Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Free Essays on Racial Profiling

Racial Profiling can be defined as the identification of racial factors, such as skin color, hair texture, facial structure, physical attire, gender, spoken language, accent, or religion. As noted above, there are many ways in which someone can be racially profile. Racial profiling has been used for many years. It started with segregation in the early 1900’s and recently with cases such as Major Aaron Campbell vs Florida. Yet, racial profiling has been overlooked and not investigated thoroughly until recently. Some believe that racial profiling is a good offensive tactic by law enforcement. But, others feel that singling out minorities to be involved in criminal activities is a violation of the law, the Fourth amendment, and their civil rights. According to Voice magazine, about 50 uniformed and undercover officers, Caucasians and African American, participated in an unscientific survey which contended that â€Å"the felon look† or â€Å"Tupac-thug-for-life† image and posture account for the majority of the stops and frisk done by officers.(Noel, 2000) During the survey the officers had to assign a high or low percentage to every piece of clothing a person is wearing. Therefore, showing us a glimpse into an officer’s mind. The following is a list that may constitute suspicion for a stop and/or frisk according to the survey: 1. A baseball cap, worn at any angle, accounts for about 10%. 2. A bandana, particularly red or blue, hints a gang involvement and accounts for about 20%. 3. An XXL hooded sweattop, or â€Å"hoodie†, accounts for about 20%. 4. Sagging or baggy trousers, accounts for about 30% of stops. 5. Exposed plaid boxer shorts, accounts for about 10% of stops. 6. Expensive high-top sneakers, unlaced, suggesting that the person may have done prison time, accounts for about 10%. These are just mere suggestions of how a suspicious person may dress and could be involved in criminal activities. Living ... Free Essays on Racial Profiling Free Essays on Racial Profiling I. Introduction What’s a person, group or society to do when the holder of law itself states that a police officer’s true motive for stopping someone was irrelevant. If that person is suspected of some kind of violation, the police officer may pull that person over even if the police officer was motivated by racial bias (Savage 2001). Challenge it, that’s what we can do. There are African-Americans and other racial ethnicities in our society who feel that police officers are racially bias towards them because the color of their skin happens to be shades darker than theirs. There are people out there who see this as unconstitutional and yet there is no supreme law directly stating that Racial Profiling is unconstitutional. It must be that there are people that are too scared to challenge something like this because it’s a real big controversial issue, which is considered to be too much heated of a controversial issue to debate at times. Debate after debate people b egin to lose track of what Racial Profiling really means. Then consider this, the neutral definition of Racial Profiling: the practice of police officers stopping motorist and pedestrians of certain racial or ethnic groups because the officers believe that these groups are more likely than others to commit certain types of crimes (House Research Organization 2000: 2). This active kind of practice of police officers to stop people solely on the basis of their skin color being shades different from theirs is, to no purpose, wrong. There are African-Americans and other ethnic groups in our society who feel that police officers are racially bias towards them because the color of their skin happens to be shades darker than theirs. In addressing this issue to you, this paper begins with a brief background sketch on racial biases against the African-Americans and other ethnic groups in society. Following that, addressing the issue through first... Free Essays on Racial Profiling Position paper: Is Racial Profiling Justified in Certain Situations? To begin with, I believe that when a traffic stop is made simply based on race and color than this is wrong and a violation of an individuals rights. However, I believe that in some situations racial profiling is justified. Some even consider the act of racial profiling as a valuable and effective way to reduce crime. When our national security is on the line, â€Å"racial profiling† or more precisely, threat profiling based on race, religion, or nationality is justified. Last week the FBI came under fire for questioning Muslims in Seattle about possible terrorist ties. Where else are federal agents supposed to turn for help in uncovering terrorists plots? How can people argue that profiling is offensive when prohibiting it jeopardizes our safety? Profiling in certain situations must be done and we must consider the missed opportunities. In summer 2001, Phoenix FBI agent Kenneth Williams urged his bosses to investigate Muslim men whom he suspected of training in U.S. flight schools as part of terrorist missions. His superiors rejected him and FBI director, Robert Mueller, said the reason was that there were concerns that the plan could be viewed as discrimatory racial profiling. If the FBI had taken the advice, the feelings of some Arabs and Muslims might have been hurt but the Twin Towers might still be standing and 3,000 innocent people might be alive today. Profiling is just one investigative tool among many that can be used. This is a situation where racial profiling is justified. We need to pay close attention to issues of security and public safety, issues that could mean giving up some of the freedoms that we enjoy especially in the time of the war on terror. People need to understand that they could be profiled and just except the fact. If you have nothing to hide then you have nothing to worry about. If the government needs to profile me... Free Essays on Racial Profiling Racial Profiling can be defined as the identification of racial factors, such as skin color, hair texture, facial structure, physical attire, gender, spoken language, accent, or religion. As noted above, there are many ways in which someone can be racially profile. Racial profiling has been used for many years. It started with segregation in the early 1900’s and recently with cases such as Major Aaron Campbell vs Florida. Yet, racial profiling has been overlooked and not investigated thoroughly until recently. Some believe that racial profiling is a good offensive tactic by law enforcement. But, others feel that singling out minorities to be involved in criminal activities is a violation of the law, the Fourth amendment, and their civil rights. According to Voice magazine, about 50 uniformed and undercover officers, Caucasians and African American, participated in an unscientific survey which contended that â€Å"the felon look† or â€Å"Tupac-thug-for-life† image and posture account for the majority of the stops and frisk done by officers.(Noel, 2000) During the survey the officers had to assign a high or low percentage to every piece of clothing a person is wearing. Therefore, showing us a glimpse into an officer’s mind. The following is a list that may constitute suspicion for a stop and/or frisk according to the survey: 1. A baseball cap, worn at any angle, accounts for about 10%. 2. A bandana, particularly red or blue, hints a gang involvement and accounts for about 20%. 3. An XXL hooded sweattop, or â€Å"hoodie†, accounts for about 20%. 4. Sagging or baggy trousers, accounts for about 30% of stops. 5. Exposed plaid boxer shorts, accounts for about 10% of stops. 6. Expensive high-top sneakers, unlaced, suggesting that the person may have done prison time, accounts for about 10%. These are just mere suggestions of how a suspicious person may dress and could be involved in criminal activities. Living ... Free Essays on Racial Profiling Racial Profiling: â€Å"Its Time to Put an End to this Unjust Practice† It has happened to actors such as Wesley Snipes, Will Smith, Blair Underwood and LeVar Burton. It has happened to football player Marcus Allen, Olympic athletes Al Joyner and Edwin Moses, and it has happened to attorney Johnnie Cochran. Police officers stop, question and even search black drivers who have committed no crime, based on the excuse that a traffic offense has occurred. The term black Americans use for these stops are â€Å"Driving while Black† or DWB. Driving while black is a prime example of racial profiling. The issue of racial profiling in America is one of great importance to the future of American society, and regrettably, is not a new issue. For decades black Americans have complained about this practice. Law enforcement officials across our great nation deny that racial profiling occurs, but an over whelming majority of the black community believes that racial profiling is practiced on a daily basis. During the Civil Rights Era, racial profiling was a major issue, thousands of black Americans were unnecessarily stopped and arrested based on their skin color alone. Yet, after all of our progress 2 since that torrid period of our past, we continue to fight for the stoppage of racial profiling in the year 2000. This issue screams to be addressed by the government and abolished in American society if we truly desire our country to be â€Å"The Land of the Free,† that we all know and love. Racism, and stereotyping in general, are issues that date back many centuries. It would seem that skin color alone may very well make you a suspect in America, and more likely to be stopped by our law enforcement personnel. The war on drugs has given police a license to target those people who they believe fit the â€Å"profile† of a drug dealer or a gang member. The prevailing perception in American society today is that most drug trafficke... Free Essays on Racial Profiling Racial profiling is the tactic of stopping someone because of the color of his or her skin and a fleeting suspicion that the person is engaging in criminal behavior (Meeks, p. 4-5). This practice can be conducted with routine traffic stops, or can be completely random based on the car that is driven, the number of people in the car and the race of the driver and passengers. The practice of racial profiling may seem more prevalent in today's society, but in reality has been a part of American culture since the days of slavery. According to Tracey Maclin, a professor at the Boston University School of Law, racial profiling is an old concept. The historical roots "can be traced to a time in early American society when court officials permitted constables and ordinary citizens the right to 'take up' all black persons seen 'gadding abroad' without their master's permission" (Meeks, p. 5). Although slavery is long since gone, the frequency in which racial profiling takes place remains the same. However, because of our advanced electronic media, this issue has been brought to the American public's attention. Some consider racial profiling a viable tool to reduce crime. The New Century Foundation, a non-profit organization based in the Washington, D.C. suburb of Oakton, VA, published a report on the American Renaissance website, stating that African-Americans commit 90% of the approximately 1,700,000 interracial crimes of violence that occurs every year in the United States. They are more than fifty times more likely to commit violent crimes against whites than vice versa. According to this same report, African-Americans are much more likely to commit violent crimes than whites and when they commit these crimes, target whites slightly more than half the time. The foundation believes that these crime statistics warrant racial profiling as a crime deterrent and believe that it may even reduce crime. A recent article publish...

Friday, November 22, 2019

Best SAT Prep Books 2019

Best SAT Prep Books 2019 SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips There are a lot of "Best SAT Books" lists out there, but we think that most of them aren’t very good or thorough. As a result, I’ve tried to write a much better guide here. In this article, you’ll learn which books are absolutely critical for your SAT prep, which books you can use to improve your individual section scores, and which books you'll need if you’re aiming for a top score. More importantly, you’ll learn how to use these SAT prep books for effective studying. This guide is pretty detailed, so here are reference links you can use to jump directly to different parts of the article. That said, I recommend reading the whole guide if you can! What's Better About This Guide to the Best SAT Books? Who Is This SAT Prep Books Guide For? Critical SAT Prep Books Best SAT Books by Subject Best Books for Top SAT Scorers Best All-in-One Book for Less Motivated Low Scorers The #1 SAT Prep Book to Avoid Buying Other Free Resources to Help You Plan Your SAT Prep Is Using SAT Prep Books the Best Option for You? What’s Better About This Guide to the Best SAT Books? Since your SAT score is important for yourcollege applications and you’ll likely spend a fair amount of time studying for the test, it’s important to get the right advice. Follow the wrong advice, and by the time you realize it's wrong, it'll probably be too late to improve your SAT score. Ideally, you'll vet any advice you get (including ours) before deciding on yourSAT prep plan. Before you read each article in your research, be sure to ask yourself, "Why should I trust this person online giving me SAT advice?" Well, we answer that question right here. Here’s why this SAT prep books guide is far better than others you might find online: I explain in detail why certain SAT books are good and what each book's flaws are. You probably haven’t heard of some of these prep books; many are newer or less well known and thus aren't featured as widely as books from more popular companies with larger marketing budgets. Most other SAT books guides just list a few books without context, but we tell you every critical piece of information you need to know before buying a book. I believe it’s important to target your weaknesses and where you need to prep.I’ll point out SAT books that are best for training for specific sections and books that are better for low or high scorers. Other guides assume that all students are the same, but we tailor ours to a variety of test-taker levels. I don’t get paid for promoting these SAT books over others.I don't know any of these authors personally. In reality, I’ve studied dozens of SAT prep books, and these are the ones I'd use if I myself were prepping. Other sites, such as about.com and reviews.com, get paid to adjust theirrankings or get kickbacks from publishers for mentioning their prep books. I like to think that I know what I’m talking about. I scored two perfect scores on the SAT and have worked directly with thousands of students prepping for the SAT. I’ve helped test takers of all levels, from those scoring around 800 to those aiming for 1530+. Other writers don't have the expertise needed to differentiate between good and bad SAT books, and end up recommending books as an afterthought. One important disclaimer: I’m co-founder of PrepScholar, an online SAT/ACT prep program. I believe we’ve built the best SAT prep program available. Itdiagnoses your strengths and weaknessesand gives you a structured all-in-one guide, combining the best aspects of the SAT books below so you can know exactly what to study at every point in your prep. I want to stress that you don’t need a prep program to do well on the SAT. In fact, writing this guide could lose us some customers if you decide you don’t need a program after all. If, however, you're not interested in managing 10 books and would rather have an integrated program that's customized to your learning style,check out our SAT prep program now. In either case, if you’re serious about SAT prep, keep reading. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points? Tired of wasting time prepping in ways that don't work? We have the industry's leading SAT prep program. Built by Harvard grads and SAT full scorers, the program learns your strengths and weaknesses through advanced statistics, then customizes your prep program to you so you get the most effective prep possible. It's the best prep program available right now. Best of all, we guarantee your money back if you don't improve your score by 160 points or more. Check out our 5-day free trial today: Improve Your SAT Score by 160+ Points, Guaranteed Who Is This SAT Prep Books Guide For? First, this guide is for students who are serious about test prep.You need to be motivated to get a high score, and you need to be willing to put in hard work. Getting through these books will take dozens of hours simply because the SAT covers so much material. If you plan to study just five hours or so, your choice of book won't make much difference.In this case, it's best to focus on taking anofficial SAT practice test and reviewing your answers. With such little prep time, your score won’t go up much in the end, so don't expect any miracles. Buying SAT prep books is the first and easiest step of SAT prep. You'll need to put in serious work to actually get the score improvements you want, though. In the following sections, we explain the best ways to get the most out of each SAT book we recommend. Secondly, this guide targets students who want to improve their scores by more than 100 points. To consistently score this much higher on the SAT, you'll need more than just tricks; you'll need to understand the actual contentbeing tested- that is, the underlying math concepts and grammar rules. Don't bother with ineffective "tricks" that simply make you feel as though you've learned something when you actually haven't. If you’re only looking to improve your score by 50 points or so, however, it’s possible for you to do this just byretaking the SAT, especially if you’ve taken the test only once. Lastly,to improve your score through SAT prep books, you'll need to have an excellent study strategy.It isn't enough to just read a book cover to cover- you must focus on your weaknesses by brushing up on the content you struggle with the most. Unfortunately, many students spend dozens of hours poring over one book after another without improving their SAT scores.Why? Because they're not understanding what their weaknesses areand aren'tfocusing their time on their weaknesses. Without learning how to attack your weak spots, you won't improve your SAT score! It might sound obvious, but it's pretty hard for many students to do this well. I write a lot more about how to prep for the SAT inmy guide to a perfect SAT score. It's also how I designed our online SAT program to do all of the hard structural work for you. Ultimately, if you’re serious about SAT score improvement and want to study with top prep books, this is the guide for you. The Best SAT Prep Books of 2019 For this guide, we’re going to divide our picks for the best SAT books into the following categories: Critical Books:These are must-have SAT books for your prep, no matter your strengths or weaknesses. Subject-Specific Books: These are by far the best books to use to better your SAT Reading, Math, and Writing skills. Books for Top Scorers:These SAT prep books are guaranteed to push you over the top and help you get the best score you're capable of achieving. Books for Low Scorers and Low Motivation: If you only want to study for a few hours and improve your SAT score just slightly, these books are OK to use. Otherwise, avoid them. The #1 Book to Avoid: The book I always used to recommend for the old version of the SAT is now squarely on the "Do Not Buy" list. Find out why! Since the format of the SAT changed so much in early 2016, I do NOT recommend using old SAT books to study for the current SAT. Although older SAT practice tests doshare some similarities with newer ones, you'll waste a lot of time studying for the wrong topics and questions if you don't know exactly how the old SAT differs from the current SAT. Therefore, always use books that target the current SAT (that is, books published in 2016 or later), such as the ones listed below. You can also use our online SAT prep programto learn more about your specific weaknesses and how you can improve them. Critical SAT Prep Books These are the books I believe all test takers should have, regardless of their SAT scores or what skills they need to improve. This is an extremely high standard to meet- in fact, there are only two books out of dozens I’ve tested that qualify for this title. We introduce them below. Official SATPractice Tests We’ve written at length about the importance of official SAT practice questions. As you might know, the SAT is a bizarre exam that tests concepts in ways you’ve never seen in school. Thus, you must train with realistic questions in order to accurately learn the patterns of the SAT. Official SAT tests released by the College Board are the gold standard for practice questions. At present, there are 10 official tests. These aren't exactly a "prep book" in the standard sense, but altogether they make up quite an important resource not too different from a book. Each test contains real questions given to actual students on previous administrations of the SAT. Without a doubt, the quality of official questions is far better than that of questions written by unofficial sources such as Kaplan or Barron's. Even better,all official SAT practice tests are free!You can download the tests as PDFs from the College Board website orour complete guide to official SAT practice tests. Make sure to print them out to get the realistic on-paper testing experience. Pros They're the best set of SAT practice tests you can get anywhere, period.If you want to take a full-length practice test, these are absolutely the ones you should use first. Each test is completely free to access and download. 10 full-length practice tests mean a decent amount of studying. If each test takes about four hours to take and two hours to review, that's a solid 60 hours of study time. Answers and answer explanations are available for all questions. Cons Most students will find that the answer explanations aren't that helpful for self-learning. Many explanations read like this: "A is wrong because A is wrong. B is correct for these reasons." In other words, they don't show you how to solve the question from step one. If you don't know key strategies such as how to approach reading passages or how to plug in numbers for math problems, you'll need a different resource to teach you. The tests don't offer anyother instructional material.If you’re bad at algebra, you can’t rely on this resource alone.These tests are just that- practice tests and practice questions. Nothing else! With only 10 practice tests available, there's not enough practice material for more motivated students or those seeking a large score improvement. You'll want to have one test to get used to the format and figure out your current score level, three to track your progress, one to take right before the actual test, and a couple to keep as backups. Unfortunately, you'll need more practice questions to drill with than you can get from the leftover tests to get really good at the SAT (which is why our prep program has the equivalent of four more practice tests to help you improve your skills). You have to print out the PDFs yourself to be able to work through them on paper. But in my opinion, this is better than having to buythe tests as hard copies (more on this later). Taking practice tests without a system for learning SAT content isn’t going to improve your score, and the tests don'tprovide any guidance on how to do this.Remember, mastering the SAT is as much about strategy as it is about content! SAT Prep Black Book, Second Edition TheBlack Book byMike and Patrick Barrettis the only other critical book I recommend for SAT prep. Unfortunately, the book itself isn't sufficient, and even with the practice tests above you’ll likely need supplemental help (as I explain below). What it does have, though, is so good that I believe every student studying with SAT prep books should read it. What you’ll get from the Black Book is essentially a way to think about the SAT. But what does this mean exactly? Here are a few examples: You'll learn that the SAT is designed to be a predictable, standardized test.It needs to test basic concepts so that it can be administered nationwide to all students, but it also needs to be difficult, so it often distorts questions in a weird way. It explains how every answer on the SAT must be unambiguously correct,or else test takers would complain that their incorrect answers are correct. Therefore, your main strategy should be to rule out all incorrect answer choices- this is especiallyimportant on SAT Reading. The concepts in this book were things I understood intuitively back when I took the SAT and was studying for a perfect score. This resource influenced the way I think about teaching our students at PrepScholar. Overall, of all books on the market, the Black Book aligns most closely with my personal philosophies on how to succeed on the SAT. Pros It offers a very lucid take on the SAT. Its ideas will not only change your view on the SAT but also motivate you to work harder by showing you that any student can excel on it. The book contains practical strategies that are more helpful than those in most other SAT books. Unlike other popular prep books, this one doesn’t rely on ineffective tricks. It doesn’t assume all students are the same.Rather, the book offers a few alternatives for strategies, and then suggests you try them out to see which ones work best for you. The book has a thorough set of answer walkthroughs for all Reading, Writing, and Math questions in the first four official SAT practice tests (included in the recommended "book" above). Each explanation clearly breaks down how to approach the question and get the right answer. Cons The book requires a ton of self-discipline and insight to be able to use it effectively. Because you’re learning from your mistakeswith no one there to guide you, you must be self-driven and willing to experiment with different strategies to figure out which one works best for you. For some students, following a set of straight guidelines could be less confusing. The fundamental content is lacking. If you’re weak in word problems, for example, this book alone will not help you master the subject. I believe in recognizing your weaknesses and then mastering that skill through focused prep and practice questions. While this book gives you a general approach to SAT prep, it doesn't teach you the specific content you'll need to know. It's fairly long (more than 550 pages!), with answer explanations that often feelrepetitive; however, that's partly due to the structure of the SAT itself (remember, it's a standardized test and therefore repetitive in how it tests certain skills). I personally disagree with some of the key points in this book.For example, the writers believe you should aim to reach a certain skill level rather than aim for a particular score. By contrast, I believe that setting an SAT score goal is a useful motivator. Once again, I highly recommend these two resources for all students studying with (or only with) SAT prep books. We cover most of the important concepts in the Black Book in our SAT prep program and also provide focused practice on individual skills. As mentioned above, you'll most likely need specific training on each subject to be able to shore up your weaknesses. Next, we provide you with key resources for individual subjects on the SAT. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points?We've written a guide about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now: Best SAT Books by Subject Beyond the critical SAT books covered above, you’ll likely need supplemental help on specific SAT sections. Here, we discuss the best prep books to use for SAT Reading, Math, and Writing. These books all follow my SAT prep philosophy: Divide SAT content into skills, and then get focused training on those skills. Use realistic, high-quality questions that prep you well for the SAT. Cover only what you need to know- not advanced material that won't be on the SAT. Best SAT Reading Prep Book In my experience with thousands of students, SAT Reading is the most difficult section score to improve.This section uses logical reasoning skills that aren’t as easily mastered as math concepts or grammar rules are. As a result, it’s extremely important to learn what kinds of questions will be asked and how you can approach them in a systematic way. My recommendation for best SAT Reading book is The Critical Reader: The Complete Guide to SAT Reading, Third Editionby Erica L. Meltzer. This book dissects the SAT Reading section by question type and skill, and does a great job teaching the core of what each question is asking. It also clearly explains how to work with a passage to arrive at the correct answer. Of all writers, Meltzer uses an approach to SAT Reading prep that aligns most closely with mine: todrill questions skill by skill so you can recognize patterns. Pros It offers a great breakdown of the Reading section on a skill-by-skill level, as well as helpful strategies for every question type. This is the same approach we use in our own SAT prep program. There are lots of high-quality, realistic passages and questions.Meltzer uses passages that are extremely similar to those you’ll see on the actual SAT. The book has a helpful guide listing the questions on the SAT by skillso you can get even more focused practice. Cons The cost is somewhat high for a book that covers just one SAT section (about $30-$35). Its writing style is dry and clinicallike that of an academic textbook. It feels very formal and there are no images to break up the text. I personally prefer this style- cut out the fluff- but it can be too dense for some students. What this means is thatyou might not even read the book because you find it so boring. Its lack of creative page layouts and lots of text on large pages can get tiresome- sort of like reading a phone book. Best SAT Math Prep Book My philosophy on SAT Math is that the best way to significantly improve your Math score is to learn the underlying content.Getting familiar with math questions and learning some strategies like plugging in answer choicescan help you make some progress, but you’ll quickly run into a wall if you have gaps in your underlying math knowledge. Your best bet, therefore, is to find a book that canteach you math content in an organized way and give you practice problems you can use to focus on individual skills. It should also cater to your skill levelsince math questions that are too hard or easy for you will be a waste of time. For these reasons, I recommend Steve Warner’s series of SAT Math books.He's written multiple SAT prep books for beginner, intermediate, and advanced students, and has a set of 240 SAT Math problems organized by topic and difficulty. Pros Lessons that teach math concepts are clear and helpful. They suggest ways to speed up your ability to solve questions and help you identify what a question is really asking. Practice questions are all fairly realistic with good answer explanations. Customizing your SAT Math practice by skill level is important. If you’re scoring below 600, there’s no reason to focus on attacking the hardest questions on the test. Warner's books give you appropriate practice for your specific math level. Cons The books' categories aretoo broad, makingit difficult to find specific math concepts to practice. In contrast,our SAT programsplits large topics into smaller subjects. In algebra, for example, we go over linear functions, single-variable equations, andsystems of equations.By focusing on each individual skill, you can more accurately pinpoint your weaknesses and drill them in your prep. If you’re planning to make a large score improvement, you'll need to buy multiple SAT Math books, which can end up costing you around $100.This is pretty pricey for basically pages of practice questions. Math questions can get repetitive from book to book,as though they're being generated from templates. You definitely need to supplement these books with real practice tests to get broader exposure to how the College Board phrases SAT Math questions. The SAT has some creative, out-there Math questions that I don’t see covered well in Warner's books. If you’re really struggling with SAT Math at a basic level (say, scoring 500 and below), I recommend supplementing your work with Khan Academy’s math modules. This website is a free program that provides an engaging way to train your most basic skills. I believe the core Khan Academy program has better instruction than itsSAT prep program, even though it's not focused on the SAT. Best SAT Writing Prep Book The best way to excel at SAT Writing is to understand the grammar rules and how they appear on the test. You also need to answer a lot of high-quality practice questions to ensure you learn the patterns of the SAT (that’s how we designed our online SAT program to teach you grammar!). Once again, I’m returning to Erica L. Meltzer for her SAT grammar books.Meltzer’s fantastic at distilling all the rules of English grammar into what you need to know for the SAT; you won’t learn any arcane grammar concepts not on the SAT. For the rules that are tested, Meltzer presents them clearly and covers their foundations in case you’ve forgotten grammar rules learned in school. Unlike her single prep book covering SAT Reading, Meltzer has two books for SAT Writing: The Critical Reader: The Ultimate Guide to SAT Grammar, Fourth Edition: This bookcovers all SAT grammar rules you need to know and offers exercises to help you learn how to analyze grammar in the context of passages. The Critical Reader: The Ultimate Guide to SAT Grammar Workbook, Fourth Edition:This book offers hundreds of SAT practice questions, equivalent to six full-length Writing tests, as training material. Neither book is sufficient on its own, which is a big drawback. The first one doesn’t have enough SAT Writing questions to let you really drill grammar rules. Meanwhile, the second one doesn’t teach grammar rules, and questions aren’t organized by rule. These problems can complicate studying for students, but I still believe these are the best SAT Writing books out there. Pros Each book uses a clear writing style and cleanly articulates SAT grammar rules. The books cover only what you need to know for SAT Writing and omit extraneous material. A lot of SAT grammar books suffer from including too many esoteric rules that aren't tested on the SAT. The Writing practice questions are all fairlyrealistic. Cons There's no guidance on study strategy.The books offer a nice breakdown of the SAT, but you don't get instruction on how to use each book to best maximize your Writing score. Like other SAT resources,the price for each book is a bit high- about $30.They have good content, but I believe Meltzer could get a lot more customers by lowering her prices. I'd prefer a more unified, skill-based approach in a single book.Ideally, you'd practice single grammar rules with practice questions and then bring them all together in a full-length practice test. At PrepScholar, we believe in a unified, seamless experience, and integrate test content, customization, and feedback into a single package. Bonus: Looking for the very best guides to every SAT section? Check out our top guides for every single section of the SAT. Choose the score level you're aiming for: 800 Score Guides: SAT Reading | SAT Writing | SAT Math | SAT Essay Choose these guides if you're scoring a 600 or above on a section, and you want to get the highest SAT score possible. 600 Score Guides: SAT Reading | SAT Writing | SAT Math | SAT Essay Choose these guides if you're scoring below a 600 on a section, and you want to boost your score to at least a 600 level. These are the very best guides available on boosting your SAT score, section by section. They're written by Harvard grads and perfect SAT scorers. Don't disappoint yourself- read these guides and improve your score today. Best Books for Top SAT Scorers As you can see, you already have a lot to work on. With 10 full-length practice tests and more than five SAT books at your disposal, you'll be studying for well over 50 hours. By using the guidelines we recommend, you can make huge improvements in your score. If you still need extra practice, though, I recommend Barron's SAT prep books, especially if you want a perfect or near-perfect score. I remember using these books for my own SAT prep in high school. While their questions aren't as good as those in official SAT practice tests, they’re a solid backup source to use when you finish all the other SAT prep books above. Pros Each book offers a lot of content- thousands of practice questions and detailed lessons with many examples. The books areextremely thorough, covering every nook and cranny of what you need to know for the SAT. You can be confident that little is tested outside of what’s in these books. Cons The topics can get too difficult for what you need to know on the SAT. Some questions get unrealistically hard in a way you’d never see on the actual test. If you’re not an SAT expert yet, you won’t be able to detect when this happens and might end up wasting time studying irrelevant concepts. The books lack clear direction on what’s important and what's not for the SAT. For example, a grammar rule that appears once every SAT gets the same number of pages as a grammar rule that appears eight times on the SAT. Specifically, algebra is really important but gets far too little treatment. These are definitely not the books to use if you have limited time to study for the SAT. Not all SAT strategies are top notch.For example, I have mixed feelings about the SAT Reading passage strategies detailed in these books. Best All-in-One Book for Less Motivated Low Scorers So far my recommendations have been primarily for the super ambitious students who really want to improve their SAT scores.But I know that there are some students who just want to put in a few hours of prep, get exposure to the test, and then take the SAT and forget about it. I personally believe that for most test takers, raising your SAT score is the best way to improve your chances of college admission. If you don't want to put in hours of time to raise your score, I strongly suggest questioning your approach to test prep. Still, some of you either won't have the time or motivation to prep better. If you’re one of those just hoping to get the SAT over with, I recommend usingKaplan’s SAT Prep Plus 2019. It’s an all-in-one book that covers the three sections and has a wide assortment of practice questions and tests. The book doesn’t excel at any of what it’s doing,but it addresses the most important bases for SAT prep. It also has more reasonable content than other all-in-one SAT books like the one by The Princeton Review. The truth is, I don’t love this book. I don’t even really like it. I don’t recommend it if you actually want to improve your score and are willing to put in the study time needed to do so. However, if you just want a single resource that's easily digestible and does an OK job teaching you the basics, this book is the best one out there. Pros It covers all three SAT sections and contains five full-length practice tests. At about $20, it's quite affordable for the breadth of SAT content it covers. The book offers some basic test-taking strategies that can get you a few easy points if you're new to standardized testing and often feel like you have no idea what to do. Cons Practice questions tend to be unrealistic- the book doesn't phrase questions the way the SAT would and doesn't always test concepts correctly. In addition, the questions don’t trick you in the same ways the real test does. Answers and other materials have a lot of errors,indicatingpoor quality control. You'll probably notice many of these mistakes yourself, but if you don't catch them you'll learn the wrong facts and strategies. The strategies are not super helpful once you move past a 600 score in a section. To improve beyond this point, you'll need tomaster specific content and develop customized strategies based on your weaknesses. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points?We've written a guide about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now: The #1 SAT Prep Book to AVOID Buying Unlike every other section in this guide, I'm making one specific recommendation againstbuying an SAT book. This is particularly unusual because, prior to 2015, this was the #1 SAT prep book to get! So what book is it? None other than The Official SAT Study Guide, 2020 Edition. It feels really weird to recommend not buying this book because, for years and years, this wasthe book to use to study for the SAT. This guide used to contain 10 full-length practice tests you could only get by buying the book. Here's the problem today, though:everything in this book is available for free online. You just go to the College Board website and download PDFs for every section of the book. (The practice tests contained in it are my #1 recommendation at the beginning of this article.) So why release this guide for free? This is all part of the College Board's move to make the SAT more accessibleto test takers and to reduce educational inequality. Such an endeavor is admirable, and I support them- but it also means thatThe Official SAT Study Guide is now a waste of money.What's more, the material outside the practice tests is superficial and overall unhelpful (we've written far better guides on the Reading, Math, and Writingsections, all of which are available on our blog for free). Pros The guide has eight official SAT practice tests pre-printed for you, so you don't need to print them out yourself. It can be ripped apart for fire kindling or birdcage lining. Cons Everything inthis guide isavailable for free through the College Board website (which actually has two additional practice tests not in this book). The book doesn’t provide any instructional material, so don't expect to actually learn skills and content here. If you’re bad at algebra, you can’t rely on this book alone. Most test takers buy it for the tests, and the College Board knows this. Taking practice tests without a system for learning isn’t going to improve your score, and the book doesn’t provide any guidance on how to do this. Other Free Resources to Help You Plan Your SAT Prep More important than buying SAT books is knowing how to use them effectively. The more prep books you have, the more important it is to build a unified study system. We've written thorough guides to help guide you through your SAT studies. Before you buy any books, though,take a realistic SAT practice test to assess what areas you're weak in. Check outour guide on how to set up a diagnostic practice testif you aren't sure where to start. After taking this first practice test, you'll need to go over your results in detail to pinpoint your weaknesses; this will help you determine where you should spend your prep time and money. For instance, if you did fine on the Reading and Writing sections but bombed Math, you'll want to focus your prep on Math and potentially invest in the SAT Math books recommended above. It's also important to set a target SAT scoreso you know what your end goal is for your SAT prep. Students aiming for around 1200 (600 on Math and600 on Evidence-Based Reading and Writing) should use different strategies and prep books than students shooting for 1600. If you're aiming for a top score, check out my comprehensive guide detailing how I got a perfect SAT score. Finally, you'll need to build a study plan that works well with your schedule and lets you figure out the best time to take the SAT. We offer a free guide explaining thefive essential components of an SAT study program guaranteed to improve your score by 160+ points. Use these free resources to guide yourself through the maze that is SAT prep. (FutUndBeidl/Flickr) Is Using SAT Prep Books the Best Option for You? There are a lot of prep methods available, and book studying is just one of them. To explore all our options, let's quickly examine whether using SAT prep books is right for you. Students who choose to study for the SAT with books do so for different reasons. Some use books because they're cheaper than other options like prep programs and tutors. That said, the best SAT books can get expensive:if you buy all top books, you'll be spending around $200.This is close to the cost of our online SAT prep program, which goes beyond books by guiding your studies step by step and motivating you to put in study time. Other students use SAT prep books because they're self-motivated and like teaching themselves. If this isn't you, books can be a disappointing way for you to spend your time prepping. Without a solid study strategy, you can put in dozens of hours yet make zero improvement since you're not understanding your weaknesses and how to fix them. By far one of the most important ways to improve your SAT score is to study and learn from your mistakes.If you can't do this reliably, you'll need extra help to get you started.We've written a free guide comparing various methods of SAT prep. Download this to see which methods are best for you. Recap: The Best SAT Book in Every Category Here's our shortlist of the best SAT prep books for 2019, complete with links: Best Critical SAT Books Official SAT Practice Tests SAT Prep Black Book (Second Edition) Best SAT Subject-Specific Books The Critical Reader: The Complete Guide to SAT Reading, Third Edition Steve Warner's SAT Math books The Critical Reader: The Ultimate Guide to SAT Grammar, Fourth Editionand its companion Grammar Workbook Best SAT Books for Top Scorers Barron's SAT prep books Best SAT Book for Low Scorers and Low Motivation Kaplan's SAT Prep Plus 2019 We've given you an excellent array of SAT books to choose from. Now, it's time to start looking for the ones you think will help you the most and get studying! Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or more? We've put our best advice into a single guide. These are the 5 strategies you MUST be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download this free SAT guide now: What's Next? Understanding your SAT target score is critical for success. Read our step-by-step guide to help you figure out what exact SAT score you need to aim foron test day. Want to score a super high SAT score?Get all the tips and expert advice you need in my guide to getting a perfect SAT score. Looking for additional SAT prep help?Check out our picks for the top SAT prep websites and the top SAT apps you should be using in your studies. Check out our industry-leading online SAT program. We've designed it to cover all the advantages of books and tutors at an affordable price. Featuring in-depth strategy lessons and thousands of practice questions, we have the content from the leading books. We include the critical Official SAT Study Guide above. Beyond that, the program acts like your personal tutor. It guides you step-by-step through what you should be working on at every moment to best improve your score. It customizes to your strengths and weaknesses, then gives you focused practice so you learn the patterns on the SAT. Furthermore, it motivates you to study so that you put in enough time. There's a 160 point guarantee- if you don't improve your score by 160 points, you get all your money back.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Cash rate, loan rate, equity funding Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Cash rate, loan rate, equity funding - Essay Example This can be attributed to the increased cost of debt funding for the major banks in Australia. Study of major banks’ fund composition shows that the banks are shifting their focus towards deposits and long term borrowings more and there has been a decline in share of short term debt in banks funding. Amongst others, higher deposit rates have contributed significantly towards increase in debt funding costs for banks. Although the share of equity has also increased in the banks’ funding composition but it has not contributed much towards changes in housing loan rates, since they are less risky. Until recently, in 2011, the spread between standard housing loan rate and cash rate has reduced by about 10 basis points due to the increase in discounts offered by the banks on new mortgages, but it’s only a small reduction compared to the overall spread. Table of Contents Table of Contents 3 Widening of the spread between the major-banks standard variable housing loan rat e and the RBA’s cash rate since 2007 4 RBA’s Cash Rate 4 Variable Housing Loan Rate and Cash Rate 4 Composition of Banks’ Funding 5 Cost of Debt and Equity Funding 5 Pricing for Risk and Banks’ Housing Loan Rates 6 Conclusion 6 List of Graphs 7 References 10 Bibliography 12 Widening of the spread between the major-banks standard variable housing loan rate and the RBA’s cash rate since 2007 RBA’s Cash Rate The key objective of RBA’s monetary policy is to lower the inflation rate, targeting around 2 to 3%. Other objectives of RBA’s monetary policy include low unemployment rate and maintaining a stable growth of Australian economy. Cash rate is the primary tool which is used by RBA to regulate the monetary policy in the country. It increases target cash rate when the inflation pressure is in excess of the RBA’s target and it decreases the target cash rate when the economy can grow at a faster rate without creating any infla tion problem (Lowe, 1995, p. 3-15). If we look at the history of RBA’s cash rate, it can be inferred that there has been a steady increase in cash rate from 2007 till mid 2008, which was the beginning of Global Financial Crisis (GFC). Then there was a sharp decline in cash rate during the period of mid 2008 till April, 2009. The cash rate was as low as 3% and continued to be so till September, 2009. Since October, 2009, there had been a steady increase in cash rate (Graph 1). Until recently there had been minor cuts in cash rate and is at 4.25%, as of today (RBA, n.d.). Variable Housing Loan Rate and Cash Rate The trend of standard variable housing loan rates is believed to follow the trend of cash rate. It is so because the household cost of funds are driven by the cash rate. If we compare the standard variable housing loan rate with cash rate, we find an overall strong correlation between these two rates over the years but with some anomalies in between (Graph 2). If we wat ch closely, it can be found that there has been an increasing spread between the major bank’s standard variable housing loan rate and the cash rate since 2007. This increase in variable housing loan rate by major banks relative to the cash rate can be attributed to the increase in bank’s cost of debt funding. In addition to this, higher equity funding costs and increase in expected losses have also attributed to this widening of spread between the two rates. Until recently, in 2011, the spread has reduced by about 10

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

NEGOTIATION STYLES AND COMMUNICATION Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

NEGOTIATION STYLES AND COMMUNICATION - Assignment Example Globalization has brought about the need for cultural understanding for traders in various countries to enable them to trade globally. The Vietnamese and the Americans have different personality styles and preference in negotiation. To start with, the Americans and Vietnam have different approaches to negotiation with the Americans being convenience customers while the Vietnamese are valued customers. This is from the buyers’ point of view so that the negotiating party is the buyer. A convenient customer is the once who is less sensitive to brand and try to minimize effort on evaluation. The convenience customers are time sensitive, thus prefer saving on time. The Americans fit the convenience customer definition through its individualistic nature. Americans are more interested in satisfying personal needs rather than focusing on societal beliefs and culture, therefore the American consumers are known to make decisions free of societal influence. On the other hand, the value customers are conscious of both value and prices of products. They, the value customers, would want to get the best quality at the lowest possible cost thus maximizing on value. For the Vietnamese, they believe in collective communal responsibility for individuals. The people in Vietnam are aware of the general prices of products and qualities, thus are more brands sensitive. The Easterners prefer having to negotiate for lower prices but at the same time maintaining good quality of the product. The individual behavior has affected the way trader price their goods. Traders in the east are aware of the bargaining nature of most of the customers thus have priced their products to allow for bargaining. The Far East is characterized with high power distance (Van 2009). This means that the gap between those having powers, and those not in powers is big and visible. The inequality in power is reflected in the high income disparity

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Training Program And HR Order Essay Example for Free

Training Program And HR Order Essay Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   We are in the epoch of organizational reform and innovation. Our time is marked with rapid changes in the demography of workforce, changing corporate culture, and changing institutions. In the light of the rapid shift in today’s organizations, the skills required of human resource managers, beginners in the profession and even aspiring students in the discipline, rest on the foundation of knowledge on the whole gamut of human resources and organizational development. Corporate America is not without its complications. When the company â€Å"succeeds,† there is with it (the success) a corresponding notion of responsibilities and liabilities. Organizations thrive today because of the policies and guidelines they have managed to fixed firmly in their set-up and translated into their day to day affairs. Big businesses have the competitive edge over others – i.e., over small entrepreneurs, because they have arrived at their positions in the market place by securing certain parameters in the many facets that comprise their organizations. This is especially true on government laws and regulations (McKenna, 2000).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Company policies reflect the company’s intentions of not only looking into employees’ benefits and/or plight, but its willingness to comply with authorities. Safety must be of prime importance in each organization and cooperation between employees and the imposed restrictions must be monitored and regulated. Any accident prevention program can only be effective and successful with the combined efforts of the management, supervisors, foremen and employees. This is where motivating the employees to participate is also critical and the constant and proper communication channels are employed in the organization. Government’s monitoring should also be unceasing because the tendency for institutions to make lapses and/or company support to be negligent with their duties can oftentimes occur (McKenna, 2000; Clement, 1981). Discussion ~ Training Programs: its purpose and efficacy   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Training and training programs instituted by an organization requires that the management realizes the need for a systematic program for employee training and development through the formulation of company policy and its implementation by specifying who should be responsible. Management must therefore consider training as one of its major functions. It must realize this need because training is a continuous activity and requires management’s attention and support. Without management’s continued backing, financial, and moral, the program will fail (Clement, 1981).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Regardless of the sophistication and predictive validity of a selection program, it is almost always necessary to expose newly hired employees to some kind of training before they can be maximally effective on a new job, even if the employees are already experienced with the tools utilized in the workplace. The purpose of which is to increase the employee’s productive efficiency and to enhance organizational goals. Training requirements are made more complicated when the workers have had little actual job experience or are being hired for a type of work they have never performed (Baron, 1983). The organization’s selection procedures ideally ensure that new employees have sufficient intelligence, aptitude, and attitude to learn the job. The effects of a training program are in some cases tangible and in other cases, intangible. In the case of the former, empirical measurement of effectiveness is relatively easy; but in the case of the latter, it is not so. For example, the effectiveness of a training program, such as one for operator training, work study or inventory control, can easily be measured in terms of increased productivity or reduced cost, after the trainees have completed the program. But in the case of a program on human relations or leadership, the benefits cannot be measured in terms or units; they are seen and felt over a period of years. The effectiveness of such programs can also be measured from the point of view of objectives of the program by conducting in depth interviews of the participants, their superiors and subordinates (Baron, 1983). ~ The HR Manager’s role to make training effective   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The HR manager should determine, in consultation with the different line departments, what training activities are needed, arranged according to priorities. He should evaluate the training programs and submit to management annual reports on the status of each program, their effectiveness, and the quality of the training activities. He should continually sell the training programs to all supervisors and managers and integrate the programs with other personnel actions, such as promotions or transfers. He should also extend technical aid to the supervisors and managers at all levels in determining training needs, selecting instructors or demonstrators and evaluating results (Landy, 1985; Baron, 1983; Clement, 1981).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another important role of the HR manager is to evaluate whether the training conducted met what was intended for and if further follow-up or reinforcements are needed, there are contingencies that are also in place. Management, furthermore, as a rule wants to know whether or not the expense involved in the training and development of its employees will be a profitable investment. In evaluating the effectiveness of training there is a need to define what one wants to get from that particular training to be able to evaluate its results. The usual approach of relating the effects of training to gross changes in the organization in terms solely of the attitudes and behavior of workers is not enough as these are not all the effect one gets out of training. There are intangible benefits that a trainee acquires which broaden his outlook in life through his contact with society at large, boost his morale and motivation towards his work, and develop his pride to belong to his organization. Quantification should be in terms of identifiable units as psychomotor skills, knowledge and information gained and specific behavior patterns instilled (Landy, 1985; Baron, 1983; Clement, 1981).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Effectiveness is measured in terms of the application of what the learners have acquired during the training course. This application in turn is affected by various factors, the most important of which is the organizational framework and climate within which to apply the ideas learned from the course. Training is not transferred until it is well-integrated and successfully applied in a given job for which it was intended. Not all knowledge or skill can be used immediately in all situations but the learner will have it ready for his use when the need arises (Landy, 1985; Baron, 1983; Clement, 1981). Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The rapid technological and environmental changes which have engulfed the world in increasing proportions have drastically transformed the placid face of the earth. Organizational as well as industrial behaviors have evolved towards dynamic materialism thereby elevating worker’s and customer’s demands and expectations. Trends show that: 1) there is a great and growing shortage of high talent managers; 2) there will be an increasing need for better managers; 3) the manager’s job will be more demanding; 4) there will be increasing competition for managers. This reality is sustained up to the next decades. Hence, the manager himself constantly must undergo training and advanced schooling for him to remain in the competitive edge. He can also pinpoint to the staff in the workplace the significance of training when he himself refreshes in the profession he is involved in (Clement, 1981).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   When the HR manager thoroughly knows his stuff and had done his research, studies and analysis into the problems and challenges of his workplace, it is no wonder that the training provided for the organization is appropriate and fitting for the members of the organization. His job seems to be continuous and he updates himself constantly to pull the rest of the organization to a level of competence. Reference: Baron, R. 1983. Behavior in Organizations: Understanding and Managing the Human Side of Work, Boston: Allyn and Bacon. Clement, R.W. 1981. Evaluating the Effectiveness of Management Training. Human Resources Management. Vol. 20, pp.8-13. Landy, F.J. 1985. Psychology of Work behavior. 3rd Ed. Dorsey Press. McKenna, Eugene, 2000. Business Psychology and Organizational Behavior: A Student’s Handbook. 3rd Ed. Psychology press: Taylor and Francis Group.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Dark Matter Essay -- essays research papers

There is perhaps no current problem of greater importance to astrophysics and cosmology than that of "dark matter". The controversy, as the name implies, is centered on the notion that there may exist an enormous amount of matter in the Universe that cannot be detected from the light that it emits. The evidence of dark matter is from the motions of astronomical objects, specifically stellar, galactic, and galaxy cluster/supercluster observations. The basic argument is that if we measure velocities in some region, then there has to be enough mass there for gravity to stop all the objects from flying apart. When such velocity measurements are done on large scales, it turns out that the amount of inferred mass is much more than can be explained by the luminous mass. Hence we infer that there is non-luminous matter in the Universe, i.e. there is dark matter. Dark matter has important consequences for the evolution of the Universe. According to standard cosmological theory, the Universe must conform to one of three possible types: open, flat, or closed. A parameter known as the "mass density" - that is, how much matter per unit volume is contained in the Universe - determines which of the three possibilities applies to the Universe. In the case of an open Universe, the mass density (denoted by the Greek letter Omega) is less than unity, and the Universe is predicted to expand forever. If the Universe is closed, Omega is greater than unity, and the Universe will eventually stop its expansion and recollapse back upon itself. For the case where Omega is exactly equal to one, the Universe is delicately balanced between the two states, and is said to be "flat". Dark matter candidates are usually split into two broad categories, with the second category being further sub-divided: baryonic and bon-baryonic. Then, under non-baryonic, hot dark matter (HDM) and cold dark matter (CDM) are its types. Depending on their respective masses and speeds, CDM candidates have relatively large mass and travel at slow speeds (hence "cold"), while HDM candidates include minute-mass, rapidly moving (hence "hot") particles. As leading possible candidates for baryonic dark matter, there are black holes (large and small), brown dwarfs (stars too cold and faint to radiate), sun-size MACHOs, cold gas, dark galaxies and dark clusters, ... ...e seeking them in a Stanford laboratory by watching for radiation as they excite crystals of germanium in a detector, but they haven't detected any yet. Soon they will try an even more exotic search by moving their equipment to an old iron mine 2,400 feet deep in northern Minnesota where one or two WIMPs, if they really exist, might very occasionally make their existence known. The detectors are hockey puck-sized superconducting crystals of germanium and silicon. These pure crystals are cooled to about 500 degrees below zero. A particle hitting a detector disturbs the molecular structure of the crystal and registers as a slight temperature increase. Because WIMPs easily pass through most matter, they can pass through the shields and register a signal. To date, the detectors at Stanford have registered a handful of signals, but an analysis suggests that these were caused by stray particles that originally came from cosmic rays and managed to penetrate the 35 feet of rock over the detectors. The ever-so important question what is dark matter will not be answered tomorrow. More data has to be taken, the theories have to tweaked, and many physicists must continue to work together.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Technology

Today the whole world's image of technology is negative. Author Alex Williams, essay Quality Time, Redefined shows negativity for technology also positive things that technology can do, such as bringing families together. Making relationships stronger between two married couples. Technology can in many ways make families bonds stronger. In the past people would Just write letters to family members who lived far away. Now Technology has improved the life of people. Life has evolved over time with the help of technology.I agree with Alex Williams in how much technology can help families bond stronger closer, also being connected to each other throw many APS, such as Backbone, twitter, emails, testing, also keep. These technology developments help the whole entire world to be more social and connected. Negative sides of technology that people see is how can a small phone can take the focus of someone that they love. Technology can in so many ways have negative sides to it. Making the ey es weaker, making the brain tired. Technology, has many negative sides to it as it has positive sides to it.Many people would disagree on technology on having a positive side. Ms Vary agrees when she says † The family was in the same room, but not together. † (pig. 94) People when using technology get connected into the technology, and can't focus and do multicast while using technology, its kind of like it absorbs your brain cells Just to focus on one task. The culture has changed so much as when people read Just books, and playing bored games at night. Looking at it from one point books are as much focus taking as technology.As many people miss the old culture of America where he whole family sits and talk about how their day was or what are they planning for the next day. Ms. Vary acknowledges, † An evening like that can bring more closeness than a night spent huddling over a board game back in the days of analog. † (pig. 99) Ms. Vary agrees with using tec hnology in a family as everyone would be doing what they wish to. The father would be reading a news paper, the daughter studying, the son playing games. Makes the environment much happier and excited evening for all the family members.In the old days none of the technology excited but bored games books and stories excited where one family ember wither didn't like the bored game or didn't like the story, even though they would have sat throw the evening either listening to a story or playing something that they refuse to like. For example back in my country technology is not as big as it is in the United States, which has made an big impact on the people who live in the United States. When I was younger I remember we never sat at any time of the day and talk about each others daily life or about a sport.Moving to the United States we picked up the American culture, which one of them is having so much technology in he house. We all had our own phones and laptop and pads. I then sudde nly started getting super close to my mom. Testing My mom everything about my day, how everything went throw out my day. Which made me close with my mother until she passed away 4 months ago. â€Å"life keeps going. † a quote explaining how much I adored my mother when I started to know her and all about her childhood and boyfriend problems, which we never would have talked about if we were back in my country, we would Just be helping the moms clean up every mess.Technology has done life much easier for humans, made people have critical thinking about life. Would you want to live in the old world and have no technology Just have some bored people who try to go throw their days? Or have technology which can make life border? Knowing that technology could do Just so much in someone life, that actually makes them emotionally closer with the family, and more involved in their siblings life throw APS, Backbone, Twitter, Keep connecting them to each other no matter what country, ci ty they live in. I am someone who believes technology does not apart families or married couples, it can only make it stronger.Today's culture connections often occur when the participants are miles, or even continents, apart. There are so many communication opportunities provided such as cell phones, laptops, and pads that keeps two couples together or meet in one country and stay in touch. Makes the relationship gets much stronger, by talking everyday about your emotions without worrying about how you look or care what you wear. Being yourself makes the relationship it self become stronger, and a love that is fought for. Alex Williams talks about many different topics in his essay one of them is allegations, and technology.For example Dry. Elevate mentions † Your task to keeping the relationship vital and refreshed is managed togetherness and separateness. Technology could be used as a tool to assist that. † (pig 99) Humans can't be around one person the whole entire t ime, they get bored and start fights and their love goes from being in a healthy relationship to a exotic relationship. Where its all arguments, and not being able to handle seeing each other. Technology is one of the strongest tools that takes a humans focus, and take them to a whole another world.Everybody deeds time to their self, while using technology helps keep the relationship between two couples healthy. Not being around each other all the time or have to be facing one and another, forced to talk about anything to keep the atmosphere comfortable for both couples. Their relationship can also stay very fresh, makes that bond of love stronger and stronger each day, missing someone makes you love them like no other. Dry. Hillman claims † People get up from their laptops, come together on one screen. † (pig. 98) Technology is so big that it has came to a point where people meet horror APS, come together and meet.Different culture different believes, they still come to gether because of a talking bond they have with each other. For example I met my fiance throw Backbone which is an app that you get to meet people throw out the world. My fiance lives in Turkey Istanbul, which is a continent away from me, he can't come and visit the United States because of the wars and they won't give him his Visa. I went to meet him in Istanbul and we already had planned what we wanted to do where to go, we had so much things in common where we found out by talking o each other testing or keep.The only ways we communicate and make sure we are still wanting each other is technology. Seeing him throw the app Keep makes me cherish having him in my life. We see each other once a year, through out the year we keep on using technology to keep us together and not separate, it also gives us our own time to our self to relax and think straight, know if this is the right person or not for you. My question for the people who always think negative about technology is â€Å"h ow can we have a social life when we have no technology in life? How can that alp our associate and make us more open to the real word? Technology can assist to keep the bond stronger between two married or engaged or in a relationship couple. The world needs to change their negative image because there are so many positive things about technology that helped us reach where we are today and where we will be in the future with the technology growth in our lives. Love is a strong word that can't be found easily. Technology allows people to find love all around the world. Cell phones has a huge impact on our life that keeps us in touch with our partners also families.I think technology can grow so much bigger that people will start loving technology, and actually see the bigger picture of how technology helps us stay connected to the real world. As Alex Williams claims in his essay that there are many positive effects of technology that helped and still helps families. In sass people h ad no technology which kind of made them like robots they only knew what they were exposed to around their city. As if now people know so much more about other countries, seeing pictures of beautiful nature gives the hope to a better life and border thinking. Technology Technology is defined as the combination of technique, skills, methods, basic tools and processes that are made use in the production of goods and service. In other terms it is called the ‘science of craft'. While the Global Economy refers to the economy that encompasses the whole world, it is thought as the international exchange of goods and services that's translated in monetary terms. (wikipedia, 15 April 2018). In a vague sight of the contemporary economic history there are two trends in the world economy it suggests: first innovations in technology are uprising to be a significant contributor to economic well-being. Secondly nations in global economy are pointing towards being interdependent and open in a growing way. Innovators from different parts of the world are coming together rapidly, this means that there is no denying that technology has a significant percentage in shaping the global economy.Is technology still fulfilling the role and purpose it was embraced for?In this research I intend to find out whether or not technology is still being regarded as it was when it was first embraced in the earlier times. This is based on how technology has empacted the world economy and its markets. The purpose of technology is clearly judged on how and why it affects the global economy.Before the analysis of how technology Is impacting the world economy it is rather of great importance to first be enlightened even slightly so as to how technology was introduced to economies in different countries comprising of the global or world economy at large. Just as important is also to bear in mind the coming about of economic growth. The History of TechnologyTechnology forms part of a perplexed and diverse body of knowledge and devices through which man in an ongoing way manage to perfect his natural environment. The history of it is rather inclusive of wild and not properly defined. The findings for the complication of the study, dates to the modern time where there is a contrast of technological history than that which as popularized by the story of political and intellectual development. During the nineteenth – twentieth of the human story will be touched on briefly. The Old Stone Age man referred to as the Paleolithic were few and scattered they managed to come up with not much to give them the ability to conquer their environment. Then came the Middle Stone Age referred to as the Mesolithic, they were named this because it was a period of transition between the end of the last ice age an d the early stages and era of human settlement and cultivation. Again there is the Neolithic Man, this is a man emerging from savagery and holds the solution of the basic problems of his environment. He was able to grind, polish and drill his craft of hard stone. However he needed to attain knowledge of metal-working for a greater form of effectiveness in his quest of mastering his environment, this concluded an increase in population.The first use of metals was the day break of civilization as we know it. Relating it to its material aspect the history of civilization is the history of technology. (Thomas P. Hughes, (â€Å"A Short History of Technology: From the Earliest Times to A. D. 1900. T. K. Derry, Trevor I. Williams,† Isis 54, no. 3 (Sep., 1963): 417-418.) With regards to Economic Growth HistoryAfter Adam Smith the focus of classical economics in the 19th century was long term growth. After much findings there was a development of a negative view of it. Upon other findings was the realization that the United States of America in the 19th century was perceived to be growing as a result of its exploitation of other continents that were rich in resources. Resources were found to increase long term growth. Economists then transferred their focus to neoclassical economics in the late 19th century and the early 20th century, which comprises of a closed economy. They developed tasks to thoroughly look at optimizing the use of scarce resources by businesses. The focus was on short-term growth rather than long-term growth. The worldwide depression of 1903, J.M Keynes's aggregate demand management was found as a solution to reduce cyclical fluctuation and leading to unemployment. After putting together Keynes's concept with Neo classical methods of uttermost resource distribution by Paul Samuelson and Sir John Hicks there was a stagflation and low growth exposed its fundamental weakness. Following this unforeseen trends new schools of economics emerged: monetarist, new-classical and supply side etc. new school of economics encouraged much innovativeness with regards to economic trends and technological input for research and development.(Kuznets, (1973)) The above indicates the significance of the introduction of technology in the economy with regards to how it has impacted it and continues to impact it. It is of no doubt that this two are interlinked in more ways than one. However there are quite a number of pros and cons that have emerged in recent years as technological innovations continue to develop. Benefits of technology in the modern day economyThe level and the rate at which economies grow and develop in various markets and countries is interlinked with technological advancement. Technological innovation has helped underdeveloped countries slowly become developing and then ultimately developed. The developing of economies of different countries result in the growth and development of the global economy. Figure 1-3, in R' are a diagram indication of an Isoquant of production function post-technological change. The innovation does not differ regards to labor and capital. However the new production function R indicates how the same output can be achieved through lower levels of labor and capital after technological advancements. (debasish, 2017) Technology helps the economy through job creation. The ICT sector has proved and remains to hold the title of being one of the largest employers. Stats in the U.S have shown that IT jobs are expected to increase by a significant number of 22% in 2020, thus creating about 758800 new jobs. In Australia, the plans of building and operating the newly established Super-Fast National Broadband Network will certify 25,000 jobs per year. The global Technology market is set to increase by 8%, this encompasses creating jobs, salaries and enlarging different services and products.A contribution to the GDP Growth of the Global Economy. Sources from different countries confirm the positive impact of the growth in ICT. A 10% rise in broadband penetration leads to a 1.2% rise in GDP growth in emerging markets. China reflected a 2.5% rise. GDP per capita growth rate goes up to 0,5% globally, while the internet shows a 3,4% overall in other countries. E-commerce is positively affecting the global economy. The emergence of new services and industries. Mobile phones have allowed a lot of of public services to be made known online. Modernization is incorporated with cloud computing. Moldova government found in Eastern Europe was found to be one of the first governments that moved its government IT infrastructure into the cloud launching mobile and e-service for their residents and businesses. Founding research indicates the Facebook to have provided around 182,000 jobs in 2011. Its value aggregated to worth 12 billion and above.Workforce transformation. Newly found â€Å"microwork† spaces, created by companies like ODesk, Amazon and Samasource have assisted to segregate tasks into manageable components which can be outsourced to contract workers. These contractors are usually found in emerging markets. Entrepreneurs have cut costs as a result of microwork. In 2012, ODesk singularly had above 3 million registered contractors doing 1.5 million tasks. Online payment system emerged as a result of this trend.Business Innovation. Over 95% of businesses in OECD countries operate online in some way. The internet brings innovative ways of getting access to customers and also competing for the market share. In past recent years, social media has evolved to be a marketing tool. ICT tools operating inside companies are assisting businesses on streamlining processes and increase efficiency. The eruption of connected devices throughout the globe has allowed new ways for businesses to reach out to their customers in service.(Kvochko, 2013)The stated above benefits or advantages however do not eliminate controversies that also surround technology impacting the global economy. There are prone difficulties and challenges that global societies are surfacing as technological change continues to emerge. As expected with any form of continued evolution and change.Controversies on technologyReliance on Technology. This can be a negative of how technology affects because of of technology has become a basic sphere of need for most if not all modern enterprises, production is impacted a lot by flaws and malfunctions of machines and IT systems. If there could be a disruption of connection, E-commerce business cannot run functionally. On the other hand there is reduced production if a machine suffers technical glitches. The more technological innovations grow, the more they will need highly specialized professionals to rectify or fix them if they malfunction.Loss of Jobs. As with much creation of job opportunities offered by new technology. There is a significant decline in middle class workers who are not in any specialty ad working rather manually. Machinery has in some way replaced human capital and a portion of manual labor. Factory workers have declined and been replaced by high tech machinery which slowly needs more IT supervision that physical help.(Vossos, Tasos. (2017, September 26). Advantages & Disadvantages of Technology in Our Economy. Bizfluent. Retrieved from https://bizfluent.com/info-8373180-advantages-disadvantages-technology-economy.html)Less physical human connection. Online entertainment and social media platforms form a big part of technological advancement. People have taken a liking to rather communicate virtually that physically, from phone calls to texts to sharing pictures if there's a need to ‘see' each other. This in the long run will bring about a vague knowledge of one another in the human form and social connection will be based on how a person wants to be known rather than who they truly are. Other effects with recent finding s are the cause of depression and social attempts by teenagers and young adults who feel they cannot live up to the standards set online. Almost 80% of teenagers and adults are on social media platforms. In contrasting the earlier years of economic growth evolution and technological evolution. The above benefits and controversies mark a not so out of touch difference in the line of the length technology has gone in its development. Meaning it is still focused in more ways than one in bettering the world's economy and markets. It is although inevitable for any implementation to have side effects. CONCLUSION Based on the findings of my research I have concluded that technology in its own has diverted into many spheres from the reason of just being introduced to help man cultivate his natural environment. It has not only helped but also overtaken man greatly in its efficiency and operation. Technological innovations have also been developed to be independent from the directory of man. Which may be the result of the lack of control and concerns as to its negative and controversial effect in the larger and global economy. The solution however that I propose is for the larger economy to go back to the fundamental reasons of why technology was introduced every time a new innovation is made. This will harbor controlled growth of the development of economies also in different countries leading up t a greater impact in the world economy. Countries still needing more technological advancement should be assisted by long advanced economies. This will ensure a greater level of desired impact in th growth of the economy and the global GDP and GDP per capita will rise significantly. Technology Questions to research: Are advertisements aimed at teenagers effective? And, are they ethical? My Response:  Most advertisements aimed at teenagers are effective, but usually are not ethical. Most marketers have many ways of gathering information on teenagers spending habits and what is most important to teens. With this information they’re able to create advertisements that will appeal to most teens and create profit. Many people argue that some or most of these ads aren’t ethical because they will create a problem or insecurity and then give the solution to that problem in the form of their product.Central Idea: The most effective ads show teens using and enjoying a product. The least effective were those that caused an emotional response. A teen’s acceptance of ads varies according to the media platform. The medium with the lowest teen ad acceptance was texting. The â€Å"Teen Advertising Study†, compiled with the help of the University of Massachuset ts, showed that teens were more susceptible to online ads if they could relate to it and if they found it funny.Central Idea: Marketers love teens because they easily spend money on â€Å"luxury† items such as clothing, electronics, and music. They mostly make their purchase decisions independently, have significant influence on family purchases, and companies know that once they have â€Å"branded† a child, they are likely to be customers for life. They reach kids by advertising in magazines, movies, TV shows, and on the internet. Companies get info about kids spending habits from internet â€Å"quizzes† and â€Å"surveys†.Marketers know how to capitalize on important teen issues and anxieties, like body image, peer acceptance, coolness, and need for power. Marketers often use a theme or attitude like sex or alcohol and drug use that seems to raise the  Ã¢â‚¬Å"coolness factor† of their product. Advertising is so effective because it creates insec urities about things such as appearance. Successful ads convince the viewer that they have a problem and then offer the solution, which is the product they’re selling. This gives off the messages that teens aren’t good enough the way they are and many kids unwillingly buy into that message which is causing kids to grow up in the most materialistic society we’ve ever had. Most of the things that are advertised to teens do not promote healthy development.Central Idea: In one year, teens view more than 40,000 ads on TV alone while also being exposed to ads on the internet, in magazines, and in schools. Teens are often the main target for marketers because they are always willing to spend money on the newest â€Å"luxury† items. Teens strive to have the newest electronics, clothing, and other overly advertised items. Marketers know how to target teen issues such as body image, peer pressure, and the need for acceptance. On average, teens are exposed to 3,000 ads per day.Teenagers, on average, spend $155 billion per year on advertised products, also influencing their parents to spend another $200 billion per year. Recent studies have shown tobacco companies use their ads to target teens as young as 13-years-old. Another major advertiser is the alcohol industry, using ads that feature young, attractive people drinking or posing with their beverages. Ads affect teen psychologically by exposing them to ads that suggest they are not what the entertainment business considers attractive. Ads can be harmful to teens by lowering their self-esteem.Children, Adolescents, and Advertising http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/118/6/2563.full Central Idea: Children and teens view 40,000 ads per year on TV alone even though the Children’s Television Act of 1990 limits advertising on children’s programming to 10.5 minutes/hour on weekends and 12 minutes/hour on weekdays. M-rated video games, which are not recommended for children younger than 17-years-old, are frequently advertised in movie theaters, video game magazines, and publications with high youth readership. Young  people see 45% more beer ads and 27% more ads for hard liquor in teen magazines than adults to in their magazines.An increasing number of web sites try to get teens to make direct sales. More than 100 commercial websites promote alcohol products. Most advertisers use techniques that children and teens are more vulnerable to, like product placement in movies and TV shows, action figures, kid’s clubs, and celebrity endorsements. Sex is used in commercials to sell almost anything now. American ads constantly use thin female models, which contribute to the development of self-esteem issues in young girls.Thesis StatementWith marketers aiming their advertisements more towards teens every day, researchers are looking into how effective and ethical these advertisements really are.Outline The Ethics and Effectiveness on Advertising toward Teens Thesis statement: With marketers aiming their advertisements more towards teens every day, researchers are looking into how effective and ethical these advertisements really are.I. Teens are being exposed to advertisements more each day. a. . Companies gather info about teens’ spending habits from internet â€Å"quizzes† and â€Å"surveys†. b. Children and teens view more than 40,000 ads per year on TV alone. c. More than 160 magazines are now targeted towards teens.II. Different factors will make an ad effective. a. Teen’s acceptance of ads depends on the media platform. i. Sponsorships of live events had the highest level of acceptance. ii. Text messaging had the lowest level of acceptance. b. Least effective ads were those that caused an emotional response. III. The advertising strategies marketers use have been shown to be unethical. a. M-rated video games are frequently advertised in movie theaters, video game magazines, and publications with high youth readership b. Young people see 45% more beer ads and 27% more ads for hard liquor in teen magazines than  adults to in their magazines. c. Advertising is so effective because it creates insecurities about things such as appearance. i. American ads constantly use thin female models, which contribute to the development of self-esteem issues in young girls. ii. Gives off the message that teens aren’t good enough the way they are.Body ParagraphsI believe that the advertisements aimed at teens are effective, but unethical. Through a number of research tactics marketers are finding ways to keep up with the ever changing trends in teen culture. With the information they gather they’re able to produce advertisements that ultimately pressure their audience into buying their product. With marketers aiming their advertisements more towards teens every day, researchers are looking into how effective and ethical these advertisements really are. Technology based adverti sements are effective among teens because of how often they are exposed to ads, the ads appeal to their lifestyles, and even sometimes pressure teens into buying their products.Advertisements have rapidly been integrated into the world around us. â€Å"Young people view more than 40 000 ads per year on television alone and increasingly are being exposed to advertising on the Internet, in magazines, and in schools.† (pediatrics.aappublications.org) Teens are heavily influenced by these ads because of how often they are exposed to them. Marketers are gathering information about teens’ spending habits through quizzes and surveys. ‘Teen Advertising Study’, which was compiled in conjunction with the University of Massachusetts, revealed that teens were more susceptible to online advertising if they could relate to it and if they found it funny.† (utalkmarketing.com) With information like this they’re able to determine what type of ads would be effe ctive on the teens of today.Different factors can make an ad effective, such as how they’re viewed and if it’s relatable to their audience. The most effective ads showed teens using and enjoying their product. For example, in this PlayStation 4 Interface commercial, you’re shown teens happy with their product and you’re given a glimpse of some features. This is considered an effective ad because it features the newest upgrade of their product, they’re being shown new features and games, and seeing other teens happy  with the product would give them a positive feeling about having it. This ad also shows both genders enjoying their product, suggesting they support both genders using the PS4. An example of an ineffective ad would be the Microsoft Surface commercial, in this commercial you can see people enjoying their product but you’re not given a look at what their product can do. It’s a fun ad to watch, but it doesn’t provide enough information for a teen to considering buying their product.Lastly, many advertisements aimed at teens have been said to be unethical in order to be effective. Marketers will bring up a problem in their advertisement; this problem might be based on social status, then they will provide a solution in the form of their product. For example, in this Samsung Galaxy S4 commercial you see only younger people using their product while the older people are just learning about this product. This suggests that if you have their product you’d be cool and up to date with the world around you. This ad seems to guilt the target into thinking what they have isn’t good enough and their product would make them cooler.ConclusionIn conclusion, I think advertisements aimed at teens are effective, but unethical. Teens are being exposed to advertisements more each day. Advertisements can be found all around them, in schools, online, through T.V., etc. Marketers are constantly doing r esearch to improve ads to be more appealing to their target audience, teens. Through the information they gather, they can create advertisements that will persuade their audience into buying their product. An effective ad would feature other teens enjoying their product. An effective, but unethical ad, would be an ad that brings up a problem, such as a teen’s social status, and then present a solution in the form of their product.

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Expository Essay †Breastfeeding Essay

As parents, our main goal is typically to raise happy, healthy children. Do you know the ultimate start to a child’s optimal health? The very first thing a mother can do for her child is something that will provide more health benefits than most parents know, all throughout their child’s life. This one decision that will give your child the best start in life is very simple; breastfeeding. Breastfeeding has numerous physical and psychological benefits that it provides an infant. These benefits are often greatly underestimated and under-emphasized. There are many details that go into enforcing the fact that breastfeeding has been proven to be the optimal nutrition for infants, and these details are crucial in encouraging mothers to do what is ultimately the best thing possible for their children. Because of the incredible physical and psychological benefits breastfeeding provides an infant, doctors and medical organizations around the world have declared breastfeeding as optimal nutrition for an infant. One important factor of breastfeeding is breast-milk is specifically formulated for each individual infant by each mother. The composition of breast-milk is constantly changing to meet the changing demands of an infant. Breast-milk contains the exact amount of nutrients and antibodies that each infant requires for good physical health. Moreover, breastfeeding has been proven to strengthen an infant’s immune system and prevent illnesses and infections, extending this protection throughout the child’s life. In addition, breastfeeding has also shown to provide many long-term psychological benefits to infants. Breastfeeding promotes a healthy bond between mother and child and helps to instill trust and security in the infant. Also, breastfeeding offers long lasting mental health benefits and has even been linked to some intellectual advantages. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, exclusively breastfeeding (relying only on breast-milk for nutrition and not supplementing with formula or solids) for the first six months of life will provide an infant with all the proper nutrition they need, while also providing the infant with antibodies and immunities. Breast-milk contains the right amounts of nutrients that infants need to thrive. Human breast-milk is made up of two types of proteins, whey and casein. Approximately 60% is whey and 40% is casein (â€Å"What’S In Breast Milk?†, 10/2011). The major concern with formula here is when it contains a higher amount of casein, causing it to be much more difficult to digest. Additionally, breast-milk contains fats that are important to an infant’s development, while also providing the right amount of carbohydrates, mainly, but not limited to, lactose. Lactose fights off unhealthy stomach bacteria while improving the absorption of calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium (â€Å"What’S In Breast Milk?†, 10/2011). Breastfeeding provides an infant with all the nutrition the child will require the first six months of life. Breast-milk alone is enough for the infant to rely on in order to meet nutritional requirements. Equally important, a mother’s milk also contains the right amount of antibodies and immunities designed for the infant. Thanks to the proper nutrition provided combined with a healthy amount of antibodies and immunities, breastfeeding has been proven to prevent illnesses and fight off infections . A mother’s milk is specifically designed to meet all needs of the nursing infant. Breast-milk contains antibodies that are passed on to the infant that help to fight off infections and illnesses. Furthermore, a nursing infant also receives certain immunities from the breast-milk. These immunities are not only valuable in helping to fight off infections and prevent diseases, but also help the infant to better respond to immunizations the child will receive throughout the first few years of life. In conjunction, these antibodies and immunities are key to warding off infections as simple as ear infections to illnesses as severe as SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) and childhood cancers such as Leukemia. In the same way there are physical benefits from breastfeeding, there are also some psychological benefits as well. The bond and security between a mother and child is usually increased in a nursing infant than in a formula fed infant. The skin-to-skin contact offers infants a stronger emotional bond to their mothers and also enhances the bonding experience (â€Å"Breastfeeding Vs. Formula Feeding†, 01/2012). This has shown to lead to better emotional and mental stability. Breastfeeding and this skin-to-skin contact has proven to release the hormones ser otonin and oxytocin in both mother and child, which only encourages a stronger sense of security and trust, an important part of the emotional bond between a mother and her child. Breastfed children are also more protected from mental health and addiction problems that may occur later in life. Breastfeeding has also displayed a higher IQ score later in life in babies who were breastfed than in babies who were formula fed, especially those of premature infants (â€Å"Breastfeeding and IQ†, n.d.). Additionally, breastfeeding has shown to be the smoothest transition for a child from inside the womb to the outside world. By breastfeeding, the mother is offering the infant very important skin contact, which offers nourishment passed from the mother’s body to the infants, and this nourishment presents a sense of continuity from pre- to post-birth life. Thus, the infant is better able to understand that he is protected and that the mother is there to provide for his needs to adjust to the new world in which he is entering. Due to the unique bond breastfeeding enhances, it has been known to lower rates of infant abandonment. Another important fact about breastfeeding is its economic status. Not only is breast-milk readily available whenever it is needed, but it is also completely free of charge, not only to parents but to government as well. Moreover, breastfeeding also offers parents and government decreased healthcare costs. Many infants are formula fed when they could easily be breastfed. Unfortunately, many of these infants are born to parents who receive some form of government assistance. Alongside the health benefits breastfeeding offers, there are many economic benefits it offers as well, especially in regard to federally-funded programs assisting parents and infants. PhDInParenting (2009) found that, â€Å"In 2001, the USDA concluded that if breastfeeding rates were increased to 75 percent at birth and 50 percent at six months, it would lead to a national government savings of a minimum of $3.6 billion (and this only considered a few of the health benefits of breastfeeding, not all of them)†. Additionally, according to WIC (Women, Infants, Children), financially supporting a breastfeeding woman costs about 45% less than supporting a mother whose child is formula fed. Five hundred seventy-eight million federally-funded dollars is spent annually to support formula fed infants who could be breastfed with no complications. Due to the increased health benefits breastfeeding provides, it has proven to offer parents and government both decreased healthcare costs. Because it offers decreased health issues, breastfeeding ultimately saves money. It not only aids in preventing childhood infections and illnesses, but it also helps the mother with aiding in the prevention of many reproductive cancers, breast cancer, postpartum depression, and type 2 diabetes. Consequently, whether the parents have private health insurance or receive state aid, breastfeeding still saves money. Since breastfeeding increases the overall healthiness of a nursing infant, there are decreased healthcare costs because usually the nursing infant will not require as many visits to medical facilities as the non-nursing infant. Breastfeeding is also economically stimulating because breastfeeding mothers typically do not miss as many work days due to health related issues, whether they are concerning the mother or the infant. With that being said, it is clear that breastfeeding truly is optimal nutrition for infants. The benefits of breastfeeding are important factors in a child’s life, even excluding all the benefits breastfeeding provides the mother as well. It has been said time and time again, â€Å"breast is best†, and there is scientific reasoning behind that statement. With all the benefits infants receive, both physical and psychological, it is fairly cut and dry: the breast truly is the best. While formula is made to best mimic the nutritional value of breast-milk, it is still lacking in many aspects. Even more important, breastfeeding provides infants with psychological benefits that most medical professionals will argue formula just cannot give an infant. With the right resources and support system, many mothers can successfully breastfeed their infants. Unfortunately, a very small percentage will follow the American Academy of Pediatrics’ recommendations concerning breastf eeding, which is why proper education on the physical and psychological benefits of breastfeeding are crucial in encouraging mothers to make the decision to give their child the gift of optimal nutrition.