Common Dorm Costs for College Students

Normal Dorm Costs for College Students Living in the habitation corridors during your time in school frequently implies you can dodge the problem of paying rent each month, manage a proprietor, and financial plan for utilities. There are still, in any case, heaps of costs that accompany living in the dormitories. Remember that, as an understudy living in nearby lodging, there are in reality a great deal of costs you have power over. Indeed, you might be required to buy a feast plan, yet you can buy the littlest one potential and save a few snacks in your space for when youre hungry. Moreover, in the event that you deal with your room during the year, you wont deal with sudden indictments for cleaning or harm fixes when you look at. Finally, taking great consideration of yourself - e.g., discovering time to work out, getting enough rest, and eating admirably - can help kill surprising expenses on things like regular checkups or meds. The following is an example spending plan for an understudy living nearby during their time in school. Your expenses might be higher or lower contingent upon where you live, your own decisions, and your way of life. Consider the financial plan beneath an example that you can reexamine varying for your own individual circumstance. Moreover, some details in this example spending plan can be included or deducted varying. (Your PDA bill, for instance, might be a lot bigger - or littler - than recorded here, contingent upon your requirements just as your spending plan.) And a few things, similar to transportation, might be immensely unique relying upon how you get to grounds just as the distance away from home your school is. The pleasant thing about spending plans, regardless of whether youre living in a home corridor, is that they can be adjusted until they fit your own one of a kind needs. So if something isnt very working out, have a go at moving things around until the numbers include in support of yourself. Basic Dorm Costs for College Students Food (snacks in room, pizza conveyance) $40/month Garments $20/month Individual things (cleanser, razors, antiperspirant, make-up, clothing cleanser) $15/month Phone $80/month Diversion (going to clubs, seeing motion pictures) $20/month Books $800-$1000/semester School supplies (paper for printer, hop drive, pens, printer cartridges) $65/semester Transportation (bicycle lock, transport pass, gas on the off chance that you have a vehicle) $250/semester Travel (trips home during breaks and occasions) $400/semester Solutions, over-the-counter meds, medical aid unit $125/semester Various (PC fix, new bicycle tires) $150/semester

study guide for romeo and juliet Essay Example For Students

study control for romeo and juliet Essay Romeo JulietStudy GuideCHARACTERS1. Stage Manager-When the play is perused so anyone might hear, and the entertainers stay situated the stage administrator peruses the play headings. These are the words in italics that portray whats occurring in front of an audience. Capulets2. Ruler Capulet3. Woman Capulet-his wife4. Juliet-their daughter5. Tybalt-Juliets Cousin6. Sampson7. GregoryMontagues8. Ruler Montague9. Woman Montague-his wife10. Romeo-their son11. Benvolio12. Mercutio13. AbrahamOther14. Medical attendant Juliets Nurse15. Minister Laurence-a sacred man16. Sovereign The Prince of Verona17. ParisAct1 Scene1: The scene is a road in Verona, Italy. Sampson and Gregory, 2 workers of the Capulet family unit, are talking. Romeo cherishes RoselineScene2: At the Capulet house, Lady Capulet converses with Juliet. Juliets incautious sisters. Scene3: Three covered Montagues falter outside the Capulet house. They are Romeo, Benvolio, and Mercutio. We will compose a custom paper on study manage for romeo and juliet explicitly for you for just $16.38 $13.9/page Request now Act2 Scene1: Romeo enters the Capulets plantation. Scene2: Friar Laurence goes into his room. He conveys a willow bin loaded with organic product. Scene3: Benvolio and Mercutio stroll along a road in Verona. Tybalt provoked Romeo to a duel. Scene4: Juliet is in her room. Act3 Scene1: Benvolio and Mercutio remain in the road talking. Romeo and Juliet wedded. After one hour there is a battle. Mercutio and Tybalt battle then Tybalt cuts Mercutio. Romeo is distraught and afterward battles Tybalt in which he slaughters Tybalt. Scene2: At the Capulets house, Juliet anticipates for Romeo. Juliet has known about Tybalts demise. Juliet discovers that Romeo has been expelled. Scene3: Romeo is disturbed and he needs to execute himself. Monk advises Romeo to go to Mantua. Scene4: Romeo bids farewell to Juliet. Juliets guardians have organized Juliet to wed Paris. Act4 Scene1: Juliet converses with minister and finds away out. Scene2: Juliet is dead. Paris is furious. There will be a burial service. Act5 Scene1: Romeo hears the updates on Juliet being dead. Scene2: Romeo kills himself in the wake of killing Paris and afterward Juliet kills herself (for genuine this time!)Shakespear Bio Notes:He was conceived in 1564 and he kicked the bucket in 1616. He composed 38 plays. Strategy3 major ingredients:1. Story2. Performance3. AudienceA PLAY WILL USUALLY END IN A RESOLUTION TO A CONFLICTCategory: Shakespeare

How to Find Help With Research Papers

How to Find Help With Research PapersWhen looking for help with research papers, it is important to be aware of the research paper help sites that are out there. Finding these help sites can be tricky, but the good news is there are quite a few great ones out there that are completely free of charge.One good place to find help with research papers is on the Internet. A lot of professional organizations have websites, and many websites are dedicated to helping people with writing a better research paper. Also, when you register at these websites, you will usually get a newsletter with help with research papers that you can download as well.Another great place to find help with research papers is in your school. Your school may have a science or math department that has several courses that you can take in order to prepare for a future research paper. Many of these courses include research papers and there will often be a professor who is available to help you with the papers.If you ar e studying abroad, you should check to see if your school has a website or even a phone number for help with research papers. Sometimes, the professors in your country who are native English speakers will be more than happy to write your paper for you. There may also be resources that you can use.You can also find a lot of help with research papers from books and magazines. There is a lot of information out there on research papers and you should not hesitate to use what you read. As long as you are consistent with what you are doing, you should be able to generate good results.However, there are also a lot of helpful websites out there that have been created by people who work for a living. These websites have become very popular because of how interactive they are and how much information they provide. It can be hard to find such sites, but once you do, you will be able to get some good help.If you decide to sign up for a class or use a website to get help with research papers, yo u should have some idea of what to expect. Most of the time, you will be given a number of research papers to work on and then given a set amount of time to complete them. This is the only way to get through all of your work at once, so make sure you are able to do this.With a little effort, you can find help with research papers. Take the time to investigate some of the options that are available, and you will be able to produce an effective research paper in no time at all.

The Death Penalty Is Bad - 1258 Words

The death penalty is bad. Like really bad. Seriously, it’s bad. The death penalty and the use of capital punishment has been a long withstanding tradition in the United States. The earliest record of death penalty laws can be traced back to the code of Hammurabi in eighteenth century B.C. This set of laws laid down death as an acceptable form of punishment for twenty five crimes. Fast forward to sixteenth century Britain; there are now two hundred and twenty two crimes punishable by death, including, but not limited to stealing, and cutting down a tree. This excessive use of capital punishment in Britain was brought with the settler to the new world and sets the stage for American capital punishment; this â€Å"provided the death penalty for†¦show more content†¦The death penalty is an obvious form of cruel and unusual punishment. On April 29, 2014, Clayton D. Lockett was set to be executed by lethal injection. Lockett’s lawyers repeatedly questioned the use of the experimental drug set to be used in his execution, but the state of Oklahoma decided to carry it out as scheduled. First, the executioner had a problem finding a suitable vein to inject Mr. Lockett. After an hour, a vein was finally found, near his groin, and the execution was set to begin. The doctor who was supervising administered a sedative first, and announced that Clayton Lockett was unconscious, and for the lethal drugs to be administered. At this point, two things were wrong. First, just the sheer fact that a doctor was present was in violation of several ethical codes and standards which doctors are set to abide by, the American Medical Association’s code of Ethics states that doctors are not allowed to participate in the killing of an individual, and may only be allowed to provide a certificate of death after the individual has been declared dead by someone else (Black). Second, Mr. Lockett was not unconscious. The drugs used in lethal injection are known to cause excruciating pain if the victim is not properly sedated. No more t han three minutes after the administration of the drugs,

Analysis Of Showrooming At Best Buy, Details The Struggles...

Introduction: The following case analysis, Showrooming at Best Buy, details the struggles of brick and mortar companies competing with online retailers. Best Buy, a major retailer of electronic goods, decides to permanently price match their online competitors. Using references from the 11th edition of business essentials, this paper will determine the pros and cons of permanent price matching, and how other companies are dealing with the increase in online shopping. The issue of showrooming will be addressed, along with an explanation of how companies are deterring customers from partaking. Through the analyzation of the case study, several recommendations will be made on how Best Buy can stay afloat despite a risky tactic in price-matching, and how companies can compete in a market dominated by online retailing. Analysis: Showrooming is the practice of shopping for a product in person, only to buy it online rather than at the store (p3). An increasing amount of shoppers are partaking in showrooming for the ability to compare prices and save money. During the 2012 holiday season, 27% of mobile phone owners used their phone while inside a store to check the price of a product elsewhere (p1). More and more shoppers were using showrooming for the convenience and deals offered by online retailers. Showrooming had a great effect on brick and mortar stores. Sales for major chains such as JC Penney and Best Buy fell, with the former having same-store sales decrease by 26 %,

The Epic Of Gilgamesh, The Bell Jar, And Ariel - 902 Words

Just when I think I learned the way to live, life changes† a quote from Hugh Prather. Do you know how to live or is life changing for you, no matter what your life is changing unexpectedly. I believe the stages of dealing with life unexpectedly changing are the pains of having your world crumble from around you, the journey to create a new life, and the acceptance of the new life you now have. and these stages are written in King Lear, The Epic of Gilgamesh, The Bell Jar, and Ariel: the restored edition. this means what connects these pieces of literature together is the common thread of life unexpectedly changing. Tzvi Abusch author of Ishtar’s Proposal and Gilgamesh s Refusal: An Interpretation of The Gilgamesh Epic† said â€Å"Gilgamesh must learn to live†. This because Gilgamesh in tablet 8 of The Epic of Gilgamesh has to come to terms with Enkidu s death and that his ideal life with his best friend is now destroyed. In king lear we can tell in â€Å"a ct 1 scene 1† that he had everything he could ever want. That is until his daughter Cordelia refuses to give him affection and he replies with â€Å"nothing can come of nothing, speak again† to which she says â€Å"Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave my heart into my mouth. I love your Majesty According to my bond; no more nor less.† This pains Lear and starts unexpected changes. he should have learned what Esther said in â€Å"chapter 5† of The Bell Jar â€Å"if you expect nothing from somebody you are never disappointed† nothing really

Dinner free essay sample

Dinner. Family dinners at my home are something that I will hold close to me forever. Rosi, are you coming to dinner? My mom asks this question almost nightly. I turn off my disc player and head to the dinner table, not always to eat but to have my cup of tea and spend time with my family. Dinner is something my family and I make time for. It is a time to discuss the happenings of our day and to share our thoughts. I feel that too many families nowadays dont make time to be together, for at least a half an hour, without being in front of a television. As the eleventh in a family of twelve, family dinners used to be hectic and loud. As children, after dinner, my younger brother and I would both sit on Daddys lap and hed give us tight hugs, the tighter the hug, the better, we thought. We will write a custom essay sample on Dinner or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page My family has grown up and my brother and I are much too big to sit on my dads lap. I miss the nights of pandemonium because these days its just my parents, my older brother and me for dinner. As I grow older, Ill never forget the nights spent talking around the dinner table. When I leave my home, I think one of the things Ill miss most is dinner and everything dinner stands for, at least, in my family.

I hate black people 208 PM free essay sample

I open my phone in the huddle before we begin discussing the game plan for the upcoming battle against Coginchaug volleyball. My Twitter is blowing up. Different Twitter handles all yell at me. â€Å"We hate you too†, â€Å"You’re not going to be sleeping tonight, we will find you†, â€Å"You’re stupid, you don’t know how to put on eyeliner, and your parents are cousins. † Emotions rush over me. Although I feel extremely faint and anxious, I ask my team what to do and frantically search for answers. I notice, out of the corner of my eye, the principal arriving. Running out to meet her, my face turns quickly from relief into panic. Sheheard what happened from hateful emails sent to the school. For all she knew, I was the one who sent the tweet.Questions poured out of the principal’s and vice principal’s mouths. I had no answers. We will write a custom essay sample on I hate black people 2:08 PM or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I did not know how from my Twitter a tweet was sent out saying â€Å"I hate black people.† There were about twenty thousand favorites and eleven thousand retweets with many, many more replies, agreeing with me or condemning me to Hell. Some were from my friends, but hundreds were from people I had never met before. After a half an hour of questioning, I realized who tweeted. It was not a hacker or an enemy, but one of my friends. I shared everything that happened since 2:08, the time of the tweet, to the time I arrived in that office with the principal, I repeated the timeline to the vice principal, then my dad, then the police officer, then the police officer again as he wrote a police statement. I opened my phone at 2:07, saw a friend pick it up at 2:08, continued talking at 2:09, heard the bell ring at 2:10. I picked my phone up, put it in my backpack, went to practice at 2:11. From 2:11 to 5:30, while my phone sat in my backpack, my life was changing, and I had no idea.As I shared the timeline, I shook. The hate in the tweets and emails directed at me scared me. I worried about the safety of my family, who sat at home, vulnerable. While I feared being murdered or not getting into college, this â€Å"friend† was at a soccer game, cheering on our school, oblivious to what he had caused. I drove home, stunned and confused. I took a shower to clear my head. My family sat in the hallway. They called my friend who agreed to go to the school to admit what he had done. My chest felt lighter. I could finally breathe again. I would be able to go to college. My family was around me, assuring me that I was safe.When I returned the next day, the principal held an assembly using the events that took place the day before as an example on the effective use of social media. My friends and the teachers were there to support me. A few months later, we re-started our social media accounts, this time on the private setting.

Back-Channel Signal Definition and Examples

Backs .In conversation, a back-channel signal is a noise, gesture, expression, or word used by a listener to indicate that he or she is paying attention to a speaker. According to H.M. Rosenfeld (1978), the most common back-channel signals are head movements, brief vocalizations, glances, and facial expressions, often in combination. Examples and Observations Fabienne: I was looking at myself in the mirror.Butch Coolidge: Uh-huh?Fabienne: I wish I had a pot.Butch Coolidge: You were lookin in the mirror and you wish you had some pot?Fabienne: A pot. A pot belly. Pot bellies are sexy.(Pulp Fiction, 1994)We .. show we are listening and do not wish to interrupt by giving back-channel signals, such as yes, uh-huh, mhm, and other very short comments. These do not constitute turns or attempts to take the floor. On the contrary, they are indications that we expect the speaker to continue.(R. Macaulay, The Social Art: Language and Its Uses. Oxford University Press, 2006)Karen Pelly: Brent might learn a little lesson if his security camera got stolen.Hank Yarbo: Yeah.Karen Pelly: By someone.Hank Yarbo: Hmm.Karen Pelly: Someone he trusts.Hank Yarbo: Yeah, I suppose.Karen Pelly: Someone he would never suspect.Hank Yarbo: Yeah.Karen Pelly: Plot the cameras motion and approach from a blind spot. You could pull it off.(Security Cam, Corner Gas, 2004) Facial Expressions and Head Movements The face plays an important role in the communication process. A smile can express happiness, be a polite greeting, or be a back-channel signal. Some facial expressions are linked to the syntax structure of the utterance: eyebrows may raise on an accent and on nonsyntactically marked questions. Gaze and head movements are also part of the communicative process. (J. Cassell, Embodied Conversational Agents. MIT Press, 2000)And here Mrs. Aleshine nodded vigorously, not being willing to interrupt this entrancing story.(Frank R. Stockton, The Casting Away of Mrs. Lecks and Mrs. Aleshine, 1892) A Group Process Turn-taking and suppressing signals are given by the current speaker; they are used to defend the right to continue speaking on the same subject or with the same level of emphasis. ​Back-channel signals are communication acts by others, such as a person agreeing or disagreeing with the speaker. The types of signal and the rate at which they are used relate to the underlying group process, particularly the group regulatory forces. Meyers and Brashers (1999) found that groups use a form of participation reward system; those who are co-operating with the group receive helping communication behaviors and those in competition are received with communication-blocking behavior. (Stephen Emmitt and Christopher Gorse, Construction Communication. Blackwell, 2003)

Creativity in the classroom Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Creativity in the classroom - Essay Example Some teachers may take hands off attitude in terms of not caring whether students concentrate on the subject taught in the classroom. With such an attitude, teachers may engage in ignoring difficult topics they feel may not attract the attention of students. Students on their part, may engage in shifting blame on their teachers for failing or losing interest on a course or subject (Boyer 82). Professors need to come up with creative measures that will enhance the student interest on a subject or course. How one teaches, impacts on the students concentration in the classroom. Teachers need to make the subjects or topics they teach in the classroom more interesting and rewarding for both the teacher and the student. In addition, the teachers need to relate with students in a manner that is informal, prior to beginning a lesson in a classroom setting. This helps in creating a working alliance between the teacher and student in the classroom setting and ease up tensions while teaching su bjects’ students regard as tough to understand. I concur with Boyer on his suggestion that teachers should focus on caring for their students since, it allows students to interact positively with their teachers and concentrate more on what is taught in the classroom. ... s, students lack interest in studying and engage in practices such as cheating in their assignments, they buy term papers and this impacts negatively on the education system (Boyer 85). Professors need to develop personal interest in their student’s progress and related to courses they teach in the classroom. As part of enhancing creativity in the classroom, teachers need to encourage student participation where, the students have the opportunity to speak or reflect their views on the subject being taught. This way, students develop interest to learn more and gain understanding of the subject being taught. It is true that the class size matters in terms of improving student concentration in a class. The moment a class is packed, the teachers are not able to keep track with the student’s performance in class. The only students who benefit in such an environment are the bright students while those struggling in class continue to lose and underperform (Boyer 86). In additi on, a controlled class size provides the teachers with ample time to check on each student’s effort and performance in the class. Quality education require lecturers to focus their concentration on both lower and upper courses. In most colleges, it is a common trend for lecturers not to focus their attention on lower courses and give more attention to the upper division courses. Small class enhance discussions compared to a large size class where the attention span for student is affected by engaging on other distracting activities because the lecturer is unable to keep track of every student in the classroom. As reiterated by Boyer, freshmen need to be taught by finest teachers and small size classes that promotes lively participation in class discussion and improve student interest in their

Essay Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 4

Essay - Assignment Example Wendell Berry offers an insight into the importance of practicing some sort of agriculture to produce food. After critical evaluation of the existing trend in which people are increasing choosing food over the counter, he learns something. The contemporary society is characterized emphasis on service industry especially in urban center. In that respect, people tend to ignore the important fact of researching on the nutritional threshold of the food consumed (Wendell 146). The increasing campaign for industrialization has kept many people away from practicing simple gardening at the backyard to obtain pure and fresh food. Instead, eating has remained the only interest with absolute ignorance on the diet and suitability of such food. Besides, Berry recognize the immediate challenge of poor feeding habits and the transferred costs through medical attention over nutritional health related problems. The pleasure of eating according to Berry Wendell can only be derived from consuming fresh and nutritious food which one knows its source. This constitutes direct involvement in farming however small scale it may be and cooking the food before eating it. On contrary, most people have shifted the responsibility to food processing industries who serve their profit interest at the expense of consumer welfare. People have failed to understand that the groceries and food stores are health hazards filled with mere appearance of beauty. Such food production technology to feed the mass includes biotechnology which has already raised ethical concerns. The chemical content of the genetically modified food outweigh the bodily nutritional requirements. Individual consumers are partly to blame for this increasing technology due to overreliance on the food stores instead of embracing even small scale vegetable gardening at the backyard. Besides, people tend to give little attention to the significance of cooked food and hide behind limited time to consume

Real Time Pcr Essay Example for Free

Real Time Pcr Essay PROBE-BASED DETECTION SYSTEMS14 Hybridization probes (also called FRET probes)16 MELTING CURVE ANALYSIS16 Multiplex real-time PCR18 APPLICATIONS OF REAL TIME PCR18 GENE EXPRESSION ANALYSIS18 SNP GENOTYPING19 HIV DETECTION19 CYSTIC FIBROSIS (CF) DETECTION:20 THE ADVANTAGES OF REAL-TIME PCR20 THE DISADVANTAGES21 REFRENCES21 REAL TIME PCR TRADITIONAL PCR The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is one of the most powerful technologies in molecular biology. Using PCR, specific sequences within a DNA or cDNA template can be copied, or â€Å"amplified†, many thousand- to a millionfold. In traditional (endpoint) PCR, detection and quantitation of the amplified sequence are performed at the end of the reaction after the last PCR cycle, and involve post-PCR analysis such as gel electrophoresis and image analysis. REAL-TIME QUANTITATIVE PCR (qPCR) In real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR), the amount of PCR product is measured at each cycle. This ability to monitor the reaction during its exponential phase enables users to determine the initial amount of target with great precision. WHAT’S WRONG WITH AGAROSE GELS? * Poor precision. * Low sensitivity. Short dynamic range lt; 2 logs. * Low resolution. * Non-automated. * Size-based discrimination only * Ethidium bromide staining is not very quantitative REAL TIME PCR VS PCR . BASIC PRINCIPLE Quantitative PCR  is carried out in a  thermal cycler  with the capacity to illuminate each sample with a beam of light of a specified wavelength and detect the fluorescence emitted by the excited  fluorochrome. The thermal cycler is also able to rapidly heat and chill samples thereby taking advantage of the physicochemical properties of the  nucleic acids  and  DNA polymerase. The PCR process generally consists of a series of temperature changes that are repeated 25 – 40 times, these cycles normally consist of three stages: the first, at around 95  Ã‚ °C, allows the separation of the nucleic acid’s double chain; the second, at a temperature of around 50-60  Ã‚ °C, allows the alignment of the primers with the DNA template;  the third at between 68 72  Ã‚ °C, facilitates the  polymerization  carried out by the DNA polymerase In real-time PCR, * the amount of DNA is measured after each cycle by the use of fluorescent markers that are incorporated into the PCR product. The increase in fluorescent signal is directly proportional to the number of PCR product molecules (amplicons) generated in the exponential phase of the reaction. * Fluorescent reporters used include double-stranded DNA (dsDNA)- binding dyes, or dye molecules attached to PCR primers or probes that are incorporated into the product during amplification. * The change in fluorescence over the course of the reaction is measured by an instrument that combines thermal cycling with scanning capability. By plotting fluorescence against the cycle number, the real-time PCR instrument generates an amplification plot that represents the accumulation of product over the duration of the entire PCR reaction (Figure 1). Figure 1—Amplification plots are created when the fluorescent signal from each sample is plotted against cycle number; therefore, amplification plots represent the accumulation of product over the duration of the real-time PCR experiment. The samples being amplified in this example are a dilution series of the template. TYPES OF PCR Quantitative PCR| Qualitative qPCR| A specific or non-specific detection chemistry allows the quantification ofthe amplified product. | In qualitative qPCR, the goal is to detect the presence or absence of a certain sequence. | The amount detected at a certain point of the run is directly related to theinitial amount of target in the sample| For virus sub-typing and bacterial species identification. Can also be used for allelic discrimination between wild type and mutant, between different SNPs or between different splicing forms. | common pplications of quantitative PCR are gene expression analysis, pathogen detection/quantification and microRNA quantification| Different fluorophores can be used for the two alleles, and the ratio of the fluorophores signals correlates to the related amount of one form compared to the other one. | Quantitative PCR software uses the exponential phase of PCR for quantification. | Specific detection methods such as Double-Dye probe systems are more ofte n used for theseApplications| Overview of real-time PCR Real-time PCR is a variation of the standard PCR technique used to quantify DNA or RNA in a sample. Using sequence-specific primers, the relative number of copies of a particular DNA or RNA sequence can be determined.. Quantification of amplified product is obtained using fluorescent probes or fluorescent DNA binding dyes and real time PCR instruments that measure fluorescence while performing temperature changes needed for the PCR cycles. qPCR STEPS There are three major steps that make up a qPCR reaction. Reactions are generally run for 40 cycles. 1. Denaturation—The temperature should be appropriate to the polymerase chosen (usually 95 °C). The denaturation time can be increased if template GC content is high. 2. Annealing—Use appropriate temperatures based on the calculated melting temperature (Tm) of the primers (5 °C below the Tm of the primer). 3. Extension—At 70–72 °C, the activity of the DNA polymerase is optimal, and primer extension occurs at rates of up to 100 bases per second. When an amplicon in qPCR is small, this step is often combined with the annealing step using 60 °C as the temperature. BASICS OF REAL TIME PCR Baseline – The baseline phase contains all the amplification that is below the level of detection of the real time instrument. Threshold – where the threshold and the amplification plot intersect defines CT. Can be set manually/automatically CT – (cycle threshold) the cycle number where the fluorescence passes the threshold Rn – (Rn-baseline) NTC – no template control Rn is plotted against cycle numbers to produce the amplification curves and gives the CT value. ONE-STEP OR TWO-STEP REACTION qRT-PCR can be one step or two step. 1. Two-step qRT-PCR Two-step qRT-PCR starts with the reverse transcription of either total RNA or poly(A)+ RNA into cDNA using a reverse transcriptase (RT). This first-strand cDNA synthesis reaction can be primed using random hexamers, oligo(dT), or gene-specific primers (GSPs). To give an equal representation of all targets in real-time PCR applications and to avoid the 3? bias of oligo(dT), it is usually recommended that random hexamers or a mixture of oligo(dT) and random hexamers are used. The temperature used for cDNA synthesis depends on the RT enzyme chosen. Following the first-strand synthesis reaction, the cDNA is transferred to a separate tube for the qPCR reaction. In general, only 10% of the first strand reaction is used for each qPCR. . One-step qRT-PCR One-step qRT-PCR combines the first-strand cDNA synthesis reaction and qPCR reaction in the same tube, simplifying reaction setup and reducing the possibility of contamination. Gene-specifi c primers (GSP) are required. This is because using oligo(dT) or random primers will generate nonspecific products in the one-step procedure and reduce the amount of product of interest. O verview of qPCR and qRT-PCR components This section provides an overview of the major reaction components and parameters involved in real-time PCR experiments. * DNA polymerase One of the main factors affecting PCR specificity is the fact that Taq DNA polymerase has residual activity at low temperatures. Primers can anneal nonspecifically to DNA, allowing the polymerase to synthesize nonspecific product. The problem of nonspecific products resulting from mispriming can be minimized by using a â€Å"hot-start† enzyme. Using a hot-start enzyme ensures that no active Taq is present during reaction setup and the initial DNA denaturation step. * Template Anywhere from 10 to 1,000 copies of template nucleic acid should be used for each real-time PCR reaction. This is equivalent to approximately 100 pg to 1 ? of genomic DNA, or cDNA, generated from 1 pg to 100 ng of total RNA. Excess template may increase the amount of contaminants and reduce efficiency. If the template is RNA, care should be taken to reduce the chance of genomic DNA contamination. One option is to treat the template with DNaseI. Ultrapure, intact RNA is essential for full-length, high-quality cDNA synthesis and accurate mRNA quantification. RNA should be devoid of any RNase contamination, and aseptic conditions should be maintained. * Reverse transcriptase The reverse transcriptase (RT) is as critical to the success of qRT-PCR as the DNA polymerase. It is important to choose an RT that not only provides high yields of full-length cDNA but also has good activity at high temperatures. High-temperature performance is also very important for tackling RNA with secondary structure or when working with gene-specific primers (GSPs). * dNTPs It is recommended that both the dNTPs and the Taq DNA polymerase be purchased from the same vendor, as it is not uncommon to see shifts of one full threshold cycle (Ct) in experiments that employ these items from separate vendors. * Magnesium concentration In qPCR, magnesium chloride or magnesium sulfate is typically used at a fi nal concentration of 3 mM. This concentration works well for most targets; however, the optimal magnesium concentration may vary between 3 and 6 mM. * UNG The Uracil-N-Glycosylase is an enzyme that hydrolyses all single-stranded and double-stranded DNA containing dUTPs. Consequently, if all PCR amplifications are performed in the presence of a dNTPs/dUTPs blend, by carrying a UNG step before every run it is possible to get rid of any previous PCR product. * ROX Some thermocyclers require MasterMix containing ROX dye for normalization. This is the case for the ABI and Eppendorf machines, and optional on the Stratagene machines. If you work with such machines, it is easier to work with the ROX dye already incorporated in the MasterMix rather than adding it manually. It guarantees a higher level of reproducibility and homogeneity of your assays. * Fluorescein For iCycler iQ, My iQ and iQ5 machines (BioRad thermocyclers), the normalization method for SYBR Green assay uses Fluorescein to create a â€Å"virtual background†. As in the case for the ROX, it is better and easier to use a MasterMix that contains pre-diluted Fluorescein, guaranteeing higher reproducibility and homogeneity of your assays. REAL TIME PCR SYSTEM: System Features: †¢ Four interchangeable block formats †¢ Optional Automation Accessory amp; Barcode Scanner †¢ Argon ion laser/CCD camera †¢ Easy to Use Software, Multiple Applications †¢ Set up Wizards †¢ QC Filtering/Flag System †¢ Flexible data reports amp; exporting SOFTWARES FOR DATA ANALYSIS AND PRIMER DESIGNING 1 ) Light Cycler ® Relative Quantification Software The first commercially available software was the Light Cycler ® Relative Quantification Software (2001). 2 ) REST In 2002, the relative expression software tool (REST ) was established as a new tool. 3 ) Q-Gene Recently a second software tool, Q-Gene, was developed, which is able to perform a statistical test of the real-time data. Q-Gene manages and expedites the planning, performance and evaluation of quantitative real-time PCR experiments. 4) OligoPerfect A primer design software program such as OligoPerfectâ„ ¢, available on the Web at www. invitrogen. com/oligoperfect, can automatically evaluate a target sequence and design primers for it based on the criteria STEPS OF REAL TIME PCR Real-time reaction mix (final concentrations): 1x 2 x AmpliTaq Gold 0. 5 ? M 5’ primer 0. 5 ? M 3’ primer 0. 2 ? M probe 0. 4 ? Rox reference dye 20 ? l Final Volume (including sample and dH20) STANDARD REAL-TIME PCR PROTOCOL ASSAY DESIGN: This section describes the stages of real-time PCR assay design and implementation. We will identify sources of variability, the role they play in data accuracy, and guidelines for optimization in the following areas: 1Target amplicon and primer design 2. Nucleic acid purification 3. Reverse transcription 4. Controls and normalization 5. Standard curve evaluation of efficiency, sensitivity, and reproducibility Good primer (pair) properties One way to minimize efficiency bias is to amplify relatively short targets. Amplifying a 100 bp region is more likely to result in complete synthesis in a given cycle than, say, amplifying a 1,200 bp target. For this reason, real-time PCR target lengths are generally in the range of 60 bp to 200 bp. In addition, shorter amplicons act as a buff er against variations in template integrity. Primers designed to amplify larger regions are less likely to anneal with the same fragment in a slightly degraded nucleic acid sample. PURIFICATION Phenol-based organic extraction is a very effective method for purifying RNA from a wide variety of cell and tissue types. During sample lysis, phenol and guanidine isothiocyanate disrupt cells and dissolve cell components. while maintaining the integrity of the nucleic acids by protecting them from RNases. Chloroform is added and the mixture is separated by centrifugation, which separates the solution into an aqueous phase and an organic phase. RNA remains exclusively in the aqueous phase in the presence of guanidine isothiocyanate, while DNA and protein are driven into the organic phase and interphase. The RNA is then recovered from the aqueous phase by precipitation with isopropyl alcohol. REVERSE TRANSCRIPTION CONSIDERATIONS Most reverse transcriptases employed in qRT-PCR are derived from avian myeloblastosis virus (AMV) or Moloney murine leukemia virus (M-MLV). An ideal reverse transcriptase will exhibit the following attributes: * Thermostability— thermostable RTs function at the higher end of (or above) this range and allow for successful reverse transcription of GC-rich regions. * RNase H activity— RNase H activity can drastically reduce the yield and ratio of full-length cDNA, which translates to poor sensitivity. Several RTs, most notably SuperScript II and III, have been engineered for reduced RNase H activity. NORMALIZATION AND QUANTIFICATION: When analyzing and comparing results of Real-Time qPCR assays many researchers are confronted with several uncontrolled variables, which can lead to misinterpretation of the results. Those uncontrolled variables can be the amount of starting material, enzymatic efficiencies, and differences between tissues, individuals or experimental conditions. In order to make a good comparison, normalization can be used as a correction method, for these variables. The most commonly known and used ways of normalization are : * normalization to the original number of cells, * normalization to the total RNA mass, normalization to one or more housekeeping genes, * normalization to an internal or external calibrator. Normalization to number of cells can actually only be done for cell culture and blood samples. The two majors methods of normalization are the absolute quantification and the relative quantification . Absolute quantification Absolute quantification requires a standard curve of known copy numbers. The amplicon being studied can be cloned, or a synthetic oligonucleotide (RNA or DNA) can be used. The standard must be amplified using the same primers as the gene of interest and must amplify with the same efficiency. The standards must also be quantified accurately. This can be carried out by reading the absorbance at A260, although this does not distinguish between DNA and RNA, or by using a fluorescent ribonucleic acid stain such as RiboGreen. Relative quantification Relative quantification is the most widely used technique. Gene expression levels are calculated by the ratio between the amount of target gene and an endogenous reference gene, which is present in all samples. The reference gene has to be chosen so that its expression does not change under the experimental conditions or between different tissue. There are simple and more complex methods for relative quantification, depending on the PCR efficiency, and the number of reference genes used. STANDARD CURVE TO ASSESS EFFICIENCY, SENSITIVITY, AND REPRODUCIBILITY The final stage before assay employment is validating that all the experimental design parameters result in a highly efficient, sensitive, and reproducible experiment. * Reaction efficiency One hundred percent efficiency corresponds to a perfect doubling of template at every cycle, but the acceptable range is 90–110% for assay validation. This efficiency range corresponds to standard curve slopes of –3. 6 to –3. 1. The graph in Figure shows the measurement bias resulting solely from differences in reaction efficiency.. A standard curve is generated by plotting a dilution series of template against the Ct for each dilution. To some, sensitivity is measured by how early a target Ct appears in the amplification plot. However, the true gauge of sensitivity of an assay is whether a given low amount of template fits to the standard curve while maintaining a desirable efficiency. The most dilute sample that fits determines reaction sensitivity. The standard curve also includes an R2 value, which is a measure of replicate reproducibility. Standard curves may be repeated over time to assess whether the consistency, and therefore the data accuracy for the samples. Real-Time PCR Fluorescence Detection Systems Several different fluorescence detection technologies can be used for realtime PCR, and each has specific assay design requirements. All are based on the generation of a fluorescent signal that is proportional to the amount of PCR product formed. The three main fluorescence detection systems are: * DNA-binding agents (e. g. SYBR Green and SYBR GreenER technologies * Fluorescent primers (e. g. , LUX Fluorogenic Primers and Amplifluor qPCR primers) * Fluorescent probes (e. g. , TaqMan probes, Scorpions, Molecular Beacons) The detection method plays a critical role in the success of real-time PCR. DNA-Binding Dyes The most common system for detection of amplified DNA is the use of intercalating dyes that fluoresce when bound to dsDNA. SYBR Green I and SYBR GreenER technologies use this type of detection method. The fluorescence of DNA-binding dyes significantly increases when bound to double-stranded DNA (dsDNA). The intensity of the fluorescent signal depends on the amount of dsDNA that is present. As dsDNA accumulates, the dye generates a signal that is proportional to the DNA concentration and can be detected using real-time PCR instruments. SYBR Green I advantages †¢ Low cost assay †¢ Easy design and set up SYBR Green I disadvantages †¢ Non specific system †¢ Not adapted to multiplex †¢ Non suitable for qualitative qPCR Primer-Based Detection Systems Primer-based fluorescence detection technologies can provide highly sensitive and specific detection of DNA and RNA. In these systems, the fluorophores is attached to a target-specific PCR primer that increases in fluorescence when incorporated into the PCR product during amplification. * Amplifluor Real-Time PCR Primers Amplifluor real-time PCR primers are designed with both a fluorophore and quencher on the same primer. The primer adopts a hairpin configuration that brings the fluorophore in close proximity to the quencher. The fluorescent signal increases when the primer is unfolded and the fluorophore and quencher are de-coupled during incorporation into an amplification product. Figure: Ampliflour primer PROBE-BASED DETECTION SYSTEMS Probe-based systems provide highly sensitive and specifi c detection of DNA and RNA. However, dual-labeling and complex design specifi cations make them expensive and more diffi cult to use than primer-based systems or DNAbinding dyes. TaqMan probes = Double-Dye probes TaqMan probes, also called Double-Dye Oligonucleotides, Double-Dye Probes, or Dual Labelled probes, are the most widely used type of probes. A fluorophore is attached to the 5’ end of the probe and a quencher to the 3’ end. The fluorophores is excited by the machine and passes its energy, via FRET (Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer) to the quencher. TaqMan probes can be used for both quantification and mutation detection, and most designs appear to work well. TaqMan ASSAY DENATURATION ANNEALING OF PRIMERS AND PROBE POLYMERIZATION AND PROBE CLEAVAGE Molecular Beacons In addition to two sequence-specific primers, molecular beacon assays employ a sequence-specific, fluorescently labeled oligonucleotide probe called a molecular beacon, which is a dye-labeled oligonucleotide (25–40 nt) that forms a hairpin structure with a stem and a loop . A fluorescent reporter is attached to the 5 end of the molecular beacon and a quencher is attached to the 3 end. The loop is designed to hybridize specifically to a 15–30 nucleotide section of the target sequence Figure: Moleculer Beacon They are highly specific, can be used for multiplexing, and if the target sequence does not match the beacon sequence exactly, hybridization and fluorescence will not occur a desirable quality for allelic discrimination experiments. Hybridization probes (also called FRET probes) Roche has developed hybridization probes for use with their LightCycler. Two probes are designed to bind adjacent to one another on the amplicon. One has a 3’ label of FAM, whilst the other has a 5’ LC dye, LC red 640 or 705. When the probes are not bound to the target sequence, the fluorescent signal from the reporter dye is not detected. However, when the probes hybridize to the target sequence during the PCR annealing step, the close proximity of the two fluorophores allows energy transfer from the donor to the acceptor dye, resulting in a fluorescent signal that is detected. FRET probe principle and light cycler MELTING CURVE ANALYSIS Melting curve analysis can only be performed with real-time PCR detection technologies in which the fluorophore remains associated with the amplicon. Amplifications that have used SYBR Green I or SYBR GreenER dye primers can be subjected to melting curve analysis. Dual-labeled probe detection systems such as TaqMan probes are not compatible because they produce an irreversible change in signal by cleaving and releasing the fluorophore into solution during the PCR; however, the increased specificity of this method makes this less of a concern. The level of fluorescence of both SYBR Green I and SYBR GreenER dyes significantly increases upon binding to dsDNA. By monitoring the dsDNA as it melts, a decrease in fluorescence will be seen as soon as the DNA becomes single-stranded and the dye dissociates from the DNA. Figure: Melting curve analysis can detect the presence of nonspecifc products, as shown by the additional peaks to the left of the peak for the amplified product in the melt curve. How to perform melting curve analysis To perform melting curve analysis, the real-time PCR instrument can be programmed to include a melting profile immediately following the thermocycling protocol. After amplification is complete, the instrument will reheat your amplified products to give complete melting curve data. Most real-time PCR instrument platforms now incorporate this feature into their analysis packages. In general, the program steps will be: 1. Rapid heating of the amplified sample to 94 °C to denature the DNA. 2. Cooling the sample to 60 °C. 3. Slowly heating (by increasing the temperature 0. 2 °C/second) the sample while plotting fluorescence signal vs. temperature. (As the temperature increases and the dsDNA strands melt, the fluorescence signal will decrease. ) Figure: Example of a melting curve thermal profile setup on an Applied Biosystems instrument (rapid heating to 94 °C to denature the DNA, followed by cooling to 60 °C. ) Multiplex real-time PCR In multiplex real-time PCR, more than one set of gene-specific primers is used to amplify separate genes from the template DNA or RNA in a single tube. Typically, multiplex reactions are used to amplify a gene of interest and a â€Å"housekeeping† gene (e. g. , #-actin or GAPDH), which is used as a normalize for the reaction. Because more than one PCR product will be quantified in the same tube, different fluorescent reporter dyes are used to label the separate primers or probes for each gene. More Samples Analyzed per Plate. Target and normalizer in same reaction and Less sample consumed. APPLICATIONS OF REAL TIME PCR GENE EXPRESSION ANALYSIS A sample gene expression analysis using a multiplex TaqMan assay is presented in the following sections. In this example, we’re interested in the relative expression of three genes in the polyamine biosynthesis pathway, ornithine decarboxylase (ODC), ODC antizyme (OAZ), and antizyme inhibitor (AZI), in two different samples, sample A and sample B. 1. RNA was isolated from sample A and sample B. 2. RNA was reverse transcribed into cDNA. 3. The amount of the target genes (ODC, OAZ, and AZI) and the reference gene (b-actin) was determined in each of the cDNA samples using a multiplex qPCR assay. 4. Data were analyzed and the relative expression of each of the target genes in the two samples was calculated. EXAMPLE BRCA1 is a gene involved in tumor suppression. BRCA1 controls the expression of other genes. In order to monitor level of expression of BRCA1, real-time PCR is used. SNP GENOTYPING In order to perform SNP genotyping, two specific probes labeled with different dyes are used, the first for the wild type allele and the second for the mutant allele. If the assay results in the generation of only the first fluorescent color, then the individual is homozygous wild type at that locus. If the assay results in the generation of only the second fluorescent color, then the individual is homozygous mutant. And finally, if both fluorescent colors are produced, then the individual is heterozygous. At the end of the reaction, hydrolysis probes are digested. The quality of a hydrolysis probe is given by the hybridization efficiency, the quenching of the intact probe and the cleavage activity of Taq polymerase. HIV DETECTION Nowadays HIV is strikingly spreading out whole the world. so in order to diminish its distribution , it is necessary to detect it as soon as possible amp; for this purpose, Real time PCR is recommended by scientist. In this method ,’ pol’’ gen of the virus, is amplified in thermocycler. 6 patient have been studied. infection in these patients was confirmed by ELISA amp; western blot. * Sampling amp; RNA extracting from patients. * Cloning of target segment by using Xba I amp; Hind III. And 180 bp primers. * Standard virus mRNA was extracted. * Quantitative analysis of HIV virus by SYBR-green Real Time RT-PCR. CYSTIC FIBROSIS (CF) DETECTION: Cystic f ibrosis (CF) is the most common inherited disease among Caucasian populations with an incidence of ~1 in 2500 births. A3 base pair (bp) deletion, designated DF508, accounts for nearly 70% of CF cases and causes severe manifestations of the disease. It results in the absence of phenylalanine at position 508 of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) protein and this error prevents normal processing and translocation of the polypeptide chain to apical membranes of epithelial cells. This deletion can be detected by molecular beacons in real time PCR. Figure:Examples of specific molecular beacon fluorescence increase during real-time PCR in samples containing single lymphoblasts homozygous normal for CF (green), heterozygous DF508 (blue), or homozygous DF508 (red). A) Fluorescent signal from the molecular beacon detecting the normal allele. (B) Fluorescent signal from the molecular beacon detecting the DF508 allele. Dashed lines indicate the threshold of 200 units (~10 SD above baseline readings) used for determining CT values. THE ADVANTAGES OF REAL-TIME PCR * The ability to monitor the progress of the PCR reaction as it occurs in real time * The ability to precisely measure the amount of amplicon at each cy cle * An increased dynamic range of detection * The combination of amplification and detection in a single tube, which eliminates post-PCR manipulations. Rapid cycling times (1 hour) * High sample throughput (~200 samples/day) * Low contamination risk (sealed reactions) * Very sensitive (3pg or 1 genome eq of DNA) * Broad dynamic range (10 1010 copies) * Reproducible (CV lt; 2. 0 %) * Allows for quantitation of results * Software driven operation * No more expensive than â€Å"in house† PCR ($15/test) THE DISADVANTAGES * Current technology has limited capacity for multiplexing. Simultaneous detection of 2 targets is the limit. * Development of protocols needs high level of technical skill and/or support. Requires Ramp;D capacity and capital) * High capital equipment costs ($ 50,000 -160,000). REFRENCES * http://www. icmb. utexas. edu/core/DNA/qPCR/QiagenRT-PCR. pdf www. icmb. utexas. edu * http://books. google. com. pk/books? id=-v-U-mXWg-gCamp;printsec=frontcoveramp;dq=real+time+pcramp;hl=enamp;sa=Xamp;ei=Bph1UezKIceDhQeUh4CwCAamp;ved=0CDAQ6AEwAQ#v=onepageamp;q=real%20time%20pcramp;f=false books. google. com. pk * PCR/Real-Ti me PCR Protocols www. protocol-online. org Real-Time Pcr: An Essential Guide Google Books books. google. com * * http://www. gene-quantification. e/bio-rad-CFX96-bulletin-5589. pdf www. gene-quantification. de * https://www. google. com. pk/#output=searchamp;sclient=psy-abamp;q=fret+rt-qpcramp;oq=fret+in+rtamp;gs_l=serp. 1. 1. 0i22i30l2. 1583. 4622. 1. 10196. 6. 6. 0. 0. 0. 0. 551. 2584. 3-3j1j2. 6. 0 0. 0 1c. 1. 9. serp. 97Wjtm9UCU4amp;psj=1amp;bav=on. 2,or. r_cp. r_qf. amp;fp=f6d28cf5fd703914amp;biw=1366amp;bih=600 www. google. com. pk * BioTechniques Real-time PCR for mRNA quantitation www. biotechniques. com * http://env1. gist. ac. kr/joint_unugist/file/g_class11_real_time_pcr_vt. pdf env1. gist. ac. kr

Adam Sandlers Kids Choice Award :: essays research papers

Adam Sandler is in control -- really The clout of a child-man Monday, April 14, 2003 Posted: 1:07 PM EDT (1707 GMT) Adam Sandler accepts a Kids' Choice Award for best movie actor. Many adult movie critics would disagree. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Story Tools -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- RELATED †¢ Review: Jack's back in 'Anger Management' †¢ 'Anger' tops box office with $44.5M LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- Adam Sandler, who's become one of Hollywood's top box-office draws by playing infantile men prone to fisticuffs and tantrums, displays in real life a shambling politeness and faux-naive modesty. With a shy smile, he often looks down as he speaks, while deflecting questions with self-deprecating jokes. The 36-year-old comic's almost childlike behavior conceals his status as a Hollywood workaholic who's unwaveringly loyal to his friends. "I was in his office 12 hours a day, and he was either working with me, or working on editing something else, or working on one of his other projects," said David Dorfman, screenwriter of "Anger Management," which co-stars Sandler and Jack Nicholson. "He worked nonstop." Sandler has used his clout not only to gain greater control over his own films, but also to boost the careers of former "Saturday Night Live" friends such as Rob Schneider, David Spade and Dana Carvey by guiding their pet projects through the studio system. Dorfman described Sandler as "a benevolent mogul," and Carvey said his 2002 film, "The Master of Disguise," would have gone nowhere without Sandler's help. "I mean, I owe him. I don't really know why he did it, you'd have to ask him. But it was great to have him push it through. I guess I was nice to him on 'Saturday Night Live,' " Carvey said, adding with a laugh: "Thank God." Critical roasting But some Sandler favors backfire. He gave directing duties of "The Master of Disguise" to his longtime production designer Perry Andelin Blake, although Blake had no previous experience. Critics complained that the film was a mess, and Sony was still reworking the movie shortly before its release last summer. Carvey had already starred on the late-night comedy show for five years when Sandler began appearing in 1991, the same year as Spade, whose 2001 film, "Joe Dirt," and upcoming "Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star" were produced by Sandler. Sandler co-stars with Jack Nicholson in "Anger Management." During his five-year run on the show, Sandler was known for impish characters such as Canteen Boy and musical bits such as Operaman.

Globalisation and environmental sustainability Essay

A global society is marked by new technologically integrated local and international relations which encourage the study of the effects of globalisation and as well as internationalisation of various disciplines in a society which are involved in social interactions. This interactions may be locally based or may involve international relations some of which have a close relationship to political philosophy, international economies, conflict analysis, international laws and policies as well as sociology. Globalisation makes the world more productive and stable. In the past few decades, the global economy has become increasingly interconnected and integrated. This integration is quite evident in the international markets and it has been on a steady increase since the seventeenth century although in the last few years, globalisation has undergone revolution which has given rise to many controversial issues regarding its effects and impacts on the larger global society (Lindert, Williamson 2001). Some researches have indicated that in the last two decades or so, the increased integration in the global markets has resulted in greater inequality in the way income is distributed among nations around the world. In connection to this, Bourguignon and Morrisson (2000) have also observed that combining inequality within and across countries has brought a significant rise in the global inequality since 1960 thus making the already poor countries poorer while the rich countries get richer through globalisation. Globalisation refers to the way in which nations increasingly become interconnected with one another in terms of economic, political, technological, social and cultural aspects. More often than not, the word globalisation is used to refer to the economic aspect of a nation. Economic globalisation describes the integration of national economies into the international economies via trade, migrations, international market capital flows, foreign investments and increased use of technology. The increasing rate of globalisation as has been experienced in the past two decades or so has led to rapid growth of global trade, financial capital flows, direct foreign investments and cross border trade transactions (Johnston, Taylor, Watts 2002). The major facilitators of this growth include improved transport and communication infrastructure, improved technological know-how, quicker methods of telecommunication and internet services. In addition to this, globalisation has been favoured by removal of trade barriers and policies across nations which previously inhibited international trade among nations. This has now liberalised trade and encouraged more export and import transactions which promote globalisation. The establishment of international trade organisations such as world bank, IMF and WTO have also played a significant role in facilitating globalisation as they are devoted to promoting trade and investment across nations worldwide. The result of this kind of globalised trade is presence of multinational companies (MNCs) whose budgets exceed those of the economies of many nations in which they are situated (Atkison 1999). Globalisation and sustainability. In the recent years, many controversies have emanated from the issue of globalisation. It is now seen an unnecessary evil which is threatening the social and environmental sustainability of the global societies. Globalisation is viewed by some people as an opportunity for national and international economic growth while others feel that it is a threat to economic prosperity, political sovereignty and cultural integrity (Jussilla, Cullen 2002). People in developed countries are particularly concerned with the fact that globalisation poses a threat to unskilled workers who are bound to be left jobless with the increased technological methods of production in the contracting industries. On the other hand, the developing nations are mostly concerned about the loss of political powers and sovereignty as well as loss of economic prosperity which is bound to be brought about by globalisation. According to Bhalla (2002) the whole concept of globalisation is surrounded by ideological issues both positive and negative which in the long run affect the people or societies in the globalised world. , the controversial aspect of globalisation can not be easily resolved. Globalisation and environmental sustainability. Environmental sustainability refers to the aspect of addressing the needs of the current global societies fully while being cautious not to compromise the needs of the societies which are to come,that is, future generations. According Heinberg (2005), globalisation has directly or indirectly led to several environmental issues such as global warming, increased deforestation, depletion of the ozone layer, destruction of water catchment areas, biodiversity, most natural resources have reached or are nearing depletion levels, pollution of water, air and the entire environment among others. For instance, globalisation has enabled MNCs to invest in countries which have few or no environmental conservation by-laws and this results in high environmental degradation as well as depletion of natural resources. However, the WTO in response to this effect has argued that the large amounts of income or capital flows earned from globalisation are capable of catering for the environmental degradation and this is bound to improve the quality of the environment to even higher standards that it were in before. In addition, globalisation has led to increased industrialisation all over the globe and this has resulted in the much dreaded effects of depletion of the ozone layer and global warming. Global warming comes as a result of release of industrial pollutants from the manufacturing industries into the environment. Such pollutants include carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, oxides of sulphur and so forth. The effects of global warming are quite evident all over the globe as they have led to diverse changes in weather and climate resulting in drought and famines in some parts of the world among other effects. The depletion of the ozone layer occurs as a result of release of chemicals such as freons and fluorocarbons in to the air which react with ozone layer hence thinning it (Bellow 2001). However,there are several positive effects of globalisation in relation to environmental sustainability. Precisely, globalisation has led to improved methods of energy utilisation, substitution of resources especially those occurring naturally, innovation of metal recovery and material recycling methods, dematerialisation of resources among other positive practices (Eiezen, Maxine 2006). Globalisation has particularly been putting great emphases on dematerialisation and this has helped industries to improve their efficiency in production, minimise and manage their waste production and reduced the production costs through use of cheap systematic procedures. In addition, the use of improved technological methods has made companies to adopt newer and more efficient methods of energy utilisation and as a result, the energy requirements in industrialized countries have substantially reduced in the recent years. Moreover, many non-renewable energy resources have been substituted with renewable sources of energy and this has greatly reduced the risk of depletion of such resources in the near future. Although the improved technology has great positive effects on the environmental sustainability, globalisation is negatively associated with the exportation and use of technologies and activities that can have detrimental effects on the environment. All these environmental effects of globalisation have either a direct or an indirect impact on the global societies. Lack of clean water for instance is a negative effect which is likely to cause diseases and suffering to the larger population. On the other hand, improved energy efficiency, advanced technology and industrialisation translates a greater advantage to the people living in the globalised world in terms of better quality consumer products, free exchange of goods, capital and services between nations among others. Globalisation and social sustainability. On the aspect of social sustainability, globalisation plays a very important role in terms of improving or lowering the social status of the people living in globalised world. Experts have argued that globalisation tends to impose a greater disadvantage to the poor countries while at the same time it favours the already developed nations (Bellow 2001). They add that although globalisation is believed to favour free trade among nations, it lead to much inequality between the developed and the under developed countries since the developing countries are unable to compete favourably with the developed countries in the international markets (Agyeman, Bullar, Evans 2003). In addition, the increased use of technology is bound to render many people jobless especially the unskilled workers, since most of the work which was previously done manually by the people is now easily done by machines. This reflects negatively on the society especially in the poorer countries since when people do not get jobs to do, they are likely to suffer from starvation, poor health, illiteracy among other social problems (Walker 2005). On the positive side, globalisation allows free movement of people across nations as they trade and this has promoted cultural diversity, intermarriages, tourism and so forth. This has further promoted peace,understanding and unity between individuals as well as nations. It is thus clear that globalisation has some critical impacts on the social lives of individuals an groups living in the industrialised countries. Identities and powers based on globalisation and sustainability. The last one decade or so has presented a turbulent phase for the global societies marked by globalisation and resurgence in the identity politics or religion based politics. Globalisation being a process of ongoing capitalism-industrialisation has had some adverse effects on the poor strata of the society. According to Heiberg (2005), the nature of globalisation is contradictory in that it divides the world as much as it unites it. Movements fundamental to globalisation are based on empathy, ideology and identities. The lives of people living in global societies are largely shaped by conflicting trends of globalisation and identity and current events in the world indicate that community identities are threatened by the forces of globalisation. One effect of globalisation on the societal political structure is the emergence of socialist states which came into being in the mid-20th century ushering in the beginning of an industrial society. The intensified rate of globalisation has led to a rise of America as a lone super-power in the world, decline of the power and authority exercised by the United Nations, decline in the amount of Non-Aligned movement, a rise in Fascist-fundamentalist politics among countries and worsening of the problems experienced by the poor in the society. While globalisation is believed to result in a democratic world economy, the political democracy system in the world is stifled in form of emasculation of the potential world government. As the national economies become more and more globalised, the world political powers become more and more centralised into one or a few nations of the world. This power monopoly is a negative effect of globalisation as it leads to a decline in democratic norms and projection of identity politics. Identity politics involve competition over scarce resources which could in principle be taken to mean struggle for political power or economic wealth resources. This kind of competition seems to favour only the rich and mighty residing in the wealthy and powerful countries leading to a form of discrimination. As a result, globalisation makes the people in rich countries continue becoming richer as those in poor countries become more poor by the day. In this case it is clear that although globalisation is capable of empowering a nation both economically and politically, the power distribution is unequal and this puts some nations at a higher political power advantage than others. Conclusion. Beyond doubt, globalisation has led to significant increase in per capita income of different nations which have fully accepted this process and applied effectively the technological advancements which come with it. It can however be seen that, globalisation has pushed most developing or Third world countries along the path of diminishing sustainability and this has not in any way been improved by the recent regulations made in the globalisation processes. For instance, the deregulation of global trade in the recent past has led to a decrease in the environmental and social-cultural constraints associated with globalisation but this kind of deregulation has failed to address the issues of sustainability. In conclusion, it is clear that the current globalisation process is quite unsustainable but with a few policies to govern it properly, the process is capable of bringing much success in the long run to all nations world wide as well as to people as individuals in the globalised world. Reference. Atkinson, G., Dubourg, R. , Hamilton, K. , Munasinghe, M. , Pearce D. , 1999. Measuring sustainable development. UK: Edward Elgar Publishers. Agyeman, J. , Bullard, R. D. , Evans, B. , (eds. ). 2003. Sustainability: Development in an Unequal World, London: Earthscan. Bello, W. F. 2001. The Future in the Balance: Essays on Globalization and Resistance. Oakland, Calif: Food First Books. Bhalla, A. S. 2002. Globalisation and Sustainable Development: A Southern African Perspective†, International Journal of Technology Management & Sustainable Development, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 40-57.

Emancipation Proclamation History of Lincolns Order

The Emancipation Proclamation was a document signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, freeing the slaves then held in the states in rebellion to the United States. The signing of the Emancipation Proclamation did not free a great many slaves in a practical sense, as it couldnt be enforced in areas beyond the control of Union troops. However, it signaled an important clarification of the federal governments policy toward slaves, which had been evolving since the outbreak of the Civil War. And, of course, by issuing the Emancipation Proclamation, Lincoln clarified a position which had become contentious during the first year of the war. When he had run for president in 1860, the position of the Republican Party was that it was against the spread of slavery to new states and territories. And when the slave states of the South refused to accept the results of the election and triggered the secession crisis and the war, Lincolns position on slavery seemed confused to many Americans. Would the war free the slaves? Horace Greeley, the prominent editor of the New York Tribune, publicly challenged Lincoln on that issue in August 1862, when the war had been going on for more than a year. Background of the Emancipation Proclamation When the war began in the spring of 1861, the declared purpose of President Abraham Lincoln was to hold together the Union, which had been split by the secession crisis. The stated purpose of the war, at that juncture, was not to end slavery. However, events in the summer of 1861 made a policy about slavery necessary. As Union forces moved into territory in the South, slaves would escape and make their way to the Union lines. The Union general Benjamin Butler improvised a policy, terming the fugitive slaves â€Å"contrabands† and often putting them to work within the Union camps as laborers and camp hands. In late 1861 and early 1862 the U.S. Congress passed laws dictating what the status of the fugitive slaves should be, and in June 1862 the Congress abolished slavery in the western territories (which was remarkable considering the controversy in â€Å"Bleeding Kansas† less than a decade earlier). Slavery was also abolished in the District of Columbia. Abraham Lincoln had always been opposed to slavery, and his political rise had been based on his opposition to the spread of slavery. He had  expressed that position in the Lincoln-Douglas Debates of 1858 and at his speech at Cooper Union in New York City in early 1860. In the summer of 1862, in the White House, Lincoln was contemplating a declaration that would free the slaves. And it seemed that the nation demanded some sort of clarity on the issue. The Timing of the Emancipation Proclamation Lincoln felt that if the Union army secured a victory on the battlefield, he could issue such a proclamation. And the epic Battle of Antietam gave him the opportunity. On September 22, 1862, five days after Antietam, Lincoln announced a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. The final Emancipation Proclamation was signed and issued on January 1, 1863. The Emancipation Proclamation Did Not Immediately Free Many Slaves As was often the case, Lincoln had been faced with very complicated political considerations. There were border states where slavery was legal, but which were supporting the Union. And Lincoln did not want to drive them into the arms of the Confederacy. So the border states (Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri, and the western part of Virginia, which was soon to become the state of West Virginia) were exempted. And as a practical matter, the slaves in the Confederacy were not free until the Union Army took possession of a region. What would typically happen during the later years of the war was that at the Union troops advanced, slaves would essentially free themselves and make their way toward the Union lines. The Emancipation Proclamation was issued as part of the president’s role as commander-in-chief during wartime, and was not a law in the sense of being passed by the U.S. Congress. The spirit of the Emancipation Proclamation was fully enacted into law by the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the U.S Constitution in December 1865.

Expository Paper - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 4 Words: 1147 Downloads: 2 Date added: 2018/12/18 Category Literature Essay Type Critical essay Level High school Topics: Learning Essay Did you like this example? Introduction The expository paper is a category of the essay that requires the student to develop an argument concerning the idea in that paper whether its clear and concise manner. A written good essay allows the reader to understand the information in the essay. To develop a good essay there are the guidelines that need to be followed. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Expository Paper" essay for you Create order Examples the writer has to decide what he wants to write, preparing the outlines of the topics. The writer has to write a thesis statement which introduces the essay which explains the discussed topics. Proper use of grammar and punctuation have to be used, the writer is also required to develop clear and understandable paragraph in the body. Moreover, conclusions at the end are important because of the recommendation of the discussed topic. When this all guidelines are applied in the essay the students will able to pass the information and hence get the good grade. Sonny blues is an essay written by James Baldwin, the essay is not clear and concise manner because of the following reason. Introduction format Firstly, the introduction in the essay is not in a concise manner, a good introduction prepares the person reading the information. The introduction should inform and give the facts of the topic straight up. Also gives the reader the interest in reading the story, it attracts the minds due to proper arrangement of the flow of the story. After reading the introduction the reader is able to tell what the topic is about and the expectation. In the sonny blues essay, the introduction is not clear and its hard to explain the information conveyed by the writer. They are also poor grammar and punctuation in the introduction which contributes to a poor grade (Irmscher, p, 30). The writer has repeated word many times in the introduction ?I read this makes the introduction to be boring and difficult to understand. The writer has also used poor grammar in the introduction example ?spelling out the story this makes the reader become bored and may not get the information the writer is conveying . Transition In addition, the writer of Sonny blues has not used transition in the essay. Transition words are used to link words, sentence and the phrases in the essay. They attract the mind of the reader and give him the deeper understanding of the story. Transition words assist the reader to progress from the one information to the next information in the paragraph. They also improve the information conveyed by giving the sentence weight, especially where they are important information that the writer wants to convey. Moreover, the transition words build up coherent relationship inside the text. The Sonny blues essay lack transition words in the paragraph, this make it difficult to understand the information that the writer is conveying. The writer could have used the transition word so that he can be able to attract the reader attention. Lack of transition word in the essay makes it more boring and the reader may ignore some part of it hence missing the information conveyed. Topic sentence Furthermore, the Sonny blues essay lack the topic sentence which is very important when writing an essay. The topic sentence helps the reader to identify the main idea in the paragraph; it always appears first before starting the paragraph. The topic sentence introduces the point the writer wants to talk about, it usually guides the reader when reading. It also shows the flow of the story the writer is narrating, this helps the reader to capture the message in an easier war. The writer of the Sonny blues did not use the topic sentence in the essay; this makes reading difficult to understand what the writer is talking about. It hard to understand some sentence in the paragraph this result to different ideas in the same paragraph; these ideas tend to confuse the reader. Topic sentence mostly attracts the reader attention and gives him the moral of reading the story, in the Sonny blues the writer have to ignore the topic sentence hence boring the reader. Short paragraph containing different ideas Additionally, the writer of Sonny blues has used short paragraph which has no meaning. He has also used the wrong paragraph which the sentence has been repeated several. The paragraph in an essay should discuss ideas in the sentence topic, this attract the mind of the reader and get the information easily. The effective paragraph contains the following topic sentence which contains the ideas to be discussed in the paragraph. Coherence is another factor to be considered, which refer to how the flow of ideas has been discussed in the paragraph. Moreover, the paragraph should be adequately developed this describes and explain the topic sentence. And also they should be unity of sentence; this explains how the ideas of the paragraph have been connected together. Through the paragraph will able to convey the message the writer is trying to, this will attract the reader attention and also been able to understand the story. The Sonny blues story paragraph have not been constructed well, s ome paragraph contains more than one idea which results in different ideas in one paragraph. This tends to confuse the reader and may get tired of reading the story. Wrong punctuation Additionally, the writer in the Sonny blues has punctuated the sentence wrong resulting in different information from which he wants to narrate. Punctuation is the application of conventional signs and spacing. Punctuation allows correct reading of the paragraph and also helps the reader to understand the information or the story narrated by the writer. English punctuation is a must because the reader cannot understand the information communicated without punctuation marks. In the Sonny blues, the writer has used punctuation wrong making difficult to understand the story he is narrating. He has used wrong punctuation in the conversation example, sure, I said. You do that. So long this is wrong conversation statements it confuses the reader and he may lack to get the information the writer is conveying. Conclusions In conclusions, to develop a good essay they are some important factor should be considered. These are proper punctuation, topic sentence, use of grammar and vocabulary. These factors help the reader to get the information conveyed by the writer. When they have ignored especially the punctuation they tend to change the information of the writer. Proper punctuation, good grammar, and use of topic sentence they attract the attention of the reader. This helps him to understand and have the moral of reading the story. The writer in Sonny blues has ignored this factor resulting in poor essay format and different ideology in the same paragraph. Works Cited Hidi, Suzanne, and Valerie Anderson. Situational interest and its impact on reading and expository writing. The role of interest in learning and development 11 (1992): 213-214. Irmscher, William F. Teaching expository writing. Harcourt School, 1979.

A Midsummer Nights Dream Research Paper (with Cited)

The play, A Midsummer Nights Dream by William Shakespeare, is about four lovers and their dreamlike adventure through a fairy ruled forest. There are many different characters in this play and they each play their own individual role in how the play is performed and read. Three main characters that showed great characteristics are: Puck, Tom Bottom, and Helena. The play, A Midsummer Nights Dream by William Shakespeare, uses characters and their conflicts to give meaning to this piece of literature. A Midsummer Nights Dream was written in the early part of William Shakespeares life in 1596. It was written to be played at artistic carnivals and tried to please all parts of society; the carpenters to please all the galleries,†¦show more content†¦Give me your hands, if we be friends, And Robin shall restore amends. Nick Bottom is another comical character that makes the audience laughs from his overconfidence in him. He is one of the central figures in the subplot of the production of the Pyamus and Thisbe story. He brings his comedy from his extraordinary belief in his own abilities. Bottom thinks he is perfect at everything he does, yet he is a horrible actor and frequently makes rhetorical and grammatical mistakes in his speech. His humor stems from the fact that hes not aware of how ridiculous he is. Titania falls madly in love with Bottom after she was anointed with a love potion and Bottoms head has been turned into that of an ass. He thinks nothing out of the ordinary about a fairy queen that has fallen in deeply in love with him. His inability to perceive the fact that his head had been transformed and a fairy queen has fallen in love with him parallels how absurd he is. Although Puck and Bottom may stand out as two of the main characters they arent involved in the main conflict. Helena, who is desperately in love with Demetrius, may be the most drawn out character. Helena is he one lover who thinks more about the nature of love than the actual thing. She is extremely unsure about herself and thinks about her appearance a lot andShow MoreRelated Renaissance Family Values and Their Significance to As You Like It1920 Words   |  8 PagesRenaissance Family Values and Their Significance to As You Like It      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   When I began my research for this paper, I did not have a good understanding of the term Renaissance.   Therefore, I thought that it was a good idea to clarify on this before I tried to learn about what family life was like at that time, and I also thought it might be interesting to look at Shakespeares family.    The word Renaissance means rebirth and refers to the 15th Century, between the years 1350 andRead MoreAnalyzing Mr. Keating’s Teaching Concept in Dead Poets Society from Progressivism4764 Words   |  20 Pagesshadow and becomes confident and gregarious. Under the edification of the Poetry Society, Neil listens to inner voice and found his real ideal. In spite of his father’s opposition, he successfully starred in the play A Midsummer Night’s Dream. 1.2 Overseas and Domestic Research Status According to the document literature, there are not many domestic scholars study on education through Dead Poets Society. The articles one-sidedly analyze the teaching methods, teaching concept or teacher-studentRead MoreDeveloping Management Skills404131 Words   |  1617 PagesManager: Kelly Warsak Senior Operations Supervisor: Arnold Vila Operations Specialist: Ilene Kahn Senior Art Director: Janet Slowik Interior Design: Suzanne Duda and Michael Fruhbeis Permissions Project Manager: Shannon Barbe Manager, Cover Visual Research Permissions: Karen Sanatar Manager Central Design: Jayne Conte Cover Art: Getty Images, Inc. Cover Design: Suzanne Duda Lead Media Project Manager: Denise Vaughn Full-Service Project Management: Sharon Anderson/BookMasters, Inc. Composition: Integra

Communication Skill free essay sample

International Conference Conferences, Symposia and Campus Events 2006 The Integration of Professional Communication Skills into Engineering Education Dorthy Missingham University of Adelaide Originally published in the Proceedings of the EDU-COM 2006 International Conference. Engagement and Empowerment: New Opportunities for Growth in Higher Education, Edith Cowan University, Perth Western Australia, 22-24 November 2006. This Conference Proceeding is posted at Research Online. http://ro. ecu. edu. au/ceducom/91 Missingham, D. The Universtiy of Adelaide, Australia. The Integration of Professional Communication Skills into Engineering Education Dr Dorthy Missingham School of Mechanical Engineering The University of Adelaide. Australia dorothy. [emailprotected] edu. au ABSTRACT Conventional Engineering curriculum is strongly focused on the development in students of technical knowledge and skills. However, in recent years, employers have increasingly acknowledged that this traditional preparation of Engineering students‘ is inadequate, as graduates lack the wide range of written and spoken communication skills required to engage with members of other professional groups and with the broader community. Recognition of the important role that communicative competence plays in professional success within the engineering industry has, as a result, led to a number of tertiary institutions developing curricula to address these needs. This paper presents a successful integrative Engineering Communication curriculum, developed for both local and international Engineering students in an Australian university, which aims to develop both communicative ability and community engagement. The courses that form the Engineering Communication Program provide for critical awareness-raising of community issues such as ethics, sustainability and gender, English for academic and professional Engineering purposes for both English as an Additional Language (EAL) and English background students and advanced research communication for postgraduate students. All courses are strongly informed by scaffolded learning techniques, systemic functional linguistics and genre theory, and most are run collaboratively by Engineering, Education and Applied Linguistics lecturers. The aims of the Program are to raise awareness in Engineering students about, and to equip them with skills for, their future roles and responsibilities, and to provide the community with engineers whose strong technical knowledge is balanced by an appreciation of the broader social contexts with which they will engage in their professional lives. INTRODUCTION The need for engineering students to acquire professional skills, in addition to technical skills, in order to enhance both community engagement and career success has been increasingly articulated by educators and industry professionals alike. Professional skills mentioned variously include teamwork, conflict resolution, and an awareness of social justice, sustainability and ethics. However, as highlighted by Adams and Missingham (2006) the need for improved communicative competence in engineering graduates has been the professional skills area most widely discussed in research and the engineering profession. Increasingly, engineers work in knowledge-intensive fields that require both high level communication and problem-solving skills (Alvesson 2004). In the Australian setting this need is recognised in the National Generic Competence Standards formulated by Engineers Australia, which extensively refers to communicative abilities throughout its descriptors of competencies required by engineers (IE Aust 1999). However, research on employer satisfaction with engineering graduates‘ communication skills indicates they are below desired requirements, both in Australia (DEETYA 2000) and abroad (Lee 2003). This paper discusses a successful integrative Engineering Communication curriculum, developed for both local and international Engineering students in The University of Adelaide, which aims to develop both communicative ability, and an understanding of the need and ability for community engagement. The paper begins with a brief comparative examination of engineering communication education in other universities, both in Australia and overseas. 346 COMPARATIVE APPROACHES The critical role that communicative competence plays in both academic and professional success has, over the past decade, been recognised nationally and internationally in a number of tertiary institutions involved in engineering education (Najar 2001, Riemer 2002, Einstein 2002). A review of literature, relating to engineering communication education, reveals several significant trends common both within Australia and overseas. These trends identify three major areas of academic and professional engineering communication recognised by educators as important skills needed by graduating engineers. The teaching of oral communication, written communication and teamwork skills have been introduced as part of the undergraduate engineering curricula in various Universities world wide (Einstein 2002, Schowm Hirsch 1999). Whilst the combination of communication skills taught and the methodologies used may vary between institutions one particular theme or approach frequently emerges. An interdisciplinary approach to the teaching and learning of engineering communication (Artemeva, Logie St-Martin 1999, Jennings Ferguson 1995) is being practiced by a small but increasing number of engineering faculties and colleges. Examination of interdisciplinary approaches is important in relation to the integrative approach used by engineering and communication educators within the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Adelaide. In this respect, learning and teaching of oral and written communication skills in engineering communication curricula have been examined whereas team work skills have not been specifically examined for this particular discussion, as it is considered as worthy of separate dedicated research . Studies undertaken within Australian universities attest the need for high level communication skills. According to Najar (2001) communicative competence, including teamwork and professional writing skills for example, the ability to ? research, write and format basic research reports‘ as well as developing formal oral presentation skills is important to prepare students for both ?academic success and the workplace‘. Similarly Riemer (2002) claims that whilst engineering knowledge and technical expertise are important attributes the graduate engineer must be able to present this knowledge ? ith an excellent standard of communication skills‘. However, where Najar emphasises written and teamwork communication skills, Riemer (2002) claims that emphasis on oral communication skills is highly valued by employers. Riemer further elabourates that oral communication and presentation skills are ? career enhancers‘ which may be considered as ? the biggest single factor in determining a student‘s career success or failure‘ (Beder 2000 cited in Riemer 2002). Despite the apparent emphasis that Riemer places on oral communication skills he also acknowledges that there are a number of areas of communication skills which are necessary for engineers, including written communication skills, technical terminology and professional jargon. The later two areas are probably best described in linguistic terms such as genre and discourse, which are indicative that for each specific discipline there is an accompanying language culture. Internationally, universities are also engaged in the teaching and learning of engineering communication skills. Einstein in his 2002 overview of changes in engineering education at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) describes a new approach implemented in the School of Civil Engineering which was developed in response to the view that what was being taught in universities was increasingly divorced from practice. As a result twelve courses were either created or developed in most of which ? regular oral, written and illustrated presentations‘ were required. Similarly Carlton University in Canada also recognised that the engineering discipline had specific needs in the teaching and learning of communication skills (Artemeva et al 1999). These needs related directly to the transition of engineering students from an ? academic to a workplace environment‘. In the case of Carlton University engineering communication studies emphasise written communication skills. The Carlton University approach described by Artemeva et al (1999) is in contrast to Riemers (2002) theoretical proposition on the prominence required in developing oral communication skills for the workplace. One other key difference in Riemers (2002) paper to the approaches suggested by Artemeva et al (1999) as well as Najar (2001) and Einstein (2002), is that Artemeva et al, Najar and Einstein are all overviewing programs of engineering communication already in existence. A common theme emergent in the literature is that many institutions recommend an interdisciplinary approach to the teaching and learning of engineering communication. Various researchers and educators claim that linking acquisition of academic communication skills to authentic engineering tasks 347 both challenges students negative attitudes, towards what they term ? earning English‘, as well as promotes student motivation. Shwom and Hirsch (1999) claim that shared agenda between disciplines recognises the equal status of engineering and communication, or the ? equal place at centre stage of the course‘. This view is also reinforced by Jennnings and Ferguson in their 2002 study, of communication engineering skills in Queen‘s University, Belfast, which states that through linking the study of communication skills to the exploration of engineering issues that communication skills become a key element in the educational process. Furthermore, ? here is a greater likelihood that students will develop a better overall perspective on their (engineering) subject‘. Significantly, many courses which have implemented an interdisciplinary approach have combined the teaching of communication skills with engineering design subjects. In an approach similar to that of the School of Mechanical Engineering, at The University of Adelaide, engineering schools at Northwestern University, USA, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard and Flinders University, South Australia advocate an interdisciplinary approach that combines engineering communication with engineering design. In reference to the program at Northwestern University, Shwom Hirsch (1999), claim that design and communication are ? ideal partners‘ and that students ? combined knowledge of both fields will make them both better designers and better communicators‘. Additionally students are convinced of the importance of communication in engineering. Of the interdisciplinary approach taken at MIT, Einstein (2002) describes design as a synthesising process which requires various visual, written and problem solving skills inferring therefore that it is the natural setting for teaching and learning communication skills. He goes on to state that ? design (synthesis), coordination and communication‘ are regarded as the major features of the MIT , Civil and Environmental approach to engineering education. Najar (2001) discusses the Language in Use (LIU) modules linked directly to engineering design project work at Flinders University. A notable similarity with the approach of Adelaide University‘s School of Mechanical Engineering approach is that the development of students engineering knowledge is supported in an integrated way by the acquisition of professional and academic communication skills. Skills common to both universities include; how to communicate orally, how to research, and how to write and format research reports. Similarly the interdisciplinary approach employed in the Civil Engineering Department at Queens University, Belfast covers related communication issues in use of the library (how to research), English composition and technical report writing (written communication) and Public speaking (oral communication). Additionally Queens University covers poster presentation (visual communication) an area that the Adelaide University program covers in fourth year but which is not mentioned in the Flinders University program. It is apparent from the literature therefore, that the need for communicative competence in engineering education has been recognised in a number of places worldwide. In particular, an interdisciplinary education approach in engineering communication has been introduced in a range of Universities which offer engineering studies. Despite some differences in the methodologies, curricula and elements of communication addressed by different universities, including the University of Adelaide, these studies indicate that the synthesis of engineering design, which is inherently practical in nature, with the need to communicate the design process and outcomes is both an ideal setting and an important factor for positively influencing student motivation and skills in the study of professional communication. By promoting a shared agenda between disciplines the literature also suggests that this may also promote student recognition of the importance of communication in engineering. Regardless of the similarities and differences of engineering communication education taken by the programs discussed here the literature agrees that increased levels of communicative competence relate directly to employability and success in the engineering industry. THE ADELAIDE APPROACH Background The teaching of professional communication skills within the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Adelaide has evolved over a number of years since the mid 1990s. This evolution has experienced different iterations with the current approach developing more directly from a combination of initiatives taken both within the Faculty of Engineering and the School of Mechanical Engineering, and by the then Advisory Centre for University Education (ACUE), now the Centre for Learning and 348 Professional Development (CLPD). These initiatives led to the creation of various courses in Engineering Communication including courses for International Students. The Faculty wide Engineering Communication (EAL) course was traditionally managed by the School of Mechanical Engineering. In Semester 2, 2006 this course was transferred to management by the Faculty Academic Registrar in order to reflect the Faculty wide nature of the need for dedicated engineering communication course for international undergraduates. Within the School other initiatives led to the teaching of Engineering Communication to 3rd year students. Initially taught as a separate subject this course was combined with the Level III Design in 2004. In the same year the School of Mechanical Engineering also created a new course, Engineering Planning Design and Communication (EPDC), for entry level students. The Mechanical Engineering Communication approach consists of a fully integrated, nested curriculum of courses, designed to; explicitly link communication learning to learning in engineering at all year levels, ? develop students‘ ability to construct and present logical argument discursively, ? oster language development from sentence level skills to large document written and oral communication, ? encourage active participation through class discussion and response to formative feedback, ? foster the ability to communicate problem identification, formulation and solution to diverse audiences and ? use development in communicative ability as a vehicle for fostering students‘ insight into and perspective on engineeri ng practice in the community, including the social, cultural, political, international and environmental context of professional engineering practice. Each course in the program, illustrated below in Figure 1, addresses these aims while embedded within either broader Engineering course curricula or, in the case of Engineering Communication EAL, within a curriculum that employs specific strategies that address the needs of EAL Engineering students (Adams Missingham 2006). 349 EPDC Level I 2 Engineer Communication EAL 1 Design Practice Level I I 2 Engineering and the Environment Level III 2 Design Commun. Level III 2 Research Communication Program 1 Design Project Level IV 2 (Postgraduate) Figure 1: Mechanical Engineering Communication courses showing their relationships to each other and the broader Engineering curriculum. 1 for students enrolled in all Engineering disciplines 2 for students enrolled in Mechanical Engineering Theory The theoretical underpinning of the first year Engineering Planning Design and Communication course and the third year Design and Communication course is based on the notion of ? ocial constuctivism‘ as advanced by Vygotsky. In particular, Bruners‘ concept of ? scaffolded‘ learning (Wood, Bruner Rose 1975) informs the student based approach that is centred on active participatory curricula which aims at assisting students to develop increasingly skilled levels of academic and professional communication. Social constructivism grew from a view that educational methods needed to be base concepts of learning beyond rote memorisation, ? egurgitationâ₠¬Ëœ of facts and the division of knowledge into different subjects. Early approaches sought to provide appropriate learning situations where teachers allowed students to develop their own knowledge, meaning and truth in a context which would enable them to use the learning throughout their life. Vygotsky developed this philosophy, noting that ? the central fact about our psychology is the fact of mediation‘ (Vygotsky 1978 p. 166). Social constructivists consider that the dynamic interaction between instructors, learners and tasks provides the opportunity for learners to create their own understanding through the interaction with others and is the most optimal learning environment. The constructivist approach, guiding the Mechanical Engineering communication courses is further reinforced in the application of Brunerian notions of the ? spiral curriculum‘. Bruner postulated that ? A curriculum as it develops should revisit the basic ideas repeatedly, building on them until the student has grasped the full formal apparatus that goes with them‘ (Bruner 1960) p. 3). 350 In the School of Mechanical Engineering these theories guide the designing of courses which are aimed at developing generic language skills which can be used as the basis for current and future application within the engineering industry, rather than a language course focussed solely on communicating engineering terms. The learning and t eaching of communication skills across all levels of the undergraduate program enables scaffolding of knowledge to be integrated rather than focussing on a short d of student teacher interaction. Through this approach skills acquired in first year communication are reinforced in second year Design Practice, extended and elaborated on in the level III course and then reinforced again through workshops and practice in the fourth year Design Project. Borrowing from neuroscience research into learning. the 2006 Level III and semester 2 EAL students have informed the idea of a concept of developing an habitual intellectual framework. Whilst relying on heavily on scaffolded learning, this concept also aims to redress some of the negative perceptions that engineering student have about ? earning English‘ by encouraging students to acquire higher cognition learning in communication skills which they can then apply as habit. PRACTICE AND PERCEPTION Three dedicated communication courses are provided at undergraduate level, Engineering Communication EAL (English as an Additional Language), Engineering Design Planning and Communication (Level I) and Design and Communication (Level III). The overall aim of the three courses is to provide students with an nderstanding of the importance of communication to the professional engineer and to equip them with the necessary knowledge, skills, flexibility and confidence to be good engineering communicators. Through the application of Student Experience of Teaching and Learning (SELT) surveys students are able to comment on and assess the effectiveness of the courses to their needs. At the same time instructors are able to monitor student needs and make appropriate changes to the curriculum and methodology if required. Engineering Communication EAL Engineering Communication EAL was designed specifically to meet the particular needs of international students and to be complementary to the technical engineering courses students undertake to complete their degrees. Through a variety of formal and informal learning strategies students are introduced to and practice basic research techniques. These techniques include ? locating, critically reading and interpreting academically acceptable sources ? presenting their analysis in the form of evidenced based propositions with sources integrated appropriately ? resenting the argument in both a written and an oral form suitable for an academic audience. The strategies used emphasise participation and practice as key elements to becoming effective communicators. Therefore, classes are very active, sometimes rowdy and frequently fun with group discussions and impromptu presentations of issues, group and individual exercises integrated with peer teaching/learning through guided presentation of answers to the class, and open class discussion inviting students to academically critique their own and others responses. Student Experience of Teaching and Learning (SELT) surveys consistently indicate that learning outcomes for students are enhanced by ? full participation on (sic) the aims of the course‘, ? giving feedback to students about their participation‘, adjusting the teaching ? of various topics accordingly (sic) to the class – enabling faster, more effective learning‘, ? very dynamic lessons‘ and being ? able to stimulate my learning‘. Formal assessment strategies involve a series of formative assessments which involve students applying feedback provided to a subsequent assignment. Student comments indicate that this approach is highly effective. Design and Communication courses The Engineering Design Planning and Communication (Level I) and Design and Communication (Level III) courses are provided for all students undertaking degree programs in the School of Mechanical Engineering. The integration of communication and engineering design was devised specifically to emphasise the importance of professional engineering communication and to ensure that communication is not seen by students as a stand alone subject that can be completed and then forgotten about. The effectiveness of this approach in highlighting the importance of communication has been recognised by students who report that the course(s) ? improves your speaking and writing skills‘, 351 ?helps with the written work in other subjects‘, they have ? learnt how to write for university assignments‘, and ? learning academic writing (is) useful to further years of study‘. A number of students have explicitly stated that the course taught them ? to communicate effectively and should be compulsory for all engineer‘?. These comments are also consistent with graduate attributes specified as important not only by the Faculty but also by the engineering industry, including ? the ? ability to communicate effectively‘, ? the ? ability to undertake problem identification, formulation and solution‘ ? the acquisition of skills to enable the ? pursuit of life long learning‘. Course material is also designed to be complementary to the Engineering Communication EAL course by providing reinforcement of and extension to the skills learnt. For example, the Level I course provides students with the additional educational framework and the opportunity to apply skills learnt in ESL to the needs of report writing and the oral presentation of progress reports on a Planning and Design project. Student feedback through SELT surveys consistently evidence the importance of these skills, for example, ? It was great knowing how to structure a report properly‘ and the ? introduction to engineering report writing is very comprehensive‘. A further integrative approach that has been taken in the Level I and Level III courses is reflected in the establishment of the relationships with prior learning and future learning. For example, Level III examines structure, cohesion, critical thinking and analysis, the use of evidence, presenting arguments both in written and oral form and report writing at a more advanced level than the Level I course. The Level III communication course is also an important prerequisite to level the IV Design Project, where all students must write an extensive design report and present a professional seminar on their project. Challenges and Outcomes Empirical and anecdotal evidence indicates that engineers are poor communicators and that one of the factors which influences student choice in undertaking engineering studies is the belief they will not need ? English?. Therefore, discussions and exercises are designed to encourage students to participate and practice skills, to be flexible in their approach to language and its uses, to contribute their ideas, to build on their strengths and to develop confidence. The value placed on practical evidencing of communication is reflected in a participation mark, worth 20% of the total assessment. As a result classes are noisy and dynamic. Students also find that effective communication can be both useful and enjoyable. For example, SELT comments show ? I like the idea of students presenting ideas on overheads (transparencies) in class activities‘, the course ? keeps people interested in tasks that could be very boring‘, ? A good environment for learning is provided‘ and ? interactivity of the class in tasks helps us to gain a better understanding of the subject‘. Similar strategies of regular class and group discussions as well as workshop exercises are used throughout the courses to ensure students regularly practice the skills of communication. Student response indicates that group learning and discussion ? stimulates learning without placing student under pressure‘ and that all students‘are able to learn something regardless of language ability‘. Individual students and groups are invited to present analyses and answers to the whole class and then to call for comments from their peers. The importance to student learning of this approach is exemplified in the following SELT comment ? Doing exercises and presentations in class forced me to do the work which I otherwise would not have touched if it had been set as homework. I appreciate that. Students are encouraged to form cross cultural groups during classes, so that a greater understanding of diversity and its value in engineering is promoted. At the same time students must undertake practical work in developing effective team work skills in order to be able to complete tasks and class based exercises. Students frequently comment that the group work is th e best aspect of the course as it provides opportunity to improve interpersonal communication skills and to gain a real sense of diversity through their interaction with students of different socio-cultural, and ethnic backgrounds. Student comments indicate that working in cross cultural groups encourages ? acceptance of all ideas‘. Students discuss and at times challenge the characteristics of English for academic and professional purposes as presented in these courses. In doing so, students become increasingly aware of how purpose and socio-cultural factors shape the kind of language used in different contexts rather than 352 viewing language as simply correct or incorrect, or based predominantly on the rules of grammar. Issues of ethics and social responsibility arise naturally in relation to topics and lecturers encourage students to discuss these in class. Similarly communication and management themes highlight the nontechnical role aspects of engineering. Students have reflected that ? This (allows you to) practice skills you actually need‘ and there is a ? good balance for a broad variety of skills‘ development. Links to industry expectations are also reinforced through guest presentations from graduate engineers, Engineers Australia and industry leaders. In these way students are encouraged to broaden their perception of the engineering industry as a technical culture to include the understanding that engineering is also a communicative culture. Formal Assessment of Student Work A series of formal assessments, both oral and written are also undertaken to ensure that students can also apply research and analytical skills in a ? planned and timely manner‘ as highlighted by engineering graduate attributes. Formative feedback is given on all assignments in order that students may take full advantage of self directed learning. Students who apply the feedback to subsequent assignments are rewarded for both the attempt and the quality of the improvements made. Students report that this approach provides ? constructive criticism‘ which ? helps each student‘ to ? check their drafts carefully‘. Assessment criteria and their relationship to graduate attributes are fully discussed in both the course notes and in conjunction with exercises, and students have expressed this helps them to place learning in the context of professional and industry expectations, ? hen it‘s explained, it makes sense that engineers spend so much time writing reports, talking to clients and presenting project ideas to meetings‘. RESEARCH TOPICS AND TOPICAL RESEARCH To broaden student awareness of their professional responsibilities as engineers within society, in addition to operating within a company framework, research topics are carefully chosen to reflect community and industry concerns. In particular th e topics chosen provide for critical awareness-raising of community issues such as ethics, sustainability and social justice. For example, the research topic for the current semesters Engineering Communication EAL course is the Role of Engineers, through which students are exploring issues such as personal and interpersonal skills, engineering education and life long learning, ethical responsibilities, social and environmental factors, holistic thinking, entrepreneurship as well as technical skills. Previous topics have included an examination of gender issues in engineering education and the profession, forensic engineering, and the effects of teamwork on the outcomes of engineering projects. The imbedded nature of the Engineering Communications courses within the engineering curriculum ensures that the research topics are relevant to engineering practice, topical and frequently devised in collaboration with engineering lecturers. Level III Design and Communication research topics, for example, are devised together with the design lecturer and sometimes also with reference to other departmental members. The current semesters‘ research topic was directly linked to the Design Project topics. These topics and the communication research topic specifically designed to be co-related. Through this collaborative approach aspect of sustainability in engineering practice are reinforced and student skills in critical thinking, analysis and evaluation of research information are further developed. In Design the projects are to design a Formula SAE Car, Bio-Oil Trike, Biodiesel Bike, 1. 0 litre Biodiesel Taxi Tuk-Tuk, Hybrid Solar Electric Vehicle, Biodiesel Boat, Formula SAE Aircraft, Alternative Energy 2-Seater Aircraft, Hybrid Solar/Biofuel Generator, Fossil-Fuel-Free irrigation system or a Nano-satellite. The topic for the Communication assignments is ? ustainability‘, applied to the chosen design project. , as outlined below. Topic The broad objective of sustainable development is ? to achieve social justice, sustainable economies, and environmental sustainability? ( European Conference on Sustainable Cities Towns, 1994). Australia has a National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development which aims to ? meet the needs of Australians today, while con serving our ecosystems for the benefit of future generations? (Office of Sustainability, Department of Environment and Heritage, 2006). 53 Task Environmental sustainability is a fundamental aspect of sustainability. For your Communication assignments you should identify how environmentally sustainable features can be incorporated in the design of your project, for example a bio-diesel boat, or alternative energy 2-seater aircraft. In addition, you should compare the effects of these features to a traditionally designed version of your project. You are not expected to justify sustainability. Your research must focus on the specific features of sustainable transport. Yong Missingham, 2006) Previous research topics have included the following: Investigate an ethical dilemma in an engineering project, and critically evaluate the response of the engineering company or companies involved, in terms of relevant tenets of the IEAust Code of Ethics. (Yong Missingham, 2005) Select an example of technological development that is prominent in industrialised society and analyse the benefits as well as the adverse effects of this technology to individuals, society and the environment. Yong Missingham, 2004) A high level of both professional communication skills and an appreciation of community concerns required to be developed by the Level III Mechanical Engineering students. The topic descriptions have also been carefully devised to illustrate to students the inter-relationship of effective communication and an understanding of the social, cultural, political, international and environmental impacts implicit in the professional practice of engineering. These expectations are detailed in the Research Topic paper given below. ?Your research is to be based on a topic which has social, cultural, economic, and/or political implications. Engineers work in every sphere of life. As a professional engineer you will be working in an array of industries, in various contexts, and making contact with many people about professional organisations, government departments and agencies, allied industries and organisations, academics, and others. As an effective communicator and decision maker, you will need to be able to present your interpretation and findings on a range of issues, as will occur in the negotiation and management of projects, the submission of tenders, and the advising of clients. The topic for your research in this subject aims to provide you will strategies to both write and talk about your interpretation and findings about diverse issues. Your writing and your presentations will be an attempt to convince a nonspecialist audience of your point of view. You may choose one of the following areas of research for your project. Topic A – the impact of engineering projects on local communities The projects you may work on as an engineer could have significant social, cultural, economic, and/or political implications for people and communities who are not directly involved in the implementation of the project. Your research task is to: Discuss an engineering project which has, or has had, a significant impact/s on local communities Your research is to examine the impacts and outcomes of a specific engineering project on a community or communities. Examples of engineering projects could be dams or hydro-electric projects, weapons testing, mining, the building and operation of chemical or other industrial plants, building roads and railways, and others. The size of the project is unimportant, rather it is its impact on the local community which will be the focus of your research. The impacts could be one of the following scenarios, or a combination of scenarios: ? Well recognised and integrated into the planning of the engineering project, yet have provided, or are providing, difficulties in the implementation and outcomes of the project ? Recognised by the local communities or interest groups, but rejected or ignored by project planners and workers ? Unrealised in past projects, with the long-term consequences now the subject of community and/or legal dispute. 354 Your discussion needs to be an examination, that is, an analysis of the impacts arising from the project. Avoid lengthy descriptions of the history of the project, the engineering technicalities, or merely describing the impacts. You need to read as widely as possible about the project you have chosen, and from your interpretation of the source information provide a discussion of the (perhaps disputed) impact/s of the project. Limit your scope so that you have a specialised focus, that is, analyse only two or three impacts of the project. The word limit set for your assignments means you will not be able to cover all aspects of the project. Your focus needs to be an in-depth examination rather than a broad sweep of issues. Topic B – the impact of seemingly simple technology on the existence of communities. This topic also aims to examine the impact of (seemingly simple) technology on the existence and quality of life for those who use or used the technology. Your task is to: Discuss the impact of a seemingly simple technology on the existence of a community This research topic involves examining the design logic underpinning the technology and importantly the effectiveness of its use. Examples of apparently simple technology could be the boomerang, other hunting implements, for example, harpoons and poison arrows, a specific type of irrigation system, terracing for the cultivation of crops, and others. Your research needs to take account of: ? The design logic underpinning the technology ? The quality of life and survival provided for those who used the technology ? Any evidence which debates the effectiveness of technology, particularly its long term use. The technology you are examining may have been beneficial for a community in the short term, but in the longer term, further developments, modifications, abandonment of the technology, may have ensured a better quality of life, even survival, of a community. Long term environmental impacts could be important in your study. Your discussion needs to be an analysis of the effectiveness, or otherwise, of the technology. Avoid lengthy descriptions of the history or the form of the technology. This information needs to be only brief background information. You need to read as widely as possible about the technology you have chosen, and from your interpretation of the source information provide a discussion of the (perhaps disputed) effects of its use. Limit your scope so that you have a specialised focus, that is, on the analysis of two or three aspects of effectiveness of the technology. The technology could be from any era, past or even present day. If you are examining past technology, your focus needs to be on the effectiveness, or otherwise, of the technology itself for its intended purpose regardless of other influencing factors such as the introduction of other technology as a result of invasion, colonisation, or economic factors. Alternatively, the technology could be in current use or development, such as reversions to more environmentally sustainable technologies, for example, wind power. (Wake, 2002) CONCLUSION By promoting a shared agenda between language and engineering disciplines it is suggested that this may also promote student recognition of the importance of communication in engineering. Regardless of the similarities and differences of engineering communication education taken by various programs discussed here, increased levels of communicative competence relate directly to employability and success in the engineering industry. The program developed by School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Adelaide represents a successful integrative Engineering Communication curriculum, developed for both local and international Engineering students in an Australian university, which aims to develop communicative ability, community engagement and an awareness of the social, cultural, political, international, environmental and ethical contexts in which professional engineers practice. 55 ACKNOWLEDEMENTS Thanks go to many colleagues and friends, and to staff and students of the School of Mechanical Engineering who provided input (often unwittingly) to this research proposal. Thank you to Karen Adams for the stimulating and frequent discussions on many things educational and philosophical and Colin Kestell engineering lecturer extraordinaire who can always be relied on to stimulate teaching enthusiasm and creativity. Many thanks go to wonderful colleagues Elizabeth Yong and Kristin Munday whose considerable work is also represented here, and to Catherine Irving and Patricia Zoltan whose support, intellectual contributions and hard work have also contributed to this program. Thank you also to Barbara Wake whose commitment to and knowledge of academic communication which, together with the vision of Colin Hansen, Head of the School of Mechanical Engineering have enabled the development of such a successful program of professional and academic engineering communication. Special thanks to Roxanne Missingham for the editing and encouragement. REFERENCE Adams, K D Missingham (2006) Contributions to Student Learning: An overview of Engineering Communication courses in Mechanical Engineering education, School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Adelaide, unpublished (internal) report. Alvesson, M (2004) Knowledge Work and Knowledge-intensive Firms, Oxford University Press, Oxford. 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