Censorship Can Suppress The Progress of Art - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 959 Downloads: 1 Date added: 2019/05/29 Category Society Essay Level High school Tags: Censorship Essay Did you like this example? Where are we to turn when it is time to gently absorb what is happening around us? Art. Illustrating what society fears speaking of, imagery captures emotions felt within society whether it safely depicts a weathered man feeding pigeons or silently screams the horrors of war, political strife, or historical events. Whilehighly regarded, it is not always well received. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Censorship Can Suppress The Progress of Art" essay for you Create order Since art often represents life, when specific pieces of art are selected to appear in open spaces, they should remain visible and unaltered despite any discomfort; therefore, the art created by Aaron Bellshould not have been censoreddue to freedom of expression, the nature of artists work, and fulfilling the expectations of this particularartistrs audience. Selected for display inNew York Citys Riverside Park,Stand Tall, Stand Loud†¹is a sixteen-foot-tall steelsculpture by artist Aaron Bell which evokes an image of slavery. In its fullness, itencompasses a theme of tolerance.The piece is the body of a man with a noose, a loop with a knot used to hang people, which sits where his head would appear. A wind turbine serves as ametaphoricalheart and large hands stretch wide, representing tolerance. A quote by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. isinscribed on thesculpture, reading Our lives begin toend the day we become silent about the things that matter.Stand Tall, Stand Loudrepresents that hatred has lived here. Hatredwashere. The creation of this piece was an artistic reaction to the truth, a call for an end to hatred, not a cry for the subsequent bureaucraticinterference which it was bound to. While not all pieces of art focused in this arena are seen by the majority, the work ofAaron Bellcaused quite a stir. Arguably one ofthe most controversial piecesof art releasedduring recent times,Bellwas exercising hisright to freedom of expression. For this reason alone, the controversy should have remained as discussions among friends and art critics. This was not the case. To the surprise of many, and the satisfaction of others,this piecewas subjected to censorship to make it more digestible for park visitors during their yoga classes and other outdoor activities. Does the truth hurt that muchwhile standing in a warrior pose? The decision to censor this piece was enforced by the New York City Department of Parks, resulting in the noose being removed to soften the experience of those who would see it. When considering the world at large, artists are a significantly small portion of the population. Radical ideas and fearless positions in the world allow artists to take on the responsibility of speaking on behalf of society. When Aaron Bell did just this, it was met with resistance. However, this is the nature of artists work. How are we to invite creativity and then punish an artist for his bravery? If such a sensitive reaction is going to continue to be embraced, this specific piece should not havebeenisolatedand placed under review for censorship, but instead,entire sections of galleries which house controversial art should be placed under thesame microscope. The weathered man feeding pigeons wins. Many artists have a strong following, consisting of inspired supporters who choose to stay connected to the pulse of bold art. Admirers begin to develop a taste and expect to be satisfied from the work of a chosen artist. How is it acceptable that an audience can be interrupted while enjoying art? Some artists are known to produce rebellious pieces. This, then, prompts satisfaction because in this shared space the artist has a power to write a story from a perspective that does not use words. The silence is whimsical when taking in a piece. Everyone could use that chilling feeling it can produce to go a little deeper in the understanding of the world. Art cuts through the noise. It makes an uncomfortable worldbearable. Because of this, Aaron Bells work should not have been considered for censorship. Art imitates life. If a piece carrying arevolutionary message is censored to make it more palatable, it does not mean that the depicted eventdid not happen. It does not mean that we need to be coddled to diminish guilt.Many people today are disconnected from experiencing a range of emotions. The answer to this is art, it prompts a reaction. Art allows individuals to feel,properly. Some, otherwise, would not feel certain emotions, at least not beyond the surface. The last thing which needs censorship is art. Because of freedom of expression, the nature of artists work, and what audiences expect from certain artists, and those following Aaron Bell specifically; there should not bean experience of art being censored. The experience should be freely available to all who turn to art for answers. Those who want to enjoy their yoga and expensive lattes in a parkshould choose one that does not embrace art in public spaces. Wondering what happened? The New York City Department of Parks overturned the decision to censor Bellrs sculpture and issued a public apology to the artist. The noose was placed back onto the piece, restoring Bellrs original vision. Based on the program which managed the curating and installation, the sculpture was planned to be on temporary display, making it even more distinct and exclusive. Unfortunately, and ironically, it was previously stated that this work posed a potential distraction; yet society was distracted by unfounded and unnecessary remarks which removed the attention from the work itself. It was a win for Bell and for those who admire bold art when Stand Tall, Stand Loud was restored to its intended glory in Riverside Park. Although materials are fleeting and not everlasting, this piece brought tangibility to a message. There are limitations on how far the truth can be censored: what is in the dark will eventually come to light. Stand Tall, Stand Loud immortalizes Be llrs message.

The American Empire Exceptionalist Political, Economic,...

America is like the 800-pound gorilla in every room in the world. When it gets a cold, the world wheezes, when it has a tingle, the world scratches. When it neglects to act, it regularly sends a swell around the globe. For some, it is a model for different societies to imitate. This thought of American exceptionalism really has numerous roots and numerous varieties. One is the old Puritan idea, in light of a John Winthrop sermon, that America is a city upon a hill. This notion of America as Gods country or the new Promised Land later got secularized and blended with thoughts of emancipation inferred from the American Revolution. It is this secularized thought that is most predominant today. The point when Presidents Ronald Reagan†¦show more content†¦Separation of powers: The separation of powers alludes, regardless, to the work in the definitive record of legislative, executive, and judicial capacities to different institutions, independently constituted. These organizations are needed by the rules set down in the document to share policymaking, and in this way are ceaselessly commonly responsible, each to the others. In The Federalist by the three founders, James Madison says: The great security against a gradual concentration of the several powers in the same department consists in giving to those who administer each department, the necessary constitutional means, and personal motives, to resist encroachments of the others. (CITATION) Most countries have governments that employ chief executives, and essentially all have lawmaking bodies, however the American Congress has no nearby partner anyplace on the planet in the self-sufficient power that it practices as an aggregate entity. For unlike the parliaments with which such a variety of onlookers of modern democracies are well known, the Congress has a quite important interior structure. Also this is accurate, yet correct in ways, for both the House and the Senate. Political culture: A political culture is a designed method for thinking about political life that is imparted by various individuals, compasses the generations, and rejects different qualities and traditions. It distinguishes theShow MoreRelatedOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is an Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 PagesHamilton and Linda Shopes, eds., Oral History and Public Memories Tiffany Ruby Patterson, Zora Neale Hurston and a History of Southern Life Lisa M. Fine, The Story of Reo Joe: Work, Kin, and Community in Autotown, U.S.A. Van Gosse and Richard Moser, eds., The World the Sixties Made: Politics and Culture in Recent America Joanne Meyerowitz, ed., History and September 11th John McMillian and Paul Buhle, eds., The New Left Revisited David M. Scobey, Empire City: The Making and Meaning of the New YorkRead MoreEvil Disney, Research Response to Henry Giroux5383 Words   |  22 PagesEvil Mickey There are plenty of hotbed issues on how the Disney corporation’s sociological and socio political ideologies are embedded into their products and how they affect children, but very few ask why Disney would place hidden ideologies in their movies/shows. What reasons would Disney have to program children with outdated morals while trying desperately to uphold a model image of innocence? What practices has the disney corporation practiced that some would consider immoral or even illegal

Public Relations and Social Media Free Essays

Figure 1: BDI Logo An essay on the Black Dog Institute’s use of social media for public relations purposes. Major Assessment: How is social media being used by not-for-profit organisations for PR purposes? Choose one not-for-profit organisation operating in Australia and discuss – with reference to public relations and new media theory – how the organisation is using social media to manage their key stakeholders and community groups online. The practice of public relations has seen a change in recent years, and now includes many and varied tools; including new media. We will write a custom essay sample on Public Relations and Social Media or any similar topic only for you Order Now The term ‘new media’ encompasses a variety of non-traditional methods including social media. This essay discusses the use of social media in a public relations capacity, to assist in managing an organisation’s key stakeholders and community groups online. The focus organisation is the Black Dog Institute (BDI), a notfor-profit organisation and an â€Å"educational, research, clinical and community-oriented facility offering specialist expertise in mood disorders† (Black Dog Institute, 2012). When considering how an organisation uses social media, it is important to understand who the key stakeholders are and also what constitutes social media tools. Some of the institute’s key stakeholders (otherwise known as the specific target audience) include health professionals, donors/sponsors and government agencies. So, with some of the key stakeholders defined, what then is social media? Social media, as a whole, is online media with which you – the user can participate. Mayfield (2008) states that social media of all kind shares most (or all) of the following characteristics – participation, openness, conversation, community and connectedness. The Black Dog institute has used several social media tools to get their message out to the wider community. The use of these new media tools, specifically social media tools, assists not-for-profit organisations such as The Black Dog Institute in managing their key stakeholders and community groups online. Social media is fast becoming an effective tool for public relations purposes and The Black Dog Institute has mplemented a variety of tools such as wikis, social networking, blogging, video, an interactive website and applications suitable for iPhone, iPad and iPod. Figure 2: Social Media The Black Dog Institute engages in wikis such as The Mental Health Wiki. The Mental Health Wiki (2012) which claims to be â€Å"a collaborative, open platform for capturing high quality information in the mental he alth field† is open to anyone however the site only allows suitably qualified people to contribute. So how does this wiki help The Black Dog Institute manage their key stakeholders? Through participation, the institute is able to demonstrate their expertise in the area of mental health therefore enhancing their reputation among other health organisations. Wikis are a potential destination for online Page 2 of 7 PRN101 – Major Assignment research and thus by contributing to such, the organisation is able to continuously improve relationships between themselves and their stakeholders (medical professionals) As a fundamental function of public relations is to build mutually beneficial relationships, the contributions supplied by the institute on the Mental Health Wiki would be accessible by other health care professionals. This accessibility is a key in building such relationships, and in turn, the institute has access to other organisation’s research material. On the flip side however, it is important for the institute to consider the legal ramifications of contributing to such a forum. Flynn (2012) states that social media content can be subpoenaed and used to support (or sink) an organisation in the event of litigation, therefore it is important that the institute adheres to laws affecting PR such as copyright, privacy and the Trade Practices Act. Facebook is a social networking site offering community, conversation and connectedness and is another largely accessible social media tool with which The Black Dog Institute has engaged. Their active Facebook site allows community groups to interact and remain connected with the institute. The site offers news feeds, events, videos and the option for like minded people to contribute to the site through ‘posts’ – discussions. Figure 3: BDI FaceBook Page According to Solis (2009) social networking is not just about socialising, it’s about leveraging the network to increase visibility for expertise, reputation and activity. As you can see with the image, the Black Dog Institute’s Facebook page includes a picture of their facility, but is this the kind of visibility we refer to in PR? To increase their visibility (or exposure) the institute utilises social network i. e. Facebook to promote upcoming events, VIP associations, and other online presences such as websites/twitter and to provide another avenue to access their products for sale. By using social networking to increase their visibility, the institute develops another avenue to increase donations and much needed funds. Page 3 of 7 PRN101 – Major Assignment Blogging is another social media tool that has been adopted by The Black Dog Institute, through the use of Twitter – a micro-blogging site. Their Twitter blogs allow readers to ‘pull’ information that is relevant to them and with the dynamic nature of blogging; the institute gains a genuine insight into the opinions of their public. In terms of public relations, blogging assists the organisation to maintain a constant and up-to-date connection with its publics. The Black Dog Institute embraces that connection and continues to build a network (or community) of like minded people and remain connected with their audiences. With one of the most important functions of public relations being to create understanding, blogging sites such as Twitter allows The Black Dog Institute to create this understanding. Some media tools do not allow participation from an organisation’s public, however through blogging a two-way process is encouraged thereby creating a mutual understanding. It is important to acknowledge that a forum involving two-way conversation can again place the organisation in a vulnerable position – both its’ legally and socially responsible position. Therefore maintaining an ethical approach to the blogging process, with a deliberate course of action, can help to reduce this vulnerability. Figure 4: YouTube Videos are another social media tool that an organisation can use to remain connected with their public. Sites like YouTube are becoming increasingly popular with individuals and organisations alike. The Black Dog Institute has a YouTube channel, where subscribers can upload videos and also comment on videos uploaded by others. The institute joined the YouTube ‘phenomenon’ in September, 2011. At present there are only two videos available on their own channel, however when you search the term ‘black dog institute’ several others have been uploaded (as indicated in the above image). This indicates an increasing awareness of the institute through an often entertaining and light hearted forum. Videos offer the institute the opportunity to present their organisation in an honest and accurate way. Further development of their YouTube channel can be achieved Page 4 of 7 PRN101 – Major Assignment through commenting on other contributor uploads regarding the institute and its activities from other users. Other tools utilised by the institute, which are a little out of the scope of this essay, include an iPod/iPad application – â€Å"The Black Dog Pedometer†. This tool gives the institute’s stakeholders/community access to not only a pedometer but also a link to learn more about the institute and also a donation option. In terms of public relations, the pedometer application increases the organisations image as an authority on the subject of mental health and mood disorders. The institute also has a website developed specifically for teenagers – www. biteback. org. au which as a whole is not a social media tool; however the blog component of the site offers interaction and participation by subscribers. The Bite Back website allows the BDI public relations team to take a proactive approach to their subject of expertise, offering an engaging and interactive forum for their younger community groups. As you can see throughout this essay, social media assists the Black Dog Institute in its’ public relations plans. Tools previously outlined such as wikis, social networking, blogging and videos assist the institute in building and improving relationships with their key stakeholders and to increase awareness and visibility of their organisation. As the momentum of social media continues, further opportunities may develop for the institute. Trimester 1, 2012 Page 5 of 7 PRN101 – Major Assignment Reference List: Figures Figure 1: Black Dog Institute Logo – www. lackdoginstitute. org. au (accessed 30 April, 2012) Figure 2: Social Media – http://masoncadeagency. com/wpcontent/uploads/2011/07/SMO_Social_Media_Optimization. jpg (accessed 3 May, 2012) Figure 3: Black Dog Institute Facebook page – http://www. facebook. com/blackdoginst (accessed 5 May, 2012) Figure 4: YouTube screenshot – Available: http://www. youtube. com/results? search_query=blac k+dog+institute+oq=black+dog +institute+aq=faqi=aql=gs_l=youtube. 3†¦ 16614. 20473. 0. 21177. 22. 19. 1. 2. 2. 1. 30 3. 2779. 5j7j6j1. 19. 0†¦ 0. 0. (accessed 6 May, 2012) Bibliography Texts: Ali, M 2006, Public Relations – Creating an IMAGE, Heinemann, Oxford, GB Chaffey, D Smith, PR. 2010, eMarketing eXcellence – Planning and optimizing your digital marketing, Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford, UK. Flynn, N, 2012, Social media handbook – policies and best practices to effectively manage your organization’s social media presence, posts, and potential risks. Wiley, Australia Harrison, Kim 2011, Strategic Public Relations – A Practical Guide to Success, Palgrave Macmillan, South Yarra, Australia Lee, R Kotler, P. 011, Social Marketing – Influencing Behaviors for Good, 4th edition. Sage, California Rix, P, 2011, Marketing – A Practical Approach, McGraw Hill, North Ryde, Australia. Solis, B Breakenridge, D. 2009, Putting the Public Back in Public Relations – How Social Media Is Reinventing the Aging Business of PR, Pearson Education, New Jersey Page 6 of 7 PRN101 – Major Assignment eBooks and P DFs: Junee,T 2012, PRN101_Social_Media_2012-2 [Slide]. THINK: APM College of Business, Sydney Mayfield, A. 2008 What is Social Media? v1. 4 updated 1 August 2008 http://www. crossing. co. uk/fileadmin/uploads/eBooks/What_is_Social_Media_iCrossing_eb ook. pdf (accessed 3 May, 2012) Weblinks: Black Dog Insitute. 2012. About Us: Black Dog Institute. Available: http://www. blackdoginstitute. org. au/aboutus/overview. cfm (accessed 6 April, 2012) Harris, A. 2012. Be Social Media Savvy. Available: http://www. pria. com. au/priablog/be-social-media-savvy (accessed 7 April, 2012) Mental Health Wiki. 2012. Register: Available: http://www. mentalhealthwiki. org/deki/plugins/register/register. php (accessed 2 May,2012) Facebook. 012. Key Facts. Available: http://newsroom. fb. com/content/default. aspx? NewsAreaId=22 (accessed 1 May, 2012) YouTube. 2012. Search results for Black Dog Institute. Available: http://www. youtube. com/results? search_query=black+dog+institute+=black+dog+instit ute+=f ===youtube. 3†¦ 16614. 20473. 0. 21177. 22. 19. 1. 2. 2. 1. 303. 2779. 5j7j6 j1. 19. 0†¦ 0. 0. (accessed 18 April, 2012) Black Dog Bite Back. 2012. Blogs: Available: http://www. biteback. org. au/ (accessed 2 May, 2012) Page 7 of 7 PRN101 – Major Assignment How to cite Public Relations and Social Media, Essay examples

Australasian Benefits Tax and Travel

Question: Discuss about the Australasian Benefits Tax and Travel. Answer: Introduction: According to the rules and guidelines of ATO, assessable income are those that can be earned from income from direct and indirect sources. ITA Act, 1997 reflects that all the residents of Australia are subjected to pay taxes. Sec-6-15 further reflects that only ordinary and statutory income needs to fall under assessable income. If any income do not fall under these categories, then, that income will not be considered as an assessable income. On the other hand, Section 10-5, provides certain provisions of assessable incomes. These provisions are about inclusion of assessable income amounts that are not ordinary incomes. These incomes can be of various types such as insurance bonus, sale of fixed, capital assets, or properties, employer giving a lump sum amount to its employer, provision for bad debts, recovery of bad debts, gains from foreign exchange, swapping of debt and equity, etc. These incomes not fall under the category of ordinary incomes (Austlii.edu.au. 2016). On the other hand, there are various types of income categories falling under ordinary income. These are in the form of income received from sale of property, profit of an organization, reserves and surplus, salaries and wages, interest on bank deposit, rental income, etc. It can be also inferred that in case of every ordinary income, all the gains are either convertible on cash or received in cash. If there is no existence of real gain, then that particular income should not fall under the category of ordinary income. It can be also highlighted that, in case of ordinary income like sale of property, then, an individual is required to pay taxes on the net sale proceeds received on that property (Austlii.edu.au. 2016). In the given case, it can been seen that a tennis court has been purchased by Peta and this was present in her house. The main objective of Peta is to earn profits by selling the three units of the tennis court. This can be considered as an assessable income under Section 10-5. If Peta, could sell the house in units after incurring all the expenses, this could have been included as her business income and termed as an ordinary income under Sec-6-15. However, it has been seen that he has sold the tennis court to the club as a whole and not in units. Due to this reason, such kind of income can be included as ordinary income (Reddy 2014). The main reason is that this income has been generated in the intention to make profits. The main intention of Peta was not to sell the tennis court as a whole, but in units. However, since her intention was to make profit and the income received is readily convertible in case, therefore, the total income of $600,000 can be termed as an ordinary income and not a statutory income of Peta in accordance to the provision of section-5. It can be also seen that Peta did not involve herself in real-estate business and if she had to include this as under ordinary income, then, she has to pay taxes on her net income received. On the other hand, she can also get a 50 percent tax rebate, if the total amount of income received is shown as a capital gain in her books of account (Hodgson 2015). FBT consequences of the organization Pomerleau (2014.) opines that fringe benefit tax can be defined as the taxable amount on benefits given to the employees. FBT is applicable to all the benefits in case of benefits of family members of the employee. Generally, FBT can be calculated with the help of two methods, which are, lower gross-up rate and higher gross-up rate. There are different types of fringe benefits that an organization can give to its employees. This can be in the form of entertainment fringe benefits, car benefit, special discount benefit, etc. However, it is also be noted that all the various types of fringe benefits needs to related to the employment of that particular employee (Kenny 2014). In the given case study, the organization ABC Pty Ltd gives several amounts of fringe benefits to its employee Alan. The employer receives a salary of $30000, a mobile bill of $220*12= $2640 per year and payment of Alans childrens school fees as well. According to the Fringe Benefit Tax assessment Act, 1986, if any item is used for work related purpose, and then those expenses are exempted from FBT liability (Austlii.edu.au. 2016). However, it has been also seen that, the organization ABC Pty Ltd pays mobile bills to a third party and not to Alan directly. Therefore, mobile expenses will be considered as taxable fringe benefit. On the other hand, it can be inferred that FBT not includes the total amount of salaries and wages paid to the employees. Therefore, the salary of $300,000 of Alan will not be included in Fringe tax benefit (Kudrna, Tran and Woodland 2015) Apart from this, it can be inferred that the employer pays the fees of employees child. According to FBTA Act 1986 (Section 20), such expenses needs to be treated as expense fringe benefit and due to this reason, the employer ABC Pty Ltd needs to pay the liability of such expenses. It has been also seen that the organization hosted a dinner of all the employees resulting in a cost of $6600, and per head of cost of $330. Therefore, this will come under the head of entertainment benefits as per ATO guidelines. Due to this reason, the organization ABC Pty Ltd needs to include this while calculating their FBT liability (Iknow.cch.com.au. 2016). Apart from this, since ABC Pty Ltd is not a small organization, therefore, 49 percent FBT rate will be charged on net taxable benefit of the organization (Austlii.edu.au. 2016). The following table reflects the FBT tax consequences that the organization ABC Pty Ltd can face. Table 1: FBT liability of the organization ABC Pty Ltd (Source: Created by Author) The above table reflects that the total amount of FBT liability of the organization ABC Pty Ltd will be around $22339. This has been calculated with the segmentation of two columns ie, GST inclusive amount and GST Fee amount. Two columns have been separated as it helps in the multiplication of Gross-up rates with the respective values. Only 5 employees included In the given scenario, there will be a change in total dining cost incurred in the restaurant, if total amount of employees decreases from 20 to 5. The per-head cost of dining will increase and it will have an effect on the total FBT liability of the organization ABC Pty Ltd. This can be reflected with the assist of the following table:- Table 1: FBT liability of the organization ABC Pty Ltd in case of 5 employees (Source: Created by Author) From the above table, it can be inferred that the organization ABC Pty Ltd will have a higher amount of FBT liability if the employees are reduced to five. Clients attending dinner The above scenario would have any impact on the total tax liability of the firm ABC Pty Ltd. This is mainly because FBT liability can be only imposed in case of employees and not for clients. Therefore, no deductions will be done in calculation of FBT for the business organization ABC Pty Ltd (Delany 2012). References Austlii.edu.au. (2016). Australasian Legal Information Institute (AustLII). [online] Available at: https://www.austlii.edu.au/ [Accessed 21 Sep. 2016]. Chan, C., 2014. Earnouts and CGT: Fine-tuning the. Tax Specialist, 18(1), p.27 Delany, T.P., 2012. Fringe benefits tax Dunne, J., Aldred, J., Gorton, T. and Taylor, H., 2015. 2014 cases show a continuing trend of high ATO success rate. Taxation in Australia, 50(1), p.20. Hodgson, H., 2015. Fringe benefits tax and travel to and from work: how can employers sponsor alternative forms of travel?. Australian Tax Law Bulletin, 2, p.1. Iknow.cch.com.au. (2016). Australian Tax Accounting | CCH iKnow. [online] Available at: https://www.iknow.cch.com.au/topic/tlp1041/overview/assessable-income [Accessed 21 Sep. 2016] Kenny, P., 2014. Small business CGT concessions: The SBE and $6 m net asset value basic conditions. Tax Specialist, 17(4), p.157. Kudrna, G., Tran, C. and Woodland, A., 2015. The dynamic fiscal effects of demographic shift: The case of Australia. Economic Modelling, 50, pp.105-122. Pomerleau, K., 2014. The high burden of state and federal capital gains tax rates. Tax Found, pp.1-8. Reddy, C., 2014. The Taxation of Mining Payments to Traditional Owners: An Unfair Blunt Tool?. Available at SSRN 2479162.

Average National SAT Scores for 2012

Average National SAT Scores for 2012   Over a million high-schoolers registered for the SAT  in 2012. Their average scores provide some interesting insights into this group. Whether they wanted admission to the  top public universities  or another school of their choice, see how they performed. Overall SAT Scores for 2012 The mean is the average score of every student who took the SAT from the fall of 2011 through June of 2012. Here are the mean scores for all testers by section: Overall: 1498Critical Reading: 496Mathematics: 514Writing: 488 (subscores: multiple-choice: 48.1 / essay: 7.3) See how these compare: SAT Scores for 2013 SAT Scores by Gender As is often seen, boys were better on average in the Mathematics section and they also slightly outperformed girls as a whole in the Critical Reading Section. But females outperformed them on average in the Writing section. You can compare your scores with the average for your gender. Critical Reading:  Males: 498. Females: 493Mathematics:  Males: 532. Females: 499Writing:  Males: 481. Females: 494 SAT Scores by Reported Annual Income Higher parental income is associated with a higher SAT score. This doesnt necessarily mean that wealthier families produce smarter children. But it likely has some relationship to parents sending their children to better schools and being more willing to purchase SAT prep. They may also be more willing to spend money on retakes of the examination. $0 to $20,000: 1323$20,000 to $40,000: 1398$40,000 to $60,000: 1461$60,000 to $80,000: 1503$80,000 to $100,000: 1545$100,000 to $120,000: 1580$120,000 to $140,000: 1594$140,000 to $160,000: 1619$160,000 to $200,000: 1636$200,000 and more: 1721 SAT Scores by AP/Honors Classes It is helpful to know which courses in school tend to produce the highest SAT scores. You could guess that students who take AP courses or rigorous Honors courses are going to score higher on the SAT, but the degree to which they score better is significant. The question is which came first, the chicken or the egg? Do these students score higher due to their natural abilities, or do the courses themselves prepare students better for the SAT? Check out the stats: AP/Honors Math 1698: Mean SAT score for those enrolled in AP/Honors Math1404: Mean SAT score for those not enrolled Percentage of SAT Testers Enrolled in AP/Honors Math by Ethnicity All students: 36 percentAfrican American: 25 percentAmerican Indian: 31 percentAsian: 47 percentHispanic: 31 percentWhite: 40 percent AP/Honors English 1655: Mean SAT score for those enrolled in AP/Honors Math1404: Mean SAT score for those not enrolled Percentage of SAT Testers Enrolled in AP/Honors English by Ethnicity All students: 42 percentAfrican American: 34 percentAmerican Indian: 40 percentAsian: 44 percentHispanic: 39 percentWhite: 46 percent AP/Honors Natural Science 1698: Mean SAT score for those enrolled in AP/Honors Math1414: Mean SAT score for those not enrolled Percentage of SAT Testers Enrolled in AP/Honors Natural Science by Ethnicity All students: 35 percentAfrican American: 24 percentAmerican Indian: 28 percentAsian: 43 percentHispanic: 28 percentWhite: 38 percent 2012 SAT Scores Summary The statistics say youd have the best advantage on the SAT if you were a male of Asian ethnicity whose family who made more than $200,000 per year. You could always prepare regardless of your ethnic heritage or familial status. These statistics represent the mean but do not, of course, represent the individual. If you have nothing in common with the groups scoring the highest on the SAT, it does not mean that you cant secure a top-notch score. Start with some free SAT practice quizzes, grab some free SAT apps, and prepare yourself the best way you can.

The Complete Guide on How to Write a Physics Essay

The Complete Guide on How to Write a Physics Essay Some students view writing an essay, especially one in physics, as a frightening and excruciatingly complicated process. However, it does not necessarily have to be such a negative experience. Creating an essay is a significant part of the learning process which can serve to develop the critical thinking abilities as well as broaden the understanding of the subject Physics. To make this process more accessible, it is essential to fully comprehend the task. Thus, it is only logical to ask: â€Å"What is an essay in Physics and what basic rules does it have to follow?† Incidentally, it is necessary to review the fundamentals of the physics essay structure. All the practical information is found in this physics essay writing guide. Find enough time to get the grasp of each point we state here. Don’t forget to make use of all the physics essay writing prompts you’ll read in this article. A Physics Essay: What Is It? This type of writing is usually shorter than a paper and should be readable to a less professional audience. However, it is also a scientific work and has to meet certain specifications. Similarly to an essay in humanities, this assignment typically requires the writer to show an understanding of the concept and give a personal viewpoint on the matter. Hence, it has to follow one of the basic types. The answer should also be supported with information and examples from reliable sources. In short, this assignment can be imagined as a precise and formal explanation of a physics matter to a peer. Despite being vague, this concept helps to form a better understanding of the writing task. This guide will elaborate on dealing with the challenges of writing a Physics essay. Choosing a Topic for a Physics Essay Quite frequently instead of a handout topic, the writer has the opportunity to decide on it. In this case, one of the most important steps towards a successful essay is picking the research theme. Selecting a subjectively interesting topic is necessary. Also, if the issue is inappropriately broad or narrow, research becomes overly complicated due to the lack of information available to support and formulate the arguments. Another helpful strategy is to phrase the topic as a question. Applying this method ensures that the writer can focus on answering it throughout the essay and not stray from the task. Moreover, the topics can usually be grouped according to the type of writing that is required. Considering this form before choosing the subject can help generate ideas in a faster and more efficient manner. Types of Essays with Examples: Descriptive (detailed explanation of how the subject works), Explain how a combustion engine works. A brief introduction to the electromagnetic induction effect. Compare Contrast (similarities and differences of concepts), Alternating and direct current comparison. Explain the difference between diode and triode. Process (experiment and the analysis of its results), Use a marine aquarium to calculate the salinity levels and the density of the water. What works best for the fish? What happens when these levels are changed? Narrative (historical description), History of cameras. Creation of the first nuclear bomb. Cause Effect (sequence and effect of events), What led to the tragedies of Chernobyl and Fukushima? Which experiments proved the inconsistencies behind Newton’s laws of motion. Argumentative (persuades the reader to accept the writer’s position on a debatable issue), Can time travel to the future or the past ever be possible according to the laws of physics? Furthermore, these types can be grouped according to the kind of information that is needed to have a strong essay. History (Narrative). This type generally does not require a deep understanding of scientific principles and is based on analyzing history and modern day events. Fundamental physics (Descriptive, Compare Contrast, Process). This category requires knowing the laws and principles of physics under discussion. As a result, it is necessary to be well-informed on the matter to take such a subject. Modern research (Cause Effect, Argumentative). These essays are among the most complicated because the writer has to overview the current opinions of the scientific community on the topic, which typically requires already having the basic notions about it. All in all, the selected type of the essay dictates the needed amount of knowledge in the particular field. Although it is acceptable to not be fluent in the technical side before starting the work, it should be taken into account that learning can be immensely time-consuming. Therefore, it is recommended to choose a familiar topic to allow more time for in-depth research. Tips for Physics Essay Writing The following tips should be considered prior to writing the physics essay: The physics concepts require precision and may be complicated to grasp without proper explanation. Therefore, the essay should, by all means, have a clear structure and flow well. It is also necessary to avoid wordiness and long sentences. Similarly to other types of academic writing, the essay should also be written in a formal and impersonal style. Grammar and other language flaws must be omitted and can be found using Grammarly and other online resources or checked with a dictionary. It is important to keep in mind the audience the essay is going to be presented to. The work should avoid detailed explanations of commonly known concepts if the target audience is at the required level. For instance, if it is written for an undergraduate class Newton’s Laws of Motions can be presented without further explanation. However, the essay should elaborate on all of the significant matters that are crucial to its understanding. Any supplementary information can be assisted in the further reading section. Scientific essays repeatedly use mathematical equations, graphs, and diagrams, which can be helpful to present significant amounts of data. Incidentally, these tools require specific formatting to prevent hindering the readability of the work. Graphs and diagrams should be accompanied by a caption and a figure number and positioned in the text where they are referred to. Equations should be considered as part of the text, punctuated like any other sentence and numbered if they are referred to again. The essay should avoid generalizations and colloquial tropes including â€Å"some scientists think†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , â€Å"it is believed that† etc. Consequently, citations and other unique notions should be included with references to the sources. Copying the work or its parts from other sources is plagiarism, and it is considered a severe issue in the scientific community. Therefore, all of this external information should be referenced as direct quotations or paraphrases. It is also vital that these references match the AIP format, which is standard for scientific works in Physics. Common requirements for citations are outlined in the table below. The Physics Essay Structure to Follow Title Choosing the title is a crucial part of writing an essay because it allows the reader to understand the primary focus of the work. Moreover, a precise title will enable it to be found by a straightforward key-word search. Thesis Statement A thesis statement is a tool that helps the author to outline the main idea or topic and the author’s position on it. It typically consists of one or two sentences. An appropriate thesis serves as the backbone to the essay, helping the writer not to drift from the initial viewpoint. Therefore, it should avoid being a topic, an opinion or a fact. â€Å"Creation of the first nuclear bomb† can be a topic; â€Å"The nuclear bomb was created during WWII† is a commonly known fact. â€Å"Creation of the first nuclear bomb is the worst thing that happened to humanity† is a subjective opinion. Whereas, a successful thesis like ‘Despite having horrifying consequences including Hiroshima and the Cold War, the creation of the nuclear bomb made the use of atomic energy possible, questioning the world’s dependence on fossil fuels’ should not only elaborate on the views but also explore the argumentation for having them. Some helpful ideas to consider choosing the thesis of the essay include: Despite not being obligatory, it is widely accepted to place the thesis statement at the end of the introduction; Exploiting contrasting arguments by analyzing sources with an opposing view can create tension, which results in a stronger statement; An efficient thesis should be a complete statement in itself and avoid generalization. Hence it cannot be formed into a question or list the arguments without context; In case the essay is based on an experiment, its thesis should present the hypothesis the research was based on. Introduction, Body Paragraphs Conclusion It is globally agreed that academic essays should have a fixed structure that consists of an introduction, several body paragraphs, and a conclusion. An introduction allows the writer to establish the foundation for the whole essay. It usually starts with broader notions to introduce the topic or its context followed by an outline of the main points, which leads to the thesis statement. A brief action plan for writing an introduction: Definition of the central issue/area that is going to be explored; Background context of the research; Introduction/outline of the established theoretical framework in this field; Thesis statement. The body paragraphs elaborate on the thesis statement serving the purpose of the particular essay type. There are typically three body passages in an essay. It is practical to consider a suggested universal layout to present information throughout the body of the essay: The first paragraph should present an overview of the relevant data on the matter. The writer should explain various perspectives of the problem by critically examining multiple external sources and presenting own research (if applicable) in a neutral and factual manner. Consequently, the second paragraph is based on the previously presented data and focuses on interpreting it through the theoretical framework mentioned in the introduction. The writer then needs to synthesize data and theory to illustrate how the evidence supports the selected position on the subject. Finally, the third paragraph may concentrate on introducing and evaluating the major opposing views or identify where the data is incomplete or weak. This analysis should provide reasons for why this position it is less acceptable than the one promoted in the essay. Furthermore, the so-called TEEL strategy helps to form individual paragraphs using a template structure. It is based on a sequence of topic sentence (contains the main idea) explanation (of the concept in the topic sentence) evidence and example (includes references) link (sums up the whole paragraph). The conclusion of the essay should summarize the points made in work and link it to the field as a whole. In other words, it elaborates on the importance of the essay as to where it fits within the broad scientific field. It may also mention the ways in which this work could be extended or improved. However, this self-criticism should not undermine the significance of its results. Helpful Additional Sources of Information Our Writers Use Advise Tips on the essay structure: https://www.citewrite.qut.edu.au/write/essay.jsp cws.illinois.edu/workshop/writers/tips/thesis/ http://writing.umn.edu/sws/assets/pdf/quicktips/titles.pdf Analyzing the experiment results: batesville.k12.in.us/physics/APPhyNet/Measurement/how_to_analyze.htm Credible resources for information search: https://physics.info https://www.britannica.com https://www.jstor.org https://scholar.google.com Proofreading a Physics Essay As the final step, the writer is required to examine the finished work to correct major logic flaws. This process may be difficult, but it is necessary to make sure that the essay is clear and consistent with the task. An effective strategy is to go through a checklist of revision questions that cover most of the general issues. Finally, it is more complicated to find the problems in the writer’s own essay. Therefore, an efficient method is to ask for assistance from a peer or professor after finishing the work. Much more confident of essay writing in Physics? Don’t put off your physics essays. Write them all right now!

Recent biotechnological approaches that have been used to enhance the Essay

Recent biotechnological approaches that have been used to enhance the yield and diversity of amino acids, vitamins, antibiotics - Essay Example These enrichments are only possible with Biotechnology. In the agriculture sector, many technologies are used such as genetic manipulation and gene transfer, development of recombinant vaccines, molecular markers, DNA-based disease diagnosis and characterization, embryo transfer and in vitro propagation of plants. In the food industry, the food processing is the main part where biotechnology intermission is required. For the improvement of the bacterial strains, genetic modification of the strains for the food processing microorganisms by the identification, characterization and alteration is done. Thus biotechnology has vast applications in many fields. Biofuels: As the fossil fuels are very limited, the search for the alternative methods that are renewable and safe are looked upon. The biological fuels such as ethanol, methane, hydrogen etc., are increasing day by day. To improve the production quality of these biofuels, the biotechnological approaches are used. The drawbacks of th ese methods such as low yield, high cost of feed, ad lack of active micro organisms can be overcome by using biotechnological approaches. ... Here the metabolic pathway is altered. The glucose metabolism towards the metabolic pyruvate formate lyase pathway by interrupting the succinate producing and lactate producing pathways. (Yoshida et al. 2006). By this technique the yield of hydrogen was increased from 1.08 mol/mol glucose to 1.83 mol/mol glucose which is 190 percent increase in the yields when compared to the wild strain hydrogen production. (Yoshida et al. 2006). The maize is used for the production of biofuel nowadays. The distillery soluble waste obtained after the ethanol production called as dried distiller grain soluble (DDGS), is usually left out as cattle feed. The researchers have found that this DDGS has a lot of nutritional value and if the feed is improved with amino acid and vitamin content, it can be used for swine and poultry. (Ufaz and Galili 2008). Lignocellulostic biomass is widely used as the main source of sugars for the fermentation to biofuels and other energy sources. These sugars are present b ound to the plant cell walls. The process of overcoming these barriers by the use of some break through technologies is termed as â€Å"biomass recalcitrance†. (Tomes and Lakshmanan 2010). Pretreatment of the biomass and then using it as the raw material for biofuel production will result in better yield. As lignin is not degraded easily by the protease enzymes, some modification to the substrate is very essential. Lignin hinders its active site form the enzymes and also binds reversibly to the proteins, because of this nature of lignin the enzymatic conversion is very less. So an alternative approach of increasing the pore size of the biomass can help to increase the enzymatic activity. Enzymes such as cellulase and hemicellulase are used for the

Why Do Chinese Students Choose To Study For First Degrees In UK Essay

Why Do Chinese Students Choose To Study For First Degrees In UK Universities - Essay Example Why Do Chinese Students Choose To Study For First Degrees In UK Universities? UK degrees are perceived to have greater career value than those offered in Chinese universities (Agelasto, 2001). Research question Why do Chinese students choose to study for first degrees in UK universities? Background This research study will basically involve the global expansion of Chinese students studying at UK universities. There has been declaration of policies in the UK for the expansion of both the absolute numbers of foreign students and their share of this huge Chinese market. Mainland China has been the largest component of this growth in the UK. Currently, they are by far the largest national group of overseas students in the UK, with numbers increasing by a factor of almost twenty over the ten years from 1994/5 to 2004/5. This study will focus on Chinese undergraduates, for whom the growth in numbers has been particularly marked – from 245 to 20,820 in that ten-year period (Denscombe, 2010). These Chinese students comprise of a major input generally to the UK economy and particularly to the financial health of universities. Strategies for the expansion of the market share will benefit from a vivid understanding of the kind of demand and the customers in the market. There have been no detailed studies assessing the relevance of various factors believed to influence students’ decisions to study abroad. ... foreign students, this study will also contextualize and develop our understanding of the processes which are involved in individuals’ decision-making (Agelasto, 2001). Other information The Chinese students’ decisions to study in the UK however, should be understood based on the relevant conditions in the home country, which will include the various university options available there. This study therefore will also briefly include Chinese students who have opted to study at their local universities, so as to have a whole picture of the involved decision-making process and its theorization. Two broad theoretical positions have been used to account for developments in patterns of educational enrolment and the choices that lie behind them: human capital theory and positional competition theory. The former argues that expansion of demand for education reflects increases in the skill levels demanded by the economy, with increasing components of technical and scientific know ledge that require longer periods of more advanced education and training, precisely the situation in contemporary China, and the basis of the policy of ‘massification’ of higher education. Rates of return on educational investment can be calculated and it is these that motivate social and individual decisions to invest in education (Hechanova-Alampay et al., 2002). Positional competition theory on the other hand, argues that the expansion of educational demand at increasingly higher levels of the system, as currently experienced in China, is the outcome of competition to increase one’s educational standing relative to others. The labor market and education relationship is not one of providing necessary technical skills, but one which is mediated by the use of credentials as a screening device

Using Research Evidence. (paper subject - Health and social care) Essay

Using Research Evidence. (paper subject - Health and social care) - Essay Example However, the definition that really caught my attention was the one that defined research as a systematic, planned, investigation of a stated problem with a pre-established or decided outcome, which will contribute to understanding the issue in question (Carnwell, 2015). In all the above definitions, there is the element of systematic, and planned even if not directly but may synonymously be implied by the used words. In other words, research must be systematic and planned. This is a research that basically depends on collection and gathering of quantifiable or measurable data. It may be defined as a method that involves collecting numerical data under controllable conditions and the subsequent statistical analysis of information generated afterwards (Burns & Grove, 2001). In summary, it has the following characteristics that make it distinct from qualitative research: Under this research, there is a single objective that defines the study plus, the report must be based on statistics. Correlations and other measures of central tendencies are calculated and reported (Johnson & Christensen, 2008). This research involves collecting and analyzing systematically materials, using personal feelings through procedures in which there tends to be a minimum of researcher control to minimize bias of the researcher (Polit & Hungler, 1993). In this type, there is mostly personal feelings involved and most of the findings are not quantifiable. Evidence can be said to be either valid, relevant, reliable or valid and relevant or valid and reliable. When it comes to evidence based practice, there is need to use the best evidence for decision-making. For this reason, the evidence needs to be one that can be reliably be depended upon since life is at stake. They would want o use the best evidence available from the previous research. Evidence may be valid with regards to a particular case or person, but may fail the relevancy test for which

Second Language Learning And Age Related Factors English Language Essay

Second Language Learning And Age Related Factors English Language Essay Age is one of the most important affective factors in Second Language Acquisition(SLA). There is some consensus among SLA researchers that age as an affective factor that brings about different performance stages in second language learning. Most experts also agree that individual learners learn differently depending on many variables like learning opportunities, the motivation to learn, individual differences and learning styles in second language acquisition. However, there is little consensus as to how far individuals of the same age group of learners follow a similar and/or linear pattern of language acquisition. The question of how developmental stages interact with individual learning differences is still a question of great debate. It is generally believed that younger learners have certain advantages over older learners in language learning. The common notion is that younger children learn L2 easily and quickly in comparison to older children (Ellis, 2008; Larsen-Freeman, 200 8; Mayberry Lock, 2003). The relationship between age and success in SLA, though complex in nature, is linked to the Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH). CPH, also known as the sensitive period, is defined as the period during which a child can acquire language easily, rapidly, perfectly, and without instruction(Richards Schmidt, 2002, p.145). The CPH suggests that a period of time, between birth and somewhere around the age when a child enters puberty, exists in which the learning a second language can be accomplished more rapidly and easily than times falling outside of this period i.e. post puberty (Larsen-Freeman Long, 2008).SLA theories and research have explained the impact of age in second language acquisition. As reported by Light bown and Spada (2008), learning depends on learners characteristics and the environment. Their findings suggested that older learners have a higher level of problem solving and metalinguistics abilities than younger learners. Researchers discoveries Researchers have focused on learners pronunciation, syntax and grammatical morphemes. Mark Patkowski (1982) examined the level of spoken English of sixty-seven immigrants to the U.S. His finding was that pre-puberty learners acquire second language better than post-puberty learners. He also pointed out that two other factors-length of residence and amount of instruction-are inseparable from the age factor. Johnson and Newport (quoted in Light bown Spada, 2008) found native-like language abilities and the performance levels lower in older children than younger in a study of forty-six Chinese and Koreans speakers. On the other hand, Snow and Hoefnagel-Hohle (1982), from their research carried in Holland, concluded that adults learned faster than children and the rate of second language learning was higher. David Singleton(2003) also declared that the tendency for younger learners to do better in the long run in the matter of second language lexical acquisition is no more than a tendenc y (p. 22). In this paper, an attempt is made to study and analyze the age related research on the basis of critical period hypothesis and other relevant variables. The key question in this paper is how age affects second language acquisition. Do people of the same age group possess the same learning characteristics and learn in the same ratio in SLA? Are there any certain features that the researchers have agreed upon regarding the age factor in SLA and CPH? Critical period The notion of critical period for a second language acquisition has been associated with several hypotheses. Some researchers have focused on the view that the younger learners as the better learners whereas others opine the older learners as the better learners. However, there are different perspectives on how the children and adults learn a foreign or second language. Adults naturally find themselves in such situations that demand more complex language and expression of more complicated ideas whereas children lack pressure and maturity in second language learning. The Experiments David Singleton (1989) offered a number of proposals related to age and second language acquisition. The most popular notions are the younger =the better and the older =the better (Singleton, p. 31). He, on the basis of previous studies and research on age factor, focused on learners pronunciation skill and other linguistics features. There are a number of research to support the younger the better hypothesis. Yamanda et al. (qtd. in Singleton, 1989) studied 30Japanese elementary school pupils of seven to ten ages old. These students did not have any previous experience of English. The researchers used a list of 40 English words and recorded the rate of success of the students. Their finding was that more than average older learners decreased with age i.e. the older the age the lower the score. Furthermore, Mark S. Patkowski (1982) carried out a research on 67 highly educated immigrants to the United States from various backgrounds. In his control subjects, 33 subjects were those who had come to the United States before the age of 15 (pre-puberty group) and 34 subjects who were post-puberty group with similar backgrounds. He examined the spoken English of the subjects, and analyzed a difference between learners who began to learn English before puberty and those who began learning English later after puberty (Patkowski, 1982, p.58). His results showed a strong negative relationship between age of arrival and syntactic rating. He concluded that the pre-puberty group was better in language learning than the post-puberty group. He further addressed: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the only factor which was highly associated with the level of syntactic proficiency attained by learners was the age at which acquisition of English began. Practice and instructional variables showed little or no association with the dependent variables. The result, then, appeared to strongly support the hypothesis of an age-related limitation on the ability to acquire full command of a second language. (Patkowski, 1982, p. 59) He also concluded that the age factor is highly related to other several factors like the numbers of years spent in the United States, amount of information exposure to English and amount of formal instruction in English. One of the supporting evidences in the field of second language acquisition comes from the experience of immigrants. A group of researchers have shown a relationship between age of entry, length of residence and level of language acquisition (Singleton 1989; Ekstrand 1982; Asher Gracia 1989; Lightbown Spada 2008). Asher and Gracia examined acquisition of pronunciation of 71 Cuban immigrants to California. The subjects were of aged groups from seven to 19 years. The majority of them had been in the United States for about five years. They concluded that not one of the 71 Cuban subjects was judged to have American native pronunciation (qtd. in Singleton, 1989, p. 83). They also figured out a fact that the younger a child had been when entering the United States, the higher the probability of a native like accent. The Lenneburgian notion of CPH that puberty as a milestone for SLA has been reversed by the other researchers. Carroll (1963) suggested that the ability to acquire a native like accent declines toward puberty. Ekstrand (1982) carried out a research on age and length of residence of 2400 Swedish pupils. The test consisted of six areas including pronunciation, diction, listening, reading, oral and written production. Ekstrand grouped the total population into 26 categories according to third month of year of birth and observed effects of age and effects of length of residence in the process of second language. He found that language learning ability goes almost linearly with age. He also noticed that social and emotional adjustment did not seem to be related to age. He deduced that age was strongly correlated with grade levels because quality and quantity of instruction was an important factor in second language learning. For Ekstrand, the more developed the brain was, the better it was suited for second language learning. Susan Oyama (1976) studied 60 male Italian immigrants who entered to the United States at ages ranging from six to 20. She examined the degree of American accent and proficiency in English listening. She concluded that age is as an important factor to achieve native like accent. The youngest arrivals performed a better accent. She has shown the relation of age and listening comprehension as follows: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦those subjects who began learning English before age 11 showed comprehension score similar to those of native speakers, whereas later arrivals did less well; those who arrived after the age of 16 showed markedly lower comprehension scores than the native. (Oyama, 1982, p. 23) A further immigrant study appeared in support of the younger the better hypothesis. Johnson and Newport (qtd. in Lightbown Spada, 2008) selected 46 Chinese and Korean experimental subjects in their research. They tested some rules of English morphology and syntax among the participants of aged groups from three to 15 and with those aged groups from 17 to39. The result was that those who began learning later did not have native like language abilities and their performance on the test varied more widely. Robert Dekeyser (2000) conducted a replication of the Johnson and Newport with a group of Hungarian immigrants to the United States. On the contrary, he concluded that adult learners were better than the younger ones. The second strong hypothesis is that older learners are more successful that than younger language learners in SLA. This notion was highly supported by a number of short term experimental researchers. These studies and research were based on teaching projects and second language immersion programs. Some of these studies have highlighted adolescents and adults of different ages where results have indicated that the older learners are far better than the younger ones. In 1967 Ashor and Price (as cited in Singleton, 1989) have carried out an experiment with96 students from the second, fourth and eighth grades of a school and 37 undergraduate students from a college. The subjects did not have any previous knowledge of Russian, the targeted language. After three short trainings conducted in Russian language, the results showed that the eight graders performed significantly better than the second graders and the fourth graders. They also noticed a consistently positive relationship with advancing age because of above average mental ability of the adults. Politzer and Weiss (as quoted in Singleton, 1989) have conducted another study in which they found that an advantage of SLA for older learners than younger ones. Their subjects were second, fifth, seventh and ninth graders. The experimental procedures were consisted of an auditory discrimination test, a pronunciation test and a reading test among 257 pupils. They recorded a gradual improvement of scores with an increase age in all three tests. Similarly, Olson and Samuel in the 1970s (qtd. in Singleton, 1989) have investigated the relative capacity of native English speakers in three different age groups on 20 elementary pupils, 20 junior high school pupils and 20 college students. On the test of pronunciation, it was found that two older groups performed significantly better than the elementary age group. In other studies on age and SLA, many researchers have mentioned a similar finding that adult subjects performed better than the children (Bland Keislar, 1966; Smith Braine, 1973; Burstall her colleagues, 1974; Singleton, 1989). Bland and Keislar took six fifth graders and four kindergartners in their study. They conducted an individualized program of oral French. They mentioned that amongst the fifth graders this time ranged from 4.5 to 11 hours, the mean being 6.9 hours, whereas amongst the kindergarteners the ranges from 12.5 to 17.5 hours and the mean was 15.1 hours (Qtd. in Singleton 1989, p. 98). In other words, the younger learners took more than twice as long as the older learners. A large scale experiment was conducted by Burstall and her colleagues (Qtd. in Singleton 1989) in the 1970s. The study included three age groups of pupils from selected primary schools in England and Wales. Among the 11 year old, 13 year old and 16 year old students, the results indicated that older students dramatically achieved higher score in listening and speaking tests than the younger ones. Other researchers of SLA interested in assessing phonological skills of learners suggest a common belief that younger learners acquire a native like accent in the target language. Dunkel and Pillet (reported in Singleton, 1989) compared the proficiency in French between elementary school pupils and beginning students of French from the university. They found that the younger learners pronunciation was better than that of the older ones. However, in both written and aural tests, the university students had better performance than the younger ones. In another study, Fathman and Precup (reported in Singleton, 1989) tested oral proficiency in English on 20 children and 20 adults in a formal setting in Mexico. Their finding also brought a similar conclusion that the children scored better in English pronunciation than the adults but the adults scored better then the children in syntax. Some studies, on the other hand, have focused on the issues of culture and variations of accent among the speakers of the same language. Lobov (1920) has claimed that people rarely acquire the accent of a particular region if they move into that region after puberty (qtd. in Singleton, 1989, p. 111). While considering younger learners in long run, Stephen Krashen (1979) has forwarded three proposals in the domain of morph syntax. Krashens positions in SLA are as following: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Adults proceed through early stages of syntactic and morphological development faster than children (where time and exposure are held constant). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Older children acquire faster than younger children (again time and exposure are held constant). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Acquirers who begin natural exposure to second languages during childhood generally achieve higher second language proficiency than those beginning as adults. (qtd. In Singleton, 1989, p. 117) Krashen et al. studied syntax and morphology of children in formal and informal learning contexts. They claimed that older learners proceed through the early stages of second language grammatical development more quickly than younger learners. Anan Fathman (1982) observed a difference in the rate of learning English phonology, morphology and syntax based on the differences in age. She focused on the children aged 11 to 15 years who received significantly higher scores in learning the morphology and syntax of a second language than those children of aged six to ten years. One of the most significant studies related to age and SLA comes from the research of Catherine E. Snow and Marian Hoefnagel-Hohle (1982). They investigated 51 English subjects in five age groups whose target language was Dutch. The subjects accomplishments at three points in the Netherlands were compared with the accomplishments of two advanced speakers of Dutch and native speakers. The beginners were tested three times at 4 to 5 month intervals, but the advanced learners were tested only once. The subjects were tested individually at school or at home in various categories-pronunciation, auditory discrimination, morphology, sentence repetition, sentence translation, sentence judgment, Peabody picture vocabulary test, story comprehension and storytelling. The results of their study gave strong evidence against the critical period hypothesis. All the tests showed a rapid learning by the 12 to 15 years old and adults during the first few months of acquisition. T hey mentioned: The adultsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦fell increasingly behind because their subsequent improvement was very slow. The teenagers had achieved almost native performance extremely quickly, within a few months of starting to speak Dutchà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.The crucial findings of relevance for evaluating the CPH were that the 3 to 5 years old scored consistently worse than the older groups on all the test and that the 12 to 15 years old showed the most rapid acquisition of all the skills tested. (Snow Hoefnagel-Hohle, 1982, p. 103) The Results Their finding rejected the notion of younger learners as better learners in L2 acquisition. In the second study, Snow and Hoefnagel-Hohle took 81 subjects. Of them, 51 were beginners and31were advanced learners. In the result, it was found that in all cases the adolescent and adult subjects outperformed the younger subjects. The research has shown non-liner relationship between age and second language acquisition. Whether the long term or short term studies are conducted on syntax and morphology or pronunciation of a second language, there are as many conflicting views as the researchers. To address this situation, it is opted to quote Singleton (1989) that beyond the strict terms of Krashen et. al.s hypothesis the evidence concerning short term versus long term language attainment is more confused (p.119) and there is no common argument agreed by all the research. David Birdsong (2006) has studied theoretical issues and empirical findings of age related research of second language acquisition. He had found that brain memory, learning conditions and second language processing speed are connected with age factor. He has pointed out that morphological changes and cognitive process are different in young and adult learners. The next component besides Critical Period Hypothesis of second language acquisition is the variables related to the age factor. These variables can be motivation, anxiety, self confidence, attitude, learning styles and so on. They are responsible in language acquisition in both children and adults. Their direct relationship to age as an indicator of language learning has been studied by various researchers. John Archibald (2005) has said that it is hard to say whether critical period exists or not. He argued that it is much more difficult to predict knowledge or ability in any of the other areas of communicative competence (syntax, cohesion, sociolinguistics, etc.) based on age of acquisition (Archibald, 2005, p. 420). Rather he valued individual differences, the L2 classroom, modified input, modified interaction, and learning environment in second language learning context. Mary Schleppegrell (2008) has focused on health, classroom practices and learning styles as age related factors in second language learning. She says that older adults learn a foreign language for a specific purpose to be more effective professionally, to be able to service in an anticipated foreign situation or for other instrumental reasons (Schleppegrell, 2008, p. 3). On the other hand, younger learners may not have extrinsic motivation or may not see a specific goal in learning another language. It is also noticed that children and adults do not always get the same quality and quantity of language input in both formal and informal learning settings (Lightbown Spada, 2008). It is also hard to say how these variables work as a filter or barrier in learning process of young and adults. As in Colliers study (1987) (qtd. in Singleton, 1989), the barrier of anxiety sometimes makes the adults less successful in second language. Language input is another factor linked to age. Stephen Krashen believes that the learner improves when he or she receives second language input at a level of comprehensible input (i+1). For Krashen the natural comprehension input has become the fundamental principle in SLA. This comprehensible input may change with age where older learners get an advantage over younger ones (Lightbown Spada, 2008). Conclusion Summing up, age is one of the characteristics that determine the way in which an individual learns second language. Age is highly associated with critical period in many research studies. There are a number of controversial issues related to second language acquisition and critical period hypothesis. As Singleton (2005) has predicted, a multiplicity of CPs, like mythical hydra, whose multiplicity of heads and capacity to produce new heads rendered it impossible to deal with (p. 288). He declares the end of critical period. Some researchers limited the CP between per inatality and puberty, while the others extended it after the puberty. In the realm of pedagogy, the researchers have advocated CPH into two main categories-the younger the better and the older the better. A group of researchers including Singleton, Yamanda et al., Carroll and et al, and Patkowski believed that the young learners have higher learning potentiality than the adults whereas Johnson and Newport, Dekeyser, Asher and Price, Politzer and Weiss, Olson and Samuel opined the opposite. The young learners are considered fluent in communication of the second language and achieve native like accent. Learners after the age of puberty do not acquire native like accent of a second language but have complex learning pattern. Research suggests that children and adults L2 learners pass through different developmental states in second language learning. Learning depends on the cognitive maturity and neurological factors. Julia Van Sickle and Sarah Ferris (as quoted in Singleton, 2005) have shown the relation between age and second language acquisition as, One of the dangers of the emphasis on critical periods is that it prompts us to pay too much attention to when learning occurs and too little attention to how learning might best occur (p. 105). Age is not everything in second language learning. However, factors related to the age, for example the learning opportunities, the motivation to learn, individual differences, and learning styles, are also important determining variables that affect the rate of second language learning in various developmental stages of the learners.

A Doctor In The House Essay -- essays research papers

A Doctor in the House Henrik Ibsen's character, Dr. Rank, in "A Doll's House" is an important component of the play, though he is not a lead character. Rank enhances the story in his own right as a character, but mainly serves a greater purpose as an accentuation of Nora'a character. Nora's relationship with Rank is equal, and perhaps it implants in Nora's mind the idea that relationships should be equal. Their relationship brings up questions about social correctness and even the values necessary in a marriage. Essentially, Dr. Rank's purpose is to refine the audience's understanding of Nora's character. Dr. Rank's presence establishes the lack of communication between Nora and her husband. Nora confides in Dr. Rank, involving him in secrets and everyday conversation. For instance, Rank is the first character to be let in on Nora's secret plan to take Helmer on a "vacation," supposedly paid for by her father. Also, Rank refers to Christine Linde as "a name I have often heard in this house," when Helmer is virtually unaware of Linde's existence (Ibsen 542). The quote further indicates Rank and Nora share things in which Helmer is not included. Rank is like a messenger for the couple on one occasion when Nora finds out about Helmer's new job from the doctor. Nora asks Rank, "Tell me Dr. Rank--will everyone who works at the bank come under Torvald now?" (542). These conversations help to conclude that most of Nora's meaningful and informative conversation is not with her own husband. Furthermore, the doctor encourages Nora to confide in him; "You can say it to us†¦say it, here he is," says Rank, urging Nora to do as she wishes around him (542). Nora seems to divulge her thoughts to Rank and not Helmer, relaying an inward struggle in Nora to do as she wishes. She lies to Helmer about the macaroons, but hastily reveals her hidden snack to the doctor. Rank and Nora's relationship shows Nora's longing for independence from Helmer and society's rules. Even Mrs. Linde, a relatively liberated woman, feels Nora's intimate relationship with the doctor is curiously inappropriate. Linde is shocked that Nora would speak with Rank about the debt behind Helmer's back, to which Nora replies, "I've got to get out of this other busine... ...ra's father, and then subsequently, how they see Nora. Ibsen makes the hereditary flaws available in Rank in order to make the theme clear. While Rank's flaws end with his death, Nora's bad traits threaten to rub-off on her children, continuing the line of bad heredity. According to Helmer, Rank's dark life "accentuates the light of their marriage," but the importance of the character, Dr. Rank, is to accentuate the darkness of Nora's life. Rank's life parallels Nora's situation until the role reversal at the end. Throughout the play, both suffer the consequences of morally corrupt fathers; Nora has her secret debt and Rank with his illness. Rank's announcement of death also marks the end of the masquerade, literally and figuratively speaking: Nora's masquerade of a content marriage is over as well as the ball that are her last moments of "fun." Instead of dying when Rank dies, however, Nora is reborn as an independent woman in society. Her situation may again parallel Rank's; there is uncertainty associated with death as there is definite uncertainty as to Nora's fate.