Cyber Language Research Script

Now I am going to introduce the cyber language which is used by foreigners. English cyber language usually comes from online games, video games and general pop cultural, like movie, youtube video clips, and so on. People usually take the first alphabet of the words in a phrase and combine them into a new word. And these are some of the examples of acronym. They are commonly use all over the world. I think these examples you all may be familiar with, so now I am going to introduce some not so familiar examples. LOL is obviously a example of acronym, which is a short form of laughing out loud.People take each word’s first alphabet to create LOL. And for ‘he’s 404’ means he is clueless. This word includes coinage and ideogram. For coinage, usually when a web page cannot be found, then the internet will pop up a 404 web page to inform you. Therefore when we cannot find someone, we can call him 404. And for ideogram, people instead of saying directly he’s clueless, they refer to the picture of the web site 404, so it is a ideogram. The next one is ASAIK. ASAIK means ‘as soon as I know’. It is also an example of acronym. It is a short form of the phrase as soon as I know.And for the next example, it is easy to know what it means. It means see ya. It includes compounding, because it is combined with 2 words, see and ya. And also the letter C is a homophone of the word see. They both pronounce in the same pronunciation. At the same time, it also includes syllabic writing system and rebus writing system. It is a syllabic writing system, because C represents /si:/ to replsce see /si:/ ,so is syllabic writng At last, it includes rebus writing system, because it uses another word with the same sound to replace it.The word see is replaced by the letter C, and the you is replaced by YA. And at last, this word means night. It includes syllabic writing system, the nine : /nain/ replace nigh /nai/. And it sticks with the letter â⠂¬Ëœt’, which is an alphabetic writing system. Also it is same as CYA, it also includes rebus writing system. The sound nigh is replaced by a word which is similar its sound, nine. Emoticons is a pictographic writing. It use different kinds of punctuation to form a facial expression.This emoticons are usually use in computers, mobile and also other communicating devices and forum. These emoticons can express our feelings even more direct, sometimes it is better than using words to express our feelings. And also these emoticons can help us to save time. For example, if we want to express we are so happy, instead of typing alphabets, we type the punctuations into a smiley face, it would save a lot more time. Type happy, we need to type 5 alphabets, but a smiley face, only needs 2 punctuation, and that’s it.Therefore it really save time form typing words. Because of the efficiency of emoticons, it is now a trend all over the world, and among all the countries, japan is on e of the countries which use emoticons the most. And here are the examples of emoticons. We can see that there are a lot of emoticons to express different kinds emtions. Taiwanese and mainlanders may also miscommunicate throughout a conversation, although they share the same language,Putonghua. The miscommunicate is because of their cultures, each one develop their own kinds of words into their language e. . (1) Taiwanese may use ‘ ‘ to express you are so annoying. But when the mainlanders saw this, they may misunderstand as you are such a motorbike. It would be a totally different ecplanation. And there is also another e. g. (2)mainlanders may use ‘? ‘ to mean being frightened. But in Taiwan, it reminds people that the post in the forum would disclose a play's information. So they use the same word, but the meaning of the word ’? ’ means differently to different culture and nation.

Estimation Of GFR Kidney Disease Health And Social Care Essay

AbstractionBackgroundPurpose of our survey was to happen out correlativity between estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate ( eGFR ) by Modification of Diet in Renal Disease ( MDRD ) expression and eGFR by Cockcroft-Gault ( CG ) equations, in patients with chronic kidney disease ( CKD ) , and to see whether they can be used interchangeably.MethodWe conducted a cross subdivision survey of 70 patients presented to the nephrology clinic over a period of one twelvemonth. We compared the eGFR by these two expressions in five phases of CKD. Abbreviated 4 variable MDRD expression was used.ConsequenceMDRD consequences were expressed in ml/min/1.73m2 and CG consequences in ml/min. Age scope was 15 – 79 old ages ; Male 49 % , Female 51 % . The correlativity ( R ) between eGFR by MDRD and eGFR by CG for CKD stages 1 to 5 was 0.64 ; 0.31 ; 0.32 ; 0.67 ; and 0.45 severally. The correlativity ( R ) between creatinine clearance by 24 hr urine aggregation to eGFR by MDRD expression was 0.84 ( P: 0.001 ) and to eGFR by CG expression was and 0.79 ( P: 0.001 ) .DecisionWe conclude that Cockcroft-Gault ( CG ) equation correlates best with MDRD expression at CKD phase 4 followed by phase one. Cockcroft-Gault expression underestimated eGFR in phases 1, 2 and 3. We speculate that standardization of Cockcroft-Gault equation to the organic structure surface country of.73m2 will farther better the correlativity but will diminish its utility on bed side. . There is a demand of a big graduated table population based survey to formalize our consequences.Index WORDSMDRD, Cockcroft-Gault, Chronic kidney diseaseIntroduction:Alteration of Diet in Renal Disease ( MDRD ) and Cockcroft-Gault ( CG ) equations are the most common methods of appraisal of Glomerular Filtration Rate ( GFR ) . Both formulas depend upon serum Creatinine to gauge GFR. Creatinine clearance measuring utilizing 24 hours urine aggregation is mostly abandoned in favour of the MDRD and CG expressions. It is chiefly because of the familial troubles in accurate aggregation of 24 hours urine. Cockcroft-Gault expression remained the most common method of bedside appraisal of GFR. It requires weight in add-on to age but still is really easy to utilize without a reckoner or computing machine. This advantage of CG expression is maintaining it alive in spite the of rapid popularity of MDRD expression. Numerous surveies are done to compare these two equations in assorted scenes. However the information from Asia particularly from Pakistan is bare [ 1 ] . Purpose of our survey was to happen out correlativity between the two equations in patients with chronic kidney disease ( CKD ) and to see whether they can be used interchangeably.MethodsWe conducted a cross subdivision survey of 70 patients presented to the nephrology clinic of a third attention infirmary in Karachi Pakistan over a period of 1 twelvemonth from January 2006 to December 2006. Aim of our survey was to happen out correlativity between estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate ( eGFR ) by Modification of Diet in Renal Disease ( MDRD ) and eGFR by Cockcroft-Gault ( CG ) equations in patients with chronic kidney disease ( CKD ) and to see whether they can be used interchangeably. Age scope was 15 – 79 old ages. Male were 49 % , female were 51 % . Patients with acute nephritic failure were excluded. All the patients in the survey were divided into five groups harmonizing to the kidney disease outcome quality enterprise ( KDOQI ) categorization of chronic kidney disease as follows: Group 1: GFR & gt ; 90 ; Group 2: GFR 90 – 60 ; Group 3: GFR 30 – 59 ; Group 4: GFR 15 – 29 and group 5: GFR & lt ; 15 ml/ min/1.73m2. Abbreviated four variable MDRD expression was used.to estimated GFR ( ml/min per 1.73 M2 ) utilizing the equation:186 x [ serum creatinine ( mg/dl ) ] -1.154 x ( age ) -0.203 x ( 0.742 if female ) . Estimated GFR utilizing the CG equation ml/min ) was calculated as follows: ( 140 – age ) ten ( weight in kilogram ) /serum creatinine ( mg/dl ) x 72 ten ( 0.85 if female ) . Measured creatinine clearance was calculated by 24 hr urine aggregation and utilizing the expression: creatinine elimination ( mg/kg per twenty-four hours ) divided by serum creatinine ( mg/dl ) divided by 14.4 ( min/d per dl/ml ) . Data was analyzed utilizing SPSS package.ConsequencesMDRD consequences were expressed in ml/min/1.73m2 and CG consequences in ml/min. Mean GFR by MDRD expression for CKD stages 1 to 5 was 111AÂ ±30, 77AÂ ±24, 39AÂ ±9, 21AÂ ±6 and 13AÂ ±4 severally. Mean GFR by Cockcroft-Gault equation for CKD phase 1 to 5 was 119AÂ ±28, 78AÂ ±13, 43AÂ ±7, 23AÂ ±3 and 12AÂ ±2 severally ( t able 1 ) . The correlativity coefficient ( R ) between eGFR by MDRD and eGFR by Cockcroft-Gault for CKD phases 1-5 was 0.64 ; 0.31 ; 0.32 ; 0.67 ; and 0.45 severally ( table 2 ) . Mean and average eGFR by MDRD was 48AÂ ±40 and 32 ( 58-7 ) severally for all patients. Mean and average eGFR by Cockcroft-Gault was 52AÂ ±42 and 36 ( 197-7 ) severally for all patients ( table 3 ) . The Cockcroft-Gault equation correlated best with MDRD expression at CKD phase four followed by the phase one. The eGFR by MDRD was lesser as comparison to by CG, in phases 1, 2 and 3. The creatinine clearance by 24 urine aggregation was correlated to the eGFR by MDRD expression. The R value was 0.84 with p value of 0.001. Similarly the creatinine clearance by 24 urine aggregation was correlated to the eGFR by CG expression. The R value was 0.79 with p value of 0.001. ( Table 4 )DiscussionAccurate measuring of GFR in chronic kidney disease can non be overemphasized. It is particularly of import when GFR reaches near phase 3 and 4. The of import determination like doing AV fistulous withers and induction of nephritic replacing therapy are taken at this clip. There were more than eight expressions introduced to gauge GFR but merely two viz. Cockcroft-Gault ( CG ) and MDRD got the credence by the medical community. The CG Formula was proposed every bit early as 1976 [ 2 ] . Because of its simpleness and bedside usage, it was readily accepted by the doctors. The CG expression enjoyed this monopoly till the MDRD equation was introduced in 1999 [ 3 ] . Twenty four hr urine aggregation for Creatinine clearance measuring is non method of pick because of several booby traps. The most of import being the 24 hr urine aggregation is frequently non accurate. In add-on the serum creatinine remains within normal scope in early phases of CKD due to increased cannular secernment ensuing in overestimate of GFR. Using Inulin clearance to mensurate GFR is really cumbrous and non practical for everyday clinical pattern. Alternatively, the radioactive and non-radioactive based markers e.g. Iothalamate, Iohexol, DTPA and EDTA are used. The isotope based GFR measurings are thought to be the most accurate but they are dearly-won and non available in many research labs. Therefore their public-service corporation is confined practically to research. They are used as a gilded criterion to formalize the truth of eGFR by MDRD or CG equations. In our survey we still used the traditional 24 hr urine aggregation to cipher creatinine clearance. We were really peculiar and thorough in giving the direction to the patients. The strong correlativity of 24 hr creatinine clearance to eGFR by CG every bit good as MDRD expression goes in favour of our premise that urine aggregation was accurate. MDRD survey equation originally required six variables viz. Serum Creatinine, Serum Albumin, Serum Urea Nitrogen, Gender, Age and Race. Later a simpler four variable equation was proposed and is considered to be a good as six variable equation [ 3 ] . This brief MDRD equation requires Serum Creatinine, Age, Gender and Race merely. It does non necessitate Serum Albumin and Serum Urea Nitrogen. The usage of standardised serum creatinine in re-expressed 4 variable MDRD expression improves the truth [ 4, 5 ] . Surveies have shown that accommodation for organic structure surface country improves the truth of Cockcroft-Gault expression [ 6,7 ] . The demand of this simpler four variable MDRD equation raised due to trouble of utilizing 6 variable equation on bedside. However still its chief drawback remains the demand of a computing machine. There are a figure of surveies comparing the MDRD to CG expression with variable consequences. Following is the reappraisal of some of import surveies. MDRD equation provides indifferent and moderately accurate estimations across broad scope of subgroups when GFR is less than 60 ( CKD Stage 3, 4 & A ; 5 ) [ 8 ] . They besides proved to be dependable for followup in CKD patients in longitudinal surveies [ 9 ] . MDRD equation performed better than CG equation in CKD, when GFR was less than 60 ml/min/ 1.73 M2. On the other manus CG equation performed better in healthy kidney givers [ 10 ] . CG expression was less precise than MDRD equation in most instances with average GFR of 59.8 ml/ min/ 1.73 M2s [ 11 ] . In another survey appraisal of GFR in older patients with CKD and average GFR of 53 ml/ min/ 1.73 m2. , the CG Formula was more precise than MDR Formula [ 12 ] . In diabetic patients MDRD every bit good as CG expression correlated good with isotopic GFR measurings, but MDRD equation turned-out to be more accurate [ 13 ] . In ill hospitalized patients the public presentation of MDRD and CG equation was compared, utilizing Iodine iothalamate as a control. MDRD equation performed better [ 14 ] . MDRD Formula as comparison to CG expression underestimates GFR in healthy persons [ 15 ] . MDRD expression was more accurate than CG expression in ESRD patients. However MDRD expression underestimated GFR when inulin clearance was more than 8 ml/min/1.73 M2 and overestimated GFR when inulin clearance was less than 8 ml/min/1.73 M2. On the other manus CG expression overestimated GFR when inulin clearance was less than 13 ml/mim/11.73 M2. [ 16 ] . In patients with CKD but normal serum creatinine, CG Formula was found to be more accurate than MDRD Formula. Measurement of GFR by endogenous and exogenic filtration markers might be the most prudent scheme [ 17 ] .DecisionWe conclude that CG Formula correlates with MDRD equation best at CKD stages 4 and overestimated GFR at phases 1, 2, 3. The two expressions may be used interchangeably at phase 4 & A ; 1. Measurement of 24 hr urine creatinine clearance may still be dependable if patients are counseled decently. Standardization of GFR for organic structure surface country of 1.73 m2.improves the truth of Cockcroft Gualt expression. We speculate that this in bend will better its correlativity with MDRD expression. However we suspect that perplexing the Cockcroft Gualt expression by including the organic structure surface country in equation will diminish its utility on bed side. It is improbable that MDRD expression will replace Cockcroft Gualt expression in clinical medical pattern shortly because of its dependence upon a computing machine plan.

Advantages of Natural Gas Grill Brands

Advantages of Natural Gas Grill Brands Summertime would not be complete without at least one outdoor barbeque. Once upon a time, there was a very limited array of foods that you could cook on your grill Today, modern conveniences allow you to cook pretty much any type of food on your grill. The easiest grill to use is by far the natural gas grill. Natural gas grills are designed to hook directly into your home’s natural gas line, eliminating the need to provide the fuel source. This cuts out all trips to the grocery store for more charcoal or propane. Another advantage when using a natural gas grills is the ability to control the temperature in which you are cooking. Natural gas grills have burner controls which allow you to produce different temperatures for the different cooking areas on your grill. This allows you to cook your meat on one side while keeping your side dished warm on the other. Natural gas grills have the ability to come with many different types of cooking surfaces. These different cooking surfaces include a BBQ surface, a flat grill, and a ribbed grill. Some grills even offer these types of surfaces as none stick, which allow you to cook a whole array of foods that you would not be able to cook on a grill otherwise. Some gas grills even contain a Wok type surface for cooking pasta and rise dishes, or a full rotisserie set that allows you to cook rotisserie chicken. Natural gas grills are by far the easiest type of grill to clean. With other grills such as charcoal and smoker grills, you have to remove the wood and charcoal briquettes each time. Natural grills only have to be wiped down. Some natural gas grills even have a none stick feature. Natural gas grills are not portable as you will need to be able to hook them up to your natural gas line, so weight should not be that big of an issue when you go to purchase your first grill. Instead, you should look at the surface area available. Will you be able to cook for just yourself and one other? How about a family of 5? Natural Gas Grill Brands Broilmaster- One of the most popular brands of natural gas grills is the Broilmasters. This company has been around for a long time and prides itself on creating great grills, even in its companies early years. If you are looking for a reliable name, Broilmaster would be the way to go. One of the most popular Broilmaster grills is the Super Premium Series, which puts out 40,000 BTU’s of cooking power, and has a cooking surface area of over 695 square inches. Brinkman- These simple natural gas grills put out a lot of power, and can be purchased for much less then it’s competition. The Brinkmans, like the Broilmasters, are built of solid construction and meant to last a long time. Typical power output is around 45,000 BTU’s. Smaller units can range from 12,000 to 15,00 BTU’s. Lynx- Lynx natural gas grills were specially designed for cooking higher end meats such as steaks and ribs. This grill have a patent design that is suppose to lock in flavor and juices. The Lynx run on the higher end of the price range, anywhere from $500 to $3000. The typical cooking power is about 50,000 BTU and has a cooking surface area of 840 square inches.

Why do you want to teach Special Education Essay

Why do you want to teach Special Education - Essay Example I am aware that a special education teacher is required to be organized, patient, has the ability to motivate his students, understand his students and the teacher should also be able to accept the differences in others, something I experienced on a first hand basis. It is to my understanding that special education is a little different from the normal education system in that; their curriculum is modified to meet the students’ needs. The special education program is available at all levels from preschool, elementary, middle, and secondary level (â€Å"U.S Bureau of Labour Statistics† 206).  The teaching modes include the use of individualized instructions that can only apply to a specific child, for example, some students might need extra time during exams or others might need the teacher to teach at a slow pace for them to understand.  Furthermore, I also understand that there must be a strong teacher-parent relationship because that is the only way a parent will trust the school to take care of his or her child. In addition, there are reports of a rise in job prospects, in this area, due to a rise in enrolment of students with disabilities, and I believe I can get this opportunity (â€Å"U.S Bureau of Labour Statistics†

Integrating Research Methods with Marketing Decisions Proposal

Integrating Methods with Marketing Decisions - Research Proposal Example It is mostly qualitative and unstructured. Being qualitative in nature, it uses a small focus group instead of a larger population or interviews that are in-depth, or projective techniques. In the focus group method, a small group of people is interviewed on the topic. These people are free to interact with one another. This is a hurdle for the researcher as he has no control over the group. Many times it drifts towards irrelevant matters. The data also gets influenced by others. Another problem is that it is researcher dependent. The questions framed by the researcher lead in one particular direction. Projective techniques are indirect techniques that help understand the underlying beliefs without disclosing the actual aim of the research like word association, sentence completion , story completion, cartoon tests, role play etc. In-Depth Interviews are conducted on one-to-one basis. This helps in getting in-depth information and also to get to the hidden issues. Unlike survey interviews it may not have the same set of questions for all the participants. It is a time consuming process that may get influenced by the bias of the researcher. There are three techniques used in these interviews - One is Laddering, in this the questions start off with the external objects and slowly get to internal attitudes or feelings. Another way is Hidden issue questioning. In this the researcher concentrates on deeply seated beliefs and feelings. Third one is Symbolic Analysis. Here the researcher asks opposite questions and tries to understand their symbolic meanings In-depth Interviews are the best suited way for this research as it will help understand the underlying beliefs and attitudes that form the basis for buying a vehicle. This is the information needed by the company to remodel Taurus.Descriptive research methodDescriptive research gathers data and then interprets it by tabulating and organizing the data. Description is used as a tool in organizing the data. It is very helpful to find out what is the best solution to the given problem with many variables. Once the research question is fixed, the descriptive research method can be decided upon. The methods of data collection could be surveys, interviews, observations and portfolios. Surveys draw conclusion based on the questionnaire and help to identify the factor that needs change.These surveys can be done through written questionnaires or personal interviews or telephone interviews. Interviews are most time efficient and help in getting in-depth information by creating a rapport with t he participants. But it is time consuming and requires a lot of time to be spent in interviewing and in traveling for interviewing. In comparison, telephone interviews are less time consuming and less expensive but there is no visual input. Mailed questionnaire is even faster but has very low response rate and requires a very simple survey design.Observational research methods are based on direct observation that can give lot of

Porche Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Porche - Essay Example Ferdinand had the right mixture of the brains required to successfully run a car company and the passion required to drive the growth of Porsche. In the Prince Henry trials in 1910, the innovatively designed car model which was driven by Ferdinand himself won the most prestigious award in the sports category (Boatcallie, Chase, Salehi, Skrisovsky and Volio 2). In 1931, Ferdinand opened up his own company under the name of Porsche in Stuttgart, Germany for performing the activities of engineering and consultation. The company soon received contracts from the car manufacturers like the Wanderer, Auto Union and NSU for supply and design of cars. Porsche had the vision to anticipate the demands of the present and link it to the changing trends in future. With innovative designs and influencing the partners to manufacture car model that would accepted worldwide, Porsche delivered the model of the Beetle which was taken up by the VW Group. The Beetle designed by Porsche underwent mass prod uction and had not lost its popularity for the next 75 years. Ferdinand who was the founder of Porsche was a race-driver by passion and actively participated in the racing events. Ferdinand was also an engineer by profession. The founder of the company was able to mix his passion with the entrepreneurial activities as an engineer and applied his ideas and innovations in the field of manufacturing newly designed and creative car models. After the death of the founder, his son took over the charge of Porsche and started to expand the trading activities through sustenance of efficiently manufactured innovative car models. Porsche became famous for its racing cars and emerged victorious in the various rallies that it participated. The 911 model was one of the famous racing models built by Porsche (Porsche1 1). The 911 model was traded in the 70s, 80s and the 90s. In 1996, the

Nursing - Pain Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Nursing - Pain Management - Essay Example Cyclooxygenases Prostaglandin endoperoxide H synthase (commonly known as Cyclooxygenases) was purified in 1976 and cloned in 1988. This enzyme is the key catalytic protein in the synthesis of prostaglandins from arachidonic acid, resulting in pain and inflammation, and is subject to inhibition by non ­steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). In 1991, several laboratories identified a second gene product with COX activity, now termed COX-2. It is clear now that both isoforms, COX-l and COX-2 are expressed in both peripheral tissues and several areas of the CNS (Prochazkova et al., 2006). Theories of Pain Gatchel, Polatin, and Kinney (1995) state that there are two prominent theories of pain: the traditional specificity theory of pain and the gate control theory of pain. The former, still widely taught, proposes that pain is a specific sensation and that the intensity of pain is proportional to the extent of tissue damage. This theory implies a fixed, straight-through transmission system from somatic pain receptors to a pain center in the brain (p.416). In 1965, Melzack and Wall proposed the gate control theory. This theory suggests that there are physiological and neural mechanisms in the body that can have an effect on the perception of the painful stimulus (Hawthorn & Redmond 2001). The theory postulates that there are two controls that affect the gate. ... This gating mechanism depends on the relative quantity of information being received over the larger fibers versus the smaller fibers. In essence, the two peripheral impulses interfere with each other to alter pain perception. The gate control theory has received the most recognition in the field of pain research (Gatchel, Polatin, and Kinney 416). Anatomy & Physiology The complexities associated with the experience of pain are immense. Hall (1994) addresses those that deal with the physiological aspects by observing that medical science has not fully explained pain mechanisms. The specialization of receptors has been discovered. This refers to receptors being more sensitive to one stimulus than others. Hall (1994) continues with the identification of the receptor that is "incriminated" in the reception of pain, the unmyelinated or thinly myelinated nerve ending, an "unencapsulated" nerve ending. Hall describes the myelin sheath covering that encloses nerve fibers. The thickness of t his sheath varies throughout the body, from none in the periphery, to very thick where nerves enter bones, and other parts of the body. The covering acts as insulation to keep stimuli from entering the nerve from regions other than those served by the nerve (p. 11). Hall (1994) goes on to describe the receptor as a "primitive unorganized nerve ending and often has a weed-like appearance. It has many branches and overlaps with other receptors to totally cover the area which it serves" (p. 11). The area that a particular nerve serves is called a dermatome, which may serve an area of skin, a muscle, or any organ of the body. Hall states, "It is important to realize that the strength of stimulus is a critical factor in the production of pain in this and other

Investment Appraisal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Investment Appraisal - Essay Example However, there are various risks that emanate from the uncertainty encompassing the projected variables. As a result, it is important to identify and understand the nature of uncertainty in the key project variables and have the tools and methodology to identify its risk implications on the projects return to be able to evaluate the project risks. Uncertainty in a project is evident especially in estimating future values of project variable as being certain; by calculating a â€Å"best estimate† based on the available data and use it as an input in the evaluation model: however, a range of other probable outcomes for each project variable is not included in the analysis. The outcome of the project is, therefore, also presented as a certainty with no possible variance or margin of error associated with it. Risk analysis is methodology whereby the uncertainty encompassing the main variables projected in a forecasting model is analyzed in order to estimate the impact of risk on a projected results. It is a technique based on the Monte Carlo simulation by which a mathematical model is subjected to a number of simulation runs, whereby successive scenarios are built up using various input values for the project's key uncertain variables that are selected from multi-value probability distributions. After simulation, the results are collected and analyzed statistically to arrive at a probability distribution of the potential outcomes of the project and to estimate various measures of project risk.

Girl in a Mirror Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Girl in a Mirror - Research Paper Example His works include art collection inspired from the works of Renaissance, Baroque and Rocco artists (Gottileb, The Journal Of Aesthetics & Art Criticism.). The uniqueness in Picasso’s work existed not in the discovery of new themes, but in the way he portrayed the existing stuff. Picasso not only popularized the art of Cubism by combining geometrical shapes and abstract forms, but also was a believer of symbolism like the famous quote he said that â€Å"It is not necessary to paint a man with a gun. An apple can be just as revolutionary†. Picasso gave a new dimension to cubist paintings by adding human emotions to the multi faceted figure. With time Picasso experimented with Synthetic Cubism and included human forms and events with his symbolic styles. Picasso painted many women that came in his life, his famous painting â€Å"Girl before a Mirror† is from the series of paintings he made with the model Marie-Therese Walter. Marie was very young when she met Picass o, and served as his mistress for many years. The particular painting â€Å"Girl before a Mirror†, was painted during Picasso’s cubism period and reflects his bold display with forms and colors. The painting is based upon a girl looking herself in the mirror, but the reflection she sees is in complete contrast to herself. The painting represents Picasso’s style and highlights an image of vanity. ... The beautiful almond shape of her eyes is transformed into deep maroon circles. Her forehead and the upper part of the nose are in bright red color. This distortion of her reflection makes her look ethereal and fearsome (Gottileb, The Journal Of Aesthetics & Art Criticism.). The face of the girl is composed in two parts; the profile section is in lavender pink with slight blush on the cheek while the frontal view of her face is like a crescent shaped moon with bright yellow color with makeup such as lip stick and green eye shadow applied to it. Similarly the body of the girl is also formed in two parts which visually complement each other. These are the profile and front figure. If we see closely, there are dark black thick lines on light green base in the profile section and red curvilinear lines in the front. These might represent the ribs and vertebrae of the girl seen through flesh (Gottileb, The Journal Of Aesthetics & Art Criticism.) â€Å"Girl in a Mirror† depicts the v anity of a woman and sees herself as a death’s head. It shows Marie Walter’s self during the day and at night, it also highlights her transition from a young innocent girl to a woman who is conscious of her sexuality. The mirror in which the girl sees her reflection is device through which we can look into her sole and inner mysteries and ambiguities. The face of the girl in the reflection is dark with hollow eyes. The feminine contours of her body are twisted and knotted. Her reflection seems older and withered. The girl reaches out to unite and embrace herself with her reflection and is in an effort to become whole. The differences in the girl’s reflections can also suggest to the fact that she is anxious and

Love Jones Review Essay Example for Free

Love Jones Review Essay The consummate ladies man, Darius silky smooth presentation romises more sell than substance. And Ninas recently Jilted heart isnt looking for anymore of loves kind of trouble. love Jones begins with Nina and her good girlfriend Josie Nichols (Lisa Nicole Carson) packing up whats left of Ninas disappointing relationship. Fearful that the scars left from this failed romance may be too deep for her to heal, Josie takes her to a night-time poetry-slam at the Sanctuary, where she encounters Darius for the first time. The Sanctuary is the local haven where poetry is the prime draw, and a favorite night spot for Darius and his friends Savon Garrison (Isaiah Washington), Eddie Coles Leonard Roberts), Sheila Downes (Bernadette Clark, and Hollywood (Bill Bellamy). The romance dies between couples, we overhear Darius telling his friends from his intellectual set, because theyVe (people) given up on the possibility of it. In an awkward introduction at the bar, Nina catches Darius off-guard and, uncharacteristically, he fumbles and spills his drink on her. He recovers minutes later when called to the stage to recite one of his poems. He makes the most of the moment by calling his sensuous creation A Blues for Nina. Flattered but embarrassed, she informs him in front of his friends that there are opics for poetry other than sex. When he asks her to name one, she writes the word love on his hand. Everyone is impressed; particularly Darius. Darius runs into Nina at a record store managed by his friend, Sheila. She is there because she has Just been fired from her Job as a photographers assistant and desperately needs to hear the Isley Brothers. When Darius approaches her, she acts as thought she vaguely remembers his name. Darius seizes the opportunity though, by playing her a tender rendition of Parkers Mood. While Nina remains unreceptive at that point, she finally buckles and agrees to a date when Darius ppears, unannounced at her door presenting the very CD she had been looking for at the record store. He bribed Sheila so he could get her address and phone number off of the check she used to pay for a CD. His persistence pays off when a romantic statement l Just want to come up and talk leads to a passionate night at her apartment. The next morning, Darius and Nina confide in their respective friends Savon and Josie that, in spite of the incredible sex, It aint no love thing, they Just kickin it. Unfortunately, these two individuals arent exactly the best advisors they could have ound Josie is way down on men and lives her life vicariously through Nina, and Savon is mired in the problems of his eight-year marriage (his wife left him and took their son). But Darius is getting interested. He even reveals to Nina the sacred location of the Batcave (his apartment), where some interesting foreplay ensues when she whips out her camera and tells Darius to take off his clothes. The romance advances. Then, out of the blue, Marvin Cox (Khalil Kain), Ninas former fianc ©e, shows up asking her for a second chance. At Josies suggestion, Nina uses the offer to test Darius: Will he be Jealous, or coolly let her go? Darius pretends not to care, of course, and Nina moves to New York to see if she should resume her relationship with Marvin. Inevitably, Marvin and Ninas differences are irreconcilable, and Nina returns the engagement ring and then heads back to Chicago. Hoping to reconnect with Darius, Nina and Josie go to the Sanctuary, to no avail. Darius has settled down with a new girlfriend, Lisa Oacqueline Fleming). Enter, Hollywood, whose friendly competition with Darius enables him to sense a prime opportunity for one-upmanship. Wood stops by the portrait studio where Nina now works to cheer her up. Tensions run high when Wood brings Nina to Sheilas house for a party that he knows Darius will be attending. Nina, feeling like a pawn in a bad game of male egos, asks Wood to take her home. He refuses and Darius comes to her rescue. Its their first meeting since she went to New York. She confesses she still has feeling for him, and he assures her that Lisa means nothing to him. Swooning, they make up and head for a date at the famous Blackstone Hotel. There, legendary Chicago DJ Herb Kent is hosting a steppers ball, featuring the inimitable dance style popular in Chicago. On the floor, Nina and Darius become a eam again. The fire is relit as they complete the evening with a wet, but romantic walk around Buckingham Fountain. Nina starts to inherit habits from Darius and vica versa. She starts smoking and develops a love for poetry. In return, he develops an eye for photography. But soon after their reconciliation everything starts to crumble. Nina finds Lisas telephone number around Darius apartment, and he gets the occasional Sam call that takes him out of the room. The issue of distrust rears its ugly head. Darius tries to smooth things over by whipping out her camera and telling her to take her clothes off, as she id in an earlier scene. But it is too late. Come get your things from my apartment why would you be with someone you dont trust? The scene ends with Nina returning the key. Because of a Job offer from Vibe magazine in New York, Nina decides to move. Josie, serving as a reluctant Cupid, intercedes by telling Darius of Ninas plans. He takes the cue and makes a gallant but futile effort to talk to Nina before she leaves. A year later, his book has been published, her career is off and running and Nina has been sent to Chicago to shot a Michael Jordan layout. Looking in vain for Darius t the Sanctuary, Nina takes the stage to recite a poem of her own. Startled, Darius turns and listens to her recital, which is about love remembered. Funny what you can do in front of a room full of people, she says, and cant do in front of one person. The movie ends with Nina leaving the Sanctuary and seeing Darius outside. Darius starts off by saying, Longtime no see. I enjoyed your poem. Nina, there have been mistakes on both sides and I apologize for my part. I want to put the past in the past. Once again your timing couldnt be worse you always want what you want hen you want it why is everything so urgent, Nina says. Nina, this here, right now, at this very moment, is all that matters to me. I love you and thats urgent like a mother fucker. love Jones shows that love can be inconvenient. It encourages everyone to approach love the way Nina and Darius do scared, awkward, and even sometimes alone. Theres the obligatory handful of tragic misunderstandi ngs, prideful arguments, over-orchestrated sex scenes, and betrayal and reconciliations. ove Jones steps back, allowing its characters to closely examine what is happening to them. They analyze their own instincts; wonder about each others feelings and even plot little traps to reveal the others true intentions Nina and Darius relationship is built upon the use of some key things: sex and sexual invitations, pick-up lines and relationship openers, music and poetry, the actions of all the movies characters, friends being confidants and advisors, and the use of Baxters techniques to acquire information about the relationship play vital roles. Their relationship proves that the movement in and out of the interaction stages is not set in stone. The stages conform to your situation. Nina and Darius seem to ollow this type of pattern: initiating, experimenting, intensifying, terminating, experimenting, intensifying, integrating, bonding, stagnating, terminating, and initiating. They are also struggle with the roles society has laid out for women and men. And are both trying to fgure out how to play without getting played. Theyre both secretly wondering how you get beyond playing and move on to the love. When youre in your twenties, as Nina and Darius were, loving someone outside your friends and family can seem like a task for Mother Theresa. We twenty- somethings have been unleashed from our parents and the chances to experience exual encounters of all sorts are numerous. But flirting and playing is one thing. Building relationships with the human objects of our desires is a challenge that many of us fail at miserably. At one point in the movie, Darius asks his married friend Savon if he believes in the concept of soulmates. Savons response is that it depends on what day you ask him. Youre with who youre with, he says. Love and marriage are pretty much what you make of them. love Jones doesnt fully answer the soulmate question. In the end, we are only promised that Nina and Darius will be together as long as their belief in he possibility of romance lasts. eeting in a bar, the reluctant coupling, the Jealously and conflict, even a mad rush by one lover to stop the other from leaving on a train. love Jones showed me that there is Just no way around it: Love between a man and a woman is hard work. A conscious effort to relate to the opposite sex is whats needed if were going to get the satisfaction we crave from that someone special. Our twenties can be about a lot more than simply getting our groove on. We can build lives with people while we are enjoying the fresh experiences we are having in our y outh.

The Effect Of Dividend Policy Finance Essay

The Effect Of Dividend Policy Finance Essay The issue of how much a company should pay its stockholders as dividend is been of concern to managers. The optimal dividend policy of a firm depends on investors desire for capital gains as opposed to income, willingness to forgo dividends for future returns, and perception of risk associated with postponement of returns. Management is often in a dilemma; whether to pay dividends or to retain them for future investments with implications on share value. The study sought to determine the effects of dividend policy on the market share value in the banking industry in Kenya, using National Bank Kenya (NBK) as case for the study. The study applied an explanatory research design covering a proportionate sample of 100 shareholders drawn from a target population of 47,000 shareholders of National Bank of Kenya. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze data. The hypotheses were tested by use of Pearsons Moment Corr elation. With a response rate of 68%, the study established that NBK had a dividend policy as confirmed by 91% of the respondents. The study established a strong and positive correlation (0.850) between dividend payout and market share value, with a P-value of 0.000. There was a positive correlation (0.299) between dividend growth rate and market value of shares with a p-value is 0.013; hence establishing a significant relationship between variables. There was a positive correlation (0.502) between regularity of dividend declaration and market share value with a P-value was 0.000. Dividend policy had a significant effect on the market share value. The study recommends that management in banks and specifically National Bank Kenya must adjust the dividend policy in tandem with interests and requirements of shareholders to improve the market share value. Key Terms: Dividend policy, dividend payout, dividend declaration, share value Background to the Study Dividend policy has been a puzzle in corporate finance for several decades. Among numerous research subjects about dividend policy, the most popular one is the relationship between the dividend level and the share price of a firm. According to the dividend discount model (Gordon, 1959); it is feasible to derive that dividend payment augmentation should be accompanied by the value increase in a firm. Miller and Modigliani (1961) however, point out that the value of a firm is not influenced by current and future dividend decisions, which is well recognized as the dividend irrelevance theory. According to Kapoor (2009) dividend policy connotes to the payout policy, which managers pursue in deciding the size and pattern of cash distribution to shareholders over time. Therefore, managements primary goal is shareholders wealth maximization, which translates into maximizing the value of the company as measured by the price of its common stock. This goal can be achieved by giving the shareholders a fair payment on their investments. Gordon (1963) found that dividend policy of the company did affect the market prices of its shares. Share value is represented by the market price of the companys common stock, which, in turn, is the function of the companys investment, financing and dividend decisions. Dividend decisions are recognized as centrally important because of increasingly significant role of the finances in the firms overall growth strategy. Bishop et al., (2000) contends that managers must not only consider the question of how much of the companys earnings are needed for investment, but also take into consideration the possible effect of their decisions on share prices. According to Kapoor (2009), share prices of a firm tend to be reduced whenever there is a reduction in dividend payments. An announcement of dividend increase generates abnormal positive security returns and an announcement of dividend decrease generates abnormal negative security returns. A drop in share prices occurs because dividends have a signaling effect. The Research Problem Dividend policy is an integral part of financial management decision of a firm. There is adequate empirical evidence pointing to a strong relationship between dividend policy and stock market prices. However, managers are in a dilemma as to whether to pay large, small or zero percentage of their earnings as dividends or to retain them for future investments. This situation is occasioned by the different shareholder interests which management has to satisfy. For instance, some shareholders prefer to be paid dividends every year for investing in other profitable businesses while other shareholders would like to invest in the future and thus, prefer that the dividends be retained by the company for re-investment. However, most investors prefer companies with high pay outs because they are less risky than potential future capital gains. Since the bank management is dealing with competing interests of various shareholders, the kind of dividend policy they adopt may have either positive or negative effects on the share prices of the company. According to Miller and Modigliani (1961), the effect of a firms dividend policy on the current price of its shares is a matter of considerable importance, not only to management who must set the policy, but also to investors planning portfolios and to economists seeking to understand and appraise the functioning of the capital market. It is this basis that the study sought to establish the effects of dividend policy on market share value in the banking industry in Kenya, using National Bank of Kenya as a case for the study. Purpose of the Study The purpose of the study the study was to determine the effects of dividend policy on the market share value in the banking industry in Kenya, using case study of National Bank of Kenya. The constructs of dividend policy that were correlated with market share value were dividend growth rate, dividend payout, and regularity of dividend declaration. Research Methodology The study adopted an explanatory research design. The design allowed description of the variable characteristics and systematic explanation of the relationships amongst them as supported by Mugenda and Mugenda (2003) and Kothari (2004). The study covered a sample of 100 respondents from a population of 47,000 general public shareholders. The sample was selected through proportionate stratified sampling method; where the population was divided into five strata; shareholders with 1 to 100,000 shares, shareholders with shares between 100,001 and 200,000 shares, shareholders with 20001 to 30000 shares, shareholders with 300,001 to 400,000 shares and shareholders with over 400,000 shares. A structured, self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from the respondents. Descriptive statistics including frequencies, percentages and mean were used to describe variable characteristics while inferential statistics (correlation and regression) were used to determine and explain varia ble relationships. The research hypotheses were tested using Pearsons Moment Correlation was used to test the research hypotheses. The study also tested the working of the postulated model using ANOVA while regression analysis was applied to test the test model in explaining the variable relationships. Results and Analysis The study achieved a response rate of 68%. Among the respondents, 32% were female while 68% were male; implying that majority of the National Bank of Kenya (NBK) shareholders is male. Dividend Policy The respondents were given a set of statements regarding NBKs dividend policy and asked to indicate extent to which they agreed with each one of them. According to the results (Table 1), 91% of the respondents were aware that National Bank of Kenya had a dividend policy. However, 59% indicated that the Dividend Policy was not well communicated to and understood by the shareholders. Table 1: Status of Dividend Policy Statement/ item Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree Mean Frq % Frq % Frq % Frq % National Bank of Kenya has a Dividend Policy 5 7.4 1 1.5 29 42.6 33 48.5 3.32 NBK dividends policy is well understood by its shareholders 19 27.9 21 30.9 14 20.6 14 20.6 2.34 Dividend policy has been and continues to be important factor driving NBK share value 1 1.5 12 17.6 19 27.9 36 52.9 3.32 Formal dividend policy gives shareholders the assurance of predictable dividend payments 0 0 22 32.4 32 47.1 14 20.6 2.88 The study revealed that the dividend policy has been and continues to be an important factor driving NBK share value as supported by 80% of the respondents. Respondents were of the view that a formal dividend policy gives shareholders the assurance of predictable dividend payments (68%). The importance of the dividend policy to shareholders was clearly underscored as demonstrated by above average mean scores on all the constructs on which it was measured except the understanding of the policy by shareholders. Dividend Payments on Share Value Objective one sought to assess the effects of dividend payout on the market share value of National Bank of Kenya. An assessment of the effects of dividend payments on share value involved a set of statement which the respondents were required to indicate the extent to which they agreed with them. As shown in Table 2, 90% of the respondents pointed out that they considered payment of dividends a major element in the value of shares, meaning that an increase in a dividend payout causes an increase in share price as supported by 88% of the respondents. However, 79% felt that dividend payment did not remove excess cash flows that could be invested in unprofitable projects. Majority of the respondents (98%) strongly submitted that dividend paying firms are more closely scrutinized by financial analysts to assess managements role in building share value. Further they felt that dividend payments should satisfy shareholders dividend preference rather than depend on the firms investing or financing decisions. The study also revealed that dividend payments are better signals of confidential information than other media forms (98%); thus raising share value. The respondents were also of the view that payment of dividends is a demonstration that that the firm is strong enough and can pass up profitable investments (98%). Moreover, most of the respondents (78%) agreed that they valued their shares at NBK because of the regular dividend payments they received. Out of eight items used to measure the effect of dividend payment on share value, five of them received above average mean scores ranging between 2.97 to 3.76; a demonstration that that indeed dividend pay ment is a major determinant of share value. Table 2: Effects of Dividend Payments on Market Share Value Statement/ item Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree Mean Fre % Fre % Fre % Fre % I consider payment of dividends a major element in the value of shares I hold at National Bank of Kenya 2 2.9 5 7.4 29 42.6 32 47.1 3.34 An increase in a dividend payout causes an increase in share price 0 0 8 11.8 28 41.2 32 47.1 2.18 Dividend payment removes excess cash flows that could be invested in unprofitable projects 0 0 54 79.4 14 20.6 0 0 2.21 Dividend paying firms are more closely scrutinized by financial analysts to assess managements role in building share value 0 0 1 1.5 41 60.3 26 38.2 2.97 Dividend payments should satisfy shareholders dividend preference rather than depend on the firms investing or financing decisions 0 0 1 1.5 41 60.3 26 38.2 3.37 Dividend payments are better signals of confidential information than other media forms; thus raising share value 0 0 1 1.5 14 20.6 53 77.9 3.76 In my view, payment of dividends is a demonstration that that the firm is strong enough and can pass up profitable investments. 0 0 1 1.5 14 20.6 53 77.9 3.76 I value my shares at NBK because of the regular dividend payments I receive. 5 7.4 10 14.7 20 29.4 33 48.5 2.21 The study tested a hypothesis which stated that Dividend payout does not significantly affect the market value of National Bank of Kenya shares. The hypothesis was tested using Pearsons Moment Correlation Coefficient. The test was conducted to establish the relationship between dividend payout and market value of shares. The study (Table 3) revealed a positive correlation (0.850) between dividend payout and market value of NBK shares with a P-value of 0.000, less than the alpha of 0.01; hence establishing a strong and significant relationship between variables. Table 3: Correlation Analysis on Dividend Payout and Market Share Value Dividend payout Market value of NBK shares Dividend pay out Pearson Correlation 1 0.850(**) Sig. (2-tailed) . .000 N 68 68 Market value of NBK shares Pearson Correlation 0.850(**) 1 Sig. (2-tailed) .000 . N 68 68 ** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). Dividend Growth Rate and Share Value Objective two sought to determine the effects of dividend growth rate on market value of National Bank of Kenya shares. This was a measured on a number of statements in which respondents were asked to indicate the extent to which they agreed with them. As shown in Table 4, all the respondents disagreed with the statement that dividend payments at National Bank of Kenya have been experiencing steady growth over the years. However, they (98%) pointed that maintenance of steady and growing dividend payments increases a firms share value. Further, 98% of the respondents were of the view that adjusting dividend payments towards a target payout ratio will increase a firms share value. The study also established that 78% of the respondents valued the shares they held with National Bank of Kenya because of steady growth in dividend payments; contradicting Levinsohn (2003) who observes that paying dividends will influence how a company finances its growth but will not have a lasting effect on its value in the marketplace. Though majority of the respondents disagreed with the contention that the dividend payments have been experiencing steady growth over the years, all the others attributes used to measure the effect of dividend growth rate on market share value all the other attributes were favourably rated with mean scores of over 3.3 out of 5; demonstrating that dividend growth is a major determinant in market share value. Table 4: Effects of Dividend Growth Rate on Market Share Value Statement/ item Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree Mean Fre % Fre % Fre % Fre % NBK dividend payments have been experiencing steady growth over the years 14 20.6 54 79.4 0 0 0 0 1.79 Maintenance of steady and growing dividend payments increases a firms share value 0 0 1 1.5 14 20.6 53 77.9 3.76 Adjusting dividend payments towards a target payout ratio will increase a firms share value 0 0 1 1.5 40 58.8 27 39.7 3.38 I value the shares I hold with National Bank of Kenya because of steady growth in dividend payments 3 4.4 12 17.6 20 29.4 33 48.5 3.32 The study tested a hypothesis which stated that Dividend growth rate does not significantly affect the market value of National Bank of Kenya shares, using Pearsons Moment Correlation. As shown in Table 5, there is a positive correlation (0.299) between dividend growth rate and market value of NBK shares with a P-value of 0.013 less than the alpha of 0.05; hence establishing a high significant relationship between the study variables. This shows that dividend growth rate has a significant effect on market value of NBK shares. Table 5: Correlation Analysis on Dividend Growth Rate and Market Share Value Dividend growth rate Market value of NBK shares Dividend growth rate Pearson Correlation 1 .299(*) Sig. (2-tailed) . .013 N 68 68 Market value of NBK shares Pearson Correlation .299(*) 1 Sig. (2-tailed) .013 . N 68 68 * Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). Regularity of Dividend Declaration and Market Share Value Objective three sought to establish the effects of regularity of dividend declaration on the market share value through a set of statements. According to the study findings (Table 6), 77% of the respondents considered regularity of dividend declaration as major element in the value of shares they owned whereas 88% felt that regular dividend declaration caused an increase in share price. Further, 90% of the respondents submitted that regular dividend declaring firms have more shareholders and their share value is high. Table 6: Effects of Regularity of Dividend Declaration on Market Share Value Statement/ item Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree Mean Fre % Fre % Fre % Fre % I consider regularity of dividend declaration a major element in the value of shares I hold at National Bank of Kenya 1 1.5 14 20.6 29 42.6 24 35.3 3.12 Regularity of dividend declaration causes an increase in share price 2 2.9 6 8.8 28 41.2 32 47.1 3.32 Regular dividend declaring firms have more shareholders and their share value is high. 0 0 7 10.3 7 10.3 54 79.4 3.69 I value my shares at NBK because of the regular dividend payments I receive 26 38.2 28 41.2 0 0 14 20.6 2.03 The results further revealed that majority of the respondents (79%) disagreed with the contention that they valued their shares because of the regularity of dividend declaration with a mean score of 2.03 out of a maximum of 5. In general, three out of the four attributes measuring the effect of regularity of dividend payments on share value received high mean scores of over 3 out of 5; implying that regularity of dividend payments is positively related to share price. It follows thereof that when dividends are not regular, the share value drops and vice versa. The study tested a hypothesis which stated that regularity of dividend declaration does not significantly affect the market value of National Bank of Kenya shares using Pearsons Moment Correlation. As shown in Table 7, the study established a positive correlation of 0.502 with P-value of 0.000, less than the alpha of 0.01; hence demonstrating a high and significant relationship between the two variables. Therefore, regularity of dividend declaration has a significant effect on market value of shares. The results agrees with Pettit (1972) observations that announcements of dividend increases are followed by significant price increases and that announcements of dividend decreases are followed by significant price drops. Table 7: Correlation Analysis on Regularity of Dividend Declaration and Market Share Value Regularity of dividend declaration Market value of NBK shares Regularity of dividend declaration Pearson Correlation 1 0.502(**) Sig. (2-tailed) . 0.000 N 68 68 Market value of NBK shares Pearson Correlation 0.502(**) 1 Sig. (2-tailed) 0.000 . N 68 68 ** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). When asked to rate the level of market share value (Figure 1), 3% rated the value as very low, 57% rated it low, with 36% rating the value as high and 4% as very high. This shows that majority (60%) of the shareholders considered the market value of the shares as low. Figure 1: Level of market share value Model Testing The model had hypothesized that regularity of dividend declaration, dividend growth rate and dividend payouts were responsible for variation in the market share value. To test this model multiple regression was run with market share value as the dependent variable and regularity of dividend declaration, dividend growth rate and dividend payouts as the independent variables. According to the study results in Table 8, the three independent variables account for 68% (R Square, 0.679) of the variations in market share value. Table 8: Regression Model Summary Model R R Square Adjusted R Square Std. Error of the Estimate 1 .824(a) .679 .664 .530 Predictors: (Constant), regularity of dividend declaration, dividend growth rate and dividend payouts. The study conducted ANOVA to test determine whether the model works. As shown in Table 9, the F value was 45.110 at significance level of 0.00. Since the significance level (0.00) was far much less than the alpha level 0.05, it implies that the three independent variables (dividend payout, dividend growth rate and regularity of dividend declaration) contributed significantly to variations in the dependent variable (market share value). Table 9: ANOVA Results Model Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig. 1 Regression 38.060 3 12.687 45.110 .000(a) Residual 17.999 64 .281 Total 56.059 67 a. Predictors: (Constant): regularity of dividend declaration, dividend growth rate and dividend payouts; b. Dependent Variable: market value of NBK shares Regression analysis was conducted to determine the effects of dividend payout, dividend growth rate and regularity of dividend declaration on market share value. The study established that an increase in regularity of dividend payout, dividend growth rate and regularity of dividend declaration by one unit would increase market value of NBK shares by 0.615, 0.393 and 0.217 respectively. This implies that all the three independent variables significantly affect market share value, though dividend payout is more significant than the other two variables. Table 10: Regression Coefficient Model Un standardized Coefficients Standardized Coefficients t Sig. B Std. Error Beta (Constant) .463 .239 1.939 .057 Dividend payout .615 .075 .758 8.161 .000 Dividend growth rate .393 .130 .218 3.015 .004 Regularity of dividend declaration .217 .057 .223 3.793 .000 a. Dependent Variable: market value of NBK shares Conclusions It is palpable that National Bank of Kenya had a dividend policy, which has been and continues to be important factor driving NBK share value. However, it was not well understood by the most of the shareholders. The NBK shareholders considered payment of dividends is as major element in the value of shares as it demonstrated that that the firm is strong enough and can pass up profitable investments. It is also evident that that an increase in a dividend payout causes an increase in share price. It is also clear from the results that dividend payments have been experiencing declining over the last five years. Although, maintenance of steady and growing dividend payments has been confirmed to increase the firms share value, adjusting dividend payments towards a target payout ratio will also increase a firms share value. Consequently, steady growth in dividend payments makes the shareholders value their shares more. Regularity of dividend declaration was also viewed as a major element w ith regards to the value of shares as shareholders believed that regular dividend declaration caused an increase in share price. Based on the results, dividend payout, dividend growth rate and regularity of dividend declaration significantly influenced the market value of National Bank of Kenya shares. Recommendations Based on the findings, the study made the following recommendation; Dividend policy has proven to be of paramount importance with regards to the market share value and thus NBKs management should avail the policy to its shareholders. This grants them an opportunity to contribute to the improvement of the policy. NBK must adjust its dividend policy to improve the market value of its shares. For an optimal dividend policy to be achieved and maintained, the bank management should maintain regular dividend payment, and also pay a special dividend or initiate a share repurchase programme. Any changes in policy should be shared with the shareholders.

Teaching The Confessions of St. Augustine Essay -- The Confessions of

Teaching The Confessions of St. Augustine ABSTRACT: Augustine's passionate and immensely personal account of his conversion has enthralled readers for centuries. Unfortunately, the passion and personal nature of the writing can stand as a barrier to comprehension, especially when the text is taught at the undergraduate level. Add to this the fact that the work has the character of one long and substained prayer to God, contains many passages that are tediously introspective, and refers to a time and place that are foreign to today's undergraduates, the task of helping students to understand and appreciate the work is daunting, to say the least. Augustine's very passionate and immensely personal account of his conversion has enthralled readers for centuries. Unfortunately, it is also the very passionate and personal nature of the writing that can stand as a barrier to comprehension, especially when the text is taught at the undergraduate level. Add to this the fact that the work has the character of one long, sustained prayer addressed to God, it contains many passages that are tediously introspective, it refers to a time and place that are foreign to today's undergraduates, and the task of helping students to understand and appreciate the work is, to say the least, daunting. But the Confessions, like all great literary masterpieces, is ultimately accessible, although special effort may have to be made to make it so for the student. One method of approaching the text that has been very helpful for my students has been to explore the text in terms of theme and pattern. It is this method about which I will speak in this paper. I shall speak first of theme, and return later to pattern. There is no doubt in Augustine's m... ...on, and the individuals who at every stage helped him to overcome those obstacles. I have further suggested that one theme that comes readily to the fore when the first eight books of the Confessions are analyzed in this way is Augustine's belief that God's work is accomplished in our lives through the agency of others. This approach is used with a primarily undergraduate audience in mind, thus many of Augustine's more subtle psychological and theological teachings from these books are not given emphasis. However, this approach does provide students with a way into the text that is intelligible and manageable. It can only be hoped that in subsequent readings, our students will be able to appreciate some of the other riches that await them therein. Bibliography Augustine. The Confessions of St. Augustine. Trans. John K. Ryan. Garden City: Image-Doubleday, 1960.

Ghost Story of the Mirror in the Castle :: Ghost Stories Urban Legends

This story was told to a friend of mine by his father. My friend was 10 years old when he first heard the story and is 20 years old now. He grew up in northern Oklahoma and his family moved to Maryland when he was eight. His father, his younger brother and he were on a road trip and my friend and his brother asked their father to tell them a story to help them pass the time. My friend does not recall what his father said about where he heard the story from, but it goes more or less as follows: Once upon a time (chuckles), there were two brothers. These two brothers loved to play outdoors and one day, as it was getting on into evening, they wandered into a graveyard and met another little boy who wanted to play with them. So, they played with the boy for a while and eventually the little boy asked if the brothers would like to [see] the castle. The brothers agreed to go along and off they went following behind the little boy. The boy took them to a castle in the middle of the graveyard and took them inside to a room with big mirror on one wall. (In a really weak and timid voice:) â€Å"Follow me,† said the boy. â€Å"Let me show you where I live.† (Begins speaking more intensely:) At that, he stepped through the mirror and into the castle on the other side and disappeared around a corner. The two brothers shared a concerned look, but in the end stepped into the mirror and came out the other side. Whereas the castle they had been brought to at first seemed aban doned for centuries, this castle felt and looked as though it were currently inhabited. (Speaking with a sense of awe or wonderment:) They wandered out of the bedroom and after a time found them selves in a dinning room with a table set for many people and food laid out like a feast. At that table sat a number of ornately dressed adults. Some in very fine robes or very flashy dresses, all enjoying the feast and each others' company. (Changes to a concerned or anxious tone:) The brothers tried to ask the person nearest them what the occasion of the feast was , but the person utterly ignored [them]. In fact, when one of the brothers tried to tug at the adult’s sleeve he found that his hand went straight through it.

Comparing Poe and Whittman Essay -- comparison compare contrast essays

Comparing Poe and Whittman  Ã‚     Ã‚   A successful writer is he who is able to transmit ideas, emotions, and wisdom on to his readers. He is cable of stirring emotions and capturing the reader's attention with vivid descriptions and clever dialogues. The writer can even play with the meanings of words and fuse reality with fiction to achieve his goal of taking the reader on a wonderful journey. His tools are but words, yet the art of writing is found in the use of the language to create though-provoking pieces that defy the changing times. Between the lines, voices and images emerge. Not everyone can write effectively and invoke these voices. It is those few who can create certain psychological effects on the reader who can seize him (or her) with inspiring teachings, frightening thoughts, and playful games with the language. These people are true writers†¦ In addition, authors frequently lack originality and simply take the reader on all-too-familiar voyages into politics, morals, or religion. Successful writers are those who risk and go on to write about topics that many times others have been less willing to address. The product of these extraordinary efforts is compositions richly enhanced by human feelings and real problems that we encounter and relate to our everyday lives†¦thought-provoking discussions about religion, philosophy, or politics. These pioneering authors are not afraid to write about evil, the perverse aspects of man, or even sexuality†¦Ã‚   Their true voices have risen from behind the words taking shape in the minds of the readers. Few have done this, but in the 19th Century two remarkable Americans produced compositions of unequal quality. Their styles and the way they approach the reader are different from t... ... something (AL 2139) Could it be that their originality sprouts from the fact that they have both been able to express so humanly the cries of the soul while at the same time leaving mysteries and ambiguity for the readers' minds to personalize to their own life experiences? Their distinct styles enabled them to expresses exactly what was on their minds with words, leaving behind all inhibitions. The themes of their compositions and the moral issues captured our attention. I think the reader was able to "feel" he was truly experiencing the story simply because so much was left as a mystery for our unconscious to reflect upon†¦ I am convinced that this is the key element that makes both Whitman and Poe successful writers.  Ã‚   Works Cited Reidhead J. ed.   (1998, Fifth Edition) The Norton Anthology of American Literature Volume 1: Norton & Company, New York

Emergency Management

How would you rate the four phases of Emergency Management for meeting the challenges confronting this nation from terrorism? The information the National Situation Update for September 12, 2001 gives us on the activities following the attacks largely focuses on the response of resources. There seems to be an abundance of resources available to respond to each disaster area including emergency response teams, disaster mortuary teams, disaster medical assistant teams, urban search and rescue task forces, and incident support teams.Because of this, my thoughts are that in order to have such a response there had to be a certain level of preparedness. Therefore my top rated selection is the preparedness phase. Closely following is the response itself. For reasons previously stated the response phase is my second rated phase for this scenario. Multiple agencies from many different states responded with the appropriate resources within hours of the attacks. Thirdly, the recovery phase is m y next selection of importance.This phase is the measure of how well prepared and/or how quickly the response was including lives and property saved. The recovery phase directly leads into the mitigation phase as the last phase to be implemented. The mitigation phase allows for evaluation of the response and recovery taking into account for the entire operation as a whole. It can be utilized as a teaching tool of what went wrong or right and how to do it better next time. Learning from a disaster and how the event affected the area it encompassed is the primary goal of mitigation.Based on the information contained in the National Situation Update for September 12, 2001 which of the following phases of emergency management were best fulfilled? Please place the four phases in order of which phases was best planned/implemented with the best implemented phase ranked first. Please justify your response. After reading the National Situation Update for September 12, 2001 I would place the following phases in order of best planned and implemented with the best-implemented phase listed first. * The response phase * The preparedness phase * The recovery phase The mitigation phase Overall, response was overwhelming. Multiple agencies from all over the U. S. responded to the disaster. These ranged from mortuary response teams to disaster medical response teams as well as urban search and rescue task forces. The response was excellent. Because no one prior to the September 11, 2001 could foresee the attacks, planning for such an event could not have been accomplished. Due to the fact that the U. S. had planned for other natural disasters in other parts of the country I believe that the preparedness for the attacks was next best met.Being prepared for other disasters that cause mass destruction and loss of life we were able to respond quickly and efficiently. Recovery was slow due to the magnitude of the attacks. Four separate events within hours of each other heavily taske d our resources and made for a long recovery process. Debris recovery was primarily lead by the U. S. Army Core of Engineers. However, psychological recovery has taken and probably will take many more years. Economic recovery has also been slow. As for mitigation, the damage had already been done.There was no way to know what was going to happen and therefore contingencies to lesson the effects could not be made. Mitigation in this regard comes into play with agencies like the Red Cross providing blood products for the injured, shelter for the disaster workers, and fund raising. As with all major disasters or accidents we learn each time we fall victim to them. Future events such as the September 11, 2001 attacks, now that we have experienced such an event, can be better prepared for. In this way we will have better response, more effective mitigation, and a quicker recovery process.In retrospect and in YOUR opinion (Hindsight is always 20/20),   if any singular aspect of planning and implementation for such a disaster could have possibly prevented 9-11 what could it have been? No, I do not think that 9-11 could have been prevented. WE have learned valuable lessons from that tragic attack, but it the terrorist took advantage of our security, and process of how we conduct our affairs. Now that we know what we know, we have changed our processes, and we continue to alter them. We have tightend our security.Our Intelligence forces now are able to put threats and information together that prior to 9-11 we wouldn’t have considered. What are some of the distinguishing features between a natural disaster and a man-made disaster such a 9-11? A natural disaster is an effect of nature such as a volcanic eruption, earthquake, or hurricane. These cannot be prevented but can be prepared for. A man-made disaster is a catastrophe or tragedy caused by humans. Such as bombings, the 9-11 attack, arson. These can be prevented.If a terrorist attack or another significant disaster were to hit the United States today that is similar to that which occurred on 9-11 or Hurricane Katrina were to occur today, which of the four phases of emergency management do you believe we would respond to significantly better today. Please justify your response. As with all major disasters or accidents we learn each time we fall victim to them. Future events such as the September 11, 2001 attacks, now that we have experienced such an event, can be better prepared for. In this way we will have better response, more effective mitigation, and a quicker recovery process. Emergency Management How would you rate the four phases of Emergency Management for meeting the challenges confronting this nation from terrorism? The information the National Situation Update for September 12, 2001 gives us on the activities following the attacks largely focuses on the response of resources. There seems to be an abundance of resources available to respond to each disaster area including emergency response teams, disaster mortuary teams, disaster medical assistant teams, urban search and rescue task forces, and incident support teams.Because of this, my thoughts are that in order to have such a response there had to be a certain level of preparedness. Therefore my top rated selection is the preparedness phase. Closely following is the response itself. For reasons previously stated the response phase is my second rated phase for this scenario. Multiple agencies from many different states responded with the appropriate resources within hours of the attacks. Thirdly, the recovery phase is m y next selection of importance.This phase is the measure of how well prepared and/or how quickly the response was including lives and property saved. The recovery phase directly leads into the mitigation phase as the last phase to be implemented. The mitigation phase allows for evaluation of the response and recovery taking into account for the entire operation as a whole. It can be utilized as a teaching tool of what went wrong or right and how to do it better next time. Learning from a disaster and how the event affected the area it encompassed is the primary goal of mitigation.Based on the information contained in the National Situation Update for September 12, 2001 which of the following phases of emergency management were best fulfilled? Please place the four phases in order of which phases was best planned/implemented with the best implemented phase ranked first. Please justify your response. After reading the National Situation Update for September 12, 2001 I would place the following phases in order of best planned and implemented with the best-implemented phase listed first. * The response phase * The preparedness phase * The recovery phase The mitigation phase Overall, response was overwhelming. Multiple agencies from all over the U. S. responded to the disaster. These ranged from mortuary response teams to disaster medical response teams as well as urban search and rescue task forces. The response was excellent. Because no one prior to the September 11, 2001 could foresee the attacks, planning for such an event could not have been accomplished. Due to the fact that the U. S. had planned for other natural disasters in other parts of the country I believe that the preparedness for the attacks was next best met.Being prepared for other disasters that cause mass destruction and loss of life we were able to respond quickly and efficiently. Recovery was slow due to the magnitude of the attacks. Four separate events within hours of each other heavily taske d our resources and made for a long recovery process. Debris recovery was primarily lead by the U. S. Army Core of Engineers. However, psychological recovery has taken and probably will take many more years. Economic recovery has also been slow. As for mitigation, the damage had already been done.There was no way to know what was going to happen and therefore contingencies to lesson the effects could not be made. Mitigation in this regard comes into play with agencies like the Red Cross providing blood products for the injured, shelter for the disaster workers, and fund raising. As with all major disasters or accidents we learn each time we fall victim to them. Future events such as the September 11, 2001 attacks, now that we have experienced such an event, can be better prepared for. In this way we will have better response, more effective mitigation, and a quicker recovery process.In retrospect and in YOUR opinion (Hindsight is always 20/20),   if any singular aspect of planning and implementation for such a disaster could have possibly prevented 9-11 what could it have been? No, I do not think that 9-11 could have been prevented. WE have learned valuable lessons from that tragic attack, but it the terrorist took advantage of our security, and process of how we conduct our affairs. Now that we know what we know, we have changed our processes, and we continue to alter them. We have tightend our security.Our Intelligence forces now are able to put threats and information together that prior to 9-11 we wouldn’t have considered. What are some of the distinguishing features between a natural disaster and a man-made disaster such a 9-11? A natural disaster is an effect of nature such as a volcanic eruption, earthquake, or hurricane. These cannot be prevented but can be prepared for. A man-made disaster is a catastrophe or tragedy caused by humans. Such as bombings, the 9-11 attack, arson. These can be prevented.If a terrorist attack or another significant disaster were to hit the United States today that is similar to that which occurred on 9-11 or Hurricane Katrina were to occur today, which of the four phases of emergency management do you believe we would respond to significantly better today. Please justify your response. As with all major disasters or accidents we learn each time we fall victim to them. Future events such as the September 11, 2001 attacks, now that we have experienced such an event, can be better prepared for. In this way we will have better response, more effective mitigation, and a quicker recovery process.

Assignment Questions Chapters 5-7 Psychology Essay

1. Most current studies aimed at understanding human memory are conducted within a framework known as information-processing theory. This approach makes use of modern computer science and related fields to provide models that help psychologists understand the processes involved in memory. The general principles of the information processing approach to memory include the notion that memory involves three distinct processes. The first process, encoding, is the process of transforming information into a form that can be stored in memory. The second process, storage, is the process of keeping or maintaining information in memory. The final process, retrieval, is the process of bringing to mind information that has been stored in the memory (p.168). Two influential theorists concerning the information-processing theory are Richard Atkinson and Richard Shiffrin. They characterized memory as three different, interacting memory systems: sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memor y. Sensory memory is the memory system that holds information from the senses for a period of time ranging from only a fraction of a second to about 2 seconds. Sensory memory can take in an enormous amount of information, but it can only hold on to it for a very brief period of time (p.169). Short-term memory is the component of the memory system that holds about seven (from five to nine) items for less than 30 seconds without rehearsal; also called the working memory. When short-term memory is filled to capacity, displacement can occur. In displacement, each new incoming item pushes out an existing item, which is then forgotten (p.170). Long-term memory (LTM) is the memory system with a virtually unlimited capacity that contains vast stores of a person’s permanent or relatively permanent memories. There are no known limits to the storage capacity of this memory system, and long-term memories can persist for years, some of them for a lifetime. Information in long-term memory is usually stored in semantic form, although visual images, sounds, and odors can be stored there as well (p.174). 2. The analogy heuristic involves comparing a problem to others you have experienced in the past. The idea is that if a particular strategy worked with similar problems in the past, it will be effective for solving a new one. Another heuristic that is effective for solving some problems is working backward, sometimes called the backward search. This approach starts with the solution, a known condition, and works back through the problem. Once the backward search has revealed the steps to be taken and their order, the problem can be solved (p.207). Another popular heuristic strategy is means-end analysis, in which the current position is compared with a desired goal, and a series of steps are formulated and then taken to close the gap between the two. When you adopt a heuristic strategy, it may or may not lead to a correct solution. By contrast, the algorithm is a problem-solving strategy that always lead to a correct solution if it is applied appropriately (p.208). 3.Research suggests that there are both advantages and disadvantages to learning two languages early in life. One of the pluses is that, among preschool and school-age children, bilingualism, fluency in at least two languages, is associated with better executive control skills on language tasks. Executive control skills enable bilingual children to suppress impulsive responses to verbal tasks and, as a result, think more carefully about them. Thus, executive control skills are important in learning to read and write. On the downside, even in adulthood, bilingualism is sometimes associated with decreased efficiency in memory tasks involving words. However, bilinguals appear to develop compensatory strategies that allow them to make up these inefficiencies. Consequently, they often perform such tasks as accurately as monolinguals, though they may respond more slowly. Researchers have found that there is no age at which it is impossible to learn a new language. While it is true that those who begin earlier reach higher levels of proficiency, age is not the only determining factor (p.214). There is one clear advantage to learning two languages earlier in life, however. People who are younger when they learn a new language are far more likely to be able to speak with an appropriate accent. One reason for this difference between early and late language learners may have to do with slight variations in neural processing in Broca’s area, the area of the brain that controls speech production. Research suggests that bilinguals who learned a second language early rely on the same patch of tissue in Broca’s area for both of the languages they speak. In those who learned a second language at an older age, two different sections of Broca’s are are active while they are performing language tasks (p.215). 4. Charles Spearman observed that people who are bright in one area are usually bright in other areas as well. In other words, they tend to be generally intelligent. Spearman came to believe that intelligence is composed of a general ability that underlies all intellectual functions. Spearman concluded that intelligence tests tap this g factor, or general intelligence, and a number of s factors, or specific intellectual abilities. Spearman’s influence can be seen in those intelligence tests, such as the Stanford-Binet, that yield one IQ score to indicate the level of general intelligence. Howard Gardner also denies the existence of a g factor. Instead, he proposes a theory of multiple intelligences that includes eight important forms of intelligence, or frames of mind. The eight frames of mind are linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalistic. In recent years, he has proposed a ninth type of intelligence, one that he calls existential intelligence, deals with the spiritual realm and enables us to contemplate the meaning of life. He first developed his theory by studying patients with different types of brain damage that affect some forms of intelligence but leaves other intact. The most controversial aspect of Gardner’s theory is his view that all forms of intelligence are of equal importance. In fact, different cultures assign varying degrees of importance to the types of intelligence (p.216-217). 5. I would perform a fixed-ratio (FR) schedule, in which a reinforcer is given after a fixed number of correct, non reinforced responses. So, if my dog knew that after rolling over correctly ten times without getting reinforced meant that she would get a reinforced after those ten times, she would then learn that after rolling over ten times correctly, she would be reinforced (p.147). In fixed-rate schedules response rates are very high, and the higher the ratio, the more resistant to extinction (p.148). 6. Psycholinguistics is the study of how language is acquired, produced, and used and how the sounds and symbols of language are translated into meaning. Psycholinguists use specific terms for each of the five basic components of language. The smaller units of sound in a spoken language-such as b or s in English-are known as phonemes. Three phonemes together form the sound of the word cat: c (which sounds like k), a, and t. Combinations of letters that form particular sounds are also phonemes, such as the th in the and the ch in child. The same phoneme may be represented by different letters in different words; this occurs with the a in stay and the ei in sleigh. And the same letter can serve as different phonemes. This letter a, for example, is sounded as four different phonemes in day, cap, watch, and law. Morphemes are the smallest units of meaning in a language. A few single phonemes serve as morphemes, such as the article a and the personal pronoun I. The ending -s gives a plural meaning to a word and is thus a morpheme in English. Many words in English are single morphemes-book, word, learn, reason, and so on. In addition to root words, morphemes may be prefixes (such as re- in relearn) or suffixes (such as -ed to show past tense, as in learned). The single morpheme reason becomes a dual morpheme in reasonable. The morpheme book (singular) become two morphemes in books (plural). Syntax is the aspect of grammar that specifies the rules for arranging and combining words to form phrases and sentences. The rules of word order, syntax, differ from one language to another. For example, an important rule of syntax in English is that adjectives usually come before nouns. So English speakers refer to the residence of the U.S. president as â€Å"the White House.† In Spanish, in contrast, the noun usually comes before the advective, and Spanish speakers say â€Å"la Casa Blanca,† or â€Å"the House White.† Semantics refers to the meaning derived from morphemes, words, and sentences. The same word can have different meanings depending on how it is used in sentences: â€Å"I don’t mind.† â€Å"Mind your manners.† â€Å"He has lost his mind.† Or consider another example: â€Å"Loving to read, the young girl read three books last week.† Here, the word read is pronounced two different ways, and in one case, is the past tense. Pragmatics, is the term psycholinguists use to refer to aspects of language such as intonation, the rising and falling patterns that are used to express meaning. For example, think about how you would say the single word cookie to express each of the following meanings: â€Å"Do you want a cookie?† or â€Å"What a delicious looking cookie!† or â€Å"That’s a cookie.† The subtle differences reflect your knowledge of the pragmatic rules of English (P.210-211). 7. An intelligence test is a measure of general intellectual ability. An individual’s score is determined by how his responses compare to others of his or her age. Thus, intelligence tests are norm-referenced. All psychological tests, including all the various types of tests that measure cognitive ability, are judged according to the same criteria.They must provide consistent results. An intelligence test must have reliability; the test must consistently yield nearly the same score when the same person is tested and then retested on the same test or an alternative form of the test. The higher the correlation between the two scores, the more reliable the test. Tests can be highly reliable but worthless if they are not valid. Validity is the ability or power of a test to measure what it is intended to measure. Once a test is proven to be valid or reliable, the next requirement is norm-referenced standardization. There must be standard procedures for administering and scoring the test. Exactly the same directions must be given, whether written or oral, and the same amount of time must be allowed for every test taker. But even more important, standardization means establishing norms, age-based averages, by which all scores are interpreted. A test is standardized by administering it to a large sample of people who are representative of those who will be taking the test in the future. The group’s score are analyzed, and then the average score, standard deviation, percentile rankings, and other measures are computed. These comparative scores become the norms used as the standard against which all other scores on that test are measured. Reliability, validity, and standardization are especially important with regard to intelligence tests because the kinds of decisions that are sometimes based on intelligence test scores can have grave consequences. For example, a few years ago the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that is unconstitutional to execute individuals who have mental retardation. Thus, a psychologist who is charged with the responsibility of administering an intelligence test to a person who will or will not be subject to the death penalty at least partly on the basis of his or her intelligence test score must ensure that the test given is reliable and valid and has been properly standardized. Likewise, children’s scores on these tests are often used to place them in special school programs that, in a very real sense, change the course of their lives for years to come. In fact, such a goal was the impetus for the development of the first standardized intelligence test (p.219). 8. In memory loss there are two broad categories that involves this kind of memory loss, amnesia and dementia. Amnesia is a partial or complete loss of memory due to loss of consciousness, brain damage, or some psychological cause. Unlike the memory disorders that are experienced by some older adults, amnesia can be experienced at any age. In some cases, amnesia takes the form of an inability to store new information. This kind of amnesia is known as anterograde amnesia. Anterograde amnesia is the inability to form long-term memories of events occurring after a brain injury or brain surgery, although memories formed before the trauma are usually intact and short-term memory is unaffected. Some individuals with amnesia can form new memories, but they cannot remember the past, a disorder known as retrograde amnesia. Retrograde amnesia is a loss of memory for experiences that occurred shortly before a loss of consciousness. These people often lack knowledge of themselves and/or the events surrounding the development of their memory loss. It is not unusual for a person to have both retrograde and anterograde amnesia with regard to the events that immediately preceded and followed a serious car crash or other traumatic event (p. 189). Another form of memory loss is dementia. Dementia is a state of mental deterioration characterized by impaired memory and intellect and by altered personality and behavior. Dementia can result from such conditions as cerebral arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries in the brain), chronic alcoholism, and irreversible damage by a small series of strokes. Dementia is most common among older adults. However, diseases such as HIV/AIDS can cause dementia to develop in a younger person as well. About 50 to 60% of all cases of dementia result from Alzheimer’s disease. This is a progressive deterioration of intellect and personality that results from widespread degeneration of brain cells (p.190). 9. People reconstruct memories, piecing them together using schemas to organize fragments of information, a process that has both advantages and disadvantages. Information that fits with preexisting schemas can be efficiently remembered, but schemas can also introduce distortions into memory. Sir Frederick Bartlett’s research demonstrated how reconstructive processing changes memory over time (p.178). Most memories do not include source information, so memories for sources must be reconstructed. Source monitoring results in encoding of source memories. Flashbulb memories are different from others in that they always include source information, although the source information is subject to reconstruction changes over time (p.179). Autobiographical memories are reconstructed memories that include factual, emotional, and interpretive elements. They are subject to positive bias (p.180). 10. Bandura suspected that aggression and violence on television programs, including cartoons, tend to increase aggressive behavior in children. In several classic experiments, Bandura demonstrated how children are influenced by exposure to aggressive models. One study involved three groups of preschoolers. Children in one group individually observed an adult model punching, kicking, and hitting a 5-foot, inflated plastic â€Å"Bobo Doll† with a mallet, while uttering aggressive phrases. Children in the second group observed a nonaggressive model who ignored the Bobo Doll and sat quietly assembling Tinker Toys. The children in the control group were placed in the same setting with no adult present. Later, each child was observed through a one-way mirror. Those children exposed to the aggressive model imitated much of the aggression and also engaged in significantly more nonimitative aggression than did children in either of the other groups. The group that observed the nonaggressive model showed less aggressive behavior than the control group. The researchers concluded that â€Å"of the three experimental conditions, exposure to humans on film portraying aggression was the most influential in eliciting and shaping aggressive behavior (p. 158-159). 11. Experiencing hunger pangs when you smell your favorite food is an example of classic conditioning.Your stomach rumbles when you smell your favorite food because smell and taste are so closely linked that food odors, functioning as conditioned stimuli, can actually make you think you are hungry even if you have just finished a large meal. The conditioned stimulus (CS) would be the presence of the smell of your favorite food which brings about the unconditioned stimulus (US) hunger pangs. Because humans do not need to be taught to be hungry for food, the act of feeling hungry would be the unconditioned response (UR). The conditioned response (CR) would be knowing that you will get hungry when you smell your favorite food (p.143). 12. Critics argue that therapists using hypnosis and guided imagery to help their patients recover repressed memories of childhood sexual abuse are actually implanting false memories in those patients. They are especially critical of claims of recovered memories in the first three years of life, because the hippocampus and areas of the cortex are not well developed enough to store long-term memories. Therapists who use these techniques believe that a number of psychological problems can be treated successfully by helping patients recover repressed memories of sexual abuse. These therapists believe that a process called repression, a form of motivated forgetting, can cause traumatic memories to be so deeply buried in an individual’s unconscious mind that he or she has lost all awareness of them (p.192-193). 13. Writing notes, making lists, writing on a calendar, or keeping an appointment book is often more reliable and accurate than trusting to memory. But if you need information at some unpredictable moment when you don’t have aids handy, several mnemonics, or memory devices, and study strategies have developed over the years to aid memory. Mnemonics, or rhymes are a common aid to remembering material that otherwise might be difficult to recall. As a child, learning to recite â€Å"i over e except after c† when you were trying to spell a word containing that vowel combination is an example of a mnemonic. The method of loci is a mnemonic device that be used to when you want to remember a list of items such as a grocery list. Select a familiar place – your home, for example – and simply associate the items to be remembered with locations there. For example, visualize the first item you want to remember in its place on the driveway, the second in the garage, and the third at the front door, and so on until you have associated the item you want to remember with a specific location. Overlearning is another method of improving memory. Overlearning is practicing or studying material beyond the point where it can be repeated once without error. It makes material more resistant to forgetting (p.173). 14. Bandura proposed that four processed determine whether observational learning will occur: Attention: The observer must attend to the model. Retention: The observer must store information about the model’s behavior in memory. Reproduction: The observer must be physically and cognitively capable of performing the behavior to learn it. In other words, no matter how much time you devote to watching Serena Williams play tennis or listening to Beyonce sing, you won’t be able to acquire skills like these unless you possess talents that are equal to theirs. Reinforcement: Ultimately, to exhibit a behavior learned through observation, an observer must be motivated to practice and perform the behavior on his own (p.156). 15. In some cases, we are hampered in our efforts to solve problems in daily life because of functional fixedness, the failure to use familiar objects in novel ways to solve problems. Objects you use everyday such as, tools, utensils, and other equipment are what help you perform certain functions. Although, you probably do not think to use the normal functions of such objects in new and creative ways. Suppose you wanted a cup of coffee, but the glass pot for you coffeemaker was broken. If you suffered from functional fixedness, you might come to the conclusion that there was nothing you could do to solve the problem at that moment. But, rather than thinking about the object you don’t have, think about the function that it needs to perform. Another impediment to problem solving is mental set, the tendency to continue to use the same old method even though another approach might be better. Perhaps you hit on a way to solve a problem once in the past and continue to use the same technique in similar situations, even though it it not highly effective of efficient. The cognitive process that underlies both functional fixedness and mental set is confirmation bias, the tendency to selectively pay attention to information that concerns preexisting beliefs and ignore data that contradict them. For example, when faced with an operating system â€Å"crash,† most computer users know that the first line of defense is to reboot. Every time rebooting solve the problem, confirmation bias in favor of rebooting as a solution for computer problems becomes stronger. As a result, when a problem arises that proves resistant to rebooting, most of us try rebooting a few more times before we confront the reality that rebooting isn’t going to solve the problem (p.209).