Would you use Keynesian Policy?

1. Would you use Keynesian Policy? Explain Keynesian Economics in 10 lines or less. Keynesian Economics, broadly speaking, is a macroeconomic approach that advocates active government intervention in a country's monetary policy in order to ensure the best economic outcome. This produces a mixed economy, where both the private sector and the government control market conditions. In order to ensure economic growth and stability, governments impose policies that could stimulate the economy towards their desired ends. In a recession, stability can be achieved through tax breaks and government spending; in an economic upturn, this can be   done though tax hikes and cutbacks on government spending. Keynes, the theory's proponent, believes that trends in the macroeconomic level can influence the spending and market behavior of individuals, and that the government plays a crucial part in instigating these trends by adjusting the economy's general equilibrium. 2. Would you use Supply Side Policy? Explain this Economic Policy in 10 lines or less. The supply-side policy holds that influencing the supply of goods and services will lead to economic health. It emphasizes the supply, rather than the demand stimulus towards economic activity. Its conjecture is that if individuals have the means to buy, demand will be created. Supply-side economics thus focuses on policies that raise production capabilities for lowering the cost of products and controlling inflation. Supply side economists believe that high taxes increases the costs of production, thereby reducing the incentive to work and to invest. As such, they advocate policies that lower taxation rates in order to raise labor outputs and market capitals. 3. Would you use Monetarism? Explain this policy in 10 lines or less. The doctrine of Monetarism places emphasis on controlling the domestic money supply for promoting growth and maintaining economic stability. Monetarists believe that regulating the national income is the primary means for improving economic activity. It holds that instability and market changes such as inflation are due to fluctuations in the money supply, specifically, that these changes came as a result of the money supply being larger than the demand. By this assumption, increasing or decreasing the money supply, rather than raising taxes, will keep inflation in check. This is usually done by maintaining price stability and steadily increasing the stock of money in a moderate manner. 4. Would you use a combination of some or all of the above? Explain their main differences in 16 lines. Among the three macroeconomic policies, I believe a combination of Keynesian and Monetarist approaches will do best in achieving economic growth and stability.  According to the theory of Monetarism, inflation is an effect of the supply of money exceeding the demand. As such, regulating market prices is the best way of controlling inflation. But while Keynesian economics focus on the stability of currency, Monetarism focuses on price stability, which is achieved through maintaining money's supply-demand equilibrium. Keynesian economics supports government manipulation of market conditions by way of   monetary policies based on real aggregate demand. When there is economic recession and inflation, it advocates higher taxes in order to curb individual spending. But aside from the monetary angle, it also employs fiscal strategies, those that relate to government spending, revenues, and debt. Supply-side economics is concerned with policies that produce more incentives for work, rather than stimulate demand. The emphasis on the supply factor is the main difference between the Supply-side and Keynesian theories. Proponents of supply-side economics believe that increasing taxes will only cause revenues to fall, therefore, reducing it will do more good by generating economic activity. However, I believe that this will not increase the supply of labor and services substantially. Lower taxes does not necessarily mean that individuals will choose to be more productive. Moreover, huge tax cuts can cause enormous deficits in the federal budget. 5. Given the economic model/theory, you choose to work with, explain your economic strategy for the next four years.  In the next four years, I aim to guide the nation towards having a strong and stable financial system. This means that in economic trems, stable prices are maintaned, inflation lessened, and long-term interest rates are moderated. I also aim to keep unemployment to a minimun, or better yet, lower than the current rate of 5.10%. I propose to achieve these things though policies that follow and Monetarist and Keynesian principles. We can best promote a progressive climate by maintaining an environment of low inflation. An important reason for keeping inflation low is that businesses will be able to foresee substantial future benefits if they are to be willing to bear the long-term risks that are associated with creating new enterprises, and expected low inflation affords them a clearer view of projected benefits. The Monetarist theory holds that variations in unemployment and inflation rates are caused by changes in the supply of money, and that inflation is a purely monetary phenomenon—this means that if the money supply does not change, the price level remains the same. Therefore, regulating the money supply will ensure a stable economic preformance. The money supply can be balanced through the buying and selling government bonds and securities. By buying securities, the government increases the money supply, thus lowering interest rates. On the same note, when it sells securites, the money supply becomes tighter. Using the Keynesian perspective, rising inflation levels can be curbed by imposing higher taxes to lessen demand and stabilize economic performance. This can also reduce the money supply so that interest rates will go up, making it harder for firms and consumers to obtain money, thereby reducing aggregate demand. Since the current rate of inflation is on the rise, I propose higher interest rates in order to lessen spending. This can also be done by regulating reserve requirements of member banks, affecting interest rates. When banks reserves are lower, there is a limited amount of money to go around so interest rates go up. This usually affects the amount of money banks lend to consumers and firms. When interest rates increase, consumers are less willing to borrow money to spend on goods or services. I expect the above measures to decrease inflation and increase employment rates, which means that the total market value of all the goods and services will also increase. This translates to a higher GNP. Higher taxes would also lessen the budget deficit, and since the deficit is financed by borrowing, the country's debt will decrease as well. As for productivity, I also expect it to increase. The link between costs and   productivity is usually a positive one. Productivity helps offset costs so if inflation is low, it means that productivity is high.  If my strategy does not work and my inflation and unemployment goals were not reached, I may opt for deficit spending in order to stabilize the economy. While deficit spending can catalyze negative effects, under certain conditions (such as in a recession), it can help the economy cope. Since the money used to finance deficits usually come from foreign governments and institutions, it would be to the economy's advantage if   they can be convinced to support my proposal.. Economic indicators, dictate how the policies are implemented. However, globalization can make it harder to determine the extent of economic manipulation that is needed to promote economic growth. A global market changes the dynamics of traditional economic systems, making economic outcomes more difficult to predict. Prices of products and services are now increasingly determined by market factors aside from those within the country. Thus, intervening with the money suppy may not be an accurate response to certain economic situations. Emerging economic trends and indicators should be taken into account regarding government policies and decisions.

Pay it forward Essay

I am greatly touched by what the movie shows to me and I also feel so sad for the boy’s pass away at the end. The teacher in this movie not only assign a homework for the students, but also give a chance to the students to think about who they are, how they indentify themselves and what they can do for the whole society. The teacher is an instructor and he instructs his students to begin to consider their role in the society and how to use their actions to influence the world; even they never have such awareness. At the same time, the teacher acts as a link or bridge between Trevor and his mother. Through this social studies assignment, his mother tries to understand her son’s thoughts and his feeling and tries to communicate with the son. Meanwhile, she is also touched by her son’s â€Å"Pay it forward† idea and movement; that’s why she forgives her own mother. In the other hand, Trevor’s mother and his teacher fall in love and get together finally because of Trevor’s help. Therefore, the teacher works like a link to connect the students with their family and open a door for them to communicate with each other; and meanwhile, the teacher is also involved in the relationship between the families he serves. From my elementary school in my country, the parents and the teachers always told us you were the hope of our country and from now on, every one of you should try to be a useful person for society. However, at that time, I didn’t know what a useful person should be. It has to be a famous scientist, a professor or even a president? I didn’t know what the society excepted of me. As I grow up day by day, I understand I was not to be expected as a super great person but to be expected to bring some good change to the world like Trevor’s beings. The good changes may be very little such as throwing different kinds of trashes to specific trash ban; and the changes may be a great and valuable development such as developing a new medicine against lung cancer. It really depends on how this person’s power and abilities, but all of them are valuable and are the society’s expectations from us. For me, I am stronger and have more knowledge than before I was educated, especially on my study areas. The Biochemistry studies of my home country are just developing. Even those industries develop very fast; they still fall behind the United States. That’s why I come here and pursued my master degree at Biochemistry. I hope some day I can go back to home and involve myself to Biology or Biochemistry research areas. After I finished my master degree and worked like a chemist here for more than one year, I have already been in San Francisco for around six years. Through I chatted to lots of my friends here and so many examples I have seen, I found that the early child education here is more systematic, efficient and scientific, which has lots of fundamentals and theories to obey. Therefore, I backed to college again and study for child development as my another professional area. I hope one day, I can bake to my country to help to institute a more safe and health environment for kids and help every kid to develop as a whole child, not only on physical development, but also on mental and emotional development. From the movie, I understand the power of one person is much larger than we expected. Trevor initiate â€Å"Pay it Forward† movement, and he does a favor for three people and ask each of them to doing favors for three other people and so on, which will like a branch tree of good deeds. The movement will be like a relay race, which more and more people will be involved in and will expand more widely. Therefore, we can say one person may have chain change on the world a lot, whatever is a good change or bad change. Don’t miss doing any good thing no matter how insignificant it looks; don’t do any bad thing no matter how insignificant it looks. We don’t have to change the world better by doing really great things. When we help our families, friends or even a stranger as much as we can, we already changed the world better even we normally cannot realize that. For me, I will donate my cloths and old toys to the donation center; I will go to do the volunteer in Book Donation Center to help more people can read books and be educated. However, at most of time, I think we should always think of giving a favor to other people in daily life, not only do some specific things in specific time.

Being Virtuous Though Confucius, Krishna and Socrates Essay Example for Free

Being Virtuous Though Confucius, Krishna and Socrates Essay From the beginning of time, the quest of all humans has been to discover how to live the good life. What is a good life exactly? This term will mean different things to different people, and yet I believe there are the same ingredients that all â€Å"good lives† share, even from the classic Eurasian time until present day. Virtues of character, which are also called ‘moral virtues’, seem to be more complex and are an integral part of the completeness of life that is said is necessary for a good life. There seems to be a pattern with people of always trying to achieve being a good person. Is being a good person the answer to having a good life? The Author, Robert W. Strayer makes the point that Confucius, Krishna and Socrates had opinions of ways to a good life but they are all different from one to the other. I will argue that there is a pattern between the three and that the belief to the good life is the same throughout the writings. The saying that history repeats itself is certainly true, but it is also true that people all want to live good lives. Confucius believes living a good life is being virtuous and treating others with respect creates the kind of person that then is given the good life. Being a leader he believed that ruling under an iron fist didn’t create people that respected him and that listened to the law, instead using kindness and sincerity gave the people an example of how to live. He says, â€Å"Let him be ? nal and kind to all; then they will be faithful to him. Let him advance the good and teach the incompetent; then they will eagerly seek to be virtuous† (pg. 218). He also goes on to describe forgiveness which is an essential component in all of the opinions on what is a good life. If one is not being virtuous they can change, which tells us that people are never intended to be perfect but to continue to strive for goodness is always better than to never attempt to be good. That same ideal is true to our modern world. â€Å"To subdue one’s self and return to propriety is perfect virtue. If a man can for one day subdue and return to propriety, all under heaven will ascribe perfect virtue to him† (pg. 219). According to Confucius seeking to be virtuous will bring the good life. In Strayers words he associates the ideas of Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita as being different than those of Confucius. I believe that essentially they are one in the same. Krishna says, â€Å"a man possessed of a pure understanding, controlling his self by courage discarding sound and other objects of sense, casting off affection and aversion, who frequents clean places, who eats little, who’s speech, body, and mind are restrained who is always intent with meditation and mental abstraction and has recourse to unconcern who abandoning egoism, stubbornness, arrogance, desire, anger and all belongings, has no thought that this or that is mine, and who is tranquil becomes fit for assimilation with the Brahmah† (pg. 21). Krishna is telling us that controlling one’s self and the environment one keeps one’s self in, the abandonment of being stubborn and arrogant all contributes to a virtuous soul, which in turn leads to the good life. This point is exactly what Confucius and Krishna share the same opinion finding that mean or middle ground, that balance or yin and yang, is essential to establishing a completeness which develops virtue is vital in order to lead a successful, fulfilling life ultimately leading to happiness. Socrates also collaborates these same thoughts He states, â€Å"For I do nothing but go about persuading you all, old and young alike, not to take thought for your persons and your properties, but ? rst and chie? y to care about the greatest improvement of the soul† (pg. 223). He spent his life trying to convince people to strive to be better people. This is one of the most important things to do in order to find happiness. Socrates believed that the state of one’s soul is the answer to happiness and that there is always improvement that can be made to one’s soul. His mission was to encourage people to think for themselves and thus become more virtuous. Socrates was sentenced to death and as he is near his final moments He says, â€Å"The dif? culty, my friends, is not in avoiding death, but in avoiding unrighteousness† (pg. 223). He also shared the same ideas of Confucius and Krishna that living righteously is the key to the good life. In conclusion what creates a good life for an individual person? It appears to be the same answer that Confucius, Krishna and Socrates had during each of their lives. They learned the same thing that people look for and believe in today. We continue to search for the same answers, but I think the answers are very clear in what history tells us and we learn from these brilliant men, Confucius, Krishna, and Socrates. To be virtuous is having a life with moral integrity and having or showing moral goodness or righteousness. It means being honorable to others and yourself in which will gain the honor and respect from others. Virtue is a belief used to make moral decisions. It does not rely on religion, society or culture; it only depends on the individuals themselves. Virtue has more to do with the character of a person than their earthly riches and possessions. As people continual strive to become a better people, practicing virtuous acts regularly helps develop the good life and they are examples to others striving for the same thing. I believe in what Confucius, Krishna and Socrates taught us, that being a good person is the foundation on which everything else in life is built on, and this I believe is the answer to having the good life. Being Virtuous Though Confucius, Krishna and Socrates. (2016, Oct 02).

Studio Portraiture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5500 words

Studio Portraiture - Essay Example his or her appearance and mood rather than his or her environment. Portrait is far distinct from a snapshot for it shows someone in immobile state thus it can be termed as the best expression of a personality in photography. This explains why since the time immemorial, portraiture as an art ; painting, sculpture and photography, has been used in making impressions of great people such as kings , emperors and pharaohs among others. Moreover, it has been used in the same magnitude on important occasions like funerals weddings. Donnan (2004) claims that in political arenas, portraits are so important that it is deemed a symbol of national unity to have portraits of the head of state in important places. It is common that if a portrait of a certain personality is used too much it can lead to worship of that person either politically or in other ways like in the case of Stalin in Russia. Families have heightened demand on portraits to enjoy in commemoration of important events like weddin gs and birthdays among other various events. Portrait photography has developed since the time immemorial to become a vast and technologically sophisticated industry today. Studio portraiture has expanded creating many jobs and careers and the other hand developing talents. As technology advances so do the techniques of photography which makes the talents developed in studio portraiture to be taken far outside a housed studio (Donnan, 2004). Today's advancement in studio portraiture is solely due to digital formatting technology which is narrowed from electronic technology. Digital technology is the system controlled by digital circuits where electronic logic is transmitted discreetly using gates and flip-flops this is the opposite of analogue electronics whose systems continuously varies. Digital format is use of the said digital technology in a calculation or solving of a logical problem. Digital formatting has led to greater developments in photography techniques such as high key lighting. it has also led to development of digital cameras which are very efficient in studio portraiture. This study will be used to gauge by what ways change in studio portraiture to digital format has affected style and type of photography available today (Donnan, 2004). Problem Statement Gradual changes of portraiture brought about by technological advancement have been perceived to have brought about negative impacts to the society in terms of style as well as types of photography available today. Justification of the study. Since the discovery of portraiture as an art which through history, dates back several thousand years back, there has been a great revolution in the ways it is carried out and the outcome. The development in different techniques of portraiture has led to increased performance of portraiture as an art in satisfying the need of the user the drive of the artist. The emergence of portraiture industry has led to springing up of many studios in the recent times which have later developed as big film or photography companies; this implies large scale business which requires talents

Threats and Opportunities of Social Media Marketing in the Framework Essay

Threats and Opportunities of Social Media Marketing in the Framework of Contemporary Advertising Strategy - Essay Example This essay stresses that social media marketing is something that must always remain supreme within any advertising strategy which is geared to meet the eye of the young audiences. This has been proven with the passage of time that the young ones appreciate the presence of marketing on social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Google, YouTube, Instant Messengers and so on. As the paper declares the contemporary advertising strategy is such that it derives its basis from a number of different sectors, most significant of which remain the aspects of reaching out to the relevant target audiences and thus finding ways and means through which newer markets could be tapped in a corrective fashion. It would also manifest for growth and development under the already established clientele, which is indeed the target audience which is proving to be a major success for the brands and campaigns working under the aegis of these organizations. The modern day advertising strategy is such that it will bring instant results if devised in line with the needs, wishes and desires of the target audience. Within the framework of the social media avenues, it is always pertinent to discern the basis of success within the making up of such advertising strategies and plans which would eventually give the intended mileage to the brands and campaigns that are run on these platfor ms. The social media trends and changes are happening so quickly that it is very difficult to follow up what exactly is taking place within the relevant ranks. This calls for an understanding of how properly the advertising strategies are devised, planned and later on implemented within the related settings (Sigala, 2011). What is most significant here is an understanding that much sanity can prevail within these discussions if everyone knows his role well and then goes about aligning and delegating people for their respective chores and tasks. After all, it must be remembered here that the social media marketing elements are always given the go ahead when the brands and campaigns within the aegis of organizations understand their use and believe in its effectiveness and efficiency without any issues that will ultimately come to the reckoning. An opportunity that can be discussed here is of these social media platforms working to best affects for the sake of the consumers and users alike. These people want to be updated about the latest products, services and trends that belong to their own age where they spend most of their time, i.e. the social media avenues. It excites the young audiences as they want to connect with it and thus know about the different worldly affairs (Nolan, 2011). It just is a very significant part of who they are and what they want to seek from life. Psychological entities have proven that the social media enterprises and platforms excite the teenagers more than the

Executive summary for a project Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Executive summary for a project - Case Study Example tified that the core weakness within the replenishment process is delay time where delays at the bottleneck are longer: the time taken in completing the critical activities such as assembling of the required merchandise to be taken to the stores, or ordering of the required merchandise from the suppliers to fulfil market demand (longer lead time). In most instances a FIFO discipline most likely have higher delay time and lower outflow rates even in the best case scenario where there is regularity in processing of the merchandise. Such impact constrains the output rate at the bottleneck. The core solutions derived from the problem analysis to develop a â€Å"To-Be† replenishment process aimed at increasing operational excellence includes: Optimising lead time through adoption of just in time technique; the selection of a few strategic and trusted suppliers for whom a strategic partnership is made and the company’s replenishment process is integrated into such supplierâ⠂¬â„¢s systems; Vendor managed Inventory system which give control to the suppliers and ensures effective flow of accurate information on the level of merchandise required, which can be enhanced through incorporation of radio frequency Identification (RFID) system in the products; and cross docking where products are transported directly from the suppliers to the stores with the merchandise undergoing little to nil handling. Attaining operational excellence is critical for any business as organisations cannot afford to have quality issues, high cost operations or even long market cycles (Oracle 3). Notably, one of the core advantages that businesses often attain to achieve is effective inventory management to not only ensure high quality fresh products but also lower costs. Optimal inventory management is vital for any business organisation. The core benefits of having a much leaner inventory includes reduction in operation costs, higher customer satisfaction, and increased sales. In deed Lee (1)

Analysis of the film Gattaca in reference to its discussion about Essay

Analysis of the film Gattaca in reference to its discussion about eugenics and getenics engineering - Essay Example However, despite a very firm belief that any attempt at perfecting the human condition through selectively engineering children will have a detrimental effect on the human species, it is undeniable that if allowed, I would go back and have things corrected. It is in this desire to be perfected and saved, balanced against the detriment to society that supports the idea that legislation must prevent this from being a part of reproductive options. The concept of eugenics is defined by Francis Galton, British eugenicist and scientist, as â€Å"science that studies all the influences that may potentially effect reproduction, with the purpose of preventing degeneration and attaining the improvement of the human species† (Lavrin, 1998, p. 161). While the concept of eugenics seems to be defined by a pure intent, the central problem with eugenics is that it weeds out diversities and challenges that inspire human innovation. Morris (2006) states that â€Å"Another fear about this new e ugenics is that we might one day breed a race of clones designed genetically to be placid slaves. In this very frightening scenario, eugenics is envisioned as a tool to suppress people† (p. 70). Gattaca takes this fear one step further as those without genetic enhancement are subjugated to lower level job positions, serving those who are of a genetically superior make-up. Vincent is considered an in-valid, his genetic make-up not fitting into the standard that has been set for the upper class, meanwhile his social class does not allow him the opportunities that he desires. His life expectancy, as determined at the time of his birth, is only 30.2 years and the list of potential problems, none of which is guaranteed, is vast and daunting. There is no doubt that this type of predictability about the future of the potential outcomes would be disheartening and place that child within a social framework that was undesirable. This is what happens to Vincent, but as an adult he determ ines to write his own fate. Through impersonating someone with a better genetic code, he proves that he is valuable enough to achieve his goals. The director of the film, Andrew Niccol, who also wrote the piece, provides his beliefs on genetic engineering a forum through the film. One of the first lines of narration, â€Å"They used to say that a child conceived in love has a greater chance of happiness. They don’t say that anymore† provides the context on how social and cultural class divisions had changed the nature of predicted futures for the people within the universe of the film (Niccol, 1997). In the contrast between Vincent and the wheelchair ridden ’perfected’ human, Jerome, the aspect of chance shows that expected life expectancies and the use of genetic manipulation to ’perfect’ the human species will never account for the challenges that chance will put in the way of ambitions and desires. Vincent narrates that â€Å"He suffered under a different burden: the burden of perfection† (Niccol, 1997). Niccol uses this theme to frame his position on the danger of genetically engineering children. The character of Irene, an almost perfect who is

Case Analysis Report Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Analysis Report - Case Study Example They are situations that are merely beyond control of the organization. First, there were technical problems caused by weather conditions and malfunctioning of the parts manufactured by the contractors. At the time of different scheduled launches, there existed poor atmospheres that could not allow spacecrafts to operate. As a result, there was an adjournment at various dates. On the other hand, the parts that were manufactured by Thiokol were an ineffective and an exposed danger to human beings. Thus, there was need to correct them before NASA could operate as a result hindered NASA operations and reduced confidence from the stakeholders. NASA experienced economic shortage in finance due to reduced funding from the Congress. The country was embroiled in war with the Vietnamese, hence had reduced their support to the organization. Thus, they could not work as per their specifications and had to revert to more cost effective ways. This limited their goals and could not make effective decision on their own since there was a control from the government sect. Due to these inefficiencies, it meant that the organization could not achieve its objectives and had to be rational enough if they were to succeed. They had to prolong maturity dates of the project, abandon the most sophisticated space crafts and manufacture according to budget. The management also had to spread work as they did in the three branches to allow for more consultations and smooth workflow. Roger Bosjoloy was an expert in the solid rocket booster at the Morton Thiokol. He was charged to oversee an efficient manufacture of the O-ring rocket parts. The unit he led played a significant part in the launch of the challenger however much they experience technical problems. He was however in support of the launch of the challenger regardless of the problems he knew existed. To persuade

Immigration Today Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Immigration Today - Essay Example It is best to understand first the three major theories of immigrant and ethnic-group integration. The theories are the classic and new assimilation models, the racial/ethnic disadvantage model, and the segmented assimilation model. West Indies, South Asia, Koreans and Cubans considered as the Black Americans because of their color. They have been a victim of racial discrimination and racism. The classic assimilation theory sees immigrant/ethnic and majority groups following a "straight-line" convergence, becoming more similar over time in norms, values, behaviors, and characteristics. This theory expects those immigrants residing the longest in the host society, as well as the members of later generations, to show greater similarities with the majority group than immigrants who have spent less time in the host society. However, old West Indies remains with their culture and beliefs because of the discrimination and racism they experience from white Americans. The second generation of West Indies were able to adopt their belief and values in education. In employment most of them were engaged in self-employment, to avoid discrimination and racism. South Indians, Koreans and Cubans also believe in self employment because of the same reasons of discrimination and racism. ... West Indies, South Asians, Koreans and Cubans live on a community where most of the same origins stay. They usually live together to ensure that they will have a mutual support in an alien land. Immigrants such as West Indies, South Asians, Koreans and Cubans, to the United States tended to maintain a strong national, cultural, and ethnic identity to their homelands. Barriers usually blocked their assimilation. Because immigrants compare socioeconomic opportunities in the host country to those in their countries of origin, they may not perceive these barriers. However, by the second or third generations, they may realize that the goal of full assimilation may be more difficult and take longer than originally presumed. Segmented assimilation is a combination of the straight line assimilation and the racial ethnic disadvantage model. In this model others have noted that some members of immigrant groups become cut off from economic mobility, others find multiple pathways to assimilation depending on their national origins, socioeconomic status, contexts of reception in the United States, and family resources, both social and financial. They theorize that structural barriers, such as poor urban schools, cut off access to employment and other opportunities - obstacles that often are particularly severe in the case of the most disadvantaged members of immigrant groups. Such impediments can lead to stagnant or downward mobility, even as the children of other immigrants follow divergent paths toward classic straight-line assimilation. The 1965 immigration and nationally act has increased the numbers of Asians and other nationality to migrate in US. The revision of this act has helped the immigrants to lessen the

Student Cramming Essay Example for Free

Student Cramming Essay Abstract This study aims to determine whether cramming behavior had a significant effect on the memory retention students who took Physics 82(Fundamental Physics II) during the second semester of school year 2006-2007. A test was given to these students after one semester (first semester, 2007-2008). A comparison was made between the scores of students who acknowledged frequent use of cramming methods and those that did not. Data shows that retention decreases with time whether the student crammed or not. However, students that crammed have faster rate of decrease in memory retention. 1. Introduction Cramming is defined as studying a relatively large amount of subject matter in a short period of time. It can be regarded as a desperate measure of students to pass exams, complete projects. The consequence of such manner of study is low memory retention [1]. This study aims to confirm or disprove this stereotype. It is possible that grades reflect only short term learning since they are given at the end of the semester and there is no assurance for long term retention. According to Duda, memory retention is enhanced if, for example, a five hour study session is broken down into five separate one hour sessions [1]. This applies to cramming where a single study session just before an examination is less effective than several short study sessions. A survey was conducted to verify these assumptions using UP Los Banos students who took Physics 82 during the second semester of school year 2006-2007. The survey was limited to these students who are currently enrolled in Physics 83 during the first semester of school year 2007-2008. Physics 82 covers fundamental concepts in electricity and magnetism. This study aims to: 1.Determine whether there exists a correlation between the chronological order in which Physics 82 concepts were taught and the students’ memory retention of these concepts. 2.Determine the percentage of students who acknowledged to have employed cramming methods for their Physics 82 semester. 3.Determine whether there is a appreciable difference between students’ final grade (1-5 scale) in Physics 82 and their survey grade for both for the crammers and the non-crammers. 1.1 Hypotheses 1. There no strong positive linear correlation between the chronological order in which PHYS 82 concepts were taught the previous semester, and their memory retention of these concepts. Earlier topics taught are more retained than earlier topics. 2. There is no significant difference between crammers and non-crammers final grade (1-5 scale) in Physics 82, and between crammers and non-crammers survey score. Grade is not a good indicator of cramming behavior. 3. There is no strong linear correlation survey score and Physics 82 final grade for both crammers and non-crammers. Grade is not a good indicator of memory retention. 4. There is no significant difference between the between the students’ final grade (1-5 scale) in Physics 82 and their survey grade both for the crammers and the non-crammers. Cramming has no significant effect on the student’s memory retention of Physics 82 concepts. 2. Methodology The survey population consisted of all Physics 83 students that took Physics 82 the previous Semester. The Survey was done in class hours of Phys83 to all students. The population needed was filtered out afterwards. The survey questions included 16 topics in Physics 82 which were divided into 4 sets reflecting the first to the last quarter of the semester. Questions were generated for each topic. Five basic equations and two to four conceptual problems were taken from the topics. This was to ensure that the survey was representative of the whole Physics 82 semester. The questionnaire survey was divided into three parts, personal information, matching type and multiple choice. The first part consisted of personal information and also asked the students to rate themselves in a scale of 1 to 5 where 5 was the highest. The information taken were the following: ofrequency of cramming in exams and/or projects: â€Å"I cram my study for the night before exams† ostudy routine: (1-2hrs), (monthly(1)†¦, weekly(5)) I do not study for quizzes/do assign ahead oPreparation time for exam(a night before(1)†¦, three weeks before(5) ) I review only near exam dates oStudents claim on good retention: â€Å"I forgot my Physics 82† oLikelihood of cramming in the future: â€Å"I expect myself to cram for the coming exams due to unavoidable circumstances.† From these the students were then categorized to two sets as non-crammers (labeled as R), having less than 65% of total points in part I, and crammers (C) whose high score in part I acknowledge their use and likely future use of cramming methods. The percentage of students C and R in the population were then taken. The following comparisons were made: (1) between C and R Physics 82 final grade, (2) between C and R survey scores, and (3 ) between Physics 82 final grade and survey scores of all respondents. In the second part, students were asked to match an equation with a concept. There were 20 equations and corresponding concepts. Each match was given 1 point. Examples of the questions were [2]: Column AColumn B 1.Coulomb’s Law 2.1 Volt K. 1AmpCoul=1Joule/Coulomb Part 3 (multiple choice) consisted of 8 conceptual and 8 computational questions. The following are some examples: 1. Which of the following is false about electric potential? A.is the energy per unit charge B.is dependent of charge passing per unit time in a conductor. C.it is a scalar quantity D.electric potential surfaces lines cross each other 2. Which of the following is true? I.An Ohmic Conductor has a linear Voltage and Current relationship. II.When Ohm’s Law is not obeyed the resistivity (Ï ) of a substance is constant in the equation E=Ï J (J is current density). A.I only B. II only C. Both I and II D Neither I and I 1. The intensity of light is Io=100 Watts 1 meter away from its source. What is its intensity if the distance is doubled? A) I=Io/4 B) I=Io/2 C) I=0 D) I=Io/8 E) none of the above 2. In a DC R-L circuit, the current rises gradually to 5 ÃŽ ¼A in 8ÃŽ ¼sec. What is the induced EMF of the 10H inductor? A) 6.25V B) 0.625V C) 6V D) 12.5V E) none of the above Problem solving skills were also tested to gain insight on the student’s skills in operating some equations in part 2. Part 3 consisted of 16 items of 2 points each. The questions were structured so that 5 matching type items (Part 2), 2 conceptual and 2 computational multiple choice items (part3) represented each quarter of the Physics 82 semester. It was ensured that all items in the four quarters are of comparable level of difficulty. In order to test the reliability of the survey, we repeated some problems in the questionnaire so as to infer whether the students focused on answering the survey or merely guessed the answers. The questionnaire had a total of 52 points, 20 points for part two and 32 points for part three. Each quarter has perfect score of 13 points. A correlation between the sequence of these quarters and average points per quarter was taken. 3. Results and Discussion All of the 48 Physics 82 students who are enrolled in Physics 83 took part in the survey. Simple statistical methods were employed since the survey involved the whole population. In part I, it was assessed that there were approximately 32.56% crammers and 67.44% non-crammers in the population. The mean of the final grades of non-crammers was 2.36 while that of those who cram was 2.42. Since the grading system is in a scale of 1-5 with 1 being the highest, the one with lower mean implies a higher grade. Those who cram tends to have a lower grade than those who do not cram. This trend was also observed in the difference in the average of survey scores between the two categories where non-crammers had a 59.41% average and crammers had a 55.47%. The difference between the two averages was 3.94%. These difference is not significantly observable in the 1-5 grading system; thus, inference in cramming behavior based on grades is not reliable. Figure 3.1 Linear Regression of corresponding average survey score of students per quarter in the simulated exam to test natural degradation of retention through time. In figure 3.1 the trend of score increase is shown with a correlation of 0.566. This shows a natural degradation of memory retention through time since in the most recent quarter, 4th quarter, the average grade of the student in the simulated exam were higher than their average grade in the previous quarter. The average points of 1st 2nd, and 3rd 4th are then averaged in pairs that reflected first and second half the of the Physics 82 semester. Figure 3.2 Average scores of students per quarter in the simulated exam. The average of the second half is 7.802326 which is higher than that of the first half which is equal to 7.476744.This further justifies the degradation of memory of retention with time. Figure 3.3 Linear correlation of Physics 82 final grade and survey score Figure 3.3 shows the correlation between the survey score and the final grade of the students in physics 82 last semester. The negative correlation is due to the fact that 1 is the highest in the 1-5 scale Grading System. Students who got high grades in Physics 82 also got high scores in the survey. The correlation of -0.62263 implies that the final grade of the students is a strong indicator of memory retention where a high grade likely implies high retention. Table 3.1 Mean difference and median difference between physics 82 final grade and survey grade CategoryMean DifferenceMedian Difference Crammer-0.839-0.5 Non-Crammer-0.664-0.25 Table 3.1 shows the difference between physics 82 final grade and survey grade (1-5 grade system). The negative sign indicates that all the students have lesser survey grades compared to their final grade. There is a significant difference between the degradation of grade between crammers and non-crammers. The crammers’ grade decreased by 0.839 while that of non-crammers’ decreased by 0.664. The crammers significantly had less memory retention than those of the non-crammers. 4. Conclusion Memory retention undergoes degradation process through time. This degradation is further increased by cramming behavior. Memory retention has a natural degradation through time both for crammers and non-crammers. The earlier topics were less retained than the most recent topics. Cramming had a significant effect on the student’s memory retention of Physics 82 concepts. There was a strong linear correlation survey score and Physics 82 final grade as shown in figure 3.3. Grade is a strong indicator of memory retention since it was shown that those who got higher grades had better performance in the simulated exam. Thus, students who obtained higher grades tend to have more concepts retained. Cramming was shown to contribute to memory loss. Crammers had a 0.5 median drop in grade between Physics 82 final grade and survey grade whereas non-crammers had a median drop of 0.25. The result of this study is consistent with Duda’s study which affirms the negative effect of crammi ng. The structure of this study may be implemented on other subjects to further assess the effects of cramming behavior on memory retention and may involve other criterion on student academic performance. References [1]J Duda. Study shows test cramming has negative effects on grades. http://wc.arizona.edu/papers/94/91/01_2_m.html. Last modified on Feb 2, 2001. [2]H.D. Young and R.A. Freedman. University Physics: The Modern Physics, tenth edition. USA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, 2000. [3]Statistics.Encyclopedia Britannica 2005 Deluxe Edition CD.USA, Encyclopedia Britannica Inc. 2005

Psychological Profile of Albert Fish

Psychological Profile of Albert Fish Criminal profiling has always been a crucial way of solving crime in law enforcement. This type of mechanism narrows the field of investigation by indicating what kind of person is most likely to have committed a crime by focusing on certain behavioral and personality traits. It is a collection of leads, and has been described as a skilled attempt to provide specific information about a certain type of suspect. A disorganized asocial offender tends to have an unusual personality. As a child, their childhood had often consisted of physical or emotional abuse. Even in school, disorganized offenders struggled to make friends and also with academics. Usually, these offenders are described as strange, socially awkward, and unintelligent. Many are reasons why these offenders are overlooked. For example, in a homicide; the disorganized offender attacks the victims abruptly and uses un-planned or barely planned violence. Disorganized asocial offenders are only comfortable within their famili ar surroundings because of the absence of social norms and values. (Holmes, 1996, p.49) The organized nonsocial offender however, is the exact opposite. These offenders have organized characteristics that match to their own personal lifestyle (Holmes, 1996 p.50). Most of organized offenders are not often recognized because of their ability to â€Å"blend in.† Their charismatic personalities also play a role in their behavior. Even under suspicion, the offender could have the possibilities of preparing responses to benefit his own situation. When committing a crime, they try to leave and little evidence as possible (Holmes, 1996 p. In the case of a murder, the offender would not leave the murder weapon at the crime scene. Alternatively, they would take the weapon and move the body to a different location. An organized nonsocial offender is most likely inclined to use a weapon that belongs to them. Not all serial killers are the same. Although they tend to have a similar motivations, their behaviors are different from one another. Each serial killer can be identified in different sub-categories. The most recognized sub-categories are the visionary, mission, hedonistic, and control serial killers. Visionary killers are propelled to kill because of the voices he hears or visions he sees. God or the devil can be an influence to a visionary killer (Holmes, 1996, p.64). These killers would usually be out of touch with reality. With mission killers, they are the exact opposite of visionary killers. Instead of being out of touch with reality, mission killers are very active in the real world (Holmes, 1996, p.64). They are likely to gravitate to a certain group of people and are prone to target a minority. A hedonistic killer or thrill killer sexual gratification through the murder. These killers use time consuming techniques to murder their victims; this includes dismemberment, necrop hilia, mutilation, and many more. The hedonistic killer is more fixated on the killing compared to the visionary and mission killer. However, there is an extension to the hedonistic subcategory. One that does not kill for sexual gratification for a prime motive is called a hedonistic comfort-oriented killer. The hedonistic comfort-oriented killer preferably kills for personal gain. At last, the power or control serial killer, gains pleasure from the complete domination of his victim. Much like the hedonistic serial killer, a control serial killer gains sexual gratification from the murder; the only difference is having power over the victim (Holmes, 1996, p. 66). The subcategory of â€Å"hedonistic serial killer† best suits Albert Fish because he had lured children inside his home and would torture them multiple ways. Some of the acts of torture would include a paddle laced with sharp nails; he would later sexually assault them. As he continued to do these acts, he eventually murdered and cannibalized his victims, primarily children. Albert Fish is an organized nonsocial, hedonistic serial killer who is a psychopath. Methods Hamilton Howard Fish, also known as Albert Fish, was born in Washington D.C. on May 19, 1870. His father, Randall Fish, was 75 at the time of his birth making him 43 years older than his mother. The youngest of three living siblings, Fish adopted the name Albert after a deceased sibling. Many members of his family had mental illness, and one suffered from religious mania. One of Fish’s brothers was issued into a state mental institution. His sister was identified with a â€Å"mental affliction† Also, his mother experienced aural and visual hallucinations. Three other relatives were diagnosed with mental illnesses (Murderpedia). As a child, Fish suffered several traumatic events such as dealing with the death of his father and also being sent to an orphanage by his mother. At the time, Albert was five years old, the youngest in the entire boy in the entire institution. (Doidge) While at the orphanage, he was exposed to numerous acts of perversion and physical abuse which benefited his obsession with sadomasochism. Over the years, he was introduced to practices such as urolagnia and coprophagia from a telegraph boy. This led Fish to visit public bathhouses to watch boys undress. As he grew older, Fish moved to New York to become a male prostitute. In that time, he began sexually assaulting young boys (Doidge). Fish claimed to have â€Å"had children in every state† although it is not known whether his statement was true (Murderpedia). He mainly targeted African American or mentally challenged children because he believed that they would not be missed. Fish later married a 19 year old woman and had 6 children with her; she eventually abandoned him and their children for another man (Castleden). Although Fish had never abused his children, he encouraged them to participate in his sado-masochism games. This included his children using a nailed studded paddle on Fish’s buttocks. He was also known for writing a letter to Mrs. Budd explainin g in great detail the torture he put their children through, and also how he cannibalized her. He only confessed to the murders of Francis McDonnell, Grace Budd, and Billy Gaffney. Results Fish is indeed an organized nonsocial, hedonistic serial killer. Albert Fish falls into the category of an organized nonsocial offender. Although he is categorized as an organized nonsocial offender, he illustrates traits of a disorganized asocial as well. For this reason, Fish suffered from having an absent father-figure in his life since his father had died when he was only five years old. This caused his mother to send him to an orphanage in which he had became socially awkward. Another characteristic was that Fish claimed that God was persuading him to murder and torture children. His main traits are mostly found within an organized nonsocial offender. For example, Fish had used his charm on Mr. and Mrs. Budd that had gained their trust in order to lure Grace out of their home; this shows that he is able to manipulate others because he gives a good impression of himself. Fish also plans out his attacks before committing them. Albert Fish has a very high likelihood of being a psyc hopath because of the characteristics found in his behavior. His family history may have played a factor in his actions however, he had been examined several times by psychiatrists at Bellevue but was Fish was always released and declared â€Å"disturbed but sane.† This signifies that Fish is capable of manipulating and harming others around him. He has been known to be a master in disguise because of his weak and fragile old man appearance. He Fish uses this as an advantage to try and prey on his victims. References Albert Fish | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers. (n.d.). Retrieved January 28, 2015, from http://murderpedia.org/male.F/f/fish-albert.htm Albert Fishs Childhood | Twisted Minds a website about serial killers. (2007, January 1). Retrieved January 28, 2015, from http://twistedminds.creativescapism.com/mostnotorious/albert-fish/ Cannibal Albert Fish Documentary. (2012, February 24). Retrieved January 29, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orJiXNQeScs Castleden, C. (2011). Albert Fish the Lying Cannibal. New York: Constable Robinson. Doidge, C. (2002). The Life of Albert Fish. In Profile of Serial Killers. Create Space Independent Publishing Platform. Forensic Document Examination. (n.d.). Retrieved February 4, 2015, from http://www.forensicsciencesimplified.org/docs/how.html Handwriting Expert, Forensic Document Examiner, Forgery Exam. (2006, January 1). Retrieved February 3, 2015, from http://www.documentlab.com/ Hare, R. (1999). Without conscience: The disturbing world of the psychopaths among us. New York: Guilford Press. Holmes, R., Holmes, S. (2002). Profiling violent crimes: An investigative tool (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. Montaldo, C. (2014, December 16). Profile of Serial Killer Albert Fish. Retrieved February 3, 2015, from http://crime.about.com/od/serial/p/albertfish.htm Rawlins, H. (2003, January 1). Serial Killers. Retrieved January 30, 2015, from http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/spring03/rawlins/fishtrial.htm Taylor, T. (n.d.). ALBERT FISH. Retrieved January 30, 2015, from http://www.prairieghosts.com/fish.html