Poe Compare to Manson :: essays research papers

Though born at different times and in different places Edgar Allen Poe and Bryan Warner (Marilyn Manson) are surprising social and ideological doppelgangers. Starting as early as their childhood you can notice notable similarities. Bryan spent the majority of his time at his grandparent’s house. It was a generally hostile area for young children, leaving little access to parental supervision or interaction. Poe on the other hand had no father around to begin with and his mother died when he was two. He went on to live with his mother’s business associate who turned out to be quite abusive. Now due to personal problems Poe was unable to attend school any longer and didn’t finish his education which had been a aspiration of Poe’s to be removed. This seemed to be a similar trend between Poe and Bryan, because Manson did it as well. Both writers were similar in there choice of work as well, and how they delivered them. Both Poe and Bryan published many works before there writing became popular. The macabre story of â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart† by Edgar A. P. is quite similar to Bryan’s first published work about himself ending up murdering and raping his sister. Obviously the chosen tone by both of these individuals is similar because they desire to put out a persona. This persona is a general feeling that each Artist expresses as a discontentment with life and society, and leads to there morbid works. Poe wrote â€Å"Poe’s Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque†, where Bryan published a CD â€Å"The Golden Age of Grotesque† which both turned out to be fairly similar. On an ideological level they both consider the modern man to not be that modern. They were both haunted by something internal possibly even external that drove them nearly insane and tainted there view of all of society. Both of them had very low morality and on many accounts lusted after family members and the same sex on occasion. Poe left the Army and West Point which had been the next step in his life, he enjoyed the army in many ways ideologically speaking but still loved writing too much to not follow it. He married his first cousin against the wishes of his family and decided to make a life. Bryan decided not to go into military but still always struggled with organized religion, he also had a sexual fascination with family members.

Learning English as Second Language Essay

Learning a Second Language (L2) is a lifelong process and it is often a challenging experience for L2 learners. English has become the L2 after it was introduced to Malaysia during colonization. Presently, it is an international language and is used as the language in international relations, and in exchanging knowledge and technology. It was only since a few decades ago that it was taught to almost all schoolchildren. In general, local Malaysian students have been exposed to eleven years of learning English language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) in primary and secondary schools. Current era, good English writing competence is widely recognized as an important skill for educational, business and personal reasons. The ability to write effectively in English is becoming increasingly important in our global community as communication across language becomes ever more essential. On the other hand, writing is a complex process which demands cognitive analysis and lingu istic synthesis. It is even harder to learn to write in a second language, and it takes considerable time and effort to become a skillful writer. The present study seeks to explore ESL learners’ major writing difficulties by analyzing the nature and distribution of their writing errors. There are several ways of thinking about errors in writing. For example, in light of what we, as linguists, know about second language acquisition and what we know about how texts, context and the writing process interact with one another students‟ writing in L2 generally contains varying degrees of grammatical and rhetorical errors. These kinds of errors are especially common among L2 writers who do not have enough language skills to express what they want to say in a comprehensible way. The present study analyses the English L2 language errors in the writing of Malaysian learners. Statement of Problem English occupies the status of a L2 in the Malaysian education system in both primary and secondary schools. However, learning English as a L2 is not an easy task. According to Brown (2000), in order to master the English language, learners have to be adequately exposed to all of the four basic skills, namely listening, speaking, reading and writing. Language teaching in this country is currently focusing on the teaching and learning of the four language skills. However, the standard of English, among Malaysian children is on the decline despite learning English for several years. Malaysian students are still weak in English, especially in their writing skills. They still seem to commit errors in all aspects of language. According to James (1988) errors in writing such as tenses, prepositions and weak vocabulary are the most common and frequent type of errors that are committed by learners. Since grammar is seen only as a means to an end, some learners tend to re-emphasize its importance and in the process, they make many more errors. The learners usually face difficulties in learning the grammatical aspects of the Target Language (TL), such as in subject-verb agreement, the use of preposition, articles and the use of correct tense. Such errors can be seen clearly in the learners’ written performance. The problems that the students are bound to encounter would be weak vocabulary, inappropriate use of grammar in sentences and etc. Thus, teachers who can analyze and treat errors effectively are better equipped to help their students become more aware of their errors. The use of Error Analysis (EA) and appropriate corrective techniques can aid effective learning and teaching of English. It is understood that learning a second language is a gradual process, during which mistakes are to be expected in all stages of learning. Mistakes will not disappear simply because they have been pointed out to the learner, contrary to what some language learners and teachers believe. In fact making mistakes is a natural process of learning and must be considered as part of cognition. As a result, errors must be viewed positively. Therefore, EA is the best tool for describing and explaining errors made by speakers of other languages. By investigating students’ written work, it will provide a means to help Malaysian teachers to recognize the importance of errors as one of the challenging areas in teaching English. Objective of Study This lends to the objective of the study, which is to investigate the types of errors made by Form Four student in their written work. The study sought to answer the following research question: * What are the most common errors that students make in their essays? Methodology Location The location of the study was a secondary school in a housing area in Shah Alam town which is located within the district of Petaling and a portion of the district of Klang in the state of Selangor which is about 25 kilometres west of the country’s capital, Kuala Lumpur. The name of the school is SMK TTDI Jaya, Shah Alam. The school runs in two teaching sessions, namely the morning and afternoon session. Table 1: Distribution of Form 4 Students and Ethnic Background Participant A Form four female students have participated in this study. She had her primary education in National schools, in which Malay was the medium of instruction. English was taught as an additional subject within the school curriculum. The respondent is from Form 4 Gigih comprising of 30 boys and 42 girls. The students’ language proficiency is lower intermediate. According to the participant’s English language the class that the participant currently studying focuses more on Malay language learning and the students tend to neglect the importance of English language Background of the Student The name of the student is Nurul Nadeah binti Zulkifli. She is 16 years old. She is staying at Seksyen 15, Shah Alam. Her father works as an engineer and her mother is a house maker. She is the eldest daughter with a younger brother. Her first language is Malay language. She has learnt English for 10 years. She has scored a â€Å"C† grand for her UPSR public examination and a â€Å"D† grade for her PMR public examination. On the other hand, she is more proficient in her first language (Malay language) compared to English language. She has scored an â€Å"A† for her both public exams (UPSR & PMR) which marks her enthusiasm in learning her first language. According to Nurul, she prefers to speak and write in her mother tongue since she is comfortable with it. Thus, she views English language subject as an entry requirement for her to enter university. Despite, she added that she has not been encouraged to use English language either her parents or among friends sin ce childhood. Procedure The participant was administered a writing assignment that involved essay writing. She was required to write a cause and effect essay entitled† The Causes and Effects of River Pollution† within a period of 60 minutes and a minimum of 200-350 words. This essay follows the English format of SPM (Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia) Examination in which every student will have to take when they are in Form Five. It is a guided writing whereby the student was given a brief outline on the essay that includes the main causes and effects which the student need to explain in detail. The essay was typed using Microsoft Word 2003 so that it was computer readable. After that, the three steps of EA specified by Corder (1974) were followed: * Collection of sample errors * Identification of errors * Description of errors Instruments The instruments that we used to analyze the errors in the essays are as follows: * The students’ essay * Grammar book references * Consulting to an experienced school teacher : * Well experienced in English language teaching for 23 years and also SPM English paper marker for two years consecutively. * Interviewing a lecturer from MSU Centre For Foundation Studies (CFS) department * Group discussion. * Internet sources A total of 62 common errors were examined and categorized into 12 error types. Errors related with lexical knowledge (spelling, parts of speech, capitalization) accounted for 32.3%. Errors related with sentence structure (complex/compound, missing word, word order and redundancy) accounted for 30.6%. Other grammatical errors (verb tense, passive voice, modals and phrasal modals,article, subject-verb agreement) accounted for 37.1%.Based on the table, it reflects that the students have committed most number of errors in the parts of speech which includes noun, verb, participle, interjection, pronoun, preposition, adverb, and conjunction. The second most number of errors is registered under redundancy which means the occurrence of unwanted repetition in the written essay. Table 3: Most Common Errors and Examples of Errors Definition andError classification| Identification of errors| Correct sentences and explanation of rule| 1. Basic Phrase Structure * A sentence is formed through the combination of Noun Phrase(NP) and Verb Phrase(VP)| Sentence10:1 The industry is releasing chemical waste products from industrial waste. Example of chemical waste products are cyanide , zinc, copper and mercury.Sentence 11:2. Example of chemical waste products are cyanide, zinc, copper and mercury. The chemical products that released is dangerous| 1. The industry releases chemical wastes such as cyanide , zinc , copper, and mercuryExplanationSubject: The industry Verb : releasesPredicate: chemical waste products such as cyanide, zinc , lead , copper, and mercury. * The industry is releasing chemical waste products â€Å"from industrial waste. â€Å" This sentence is incomplete.2. These chemical waste is dangerousExplanationLiquid or substances basically known as uncountable noun which refers to general abstraction but countable noun refer to specific things. These : refer something specific (SUBJECT ) is : verbDangerous : abstract verb| 2. Passive Sentences * The object of the active verb is the subject of the passive verb| Sentence 1:1. Water is the important elements that needed by the human to live. Sentence 28:2. The flow of the clear water from the river will be disturbed. This is because, the water quality is more spoiled and flow to the river will be polluted and affecting the living things.| Water is the important element that human need for livingExplanation The word â€Å"need† in this sentence should be the subject.2. This is because, the quality of water is spoiledExplanation The phrase â€Å"water quality† is unclear and incomplete.| 3. Complex/Compound * A complex sentence combines a dependent clause with an independent clause. * A compound sentence is made up of two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction such as; for, and, nor, but, or, yet, or so and a comma or by a semicolon alone.| Senten ce 4:1. If, there is no water, living things cannot survive.Sentence 5:2. In, today’s world, river pollution is occurring so seriously.| 1. If there is no water, living things cannot surviveExplanation Difficulty in identifying dependent clause- complex sentence2. Today’s world, river pollution occurs very seriously.ExplanationWrong compound phrase.| 4. Subject/Verb Agreement * If a subject is singular, it’s verb must also be singular * If a subject is plural, its verb must also be plural.5. Modals and Phrasal Modals * Modals are special words in English and are used for specific purposes. They are NOT verbs. * The form is: Subject + Modal + Verb| Sentence 13:1. The second cause for river pollution are from agriculture activities. The agriculture activities is harming the quality of the water. Sentence 16:1. The agriculture activities ^ is one of the economic activitiesSentence 21:2. The flow of water will be disturbed and the quality of water will be decreased. | 1. The second cause for river pollution is from the agricultural activities. * The agricultural activities harms the quality of the water. * The agricultural activities harm the quality of the water.Explanation * The sentence structure is wrong in terms of singular and plural. * The word ‘activities’ shows plural form, so the verb harm should also be plural as well. * But from the aspect of present tense, its wrong because here, plural subjects, no need to add‘s’ for the verbs.1. The agricultural activities ought to be one of the economic activities. Explanation^ shows that a phrasal modal can be added to make the sentence structure stable.2. The flow of the water will be disturbed and the quality of water would decreaseExplanation Redundancy of the modal is exchanged with another suitable modal. | 6. Parts of Speech * Noun * Verb * Participle * Interjection * Pronoun * Preposition * Adverb * Conjunction | PrepositionSentence 31:1. The last effect that is stated is from mineral extraction. From the activity, the effect is the dangerous substances will mixed to the river and it will create a dangerous, havoc to the living thingsConjunctionSentence 36:1. So, it is important to take care the river. However, we cannot completely stop the river pollution be we can control the pollution. | 1. The last effect is from mineral extraction. From the activity, the effect is the dangerous substances will mix into the river and it will create havoc to the living things.Explanation†Into† is a preposition that answers the question â €Å"Where?†1. So, it is important to take care of the river. However, we can’t completely stop the river pollution but we can control it.Explanation The conjunction but should be used in this sentence since it is used to signify a negation, to create contrast. Discussion Sentence types Altogether there are 36 complete sentences. Out of 36 complete sentences, 10 sentences were simple sentences, 14 were complex sentences and12 were compound sentences. More than half complex sentences were unnecessary repetition of points. It was also found that most of the sentences were constructed using the definite article ‘the’ and the repetition of the word ‘another’ on starting of the paragraph 4 and 6. The unnecessary repetition of the points in the students’ written essay reflects that the student have a very limited knowledge in the given topic and has not exposed her to different sequence connectors. Major Error Analysis 1. Basic Phrase Structure Phrase-structure rules are a way to describe a given language’s syntax. They are used to break a natural language sentence down into its constituent parts (also known as syntactic categories) namely phrasal categories and lexical categories (aka parts of speech). Phrasal categories include the noun phrase, verb phrase, and prepositional phrase; lexical categories include noun, verb, adjective, adverb, and many others. A grammar which uses phrase structure rules is called a phrase structure grammar. Phrase structure rules are usually of the form , meaning that the constituent A is separated into the two sub constituents B and C. * The first rule reads: An S consists of an NP followed by a VP. This means A sentence consists of a noun phrase followed by a verb phrase. * The next one: A noun phrase consists of a determiner followed by a noun * Further explanations of the constituents: S, Det, NP, VP, AP, PP` In this study, the student has encounter difficulties in writing a senten ce with a correct phrase structure. This happens because she was not corrected by anyone whenever she makes the error. For example, the excerpt below was taken from the student’s written essay. â€Å"Another cause of river pollution is the mineral extraction. From the river pollution is because of releasing of nutrients, sediment, metals contaminants, pesticides especially herbicides. The pollution of water that mined that the water flow that run-off water is polluted by the organic materials. The flow of the water and the quality of water will be decreased.†| The above excerpt registers that the student has difficulty in constructing a basic phrase structure. According to me, the above excerpt is totally vague since it does not follow the basic rules of phrase structure. Mdm Patmabathy, the school teacher that we consulted in our error analysis says that this excerpt is meaningless and she added that this student is very poor in terms of sentence construction. Despite, she also said that it is also a very serious error when she gets to know that it is a written work of a Form 4 student. If I was given a chance to correct the above excerpt, it may sound like: On the other hand, mineral extraction also contributes to river pollution. This is because, the release of nutrients, sediment, metals contaminants, pesticides and herbicides may obstruct the water flow which results in the decrease of the water flow and the water quality may spoil due to the organic materials released through the mineral extraction.| 2. Passive Sentences In passive sentences, the thing receiving the action is the subject of the sentence and the thing doing the action is optionally included near the end of the sentence. You can use the passive form if you think that the thing receiving the action is more important or should be emphasized. You can also use the passive form if you do not know who is doing the action or if you do not want to mention who is doing the action. [Thing receiving action] + [be] + [past participle of verb] + [by] + [thing doing action] Examples: In the student’s written essay, there are some prominent wrongly phrased passive sentences. For example, referring to the same excerpt, â€Å"Another cause of river pollution is the mineral extraction. From the river pollution is because of releasing of nutrients, sediment, metals contaminants, pesticides especially herbicides. The pollution of water that mined that the water flow that run-off water is polluted by the organic materials. The flow of the water and the quality of water will be decreased.†| The use of the word ‘mined’ which is not a passive verb which causes the sentence to be meaningless. From this we should know, in order to use passive sentences one should have a basic knowledge on transitive verbs which the meaning can be used in passive sentences. 3. Complex/Compound A compound sentence consists of two or more simple sentences joined by * a comma followed by a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so): The dog barked, and the cat yowled. * a semicolon: The dog barked; the cat yowled. * a comma, but ONLY when the simple sentences are being treated as items in a series: The dog barked, the cat yowled, and the rabbit chewed. A complex sentence consists of a combination of an independent clause and a dependent clause. An example with a relative clause as the dependent clause: * The dog that was in the street howled loudly. * A student who is hungry would never pass up a hamburger. An example with a subordinating conjunction creating the dependent clause (note the various positions of the dependent clause): * End: The dog howled although he was well fed. * Front: Because the dog howled so loudly, the student couldn’t eat his hamburger. * Middle: The dog, although he was well fed, howled loudly. In the student’s written essay, there are more complex sentences constructed compared to compound sentences. Thus, it was merely repetition of words that occurs in the most complex sentences. For example, try to look at the below excerpt from the student’s written essay. There are some effects that caused by those previous activities. The effect of the industrial waste is one of them are the living things like fish, crab, and squid and also aquatic plants will die. From the industrial waste also affecting the drinking water for human. This is because of the quality of water is spoiled and more non-nature. There italicized phrase is an example of complex sentence whereby the dependent clause â€Å"living things like fish, crab, and squid and also aquatic plants will die is an expansion of the independent clause ‘the effect of the industrial waste’. Here, the use of complex sentence was not fully utilized since the student has problems in constructing basic phrase structure itself. The student ended up the whole sentence with full of repetition. She should have use a wider vocabulary to explain the point. 4. Subject/Verb Agreement A basic principle of English is that a verb must agree in number with its subject. Although this basic principle is very simple, it is often violated because writers have trouble either identifying the subject or the determining its number. Singular rule * A singular subject requires a singular verb. Consider the following examples. * He is happy. * The boy is happy. * David is happy. Plural Rule * A plural subject requires a plural verb. Consider the following examples. * They are happy. * The boys are happy. * David and Tom are happy The student has committed much error in this section. She tends to use plural verb for singular subject and singular verb for plural subject. For example, the below excerpt from the student’s essay reflects the wrong subject/verb agreement. The second cause for river pollution are from agriculture activities. The agriculture activities is harming the quality of the water. This activities can lead to the pollution of river. Moreover, the activities is not only polluting the quality of water, but also changes the colour of the water because it polluting the clear water. The first sentence reflects the use plural verb for singular subject (river pollution is only one). Then, the fourth sentence registers the use of singular verb for plural subject (activities refers to many). So, the correct sentence should be: The second cause for river pollution is from agriculture activities. The agriculture activities harms the quality of the water. These activities can lead to the pollution of river. Moreover, the activities are not only polluting the quality of water and also changes the colour of the water since it pollutes the clear water.| 5. Parts of Speech (Conjunction) * Conjunctions are words which link two clauses in one sentence * Here are some example conjunctions: Coordinating Conjunctions| Subordinating Conjunctions| and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so| although, because, since, unless| * Coordinating conjunctions are used to join two parts of a sentence that are grammatically equal. The two parts may be single words or clauses, for example: * Jack and Jill went up the hill. * The water was warm, but I didn’t go swimming. * Subordinating conjunctions are used to join a subordinate dependent clause to a main clause, for example: * I went swimming although it was cold. Referring to the student’s written work, the students has used very limited conjunctions such as ‘and’, ‘so’, and ‘for’. There was also wrong usage of conjunction which is as follows: 1. Moreover, the activities is not only polluting the quality of water, but also changes the colour of the water because it polluting the clear water.2. So, it is important to take care the river. However, we cannot completely stop the river pollution be we can control the pollution| For the first sentence, the use of the conjunction ‘but’ is wrong since the sentence is not showing any comparison. The second sentence also applies a wrong conjunction since the word ‘be’ refers to a verb that indicates future actions. So, the correct sentence should be: 1. Moreover, the activities is not only polluting the quality of water and also changes the colour of the water because it polluting the clear water.2. So, it is important to take care the river. However, we cannot completely stop the river pollution but we can control the pollution| Treatment for the Errors 1. Awareness of L1 interference Switching interactively between first and second language has been recognized as one of the salient characteristics of L2 writing. Woodball (2002) suggested that language switching may be driven by the mental operations of private speech for solving L2 problems with L1 resources and the results of his study suggested that less proficient L2 learners switched to their L1s more frequently than more advanced learners. According to Wang‘s finding (2003), the low proficient participants often concentrated on direct translation from their L1 into the L2 to perform their L2 writing to compensate for their L2 linguistic deficiencies. Composing their writing tasks in this way might have helped them overcome writing difficulties without exerting much mental effort. Cases of direct translation were also observed in this study, for example, ‘My nickname is schoolmate takes. English name is I elects. Give to fortune teacher to calculate.’ In addition, students have the tendency to exclude the subject or object and fail to use certain constructions due to L1 interference. Therefore, teachers can help students become aware of interlingual errors by highlighting the structural and lexical differences between Chinese and English in areas when their use is first introduced or reinforced. If interlanguage is likely to occur, then consciousness-raising can help students self-edit their errors when interference occurs 2. Writing Motivation Generally speaking, writing motivation is encouraged through stimulating reading, relation with daily life experience, and support of relevant vocabulary. Pre-writing activities are crucial for unskilled writers. After selecting an appropriate writing task, some relevant reading passages should be introduced. However, the reading materials should only serve as sources for stimulating ideas and learning of relevant vocabulary rather than models to copy. Students have to write on a new but closely related topic. They still have to generate and refine their own ideas as well as construct their own sentences. Even students of low proficiency level should be given the opportunity to experience writing as a creative act of discovery. The process approach is also applicable to low proficient students provided that thoughtful stimulus and guidance are available. 3. Instruction of Basic Grammar Good writing is certainly beyond grammar manipulation. Yet it will be very difficult to compose a clear, logical and fluent paragraph if a writer is unable to write reasonably acceptable simple sentences and does not possess the mastery of some complex sentence structures. Results of the present study indicate an urgent need in upgrading students’ basic linguistic competence. Explicit teaching on salient grammar points like types of sentences, syntax, verb forms of some commonly used tenses is highly recommended in the first semester. In the meantime, it is also important to convey the idea that error-free sentence production is not the prime target for writing practice but as the means with which to better express one’s meaning. Reflection based on the Study Most ESL students want to learn English to be able to speak the language, not write it. However, learning writing skills is an important aspect of learning English as students could be called upon to write in English for professional or formal reasons. Those who wish to live in an English speaking country will most definitely need to be able to write in English in order to fill out forms and other administrative papers concerning their everyday lives. Why we should emphasize more on writing skill in the ESL class? When speaking, there are a number of factors that help make the task easier for a foreign language speaker: speaking usually takes place in a certain context and other pre-existing knowledge is often assumed so that not all information has to be clear and precise; immediate feedback is possible and speakers can adjust as the conversation unfolds. Conversation is often informal in everyday life and easier for an ESL student to become involved in and practice. Writing, however, is a much more formal process. ESL students will most likely have to use their writing skills for formal and professional reasons, like business English. This can be very stressful and downright handicapping if they have never learnt to write in English. Thus, errors serve as an important means for us as a future teacher to observe leaner’s learning process and learning strategies. Based on the study that we have conducted, we have found that teaching writing is one of the hardest skill compare to the rest. It needs more on teachers’ effort whereby the teacher should expose the students from the basic grammar to the perfect sentence constructions. Conclusion The results of the study show that errors that the participant committed were basically grammatical. The participant also had a relatively weak vocabulary and their sentences were sometimes incomprehensible. She committed errors in applying sentence structure rules in the English language. Hence, we can conclude that this participant has problems in acquiring normal grammatical rules in English. This study has shed light on the manner in which students internalize the rules of the TL. It further shows that error analysis also can help the teachers to identify in a systematic manner the specific and common language problems students have, so that they can focus more attention on these types of errors. Such an insight into language learning problems is useful to teachers because it provides information on common trouble-spots in language learning which can be used in the preparation of effective teaching materials. Also, by being able to predict errors to a certain extent, teachers can be well-equipped to help students minimize or overcome their learning problems. Bibliography 1) Ancker, W. (2000). Errors and corrective feedback: Updated theory and classroom practice. English Teaching Forum. 38(4), 20-24. 2) European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 8, Number 3 (2009) 3) http://www.marquette.edu/wac/WhatMakesWritingSoImportant.shtml

How Economists Define and Measure Treatment Effects

The term treatment effect  is defined as the average causal effect of a variable on an outcome variable that is of scientific or economic interest. The term first gained traction in the field of medical research where is originated. Since its inception, the term has broadened and has begun to be used more generally as in economic research. Treatment Effects in Economic Research Perhaps one of the most famous examples of treatment effect research in economics is that of a training program or advanced education. At the lowest level, economists have been interested in comparing the earnings or wages of two primary groups: one who participated in the training program and one who did not. An empirical study of treatment effects generally begins with these types of straightforward comparisons. But in practice, such comparisons have the great potential to lead researchers to misleading  conclusions of causal effects, which brings us to the primary problem in treatment effects research. Classic Treatment Effects Problems and Selection Bias In the language of scientific experimentation, a treatment is something done to a person that might have an effect. In the absence of randomized, controlled experiments, discerning the effect of a treatment like a college education or a job training program on income can be clouded by the fact that the person made the choice to be treated. This is known in the scientific research community as selection bias and, it is one of the ​principle  problems in the estimation of treatment effects. The problem of selection bias essentially comes down to the chance that treated individuals may differ from non-treated individuals for reasons other than the treatment itself. As such, the outcomes such treatment would actually a combined result of the persons propensity to choose the treatment and the effects of the treatment itself. Measuring the treatments true effect while screening out the effects of selection bias is the classic treatment effects problem. How Economists Handle Selection Bias In order to measure true treatment effects, economists have certain methods available to them. A standard method is to regress the outcome on other predictors that do not vary with time as well as whether the person took the treatment or not. Using the previous edition treatment example introduced above, an economist may apply a regression of wages not only on years-of-education but also on test scores meant to measure abilities or motivation. The researcher may come to find that both years-of-education and test scores are positively correlated with subsequent wages, so when interpreting the findings the coefficient found on years of education has been partly cleansed of the factors predicting which people would have chosen to have more education. Building upon the use of regressions in treatment effects research, economists may turn to what is known as the potential outcomes framework, which was originally introduced by statisticians. Potential outcomes models use essentially the same methods as switching regression models, but potential outcomes models are not tied to a linear regression framework as are switching regressions.  A more advanced method based upon these modeling techniques is the Heckman two-step.

South Africas National Holidays

When Apartheid ended and the African National Congress under Nelson Mandela came into power in South Africa in 1994, the national holidays were changed to days that would be meaningful to all South Africans. March 21: Human Rights Day On this day in 1960, the police killed 69 people at Sharpeville who were participating in a protest against the pass laws—laws that demanded blacks always carry passes. Many protesters were shot in the back. The carnage made world headlines. Four days later, the government banned black political organizations and many leaders were arrested or went into exile. During the Apartheid era, there were human rights abuses by all sides; the remembrance of Human Rights Day is but one step to ensure that the people of South Africa are aware of their human rights and to ensure that such abuses never again occur. April 27: Freedom Day This was the day in 1994 when the first democratic election was held in South Africa, an election when all adults could vote irrespective of their race, as well as the day in 1997 when the new constitution took effect. May 1: Workers Day Many countries around the world commemorate the contribution made by workers to society on May Day (America doesnt celebrate this holiday because of the days communist origins). It has traditionally been a day to protest for better wages and working conditions. Given the role that trade unions played in the fight for freedom, it is unsurprising that South Africa commemorates this day. June 16: Youth Day On June 16, 1976, students in Soweto rioted in protest against the introduction of Afrikaans as the language of instruction of half their school curriculum, sparking eight months of violent uprisings across the country. Youth Day is a national holiday in honor of all the young people who lost their lives in the struggle against Apartheid and Bantu Education. July 18: Mandela Day On June 3 2009 in his State of the Nation address, President Jacob Zuma announced the annual celebration of South Africas most famous son—Nelson Mandela. Mandela Day  will be celebrated on the 18th of July each year. It will give people in South Africa and all over the world the opportunity to do something good to help others. Madiba was politically active for 67 years, and on Mandela Day people all over the world, in the workplace, at home and in schools, will be called upon to spend at least 67 minutes of their time doing something useful within their communities, especially among the less fortunate. Let us wholeheartedly support Mandela Day and encourage the world to join us in this wonderful campaign. Despite his reference to wholehearted support, Mandela Day failed to become a national holiday; but Nelson Mandela International Day was established by the United Nations in November of 2009. Aug. 9: National Womens Day On this day in 1956, some 20,000 women marched to the Union government Buildings in Pretoria to protest against a law requiring black women to carry passes. This day is celebrated as a reminder of the contribution made by women to society, the achievements that have been made for womens rights, and to acknowledge the difficulties and prejudices many women still face. Sept. 24: Heritage Day Nelson Mandela used the phrase rainbow nation to describe South Africas diverse cultures, customs, traditions, histories, and languages. This day is a celebration of that diversity. Dec. 16: Day of Reconciliation Afrikaners traditionally celebrated December 16 as the Day of the Vow, remembering the day in 1838 when a group of Voortrekkers defeated a Zulu army at the Battle of Blood River, while ANC activists commemorated it as the day in 1961 when the ANC started to arm its soldiers to overthrow Apartheid. In the new South Africa, its a day of reconciliation, a day to focus on overcoming the conflicts of the past and building a new nation.

Samuel Kramer s Argument That The Ancient Civilization Of...

Samuel Kramer’s argument that the ancient civilization of Sumer and the modern-day world are â€Å"fundamentally analogous† (p. 250) is supported heavily throughout his literary work History Begins at Sumer, and has evidenced this from the social perspective, as well as from an institutional one. The first social comparison Kramer mentions is that of Juvenile Delinquency. Starting from page 14, Kramer describes a fathers point of view about this social disease and describe that his child is one of few who, rather than attend school, meet at the street corner and loiter. He continues, with the father expressing his anger. â€Å"I, night and day am tortured because you. Night and Day you waste in pleasures† (p. 17) is a perfect example of the parent’s emotions, and can be related to the modern household, for both the ancient parents and those of today focus on making sure their children rise to economic success. In Sumer, the father wishes his son to be like him, a scribe, and does not understand why the son doesn’t work towards that goal (p. 15). This contrasts with the modern family, where parents want children to, not only supplant them, but ascend to a higher economic position. Nevertheless, in today s world and that of the past, juveniles forming like-minded gangs prevails, and is but one example of comparison. Secondly, best described on page 11 of History Begins at Sumer, â€Å"apple-polishing† was yet another example used within Kramer’s argument. In 2016, many see the only way to

American Business and Foreign Policy †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the American Business and Foreign Policy. Answer: Introduction The international business procedure is getting affected due to the geographical location of the country. As stated by Miranda-de la Lama et al., (2018), especially the business rules and regulation in the border area. Due to its location in between the south and North America, the business industry of Mexico gets influenced by both the countries. Here the study has focused on Mexico, which is situated in the southern portion of North America. In this study, the external environment of the country has been discussed by using PESTLE analysis. On the other hand, competitive advantages of the business organizations have been analysed. The existing trade rules and regulation of Mexico have been highlighted in this study. Impact of foreign currency in the business industry has been discussed. Depending on this the rate of foreign investors and their interests towards business development in Mexico, the study has discussed the position of the country in international business industry. At the end of the study, depending on issues in the market required suggestion have been provided. Business industry of Mexico has the higher level of contribution in the economy of the country. As per the GDP, it is in the 15th position in the world. Large portion of the Mexican GDP comes from service and industry sector (Grande, Islas Rios, 2015). Mexico has the significant business market for the food and beverages, aerospace, motor vehicles, clothing, tobacco, mining and petroleum industry. In the year 2017, GDP rate of the country was $1.147 trillion. It has been identified from a recent report that it has second largest economy in Latin America. However, due to various socio-cultural gaps, the Mexican people are facing various challenges regarding its business development. The economic condition of the country is good is few places, but in the case of rural areas, people are facing many challenges due to lack of financial backup (Aguilar et al., 2015). As the country is located in between the North and South America, therefore both the continents have influenced the busines s environment of this country. However, mostly in the case of technological development, the European influences have been shown. PESTLE analysis Situation Positive impact Negative impact Political The Mexican government has taken different initiative for making the stable political situation in Mexico (Walker, 2015). However, the initiative has faced the failure in the rural areas. By taking the advantages of this, few local organizations have increased the price of the products and earning huge from the rural market. As the study has discussed that the political situation of the country is not in the stable condition. This has been identified recently large number of people have died due to gang violence. Therefore, this can be said that the political situation is not in favourable condition for the foreign investors. Economic The GDP rate in the country is $1.147 trillion. Which indicates the stable economic condition (Valds Vzquez Fraire, 2017). Therefore this can be understood from the GDP rate is the business opportunities in the country is very high. Due to this reason, the small business organizations will get the chance to enter the market. At the same time rate of employment will also increase. On the other hand, this has been discussed in this study that although the economic condition of the country is good, however, it is not equal in every portion of the country. In rural areas, the people face different problems due to lack of financial support. They do not get any chance to develop any kind of business in the Mexican market. On the other hand, due to economic development labour wages increases. This creates challenges for the small organizations to appoint employees in low range. Social Due to economic development in Mexico, the standard of living of the people also increases (Valds, Vzquez Fraire, 2017). It impacts on the purchasing power of the people. It helps the business organizations to develop the pricing strategy as per the requirement. On the other hand, the social status is not same in every place of Mexico. This can be said that due to an unstable social situation. This is very difficult for the organizations to develop business in Mexico. Technological From the ancient period, the Mexican civilization is famous for their mathematics, technology and astronomy. In the current scenario, the country has introduced modern technology in the business industry. Due to the introduction of software and hardware in the business industry, the online business trend has been introduced. On the other hand, if the foreign technology will be developed in this country, it will be more beneficial for developing business organizations in Mexico. Due to technological development, the local investors are not able to compete with the foreign competitors due to their technological support. Legal The Mexican government has introduced various policies for foreign investors in order to develop business in the country. In the emerging market, the foreign investors are getting the chance to enter without any complication. Therefore, this can be said that the legal condition of Mexico is in the favourable condition for the foreign investors. On the other hand, due to easier business policies, the foreign investors can easily grab the Mexican business market. This will bring the difficulties for the local organizations, which are trying to develop their business in the Mexican market. Environmental The Mexican government has introduced various environmental laws in order to develop the waste management system in this country. In order to reduce the rate of pollution from the environment, this is considered as the wise step taken by the government On the other hand, due to strict environmental laws, the business organizations, which are trying to enter in the Mexican market need to bring the changes in their packaging materials and waste management (Charter, 2017). Therefore, this can be said that the strict environmental laws can bring difficulties for the foreign organizations. Competitive advantages The term competitive advantage indicates the advantages which are being taken by an organization or country over the competitors for achieving customers attention. Hence, this can be said that competitive advantage is an important part of market analysis. By using Ansoff Matrix, the competitive advantage of Mexican business industry in the international market has been highlighted. Market penetration strategies being adopted in the case of developing existing product in the existing market (Yin, 2016). Through this strategy, the market share of the company is being increased on the market. Depending on the market segment the market share is being increased. This also helps the organization to grab the attention of new customers in the existing market. In order to implement the strategy, the organizations bring changes with its pricing strategy. By decreasing the prices of the existing products it tries to grab the attention of the customers. On the other hand, the promotional strategy of an organization gets changed for introducing existing product in the existing market in the better way. However, in this study, the market penetration strategy cannot be adopted because in this case, the study has discussed that due to rapid economic growth in Mexican market, the business organizations have decided to enter in the New Mexican business market. The strategy of market development is being adopted in the case of expanding business in a new market (Filippov, 2017). In this case the business organizations select various customer segmentation for entering the new market. These strategies are mostly taken by the organizations, which try to enter the foreign market. Though the market research the rules and regulation in the external market are being analysed by the company. By identifying the competitors in the market, the business strategy is being developed. The business segmentation gets influenced by the economic condition of the country. Here the study has focused on the strategy of market development as the business organizations are trying to enter in the Mexican market. In order to develop the business in the foreign market, the business organizations focus on the needs and demands of the market. As well as it also analyses the position of the competitors for understanding the competitive advantages. The strategy of product development is being adopted in the case of developing the new product in existing market. In this case, the organizations try to introduce new product or service in the market. In this case, the organization needs to focus on research on the market for understanding the needs and demands of the customers. On the other hand, in the case of new product development, different strategies can be adopted such as purchasing a product from the market and branding it, the joint development by connecting with other organizations and manufacturing the old product by adding more features and the new look. In the case of this study, this strategy cannot be adopted, because in this case, the Mexican market is totally unknown for the business developer. As stated by Yin (2016), the strategy of product diversification is being adopted in the case of developing new product in new market. This strategy is being adopted by the organization for increasing market share. It has been identified in this study that, in order to develop the strategy the organizations give strong effort for developing the market fist. Depending on the segmentation and target market, the product and its pricing strategy is being developed. In this situation the organizations adopt vertical and concentric diversification strategy for entering in the market with new products. Influence of foreign currency Foreign currency has the higher level of impact for developing business in any country. In the case of Mexico, in 2017, the Central Bank of Mexico has taken a drastic step towards increasing the interest rate of the country to near about 3.75% (Jensen, Quinn Weymouth, 2015). Here the government of Mexico has decided for selling the American dollar to the buyers directly in the market. Due to this reason, the value of PESO has fallen 17% in last year compared to the dollar. In this year, the PESO has recovered near about 17.81 to the dollar. As stated by Subedi (2016), after this recovery situation the volatility of Mexican PESO in the international market has increased. This has deteriorated the economic condition of Mexico in international trade industry. The chances of inflation can bring higher level of impact in the business market. The government is trying to bring the possible changes in order to stop this. The exchange rate will bring strong impact on the customer prices. Fro m a recent report, it has been identified that in the year 2014, the PESO was about 12.5 to 13.3 US dollar (Wilson, 2015). This was a significant movement taken by Mexican government. In 2015, PESO was 14.7 against 1 dollar. As opined by Cavusgil et al., (2014), due to the movement in currency exchange market, the business of the country gets affected. The payment of supplier gets affected due to this reason. On the other hand, employee wages also gets affected. As opined by Cavusgil et al., (2014), the sale forecasting report also gets influenced due to the influence of foreign currency. It becomes unpredictable for the financial experts. On the other hand, the study has highlighted the broader economy of the country, which is considered as the sensitive area and which mostly controls the export and important business, will get affected. Existing trade policies, system, barriers and incentives of the country According to Kollmann (2016), the Mexican government has introduced liberal trade policies for the business organizations, which are trying to enter in the business market of Mexico. As stated by Martn Meza (2015), wide range of trade agreements has been done by the government in order to reduce the tariff of goods. The country has taken membership in WTO in order to deal with the global rule and trade in the international market. The trade policies have been developed by the government in order to manage the export and import in Mexico. As stated by Subedi (2016), the government has also reduced the price for attracting a large number of investors. The trade system which is being followed by the business market is outward-oriented development business strategy. As the export and important business has highly contributed the GDP rate. Therefore, by following the macroeconomic policy, the trade movements are being analysed by the government. Although the government has taken various initiatives in order to bring the changes in the business industry, but due to the improper distribution in both the political and economic facilities in all over the country has created barriers for adopting the business policies (Walker, 2015). In order to motivate the foreign companies towards investing, the government has also introduced exciting incentive policies. Mexico follows the Maquiladora investment incentive policy, in which attractive incentives are being provided to the organizations which enter the Mexican market (Petras Veltmeyer, 2016). The existing level of foreign direct investment Mexico is considered as one of the popular country where the scope of foreign direct investment is very high. On the other hand, Mexico is being considered as the 15th largest FDI recipient. From the report of 2018, it has been identified that USD 93 billion has been invested in the Mexican trade industry. The investment has done directly in the Mexican industry through different foreign companies. If the foreign direct investment in Mexican industry will be analysed, it will be identified that in the year 2014, the FDI inward flow was 27508 and FDI stock was 37.5% (Petras Veltmeyer, 2016). On the other hand, in 2016, FDI inward flow was 26,739 and FDI stock was 45.3% (Salacuse, 2017). Recommendation From the above study, it has been identified country is facing the challenges due to lack of proper control on political situation. Therefore, this can be said that if the government takes strong step towards handling the political violence in the country, it will attract the foreign investors towards investing in the Mexican market. On the other hand, it has been identified in this study that due to improper economical distribution in the country, people from rural areas are facing different challenges. Therefore, this can be said that if the government notices the situation by providing financial support or providing job opportunity, the condition of the people in those areas can be improved. Conclusion In the above study, it has been identified that the government of Mexico has introduced various strategies in order to bring the development in the Mexican business industry. However, due to lack of political and Economic support in every places the business organizations may face various challenges. On the other hand, the liberal trade policies are also very influencing in the case of influencing the foreign investors towards the business market. It has been suggested in this study that if the government notices to solve the internal situation of the country, this will be helping the government in order to attract the foreign investors towards contributing in the Mexican economy. Reference list Aguilar, J. O., Xaman, J., Alvarez, G., Hernndez-Prez, I., Lpez-Mata, C. (2015). Thermal performance of a double pane window using glazing available on the Mexican market.Renewable Energy,81, 785-794. Cavusgil, S. T., Knight, G., Riesenberger, J. R., Rammal, H. G., Rose, E. L. (2014).International business. Pearson Australia. Charter, M. (Ed.). (2017).Greener marketing: A responsible approach to business. Routledge. DesJardins, J. R., McCall, J. J. (2014).Contemporary issues in business ethics. Cengage Learning. Filippov, D. V. (2017). Positioning of the Organization in the Target Markets Using the Modified Three Dimensional Matrix Model on the Example of Transport Education Market of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) of the Russian Federation.Advanced Science Letters,23(10), 9861-9865. Grande, G., Islas, J., Rios, M. (2015). Technical and economic analysis of Domestic High Consumption Tariff niche market for photovoltaic systems in the Mexican household sector.Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews,48, 738-748. Jensen, J. B., Quinn, D. P., Weymouth, S. (2015). The influence of firm global supply chains and foreign currency undervaluations on US trade disputes.International Organization,69(4), 913-947. Kollmann, R. (2016). Forthcoming in: International Journal of Central Banking (special issue on 2015 Annual Research Conference of the IJCB held in Mexico City, November 23-24, 2015) Discussion of" Financial Intermediation in a Global Environment"(Victoria Nuguer, Bank of Mexico). Martn, A. F., Meza, F. (2015).Informal Employment and Business Cycles in Emerging Economies: The Case of Mexico(No. 6780). Inter-American Development Bank. Miranda-de la Lama, G. C., Estvez-Moreno, L. X., Villarroel, M., Rayas-Amor, A. A., Mara, G. A., Seplveda, W. S. (2018). Consumer Attitudes Toward Animal Welfare-Friendly Products and Willingness to Pay: Exploration of Mexican Market Segments.Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 1-13. Petras, J., Veltmeyer, H. (2016).Multinationals on Trial: Foreign Investment Matters. Routledge. Salacuse, J. W. (2017). BIT by BIT: The growth of bilateral investment treaties and their impact on foreign investment in developing countries. InGlobalization and International Investment(pp. 25-45). Routledge. Subedi, S. P. (2016).International investment law: reconciling policy and principle. Bloomsbury Publishing. Vagts, D. F., Koh, H., Dodge, W. S., Buxbaum, H. L. (2015).Transnational business problems. West Academic. Valds, A. L., Vzquez, R. D., Fraire, L. A. (2017). Conditional correlation between oil and stock market returns: The case of Mexico.Revista Mexicana de Economa y Finanzas Nueva poca REMEF (The Mexican Journal of Economics and Finance),7(1). Walker, D. W. (2015).Kinship, Business, and Politics: The Martinez del Rio Family in Mexico, 1823-1867(Vol. 70). University of Texas Press. Wilson, J. H. (2015).American Business and Foreign Policy: 1920--1933. University Press of Kentucky. Yin, N. (2016). Application of AHP-Ansoff Matrix Analysis in Business Diversification: The case of Evergrande Group. InMATEC Web of Conferences(Vol. 44). EDP Sciences.

Tok History Essay Example

Tok History Paper Its purpose is to absorb the main idea of what happened in the past and how we will adjust or change to such events. In order for this to take place, we must then just accept certain facts, or myths, that we really arent sure of because we wont ever be completely assured of this information, but it still ends up being part of the past. This leads to the second fragment of the quote, that history is hope. Truth is, without a doubt, we wont ever be able to go back in time and relive certain events that wed like to see or to prove or disprove. We will write a custom essay sample on Tok History specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Tok History specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Tok History specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer For the time being, though, its imperative that we must have faith that all of the history that were being exposed to is the majority of the truth. We have let historians screen what they believe to be relevant and meaningful and therefore it is only fair that we accept such history and hope that it is true because we personally wont ever presence the actual occurrence of events that took place in the past. However, there is indeed a significant amount of history that is reality that in fact happened. Whether we were there when it happened, we have been told from extremely reliable sources or we are let known from undeniable evidence, there does exist history that is completely true. We may not know the background to certain events and the true causes or motivations, but we can certainly see the outskirts and the effects of such incidents and that is the truth. If we take for example the Bible and its teachings, this is surely a clichi d example, but the effect that it has had in my life, proves the validity of the quote that was previously mentioned. Revisionists will always question events that are depicted in the Bible for their supernatural nature whether it is the creation of humanity as a result from Adam and Eve or the fact that Jesus rose again three days later after he was crucified. Heck, its difficult for me to truly believe these concepts even if I understand them. This myth part ends up being the counterargument in itself because history is supposed to be the truth of what happened. A myth ultimately has no evidence to support its claims. However, I must admit that all these myths that my Catholic religion has nurtured to me trust in, and even more so because of the fact that I committed to my religion after First Communion, confirmed myself to being a Catholic only a few years ago and still go to church every Sunday, I believe in them. I hope that theyre mostly truths because even though they have been disproven as of late, I still choose to have faith in God because Ive grown to pray to him and venerate him all my life and he is my inspiration in times of despair. Now, the overall implication of the initial quote in the importance of knowing history is quite simple. The quote encompasses what history truly is made of and how valuable history is. History allows us to consider the perceptions, emotions and reasons that people had when writing the past and then make connections of this accepted past with the present and the future in order to see its true relevance and significance. Moreover, asking questions about the past allows us to prepare and think about how to react in the present and for the future. In a life with no history, humans would discover the same, new things everyday and society would never advance. Knowledge for development would not be acquired. What is good and what is evil? What is right and what is wrong? Such simple questions are the basis of discussion in terms of the Area of Knowledge (AOK) called Ethics. However, if we were to define ethics, we should consider the quote, Ethics is part myth, part hope and party reality. If we take for example the role of ethics in my life, although it is pretty present, it surges in various ways and maybe not so apparent at first. For example, the relationship I share with my mom. I truly love her and care for her greatly, however, I must admit that I constantly lie to her to a certain extent. For instance, when I go out in weekends, she restricts me in such a way that I feel I cant really enjoy myself and spend a nice time. So in response, I tell her part of the truth. I let her know where Ill be at first, but not were I plan to go or the people that will be with me. Now, the myth is that its unethical and wrong to lie to your mom. However, what if it turns out to be better for the both of us. I ultimately feel independent and enjoy my days off, while she doesnt have to bear with the worry or the fear that something bad might happen to me. Does this win-win effect end up being morally wrong? Furthermore, ethics is hope because I believe that despite my untruths, and the fact that the myth says that lying is an awful vice, it might actually be a virtue to keep my mom from carrying the burden of a volatile son and instead hope that I am doing a good deed by letting her believe that I do everything as she says and under her watch. The reality of ethics, however, is that hiding the truth will always be incorrect and morally wrong and especially when its directed towards your own mom. Nonetheless, through this quote and this example, were able to see that ethics plays a major role in the immediate consequences that are present in everyday life especially as we gain more knowledge of them and how we decided to apply them. In conclusion, I believe that history and ethics play a significant role in the way we attain knowledge and they are the main basis of who we are as a whole and who we will become in response to grasping this new knowledge. They are, however, part myths, part hope and part reality, but that doesnt change the fact that theyre crucial to the expansion and employment of our knowledge. Word Count: 1600 Bibliography 1. The Bible, Truth and Reality . Bible prophecy: world government| RFID |climate change| EU |Israel| Middle East | apostate church | persecution. N. p. , n. d. Web. 9 May 2011. http://www. seekingtruth. co. uk/.