Industry Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Industry Analysis - Essay Example This resulted in the concept of charging callers for outbound calls and also for receiving calls:† (Mobile, 2008). In the US, a lot of cell phone companies are still able to charge for receiving calls, whereas in Europe this has changed somewhat: this shows that strategy formulation has to change in this global industry. â€Å"While some systems of payment are pay-as-you-go where conversation time is purchased and added to a phone unit via an Internet account or in shops or ATMs, other systems are more traditional ones where bills are paid by regular intervals. Pay as you go (also known as "pre-pay") accounts were invented simultaneously in Portugal and Italy† (Mobile, 2008). Pre-pay accounts are currently a major draw in the US, and there is a lot of competition to offer the best service with the most options and coverage. Competition is a force in the general environment, and it is likely the force that is going to impact companies within this industry the most, as it continues to change and grow in the next few years. â€Å"The nature and degree of competition in an industry hinge on five forces: the threat of new entrants, the bargaining power of customers, the bargaining power of suppliers, the threat of substitute products, and the jockeying among current contestants† (Ireland et al., 2006). In this industry, even though barrier costs are high, substitute products are a real threat. From the team perspective, the task environment of the cell phone industry is affected by many internal, as well as external, forces. In terms of the relationship of suppliers, â€Å"If a supplier can either increase the price of its product or reduce the quality 2006). This rule holds true for the cell phone industry as well. There is also a particularly strong domestic market in the US with strong and sustained growth. â€Å"Consumer mobile phone sales in the United States

Biodiversity and Forests Essay Example for Free

Biodiversity and Forests Essay Protection and conservation of forests and wildlife are essential to maintain the earth’s health and environment. The earth is the only known living planet and it is because of its special environment and ecology which are life-supporting. Forests are part and parcel of our environment. They are one of the most valuable resources and gifts of nature. They play a key role in the maintenance climate, rain-patterns, water and soil conservation. They are the natural home of much type- of animals, birds, reptiles, insects etc. They supply timber, fuel, medicines, and wood for peeper-pulp and raw materials for many industries. The increasing depletion and destruction of wildlife is a source of great concern. One out of every seven persons of the world live in India. India has 16 per cent of the world’s population with only 2. 4 percent of its land area. There is much pressure on our natural resources including forests. In these times of increasing consumerism and nature- hostile activities, the forest-cover is depleting and deteriorating very fast. The conservation of wildlife which includes native plants and animals, depends on protection of forests. Wildlife is the direct product of the land resources and habitat conditions. The neglect of forests moans the destruction of the wild animals. Wildlife, like we human beings, need food, water, and shelter. Destruction of forests, wetlands, marshes, points, grasslands etc. eliminates their sources of food, water and habitat. The National wildlife action Plan launched in 1983 provides the framework of strategy as well as programme for conservation of wildlife. The protected area network till 1 993 consisted of 75 national parks and 421 sanctuaries covering 4. 5 per cent of the total geographical area, which was proposed to be increased to 5. 1 per cent. The wildlife protection Act, 1972 governs wildlife conservation and protection of endangered species. The Act prohibits trade in rare and endangered species. India is a signatory to the Convention on International Trade of Endangered species of Wild Flora and Fauna. Under this export or import of these endangered species is subject to strict control. Commercial exploitation such species is prohibited. The Wild Life Protection Act, 1972 has been suitably amended to make the provisions more effective. Endangered species of plants and animals have been brought under the purview of ten acts. India is very rich both in flora and fauna but many plant and animal species are already extinct and many other are on the road to extinction. In spite of various acts and rules- regulations against exploitation of wildlife, the real conservation has one of the major wildlife producer counties of the world and yet there is a skeleton staff to safeguard the interests of wildlife. Poachers are on the prowl even in sanctuaries and protected forest areas. They have become fertile hunting grounds for illegal hunting and killing of animals. The rich and influential people and traders in, animal-skins, horns, etc. have been indulging in hunting, killing and trading of wildlife with impunity. They carry telescopic rifles and other weapons, use traps and poison food and kill the animals. As a result of ecological imbalances and depleting forest-cover, the wild animals come out at night in search of food in the villages and attack human beings and domestic animals and fowls. In some parts of Uttar Pradesh the hyena and wolf-menace was very much in the news. Many children were killed by the wolves and hyenas. Similarly, in Pauri Garwal district of UP some leopards turned into man-eaters. Faced with the scarcity of animals for prey in the forest and continuing attacks from poachers, they become man- eaters. And once a man-eater is always a man- eater because man is the softest target. On many an occasion, the villagers injure more animals then they kill and so the injured animals turn into man-eaters and attack villages at night for food. When a human kill takes place, every leopard or tiger is regarded as man-eater and there is indiscriminate killing consequently, the number of these felines is decreasing fast. Thousands of snails, frog, rats, earthworms, cockroaches and other animals are killed for dissection in schools, colleges and laboratories for experiments. Snakes are also killed indiscriminately out of ignorance as greed. This destroys and disturbs the fragile ecological balance. Tigers are subjected to utmost brutality by man, the most intelligent and evolved animal on the earth. There is mindless destruction of forests for timber, firewood and fuel. Every year there is a loss of about 1. 3 hectares of forest area in India because of large and indiscriminate clearing of forests for cultivation, quarrying and large dams and irrigation projects. Then there is intensive and indiscriminate logging for commercial purposes by contractors and timber-merchants. Over-grazing has also taken its toll. The result is serious ecological imbalance and environment degradation. There is much pressure on forests and the relation between men and forests has reached the lowest depth. Conservation of forests and wildlife is also important from aesthete point of view. They make life beautiful and colourful. Without them human life will lose much of its beauty, charm and meaning. Their proper protection and conservation also means a continuous and adequate supply of food, fodder, medicines, timber etc. Forests and wildlife and renewable resources which need to be diligently protected, preserved and increased in a planned way. There is a need to spread the awareness about forest and wildlife conservation. Social forestry can be taught in schools as a subject. More and more trees should be planted, protected and seen growing and maturing. There should be a ban on mobile zoos and animal rights activists should come forward to wage a war on behalf of the mute and innocent animals. The destruction and degradation of forests in upper reigns like Himalayas causes such other ruins as erosion of top soil erratic rainfall, and recurring floods. Deforestation is a great social and national evil and should be checked on priority basis. It results in loss of productivity and environment degradation among much other harm. Encroachment on forests should also be checked and, if possible, banned, Non government agencies, village communities; trial’s etc. hould be involved in social forestry and regeneration of degraded forest lands. They should be allowed to share the benefits of these schemes in a judicious manner. The forest and wildlife conservation laws should be made more stringent and practiced scrupulously. Veerappan’s continued bloody trade in ivory and sandalwood trade upsets all concerned. Throughout the Nilgiris, it is now almost impossible to spot a large tusker. The full blown assault on forest and wildlife saddens all the Indians and wildlife lovers in foreign countries.

Heroics of Women in Ibsens A Dolls House Essay -- A Dolls House Essays

Heroics of Women in Ibsens A Dolls House The Heroics of Women Henrik Ibsen’s â€Å"A Doll’s House† is a play about a young wife and her husband. Nora and Helmer seem to be madly in love with one another and very happy with their lives together. Yet the conflict comes into this show when Nora brags to her friend Ms. Linde about how she had forged her father’s name to borrow money to save her husband’s life and how she had been secretly paying off this debt. Helmer finds out about this crime and is furious, until he finds that no one will ever know about it. This entire conflict is written to bring to light the ridiculous social expectations demanded of both women and men. Ibsen expertly leads the audience into accepting that these social expectations are foolish and wrong. The audience buys into this so much that in the end when Nora stands firm and refuses to bow down to what society demands of her, we see her as the hero. The social expectations of men in the late nineteenth century was of a more patriarchal thought-line then it is today. The man of the house was expected to be the sole provider. This works best for the families of that time, because they believed that by natural design men alone were capable of managing money wisely and carefully. The first scene of the show we see Helmer and Nora acting out this belief. Helmer comes in and he and Nora argue over how much can be spent for Christmas. â€Å"Has the little spendthrift been out throwing money around again? (Ibsen 1569)† He naturally assumes that Nora, being a woman, is out frivolously wasting money. This belief comes very naturally to Helmer. He is the model man of his time, as well as this one. He has a bright future ahead, cares for his family, is kind to his w... ...e door of the apartment she begins her journey to find the truth and to leave the lies and illusions behind (Hemmer 82). She sets out to cure her childishness by going out to learn of life without someone coloring it to their pleasing for her. Nora’s faults that are present throughout the play are evidence of her childlike nature. Nora constantly is munching on and subsequently hiding candy, she off-handedly lies, and also can’t resist bragging to Ms. Linde about what she has done (Boyesen 214). Nora walks out the door to find herself and to learn of life. She leaves the audience much as Ms. Linde met them. She has no hope or future and is alone. She is paralleled to Rank by his exiting his life into the unknown of death completely alone, and she exits her life to enter the unknown of the real world, the world that had been hidden and kept from her (Northam 108)

Decision Making Condition & Example Essay

1.1 Introduction Decision Making is very important thing that we do in everyday lives. According to Harris, R (2010), decision making is the study of identifying and choosing alternatives based on the values and preferences of the decision maker and making a decision implies that there are alternative choices to be considered. In addition, we are not on to identify as many of those alternatives as possible but to choose the one that has the highest probability of effectiveness. Just as there are different types of decision, there are also different approaches to decision making that are appropriate in different situation. Some decisions are made logical and rational thinking, while others are made using experience and sometimes based on the performance of a practiced skill. Decision making also can be described as the act of choosing one alternative from among a set of alternatives available. The decision making process includes recognizing and defining the nature of a decision situation, identifying alternatives, choosing the best alternative, and putting it into practice. In the decision making environment, there are three categories that is decision in certain condition, in uncertain condition and also in risky condition. The certain condition in making decision is where we have confidence and belief to get the best outcome in a single answer. The decisions maker also have to gain the comprehensive information regarding the situation occur in order to assist in his/her decision making. Meanwhile, uncertain condition in making decision is when the decision maker does not have knowledge of information where it is impossible to accurately describe for future outcome, more than one possible outcome. The decision maker also needs to have a high tendency towards risks to make the decision. Risky condition in making condition is where the decision maker has very limited of information and as a result, it is hard for them to predict the outcome. This risky condition can only be assumed based on information provided and probability that situation will occur and whether the situation really happen or otherwise cannot be completely ascertained as suggested by Shahrul A.A. et al (2011). He also said that decision maker or manager has limited information to assist in making the decision in risky condition even though the information obtains is not complete. In this topic, we will analyze the three conditions in decision making environment, examples for each category and also conclusion for the topic. 2.0 Decision Making in Certain Condition Decision making in certain condition implies that we know with 100 percent accuracy what the states of nature will be and what the expected payoffs will be for each state of nature. Harold. K(2009). He also believed that decision making under certainty is the easiest case to work with because with certainty, decision maker assume that all of the necessary information is available to assist them in making the right decision, and their can predict the outcome with a high level of confidence. This condition is ideal for problem solving and it is simply to study the alternatives and choose the best solution. Decision making in certain condition also occur when we know all information about alternatives and the best chosen one is the most effective. Meanwhile, Dr. John Bukowski (2012), believed that one method we can use to help decide is the cut-off screening method. Here, the decision maker predetermines a cut-off for each criterion. Then, the decision maker goes through each criterion and eliminates any choices that don’t meet the cutoff. If more than one choice remains, the decision maker could consider additional criteria or restrict the cutoffs. If all choices have been eliminated, the decision maker can relax the cutoffs. 2.1 Example of Decision Making in Certain Condition There are several examples using the certainty condition in different kind of situation. One of the example, is during making a choice of transportation from point A to a point B. Transportation ABC can take the person from point A to a point B in 10 minutes with the amount of RM 2.00. While transportation XYZ can take the person in 15 minutes with the same amount. With having limited time and money, and using the information completely given, the rational decision maker is able to know the best choice of transportation that he/she have to use to get to the destination, that is transportation ABC. In this situation, the decision maker can make the decision easily without any other probability of deciding for other option. 2.2 Second Example of Decision Making in Certain Condition Another example of making decision in certain condition is buying a new house. Mr. Ali is working at the city but he is currently living in flat house and his house located quite a distance from his workplace. Mr Ali getting promoted to the senior level, thus, he is thinking to buy a new house. His budget is RM 300,000 and he is looking for a house near at his workplace. House option A provides a bungalow house that near to the workplace, but the price is higher than his expectation that is RM 500,000. Meanwhile option B provides a new double-storey house also near to his workplace but with a less amount that is 280,000. From the information, Mr. Ali can make a decision using his budget limitation and also time saving going to work daily, the best option for Mr. Ali is Option B. 2.3 Third Example of Decision Making in Certain Condition The next decision making is on certainty is buying a car. Mr. Edward have his own family with 3 kids. Currently, Mr. Edward want to upgrade his car from his compact car into MPV size and is willing to pay not more than RM85,000 for the new car. There are several car manufacturers that selling the MPV Segment that is Proton Exora that cost RM 80,000 with value for money, good re-sell value and good maintenance. While Nissan Grand Livina will cost RM 90,000 and Toyota Wish will cost him RM 130,000. Using this information, Mr Edward have sufficient information to decide which one is the best option in term of value for money, maintenance, quality, insurance, and also re-sell value. Using this complete information, and the decision that based on facts, opinions and reasonable info, the best option for Mr Edward is Proton Exora. 2.4 Fourth Example of Decision Making in Certain Condition Mr. Gopal are trying to decide between three used cars, all of which are priced the same. If he want to buy used car number one, there is a 70 percent probability that he will have to spend RM400 to get the engine back in shape. However, there is a 30 percent probability that the engine will have to be replaced, which will cost him RM2, 000. If he chooses car number 2, there is a 50 percent probability that he won’t have to spend any money at all, a 30 percent probability that radiator repairs will cost only RM450, but there is a 20 percent chance that the car will require a new set of radiator that will cost him RM 1,500. If he choose car number three, he will face a 60 percent probability of an RM200 transmission repair, a 35 percent probability of a small transmission adjustment, and a 5 percent possibility that he will need to spend RM500 to fix the engine and the transmission. After considering information that he have and the cost for repairing of each used car, the best buy for him is the used car number 3. 3.0 Decision Making in Uncertain Condition A decision making in uncertain condition is when there are many unknowns and no possibility of knowing what could occur in the future to alter the outcome of a decision. It is also when the information received by decision maker is so poor that he/she cannot even assign probabilities to the likely outcomes of alternatives, thus making it an uncertain condition. Decision making under conditions of uncertainty is also an everyday task. When we decide whether or not to go out without bring the umbrella fearing it will rain, when deciding on whether or not to wear a helmet for cycling on the street or when deciding whether to take the bus or bus to work, the decision maker have to make a decision that involves outcomes that are in uncertain condition. According to Martin T. Schultz et al (2010), uncertainty can be classified either as input uncertainty or model uncertainty. Input uncertainty arises from a lack of knowledge about the true value of quantities used in analyzing a decision. In practice, model uncertainties are much more difficult to deal with than input uncertainties because they require the analyst to propose and evaluate competing models (Casman et al. 1999). 3.1 Example of Decision Making in Uncertain Condition Ahmad runs a small company that manufacture low-cost ergonomic stool and he sold via the Internet. His company has several popular models, each with annual sales of RM100,000 to RM150,000. He has an opportunity to invest in a new technology of manufacturing stool. Ahmad knows that a new technology will cost RM220,000 and is unsure whether there will be sufficient demand for the stool to cover this large investment. If the market is good, he thinks he can sell 4,000 chairs at a profit of RM100 each, generating a cash flow with present value of RM400,000. On the other hand, if the market is poor, he thinks he might sell only 1,000 chairs, generating a cash flow with present value of RM100,000. In this situation, ahmad does not have any information to help him decide and it is hard for him to make a decision from each probability that he made. Therefore he must use his rational and his business experience to make a best choice in order not to make his company loss in profit. Ahmad needs some skills and methods to make decisions under uncertainty. He needs techniques that match the limited time and money budgets of his small company. Therefore, this situation on decision making, he will try to have higher propensity and more practical level for the small business. 3.2 Second Example of Decision Making in Uncertain Condition Hassan, who is recently retired, has the opportunity to pursue his lifelong dream of operating a charter fishing business on the Langkawi Island with his retire savings of RM 50,000. Hassan has located a used charter fishing boat that he can purchase for RM 40,000. He realizes that this is a risky investment with many uncertainties, but he must reach a decision on whether or not to buy this boat by the end of the month. If he does not operate a charter fishing business, he will leave the money in an existing investment that is guaranteed to yield a 5% annual return. Hassan’s decision has been framed as a choice between a charter boat investment and an alternative investment. If the profits from his charter boat investment would exceed the returns from the alternative investment, he will invest in the charter boat. In this example, Hassan has applied the passive approach to adaptive management because the information he uses to update his decision is not obtained. Although the information is not obtained as part of the decision-making process, he used past experience and information to make the decision. According to Dr. Hossein, A.(2001), Business decision making is almost always accompanied by conditions of uncertainty. Clearly, the more information the decision maker has, the better the decision will be. Treating decisions as if they were gambles is the basis of decision theory. This means that we have to trade off the value of a certain outcome against its probability. 3.3 Third Example Decision Making in Uncertain Condition Another example is when analyze the weather patterns in the city ABC, forecasted by meteorological department. Sometimes the data provided by meteorological department is not always accurate to the people thus involved uncertainty condition. The most common weather that usually occurs was high winds, heavy rain, and lightning storm. For example they are predict City ABC will get a storm and heavy rain at night and as a result one of the live concert will be held at night do not know whether to cancel the show or go on due to the forecast. In this situation, people will understand that forecasts involve uncertainty with the future weather forecast because when they do not enough information, they have to estimate on their own and in this uncertainty, people have only a rely data base, they do not know whether or not the data are reliable, and they are very unsure about whether or not situation may change. According to Keltie, Denise.(2007), they used both rules and tools to deal with the uncertainty created by weather conditions and in terms of rules, they often relied upon heuristic strategies (cognitive rules of thumb) to help with decision making. 3.4 Fourth Example Decision Making in Uncertain Condition A local film producer has a developed a script and it is starting to cast the movie. The budget allows for the film is RM 50,000 for the male lead actor and RM 30,000 for the female lead actor. There are three actors that may be suitable for the male lead, and just two female actors that may fit the part of the leading lady. How does the producer decide on the individual actors and on the combination of two actors? According to Sharaf N. R.(2012), he suggested that in areas such as movie business, book publishing, and television programming, decisions are often reached on intuition, hunches, opportunities, and the pressure that a decision has to be made by a certain date. He also said, in the absence of time, relevant data, and funds, the decision makers rely on their intuition, gut feelings, and experience. In such situations, common sense suggests that an experienced person is more likely to make a better decision than an inexperienced person is. 4.0 Decision Making in Risky Condition In a risky situation, factual information may exist, but it may not complete. Rowe, W (1988) believed that whenever the decision maker has some knowledge regarding the state of nature, he/she may be able to assign subjective probability estimates for the occurrence of each state and in such cases, the problem is classified as decision making under risk. Shahrul A.A (2011) suggested that the decision maker will not know for sure the situations that will occur in the future and minimal information will only give some insight in predicting what will occur. He also said, whether the situation really will happen or otherwise, cannot be completely ascertained. The situation in risky condition usually related to management that has to deal with the market, insurance and investment. With limited resources and information, it becomes clear how important to make the right decision to avoid any losses or damage for decision maker. According to Geoffrey, C and Thomas, W. (1999), in risky condition, decision maker must assign a probability to each State of Nature and in some cases, research will reveal historical relative frequency information that we might conclude reveals the underlying probabilities. 4.1 Example of Decision Making in Risky Condition One example of risky decision can be seen in car running system. Car used to have simple ignition systems, with a distributor driven from the engine, the accelerator was a linkage from the pedal to the old system of carburetor. If the car was not running right, or there was another problem, it was simple to monitor and repair. Today’s car ignition systems are computer controlled with many sensors and actuators, the linkage from the gas pedal has been replaced with a computer, and the carburetor has been replaced by a fuel injection module. If something goes wrong, we can read out a manual code and try to determine which of the components and interconnections for each of the problem. The car running system is an example of the need for a more formal approach to risk based decision making and also risk management in car design and technology. 4.2 Second Example of Decision Making in Risky Condition Another example of a decision made under risky condition might be in the following situation, A manager in a supplier department decides to spend RM1,000 on a magazine ad believing there are three possible outcomes for the advertisement to have influence in their sales. A 25 percent chance the advertisement will have only a small effect on sales, a 55 percent chance of a moderate effect, and a 20 percent chance of a very large effect. This decision is made under risk because the manager can list each potential outcome and determine the probability of each outcome occurring. 4.3 Third Example of Decision Making in Risky Condition The following situation is in hypermarket department store. Their monthly sales statement for every month is increase. Thus, their manager is able to assume that the company will obtain net profit this year after making losses last year. Without obtaining other information such as operational cost, change of taste in consumers and environment influence, they can only assume that the company will obtain a profit based on the sales trend for the past few months. Therefore, state that the probability that the company will obtain profits is 60% and the probability that the company will make losses is 40%. With this, the manager will make a decision to increase investment. Here, the manager made a decision in a risky condition that is, it is not known whether the company will really be making a profit or otherwise. 4.4 Fourth Example of Decision Making in Risky Condition An example of a decision made under risky condition would be, for a manager of a medical research company, the decision of whether to spend RM 10 million on the research and development of a new technology on surgery equipment. The profits from the research and development spending will depend on whether the government will imposes new plan for the price regulations on new technology in the medical industry. Thus, on this condition, the manager must take the risk whether to carry on with the plan or cancel for the research. The two states of nature facing the manager in this problem are, 45 percent the government will impose price regulations or 55 percent the government will not impose price regulations for the new technology. While the manager have the limited information with the profits that will occur under either state of nature, the manager has risky condition of the probability that price regulations will be imposed on new technology. Under such conditions, a decision is made under risky condition. 5.0 Conclusion The decision making is an everyday task for us. We make decision making in environment using three kind conditions in everyday of our life, whether when we should use the car to go work, when we buying a new house, make a investment, expand our business, travelling and more. There is a lot of possibility and choice that we have to decide using these three conditions that is certain condition, uncertain and risky condition. We have to decide using the information and experience because good decision making requires not only knowing the facts, but also understanding the limits of knowledge. If we don’t have good understanding, experience and knowledge in decision making, we might ended in losing profits in our investment, regrets in purchasing a new car or house and even loss in our business. 6.0 References : Casman, E.A., M. G. Morgan, and H. Dowlatabadi. (1999). Mixed levels of uncertainty in complex policy models, Risk Analysis 19(1):33-42. [3 November 2012] Daniel Straub, Isabell Welpe. (2011). Decision-making under risk: a normative and behavioral perspective. Geoffrey Churchill, Thomas Whalen. (1999). Robinson College of Business Georgia State University: Decisions under Uncertainty. Retrieve at http://www2.gsu.edu/~dscthw/8350/decis-w.pdf [16 November 2012] Harris, R. (2010, November 22). Evaluating Internet Research Sources. Retrieved from http://www.virtualsalt.com/evalu8it.htm [6 November 2012] Harold Kerzner. (2009). Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling, Tenth Edition. John Wiley & Sons Publisher. [5 November 2012] Hossein Arsham . (2001).Tools for Decision Analysis:Analysis of Risky Decisions. Retrieve at http://home.ubalt.edu/ntsbarsh/opre640a/partix.htm [11 November 2012] John F. Bukawski. (2012). Quantitative Reasoning, by Alicia Sevilla and Kay Somers, ISBN 1-931914-90-7 . Retrieved at http://jcsites.juniata.edu/faculty/bukowski/ma103/topic11.htm [4 November 2012] Keltie, Denise. (2007). Ski Operations Managers’ Decision Making Under Uncertainty: Management Decision Making. [6 November2012] Kiker G.A. et al. (2005). Application of Multicriteria Decision Analysis in Environmental Decision Making. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management, 1(2), pp. 95–108.[4 November 201] Martin T. Schultz, Kenneth N. Mitchell, Brian K. Harper, Todd S. Bridges. (2010). Decision Making Under Uncertainty: U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center. [5 November 2012] Rowe, W. (1988). An Anatomy of Risk. R.E. Krieger Publishing Company [10 November 2012] Shahrul Aman Ahmad. et al. (2011). Principles of Management BBPP1103. V. Nov 2011. OUM. [2 Nov 2012] Sharaf N. Rehman.(2012). Decision-making Under Conditions of Uncertainty: The American Association of Behavioral and Social Sciences Journal.(The AABSS Journal, 2012, Volume 16).[5 November 2012]

Fiction and Literature Outdoor Literature Essay

â€Å"When I read great literature, great drama, speeches, or sermons, I feel that the human mind has not achieved anything greater than the ability to share feelings and thoughts through language. â€Å"- James Earl Jones The major types of literature across the world are English, Greek, Latin, Roman, African, Indian, American, French, Irish, Spain, Chinese, Italian, Japanese, Persian, Sanskrit, Nepali, Russian and Canadian literature. Literature is a well-considered form of a language that influences the minds of readers of all age. Italian Renaissance is the age of Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, whereas Greece Literature mostly comprises the literature of Greek Gods and Goddesses. Romanticism of Wordsworth is the literature which is oriented towards nature and can be considered to be reverse of classicism. Today’s era of Modernism and Post modernism uses artificial language based on ambiguity, satire and parody. Some authors choose long composition methods to link more than one story. Moreover, literature being a part of scientific language is also used to analyze grammar, usage, lexis and semantics. Kinds of Literature Fictional Literature. Drama: Drama is the theatrical dialog performed on stage, it consists of 5 acts. Tragedy, comedy and melodrama are the sub types of drama. e. g William Shakespeare, an Elizabethan dramatist composed the plays Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, King Lear that are famous because of its combination of tragedy and comedy. Problem play, farce, fantasy, monologue and comedy of manners are some kinds of drama. Tragedy: It is a story of the major character who faces bad luck. Tragedy, elements of horrors and struggle usually concludes with the death of a person. The Illiad and The Odyssey by Homer are the two famous Greek tragedies. Comedy: The lead character overcomes the conflicts and overall look of the comedy is full of laughter and the issues are handled very lightly. The elements used in the comedy are romanticism, exaggeration, surprises and a comic view of life. Melodrama: Melodrama is a blend of two nouns – ‘melody’ and ‘drama’. It is a musical play most popular by 1840. Uncle Tom’s Cabin is one of the most popular plays describing cruelty of labor life. It has happy ending like comedy. Tragicomedy: The play that begins with serious mode but has a happy ending is tragicomedy. Prose Literature  History, journalism, philosophy, fiction and fantasy writings, scientific writings, children’s literature authors and writers are included in Prose Literature. Myth Myths are the fairy tales with lots of adventure, magic and it lacks scientific proof. Nursery rhymes, songs and lullabies are forms of myths that strike the interest of children. Creative and nature myth are stories of the stars and moon. Magic tales are wonderful tales of quests and fantasy. Hero myths are ideal heroes of adventure. Short story The small commercial fiction, true or imaginary, smaller than a novel is known as short story. Short stories are well-grouped that followed the sequence of easy and no complexity in beginning, concrete theme, some dialogs and ends with resolution. They are oral and short-lived which have gossip, joke, fable, myth, parable, hearsay and legend. Novel Novel can be based on comic, crime, detective, adventurous, romantic or political story divided into many parts. The major kinds of novels are: Allegory: The symbolic story revolves around two meanings. What the writer says directly is totally different from the conveyed meanings at the end. Political and Historical allegory are two forms of Allegory. Comedy: Satire is very common form in comedy novels and tries to focus on the facts of the society and their desires. Epistolary: The collection of letters or mails is the epistolary novels. Samuel Richardson’s Pamela and Henry Fielding’s Joseph Andrew are the few examples of Epistolary novels. Feminist: These types of novels are written by women writers around the world to describe the place of women in a male dominated society. E. g Virginia Woolf’s â€Å"A Room of one’s Own†. Gothic: Gothic fiction is the combination of both horror and romance. Melodrama and parody were grouped in the Gothic literature in its early stages. Ironic: Ironic novels are known for excessive use of narrative technique. It is satire on the contemporary society about cultural, social and political issues. Realism: The realistic novels are based on the truths of ordinary society and their problems. It focuses on the plot, structure and the characters of the novel. Romance: Love and relationship topics are handled optimistically in the romantic novels. It originated in western countries; basically the story revolves around love affairs of main characters. Some popular sub categories of romantic novels are paranormal, erotic, suspense, multicultural and inspirational romance. Narration: In narrative style, writer becomes the third person who narrates whole story around the characters. Naturalism: Naturalism is based on the theory of Darwin. Picaresque: It is opposite to romance novels as it involves ideals, themes and principles that refuse the so-called prejudices of the society. Psychological: It’s the psychological prospective of mind with a resolution. Satire: Satirical novels criticize the contemporary society. The most famous novels are Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels (1726), Kingsley Amis’s Lucky Jim (1954), George Orwell’s Animal Farm and Randell Jarrell’s Pictures from an Institution (1954). Stream of Consciousness: James Joyce’s stream of consciousness is all about the thought coming up in the minds of the readers. A novel also constitutes categories on social and political aspects like proletarian, psychological, protest novel, government, didactic, materialist novel, allegorical novel, novel of engagement, naturalistic novel, Marxist novel, radical novel, revolutionary novel, anti-war novel, utopian novel, futuristic novel, anarchist novel, problem novel, social philosophy novel, novel of ideas, problem play and speculative novel. Folk Tale  Folk Tales are traditional stories that have been creating interest since ancient times. The children and old persons like religious story, magic and superstition as well. Fable, tall tales, cumulative, trickster and proverbs are the sub categories of folk tales. Mythology or legend is the ancient religious stories of origin and human civilization such as story of Robin Hood. Types of poetry Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings recollected in the tranquility. Greek poetry is found in free verse and we have rhymes in the Persian poem. Are you wondering how to write a poem, here are the followings forms of poem? Sonnet: Sonnet is the short poem of 14 lines grouped into Shakespearean and Italian sonnets. Ballad: The poems that are on the subject matter of love and sung by the poet or group of singers as telling readers a story. Elegy: This type of poem is the lamenting of the death of a person or his near one. Elegy Written in Country Churchyard by Thomas Gray is one of the famous poems marked as sad poems of the ages. Ode: Ode is the formal and long poem serious in nature. Allegory: Allegory is the famous form of poetry and is loved by the readers because of its two symbolic meanings. One is the literal meaning and another is the deep meaning. Epic and Mock epic: Epics are the narrative poems that convey moral and culture of that period. The Odyssey and Iliad are one of the largest philosophical epics written by Samuel Butler. Rape of the Lock is the great mock epic focusing on the minor incident of cutting of a curl. Lyric: It has Greek origin that gives a melody of imagery. It is the direct appeal of a poet to the readers about any incident or historical events. Lyrics are most of the time similar to ode or sonnets in the form. Nonfiction Literature: Nonfiction Literature is opposite to fiction as it is informative and comprises the interesting facts with analysis and illustrations. Main types of Non- fiction literature Autobiography and Biography An autobiography is the story of the author’s own life. ‘Family Life at the White House’ by Bill Clinton is focused on his life and achievements. ‘Wings of fire’ by Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, Mein kampf of Adolph Hitler are the autobiography books on real life. Essay Generally the authors’ point of view about any particular topic in a detailed way is an essay. Essay has simple way of narrating the main subject; therefore they are descriptive, lengthy, subject oriented and comparative. Different types of essay: Personal essay, expository essay type, response essay, process essay, persuasive essay, argumentative essay, critical essay type, interview essay, reflective essay type, evaluation, observation essay, comparison type of essay, application essay, compare and contrast essay and narrative essay type. Literary criticism It is the critical study of a piece of literature. Here critics apply different theories, evaluation, discussion and explanation to the text or an essay to give total judgments. Plato, Aristotle, T. S. Eliot, Saussure and Frye are some of the famous critics. Travel literature It is the narration of any tour or foreign journey with the description of the events, dates, places, sights and author’s views. Francis Bacon’s natural philosophies in the middle of Seventeenth century is one famous example of travel literature. Diary Diaries are the incidents recorded by the author without any means of publishing them. It is the rough work of one’s daily routine, happenings, memorable days or events in their life. E. g. Anne Frank’s ‘Diary of a Young Girl’ was published by her father in 1940s; it’s a story of a girl trapped during German invade Amsterdam. Diaries consists of business letters, newsletters, weather listing. In today’s world of Internet, writers write in blogs, forums, polls and social networking sites to convey their thoughts. This also is a form of diary writing. Some profound forms of diaries are online diary, travel, sleep, tagebuch, fictional, dream and death diaries. Journal Journal is one of types of diaries that records infinite information. They are of following types: Personal: It is for personal analysis. In this journal one can write his goal, daily thoughts, events and situations. Academic: It is for students who do research or dissertation on particular subjects. Creative journals: Creative journals are the imaginative writing of a story, poem or narrative. Trade: Trade journals are used by industrial purposes where they dictate practical information. Dialectical: This journal is use by students to write on double column notebook. They can write facts, experiments, and observation on the left side and right side can be a series of thoughts and response with an end. Newspaper It is a collection of daily or weekly news of politics, sports, leisure, fashion, movies and business. Magazine Magazines can be the current affairs or opinions well collected covering various content. Frame Narrative The psychoanalysis of human mind is present in a frame narrative. Here we find another story within the main story. Some of the popular narratives are Pegasus, Wuthering Heights, The Flying Horse, The Three Pigs, A Time to keep and the Tasha Tudor Book of Holidays. Outdoor literature Outdoor literature is the literature of adventure that gives whole exploration of an event. Exciting moments of life such as horse riding, fishing, trekking can be a part of literature. Some outdoor books are ‘The Adventures of Tom Sawyer’ by Mark Twain, ‘Treasure Island’ by Robert Louis, ‘Voyages’ by Richard Hakluyt and ‘A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush’ by Eric Newby. Narrative form of Literature Today we find movies, audio and video CD’s and Cassettes that present current literature in use. Digital poetry is an upcoming trend too. Comic books, cartoons, eBook and Internet games are the learning methods for children. Literature includes centuries, human nature, cultures and souls. Isn’t it?

5 Tips for Writing a Stellar Vanderbilt Supplement Essay

5 Tips for Writing a Stellar Vanderbilt Supplement Essay SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Vanderbilt is one of the United States’ highest-ranking colleges. With an acceptance rate of just 10 percent, it’s ranked as extremely competitive. It’s no surprise- Vanderbilt is known for having a wealth of appealing programs, including its school of medicine, the Peabody College of Education and Human Development, and Blair School of Music. Because it’s extremely competitive, you’ll need to set yourself apart as a prospective student. That doesn’t mean just your grades and impressive extracurriculars; it also means writing a killer essay to go along with your application. In this guide, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about Vanderbilt’s supplemental essay, including some ideal topics, some pitfalls to avoid, and even some analysis of past Vanderbilt essays that have worked. The Vanderbilt Supplement Basics Vanderbilt’s application is fairly straightforward. They accept multiple application formats, including both the Common and Coalition Applications, as well as Questbridge. What application you use is up to you. There are many reasons to choose one or the other, but regardless of which application you pick, you’ll still be answering just one supplemental essay prompt from Vanderbilt. Choose whichever application works best for you. In addition to the essays required for your Common, Coalition, or Questbridge Application, Vanderbilt requires one supplemental essay. There’s only one prompt with a 400-word limit, so you won’t have to choose between prompts. However, having just one prompt means that you’ll need to put a lot of attention into making your essay as good as it can be. You only have one chance to prove yourself in your essay, so make it count! A little latte art never hurts. What Is the Vanderbilt Supplement Essay Prompt? Vanderbilt has just one prompt for their supplemental essay, which must be answered in 400 words or less. Please briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences. The question is straightforward- Vanderbilt is asking you to discuss one of your extracurriculars in depth. This doesn’t just demonstrate to the admissions office that you’re dedicated to your interest, but also that you have passions outside of school. Vanderbilt wants to know that you’ll bring something besides academics to campus, and this is the space to tell them about it. Keep in mind that Vanderbilt isn’t looking for a list of activities or just a short discussion of one of your extracurriculars. They specifically ask for one, but you have 400 words to cover- which means you should spend some time unpacking not just the activity itself, but why you do it and why it matters to you. Be thoughtful; really think about your activities and why you do them beyond that they look good on your college application. Don’t just pick the extracurricular activity that you think Vanderbilt would want to hear about. If you’re a champion Mathlete but you really feel fulfilled when you’re making short films with your friends over the weekend, you should be writing about the short films. If your short film was played at a local film festival but you find more meaning in the time you spend knitting, write about knitting! It’s not about being impressive here. Plenty of other applicants will be discussing their charity work or science team victories. Use this space to discuss yourself, and why the things you do matter to you. If the most impressive thing in your repertoire and the thing that’s most personally meaningful line up, great! But don’t feel like you can only write about things like academic success, leadership roles, or entrepreneurship. Write about what’s meaningful to you and Vanderbilt will see your personality- which is really what they’re looking for- shine through. Reading Vanderbilt essays that worked is like planting a seed for your own success. Vanderbilt Essays That Worked: Analysis Vanderbilt doesn’t use the same prompts from year to year, but that doesn’t mean that looking at past successful essays can’t be useful. Consider this one from an accepted Vanderbilt student: â€Å"Never help a child with a task at which he feels he can succeed,† Maria Montessori once said. School was about letting my curiosity lead me and teaching myself at my own pace. For example, at the start of 7th grade, I was handed the Algebra I book and told to complete it anytime in the next two years. I was intrigued to have a real textbook, but a bit overwhelmed, as the math looked like a foreign language. After reading a chapter, I’d take a stab at the problem set right away. It wasn’t about getting the problems right or wrong; it was about trying to understand the material. As frustrating as this process was, each time I conquered a new idea, my exasperation was transformed into new energy. I learned how to solve problems independently and to know when to ask others for help. ... When I did get to high school, I was surprised at how well prepared I was. My two strongest skills, time management and the ability to work well independently and in groups, mad e the transition easy for me. The Mesa Sands experience shaped me outside the classroom, too. One of my strongest qualities is trustworthiness. Because my school did not have a set structure or rules, I’ve in effect worked under an honor code from the time I was three years old. This essay was written for a different prompt, but the fact that it was successful shows you that it contains features that Vanderbilt likes to see. The writer of this essay discusses their education at a Montessori school, which doesn’t take the same approach to education as many other schools. Throughout, they refer to the school’s teachings and how they shaped their learning, not just but the things they were taught, but the way that they were taught. Not everybody had this same educational experience, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t use some of the same ideas in your own work. The writer draws a clear line between how they were brought up and the person they are now- you could do a similar thing by connecting the person you are with the activity you’ve chosen to write about. What have you learned about yourself because of what you do? The writer is also able to discuss academic strengths without referring to their GPA, which Vanderbilt is no doubt already familiar with. Instead, they discuss their strengths as traits, like adherence to an honor code, trustworthiness, and time management. More importantly, they write about where those traits come from- something you could easily do by referencing the importance of the activity you choose. What’s most important to take away from this essay is the way that the writer connects the experience of attending their unique school to the person they became. No matter what your education was or what activity you choose to write about, you can do a similar thing in your own essay! Don't be afraid of multiple drafts- they make the difference between a good essay and a great one. 5 Key Tips for Writing Your Vanderbilt Essay Vanderbilt is a prestigious school, but there are some essay standards that hold true no matter where you’re applying. Follow these steps to write an essay that’s sure to impress! #1: Start Writing Starting is the step that sounds the easiest, but it’s actually the hardest. No matter what you have to do to start writing, whether it’s freewriting, brainstorming, or just pumping out a first draft as fast as you can, you need to do it. At this point, don’t worry about quality or being impressive. Just get words down on paper so that you can edit them into shape later- if you spend too much time worrying about starting with a perfect beginning, you’ll never make it past that point. #2: Edit Step two is when you can start worrying about quality. Read your essay aloud and see if you can spot problems with word choice and flow. If you’re struggling to read it, change words and add punctuation as necessary. Also think about your overall point. Does it make sense? Are you able to trace your logic all the way through without a problem? If not, find ways to connect your thoughts from beginning to end. Be thorough in cutting extraneous words. 400 words isn’t a lot, and you’ll want to make sure you’re making your essay count by picking vibrant, active verbs and clear language. Don’t worry about being flowery or busting out the thesaurus, but do be sure that your wording doesn’t feel tired or dull. #3: Seek Feedback One of the best ways to find holes in your logic or other issues in your essay is to get others to give you feedback. Find people who want to see you succeed, but preferably not those who aren’t going to give you criticism if you need it. Teachers and other mentors are a good choice, if they’re available. Don’t feel like you have to use every piece of feedback you receive, but do consider all of it. Your essay should always be your own work, so try to rephrase suggestions in your own words or rewrite confusing passages how you would write them, not how others suggest. #4: Take a Break With deadlines looming and other essays to write, it may be tempting to just rush through after getting feedback and fix everything. But take some time away from your essay, focusing on other college application duties or on other things entirely. Anywhere from a couple days to weeks to months can be good for improving your essay, though do leave yourself time to revise.Taking a break lets your mind forget what you’ve already written, so that when you come back to revise you do so with fresh eyes. This way, you can see holes in your logic or places where your language isn’t as tight as it could be. You’ll never be able to completely shed your attachment to your essay, but spending some time away from it can give you a whole new outlook on your work! #5: Revise Now that you’ve had some time away and you have notes to incorporate, it’s time to revise. Revision can be something you do multiple times, combing through your essay for errors and places to strengthen it, but eventually you are going to have to turn it in. Don’t get caught up in perfection- focus on making your essay the best you can. Check it for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors to be sure it’s clean and easy to read, and send it off! What's Next? Starting your essay is often the hardest part. If you're unsure where to begin, check out this guide to starting a college essay perfectly, and don't be afraid to just dive right in! A good essay is just one part of a successful Vanderbilt application. If you want to really wow the admissions office, be sure your grades and test scores are up to snuff, too! Vanderbilt University may not be an Ivy League school, but that doesn't mean your application can't be Ivy League-ready. Use these tips for getting into Harvard to shape your college application, and you'll have no problem getting into any school you choose! Want to write the perfect college application essay? Get professional help from PrepScholar. Your dedicated PrepScholar Admissions counselor will craft your perfect college essay, from the ground up. We'll learn your background and interests, brainstorm essay topics, and walk you through the essay drafting process, step-by-step. At the end, you'll have a unique essay that you'll proudly submit to your top choice colleges. Don't leave your college application to chance. Find out more about PrepScholar Admissions now:

Every AP US History Practice Exam Available Free and Official

Every AP US History Practice Exam Available Free and Official SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips If you want to do well on the AP US History test, you have to practice! Practice tests can help you organize your prep logically around areas of the curriculum that are most challenging for you. This article provides a complete list of all official and unofficial AP US History practice test materials available online,as well asdetailed instructions and tips on how to use them in your studying. Official AP US History PracticeExams This section lists all the free official practice tests available online for AP US History.All of these practice tests and free-response questions come directly from the College Board.You can use the free-response questions to practice writing essays at any point during the year, but I’d save the full exams for the final stages of your study process. The closer you get to the exam, the more important it is to understand exactly where your weaknesses lie and which aspects of the test present the most significant challenges. Official materials provide the best practice because the questions are a consistently accurate representation of the content and format of the real test. Full-Length AP US History Practice Exam This is a practice exam released by the College Board that aligns with the format and content of the latest version of the test.This test is the best free practice exam available online, so try to save it for when you’re closer to the real exam and want to get an accurate estimate of your score level. One caveat: there's no answer key for the free-response questions, so you might have a tough time scoring them. Refer to the College Board's general scoring guidelines to get an idea of how you did or ask your teacher if he or she would be willing to grade your essays. AP US History Free Response Questions, 2015-2017 The free-response questions for the three AP history exams have undergone some minor changes, but these sample questions will still closely resemble the format of the free-response section of the test that you're taking.Again, I would encourage you to save the most up-to-date questions for later in the study process so that you can get a better idea of what your scores will look like on the real test. AP US History Document Based Questions 1973-1999 This document includes a bunch of DBQs from past versions of the AP test. This question has remained relatively consistent throughout the years, so I'd say these are totally fine to use as practice materials. You never know exactly what the documents will look like on the test, so you should practice analyzing them until you feel comfortable with all different types of sources. Unofficial AP US History Practice Tests These tests are not directly from the College Board, but they will still help you become familiar with the material. This section includes links to bothfull unofficial practice tests and small-scale topic-specific practice quizzes. The short quizzes may be useful in the early stages of your studying when you want to target certain eras or avoid questions onmaterial your class hasn't covered yet. Prep Books Even though I'm emphasizing online practice materials in this article, it's also worth mentioning that some prep books include high-quality practice tests that are modeled directly after the current version of the exam. If you're willing to part with some of that sweet cash money, check out our list of the best review books for AP US History. Barron’s AP US History Practice Exam This practice exam is in the most up to date format, so it’s one of the highest quality free unofficial practice resources you’ll find online.It includes multiple-choice and free-response sections with answer keys for both types of questions. Full Old Format Practice Exam #1 and Answer KeyFull Old Format Practice Exam #2 and Answer Key These are unofficial practice exams originally createdby the W.H. Freeman publishing company.They each have 80 multiple-choice questions, a document-based question, and two free-response questions. There is some critical reading of historical texts required in the multiple-choice sections of these tests, so they're decent prep materials for your skills in both factual recall and deeper analysis. Full Old Format Practice Exam #3 This is a different old-format practice test created by an AP teacher.It has the same number of questions and includes similar content to that of the two tests in the previous section. Mini Practice Quizzes on Every Topic in AP US History Here, you’ll find practice quizzes for every topic covered in the course.There are multiple-choice questions and, for some topics, â€Å"short answer† questions (there's a drop-down menu of 12 answer choices).These won’t help much with the more analytical elements of the test, but if you want to test your factual recall, they'll serve you well. Multiple-Choice Questions Formatted for 2015 Exam This is a short quiz, but the questions are all similar to the ones you’ll see on the real test (you're asked to reference source materials to come up with your answers).It’s worthwhile to go through it and see how you do! Albert io AP US History Practice Quizzes This is a series of quizzes on every topic covered in the curriculum.As you take them, the site will display stats detailing how you fare on questions of each difficulty level.This should help you figure out the areas where your memory is shakier. GetaFive AP US History Course You can sign up for free for this service and enroll in the AP US History course.There are lots of practice questions and video lessons that may be helpful in your studying! Practice Quizzes for The American Pageant 12th Edition This site has chapter-by-chapter practice quizzes organized around an old edition of The American Pageant textbook.Questions are multiple choice and true/false.Again, this is more helpful for factual recall than for analysis questions. AP US History Notes Multiple Choice Practice Test This test has just 40 questions, but thesite also includes a list of frequently-asked AP US History multiple-choice questions that will prepare you better for the exam. McGraw-Hill AP US History Chapter Quizzes This website contains 32 multiple-choicequizzes,one for each chapter of the McGraw-Hill US History textbook. The quizzes follow the organization of the textbook, but they can still be useful even if your class uses a different textbook. Each quiz is titled so you know what part of US History it's testing you on. More Resources for Short Practice Quizzes on All Topics These are a few additional sites that have a bunch of short practice quizzes on every topic in the curriculum. If you're looking for additional questions that will test your basic knowledge of events in US History (or are looking for more questions dealing with a specific time period), you can refer to these resources. Brief Review in US History and Government: Quizzes CourseNotes Practice Quizzes for AP US History Varsity Tutors AP US History Practice Quizzes Matching and Multiple Choice Short Practice Quizzes Look at you! You're practically drowning in a sea of free practice questions! How to Use AP US History PracticeExams Now you have all sorts of AP US History practice resources, but what's the best way to use them? In this section we go over exactly how you should be studying with practice exams during each semester of the class. First Semester At this point, you can mostly rely on unofficial tests and quizzes that only deal with the topics that your class has already covered.Many of the sites listed above have large collections of questions for each unit of the course.Work on building a strong foundation of knowledge so that you’re prepared to answer more advanced analytical questions in the future. You can also look through the official free-response questions to find some that you feel confident answering based on what you’ve learned so far.It’s never too early to start practicing for the free-response section, especially when it comes to document-based questions.Writing a coherent and argumentative essay that incorporates six or seven different sources in just 50 minutes is a tough skill to master!Try to come up with an essay-writing process that works well for you so that you’re a pro by the time the test rolls around. Second Semester You can start taking full AP US History practice tests and assessing your AP score level midway through the second semester (March is a good time to get the ball rolling on this). By then, you’ve learned enough of the material for your scores on practice tests to be fairly accurate predictions of your final AP test scores. Since the US History test changed in 2015, you won’t have many full official practice tests that reflect the current format.Use your limited resources wisely by carefully assessing your performance on each practice test and studying your weak areas before taking additional tests. Take and score an initial practice test (with accurate time constraints!) before you do any studying.As you take the test, mark any questions you're unsure about; you’ll want to study that material later even if you end up guessing correctly.After you score the test, categorize your mistakes by historical period and theme to see if you can find any patterns. Then, start studying the areas that need work.You can turn to unofficial practice questions during the study process to test your knowledge. You should also practice writing essay outlines, so you're more prepared for the free-response section.Once you feel that you’ve mastered the subjects that stumped you on the first test, you can take another full practice test to see whether you’ve improved. Decide whether or not you want to repeat this process based on your score on the second test.If you haven’t improved much, you should reconsider your prep methods.Spend a longer time checking in with yourself to make sure you've retained information. You can also plan on doing more practice questions between full tests so that you’re prepared for the format as well as the content. Fill in any little holes in your memory. You never know if they'll come back to haunt you on the AP test. *spooky musical interlude* Essential AP US History Practice Testing Tips Tip #1: Read Excerpts Carefully, and Look for Direct Evidence The multiple-choice section is based on excerpts from historical source materials, so it tests both analytical skills and factual recall. You have to read the source materially carefully to find the correct answer.In many cases, several answer choices are historically accurate, but only one is directly supported by the evidence in the excerpt or illustration. Lookfor direct connections, and don't make too many assumptions based on your prior knowledge. Tip #2: Plan Out Your Essays When you have to write an essay on a timed test, it can sometimes end up an unfocused, disorganized mess.This is exactly what you don’t want on the AP US History exam.Hold yourself back from starting the writing process immediately, even if you’re anxious about not finishing in time.Writing a preliminary outline is critical. Without an outline, you risk rambling, going on irrelevant tangents, or getting stuck when you can’t figure out a good piece of supporting evidence!It will be much easier to write the essay if you already have a structure in place that makes sense. Tip #3: Get Comfy With the Document-Based Question The document-based question is different from other essay questions that you’ll encounter on AP tests.In fact, it’s probably the only question of its kind that you’ve ever seen on any test.DBQs can seem intimidating and weird, so make sure you practice them as much as possible before the real exam.Write notes next to each piece of source material to give yourself a basic idea of what it is and how it could be used to support the points you plan on making in your essay.You should come up with a strategy for approaching these questions that works for you before you’re face-to-face with the DBQ on the real AP test. Tip #4: Incorporate Background Information (Wisely) Include outside historical references that support your arguments in the DBQ or long essay questions.Even though you’re given seven sources to use as evidence in the DBQ, making additional outside connections will show that you’ve really mastered the material.Just remember to be careful with using outside information. Don’t fact-vomit all over the essay with everything you've ever learned about a topic.Structure your thoughts so that any outside information relates directly to the main argument of your essay. Always build sturdy conceptual bridges between tidbits of outside knowledge and the main argument of your essay. Conclusion The practice tests in this article should serve as helpful resources for you in preparation for the AP exam and any in-class assessments. Remember, official College Board questions are the highest quality practice materials, so use them wisely. Try to save most of the official practice resources for when you're closer to the AP test. You can use unofficial materials throughout the year to brush up on your memory of specific topics in the course. To recap, the overall study tips I recommend for AP US History are: Tip #1: Read Excerpts Carefully, and Look for Direct Evidence Tip #2: Practice Planning Out Your Essays Tip #3: Get Comfortable with the Document-Based Question Tip #4: Use Background Information, but Don't Overuse It With these tips in mind, you can take full advantage of the practice materials, become a master of US History, and show the AP test who's boss! What's Next? Are you missing some of your notes from class? This article has links to great notes for AP US History that will give you tons of information on every topic in the course. How do you know whether your practice test results are equivalent to a high or low AP score? Learn more about how AP tests are scored. Think you might take the SAT Subject Test for US History in addition to the AP test? Check out our complete study guide for the US History SAT II. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Successful women share their best career advice

Successful women share their best career advice Everyone- women, men, old, young- can use some guidance in their careers. Mentorship has long been established as a huge difference-maker, especially for people just starting out or people embarking on a new professional path. This level of support has proven especially beneficial for professional women, who do best when they’re able to get insight and advice from other professional women. Yet according to a study of professional women by talent scouting firm Egon Zehnder, only 54% of women have access to that kind of mentorship by other women. That doesn’t mean that those of us without those resources have to go it alone- rather, we can take inspiration from successful women who have been willing to share some of their hard-won knowledge and insights. Let’s look at some of the most inspiring career advice out there, from women who’ve made it.Be open to opportunities.â€Å"Be prepared to spot growth opportunities when they present themselves- because they are the key learning opportunities. You’ll know because they make you uncomfortable, and your initial impulse may be that you’re not ready. But remember: Growth and comfort never co-exist.†- Ginni Rometty, chairman, president, and CEO of IBM  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Always take on new challenges- even if you at not sure you are completely ready.†- Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook  Ã¢â‚¬Å"If a job’s not scary, it’s not worth doing.†- Jasmine Whitbread, Chief Executive at London First  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Don’t cut off your career branches too early. Don’t step away from your career based on what ‘might’ happen.†- Mary Barra, chairman and CEO of General Motors  If you wait around for the exact right opportunity, you might find yourself waiting around while your skills and experience go to waste. If you’re a new grad, or looking for a new job, it can be tempting to not go for opportunities that aren’t exactly like you envisioned your career, or that feel like a stretch for the experience and skills you have. But really, what do you have to lose by stretching a little? The worst possible outcome is the word â€Å"no,† which is rarely fatal. And in the best case, you could be hired for a job that challenges you and makes you grow as a professional.Be resilient.â€Å"Life’s a marathon, not a sprint. When things go wrong, dust yourself off.†- Kate Grussing, Founder and Managing Partner at Sapphire Partnership  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Take criticism seriously, but not personally. If there is truth or merit in the criticism, try to learn from it. Otherwise, let it roll right off you.†- Hillary Clinton, former U.S. Senator and Secretary of State  Failures and disappointments are going to happen occasionally, no matter who you are and what industry you’re working in. Sometimes these will be your fault, and sometimes they won’t. The one thing that all failure scenarios have in common is that you can move on from them. No matter how embarrassing it may feel, or how dire, all you can do is accept that things happened the way they did, understand why things happened what they did, and learn what you can do next time to help avoid the same kind of catastrophe.Build your team wisely.  Ã¢â‚¬Å"You are only ever as good as the team you build, so be a talent magnet and surround yourself with the best and the brightest.†- Marianne Lake, CFO of J.P. Morgan Chase  Ã¢â‚¬Å"†Never be afraid to recruit people brighter than you are, and never be afraid to recruit people who are different than you. That is sometimes hard to do, but incredibly powerful if you want to create a team that is really effective.†- Judith McKenna, COO of Walmart  Think of it as career #squadgoals. Every successful person has worked as part of a team at some point in their careers- and in fact, teamwork is one of the qualities most prized by employers. The important part is making sure that your team is able to support your goals. That may mean being a more engaged and supportive colleague yourself, or if you’re in a management role, it means recruiting the best possible people to help you grow achieve your own goals.Everyone has his or her own career goals in mind, and it can feel like we need to step on others to achieve those, but things will go much more smoothly- not to mention more easily- if you focus on building ways to work together instead of taking everything on yourself.Be yourself.â€Å"Be who you are. You’re unlikely to be first or last- your journey is your journey.†- Desiree Clarke-Noble, Director, Head of Brand and Marketing at Royal Bank of Canada  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Sit down and ask yourself, ‘What is the most important thing to me?’ What grosses me out the most? What makes me the most upset - is it healthcare? Is it so many people being hungry in our culture? Is it sexual abuse? Mix that with doing somet hing you love, something you could keep doing forever and ever. For me, it was ending violence against women, and I mixed it with music. And I’ve had a 25-year career. So that’s my advice: Find something you really care about and mix that with something you love doing.†- Kathleen Hanna, musician and activist  If your professional self is more aspirational than authentic, you’re likely to find yourself dissatisfied with the career path your persona has chosen for you. Whatever choices you make- job, relationships, skill-building- should be ones that fit with who you are, not necessarily who you think you should be.Find your focus.â€Å"The thing people want most is your focus and attention. You destroy that when you think you’re multitasking, because you’re not accomplishing either.†- Wendy Clark, president and CEO of DDB North AmericaMultitasking can be seen as a prized skill, in a world where there are about 40 digital distractions every minute and ever-increasing demands. Instead of focusing on the number of things you can do this minute, try thinking about the quality of what you’re doing and learning in the moment. Being able to send an email while half-listening to a colleague and compiling a report will get more things checked off on your to-do list, but how many of those things are you actually doing well? If you try to bring mindfulness and thoughtfulness to your to-do list, you are upping the quality factor of your work.Project confidence in all you do.â€Å"Speak slower; be more executive and more authoritative. When you speak quickly it’s hard to distil big messages and put a good case forward to your customers and your team.†- Helen Sutton, Vice President of Enterprise in Northern Europe at DocuSign  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Don’t be afraid to ask questions; that’s one thing that differentiates women from men.†- Claudia Palmer, Chief Business Officer and Chief Financial Offi cer at ReutersOne of the best things you can do for your career is to take control and ownership of your professional path. That means expressing yourself clearly, and being an advocate for your own interests. Whether it’s negotiating a salary increase or trying to get ahead, being timid or hesitant is unlikely to get you what you want. The more you can project confidence and competence, the more you’ll be able to build confidence in your abilities.If you have any of your own favorite pieces of career advice for or from women, we’d love to hear about it in the comments.

Practicality over Aestheticism In Alice Walkers Everyday Use Essay

Practicality over Aestheticism In Alice Walkers Everyday Use - Essay Example This is due not only because Maggie has remained at home with her mother, but because Maggie has learned the skills necessary to their normal existence, skills passed down from preceding generations. Dee shows an interest in family heritage as well, but her exposure to academic and social movements has shifted her priorities to the African connection rather than the African-American roots of her immediate family. This paper will examine how Walker displays a partiality for practical applications of heritage rather than abstract academic curiosity. Dee's degree of distance from her family becomes apparent as soon as she arrives at the house. Her first action is to take a series of photographs to document her family and the domicile, and " never takes a shot without making sure that the house is included." Dee then explains to her family that her name is now Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo, citing that her old name was decreed by her 'oppressors' presumably she and her companion are recent members of the Muslim movement, given that the man greets the mother with the phrase "Asalamalakim." Dee claims the churn top and dasher from the dairy churn - not noticing that they are still needed - to incorporate into some type of artistic table. Dee then wants to claim hand-stitched patchwork quilts semn together by several generations of the family, with the intent to display them at her house by hanging them behind glass. The mother, as narrator, not only shows a knowledge of the family heritage, but still lives in accordance with it. In the very first scene, she expresses an appreciation for her swept yard, saying "It is like an extended living room. When the hard clay is swept clean" The churn top that Dee wants is described as having "the milk in it clabber by now," implying that the churn is an appliance that still gets frequent use in the household. Her slight favoritism for Maggie is revealed in her defending Maggie's claim on the quilts. In the past, Dee was offered a quilt and disdained to take it; the future of the quilts has since been assigned as a sort of dowry for Maggie's eventual marriage to a boy named John Thomas. When Dee left to go to college in Augusta, Maggie remained at home and has become saturated with family culture. She has encyclopedic knowledge of family history: when Maggie recalls Aunt Dee's first husband Henry, called stash, whittled the churn dash, Dee observes that "Maggie's brain is like an elephant's." Maggie herself is a walking connection to the family history, for her burn scars came from the destruction of the girls' childhood house. Most importantly, Maggie remained with her family and learned the skills of her preceding matriarchs. Not only has Maggie communed with both her grandmother and her aunt in the actual making of these quilts, she has acquired the skill of sewing them and is now able to pass the knowledge down to following generations. Opponents of this interpretation would argue that the narrator's perceptions are not only slanted, but hypocritical. They perhaps would argue that the mother's fantasy about meeting her daughter on television indicates a merging of history and progress, with a secret yearning for progress. Another argument could be made that the

Financial Markets - Raising Capital Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Financial Markets - Raising Capital - Essay Example In fact the financing decisions form an integral part of a firm’s policy decisions. Usually, the financial managers prefer debt over equity on account of interest tax deductibility and low cost associated with debt. Mr Exposito plans to raise funds for the purpose of expanding his winery business. A careful analysis of the various sources of funding has been done to suggest the best available alternative based on the size of the winery business and the prevailing conditions in the market. Analysis of capital instruments There are two forms of financing - long term and short term. The long term financing instruments include debentures, bonds, term loans & shares and the short term debt instruments include bank overdraft & trade credit. Bonds- A bond is a long-dated financial instrument used by the companies to raise funds from the public. The bondholders are entitled to regular interest in the form of coupon payments. Normally, the bond is listed in the stock exchange. It has a fixed date of maturity which is the date at which the company agrees to pay back the principal amount to the holder of the instrument. The issue of a bond creates a legal binding on the company. Even in the event of a loss the company cannot dishonour the interest payments as this can have legal repercussions. The companies mostly issue fixed coupons bonds offering semi-annual payments until the date of maturity. There may be other types of bonds like fluctuating coupon bonds or bonds with an annual or quarterly payment feature. Besides there are zero coupon bonds that do not require any interest payments. The bonds can further be classified on the basis of the collateral as mortgage bonds, collateral trust bonds and equipment trust certificates. The real property is used as collateral in the case of mortgage bonds. The securities owned by the corporate act as a security for the collateral trust bonds whereas the inventories and company equipments act as security for equipment trus t certificates. The price of the bond is inversely proportional to the interest rate. A rise in the interest rate can lower the price of the bonds and vice versa. Considering the interest rate sensitivity the bonds can be of two types- callable and non callable bonds. If after a bond issue the interest rates fall in the market then the corporate can call back the bonds issued at a higher interest rate and issue new bonds at a lower rate of interest (Rini, 2002, p.57). Debentures- The features of debentures are more or less similar to that of bonds except that unlike bonds the debentures carry a pre-determined rate of interest. Depending on ‘security’ the debentures can be classified as secured and unsecured. Secured debentures carry a charge on the company assets. The company cannot dispose-off these assets without the approval of the debenture holders. The unsecured debentures do not carry any such charge on the asset which makes it risky from the point of view of the investors. Again the debentures can be classified as per ‘convertibility’ into convertible and non-convertible debentures. The former gets converted into equity after a specified time period. Therefore in the future the debenture holders get an option to acquire a stake in the company. The non-convertible debentures are repaid at the end of the maturity and cannot be converted into equity. Depending on the ‘payment pattern’ the debentures c

Confrontation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Confrontation - Essay Example Be it the pure arts or humanities, criticism has always been there to point put any deviations from and contradictions to the ideologies and moralities, and the sets of rules, established by the actions of the people. This effort can be traced back to Aristotle, when he, in his Poetics, put forward the theory of literature that offered positive criticism to the literary works. Or the ideology of Karl Marx, called Marxism, for instance, objected to the sociopolitical conditions and offered an alternative method of approach that not only affected the social sciences, but even artists and literates grabbed on to the philosophies proposed by him. Flash forward to the recent exhibition, Art of Confrontation, and it is apparent that the struggle is far from over. In the humanities, the critical social theory, or the critical theory for short, has had an evolution, from two distinct origins and fields_ namely the literary theory, that proposes criticism purely in the arts and literature, and the social theory of criticism, that examines and analyses sociopolitical practices_ to the recent more overlapping critical social theory that combines the two fields and tries to provide a better and deeper understanding of society by incorporating all branches of humanities. Ultimately, the goal is to mold society according to the principles of Enlightenment, and to pursue it. Similarly, artists have for long seen it as their role as social scientists, and have produced work that has criticism and progression as its basis. Culture is by the people, for the people, and this medium, when tapped, can have amazing affects on the lives of the people. Sculptures, paintings and other form of art, even literature, can forever capture the thinking, feelings, and issues of the people of their time for future generations to study and learn from. As is said, it bears testimony. It stands as a reminder of the struggles of the people and their aspirations, and can send strong waves of renaissance and reform. Sometimes it has political shades to it and sometimes it provides a parallel medium to view issues, with a new light, leading, however, to the same goal_ Enlightenment. This form of art has come about to be known as critical art, and together, critical social theory and critical art, both high culture and mass culture, aim to propagate the acquisition of critical k nowledge to instill in individuals a sense of psychoanalysis and self-reflection so that society as a whole can emancipate itself from all forms of oppression, vice and domination. The underlying agenda of all activist movement has always been human rights, and the dignity and freedom that is associated with every individual. War,

Am I a Constructivist Teacher Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Am I a Constructivist Teacher - Essay Example I also have group activities once a day. Reading to each other, playing math games, and other activities are encouraged. Every lesson also has an open discussion. I allow all students to participate with answers, questions, and even stories. I am at the middle of the constructivist spectrum due to my views on individual teaching. I feel that children can play around or distract when grouped together too often. Interspersing constructivist activities with traditional assignments seem to keep the children focused better. A child does not automatically understand self-control, autonomous behavior, and self-reliance without doing traditional assignments by themselves. On the other hand, after doing a traditional assignment constructivist activities about the traditional assignment are handy. This helps the children do the assignment on their own merits while learning from their and others’ mistakes and successes. My current teaching habits do reflect my constructivist-based views. I like to mix both traditional and constructivist views. Children cannot be programmed like computers. It is essential to use constructivist-based activities to help the child learn. Upon learning a skill a student can then reproduce the skill alone. For example, creative writing is a test given in the 5th grade. All year descriptive writing is examined by the students. Papers are written and shared by the entire 5th grade. Students bounce ideas off of each other in groups and through open discussion, however when taking the writing test the student must perform on their own. This is why I prefer both methods. Discipline is another reason I am in the middle on constructivist views. Some students cannot handle group interaction. Often these children have rough backgrounds. These children need a more traditional approach. This is especially true when speaking about emotionally disturbed (ED) children. Every child is different. If a

Globalization and HRM Strategies Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Globalization and HRM Strategies - Assignment Example Technology is a critical tool in competition as it is essential in ensuring quality of goods and services. Though it means increase in production costs of the company, technology as a tool ensures increase in sales and product quality to meet the ever increasing/ growing consumer expectations and taste. Additionally, globalization has seen that a company like Sony improves greatly on its information and knowledge transfer which, much like technology is important in helping the company stay connected and informed of emerging customer preferences. Information therefore enables adaptation to trends and its quick and effective transmission has become vital in customer retention and growth hence. Different cultures of the world have very little effect and impact on Sony and unlike most other multinational corporations, Sony has managed to break the barriers of culture across the globe by producing a wide range of high quality, sophisticated and culturally acceptable goods and services. In addition, Sony’s policy of recruiting from any culture, age, gender and other such barriers puts it in a favorable position for worldwide appeal and acceptance. However, the financial and credit services offered by Sony, for example, may receive negative and little acceptance in other parts of the world. Islam, for instance, strictly forbids the use of usury. In such areas, the company may be viewed in bad light and rejected altogether. This is highly unlikely however as Sony offers a wide range of services and products and if one of them is found to be unpalatable in a certain culture, other products eventually override this ‘dislike’ altogether and firmly establishes Sony in the area. Just like cultures, labor markets are of very... This paper approves that different cultures of the world have very little effect and impact on Sony and unlike most other multinational corporations, Sony has managed to break the barriers of culture across the globe by producing a wide range of high quality, sophisticated and culturally acceptable goods and services. In addition, Sony’s policy of recruiting from any culture, age, gender and other such barriers puts it in a favorable position for worldwide appeal and acceptance. According to the paper the human resource department spends much time with the new recruits in bid to get them fully on board with the objectives and strategies of the company and is focused on universal standard employment offering superior working conditions and paying employees their locally relevant wages. Sony also offers management training to promising recruits. IHRM plays an important role in ensuring productivity of Sony. There are a series of undertakings that the IHRM could pursue to ensure improved productivity and competitiveness of Sony globally. Seminars that serve to enlighten employees further on consumer needs and improve service delivery could be brought on board. The paper comes to the conclusion that Problem solving groups are essential and swift solution of arising issues or any quarrels act to minimize employee infighting and the distractive and destructive office gossip thus creating the much needed and indispensable harmonious, smooth working environment.

Am I a Constructivist Teacher Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Am I a Constructivist Teacher - Essay Example I also have group activities once a day. Reading to each other, playing math games, and other activities are encouraged. Every lesson also has an open discussion. I allow all students to participate with answers, questions, and even stories. I am at the middle of the constructivist spectrum due to my views on individual teaching. I feel that children can play around or distract when grouped together too often. Interspersing constructivist activities with traditional assignments seem to keep the children focused better. A child does not automatically understand self-control, autonomous behavior, and self-reliance without doing traditional assignments by themselves. On the other hand, after doing a traditional assignment constructivist activities about the traditional assignment are handy. This helps the children do the assignment on their own merits while learning from their and others’ mistakes and successes. My current teaching habits do reflect my constructivist-based views. I like to mix both traditional and constructivist views. Children cannot be programmed like computers. It is essential to use constructivist-based activities to help the child learn. Upon learning a skill a student can then reproduce the skill alone. For example, creative writing is a test given in the 5th grade. All year descriptive writing is examined by the students. Papers are written and shared by the entire 5th grade. Students bounce ideas off of each other in groups and through open discussion, however when taking the writing test the student must perform on their own. This is why I prefer both methods. Discipline is another reason I am in the middle on constructivist views. Some students cannot handle group interaction. Often these children have rough backgrounds. These children need a more traditional approach. This is especially true when speaking about emotionally disturbed (ED) children. Every child is different. If a

Unemployment Halts Globalisation (Pros and Cons) Essay

Unemployment Halts Globalisation (Pros and Cons) - Essay Example Unemployment Halts Globalisation (Pros and Cons) The fourth section before the conclusion will discuss the pros and cons of the fact that unemployment halts globalization. Unemployment With reference to the writings by Stringham and Workman (2004), they wrote that unemployment is a situation whereby people who are willing and able to work are not able to work since they do not have employment opportunities. The causes of unemployment are classified into two categories that include transitional unemployment causes and structural unemployment causes (Stone and McCraw, 2009). Under transitional causes, it is stated that unemployment is caused by temporary reasons such as; Turnover of unemployment whereby people leave their jobs to take up other jobs Casual unemployment which occurs on employees who are engaged as casual workers Seasonal unemployment, which is experienced in an industry that faces seasonal demand for its goods and services. Under structural causes, Layard et al. stated that unemployment is caused by structural changes in the economy such as: †¢ Economic depression, which normally results in low demands of goods and services meaning that employment opportunities diminishes †¢ Technological changes causes unemployment to a group of employees who are not fully conversant with the operational use of the newly introduced technology †¢ Rural to urban migration, which results in urban unemployment Other causes of unemployment include: †¢ Overpopulation †¢ Lack of capital †¢ Lack of proper training and education †¢ Lack of occupational specialisation ... s, local governments, and citizens of different countries, with investments and international trade acting as the driving force and is catapulted by information technology is known as globalization. Greenaway et al. (2008) further added that the integration and interaction of different economies and people of different economy has a very huge impact on the political system of these countries that integrate and interact as their cultures, environment, economic success and development are also greatly affected by globalization Godinot (2012) wrote in his book that the main distinctive characteristic of globalization is capitalism as it promotes self-sufficiency and reliance on individuals in order to enable them to become masters of their own destiny. Jagdish (2004) on his part stated that globalization is mainly concerned with making people and the market free. In addition, it is a system that allows economy to grow without any interference and with the assumption that there is no pov erty and the main pillars or building blocks of globalization constitute of technology, economy, market, and capital. The relationship between unemployment and globalisation From the causes of unemployment that were listed above it can be stated that the impact of globalization also contribute to unemployment, in the sense that Dreher et al. (2005) stated globalization is facilitated by high advanced technology and relocation of people from rural areas to urban areas, which has been touted as one of the causes of unemployment. On the other hand, Nadeem (2009) stated that increased levels of unemployment result in lower demands of goods and services, which means that both local and foreign goods and services will not experience high demand thereby, mostly limiting foreign companies from