Prevention And Detection Of Accounting Fraud - 2577 Words

Prevention and Detection of Accounting Fraud @@@@@ @@@@ @@@@ @@@ October 21, 2014 Abstract: A client has requested information on the prevention and detection of accounting fraud. The research paper will cover descriptions of types and components of fraud. It will offer suggestions as to who would commit fraud and how it would be detected and prevented. The research paper should provide a general overview of the subject in layman s terms. Introduction The Accounts Payable Manager writes himself a check which he then allocates to a fake invoice. The cashier pockets twenty dollars occasionally without ringing in a sale. The owner of the business fails to report thousands of†¦show more content†¦When the individual falls short of this perceived status they then feel that they cannot share this failure and may succumb to the need to commit fraud. 2) Personal failure, the individual commits fraud to cover a personal failure. 3) Business reversals, problems arises from conditions beyond the control of the individual, such as economic downturns, inflation, higher interest rates. 4) Physical isolation, in this situation the trusted person has no one to turn to. 5) Status gaining, the individual feels that he has to maintain a certain level of status. 6) Employer-employee relations, the individual feels neglected, unappreciated or abused by the organization and commits fraud to extract a measure of revenge (Wells, 2011 pgs 15-16). According to Cressey’s research fraud is only committed if all three stages of the triangle exist. Therefore, there must be a perceived opportunity. This opportunity must exist for fraud to happen and the opportunity will present itself in two areas, general information of the how the business operates, it’s levels of anti-fraud protection, the area’s where opportunity may exist and technical skill. Technical skill is the second requirement; an employee who doesn’t have the expertise will not be able to commit an involved fraud, they may be able to steal money from the till but may not be able to cover up the theft. RationalizationShow MoreRelatedChapter 7 Reading Notes : Internal Control1095 Words   |  5 PagesInternal Control: †¢ Fraud is the act of deception in which a business including employees or management use to receive personal gain. †¢ Fraud occurs based on three aspects and they are based off the fraud triangle. - They include pressure, rationalization and opportunity - Reducing these three key aspects of fraud will reduce the act of fraud in a business †¢ Pressure: - Pressure entails financial pressure, where someone is financially unstable - A financial statement fraud could come directlyRead MoreWeek 1 Acc5561135 Words   |  5 Pagescovered will include: * The effect of occupational fraud and abuse on the company * U.S. governmental oversight of accounting fraud and abuse and its effect on the company Potential corruption schemes to be aware of in the company Recommendation of types of accounting evidence and methods of gathering such evidence to support the financial status review. Fraud deterrence occurs in several stages, and the key is to know that prevention is not to same as deterrence. First is the impact ofRead MoreImplementing A Comprehensive Audit Plan Essay1501 Words   |  7 PagesSeveral companies can benefit from finding ways to implement a comprehensive audit plan to reduce the likelihood of fraud occurring. Ideas associated with the SDLC and how to create phases that will fall in line with this execution are also detailed in this assignment. The SDLC assists in reducing fraud and cannot be applied lightly; this plan makes the process of fraud prevention and detection easier to succumb. Updating policies and procedures is an ongoing process that cannot go unkempt.â€Æ' EstablishingRead MoreUnderstanding Financial Statement Fraud And Financial Statements1730 Words   |  7 PagesUnderstanding Financial Statement Fraud Anna Gallagher American Public Universityâ€Æ' Understanding Financial Statement Fraud Financial statement fraud is any intentional or grossly negligent violation of generally accounting principles (GAAP) that is undisclosed and materially effects any financial statement. Fraud can take many forms, including hiding both bad and god news. Research shows that financial statement fraud us relatively more likely to occur in companies with assets of less than $100 millionRead MoreResearching Topics Of Interest Is A Key Starting Point For The Research Effort1538 Words   |  7 Pagessections include the formulation of potential topic areas of interest for my doctoral level research. Earnings Management: An Examination of Ethical Implications, Fraud, and the Related Impacts to Stakeholder Interests The first topic area involves an observation of how managers and accountants currently utilize loopholes in FASB accounting standards to present better earnings results to investors, creditors, and regulatory authorities. Many business professionals support earnings management as routineRead MoreWhat Management and Auditors Can Do to Help Prevent Fraud, Errors and Illegal Acts1157 Words   |  5 PagesJeff Sacks-Wilner Term Paper What Management and Auditors can do to Help Prevent Fraud, Errors and Illegal Acts Fraudulent, erroneous, and illegal acts committed by a public company, usually at a managerial or executive level, have been a very serious problem for many years and have prompted development of strict and updated regulations, such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, in an attempt to prevent these occurrences. Unfortunately, these new or updated regulations are not enough to prevent theseRead MoreHow Technology Has Changed Our New Set Of Skills And Practices1040 Words   |  5 Pagesthereby making an attempt to balance three critical factors i.e. cost, innovation and risk. On parallel grounds, the domain of internal security is undergoing drastic changes that mandates banking institutions to embrace new set of skills and practices. Fraud can be categorized as a business risk – it is like a sword of Damocles over a bank’s future. This must change for the good. The rapid pace with which the technology is changing, like the recent explosion of cellular customers, is often entaile d byRead MoreMadoff Securities Inc., Had Limited Resources And Fragmented1198 Words   |  5 PagesMadoff Securities Inc., had limited resources and fragmented oversight. The fragmented oversight led to the lack of coordination in preventing fraud at the company. The company has fragmented regulatory system that allowed unscrupulous people to engage in misconduct. For instance, the regulatory oversight was unable to examine the broker dealer operations of Madoff Investment securities. The lack of resources also affects the ability of the company to deal with financial and credit crisis (HornufRead MoreFinancial Crimes1610 Words   |  7 PagesDepartment of Justice, Pricewaterhouse-Coopers, and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) (Houck, Kranacher, Morris, Riley, Robertson, Wells, 2006). An understanding of effective fraud and forensic accounting techniques can assist forensic accountants in identifying illegal activity and discovering and preserving evidence. Forensic accounting is a science that deals with the application of accounting facts gathered through auditing methods and procedures to legal problems usuallyRead MoreChallenges Faced By The World Today1042 Words   |  5 Pagesthereby making an attempt to balance three critical factors i.e. cost, innovation and risk. On parallel grounds, the domain of internal security is undergoing drastic changes that mandates banking institutions to embrace new set of skills and practices. Fraud can be categorized as a business risk – it is like a sword of Damocles over a bank’s future. This must change for the good. The rapid pace with which the technology is changing, like the recent explosion of cellular customers, is often entailed by

Freedom, A Birth-Given Entitlement Or A Manmade Privilege

Freedom, a birth-given entitlement or a manmade privilege? For the female population on this Earth, neither is the appropriate answer. Freedom is defined by the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint; everyday women are silenced for speaking out or are frowned upon for being independent by not submitting to the heavy-weight of the set standards placed upon their shoulders. Over the centuries, the proposal of women having any rights remained a constant battle that appeared to not have any pre-destined ending. In the intervening time that Charlotte Perkins Gilman fabricated, â€Å"The Yellow Wall-Paper†, any thought of Women s Rights was unorthodox; whereas when Mary Oliver indited, â€Å"Wild Geese,†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦show more content†¦In the written text or in everyday life the never-ending phrases of â€Å"act like a lady† or â€Å"dress like a lady† are heeded, but this expectancy of how a distinct sex should act is unnatural and a standardization created by how society believes each gender should operate. On July 3, 1960, Charlotte Perkins Gilman was born in Hartford, Connecticut. She grew up to become a feminist who encouraged the female population to gain their independence. She produced a large body of polemical writing, what would today be called feminist writings, that made her a leading theoretician, speaker, and writer on women’s problems of her time. In 1896, Gilman published her most-known nonfiction short story called â€Å"The Yellow Wall-Paper.† Gilman wrote the story when she started suffering from extended periods of depression after she started to believe her marriage threatened her sanity. In 1935 Gilman committed suicide after she learned she had a type of inoperable cancer (Baym p.790-791). In the compelling fiction short story, â€Å"The Yellow Wall-Paper†, the narrator is a woman that suffers from a low-grade mental illness but because she is locked aw ay in a room her illness intensifies. The narrator’s husband, John, who is a

Proposal Utilisation of Marketing Communication Tools

Question: Discuss about the Project proposal report Utilisation of marketing communication tools to Promote infamous tourism sites in uk? Answer: Identifying various marketing communication tools Review The marketing communication tool that is utilised by the any hospitality organisation always targets the benefits enjoyed by the concerned organisation in terms of the promotion it makes for the infamous tourism sites of UK. As indicated by Batra et al. (2016, p.122), the different marketing communication tools comprises of advertising sales promotion, direct marketing, personal selling along with public relation activities. The Advertising is the best way to promote any product or services. Therefore, advertisement related to the concerned service s or the products is often available on the newspapers, televisions, radio along with the billboards, in order to attract more customers to the organisation and its service and products. However, sales promotion, avail the customers or the consumers with the discount coupons, loyalty clubs, incentives, membership coupons, attractive packages along with such others. Therefore, by providing the costumer with such related sales options , the more people get attracted towards the concerned services and product. Impact of marketing communication tool in promoting the infamous tourism sites In addition to above, the impact led by the marketing communication tool is effective in order to promote the infamous sites of infamous tourism sites. As indicated by Privitera (2016, p.24), the techniques that is frequently utilised by every organisation for promoting their unique product o service to the people that are unaware to the same is done by advertising. Therefore, in order to make people aware of anything that mode of advertising is utilised. Moreover, the advertisement made by the concerned organisation must be attractive enough in order to make tourists and other people urge to watch the entire advertisement related to the infamous tourism sites. Therefore, the impact that is laid by personal selling is not that effective than the advertisements and billboard. As for instances, unit can be further assumed that an information any be missed by an individual than the utilisation of the contents in billboards would further fill the individual with the relevant information. Challenges faced in implementing marketing communication tools for promoting infamous tourism sites As indicated by Peattie (2015, p.389), the implementation of the marketing communication tools in order to promote infamous tourism sites is a critical attempt. In addition to above, it is not necessary, that the people targeted by the concerned organisation would always get informed about the relevant product or services. Therefore, attempts hat are made by the concerned organisation must focus ob the contents that is presented in the advertisement of that particular information of the infamous tourism sites. In addition to above, the organisation further faced issues in terms of satisfying their targeted audiences, along with the relevant information that is further required to be portrayed in terms of the infamous tourism.Research In order to conduct the research project, the researcher will apply the Methodolo positivism research philosophy. In addition to above, there are different gy parameters that will be faced by the researcher, in order to conduct the taken research project . As indicated by Rey-Mart et al. (2016, p. 67), the research designs further help the individual to conduct the concerned research towards an accurate pathway. In addition to above, the research design will be selected by the concerned researcher is the Descriptive design that deal with the data collection with the help of the survey that will be conducted by the researcher. Moreover, the researchers will effort to target 100 people among the population of UK in order to structure the quantitative data. The survey that will be further conducted follows the online survey questionnaire format, so that more response and involvement can be achieved in less time.However, the research approach that will be selected by the researcher is the Deductive approach that further deals with the evaluation that would be acquired by the applicable theories as mentioned in the literature review. Therefore, buy marinating the above-mentioned philosophy, design approach and survey format, the research er further expects to gain relevant information related to concerned topic.Ethical In this research, the researcher may face different issues in order to conduct Considerati the research efficiently. The norms structured by the Data Protection Act 1998 ons will be followed and further maintained by the researcher (Legislation.gov.uk, 1998). In addition to above, the concerned Act portrays the confidentiality of the information that would be further collected by the researcher in favour of the research project. Therefore, the information that will be collected from the secondary sources would be considered to be followed in the rest of the research project. Moreover, there will be no external force given to the participants of survey. Timescales (Gantt Main Wee Wee Wee Wee Week Wee Chart) Activities/ k 1 k 2 k 3 k 9 15 to k 20 Stages to 3 to 9 to 20 to 15 24 Topic à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  selection and its scope Page 5 of 8 Identificati à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  on of secondary data sources Preparation à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  of research proposal Preparation à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  of literature review Description à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  of research methodolog y Collecting à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  primary data Analysing à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  data Comparing à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  findings Conclusion à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  and recommend ations Final à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  à ¢Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  submission Analysis The possible outcomes that would be further acquired by conducting the research project will make the researcher acquire the authentic information in terms of the utilisation of marketing communication tools for promoting the infamous tourism sites in UK. Moreover, the researcher will get the important features related to the disappearance of the infamous tourism sites among the people of UK. In addition to above, the required sources that are selected as the secondary data sources were considered to be the refined information in terms of the selected research topic. References Batra, R. and Keller, K.L., (2016). Integrating Marketing Communications: New Findings, New Lessons, and New Ideas. Journal of Marketing, 80(6), pp.122-145.Gossling, S., Scott, D. and Hall, C.M., (2015). Inter-market variability in CO 2 emission-intensities in tourism: Implications for destination marketing and carbon management. Tourism Management, 46, pp.203-212. Peattie, K., (2015). Sustainability Marketing: Reconfiguring the Boundariesof Social Marketing. In Innovations in Social Marketing and Public Health Communication.pp. 365-389. Privitera, D., (2016). Poverty as a Tourism Attraction: Travelling on the Web. In Global Dynamics in Travel, Tourism, and Hospitality.pp. 23-40.Rey-Mart, A., Ribeiro-Soriano, D. and Palacios-Marqus, D., (2016). Entrepreneurial attributes of human capital and contingency factors in the culinary tourism. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, 12(1), pp.67-85. Shankar, V., Kleijnen, M., Ramanathan, S., Rizley, R., Holland, S. and Morrissey, S., (2016). Mobile Shopper Marketing: Key Issues, Current Insights, and Future Research Avenues. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 34, pp.37-48. Wojciechowski, Ã…Â .P. and Babjakov, V., (2015). Necromarketing in the Media and Marketing Communications. Social Communication, 2(2), pp.15-29. www.legislation.gov.uk, (1998) Data Protection Act 1998 Available at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/1998?title=Data%20Protection%20Act%20 [Accessed on 18 Dec 2016]

Key Highlights of the Human Career

The development of mankind is more than simply a history for the modern society. These are the lessons that people have learned, the successes that they have achieved, the failures that they have suffered and the progress that we have made from Homo Erectus to Homo Sapiens Sapiens – the level of development that cannot be compared to any existing forms of life.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Key Highlights of the Human Career specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Thus, it is very important to remember the stages that the mankind has passed on its way to perfection. Each of those stages is marked somehow in the archeologists’ and scientists’ mind, and each of those stages can be represented by a certain artifact that can demonstrate the inventions that our ancestors made and the progress that they achieved. The treasure that the museum beholds is worth more than a gold mine, for this is the knowle dge that people have been collecting for centuries and thousands of years. Within these walls one can see the rise and fall of different civilizations, trace people learning to make weapons and creating the basis for the modern understanding of society. Here, the most significant artifacts have been selected to show the way that people have been going to achieve the present stage of development. The numerous artifacts will tell how important it is not to forget the old knowledge that the people of the past possessed. The artifacts have been arranged in a specific order for people to get the grip on the subject better and to have the possibility to see the numerous artifacts interconnected as they are, floating from one epoch into another. The artifacts have been placed in separate small cases for the visitors to have a better view on all of the elements grouped according to the sphere that they represent. The first case beholds the artifacts of people’s weapons, the second ha s scripts, and the third represents the sculptures that have been created in the ancient times. Hoping that the visitors will find the exhibition most interesting and cognitive, I would like top pass to the exhibits themselves.Advertising Looking for essay on anthropology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More One of the most impressive historic discoveries was the one of the Olduwan culture. The development of these people who were living in the times old as the hills was truly incredible. In the epoch of the Stone Age, the industry was developing at a very slack pace. The people who speeded it up somehow were the Oldowans. The ancient tribe managed to create the tools that helped them in their routine work and was used from 2.6 to 1.7 million years ago! However, that did have a negative effect of its own, with the people who used the invention of the previous centuries did not need to improve anything and thus did not feel the urg e to develop their skills in creating instruments for their work. That is what lies on the one hand, but on the other the historians see the Oldowan as the people that overran the epoch, leaving their heirs far behind. One could easily guess that the Oldowan civilization was born in Tanzania, the heart of Africa – since Africa is considered by a number of scientists as the cradle of the mankind. Of course, the connection between the Oldowan tools and the modern technology is rather vague, yet there is no doubt that the invention of the first weapon can be considered a starting point in human’s development. However, some scientists tend to argue against the importance of the Oldowan tools invention: How sure can we be that the Oldowan tools are in fact manufactured tools? This is not a very easy judgment to make, since the artifacts identified as tools consist simply of small pieces of rocks that are sharpened on one side. Could they not have been â€Å"found toolsâ₠¬ ? (Donald 111)Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Key Highlights of the Human Career specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The instruments that they created were used for the prior goal, which was hunting. Although the Oldowan tools are considered the most primitive form of instruments that have ever appeared in the course of history, their importance stands beyond any doubts. If people had not started making steps towards the creation of the simplest tools and instruments, the modern civilization would have never achieved the present stage of development. After all, the great things begin with very small steps. The next issue in discussion will be the exhibit named Achaeulian Hand Axe. This invention is also considered to belong to the epoch of the Stone Age. Discovered in the region of Hoxne (Suffolk), the tools that the scientists found and considered the evidence of the people development in the Stone Age, these instruments signify the ancient people moving to Europe from the plentiful hot Africa. They created the tools that might help them to accommodate to the new environment and that was more suitable for the needs that they had in the age when they were changing the habitat. Chronologically, this event belongs to the times of the Lower Paleolithic era and signify that the ancient people have finally began to improve the tools, adjusting them so that they could be sharper, and that they could be easier to carry. The handle that the axe has shows clearly that this was a step forward in comparison to the sharp stone that was carried in hand and could not be a serious weapon in the fight with an animal. Found in India (Chandra 46), these weapons made the archaeologists understand that the Stone Age had been far more developed than it was supposed before. Like the previous exhibit, it has very distant relations with the modern weapons, yet it is a specimen of the ancient weapons and martial arts that has to be preserved.Advertising Looking for essay on anthropology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The impact that this invention has had on the modern technology and human behavior is huge, yet rather distant in time. The next exhibit that is going to be of a great interest to those interested in the secrets of the ancient times is the drawing found in the Lascaux Cave in France. It is a well-known fact that the ancient people were trying to depict the events of their everyday life, as well as the most significant occasions, or what was considered significant in the prehistoric era. The cave of Laxcaus beholds the treasures far more valuable than the Flint’s cave. The artists were called the Magdalenians, who lived about 17,000 years from now. This was the epoch of the ice age, and the drawings that are depicted on the walls of the cave are called correspondingly the Ice Art. (Burnham 6). The pictures that the ancient people drew on the walls of their dwellings were showing various scenes, starting from hunting to the pictures of animals or people alone, or the signs that the people were using at that times. Of course, this cannot be posed as art from the modern point of view, and it was hardly the art for the sake of art – it could be more reasonable to suggest that the drawings were supposed to express the ideas that were prior to the people of the Stone Age era. These drawings can be subdivided into three groups, which are the images of animals, the images of people and the images of uncertain character that were supposed to signify something for the dwellers of the cave. Among the images of the animals, the most numerous are the drawings of equine. Since it was the main object for the hunt of the ancient people, they drew it as one of the most important elements of their existence. It is rather doubtful that the drawings found in the Lascaux cave could be considered as the beginning of the art era, but they still mean that the mankind started to use visual images to point at a certain subject or express an idea. This is a very important s tep in the development of the mankind. As people went on in their cultural progress and started searching for the new methods of finding food and hunting, they discovered fast that one of the ways to sustain their lives was to resort to eating the goods that they could grow themselves. Basically, it meant the beginning of the agricultural era and mean that people have achieved another stage of development. The weapons that they created were not aimed only at hunting, or killing anymore. People started to make the weapons that helped them to create an agricultural society. Of course, the process went long and with big pauses. But the first thing that showed the ancient people’s potential for the further mental growth was the fact that they began creating such instruments as sickles and microliths. Although nowadays sickle is rather a symbol of the bygone times and the lack of progress, in the Mesolithic culture, it was a major breakthrough. With all the reasons for the further progress, people started making the weapons that could help them grow the seeds and somehow gather the harvest. It is a clear-cut case of the fats development that leads from one invention to another. Since people realized that they needed to control the growth of the plants that they use as food, they necessarily had to come to the agricultural way of living. It must be also born in mind that a sickle was used even in the modern times, though it has been modified greatly. â€Å"The Natufian sites and Zawi Chemi had sickles (or at least sickle blades) and microliths; these were not found at Ganj-Dareh,† Ucko (363) says. Well, that only proves the fact that people cannot develop at the same pace. Some of them need more time than the others. The same goes for the cultures, perhaps. The invention has modified the modern human behavior, switching it to the agricultural society. The Natufian civilization is also known for its burial traditions. The proto-Neolithic cemetery that w as found in Shanidar cave is a sufficient proof for this. It must be well remembered that the discovery of the cemetery not only helped to restore the gaps in the information about the culture that left almost no traces in the history of the world, but also to obtain the missing information about the environment that the se people lived in, their traditions, customs and most known ceremonies: A variety of cultural materials were recovered from the cemetery fill. These items were found in all excavated portions of the cemetery, in squares both with and without stone features, but not equally distributed around the cemetery. (Solecki 64) The objects of the everyday life that were discovered there could be subdivided into two groups, the bone items and the stone ones. This is the evidence of the fact that the new age was coming up and that people were starting to use another materials in creating the weapons and tools for their use. Although the discovery was dating back to 12000 BC, i t still meant for the modern art and the modern human behavior a lot, because the objects of everyday life showed that the basis for home as a shelter was created. The ancient people must have been too tired of the nomadic life and decided to settle. One could claim that these weapons show that the new generation left the previous ones far behind. Indeed, the tools that the scientists found on the burial site were completely different from what they used to observe before. The variety of the stone tools that people had by that time was amazing. The ancient people already had smaller instruments, and they differed in form and sphere of their use. Thus, there were small pecked tools and ground stone tools. It is also important that they were used as decoration as well – among those were beads, pendants and small shaped stones which were the figures of people and people’s faces. The artfully done work made it quite clear that the new tools were created not only for the sa ke of hunting and working, but also because it bore a certain sense and some ideas that the people had. This was close to the pictures on the walls of the Lascaux cave, with their entertaining and magical element. The most important discovery in the cemetery was the plain and decorated slate objects. The clue about the significance of these objects was that they were manufactured in a very specific way: The items described were made of specifically selected raw material, a metamorphic slatelike stone. At least two distinct types of objects were made from this raw material: small decorated pieces elongated shaped tools. (Solecki 68) This discovery could lead to some more clues about the habits and the customs of the bygone civilization. A very unusual artifact, the next exhibit represents the culture that existed in the place where now Turkey resides. One of the most significant and beautiful elements of the ancient art, the frescoes that have been created in the place of Chatal Ho yuk, are the evidence of the fact that the civilization of the 6,500 BC era was no less progressive than the modern world. The beauty of the frescoes captures the visitors’ attention at once. It seems impossible that this could have been created by the people who did not have the tools, the instruments and the whole wide range of equipment that the modern people have. The modern technology must have been inspired by the tools and equipment of Chatal Hoyuk. The people of the ancient Turkey must have decided to create something that the descendants would worship and appreciate. Unfortunately, the area has been subjected to the multiple forgeries, and even now one can trace the remaining of the frescoes that were viewed as the real ones. (Muscarella 141). However, the modern scientists have made it possible for the visitors to enjoy the unique objects of the ancient culture without fearing that they would be fooled – the newest technologies have made it possible to verify each object’s authenticity and genuineness. The beauty of the ancient art will not leave a single visitor disappointed, so the gallery is really worth their while. The time has come to talk about the artifacts that represent the written evidence of the ancient cultures’ existence. Indeed, the Stone Age and the age of people mastering the art of hunting and searching for provision is of utter importance, but lots of people are still getting more curious as the conversation is getting closer to the issues of cultural life. What is being talked now is the first written evidence of the civilization existed. The gift of the written word is one of those that can draw the line between a man and a human. This is where the animal part of a man borders with the spiritual qualities, and where one can see the difference between living a wild and a cultural life. In spite of the fact that the first people to introduce the written evidence of their existence were far from being cal led the ones of highly developed cultural life, they still were more civilized than the previous culture. This could be explained by the fact that people were flocking into what would be later on called society and make the stem fro the mankind to cling to. The Cuneiform Tablet was the first written evidence of a man’s existence. Homo Sapience came to reign on the pre-historic Earth. That happened around 30th Century BC, which was not that far from the beginning of our times. The people were much more intellectual than it could be anticipated – and, it fact, they had already established their own culture that was getting closer to the modern concept of a cultural life. The modern art owes much ot this artifact, for it was the script with which the era of writing began. The people of the past must have been willing to leave a written evidence of their existence for the descendants of theirs. The progress was impressive, since there was not so much time that has passed. It could have taken several epochs more, but the Providence decided that this was the right time for people to introduce their own written culture. Of course, that could happen only in the most developed state that existed in those times in the entire world, which was Sumer. The people of Sumer had very promising culture and were practically the first ones to make the culture saturated with literature and with the art that resembled the ideas of the modern art. They were overrunning the epoch just like their prehistoric ancestors had been once, and this was the evidence that the pace of the progress was constantly growing. The new civilization added to the magnificence of the mankind. It was the first to establish the new stage in its history. It is curious that the Cuneiform Tablets appeared as the first script to introduce the alphabet and the ways to out the speech into a written form, but later on it was developed into cursive (Van de Mieroop 10), which signifies that writing wa s perceived by the people with gratitude and was used as the means to express their own ideas and concepts with great pleasure, quite intensively and eagerly. Of course, that was not the first attempt to exercise the writing genre in the history of the mankind, but that was one of the most successful tries, and the scale that it was growing at was impressive. However fast the civilization might develop, if it does not have a written art of its own, or at least a written document – a few words, in fact, would be enough – to prove its existence, it would be nothing – a naught – for the historians of the modern world. Sumer people introduced their Cuneiform Tablets, and it was more than sufficient to prove that they achieved the level of development that the other civilizations failed to. The results of the researches were held by archeologists showed that the Sumers were more than advanced for the time that they were living in. The shape that the first cune iform signs took were mostly â€Å"straight lines, with a broader head where the, now blunt, stylus was pressed into the clay, which led to the wedge-shaped look. In later period when instructions were carved on stone, these wedges were imitated by the stone-cutters, and they have become characteristic of the writing system. (Mieroop 10) The fact that the Sumers pioneered in the numerous areas that were further on developed into numerous branches of science and arts by the modern civilization proves that they had much more developed culture than the rest of the civilizations veer existed before. The so-called Warka Vase, or the Uruk Vase, that was created by the ancient craftsmen. The time that the creators showed the result of their fruitful work to the rest of the work cannot be defined precisely, but it is known now that the vase was created around 3,200 – 3000 BC. Unfortunately, like most of the exhibits, it has not been preserved untouched, and in present days it looks much like a wreck of a vase to those who know nothing about its amazing story, but for those aware of the great civilization that created it, the vase is the most precious object that can be found in the museum. With regard to the ancient masters, it can be said that their work is worth being called a masterpiece, with all the refined lines and curves. The pictures on its sides are performed artfully and with great sense for beauty. One cannot help admiring the beautiful artwork. The tree registers of carving – the tiers – that one can see on the bottom, the sides and the top of the vase, are the pictures of Tigris and Euphrates, animals, among them sheep and oxen. They can be characterized as a continuous pattern and perform a function of a decorative element rather than signify the important events in the Sumerian life. Meanwhile, the top carving shows the while picture, not the scattered pieces and show the image of a goddess Inanna, who was considered one of the he ad gods of Mesopotamia (Kleiner 20). The numerous names of her – Ishtar, Astarta and the rest – make it clear that the goddess was supposed a powerful force. Altogether, this makes the vase an important exhibit in the museum collection. What were the ancient masters inspired by as they created the vase? Hardly anyone can know it. However, this could be the passion for beauty that made the ancient people create this work of art. the modern art owes much to this vase, for its shapes and the dà ©cor are wonderful examples of an artwork even to the modern artists. The last, but definitely not the least is the artifact to represent the stages of the ancient cultures development is the sculpture of the Sumerian â€Å"City-Ruler†, or the â€Å"Priest-King†. The Uruk period that took place in 4000 – 3100 BC was marked by the growing theocracy, and the king that was heading the state was reigning rather as a priest-king, coordinating his reign with the â⠂¬Å"council of elders†. There is no doubt that during this period the state achieved the success that it had never experienced before. Consequently, people took the ruler as the wisest person that could lead them out of the dark. The image of the priest-ruler that could take his flock the right way was formed in this very period. It is peculiar that in the later Sumerian period the priest-king makes certain resemblance to Buddha, â€Å"with his beard shaven and the right shoulder bare† (Waddell 112). Perhaps, the ancient Sumerians were inspired by something or someone from up above to create this holy image. The image of an ancient god was, probably, the artifact that inspired sculptors of all times to challenge gods and carve images in stone. The abovementioned altogether make the sculpture more than simply a carving in the stone. This was the idol for the ancient Sumers, and they worshipped their king like a prophet. Perhaps, one of the main questions that will be rai sed as people see the artifact exposed in all its beauty is how the objects so distanced from each other in time and space could be gathered in a single exhibition. The reasons for such unexpected choice are to be explained. Actually, the history of mankind can be compared to a chain where every single link can break the whole construction down. The elements of the chain are interdependent, and each of them is an integral part of the whole object, which makes it complete and glued together. Thus, the connection between the civilizations that have been mentioned can be easily traced. One cannot leave unnoticed such traces of the interconnection between the civilizations as the common ideas, notions and perception of the world. The world picture may vary, but the clue that it is based upon remains the same. It is not merely a coincidence that the Sumerian idol resembles Buddha so much. Although such connection is hard to prove from a scientific point of view, there is no doubt that it exists, and that the influence that each civilization has on the next one is undeniable. There is a successful theory that J. Aruz has suggested: The roots of out own civilization lie in developments that took place more than six thousand years ago in the distant lands of western Asia. The region known to ancient authors as Mesopotamia – â€Å"the land between the rivers† of the Tigris and Euphrates – was home to one of the world’s great early civilizations, thriving at the eastern end of the so-called Fertile Crescent. (7) The very idea that the modern civilization takes its roots from such distant times seems incredible. Yet it is true. Indeed, the basis that the modern culture stands on was not thought up by the people of the new wonderful world – it was taken from the ideas of the Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. Some of the nations have borrowed the elements of their culture from the Ancient Egypt. But however different the origins of the con temporary art might be, they all have the same feature about them, which is the fact that they are based on the experience of the previous civilizations. Watching all those magnificent traces left by the bygone civilizations, on might ask why these huge worlds had to go. Was it a war that destroyed them? Maybe, the natural cataclysm wiped them out from the face of the Earth? Or, perhaps, these people faced the attack of a meteorite. None is right. The thing is that the rise and fall of civilizations depend on nothing and no one else but the very people. The way they were governing their country and building up the society was the road that led them from the top of the world to the decay. There is a successful theory that J. Aruz has suggested: The roots of out own civilization lie in developments that took place more than six thousand years ago in the distant lands of western Asia. The region known to ancient authors as Mesopotamia – â€Å"the land between the rivers† of the Tigris and Euphrates – was home to one of the world’s great early civilizations, thriving at the eastern end of the so-called Fertile Crescent. (7) The very idea that the modern civilization takes its roots from such distant times seems incredible. Yet it is true. The key to the civilizations slowly coming to their decay is actually the cycles that the life of mankind is divided into. Repeating and spinning around the time line like the Earth spins around the Sun, those cycles mark the rise and fall of great civilizations. The stress leads people to agricultural society, for they are striving for their lives, which means striving for food and harvest. The abundance of resources, along with the wild resources, results in sedentism, which implies turning to a stable life with permanent home and abandoning the nomadic lifestyle. From the point of the theory of mind, which emphasizes that each human being is entitled with certain mental states, among them beliefs an d desires, intentions and thoughts, the mental progress of the ancient people meant that they were not different form the modern people. In fact, they were entitled with the same gift of mental states, that is, with the ability to have desires, emotions, beliefs and thoughts. Moreover, Diamond assures that these mental abilities are interconnected with the events that occur in the world, in a very special way. To put it more precisely, it cannot be stated whether the mental abilities trigger the events or vice versa, but there has always been the link between the two. The abovementioned abilities can actually be both the causes and the results of these events. Speaking of the cyclic development of civilizations, there is a reason to mention the Australian people that Diamond speaks about. Diamond proves that the chain leading from the top to the decay is the same fro all peoples and involves several elements that mark the stages of the mankind progress and regress. The earliest and the most intensive food production with the decent population was in the highlands of New Guinea between 4,000 and 9,000 feet. Drainage ditches from 9,000 years also have been found. By 6,000 years ago, extensive agriculture with terraces in drier areas and ditch systems to dry wet areas existed. Many are still used. (Diamond 31) This is the case of the path dependence that Diamond has described so well. He showed that the way from overproduction to the decay is inevitable and will ultimately follow any civilization, however successful its development could be. Then, the new civilization rises from the ashes of the old one to follow the footprints of the latter. The famous question that Yali asked: â€Å"Why is it that you white people developed so much cargo and brought it to New Guinea, but the black people had little Cargo of our own?† (Diamond 14) has been actually answered by Diamond. Facing the danger of over-nurture, human nature seeks the way out, and as they do, they turn to sedentism, beginning to lead a settled life. Resulting in the fertility and the population growth, the mankind development comes to a dead end as the resources are drained and the population is left with nothing. Thus, the competitive evolution emerges, for people to survive through the hard times, and the story starts from the very beginning. In spite of the fact that the cyclic development seems to leave too little space for progress and doom people to repeat the same mistakes, there is one â€Å"but† that is worth attention. One of the abilities of people is to draw conclusions from the previous experience. Owing to this ability, the new civilizations have an opportunity to achieve a better success in their development. New technologies are built on the ruins of the old ones. Also, the interaction between the civilizations and discovering the artifacts provides innovations in people’s lives. Finally, the role of language in facilitating the development cann ot be denied. The culture of speech, as well as writing, is one of the most important stages of human’s development. After all, only people have their vocal apparatus developed enough so that they can speak, in contrast to animals. The ideas that will come to people’s minds can be even more valuable and precious than all the artifacts of the exhibition altogether, for sometimes people need to see the small truths that they have always known about and have never succeeded to understand. These truths can lead to seeing the centuries-old ties that all people and all peoples have been linked to each other with since the world was created. And, maybe, this exhibition will inspire someone to leave a work of art of his or her own to the grateful descendants. Works Cited Aruz, Joan. Art of the First Cities: The Third Millennium B.C. from the  Mediterranean to the Indus. New York, NY: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2003. Print. Burnham, Brad. Cave of Lascaux: The Cave of Prehist oric Wall Paintings. New York, NY: Rosen Publishing Group, 2003. Print. Chandra R., Sarat. Man in India. Bajpai: A. K. Bose, 1999. Print. Diamond, Jared. Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Society. New York, NY: W. W. Norton Company. 1999. Print. Donald, Merlin. Origins of the Modern World: Three Stages in the Evolution of  Culture and Cognition. Harvard: Harvard University Press, 1991. Print. Kleiner, Fred S. Gardner’s Art through the Ages: The Western Perspective. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning, 2009. Print. Muscarella, Oscar W. The Lie Became Great: the Forgery of Ancient New  Eastern Cultures. Leiden: Brill, 2000. Print. Roach, Darby. Your Three Second Window: Changing Everyday Moments  into Extraordinary Opportunities for Success. New York, NY: Wordclay, 2010. Print. Solecki, Ralph et al. The Proto-Neolithic Cemetery in Shanidar Cave. Austin, TX: Texas AM University Press, 2004. Print. Ucko, Peter J. and Dimbleby G. W. The Domestication and Exploration of  Plants and Animals. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 2007. Print. Van de Mieroop, Mark. Cuneiform Texts and the Writing of the History. New York, NY: Routledge, 1999. Print. Waddel, Austin. Makers of Civilization in Race and History. Whitefish: MT: Kessinger Publishing, 2009. Print. This essay on Key Highlights of the Human Career was written and submitted by user Amanda Mcgee to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Why Automacity and Fluency is measured in education Essay Example

Why Automacity and Fluency is measured in education Essay Example Why Automacity and Fluency is measured in education Essay Why Automacity and Fluency is measured in education Essay In every reading lesson, there are various ways in which a teacher measures the level of comprehension. Some of the guidelines used in measurement are automaticity and fluency. Automaticity is the way in which a learner develops the unconscious speed after being fluent. In this process, he is able to understand more, other than focusing on reading of vocabulary only. This paper will discuss the two concepts with a clear description of a theoretical analysis on automaticity. There are very many reasons why the two concepts are measured, which will also be brought out clearly in the essay. Additionally, the importance of fluency and automaticity is also revealed. It is therefore very necessary for teachers and students to understand that the two concepts are very beneficial for every learner so that they can comprehend more difficult work as they progress in learning. Otherwise, there would be a lot of problems in relation to learning as they progress to higher grades, and even at the college level, since they lacked proper orientation and foundation. Why Automacity and Fluency is measured in education Introduction In any classroom context, especially for young learners, it is necessary for the teacher to ensure that all the students develop the skills of fluency and automacity in all subjects. The academic performance of a child will only be good if the child has good skills in reading. Therefore, the teachers are always keen on measuring the level of fluency and automacity in the children they teach using various methods. This research paper seeks to discuss why fluency and automacity should be measured. Automacity and fluency The words automacity and fluency are intertwined. However, they are defined differently. Automacity is a process which is defined asâ€Å"quick, correct and effortless word recognition at the single word level. It is also defined as the ability to perform a task without significant demands on attention† (Philips, 2008). Automaticity comes form the word automotize, which basically means ‘automatic or unconsciously† (Miguel, 2008). On the other hand, fluency, or fluent reading is a process which is described as â€Å"the link between decoding and comprehension† (Morrow, Rueda, Lapp Gordon, 2009). It is a process which gives all learners the ability to move from monotonous and difficult reading to a kind of reading described as expressive and smooth. It is also defined as an automatic and accurate way of recognizing words, in addition to the proper use of prosody (Morrow, Rueda, Lapp Gordon, 2009). Fluency and automaticity are very important elements in all subjects. In language, there are several important skills, which include reading, writing, listening and speaking. The most important skill, which is in fact the opener to the other three, is reading. Since a student is required to know how to read in order to interpret comprehensions and understand all the other subjects, it is important for the teachers to emphasize on the skill. The recognition of the automatic word enables the reader to be attentive to all written texts. As a student begins to read, there is so much attention which is put on the exercise. With time, the ability of the learner in reading becomes automatic, and as a result, his or her attention lessens. This is described as â€Å"freeing up of cognitive resources for the construction of meaning† (Morrow, Rueda, Lapp Gordon, 2009). According to NIFL (2007), learners at the beginning and intermediate level are generally slow readers, but they increase their reading speed as they advance. Non- native speakers of a certain language and adults in the literacy classes also have the same characteristics. The only way that the students can be helped to move from intentional, slow decoding to the word recognition level is through constant practice. Practice is very beneficial as it enables learners to have the wide exposure in printing (alphabetic), makes work easier for the learners and the students get to learn any form of written work whether phonologically, orthographically and morphologically presented (Morrow, Rueda, Lapp Gordon, 2009). All the same, development of automaticity is not the endpoint of the reading process. It is not the only way that measurement can take place. Once all reading cycles begin, there should be fluency developed, and the learners should also be shown how to apply the skills they have learnt. Additionally, the learners should also been made aware of the need to use the skills learnt and therefore should be encouraged in monitoring of the skills (Wifischer, Holmes Yang, 2007). Theoretical discussion on automaticity The automatist theorists state that attention is very vital in any form of automatic information processing. Attention consists of external and internal. Internal attention is abstract and cannot be observed directly. It has three major properties, selectivity, alertness and limited capacity (Philips, 2008).On the other hand, external attention is revealed by the attitude of the readers through all senses. This is discussed in a model referred to as the La Berge Samuel model. The theory suggests that if too much energy is spent on easy tasks like decoding, there will be very minimal energy for giving the comprehension. Additionally, meaning must be derived, as there must be printed words which are decoded. As reader becomes fluent, he or she requires very little attention so as to decode words. Therefore, they only require putting much focus on comprehension of the text (Philips, 2008). Reasons of measuring automaticity and fluency One of the reasons why the two concepts are measured is to ensure that the learners have the ability of reading words in all texts so that all the readers can direct all their few cognitive resources from just recognizing words, and use them also in reading and understanding of all comprehensions. Word recognition is measured initially through prosodic or expressive reading, which is commonly known ad the melodic reading. In this case, the learners try to make out the meaning of words through their voices. In silent reading, however, the meaning of all texts is also revealed by the manner in which the words are read, with phrasing, expression, different pace, stressing some words through making some dramatic pauses. In the long run, the learner develops fluency and automaticity (Rasinski Griffith, 2008). The other reason why automaticity and fluency is measured in learners is to model the students so that they can be braced to face the curriculum introduced to them in future. This begins by ensuring that the learners are fluent readers. So as to mould good fluency skills, the teacher first reads a text loudly in class as the learners follow. The teacher also asks them to follow the teachers’ voice, and even assigns some if the reading tasks to the parents so that they can assist their children at home. The teachers are also instrumental as he or she helps the learner to realize that learning is not only a matter of reading fast, but reading expressively through listening to the teachers directions (Rasinski Griffith, 2008).The reading process of a learner who is not well oriented to the concept of fluency and automatization is characterized by halting, inappropriate expressions, oral speech problems and several decoding errors (Fink Samuels, 2008). It is also important to measure fluency and automaticity in learners because the teacher is able to identify any learner who could be having eyesight problems. Therefore, the learner with the eyesight problem can be referred to an eye specialist as early as possible. Children with eye problems tend to struggle so much when reading. According to Getz, (2008), using the ‘Snellen eye chart test’ is not a good way of testing any visual activity. Once it happens, the teachers and parents get a false notion that the child is fit for learning. However, it is through reading that the child is able to assess whether the child has got any form of visual interference. There would be maximum development of the child’s potential if at all the visual pathways of the child are interfered with. Brain-based research reveals all the neurological reasons why the development of automaticity is so vital in all learning processes. There are very many clinical trials in several computer-based interventions which reveal the real world classroom results. The studies have revealed that the brain is â€Å"a limited control processor that isn’t capable of efficiently managing both fixed knowledge processing and higher order reasoning at once† (Auto Skill, 2009). Therefore, by automatizing knowledge which is fixed, for example decoding of letters, the students can focus on a high level of reasoning and comprehension. When automaticity continues developing, the processes of the brain also continue advancing. There are also ninety percent reductions in the activities of the cortex (Auto Skill, 2009). Learners who have good mathematics skills could probably have been exposed to very good fluency and automaticity orientation. This is because they learn how to decide information at a faster rate compared to those who have problems in fluency and automaticity. Therefore According to Auto Skill, (2009), development of mathematics skills is also measured by the students laying necessary work so as to attain all their academic goals. The core of fluency is in the automaticity concept, and it is also meaningful in mathematics. According to Teacher to Teacher (2010), teachers provide a great deal of practice so as to make sure that there is computational fluency Automaticity is generally derived from over-learning. This is usually through the process of repeated drilling and practice. This has got very many implications in the classrooms of students who are learning English as a second language, and all other subjects. For effective fluency and automatization, the teacher is supposed to give information from the general to specific, known to unknown, simple to complex. This is what is referred to as bottom –up processing (Miguel, 2008). Conclusion From the discussion, fluency and automaticity are very important terms in education of the learners. Once fluency is developed through the help of a teacher, automaticity develops unconsciously. It is therefore very important for all teachers to ensure that their learners have good automaticity and fluent skills so that they can perform well in their class work. Otherwise, the learners will always have problems in learning. Learners who have problems should get the right assistance from their teachers. They should be referred to specialists if at all they have problems in their academics, so that the problems might not become worse in future.

4 Tips for Writing Stellar Virginia Tech Essays

4 Tips for Writing Stellar Virginia Tech Essays SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Are you hoping to be part of Virginia Tech’s next matriculating class? If so, you’ll need to write strong Virginia Tech essays to supplement your application. All Virginia Tech applicants are required to answer four short answer questions as part of their application. In this article, we’ll break down what the Virginia Tech essays are and what the admissions committee is looking for in your answer. Why Does Virginia Tech Require Applicants to Answer Essays? Virginia Tech requires all applicants to answer four short answer questions. If you’re applying to the Honors College, your answers will also be shared with the Honors College admissions committee. You don’t need to answer any separate questions as an applicant to the Virginia Tech Honors College. The Virginia Tech essays are designed for the admissions committee to get a better sense of who you are, both as a student and a person. The short answers questions ask about your character, leadership, and goals. The admissions committee will use your answers to better understand you as a person - who are you? What do you care about? How will you fit in on Virginia Tech’s campus? It’s important to put some serious effort into your Virginia Tech essays so that you represent yourself well to the admissions committee. These essays are your chance to present a well-rounded version of yourself that makes the admissions committee say, â€Å"We have to admit this student!† What Are the Virginia Tech Essays? Virginia Tech requires that every applicant answer four short answer questions. These short answer questions are just that - short! Each has a word limit of 120 words. Let’s take a look at the questions: #1: Virginia Tech’s motto is "Ut Prosim" which means 'That I May Serve'. We are interested in learning more about your interests and how you have been involved and/or served. Briefly describe a group, organization, or community that you have been involved with. Is this a special area of interest for you, and why? How long have you been involved? What role did you play? What contributions have you made to this group? Were you able influence others and/or influence decisions for the good of the group? #2: Describe a situation where you were involved or witness to an act of discrimination. How, or did, you respond? Do you wish you would have responded differently? Did this situation cause any change to happen based on this event and did you have a role in that change? What did you learn from this experience? #3: Describe an example of a situation where you have significantly influenced others, took on a leadership role, helped resolve a dispute, or contributed to a group’s goals. What was your role, what responsibilities did you take on? Did you encounter any obstacles, and if so how did you respond, were you able to overcome them? What would you do differently? #4: Briefly describe a personal goal you have set for yourself. Why this goal, what is your timeline to achieve this goal, what precipitated this goal? Have you turned to anyone for advice or help, what was their role, what did you learn about yourself, are you still working toward this goal? Virginia Tech Essays, Analyzed Now that we know what the Virginia Tech essays are, let’s break down how to answer each one as best as possible. Since the Virginia Tech essays are so short, the key is to be super targeted in your responses. For each prompt, we’ll break down what the essay is asking and how you can tailor your response to make sure it’s what the admissions committee wants to hear. Virginia Tech’s motto is "Ut Prosim" which means 'That I May Serve'. We are interested in learning more about your interests and how you have been involved and/or served. Briefly describe a group, organization, or community that you have been involved with. Is this a special area of interest for you, and why? How long have you been involved? What role did you play? What contributions have you made to this group? Were you able influence others and/or influence decisions for the good of the group? This essay question is asking about your involvement or service with a specific organization. The admissions committee is looking for you to demonstrate a genuine commitment to a cause - what the cause is doesn’t matter as much as the fact that you genuinely care about it. You should pick an organization that you’ve made real, lasting change at. Don’t choose the committee or group that sounds the best if you haven’t actually done a lot for them. For instance, if you were a member of your school’s Habitat for Humanity club but didn’t actually attend very many meetings, don’t talk about how meaningful it was to build houses for disadvantaged people just because you think it sounds nice. Any insincerity in your application will be very obvious. Consider groups that you’ve had significant leadership roles in, as well as any organizations where you’ve affected policies or made choices about activities. These will be service experiences the group wants to hear about. Describe a situation where you were involved or witness to an act of discrimination. How, or did, you respond? Do you wish you would have responded differently? Did this situation cause any change to happen based on this event and did you have a role in that change? What did you learn from this experience? This second question can seem intimidating - are you supposed to represent yourself as a social justice warrior? What if you haven’t witnessed too many forms of discrimination? Luckily, the key here isn’t to show that you’ve tackled the patriarchy or changed racist laws in your community. Instead, the admissions committee simply wants to know if you approach situations with compassion and an open mind. They want to know that you can reflect on your behavior and asses how your choices affect others. You don’t need to pick a big incident. You can even choose something small that you’ve noticed daily. You also don’t need to pick an example where you were in the right - the key is to demonstrate that you’ve reflected on and learned from your experiences, not that you’ve known how to act and stand up for others from day one. Describe an example of a situation where you have significantly influenced others, took on a leadership role, helped resolve a dispute, or contributed to a group’s goals. What was your role, what responsibilities did you take on? Did you encounter any obstacles, and if so how did you respond, were you able to overcome them? What would you do differently? This prompt wants to know two things: first, have you taken on the responsibility of leading other people? Second, how do you deal with challenges? The admissions committee wants to know that you don’t shy away from leadership roles and growth opportunities. You don’t have to be president of a club or captain of a sports team to demonstrate leadership. Perhaps you took on the role of project coordinator for a classroom project or are section leader of a few instrumentalists in the band. The size of the role isn’t as important as the scope of your influence - how did your choices and actions influence others? The second half of the question focuses on overcoming obstacles. What challenges did you face? How did you defeat them? The key here isn’t to show that you can overcome problems easily. It’s to show that you’re open to growth. Admitting that you handled a situation poorly and would do so differently in the future is more powerful than saying â€Å"I was a great leader who did nothing wrong.† Show humility and self-reflection in your answer. Briefly describe a personal goal you have set for yourself. Why this goal, what is your timeline to achieve this goal, what precipitated this goal? Have you turned to anyone for advice or help, what was their role, what did you learn about yourself, are you still working toward this goal? The final Virginia Tech short essay question assesses your commitment to growth. Notice that the question asks about a personal goal - that means you don’t have to pick something lofty or world-changing. You just have to pick something that resonates with you. Maybe you decided to wake up 30 minutes earlier every day so you can meditate or do yoga before school. Maybe you made it a goal to complete all of your essays two days before they were due so you could revise your work. Maybe you made it a goal to try a sport this year when you normally hate sports. Whatever your goal is, you want to demonstrate that you’re capable of self-reflection and of positive growth - that you’re constantly assessing how to better yourself. You also want to show humility in this prompt - that you can rely on or ask for help from others when you need it. The admissions committee doesn’t expect that you’ll have all the answers yourself. They want to see that you can collaborate with and learn from others when you need to. Tips for Answering Your Virginia Tech Essays Follow these general tips for making sure that your Virginia Tech essays are as strong as possible. #1: Demonstrate Growth and Self-Reflection Virginia Tech places a strong emphasis on service and self-reflection. These qualities are reflected in the choices of essay topics. You should demonstrate these qualities in your answers. Show that you’re constantly working to better yourself. Demonstrate humility and understanding. Virginia Tech wants students who will grow on their campus - not ones who will matriculate already thinking they’re perfect. #2: Be Honest and Sincere All of the experiences that you outline in your Virginia Tech essays should be real - they need to have actually happened to you. It can be tempting to lie about or exaggerate your experiences to make them seem more impressive. Don’t do this! First of all, lying on your application is a major ethics violation and can get you in some pretty serious trouble if you’re caught. Second all, insincerity will be super obvious. The admissions committee reads thousands of applications every year. They can easily sniff out people who are lying. Be as honest as possible in your Virginia Tech essays and remember - they WANT to hear about how you’ve grown. #3: Proofread! It should go without saying, but your Virginia Tech essays should be the best examples of your work possible. Don’t just write your essays and be done with them. Take the time to formulate an answer and then go back and edit it. Make sure to proofread and run your work through a spelling or grammar checker to ensure it’s polished. #4: Get a Second Opinion Getting a second opinion on your work can be a helpful way to assess whether your Virginia Tech essays are demonstrating your best qualities. Ask someone to read your work who really knows you, so they can tell you whether or not you’re underselling yourself or missing a key feature of your personality that the admissions committee should know. That being said, there’s a fine line between getting a second opinion and plagiarism. It’s okay to ask for someone’s opinion on your work. It’s not okay to steal their ideas and pass them off as your own. Make sure you’re doing the former, not the latter. Recap: Responding to the Virginia Tech Essay Prompts The Virginia Tech essays are designed to show who you are as a student and how you’ll fit in on Virginia Tech’s campus. Do: Be honest and sincere. Highlight opportunities you’ve taken to grow and change. Edit and proofread your work to make sure it’s as strong as possible. Don't: Lie or over exaggerate to make yourself seem better. Steal anyone else’s ideas. Sweat the short answers too much. They’re important, but they won’t make or break your chances at admission to Virginia Tech. What’s Next? Want to know how to make your extracurriculars stand out even more?Check out this guide to four amazing extracurricular activities and learn why they're so impressive to colleges. Thinking of applying to other great schools likePrinceton, Brown, or Columbia? Then be sure to check out our guides to learn how you can write amazing essays for these schools' supplements. Want to write the perfect college application essay? Get professional help from PrepScholar. Your dedicated PrepScholar Admissions counselor will craft your perfect college essay, from the ground up. 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Factions Leading To The Outbreak Of The Civil War Essay

Factions Leading To The Outbreak Of The Civil War - Essay Example They took advantage of the new lands, railroads and natural resources, and they strengthened their economic and political interest. The Civil War started on April 12, 1861, when the Confederates (Southerners) bombarded Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina. Initiated by the crisis between 1860 and 1861 which occurred in the autumn of 1859, John Brown and cohorts took the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia under seizure, targeting to summon slaves over to be armed safely at a fortification built on a mountain. Brown encouraged them to put an end to unwanted slavery and forced labor suffered at the hands of their slavedrivers in the South. Through the command of Gen. Robert Lee, one of the finest generals at the time, the Confederates managed to defeat the Yankees (Northerners) on a number of incidents that include the suppression of the band of raiders led by Brown who was himself tried and executed. Paranoia toward malicious intentions was claimed to have transpired betwe en the Northerners and the Southerners due primarily to inequality between the two regions, the issue of slavery, and secession by the south. The various states in the North and in the South had conflicting interests. While the North was industrial, democratic, and progressive, on the other hand, the South remained agricultural, aristocratic, and conservative. A majority of Northerners viewed the inhabitants of the South as indolent, poorly educated, and misbehaved people who would always contradict ideas and possibilities which could enable the United States to achieve its goals with capitalism. Northern Americans opposed black slavery because they did not need slave labor in their factories whereas Southern Americans needed slaves to cultivate their vast plantations of cotton, tobacco, and rice. On a rough estimate, about 80% of the population in the South toiled in agriculture and a significant mass of southern wealth was reported to have been invested slave trade and acquisition of lands to expand territories. Pieces of cotton produced via southern regulations were sold to northern and European textile mills, largely imparting a favorable equilibrium in the country’s potential in the aspect of trade as rich slaveholders obtained extensive commercial, social, and political dominion over their region. Thus, during the 1850s, several white southerners had come to adopt the principle that considers bondage to servility to be a â€Å"positive good† either for the slave or his master. Besides labor control, slavery also functioned as a means for the Southern Americans to settle with the social order in which division of class among the whites in the southern society seemed to have become abolished for having a common stake in the system of slavery. Regardless of economic status, white people of the South were justified as equal among themselves by virtue of or fact with the prevailing black slavery of that period. For this ground and the anxiety to ward dissonant consequences, once black servants were freed, the Confederates all the more agreed to necessitate slavery and defended this position against their northern counterparts. Consequently, the Yankees of the North were established with a stereotypical impression of being indifferent or partaking with negligible concern about family matters, as if all they ever cared for was to sustain personal extravagance whereby economic interests were sought to prioritize luxury in living.

Rhetorical Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 6

Rhetorical Analysis - Essay Example Rhetoric Analysis of Martin Luther King’s Speech ‘I have a Dream’ The dramatistic pentad was developed by Kenneth Burke and forms the foundation of dramatism and rhetoric analysis. The pentad requires one to use a metaliguistic approach in analyzing stories in order to carefully investigate the uses and roles of rhetoric elements (Burgchardt, 2010). The five rhetoric elements of act, scene, agent, agency and purpose are common to all narratives and are what forms the dramatistic pentad. Using the pentad, one can evaluate the emphasis that is given by the story teller on each of the five elements and get to understand the motive and the behavior of the characters in the story. One can also get the character’s worldview by analyzing the issues they stress with regard to the five elements of rhetoric. In applying the pentad to analyze King’s speech, one can be able to determine that his world view is that of freedom and equality of all people regardless of their racial backgrounds (Burgchardt, 2010). The speech was issued as the centre of a civil rights movement march to Washington for freedom and jobs. Dr. King had been an ardent supporter of the civil rights movement in America and he used this speech to give the African Americans and other minority racial groups in America hope that they would no longer be discriminated against in the future. The speech was issued on August 28th, 1963 at the Lincoln memorial. The speech can be analyzed using the five elements of the pentad as shown below (Burgchardt, 2010). Act Several civil right movements had organized for a march of freedom in support of the bill that was due for discussion in congress seeking to treat African Americans and other minority races as equal members of the American society. The peaceful demonstration was attended by about 300000 people with African Americans estimated to be about 75-80% of those in attendance (Burgchardt, 2010). There were fascinating speeches fr om various leaders of the civil rights movement to address the mass but it was Martin Luther’s speech, â€Å"I have a Dream† that had a big impact. The other speeches addressed several issues of the civil rights movement at the time but Dr. King’s speech came out as more appealing to the people as it dealt with issues of freedom and equality. The other people who gave their speeches include Wilkins, John Lewis, and Walter Reuther, all of whom were renowned civil rights activists (Burgchardt, 2010). Dr. King’s speech did not only address the equality and freedom issues, but was also looked at as a symbol of optimism that things would get better in future for everybody with regard to equality. Scene The day was colored by powerful speeches from the leaders present, several people who had turned out to support the civil rights movement, among them popular celebrities and singers. This day marked a turning point in the American civil rights movement by bringi ng together all the Americans to support equality as opposed to divided responses that the calls for equality had received before. The protestors were cheered by several people who were watching from their windows and on television. The police department in Washington had anticipated for violent scenes to occur during the protest and they had prepared for a full police escort (Burgchardt, 2010). Instead, the people maintained peace throughout the marching process. Some media reports had indicated that the turnout would be very small but to the

Modernization theory Essay Example for Free

Modernization theory Essay Modernization theory focuses on the main idea that the processes which the currently developed countries went through are vital to achieving development in the underdeveloped and developing countries. Modernization is thought to take place in five stages according to the Rostow’s stage theory (Rostow 1960), namely; †¢ The traditional society †¢ Take-off preconditions †¢ Take-off †¢ Drive to maturity †¢ High mass consumption age The modernization theory is based on the idea of human progress according to Carneiro (2003) although according to Jones (1985) and McNeill (1990), the idea of human progress seemed unrealistic so long as man did not significantly influence the natural environment and as long as there was no perceptible change in the agrarian economies from one generation to the next. The developed countries are to serve an important role in helping the developing countries to achieve their level of development and serve as examples. Modernization traces its origin in the enlightenment era with the focus that progress in technology would help man overcome the challenges that the nature posed and man would have control over nature. Condorcet (1979) argued that moral values of people would change through economic development and technological progress, and therefore linked cultural change to economic development. Rostow (1961) argued that the economic effectiveness in the countries of low incomes is hampered by their social institutions and traditional cultural values. In these countries large population do not allow the individuals to save, as does the lack of strong work ethic (Giddens, Griffiths2006). According to the Marxist version of the modernization theory, early industrial society was characterized by exploitation. Growth of the developing countries would result from the use of education and technology. Allocation of resources in the developing countries in an irrational way was linked to the drawback in the industrialization of these countries. In order for a country to develop, it was necessary to remove the cultural, institutional and organizational roadblocks on its way to modernization and allocate resources rationally. Modernization is, according to Inglehart Welzel (2005), a process of the development of human where development of the economy triggers cultural changes which make democracy, gender equality, and individual autonomy increasingly possible. In addition to bringing out the root causes of the problems existing in the underdeveloped or developing countries, the theory also can help countries focus on means and ways of alleviating poverty by emulating the already developed countries. The theory puts strength to the fact that development is reachable, even by the underdeveloped and the developing nations and therefore can help the latter to put efforts to reach the developed world. The theory explains an important point why the developing countries cannot wake up one day and expect to see themselves developed, but that to achieve development, a particular process is followed-building the sub-processes in this process is of paramount importance to the countries of low economy. Dependency theory can be defined as an explanation of the development of the economy of a country’s or state’s development policy as influenced by the outside forces of cultural, economical, and political aspects (Sunkel, 1969). It is a system through which the developmental possibilities of the subordinate countries are disadvantaged and conditioned by the economic expansion and development of another country (Dos Santos, 1971). Dependency theory emanated in the 1950s with Raul Prebisch who was the director of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and together with his colleagues was not comfortable with the way the developed economy in the developed nations failed to lead to growth in the poorer countries. According to him, the poorer countries exported the raw materials to the developed countries and yet received the same goods as processed goods and the earnings from the exports was not enough to fund the imports. Prebisch offered a solution for the poor countries to substitute imports and avoid use of their foreign reserves to purchase for imports of manufactured goods. Import substitution was hard to follow because of obstacles that were facing the poorer countries. These included: the possibility or ability of controlling their exports of primary products; political will as concerning desire or possibility to shifting from producing primary goods; and the inability of the small internal markets of the poorer countries which made them unable to support the economies of scale used by the richer countries to keep their prices low. International capitalism has been mentioned as the force causing dependency relationship According to Gunder (1972), contemporary underdevelopment is as a result of continued relationships-economic or others-between the developed and the poorer countries. Unlike imperialism which explains dominant state expansion, dependency explains underdevelopment-the result of imperialism. Dependency theory was developed as a result of combination of economic doctrine called structuralism, and Marxist sociology. It blamed the US intervention and the role of the Latin America in the world economy as failing to achieve development and its political authoritarianism as a result of its role in exporting raw materials in the world economy. America was said to suffer deterioration in the terms of trade by experiencing cheaper exports due to low wage resulting from surplus labor, and more expensive imports because, instead of the productivity gains being passed on as lower prices, they were going to the increasingly monopolistic industrial firms. Latin America would therefore, because of this free trade, not be able to accumulate surplus capital required to industrialize. The difference between developed and underdeveloped economies was said not only to be on state of the system of production, or simple difference of stage, but also to be of position or function within a single international economic structure of production and distribution. Poverty of the countries was blamed for the richness of some others, not because of any failure (Reid, 2007). Social exclusion of masses as a result of domination of the economy through industrial monopolies yielded to urbanization void of industrialization (Reid, 2007). As a payment to investments, the foreign investors required that the state discipline those demanding high wages leading to military dictatorship. Although their diverging points on the theory, there is an agreement in issues like the influence of external forces that developed world use to extend their interests abroad which includes foreign aids, communications, multinational corporations and other tools. In all the definitions there is an agreement that there exist two sets of states; the dominant and the dependent, centre and the periphery, the metropolitan and the satellite. All of the definitions point to dynamism of the relationship between the dominant and the dynamic country since the interactions between them tend to reinforce and intensify the unfair patterns (Ferraro, 1996). Like the Modernization theory which can be considered to be developed by different people, the dependency theory also is said to have arisen in three principle formulations. According to Reid (2007) the first principal formulation of the dependency theory focused on formal and institutional relationships such as trade relations and foreign trade, as factors which were sources to dependency. The second formulation treated the theory as a subfield of the refined imperialism theory of the Leninist and the analysis of capitalism by Marxist. The third formulation dealt with the two previous definitions. The theory has assisted in shedding light as concerns the exploitation existing in the monopolistic world market where countries with strong economies try to dominate over those with weak economies and create a monopolistic effect of trade. Continued use of foreign aid to the poor nations, which has seen countries being over-reliance to donors, has left poor countries with no solid alternatives than to pledge loyalty to the developing nations. The theory has helped in enumerating the disadvantages that can be acquired from capitalism especially where the capitalism is the influence to the establishment of relations between countries. The theory was criticized as eroding Latin American’s belief in selves, according to Lawrence Harrison, in addition to patronizing and paralyzing Latin America. The formulations were attacked as ignoring or undermining the other causes of underdevelopment such as internal social and cultural factors and were neglect of culture, race, gender and ethnicity. Besides, there were some countries like Asian countries which developed purely on a capitalistic system, and countries like Taiwan and South Korea developed through the ideas that have been propelled in the development theory (‘Dependency verses Dependency theory’). The theory has been blamed as indicating that for a country to succeed, it should join others who have succeeded in the exploitation of some, even if it does this on a regional level. It has been termed to be a strategy left only for the smaller third world countries with no real alternative market, and is no strategy at all. The dependency theory work has been blamed also for criticizing development in the third world, indicating that such development builds a society different from that at the core (developed world) and that there is no way the resulting society can be as that at the core. Development in the third world can be best described, as the dependency theory points out, development of underdeveloped and not as the advertised development. The similarities between the two theories can summarized as follows: †¢ Both theories concern themselves with the relationship between the underdeveloped and the developing with the developed countries. While the modernization theory is concerned with the view that the developed countries should serve as an example to the developing or underdeveloped countries for development purposes, the dependency theory explains the development of the country in relation to the outside forces or influences which may be as a result of the activities of the developed countries. Both therefore deal with and recognize that there exist the relationship between thee two types of countries. †¢ Both theories are consent to the idea that the developed countries have a superior hand in terms of the economy, over the developing or the underdeveloped world. The difference in this area is that the dependency theory seems to indicate an unfair dominance of the developed economies over the developing or underdeveloped ones, whereas the modernization theory views the relationship as health-that the developed economies can assist the underdeveloped or the developing ones †¢ Both theories do not give a one-sided explanation as concerns the causes of the low economic status in the developing or underdeveloped countries. While the modernization theory gives a critical look at the reason for the poor economic status of the developing or underdeveloped nations as being a result of the problems already existing such as overpopulation and lack of work ethics, it may be seen as neglecting the role of the developed economies in the resulting economic problems of the third word countries. In its explanation to the resulting economic difficulties in the third world, dependency theory has leaned unfairly away from the role played by the third world countries in resulting to their own economic problems. It has been blamed, as seen earlier, as neglecting the social economic factors that contribute to economic problems in third world countries. It can be seen to be unfairly explaining the problem as a result to exploitation and external forces. †¢ There are a range of modifications or disagreements arising among scholars in the development of the two theories Other differences †¢ While the modernization theory seems to explain the causes of poor economy in the third world as the result of the activities of the countries themselves for example through poor allocation of resources, and with a view to solving it, the dependency theory can largely be described as a criticism to the developed countries as being the cause to the problems of the economy in the third world. The modernization theory focuses on the internal causes of the poor economy in the third world, but the dependency theory focuses on the external influences †¢ The dependency theory is devoid of a clean sheet and proper strategy of solving the economic problem of the third world in a non fair market, to the event that it has been described as a ‘no strategy at all’. The modernization theory presents a way of solving the problems of economy affecting the third world such as substitution of imports, advance in use of technology and further education to improve economy. References Andre Gunder Frank, The Development of Underdevelopment, in James D. Cockcroft, Andre Gunder Frank, and Dale Johnson, eds., Dependence and Underdevelopment. Garden City, New York: Anchor Books, 1972, p. 3. ‘Development verses Dependency theory’ Retrieved November 13, 2008 from http://www. revision-notes. co. uk/revision/619. html Dos Santos Theotonio. The Structure of Dependence, in K. T. Fann and Donald C. Hodges, eds. , Readings in U. S. Imperialism. Boston: Porter Sargent, 1971, p. 226 Ferraro Vincent. Dependency Theory: An Introduction. July 1996. Retrieved November 13, 2008 from http://www. mtholyoke. edu/acad/intrel/depend. htm Giddens Anthony Simon Griffiths. (2006). Sociology. Polity Hogan Michael, Thomas Paterson. (2004). Explaining the History of American Foreign Relations. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press Inglehart Ronald Christian Welzel. (2005). Modernization, Cultural Change, and Democracy: The Human Development Sequence. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Reid Michael. Forgotten Continent: The Battle for Latin America’s Soul. Yale: Yale University Press Sunkel Svaldo. National Development Policy and External Dependence in Latin America, The Journal of Development Studies, Vol. 6, no. 1, October 1969, p. 23

Xander Harris Speech :: essays research papers

He's a lanky fellow, dark-haired and self-effacing. He uses sarcastic humor to hide his insecurity (no one's told him it doesn't work). Even when he's being chased by a 100 feet serpent, he still manages to find the humor in the situation. He's been in a complicated love triangle and lives to tell about it. A friend, lover and slayerette......He's Xander Harris. Good afternoon/morning Ms. Rosteing and fellow students. As you can see, my speech is on Xander Harris. If you don't watch "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", which you should because it's the best show on TV, you're probably thinking, "who the hell is Xander Harris?". Well for the next 3-4 minutes sit back, relax and get ready for a "goofy" good time (as Xander would say). His full name is Alexander LaVelle Harris. He's 17 and hails from Sunnydale with its renown Hellmouth. Mishap after mishap, Xander is always there with a witty remark or funny joke. Xander is not exactly popular -- with the guys or the girls. He's the class clown and has much more important things to do than study homework -- namely study girls. He hangs out with Buffy Summers (this generation's slayer), Willow Rosenburg and Oz; otherwise known as the "Scooby Gang". He's been friends with Willow as long as they can remember. Before Buffy came along, it was just him, Willow and Jesse , his best friend. When Buffy showed up in Sunnydale, Jesse was turned into a vampire and he fell for everyone's favorite slayer. Buffy joined their group, and with her, they started hanging out in the library with Giles, Buffy's watcher. In terms of relationships, this is where it gets a little complicated. At the beginning of the show, Xander fell instantly in love with Buffy. But at the time, Xander and Willow were best friends, and Willow had a sizable crush on the X-man. So there was this love triangle deal going, and the fact that Buffy had no interest in Xander made it one big unrequited love angst-fest. Cordelia was one of the 'popular' girls, and treated Buffy, Willow, and Xander like little bugs that you want to squash as soon as you see them. Needless to say, there was some serious animosity between Cordelia and the others, but through bad luck and circumstance, she discovered Buffy's secret. This became a major source of frustration for everybody, especially when Cordy w as trapped in a basement with Xander, and their intense dislike for each other created some sort of twisted bond, resulting in a steamy kiss and a topsy-turvy relationship.