Critical analysis on an article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Critical analysis on an - Article Example Though this type of research is not new by any stretch of the imagination, the rigor and thorough nature of the datasets and graphs that the authors present help to engender a degree of well reasoned argument with which the reader can both understand as well as identify with. Although the weakness of the approach are not specifically enumerated upon, the authors begin the piece by discussing the ways in which the study of directional evolution risks over-simplifying the subject matter and ultimately reducing the research question to a form of â€Å"what came first the chicken or the egg†. As a means of addressing such a threat, the piece seeks to lay out a firm and rigid framework of analysis which does not allow any form of broad generalizations on the subject matter (Whittall et al 706). As far as influencing the views of this particular student and providing a bigger picture conclusions, it can be definitively stated that the results that the piece has proven leave little if any doubt in the mind with regards to the clear and inarguable nature of directional evolution and the means through which it occurs. As a function of the bigger picture, this can be understood to re-affirm Darwin’s original theory and helps to shed a further light o n the ways in which individual species evolve, grow, and develop over

Race and Alabaster Essay Example for Free

Race and Alabaster Essay Othello and Desdemona’s marriage was doomed from the start. Even considering the racial nature of the marriage, his lack of a constant home, and the improper method of his courting, there is another reason why their marriage would never have worked. Othello’s label of Desdemona prevents him from considering her a person. He thinks of her instead as superior to himself in every way, to the point that she is a god. Her race, beauty, and status make her godly in his mind. Because Othello thinks of Desdemona as â€Å"Alabaster†(5. 2.5) he will never consider her capable of responding to his love. Because Othello is at his wit’s end when he refers to her as â€Å"Alabaster†, he is speaking out of his heart. After Othello reads the letter from Venice, he begins to speak in less cohesive manner. For instance the line, â€Å"Pish! Noses, ears, and lips. Isn’t Possible? Confess! Handkerchief! O devil! †(4. 1. 42) contains none of Othello’s former eloquence. He begins to speak with word association, rather than in complete sentences. For instance, the word â€Å"confess! † brings up the word â€Å"Handkerchief!†, and â€Å"devil! †. Because Desdemona, the handkerchief, and the sense of maliciousness were on his mind so much, he begins to express with abstract words and ideas instead of sentences. Although this makes his lines harder to read, they show us what he is constantly thinking of. Instead of clear and concise lines, they are a torrent of his true feelings. Therefore when he describes Desdemona as â€Å"Alabaster†, we can be sure it is his inner picture of her. Alabaster’s beauty gives you an idea about his feelings of bodily inferiority to her. Alabaster is a naturally beautiful stone, used by ancient Egyptians and Chinese to make statues and vases. This word choice gives the reader a sense of his feelings of inadequacy to Desdemona. He is never said to be ugly, on the contrary, he is described as â€Å"far more fair than black†(1. 3. 291). He must have felt some sensitivity about his physical appearance. In contrast, he describes her face as â€Å"fair as Dian’s visage†(3. 3. 389), Dian most likely being the god of healing in Celtic mythology. This implies both beauty and health. He then goes on to say â€Å"begrimed and black as mine own face†(3. 3. 390). Othello superimposes her clean and young white face with his grimy old black face. The fact that he believed her to be unfaithful with Cassio further proves his insecurity. Cassio is a clean white man with golden hair. Cassio is all of the beauty that Othello can not be, and is therefore able to provide something that he cannot. This makes Cassio a threat to Othello’s masculinity. Othello most likely gains this opinion of Cassio from his nonchalant attitude. When Cassio says â€Å"I never knew a woman love man so†(4. 1. 111) Othello immediately jumps to the conclusion that he is referring to himself and Desdemona. Othello is on the offensive with Cassio without any proof, simply because of his physical appearance. Alabaster’s smooth white surface illustrates the racial inferiority he feels to Desdemona. Race plays an enormous part in Othello’s relationship with Desdemona. Although he is an upstanding citizen and a good solder he is still unfit to marry because of his race. A reoccurring theme in the way that people refer to Othello is that of a great black beast. He is often described as an â€Å"Old black ram†(1. 1. 87) or a â€Å"Barbary Horse†(1. 1. 110). There is a sense that he is animalistic, even though in real life he is sophisticated and civilized. This spiteful talk is a back-handed reminder that he is a moor. The constant inference that he is a beast may have caused him to believe it himself. Othello believes that Desdemona could not love an ugly animal like himself. This puts her sincerity into doubt when she says that she loves him. Alabaster is a rock, and can not return any feelings of love that Othello gives to it. This is part of a feeling that Desdemona is something elemental and beyond him. For instance in the same speech he describes her as having â€Å"Promethean heat†(5. 2. 12), Prometheus being the god that stole fire for man. Therefore â€Å"Promethean heat† would refer to the element of fire in its purest form, something divine and primeval. He also says that her death should bring â€Å"A huge eclipse of sun and moon†(5. 2. 97). This paints her as something cosmic in scale, so large and important that the entire universe should be changed in her passing. Othello puts her on a different scale than himself. When he dies he says only that â€Å"in your letters†¦ [you should] speak of me as I am†(5. 2. 338). While he is normal, she is a cosmic and divine being, unfit to love a mortal like himself. This creates insecurity in Othello. He begins to ask how can a rock, or fire, or a star in the night sky love him? Because of his high view of her, he creates a complex of his own insignificance. From his point of view, Desdemona is unable to love him because she is too elemental to have emotion. Othello has, put simply, encased Desdemona in alabaster. He has formed an opinion of her that she is unable to break free of. Because he has so strongly locked her into this state of mind he is unable to think of him in any other way. She is so high up on the pedestal that he puts her on that he is unable to see who she truly is. This is Othello’s failing. By making her too powerful, too divine, any minor fault is a glaring defect to her immaculate surface. Then at the first flaw, she becomes low and nothing, and he needs to return her to her former glory. He must â€Å"Quench thee†¦ [and] again they former light restore†(5. 2. 9). He fails to see her love through her alabaster covering.

Advances in Medical Technology :: Medicine

Advances in Medical Technology Since the 1800s medical technology as made remarkable advances. The most basic instrument for a surgeon, which was a field in which Dr. Frankenstein was a pioneer, is the scalpel. There have been no drastic changes in the scalpel since it was first constructed. What has occurred are the refinements to the instrument. When Dr. Frankenstein wielded the instrument it was a simple steel blade with an ivory handle. Although the instrument was adequate it was not completely sterile because of the ivory handle. The fact that it was also kept in a velvet lined case did also prevented the scalpel from being 100% sterile. The scalpel of today is not only completely made from stainless steel, but there are now scalpels that are disposable. How the disposable scalpel works is" a one piece handle molding including a unique integral one-way hinge" (The Granton Knife Company). This one time use blade decreases the risk of cross infection. Even though scalpels are always disinfected after each use this is just an added precaution to prevent infection. The main reason that no drastic design changes have occurred to the basic steel blade scalpel is because " the physiology of the human hand and body have not changed since ancient times, surgical tools manifest a remarkable constancy". (The Science of Incision, Barry M. Katz) Steel blades are not the only form that a scalpel takes. Scalpels are now in the form of lasers. The use of lasers began with a laser knife. The CO2 laser was used to remove cancerous tissue. Later the Nd:Yag laser was used. Lasers knifes are not the only addition to new medical technology. The introduction of the computer-tomography (CT) scanner and the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have greatly helped doctors to make a better diagnosis. When video imaging became available in the 1970s doctors discovered that by " inserting a fiber-optic endoscope through a cannula they could explore otherwise quite unimaginable places without invasive surgery". This technique led to the laparoscopic surgery "where the surgeon manipulates elongated tools through a cannula" (Katz), but instead of watching the patient the surgeon watches a video monitor. This type of surgery has forced the doctors to develop eye-hand coordination that is counterintuitive to the style in which these doctors were originally trained. The original question that was posed to me was how I felt about technology.

Christmas Song Essay -- Analysis, Christmas Carol

To many people a warm crackling fire brings about memories of the Christmas season. By listening to some of the Christmas carols played throughout the festive holiday season, it is easy to pick up on this. In one such Christmas carol, they mention â€Å"chestnuts roasting on an open fire† in this line fire is the provider of warmth light, and good spirits. By roasting the chestnuts the fire gives food and allows people to share with one another in a warm comfortable atmosphere. A second popular Christmas carol that mentions fire it â€Å"Let it Snow†. In this song, one of the main verses is â€Å"Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful, And since we've no place to go, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow†. In this verse fire is representative of the winter time and gives delight, along with warmth and light, to the person singing the song. Light is something that goes hand in hand with the Christmas holiday, but something that is not a common thought when it comes to Christmas is darkness. The example of fire and light also holds true for Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. Before the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by the spirits of his seven years dead business partner Jacob Marley, and the Ghosts of Christmas’s past, present, and future, he despises Christmas and everything about it, almost forcing his clerk, Bob Cratchit to work Christmas day. Even his always cheerful nephew Fred cannot seem to break through the hatred. But while Scrooge worked as an apprentice for Mr. Fezziwig, the hatred was not present. But through the series of events that happened in his life. Scrooge grew to hate the whole Christmas season. After he is shown what will happen to him if he doesn’t change his ways, Scrooge wakes up the ne... ...Christmas Carol reflects how much love and generosity of spirit are present among people: the greater the â€Å"good cheer† the brighter the scene, the more greed, self-centeredness, or hostility, the more absolute the darkness. An example discussed in the novel was the amount of light and therefore, spirit, love and generosity, present in the moor where the miners work. In contrast to the miners light, was the gloom surrounding Scrooge before he was visited by the three ghosts. Although Scrooge was surrounded by murkiness, greed and self-centeredness before the ghosts visited him, by the time he went to his nephew Fred’s party there much more light, love and generosity present. Fire light and warmth play an important role in The Christmas Carol but darkness and gloom play an equally important role in representing the characteristics of people in the scene.

IB Interesting Facts Essay

1968, IB, standing for the International Baccalaureate, has been founded as a non-profit educational organization at the International School of Geneva. It was created by teachers at the school, in addition to help from teachers from all over the world. Today, the International Baccalaureate has grown into a university preparatory program that has been divided, in most schools, into three programs for students as young as 3 years old to students 19 years old. †¢It was first created to accommodate English and French. †¢It is aimed at developing a global awareness for its students. In other words, students learn how to accept global cultures, perspectives. †¢IB first originated in private schools. Over the years, this changed so that nearly fifty-percent of all schools providing the International Baccalaureate would be government owned and thus free of tuition. †¢The fact that many governments all over the world have adopted the International Baccalaureate shows the confidence that they have that their future generations will truly be better off in this type of curriculum. †¢It was through the efforts of Alec Peterson (director of the Department of Educational Studies, Oxford University) that universities recognized the International Baccalaureate. †¢At first, in the beginning of the 1980s, the International Baccalaureate was viewed as a threat from some governments all over. Governments believed that the International Baccalaureate would draw their children away from their national educational systems. †¢However, this idea was later refuted and the International Baccalaureate was viewed as a enhancement to their educational systems and was later adopted at a very rapid rate. †¢Today, people who acquire the International Baccalaureate get accepted to the top universities all over the globe (in North America, Europe, UK, etc) †¢IBO, in 1994 founded the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program for students aged eleven to sixteen. †¢In 1997, IBO created the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program, which is aimed at creating well-rounded and cultured students whom are three to eleven years old. Works Cited â€Å"IB Timeline.† IBO. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Oct. 2012. .

ACT What Should You Do

Low GPA but High SAT/ACT What Should You Do SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Say you have done the near-impossible, and gotten an amazing SAT score of 2200 or higher or an ACT score of 32 or higher. Many high school students across the country are probably jealous of you! But what if your GPA is much lower – a 3.0, or even a 2.0? Do you still have a shot at top colleges? What will admissions officers think about you? Read on to find out what to do with a low GPA, high SAT/ACT score application. That high score could be worth a lot more than you think! The Good News Your high SAT/ACT score proves your academic abilities and intellectual aptitude. While it’s possible to have a high GPA without being super smart (since some schools inflate GPAs), it’s almost impossible to get a high SAT/ACT score if you don’t have significant intellectual ability. Colleges know this. Since the SAT and ACT are national, standardized tests, if you do well on them you'll stack up very favorably compared with the entire applicant pool. For example, if you have a 34 ACT, that means you scored higher than 99% of the country. Having a 4.0 GPA, on the other hand, doesn’t allow colleges to easily compare you to other students. This is because grading scales and class difficulty varies among high schools. One other thing to keep in mind is that applying to schools where your SAT/ACT score is above their average admitted student score raises your odds of admission because your score will raise the schools' averages. Remember, colleges are also trying to maximize their score profiles, and getting students with higher SAT/ACT scores to apply can make them look good. The Bad News Your transcript and GPA are very important, especially for competitive schools. Stanford says on their admissions website, â€Å"We expect you to challenge yourself throughout high school and to do very well. The most important credential that enables us to evaluate your academic record is the high school transcript.† Why is the transcript – including your GPA – so important? Because your GPA shows your performance over a long period of time, as well as your ability to succeed in tough classes. This is important to help colleges decide if you will be able to succeed in their classes. If you’re a junior or senior with a low GPA, you don’t have a lot of time to raise it before you turn in your college applications. So what can you do? We will tell you what colleges might think about your low GPA and high ACT/SAT combination, questions they will have, and tips for you based on what your exact circumstances are. How Low Is Low? Of course, just how low your GPA is will affect your odds of admission. There is a huge difference between a 3.5, which would be considered low at selective colleges but well within range at many state schools, and a 2.0, which is considered low at most colleges. Also make sure you're not being hard on yourself... you may think your 3.9 GPA is low, but most colleges won't. Find out what the admitted student GPA range is at your target schools. You can do this by searching â€Å"[Name of College/University] Average GPA Admission† or â€Å"[Name of College/University] Admission Requirements.† If your GPA is just out of range, your high SAT/ACT score will likely make up for your GPA, especially if the rest of your application is strong. But if your GPA is far below their range, it will be especially important to use your application to explain why your GPA is low. So if you’re reaching for a tough college, or have a way out-of-range GPA, read on to find out what to do! What Do Colleges Think of Your High SAT/ACT and Low GPA? If you have a high SAT/ACT score but low GPA, admissions officers will assume your academic potential is high – your SAT/ACT score shows that – but that your motivation is low, hence your low GPA. A â€Å"smart slacker† could be the first thing that comes to mind when an admissions officer reads your file. So what you have to do is prove that assumption wrong. Whether you have personal circumstances leading to a low GPA, a demanding extracurricular, or other academic preparation outside of high school classes, your goal is to show that not only are you smart – but you can also work hard and do well in college. We will go through a series of scenarios, guided by the main questions admissions officers will be asking, about why your GPA is low and what it means. For each scenario, we have some specific advice, but read through all of them as your situation is likely unique and combines multiple scenarios. Why Is Your GPA Low? This is the big question admissions officers will have when they see your application. This is the question your application has to satisfyingly answer, especially if you want a shot at top colleges. We will explore the two circumstances most likely to excuse a low GPA. Don’t worry if these don’t apply to you – we have plenty more advice coming! Scenario 1: Extenuating Circumstances If you have serious extenuating circumstances like a medical condition or family crisis, definitely explain them on your application. This would fit in the â€Å"extra information† box for sure, but it could also be good material for your personal statement. For example, if you have a low GPA because your family had financial troubles, both of your parents started working long hours, and you became the primary caretaker for younger siblings and didn’t have time for homework, that should definitely be on your application as part of your story. Or if your grades suffered due to a medical condition, you should definitely make that known on your application. In short, if you had serious outside circumstances that affected your grades, make sure you explain them thoroughly on your application. You want to make sure colleges know that, in your case, your GPA wasn’t entirely in your control. You should highlight academic interests and classes you did do well in, but the explanation of your circumstances will be the best way to help admissions officers evaluate your file fairly. Scenario 2: You Spent Tons of Time on an Extracurricular If you spend a lot of time on an extracurricular – say you’re a debater who’s been to nationals or an award-winning flute player – at the expense of classes, it won’t excuse a low GPA, but it will improve your chances. In addition to top scores and high GPAs, colleges are also looking for exceptionally talented students in specific fields. If you have an exceptional ability, it could overcome a low GPA, especially with your high ACT/SAT score. Any extracurriculars done at the national level will look especially good. Do neither of these situations apply to you? Keep reading. If you've played Carnegie Hall, colleges will probably be fairly forgiving about that C in Biology... What Kinds of Classes Were You Taking? A low GPA in hard classes will look better than a low GPA in easier ones. You should think about the pattern of grades you received and why you got low grades where you did. College admissions officers will be trying to figure out this pattern too, so make it easier for them and explain whatever pattern you have. For example†¦ Scenario 3: You Took Hard Classes and Got a Low GPA Did you overload yourself with too many hard courses and struggle to keep up? In your essay, you could talk about what you learned from taking on too much at a time and how you will be more careful and focused in college. Since you were in those hard classes, you should also highlight what you learned and any intellectual development you experienced. For example, even if you got a low grade in AP Biology, maybe taking it convinced you that you want to explore pre-med courses in college and so you began volunteering at a local hospital or signed up for a medical anatomy class. That kind of journey would show colleges that you have serious interests, and even if your grades aren’t high, you are capable of doing hard work and improving. Scenario 4: You Took Easy Classes and Got a Low GPA Were you uninterested by easy classes at your school, and ended up slacking off? This will be a harder sell, but if you were in mostly regular classes (not honors or AP or IB) and got a low GPA, you could argue you simply weren’t interested by your classes and had a hard time keeping up with menial assignments, but did have intellectual pursuits in your free time. The above argument will be more compelling if you went to a high school without very many honors, AP, or IB options. Your application would also be strengthened if you have a career goal in mind and do well in certain classes related to it. For example, if you want to be a lawyer and manage to pull decent grades in English and History, it could help convince admissions officers that despite your slacking in other classes, you will be able to pull together and focus on your major in college. Hint: video games don't count as an intellectual pursuit (unless you design them). What’s Your Grade Trend? While a high GPA is important, so is an overall trend of improved grades or harder classes year to year. Whether you have a rising grade trend or a sinking one, read on to learn what it means and how it affects your applications. Scenario 5: You Started With Low Grades but Improved If you’re reading this as a sophomore or junior, work to improve your grades starting now. You won’t be able to totally fix your GPA, but you will be able to show a story of improvement, which can be just as important. A pattern of improved grades shows that you fixed issues you had with time management and have gotten better at handling assignments and tests. This growth is important because it shows admissions officers you can continue to grow and improve in college. This will look especially good if you have been succeeding in honors, AP, or IB classes later in your high school career, as it suggests you are learning the skills needed to succeed in college. If you have this pattern on your transcript, definitely spend some time on your application explaining why you struggled at the beginning of high school, and what caused you to improve your grades. Along with a high ACT/SAT score, an improved GPA can convince colleges you are academically prepared. Scenario 6: You Started With High Grades but They Dropped If you started with great grades and your GPA has fallen, you’ll have to explain why. Took on too many hard classes? You became overly involved in a sport or extracurricular? Illness in the family? It will also be especially important to prove you have other academic or intellectual interests, like we will discuss below. A lowering grade trend is more worrisome to collegesbecause it suggests you had a hard time coping with harder classes later in high school, or even that you’ve burned yourself out before college. You will have to prove that you have strong academic interests and are capable of doing well, despite your trend of sinking grades. One way to do this is to take a few Honors, AP or IB classes senior year and make sure you do well in them. Colleges will see a mid-year grade report, so if they see that you have taken on harder classes and are doing better, that will reassure them that you are capable of doing well in college courses. Another way to reassure colleges is with SAT Subject Tests. Some colleges require them for admission, some don’t, but nearly all will consider them. Getting high SAT subject tests scores will help convince admissions officers that you’re academically capable in certain subjects. If you haven’t taken any SAT Subject Tests yet, consider it – many students take them late in the game (even in Senior fall). If you are confident of your ability on tests, and you have even a bit of time to devote to studying, a high SAT subject score or two could help prove your ability in academic subjectsand help overshadow your GPA. If your GPA trend looks like this, you have some explaining to do... Can You Prove Your Academic Preparation in a Different Way? If your GPA is low and you don’t have a good reason for it, your task will be to prove to colleges you are still academically prepared, despite your low GPA. Your high ACT/SAT score is the first step towards proving yourself, but also consider other ways you can show your smarts†¦ Scenario 7: You Have One Weak Subject Is there a certain subject you struggle in? Is your GPA low because you have Ds in math but As and Bs everywhere else? If so, you should highlight your strengths in other subjects. For example, If you have great grades in English classes, highlight that on your application and talk about what draws you to English and why you enjoy it. Show that you have strong intellectual interests in your best subjects, which you can do through your personal statement or college supplements on the Common App. If you have done outside work or an extracurricular related to these classes, even better. For example, if you’re great at English and history and spend time outside of class in Mock Trial, you can talk about how your interest in law drives you to do well in history and English. This won’t totally excuse low math grades you might have, but it will show colleges you have strong academic interests. Help colleges focus on the positive! Scenario 8: You Took and Passed AP or IB Exams Did you take and pass AP or IB exams? For example, even if you got Cs all year in World History but passed the test with a 4, that at least proves you mastered most of the material. If this is the case for you, highlight exams you did well on and talk about your intellectual interest in those subjects. You could address why you didn’t do well in the classes in the â€Å"extra information† box, but focus on explaining your academic interests and how you want to continue pursuing them in college in the personal statement. Remember, you want to demonstrate your academic abilities to colleges. A passing AP/IB score is an important piece of evidence, so follow it up with an essay further explaining your interests! Scenario 9: You Took Outside Enrichment Classes Whether you attended an academic summer camp or took an extra course or two at a community college, definitely put that information on your application. It won't make up for your low grades, but it will show colleges that you are serious about your intellectual pursuits and made time outside of school for learning. This can be especially helpful if you get an additional letter of recommendation from a professor or instructor you worked with. Scenario 10: You Have Academic Interests Outside of School So your GPA is low, but do you do things like read War and Peace in your spare time? Have you learned a coding language on your own and designed your own app? If you can’t show your academic preparation through any high course grades or AP/IB exam results, find a way to include outside academic interests in your application. If you’ve attended Hackathons or entered writing contests, fit that into your application under extracurriculars. This kind of outside interest could be great material for a personal statement as well. Basically, if you have academic preparation or interests that are not going to show up on your transcript, make sure they show up on your application! It will be reassuring to admissions officers to see you have outside intellectual pursuits. Writing code is a more acceptable excuse for slacking off in Algebra than watching television... How Can You Compensate With the Rest of Your Application? College applications are holistic, meaning they consider the candidate as a whole. GPA is just one factor. While it’s an important factor, if everything else on your application is strong you can improve your chances of admission. Having a high SAT/ACT score is your big advantage because you won’t be weeded out immediately based on your score. Read on to see how to maximize the other categories. Personal Statement Your essay is another opportunity to prove yourself. If you had significant extenuating circumstances, you could talk about them here. If you were bored and slacked off, use the essay as a space to explain an intellectual interest or hobby to offset your low GPA. No matter what you write about, make sure your essay is well-written and presents your unique voice. Remember – you no longer have control over your GPA, but you have complete control over your essay and how it presents you. Use it wisely! Extracurriculars Do you have any other extracurriculars that speak to intellectual aptitude? Math competitions, Model United Nations, writing for the school newspaper – these are the kinds of extracurriculars that support academic interests. If you have them, definitely highlight them. Extracurriculars in the arts – from musical instruments to drawing to theater – are also great because they speak to interests outside of the classroom. You should also talk about your involvement in sports, since that excelling in them requires both discipline and teamwork skills. In short, you should highlight any extracurricular activity you have, even if you don’t think it’s significant. Extracurriculars can help show colleges you have outside interests, discipline, and the ability to work with others. These are all important factors, but can also help make up for a low GPA. Teacher Recommendations For your letters of recommendation, find teachers who can either speak to your personal circumstances or believe in your academic potential. You want to make sure your recommendations are supporting evidence for your application, not contradicting information. For example, if your GPA is low due to an illness, find a teacher who can speak to your perseverance when you were sick, or how hard you worked once your condition improved. If you don’t have extenuating circumstances like that, make sure you find teachers who have great, specific things to say about you and your academic potential. Maybe you have an English teacher who always loved your essays or a math teacher who often called you to the front to explain problems on the board. Find teachers who recognize your abilities and would write you a kind letter. Don't get a teacher to write a letter just because they taught you in a hard subject. If a recommender doesn't have specific things to say about you, the letter won't help your application. If you’re not sure you can get an amazing recommendation from a teacher, many colleges allow an additional letter to be submitted, from someone like a coach or boss. Find a third person who you know will speak very highly of you and use them for that third letter. Where Are You Applying? Your odds of admission will also depend on where you’re applying. For example, say you have a 2360 SAT but a 2.7 GPA. While your SAT would make you competitive for the Ivy League, it will be harder to overcome your low GPA at highly competitive schools. They simply have too many applicants with both high test scoresand high GPAs to admit many people with a serious deficiency in either. That 2360 alone won't get you into Harvard... However, if you apply to less competitive schools where your SAT is far above their 25-75 percentile ranges, you would actually be quite a desirable candidate since your SAT score would raise their averages. (The 25-75 ranges are the score ranges that the middle 50 percent of colleges’ accepted students fall in. For example, a 25-75 range of 24-30 ACT means that 25% of applicants scored lower than a 24, 25% scored higher than 30, and the middle 50% were between 24 and 30.) Furthermore, a less competitive school will be more forgiving of a weak spot on your application, in this case your GPA, as opposed to a very selective school. As a general rule, it’s important to apply to a range of colleges. Don't just apply to all eight Ivy Leagues hoping that one will let you in. Apply to a few schools that are reaches given your GPA and ACT/SAT combo, a few that are safe targets, and a few that you think you will definitely get into, like state or community colleges. You want to make sure you have some choices when it’s time to decide which college you’ll attend. What’s Next? Learn about automatic scholarships for SAT/ACT scores. While colleges usually factor in GPA or Class Rank, see how far your high test score can get you. Want to use SAT Subject Tests to raise your chances of admission? Learn which colleges require SAT Subject Tests for admission. Check out our SAT/ACT Percentile rankings guides to see just how much your high score stands out. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Chicago Referencing †How to Cite a Book

Chicago Referencing – How to Cite a Book Chicago Referencing – How to Cite a Book The Chicago Manual of Style actually sets out rules for two separate citation styles: in-text â€Å"author–date† citations and a footnote/bibliography system. Depending on your outlook, this dual system is either admirably versatile or unhelpfully confusing. Nevertheless, whichever approach you’re using, it’s vital that you know how to cite a book correctly. On our academic blog today, we run through the basics for doing this using both approaches. Author–Date Citations As with many parenthetical referencing systems, Chicago-style author–date citations require you to provide the author’s surname and the date of publication in the main text when referencing a source. A citation of a book by cheeky French philosopher Paul Ricoeur would, therefore, appear as: Interpretation involves the metaphorical and speculative domains of meaning (Ricoeur 1978). If the author is named in the text, only the year is required in the citation. The only other thing you’ll need to provide in in-text citations are relevant page numbers when quoting a source: Ricoeur (1978, 17) states that â€Å"metaphor is defined in terms of movement.† All cited texts should then be added to a reference list at the end of your document, with sources listed alphabetically by author surname and full publication details provided. For a book, this includes: Author Surname, First Name. Year of Publication. Title. City of Publication: Publisher. In Ricoeur’s case, this translates to: Ricoeur, Paul. 1978. The Rule of Metaphor. London: Routledge Kegan Paul. Footnotes/Bibliography The other form of Chicago referencing places citations in footnotes, as indicated by superscript numbers in the main text (e.g., 1, 2, 3). The information required for the first citation of a book is: n. Author Name, Title (City of Publication: Publisher, Year), Page Number(s). Returning to our philosopher friend, the first footnote for The Rule of Metaphor would therefore appear as: 1. Paul Ricoeur, The Rule of Metaphor (London: Routledge Kegan Paul, 1978), 24. Subsequent citations of the same text can be shorted to just author surname, a shortened version of the book title and the relevant page number (or â€Å"pinpoint reference,† as it is otherwise known): 2. Ricoeur, Rule of Metaphor, 112. As well as footnotes, this version of Chicago referencing lists all cited texts in a bibliography at the end of the document. The information required is similar to the first footnote, but with slightly different punctuation and the author name reversed so that sources can be listed alphabetically by surname: Ricoeur, Paul. The Rule of Metaphor. London: Routledge Kegan Paul, 1978. A Final Thought Since these two versions of Chicago referencing are very different, the single most important thing you can do before you begin writing is check which version is specified by your style guide. Also, it’s worth mentioning that Paul Ricoeur would probably have rejected being described as â€Å"cheeky.† Nevertheless, it’s how we prefer to think of him.

Biography of Túpac Amaru, the Last of the Incan Lords

Biography of Tà ºpac Amaru, the Last of the Incan Lords Tà ºpac Amaru (1545–September 24, 1572) was the last of the indigenous rulers of the Inca. He ruled during the time of the Spanish occupation and was executed by the Spanish after the final defeat of the Neo-Inca state. Fast Facts: Tà ºpac Amaru Known For: The last indigenous ruler of the IncaAlso Known As: Tà ºpac Amaru,  Topa Amaru,  Thupa Amaro,  Tupaq Amaru, Thupaq AmaruBorn: 1545 (exact date unknown) in or near CuscoParents: Manco Capac (father); mother unknownDied: September 24, 1572  in CuscoSpouse: UnknownChildren: One sonNotable Quote: Ccollanan Pachacamac ricuy auccacunac yawarniy hichascancuta. (Pacha Kamaq, witness how my enemies shed my blood. Early Life Tupac Amaru, a member of the Incan royal family, grew up in the Incan convent Vilcabamba, the religious university of the Incas. As a young adult, he was against the Spanish occupation and rejected Christianity. Indigenous Incan leaders supported him because of that. Background When the Spanish arrived in the Andes in the early 1530s, they found the wealthy Inca Empire in turmoil. Feuding brothers Atahualpa and Huscar ruled over two halves of the mighty Empire. Huscar was killed by Atahuallpa’s agents and Atahualpa himself was captured and executed by the Spanish, effectively ending the time of the Inca. A brother of Atahualpa and Huscar, Manco Inca Yupanqui, managed to escape with some loyal followers and established himself head of a small kingdom, first at Ollantaytambo and later in Vilcabamba. Manco Inca Yupanqui was assassinated by Spanish deserters in 1544. His 5-year-old son Sayri Tà ºpac took over and ruled his small kingdom with the help of regents. The Spanish sent ambassadors and relations between the Spanish in Cusco and the Inca at Vilcabamba warmed. In 1560, Sayri Tà ºpac was eventually persuaded to come to Cusco, renounce his throne, and accept baptism. In exchange, he was given vast lands and a profitable marriage. He died suddenly in 1561, and his half-brother Titu Cusi Yupanqui became the leader of Vilcabamba. Titu Cusi was more cautious than his half-brother had been. He fortified Vilcabamba and refused to come to Cusco for any reason, although he did allow ambassadors to stay. In 1568, however, he finally relented, accepting baptism and, in theory, turning over his kingdom to the Spanish, although he consistently delayed any visit to Cusco. Spanish Viceroy Francisco de Toledo repeatedly attempted to buy off Titu Cusi with presents such as fine cloth and wine. In 1571, Titu Cusi became ill. Most of the Spanish diplomats were not in Vilcabamba at the time, leaving only Friar Diego Ortiz and translator Pedro Pando. Tà ºpac Amaru Ascends the Throne The Inca lords in Vilcabamba asked Friar Ortiz to ask his God to save Titu Cusi. When Titu Cusi died, they held the friar accountable and killed him by tying a rope through his lower jaw and dragging him through town. Pedro Pando was also killed. Next in line was Tà ºpac Amaru, Titu Cusi’s brother, who had been living in semi-seclusion in a temple. About the time Tà ºpac Amaru was made leader, a Spanish diplomat returning to Vilcabamba from Cusco was killed. Although it is unlikely that Tà ºpac Amaru had anything to do with it, he was blamed and the Spanish prepared for war. War with the Spanish Tà ºpac Amaru had only been in charge for a few weeks when the Spanish arrived, led by 23-year-old Martà ­n Garcà ­a Oà ±ez de Loyola, a promising officer of noble blood who would later become governor of Chile. After a couple of skirmishes, the Spanish managed to capture Tà ºpac Amaru and his top generals. They relocated all the men and women who had been living in Vilcabamba and brought Tà ºpac Amaru and the generals back to Cusco. Dates of birth for Tà ºpac Amaru are vague, but he was approximately in his late 20s at the time. They were all sentenced to die for insurrection: the generals by hanging and Tà ºpac Amaru by beheading. Death The generals were thrown in prison and tortured, and Tà ºpac Amaru was sequestered and given intense religious training for several days. He eventually converted and accepted baptism. Some of the generals had been tortured so badly that they died before making it to the gallows- although their bodies were hung anyway. Tà ºpac Amaru was led through the city escorted by 400 Caà ±ari warriors, traditional bitter enemies of the Inca. Several important priests, including the influential Bishop Agustà ­n de la Coruà ±a, pleaded for his life, but Viceroy Francisco de Toledo ordered the sentence to be carried out. The heads of Tà ºpac Amaru and his generals were put on pikes and left at the scaffold. Before long, the locals- many of whom still considered the Inca ruling family to be divine- started worshiping the head of Tà ºpac Amaru, leaving offerings and small sacrifices. When notified of this, Viceroy Toledo ordered the head to be buried with the rest of the body. With the death of Tà ºpac Amaru and the destruction of the last Inca kingdom in Vilcabamba, Spanish domination of the region was complete. Historic Context Tà ºpac Amaru never really had a chance; he came into power at a time when events had already conspired against him. The deaths of the Spanish priest, interpreter, and ambassador were not of his doing, as they took place before he was made the leader of Vilcabamba. As a result of these tragedies, he was forced to fight a war he may not have even wanted. In addition, Viceroy Toledo had already decided to stamp out the last Inca holdout at Vilcabamba. The legality of the conquest of the Inca was being seriously questioned by reformers (primarily in the religious orders) in Spain and in the New World, and Toledo knew that without a ruling family to which the Empire could be returned, questioning the legality of the conquest was moot. Although Viceroy Toledo was reprimanded by the crown for the execution, he did the king a favor by removing the last legitimate legal threat to Spanish rule in the Andes. Legacy Today Tà ºpac Amaru stands as a symbol for the indigenous people of Peru of the horrors of the conquest and Spanish colonial rule. He is considered the first indigenous leader to seriously rebel against the Spanish in an organized way and, as such, he has become the inspiration for many guerrilla groups over the centuries. In 1780, his great-grandson Josà © Gabriel Condorcanqui adopted the name Tà ºpac Amaru and launched a short-lived but serious rebellion against the Spanish in Peru. The Peruvian communist rebel group Movimiento Revolucionario Tà ºpac Amaru (â€Å"Tà ºpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement†) took their name from him, as did the Uruguayan Marxist rebel group the Tupamaros. Tupac Amaru Shakur (1971–1996) was an American rapper who was named after Tà ºpac Amaru II. Sources De Gamboa, Pedro Sarmiento, History of the Incas. Mineola, New York: Dover Publications, Inc. 1999. (written in Peru in 1572)MacQuarrie, Kim.  The Last Days of the Incas, Simon Schuster, 2007.

How has Massachusetts differed from other states in dealing with Essay

How has Massachusetts differed from other states in dealing with fiscal problems in the last couple of years - Essay Example Since the recession started, most states have closed more than $425 billion in shortfalls. All states have to balance operating budgets at least biennially unlike the federal government, which can go on providing services even with a financial downturn. Since federal economic assistance is to expire before the recovery of most state budgets, the states must address these shortfalls by a combination of tax increases and spending cuts. This paper aims to discuss how the state of Massachusetts has differed from other states in dealing with their fiscal problems. An annual update released by the US Census Bureau for local and state government finances provided national data for the year 2010. The amount of local and state taxes in Massachusetts as total personal income share was 10.2% in the fiscal year 2010. Using this measure, the state of Massachusetts, recorded lower taxation when compared to twenty-four other states (Ellwood 23). Measuring of taxes as a personal income share allows financial experts a meaningful comparison tool to compare states. Taxes act as the primary funding source for people living in various states that are provided to government for the provision of such functions as public education, safety nets, libraries, playgrounds and parks. The new data from the census shows that Massachusetts has a level of taxation ranging at 10.42%, below the average nationally that came at 10.59% in 2010 (Ellwood 23). If the state of Massachusetts had a taxation level at the average nationally, then local and state government would have had an extra $1.1 billion to spend during the fiscal year. Most states across the United States started implementing budget cuts in spring 2008 with the recession bringing weakened revenues sharply into focus. These cuts have increased given the persistently high unemployment. Most states cut funding by 4.2% in 2009 and a further 6.8% in 2010 despite the continued need for services that are funded by the state (Ellwood 25). Ho wever, in Massachusetts, a few diversions were noted, especially with budget cuts. Massachusetts has four major categories in their budget where they spent much more than other states despite/ instead of effecting cuts. These were public welfare, transit, veteran services and unemployment compensation. Public welfare, behind education, is the second largest category in the census encompassing temporary assistance for needy families, food stamp program and Medicaid. Unlike other states, Massachusetts has seen overspending in this category, indicated by the low ratings for welfare reform. TANF afforded flexibility to most states for the administration of benefits provided the goals set out by TANF were satisfied. A comprehensive study gave Massachusetts a low grade for the satisfaction of these goals, with a score of 34.9% and a ranking of forty-sixth out of fifty states (Ellwood 28). Unemployment compensation includes benefits that are funded by the federal government such as basic u nemployment benefits and cash benefits for military and civilian employees. This includes shared expenditure, for example, extended employment for those states with high rates of unemployment. One significant indicator that Massachusetts overspends in this category compared to other states in this category is the fact that, in 2008s second quarter, Massachusetts recorded the second highest rate of weekly payment at $391.91 in comparison to the national average at $285.28 (Gold 250). Massachusetts’

Principles of Microeconomics Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Principles of Microeconomics - Research Paper Example a single buyer in the entire business setting. Entry in such a market is restricted as a result of high cost or due to impediments which may be social, economic or even political. For instance the government can opt to create a monopoly over an industry. On the other side, monopolistic competition is generally a type of imperfect competition in that the competing producers sell products which are totally different from each other as goods but not necessarily perfect substitutes (Kamien 1982). Therefore, in a monopolistically competitive market, different firms can behave as if they are monopolies in the short-run by using market power to generate more profits. Later in the long-run, once other firms enter the same market, the benefits will be shared among them and the overall profit due to differential will considerably decrease with increase in competition. Having understood the basic principles about monopoly and monopolistically market structure, now it is very easy to anally the case in hand. As mentioned in the question, that in the year 2007 potato chip industry was operating as under monopolistically market. ... In most cases, it is argued that a multi-producer monopolist will always charge a lower price as compared tom firms operating separately producing the same complement products (Ralf 2000). As a result of lower pricing, demand will be higher since more customers are encouraged to buy at a lower price. The result is that, in the long run is that there will be a shortage of production because monopolistic generally produces less product than that society efficient level of output. In the long run, the price of commodities will be much higher due to less supply in the market. The strategy here is that, profit made earlier and being part of the surplus, it is transferred from consumers to the producers and this creates a social cost which arises from inefficiency low output that ends up to a dead weight loss. Immediately after transformation into a monopoly market the result would be realized within a short duration. For instance, due to monopoly the prices charged are much higher because there is no close substitute for the product. Those are at a disadvantage are the low income consumers who might be exploited by such a monopoly market where prices are a bit higher (Mckenzie 2008) Thought to producer high prices contribute to increase in the profit made by the firm. These benefits will be transferred to stakeholders whose main objective is after profit maximization. Though that may be the case, but sometime, a firm may not enjoy the domestic monopoly power, rather face an intense competition from other oversee producers. This tends to limit their market power and instead help in keeping prices lower for the consumers. Once manager has received such profits both in the short run and in the long run, they will distribute it

Gender roles and Marriage Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Gender roles and Marriage - Thesis Example While sex refers to the biological classification into male and female categories, gender indicates social classification of the masculine and feminine attributes. On the other hand identity depends on ones self realization about his or her sexual category. In the paper two stories have been taken up for study – ‘The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ by James Thurber and ‘The Story of an Hour’ by Kate Chopin. In the former work, Mr. Mitty tries to build his masculine identity through his regular daydreams and in the second work, Mrs. Mallard tries to gain freedom from the repressive bond of marriage and a kind of sexual freedom is experienced after she hears the news of her husband’s death. In fact both these characters of opposite gender tries to gain freedom in their own ways. Mr. Walter Mitty attempts to gain freedom from the influence of his dominating wife who apparently always has the last word. The institution of marriage can be repressive ow ing to the influence of gender roles. ‘The Story of An Hour’ by the American writer Kate Chopin talks about the central character Mrs. Mallard’s reaction and mental transformation on hearing the news of her husband’s death and the mix of emotions experienced by the frail woman. Widowhood does cause some sorrow but within minutes it brings forth a new opportunity and light to the journey of life. The transformation in thoughts and a feeling of some kind of freedom gradually replaces the initial feeling of loss. In this case the freedom enjoyed within shows how repressive the marriage could be. This is not really written to criticize the character of Mr. Mallard as a repressive husband but through the reactions of his wife, it mocks this supposedly happy union. The open window, the comfortable chair, ‘delicious breath of rain’ and the tops of the trees that were ‘all aquiver with the new spring life’, all indicate an underlying feeling of regeneration or rebirth and a m ind which is open to the change and the new life that will belong solely to her. The open window through which she stares at the sky represents a glance at life through the eye of freedom. Mrs. Mallard was ‘young, with a fair, calm face, whose lines bespoke repression and even a certain strength’; this description has been used as a tool to highlight the change that was taking place within. She was gaining her strength from the expectation of a new life approaching her. These new oncoming years have been portrayed like â€Å"creeping out of the sky, reaching toward her through the sounds, the scents, the color that filled the air†. (Chopin, 1894) Chopin’s story bears significance to The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Gilman where the wife finally protests against her husband who does not want her to write and always asks her to rest and sleep like a sick woman. Again, there are sexual overtones in the story that cannot be overlooked. The initial ‘stor m of grief’ is almost indicative of a sexual urge or release, which goes hand in hand with the term ‘wild abandonment’. The quivering of the trees is analogous with the thighs that aquiver with sexual anticipation. The term ‘haunted’ signifies that she was craving for it from within and therefore this freedom meant physical or sexual freedom as well (Eggins, 2004, p.39) She also prays that her life may be long. This shows the immense joy experienced. The expression in her eye has also changed from a dull glare to a look of ‘feverish triumph’. As she came down the stairs into the living room, being supported by her sister, Mr.

Premature Rupture of Membrane during Labor Essay

Premature Rupture of Membrane during Labor - Essay Example However, her pulse is at 80bpm, 37.7oC temperature, and blood pressure at 111/58, and normal respiration at 16. Fetal heart rate is at 140. The patient is under the monitor of IUPC for frequency, intensity, and duration of contractions. The fetus is monitored by the external electronic fetal. Cervical dilation is 4cm, station 3, and 70% effaced. Fetus is in cephalic presentation. At 1000 assessment, cervical dilation is still 4cm, station -3, and 80% effaced, and the patient is in pain and distress, with a pain of eight in a 1 to 10 scale. Pain medication administered and support person taught lower back massage to alleviate back pain. Fetal heart rates are at 138, with 3 to 5 minutes contractions ranging between 30 seconds to one minute long. At 1200, epidural block administered after patients complain of pain, and advised not to lie on her back. Nursing Diagnosis and Pathophysiology Managing labor at term with spontaneously ruptured membranes can be confusing. Concerns arise about the appropriate management for pre-labor rupture of membranes and the spontaneous rapture of membranes after the labor begins. The nursing diagnosis priority is the examination of the premature rapture of membrane through a thorough physical, history examination, as well as selected laboratory studies. The primary caregiver should carry out a speculum examination to determine the presence of any cervical dilation or effacement. On suspicion of membranes premature rapture, it is integral to halt digital cervical examinations, as they tend to increase mortality and morbidity. Moreover, the digital cervical examinations result to a decrease of about nine days in the latent period (Medina and Hill, 2006). Evidence of pooling fluid in the vagina, or leakage from the cervical on application of fundal pressure or when the patient coughs, assist the care provider in determining membranes raptures. Diagnostic methods such as the use of nitrazine paper and ferning determination have sensitivi ties of about 90%. Nitrazine paper turns blue in the presence of amniotic fluid with a pH above 6.0. However, other contaminations such as presence of semen, blood, and bacterial vaginosis may give similar outcomes. The care providers should reserve a swab for determining the presence of ferning, which if positive indicates premature membranes rapture (Medina and Hill, 2006). Management of Pre-labor Membranes Ruptures at Term Previous studies on the management of pre-labor membranes ruptures focus essentially on the comparison of the incidence of infection in immediate induction patients versus the expected management on risk of infection after different durations of rupture. In their examinations, researchers compared outcomes from an induction and expected management with premature rupture of membrane at term. According to their reports, there were no differences in infection rate between the two examination groups, as well as a higher rate of caesarian section cases in the induce d groups. A more recent research by Hannah and colleagues called TERMPROM study, a large, randomized multicentre trial, which compared immediate induction to expectant management running up to four days after the diagnosis of premature rupture of membrane at term. Results of the study show that maternal infection occurred at higher rates in women managed expectantly (Marowitz and Hunter, 2004). The rates of caesarian sections and neonatal infections were the same. Care Plan The following is the care plan for

How are learning and teaching related Then, Elaborate on the business Essay

How are learning and teaching related Then, Elaborate on the business roles in the learning organization - Essay Example In general, learning can be acquired with the use of either formal or informal intervention. A good example of formal learning intervention includes the act of enrolling in formal educational courses, the provision of training and development programs, requiring employees to participate in formal business meetings, or attending conference being led by external professionals (Bull et al., 2008). On top of using self-reflection techniques and self-analysis methods, informal learning is possible when there is a two-way communication among employees, between the top management and the low ranking employees, and vice versa including situations wherein employees are able to communicate directly with the customers (Cheetham & Chivers, 2001). In order to minimize barriers to teaching and learning, business managers should establish a strong organizational culture that acknowledges not only the importance of organizational learning but also the use of effective leadership style and improvemen ts in communication skills. In line with this, the use of leadership style enables the business managers to effectively convince and persuade employees to participate in the promotion of organizational learning. References Bull, G., Thompson, A., Searson, M., Garofalo, J., Park, J., Young, C., et al. (2008).

Premature Rupture of Membrane during Labor Essay

Premature Rupture of Membrane during Labor - Essay Example However, her pulse is at 80bpm, 37.7oC temperature, and blood pressure at 111/58, and normal respiration at 16. Fetal heart rate is at 140. The patient is under the monitor of IUPC for frequency, intensity, and duration of contractions. The fetus is monitored by the external electronic fetal. Cervical dilation is 4cm, station 3, and 70% effaced. Fetus is in cephalic presentation. At 1000 assessment, cervical dilation is still 4cm, station -3, and 80% effaced, and the patient is in pain and distress, with a pain of eight in a 1 to 10 scale. Pain medication administered and support person taught lower back massage to alleviate back pain. Fetal heart rates are at 138, with 3 to 5 minutes contractions ranging between 30 seconds to one minute long. At 1200, epidural block administered after patients complain of pain, and advised not to lie on her back. Nursing Diagnosis and Pathophysiology Managing labor at term with spontaneously ruptured membranes can be confusing. Concerns arise about the appropriate management for pre-labor rupture of membranes and the spontaneous rapture of membranes after the labor begins. The nursing diagnosis priority is the examination of the premature rapture of membrane through a thorough physical, history examination, as well as selected laboratory studies. The primary caregiver should carry out a speculum examination to determine the presence of any cervical dilation or effacement. On suspicion of membranes premature rapture, it is integral to halt digital cervical examinations, as they tend to increase mortality and morbidity. Moreover, the digital cervical examinations result to a decrease of about nine days in the latent period (Medina and Hill, 2006). Evidence of pooling fluid in the vagina, or leakage from the cervical on application of fundal pressure or when the patient coughs, assist the care provider in determining membranes raptures. Diagnostic methods such as the use of nitrazine paper and ferning determination have sensitivi ties of about 90%. Nitrazine paper turns blue in the presence of amniotic fluid with a pH above 6.0. However, other contaminations such as presence of semen, blood, and bacterial vaginosis may give similar outcomes. The care providers should reserve a swab for determining the presence of ferning, which if positive indicates premature membranes rapture (Medina and Hill, 2006). Management of Pre-labor Membranes Ruptures at Term Previous studies on the management of pre-labor membranes ruptures focus essentially on the comparison of the incidence of infection in immediate induction patients versus the expected management on risk of infection after different durations of rupture. In their examinations, researchers compared outcomes from an induction and expected management with premature rupture of membrane at term. According to their reports, there were no differences in infection rate between the two examination groups, as well as a higher rate of caesarian section cases in the induce d groups. A more recent research by Hannah and colleagues called TERMPROM study, a large, randomized multicentre trial, which compared immediate induction to expectant management running up to four days after the diagnosis of premature rupture of membrane at term. Results of the study show that maternal infection occurred at higher rates in women managed expectantly (Marowitz and Hunter, 2004). The rates of caesarian sections and neonatal infections were the same. Care Plan The following is the care plan for

How to Recruit and Retain Volunteers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

How to Recruit and Retain Volunteers - Essay Example Others performed the duty due to court-mandated work as part of the sentence from a judge. Irrelevant of the motive non-profit organizations have to promote themselves adequately to attract volunteers and financial donations. I selected an online-articled entitled How to Recruit and Retain Volunteers for further analysis of the topic. The article stated that three ways to recruit employees is by using personal contacts, going where the people are, and by getting the word out (Genv, Youth Venture, 2007). I totally agree with the strategies chosen in the article. Word of mouth advertising is priceless and the costs of implementation are minimal or nonexistent depending on the situation. Non-profit organizations have to be proactive in their marketing and recruiting initiatives. It is wise idea to formulate seminars to be present at different locations such as churches, universities, and public parks. Personal contacts can be very valuable. The manager of the non-profit organization has to use his or her network of family, friends, associates, and colleagues to directly recruit these individuals to donate some of their time. The decision maker or manager of the non-profit organization must possess excellent communication and leadership skills. The organization must also recruit volunteers from the corporate sector. Many private organizations are willing to provide support in terms of capital or manpower when non-profit organization ask for the help and are able to negotiate a deal. The second important aspect of managing volunteers is being able to retain the personnel. A list of strategies and tactics that can be used to manage volunteers to keep them motivated and happy is listed below: People that are welcoming and nice create an environment that is pleasant for the volunteer which helps keep the volunteers interested. By making the work fun the volunteers enjoy their time which helps to keep them motivated. It is important

History based on the life of the original Macbeth Essay Example for Free

History based on the life of the original Macbeth Essay Eleventh century Scotland was a violent and troubled country. Family and supposedly loyal friends rebelled against one another for trading and territory purposes. The threats of an enemy invasion or an attack on fortresses were extremely common. Rampant Vikings and local Scottish men raided constantly to weaken and more importantly drive out the stubborn opposing forces that lay in their way. Macbeth was born into this dangerous environment in 1005, son of the victorious family that stamped its authority on Moray and Ross [significant areas in Scotland]. The family itself betrayed themselves as being loving and caring to one another, however, internally they were scarred mentally, as a consequence of their fathers death who was evidently murdered by his cousins. Macbeth obviously emotionally distracted by his fathers death, concentrated his thoughts on leading a comparatively normal life, supported by Brauch his new partner [granddaughter to a High King of Scotland]. Subsequently they had no children of their own. The present ruler of Scotland was Duncan, an ineffectual and seemingly unpopular person amidst the civil problems. Not surprisingly someone assassinated him at the age of thirty-eight. Historians believe that it may have actually been Macbeth, but there is no conclusive evidence to confirm their theories. Macbeth seized this unique opportunity, and was elected High King of Scotland in 1040; he ruled for seventeen years. As predecessor of the reviled Duncan, his first priority during his initial ten years in power, was to bring peace and relative stability to his problematic kingdom, notably he was fairly successful at doing-so; he became a reforming King accordingly. He managed to balance out and annihilate the majority of the negative feelings amongst the population. Unfortunately for him, his greatest and most fatal hurdle materialized in the form Duncans son Malcolm, who was absolutely determined to take control of Scotland. He ingeniously invaded the region in 1054, aided by the English King Edward the Confessor. Macbeth himself was brutally exterminated on the 15th of August 1057 at Peel Ring Lumphanan in Mar. He was buried at Iona, respectively; the sacred burial place of the Kings of Scotland. Was this epic period of Scottish History the basis for Shakespeare Macbeth? Shakespeare was a talented playwright, not a historian. However, the past provides an excellent source for basing a flourishing play. It is exciting factual material with which [if one is intellectually sound], can modify and adapt to conjure up maximum dramatic effect and a truly brilliant and entertaining stage production. Historical evidence bestows writers with a fruitful background; an imaginative base on which one can construct a sophisticated plot that entices the audiences mind, body and soul. For Shakespeare this would have been incredibly difficult to originate, hence the gathering below the rostrum; that were either damn right rude or absolutely sloshed. Indeed, it is true to say that some of his dramas were not as appreciated or dominant, fortunately Macbeth proved different, and would be a prevailing theatrical production for hundreds of years. Shakespeare was an independent character, one who thrived on his own personal achievement, and one who was not afraid to alter and develop certain features regarding a story to accomplish ultimate dramatic effect. The epicentre of Macbeth pivoted around the eleventh century ancestors; he obviously acknowledged the great potential in these characters. He evidently thought it necessary to convert, invent and abolish particular characteristics surrounding the events of eleventh century Scotland. He established Lady Macbeths sleepwalking and death, the banquet scene and Banquos ghost, and most of the cauldron scene. With a little imagination and adaptation he reversed King Duncans nasty personality into a loved and greatly appreciated role model. He also eliminated Macbeths ten years of good rule to make the scenario and atmosphere more effective; everything he purposely altered was in the interest of the play. Interestingly, King James I was in power, when Shakespeare first presented Macbeth in 1603. I personally find this rather intriguing, because the actual storyline consists of many of King Jamess personal comforts and interests. It is obvious that King James was a superior influence on the outcome of the play; he helps to conjure up some fruitful inspiration for Shakespeare; this, and the colourful Scottish pass times, provides a feast of information and ideas for Shakespeare to weave his magic upon. He gratefully accepted this priceless gift, and transformed it into one of the greatest tragedies this world has literally ever experienced. What message is Shakespeare trying to get across? I feel it important for one and me to understand that the play is meaningfully founded on the corruption of power. Although the supernatural, fascinating individuals and mysterious undertakings create a unique atmosphere to the play, the nucleus consists off events that revolve around the abuse of power. It is true to say that this is present and happening in our modern society, take Hitler for example. He was a dictator who possessed a lethal amount of power, he used it to brainwash people, so that he could do what he wanted. He started by wiping out an entire race, known as the Jews; he and his fixation to be in control was a major factor in triggering the Second World War. A comparison can be made between him and Macbeth, both of which abused their authority. Shakespeare is trying to get this eminent message across to his viewers. Witchcraft and Murderous Schemes. If one is familiar with the tragedy, one will know that Shakespeare wrote and directed it, at a time in which murders and witchcraft were everyday issues. In fact, the majority of the general public seriously believed and feared the paranormal universe, so much so, individuals who were thought to be actual witches were tried, tested and eventually killed. During this time, witch mania reached terrifying proportions; hundreds of innocent people [usually women] were condemned to immediate execution, without an adequate assessment. As anticipated, a small minority were against this mass persecution, but they and their justifiable opinions were suffocated without due consideration by the bulk of the general public. Essay Targets. Macbeth has complicated plots that comprise of numerous acts and scenes. I am attempting to devise an essay focusing on three specific scenes. The essay is to be written in a directors point of view as if I was to direct these three selected scenes: Act I, Scene 3. Act I, Scene 5. Act 5, Scene 5. I feel that these three scenes collectively describe the basic tale and downfall of Macbeth himself. Act I, Scene 3 meets the witches, which influences his decision to kill the king. Act I, Scene 5 Lady Macbeth plots to kill Duncan herself and confides her thoughts in Macbeth. Act 5, Scene 5 As a consequence of his murders, everything has come back to haunt him. He is about to be attacked by the English army, and inevitably faces the decisive punishment for his sins Death!!! I deem each scene to be off substantial importance, all independently help to develop and illustrate the overall narrative too. Unquestionably, each one has to be directed appropriately, to attain the audiences concentration, and to merely get them philosophizing about the story. An enthralling location is also absolutely necessary, the audience needs to be encapsulated by the setting and circumstances. The following essay denotes each scene autonomously, and expresses my feelings and points of view on how I should direct and conduct all three scenes to achieve a stunning atmosphere to mesmerize and amaze the spectators. My main objective is to manipulate selected characters and transform their personality and temperament to improve the play and exaggerate the horror theme. The fact that Shakespeare himself, left no stage directions leaves the doorway open for any willing direct to interpret the actual play, as he/she wants. Over the centuries, several producers have devised their own technique and developed the plot to create their own translation of the enigmatic ventures of the Scottish hierarchy. I have committed my play and essay to a film production. I have chosen to adopt this particular method, because I feel that it would fit perfectly into a modern day movie, which has the funds and technology to support graphic and suitable special effects. I have observed a modern day interpretation of the play; it was staged on a rough Birmingham estate. For some bizarre reason though, the actors referred to the direct text, but conveyed them in a Brummie accent; this was literally diabolical. It simply did not complement Shakespeares erratic language, the pronunciation was awful- quite positively negative. I on the other hand deem it more appropriate to compose the epic tale of Macbeths downfall in its indigenous and traditional generation. Directors point of view for Act I, Scene 3. Summary of scene: Macbeth and Banquo meet the witches, Macbeth is returning from the battle with his gallant companion and hearty Scottish nobleman, Banquo. Their journey back to the Kings camp takes them over a deserted heath. Here, the witches lie in wait for them, talking as they generally do about an evil spell they have cast upon one unfortunate person. The mist clears Macbeth and Banquo unexpectedly see the witches. They demand that these creatures: so witherd and so wild in their attire, explain who they are. When the witches speak, they greet Macbeth as Thane of Cawdor and predict that hell become king. To Banquo they foretell Your heirs will be kings, although you will not, they then disappear, before a bewildered and perplexed Macbeth can inquire about their prophecies. I feel it compulsory to point out that this scene is the penultimate in the opening trio, therefore a lot of planning and thought has gone into directing it, hence the fact its considerably longer than the other two scenes. Uncharacteristically, I have chosen to direct the third scene instead of the first. Respectively both are of great significance to the outcome of the play, but the third introduces the witches, their first apparition, Macbeth and Banquo. Like the opening scene, this one needs to be just as effective to conquer the audiences awareness. In this scene the witches encourage Macbeth to believe that he is invulnerable and indestructible. The intereference of the witches influence Macbeths actions; he immediately considers to commit regicide against King Duncan If good, why do I yield to that suggestion/ Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair/ And make my seated heart knock at my ribs/ Against the use of nature? These four sentences help to describe Macbeths feelings, he is basically thinking about the proposed murder, he does this by making references to certain features on his body. For example, your heart pounds when youre excited or nervous. Macbeth having possession of all the confidence in the world as a consequence of the witches predictions and the recent victory in the exasperating battle fears no one. I find it hard to appreciate the reliance and dependence confined in the witches and their prophecies by Macbeth; after all they are absolute strangers. This is why Ive chosen to portray the witches as attractive housewives, hopefully this will make the scene more believable, because men are easily dominated and controlled by beautiful, seductive mistresses. This needs to apprehend the audiences interest, so that they can acknowledge the circumstances and understand whats actually happening. I will set the play on a desolate, open stretch of countryside. It will be nighttime with a low and eerie fog making visibility poor. This will intensify the atmosphere, because the audience will instinctively be weary of the surroundings and the mysterious environment. The witches, Macbeth and Banquo are all dominant and important characters, thus meaning they need to be familiarized and introduced, so the audience recognizes who they are later on in the film. The scene will get underway with Macbeth and Banquo strolling over the motionless fields, discussing the eventful battle, although you will not be able to hear them, because only a sinister genre of music will be heard. They are going to be dressed in war-like clothes; therefore the audience will directly associate them with a battle of some description. In the near distance a lonely farm building will stand [the audience obviously noticing this, should already be imagining whats in it and are Macbeth and Banquo going to go there]? The interior of the barn will be exceptionally gloomy, but in the far corner three ugly hags are going to be highlighted by specifically positioned lightning. The witches are severely deformed, to leave the audience feeling astonished and expectantly physically sick! The witches will speak in macabre tone of voice, whilst speaking to one another. Their wicked conversations will consist off evil material e.g. Killing swine/ and like a rat without a tail/ Here I have a pilots thumb, wrecked as homeward he did come. The presence of the witches and their repulsive words is a created stimulus that makes the play a great deal more engaging, therefore the overall production benefits and improves considerably. Their physical appearance and cursed lines keep the audience hooked, simultaneously the supernatural element increases the suspense with every scary sound and disgusting illustration produced or described by the witches. Macbeth and Banquo feeling exhausted from their tiresome day will seek deserved refuge beneath the suspicious looking dwelling. The tension and suspense will certainly be enhanced amongst the audience obviously fearing the couplets safety as they cautiously enter. However, they will be treated to a pleasant surprise, this is due to the sexy figures gathered in the corner of the room. Using contemporary technology and realistic special effects, the hideous threesome will magically be converted into gorgeous bitches! The transformed witches disguised as randy and bored housewives will [without doubt], outstand and arouse the audience together with Macbeth and Banquo. This is known as dramatic irony, when the watchers know something that the characters dont. The witches dressed in a low, red cut top [showing an outrageous amount of cleavage] will immediately greet the dazed Macbeth and Banquo with verses of factual information and weird prophecies. The amorous ladies will speak in a confident, persuasive, but somewhat devious tone of voice, thus causing the men in the room to absorb these queer predictions. The audience would accept the witches original nature and accept the fact that beautiful seductive women are able to force gullible/intelligent men to believe in them and their words. Obviously, Macbeth and Banquo will be confused and amazed, but in some sense enthusiastic about the apparition. As they attempt to verbally challenge the witches, the room will suddenly become silenced, with them both pondering their recent experience, the atmosphere again changes though, as Ross and Angus storm into the equation. Ross and Angus stunned to find their chums under these certain circumstances try to regurgitate the report sent by the king. Gradually, as Ross explains the situation to Macbeth and Banquo [regarding the former Thane of Cawdor and him being sentenced to death for treason against the king], the witches prophecy is beginning to unfold. Therefore Macbeth needs to act in an astounded manner, altering his body language and facial expressions accordingly best shows this. Macbeth has chosen to renovate his character, and so he keeps his feelings and thoughts to himself. This is aptly shown as he speaks to the audience alone [aside]. His soliloquy refers to and describes his ambition. The prophecy that was revealed by the witches brings a broad temptation to Macbeth that had been his secret all along for being a king, for example: My thought, whose murder yet is but fanastical. This purely indicates Macbeths great ambition, he is already thinking about killing Duncan. If the audience is reasonably clever, they will detect this too. Another distinctive line is Nothing is, but what is not. He is referring to the recent events, commenting on the sensational proceedings. During this scene the plot is potentially discovered, it helps to entangle and trigger off the storyline. Although the words are enormously imperative, the characters and their actions are equally significant, in conjunction with one another, the audience understand whats going on. The scene will end with Macbeth and Banquo standing side by side, contemplating their prosperous future. The camera will zoom in on Macbeth and his cunning visions of murdering Duncan. Unlike Banquo, who is triumphantly imaging his sons being crowned, with him in the background looking on proudly, crying sweet tears of joy? Directors point of view for Act I, Scene 5. Brief summary of scene: In this scene Lady Macbeth plans a murder. She lives at home in there castle at Inverness. Lady Macbeth has received a letter from her husband; in it he tells her about the witches prophecies. She is interrupted as a messenger arrives telling her of the kings visit. She realises that this is the golden opportunity to kill Duncan, the king. Her treacherous thoughts are kept to herself, unlike Macbeth who suppresses them. She makes her mind up that the murder must be committed that night. When Macbeth arrives at the castle ahead of the king, she exclaims convincingly that she has arranged everything. Lady Macbeth is the second most dominant influence on Macbeth. As soon as Lady Macbeth learns of the words spoken by the weird sisters, she instantaneously analyses Macbeths future i.e. if Duncan were killed, Macbeth and her could acquire Scotland. She vigorously studies the letter and assesses the situation, considering the best and most suitable option to chose, in order to bring her eagerly awaited success. If I were to direct this scene, I would set it in Lady Macbeths chamber; this is because bedrooms tend to be a solemn place of privacy and security. The bedroom is to be very grand and ornate, with elaborate walls, preferably in a blood-red colour, this is to emphasis the theme of blood that runs throughout the play. Lady Macbeth dressed in her sexy, soft; silky nighttime gown will try to interpret the epistle relaxing on her mahogany four poster bed. Under a quiet, pleasant piece of music, Lady Macbeths voice is to be sounded above the music, reading out the letter to herself, she will also over exaggerate particular words and phrases, which depict Macbeths thoughts. Whilst peacefully examining the letter, succeeding in comprehending it, she will act in a attentive fashion. As the production is a film, I have decided to include visual images of Lady Macbeths perceptions of the letter. When reading it, there will be metaphors of Lady Macbeth conjuring up pictures of her and Macbeth sitting gloriously on the throne, with hundreds of spectators gathered below, robustly singing their praises. To accompany this ceremony, a victorious composition will engulf it, however, these false celebrations will be disrupted as she resumes normality awoken by an attendant. Things could just not get any better for Lady Macbeth; the attendant brings delightful news concerning Macbeths and Duncans arrival. The supernatural is again underlined and called upon, this time by Lady Macbeth. She forms an imaginary conversation with the evil spirits, asking them to assist her murderous plans: Come you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here. When the conversation commences, Lady Macbeth is going to gaze up at the ceiling and perform actions with her hands where appropriate e.g. Come to my womans breasts she will be clenching her bosoms as she speaks. Again, faded scenes of wicked witches will corrupt her mind, these will then turn into vivid images of her viciously stabbing Duncan to death with a decorative candlestick, as he sleeps. You will then he totally horrified by her face speckled with distinctive spots of blood. Another will then immediately follow this bloodcurdling incident; her menacing eyes will stare at you, threatening you, frightening you!!! With an ounce of luck, the audience will be completely petrified, thus achieving maximum dramatic effect. Over pictures of gruesome violence, a terrorizing sample of music will be heard. During Lady Macbeths deceitful outburst, many references to blood, light and dark and hell are made e.g. Come thick night, and pull these in the durnest smoke of HELL. All of these factors exaggerate the horror theme and atmosphere. Macbeth then enters the bedroom, instantly Lady Macbeth [being the scheming bovine she is], craftily asks her partner [when he claims that Duncan is coming] and when goes hence? In other words when is he going, so I know when to conduct his brutal surcease? Being a woman in all, she is able to change nature and personality whenever she feels it obligatory to fool or persuade Macbeth. Subsequently, she goes on, to subtly describe about disguise: To beguile the time, look like the time/ look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent undert. She is relating these lines to the killing of Duncan, in such away that the audience and Macbeth cannot really appreciate or indeed realize. I would instruct Lady Macbeth to deliver these disloyal words in a convincing way, almost as if shes reassuring Macbeth about the murder. Macbeth does actually distinguish Lady Macbeths words, but he fails to comment on them, instead he ignores her, and demands to talk at a later date. By this time, the murder is already almost complete. Directors point of view for Act 5, Scene 5. Brief summary of scene: Macbeth prepares for battle, is busy setting up defenses all around Dunsinane Castle. Most of his noblemen and soldiers have rebelled and joined the other side, but he is certain he cannot be beaten or not until Birnam Forest comes to Dunsinane [as a consequence of the witches new appairitions]. What he does not know is that his enemies have agreed to meet at Birnam Wood. When the soldiers gather there, each one is given the branch of a tree to camouflage them as they move forward to launch an attack. As he is organizing for the battle, he thinks how meaningless life is. Just then, a messenger announces that Birnam wood appears to move. After the initial murder of Duncan, Macbeth persists in his violent actions and continues to kill more, in an attempt to become ruler of everyone and everything north of the border. Once the first the killing took place, the ball started rolling and unfortunately did not stop, that is up till now. Macbeth is facing unavoidable death, the ultimate punishment for his many sins; his castle at Dunsinane is surrounded with him at the epicentre amongst the entire calamity, but yet he still have faith in the witches predictions, and why not? The witches prophecies and apparitions have so far proved correct, significantly, the prediction concerning Macbeths mortality: No man on earth shall harm him, is about to prove incorrect. However, the arrogant Macbeth seriously supposes himself imperishable, consequently fearing no one. He is undisputedly emotionless this is shown in line 9: I have almost forgot the taste of fears, clearly his mental state is severely befuddled, his aspiration has got him where he is and under these particular state of affairs, he cannot turn back the clock, he simply has to face the penalty of his slaughterous actions. Remarkably, he does not sense any guilt either; instead he concentrates his efforts on the seemingly impossible encounter ahead. Even when is once loved wife dies, he fails to physically react, he simply gathers his thoughts and feelings and distributes them into a touching paragraph; yes, even the audience cannot help to feel for the desolate Macbeth. He once walked upon lifeless stretches of open countryside accompanied by his dearest friend Banquo, now he is the dirt on which his predecessors and countless enemies tread. This scene resembles Macbeths uncomfortable position, and his feelings; it needs to be incredibly effective to achieve the right atmosphere and tension. A more suitable location could not have been selected; the castle at Dunsinane is the perfect setting under such awkward circumstances. With the castle encircled and the defeated, lonesome, loathed figure stranded at the centre, the scene is an awesome opportunity for a willing director like myself to challenge. The scene will commence with an aerial view of the castle and the environment engulfing it, the audience will now understand Macbeths situation. Thousands of infantry will be advancing towards the castle under the natural camouflage off tree branches, a strong drum beat intentionally heard by the audience, will encourage the soldiers to move forwards. Meanwhile, Macbeth seeking what he considers to be relative safety in the castle will burst onto the scene in an aggressive manner. A room sited at the top of the castle [overlooking their boundaries], will suddenly be animated as the door flies open with a terrific thud, followed by a apprehensive Macbeth, Seyton and three rather nervously looking soldiers. A window foreseeing the countryside ahead and the moving woodland will be an important feature in the room, this is because Macbeth will stand in front of it [with his back against the opening], facing the anxious congregation organized below. Macbeth dressed in his gleaming armour tries to rally his troops by expressing valiant words of defiance: Our castles strength will laugh a siege to scorn; here let them lie till famine and the ague eat them up. This successfully illustrates his current state of mind, he is positive and thinks that he and their stronghold will hold out against the enemy, the audience should sense this by li stening to the tone in which he conveys his words; he will do so in a self-assured and powerful manner. During his defiant speech, a high-pitched squeal will be heard, immediately the audience and Macbeth will demand to know what it actually was. Seyton acknowledges that it was a cry of women. Macbeth reflects in a sorry tone, his emotions; the way in which he delivers these might effect the audiences opinion of him. The audience realizes that he was once a good fellow, who fought bravely and cared for ones close, they should almost feel a bit of sympathy towards him, but then they compare him to the coward he has become, one who deserves everything coming his way [that is in the form of an entire army, seeking revenge for the futile murders he has committed]. Seyton informs Macbeth that it was his wife Lady Macbeth. Once more Macbeth expresses his thoughts on the matter, almost as if he is looking back and regretting his actions. The audience will be able to identify the real Macbeth again, as he comments upon ones life, comparing it to Lady Macbeths and his. The atmosphere at this point will be depressive, due to Macbeths sorrowful words. However, the mood will revolutionize on the arrival of a messenger bringing shocking, but inevitable news. I will instruct the messenger to act in a stunned manner; he will also find it increasingly more difficult to tell Macbeth of the moving forest, approaching them at a rapid pace. Macbeth purposely rejects this news: Liar and slave! even though he knows full well that there true, because the witches told him so. At this meticulous moment, a flashback will occur, this will consist of haunted reminiscences of the raunchy women retelling the third apparition stating: Macbeth shall never vanquished be until Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane hill shall come against him. In other words, you will never be hurt or even destroyed until Birnam Wood moves towards Dunsinane [this will help to remind the audience about the apparition]. When Macbeth resumes regularity, he will again, persist in not believing the messengers words of truth, perhaps he does not want to believe them, because he knows that the end is near. Regardless of this, he has come too far, and so he will fight to the very last second. At the conclusion of his final dialogue in the scene, he will turn to observe the view outside, noticing an entire wood gradually moving closer, this signifying that his death is exceptionally near, a vacant expression on his countenance will demonstrate this completely.

Extraversion on Academic Achievement in University Students

Extraversion on Academic Achievement in University Students University fosters an environment encouraging both academic achievements and personal developments. Each individuals experience differs due to their choice of engagement in academic and social events. As academic events are still more important in an academic institution, achieving excellence in academics should be the priority for every student. The choice of participation and degree of academic involvement may depend upon an individuals personality. Thus, the relationship between personality traits and an individuals university academic achievement will be examined. To be more specific, extraversion will be the target personality trait in this study. Extraversion is the independent variable in the study; it refers to an individuals energy level and tendency to interact with others in a social setting (Costa McCrae, 1992).In this study, the Big-Five Personality Inventory which defines human beings personality traits through five dimensions was used (Goldberg Rosolack, 1994). Extraverts tend to be social, talkative, and emotional. Introverts, on the other hand, are less emotional and more likely to stay alone (Costa McCrae). By reviewing the past studies, there seemed to be more than one explanation in explaining the relationship between the above independent and dependent variables. However, they were not conflicting with each other. A variety of factors has been taken into account to thoroughly examine the impact of extraversion on an individuals academic achievement. For example, in 1966, Estabrook and Sommer (1966) conducted an early and classic study. The results revealed that more extraverted students preferred to study in a leisure manner. For example, they liked to study in an informal space, such as on a bed or a couch. They also took frequent breaks and tended to study in a group setting, while the introverts enjoyed the contrasting habits and settings (Estabrook Sommer). The results of the study revealed that the extraverts had a lower average compared to the introverts (Estabrook Sommer). It also further demonstrated that an individual with a higher score in extraversion had worse study habits, which might have contributed to its less satisfactory academic performance in university. A similar study was conducted on the same topic but with a third variable involved, peak activation time (Beaulieu, 1991). This study examined the relationship between an individuals peak activation time, extraversion/introversion and academic achievement. Peak activation time is the time period in which, people tend to be more efficient in activities. Participants were a group of adults enrolled in a junior-level organizational behavior course. Along with their academic grades, a survey was also conducted to collect their extraversion score and sleeping habits. As a result, it was clear that extraverts tended to go to sleep late and had a peak activation time at night, while the introverts preferred to sleep earlier and had a peak activation time in the daytime (Beaulieu). Because most university courses are taken place in the day, the hypothesis predicted that introverts would do better than the extraverts given their daytime activation peak pattern. The result was consistent with the prediction extraverts had poorer academic scores than the introverts. However, there were findings that extraverts paid less attention in academic activities, because they contributed more time engaging in social events given their social and energetic nature. Less attention might be paid to daily academic activities. A recent study, conducted by Infant and Marin, investigated a sample of unsuccessful Spanish students focused on their personalities (2008). Here, unsuccessful students could be defined as students with low averages, high failing rates and potential to drop out. As discussed in the previous two studies, Infant and Marin predicted that individuals scoring high on extraversion would be likely to experience poorer academic performance given their ineffective study habits. Similarly, this study revealed that extraverts had a higher chance to experience neuroticism, lack of motivation, and low conscientiousness, they were more likely to result in academic failure in university and become pessimistic about their future. Thus, this result emphasizes upon the fact that an unsuccessful university students had a higher chance of being more extraverted. This study also illustrated a further relationship between the two variables an extravert experienced poor academic results from their ineffec tive study habits, and these results could trigger the development of negative attitudes towards their future academic experiences in university. A recent meta-analysis found that the extraversion and intelligence are negatively correlated . Although the result exemplified no relationship between the two variables, there might be a potential correlation. Additionally, Morris and Carden (1981) examined the relationship between internal-external locus of control and extraversion-introversion. This study was conducted through gathering university undergraduate students data. The group assignments were based on survey results that differentiated the participants as external or internal locus of control and extraverts or introverts (Morris and Carden). These participants were then given out a test, and consequently their time spendt on the test and their overall grades were recorded (Morris and Carden). Later a feedback was written by the students about their feeling on their overall grades. The results demonstrated that the extraverts were impulsive (more satisfied or more unsatisfied in terms of emotion like happiness or sadness) even when their grades were not necessarily lower or higher than others (Morris and Carden). In combination with the external-internal analysis, it was clear that an extravert with external locus of control ten ded to do the poorest of the four groups (Morris and Carden). This model suggested that participants high on extraversion tended to be more emotional in problem solving or critical situations. In addition, if exhausted participants had external locus of control in dealing with problems, they had a higher chance of doing poorly. Conversely, an introvert with an internal locus of control was more emotionally stable and more likely to believe in his or her own abilities. However, results were quite different when the students own perspectives and grades were taken into account in rating the degree of their own success. Irfani (1978) developed hypothesis stating that a students perspective on his or her academic performance would be influenced by their personality. It was tested through three different groups of participants assigned based on their personalities, extraversion, psychoticism and neuroticism (Irfani). These students were asked to answer a question that simply required their answer about whether they categorize themselves as successful or unsuccessful with respect to their academic performance (Irfani). Extraversion ratings seemed to affect the rating of academic success the most. A large number of extroverts in all three groups rated themselves as academically successful (Irfani) as they might have been more impulsive about their achievements. Thus the result supported the hypothesis to some degree. One could conclude from the result tha t an extrovert might view himself or herself as successful even when they are not. This conclusion also supported Morris and Cardens (1981) research that idicated extroverts had the tendency to be more emotional in performing academic activities. Moreover, this research also demonstrated that an extroverts perception and satisfaction derived from academic performance may encourage them in continuing their study habits, and thus less likely to make improvements in the future due to constant inefficiency. This could be another reason why the extroverts have a higher chance of doing poorer than the introverts do academically. In conclusion, students scoring high on the extraversion test may perform poorer than those who score low on extraversion. This result can be explained by a combination of factors. From the literature reviews collected on this topic, an extravert tends to be social, energetic, and easy-satisfied, which may contribute to their poor academic performance through their peak activation time at night and ineffective and lazy studying habits. In addition, extraverts high emotional levels may increase their tendency to be impulsive in reacting towards both successful and unsuccessful events. Thus, these factors together may make them less capable of handling university academic life successfully. Therefore, the hypothesized result is that students who score high on extraversion test will have less successful academic performance than those who score low on the test and vice versa. In this study, the Big-Five personality test will be employed to measure the independent variable, and only the extraversion parts will be used to calculate the score. An extrovert will naturally receive a higher score on the test, while an introvert will get a lower result. The questionnaire and the scoring keys used in this study are attached in the Appendix B and C (John Srivastava, 1999). Moreover, the dependent factor of this study is an individuals academic achievement, which is measured by his or her cumulative average from first year. In order to maximize reliability of data and avoid skewness, only first-year students will be sampled since their courses are mostly compulsory. Method Participants The sample were composed of 36 undergraduate students from the University of Western Ontario (UWO), ranging from the age of 18 to 27 (M=20.64, SD=1.76). This group of participants was randomly selected at UWOs University Community Centre (UCC) from 12:00 to 15:00 and from 21:00 to 23:00. In addition, researcher employed the method of convenience sampling in approaching participants and requesting for their cooperation and completion of the questionnaires. However, this sampling method did provide a perfect random selection, so the results might be confounded as students choices of going to the UCC in the selected periods may be highly dependent on their personalities. Thus the problem of generalization might appear in this study. For compensation, a more distributive sample was taken as the result of going for participant in large time gap. That is, going for individuals randomly, trying to avoid large group which would result in a similar personality and grade. Materials First, participants will be required to complete a Demographic Questionnaire (See Appendix A). This form contains items relevant to a students personal background, such as age, gender, ethnic background, birthplace, and average grade of each participants first year courses. First year average was selected as a measure of academic achievement. This was to reduce the external variable by limiting the course selection Most first year courses are compulsory. Therefore, there would be less freedom for participants to pick easy or challenging courses that may vary the average too much. Then personalities of these participants was assessed through their completion of the Big-Five-Inventory (BFI) forms, which contain 44 items and eight extraversion items will be used in this study (John Srivastava, 1999). For each item, a score of 1 to 5 was used as 1 being strongly disagree and 5 being strongly agree. The scoring key is provided in Appendix C for interpretation of items used. Also this study was completed by paper and pencil and within approximately 15 minutes. For this questionnaire, the extraversion part has a score of 40 being highest on extraversion and 8 being lowest on extraversion. Procedure This survey was conducted on a one-to-one basis at the first floor of UCC. All participants was approached randomly. Although there was no time limit, it should be completed within 15 minutes. Verbatim Instruction was given to participants as the researcher approaches them (see Appendix D). Followed by this, participants was given the Letter of Information and Consent (see Appendix E). Then they filled out the Demographic Questionnaire (see Appendix A), which contain the studys first variable their first years averages. Immediately upon completion of this form, participants was asked to read instructions on the BFI (John Srivastava, 1999) form and rank all the necessary items. After this stage, data for the second variable, the extraversion score, was collected (see Appendix B). Finally, Debriefing Form (see Appendix F) was given to the participants, while the researcher verbally asked if there are any questions or concerns. After being debriefed, all participants was thanked for their cooperation. Results The means and standard deviations for two variables, the first year averages and the extraversion scores are shown in Table 1. Table 1 Descriptive Statistics for two variables involved in the research ­Ã‚ ­ Variable M SD Extraversion Score 27.25926 4.40202 First Year Average 77.22222 6.680937 A bivariate correlational design was used in order to determine if extraversion and academic achievement were correlated significantly. An alpha of .05 was used. The Pearson Product Moment coefficient was used in this research for the relationship between extraversion scores and first year averages. The results showed a relatively significant correlation between these two variables (r = -.48359,  ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­r2 = 0.23386, p Later, a regression analysis was conducted, the formula of the regression line was obtained ( y = -.73396x + 97.2294, Appendix H). Figure 1 shows the graph of this regression line Figure 2 The Graph of the Regression Analysis y = -.73396x + 97.2294 These results was able to provide a sufficient amount of evidence to support the hypothesis that extraversion is negatively related to academic achievement. That is, individuals scoring low on extraversion tend to perform better academically and vice versa. The summary data is shown in Appendix I. Discussion This study hypothesized that students scoring low on extraversion scale tend to have high academic achievement. This hypothesis was based on previous studies that indicated that extraversion correlates with academic achievement negatively. This finding was illustrated in different ways. For, example, Estabrook and Sommers (1966) study addressed this problem by explaining the basis of education, a students study habits. In this study, students scoring high on extraversion showed relatively poor behaviors comparing to what students scoring low on extraversion did. This finding may explain from the foundation why extraversion might correlate with academic achievement. That is, if a student does not study in an efficient way, the result may be poorer than that of those students with good study habits. This study demonstrated a possible explanation for this problem, but it did not address the reason why study habit is correlated with extraversion, nor did it give any cues about the directionality of this correlation. In addition, there are other studies addressing this problem from different perspectives. Peak activation time was another point studied in this area. Beaulieu (1991) tried to examine the relationship students peak activation time and their extraversion scores. The results showed that students scoring high on extraversion might have a peak activation time at night. Relating back to authors study, this finding may suggested that as most of the courses are taking in day time, students scoring high on extraversion may not do well in them because of their peak activation time. Another study on this problem was conducted by Morris and Carden (1981). It provided another explanation on this problem. That is, students scoring high on extraversion may overestimate their academic results. For example, they may feel satisfied about their mark more easily than those students scoring low on extraversion scale may. Due to this, they may not try to compensate an academic failure about which they consider only as an occasion. As what previous studies have predicted, this study generated a significant result that students scoring high on extraversion may do poorer in their academic field. The reasons for this result may be a combination of different reasons. In university, students have to regulate themselves to adapt the pace of the courses they have taken. This is, developing a schedule that fits the university life. Academic results can be highly influenced by a students study habits. In this case, students scoring high on extraversion may not have a standard study habit for university life. Therefore, they may have some problems in different academic activities, like note-taking, reviewing, going to class regularly etc. In addition, when they constantly receive their academic feedback, they may be emotional oriented to rationalize their failure as not so important to them. As the result, not much improvement can be obtained in it. Moreover, as they have rationalized their behaviors, they may not contribute the poor result to personal reasons. That is, they are less likely to change their study habits to improve their mark. Another reason was related to the peak activation time. The students scoring high on extraversion have a peak activation time later in the day. This means, they may not perform their best during a common daytime course or exam. At the same time, as with a peak activation time at night, many social activities can draw their attention from their academic interests. For example, going to a club or bar is a very common leisure activity for university students. As so, an even worse condition may be produced for the next day as the result of over participating in a leisure activity at night. When the author was distributing the survey, he asked some general questions about the students nightlife after finishing the questionnaire. There was a general trend that whatever personality the students have, nowadays going to a club or a bar is a huge part in university life. Thus, although not included in this study, the topic about the relationship between the nightlife and academic achievement i s worth studying on. Another interesting finding was that a student who scored high on extraversion contributed the highest academic score. At the same time, the student who scored low on extraversion had the lowest academic score among all the participants. This may be due to the sample-size in the study. They can be viewed as outstanding results, not concluding any generality in the study. However, it can also be explained in terms of the limitation of this study. As this study merely generate a relationship between academic achievement and extraversion. The major of the students were not taken into account. Considering about different majors, different personality may fit differently. For example, a major involved many social tasks may be well fitted with extraversion personality. That is, as the students scoring high on extraversion are more sociable, they may be easier to communicate their opinions and participate in activities like presentation and election. This may need further analysis in order to rationalize the findings. Another limitation is that the time was set only at noon in UCC. This setting was for both the convenience and availability of maximum participants. However, as mentioned above, students scoring high on extraversion may have a peak activation time at night; this may make them prefer more to night-class. In addition, many students may not come to UCC regularly regardless of their personality. Therefore, this study did not have an equal probability for its participant selection. Furthermore, as considering about the setting of the questionnaire, the academic achievement section merely required one average for the students performance. This may rule out the differences in course difficulty and major module. It cannot generalize that each score obtained was based on a same standard. Thus, the study may fail to make a wide generalization on this topic. In addition, although the first year average required was to minimize the difference in course selection, for the students from higher grades, it may be difficult to call back the precise marks. In this situation, as the author required, they may make up one mark from their false memory or remember it less accurately. Overall, this study was to help on the understanding of study behaviors. The results from the study yielded a statistical significance. Extraversion was found to be negatively related to academic achievement. As there are several limitations in this study, further research should be taken to make a more generalize conclusion.