Research Proposal on Women Empowerment Essay Example

Research Proposal on Women Empowerment Essay Women empowerment is the process of treating women like the equal companions with the same rights and duties as men have. Since the dawn of the human civilization women have always been treated like the lower gender and their main duty was to take care of children and household chores. Today the situation is completely different. Women work, build careers, rest the same way as men do. Nevertheless, women still suffer from numerous stereotypes and prejudices, which often affect their self esteem badly. For example, if a woman works in an office, she will not be given difficult tasks to do, because men still feel and believe in their dominance over women. In spite of it, women manage to ruin all the stereotypes and do their work perfectly well and sometimes even better than their male companions. We will write a custom essay sample on Research Proposal on Women Empowerment specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Research Proposal on Women Empowerment specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Research Proposal on Women Empowerment specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer There have been carried out a great number of investigations and observations which proved that women have a range of advantages over men in economics and business. For example, they are more scrupulous and treat every business contract seriously and think it over a lot before signing it. Women are able to avoid spontaneous decisions in the workplace and their solutions are often more effective and reasonable. Finally, a woman does not create any conflicts in the workplace, due to which a healthy working atmosphere is created. Unfortunately, women empowerment is still a dream in many countries and parts of the world. For example, in many Asian and Islamic countries women simply can not be empowered because of the cultural peculiarities of the nation, where men are considered to be absolutely dominant. If one want to prepare a good women empowerment research proposal, he should spend much time to investigate the key problems of the topic successfully. It is important to explain what women empowerment is and present the historical background of the problem. One should dwell on the reasons why women should be empowered and present the facts which prevent them on empowerment. Here one can focus on the cultural reasons on the example of different countries. It is important to prove why women should be empowered and convince the reader in it. Without the persuasive side the effect of the research proposal will be extremely low. In order to create a good convincing proposal one should take advantage of the free sample research proposals on women empowerment in India. It is reasonable to read the example papers of the professional writers and borrow their writing experience and knowledge. Moreover, with the help of a free sample research proposal on women empowerment in Bangladesh one will be able to complete a good structure and format the paper correctly. *** NOTE! As far as you know free sample research proposals and examples about Women Empowerment are 100% plagiarized!!! At EssayLib.com writing service you can order a custom research proposal on any topic you need. Your research paper proposal will be written from scratch. We hire top-rated Ph.D. and Master’s writers only to provide students with professional research proposal help at affordable rates. Each customer will get a non-plagiarized paper with timely delivery. Just visit our website and fill in the order form with all proposal details:

Community Social Work In Modern Society Social Work Essay Example

Community Social Work In Modern Society Social Work Essay Example Community Social Work In Modern Society Social Work Essay Community Social Work In Modern Society Social Work Essay This survey is an overview of current authorities proposals for the Large Society within community societal work. In July 2010, Prime Minister David Cameron launched a undertaking called the Big Society. It is considered by Mr Cameron that communities merit to be empowered to hold more of a say in what happens in their local country. The belief is that by making this, many of the local services provided by the authorities can be taken over and run by community and voluntary groups, with Mr Cameron depicting the undertaking as a large progress for people power ( www.bbc.co.uk/news, accessed: 30/10/2010 ) . The theory base of community societal work from a historical and modern position will be presented and evaluated. The survey will supply a literature reappraisal of community undertakings in both neighbouring UK states and Inner City London ; analyzing their effectivity in making community authorization to enable the possible declaration of societal corruption. Particular attending will be paid to the differences that each geographical location possesses in footings of economic system, civilization and category diverseness when sing each undertaking and how this relates to its success. A upper limit of four undertakings will be chosen to compare and measure and the survey will reason with lessons learnt for future societal work in community work pattern with the inclusion of messages from the Social Work Reform Board. The Big Society Argument However, Cameron s impression of the Big Society has come under much unfavorable judgment. The Guardian s Jonathan Freedland has written a cutting onslaught on Mr Cameron s proposals and his article posted What is Community Social Work? The thought behind community societal work is the belief that peoples jobs can be countered by interceding with the people within their societal web. This may include friends and relations, and neighbors. Social workers need to seek and reenforce such support webs for service users and purpose to ease their growing where it has become evident that such has lapsed. The work should be seen as both a protective and preventive scheme and is now considered to be the Par excellence of intercession scheme for advancing societal inclusion. ( Walker and Beckett, 2005, pg93 ) . Therefore, community societal work is efficaciously a method of advancing the societal inclusion of persons and their households by authorising them to seek and make the intercessions they require. Walker and Beckett ( 2005 ) inform that societal work is at the cutting border of persons, households or communities efforts to pull off life challenges that have been influenced by both economic and societal policy, public assistance systems and the manner they are made up internally. However, there are differing positions on the construct of authorising people and utilizing socially inclusive methods within societal work. The first position is that the authorization of service users may be considered to be self-evident if the worker sees the jobs people are confronting as merchandises of the an unjust economic system that, Disenfranchises the weak, vulnerable, disabled or hapless from equal engagement and entree to the resources produced by society. ( Walker and Beckett, 2005, pg93 ) . The purpose of societal work here would be to try to acquire service users involved and seek to authorise them to happen a manner of accessing the services that are available to them. Payne ( 1995 ) suggests of this issue that although public policy statements do take to turn out the value of community engagement and user authorization, community work may so, Draw attending to inequalities in service proviso and in power which lie behind terrible want and hence besides become portion of the battles between people in powerless places against the powerful. ( Payne, 1995, pg165-166 ) . The 2nd position on the authorization of service users is that it can give them ( service users ) an increased outlook of what can be available to them. It is believed that in this instance, societal workers may believe that the right thing to make would be to cut down the outlooks of service users, coercing them to accept the state of affairss they find themselves in and that they may go socially excluded merely because that is the manner it is . If this does go the instance, societal workers may neglect to help in the bringing of services that are available to service users, alternatively merely seeking to assist service users to manage with what they believe is available to them. Possibly the best manner to see authorization for service users is to utilize Trevithick s ( 2000 ) theoretical account of when rehearsing societal work you are either ( a ) making things to service users, ( B ) making things for societal workers, or ( degree Celsiuss ) making things with service users. Community societal work foremost came into being following reviews of community work after placing that such was considered to be a wholly different activity to that of societal work. These reviews found that community workers and outreach workers were going marginalised from their co-workers within proper societal work bureaus. In order to forestall this from go oning farther, there was what was deemed a positive motion to encompass some of the rules and patterns of community work within societal work. Coulshed and Orme ( 1998 ) inform us that although independent community action has continued throughout history by being supported by dedicated community workers, policy developments that incorporated both the linguistic communication of community and the work involved began to inform the actions of statutory societal work as of the late seventiess. Despite this being the instance, it is thought that such motions towards community care enterprises were non what societal workers had needfully thought to be right. The above moves were initiated via the Seebohm Report ( 1968 ) . An article by Eileen Munro said of the actions brought about by the study, The division between ( changing ) societal work was seen as the job, so societal services sections were created to offer a joined-up service. ( www.guardian.co.uk/society, accessed: 9/10/2010 ) . These actions included the creative activity of societal services sections that would hold smaller administrative units with country squads functioning their ain geographical vicinities. It was believed that such would better entree to service proviso for those placed within each vicinity and a wider sense of designation with the local country for societal workers. Decisions could be made dependant on the individual and their local demand as opposed to the generic, centralized determinations that took topographic point antecedently. Seebohm s study besides stated that each area-based administration should alter the relationship that societal workers held within the comparative catchment countries that the workers were runing. The study said of this that the sections should, Encourage, support and promote voluntary attempt and prosecute in helping and promoting the development of community individuality. ( Seebohm, 1968, paragraph 477 ) . Despite this alteration in the agreements for which societal services were delivered, Seebohm s study did non decently turn to what it was community workers, or so societal workers working with communities were really supposed to be making. Although the Seebohm study had considered the basic impressions of community societal working, the footings and rules of such were non defined to the full until this was done by the Barclay Committee and published in a study in 1982. This definition was as follows: Community societal work is, Formal societal work which, get downing from the jobs impacting an person or group and the duties and resources of societal services sections and voluntary administrations, seeks to tap into, support, enable and underpin the local webs of formal and informal relationships which constitute our basic definition of community, and besides the strength of a client s communities of involvement. ( Barclay, 1982, p seventeen ) . The accent on the function of the community within society continued following the Barclay Committee s study and re-emerged towards the terminal of the 1980s. In more recent times, the Griffiths Report of 1998 looked at care in the community and was based around an purpose of closer partnerships between statutory services and local communities as portion of a larger public assistance spectrum. The National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990 excessively pushed towards an accent on community work although Adams et Al ( 1998 ) inquiries whether the theory was really put into pattern. Adams et Al besides speculate as to the trouble that community societal work continues to confront as a consequence of go oning alterations to societal policy. In modern societal work, it is considered by Beckett ( 2006 ) that it is good to work with groups or households as opposed to working with persons. Therefore it seems reasonable that such an attack would of course in some respects at least lead towards working within communities. Community societal work is by and large considered to be a similar activity to that of group work. This is because community work intercessions normally involve the worker trying to promote the development of groups. However, community work is aimed more along the lines of self-help or societal action in consideration of the group work spectrum. Community societal work does non let for the worker to do things for people , be that for persons or so groups, but wants to advance The development of organized activity by the community itself ( Beckett, 2006, pg94 ) through either the self-creation of resources to run into its demands or even by fall ining forces to run against the governments for non supplyi ng the necessary installations. Henderson ( 2000, pg72 ) says of such an attack that At the nucleus of the methods and accomplishments is the thought of organizing: assisting people to come together to organize an independent group. The above shows that in this context, the community worker is considered to be something of an enabler instead than the influence peddler within community undertakings. Despite this, it is besides believed that community workers although being employed by the province and therefore still considered as an outsider within the community with which they are working take on a grade of benevolent paternalism as opposed to developing the necessary corporate community action. Popple ( 1994, pg24 ) says of this, Historically community work has developed from two distinguishable roots: benevolent paternalism and corporate community action. With the above in head it is of import to retrieve that the term community is still instead obscure. It is borne from the impression that a complete vicinity can work as its ain entity as opposed to admiting that vicinities consist of many differing communities. Individual involvement, cultural communities, geographics, familial extensions and workplaces all form portion of communities, yet will frequently widen far beyond the vicinity in which they are formed. Community societal work is harmonizing to Smale et al About the procedures the workers engage in, the relationships they make and how they maintain and change them. adding These procedures generate the particular aims and aims of the workers and those they portion the work with. ( 1988, pg23 ) . The most of import things that must be recognised by any community worker is the type of community that they are working with or so the type of community that they are helping to assist construct. Evaluating Community Projects The Study So Far Decision

Pension System in China Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6250 words

Pension System in China - Thesis Example According to the research findings, the growth of the pension funds has consistently represented a challenge especially considering the present position of commercial banking. However, there have also been benefits related to expansion and growth of the financial markets, hence leading to efficiency and liquidity. This paper has found out that an effective pension system requires such pre-conditions as sound commercial banking, market stability, effective financial regulations, and commercial systems of insurance. In the perspective of China, the country is present, at an important period with regard to its economic and social transition. The comprehensive reform of China’s social security and pension systems is a critical strategic factor that will assist in realizing a sustainable development in pension plans as well as a harmonious society. However, its current approach to pension system is inadequate in facilitating a realization of the country’s economic developmen t objectives now and for future generation. Presently, China is at an important period with regard to its economic transition. The comprehensive reform of its social security and pension systems is a critical strategic factor that is aimed towards realizing a sustainable development as well as a harmonious society. The common view by policymakers in China is that the current approach to the pension is inadequate in facilitating a realization of the country’s economic development objectives now and in the future. According to these policymakers, a reformed pension system will see urban systems being sustainable, multilayered, protects at the basic level and has broad coverage. However, though the relevant authorities have placed the increasing premium on a more balanced development between urban, and rural areas, households and different regions, the pension system has a per today only contributed to divergence.

A Study of Aristotelian tragedy in Oedipus Essay

A Study of Aristotelian tragedy in Oedipus - Essay Example One of Aristotle’s most influential works concerning literary theory is his Poetics. In it he articulates with eloquence and clarity various facets of good theatre. Tragedy is acknowledged as a powerful genre of drama. Aristotle goes on to set out various rules of thumb for making aesthetically and emotionally satisfying tragedies. His concise definition of tragedy is that it is â€Å"an imitation of an action that is serious ... with incidents arousing pity and fear, in order to accomplish the catharsis of such emotions." (Botton 20) He was in opposition to Plato’s critical and disparaging view of theater. Plato had earlier set the debate rolling in The Republic, stating that poets and other artists should be banned from civil society because they induced excessive emotional responses in audiences which countered calm reasoning. Aristotle rebutted this assertion in Poetics, stating that â€Å"although watching tragedies raised emotions, it also purged them. An audien ce would come away from Oedipus humbled, keen to be better and wiser.† (Botton 20) In many ways, Oedipus satisfies the Aristotelian conception of the tragic hero. For example, the tragic hero is someone who feels responsible for his actions and is conscious of ethical merits and demerits associated with them. In Sophocles’ Oedipus, we see that the author does not contemplate either the acknowledgement of guilt or the blinding. Instead, â€Å"awareness and blinding will be present in Aeschylus because his Oedipus must not see both 'what he suffered and the bad he did'. According to the author, the individual responsibility celebrated by tragedy is the expression of a people who do not tell history any more, but are aware of making it: a process that Plato could not-or did not want to-recognize, claiming to read tragedy like the continuation of old myths and of old stories, rather than like a new way to tell them again, to involve oneself and to involve us with them in a different way.† ... ould not-or did not want to-recognize, claiming to read tragedy like the continuation of old myths and of old stories, rather than like a new way to tell them again, to involve oneself and to involve us with them in a different way.† (Goretti 1305) What we also witness in Oedipus is a dimension of the tragic hero engaged in praxis. In Aristotle’s conception of tragedy there is an underlying conflict between ‘absolute necessity’ and ‘freedom’. This is amply evident in crucial life events of Oedipus, who, as the story progresses, is compelled to implement his own demise. For Aristotle, tragedy allows Greeks â€Å"to bear the unbearable contradiction that for thought would remain incomprehensible: 'the attestation, even in the loss of freedom, of this same freedom'†. (Goretti 1306)Though we do not find direct mention of concepts such as ‘will’ and ‘responsibility’ in the Poetics, â€Å"when Aristotle must indicate the ones who act the tragic action, for him 'hoi prattonese' is not sufficient, but he adds 'kai drontes'. The problem of freedom involves the problem of evil: the evil one does, the evil one suffers or the evil that is anyway committed.† (Goretti 1306) In the case of Oedipus, he is clearly aware of how evil forces are acting upon his life – some of which is caused by his own agency. To the coryphaeus who questions him on what a horrible action he has committed and on which god has induced him, Oedipus answers, â€Å"'It was Apollo', and then, a little afterwards, 'It was me, miserable, who did it'.† (Jones 45) According to Aristotle, a sense of foreboding and inevitability makes for effective tragedy. Throughout the story, there are numerous crucial decisions taken by Oedipus, which led up to his inevitable demise. Oedipus is not himself

Marketing research Exploring University of Leicester Students' Essay

Marketing research Exploring University of Leicester Students' Perception of Healthy Eating and Food Consumption - Essay Example Social Factors 11 3. Consumption Pattern 12 3.1. Involve In Purchasing 12 3.2. Intake of Vegetables and Fruits 12 3.3. Fat Intake 13 3.4. Intake of Fish and Meat 13 3.5 Consumption of Organic Food 13 References 15 Bibliography 19 Appendix 20 Evaluation of Research Design 1. Research Paradigm The research paradigm selected for this study has been interpretive. The interpretive research is chosen owing to different reasons. One of the primary reasons behind its selection is that this approach, unlike positivist approach deems that reality and the individual who observes it cannot be distinguished. On the other hand, the positivist approach believes that the reality is separate from the individual who observes it. The positivist approach is often blamed for its dualistic nature. Interpretative approach is also ascertained to provide an in-depth understanding of the complex world of human experience from their beliefs and perspectives. This approach is further consistent with the constru ction of the social world characterised by the interaction between the researcher and the participants (Andrade, 2009). Hence, the rationale behind selecting interpretive approach is that the study has aimed at attaining opinions regarding the healthy eating and food consumption habit. In this context, the opinions and beliefs cannot be quantified or measured, thus exploratory research has been chosen for this study. The exploratory research facilitates in drawing valuable insights regarding concept, people or any particular situation (Maxwell, 2008). Correspondingly, this study has intended at ascertaining deep insights regarding the participants’ perception on healthy eating and food consumption. While on the other hand, conclusive research particularly involves obtaining and analysing specific data to address particular specific questions (Dr. Nancy D. Albers-Miller, n.d.). Furthermore, inductive research has been adopted in this research study. Unlike deductive research, inductive research involves generalising the observations such as the factors that motivate participants to purchase and consume certain specific food items, which is not feasible with the use of deductive method (University of Pretoria, n.d.). Secondary research had been initially conducted in order to comprehend that further research is required. Moreover, secondary research had been undertaken as it was convenient to identify the known factor with the use of secondary sources. The qualitative research was conducted as the tool for primary research (Church, 2001). The qualitative research was selected in order to gain reliable understanding regarding the behaviour of the participants for uncovering the motivations behind purchasing and consuming certain categories of food items (Roller, 2011). At the same time, ad-hoc research approach was adopted in this study as this study involved identifying certain specific problem that was hard to generalise. While longitudinal approach was omitted as this approach requires longer time as well as it is more complicated and expensive in nature (Yee & Niemeier, 1996). 2. Data Collection Methods Data collection is an important procedure for any research in order to ensure the validity and reliability of the research study. It is thus crucial to select the most appropriate method of data collection. Correspondingly, focus group has been used in this study. The focus group is adopted so that more in-depth understanding regarding the perceptions, attitudes, beliefs and experiences could be

Definition And Classification Of Humor

Definition And Classification Of Humor Humor is a common phenomenon, which plays an important role in many aspects of our daily lives. Over thousand of years humor has been extensively studied in many fields, such as psychology, physiology and philosophy, anthropology, and sociology. Until recent times, it has been studied within the scope of linguistics. The English term humor derived from the Latin word for liquid, fluid or moisture. As time went by, the word humor lost its original meaning and came to be used in its present sense. As to the definition of humor, no agreement has been reached yet. According to Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary of Current English, it is defined as (1) capacity to cause or feel amusement (2) a persons state of mind. In Longman Dictionary of English Language Culture, it is defined as the ability to understand and enjoy what is funny. Although the definitions are not completely the same, we still can find something in common: Firstly, there should be human participants in the act. The speaker and the hearer play an important role in the humorous utterance. Secondly, the occurrence of humor should refer to the ability of people who are capable of producing and receiving what is funny and laughable. Thirdly, in any case something must happen in a humorous act, which refers to something people have seen, heard or thought. As to the classification of humor, Pocheplsov (Pocheplsov, 1981: 25) divided humor into two kinds. One is situational humor, the other is linguistic humor or verbal humor. Situational humor is situation-oriented, such as Monkeys mimic human beings behavior, and little babies learn to walk. Both of their awkward and vivid postures are situational humor. Verbal humor refers to text-oriented humor, both written and spoken. It is realized by languages. In this paper, verbal humor will be mainly discussed. 2. Humor created by flouting the cooperative principle In the next part, the theories will be briefly introduced and how the humorous effect is achieved will be discussed in details. 2.1 A brief review of cooperative principle In the process of communication, participants must abide by some basic principles, especially cooperative principle to ensure that the conversation goes smoothly well. We know that quite often a speaker can mean a lot more than what is said and the hearer can arrive at the speakers meaning. A philosophy and logician, H. P. Grice believes that there must be some mechanism governing the production and comprehension of these utterances. He suggests there is a set of assumptions guiding the conduct of conversation. This is what he calls the Cooperative Principle (CP). He then formulates the principle and its maxims as follows: Make your conversational contribution as is required, at the stage at which it occurs, by the accepted purpose or direction of the exchange in which you are engaged. To put it more specific, there are four maxims under the general principle. The maxim of quantity Make your contribution as informative as required (for the current purpose of the exchange ) Do not make your contribution more informative than is required. The maxim of quality Do not say what you believe to be false. Do not say that for which you lack the adequate evidence. The maxim of relation Be relevant The maxim of manner Avoid obscurity of expression Avoid ambiguity Be belief Be orderly (Grice, 1969: 58, cited in Wen Liu, 2006: 154) Grices CP is, with no doubt, one of the most important pragmatic principles ever existed and also one of the focuses of this thesis. However, not everyone obeys these maxims in the process of communication. Although speakers sometimes may violate these maxims intentionally or unintentionally, they are still cooperative and the communication can be successful. Humor is one of the cases like this .In the pragmatic study of verbal humor, violation or flouting of the four maxims has frequently encountered. In the following parts, I will talk about how humorous effect comes out on flouting of CP maxims in details. 2.2 Humor created by flouting of the maxims 2.2.1 Humor created by flouting of the maxim of quantity On the one hand, when the information is not as informative as is required, the sense of humor can be felt. For example, 1) That is not my dog An old lady was strolling through the park when she saw Jamie with a dog. Does your dog bite? she asked. NO. said Jamie. When the lady tried to pet the dog, it almost bit her finger off. I thought you said your dog does not bite! screamed the old lady with blood dripping from her hand. That is right, answered Jamie, my dog does not bite -but that is not my dog. In this story, Jamie violates the CP in that she does not answer the ladys question without adequate information. But the lady takes it for granted that that is Jamies dog. So when she complains, Jamies smart answer causes this humorous effect. On the other hand, when the information is more informative than is required, the humorous effect can also be felt. A good case in point is the conversation between The Soprano and the Contralto. 2) S: Did you notice how my voice filled the hall last night? C: Yes, dear. In fact I noticed several people leaving to make room for it. This humor lies in the over-loaded information of the Contraltos answer. The Soprano is proud of her voice and she wants to get others affirmation. So she asks the Contralto. In fact the first part of her answer is enough. From the extra part we can deduce the implication that the Soprano sings so badly that some audience can not bear it and start to leave. The contrast between the Sopranos expectation and the results she gets produce humorous effect. It is not hard to imagine how embarrassed and lost she was at that moment. 2.2.2 Humor created by flouting of the maxim of quality We have mentioned that the quality maxim requires the utterance to be true and reliable. The following story will fully explain how the humorous effect will be achieved by flouting the quality maxim. 3) The Barbers Explanation Once a boy went into a barbers shop and he asked for a shave. The barber told him to sit down, soaped his face and then left. The boy waited and waited and at last he lost his patience. Well, he shouted, why are you leaving me here for all the time The barber replied, Im waiting for your beard to grow. In this humorous story, the little boy is probably too eager to become an adult. So he asked for a shave, but the humorous barber did not refuse him directly .Instead, he left the boy waiting there and explained when the boy lost out of his patience. Obviously the barber violate the maxim of quality for it is known to us all that it will be many years before the boy grows beard. His real purpose is that he wants to tell the boy that there is no need for him to shave. His humor exists in disagreement between his utterance and actual objective facts. The following story will produce the same effect. It is about a horse or a mistress. The following is the story. 4) A horse or a mistress A woman came up behind her husband while he was enjoying his coffee and slapped him on the back I found a piece of paper in your pant pocket with the name Marylou written on it , she said ,furiously, you had better have an explanation. Calm down, honey! the man replied, Remember last week I was at the race? That was the name of the horse I bet on The next morning his wife sneaked up and again slapped him, what was that for? he complained. Your horse called last night. In this story the husband explained that Marylou was the name of his horse. Obviously he lied and violated the maxim of quality- Say something you believe to be false. The next morning when he asked why his wife beat him. His wife deliberately violated the maxim of quality and said his horse called last night. From this we can feel the wifes anger and her humor. Another aspect about deliberately flouting the maxim of quality is saying something lacking of evidence. For instance, 5) She: how old do you think I am? He: you dont look your age. In this piece of humor, the mans answer is vivid and humorous in that in western culture age is a taboo for ladies in a conversation. You dont look your age is quite a good answer for however old the lady is, it will not embarrass her. The violation of quality maxim is actually lying. In order to achieve humorous effect, speakers often apply rhetorical devices, such as personification, irony, hyperbole. Hence the hearer infers that the speaker meant something informative instead, for example, 6) Tom has wooden ears, this sentence can be interpreted that Tom do not appreciate classical music so we should not invite him to the concert. 2.2.3 Humor created by flouting of the maxim of manner In Grices cooperative principle, the maxim of manner requires the addresser and addressee to avoid obscurity of expression and ambiguity, be brief and orderly. However in our daily life, it is easy to break one or two, thus producing some unexpected humorous effect. Firstly, humor is created by intentionally saying some obscurity of expressions. 7): Lady (standing in the middle of a busy street): officer, can you tell me how to get to the hospital? Policeman: Just stand where you are and you will find how to get to the hospital. In example 7), the policeman did not answer the ladys question directly but indirectly warned her not to stand in the middle of road. This kind of conversation will make the seemingly boring transportation a little interesting. Secondly, people achieve humorous effect by making use of ambiguity of words. The following dialogue is the oral test to American registered electorate. 8) Where is Washington? He is dead. I mean the capital of the United States. They loaned it all to Europe. Now do you promise to support the constitutor? Me? How can I? I have got a wife and six children to support. In this conversation there are many words easy to be misunderstood for they have multiple meanings. Washington not only refers to one of American cities but also can refer to the first president of United States. Capital also has two meanings, city and money. Support can be used to agree with somebody and it also mean raise somebody. The questioned skillfully make use of polysemy to produce ambiguity. Thus, he can avoid answering the questions directly. It not only vividly reflects his sense of humor but also criticizes American politics. Thirdly, another way of producing humor by violating the manner of maxim is not to be brief. There is an old story which can best illustrate this point. Example 9): There was a man who played the chess for three times continuously. Later when he was asked how it was .He winked his eyes and answered: I did not win in the first time, the second time I did not lose and the third time I wanted to draw, but he disagreed. In actual fact, the man lost three times but he did not want to admit it. So he answered in the way that violates the third rule. However, this clever answer not only save his face but also left a deep impression on people who wanted to know the answer. Last but not the least is that the speaker deliberately says something random, illogical but the hearer can sense the humor by inferring from what he says. There is an example, 10) Her files of pins extend their shining rows; puffs; powders; patches; bibles; trifles; billet-doux. From this sentence the author put pins, make-ups of women and love letters sacred bible together. It is hard not to laugh when you get the pragmatic meaning that the woman was not loyal to God and Christian briefs. 2.2.4 Humor created by flouting of the maxim of relation The relation maxim requires us to speak something relevant. But in a conversation something completely irrelevant to topic maybe underlying something deep unsaid. Sometimes ridiculous words can also achieve humors effect. Example 11): There is a bug in the bottom of my cup! howled a customer in greasy-spoon cafà ©. What does this mean? Listen, mate, growled the owner, if you want your fortune told; go to find you a gipsy. In this example the customer needs a reasonable explanation about the bug, but the owner answer totally different thing irrelevant to his question. It violates the relation principle but achieve humorous effect .another example is listed to illustrate this point. A young man pretended that his eyesight was very poor when examined, so he was not called up for army service. That evening he went to a movie only to find that the doctor who had examined him was sitting beside him. Immediately he said to the man doctor, Excuse me, maam, but doesnt this bus go to Main Street? The young mans question has nothing to do with the context. He deliberately flouts the relation maxim to make the doctor believe that he is indeed short-sighted. In this way he covered his lie but it adds into the whole story a humorous effect. 3. Humor created by flouting the speech act theory 3.1 Theoretic review of speech act theory The speech act theory is one of the important theories in pragmatics; it is initially put forward by the British linguistic philosopher John L. Austin in his lectures at Harvard University in 1955. It is a philosophical explanation of the nature of linguistic communication. It aims to answer the question What do we do when using language? According to Austin, a speaker might be performing three acts simultaneously when speaking: locutionary act, illocutionary act and perlocutionary act. Locutionary act: the act of saying the literal meaning of the utterance. Illocutionary act: the extra meaning of the utterance produced on the basis of its literal meaning Perlocutionary act: the effect of the utterance on the hearer, depending on the specific circumstance (Liu Wen, 2006: 149). 3.2 Humor created by misunderstanding illocutionary act Example 12): Teacher: what is the shape of the earth? Jonny: it is round. Teacher: How do you know it is round? Jonny: All right, its square then. I dont want to start an argument about it. From the teachers question, How do you know it is round? We can infer the teacher didnt blame the students answer, but wanted the student to tell him the evidence or causes for his answer. However, the student thought the teacher suggested him that the answer was wrong, so he changed his answer. Example 13): Waitress, shouted the impatient diner, do I have to sit here and starve all night? No, sir, we close at nine oclock. It is obvious that the customer is dissatisfied with the restaurants slow service, and he expressed his complaint. But the cute waitress deliberately understood the complaint on the locutionary act, and she hinted the customer she wont make him stay too long for his business hour was not all-day round. In the above two examples, humor is produced by misunderstanding illocutionary act. 3.3 Humor created by understanding illocutionary act In the following example, the seeming unconnected conversation between husband and wife is very coherent on a speech-act level on the condition that both of them understand the illocutionary act. 14) a. Husband: Thats the phone. b. Wife: Im in the bathroom c. Husband: Ok. This is an exchange between husband and wife when the telephone rings. In (a) The husband is not describing something it is a thing that needs no description to his wife .In (b), the wife is not describing her action either people do not usually need to assert that they are in the bathroom. Its illocutionary act are a refusal to comply with the request and issuing a request to her husband to answer the phone instead .In (c) the man accepts his wifes refusal and accepts her request, meaning all right, I will answer it In this piece, the humor lies in getting implied meaning from the seeming unconnected conversation. They both can understand each other without saying something directly. 4. Presupposition and humor Presupposition can be defined in linguistics as any kind of background assumption against which an expression or utterance makes sense or is rational. Presuppositions refer to the conditions that must be met in order for the intended meaning of a sentence to be regarded as acceptable (Yang, 2008: 177). Presupposition can be divided into semantic presupposition and pragmatic presupposition. Semantic presupposition can be easily figured out with presupposition triggers. However, pragmatic presupposition is the presupposition of the speaker or those directly involved. It concerns not only knowledge (whether true or false), but also concerns expectations, desires, interests, claims, attitudes towards the world, fears etc. The presupposition in linguistic is affected by some factor or the context. Pragmatic presupposition is the background knowledge of the two parties of communication, and the mutual knowledge is an important factor involving the construction of context. When the mutual knowledge is negated, the presupposition of the previous utterance is cancelled. In some situations, the speaker may deliberately make use of the defeasibility of presupposition to create humorous effect. The following examples are good cases in point. Example 15): If youre going to work here, young man, said the boss, one thing you must learn is that we are very keen on cleanliness in this firm. Did you wipe your feet on the mat as you came in? Oh, yes, sir. And another thing was we are very keen on is truthfulness. There is no mat. In this story, when the boss asked the young if he wiped his feet on the mat when he came in, the presupposition is that there is a mat on the floor. For this question, not only the young man, anyone would think that there is a mat on the floor. In fact, the boss set a trap to the candidate through a false presupposition to test whether the candidate is honest. 16) How often do you cheat in your exam? if you are asked by your teacher, how will you answer ¼Ã… ¸ There is a presupposition that you do, in fact, cheat in examinations. If you simply answer the how often part of the question by saying the words like very seldom, you are behaving as if the presupposition is right, that is, you admit that you have cheated in the exams. In this way we can touch the humorous effect of English. Presupposition is a precondition of an utterance and the implicit information it contains plays a role in normal progression of conversation. Ignoring the presupposition of an utterance, making a false presupposition and contradicting the presupposition to an utterance cause the abnormal comprehension to an utterance between the speaker and the hearer. In this way the effect of humor is produced. It is interesting and important to note that while conversation participants nearly always observe the CP, they do not observe these maxims strictly. Sometimes in order to achieve humorous effect, they will deliberately flout one or two of these maxims. The so-called sense of humor is the ability to produce or appreciate humor. The violation of one or two of these maxims is one of the main reasons to create humor. So many examples have been used to illustrate that violating this maxim could produce humor. But how can we sense it? Another pragmatic principle comes up-Conversation implicature. 5. Conversational implicature and humor Grices basic idea is that in communication, speaker aims to follow the CP and its maxims, and that hearers interpret utterances with these maxims in mind. According to Grice, utterance interpretation is not a matter of decoding messages, but rather involves taking the meaning of the sentences together with contextual information, using inferences rules, and working out what the speaker means on the basis of the assumption that the utterance conforms to the maxims. The kind of meaning that is not literally contained in the utterance is called conversational implicature. Conversational implicature is the key notion to appreciate English humors. In other words, appreciating English humor is no more than getting the implied meaning from the utterance. How can we get the implied meaning and what knowledge do we need? The correct inference of the conversational implicature presupposes the hearers mastery of the following knowledge: (1) the conventional content of the utterance (2) the cooperative principle and its maxims (3) the content of the context (4) some background knowledge shared by the speaker and the hearer. The speaker can produce the implicature in two ways: observance and non-observance of the maxims. In actual speech communication, it is often the case that speaker do not or can not observe the CP and the maxims. For example, the sentence he is a tiger literally is false, openly against the maxim of quality, for no human is a tiger. But the hearer still assumes that the speaker is being cooperative and then infers that he is trying to say something distinct from the literal meaning. He can work out that probably the speaker means to say that he has some characteristics of a tiger. Thus humorous effect can be sensed by such kind of expression. Metaphor and irony are standard examples of the flouting of the maxim of quality. However, the least interesting case is when speaker directly observe the maxims so as to generate conversational implicature. 15) Husband :where are the car keys ¼Ã… ¸ Wife: Theyre on the table in the hall. The wife has answered clearly(manner)and truthfully(quality),and has given just the right information(quantity)and has directly addressed her husbands goal in asking the question(relation).She has said precisely what she meant, no more and no less, and has generated her conversational implicature. From the above examples we can see clearly that this pattern of conversation of inference can work only on the assumption that the interlocutors share some background knowledge mentioned above. 6. The politeness principle and English humor The cooperative principle alone cannot fully explain how people talk. It explains how conversational implicature or English humor gives rise to but it does not tell us why people do not say directly what they mean. Why, for instance, do people say Could you give me a lift? instead of Give me a lift? The reason has to do with another principle which applies to conversation in addition to the Cooperative Principle Polite Principle (PP). In most cases, the indirectness is motivated by consideration of politeness. Politeness is usually regarded by most pragmatists as a means of strategy which is used by a speaker to achieve various purposes, such as saving face, establishing and maintaining harmonious social relations in conversation. Leech (leech, 1983: 165) looks on politeness as crucial in accounting for why people are often so indirect in conveying what they mean. He thus puts forward the Politeness Principle so as to rescue the Cooperative Principle in the sense that politeness can satisfactorily explain exceptions to and apparent deviation from the CP. Following Grices presentation of the CP, leech puts forward six maxims of the polite Principle which run as follows: Maxim of tact Minimize the cost to the other Maximize the benefit to the other Maxim of generosity Minimize benefit to self Maximize cost to self Maxim of approbation Minimize dispraise of the other Maximize praise of the other Maxim of modesty Minimize praise of self Maximize dispraise of self Maxim of disagreement Minimize disagreement between self and the other Maximize agreement between self and the other Maxim of sympathy Minimize antipathy between self and the other Maximize sympathy between self and the other (Wen Liu, 2006: 254) Briefly, this principle requires speakers to minimize the expression of impolite beliefs, give credit to the other person in its positive aspect and not cause offense to the other person in its negative aspect. 6.1 Humor created by abiding the politeness principle It has been mentioned that interlocutors should observe the maxims of Cooperative Principle in order to keep the communication go smoothly. However, in some situation interlocutors would rather sacrifice the Cooperative Principle than appear impolite. Interestingly, sometimes interlocutors abide by the Politeness will also create humorous effect. The following is such a case. The story happened when Regan held the post of the American President. During his first official visit to Canada, the demonstrators against the USA interrupted his public speeches off and on. The Canadian Premier Pierre appeared quite embarrassed. Then, Regan with a smile said to Pierre, Such a demonstration happens quite often in America. I guess these people must be coming from America o purpose to your honorable country. They just want to make me feel at home. (Xie, 2004: 125) Regans humorous speech immediately made Pierre joyful. When he saw the Premier felt tough to deal with the situation, President Regan applied the generosity maxim and the sympathy maxim in due course. His humor relieved Pierre from the embarrassment and at the same time saved his own positive face. Humor aroused by abiding by the Politeness Principle. The other maxims are also very important in explaining why certain forms are more acceptable than others. The maxim of approbation will explain why a compliment like what a marvelous meal you cooked! is highly valued while what an awful meal you cooked is not socially accepted .Thus when criticism is evitable; understatement is preferred as a show of reluctance to dispraise. (Her composition was not as good as it might have been.) The maxim of modesty accounts for the benign nature of utterance like how stupid of me and the offensive nature of how clever of me. A: The book is well written. B: Yes, well written as a whole, but there are some rather boring patches, dont you think. Regulated by the maxim of agreement, people tend to exaggerate their common ground first, even when much difference is to follow. In the following example, notice how much effort speaker B puts into trying to hide the fact that he disagrees with A. A: She is small, isnt she? B: Well, shes sort of smallà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦certainly not very large à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦but actuallyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦I would have to say that she is large rather than small. Bs answer is better than answer directly. 6.2 Humor created by violating the politeness principle For some special communicative purposes, the interlocutors may violate the maxims of Politeness Principle. Teacher (to a boy slow at mathematics): You should be ashamed of yourself? Why at your age George Washington was a surveyor! Boy: Yes, sir, and at your age he was President of the United States. According to the maxim of Politeness Principle, we can see the teacher firstly violated the maxim to approbation .Faced with the dispraise, the boy struck back the teachers dispraise, and he also violated the maxims of approbation .However, in this example, the student saved his own face by violating the maxim of politeness principle. It is argued that when the CP and PP are in contradiction, it is generally the CP maxims that get sacrificed. When the truth cannot be told for politeness sake, a white lie may be offered. In fact the PP is so powerful that people are often encouraged to violate its maxims in order to ensure a cooperative discourse .Irony is a means to solve the conflict between the CP and PP-when the truth is too offensive to be told, an ironic utterance assumes a polite surface while delivering an unpleasant true message underneath. Conclusion Just as Chinese scholar Lin Yutang puts it, humor is part of life. As a phenomenon peculiar to human beings, it can be found everywhere. The study of humor can help us better understand humor. This paper studies the general knowledge of humor and how it is caused. Conducting a pragmatic approach to the understanding of verbal humor makes it clear why humor is humorous and how to understand and create verbal humor effectively and efficiently. Through the employing of pragmatic theories to analyze the creation of humor, it can be found that the Cooperative Principle has strong explaining force to the analysis of verbal humor. According to Grice, conversational implicatures can arise from either strictly and directly observing or deliberately and openly flouting the maxims, that is, speaker can produce implicatures in two ways: observance and non-observance of the maxims. According to Leech, the politeness principle is not just an addition to Grices CP, but a necessary complement needed for cases where the CP fails to offer a reasonable explanation. Besides, the speech act theory also plays an important role in appreciating English humor. Through the illocutionary act, extra meaning of the utterance can be produced on the basis of its literal meaning. Presupposition is also an important fact in understanding humor and not getting cheated by others. From the perspective of its function, humor can be used to activate atmosphere, get rid of conflict, attack and counter-attack, and save ones faces. In our daily life, people create humor not only for humors sake, but also for some special communicative purposes. Through the study, people can find the power and charm of humor. If more and more people can be encouraged to use humor in their daily life, the whole society will be more friendly and harmonious.

The Merchant of Venice Should be Studied in High Schools Essay

Since middle school, I have believed that all of Shakespeare’s works, similar to A Mid Summer Night’s Dream, were plays that one would read to hear a happy, entertaining story; but, it was not until this year, after reading The Merchant of Venice, that I recognized the darker, more sinister, side of Shakespeare’s plays. The Merchant of Venice supports the Jewish, anti-Semitic stereotype as the wicked character of Shylock is developed. Many individuals fear that it is improper to teach and discuss The Merchant of Venice in high school classrooms because of the negative way it presents Jews; however, I believe that it is important to read this controversial play in high schools because it enables students to learn anti-Semitic history and because reading Shakespeare’s works, due to their complexity, expands the literary mind of those who read it. It is so important for people to recognize how Jews were portrayed during Shakespeare’s life so that historic events such as the holocaust do not repeat themselves. Teachers who plan on presenting their students with The Merchant of Venice should also present them with articles explaining how Jews received their negative stereotype and explain to them that Jews are not as evil as Shylock. The play can still be useful as a high school reading experience only if taught correctly, in a manner that avoids Jews being insulted and non-Jews getting a completely flawed idea about Jews. Although comedic during the 16th century, The Merchant of Venice can no longer be viewed as a comedy in the 21st century due to the diversity of people and general acceptance of their cultures throughout the United States. Without proper instruction from teachers, non-Jewish students may begin to express h... ...ent in their society. In reading Shakespeare, minds of readers are expanded due to his use of Early Modern English and extensive vocabulary. Shakespeare’s works also provide readers with great entertainment whose portrayal of the human condition transcends the generations. The Merchant of Venice contains many witty lines and sub-plots. â€Å"Prejudice feeds on ignorance† (Leggatt 215). If teachers do not teach their students the origin of such stereotypes, then they are developing ignorant students who will forever believe that Jews are incarnations of the devil. Considering the Jewish Stereotype that is supported and developed in Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, the play is, indeed, still useful as a high school reading experience because, due to its sensitive topics, assists in eliminating innocence and creates a more discerning eye for world issues in students.

Communication Changes Essay

How did we arrive here? I ask that question after pondering the thought of how communication has changed just in my lifetime. I was born in 1970 in a small Idaho town. Party lines were still being used by most of my neighbors along our rural gravel road, and touch tone dialing wasn’t even thought of – at least not in my county. Two black and white televisions were in our household†¦one 14† in my parents’ room and a larger 19† in our family room. Cable tv? Not a chance. Four channels was all that was available, one of which was PBS – so unless Sesame Street was on, that didn’t count. That was just forty three years ago. Ouch. Writing that number makes it seem like a much longer time than it is, I still feel young. However looking back at all of the changes in the last four decades can be mind boggling. I watched new technology arrive and often thought â€Å"wow†¦.this is it, they  will never invent anything  that can outdo this!†. The touch tone phone, it allowed us to call someone so much faster than before. Soon after the VCR was the next best thing to come into our household and although not a communication device it would eventually evolve into an interactive communication tool. Communicating with someone in another town, state, or country was limited to either telephone or postal mail, which my grandparents at the time still commented on how amazing it was to be able to speak with someone on the other side of the planet. But it was expensive, very expensive. While brainstorming for this paper only a few methods of communication came to mind, oral, written, and electronic. During my research I found that communication technologies can be classified into eight different stages according to Walter Ong (Source: Theo 2011): 1. Orality (talking only)  2. Early Writing (pictorial writing then eventually phonetic alphabets, â€Å"craft literacy†, parchment). 3. Later Writing (scrolls then early bound books i.e. codices) 4. Early Print (Gutenberg and friends)  5. Later Print (the mass market begins) 6. Electric (Telegraph, Telephone) 7. Electronic (TV and radio) 8. Digital (Internet, cell phones) After initially reviewing this list I was astounded at how communication progress was extremely slow in the first five stages – consisting of tens of thousands of years between one stage to the next; however in my lifetime alone I have witnessed the last three stages evolve. I wonder, will this happen again? Will my son witness communication evolve three, four, five times in his lifetime? Or was this technology evolution an anomaly. Fast forward to current day, we have so many choices available to communicate with others it is often difficult to choose which method we want to use. Should I eMail my friend in San Francisco, call him using my house or cell phone, send him a text with an attachment of my wife and I’s wedding, or would he prefer a hand written card sent via the US Postal Service? Not only am I faced with which method works best for me in these situations but I also need to consider my recipient. It is generally very easy for adults to choose the appropriate method of communication however teenagers struggle more than ever. Often they will choose the simplest form of communication for their generation – texting. They even have their own new language while texting, SMS language or otherwise known as ‘textese’. This type of language is very similar to those used when the telegraph was in use over a hundred years earlier. The SMS language utilizes the fewest number of letters to produce words and sentiments in their correspondence, mostly driven by space, time and cost restraints.

School Ties essays

School Ties essays School Ties, a film by Robert Mandel, is the story of a Jewish boy, David Greene, who is recruited to play football for an elite private school. David Greene hides his religion from his schoolmates and teachers because the school is made up of Christians. Soon after David begins to feel accepted by his classmates, Charlie Dillon, a jealous rival of Greene's, exposes him as being Jewish. All of Greene's friends turn on him and David begins to be tormented by his peers. Later, Dillion cheats on a test. The teacher decides that unless the cheater comes forward, he will fail the entire class. While the classmates are deciding who the culprit is, a momentum is built and the students begin to behave differently than they would if group did not surround them. The classmates turn on Greene even though a few of them originally thought that Dillion cheated. This change in behavior due to the safeness of a crowd mixed with fear, panic, and ignorance is called a mob mentality. The first instance of mob mentality in School Ties occurs soon after the students discover that David Greene is Jewish. The students turn on David and begin to be hurtful toward him. A few students try to intercede by asking each other questions like "Well how many Jews have you had in your house?" Most of the students had never directly met a Jewish person. The ignorant students assumed that Jewish people were money-hungry and generally bad people because of what they had heard from other people. David's peers were scared because they believed that David's religion changed who he was as a person and it separated him from them. Chris Reece, David's room-mate asked David why he didn't tell him that he was Jewish. David retorted by asking Chris Reece what religion he was and why he had not told David before. The students believed that David's religion was so different and foreign and that it seperated them so much that it was his duty to inform them. ...

Amazing Sand Dollar Facts

Amazing Sand Dollar Facts A sand dollar (Echinarachnius parma) is an echinoid, a type of invertebrate animal whose skeletons- called tests- are commonly found on beaches the world over. The test is usually white or grayish-white, with a star-shaped marking in its center. The common name for these animals comes from their likeness to silver dollars. When they are alive, sand dollars look much different. They are covered with short, velvety spines that  are colored purple to reddish brown. Fast Facts: Sand Dollar Scientific Name: Echinarachnius parmaCommon Name(s): Common sand dollar or northern sand dollar; also known as sea cookies, snapper biscuits, sand cakes, cake urchins, or pansy shellsBasic Animal Group: InvertebrateSize: Live adult animals measure between 2–4 inches in diameter, and approximately 1/3 inch thick  Lifespan: 8–10 yearsDiet:  CarnivoreHabitat: Northern parts of the Atlantic and Pacific oceansPopulation: UnknownConservation Status: Not evaluated Description Living animals of the common sand dollar (Echinarachnius parma) species are generally sub-circular, measuring approximately 2–4 inches across, and are coated with spines that are purple, reddish-purple or brown in color. The test of the sand dollar is its endoskeleton- it is called an endoskeleton because it lies underneath the sand dollars  spines and skin, and it is made of fused calcareous plates. This is different than the skeletons of other echinoderms- sea stars, basket stars, and brittle stars have smaller plates that are flexible, and the skeleton of sea cucumbers is made up of tiny ossicles buried in the body. The top (aboral) surface of the sand dollar test  has a pattern that looks like five petals. There are five sets of tube feet that extend from these petals, which the sand dollar uses for respiration. The sand dollars anus is located at the rear of the animal- found in the edge of the test below the single vertical line extending from the center of the star. Sand dollars move by using the spines located on their underside.   Daniela Duncan / Getty Images Species Sand dollars are echinoderms, which means like sea stars, sea cucumbers, and sea urchins, they have a radiating arrangement of parts and a body wall stiffened by bony pieces such as spines. In fact, they are basically flat sea urchins and are in the same class, Echinoidea, as sea urchins. This class is divided into two groups: the regular echinoids (sea urchins and pencil urchins) and irregular echinoids (heart urchins, sea biscuits, and sand dollars). The irregular echinoids have a front, a back and basic bilateral symmetry on top of the normal pentameral symmetry (five parts around a center) that regular echinoids possess.   There are many species  of sand dollars. Besides E. parma, those found commonly in the United States include: Dendraster excentricus  (Eccentric, western, or Pacific sand dollar) are found in the Pacific Ocean from Alaska to Baja, California. These sand dollars grow to about 4 inches across and have gray, purple or blackish spines.Clypeaster subdepressus  (Sand dollar, sea biscuit) live in the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, from the Carolinas to Brazil.  Mellita sp. (Keyhole sand dollars or keyhole urchins) are found in tropical waters in the Atlantic, Pacific, and the Caribbean Sea. There are approximately 11 species of keyhole sand dollars. Sand dollars are classified as follows: Kingdom: AnimaliaPhylum: EchinodermataClass:  Clypeasteroida (includes sand dollars and sea biscuits) Habitat and Distribution Common sand dollars have been found throughout the North Pacific and eastern North Atlantic oceans, at locations from just below the intertidal zone to more than 7,000 feet.  As their name suggests, sand dollars prefer to live in the sand, in densities ranging between .5 and 215 per 10.7 square foot. They use their spines to burrow into the sand, where they seek protection and food.  Adult sand dollars- those over 2 inches in diameter- live in the intertidal zone. Most sand dollars live in seawater (saline environments), although some species do occur in estuarine habitats which combine of river and lake water, and are chemically distinct from saline or freshwater environments. Studies show that sand dollars require a certain level of salinity to fertilize their eggs. The sand dollar uses its spines to burrow into sand. Douglas Klug / Getty Images Diet and Behavior Sand dollars feed on small food particles in the sand, typically microscopically sized algae, but they do also eat fragments of other animals and have been classed as carnivores according to the World Register of Marine Species. The particles land on the spines, and then are transported to the sand dollars mouth by its tube feet, pedicellaria (pincers), and mucous-coated cilia. Some sea urchins rest on their edges in the sand to maximize their ability to catch prey that is floating by.   Like other sea urchins, the mouth of a sand dollar is called Aristotles lantern and is made up of five jaws. If you pick up a sand dollar test and shake it gently, you may hear the pieces of the mouth rattling inside. Reproduction and Offspring There are male and female sand dollars, although, from the outside, it is difficult to tell which is which. Reproduction is sexual and accomplished by the sand dollars releasing eggs and sperm into the water. The fertilized eggs are yellow in color and coated in a protective jelly, with an average diameter of about 135 micros, or 1/500th of an inch. They develop into tiny larvae, which feed and move using cilia. After several weeks, the larva settles to the bottom, where it metamorphoses. Juveniles (under 2 inches in diameter) are found in the subtidal zones and slowly migrate into exposed beach areas as they mature; the smallest are found in the highest beach elevations. They can bury themselves in the sand up to two inches deep, and very dense populations can stack themselves up to three animals deep. Threats Sand dollars may be affected by fishing, especially from bottom trawling, ocean acidification, which may affect the ability to form the test;  climate change, which might affect available habitat; and collection. Reduced salinity lowers fertilization rates. Although you can find plenty of information on how to preserve sand dollars, you should collect only dead sand dollars, never live ones. Sand dollars are not eaten by humans, but they can be prey for sea stars, fish, and crabs. Conservation Status The sand dollar is not currently listed as an endangered species. Sand Dollars and Humans Sand dollar tests are sold in shell shops and on the internet, for decorative purposes or souvenirs and often with a card or inscription referencing the  Legend of the Sand Dollar. Such references are associated with Christian mythology, suggesting that the five-pointed star in the center of the top of the sand dollars test is a representation of the Star of Bethlehem that guided the wise men to the baby Jesus. The five openings in the test are said to represent Jesuss wounds during his crucifixion: the four wounds in his hands and feet and the fifth in his side. On the underside of the sand dollar test, it is said that there is an outline of a Christmas poinsettia; and if you break it open, you will find five small bones that represent doves of peace. These doves are actually the five jaws of the sand dollars mouth (Aristotles lantern).   Other lore about sand dollars references the washed-up tests as mermaid coins or coins from Atlantis. Sources Allen, Jonathan D., and Jan A. Pechenik. Understanding the Effects of Low Salinity on Fertilization Success and Early Development in the Sand Dollar Echinarachnius Parma. The Biological Bulletin 218 (2010): 189–99. Print.Brown, Christopher L. Substrate Preference and Test Morphology of a Sand Dollar (Echinarachnius Parma) Population in the Gulf of Maine. Bios 54.4 (1983): 246–54. Print.Coulombe, Deborah. Seaside Naturalist: A Guide to Study at the Seashore. Simon Schuster, 1980..Echinarachnius parma (Lamarck, 1816). World Register of Marine Species.Echinarachnius parma (Lamarck 1816). Encyclopedia of Life.  Ellers, Olaf, and Malcolm Telford. Collection of Food by Oral Surface Podia in the Sand Dollar, Echinarachnius Parma (Lamarck). The Biological Bulletin 166.3 (1984): 574–82. Print.Harold, Antony S., and Malcolm Telford. Substrate Preference and Distribution of the Northern Sand Dollar, Echinarachnius Parma (Lamarck). International Echinoderms Conference. Ed . Lawrence, J.M.: A.A. Balkema, 1982. Print. Kroh, Andreas. Clypeasteroida. World Echinoidea Database, 2013.Pellissier, Hank. Local Intelligence: Sand Dollars. The New York Times, January 8, 2011. Smith, Andrew. B. Skeletal morphology of sand dollars and their relatives. The Echinoid Directory. Waggoner, Ben. Introduction to the Echinoidea. University of California Museum of Paleontology, 2001.

Theoretical Approaches to International Development Essay

Theoretical Approaches to International Development - Essay Example Although the world bodies on development argue that poverty has been reduced, the rates of under-development are still too high in many countries. World Bank argue that world population living in poverty has reduced tremendously in the past as a result of implementation of development policies on poor countries. This implies that if their data is correct, the world has attained one of the millennium development goals of reducing poverty levels by 50%. This review of international development approaches has considered three articles by Onis and Senses, Leftwich, and Kiely. These authors have analysed various features of development and approaches in measuring equality. This review covers a summary of key points raised by the authors, analysis of their strengths and weaknesses and comment based on these authors’ articles. Onis and Senses in their article, â€Å"Rethinking the Emerging Post-Washington Consensus,† have analysed the outcomes of new Post Washington consensus as a development debate. The authors have also analysed the new development orthodoxy that advocated for a new development model based on the fact that individualisation should be primary, outward orientation, liberalisation of market, and state contradiction. According to them, the state is viewed as the cause of retarded development. States are viewed as causing delay in development through many sectors they have created. These sectors make development processes longer (Onis and Senses, 2005, p. 264). Neoliberal orthodoxy was supported by ‘new political economy’ model which was opposed to sectors claiming that they were supporting majority interests. In essence, ‘new political economy’ model fostered individualism. Later, there were challenges that were noted in development by the use of neoliberal orthodoxy that led to the rise of Post-Washington Consensus. This consensus emphasised the importance of the state in development. It represented critical anal ysis of former paradigms in development i.e. national developmentalism and neoliberalism. This new approach recognises the place of the state in development but also emphasises the need for the state to avoid failures in the market. Post-Washington Consensus is challenged by its narrow look of issues related to market (Onis and Senses, 2005, p. 279). The agenda of this consensus is not adopted by Bretton Woods institutions like IMF. Onis and Senses conclude that there still are inequalities that are resulting in poverty even with Post-Washington Consensus (Onis and Senses, 2005, p. 287). Onis and Sense’s article has analysed various development models distinguishing their efficiency. However, their argument does not show explicitly the most favourable methods towards development. They cited different challenges of each models but never came with a recommendation of one. Kiely’s article is an evaluation of whether there has been any significant reduction in poverty leve ls. Kiely criticises the World Bank’s report that population living in absolute poverty were reduced by 400 million from 1.4billion in 1980. Other researchers indicate that poverty levels were reduced to 18% by the year 2000 from 46% in 1980. His work is a criticism of the definition of absolute poverty, which World Bank defines as Purchasing Power Parity. He claims that this method was just aimed at creating optimism of having achieved reduction in poverty level. Kiely criticises the method of measuring poverty level by Purchasing Power Parity saying that prices of commodities are likely to change in different

Knowledge of Organizational Communication Concepts and Skills Essay - 1

Knowledge of Organizational Communication Concepts and Skills - Essay Example This paper presents an analysis of each communication concepts and provides suggestions to implement it in the organization. Active listening is a very important part of communication structure. In order to build an effective business communication structure there is need to improve listening skill. This section outlines the importance of active listening and suggests ways to improve this skill. Both speaking and listening are very important part of verbal communication. Without a doubt, in any firm (small, medium or large), listening plays a significant role in effective working associations and communications among employees and between staff and administration. In the same way, this skill is also important in communicating with business customers and other organizations. The importance of listening cannot be underestimated if a business really wants to survive in this ever-increasing competitive world. In fact, listening has the power to make or break someone’s success in management, or customer relationships. Hence, improving listening skills means increasing the chances of business success (Hatter, 2013; Kati, 2011; More-For-Small-Business, 2012; Tingum, 2013). In addition, there are many important tips that can be used to improve listening skills. However, the first rule is to pay the speakers full attention and try to keep eye contact. In this scenario, the speaker can be a colleague, an employee, customer or management. Additionally, when they have completed this process, put another way their words and confirm whether you understand them in the approved manner. If you have any confusion then keep continue asking questions to increase understanding of their speech. Actually, listening cautiously while someone speaks to you can improve the quality of business communication. However, in order to improve listening power there is a need for effective concentration, which can only be attained with endeavor and practice. Without a