ACT Book Guide The Best Books for Intense Study

ACT Book Guide The Best Books for Intense Study SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Albert Einstein, who's generally considereda pretty smart guy, said, "It's not that I'm so smart. It's just that I stay with problems longer." That type of commitment, as anyone who's studying for the ACT knows, is its own formof intelligence, and it's what will help you accomplish your long-term goals. This book guide is meant for students looking to "stay with problems longer" and study intensively, like 100 or more hours, to maximize their scores on the ACT.If you're a student who wants to leave no stone unturned as you prep for the ACT, then these are the books for you. Before delving into the ACT prep book list, a word about what perspective I'm coming from in my recommendations. Perspective Check The ACT books on this list all have strengths and weaknesses, but taken together they can provide you with comprehensive instruction, insightful strategies, and a huge number of practice questions. Since all these books add up to hundreds of pages, I'll suggest an agenda below to help you study from them in a coherent sequence. These recommendations are based off of the experiences of myself, ACT experts, and students. These are the ACT preparation books that offer a level of detail and insight into the testbeyond the ordinary. They'll help you achieve mastery in each section of the test. At the same time, I think that self-studying from books presents some extra challenges for students. One lies in the comprehensive nature of these ACTprep books. Because they're so comprehensive, they can feel overwhelming. It can be difficult to know where to start and how to use them in a more effective way than attempting(and struggling) to read them cover to cover. The best ACT study plan is customized to your individual needs, target scores, and strengths and weaknesses. You don't want to waste time drilling yourself on vocabulary you already understand or probability questions you could do in your sleep. Instead, you want to make sure you're making an effective use of your time, targeting your weak areas, and building your confidence where you need it most. PrepScholar's online ACT prep program was created with these challenges in mind. It has all the best parts of these books, with critical lessons, strategies, and practice questions, plus it adds the unique feature of customization. The prep program diagnoses your level and individualizes the study plan to you, ensuring your prep is as focused and effective as possible. Plus it helps you design a schedule and stay accountable, two things that are tough to prioritize when you're studying completely on your own with ACTprep books. Regardless of whether or not you're interested in trying the 5 day free trial of PrepScholar's ACT prep program, you should explore our detailed study guides on the ACT. We have answers to all your questions about the ACT, from how to read the passages to saving time on math to how to best review your practice test mistakes. Our goal is to make sure all students can access the resources they need on their path to college. That being said, read on for a thorough assessment of the best ACT preparation books for intense study, starting with the critical book all serious students need. The Critical ACT Prep Book The book that's essential to your ACT prep comes from the testmakers themselves. The Real ACT Prep Book, also known as the Red Book, is a must-have. At the same time, it's not sufficient as the only book you use. Let's look at the pros and cons of the Red Book. The Real ACT Prep Book (or the "Red Book") Amazon price: $18.18 Pros Because The Real ACT Prep Bookwas created by the ACT and contains previously administered ACT tests, its practice questions are the best ones available. There are definitely high quality practice questions that aren't "official," but they are still an imitation. The questions in the Red Book are real, and therefore they're the most useful ones you can use to get ready for the test. The Red Book has 5full length practice tests, allof which were administered to students in past years. That adds up to over17hours of practice testing with more than1,000 practice questions! Students doing intensive prep can gain a lot from all this practice testing. As I'll explain further down,students could benefit from using these tests throughout their test prep, first to diagnose their level, then to measure to progress, and finally to finish up their studying with a post-test. You can gain a ton both from the experience of practice testing and the post-test scoring and analysis. Make sure to thoroughly understand your mistakes and use them to fuel further review. While the Red Book is the best prep book for authentic practice tests and sample questions, it's lacking in some other key areas. Let's consider what it's missing and why you need to supplement it with other books. Cons There are other parts to ACT studying besides practice tests, like lessons in content and time management strategies. The Red Book has some general information in these areas, but it doesn't go as deeply as you're looking for. That's why it's best used alongside other books to reinforce your understanding, experiment with strategies, and measure your progress as you go. Another word of caution: according to ACT experts and students, the ACT has been secretly but steadily getting harder in the past few years!The Science section, especially, has been getting more complex and time-consuming, plus the Reading is tough to finish within the given time limit. While the ACT has not announced any changes, there is general agreement that the test has, in fact, changed. This means that practice tests developed and/or administered before 2010 are probably not as representative of the test you'll see today as more recent ones. They still resemble the current ACT and are useful, but they're somewhat easier in terms of content and pacing. When taking these earlier practice tests, keep a critical eye on any differences amongthe tests. Also keep in mind that you might score higher on these than you would on the more challenging test given today. Finally, the last downside to the Red Book is that the answer explanations for each question are not as thorough as they could be. Students who want to prep deeply for the test should not just understand why a correct answer is correct, but also what exactly is wrong with the other answer choices. None of the answer choices are going to be totally off base or random, so students should develop a discerning eye about the common misleading answer choices that seem reasonable, but aren't quite right in some way. Luckily, the next book in this list provides more thorough answer explanations to many of the questions in the Red Book. It explains each answer choice while also suggesting helpful thought processes to use when approaching each question type. The Best ACT Book for Strategy The similarly named ACT Black Book is my highest recommendation for gaining strategies and insights into how the ACT works. It refers directly to questions from the ACT Red Book, so the two are best used together. The ACT Prep Black Book: The Most Effective ACT Strategies Ever Published Amazon price: $19.79 Pros Can this book live up to its bold title? Actually, I do think it's one of the best books for pure strategy and in-depth understanding of the ACT. According to its author, Mike Barrett, the ACT is a predictable, standardized test. The content knowledge is not particularly advanced, but the questions are unique, even designed to trick students, in their wording. Because of this predictability, Barrett says, students can learn to see through the tricks and beat each question in the least amount of time possible. He talks about patterns and process, and gives you practical strategies for answering math, reading, science, and English questions. The Black Book also shows you over 200 solutions for some of the hardest questions in the ACT Red Book. He walks you through how to solve and think about ACT questions in a way that the Red Book doesn't. While the ACT doesn't want to reveal its secrets, Barrett's mission is to pierce through the workings of the ACT and provide a concise roadmap of the test to students. The Black Book works well for focused students who are interested in going a step beyond the usual in their ACT prep. If you're interested in taking a big picture approach to the testand analyzing its patterns, then the ACT Prep Black Book is an indispensable study aid. Cons You mightbe starting to suspect that some of these books are so high quality because they're focused on a particular aspect of test prep. The Red Book is focused on practice tests, while the Black Book is focused on strategy. Because of its singular emphasis, the Black Book does a really good job in that area. Inevitably, though, this means that it's lacking in other key areas of test prep, namely content review. The Black Book is not particularly useful for instruction in geometry or grammar rules, nor is it going to help you develop your critical reading skills. In addition, the Black Book has no practice questions of its own. While the Red Book has 5 practice tests, you'll probably want to seek even more ACT questions to apply your understanding and improve your time management. Finally, the Black Book requires a certain amount of dedication and focus from its readers. It's not the easiest read, because it dives deeply into the ACT. That's why it can be so helpful for intense study, but be aware that you'll really have to engage with the material to get the most out of it. So far we've talked about practice tests and strategies, with less of an emphasis on reviewing concepts and enhancing skills. Below are my recommendations for the best comprehensive book for content review, followed by the best books for spotlighting each individual section of the ACT. The Best ACT Book for Overall Content Review My recommendation for an ACT prep book with an in-depth breakdown of concepts and skills is Barron's ACT. Students aiming for top scores who are looking for additional practice can also check out Barron's ACT 36: Aiming for the Perfect Score(Amazon price: $9.99). This assessment will focus on Barron's ACT. Barron's ACT Amazon price: $15.15 Pros Barron's ACT thoroughly reviews the concepts and skills being tested on the Reading, Math, English, Science and Writing sections of the ACT. The Englishand Math reviews are particularly strong, with each concept broken down into subtopics like a grammar review of parallelism, transitions, and word order and a math review of intermediate algebra, plane geometry, and trigonometry. It starts with a diagnostic test, encouraging students to reflect on their strengths and weaknesses and plan their test prep accordingly. Purchase of the book will also give you access to an online component that helps you establish your skill profile and access video lessons. In addition toexampleand practice questions that illustrate and drill various concepts, Barron's ACT also has 3full-length practice tests. These aren't authentic ACT questions, but they are still high quality and useful in your prep. This is another 10+ hours of practice testing and over 600 practice questions, an essential part of intensive study. Barron's also excels in its answer explanations. Like the Black Book, it explains both why an answer is correct and what's wrong about the incorrect answer choices, an understanding that should not be overlooked in your test prep. While it's a traditional prep book written in a straightforward style, Barron's also acknowledgesthe feelings of its readers with sections on optimizing your test-taking mindset and managing any anxiety you have around the ACT. Cons As I mentioned earlier, big traditional prep books can be very useful in their thoroughness, but they can be daunting at the same time. Barron's ACT is a perfect illustration of this - chock full of content and practice questions, but intimidating in its breadth. The book suggests some study plans based on the amount of time you have to prep, but you'll also have to do some extra work to break it up into smaller, more manageable goals. Perhaps the biggest downside to Barron's ACT is how realistic the practice tests are. While they're relatively high quality, a lot of students agree that they are sometimes more difficult than the questions that will actually appear on the ACT. Their wording can be overly complicated, or sometimes they test a concept that's too advanced. While overpreparing isn't the worst thing, you want to mimic the test as much as possible so you have a strong understanding of what to expect. Again, try to keep a critical eye when taking practice tests and take factors like difficulty level into account if you notice unexpected fluctuations in your practice test scores. Finally, Barron's ACT is particularly strong on Englishand Math,and pretty useful on Reading. Its Science review is less strong than the other sections, something which occurs often across ACT prep books. While it describes the sources of passages, types of passages, and strategies for reading, along with science practice questions, you probably would want to supplement your science studying with another resource. Given this, let's look at the best resourcesspecific to each section of the ACT, starting with Science. Best Book for ACT Science Even though many students find the Science section to be the most challenging part of the ACT, until recently there were no books specifically dedicated to helping you on ACT Science. At PrepScholar, we know all the tricks for making ACT Science easier, so we decided to compile them into a book. The PrepScholar Guide to ACT Science Amazon price:about $5 Pros The PrepScholar Guide to ACT Sciencecovers every topic, skill, and question type you'll see on ACT Science which means that nothingon this section will come as a surprise on test day.That includes a list of every science fact you could be tested on, so you're only studying the science information you need to know. It also containsmultiple strategies for tackling Science passages so you can choose the method that works best for you. Most importantly,this bookalsoincludes all of our best ACT Sciencetest-taking tricks.Many students get tripped up ontheScience section because it's so different from the science tests they've taken in school. Even if you're a science whiz, you'll likely need to study how the Science section works before you can ace it. This book is your key to doing that. It shows you how to identify every trick inACTScience and learn how toavoid getting fooled by them so you can find the correct answer quickly and more easily. Cons While every chapter in this book includes sample questions to help you see and understand different concepts, there is no final quiz or exam section at the end of the book. For every section of the ACT, it's critical to take regular practice tests and quizzes to track your practice and see where you still need to improve. To fully practice everything you've learned from this book,we recommend takingfull-length Science sections. Best ACT Book for Math If you want to hone in on the math section and improve your algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and problem-solving skills, then you can do so withthe Ultimate Guide to the Math ACT. Let's take a look at where it excels and where it's not as strong. The Ultimate Guide to the Math ACT Amazon price: $17.54 Pros The Ultimate Guide to the Math ACTis a solid review of all the concepts you need to know for the Math section of the ACT. It doesn't get too advanced, but sticks to the topics that will show up on the test. Like PrepScholar, this book breaks each area - algebra, geometry, trigonometry - into small subtopics, like fractions, averages, square roots, functions, and trigonometry for rights triangles. Each lessonis illustrated with high quality practice problems, along with techniques and strategies for answering various question types. In addition to its own practice questions, this book cross-references questions in the Red Book. Overall it walks you through each and every concept you need to know for the Math section of the ACT in a clear and succinct way. Cons This book takes a minimalist approach in terms of its lessons. Some students will appreciate its straightforward, not overly explanatory style, while others might wish they hadmore description and explanation in each lesson. It's not a wordy book, but a lot of students look for that when they study math. On a similar note, this book isn't the most helpful for walking you through a problem from beginning to end. Some of its explanations are helpful, especially as they cross reference the Red Book, but it doesn't offer a lot of guidance for thinking through a problem. Nor does it evaluate problems by difficulty level or provide a frequency guide to help you prioritize more important concepts over others. Finally, this book has some errors in printing, especially in matching up the questions with the answer key. While this doesn't detract much from its overall quality, it can be distracting as you're scoring and understanding your practice questions. Just as this book dives into the math section of the ACT, my next two recommendations closely examine the verbal, or English and Reading sections. Best ACT Books for English and Reading I'm grouping these books together for two reasons. First, the skills you develop for English are helpful for Reading, and vice versa. Secondly, both guides come from the same author, Erica Meltzer, and have similar pros and cons. Let's look first at Meltzer's book on the English section of the ACT. The Complete Guide to ACT English by Erica Meltzer Amazon price: $26.52 Pros 75 questions in 45 minutes, oh my! The English section is definitely fast-paced. To make sure you finish in time, you need toquickly and efficiently identify each grammar rule being tested and pick the right answer choice. Erica Meltzer explains all the grammar rules you need to know for this section in The Complete Guide to ACT English, like verb agreement, word pairs, and transitions. Similar toPrepScholar's approach, she breaks the section down by skills and drills you on each one to ensure you can apply them in context. Throughout the text are cumulative reviews so you can practice your widening range of concepts. The practice questions in this book are realistic and take the same passage format as you'll see on the ACT. Meltzer's lessons are straightforward, clear, and to the point. You can also find extra tips for both the English and Reading sections onher blog, The Critical Reader. Cons One immediately evident con of this book is the cost. At almost $30, it is relatively expensive considering it only covers one of four sections. Plus you'll need to use it alongside the Red Book, if not other books for even more practice tests and questions. This book is "no frills," meaning it doesn't have a lot of description or creative graphics. Some students find it dry, while others appreciate that she cuts out extraneous material. The formatting can get a bit tedious with a lot of small font on each page, but the content remains high quality. Finally, you have to be careful about answering questions that are arranged by skill. While it's a great way to learn and reinforce each grammar rule, you also must practice applying these rules on real practice tests. Real tests won't be arranged in order for you, so you need to ensure you can quickly identify and apply each rule randomly without them being labeled for you. In addition toher grammar rules in The Complete Guide to English Grammar, Erica Meltzer also does a great job of presentingthe Reading section of the ACT. The Complete Guide to ACT Reading by Erica Meltzer Amazon price: $30.39 Pros Like her English book, Erica Meltzer's The Complete Guide to ACT Reading is a great resource for students serious about gaining a strong Reading score. She has realistic passages from prose fiction, humanities, social science, and natural science with high quality practice questions. The Reading section can be harder to break down than, for instance, the Math section, but Meltzer manages to clearly outline the skills and concepts you need. She categorizes the Reading question types into literal comprehension, big picture, vocabulary in context, inference, and tone/attitude questions. Along with a clear lesson, she has questions illustrating each of these important types. Along with these skills, this ACT book teaches you how to manage both your time and your stress. Meltzer gives strategies for mapping the passage, strategically reading them in order, and using skimming techniques to your advantage. She offers a few different approaches so that students can figure out what works best for them. At the end of the book are two practice tests, each with four passages and 40 questions each. That's another 70 minutes of practice testing to add to the hours you get from the Red Book and Barron's ACT. Cons Like its English counterpart, this book is relatively expensive, especially for a book of only 120 pages that covers just one section. It's also not all that creative in its layout, with small font filling up thepages. Some students find its style to be dry, which can make self-study harder to maintain if you're not engaged with the material. Like the English guide, this book is arranged by question type and skill, like big picture questions and determining tone. This is a great way to recognize question types and apply skills, but you also want to make sure you can identify and apply skills when the questions are in random order. All of the books I mentioned are exceptionally strong in some areas and not so useful in others. Taken together, they might feel a bit overwhelming - where exactly do you start? Read on for my suggestions on how to come up with a study plan that uses these books in a logical way. X marks the treasure(d ACT score)! Study Plan with ACT Prep Books Should you start reviewing content or learning about strategies? Is it better tobreak into your first practice test or leave it until you've done some studying? What if you juststackthe books in a pileand try again tomorrow? So many questions, somuch time....if you're planning to study intensively and devote many hours to ACT prep, that is. I wouldn't recommend attempting to read these books from cover to cover without a thoughtful plan. Instead, I recommend mapping out a plan and schedule that concentrate your review on the areas in which you need it most. First off, you need to uncover those areas where you need the most intensive prep. I recommend using a practice test as a diagnostic test, just as Barron's ACT suggests. For your most accurate diagnostic tool, you should use one of the official practice tests from the Red Book. Time yourself in a quiet room with no distractions. After you score your test, mark the ones you got wrong and figure out the reasons for your mistakes. Go over the answer explanations thoroughly, and take notes on where you need to review. If you struggled on geometry questions, for instance, you could start with geometry review. If you kept running out of time on Science, consult the time management study guides on the Science sections. You should review every section, but concentrate your prep on your weaker areas. Consult this guide of recommended ACT prep books for content review. Barron's is a comprehensive breakdown of all the sections, while The Ultimate ACT Math Guide and Erica Meltzer's books focus intensively on one section at a time. Teach yourself these concepts, drill them with practice problems, and measure your progress with practice tests spaced out along the way. The Black Book is best for students who have a strong foundation in the math, verbal, and science concepts and skills. You could save Black Book strategies for after you've done some content review. As you study, continue to keep a critical eye on question types and difficulty level of questions, as well as analyze themistakes you make on practice tests. Focus on the areas where you need to improve your performance and confidence the most. Dive into your weaknesses to see the biggest score improvements. Since this type of planning is so unique to each individual, it can be tough to know exactly what the best approach is for you. Before you start planning, I would encourage you to explore your options for test prep. Are Books the Best Option for Intensive Study? Taken together, these ACT books have a huge amount of knowledge to impart. It can be a big challenge, though, to get all that knowledge...imparted. You have to havea tremendous amount of self-discipline and sustained motivation to spend 100+ hours poring over these books. In addition, you have to design an effective study plan, rather than repeating the same kinds of questions that won't end up improving your score. Besides these challenging efforts, books can also get expensive. All together, these add up to over$100.In the old days of test prep (ie, 5 to 10 years ago), books were a mainstay of SAT prep. But with the advent of online prep programs, which combinethe unparalleled advantagesof technology with human expertise, books are no longer the only, nor necessarily the best, option. One of the reasons I'm a big fan of PrepScholar's approach is because it makes the test prep process more enjoyable. It does a lot of the behind-the-scenes work for you, by diagnosing your academic profile and building a study regimen that complements your skills and learning style. It incorporates all the strengths of these books while seamlessly taking care of the customization and accountability aspect. Besides trying out PrepScholar's 5 day risk-free free trial, you can also explore our detailed study guides on all sections of the ACT. Some especially helpful ones include The Best Way to Review Your Mistakes on ACT Questions Should You Guess on the ACT? 5 Guessing Strategies The 31 Critical Math Formulas You Must Know The Complete Guide to ACT Grammar Rules ACT Vocabulary: Words You Must Know How to Write an ACT Essay, Step by Step How to Get a Perfect ACT Score, by a 36 Full Scorer If you're looking to devote a good amount of time to prepping for the ACT, then you want to ensure you're making the most of it. By exploring your test prep options and the abundance of free resources online(though no ACT preparation books pdf free download), you can make an informed decision that will help you enjoy the process and ultimately achieve the scores you seek for your college applications. What's Next? For more detailed strategy guides on all sections of the ACT, including the best ways to study and manage your time, explore our continually updated articles here. Are you deciding when to take the ACT for the first time (or second or third)? Read about how to choose your test dates here. Want to improve your ACT score by 4 points? Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes your prep program to your strengths and weaknesses. We also have expert instructors who can grade every one of your practice ACT essays, giving feedback on how to improve your score. Check out our 5-day free trial:

E-COMMERCE AND THE FUTURE OF MODERN BUSINESS essays

E-COMMERCE AND THE FUTURE OF MODERN BUSINESS essays The internet has been the revolutionary technology of the new millennium, empowering consumers and businesses alike with blessings of connectivity (Kotler With the rapid increase and development of technology, information systems are no longer a novelty. They have become an ordinary component of our everyday life, varying from private every day use (such as emailing friends, chatting on MSN, etc) to corporate use, by facilitating business processes and transactions. In the modern days, an office is practically inexistent without the use of some kind of information systems. The old office, where people used only pens, paper, calculators and envelopes is quickly ceasing to exist in that particular form. Today we are moving into an era of intangible business processes, where business communication and transactions can be conducted anywhere, anytime, and with a simple mouse click . E-Commerce is currently changing the way business is conducted with very few organizations debating whether or not to participate in it. This essay will focus on the rise and importance of e-commerce, in order to illustrate that electronic commerce is the behind any successful modern business. The phenomenal growth of the Internet has lead to the emergence of a great number of new technologies. One of the most important ones is the ability to conduct business over the Internet. E-Commerce is often described as the buying and selling of information, products and services with the assistance of computer technology and the Internet (Rahman Traditional e-commerce was centred around electronic data interchange (EDI), a sharing and transferri...

Geertz and Pacanowsky Cultural Approach to Organization Essay

Geertz and Pacanowsky Cultural Approach to Organization - Essay Example From the film ‘Developing Organizational Culture,’ Tom examines how the theory can be applied in promoting an organizational culture within a workplace. He says that culture needs to be inclusive. Meaning, it should not come from one dominant section, but be a blend that reflects the entire organization. He agrees that culture is not organization, itself, is a culture and does not necessarily need to have one. Also, he concurs that it is a unique and elusive system of shared meaning which should be embraced by everyone as it determines what the organization stands for. No organization is made up of one person. Their complexities and diversities dictate that they need to be favorable for all. In conclusion, Cultural Approach to Organization is a brilliant theory that, if effectively applied in management, can help in producing an ideal workplace. Geertz and Pacanowsky did a commendable by doing a great research that can help in producing an excellent workplace. Surely, no organization has a culture because it is the very organization which is a culture. At the same time, it needs to be drawn from the narratives from the personal, corporate and collegial stories. For all organizations to excel, they need to have a set of culture which defines their system. As seen in the article and film, its effective application can help in promoting effective interpersonal and organizational communication which can in turn help in creating harmony within the workplace. It shows that the theory can help a lot if properly applied.

The self-esteem movement has caused young people to overvalue their Essay

The self-esteem movement has caused young people to overvalue their actual skills and has set many of them up for disappointmen - Essay Example 1). In considering this argument, it is important to note that studies have revealed that only about 12% of fourth graders are reading at grade level; and telling young learners that they are beautiful and gifted has not necessarily translated to higher test scores or better spelling skills (Colvin, p. 1). For which reason, various scholars have emphasized that the self-esteem movement has not achieved ideal goals for the students and for the educational system in general. It has instead gone too far in crediting children and other young people with skills which would not get them through the harsh realities of life. The self-esteem movement has also created an illusion for many young learners. It has overblown their self-concept and has seemingly given them more than a healthy dose of self-esteem. In other words, the movement has given them a bloated self-concept which seems to skate closely towards egotism and self-centeredness. This may be apparent in the case of bullies who have been â€Å"discovered to highly rate themselves in their academic performance and interpersonal relationships, and typically hold unrealistically positive self-esteem† (Tseng, p. 24). College professors also note that while citing spelling and grammatical errors, their students often claim that it is just the professor’s opinion. And these professors emphasize that wrong grammar and wrong spelling is not merely an opinion – it is just really bad writing (Jayson). Moreover, in assessing the different interests and values of teenagers and young learners, a survey was able to establish that when teenagers were asked about their biggest issues to date, one of their main issues is on "whether or not to have sex" and another concern is on their "popularity" (Psychauthors, p. 4). They expressed little concern for other issues like global warming, war, or politics. As compared to their parents' generations, these teens appear to display more self-confidence and self-est eem; but these qualities have not translated to happier and healthier teens. In fact, depression among teens seems to register at higher rates now than in the 1960s or 1970s; and not to mention, the number of teens suffering from eating disorders, anorexia and bulimia, have risen to alarming rates over the years (Psychauthors, p. 4). These numbers hardly express major gains in instilling improved self-concepts for young people; and if their academic gains were to be assessed, these show hardly any improvement at all. The self-esteem movement was conceptualized in order to give young learners the psychological tools to ward off bullies and other people who may underestimate their capabilities. These goals are to be admired; however, the overall impact that the movement has had on young people cannot be considered as major gains which can be used in the outside world. In the classroom, the movement emphasized that even if children made multiple grammatical and spelling mistakes in the ir schoolwork, these should be overlooked because it might damage their self-esteem (Jayson). However, as many of these young learners enter college where the merit system is based on strict and realistic standards, they often break at the slightest

Nietzsche's theory of nature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Nietzsche's theory of nature - Essay Example On the other hand what does human being do? in his opinion humans try to run nature the way they think best. As man is the ultimate being and creation of God thus he wants to use this power and modify the things going on around him. Isn’t living life close to respecting, desiring, being unfair, to be restricted, near to the attempt of being different, he says.   Furthermore the idea that humans are aggressive by nature the statement as living according to nature in actuality will mean living in accordance to life, so how can one do anything that is otherwise or different. He attempts to further shed light on this natural yet so indifferent methods of humans by suggesting that there is no need for people to make principles based upon what they are themselves and should be. It can be quite the opposite he says as one might imagine to go through the ecstasy of reading the rule of one’s own principles in Nature it is understandable that they would be looking for an altoge ther different thing. He calls people â€Å"you extraordinary stage-players and self-deluders!† (9; †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦) So much is the negativity he holds against the way human beings function. It is to him a shocking reality that things could be so deceiving and yet people try to justify themselves by saying it is what nature has taught them. Man is a proud being and undoubtedly in their pride they â€Å"wish to dictate your morals and ideals to Nature, to Nature herself, and to incorporate them therein.† (9; †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦)

Developing a theory of mind at four years

Developing a theory of mind at four years Theory of Mind is a term introduced by Premack and Woodruff, (1978) it is considered the ability to infer the current mental state of others, their beliefs and desires (Gazzaniga, Ivry, Mangun, 2009). Theory of mind is vital in our understanding that others knowledge may differ from our own, it allows one to manipulate and interpret the actions and contemplations of another in terms of theoretical and intentional states. As such, we are able to surmise the mental states of others although they may not communicate them with visible cues, such as what they may be thinking or feeling, as well as the ability to distinguish between reality and belief. One of the major ongoing debates within developmental psychology is centred around the claim that a theory of mind does not develop until the age of 4. Although many agree with the claim there are countless theorists who believe that a theory of mind is innate therefore it must be present at birth (Fodor, 1992). This essay will be assessing contributing research towards this debate by looking at evidence for and against the claim in order to make an informed decision according to supporting research. One of the most effective ways to test for a theory of mind in young children is through the false-belief task, as passing the task indicates that the child is aware that others may have incorrect beliefs about the world. Wimmer and Perner (1983) found, from their unexpected transfer test, that a fully developed theory of mind does not appear before the age of 3 to 4 years. In this test infants were told to watch a scene in which a character, Maxi places chocolate in a drawer and walks away. While he is away his mother takes out the chocolate and grates some of it onto a cake, places it elsewhere then leaves. Maxi then returns and the experimenter asks where will Maxi look for the chocolate? Results found that children above the age of 5 had no problem attributing to Maxi a false belief. The study was later repeated to children under the age of 4, when it was found that children under the age of around 3.7 years failed to answer questions correctly. Thus this provides strong evidence that a theory of mind does not develop until around 4 years of age. Another classic experiment by Baron-Cohen et al (1985) was the Sally-Anne task where the experimenter had adopted similar characteristics used originally by Wimmer and Perner (1983) and tested Autistic children, normal children and those suffering from Downs syndrome for the presence of a Theory of Mind. It was found that the majority of normal and Downs syndrome children answered all questions correctly whereas autistic children found it difficult to comprehend what had happened and tended to answer incorrectly. Although Baron- Cohen et al were testing for a theory of mind in Downs syndrome and Autistic children, it should be noted that normal children and Downs syndrome children both appear to have a theory of mind; hence they would pass the task at 4 years old. An autistic person however would not have a theory of mind as their minds do not function in the same way as a normal child, therefore one may suggest that a theory of mind does appear at 4 years but not for people with aut ism. A further piece of evidence lies with Avis Harris who tested the universality of the false-belief task in their study of the Baka children of Cameroon. The Baka is a traditional, hunting and gathering, non literate society where none of the adults or children can read or have been schooled. Using the original false-belief task, Avis Harris tested 34 children aged between 3-5 years. Findings were similar to those in Western countries. However the results of this study shows flexibility in the age in which theory of mind develops. It is not necessarily 4 years within the Baka community which implies that there may not be universality in the age at which theory of mind appears to be present; the age is not 4 years it is in fact between 3 and 5. Another researcher who has tested for universality in theory of mind is Astington (1996) who gave the false-belief test to Quechua children in Peru, and Tainae children of New Guinea. The results were very incompatible with those from Western countries. Young children and even adolescents could not recognise false-beliefs in others, hence no theory of mind at the age of 4. This provides strong evidence of cultural variation, as the task has consistently proved that children aged 4 are able to answer correctly within most Western countries and this is still likely to be the case if ever replicated. It may however, be considered inappropriate to impose our Western false-belief task on people who have their own practises and teachings within their societies. This does not mean other cultures have no understanding of the mind, they may simply have their own means of perceiving others minds. Hence, children of other cultures and countries may have a theory of mind at the age of 4; we perhaps need to conduct research of a different method in such societies rather than the false-belief task. Due to the volume of research in support of the claim that theory of mind appears around the age of 4, psychologists have come up with theories to explain why this the happens to be the case. The Representational Deficit theory, also known as the theory-theory suggests that children develop beliefs or theories about other people, revise them and use them in a similar to manner to how we use scientific theories. As such, by using these theories, children are able to make predictions about new evidence, to interpret evidence, and to explain evidence (Gopnik, 2003). The theory-theory explanation is essentially a constructivist account as a rational understanding of the mind occurs by means of everyday theoretical constructs. Infants instigate with an initial primitive understanding of the mind, they accumulate data through interaction with the world and others around them which leads to a theory change and thus the development of a mature theory of mind at the age of 4 (Gopnik Wellman, 1994). Now looking at evidence against the claim, we must firstly take a look at theories and research which suggests that theory of mind does not in fact develop at 4 years. Problems with evidence for the claim are pointed out by researchers and are noted below. Theory of mind module is a theory which essentially goes against the claim that children do not develop a theory of mind until the age of 4. Fodor (1983) originally mentioned innate mental modules thus, in contrast to the theory-theory approach, many theorists have agreed with Fodor and argue that a psychological understanding of the mind is achieved via the computations of an innate mental module (Wellman, 2002). Researchers such as Fodor (1992) and Leslie (1987) have all come to a similar accord that there is an individual theory of mind module which creates depictions of human activity in terms of mental attitudes toward specific events (domain specific cognition). Evidence for the theory of mind module and against the theory theory is when researchers conducted theory of mind research on individuals with autism. They proposed that autistic children have impairment on their theory of mind module leading to inability to construe people in terms of mental states i.e. mind blindness (Leslie, 1987; Baron-Cohen et al 1985). However, as we established earlier, this may be due to the fact that autistic people do not have the same functioning of the mind as normal people and thus may have nothing to do with a module. Theory-theory has also been challenged by many researchers as there is over-reliance on false-belief tests. Lewis Osborne (1990), for example made the point that children can misunderstand the question being posed. Furthermore, Lewis, Freeman, Hagestadt Douglas (1994) stated that children may fail to understand and integrate key elements of the story. Another critique of the theory-theory is that there have been vast amounts of research of a theory of mind before the age of four. Early theorists, argue that children perform better in naturalistic environment for example Dunn (1988) provided a clear analysis of young childrens understanding of other family members desires, intentions and emotions. However one may argue that this is not actually evidence of a theory of mind, rather it is linked with developmental abilities, it does not mean that a theory of mind is acquired at this stage. It has also been found that children have other early (before the age of 4) abilities such as deception (Lewis, Stanger Sullivan, 1989), communicative abilities (Butterworth Jarrett, 1991) and pretence (Leslie, 1987). Numerous researchers have criticised tests such as the false-belief test. De Gelder (1987), for example pointed out that it is known that autistic children have difficulty with pretend play. Therefore, using dolls to represent real people may cause them some difficulties. However Leslie and Frith (1987) repeated the same study using real children and obtained similar findings. Furthermore, despite criticisms, false-belief tests have been replicated and the findings supported by many other researchers (Perner, Leekam Wimmer 1987; Gopnik Astington 1988). Mitchell (1996) agreed with the traditional nativist account of theory of mind. He believed theory of mind had to be present at birth. Mitchells view was that everybody is born with a theory of mind and a reality criterion and young children fail theory of mind tasks as they are guided by the reality criterion. He also emphasised on the reliance of reality with false belief tasks when making judgments. It does not mean young people are incapable of false belief, it simply suggests that the reality criterion is more dominant. Evidence for Mitchells theory takes form in a modified version of the deceptive box test (Mitchell Lacohee, 1991) originally created by Perner, Leekam Wimmer (1987). In the modified version, 63% of children answered correctly compared with 23% in the standard version. Both of the above theories have been deemed as plausible accounts of the theory of mind in children. However there does not seem to be adequate evidence against the claim. As theory of mind has been defined as the ability to understand others beliefs, this has not been seen to occur until the age of 4 (Perner, 1991). Another significant point is that although early abilities may be precursors to a real theory of mind, it does not mean that the change after 4 years does not exist. Gopnik, Slaughter Meltzoff (1994) named four conceptual changes in the development of a theory of mind which provided evidence that a fully developed theory of mind does not appear until the age of 4. A child showing signs of deception, communicative abilities and pretence should even be considered as irrelevant information when studying the theory of mind. Perner (1991) went on to say that pretence, deception etc may be over interpreted. After all, other developmental abilities are each to their own, their presence does not necessarily have to relate to a theory of mind. On balance it would be fair to state that a fully developed mature theory of mind does not appear before the age of 4 and there is not sufficient evidence to backup claims that say otherwise. Although, the majority of evidence relies heavily upon false-belief tasks, the task has been proven to be accurate and reliable. Additionally, Wellman, Cross Watsons meta-analysis (2001) showed that children around 4 years 0 months performed above chance on the false-belief task. They also found that the results were consistent across the period analysed and were not any different for earlier studies than later ones. This provides extremely strong evidence of a theory of mind at the age of 4 compared with nil evidence against the claim. It would therefore be appropriate to accept the claim that a theory of mind appears around the age of 4 years and this is extremely strong evidence in support of this claim. Astington, J. (1996). what is theoretical about the childs theory of mind?:a Vygotskain view of its development. In P. Carruthers, P. K. Smith (Eds.), Theories of Theories of Mind (p. 401). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Avis, J., Harris, P. (1991). Belief-Desire Reasoning among Baka Children:Evidence for a Universal Conception of Mind. Child Development , 62, 460-467. Baron-Cohen, S., Leslie, A. M., Frith, U. (1985). Does the autistic child have a theory of mind. Cognition , 37-46. Butterworth, G., Jarrett, N. (1991). What minds have in common is space: Spatial mechanisms serving joint visual attention in infancy. British Journal of Developmental Psychology , 9 (1), 55-72. Chomsky, N. (1965). Aspects of the Theory of Syntax. Masachusetts: MIT Press. Chomsky, N. (1986). The Leading Ideas of the Minimalist Programme. In H. L. Zeljko Boskovic (Ed.), Minimalist Syntax The Essential Readings (pp. 2-4). Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. De Gelder, B. (1987). Discussion on not having a theory of mind. Cognition , 285-290. Dunn, J. (1988). The beginnings of social understanding. Harvard University Press. Fodor, J. (1992). A theory of the childs theory of mind. Cognition , 283-296. Fodor, J. A. (1992). A theory of the childs theory of mind. Cognition , 283-296. Fodor, J. A. (1983). The modularity of mind: an essay on faculty psychology. MIT Press. Gazzaniga, M. S., Ivry, R. B., Mangun, G. R. (2009). Cognitive Neuroscience:The Biology of the Mind. London: W. W. Norton Company Ltd. Gopnik, A. (2003). The Theory Theory as an Alternative to the Innateness Hypothesis. In L. M. Antony, N. Hornstein (Eds.), Chomsky and his Critics (pp. 238-254). Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Gopnik, A., Astington, J. W. (1988). Childrens Understanding of Representational Change and Its Relation to the Understanding of False Belief and the Appearance-Reality Distinction. Child Development , 26-37. Gopnik, A., Wellman, H. (1994). The theory theory. In L. Hirschfield, S. Gelman (Eds.), Domain specificity in culture and cognition (pp. 257-293). New York: Cambridge University Press. Leslie, A. M. (1987). Pretense and representation: The origins of theory of mind. Psychological Review , 412-426. Leslie, A. M., Frith, U. (1988). Autistic childrens understanding of seeing, knowing and believing. British Journal of Developmental Psychology , 315-324. Lewis, C., Osborne, A. (1990). Three Year-Olds Problem with False Belief: Conceptual Deficit or Linguistic Artifact? Child Development , 1514-1519. Lewis, C., Freeman, N. H., Hagestadt, C., Douglas, H. (1994). Narrative access and production in preschoolers false belief reasoning. . Cognitive Development , 397-424. Lewis, M., Stanger, C., Sullivan, M. W. (1989). Deception in 3-year-olds. Developmental Psychology , 439-443. Meltzoff, A. N. (2002). Imitation as a Mechanism of Social Cognition:Origins of Empathy, Theory of Mind, and the Representation of Action. In U. Goswami (Ed.), Blackwells Handook of Childhood Cognitive Development (pp. 6-25). Oxford: Blackwell Publishers Ltd. Mitchell, P. (1996). Acquiring a Conception of Mind. East Sussex: Psychology Press. Perner, J. (1991). Understanding the representational mind. Learning, development, and conceptual change. Cambridge: The MIT Press. Perner, J., Leekam, S. R., Wimmer, H. (1987). Three-year-olds difficulty with false belief: The case for a conceptual deficit. British Journal of Developmental Psychology , 125-137. Piaget, J. (1929). The childs conception of the world. New York: Routledge Kegan Paul Ltd. Piaget, J. (1999). The Psychology of Intelligence (2 ed.). (M. Percy, D. E. Berlyne, Trans.) London: Rputledge and Kegan and Paul Ltd. Premack, D., Woodruff, G. (1978). Chimpanzee problem-solving: a test for comprehension. Science , 532-535. Wellman, H. M. (2002). Understanding the Psychological World: Developing a Theory of Mind. In U. Goswami (Ed.), Blackwell Handbook of Childhood Cognitive Development (pp. 167-187). Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. Wellman, H. M., Cross, D., Watson, J. (2001). Meta-Analysis of Theory of Mind Development:The Truth about False Belief. Child Development , 72 (3), 655-684. Wimmer, H., Perner, J. (1983). Beliefs about beliefs: Representation and constraining function of wrong beliefs in young childrens understanding of deception. Cognition , 103-128.

Little Foxes Analytical Essay -- essays research papers

Every play written uses dramatic elements. The main dramatic elements are plot, character, theme, and language. Lillian Hellman, who wrote the Little Foxes, incorporates these elements beautifully in her play. The play is set during the spring of 1900 and takes place in the Deep South part of the United States of America. Just as every other play, the Little Foxes has included the dramatic elements in her play, particularly the plot, character, and language that all incorporate an underlying theme of greed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The character, which includes the physiological and psychological makeup of each person in the play, properly incorporated the greed and oppression of the time. Ben and Oscar are brothers who are possessive, scheming, and greedy individuals. These two characters make the play very interesting. Both brothers’ physiological makeup fit the play perfectly. This is because Ben tires to look like a nice guy on the outside but has only one motive that drives his character. This motive is money. He will do anything to get his cotton mill deal to go through. Then there is Oscar. He is also a lot like Ben, but on the surface not as nice. Because of these two characters, the rest of the characters feed of their hatred and ulterior motives. Another character is Leo who is a weak unprincipled son of Oscar and Birdie. This character is not emotionally strong compared to Ben or Oscar, but still has a very well written part. Birdie is then obviously Oscar’s wife. Bi rdie has one of the most complex characters in the whole play. Her psychological make up is very complex. Her character has very quick mood changes and subsequently does not seem like she has much power in the physiological makeup of the whole group. Next, there is Regina, who is married to Horace and a sister of Oscar and Ben. She undoubtedly has the most devious psychological makeup of all the other characters put together. She has a very cold heart towards her husband. This was the most thoroughly created character in the whole play although it was also the most troubled character. Every line that she said was written for a specific purpose and was usually only to help herself. Married to Regina is Horace. Horace’s character was a very weak and sick old man. Although his part was written beautifully, he should have been a bit wiser to what Regina was planing. He was almos... ...ay. The spoken language was written with a southern accent which was also very well done. All the characters also speak in their different social class styles. For example, the servants speak with very poor grammar and then on the other hand, Ben or Mr. Marshall speak in a very dignified manner. Besides the spoken language, the play has many written stage direction which almost all highlight the characters’ ideas. Since though there are so many stage directions though, one has to be careful to make sure that they all further and enhance the plot of the play. The intentions and meanings of the language also came through exceptionally clear. From the very beginning of the play, the reader knows exactly what every character’s ulterior motive is and almost every character has one. Because of the very clear character makeup, this enhances all themes, meanings, and intentions of the play and characters. Lillian Hellman, who wrote The Little Foxes, does a brilliant job of using the main dramatic elements in her play. Although there are a few weaknesses in the dramatic elements, there are not nearly enough to hinder the brilliance of the character, plot, theme, and language of the play.

Bad Boys by Arnette Ferguson

Paige Kahalnik Sociology Bad Boys paper In the book, Bad Boys, Ann Arnett Ferguson goes on a three-year journey through Rosa Parks Elementary School to observe and research why it is that mostly black males are ending up in jail and are unsalvageable from such a young age. She interviews and observes daily interactions with the eleven and twelve year old students that have been labeled â€Å"at risk† by their teachers and peers. She wants to research how it is being in school when all of the educators have already labeled them as â€Å"unsalvagable, at risk, and bound for jail†.These kids pretty much act in the way that their teachers treat them. They get into trouble every single day and most of the times these boys provoke it because that’s how they think there supposed to act because they think they are already going no where in life. At such a young age, these boys, just because they are black, shouldn’t be criminalized and put in a different category than other boys. These children faced many challenges that effected how they learned in school, the way teachers and peers treated them, and how they are labeled as bad boys.Ann Arnett Ferguson said, â€Å"in the course of my study it became clear that school labeling practices and the exercise of rules operated as part of a hidden curriculum to marginalize and isolate black male youth in disciplinary spaces and brand them as criminally inclined†(page 2). This means that the educators didn’t really realize they were doing this and labeling these boys but it was more like a tradition and they saw nothing wrong with it. This is purely based on race and obviously some people are still in the mindset that black people are inferior to white people.Bad boys show black males from a very young age being adultified and become very masculine making them becomes part of the criminal system early on. Adultification is a filter of overlapping representations of three socially inven ted categories of â€Å"difference†; age, gender and race. This is justified by saying that humans are different from animals, children different from adults, girls different from males, and blacks different from whites. African American boys are doubly displaced among society.Ann Arnett Ferguson says, â€Å"they are not seen as childlike but adultified; as black males they are denied the masculine dispensation constituting white males as being â€Å"naturally naughty† and are discerned as willfully bad†(page 80). These African American boys are thought of being two things, either a criminal or an endangered species. They are not allowed to be naughty by nature according to society, but rather there naughtiness is a sign of vicious, inherent, insubordinate behavior.African americans are seen as endangered victims, which makes them criminals. Ferguson states, â€Å"It is their own maladaptive and inappropriate behavior that causes African americans to self-destr uct†(page 82). There are two versions of childhood that are contradictory to each other. A real child would be seen as a â€Å"little plants† ready to grow up accordingly which is what white men were like to educators. On the other hand the African American boys were seen as children who are powerful, self centered, and have an agenda of their own.These black boys are seen as adults from such a young age, they don’t have time to be young and grow up because others make it seem like they are already fully grown. This drives them in the path to do bad things and make bad decisions. In the beginning of the book, the vice principal of Rosa Parks Elementary school said that most of the children in the school would be headed for jail and that there was a jail cell with some of their names waiting on it. At first, Ferguson rejected this point of view and said that that was not going to be true.After further research and observation, Ferguson definitely looked at the sit uation differently. She said, â€Å"While I rejected the labeling practices of the school vice principal , in my opening chapter, I also reluctantly admitted that by the end of school year, I too had come to suspect that a prison cell might have a place in the future of many Rosa Parks students† (page 230). These boys have adopted the way that people treat them and it has such a negative effect on them that they are probably heading to jail.They are all being punished so much and isolated from the classroom that they aren’t learning anything throughout the days. They don’t have many social interactions and don’t have full access to resources that are needed. Educators might not see it, but they are a big reason that these children and being put behind bars and not meeting expectations that white boys meet. They are treated differently than white boys from such a young age, so they just start to â€Å"act black† like how everyone else thinks they sh ould. They know they are getting treated differently, so they just keep it that way.Most of the people that end up in jail are usually African American boys. If these â€Å"bad boys† weren’t treated like they are some kind of poison, maybe they wouldn’t be behind bars as life goes on for them. African American boys have to seem masculine every single day from such a young age because they were labeled as adults so early on. These boys thrive on their masculinity because this means that they have power and value. Their life doesn’t have meaning if they aren’t throwing masculine performances to the best level. This is why so many African Americans get in trouble.They want to prove their masculinity through violence. When young African American boys are in school they fight to show others who they are. Most of these boys identify themselves in groups like gangs because it is a sense of home for them. They are all being treated differently than others and they come together based on the fact of their race and how others see them. There is never any white boys in these gangs they are all black. Gangs are a sign of family and equality when they’re with there â€Å"homies†. They do violent acts in gangs to show their masculinity to others and have others fear them.The public and the media see them as â€Å"ghetto† black boys who aren’t educated and are violent. Since so many people portray them as this, they tend to do these things. They know how people see them and so they act on it how they think they should be acting in correlation to what the media and public see them as. In the classroom the African American boys will talk out of turn, say mean comments to others, and not answer any questions that the teacher asks. They see this as a masculine performance. It is fundamental for these boys to engage with power while in the classroom or they don’t feel like themselves.They are always seen as inf erior to the white boys and girls in class, so they decide to stay that way and not play around with the hidden curriculum. Bad Boys shows that there is still race issues that are going on today. Whether the educators realize that they single out the black boys more than anyone or not, there hidden curriculum is very apparent in this book. Fergusons portrayal of what happens to black boys is very real and happens to tons of them. It is true that mostly African Americans end up in jail and that they are treated like adults from such an early age that they already feel grown up by the time they are eleven or twelve.These boys are supposed to â€Å"act black†, so they do. These boys are supposed to act masculine, so they fight. These boys do everything that the public and media say they should and they don’t know any other way of how to act. This has been going on for so long, that there is no turning back for these boys. This book will show people what is really going on and I think many educators, peers, parents, etc. will see this and really try to change the way they say and do things to African Americans. Maybe this book will turn some people around and these boys will be treated equally.

The Marketing Environment of the Sony Playstation 3 Essay Example

The Marketing Environment of the Sony Playstation 3 Essay Example The Marketing Environment of the Sony Playstation 3 Paper The Marketing Environment of the Sony Playstation 3 Paper Essay Topic: The Birth Mark The PlayStation 3 is Sony Computer Entertainments new generation video game console, the third in the PlayStation series. It is the successor to the PlayStation and PlayStation 2 and competes primarily against Microsofts Xbox 360 and Nintendos Wii. The console was released on November 11, 2006, in Japan and on November 17, 2006, in the United States, Canada, Taiwan and Hong Kong. It is due to be released on March 23, 2007, in Europe, Australia and Singapore. It is available in two initial configurations, the 20 GB Basic model and the 60 GB Premium model. Very few products and services can satisfy all consumers in a market. Not all consumers want or are prepared to pay for the same things and their reasons for purchase can vary greatly. Therefore to effectively implement the marketing concept and successfully satisfy the needs of the consumers, different product and service offerings must be made to the diverse groups of customer that make up a typical market. The technique mentioned above is called market segmentation and is defined by Jobber as The identification of individuals or organisations with similar characteristics that have significant implications for the determination of marketing strategy. There are four benefits to be gained by successful segmentation which will be discussed in turn. The first being target market selection, which is a chosen segment of market that a company has decided to serve. As customers in the target market segment have similar characteristics, a single marketing mix strategy can be developed to match those requirements. Sony with their PS3 have decided to serve the young male market. This is evident through the products masculine, ultra modern design and sponsorship of major sporting events such as the UEFA Champions league 2006-2007. A tailored marketing mix is when marketers understand the requirements of a particular segment and devise specific marketing mix packages that meet the needs of their consumers. In this instance Sony have created a product with males in mind this is evident through the design and function of the PS3. The games are of a masculine nature such as fighting and sport and the product is advertised at sporting events and in male magazines such as FHM. Another benefit to be gained by successful segmentation is differentiation; this is when a company decides to target several market segments and develops separate marketing mixes for each It could be argued that Sony are trying to make the PS3 attractive to not only young males who are most likely to want to purchase it but also to others in the household with the amount of hi-tech features it offers. The last benefit of marketing segmentation is the use of swot analysis, it is crucial that the company to be able to do this effectively in order that new opportunities such as a gap in the market are noticed quickly, they are able to maintain and work on their strengths to ensure market dominance, be able to openly admit their weaknesses in order to improve them and identify and potential threats before it is too late. Sony may have used this type of marketing segmentation to identify the need for a new product. With its main competitor Nintendo working hard to gain market dominance through the release of the futuristic Nintendo Wii, It became apparent Sony has had to develop something new to wow consumers, as in the last five years there have not been a lot of major changes to the PlayStation product which has led to declining sales of the product which was once the strongest games console in the industry, which caused previous major competitor Sega with their Sega mega drive and Dreamcast consoles to stop producing completely. The marketing mix mentioned above consists of everything the firm can do to influence the demand for its product. The many possibilities gather into four groups of variables known as The four Ps: product, place, price and promotion. A product can be defined as anything which is capable of satisfying the needs of customers. The Sony PS3 as a core product satisfies the particular need of providing entertainment in the form of playing a game, this is the central benefit required by the consumer of the games console. As an augmented product as well as providing entertainment it is also a unique product. No other companies make the PlayStation 3 and there is also a large and varied selection of games available to play on the console. Extra features of the PS3 also include the ability to watch high definition movies through the inclusion of Blue-ray software as standard which is the latest in DVD technology, amazingly realistic gaming, backwards compatibility allowing PS1 and PS2 games to be played on the new console and online connectivity; these are the extra functional and/or emotional values that combine to form the brand. Branding is the process by which companies distinguish their product offerings from the competition. By developing a distinctive name, packaging and design a brand is created. Most brands are supported by logos and for the newest addition to the product line Sony have created a sleek contemporary logo clearly stating PS3 which is displayed across the console. Having a logo associated with the brand ensures recognition; this allows customers to develop associations with the brand and eases the purchasing decision. By choosing to carry on with tradition and name the new console the PlayStation, Sony have immediately caught the attention of all those who have bought/supplied their previous models. This is a good strategy to employ as Sony are continuing to build on what is already a reliable and respected brand considered a leader in its field. The next variables to be discussed are promotion and place. Sony has not made a lot of changes on how they plan to promote the new PlayStation model compared to previous ones. It is being made available in every gaming and electronic store and as with previous models it is available to pre-order. Not only does this guarantee the customer will get a console on the day of release, it also benefits the company by giving them an early indication of how many consoles will be required. Sony are also continuing to advertise on television and on billboards. One of their most successful advertisements could be those of the UEFA Champions League which were very noticeable around every stadium during football matches and would be viewed by millions and most certainly noticed by Sonys chosen target market of young males. For Sony, having the privilege of being associated with the prestigious UEFA brand will do wonders for the company and will be a major influence on those who view it if they believe the company sponsor their favourite football team. It also creates the impression that it is only the worlds best and most famous brands that advertise with one another. The final variable to be discussed is price. The Sony PlayStation 3 is very expensive priced at around  £500 pounds (Woolworths). For some market segments price is a key factor in store choice. Those stores that have greater buying power can afford to sell the product for cheaper. Woolworths are offering a choice of free game upon purchase of the PlayStation 3 in hope to gain the majority of sales. Sony has also decided to release two versions of the product; a basic and premium version. The premium version; is expected upon release, to be one hundred pounds more expensive due to triple the amount of hard drive space and the amount of technology Sony have incorporated into the one console. This marketing strategy is to give the consumers the choice whether to buy the console for the sole purpose of gaming or investing the premium console for the use a whole multimedia centre. Sony hope that tripling the memory for an extra  £100 will encourage the consumer to spend that little bit extra for such a vast difference in capacity. If a child wants this console for a birthday present their parents may be more likely to spend such a high amount of money on this product rather than another because of the amount of hi-tech features the product incorporates and the way Sony have cleverly marketed the product as not only a games console but also as a multimedia Centre that the whole family can use. Sony have also decided to only release the more expensive premium package first in the U.K. Sonys marketing strategy for the PS3 overall looks sound and seems as though it will be very successful in re-establishing the well loved PlayStation brand as the worlds favourite games console. However there are some changes I would recommend to ensure Sonys success. As was previously mentioned Sony plan to only release the premium package at first with no immediate plans to release the basic model thereafter. This could be a very dangerous strategy as it is already very expensive meaning it could wipe out a whole market by being unaffordable to a lot of people. Most people also already have the additional technology that is being offered with the PS3 such as DVD software and may not be willing to pay the extra unnecessarily when all they require is the gaming ability. The console should also have been released worldwide around the same time. As it was released in America and Japan last year customers may feel they are no longer receiving cutting edge technology, leading them to feel neglected by the brand and they may take their loyalty elsewhere. The price is also very high as you can buy a full high quality home computer system for around  £500 built to your requirements which is available now and may be more practical for the whole family. Sony should consider this and perhaps think about lowering their prices accordingly. Other than the above suggestions I feel that Sony have employed a successful marketing strategy and predict great success for them with their new extension to an already well loved and respected product line.

DISTRIBUTION OF REGIONAL TRAVELLERS IN THE PHILIPPINES Essays

DISTRIBUTION OF REGIONAL TRAVELLERS IN THE PHILIPPINES Essays DISTRIBUTION OF REGIONAL TRAVELLERS IN THE PHILIPPINES January - December 2006 Preliminary Report Region/Province/CityForeignOverseasDomesticTotalTotalGrowth TravellersFilipinosTravellers20062005Rate NCR (National Capital Region)262,36428,39568,694359,453 - - CAR (Cordillera Administrative Region)76,81213,191902,917992,920866,24214.62% Abra 1,519 - 1,611 3,130 4,054 -22.79% Apayao 93 1 3,087 3,181 1,691 88.11% Baguio City30,9198,679670,073709,671 637,298 11.36% Benguet4,71177101,594106,382 84,192 26.36% Ifugao 29,860 3,747 59,432 93,039 90,874 2.38% Kalinga6,037 687 21,83328,557 24,433 16.88% Mountain Province3,673 - 45,28748,960 23,700 106.58% Region I 52,7861,793281,582336,161287,64916.86% Ilocos Norte36,481 - 140,614177,095 166,806 6.17% Ilocos Sur2,839 155.00 53,41856,412 40,480 39.36% La Union6,32644742,47749,250 36,971 33.21% Pangasinan7,140119145,07353,404 43,392 23.07% Region II*/a24,453 - 610,715635,168 624,021 1.79% Batanes 942 - 4,6485,590 5,464 2.31% Cagayan 6,453 - 243,232249,685 248,026 0.67% Isabela3,695 - 78,43282,127 81,042 1.34% Quirino - - Nueva Vizcaya4,404 - 88,36792,771 91,061 1.88% Santiago City3,773 - 78,24582,018 81,717 0.37% Tuguegarao City5,186 - 117,791122,977 116,711 5.37% Region III155,3941,208251,634408,236396,2143.03% Aurora - - - - - - Bataan3,469 205 21,79525,469 24,669 3.24% Bulacan2,337 105 40,63343,075 44,958 -4.19% Nueva Ecija1,928 - 12,65014,578 15,655 -6.88% Pampanga91,74240873,075165,225 151,817 8.83% Tarlac1,914 158 8,22210,294 6,019 71.03% Zambales54,00433295,259149,595 153,096 -2.29% Region IV #434,5307,0215,852,8606,294,4116,645,943-5.29% Batangas54,4914,701265,102324,294 159,539 103.27% Cavite15,789041,73757,526 269,138 -78.63% Laguna241,2352,2951,779,6172,023,147 1,800,455 12.37% Marinduque - - - - 58,289 - Occidental Mindoro - - - - 2,365 - Oriental Mindoro74,195 - 3,625,3383,699,533 3,679,806 0.54% Palawan 48,820 25 141,066 189,911 202,228 -6.09% Quezon - - - - 165,851 - Rizal - - - - 284,492 - Romblon - - - - 23,780 - SUB-TOTAL1,006,33951,6087,968,4029,026,3498,820,0692.34% DISTRIBUTION OF REGIONAL TRAVELLERS IN THE PHILIPPINES January - December 2006 Region/Province/CityForeignOverseasDomesticTotalTotalGrowth TravellersFilipinosTravellers20062005Rate Region V31,15318,151587,823637,127 501,378 27.08% Albay3,08297035,88739,939 69,088 -42.19% Catanduanes2,441 740 25,84529,026 28,305 2.55% Daet/Camarines Norte3,13847969,92273,539 58,667 25.35% Legazpi City3,80291188,78893,501 104,422 -10.46% Naga City/Camarines Sur12,69313,137232,778258,608 130,927 97.52% Sorsogon 3,8811,08860,41565,384 47,457 37.78% Masbate 2,11682674,18877,130 62,512 23.38% Region VI **266,89184,4541,259,3321,610,6771,599,6700.69% Aklan185,18631,656357,656574,498519,86310.51% Antique1,5071,28640,26243,05524,32477.01% Capiz Province3,3174,57529,37737,26932,23415.62% Guimaras8,24851164,686172,985181,941-4.92% Iloilo Province40,20931,422293,880365,511380,289-3.89% Negros Occidental28,42415,464373,471417,359461,019-9.47% Region VII542,1597,3831,081,9031,631,4451,460,77511.68% Bohol46,4383,815169,058219,311187,99116.66% Cebu472,2422,460772,7671,247,4691,118,07711.57% Negros Oriental19,2321,044133,250153,526143,2617.17% Siquijor4,247646,82811,13911,446-2.68% Region VIII13,329597189,643203,569 164,542 23.72% Biliran902,3132,322 3,326 -30.19% Calbayog City9052101,1392,254 2,257 -0.13% East Samar135374,0864,258 1,377 209.22% Leyte3305,3155,348 3,620 47.73% Ormoc City5,88117534,85340,909 30,067 36.06% Southern Leyte19804,9645,162 5,506 -6.25% Tacloban City6,168175136,973143,316 118,389 21.06% Region IX13,64713,415480,297507,359 431,168 17.67% Dipolog City/Zamboanga del Norte1,35171934,57636,646 33,618 9.01% Zamboanga City & Basilan Province10,68411,782274,652297,118 233,448 27.27% Zamboanga del Norte & Dapitan City94362546,20147,769 35,946 32.89% Zamboanga del Sur & Pagadian City4677495,92896,469 96,772 -0.31% Zamboanga Sibugay 202 215 28,94029,357 31,384 -6.46% Sub-Total867,179124,0003,598,9984,590,1774,157,53310.41% Page 2 of 3 DISTRIBUTION OF REGIONAL TRAVELLERS IN THE PHILIPPINES January - December 2006 Region/Province/CityForeignOverseasDomesticTotalTotalGrowth TravellersFilipinosTravellers20062005Rate Region X46,2848,947837,851893,082707,80726.18% Bukidnon6,3802,43528,81237,627 40,830 -7.84% Cagayan de Oro23,6263,503235,154262,283 285,310 -8.07% Camiguin11,6171,839206,606220,062 240,553 -8.52% Misamis Occidental - Ozamis2,344200286,140288,684 47,749 504.59% Lanao del Norte / Iligan City2,31797081,13984,426 93,365 -9.57% Region XI52,7568,875699,552761,183 715,926 6.32% Compostela Valley428 - 38,32938,757 20,182 92.04% Davao City46,7288,087514,620569,435 573,326 -0.68% Davao del Sur870 17 38,85539,742 41,998 -5.37% Davao Oriental270 38 31,85632,164 22,456 43.23% Island Garden City of Samal4,061 733 37,80342,597 30,601 39.20% Davao del Norte/Tagum City399 - 38,08938,488 27,363 40.66% Region XII 4,6064,443618,077627,126592,3025.88% Cotabato44666662,44263,554 60,765 4.59% Cotabato City89860793,94695,451 90,681 5.26% General Santos City998574104,333105,905 109,359 -3.16% Kidapawan City48144265,44966,372 61,978 7.09% Koronadal City41040871,74372,561 69,812 3.94% Sarangani26732747,60748,201 44,039 9.45% South Cotabato60857573,37974,562 65,147 14.45% Sultan Kudarat23246148,04048,733 44,741 8.92% Tacurong City26638351,13851,787 45,780 13.12% Region XIII16,2004,792341,844362,836365,032-0.60% Agusan del Norte956949,99111,041 6,367 73.41% Agusan del Sur/San Francisco 212 2,610 32,54535,367 22,270 58.81% Bislig City 261 - 7,2597,520 13,779 -45.42% Butuan City7,186994197,832206,012 214,874 -4.12% Surigao City4,71254253,08758,341 68,959 -15.40% Surigao del Norte/General Luna/Dapa2,513 435 10,02312,971 6,912 87.66% Surigao del Sur36011731,10731,584 31,871 -0.90% SUB-TOTAL119,84627,0572,497,3242,644,2272,381,06711.05% GRAND TOTAL1,993,364202,66514,064,72416,260,75315,358,6695.87% Source of Data: Department of Tourism Regional Officespage 3 of 3 Prepared by: Tourism Research and Statistics Division, Office of Tourism Development Planning, DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM *Data for Overseas Filipinos are lumped under Foreign Travellers **partial report a= 227,161 travelers comprised excursionists who visited pilgrimage sites and museums in 2006 against its 2005 volume of 218,734 # = 1,886,683 travelers comprised excursionists in 2006 against its 2005 volume of 1,800,455 As of May 9, 2007

Greek Mythology and Society of Illuminati Article

Greek Mythology and Society of Illuminati - Article Example The Roman Catholic have been actively engaged in the European politics, and have substantial control on the will of the masses, and the constitution of these republics. The civil society was extremely disturbed and annoyed by the continuous involvement and interference of the religious groups in the political and administrative issues of the state. It is this spirit which resulted in rebellious approach by the civil society; the establishment of the society of Illuminati was in actual an attempt to mobilise the masses against monarch. It is important to realise that no association or linkages exist between famous scientists and society of Illuminati. All the linkages described in the history are "part of mythical genealogies with no historical basis". The members of the society of Illuminati were professional lawyers, public officers and liberal clergyman. The teachings of Weishaupt at the forum of Illuminati strongly focused upon version of the Enlightenment philosophy proposed by Immanuel Kant; "Weishaupt ostensibly claimed to be against the continuing reactionary influence of the Jesuits, but not against Roman Catholicism". Mr. Weishaupt shared strong sentiments against "anti-clericalism and anti-Catholicism, and promoted secular humanism and atheism". The destruction of Vatican is myth, and no evidence or document exists to support such claim by the Illuminati.The society of Illuminati was involved in political struggle with religious fervour. The society expressed their deepest concern against the inhumane p olicy and approach under monarchy. The rule of law, the rule of people was the actual ambition of the society of Illuminati. The members of the society intentionally added religious element in this politically motivated propaganda against the monarch to seek and develop trust and support of the local population. The society fabricated, and revealed its affiliation with the certain chapters of history; the society intentionally orchestrated its history to convince people about its long history and secret mission.is misconception that the society of Illuminati struggled and supported French Revolution. It is important to identify the actual forces behind French Revolution, "this revolution was the result of a Masonic conspiracy, and that the Illuminati were suspected to be the secret leaders of the French Freemasonry". The Order of Illuminati was conceived after 1780s; therefore practically the society of Illuminati shared no responsibility or role in the French Revolution. It is furt her important to restate that "French Freemasons were quite hostile to the Illuminati, and certainly not prepared to accept the leadership of a German order". Illuminati: Myth or Reality The Order of the Illuminati is a reality; it was established in 1776 at University of Ingolstadt, Germany. The Illuminati was established by Adam Weishaupt, professor of Law. The society evolved and firmly practiced rituals of religious significance; the society focused towards esoteric rituals with certain political desires.

International Trade - Definition, Meaning Term Paper

International Trade - Definition, Meaning - Term Paper Example Commerce includes all those activities, which are connected with trade and auxiliaries to trade such as transport, warehousing, insurance, and banking and finance. In 1980 only 25 percent of the exports of developing countries were manufactured; by 1998 this had raised to 80 percent Davis and Weinstein show that developing country exports are indeed now labor-intensive. This is an astonishing transformation over a very short period. The developing countries that have shifted into manufactures trade are quite diverse. Relatively low-income countries such as China, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka have manufactured shares in their exports that are above the world average of 81 percent. Others, such as India, Turkey, Morocco, and Indonesia, have shares that are nearly as high as the world average. Another important change in the pattern of developing country exports has been their substantial increase in exports of services. In the early 1980s, commercial services made up 17 percent of the exports of rich countries but only 9 percent of the exports of developing countries. During the third wave of globalization, the share of services in rich country exports increased slightly to 20 percent-but for developing countries the share almost doubled to 17 percent. What accounted for this shift Partly it was changing economic policy. Tariffs on manufactured goods in developed countries continued to decline, and many developing countries undertook major trade liberalizations. At the same time, many countries liberalized barriers to foreign investment and improved other aspects of their investment climate. Partly it was due to continuing technical progress in transport Containerization and airfreight brought a considerable speeding up of shipping, allowing countries to participate in international production networks. New information and communications technologies mean it is easier to manage and control geographically dispersed supply chains. And information-based activities are "weightless" so their inputs and outputs (digitized information) can be shipped at virtually no cost. Some analysts have suggested that new technologies lead to the "death of distance" undermining the advantage of agglomeration. This is likely true in a few activities, while for other activities distance seems to be becoming even more important-for example, the proximity requirements of "just-in-time" technologies. The OECD agglomerations continue to have massive cost advantages and technological change may even be increasing these advantages.  Ã‚