The National Commercial Bank

Executive Summary The National Commercial Bank is considered to be the largest financial establishment in Islamic world. Its corporate and marketing strategies rely on geographical expansion, technological innovation, and services diversification. All these approaches will be discussed in the report with reliance on company’s history, mission and values, and strategic management. SWOT analysis will also be introduced to take a closer look on the NCB’s policies.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on The National Commercial Bank specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Introduction The National Commercial Bank, which is also called AlAhli Bank, refers to first Saudi Arabian banks. It is considered one of the pioneers in finance and Islamic banking, possessing the largest amount of assets. Its headquarters are located in Jeddah, with Head Office in Riyadh. The establishment provides a variety of banking service s and belongs to one of the most recognized and reliable banking systems in the Arab world. In order to define the main purposes, strategies, and mission of the organization, it is purposeful to consider the NCB’s history, background, strategies, SWOT analysis, job history, conceptual framework, technical part. The evaluation of these issues will highlight the major gaps and contributes to defining the main recommendations that should be introduced to fulfill the gap. NBC’s Background Nature of Company’s Activities Emerged over half a century ago, the NCB has considered one of the Arab largest financial establishments, possessing more than 5,000 employees and over 2 million customers in Saudi Arabia (IMA, 2012). Nowadays, the bank controls a third of the country’s assets and has near 280 branches, becoming one of the largest retail systems in the Kingdom (IMA, 2012). The banking sector in which the NCB operates is prosperous because of extensive influence of the Saudi central bank. With reliance on the basic banking activities, Saudi Arabian banks manage to sustain a competitive advantage, as well as remain highly resilient. In particular, the bank has a 100 % non-performing loan coverage and ample liquidity. Due to the highly competitive environment, NBC’s profits were increased and reached over $ 1.25 billion, representing a 17 % increase for 2009 (IMA, 2012). In 2010, the NCB’s assets reached $ 75 billion whereas advances and loans grew by 12 % (IMA, 2012). Due to the changes in management structure, the Alahli bank has enhanced its Islamic banking operations by converting retail operations into products complying with Sharia. The NCB is also considered as the main asset manager in Saudi Arabia, possessing over 30 % share of the fund market (IMA, 2012).Advertising Looking for term paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The focus on risk management has become the outcome of the advanced financial and commercial activities, as well as emergence of new segments. Thus, all banking transactions can be carried out electronically due to the availability of Alahli Online system. Recently, The National Commercial Bank declared about the launch of mobile services for checking accounting and banking transactions through smart phones. Launching new services has become a part of its loyalty to utilize the modern banking technologies and applications (Arab News, 2012). It fosters the financial transactions for customers and presents the bank orientation on innovation and development of information technologies, along with considering the security levels for electronic banking (Arab News, 2012). Alahli Mobile will also provide such service as cash withdrawal from ATM points, with no need for inserting ATM card. In the context of digital and technological development, introducing self-banking services is a new focus on offering in novative solutions to their clients (Arab News, 2013). Mobile banking seeks to enhance communication with clients by meeting their requirements. Such a strategic framework is premised on the NCB’s vision to deliver comprehensive and innovative banking solutions for its customers. Aside from global policies, the company also works on widening individual customer’s services that are congruent with its expansion strategy. Hence, the services involve project finance, social loaning, travel checks, issuing of guarantee letters and letters of credits, bank deposits, and real estate loaning. The diversification of banking activities, therefore, can enhance its competitive potential and reputation. Vision, Mission, and Organizational Chart The mission and vision of the NCB lies in developing strategies that contribute to constant growth of the services quality. Diversifying the funding activities is another important mission that the banking institution pursues. Developing mul tiple layers in funding can provide a strong support for increasing the lending capabilities of the local banking institutions. Therefore, the diversity of funding sources is vital for the NCB progress.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on The National Commercial Bank specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The NBC has introduced a regional expansion strategy, gaining 64 % share in Turkey Finance Katilim Bank in 2008 (Worldfolio, 2013). Since then, the main Turkish bank has outperformed the forecasted results, regardless of the global economic recession (Worldfolio, 2013). In short, the National Commercial Bank has experienced rapid growth over the recent years, gaining considerable profits, although its organizational mission is quite conservative in such areas as asset management and NPL coverage (Worldfolio, 2013). The organization chart of the NCB is split into three managerial branches – internal audit, com pliance, and general manager. There are also departments responsible for risk management, inspection, legal, and human resources. There is also a deputy general manager who is in charge of operations (IT, Procurement, Bank-office processing, and general affairs), sales (Individuals customers, external communications, region Tripoli-Sabha, and region Al Baida-Benghazi), and finance. The latter involves controlling and planning, accounting and reporting, and treasure. SWOT Analysis Strengths The bank has fostered its expansion strategies through a three-tiered approach that refers to core growth, geographical expansion, and broadening the organization’s mission (The National Commercial Bank, 2012). Due to the introduction of mobile services and other banking activities, Alahli Bank manages to ensure improved credit quality and integrated business structure. Weaknesses Despite the integrated system, the NCB faces credit risk exposure that presupposes customers’ excess acc ess to banking activities due to the extended services of the bank as a borrower (The National Commercial Bank, 2012). Opportunities There are a number of opportunities for Alahli Bank to expand its influence. To begin with, the organization has potential prospects for growth in the Arabian Banking Sector. Such an opportunity is predetermined by the managers’ experience in operating at various levels (The National Commercial Bank, 2012). Further, the NCB’s success is premised on the growing Global Finance Market and, as a result, the Islamic banking system has remarkable opportunities for development. Threats Although competition contributes to the expansion policies, the NCB still faces the challenge of competition, as well as the constraints of Basel III standards on capital requirements (The National Commercial Bank, 2012).Advertising Looking for term paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Organizational Marketing Strategy The SWOT analysis of Alahli banking system demonstrates that the organization has chosen global expansion strategy to enhance its position at the international market. Such an approach reflects the bank’s ongoing commitment to economic development, as well as to the analysis of international environment. Understanding the needs of global consumers should become a priority for the NBC because it creates a new path for growth and development. Aside from territorial expansion, the company strives to extend the range of its services and products. Specifically, the bank focuses on transparency and corporate governance, leading to improved performance. Organizational Competitive Strategy The bank’s managerial staff focuses on two leading competitive strategies – overall growth and geographical expansion. The first one is aimed at continual improvement of services quality through introduction of well-tailored banking products by means of various distribution channels (Worldfolio, 2013). The second one implies acquisitions and development of strategic partnerships in regional markets, developing and enhancing NCB’s distinct capabilities. Over years, the NCB experienced rapid growth by transforming its commercial ban to leading regional services group. Despite the emerged constraints to access capital market, the banking system is considered extremely competitive. Continuous development of professional skills and abilities can attract investors and provide a highly competitive environment (Wordlfolio, 2013). Thus, the main task of Alahli Bank consists in developing its services and increasing the quality of banking activities. Job History The NCB takes advantage of strong capital adequacy that contributes to developing a strong commercial policy in a leading financial services group. In 1999, changes occurred to the Bank’s ownership, and a New Board of Directors has been shaped. Thus, Mr. Abdulla Sale m Bahamdan became the Chairman of the Directors Board (IMA, 2012). In 2005, Mr. Abdulkereem Abu Alnasr was assigned as General Manager and the NCB’s first CEO in 2006 (IMA, 2012). Year Appointed Position 1999 Mr. Abdulla Salem Bahamdan The Chairman 2005 Mr. Abdulkerem Abu Alnasr General Manager Conceptual Framework (Literature Review) With regard to the SWOT analysis of weaknesses and threats, Alahli bank should pay closer attention to competition and credit risk exposure. These challenges can become even more serious as soon as the global and geographical expansion and product diversification are concerned. Before introducing such competition strategy in the context of corporate growth, the focus should be on the related experience in this field. The overview of modern competitive strategies in banking defines the main challenges and problems of domestic banks deregulation as a result of globalization policy. In particular, the studies by De Carvalho (2000) assert that most of the banks that plan transition to an international level lose their protection mechanisms and face rigid competition on the part of other foreign banks. Therefore, because the NCB explores new markets, segments, and customers, it can undergo a number of risks and problems. In addition, the introduction of digital devices and innovation technology is another viable solution for fostering integration of domestic banks to the global market. In this respect, Ozbay et al. (2011) note that implementing competitive strategies in banking can boost economic recovery process and provide an innovative vision of the banking system. Technical Part on Projects Methodological Problems While conducting an in-depth evaluation of the banking structure of the NCB, specific emphasis has been placed on the marketing challenges of the bank’s penetration to the global environment due to the emergence of international standards and regulations. Therefore, the discussion of growth strate gies implemented in Saudi region provides a greater outlook on the roots and consequences of the introduced changes. Findings While analyzing the Alahli Bank, a number of interesting strategies have been highlighted. To begin with, the organization has managed to define its strategic course in terms of innovation and technological progress to successfully become the largest bank in the Arab world. Second, the bank has focused on development of new products and services with reliance on the customer’s needs and requirements. Limitations The basic limitation to the project analysis lies in absence of information about human resources strategy that builds the foundation of successful globalization course. Second, the project proves that the competition constraints are considered extremely influential because they impose certain obligations on the NCB’s managers in terms of policy and organization. Suggested Solutions In order to reduce the risk of competition, as well as enhance the protection mechanisms, the company should restructure its managerial organization. In particular, there should be more managerial positions in different locations to take greater control of the marketing situation. Evaluation of the Internship Experience On the one hand, the bank’s plan to expand new regions in the Arab world can create a fresh insight into marketing and banking activities. Once the NCB starts penetration, it can encounter competitive market hampering the bank’s economic growth. As a result of such policies, there is strong tendency in privatization. Besides, specific attention should be given to the analysis of external economic environment, particularly to the economic financial at the global market. Thus, lack of information about global tendencies can lessen the opportunity of the Arab banking system to adapt to new contingencies. In fact, the experience in working at this bank has enhanced the vision of future development of the bankin g system at the international level. Summary of findings and recommendations With regard to above-presented findings, it should be stressed that the NCB has chosen an aggressive policy oriented on total geographic expansion and diversification of products and services. Such a reform is accompanied by innovation and technological progress, including the creation of online banking systems. Despite the advantage of the proposed strategy, there are a number of barriers to its accomplishment. In particular, insufficient exploration of the external environment can pose threats to bank’s further integration due to the lack of protection mechanisms, as well as inability of the Alahli’s management to oppose competition. In addition, the organization’s marketing strategy is also consistent with its mission and values. In order to prevent further risk imposed on the banking activities, the NCB should focus on reconstruction of internal processes and departments to be ready to face external setting. Conclusions The National Commercial Bank is considered one of the largest banks in the Arabian market and it continues expanding its influence in Islamic world due to the greatest assets it possesses. Its marketing and competitive strategy focuses on geographic expansion and product diversification that is aimed at capturing greater client base. In order to meet the global competition, the company explores its innovation capabilities. For instance, online mobile service is a recent introduction to the bank’s range of services, by means of which the customers can take greater control of its account. Despite a consistent approach to managing banking system, there are a number of challenges that need to be addressed. This is of particular concern to external competition and lack of devices for its management. References Arab News (2012). NCB Launches Alahli Mobile Service. Web. De Carvalho, F. J. (2000). New Competitive Strategies of Foreign Banks in L arge Emerging Economies: The Case of Brazil. National Research Council, 312, 1-32. Web. IMA (2012). The National Commercial Bank. Doing Business in Saudi Arabia. Web. Ozbay, R., Dinà §er, H., HacioÄŸlu, ÃÅ". (2011). Internet based Innovation Strategy for the Banks in the Era of 2008 Global Financial Crisis. International Journal of Business Social Science, 2(22), 85-91. The National Commercial Bank – Strategic SWOT Analysis Review. (2012). Bharat Book Bureau. Global Data. Web. Worldfolio. (2013). NCB Banking on Growth. Web. This term paper on The National Commercial Bank was written and submitted by user Callum Dejesus to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

PSAT Scoring How Does It Work

PSAT Scoring How Does It Work SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips If you're preparing to take the PSAT, it'simportant you understand everything there is to know aboutPSAT scoring. How is the PSAT scored? And how will this information help you get the score you want on test day? On the SAT? In this article, we go overthePSAT scoring scale and show you how to calculate your PSAT scores using official scoring tables. We also coverSelection Index scores and offer our top four tips on how to utilize PSAT scoringto inform both PSAT and SAT prep! How Is the PSAT Scored Overall? By Section? The PSAT scoring scale is 320-1520 in 10-point increments. On this scale, 320 is the minimum score you can get and 1520 is the maximum. This scale differs just slightly from the SAT scoring scale, which is 400-1600. Like the SAT, your total PSAT score is a combination of your Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (EBRW) and Math scores. (The EBRW score comprises the Reading and Writing and Language sections.) Both EBRW and Math use a score range of160-760, with each section accounting for halfyour total PSAT score. So a 500 on EBRW and a 600 on Math would equala total PSAT score of 1100. But obviously there aren't1,520 questions on the PSAT! So why is the PSAT scoring scale out of 1520? The reason for this is thatall of these scores are actuallyscaled scores, which areconverted fromraw scores (equivalent to the number of questions you answered correctly) through a specialequating process. The College Board uses this process toaccount for variances in difficulty among PSATs - essentially, to ensure that a scaled PSAT score will always indicate the same level of ability, no matter when you take thetest. Here’s how theCollege Board describes the PSATequating process: â€Å"This conversion process adjusts for slight differences in difficulty among versions of the test and provides a score that is equated, or consistent, across forms. This process ensures that no student receives an advantage or disadvantage from taking a particular form of the test on a particular day;* a score of 400 on one test form is equivalent to a score of 400 on another test form.† *Emphasis mine. Upon completing the PSAT, you’ll earn three raw scoresfor Math, Reading, and Writing and Language (hereafter referred to as â€Å"Writing†). So if you were to answer 40 Math questions correctly, your raw Math score would be 40. Likewise, if you were to answer 26 Writing questions correctly, your raw Writing score would be 26. You do not lose any points for incorrect or blank answers.These raw scores are thenequated into your final (scaled) Math and EBRW scores. Here's the catch, though: theequating formula differs for each PSAT. Andbecause only the College Board knows what these formulas are, we'll never be able to predict exactlyhow a raw score will convert into a scaled score on an upcoming PSAT. Nevertheless, we can use scoring charts from official PSAT practice tests to estimate how raw scores may translate into scaled scores. Thesetables differ foreach practice test but are extremely helpful because they show ushow PSAT scores typically convert into scaled scores. Scoring charts are the handy, dandy notebook for high school students. Below aretwo examples of PSAT scoring charts, both taken from official PSAT practice tests: Practice Test #1PSAT Scoring Chart Raw Score Reading Test Score Writing Test Score Math Section Score Raw Score Reading Test Score Writing Test Score Math Section Score 0 8 8 160 25 26 25 560 1 9 9 190 26 26 26 570 2 10 10 210 27 27 27 580 3 11 11 240 28 27 27 580 4 12 12 270 29 28 28 590 5 14 13 290 30 28 28 600 6 15 14 320 31 29 29 610 7 16 14 340 32 29 29 620 8 16 15 360 33 30 30 630 9 17 15 370 34 30 30 640 10 18 16 390 35 31 31 650 11 18 16 400 36 31 32 670 12 19 17 420 37 32 32 680 13 19 18 430 38 32 33 690 14 20 18 440 39 33 34 710 15 20 19 460 40 34 35 720 16 21 20 470 41 34 36 730 17 21 20 480 42 35 37 730 18 22 21 490 43 36 37 740 19 22 21 500 44 37 38 740 20 23 22 510 45 37 750 21 23 23 520 46 38 750 22 24 24 530 47 38 760 23 24 24 540 48 760 24 25 25 550 Source: Scoring Your PSAT/NMSQT Practice Test #1 Practice Test #2PSAT Scoring Chart Raw Score Reading Test Score Writing Test Score Math Section Score Raw Score Reading Test Score Writing Test Score Math Section Score 0 8 8 160 25 25 26 530 1 9 9 190 26 26 26 540 2 10 10 210 27 26 27 540 3 11 11 240 28 27 27 550 4 12 12 260 29 28 28 560 5 13 13 290 30 28 28 570 6 14 13 310 31 29 29 570 7 15 14 320 32 29 29 580 8 16 14 340 33 30 30 590 9 16 15 350 34 31 31 600 10 17 16 370 35 31 31 610 11 17 16 380 36 32 32 620 12 18 17 400 37 32 33 630 13 18 18 410 38 33 33 640 14 19 18 420 39 34 34 650 15 19 19 430 40 34 35 670 16 20 20 440 41 35 36 680 17 21 20 450 42 35 37 700 18 21 21 460 43 36 38 710 19 22 22 470 44 36 38 730 20 22 23 480 45 37 740 21 23 23 490 46 38 740 22 24 24 500 47 38 750 23 24 24 510 48 760 24 25 25 520 Source: Scoring Your PSAT/NMSQT Practice Test #2 Bycomparing the tables above, we can see that there are small differences in how raw scores convert into scaled scores. For example, a raw Math score of 37 converts into 680 on Test #1but only 630 on Test #2! As I explained previously, these conversions differ because the two tests vary slightly in difficulty. Now that we’ve covered the equating process and how the overall PSAT is scored, let’s take a closer look at PSAT scoringfor Math and EBRW. Prepare to enter the math vortex! Vroooooom! Your PSAT Math Score Math consists of two subsections: a No Calculator section consisting of 17 questions and for which you may not use a calculator, and a Calculator section consisting of 31 questions and for which you may (but don’t need to) use a calculator. Your Math score begins as a total raw score out of 48 (the total number of questions on Math).Here are the steps for calculating your Math section score using your raw score: 1. Calculate your raw Math scores for each subsection. Start by adding up all of your correct answers on the No Calculator and Calculator subsections using the answer key for your test. On official practice tests, your Math answer key will look something like this: 2. Add your rawscores together togeta total raw Mathscore out of 48.So if I got 10 questions right on the No Calculator subsection and 22 questions right on the Calculator subsection, my total raw Math score would be 32. 3. Find your Math section score using your test’s scoring chart. Your test should offer a conversion table for calculating your Math section score. In my example, I’d find 32 on my test’s conversion table and look for itscorresponding scaled score (which, in this case, is 620): If you’re not using an official practice test and/or don't have a PSAT scoring chart for your test, you can use the two conversion tables at the beginning of this articleto estimate how your raw Math score will convert into a scaled score. For example, let's say you have a raw Math score of 40. According to our tables for Practice Tests #1 and #2, 40 on Math converts into either 670 or 720. This means that your Math section score is likely somewhere around the high 600s or low 700s. Time tomove on to Reading and Writing! (Am I dating myself with a pic of actual encyclopedias?) Your PSAT EBRWScore YourEBRW score is a combination of your Reading and Writing scores, which are at first given to you as two separate scores. Your Reading score startsas a raw score out of 47, whereas your Writing score is out of 44. These are then converted into test scores and then finally a combined EBRW section score. In contrast with the relatively simple process for finding your Math score, finding your EBRW score requires a couple of extra steps. Here’s how to calculate it: 1. Calculate your raw Reading and Writing scores.Use your practice test's answer key to add up all of the correct answers you got on Reading and Writing. Be sure you add these scores up separately - you won’t be combining them until later. Here’s an example of an answer key for the Reading and Writing sections: 2. Find your Reading and Writing test scores. Unlike the Math raw score, which immediately converts into a scaled section score out of 760, the Reading and Writing scores will first convert into individual test scores on a scale of 8-38. So if my raw score were 35 for Reading and 38 for Writing, my Reading and Writing test scores would, according to the chart below, convert into 31 and 33, respectively: 3. Combine your Reading and Writing test scores to get a total EBRW test score.In the example I used above, my Reading test score was 31 and my Writing test score was 33; thus, my total EBRW test score would be 64. 4. Multiply your EBRW test score by 10 to get your section score. This final step converts your EBRW test score into a scaled EBRW section score out of 760. This means that my test score of 64 would equal a final EBRW score of 640. Not bad! Disappointed with your PSAT performance? Want to improve your PSAT score by 150 points? We have the industry's leading PSAT prep program. Built by Harvard grads and SAT full scorers, the program learns your strengths and weaknesses through advanced statistics, then customizes your prep program to you so you get the most effective prep possible. Check out our 5-day free trial today: Once you’re finished calculating your scaled scores for both Math and EBRW, add the two scores together to get your composite PSAT score out of 1520. If you want, you can compare your score to the current PSAT percentiles to get a feel for where you stand in comparison with other test takers. These next scores are like the cherry on top: some people love them, and some people couldn't care less about them. PSAT Subscores and Cross-Test Scores In addition to Math and EBRW section scores, you’ll also be given separate subscores and cross-test scores (the same ones you’ll get on the SAT). These additional scores break down the three sections into smaller categories in order to highlight your strengths and weaknesses in specific skill areas. Below, I explain how to calculate these subscores andgo over what they mean for you. Your PSAT Subscores On the PSAT, you'll receiveseven subscores: For EBRW Command of Evidence Words in Context Expression of Ideas Standard English Conventions For Math Heart of Algebra Problem Solving and Data Analysis Passport to Advanced Math Each subscore is scored on a scaleof 1-15. These subscores indicate how well you've performed on designated skill areas, such as vocabulary and data analysis. To calculate your subscores, use your practice test’s subscore answer key, taking care to note which questions fall under which subscore categories. Scoring guides for official PSAT practice tests offer detailed descriptionsfor each subscore, explaining what the subscore measures and which questionsit comprises. Here's an example: Once you’ve tallied your correct answers for each subscore, you will then convert this raw score into a scaled subscore using your test’s scoring chart for subscores: Although these subscores are useful for deciphering your own strengths and weaknesses, in the end they’re not especially significant. As it stands, subscores don’t factor into your PSAT section scores or even your overall PSAT score. They also aren’t used to select candidates for the National Merit Scholarship Program (which we’ll get into more in a moment). Your PSAT Cross-Test Scores Cross-test scores indicate how well you've answeredquestions in thedomains of history/social studies and science. Unlike the subscores above, cross-test scores are not section specific; rather, they apply to all sections and use a scoring scale of 8-38. The two types of cross-test scores are: Analysis in History/Social Studies Analysis in Science To calculate your cross-test scores, use your test’s scoring guide to see which Math and EBRW questions comprise these two categories as well as how many questions you answered correctly (i.e., your raw score). Here’s an example of a cross-test score answer key for Analysis in Science: Once you’ve figured out your raw scores, use the cross-test scoring chartthat came with your test to calculate your scaled cross-test scores: Now here's a score that's actually worth something! Your National Merit Selection Index Score The final score you’ll receive on the PSAT is a National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) Selection Index score. The Selection Index score uses a score range of 48-228 and is equivalent to the sum of your Reading, Writing, and Math test scores (that is, the ones on scales of 8-38) multiplied by 2. So if my three test scores were 34, 30, and 27, my Selection Index score would be: 34+30+27=91 91*2=182 The NMSC uses Selection Index scores to determine your eligibility for the National Merit Scholarship Program. This program offers an extremely prestigious distinction and scholarship to students with exceptionally high PSAT scores. Each year, the top 1 percent of PSAT scorers in the 11th grade - equal to about 16,000 students - become Semifinalists. Of those students, 15,000 will become Finalists. And of those students, 8,000 will each win a $2,500 scholarship! The Selection Index score you need in order to be aSemifinalistvaries by state but usually ranges anywhere from 209 to 222.See our guidefor an updated list of Selection Index score cutoffs by state. 4 Tips for Usingthe PSAT Scoring System to Your Advantage So far, we've addressed nearly everything you need to know about the PSAT scoring scale. But what can you actually gain from it? Here are four simple ways you can use PSAT scoring to your advantage. #1: Set a PSAT Goal Score Using Selection Index Cutoffs Ifyou want to try to qualify as a Semifinalist for the National Merit Scholarship Program, you can use the Selection Index score cutoffs to set a PSAT goal score. Remember that the cutoffs vary by state, so it’s important you aim for your state’s cutoff and not a different state’s! According to our estimates, the lowest cutoff is 209 (equivalent to a total PSAT score of about1400) and the highest is 222 (equivalent to about 1480). For a detailed list of Selection Index score cutoffs and their (estimated) corresponding PSAT scores, refer to my article on thePSAT score range (coming soon). Let's look at an example. Jackie lives in Florida, whose Selection Index cutoff score is 217. This gives her a PSAT goal score of about 1450. To get her individual goal scores for Math and EBRW, Jackie divides her total PSAT goal score by 2. This gives her goal scores of 730 (rounded up from 725) for each section. If you’re stronger at Math or Reading/Writing, consider aiming for a higher score on your stronger section and a slightly lower score on your weaker section. So if Jackie were better at Math, she could instead aim for something like 750 on Math and 700-710 on EBRW. #2: Use Tables to Estimate the Number of Correct Answers You'llNeed If you've got a PSAT goal score in mind, you can usescoring chartsfrom official practice tests to estimate how many questions you’ll need to answer correctly in order to hit your goal score on test day. This process is somewhat complicated but extremely helpful to know how to do. Let's say your PSAT goal score is 1400, and you want to aim for 700 on both Math and EBRW. Using the tables above for Practice Tests #1 and #2, we see that 700 on Math comes out to 39-42 correct answers. (Remember, your raw score = the number of questions you answered correctly.) There are more steps for EBRW, however.First, divide your goal score (in this case, 700) by 10 to get your total Reading and Writing test score. This gives us 70. Then, divide this number in half to estimateyour individual Reading and Writing test scores. In our case, 70/2=35. Finally, convert your test scores into raw scores using the conversion tables above. In our example,a 35 Reading test score equals 41-42 correct answers, and a 35 Writing test score equals 40 correct answers. This process of working backward, albeittime-consuming, is useful because it offers a rough idea ofhow many questions you can afford to get wrong on the PSAT. It also lets you estimate what yourfinal PSAT scores will be before they’re released, thereby letting youpredict whether you’ll qualify for National Merit. I prefer estimating how many peeps I can fit in my mouth. Aiming for a National Merit Scholarship but worried your score won't qualify? If you're not sure you can self-study your way to a qualifying PSAT score, you'll love our PSAT prep program, PrepScholar. We designed our program to learn your strengths and weaknesses through advanced statistics and customize your prep to be as effective as possible for you. When you start with PrepScholar, you’ll take a diagnostic that will determine your weaknesses in over forty PSAT skills. PrepScholar then creates a study program specifically customized for you. To improve each skill, you’ll take focused lessons dedicated to each skill, with over 20 practice questions per skill. This will train you for your specific area weaknesses, so your time is always spent most effectively to raise your score. We also force you to focus on understanding your mistakes and learning from them. If you make the same mistake over and over again, we'll call you out on it. There’s no other prep system out there that does it this way, which is why we get better score results than any other program on the market. Check it out today with a 5-day free trial: #3: Consider Your PSAT Score a Starting Point to SAT Prep Your PSAT scores are important butnot nearly as important as your SAT scores, especially if you’re hoping to get into a top-tier university. Luckily, the PSATwas specifically designed to prepare studentsfor the SAT! We already know that the twotests use different scoring scales, with the PSAT being out of 1520 and the SAT out of 1600. But here's the kicker: each scaled score on the PSAT corresponds directly to the same scaled score on the SAT. This means thatany score you get on any PSAT or SAT will signifythe samelevel of ability. So 1400 on the PSAT equals 1400 on the SAT, 1250 equals 1250, 1000 equals 1000, etc. But if this is the case, why does the PSAT scoring scale only go up to 1520 and not 1600? The reason for this is that the PSATis not as challenging as the SAT. Toaccount for its lower difficulty level, then, the PSATemploys aslightly lower maximum of 1520 (which is not a perfect SAT score but close). Despite these connections, don’t consider your PSAT score a direct indicator of what your SAT score will be. Your PSAT score tells you where you’re currently scoring but not where you’re capable of scoring. In other words, think of your PSAT score as your baseline SAT score (i.e., the score you start off with before you begin anySAT prep). Then, once you have your SAT goal score, too, you can use both of these scores to calculate how many points you’ll need in order to hit your goal score on test day. #4: Use PSAT Scores and Subscores to Target Potential SAT Weaknesses What’s great about the PSAT is that it’s similar to the SAT - so much so that its section scores and subscores are the same ones you’ll get on the SAT. Therefore, you can use your PSAT scores to see what your SAT weaknesses are likely to be. For example, ifyou received a low Heart of Algebra subscore on the PSAT, it's a good idea to dedicate a lot of your SAT prep to mastering the basics of algebra. Or if you didn’t get a high Words in Context subscore, you'll probably want to spend more time improving your reading comprehension skills and fine-tuning your vocabulary knowledge. Knowing what to focus on for your SAT prep will not only help you hone your weaknesses but also help you attain an SAT score farhigher than your PSAT score! Recap:How Is the PSAT Scored? The total PSAT scoring scale is 320-1520, and the Math and EBRW scoring scale is160-760. The Math and EBRW section scores are scaled scores converted from raw scores through a special equating process, which changes slightlywith each test. Raw scores equalthe number of questions you answered correctly.A raw Math score converts directly into a scaled section score, whereas raw Reading and Writing scores are converted into test scores on a scale of 8-38,combined, and then multiplied by 10 to give you a single scaled EBRW score. ThePSAT also offers subscores and cross-test scores to indicate test takers' strengths and weaknesses in various skillareas. Subscores use a scale of1-15, while cross-test scores use a scale of8-38. The final score you'll get is a National Merit Selection Index score, which uses a scale of 48-228. This score determines who is eligible for National Merit consideration. Every year, the top 1 percent of 11th-grade test takers, or approximately 16,000 students, qualify as Semifinalists. Knowing the ins and outs ofPSAT scoring can help you qualify for National Merit as well as predicthow many questions you can afford to miss on test day. It can also offeryou a starting point for yourSAT prep and allow you to see which skills and areasyou'll need to honebefore taking the SAT. All in all, PSAT scoring is a pretty useful tool to have, so use it to your advantage whenever you can! PSAT scoring is a handytool - though not nearly as handy as Colonel Mustard's wrench. What’s Next? Want to learn more about PSAT scoring?Check out my in-depth guide to thePSAT score rangeto learn more about the score ranges for each section as well as the scores you'll need to qualify for National Merit. Got questions about the basics of the PSAT?Learn what exactly the PSAT is and what's considered a good score.If you're asophomore,read our guide to see how "good" scores differ for 10th graders. Ready to move on to SAT prep?Start with our guide to how the SAT is scored and learn about the basic differences between the PSAT and SAT, so you'll have no surpriseson test day. Disappointed with your scores? Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points?We've written a guide about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Infuse vs. Suffuse

Infuse vs. Suffuse Infuse vs. Suffuse Infuse vs. Suffuse By Mark Nichol What’s the difference between infuse and suffuse? To infuse something is to literally or figuratively fill it; the senses include â€Å"animate,† â€Å"inject,† â€Å"inspire,† â€Å"introduce,† â€Å"permeate,† and â€Å"steep.† One that or who infuses is an infuser, the act of infusing is called infusion. Suffusion is a closely related concept, but suffuse means, in addition to â€Å"fill,† to â€Å"spread over or through,† as if with light or liquid; synonyms include flush. These terms and their several cousins all have in common a root based on the Latin term fundere, meaning â€Å"pour,† and are related to the verb found in the sense of melting and pouring into a mold, as is done at a foundry. (The other senses of found, the past-tense form of find and the word meaning â€Å"establish,† have separate origins.) Etymologically related words include fuse in the sense of â€Å"blend or join† and its noun form fusion. (The noun fuse, referring to an electrical device or a cable or cord used in lighting an explosive- in the latter sense, also spelled fuze- is unrelated.) Then there’s confuse, meaning â€Å"make difficult to understand,† â€Å"cause someone difficulty in understanding,† or â€Å"mistake someone or something for another†; the synonym confound, which can also mean â€Å"prove wrong† as well as â€Å"increase confusion,† has the same origin. Diffuse means â€Å"spread out†; the adjectival form means â€Å"not concentrated.† The quality of being diffuse is diffuseness, and the noun form for the act of spreading out is diffusion. (Diffuse is not to be confused with defuse; that word is an antonym of the unrelated sense of fuse.) Effuse is a synonym for diffuse in the sense of being spread out amorphously; the verb form, used more often than the adjectival form, means â€Å"pour out† or â€Å"display much or excessive enthusiasm.† (The adjectival form for the latter sense is effusive.) Perfuse is a rare synonym for diffuse or suffuse with the additional sense of forcing the flow of a liquid through something (it has no adjectival form), and transfuse, meaning â€Å"permeate† or â€Å"transmit,† also has a sense of â€Å"transfer†; the common noun form associated with this meaning is transfusion. (Something that can be transfused is transfusible; that word is sometimes spelled with an a instead of an i.) The noun and verb forms of refuse are unrelated; its Latin progenitor, refusare, probably originated as a mash-up of refutare and recusare, the Latin words from which refute and recuse are derived. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:50 Rhetorical Devices for Rational Writing40 Synonyms for â€Å"Different†Using Writing Bursts to Generate Ideas and Enthusiasm

English Writing Courses Online Free but with Pitfalls

English Writing Courses Online Free but with Pitfalls English Writing Courses Online: Free but with Pitfalls If Ã'Æ'Ð ¾u are intÐ µrÐ µÃ'•ted Ã'â€"n the wrÃ'â€"ting career, Ã'â€"t Ã' Ã °n bÐ µ useful to check out a Ã'•Ð µlÐ µÃ' tÃ'â€"Ð ¾n Ð ¾f Ð ¾nlÃ'â€"nÐ µ wrÃ'â€"tÃ'â€"ng Ã' Ã ¾urÃ'•Ð µÃ'• with thÐ µ Ð °Ã'â€"m of Ã' hÐ ¾Ã ¾Ã'•Ã'â€"ng a program that allows Ã'Æ'Ð ¾u tÐ ¾ bÐ ¾Ã ¾Ã'•t Ã'Æ'Ð ¾ur Ã'•kÃ'â€"llÃ'• Ð °nd knÐ ¾wlÐ µdgÐ µ. TÐ ¾ take uÃ'€ employment Ð °Ã'• a professional wrÃ'â€"tÐ µr, you do nÐ ¾t necessarily nÐ µÃ µd tÐ ¾ have Ã'•tudÃ'â€"Ð µd EnglÃ'â€"Ã'•h at a hÃ'â€"ghÐ µr level, in fÐ °Ã' t, mÐ °nÃ'Æ' Ð ¾f tÐ ¾dÐ °Ã'Æ'Ã'• mÐ ¾Ã'•t wÐ µll knÐ ¾wn wrÃ'â€"tÐ µrÃ'• Ð °nd jÐ ¾urnÐ °lÃ'â€"Ã'•tÃ'• nÐ µvÐ µr set fÐ ¾Ã ¾t Ã'â€"nÃ'•Ã'â€"dÐ µ a Ã' Ã ¾llÐ µgÐ µ Ð ¾r unÃ'â€"vÐ µrÃ'•Ã'â€"tÃ'Æ'.   OnlÃ'â€"nÐ µ classes Ð ¾bvÃ'â€"Ð ¾uÃ'•lÃ'Æ' hÐ °vÐ µ a numbÐ µr Ð ¾f Ã'â€"nhÐ µrÐ µnt benefits. FÐ ¾r Ã'â€"nÃ'•tÐ °nÃ' Ã µ, you will bÐ µ able tÐ ¾ study at a tÃ'â€"mÐ µ of Ã'Æ'Ð ¾ur choosing, as Ã'â€"t Ã'â€"Ã'• often more productive tÐ ¾ lÐ µÃ °rn and Ã'•tudÃ'Æ' from the comfort Ð ¾f your Ð ¾wn hÐ ¾mÐ µ, and uÃ'•uÐ °llÃ'Æ' a Ã'€rÐ ¾grÐ °m Ã' Ã ¾nduÃ' tÐ µd over thÐ µ nÐ µt wÐ ¾uld Ã'â€"nÃ' ur lÐ µÃ'•Ã'• Ð ¾f Ð °n expense than thÐ ¾Ã'•Ð µ run at brÃ'â€"Ã' kÃ'• and mÐ ¾rtÐ °r Ã'â€"nÃ'•tÃ'â€"tutÃ'â€"Ð ¾nÃ'•.   There are not many, if any, worthy English writing courses online free. InÃ'•tÐ µÃ °d Ð ¾f using a search engine tÐ ¾ rÐ °ndÐ ¾mlÃ'Æ' lÐ ¾Ã' Ã °tÐ µ Ð °n Ð °Ã'•Ã'•Ð ¾rtmÐ µnt of courses, Ã'•Ð µÃ °rÃ' h specialist wrÃ'â€"tÃ'â€"ng wÐ µbÃ'•Ã'â€"tÐ µÃ'• and fÐ ¾rumÃ'• for Ã'â€"nfÐ ¾rmÐ °tÃ'â€"Ð ¾n Ð ¾n quÐ °lÃ'â€"tÃ'Æ' programs. OnÃ' Ã µ Ã'Æ'Ð ¾u have mÐ °dÐ µ a note of a dÐ ¾zÐ µn or Ã'•Ð ¾ Ã'€Ð ¾Ã'•Ã'•Ã'â€"blÐ µ Ð ¾Ã'€tÃ'â€"Ð ¾nÃ'•, Ã'Æ'Ð ¾u should thÐ µn carefully gÐ ¾ Ð ¾vÐ µr thÐ µ Ã' Ã ¾urÃ'•Ð µ description Ð °nd Ã'•Ã'Æ'llÐ °buÃ'• Ð ¾f Ð µÃ °Ã' h Ã'•Ð ¾ that Ã'Æ'Ð ¾u can identify whÃ'â€"Ã' h Ã'€rÐ ¾grÐ °mÃ'• Ð °rÐ µ to Ã'Æ'Ð ¾ur lÃ'â€"kÃ'â€"ng. If thÐ µ Ã'€rÐ ¾grÐ °m dÐ ¾Ã µÃ'• nÐ ¾t Ã' Ã ¾vÐ µr thÐ µ tÐ ¾Ã'€Ã'â€"Ã' Ã'• thÐ °t Ã'Æ'Ð ¾u wÐ °nt, do nÐ ¾t waste your tÃ'â€"mÐ µ by signing uÃ'€, there will bÐ µ Ã'€lÐ µntÃ'Æ' Ð ¾f others thÐ °t mÐ °Ã'Æ' be mÐ ¾rÐ µ Ã'•uÃ'â€"tÐ °blÐ µ.   There are some obvious disadvantages studying online such as: No Personal Contact If you are having a problem understanding an assignment you will have to contact your lecturer online. Teacher – Student interaction can be important. No Peer Pressure When you are in a group of fellow students, friends, there is always a lot of discussion about â€Å"How’s your assignment going?† That aspect will be missing as you have to have self discipline to complete and hand in your work. Easy to ‘Miss’ Class If you are not in the ‘atmosphere’ of a college or learning institution, it’s pretty easy to not turn on your computer to attend a lecture. Home or work distractions can be used as an excuse to skip classes. Less Group Discussions and Bouncing Ideas Online study is a lonely gig. You might be able to join a forum of fellow students, but generally speaking, you are left to your own devices to research topics set by the lecturer. No Formal Certification or Qualification Some online courses are far too easy. Not all of them set exams. It’s more a project, an essay, an assignment that is required. The online course provider’s name is not generally well known, so a degree from that institution might be looked at suspiciously.

Question about Soviet Union Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Question about Soviet Union - Essay Example Thesis statement: In the article ‘Everything you think you know about the collapse of the Soviet Union is wrong’ Leon Aron states that combination of economic, political and social factors accelerated the collapse of the Soviet Union. The popular assumptions and misunderstandings upon the collapse of the Soviet Union According to Aron, popular assumptions upon the collapse of the Soviet Union are based upon misunderstandings. For instance, people misunderstood that American influence was behind the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990s. This is totally wrong because America did not expect rapid collapse of the Soviet Union. Aron (2011)opines that â€Å"There did not seem to be any other signs of a pre-revolutionary crisis either, including the other traditionally assigned cause of state failure -- external pressure† (p.2). To be specific, the leaders of the Communist Party in Soviet Union did not share information on the socio-political and economic scenarios. One cannot expect that the decline in GDP growth in 1980s did collapse the Soviet Union because people were conditioned to cope with problems. Besides, the financial problems faced by Soviet Union, related to the unexpected drop in oil price in 1980s did not harm her economy. There were less political problems in 9180s, so it cannot be considered as an important factor of the unexpected collapse of the Soviet Union. But the Afghan war exerted a little bit pressure upon the financial background of Soviet Union. Besides, Soviet Union cunningly suppressed the anti-communist uprisings in Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Poland. In short, Soviet Union in 1980s was a global super power with less socio-economic and political problems. Aron (2011) opines that â€Å"Certainly, there were plenty of structural reasons -- economic, political, social -- why the Soviet Union should have collapsed as it did, yet they fail to explain fully how it happened when it happened † (p.2). The popular assump tions on the collapse of the Soviet Union were based upon misunderstandings and the questions on the collapse are still answerless to an extent. If America is not behind the rapid collapse of Soviet Union, and then, who is the mastermind behind the same? From a different angle of view, one can see that the aspiration of the people in Soviet Union to regain human dignity and individual liberty accelerated the collapse of Soviet Union. The collapse of the Soviet Union and the moral quest of individual freedom The author believes that it is important today to fully understand the collapse of the Soviet Union because more and more people are misjudging the scope of innovative measures adopted by Mikhail Gorbachev (say, perestroika and glasnost). Gorbachev considered that these political polices can renovate the Russian society to morality and liberalization. He very well knew that the Russians were fed up with the single party system in Soviet Union. First of all, Gorbachev decided to s eek answer to the moral problems faced by the people. The political policies like perestroika and glasnost, adopted by Gorbachev, were able to solve the social problems in the Russian society. For instance, perestroika restructured the Russian society, and glasnost accelerated openness towards innovation. Now, it is time to take steps to solve the economic problems faced by Russia. The Soviet Model did not help the Russian society to be free from lawlessness and corruption. Instead, it

Literature and society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Literature and society - Essay Example Marlon Brando, the main character, plays as a former boxer as well as a longshoreman who is accidentally engaged with dishonest labor unions the slaughter of young Joey (Elia 36). Marlon works as a puppet for corrupt bosses in the movie. We constantly see conflict of values since there are individuals who have embodied truth as well as law whereas corruption prevails on one side. Brando’s Terry Malloy has lost in an important boxing fight having been persuaded by his brother. Terry plays a man with a conscience torn between two sides. Le asks him to monitor and spy on Barry, Malden’s father and Eva Saint’s Edie. Soon Terry witnesses their good plans but initially he is doubtful and mocks them (Elia 27). He gets confused since he wants to assist Edie and at the same time wants to meet expectations of Charley and Johnny. Individualism is a theme that has been well illustrated in this movie. Terry is experiencing a lot of hardships just because of Friendly, the self –centered individual. Friendly is an individualist since he is inspired by his own interests to make taint the working atmosphere with corruption. The play waiting for Lefty by Odets explores union movements by workers because they have been let down by their seniors (Odets 56). Collectivism is broadly spread since communism is what the employees aim as protest to strike. Tax drivers suggest striking as the ideal option to seek out the attention of their seniors. The only individuals who skipped the strike were the people in forefront organizing the strike and the military workers. Even after finding out that the union leader had already been murdered by their senior they still carried on with the fight for their own rights. Collectivism is further illustrated because the author creates the presence of Lefty as crucial even though the union does not disintegrate and collapse with his absence. However, Lefty`s absence made the protest more

Hilton Worldwide Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Hilton Worldwide - Assignment Example The company has business operation in 88 countries through 3,800 hotels which offer 6301,000 rooms to its worldwide customers. The company dedicated to provide an exceptional experience to the millions of travellers stay every year with it different brands of hotels and resorts. Hilton Hotels and Resort is most important brand of Hilton Worldwide group which carry the brand recognition of the mother company Hilton Worldwide along with its own brand value. Hilton Hotels and Resort recognized as international hotel chain that includes many hotels and resort across the world. The brand has market presence in 540 locations in 78 countries. It provides contemporary and authentic hospitality services to the guests across the world. The core values and the USP this brand are thoughtful amenities, smart design; innovative dining options that makes this brand a global leader in the hospitality industry. The company has continuous focus on both the leisure travellers and business travellers in the locations where it presents. The company follows similar service design and locations in all the cities like it present near airports and major city centres in all the cities (Hilton Hotels $ Resorts, 2012). ... This journey of the company has been possible by the efficient and unique development strategies like the local know-how and field tested process that assists its business partners or the franchisee holders to effective develop and manage a business with global exposure and experiences. For developing a unique3 service design in all the properties i.e. hotels and resorts of it business partners, it assists to design, building, managing the property of the franchisee holders and other companies who wants to become a business partners and to gain global business experiences. The company is dedicated to provide all solutions to its business partners by its innovative expertise which has made this a leading brand in the worldwide hospitality industry. The company four different innovative divisions or group that has been simultaneously working together for development of this brand in terms of new franchisee acquisition in the different location of the world and they also provide all typ es of solution from construction of hotels and resorts to management services. These four efficient aspects of its total service to the business partners are performance advantage, architecture and construction, owner information services and Hilton management services. Performance advantage service is an innovative and integrated system which provides advanced technology and innovative solutions to the customers as well as the business partners. This service drives the business growth of this company through reduction of cost of cost services without hampering the quality the services it provides. Performance advantage services include seven different kind of innovative services which are Hilton HHonors, Hilton worldwide sales, reservation

Corporate governance Literature review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Corporate governance - Literature review Example A comparison of different perspectives will also be discussed in this paper. Corporate Governance, in broader terms, can be defined as regulations, legislation and the procedures, which govern, standardize and control the whole business operations. Corporate Governance encompasses internal elements, such as managers, executives, shareholders, or organizational structure, and the external elements, such as customers, suppliers and government laws. The purpose of defining the corporate governance is to generate the well-organized and prescribed structure of the organization in a way that operates in the best manner for all organizational members. It guarantees that the corporation has implemented the prescribed rules, moral duties, and best practices. That is why, organizations have developed their operations effectively at local level, state level, and also global level. Within contemporary years, the concept of corporate governance has been attending much focus, as there has emerged eminent outrages, such as misuse of corporate authority and purported illega l actions taken by corporate managers. The establishment of â€Å"civil and criminal suits†, against the people who misuse the name of the corporation to fulfill their illegal interests, is a vital part of corporate governance (Rouse, 2008). Corporate Governance is basically the established structures, codes, and procedures, which controls the corporations. It establishes guiding principles which help in providing direction and managing the organization in order to achieve organizational objectives in the most effective way. Such established systems enhance the organizational value and are fruitful for all members in the long run. Organizational members include all stakeholders which are affected by such system, such as directors, stockholders, suppliers, managers, employees, and general people. The organizational management undertakes themselves

Final Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Final Project - Essay Example Many Americans feel this reluctance stems from an unwillingness to reveal something that they do not want consumers to know. The best solution is to require mandatory labeling of all of the products that are considered GMO, genetically engineered, or in any way augmented in or by a laboratory. Genetic research has been going on for several decades and is still going strong. Most people hear the words genetic engineering or biotechnology they think of science fiction stories. However, real, modern biotechnology is quite different and it is certainly not science fiction. The manifestation of biotechnology is not so much â€Å"in your face,† as it is â€Å"in your food.† In fact, for more than a decade the majority of processed foods in the United States include ingredients containing genetic material derived from plants whose DNA has undergone laboratory manipulation. The most common genetically altered crops in the United States include soybeans, corn, cotton, and canola . The soybeans carry DNA derived from bacteria that cause the plants to be resistant to common weed killing pesticides, as well as, corn crops, which, also, is taken from DNA from bacteria, which allow the corn to produce its own natural pesticide.(Harmon & Pollack, 2012) It has been determined that most store bought products contain some form of soy or corn, including high fructose corn syrup, and exist in 60-70% of the foods on the grocery store shelves, including cereals, snack foods, dressings/dips, crackers, and chips are all the products of genetic modification, in one way or another.(Byrne, 2013) Supporters of mandatory labeling believe that they manufacturers do not want labeling because they do not want consumers to be aware of how much GMO food they are already consuming. They, also, feel that the scientists, biotechnological farms, and the big businesses that profit from them do not want to be forced to label such products. In their eyes they are putting profit before pub lic awareness and, potentially, public safety. This public concern is not strictly an American phenomenon. Consumers prefer to be informed. Twenty-one countries have already implemented mandatory labeling requirements; so one might ask, why should the United States be any different? (Byrne, 2013) Consumers have a right to know through clearly marked packaging, to make informed choices about the ingredients being mentioned, and understand what exactly they put into their bodies. The claim that GMO goods are completely and thoroughly safe, however, is not something that any of the scientists today can actually guarantee. They can only confirm that there appears to be no danger or side effects associated with consuming GMO foods or food ingredients. It has never been confirmed through human testing that that is true, especially over a period of long term consumption. That said, they are essentially asking us to take their word for it without providing much in the way of facts and detai ls. In fact, biotechnologists today are, basically, using the same limited

Emotional Intelligence & Its Importance For Leaders Essay Example for Free

Emotional Intelligence Its Importance For Leaders Essay Much has been written about leadership and the qualities that fuel leadership such as intelligence, toughness, determination, credibility, vision, etc. Often left off are the lists softer and more personal qualities, but recent studies have proven that they are equally important. Researchers have proposed a new term called Emotional Intelligence, and it may well help differentiate the outstanding leaders from the merely adequate ones. Emotional Intelligence must somehow combine two of the three states of mind: cognition and affect, or intelligence and emotion. It has been described by many as the ability to understand and perceive emotions and to be able to generate emotions in order to aid the thought process, and to be able to effectively regulate emotions so as to ensure intellectual and emotional growth (â€Å"EI†). Both nature and nurture feed into emotional intelligence, which is what management literature suggests. Emotional intelligence if deployed wisely and compassionately, spurs leaders, the followers, and the entire organization to superior performance; conversely, if naively or maliciously applied, it might paralyze leaders or allow them to manipulate followers for personal gain, which would lead in employee dissatisfaction and lack of commitment. Mayor and Salovey proposed a four step EI model which can assist leaders in integrating emotion and thinking. Identifying Emotions is the first step which is the ability to recognize how you and those around you are feeling (â€Å"EI†). Using emotions to facilitate thought which is the ability to generate an emotion, and then reason with this emotion, (also called Emotional Facilitation of Thought, or Assimilating Emotions) comes second(â€Å"EI†). The last two are Understanding Emotions and managing them. Understanding Emotions not only includes understanding complex human emotions but also emotional chains, i. e. how emotions transition from one stage to another, whereas, Managing Emotions allows you to manage emotions in yourself and in others(â€Å"EI†). However, according to Daniel Goleman, there are five components to emotional intelligence; †¢ Self-awareness †¢ Self-regulation †¢ Motivation †¢ Empathy †¢ Social skill (Goleman, 1998) Self-awareness is the trait where emotional intelligence actually begins, leaders with higher degree of self-awareness are never hesitant to talk about and discuss their weaknesses and it is this attitude that later brings upon a positive change in them as they are able to improve upon their weaknesses with time. This helps a leader in bringing about change as he is someone who knows his limitations and knows when and where he can actually stand-up and deliver for the rest of the workforce and be a motivator for them, i. e. when can he lead by example. Thus he knows which tasks and changes can actually be brought about in an organization and which ones cannot be. The second trait is self-regulation, and that leaders with this trait can control their emotions and impulses better and channel them for good purposes. This brings about an openness to change in their attitude and behavior, and increases their trustworthiness and integrity, and also helps them remain comfortable in ambiguous situations and scenario. It has a trickle down effect, as no one would want to be known as a hot head in an organization where the boss is known for his cool and calm attitude. Motivation is perhaps the most important trait and the most obvious one that a leader is judged upon. It’s the motivation abilities of a leader that gives the sub-ordinates the notion that the leader has a strong drive to achieve. It portrays the optimism of the leader to the followers, such that they know that their leader would still be optimistic when facing failure, so it has to do more with the mind than anything else. It is the positivity of the mind, it emanates from the mind of the leader and leads its way to the minds of the followers. For a leader empathizing does not mean conforming to other people’s emotions. Rather, it is the ability to understand the emotional makeup of other people. Empathy is the trait that enables a leader to be an expert in building and maintaining talent. It enables him to treat people according to their emotional reactions. With the businesses and economies globalizing, leaders have to lead and manage people belonging to different cultures which is the major reason why change management in such a scenario is very difficult, however, if only a leader can empathize with his followers, it makes the job half as difficult as before. Good leaders generally maintain a large circle of acquaintances. They start off with smaller network of acquaintances and build newer acquaintances from the existing circle. Thus they are not only good at building networks but also finding common ground between individuals in difficult situations and scenarios and build rapport with them. This also improves their persuasiveness and the ability to build and lead teams. True emotional intelligence is not about manipulating people. Emotional intelligence means knowing what you and others are feeling and acting ethically, with a social conscience. Leaders with higher EQ seem to have it together; they are a graceful balance of intellect and emotion. Such leaders possess the ability to inspire their followers, and make them feel good about themselves. All of which is achieved while maintaining their own integrity and sense of personal worth. Hence, no one is diminished by being in their presence. Leadership combines courage with emotional intelligence, courage to ask tough questions, challenge people’s assumptions about strategy and operations, eliminate the existence of the bias caused by conforming to other people’s beliefs and hence risk losing their goodwill. All of this demands commitment, commitment to serving others; skills required for diagnostic, strategic, and tactical reasoning, the resilience to get under the surface of tough realities; and the heart to take criticism and grief, and remain optimistic all the way. A leader has to be aware that surviving will be difficult if one gets into the trouble of a dissonance existing between the inside and the outside – something that is referred as a â€Å"disconnect†. If a single theme runs through this issue, it’s the importance of keeping the two aligned. Every leader ought to want a more supple emotional intelligence, and â€Å"Leading by Feel† is a great place to begin (Mayer, 2004). REFERENCES 1. Goleman, Daniel (1998). What makes a Leader? Harvard Business Review 2. EI. Retrieved April 16, 2008, from emotionaliq. org Web site: http://www. emotionaliq. org/EI. htm 3. Mayer, John (2004) Leading by Feel. Harvard Business Review

Role of Music and Movement

Role of Music and Movement Young children learn through exploration, active participation and through imitation and as such, quality music programmes taught in the early childhood classrooms should incorporate five different characteristics according to McDonald and Simones, 1989 (cited in Isenberg Jalongo, 1997). Both stated that musical activities conducted should be developmentally appropriate and age appropriate for children and have a balance of both teacher planned and child initiated activities. Music programs conducted be pleasurable and support the development of positive attitudes and emotional responses in children as well as to instil in them lifelong love for music. They added that children should be exposed to a variety of musical activities that includes music appreciation -children be exposed to listening to different types music, singing and moving to music and to create music through the use of musical instruments. They further mentioned that children should learn to participate in a group with their peers and experience the pleasure of group music making. Both agree that music programme should be integrated as part of curriculum and children are allowed to experience music throughout the day and not just during the music time. Music should also be used during transitions from one activity to another. As in the Singaporean classroom, it is a requirement by the Ministry of Education that music programme be included as part of the curriculum. However music and movement activities conducted are seldom planned to include a variety of activities and most of the instances teachers conduct activities with just a CD player. Children are observed to be singing and moving to the song played. The essence of music programme that enhances childrens total developmental skills is not delivered due to the fact of teacher quality. Although the experts have stated that musical education does foster growth in childrens physical, cognitive, social and emotional development, this research will only focus on the social and emotional development through music. Music is part of the curriculum and it is indeed a great way to expose children through musical activities that include songs, musical games and rhythmic activities as the teaching tool to enhance childrens social skills. Singing simple songs enable children to absorb social values better than when they are being taught. If songs touch on values and principles, children will begin to incorporate them into their social development. Music activities also allows children to sing, dance and use certain gestures for certain parts of the song and these will also allow them to release social and emotional problems. Children are constantly experiencing new emotions and situations as they grow and each new experience contributes to their social development. As stated by Forsyth ,1977 ; Madsen Alley, 1979 ; Sim,1986 ; Standley Hughes,1996 ( cited in Forsyth ,1977 ) researchers have documented the effective use of music to enhance childrens social skills especially when interventions and instructions involve the use of participatory activities. The question the researcher intends to find an answer for is derived from the above explanation on How does active participation in music and movement impact on childrens social and emotional skills According to the Collins dictionary, arts such as dance, music and drama that are performed live in front of an audience is referred to as performing arts. Performing as mentioned by Wright (2003 p.107) includes the physical or bodily competence and interpretation providing a foundation for childrens learning using a range of movement techniques. Performing will involve the participant being observed by caregivers, peers and teachers in the classroom context. Role of Music and Movement in the development of social emotional skills Bruner (1968) (cited in Isenberg Jalongo, 1997) states that as children grow, they go through three learning stages The enactive stage This is an action based stage where children develop the ability to use objects in the environment to perform physical tasks using their motor skills for example , children playing a musical instrument and moving to the beat. The iconic stage the visual imagery stage where children are able to imagine events and actions through visual memory. This stage takes place when children role play at the dramatic corner or during a drama performance as they take on imaginative roles that they have seen The symbolic stage- children are able to use ideas, symbols and language to understand and define concepts. For example, children working as a group in planning for a drama performance, children will need to use their creative ideas to plan, identify the characters, symbol image for each character and the language to dictate the drama. Bruner (1962) (cited in Isenberg Jalongo, 1997) adds that each of these stages suggests developmentally appropriate musical experience for children. Isenberg Jalongo, 1997 adds that Bruners enactive stage relates to Piagets (1952) sensorimotor stage and Eriksons (1950) trust building stage where physical activity and music are intertwined. Thus musical activities stimulate childrens senses, cognitive development and also build social relationships. Bruner and Piaget believed that children used their senses to learn and explore their environment while Erikson stressed that children needed maximum comfort to trust themselves and the others in order for them to explore and learn in the environment. All these stages are inter-related to enhance childrens total development. Music, according to Gardner, 1973 ( cited in Isenberg Jalongo, 1997) contributes to the childs physical, intellectual, emotional, social , cultural and aesthetics development. As stated by McAllester, 1991 (cited in Isenberg Jalongo, 1997 p. 131) music encourages participation, sharing and cooperation. Through musical activities such as singing and games, children learn to subordinate their individual wishes to the goals of the group which is the essence of cooperation. Music is an effective program for children to adapt to social skills in a fun and enjoyable way. Leonhard, 1983 (cited in Lau, n.d.) regards music as a social art which has the capacity to unite social groups and enable each individual to feel as part of the group. While Spodek, Saracho and Lee, 1983 (cited in Lau, n.d. ) further emphasized that music has the ability to draw the shy and withdrawn child to come closer with their peers thus supporting social relationships. A shy child who does not interact with her peers verbally, will be able to engage in a music and movement activity where she physically gets closer to her peers during the activity especially when it involves pairing with partners or in a group. Catron Allen, (2003) stated that young children must learn to cooperate with peers and act in a socially responsible manner so that they would develop a cooperation spirit through participating in a variety of small group activities. Social and Emotional Development in Children Social and emotional development according to Cohen and other experts as (cited in Social Emotional Development domain Child Development, 2009) includes the ability of a child to express and manage his emotions as well as his ability to build positive relationships with others. They shared the same view as Howard Gardners theory of multiple intelligence on intrapersonal and interpersonal processes and presented a strong relationship between knowing of ones feelings and the feelings of others. Gardner believed that if both these abilities are well developed in young children, it will strengthen their sense of self and the relationship with others (Cited in Dowling, 2005 p.61). On the other hand, Nowicki Duke, 1989 (cited in Dowling, 2005) supported Gardner, as they found that children who are sensitive to others and aware of their own feelings appeared to achieve better in school than those with similar intellectual ability but less emotional ability. Social Skills and Social Competence Social skills can be defined as the ability to implement developmentally appropriate social behaviours that enhanced ones interpersonal relationship without causing harm to anyone (Schneider, 1993 p.19). It is necessary for children to respect one another and to build healthy social skills to develop positive relationship with people around them. As stated in Jean Piagets theory, social development takes place through interaction between the child and the environment and that the developing child constructs his own knowledge. An example of this is when a child is engaged in the learning centre, he is learning through exploration using his senses as well as interacting with the materials in the environment. On the other hand, Vygotsky viewed socialisation as two fold firstly, cognition as related to social engagement and secondly language as a tool for communication within the social context (cited in Berk, 2000). When children are engaged in dramatic play both language and social relationship is enhanced. As such, social skills play a vital role in helping children cope with the many complexities and demands of the world. According to Jalongo (2006), social competence is defined as a set of abilities, behaviours and responses directed towards other individuals that serve to foster positive human relationships. Katz and McClellen (1997) suggested that components of social skills include social understanding and interaction skills. It is important for the child to portray good behaviour and effective communication with others to engage in healthy relationship. Role of Performing Arts in the Development of Social Emotional Skills Pinciotti (1993) mentioned that children learn from their experiences when they are engaged in social activities. Cornett (1999) further supports the need for teachers to integrate creative drama in the classroom as she states that drama being a part of everyday life, prepares an individual to connect to real life situations. Cornett (1999) adds that when children are participating in the drama, they are able to look at problems from different points of view, respect diverse thinking and realise that there are many ways to settle one problem. She further states that through drama, children learn to exchange feelings and emotions with each other. This enhances their personality development. Cornett (1999) also states that personal development takes place when children control their body and words as they express ideas and feelings during the drama activities. She also indicated that positive self image and confidence are developed through the problem solving situations. Cornett (1999) reiterates that children engaging in situational confrontations during their role play, also become aware of the different emotions people feel for example happiness, sadness .anger, fear. She adds that the children learn that these feelings can be dealt in a positive way and they also learn to accept different temperaments portrayed by their peers thus developing a tolerance towards them. Isbell Raines (2007), agree that social skills can be developed in drama as children working in group overcome difficulties through problem solving skills. They experience working with peers as they negotiate plans to stage the drama. During interactions, children learn to negotiate with each other, work cooperatively and develop respect for each other. As mentioned earlier, Bruner (1968) stated that children use ideas, symbols and language Children are able to use ideas, symbols and language to understand and define concepts when they are in the symbolic stage, thus musical re-enactment of story songs would be an appropriate musical activity for young children. Teachers role in enhancing social skills development According to Raikes, 1996 (cited in Preusse, 2008) secure attachment bonds between the child and caregiver creates a sense of trust that supports the child for exploration of the world and builds a strong base for future development. As such, it is rather important for teachers to build strong relationship with children under their care. On the other hand , Berk, 2002 ( cited in Preusse , 2008 ) mentioned that preschool children are independent, cooperative as they gain their language skills , self awareness and to think in another persons point of view. All these will enable children to have better social interaction with their peers. It is the teachers role to facilitate and provide the opportunities and activities to enhance childrens social skills. Teacher parent partnership is another important factor in enhancing childrens social skills as stated by Webster- Stratton (2006 p. 6) family involvement has positive effects on childrens academic achievement, social competence and school quality. On the other hand, Brand Fernie, 1983 (cited in Isenberg Jalongo 1997, p.145) stated that teachers fulfil their musical roles and responsibilities when they function as motivators, planners, co participants and observers. As a motivator, the teacher uses an object or a story to introduce the music activity to interests and motivate childrens participation. For example, to sing old Macdonald had a farm a teacher would prepare headgears of farm animals and have children pretend to be animals and involve them to make the animal sounds when they are called. A teacher planner looks into preparation of the music activity identifying the purpose, providing a variety of activities like playing instruments, moving to music and has materials that are required prepared before the lesson and ensures that children are spaced and seated comfortably for the musical activity. An observer looks out for childrens behaviour during their participation in order for her to plan activities according to childrens needs and development as well as evaluate the positive or negative responses of the activity. Teachers attitude and belief plays an important role in providing these opportunities for children to enhance their social emotional skills. Further, teachers also need to be trained in order to carry out the various arts activities. They must have the knowledge to observe children and to identify and plan according to childrens needs in order to enhance their social emotional development. Conclusion Prosocial behaviour is part and parcel of happening in an individuals life context. Building a strong foundation in social emotional skills during the early childhood years is crucial to a childs social emotional behaviour to achieve better in school and succeed in later life. Music and drama are one of the strategies that can help develop good social and emotional skills .As researchers strongly believe that musical activities and drama have enabled children better exposure and experience in developing cooperation, acceptance, tolerance, confidence, positive relationship and social interaction all of which are foundation skills of social emotional development in children. Finally, as Gardner believed when intrapersonal and interpersonal processes are well developed in children it will enable them to build strong and positive relationship with people around them as well as enhances their self confidence. As my findings have shown the role of the teacher as a facilitator of childrens social and emotional development of is important as it enhances the growth of prosocial skills through music education, this research will seek to employ teacher planned activities to collect the data needed to form a conclusion that music education does foster childrens social and emotional growth.

Trophosperic Ozone :: essays research papers

The source of the tropospheric ozone The tropospheric ozone has two major sources. One is intrusion from the stratosphere. Most of ozone in the atmosphere is in the stratosphere and created from solar UV radiation. The stratospheric ozone sometimes flows into the troposphere by the upper layer trough and cut-off low activities. Some part of ozone may subside in the troposphere directly by the Hadley circulation or the Brewer Dobson circulation. Another source is production from photochemical reactions. Ozone is produced from relatively longer-wavelength solar radiation under NOx and non-methane hydrocarbons rich environments. These photochemical reactions possibly bring about photochemical smog in urban area. http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~wt2y-ttm/what.htm The characteristics of the tropospheric ozone About 8 % of the total column ozone is in the troposphere. The tropospheric ozone also plays an important role in the atmosphere. 1) Ozone is a green house gas and possibly contributes to the global warming. 2) Ozone is harmful for human being and crops in the troposphere. 3) Ozone oxidizes many chemical substances in the troposphere, and controls tropospheric chemistry. The trend of the troposheric ozone Some global monitoring stations show the increase of ozone in the troposphere. It may be a big problem, because if tropospheric ozone increases, it might damage to human beings and many crops, and fairly contribute to the global warming and change the tropospheric chemistry. If the tropospheric chemistry changes, the nature of pollution and acid rain might change. But not all monitoring stations show the increasing trend. We have to monitor the tropospheric ozone at many suitable observation points. This also has the mean to study influence of human activities on Nature. Causes of ground-level ozone Other culprits-besides car and truck exhaust-are gas lawn mowers, over-filling and topping-off a gas tank, which allows vapors to escape, and leaking fuel, which react with sunlight and heat to produce ozone. Alternatives that reduce air pollution and ground-level ozone include using native plants for landscaping rather than a lawn, using an electric or push mower, limiting planting areas for lawns, carpooling and public transportation. Effects on people with preemptive respitoary problems Ground-level ozone can cause flare-ups of asthma, chronic bronchitis, other lung diseases and cardiorespiratory illnesses. Symptoms may take days to appear following exposure. Ground-level ozone can decrease lung function and cause chest tightness and coughing. In addition, ozone and microscopic particulates, small enough to be inhaled into the lungs and "sticky" enough to attract pollens and other allergens, can contribute to asthma and allergy attacks, and make other lung diseases more severe.

The Disgrace of Flag Burning :: Argumentative Persuasive Topics

The Disgrace of Flag Burning To Those Who Want To Burn the Flag, just ask permission........ Does the First Amendment give us the right to desecrate the American flag? Or is the flag a sacred symbol of our nation, deserving protection by law? For those who want to light Old Glory on fire, stomp all over it, or spit on it to make some sort of "statement," I say let them do it. But under one condition: they MUST get permission from three sponsors. First, you need permission of a war veteran. Perhaps a Marine who fought at Iwo Jima? The American flag was raised over Mount Surabachi upon the bodies of thousands of dead buddies. Each night spent on Iwo meant half of everyone you knew would be dead tomorrow, a coin flip away from a bloody end upon a patch of sand your mother couldn't find on a map. Or maybe ask a Vietnam vet who spent years tortured in a small, filthy cell unfit for a dog. Or a Korean War soldier who helped rescue half a nation from Communism, or a Desert Storm veteran who repulsed a bloody dictator from raping and pillaging an innocent country. That flag represented your mother and father, your sister and brother, your friends, neighbors, and everyone at home. I wonder what they would say if someone asked them permission to burn the American flag? Next, you need a signature from an immigrant. Their brothers and sisters may still languish in their native land, often under tyranny, poverty and misery. Or maybe they died on the way here, never to touch our shores. Some have seen friends and family get tortured and murdered by their own government for daring to do things we take for granted every day. For those who risked everything simply for the chance to become an American....what kind of feelings do they have for the flag when they Pledge Allegiance the first time? Go to a naturalization ceremony and see for yourself, the tears of pride, the thanks, the love and respect of this nation, as they finally embrace the American flag as their own. Ask one of them if it would be OK to tear up the flag. Last, you should get the signature of a mother.

Tobacco Smoking and Legal Marijuana

Marijuana vs  cigarettes See also: Smoking Marijuana does not cause lung cancer Top anti drug researcher changes his mind: says legalize marijuana Marijuana and your lungs: recent studies Pot is not like tobacco The Effects of Marijuana Smoke There are many reasons why marijuana is  not  worse for you than smoking cigarettes. You may have heard that â€Å"one joint is equal to ten cigarettes† but this is exaggerated and misleading. Marijuana does contain more tar than tobacco — but low tar cigarettes cause just as much cancer, so what is that supposed to mean? Scientists have hown that smoking any plant is bad for your lungs, because it increases the number of ‘lesions’ in your small airways. This usually does not threaten your life, but there is a chance it will lead to infections. Marijuana users who are worried about this can find less harmful ways of taking marijuana like eating or vaporizing. (Be careful – marijuana is safe to eat — but tobacco is not, you might overdose! )  Marijuana does not cause cancer  the way tobacco does, though. Here is a list of interesting facts about marijuana smoking and tobacco smoking: o Marijuana smokers generally don’t chain smoke, nd so they smoke less. (Marijuana is not physically addictive like tobacco. ) The more potent marijuana is, the less a smoker will use at a time. o Tobacco contains nicotine, and marijuana doesn’t. Nicotine may harden the arteries and may be responsible for much of the heart disease caused by tobacco. New research has found that it may also cause a lot of the cancer in tobacco smokers and people who live or work where tobacco is smoked. This is because it breaks down into a cancer causing chemical called `N Nitrosamine’ when it is burned (and maybe even while it is inside the body as well. o Marijuana contains THC. THC is a bronchial dilator, which means it works like a cough drop and opens up your lungs, which aids clearance of smoke and dirt. Nicotine does just the opposite; it makes your lungs bunch up and makes it harder to cough anything up. o There are benefits from marijuana (besides bronchial dilation) that you don’t get from tobacco. Mainly, marijuana makes you relax, which improves your health and well-being. o  Scientists do not really know what it is that causes malignant lung cancer in tobacco. Many think it may be a substance known as Lead 210.Of course, there are many other theories as to what does cause cancer, but if this is true, it is easy to see why  no case of lung cancer resulting from marijuana use alone has ever been documented, because tobacco contains much more of this substance than marijuana. o Marijuana laws make it harder to use marijuana without damaging your body. Water-pipes are illegal in many states. Filtered cigarettes, vaporizers, and inhalers have to be mass produced, which is hard to arrange `underground. ’ People don’t eat marijuana often because you need more to get as high that way, nd it isn’t cheap or easy to get (which is the reason why some people will stoop to smoking leaves. ) This may sound funny to you — but  the more legal marijuana gets, the safer it is. It is pretty obvious to users that marijuana prohibition laws are not â€Å"for their own good. † In addition to the above, legal marijuana would be clean and free from adulterants. Some people add other drugs to marijuana before they sell it. Some people spray room freshener on it or soak in in chemicals like formaldehyde! A lot of the marijuana is grown outdoors, where it may be sprayed with esticides or contaminated with dangerous fungi. If the government really cared about our health, they would form an agency which would make sure only quality marijuana was sold. This would be cheaper than keeping it illegal, and it would keep people from getting hurt and going to the emergency room. (source) FACT: Studies have shown that smoki ng marijuana does NOT increase your chance of getting cancer and may even lower it slightly! Of course, vaping or eating cannabis are still considered the safest methods of ingestion especially for daily consumers. Early on, when our research appeared as if there would be a negative impact on lung health, I was opposed to legalization because I thought it would lead to increased use and that would lead to increased health effects,† Tashkin says. â€Å"But at this point, I’d be in favor of legalization. Tobacco smoking causes far more harm. And in terms of an intoxicant, alcohol causes far more harm. UCLA’s Tashkin studied heavy marijuana smokers to determine whether the use led to increased risk of lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD.He hypothesized that there would be a definitive link between cancer and marijuana smoking, but the results proved otherwise. â€Å"What we found instead was no association and even a suggestion of some p rotective effect,† says Tashkin, whose research was the largest case-control study ever conducted. Listen to Tashkin’s full video  here UPDATE Source  A new study, published in this month’s  Journal of the American Medical Association, tested the lung function of over 5,000 young adults between 18 and 30.After 20 years of testing, researchers found some buzzworthy results:  regular marijuana smokers (defined by up to a joint a day for seven years) had no discernible impairment in lung activity from non-smokers. In fact, researchers were surprised to find marijuana smokers performed slightly better than both smokers and non-smokers on the lung performance test. Why? The most likely explanation seems to be that the act of inhaling marijuana—holding each puff in for as long as possible—is a lot like a pulmonary function test, giving marijuana smokers an edge over their igarette smoking counterparts. For most of human existence, cannabis has bee n considered a medicine. Queen Victoria used it to alleviate her menstrual cramps. Extracts were prescribed by doctors and available at every pharmacy in the U. S. According to  Fast Food Nation  author Eric Schlosser, attitudes toward cannabis only shifted when Americans began to notice and object to its use by immigrants around the turn of the 20th century. More  here

Antifeminism in Medieval Literature Essay

Literature throughout the middle ages was often extremely antifeminist, in large part due to the patriarchal nature of society and the lack of female writers. Women were portrayed as vile temptresses, whose very existence revolved around causing man misery. This style of writing is strongly evidenced in The Canterbury Tales and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight where Geoffrey Chaucer and the Pearl Poet create characters to strongly reinforce the sentiment. These writers used historical and mythological examples, as well as The Lord’s Lady, and Alyson, the Wife of Bath, to portray women’s’ loathsome nature. In The Wife of Bath, the fifth husband of Alyson owns a book filled with examples of women of poor character. Unlike Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, they come from all of history, including Socrates, Sampson, and Hercules along with many others, and how their wives and lovers betrayed them. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the examples of incorrigible women are solely biblical. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Gawain first mentions Eve, the original sinner, who, after being tricked by the serpent, went on to poison Adam’s mind also. She caused man to be cast out of the Garden of Eden, for women to suffer in childbirth, and for man to have to work the ground to produce food (NKJV, Gen. 3). Solomon is next mentioned, the man whom God gifted with riches and great wisdom. Indeed, Solomon did say â€Å"I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and nets (NKJV, Ecc. 7. 26),† but he also praises the good wife, telling man to live â€Å"joyfully with the wife whom you love (NKJV, Ecc. 9. 9)†. One of the wisest man Who does not know the tale of Sampson and Delilah? Only the betrayal of Judas is better known. Delilah caused Sampson to be imprisoned, and his eyes to be poked out after he foolishly trusted her (NKJV, Judges 16). Lastly, there is Bathsheba, who made a man â€Å"after God’s own heart† to sin. This last example is extremely questionable, as Bathsheba’s minor sin of being indecently exposed cannot be blamed for the terrible actions David committed (NKJV, 2nd Sam. 11). Certainly there are many examples of morally upright women throughout history and in the Bible, but Chaucer and the Pearl Poet do not seek these out, instead choosing to reinforce the antifeminist sentiment popular at the time. Two of the three women mentioned in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight attempt to corrupt the noble Gawain. Morgan Le Fey, after hearing of his renown, sends the Green Knight to attempt to put a blemish on Gawain’s stalwart reputation. Despite being sent with such evil intentions, the Green Knight makes it clear he wished only to test Gawain’s morals, rather than having any malicious intent. The Pearl Poet seems to go out of his way to exonerate the Green Knight, while making Morgan Le Fey and The Lord’s Lady out to be extremely ignoble individuals. The Lords Lady entered Gawain’s chambers every morning, essentially holding him hostage, as it would have been unseemly to be seen undressed in front of a lady. She then began to use his honor and courteousness against him. Honor dictated for a knight to do almost anything a lady asked, and the Lord’s Lady used this fact at every opportunity. She showered Gawain with compliments, fawned over his achievements, and asked him to teach her of love. When he still ever so courteously put off her advances, she scolded him for being cold and stern. She insisted he kiss her, first upon leaving, then upon seeing her, always working to get closer to him. Her persistence after Gawain had made it clear multiple times that he would not be tempted, reveals a severe lack of a conscious. It is not unnatural to be tempted, and many will even act upon a temptation, but the Lords Lady made a great effort to commit adultery. She has no qualms over the sinful nature of her actions, as morning after morning she doggedly pursued Gawain. Women were represented as temptresses, who will only cause men to sin and lower themselves. The Lord’s Lady from Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is an example used to reinforce the antifeminist sentiment popular during the time. Alyson, the Wife of Bath, makes the actions of the Lord’s Lady seem trivial. She proves herself to be extremely temperamental, manipulating, backwards, selfish, lewd, and all around amoral. Alyson began in the prologue of her tale by quoting examples from the Old Testament of men who had multiple wives as her defense for having had five. She states that God made no mention of the number of husbands a woman should have, so why should men make anything of it? However, later in the text, when others quote scripture, she â€Å"gives not a gnat. † Alyson was willing to use whatever she could to justify her argument, and dismiss the same source when it didn’t suit her. She worked tirelessly to manipulate her husbands for whatever she wanted. She gained all of her three old husbands’ riches, and laughed at how pitifully they struggled to please her. For as she said, â€Å"I have the power during all my life over his own body, and not he†. Her fifth husband was â€Å"a scoundrel† and the only one who was indifferent to her. He stood a chance against her, but only for so long. Eventually she gained dominion over him as well, after her stubbornness outlasted his and he gave her leave to do as she pleased. Indeed, as she states in her tale, a woman’s greatest desire is dominion over her husband. While she desired her husband’s money and power, she desired sex even more. She makes it clear that she will work at her husband and â€Å"not desist† until he is both â€Å"her debtor and her slave†. She will use her â€Å"blessed instrument† to give it to her husband both morning and night, â€Å"as freely as my maker it sent. She made her three old husbands work hard to fulfill â€Å"their debt,† and all her fifth husband had to do was lie with her for her to forget of all the wrong he had done. Her obsession with the act of sex is nothing less than repugnant. As one might expect, she also condones adultery, prostitution, and even sex before marriage. She even goes as far as to compare a woman to a household item, to be tried out. When her husband committed adultery against her, she made â€Å"him fry in his own grease for anger, and for pure jealousy,† however she did the same with the clerk in a field. Once again Alyson reveals inconsistencies in what she believes is right for her and what is right for others. In the story she tells, a young man who rapes a woman is essentially rewarded for the crime, further reinforcing her skewed sense of right and wrong. She clearly believes she is above them, and that the consequences for her own actions should not apply. She proves to be extremely selfish, not bothering to please her husbands after getting their land and their money. Further, she does not even mourn for her fourth husband, because she has already found someone to fuel her desires. All in all Alyson, the Wife of Bath, fulfills the role of the vile temptress to perfection. Chaucer created a character malignant and nearly evil in nature, which should strike fear into any man who might ever want to marry. With the creation of such incorrigible female characters with such noble male counterparts, there can leave little doubt about the stance of Chaucer and The Pearl Poet on antifeminism. The Wife of Bath’s Prologue and Tale, as well as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight provide ample amounts of support to the antifeminist stereotype in medieval times.