condition to enable me to provide a high standard of evidence-based care for patients. Throughout this essay I have endeavoured to demonstrate my understanding of asthma especially in relation to the pharmacological management and issues of education and concordance. These issues have been discussed and have shown to be interrelated; without achieving concordance, adherence to prescribed medication cannot be achieved and without patient education concordance cannot be realised. Although I have been unable to discuss all aspects of asthma management due to word limit constraints, my understanding of asthma medications and the use of the stepwise guidelines has increased significantly to the point where I now feel more confident in practice. More recently when seeing patients with asthma I have been able to visualise which step they are on which has helped me to decide whether they are on the correct medication in relation to the severity of their disease. Reviewing the issues of concordance and education has made me realise how important these aspects of management are; however the time needed to address these issues in practice often doesnt correlate to the time allowed for appointments. To enable me to become a competent practitioner in asthma management I need to consolidate the increased knowledge I have gained from writing this essay with more experience in practice. I need to increase my knowledge in areas not discussed in this essay, such as non-pharmacological management through self-directed study and perhaps consider further education through an accredited asthma diploma course, on completion of my degree course.

Muhammad Ali - Cassius Clay :: essays research papers

I consider a hero someone that has done great things. Some of the things that I consider great are, accomplished hard goals, stood up for their own rights, done things that would be hard for me to do, and done things that are extraordinary. Muhammad Ali-Cassius Clay is someone that fills my standards of a hero. Muhammad Ali has accomplished hard goals by getting medals in the Olympics. Muhammad Ali had to stand up for his rights when he started to box. He has accomplished things in his life that would be very hard for me to accomplish. Muhammad Ali has done things that I think are very magnificent. The thing Muhammad Ali has done makes him a hero to me. At first Muhammad Ali had no intension of boxing. After his bike was stolen, in the month of October 1954, when he was twelve, his whole life destiny changed in an instant. Upon finding out that there was a police officer in the basement of a gym, Ali went down in a horrendous state of mind exclaiming a â€Å"state wide bike hunt (http://www.planetpapers.com/jump.cgi?ID=182.html),† and said he was going to beat up the person that sole his bike. The way his life changed was that the police officer asked him if he knew how to fight and he said â€Å"no.† The policeman offered Ali lessons in how to box so that he could seek on the bike thief. This was the starting point in Muhammad Ali’s boxing career. In the late fifties, Cassius Clay rules Golden Gloves And the AAU national champion. A quick fight at the Rome Olympics in 1960, Cassius Clay a teenager knocks beats a Polish fighter by the name of Zbigniew Pietrzykowski to a â€Å"bloody pulp.† Muhammad Ali took home the gold. In 1962 Muhammad Ali states that he will knock out Archie More in the forth round. His prediction came true. In 1964, Muhammad Ali became world heavy weight champing by beating Sonny Listen. Although he did not knock him out, Sonny would not enter the seventh round making Muhammad Ali world champion. After knocking out Zora Folley, he did not fight for three and a half years. During this time he was standing up for his rights during the Vietnam War. He said, â€Å"I have no Quarrel with Viet Cong (www.usatoday.com).† He did not want to fight because the more troops we sent in, the more we lost.

Why Tough Teachers Get Good Results

I had a teacher once who called his students â€Å"idiots† when they screwed up. He was our orchestra conductor, a fierce Ukrainian immigrant named Jerry Kupchynsky, and when someone played out of tune, he would stop the entire group to yell, â€Å"Who eez deaf in first violins!? † He made us rehearse until our fingers almost bled. He corrected our wayward hands and arms by poking at us with a pencil. Today, he'd be fired.But when he died a few years ago, he was celebrated: Forty years' worth of ormer students and colleagues flew back to my New Jersey hometown from every corner of the country, old instruments in tow, to play a concert in his memory. I was among them, toting my long-neglected viola. When the curtain rose on our concert that day, we had formed a symphony orchestra the size of the New York Philharmonic. I was stunned by the outpouring for the gruff old teacher we knew as Mr. K. But I was equally struck by the success of his former students.Some were musici ans, but most had distinguished themselves in other fields, like law, academia and medicine. Research tells us that there is a positive correlation between music education and academic achievement. But that alone didn't explain the belated surge of gratitude for a teacher who basically tortured us through adolescence. We're in the midst of a national wave of self-recrimination over the U. S. education system. Every day there is hand-wringing over our students falling behind the rest of the world. Fifteen-year-olds in the U. S. rail students in 12 other nations in science and 17 in math, bested by their counterparts not Just in Asia but in Finland, Estonia and the Netherlands, too. An entire industry of books and consultants has grown up that capitalizes on our collective fear that American education is inadequate and asks what American educators are doing wrong. I would ask a different question. What did Mr. K do right? What can we learn from a teacher whose methods fly in the face of everything we think we know about education today, but who was undeniably effective? As it turns out, quite a lot.Comparing Mr. K's methods with the latest findings in fields from music to math to medicine leads to a single, startling conclusion: It's time to revive old-fashioned education. Not Just traditional but old-fashioned in the sense that so many of us knew as kids, with strict discipline and unyielding demands. complain if a teacher called my kids names. But the latest evidence backs up my modest proposal. Studies have now shown, among other things, the benefits of moderate childhood stress; how praise kills kids' self-esteem; and why grit is a better predictor of success than SAT scores.All of which flies in the face of the kinder, gentler philosophy that has dominated American education over the past few decades. The conventional wisdom holds that teachers are supposed to tease nowledge out of students, rather than pound it into their heads. Projects and collaborative learning are applauded; traditional methods like lecturing and memorization†derided as â€Å"drill and kill†Ã¢â‚¬ are frowned upon, dismissed as a surefire way to suck young minds dry of creativity and motivation. But the conventional wisdom is wrong.And the following eight principles†a manifesto if you will, a battle cry inspired by my old teacher and buttressed by new research†explain why. 1. A little pain is good for you. Psychologist K. Anders Ericsson gained fame for his research showing that true xpertise requires about 10,000 hours of practice, a notion popularized by Malcolm Gladwell in his book â€Å"Outliers. † But an often-overlooked finding from the same study is equally important: True expertise requires teachers who give â€Å"constructive, even painful, feedback,† as Dr.Ericsson put it in a 2007 Harvard Business Review article. He assessed research on top performers in fields ranging from violin performance to surgery to compute r programming to chess. And he found that all of them â€Å"deliberately picked unsentimental coaches who would challenge them and drive them to higher levels of performance. † 2. Drill, baby, drill. Rote learning, long discredited, is now recognized as one reason that children whose families come from India (where memorization is still prized) are creaming their peers in the National Spelling Bee Championship.This cultural difference also helps to explain why students in China (and Chinese families in the U. S. ) are better at math. Meanwhile, American students struggle with complex math problems because, as research makes abundantly clear, they lack fluency in basic addition and subtraction†and few of them were made to memorize their times tables. William Klemm of Texas A;M University argues that the U. S. needs to reverse the bias gainst memorization. Even the U. S.Department of Education raised alarm bells, chastising American schools in a 2008 report that bemoaned the lack of math fluency (a notion it mentioned no fewer than 17 times). It concluded that schools need to embrace the dreaded â€Å"drill and practice. † 3. Failure is an option. Kids who understand that failure is a necessary aspect of learning actually perform better. In a 2012 study, 111 French sixth-graders were given anagram problems that were too difficult for them to solve. One group was then told that failure and trying again are part of the learning process.On subsequent tests, those children onsistently outperformed their peers. The fear, of course is that failure will Bowling Green State University graduate student followed 31 Ohio band students who were required to audition for placement and found that even students who placed lowest â€Å"did not decrease in their motivation and self-esteem in the long term. † The study concluded that educators need â€Å"not be as concerned about the negative effects† of picking winners and losers. 4. Strict is be tter than nice. What makes a teacher successful?To find out, starting in 2005 a team of researchers led by Claremont Graduate University education professor Mary Poplin spent five ears observing 31 of the most highly effective teachers (measured by student test scores) in the worst schools of Los Angeles, in neighborhoods like South Central and Watts. Their No. 1 finding: â€Å"They were strict,† she says. â€Å"None of us expected that. † The researchers had assumed that the most effective teachers would lead students to knowledge through collaborative learning and discussion. Instead, they found disciplinarians who relied on traditional methods of explicit instruction, like lectures. The core belief of these teachers was, ‘Every student in my room is underperforming ased on their potential, and it's my Job to do something about it†and I can do something about it,'† says Prof. Poplin. She reported her findings in a lengthy academic paper.But she says that a fourth-grader summarized her conclusions much more succinctly this way: â€Å"When I was in first grade and second grade and third grade, when I cried my teachers coddled me. When I got to Mrs. T's room, she told me to suck it up and get to work. I think she's right. I need to work harder. 5. Creativity can be learned. The rap on traditional education is that it kills children's' creativity. But Temple University psychology professor Robert W. Weisberg's research suggests Just the opposite. Prof. Weisberg has studied creative geniuses including Thomas Edison, Frank Lloyd Wright and Picasso†and has concluded that there is no such thing as a born genius. Most creative giants work ferociously hard and, through a series of incremental steps, achieve things that appear (to the outside world) like epiphanies and breakthroughs. Prof.Weisberg analyzed Picasso's 1937 masterpiece Guernica, for instance, which was painted after the Spanish city was bombed by the Germans. The pai nting is considered a fresh and original concept, but Prof. Weisberg found instead hat it was closely related to several of Picasso's earlier works and drew upon his study of paintings by Goya and then-prevalent Communist Party imagery. The bottom line, Prof. Weisberg told me, is that creativity goes back in many ways to the basics. â€Å"You have to immerse yourself in a discipline before you create in that discipline.It is built on a foundation of learning the discipline, which is what your music teacher was requiring of you. † 6. Grit trumps talent. In recent years, University of Pennsylvania psychology professor Angela Duckworth has studied spelling bee champs, IVO' League undergrads and cadets at the U. S. Military Academy in West Point, N. Y. †all together, over 2,800 subjects. In all of them, she found that grit†defined as passion and perseverance for long-term goals†is the correlated with talent. Close Arthur Montzka Tough on the podium, Mr. Kwas alw ays appreciative when he sat in the audience.Above, applauding his students in the mid-1970s. Prof. Duckworth, who started her career as a public school math teacher and Just won a 2013 MacArthur â€Å"genius grant,† developed a â€Å"Grit Scale† that asks people to rate themselves on a dozen statements, like â€Å"l finish whatever I begin† and â€Å"l become interested in new pursuits very few months. † When she applied the scale to incoming West Point cadets, she found that those who scored higher were less likely to drop out of the school's notoriously brutal summer boot camp known as â€Å"Beast Barracks. West Point's own measure†an index that includes SAT scores, class rank, leadership and physical aptitude†wasn't able to predict retention. Prof. Duckworth believes that grit can be taught. One surprisingly simple factor, she says, is optimism†the belief among both teachers and students that they have the ability to change and thus to improve. In a 009 study of newly minted teachers, she rated each for optimism (as measured by a questionnaire) before the school year began. At the end of the year, the students whose teachers were optimists had made greater academic gains. 7.Praise makes you weak†¦ My old teacher Mr. K seldom praised us. His highest compliment was â€Å"not bad. † It turns out he was onto something. Stanford psychology professor Carol Dweck has found that 10-year-olds praised for being â€Å"smart† became less confident. But kids told that they were â€Å"hard workers† became more confident and better performers. The whole point of intelligence praise is to boost confidence and motivation, but both were gone in a flash,† wrote Prof. Dweck in a 2007 article in the Journal Educational Leadership. â€Å"If success meant they were smart, then struggling meant they were not. 8†¦. while stress makes you strong. A 2011 University at Buffalo study found that a mode rate amount of stress in childhood promotes resilience. Psychology professor Mark D. Seery gave healthy undergraduates a stress assessment based on their exposure to 37 different kinds of significant negative events, such as death or illness of a family member. Then he plunged their hands into ice water.The students who had experienced a moderate number of stressful events actually felt less pain than those who had experienced no stress at all. Having this history of dealing with these negative things leads people to be more likely to have a propensity for general resilience,† Prof. Seery told me. â€Å"They are better equipped to deal with even mundane, everyday stressors. † Prof. Seery's findings build on research by University of Nebraska psychologist Richard Dienstbier, who pioneered the concept of â€Å"toughness†Ã¢â‚¬ the idea that dealing with even routine hings, like having a hardass kind of teacher,† Prof. Seery says. My tough old teacher Mr. K co uld have written the book on any one of these principles.Admittedly, individually, these are forbidding precepts: cold, unyielding, and kind of scary. But collectively, they convey something very different: confidence. At their core is the belief, the faith really, in students' ability to do better. There is something to be said about a teacher who is demanding and tough not because he thinks students will never learn but because he is so absolutely certain that they will. Decades later, Mr. K's former students finally figured it out, too. â€Å"He taught us discipline,† explained a violinist who went on to become an League-trained doctor. Self-motivation,† added a tech executive who once played the cello. â€Å"Resilience,† said a professional cellist. â€Å"He taught us how to fail†and how to pick ourselves up again. † Clearly, Mr. K's methods aren't for everyone. But you can't argue with his results. And that's a lesson we can all learn from. Ms. Lipman is co-author, with Melanie Kupchynsky, of â€Å"Strings Attached: One Tough Teacher and the Gift of Great Expectations,† to be published by Hyperion on Oct. 1. She is a former deputy managing editor of The Wall Street Journal and former editor-in-chief of Cond © Nast Portfolio.A version of this article appeared September 28, 2013, on page Cl in the U. S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: Tough Teachers Get Results. Copyright 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact.

buy custom Higher Education Fees in the UK essay

buy custom Higher Education Fees in the UK essay Student fees in the United Kingdom have increased tremendously over the years. The gradual increase in fees has made UK higher education more expensive. Increased student fees arose from continued government proposals, to raise the figures further. This has led to the emergence of diverse views both in support and against the high student fees. Proponents assert that increased fees would facilitate learning opportunities for the poor. It would promote investments in education institutions, and it would ease taxpayers expenditure on funding education. On the other hand, opponents claim that increased fees would compromise the quality of education. In addition, they claim that it would negatively affect students from the middle class families. All these cases have led to increased debate over the escalating higher education fees in the UK. This paper explicates the cases for and against increasing higher education fees in the UK and the effect on the economy. Increased fees would help students from poor backgrounds access higher education. Students from rich backgrounds would be in a better position, to raise the fees compared to poor students. Hayto Paczuska (2002, P 100) reports that poor students would be covered with fees paid by richer students. The extra amounts arising out of the total fees collected by educational institutions would be forwarded to fund poor students both in the provision of basic need and tuition fees. The contribution by richer students is vital in ensuring that every student with a promising future accesses education. In addition, problems related to wasted brains would be eliminated as the poor access education. Institutions providing higher education would be more balanced in matters relating to class, as education is accessed individuals from diverse backgrounds. This will facilitate an increase in the number of literate individuals because everyones welfare is catered for. Thus, the UK government would be in a better position, to ensure that all students access education and none is left behind because of the failure to meet the required fees. The provision of education to poor students would see them liberate their families from poverty to better living standards as they get to the job market. According to Johnes Johnes (2004, P 112) education for all would promote equality among all the youth regardless of their family backgrounds. Increasing higher education fees is the only way to raise the prospects of poor students advancing their education and reaching their desired goals. It is the only way to increase investments in the education sector by the higher education institutions. Increasing fees would raise more revenue to educational institutions. Educational institutions rely on the fees paid by students, to develop infrastructure and enhance educational research. The increased fees would provide a larger financial base for the institutions and would make it easier for them to invest in the provision of better education. Institutions would be able to advance technologically. According to Accounts (2008, P 110) higher education would only be meaningful if students learn in an environment where they access what they need. The tremendous rise in fees would be the only way toensure educational institutions do not suffer from financial difficulties but make significant improvements as they deem. It would mean that students all over the UK have better and modern learning facilities. Higher education institutions would not have to rely on loans, which attract h igh interests on repayment. They would develop using the funds that are raised by students hence no need to pay interest. It is the only way of securing educational institutions in their efforts to provide education with modern facilities. They would be in a better position, to change and keep up with the continuous changes in the educational sector. In addition, they would be able to compete with other internationally recognized institutions. This will lead to more applications from international students. Everyone would be attracted to join the highly competitive institutions in the UK. Fees need to be increased to raise the levels of investments in the educational sector by institutions. Citizens would be taxed lesser amounts in relation to education funding. Increasing the amount of fees would mean that taxpayers are relieved of the high amounts they have to contribute towards funding higher education. Students would provide the funds required by their institutions hence no need to overtax individuals. Taxpayers would be in a better position, to increase their savings because of the reduced tax burden. Committee (2007, P 133) observes that they would be contributing lesser amounts towards the loans incurred by students in the course of pursuing higher education. This means that those who earn less would be better positioned as they can easily save and make personal investments. Individual students would bear the fees without straining taxpayers. According to Accounts (2008, P 122) educational institutions would rely on funds that they are sure about their inflows instead of depending on taxpayers funds, which could not be reliable in the long run. The ease on taxpay ers would be vital in reducing the level of resistance to higher education in the UK. Opponents claim that fee increments would negatively affect students from the middleclass families. The increased fees would hurt families that are perceived to be at the middleclass level in the UK. This is because the rich students would find it easier to pay the amounts assisted by their wealthy parents. In addition, poor students would be shielded by the funds provides by the rich students. McNay (2006, P 100) intimates that students from middleclass families with average incomes would find it difficult t raise the required fees because of the lack of shielding effects. This could lead to some of them dropping out of school because of the inability to raise the fees required in the institutions. They would not be in a position, to access better living standards because of the high amounts of fees required to keep them in schools. This will see families in the middleclass being pushed into poverty. There would be increased imbalance in the access to quality education as most middl eclass students opt to drop out and seek education at institutions that charge lesser fees. Increased fees would mean suffering among the middleclass hence not desirable. It leads to increased levels of poverty in the UK. The increased fees would compromise quuality standards in education. The quality of the education offered by higher institutions would likely go down because of the increased focus on the fees. They would be keener on raising high amounts of money from students instead of providing education. According to Brown (2004, P 120) students would only be allowed to attend classes after payment of the required amounts. This means that students who fail to comply with the fees requirements would always be sent out of class until they complete the amounts outstanding. Educational institutions would gradually transform into financial institutions aimed at generating income instead of encouraging educational promotion. Increased fees would also lead to rise of class in educational institutions, as students who are unable to raise the required fees are intimidated making them unable to concentrate. This means that they would not be able to deliver their best in academics. They would be forced to deal with intimidating elements instead of concentrating on schoolwork. In addition, educational institutions would accommodate individuals according to their financial abilities and not academic abilities. This would compromise the standards of education as the brighter students without the ability to fund their education are segregated. Increased fees are thus undesirable because it would lead to a decline in UKs educational standards. The fee increment would have various effects on the economy. For instance, it would lead to a rise in the level of poverty. With the increased fees, middleclass parents would have to spend more on educating their children hence running out of resources. Johnes Johnes (2004, P 200) assert that the economy would be retarded by their reduced contribution in its growth. The overall effect of the decline in middleclass individuals would be poor living conditions in the economy. On the positive side, the economy would be boosted as the poor students access education courtesy of richer students. It is likely to lead to a better economy as illiteracy is eliminated. This means more individuals would be able to contribute to economic growth after being employed. In conclusion, an increase in higher education fees came into place after the government passed a proposal on amending higher education fees. The increment led to the emergence of views both in support and against the move to increase higher education fees. Those in support for the increase claim that it would help poor students access education because richer students cover them. In addition, they hold that it would lead to a reduction in taxes because taxpayers would be charged a lesser amount to contribute towards education. They assert that the increment would lead to increased investments by the institutions. This will ensure that UK institutions rank among the worlds best. Those against the increment assert that middleclass parents would be negatively affected, as they would be required to spend more. There is nobody to cover them. This would lead to increased levels of poverty. Increments would compromise the education standards in the UK as the focus shifts towards money inst ead of education. The overall effects of this are that there could be increased poverty in the economy as middleclass parents grapple to provide for their children. Buy custom Higher Education Fees in the UK essay

Culture Shock Research Paper Example

Culture Shock Research Paper Example Culture Shock Paper Culture Shock Paper To move from Vietnam to the United States, I have been an exchanged student for almost 2 months. It is not smooth for a 16-year-old girl like me to start a new life in the other hemisphere of the Earth. Through the big differences of lifestyles between two countries, I have gained a lot of precious experiences of independence and adaption. As I realize, the most difficult part of a new adventure to another cultural environment is Culture Shock! It is the result of the rapid changes of the familiar life. For my own experiments in the US, I would say that Culture Shock is best expressed by 3 factors: Shock of Changes Miscommunication and Homesickness. Firstly, it is important to keep in mind the definition of Culture Shock. When a person moves from one culture to another, he suddenly finds it very strange and irrelevant to live in a new community, which is understandable. The person has to get used to the conditions of eating, sleeping, working, communicating, entertaining etc. even though he does not clearly know how. It takes him some time to be familiar with a new culture. This explains the disoriented feelings of most people being away from their own customs. For me, there have been a lot of changes in the language, the weather, the food and the people since the day I came to the US. During my first two weeks, I could not sleep before midnight due to the difference of time. It affected on my circadian rhythm and made me very tired. It was hot in the day and very cold at night, which leaded to bad headaches and running nose. About the daily habits, American friends hug and kiss a lot because they consider it as a way of expressing their friendship. Contrarily, in Asia, especially in my country, we often keep a constant distance among our friends by nodding and shaking hands for greetings. Within the very first days in the US, I was sometimes a bit depressed when I could hardly refuse a lot of hugs because of politeness. Despite my great appreciation to their friendliness, I always thought that it was unusual for an Asian girl to receive tons of hugs from friends. These above experiments are typical factors of the Cultural Shock, when I have to face a lot of changes in life in a very short time. Secondly, all of us have different reactions to the rapid changes of cultures, and not most people can get along with it. Some accept to change themselves to adapt with the situations, some refuse to open their minds and keep on having negative feelings. However, it is common that everyone does have difficulties in overcoming miscommunication when moving to another culture. Based on the differences of life conditions, miscommunication is known as the lack of adequate communication. Once, when I was talking to one of my close classmates, she suddenly said to me, Haha, no one like you. Actually, she wanted to make a special comparison between me and the other people. Unfortunately, her pronunciation made me misunderstand that everybody hated me. Then I stopped talking with her because I was really upset. Two days later, after I told her the reason, we both laughed at our miscommunication and considered it as one of the most embarrassing experiences in our lives. For my own experiences, I would say that miscommunication is one of the most typical elements of Culture Shock. Finally, homesickness is the result of these above factors. Shock of Changes and Miscommunication can possibly remind a person of his own culture, and sometimes they make him want to leave the new one for his hometown. Homesickness, for me, is the biggest problem of Culture Shock, because it is caused by emotions and feelings. Thats why we cannot control it all the time as we want. It can even make people cry and keep on feeling negative. However, it doesnt mean that overcoming homesickness is impossible. After two weeks in the US, I gradually realize the beauty of American culture and feel more comfortable to accept it. I can sleep well and enjoy the food more, which make me feel much better. Although there is still some confusion, I have gained more energy to start everything. I think I have been through Excitement and Withdrawl, and I am trying to jump from Adjustment to Enthusiasm when I live in the US. In conclusion, Culture Shock is unavoidable for most people who move from one culture to another. It does have disadvantages, however, it makes us realize how much we love our cultures and how close we are to our hometowns. Therefore, I dont consider Culture Shock as a bad problem. It teaches me how to join the world and adapt with different life conditions. In my opinion, the best solution for Culture Shock is preparing good spirit for changes of life, keeping healthy and being self-confident in every situation we face to!

German Jewish Immigration to the USA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

German Jewish Immigration to the USA - Essay Example Since he was guided not by principles but by expediency, he was able upon occasion to moderate his tactics, if not his Jewish policy, when diplomatic or economic considerations made it advisable to do so. Von Hindenburg, the aged president; von Neurath, the Foreign Minister; and Dr. Schacht, the president of the Reichsbank and later Minister of Economics, could occasionally win some concessions. But then came Hitler's evil spirits, such as the demonic Dr. Joseph Goebbels, his Minister of Propaganda; the sadist Julius Streicher, his pornographer; and the enemy of mankind, Heinrich Himmler, his executioner. All of these men served to fan the flame of his hatred. The baseness and the villainy, the lying and deception which were concentrated upon the Jews beggar description. Never was so intense and persistent a drumfire directed towards the destruction of a mighty army as these strategists found it necessary to use in order to make it impossible for 550,000 Jews to exist in the midst of 65,000,000 Germans. "Even 'Aryan' children were stirred to spy upon Jews and Christian non-Aryans and to attack them, and to incite their own parents to extirpate the Jews altogether." From this specimen the world might have learned whither the destructive spirit of the Nazis was leading, but they were gullible and were persuaded that this treatment of the Jews was solely a matter of internal German policy. It was fatal to the world at large (and to the Jews) that the world relied upon the promises of the Reich Chancellor and Reich Leader, of which he kept not one, and did not rather refer to the conclusions of his Mein Kampf, in which the true nature of the revolutionary Hitler was expressed. (Hans W. Gatzke, 1973) The overall aim of Nazi policy in the 1930s was to pressure Jews to leave Germany, but there was no unanimity in the party on how this was to be accomplished. One faction, largely concentrated in the SA and typified by the fanatical Nuremberg Gauleiter Julius Streicher (1885-1946), editor of the bi-weekly anti-Semitic tabloid, Der Strmer, pressed for violent methods to oust the Jews from German society. Almost immediately after Hitler became chancellor, SA-sponsored street terror and hooliganism began, with Jews as primary targets. It was mainly to appease the disgruntled SA militants that Hitler authorized the national boycott against Jewish-owned stores, lawyers, and physicians in April 1933. Streicher was appointed by Hitler to head the committee planning the nationwide boycott, the announced purpose of which was to retaliate against Jewish-sponsored boycotts of German goods abroad. After the end of the official boycott physical assaults against individual Jews and Jewish business es continued sporadically without official sanction. Perpetrators, however, almost always escaped arrest or prosecution. (Hans W. Gatzke, 1973) Some Nazis criticized the SA's campaign of physical violence, not on humanitarian grounds, to be sure, but because it undermined discipline and order, caused property damage, provoked Western charges of human rights abuses, invited retaliatory measures, and seemed an ineffective and counterproductive way of ridding Germany of its Jewish population. Hjalmar Schacht and later HermannGring in his capacity as chief of the Four-Year Plan deplored the adverse impact on the German economy of vandalism

The Health Care Industry in the Business World Essay

The Health Care Industry in the Business World - Essay Example This essay stresses that NHS is a company that has to improve its communication and intergration of accounting techniques and procedures to improve their level of understanding of how different variables can affect the financial bottom line of a company and how these techniques are able to measure precisely the performance of a company in different operational areas. A conglomarate health care organization which has many units performing different and similar type services has to receice support from all business departments to produce information that enables a company to support the decision making process of the company which is perform by the executive managerial staff of NHS. This paper makes a conclusion that it is difficult for a company to succedd if teamwork and productive synergies are not developed about the varios business units and operation departmetn of a company. Providing supporting services is the responsibility of professionals who work as business adminitrators. Within an organization one of the most influenctial deparments that prepares information regarding the economic activity in a company is the accounting staff. There are many techniques that manipulate information to convert raw data into valuable business reports and information that provides a compilation of the internal financial behavior of an organization as well as other information regarding the industry in which a company operates.

New Business Proposal Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

New Business Proposal - Research Paper Example The needs of the customer are vital because they help in making changes for the product such that it conforms to their needs (Stark, 2011). Providing a product that suits customer’s needs in terms of size, price and other characteristics will enhance revenue generation due to increased sales (Stark, 2011). The revenue will increase by creating a new product line extension. This process entails bundling the new product with the existing products by using a similar brand name. Apart from improving the name of the brand, the process will act as criteria for marketing the new product (Stark, 2011). As the product gains customers, it is possible to perform an analysis of the market in terms of demand and elasticity. This determines how customers will respond to any changes in price. If demand appears to be inelastic, it will be convenient to increase the prices of the commodity in order to generate sufficient revenue. When demand is inelastic, the amount of sales remains unaltered, meaning that a slight increase in price will result in high revenue (Stark, 2011). Determination of the profit-maximizing quantity requires understanding of basic concepts of total revenue and total cost (Stark, 2011). After performing the sales of the new product, there will be a need to determine the gain at each sales level. This computation shall involve a consideration of all costs including labor plus other variable costs. It is possible to determine the profit maximizing quantity by first computing the marginal profits after the sale and finding where the marginal revenue becomes identical to the marginal cost (Stark, 2011). In this case, the formula: marginal profit= marginal revenue – marginal cost, will apply. If the marginal revenue is higher than marginal cost, it means that there will be a marginal gain (Taylor & Weerapana, 2012). In order to maximize profits, the business shall ensure reduction of marginal costs and improvements in

Mother Tongue Essay Example for Free

Mother Tongue Essay Today we live in a society that is often called a salad bowl. It is called a salad bowl because it consists of various different people from various different backgrounds. We all live together in a society, but we still retain our own distinct flavors which helps to contribute to the richness and diversity of society. Unfortunately, today we also live in a society in which some of these groups are marginalized and looked down upon by others. Hence, often times as individuals we feel the need to compromise the way in which we communicate our ideas so that we can appeal to the views of the majority. Two authors explore how their attempt to compromise almost caused them to become detached from their roots. In Mother Tongue, by Amy Tan, Tan talks about growing up as a young child in America and learning the English language. She speaks about growing up as a writer and her mothers imperfect diction which had a major influence on her. On the other hand, In her essay, Censoring Myself, Betty Shamieh talks about being an American playwright and having to censor herself because of how her work was viewed. Both authors explore the influence that their background had on their ability to express themselves. As individuals we should not be afraid to express ourselves because of our differences, rather we should use our differences and show how our distinctions make us very unique. Firstly, In Mother Tongue, Tan talks about how her mothers limited English diction skewered her perception of her mother. Tan mentions how, Like others, I have described it to people as broken or fractured English (Tan 273). This shows how Tan viewed her mothers English speaking abilities. She describes it as if her mother spoke damaged English, which needed to be mended or repaired. For Tan it was imperative that she spoke proper English and used proper diction, thus she was ashamed of her mothers English. Tan fell under the impression that her mothers English speaking abilities reflected the quality of what she had to say. Since her mother expressed her words in an imperfect manner, tan believed that her thoughts were also imperfect (Tan 274). Her perception was also supported by how people in society responded to her mother. Tan states that people in  department stores, banks, and restaurants would not take her mother seriously. They would provide her bad service, pretend not to understand her, or act as if they were mute (Tan 274). This further contributed to Tans feeling of embarrassment and shame towards her mother. Tan also describes an incident in which her mother went to the hospital and was told that the hospital had misplaced her CAT scan. The hospital did not show any remorse for losing the scan, nor did they assure her that they would locate it, that is until her mother had Tan speak to the hospital (Tan 275). As a reader this shows us how language is perceived and the role that it plays in the lives of individuals. For Tan it was imperative that she was able to blend in and be like others, so that she wouldnt be ridiculed. Luckily, she was able to realize the positive influence that her mothers diction bought her. Furthermore, Tans mother teaches her to think in a different manner than the other children in her school. Tan states that her developing language skills were influenced by her family and in this case her mother, hence it affected her results on achievement tests. Since her mother taught her to think differently she was unable to perform as well in English as she did in math and science. Later Tan realizes the value of this different systematic way of thinking and it contributes to her rebellious nature towards her teachers who suggested shed be much better in engineering, accounting, or anything else than English, since she was of Asian descent. She decided to challenge this stereotype, and thanks to her mother became a writer, who didnt write using challenging diction that required a lot of thought, but rather diction that could be read and understood by audiences such as her mother. This is the reason she starts writing about her mother: â€Å"I wanted to capture what language ability tests can never reveal: her intent, her passion, her imagery, the rhythms of her speech, and the nature of her thoughts† (Tan 277). She acknowledged the richness that her mothers heritage provided her and then she decided her first reader and critic should be her mother. Overall this taught Tan that she didnt need to compromise to the high caliber and complexity of the English language, but rather she could express her thoughts in a simplistic, yet effective way which could be understood by everyone. In her essay, Censoring Myself, Betty Shamieh talks about being an American playwright and having to censor herself because of how her work was viewed by others. She states: I have been censored in many ways. But I think the most overt example of censorship I have yet faced is my experience with a project called the Brave New World Festival (Shamieh 294). For the Festival she wrote a monologue about being the sister of a suicide bomber in mourning because she was unable to prevent his vicious act of terrorism. Her approach towards writing this play was to promote anti-terrorism, but due to the harsh tragedy of 9/11 she felt that there would be some potential backlash. When she was asked to perform her monologue at the Brave New World Festival, she was very skeptical of being criticized, thus she asked a famous actress named Marisa Tomei to act in the play (Shamieh 295). Post 9/11, president Bush let it be known on national television that he thinks citizens better watch what they say (Shamieh 294). This shows the amount of tolerance that was granted towards individual expression post 9/11, where anything that was said could be viewed in light of terrorism. As an Arab American Shamieh acknowledged that her work would be a source of criticism, but she felt the need to express her view and in doing so had to compromise so that she could get her play preformed. Moreover, Shamiehs play was ridiculed for its content, so being afraid of losing her spot in the festival she produced another piece that could be preformed. This shows the censorship she faced with her work and her need to compromise her writing so that it would appeal to the majority. Shamieh states that: Arab American artist are largely faceless in this country and I felt that, by dropping out, I would be helping those who are trying to keep it that way (Shamieh 295). This portrays Shamiehs want to express her views and to represent the Arab community, whos voices were neglected. Essentially she was trying to give a voice to the voice less. She later presents a story about an Arab-American girl who ends up on a hijacked plane and talks the hijackers out of their plans. Once again her intent was to promote anti-racism, but in a humorous way, yet her new play was not only censored, but this time completely taken out of the festival. This shows the ability individuals had in being ab le to express their ideas. Being an  Arab American, Shamieh had the right to express her views, yet despite this, her work was viewed under a wrong light and taken out of the play. This taught Shamieh that as individuals we will often face censorship for many reasons, whether it may because of our race, ethnicity, gender, sex, etc. For Shamieh, this experience taught her to write about the things she cared about, the things that represented who she was. She acknowledged that she was censoring herself by not producing a play about the Palestinian experience, which was a huge part of who she was (Shamieh 296). As individuals we will often face criticism from others, but the important thing is to express our voices so that we can communicate our ideas and portray ourselves under a proper light. Hence, often times as individuals we feel the need to compromise the way in which we communicate our ideas so that we can appeal to the views of the majority. Authors Betty Shamieh and Amy Tan were both subjected to trying appeal to others. They both explore how they found themselves and attempt to tell readers to express their individuality. As American citizens, majority of us come from different backgrounds which gives us a broader perspective. We should try not to forget our roots and neither should we become entrenched in trying to appeal to others who see us under a different light. We as individual bring about diversity and cultural richness to America, hence we should not be afraid to communicate our ideas in a manner that represents who we are. When we constantly feel the need to compromise we often lose our identities and our own unique individuality. We are discrete individuals and we should utilize our differences, rather than trying to hide or forget them. If we do not s tand up and express our perspectives then others will express them for us. So, thus we need to communicate our ideas in an effective manner, while still retaining our original flavors in the salad bowl. Works Cited 1) Neweib, Janice. Mother Tongue by Amy Tan. The Mercury Reader: A Custom Publication. New York: Pearson Learning Solutions, 2011. 271-277. Print. 2) Silverman, Jonathan, and Dean Rader. Censoring Myself by Betty Shamieh. The World Is a Text: Writing, Reading, and Thinking about Visual and Popular Culture. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2011. 294-296. Print.