Explain the Biological Mechanisms by Which Stress Can Induce Depressive Behaviour

Explain the biological mechanisms by which stress can induce depressive behaviour. Introduction Depressive behaviour is a core feature of several major psychological disorders, most obviously major depression (MD) and depressive episodes of bipolar depression (BP). Depression is also frequently found to be co-morbid with psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia and with anxiety-related disorders (e. g. social phobia or OCD). Depression is the biggest major risk factor for self-harm and suicide, thus posing a real clinical problem to try to understand and reverse the mechanisms involved.Traditional anti-depressant treatment has only shown a modest benefit to placebos in treating the disorder; therefore, more effective drugs that target the right biological mechanisms are imminently needed. The majority of experimental research in the area has used rodents to test medication and model known psychopathological aspects of depression in humans, such as learned helplessness, cognitive def icits and increased co-morbidity with anxiety-related behaviours. There are many factors that may explain why some people (around 16% of the population) will experience a depressive episode in their lifetime and others won’t.Genetic vulnerability and epigenetic changes, psychosocial support, socioeconomic status or even climate-related factors all have to be considered in considering the right treatment for individual cases. Whilst the causal link between many of these and the onset of depression is somewhat inconclusive, the strong association between chronic mild stress (CMS) and depressive behaviour is now a huge area of research, resulting in the stress-induced model of depression.Even where there is evidence for the role of genes in depression, such as allele variants for the 5-HTT promoter region, it is shown to vary as a function of exposure to stressful life events. The mechanisms by which environmental stressors can lead to depressive behaviour have been explored tho roughly, with a strong focus on the role of the Hypothalamus-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis and its dysfunction in depression. The consequent rise in levels of the glucocorticoid hormone cortisol, following HPA activation, has been shown to become chronic increased in depressed patients.This is thought to be due to the development of glucocorticoid resistance, whereby high levels of cortisol are present in the bloodstream and peripheral tissue but negative feedback to shut down the HPA axis no longer works. Due to the numerous roles of cortisol within the body, several biological processes may be affected as a consequence of CMS that may lead to depressive behaviour. Direct and indirect effects of HPA dysfunction include changes in immune response, neuronal damage, decreased rates of neurogenesis and the serotonin pathways.These processes tend to interact and exacerbate one another; therefore, understanding each proposed biological mechanism of stress-induced depression and their impa ct upon each other is likely to lead to a better treatment outcome. Acute Stress and the HPA Axis The experience of acute mild stress is a normal and adaptive process, triggered by an environmental ‘stressor’ deemed to be potentially harmful. From an evolutionary perspective, this serves to protect the individual from danger via activation of the sympathetic nervous system, preparing the individual for ‘fight or flight’ mode.Stress, as well as input from the amygdala, hippocampus and midbrain, directly activates the ‘stress response’ via the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis. The first immediate response is the release of corticotrophin releasing hormone (CRH) from the hypothalamus, which travels to the pituitary where it binds to CRH Receptor 1 (CRHR1). CRH can also act directly on other brain regions, e. g. the amygdala at this early stage. CRH1 activation stimulates the release of adrenocorticotrophin release hormone (ACTH), which tr avels via the bloodstream to the kidneys, stimulating the delayed release of the glucocorticoid (steroid) cortisol.Cortisol acts throughout the body in all cells, via binding to cytoplasmic glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid receptors (GR and MR) (see Figure 1). Figure 1: Cortisol can pass through the cell membrane due to its lipophillic properties. Binding of cortisol to the GR complex in the cytoplasm causes dissociation of GR from the complex, resulting in an active GR monomer. Two GRs then dimerise to form a GR dimer. This can act as a transcription factor in itself by attaching to Glucocorticoid Binding Elements (GBE), or it can interact with other Hormone Binding Elements and transcription factors to initiate gene transcription. http://jimlund. org/blog/? m=200910] A rise in cortisol levels, alongside CRH, leads to adaptive changes in behaviour, cognition and immune function. Importantly, this rise is followed by a negative feedback loop of cortisol and CRH acting upon its o wn receptors (NC3R1 and CHR2, respectively) to shut down the HPA axis once the ‘threat’ has been resolved. This homeostatic mechanism terminates the production of any more CRH and therefore brings cortisol levels back to baseline (pre-stressor), vital for returning the individual back to a normal ‘resting’ state.It is this negative feedback mechanism which has been shown to be disrupted in patients with depression. Chronic Stress and Glucocorticoid Resistance In a situation of CMS, the prolonged activation of the HPA axis leads to abnormally elevated cortisol levels. However, chronically elevated cortisol can be dangerous, due to its role in suppressing the immune system and increasing vulnerability to infection. It is possible that in order to counteract the constant influx of circulating cortisol causing potentially unwanted downstream effects, GRs in lymphocytes become unresponsive or resistant to glucocorticoids.This dysfunction of GRs is typically seen in depressed patients and has been shown numerous times using the dexamethasone suppression test (DST). Dexamethasone (a synthetic glucocorticoid) mimics cortisol by binding to GRs and shutting down HPA activity in healthy controls. Therefore, dexamethasone-treated individuals have almost no detectable cortisol over the course of the following day. On the other hand, in depressed patients, the DST doesn’t show any significant repression of HPA activity.Whilst they already show significantly higher overall levels of cortisol, they also show reduced suppression of dexamethasone during the DST. This shows that the GRs are unresponsive to glucocorticoids, leading to the typical feature of glucocorticoid resistance in depressed patients. The Inflammation/Cytokine Hypothesis Glucocorticoid resistance has important implications for immune system function. Under normal acute stress, cortisol suppresses lymphocytes in peripheral tissue from producing pro-inflammatory cytokines by act ivating intracellular GRs and leading to transcription of downstream regulatory genes.Key targets of GR-mediated transcription related to immune function include the upregulation of anti-inflammatory genes annexin-1, IL-10 and I? B? (inhibits NF-? B) and down-regulation of pro-inflammatory cytokine genes, such as IL1-6, 9, 11-13, 16-18 and TNF-?. However, glucocorticoid resistance following chronic stress can mean that lymphocytes stop responding to cortisol, so there is an increase in the proliferation of leukocytes and production of pro-inflammatory cytokines.The proposed mechanism for how these peripherally-generated cytokines are able to affect the central nervous system (CNS) involves several pathways. These cytokines (IL-1? , TNF-? and IL-6) cannot typically diffuse across the blood-brain-barrier, but they can enter the CNS in regions of high BBB permeability or be actively transported across the BBB by endothelial cell transporters. Additionally, without crossing the BBB, cyt okines are able to activate endothelial cells to produce soluble factors (e. g.PG-E2) to indirectly activate neurons, as well as activating certain afferent neurons (e. g. the vagus nerve) that carry information to the CNS about the inflammation. In these ways, peripheral inflammation can cause typical changes in the CNS and ‘sickness behaviour’ seen in depressed patients: lethargy, anhedonia, reduced locomotor activity and sleep and weight disturbances. Support for this proposed mechanism comes from findings that clinically depressed patients show an abnormally high production of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1? IL-6 and TNF-? ), cytokine-based immunotherapy often causes depression in cancer or hepatitis C patients and cytokine administration causes depressive behaviour in animal models. Reversal of this depressive behaviour can be seen by administration of anti-depressants, which target and reduce the inflammatory response in both patients and animal models. In a sim ilar fashion, anti-inflammatories such as cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 inhibitors or omega-3 have strong anti-depressant effects on behaviour. Inflammation-Induced NeurodegenerationAnother approach to modelling stress-induced depression has focused on the controversial findings of clinically depressed patients show changes in volume of structural brain regions, including the hippocampus, amygdala, anterior cingulated, prefrontal cortex and basal ganglia. The mechanisms by which some brain regions, in particular the hippocampus as implicated in stress-induced depression, might decrease in volume appear to be a combination of both neurodegeneration (increased apoptosis of neurons) and a decrease in adult neurogenesis in the subgranular zone of the dentate gyrus (DG).Stress-induced HPA hyper-activity may explain the atrophy seen in some brain regions of clinically depressed patients. Glucocorticoids stimulate the breakdown of tissue into glucose for the quick release of energy; therefore, ch ronically increased levels may result in brain tissue loss in regions where cortisol acts, such as the hippocampus. Furthermore, the link between stress, inflammation and an increase in oxidative stress may also explain a large portion of the neurodegeneration apparent in depression.Inflammation has been shown to increase oxidation and the fact that the CNS has no proper defence against oxidative damage makes it very vulnerable to oxidative stress (OS). This has been demonstrated as a key feature in neurodegenerative diseases and depression, implicating a causal role of stress-induced inflammation in triggering degeneration. The damage caused by OS can lead to mitochondrial dysfunction, which can lead to further intracellular build up of damaging oxidised proteins.The only way for cells to cope in this situation is to activate programmed cell death (apoptosis), or in less controlled circumstances, necrosis can occur, leading to a decline in cell numbers and lateral effects on the ne ural network. This mechanism of oxidative stress-induced neurodegeneration can be slowed down and treated by the application of antioxidant enzymes, which serve a neuro-protective role. These enzymes eradicate free radical oxidising particles and also suppress pro-inflammatory cytokine action.A further damaging feature seen in neurodegeneration and depression is nitrosative stress (NS), which may contribute to neurotoxicity and therefore cell death. An increase in the production of cortisol after acute stress will temporarily cause a suppression of neurogenesis in the DG. Neurogenesis in the DG has been demonstrated to be vital for healthy cognition and memory, impacting mood, the sleep-wake cycle and appetite; all affected in depression. Therefore, CMS leads to prolonged suppression of neurogenesis and may explain the behavioural outcomes typical of depression.The decrease in neurogenesis following exposure to stress may possibly involve the neurotrophin Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF), shown to be greatly reduced in regions that also show a decrease in neurogenesis and related to brain regions typically affected in depression. Animal models exposed to CMS show decreased neurogenesis and BDNF levels in overlapping brain regions and elicit depressive behaviours associated with dysfunction of these regions. Furthermore, anti-depressant treatment that successfully increases BDNF levels also leads to recovery from depressive behavioural symptoms.However, the causation here is not clear; whether the BDNF levels dropping are a result of other stress-induced mechanisms or whether it is partly the cause of the behaviour. Some evidence suggests that anti-depressants can work independently of BDNF restoration. Hagen and colleagues set out to control for possible variables such as age, time of cortisol readings and overall brain volume. Whilst there has been no robust evidence for a link between baseline cortisol levels and hippocampal volume, this study did fi nd that hippocampal volume was negatively correlated with length of depressive episode pre-hospitalisation.Furthermore, better responsiveness (lowering of cortisol levels) after treatment was predicted by greater hippocampal volume (relative to overall brain volume). b) antineurogenic effects and reduced brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels; and c) apoptosis with reduced levels of Bcl-2 and BAG1 (Bcl-2 associated athanogene 1), and increased levels of caspase-3. Stress-induced inflammation, e. g. increased IL-1? , but not reduced neurogenesis, is sufficient to cause depression. Antidepressants a) reduce peripheral and central inflammatory pathways by decreasing IL-1? TNF? and IL-6 levels; b) stimulate neuronal differentiation, synaptic plasticity, axonal growth and regeneration through stimulatory effects on the expression of different neurotrophic factors, e. g. trkB, the receptor for brain-derived neurotrophic factor; and c) attenuate apoptotic pathways by activating Bc l-2 and Bcl-xl proteins, and suppressing caspase-3. It is concluded that external stressors may provoke depression-like behaviours through activation of inflammatory, oxidative, apoptotic and antineurogenic mechanisms.The clinical efficacy of antidepressants may be ascribed to their ability to reverse these different pathways. Neuronal damage and apoptosis Activation of the Kynurenine Pathway (KP) 5-HT Accumulated evidence indicates a role of the hippocampal 5-hydroxy-tryptamine (5-HT) and neuropeptide Y (NPY) in the response to stress and modulation of depression, but it is unclear whether and how the hippocampal 5-HT and NPY systems make contributions to chronic unpredicted mild stress (CUMS)-induced depression.Here we observed that rats receiving a variety of chronic unpredictable mild stressors for 3 weeks showed a variety of depression-like behavioral changes, including a significant reduction in body weight, sucrose preference, and locomotion, rearing and grooming in open fiel d test, and a significant increase in immobility time in forced swimming test. These CUMS-induced behavioral changes were suppressed or blocked by intra-hippocampal injection of 5-HT (31. 25 microg/microl) or NPY (10 microg/microl). These data suggest a critical role of reduced hippocampal 5-HT and NPY neurotransmission in CUMS-induced depression.

Political Manifesto

Political Manifesto â€Å"Let the people rule† was the slogan of former United States President and first Democrat of the people of the United States, Andrew Jackson. Democracy was made for the people, but not many Americans know a lot about the political party they support and what it does to help them. First I’m going to discuss some of the issues like gun control, Health care and the environment and also a brief history of the Democratic Party.Next I will tell you about a few leaders that not only influenced my following of the Democratic Party, but also supported a lot of the same views and morals I follow every day. And finally I will discuss some of the social movements like, the Students for a Democratic Society, which affected Democratic students around the United States. The Democratic Party was formed from Anti-Federalist factions that were against fiscal policies in the 1790s and was then founded in the modern era in 1828 and led by Andrew Jackson.The party h as the lengthiest record of continuous operation in the  United States and is among the oldest political parties in the world. (Encyclopedia Britannica Inc. , Democratic Party) The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United states along with the Republican Party and current President of the United States Barack Obama is the 15th Democrat to hold the office of the Presidency. (â€Å"American Presidents: Life Portrait. C-SPAN. Ret-Jan 12, 2009) There are a lot of issues in our society that Democrats are trying to take care of as well, such as the environment.Many Democrats believe that the government should protect the environment by favoring expansion of conservation lands and exploring new means of alternative energy sources. The Democratic Party also encourages open space and rail travel to relieve highway and airport congestion and improve air quality and economy. Another issue that is taking a toll on Democrats today is health care re form. Democrats call for affordable and quality health care and many advocate an expansion of government intervention in this area.More Democrats favor national health insurance or universal health care in a variety of forms to address the rising cost of modern health insurance. The Progressive Democrats of America, a group operating inside the Democratic Party, Has made single-payer universal health care one of their primary policy goals. (â€Å"Progressive Democrats of America-Priorities (Health Care for All)† Pdamerica. Org, ret-2010-06-07) Now when we talk about the issue of gun control, that can be a touchy subject with certain people Democrat or not.With a stated goal of reducing crime and homicide, the Democratic Party has introduced various gun control measures. Some Democrats, especially rural, Southern, and Western Democrats, favor fewer restrictions on firearm possession and warned the party was defeated 2000 presidential election in rural areas because of the issu e. (Abramsky, Sasha (2005-04-18). â€Å"Democrat Killer? † the Nation. Retrieved 2006-10-10) Many men in the history of the Democratic Party have influenced the way many of us live today.A few of these men, like Andrew Jackson, who was the first President of the United States that was a Democrat, helped shaped the party for future Americans. Andrew Jackson’s followers went on to create modern Democratic Party. The period during which this happened, 1830-1850, became later known as the era of Jacksonian Democracy (Wilentz, Sean. â€Å"Andrew Jackson† (2005), p. 2, 35) I believe Andrew Jackson was a great Democratic figure because of his appeal to the common citizen and how he supported states and federal rights.Franklin D. Roosevelt was also a key Democrat in American history. His efforts as President of the United States were very crucial in helping the society grip together during very enduring times. He was a dominant leader of the Democratic Party and was the only American president elected more than two terms. He built a New Deal Coalition that realigned American politics after 1932, as his domestic policies defined American liberalism for the middle third of the 20th Century. In 1944 Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the G. I.Bill-a historic measure that provided unprecedented benefits for soldiers returning from World War II, including low-cost mortgages, loans to start a business, and tuition and living expenses for those seeking a higher education. And our current President of the United States Barack Obama is also a Democrat who was involved in many economic issues in America at the time of his inauguration. Mainly I choose to support Barack Obama because he was my former Commander in Chief, but also because of his involvement in foreign policy with enacting the draw-down of troops from Iraq in December 2010.During its tenured history in America, the Democratic Party has seen its share of social movements, mainly of the few is Environm entalism. Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment. It advocates the preservation of the natural environment, and may be referred to as a movement to control pollution. (Environmentalism Definition; Merriam-webster. com. 2010-08-13. Retrieved 2012-06-20) Also having a big effect on Democratic students in America was the Students for a Democratic Society.This group was a student activist movement in the United States that developed and expanded rapidly during the mid-1960s before dissolving at its last convention in 1969. The group centered mainly on the issues of direct action and student power within the nation. In the early 2000s the 9/11 Trust movement is ongoing and many conspiracy theories have surfaced during this time as well. These social movements were such an integral part of our history and in some way had an effect on our nation, no matter how little the issue may h ave seemed.Picking the Democratic Party says a lot about a person and the morals they abide by. Aside from being one of the oldest political parties in the world, the Democratic Party has lots of issues that have affected the way they live their lives, like gun control across our nation, reform of a new nationwide healthcare plan and the effect we are having on our environment and what we can do to improve and/or preserve its current conditions not only across our country but around the world as well.There were many big political figures like former United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the current and 44th President of the United States Barack Obama and the first Democratic President of the United States, Andrew Jackson, that helped not only influence my choice in the Democratic Party, but also in the way America was shaped.Beyond the many figures that paved the way for Democracy to flourish in America, we had lots of social movements that also added to the way people live . Environmentalist movement, the 9/11 truth movement and the Students for a Democratic Society are just a few of the social movements that played a role in not just the Democratic Party, but the history of our great nation, the United States of America.

Causes of American Divorce Essay Example for Free

Causes of American Divorce Essay For the last decade, the issue of American divorce has increased dramatically. A significant change in economical, psychological and emotional mind set could be the explanation of why so many American are ending their relationship in divorce. Issues such as, not having enough financial stability, lack of communication and lack of commitment, in other words infidelity, could provide an explanation to society of why divorce has increased throughout the years. The first cause of divorce may be because of not having enough financial stability from one of the spouses or both. The quote, â€Å"Money is the root of all evil,† may be true, especially when it comes to American marriages. Although, instead, the quote should say â€Å"Money is the root to all reasons marriages fail.† Money may not be the only reason it fails but could be one of the reasons. An example of this could be, if a spouse is paying for necessity based things, such as, bills and food and the other spends too much on things that are useless, this could become a problem, especially when children are involved. Most married couples tend to forget that when they say their marriage vows, there is an important line that pertains to money and that is, â€Å"Til debt do us part.† Relationships sometimes begin and the spouse may not know the financial difficulties one may be having. This could cause a problem when the couples try to buy a house or a car. Frustration could come upon them and eventually end the marriage due to the arguments. However, financial problems might n ot be the only cause of divorce. The second cause of American marriages ending in divorce could be, lack of communication. Most couples tend to stay fairly busy with work or college and don’t get a large amount of time to talk about issues one may be facing with the other, for fear that an argument may happen. However, not talking about the issues could become a problem. For example, the spouse may do something the other doesn’t like and if it keeps happening, the petty problem could cause an outrage to spark and since they were unable to solve the problem before because of lack of communication it could lead to the marriage possibly failing. The quote, â€Å"Love is communication, so the bottom line is; a lack of communication is a lack of love,† could be true for most marriages because not talking could cause separation between the spouses. The third cause of American divorce could be lack of commitment or infidelity. Infidelity is the act of unfaithfulness to a person. This could be the number one cause of marriage failure. For example, a spouse may not be into the sexual arousal game as the other spouse is. This could then lead to the spouse engaging in sexual activity with someone other than the person they married to. Sexual desire is not the only form of infidelity. Lust may be consider as adultery as well. A spouse may begin to have fantasies of being with someone else or an intense desire of love toward a person. To conclude, the three possible reasons American marriages fail could be because of financial issues, lack of communication and lack of commitment or infidelity. The numbers are becoming dramatically alarming. To stop this problem from happening marriages should build their relationship on a strong foundation and beware of rushing into things before talking about. Communication should be an important matter in any relationship. Causes of American Divorce. (2017, Feb 08).

Asses the ministry to the poor of a historical evangelical leader of Essay

Asses the ministry to the poor of a historical evangelical leader of your choice (Martin Luther King jr) - Essay Example The triple evils of materialism, poverty and racism made up the philosophy of martin Luther in most of his speeches and sermons during his times. King was quoted saying that these three martliaism, poverty, and racism were all were all forms of violence that existed in merry round cycle. He always described them as the barriers to the existence of a unified credible society. To fight the triple evils king called for a nonviolent way he always encouraged the African Americans to have in mind the six principles of nonviolence . He further illustrates his call for peaceful resistance through the Kingian model of social actions stipulated in â€Å"six steps for nonviolent social change†. Martin Luther king had a very strong stance when it came to the famous triple evils taking on each at a time his publications and sermons. king was categorical about poverty describing issues like illiteracy, unemployment, hopelessness, mal-nutrition infant mortality as major effects of poverty ki ng is quoted in one of his sermons saying â€Å"nothing is strange about poverty but what is new is that we now have resources to get rid of it† king goes ahead to declare absolute war on poverty.... rs, king would later attend Boston University for his doctoral program in Boston where he met his future wife and they married in 1953.king moved to Montgomery Alabama where he started his preaching ministry at the Dexter Baptist church. Kings ministry involved the fight for the less privileged in the society a high percentage of kings congregation were poor Negroes. This would culminate to a political and civil process of fight against discrimination and racism. King would later remain true to his calling and head the biggest ever Negro association of the times pressing for better living standards for the black citizens. Martin Luther king’s philosophy The triple evils of materialism, poverty and racism made up the philosophy of martin Luther in most of his speeches and sermons during his times. King was quoted saying that these three martliaism, poverty, and racism were all were all forms of violence that existed in merry round cycle. He always described them as the barriers to the existence of a unified credible society. To fight the triple evils king called for a non violent way he always encouraged the African Americans to have in mind the six principles of non violence4. He further illustrates his call for peaceful resistance through the Kingian model of social actions stipulated in â€Å"six steps for non violent social change†. Martin Luther king had a very strong stance when it came to the in famous triple evils taking on each at a time his publications and sermons. king was categorical about poverty describing issues like illiteracy, unemployment, hopelessness, mal-nutrition infant mortality as major effects of poverty king is quoted in one of his sermons saying â€Å"nothing is strange about poverty but what is new is that we now have resources to get rid of

Flight Attendants Role in Aircraft Research Proposal

Flight Attendants Role in Aircraft - Research Proposal Example The aircraft passengers at the time have extremely long travel durations and it is extremely important that flight attendants the ensure full cooperation with the passengers (Shaw 2007). The major roles of flight attendants also include the safety of the passengers as they need to be facilitating them during the flight and also advise them on how to have a safe flight by providing them with safety instructions. The flight attendants are involved in boarding the flight in a collective form that is called the cabin crew. The world’s first flight attendant was Heinrich Kubis. Heinrich Kubis became the first flight attendant in the year 1912 (Shaw 2007). The main roles and duties of the flight attendants are basically concentrated towards the safety and security issues for the entire travel time period of the airlines. Before the commencement of any flight, it is required by the flight attendants to conduct the safety briefings with the pilot and the lead flight attendant of the airline (Kanki et al 2010). During the session of the briefing, the flight attendants thoroughly go over the checklists of emergency and safety element. The emergency equipment and their locations are verified along with all other necessary types of equipment required for the flight. Some passengers may have special needs, some small children may be traveling without a guardian and the responsibility may be given to a specific flight attendant, and at times some VIPs are required to give special attention during the flight. All these boarding particulars are verified before the flight commences by the flight attendants (Shaw 2007).

The homework Debate Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The homework Debate - Essay Example The article surveys the negative and positive aspects of homework. Sharryn Brownlee quotes that a punitive or tedious approach to homework limits the appropriateness of homework. The paramount reason not to subject those children to homework is that they require sufficient time to relax and take their thoughts of the classroom environment (Lindner, 2005, pp.67-76). The burden of having to complete homework every single night is quite overwhelming for most children. Consequently, they need adequate time to refresh their minds and bodies. In addition, homework tends to condense the available amount of time that children could be spending with their relatives. Kathy Walker, an early childhood expert, maintains that the superlative assignment in early years of school is having family time (Walker, 2007, pp.97-106). Walker further argues that playing together, enjoying books and talking together is better than piled up homework. Walker suggests that Family time is explicitly imperative to a growing child (Walker, 2007 pp.102-107). Absence or limited interaction with one’s family may lead to social problems that may eventually crop up. As a result, inadequate family time spending compromises the family unity. Thirdly, homework can source conflict and misunderstandings between students, teachers and parents. According to Kidwell 2004, disagreements may arise when students fail to do their homework and hence to bring about strains in families (pp.126- 134). Alfie Kohn upholds that homework is total agony and no gain (Kohn, 2007 pp.123-129). In his manuscript The Homework Myth, Kohn contends that no study has invariably found an association between homework and academic accomplishment in school. Kohn asserts that there is a minute reason to believe that homework is essential in high school. Kohn maintains that homework may reduce interest in learning. According to Jongsma 2011, a lot of homework can inspire cheating because children end up copying one another

Testifying as a Law Enforcement Professional Research Paper

Testifying as a Law Enforcement Professional - Research Paper Example The testimony of any investigator or professional should be confined to the scope of expertise of that person as demonstrated by experience, training and education. The extent of the experience, training and education needed to testify is determined by the legal authority in which the professional witness is testifying. It is also permissible for an investigator and professional to render an expert opinion (Kleinig and Zhang, 1993, p. 19). A testimony serves to prove a point or element of the case against a defendant. A professional witness or law enforcement officer should never underestimate their role in establishing a defendant’s guilt. Establishing a defendant’s guilt is based upon the strength and totality of the evidence presented. If the evidence is not convincing, then a jury or judge must acquit the defendant, but if powerful pieces of evidence are present, then it can lead to conviction of the defendant. Only witnesses having firsthand knowledge of the import ant facts of a case are allowed to testify at a trial. However, their testimony is restricted to their personal knowledge. This is what they personally know about the victim or defendant. Thus, a person who witnesses an accident and the first law enforcement officers to be at the scene have personal knowledge of the occurrence leading to the case and are likely to be summoned to testify about what they witnessed. A professional witness, on the other hand, gives a professional opinion on a case. Professional witnesses are involved in a case when technical, specialized or scientific knowledge is required to establish a fact that is controversial. A witness may be qualified as an expert by education, training, skill, experience, or knowledge. The witness may, therefore, testify basing his or her on the evidence he or she gathers (Kleinig and Zhang, 1993, p. 25). A law enforcement officer has a responsibility as a professional witness. The law enforcement officer has a crucial role in t he successful conviction of a criminal. Therefore, the officer must determine whether the evidence established is sufficient enough to proceed with a trial. It is the duty of the officer to make sure all relevant and appropriate evidence comes to light. The enforcement officer must fully record all visual, sensory and verbal observation, know what to listen and look for and be motivated to apply their skills and knowledge to aid him or her in succeeding in the trial. It is fundamental for a law enforcement officer to prepare as a professional witness before trial. The officer should recognize relevant and significant evidence and document it in field notes. The notes should be compiled, and a complete and accurate report should be written. Prior to the testimony, the officer should review the case file, mentally organizing the facts of the offense and evidence supporting it. The officer should also organize clearly and convincingly the testimony to be presented to the jury. Once the officer is notified of the trial date, the officer should review all reports and records. He should also compare notes with other officers, revisit the scene if required, discuss with the prosecutor the details of the testimony and the case, and make sure copies of all required documents by law in his or her jurisdiction have been given to the prosecutor (Kleinig and Zhang, 1993, p. 59). A law enforcement officer should dress professionally and neatly. Uniformed officers are preferred to wear their uniform. One should wear pants and a jacket if he or she is on civilian clothes. Flashlights, sunglasses and other cumbersome equipment should not be taken into the courtroom, unless they are needed for demonstration (Kleinig and Zhan

Critically discuss the movement from collectivism to individualism in Essay

Critically discuss the movement from collectivism to individualism in particular how it has been expressed in pay systems over the past 30 years - Essay Example Now we are told we must collectivize the nation because the people are so rich." -- William F. Buckley, Jr. Tribalism fueled the ideas associated with collectivism. At one time, there was no individuality, per se, except that which existed within the realm of the group or the whole. All that was done was for the good of all and all concerned. In laymen’s terms, what people thought of one another and how they interacted within their own undefined communities was all that mattered. This began to change in the late 1800s and early 1900s as group-think gave way to hedonistic self-preservation, or what is now known as individualism. A well-known Scottish hedonist and individualist by the name of John Stuart Mill, who was born in London, had a belief system that is still considered a standard in group psychology to this day. Mill was a self-described ‘socialist’ who believed that liberalism should advance the cause of individual freedoms and minimize state action, as opposed to what many believe today about socialism. Terms and usages of these different words and ideologies overlapped over time and many today believe that socialism is another word for â€Å"let the state (government) reign over the man,† which is untrue. Socialism’s purist term means that the state is the guiding hand in a partnership between the collective group and the individual citizen. The state is also held responsible, to some degree, for providing opportunities in which individuals can not only survive, but thrive. It took some time to ponder, but it appears today that ‘statism’ (or collectivism) a nd individualism are not necessarily always diametrically opposed to one another. Differences in intertwined ideals, philosophies and opinions define collectivism ‘as opposed’ to individualism, or benevolence (‘socialism’) versus self-love (‘narcissism’ or ‘hedonism’). The suffix

Creating Apps - Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Creating Apps - Ethics - Essay Example Software fall in two categories: system software that include operating systems and all utilities that that enable the computer/electronic device to function ;application system that do the real work for us i.e. word processors.BCS is a regulatory body that sets out the professional standards required and governs the conduct of individuals in the field of I.T in Britain. This paper examines the ethical and privacy issues based on the BSC ethical framework involved in the development of apps (an application system); a project that I am going to undertake. The project that I’m going to undertake will involve designing and developing an app for domestic remote control. In this case I will be involved in the design and development of an app to be stored in a digital device/remote controller that will be used to control the actions of refrigerators/freezers while in the house or even miles away. In the current technological era most refrigerators are controlled manually. Technological inventions in the current generation have improved the quality of life and made life easier and enjoyable. Research is still on to enhance the quality of life even more and each day scientists are coming up with inventions that continue to add quality to life. This project is not an exceptional as I’m going to design an app to be used in form of a remote control device that will enhance the operation of refrigerators. Currently most refrigerators in our houses are operated manually thus inconveniencing persons using them and at times posing ri sks of electric shock. The remote controller that I’m going to develop is going to make it easier and convenient for individuals to use refrigerators and get the most out of them. The app will be used to regulate temperature in the fridge digitally. Temperature is an important parameter that in part determines the performance of refrigerators. Since the main purpose of the fridge is to preserve foodstuff, this remote control will be used

Persuasive Bullying Essay Example for Free

Persuasive Bullying Essay This article is a practical help for you in your persuasive bullying essay writing. In order to write a good persuasive bullying essay, you have to become determine with the fact what the bullying is and how badly it influences the people. The definition of the notion of bullying is as follows: bullying is an open aggression towards a person or towards a group of people by the other person or a group of people. There are so many kinds of bullying, however, we are going to deal with the bullying, which is taking place in the colleges and other higher educational establishments because of this problem is too sharp in this very field nowadays. In order to write a professional persuasive bullying essay you have to write it from the prism of psychology. That is why be ready to investigate and analyze a lot while your persuasive bullying essay writing. A Topic Addressing a Common Occurrence Bullying Essays Need Novel and Fresh Perspectives Have you ever been bullied? Have you ever bullied someone? Sometimes what we think as simple teasing may amount to bullying in the eyes and the minds of someone with a sensitive mind. Therefore, this is a common occurrence which has repercussions which most of us may not foresee. Writing a bullying essay, can contain the feelings you had when either being bullied or bullying someone. On the other hand, it could be about the repercussions as mental trauma undergone by the victims. There are many ways in which to write this essay. However, firstly, we need to understand what bullying is. Defining Bullying Bullying is behaviour where one individual who is usually physically bigger act obnoxiously, annoying and physically and mentally disturbing another individual. Most often bullying comes from people who are either lacking in social skills or some form of personal affliction or a complex. Bullying is most common in young children. There are many instances where a small made child is often bullied by bigger and aggressive children. But we also see adults resorting to bullying younger children or more timid individuals. Write a Bullying Essay Which Address this Social Bane The Dire Repercussions of Bullying can be addressed in a Bullying Essay Bullying is something which can occur in many places. Bullying will begin mainly in schools, beginning at the age of ten or twelve. However, it is something which many people do regardless of age as well. This extends the habit to colleges, work place and even home. Writing a bullying essay will educate you and others on the repercussions of bullying. Your essay on bullying can be handled in various ways. If you wish, you will be able to concentrate on the repercussions of being bullied, especially once itâ„ ¢s carried too far, how to stop bullying, and the reasons for bullying. Make sure that you develop a proper essay layout and plan what part of bullying you will concentrate on in your essay.

Pronunciation Teaching Within A Theoretical Framework English Language Essay

Pronunciation Teaching Within A Theoretical Framework English Language Essay Although a number of studies have been reported regarding segmental over the past fifteen years for an overview, see Ekman, 2003; Strange, 1995, there are only a small number of studies focusing on L2 stress in an EFL context. On the other hand, suprasegmental properties, including stress, play an important role in second language acquisition. They are shown to be closely related to foreign accent perceived in L2 production and to difficulties in L2 perception. Researchers have attributed the problems with stress to the influence of the L1 prosodic system. However, these studies are inadequate, as their focus on stress acquisition mainly relies on the comparison of the phonological systems of L1 and L2. As Flege (1987) pointed out in research on L2 speech development at the segmental level, it is important to take phonetic details into account in order to gain a better understanding of the possible transfer of L1. The same is true for studies of prosody. It is possible that the influence of L1 lies in the difference between L1 and L2 in the employment of relevant phonetic correlates. 2.2. The history of pronunciation teaching within a theoretical framework Popular opinion regarding the place of pronunciation training in the ESL or EFL curriculum has ebbed and flowed along with the historical framework of language learning theories and methodologies. Prior to the popularity of the direct method in the late nineteenth century, pronunciation received little overt focus within the language classroom. Advocates of the direct method claim that an initial emphasis on listening without pressure to speak allows learners to acquire grammar inductively and to internalize the target sound system before speaking, much the way children acquire their first language (Celce-Murcia, Brinton, Goodwin, 1996, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004). Although popular in elite private European schools, the direct method was rejected by the public schools and by most language schools in the United States as impractical due the classroom time, effort and background required of both the teacher and students for the success of this approach. Criticism centered around the time-consuming nature of this instruction at a time in which most students only studied foreign language for two years, along with a lack of qualified teachers who had a comfortable, native-like fluency at their command. As a result, this essentially intuitive-imitative approach gave way to the return of the grammar translation approach of the reading era, with very little attention to pronunciation (Celce-Murcia et al., 1996, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004). According to Aufderhaar (2004), both the direct and grammar translation methods were more emphasized when there was a sudden and urgent need for qualified interpreters and intelligence to learn English with the advent of World War II. Rooted in Skinners (1957) theory of behaviorism which treated the acquisition of verbal skills as environmentally-determined stimulus-response behavior, the audiolingual method required intensive oral drilling for entire working days, six days a week (E. R. Brown, 1997). In contrast to the grammar-translation method, pronunciation was now considered to be of the highest priority, with phonetic transcription and articulation explicitly taught through charts and demonstrations, along with imitation (Celce-Murcia et al., 1996, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004). While generally proving successful within the military environment of small classes of highly motivated instructors and students whose well being depended in part on their command of the target language, the theoretical foundation of audiolingualism was shaken by the reality of the post World War II language classroom that was not conducive to this military regimen. Its strongest critic was Chomsky (1957), whose introduction of the generative-transformational theory viewed the underlying meaning of the whole as being more important than any one part. His focus on the creative, rule-governed nature of competence and performance led many educators to the conclusion that pronunciation should remain inductively within the context of morphology and syntax (Kreidler, 1989). At the heart of this hypothesis was the suggestion that all language skills, including listening comprehension, verbal production and pronunciation, are so integrated that there is no need to address them as separate an d distinct features (Brown, 1997). The influence of Chomskys generative-transformational theory, along with the cognitive-code theory of the 1960s, which focused on listening at the discourse level and discarded skill ordering, paved the way for the trend to avoid or ignore direct pronunciation teaching altogether. The advent of the communicative approach in the late 1970s and early 1980s likewise deemed the teaching of pronunciation as ineffective and hopeless, instead it emphasized language functions over forms with the goal being overall communicative competence and listening comprehension for general meaning: MacCarthy (1976) stated that at present any teaching of pronunciation is so ineffective as to be largely a waste of time. (p. 212). At that time, many instructors of the communicative approach assumed that pronunciation skills would be acquired naturally within the context of second language input and communicative practice. However, pronunciation was not entirely ignored in the time period of the 1960s through the mid 1980s. Remnants of the audiolingual approach lingered within structural linguistics, which viewed language learning as a process of mastering hierarchies of structurally related items for encoding meaning (Morley, 1991). When pronunciation was addressed, instruction was generally oriented toward the drilling of individual sounds via articulatory descriptions and minimal pair contrasts (Chun, 2002). It is the reliance on this traditional phonemic-based approach which Leather (1987) mentions one of the reasons for the demise of pronunciation teaching during this era: The process, viewed as meaningless non-communicative drill-and-exercise gambits, lost its appeal; likewise, the product, that is, the success ratio for the time and energy expended, was found wanting. (Morley, 1991, p. 486). Attitudes ranged from serious questioning as to whether pronunciation could be overtly taught and learned at all (Chun, 2002), to unwavering claims that adults were simply unable to acquire second language pronunciation (Scovel, 1988). According to Madsen and Bowen (1978), the lack of attention to pronunciation, which was prevalent in the communicative approach of the late 1970s and early 1980s and the direct assertion by many that pronunciation could not be taught, resulted in a great number of international students who were failed communicate effectively or even intelligibly although they had been instructed for a long time. This situation sparked research in second language acquisition that suggested a departure from the traditional, bottom-up phonemic-based approach to pronunciation teaching toward a top-down orientation focusing on suprasegmental or prosodic aspects such as rhythm, intonation, and duration. Defined by Wennerstrom (2001, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004) as a general term encompassing intonation, rhythm, tempo, loudness, and pauses, as these interact with syntax, lexical meaning, and segmental phonology in spoken texts (p.4), prosody has historically been ignored or relegated to the fringes of research and pedagogy, due in large part, according to Chun (2002), to its inherent complexity and difficulty mastering it. Considered notoriously difficult to acquire and define, Bolinger (1972) labeled the most controversial aspect of prosody, intonation, the greasy part of language. Despite its historical back-seat status, an undercurrent of research regarding prosody has spanned several disciplines. The first documented study of speech melody has been traced back to Steele (Couper-Kuhlen, 1993, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004), who, in 1775, used musical notation to identify pitch variations that occur in regular forms upon syllables. Unfortunately, his materials, based on five features he identified as accent, quantity, pause, emphasis and force were dependent upon fixed and absolute musical pitches rather than flexible and relative tones, apparently lacking in practical applicability (Pike, 1945). 2.3. Pronunciation research in applied linguistics Although attaining native-like pronunciation that facilitates mutual intelligibility is considered important for many language learners and teachers alike, there have been few empirical studies of pronunciation in applied linguistics (Derwing Munro,2005; Levis, 2005). For example, Derwing and Munro (2005, p. 386) state that it is widely accepted that suprasegmentals are very important to intelligibility, but as yet few studies support this belief. This claim is supported by other researchers such as Hahn (1994) and Levis (2005) who states that over the past 25 years there has been encouragement to teach suprasegmentals though very little pedagogy has been based on empirical research. The usefulness of empirical research for developing more effective pronunciation teaching is obvious. As Levis (2005) states, instruction should focus on those features that are most helpful for understanding and should deemphasize those that are relatively unhelpful ( pp. 370-371). Munro (2008) echoes this point when stating that it is important to establish a set of priorities for teaching. If one aspect of pronunciation instruction is more likely to promote intelligibility than some other aspect, it deserves more immediate attention. (p. 197). Of course, we must first know what the most important elements are to ensure optimal instruction and learning outcomes. As Munro (2008) argues, because prosody encompasses a wide range of speech phenomena, further research is needed to pinpoint those aspects of prosody that are most critical (p.210). Hahn (2004, p. 201) agrees that there is little empirical support for claims that teaching suprasegmentals is helpful and that knowing how the various prosodic features actually affect the way native speakersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦process nonnative speech would substantially strengthen the rationale for current pronunciation pedagogy. For that reason, Hahn (2004) reiterates that it is important to identify the phonological features that are most salient for native listeners. Due to the complex relationship between suprasegmentals and intelligibility, Hahn (2004) argues that it is helpful to isolate particular suprasegmental features for analyses (p. 201). Hahns argument supports the importance of the research in this dissertation in which the acoustic correlates of English lexical stress are isolated and manipulated individually to identify which are the most pertinent to the perception of speech intelligibility and nativeness. Levis (2005) states that pronunciation teaching has been a study in extremes in that it was once considered the most important aspect of language learning (when audiolingual methods were favored) and then became very much marginalized in communicative language teaching. Of the research that has been carried out, such as that on intonation patterns, little of it finds its place in pronunciation textbooks (Derwing, 2008; Derwing Munro, 2005; Levis, 2005; Tarone, 2005). Therefore, there is a need to first fill a gap in empirical research treating aspects of second language pronunciation and then to ensure that these findings are relayed to professionals in the fields of education and applied linguistics so that L2 students can benefit from these findings. Once a general framework for the delivery of instruction is chosen, the next step in designing a course of any type is to consider the needs and desires of the students and create course objectives and learning outcomes. As stated earlier, ESL students are typically concerned with issues such as intelligibility, accent and nativeness. Students often voice their goals regarding attaining proficiency in these areas and teachers should consider which goals are realistic (Avery Ehrlich, 1992). To do so, the students current abilities must be assessed in order to target strategies that will help achieve these goals. Assessing students abilities is crucial in planning pronunciation teaching. Derwing (2003; 2008) stresses that each student should be assessed individually to identify the students strengths and weaknesses and determine individual needs in pronunciation. These assessments can be done in a formal or informal way by the teacher and can include self-reports or self-assessments by the students. Self-assessments by students can provide insight into the students perceived needs, although these needs may be biased by the students previous experience with pronunciation instruction. Derwing (2003) found that of the pronunciation problems identified [by the students], roughly 79% were segmental [in nature], while only 11% were related to prosody.(p.554). In other words, students are simply more aware of segmental elements than they are of prosodic ones due to more previous instruction on segmental elements. Once evaluations have been completed, the question becomes how to address the language learners pronunciation issues. A complication arises at this point because students in ESL classes typically come from very mixed language backgrounds. Even the varying needs of students in EFL classrooms, where all learners are from the same native language background, can be challenging as individual students have individual needs. Therefore, integrating pronunciation lessons into class activities can be challenging in ESL classrooms as a particular speaker (or group of speakers) may have little difficulty with a particular element of pronunciation while others have great difficulty. A well-known example is Japanese speakers difficulty acquiring /r/ and /l/ (Bradlow, 2008) which does not cause any trouble for Spanish speakers. As Derwing (2003) advises, focusing heavily on segmental instruction in mixed classrooms is inappropriate due to the variety of language backgrounds and, therefore, prosody should be emphasized as it can have greater importance for a larger diversity of students. Derwing (2008) also argues that instruction in prosody transfers better to spontaneous speech than instruction on segmentals. Many instructors are reluctant to teach pronunciation and often unsure how to go about doing it (Derwing Munro, 2005; Hewings, 2006) as they feel underprepared or have little support in terms of course materials. Derwing (2003) estimates that only about 30% of pronunciation teachers have formal linguistic training in pronunciation pedagogy. To address this issue, it is important that empirical research on pronunciation be conveyed in a clear manner to language teachers so that they can pass this information along to students. To be certain, pronunciation should be considered an important element of ESL classroom instruction. It has been noted above that pronunciation is implicated in critical elements of communication such as speech intelligibility, and can also affect perception of nativeness. In addition, accurate pronunciation is critical for students needing to pass standardized English tests such as the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) for entrance into colleges and universities in English-speaking countries, or when interviewed by entities such as the Foreign Service Institute which assesses not only a persons grammar and vocabulary but also comprehension, fluency and accent in oral interviews (Varonis Gass, 1982). Pronunciation is also a key element in programs that prepares international teaching assistants to become teachers in American classrooms (Hahn, 2004; Wennerstrom, 1998). 2.4. The reasons for teaching pronunciation One of the most urgent reasons for effective pronunciation instruction centers on the large number of non-native English speakers attending American colleges and universities. According to The Institute for International Education, these students numbered 547,867 in the 2000/2001 school year, with a substantial number serving as graduate teaching assistants. The increase in the hours of classroom instruction given by non-native speakers has led to a corresponding decrease in student satisfaction with the quality of instruction, due mainly to the reported difficulty following non-native classroom presentation (Ostrom, 1997, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004). A survey by Shaw (1985, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004 ) revealed that having an instructor with foreign-accented speech is the highest of six areas of potential frustration for college students. Accordingly, previous studies conducted by Hinofotis and Bailey (1980) on non-native university teaching assistants revealed a threshold level of understandable pronunciation in English, below which the non-native speaker will not be able to communicate orally regardless of his or her level of control of English grammar and vocabulary. While some instructors and administrators within the field have historically dismissed these problems simply as a matter of not having enough exposure to the spoken target language (Moy, 1986), other well-meaning instructors attempting to deal with this need have often relied on minimal pair drills, repetition and articulatory instruction with poor results (MacDonald, Yule, Powers, 1994). According to Aufderhaar (2004), research in second language acquisition that suggested a departure from the traditional, bottom-up phonemic-based approach to teaching from a top-down orientation emphasizing suprasegmental or prosodic aspects such as rhythm, intonation, and duration revealed a need to increase the adult learners awareness of suprasegmental patterns of the target language at the discourse level. Chun (2002) advocates five principles for teaching intonation, including sensitization, explanation, imitation, practice activities, and communicative activities, and stresses the need for focused listening practice requiring the identification of suprasegmental features within a context of various authentic speech samples representing different speaker roles and relationships. 2.5. The sound system of English According to the Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis (CAH) the unequal features between languages are the main source of errors. Lado (1957, as cited in Gass Selinker, 2008, p.96) claims that those structures that are different will be difficult because when transferred they will not function satisfactorily in the foreign language and will therefore have to be changed. In order to understand the role of the first language in the phonological acquisition of the second language, emphasis has been given to the studies that have focused on the differences between English and Persian phonological systems. As Celce-Murcia, Brinton, and Goodwin (1996) state: all languages are unique in terms of their consonant and vowel systems. In linguistics, these distinctive characteristics have been divided into segmental and suprasegmental features. The segmental features of a language relate to consonants and vowels, whereas suprasegmental aspects of a language are involved with word stress, intonation, and rhythm (p. 35). 2.5.1 English Consonants and Vowels Standard American English includes 24 consonants and 22 vowels and diphthongs; however, a study performed on American English asserted that there are similarities among consonants that permits us to classify them into groups; the classification can be done according to various criteria (Olive, Greenwood, Coleman, 1993, p. 22). They suggested that consonants could be classified based on voice, place, and manner of articulation; therefore, according to their common characteristics, which include their location inside the mouth, they can be grouped together (Olive, Greenwood, Coleman, ibid, p. 22). Table 2.1 presents the English consonants. Table 2.1. English Consonants p pour 0 thorough r writer b ball e this m man t tool s sack n none d door z Zip ņ¹ sing k key h ham I lab g gear r shawl J rude ʆ uh 3 garage w word f fish tʃ match W what v vast d3 jelly j you The most common vowels in English have been classified in accordance with how the tongue shapes them, and while the consonant sounds are mostly articulated via closure or obstruction in the vocal tract, vowel sounds are produced with a relatively free flow of air (Yule, 2006, p. 38). Therefore, vowels can be classified based on the movement of the tongue, lips, and jaw. The vowels of English have been characterized as low, mid, or high, which describe the height of the tongue, whereas features such as front, central, or back refer to the position of the tongue inside the mouth (Barry, 2008, p. 21). Table 2.2. English Simple Vowels i deed ÊÅ   could É ª sit Ɇ bought Ɇº set a pot à ¦ bad ÊŒ but u push Ç  above 2.6. The Pronunciation Errors of Persian Speakers and the Negative Transfer of Learned L1 Habits into English Major (2001) addressed the issues in L2 phonology and how L1 phonological features can be transferred to the L2 when the sound pattern and word stress of the L2 differs from the L1. A foreign or nonnative accent can be detected more easily in a formal and longer conversation because in short conversation the speaker can produce words or sounds that are similar to the L2 in terms of segmental and suprasegmental features of language. Therefore, then overall impression concerning native speakers from whether or not and to what degree a person sounds native or nonnative is called global foreign accent (Major, 2000, p. 19). The measurement of global foreign accent is essential as it indicates at what stage of language development pronunciation is acquired. Moreover, Nation and Newton (2009) stated that the goal of pronunciation instruction is to increase the intelligibility of second language speakers although factors such as age, L1, perspectives, and attitudes of the learner can affect the learning of second language phonological system. There is clear evidence that there is a relationship between the age at which a language is learned and the degree of foreign accent (Patkowski, 1990, as cited in Nation Newton, 2009, p. 78). However, pronunciation has been identified as one of the important aspects of second language acquisition as it plays a crucial role in spoken conversational interactions and intelligibility. Although some studies indicated that it is impossible for adult learners to acquire native-like pronunciation, Boudaoud and Cardosos (2009) study suggested that learners proficiency level in English could affect their pronunciation. They compared the phonological features of Persian with four languages: Spanish, Japanese, Portuguese, and Arabic and asserted that these languages prevented their speakers from producing the /s/ consonant when learning English. The study focused on four research questions related to the production of /s/ consonant by Persian speakers and the factors that affect the acquisition of English as a second language. The findings indicated that /st/ and /sn/ were more difficult to produce than /sl/ and suggested that error production decreased as the proficiency level increased. Furthermore, Paribakht (2005) examined the relationship between first language (L1; Persian) lexicalization of the concepts represented by the second language (L2; English) target words and learners inferencing behavior while reading English texts (p. 701). This study emphasized the pronunciation errors that English majors produce in Iran when they read English texts. The study asserted that students errors in reading stemmed from their lack of knowledge in English vocabulary rather than the inability to produce the English sound system. The research questions examined whether lexicalization helped students identify the meaning of unfamiliar words. The findings also showed that students relied on their L1 when they were not provided with the synonym of an unfamiliar word. Sadeghi (2009) focused on collocational differences between the L1 and L2 and [suggested] implications for EFL learners and teachers (p.100). This study addressed the errors that Iranian EFL students make when they learn English, and it stated that these errors stemmed from the differences between Persian and English. The study compared Persian and English collocations and focused on the transfer of L1 habits into L2. The aim of the study was to find out whether students made the same errors based on their proficiency level in the English language. Lower level students tend to transfer L1 habits into L2 more frequently as a result of their lack of knowledge in the target language. However, transferring Persian vowels and diphthongs into English pronunciation can also be observed by advanced learners of English. Research related to the difference between phonological systems in English and Persian provide a general overview of the difficulties ESL students may encounter when teachers focus on pronunciation, intonation, and word stress. 2.6.1. Common consonant errors of Iranian EFL learners Persian speakers tend to place a vowel after each consonant; therefore, the following errors can be predicted when Persians pronounce English words: Bread, script, and scramble are pronounced as [bɆºÃƒâ€°Ã‚ ¹Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â‚¬ ºd], [ɆºskiÉ ¹ipt], and [ɆºskɆºÃƒâ€°Ã‚ ¹Ãƒ ¦mbɆºl]. Furthermore, according to the contrastive analysis of English and Persian conducted by Yarmohammadi (1969, 1996) and Wilson and Wilson (2001), the following negative transfer of learned L1 habits into English can be expected from Persian speakers of English. 1. Stop consonants such as /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/, k/, /g/ are articulated with a stronger puff of air. /k/, /p/, /g/ and /t/ become aspirated when they are placed in the post coda position. Words such as bank, tap, king, and rest are pronounced as [bà ¦nkÊ °], [tà ¦pÊ °], [kÉ ªngÊ °], and [È ·Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â‚¬ ºstÊ °]. 2. Fricatives such as /v/, /ÃŽÂ ¸/, /ÃÆ' °/, and /s/ are substituted and articulated for other consonants such as /w/, /t/ and /s/, /z/ and /d/, /Ɇºs/ (no initial consonant cluster). West, three, father, and school are pronounced as [vɆºstÊ °], [sɆºÃƒË†Ã‚ ·i] or [tɆºÃƒË†Ã‚ ·i], [fÃŽÂ ±dɆºÃƒË†Ã‚ ·], and [Ɇºskul]. 3. Nasal consonant /ņ¹/ is articulated as /n/ and /g/. Therefore, sing is pronounced as [sÉ ªngÊ °]. /m/ and /n/ are also articulated with a stronger puff of air and they may sound like /Ɇºm/ and /Ɇºn/. 4. Lateral liquid consonant /l/ can be pronounced with a stronger puff of air /Ɇºl/ when it is placed at the end of a word such as tell. 5. The retroflex liquid /È ·/ is trilled and it is produced with the vibration of the tongue. 6. The glide consonant /w/ is replaced by /v/ since /w/ does not exist in Persian consonants. Therefore, flower is articulated as [fɆºlavɆºÃƒâ€°Ã‚ ¹]. 2.6.2. Common vowel errors of Iranian EFL learners According to the contrastive analysis of English and Persian conducted by Yarmohammadi (1969, 1996) and Wilson and Wilson (2001), the following negative transfer of learned L1 habits into English can be expected from Persian speakers of English: 1. /Ɇº/ and /à ¦/ can substitute for one another; therefore, [bà ¦t] is articulated as [bɆºt]. 2. /ÊŒ/ replaces /ÃŽÂ ±/. [lÊŒk] is articulated as [lÃŽÂ ±k]. 3. /ÊÅ  / replaces /u/. [ful] is pronounced as [fÊÅ  l]. 4. /É ª/ replaces /i/. [bit] is articulated as [bÉ ªt]. 5. /j/ replaces /i/ if placed in initial position. [twin] is articulated as [tujin]. 2.7. The Importance of suprasegmentals and stress in L2 acquisition 2.7.1 The importance of suprasegmentals Pronunciation is always a difficult step in learning a second or foreign language, especially for adults. Learners may have acquired perfect reading and writing skills while still being unable to communicate functionally in L2. Problems in pronunciation can be traced to segmental as well as suprasegmental difficulties. Although most previous research has been conducted on the segmental level, recent studies show that suprasegmentals may play a more important role than segmentals in the acquisition of a second language phonological system (Anderson, Johnson Koehler 1992, Derwing, Munro Wiebe, 1998). Anderson, et al (1992) investigated the nonnative pronunciation deviance at three different levels: syllable structure, segmental structure and prosody. The correlation between the actual deviance at the three levels and nonnative speakers performance on the Speaking Proficiency English Assessment Kit (SPEAK) Test was calculated. It was shown that while all three areas had a significant influence on pronunciation ratings, the effects of the prosodic variable were the strongest. In Derwing, Munro, and Wiebes (1998) study, native speakers were invited to evaluate the final results of three types of instruction, i.e. segmental accuracy, general speaking habits and prosodic factors, and no specific pronunciation instruction, after a 12-week pronunciation course. Treated in three different ways, three groups of ESL learner reading sentences and narratives at the beginning and end of the course were recorded. Both the first and second groups, who received pronunciation instruction, showed significant improvement in sentence reading. However, only the second group, where prosodic factors were included in the instruction, showed improvement in accentedness and fluency in the narratives. In Johanssons (1978, as cited in Wang, 2009) study of Swedish-accented English speech, segmental and non-segmental errors were compared in terms of accentedness scores. Native English judges were presented with two kinds of production, those with native English intonation but segmental errors on the one hand, and those with nonnative intonation (Swedish-accented) but no segmental errors on the other. Higher scores were assigned to productions with native-like suprasegmental characteristics but poor segmentals. In a more recent study, Munro (1995, as cited in Wang, 2009) used low-pass filtered English speech produced by Mandarin speakers for accent judgment. Untrained native English listeners were invited to rate the speech samples. It was found that non-segmental factors such as speaking rate, pitch patterns and reduction contribute to the detected foreign accent in Mandarin speakers production and that their foreign accent can be detected based solely on suprasegmental information. In addition, some recent studies have, therefore, focused on stress production with nonce words of English. For example, Pater (1997, as cited in Altmann, 2006) investigated the stress placement patterns for English nonce words by both English native speakers and French learners of English. While this study varied syllable weight within words, it used a rather small set of items. The native English speakers exhibited a stress placement pattern that was basically identical to the Latin stress rule (i.e., stre

Analysis- System Specification :: Computer Science

Analysis- System Specification In order to design my database on Microsoft Access the software I will need is as following. I will need the operating system of Windows XP. This is because this version of Windows is more up-to-data and more professional to use than say, Windows 98. Also Windows XP will have better and more up-to-date features than older versions would have. I will need the applications programmes of Microsoft Access 2003 and Microsoft Word 2003. The reasons for this is because I will need Microsoft Access to perform such actions as creating the database and I will need Microsoft Word to perform such actions as creating a mail merge. Also I will need Microsoft Access 2003 and Microsoft Word 2003 because these are more up to date and more professional versions compared to older versions such as Microsoft Access 2000 and Microsoft Word 2000. The hardware I will need in order to carry out my database is as following. I will need a processor that has a minimum of 1GB (Gigabyte). The reason for me needing a processor this size is because this will enable me to have a larger overall volume of work stored on the computer and will allow me system to run quickly. I will also need a RAM (Random Access Memory) of at least 512KB. I will need this in order for my database to work quickly enough and sufficiently enough for the needs of my end user. I also do not need too much memory, as I would then be wasting large amounts of this. Further hardware that I need is a ROM (Read Only Memory) or a Hard Drive of at least 60GB. I will need a hard drive this size in order for my database to work quickly and sufficiently enough for the needs of my end user. Also I do not need too much memory, as doing so would be wasting large amounts, as it is not being filled. Other hardware that I need are peripherals. These are things such as a keyboard, a mouse, a monitor, a printer and a PC. The type of keyboard I will need is an ergonomic keyboard rather than just a standard QWERTY keyboard. This is because if a lot of work is carried out involving a lot of typing having an ergonomic keyboard may help to reduce the stress of working on a computer for long periods and may also help to reduce both back and neck pain. A further peripheral I will need is a mouse. The type of mouse I will need is a standard roller ball mouse with a scroll bar.

Conquering David Essay -- essays research papers fc

The Conquering David If there can be such beauty and structure of one man, it can be marveled at through the figure of David. Destined to be the king of Israel, David armed with weapons and wit creates a brave yet intellectual spirit as he defeats the Philistine giant, Goliath. With such a powerful presence as David, it is easy to see how three talented artists could portray a strong and intelligent man in a very different but still successful manner. Michelangelo, Donatello, and Verrocchio all had the same idea of the power that David represented though they all had an obviously different vision of how that power was displayed. Through youth, expression, and composition the artists all manage to capture the courage of David.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Donatello’s figure of David there is a youthful, adolescent, and barely developed young boy. Donatello manages to combine classicism with realism by presenting a real image of an Italian peasant boy in the form of a classical nude. Instead of a Greek youth David is shown as a little boy with a lack of muscle. It must have been through intellect and courage that the young David defeated the mighty Goliath, whose head lie beside the feet of the conqueror. With his sword at rest on his side it almost seems too heavy for him to handle. David seems somewhat astonished as he looks down upon his body and at the head of Goliath yet at the same time has a surprised confidence.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Verrocch...

Biography of Catherine the Great Essay examples -- Empress Russian His

Biography of Catherine the Great One of the most interesting, hard-working and powerful people to grace the pages of history during the eighteenth century was Catherine II, Empress of Russia. Historians have not always been so kind to her memory, and all too often one reads accounts of her private life, ignoring her many achievements. The stories of her love affairs have been overly misinterpreted and can be traced to a handful of French writers in the years immediately after Catherine's death, when Republican France was fighting for its life against a coalition that included Russia. Catherine was born Sophia Augusta Frederika of Anhalt-Zerbst on April 21, 1729 in Stettin, then Germany, now Poland. Her father, Prince Christian Augustus of Anhalt-Zerbst, was a high-ranking officer in the Prussian Army and a minor prince among the principalities in Germany. He married the much younger Princess Johanna of Holstein-Gottorp. Years before, Johanna's brother Karl August of Holstein-Gottorp had gone to Russia to marry the Princess Elizabeth Petrovna. However the Prince died of small pox, leaving Elizabeth heart-broken. Elizabeth's sister, Anna gave birth to a son named Peter Ulrich, however tragedy once again struck as Anna's died of tuberculosis three months after giving birth to Peter. Peter, who eventually became Tsar Peter III, was the only surviving male descendent and the potentially heir to the throne of Russia after his father died. In November 1741, Elizabeth seized the throne with the help of the Imperial Guards, and formally declared her nephew Peter heir to the throne. Peter was now 14 years old, and it was time for him to find a bride. Elizabeth had always remembered the family of her dead fiancà ©e with fondness, and chose Sophie as the bride to be. The Empress Elizabeth seemed to have taken an instant liking to Sophie at an early age. Sophie began to learn the Russian language and studied the Orthodox religion, which of course pleased the Empress. On June 28, Sophie was received into the Church in a great ceremony, and as a result changed her name to Catherine. Catherine was now the second highest-ranking lady in the country. Shortly after, Peter obtained measles, which started to show all the symptoms of small pox. Catherine found him to be a most pitiful creature, and it was with dismay that she looked towards her wedding day. The royal... ...h the many relationships she formed with men. Perhaps we misunderstand her many attachments. She loved to teach, and she had much knowledge to give. We can see from her many letters to Baron von Grimm, that she took pride in the education of her young protà ©gà ©s. Perhaps what many historians interpret as promiscuous behavior, was nothing more than her filling the lonely hours by sharing her vast knowledge with the young men she deemed worthy of her attention. She had long and lasting relationships with Orlov and Potemkin, and it seems that she was capable of being faithful and devoted. Russia owes her much. After a long reign of thirty-four years, Catherine died of a stroke on November 17, 1796. History knows her as Catherine the Great, a title she was offered during her lifetime and rejected. "I leave it to posterity to judge impartially what I have done" she said at the time; and Catherine has done well. Domestically, She dealt with peasant revolts, pretenders, and noble opposition. Abroad, she increased Russia's territory, prestige and international importance. Regardless of her much emphasized personal life and sexual relations, she deserves the title because she earned it.

Leagility in supply chain

What is â€Å"leagility† in supply chain design?In a supply chain analysis of an appliance manufacturer, application of leagility concept led to significant benefits of the company's performance.   The company is based in Thailand whose factory is located in capital Bangkok (Banomyong & Supatn).   The current problem of the firm is accumulated in its reverse logistics (e.g. managing returned products) being threefold; namely, excessive transportation costs, damaged products and slow customer response.   The current system requires customers to travel from their homes to the retailer stores where they bought the firm's products.   Retailers will then transport the returned products to the Bangkok factory or in some cases even have to forward first to distribution/ service center before actual repair in Bangkok factory.   When repaired, the products are sent to customers, however, in retail stores only so they have to travel to claim.With the application of leagility, creating service shops in retail stores serve as decoupling points to manage customer demand volatility efficiently.   These services shops will be supplied by Bangkok factory with sufficient parts for the former to address simple defects and needed repairs.   Bangkok factory will only accept complex problems that do not require immediate action.   With the presence of leagility, the reverse logistics of the firm eliminate the three problems cited above.   It is able to prevent excessive transportation because service shops can serve as direct access of customers to Bangkok factory capabilities.   Less travel is required that can prevent damaging the products.   Lastly, customer satisfaction is increased because the response is faster while their need to â€Å"come-back† is minimized due to ready service.Leagility is derived from the word leagile.   The term is first defined by Naylor et al (1999) which means the mixture of lean and agile capabilities in the sup ply chain design.   Managing the decoupling point is the crucial aspect of leagile with the objective of responding to a fluctuating demand at one end and its scheduling on the other.   When strategic decoupling plan is implemented, it is possible to respond to abrupt market needs in an agile way while also carrying an ability to postpone or being lean to achieve efficiency.   De-coupling manages the difference between orders and forecasts.   Leagility is a combination of leanness and agility.The former emphasized on reduction of cost and waste and profit maximization through a level schedule.   The latter is inclined with flexible service and profit maximization through understanding customer requirements efficiently.   Leagility is achieved when these value-creating activities are present; namely, just-in-time (JIT), quality improvement, IT upgrades, lot-size minimization (i.e. less scrap and faster response time), system integration and global optimization.Other autho rs defined leagility as a hybrid strategy between lean and agile supply chain.   Being agile is the use of market knowledge and virtual business to manage fluctuations in demand while leanness is the use of value stream where waste and time are reduced and level schedule is obtained.   In their definition, decoupling point is clearer.   Decoupling point is the part of the supply chain in which customers can interfere and take part through the chain design.The point serves as signal to the firm about demand that can guide the forecasts/ Kanban system.   With the use of decoupling, inventories are managed on a stable level that has cost efficiency implications.   The combined features of agile and lean supply chains led to inherent characteristics of leagile supply chain.   These include volatile and unpredictable market demand, medium productivity variety, short product life cycle, service level customer performance, moderate profit margins, dominant physical and marketab ility costs, vendor-managed inventory, essentiality of information and other desirable effects to quality, forecasts, lead time and other costs (O'Brien 2005).Leagility application to USMCIN USMC, information technology is used to improve the supply chain management.   IT is deemed essential in leagile design and USMC has addressed this issue.   Assuming that SAP NetWeave enables information sharing across different functions in the supply chain, the organization can stabilize leagile framework through its IT.   However, the investment in IT must not be too high because funds are required in creating decoupling points systems and resources.   It should be noted that agile supply chain will not be acquired by USMC rather leagile and this makes IT non-obligatory.Further, IT may have intensified the ability of USMC in integrating information and resources to armed forces and suppliers of other countries.   Adoption of leagility can provide relaxation on the demand in reducing lead time for USMC services as this is not essential to being leagile.   USMC can continue sharing resources with other countries that can result to acquiring the latest technology without the problem against time constraints (e.g. on approval of the cooperating country about the local information).The use of GPS and RFID device in tracking supplies should be minimized since leagility does not confront stock-out penalties especially there are no place for stock-out (RFID Journal).   This means that the advantage of GPS and RFID to provide real-time information about the location of the inventories in the stock room or warehouses are seen less useful.   Further, the cost of such technologies is higher than the common barcode that their use in leagility is sub-optimal.Therefore, barcodes should be revisited.   The use of satellite communications in relation to service provision in a timely manner and also quick response must be maintained.   Leagility does not offer robustn ess while its forecast mechanism requires algorithmic and consultative areas inherent to lean and agile supply chains respectively.   As a result, service provision can be adversely affected when satellites will not feedback real-time events in the area of jurisdiction.The use of rapid logistics is required in leagility.   However, this can be adversely affected as purchasing policy is managed by vendor inventory.   Even with an efficient logistics, a non-cooperative vendor can cause delays of resources delivery and transfer.   In contrast, the rapid logistics can aid in providing products within the concept of leagility.   Leagile products are provided as per customer demand which can increase customer satisfaction by rapid delivery.   In effect, service level is achieved with low cost from USMC due to absence of excessive stocks and inventory spaces.Smart packing is required to be an efficient process because the products carried through a leagile supply chain have sho rt life cycles.   Further, it is also a difficulty that USMC is obliged to produce different packing designs to a medium-scale product differentiation (Smart Packing).   Perhaps, a lean supply chain can better fit smart packing due to long life cycle.   If USMC requires cost efficiency, smart packing should be minimized and funds should be diverted to dominant costs in physical and marketability expenditures.ReferencesBanomyong, R. & Supatn, N. (unknown). Leagility in reverse logistics: a case study of electronic appliance manufacturer [Internet] Available from [Accessed 6 August 2007].O'Brien, V. (2005). Should manufacturing pursue a lean, agile or leagile strategy? [Internet] Available from [Accessed 6 August 2007].Naylor, J., Naim, M. & Berry, D. (1999). Leagility: Integrating the Lean and AgileManufacturing Paradigms in the Total Supply Chain. International Journal Of ProductionEconomics, 62(1), p.2.RFID Journal (unknown). Available from [Accessed 6 August 2007].Smart P acking (unknown). Available from [Accessed 6 August 2007].

Article Review: the Religious Sources of Islamic Terrorism

1. The article â€Å"The Religious Sources of Islamic Terrorism† by Shmuel Bar takes an in-depth look into the potential justifications of terrorism in regards to religion. In this article, Bar attempts to identify the differences between the religion of Islam and the duties associated with being a Muslim including participating in jihad. The author explains the various differences between the ideas of both the traditional Muslim as well as the moderate Muslim. He goes on to identify jihadist-type acts that could potentially be changed if the right movement and implementation of rules were set.The key points and concepts in this article are: †¢ the explanation of the Islamic religion; †¢ the jihadist movement; †¢ the traditional versus the moderate Muslim; †¢ the potential strategy to deal with radical ideology. 2. The Islam religion is not one that has blatant disregard for the value of human life. It is regarded as a peaceful religion and should not be mi sconstrued as being a religion that promotes terrorism. Unfortunately, there have been numerous acts of violence and terrorism in the name of Islam and a surface-educated individual will blame the entire religion.Many individuals’ lack of knowledge lead them down a path of generalization and intolerance for the religion itself. The author of this article does a good job explaining that it is not the religion that commits these acts of terror; it is the individual’s interpretation of the writings that radicalize its teachings. 3. The jihadist movement is where much of the violent aspect of the religion can be derived from. The belief is that it is their personal duty within their religion to fight for their faith.This may be non-violent such as an internal struggle with one’s spiritual life. A more physical aspect is displayed in other forms such as the obligation to spread the religion or a more violent approach, fighting to defend a once Muslim country from inv asion of infidels. The act of jihad in a violent manner typically is displayed by the radical Islamists whom are more focused on the traditional and literal meanings of the scripture; hence there exists a conflict between them and the moderates. 4.The ideas of the traditionalist versus the moderate Muslim are conflicting in how they interpret various teachings of their scripture. Participation in jihad may be considered an obligation due to the occupying of so many countries by non-Muslims; however, the idea that it must be fought with acts of terror remains debated. The traditionalists will take a more literal interpretation resulting in acts of violence and terror; even though this initiative tends to have more political motives rather than religious.The moderate Muslim struggles with the possibility that their less orthodox beliefs will appear as though they are abandoning their religion. Due to the fact that the traditionalist is more likely to resort to violence, there is also a fear of retaliation against the moderate Muslim. Unfortunately, with that mentality, the radical Islamists prevail. 5. A long-term strategy has to include ideas and not necessarily weapons and a bunch of rules. The author explains that the solution is a lot deeper than the acts they are committing on the surface.Creating a strategy to potentially combat a radical, religious ideology seems as though it would be impossible. A long-range strategy that outlines the teachings of their religion and focuses on how terrorism is actually against their scripture could succeed. The author acknowledges the idea that Western civilization must take a look within and realize that there are more ways than just their way. This realization, and possibly tolerance, could allow for an interpretation that both societies could deal with. 6. The author of this article, Dr.Shmuel Bar, has notable credibility in this subject matter. According to his biography on The Intelligence Summit website, Dr. Bar is the Director of Studies at the Institute of Policy and Strategy in Herzliya, Israel. He has also held various intelligence positions within the Israeli government and headed various research projects including some for the United States government, according to the Hudson Institute. His academic, professional, and personal expertise lends him to be a reliable source of information.The only question that may be proposed is, what is his religious affiliation? With the extent of his background and knowledge, this may seem like a moot point; however, religion relies on very little logic. Faith is based on how one feels, not just what one has researched or has seen. It is a powerful driving force that is almost impossible to describe. The idea that persuasion could be achieved without truly knowing this driving force is naivety in itself.

Adolsent Habits of Spending Money Essay

I think that many people are familiar with the economic crisis that has plagued the front of newspapers and run rampantly across countless television news networks throughout the day. Billions of dollars are flying around to help businesses in hope of avoiding a catastrophic financial meltdown. A barrel of oil has dropped to the lowest price anyone has seen in months, and multibillion-dollar companies are crashing into the rocks. In all honesty I really don’t have any opinion on the financial crisis. Of course I know the economy is failing. I see the stock market plunging and then slowly coming up for breath and quickly plunging once more, but in my mind this really doesn’t affect me because I don’t know what I am looking at. It doesn’t interest me, and I almost forget that it exists at times because I don’t have anything invested and I didn’t lose anything but 20 minutes in a day sitting on the couch watching some numbers drop. This is by far not the healthiest way to perceive something as serious as this. I really only care about financial aid as of now, which is quickly dwindling by the way, in the hope that when I finally leave this place and move on with whatever I plan to do to make a little money in my life, I will not have to pay anything for a college education. Second on my list is surviving until that point, and I plan to take it from there — what I have always done through financial turbulence and what many others should begin to think about. So when I read an article in the New York Times yesterday titled, â€Å"The Frugal Teenager, Ready or Not† written by Jan Hoffman, I was quite intrigued. It seems that most teenagers are being spoiled to an extravagant degree. Parents have had success in their lives after the late 1980s, ultimately giving them the ability to care for their children and essentially give their kids whatever they ask for, generally. I can admit I was spoiled as a child and when I was a teenager as well. My parents have done everything to their ability, and so have many other parents. What interests me more than anything is that many of the teenagers in this article took spending less on designer clothes or whatever else teenagers want as an insult. Many of these kids have never been told no and they really don’t like the sound of it. This is fairly sad. I know that parents want the best for their children and feel the need to do whatever they possibly can for them. This is perfectly understandable, but I believe that it has gone way too far, and the fact that it takes an economic meltdown that debilitates the United States and erases millions of people’s savings, investments, bank accounts and jobs to actually say no to privileged children is quite ridiculous. What does this really mean, though? Nothing. I guess that 20 years of good fortune has led parents to think that their financial situation would stay pretty much consistent, and the cash crunch got the better of them. My parents experienced this almost 15 years ago when my mom lost her job. When a family’s budget goes from over $100,000 a year to less than $30,000, it is quite unimaginable. Your standard of living is completely pulled out from underneath of you and the only way to continue is to move on. I had to be said no to — quite often actually — and it has done me well, and the teenagers today do not seem to know what money is. The only way to reverse this is to simply tell them there are going to be cutbacks and you will have to sacrifice just as much as we do. I was surprised by some of the teenager’s reactions, though. They seem as though they actually care about helping their parents in this difficult situation, which is quite relieving, by agreeing to a lower spending limit, shopping at lower brand stores and helping out with household chores to earn their allowance. This is how it should be. The value of a child growing up with responsibility is the greatest gift a parent could possibly give to his or her child, and instead of a teenager entering a completely new world after graduating high school and moving on to college or right into the workforce, they will actually realize that the world just isn’t something in Google Earth. The responsibility that my friends and I have learned while we were teenagers is priceless, and I wouldn’t trade making food for a bunch of tourists 40 or 50 hours a week when I was barely able to work for anything.