Darkness in Macbeth Essay - 581 Words

A.C. Bradley wrote that about Macbeth: â€Å"darkness, we may even say blackness, broods over this tragedy... all the scenes which at once recur to memory take place either at night or in some dark spot.† The Tragedy of Macbeth contains many instances where darkness is represented and portrayed whether it occurs at night or the actions. Many actions that were completed by Macbeth, Lady Macbeth and the prophecies told by the witches, all have corrupt intentions or outcomes. Shakespeare often will use darkness which frequently sets the mood of a dark and stormy night which usually depicts that evil things are about to come. There are at least three examples of this in Macbeth. The night has been unruly: where we lay,/Our chimneys were blown†¦show more content†¦And yet dark night strangles the traveling lamp. (Act 2 scene 4 line 7) is a metaphor for both the murder of Duncan and the night in which it occured. A dark and stormy image is also portrayed when the characters meet. The Tragedy of Macbeth is based upon witchcraft and evil. Double, double, toil and trouble;/Fire burn and cauldron bubble. (Act 4 scene 1 line 10-11), How now, you secret, black, and midnight hags! (Act 4 scene 1 line 48), Lady Macbeth Come, you spirits/That tend on mortal thoughts! unsex me here,/And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full/Of direst cruelty; make thick my blood,/Stop up the access and passage to remorse,/That no compunctious visitings of nature/Shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between/ Th’ effect! (Act 1 scene 5 line 39-46), or Macbeth Let not light see my black and deep desires;/The eye wink at the hand; yet let that be/Which the eye fears, when it is done, to see. (Act 1 scene 4 line 51-53). Shakespeare makes it clear that certain circumstances such as Duncan’s horses eating each other Tis said they ate each other. (Act 2 scene 4 line 19) and the owl killing the falcon A falcon,...Was by a mousing owl hawk’d at and killâ€⠄¢d (Act 2 scene 4 line 13-14). The Witches go hand- in- hand as an important role in â€Å"Macbeth†. Judging from the prologue we can tell that they are up to no good. Fair is foul, and foul is fair: (Act 1 scene 1 line 11). You can not tell how evil the witches are untilShow MoreRelatedMacbeth : Lightness And Darkness988 Words   |  4 PagesMuratovic Mr. Tice Honors English 2 6 March 2017 Macbeth Essay: Lightness and Darkness Is the lightness and darkness combination, implemented by Shakespeare in the play The Tragedy of Macbeth, foreshadowing Macbeth’s downfall? As many can identify conspicuous examples of light and darkness through characterization, the play has many hidden foreshadowing signifiers. Although many overlook the imagery created through the light and darkness in Macbeth, Shakespeare places these examples strategicallyRead MoreDarkness within macbeth756 Words   |  4 PagesHow is the theme of darkness portrayed in the play â€Å"Macbeth?† The play Macbeth expresses the consistent theme of darkness as a constant foreshadow of the actions in which Macbeth is to conduct further on into the play. One instance of how the theme is expressed is through the way darkness is presented in the very first scene. This scene of the play is consistently portraying dark weathers such as thunder and lightning. The weather used in this scene of the play shows how darkness triumphs over theRead MoreTheme Of Darkness In Macbeth1001 Words   |  5 Pagesworks, Macbeth, many different overtones are present throughout the entire play. Feelings of darkness, guilt, ambition, and distrustfulness are in nearly every act. Shakespeare portrayed these things in Macbeth because he wanted to convey the meaning each theme had. After reading Macbeth and doing much analysis on the play, I am now able to distinguish the meanings behind these themes.   Darkness and the imbalance of nature is one of the most prevalent themes throughout the entire play. Macbeth graduallyRead MoreDarkness Imagery In Macbeth Essay899 Words   |  4 PagesShakespeares Macbeth. Macbeth is a tragedy which was written by Shakespeare in the Elizabethan Era. There was much use of Raphael Holinsheds Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland as it was necessary for creating the environments and situations in the play. Macbeth takes place mainly in Scotland and is a play about an ambitious thane, named Macbeth, and his wife whose flaws lead to their demise. Since Macbeth is a tragedy, probably nothing else would be as suitable for the play than darkness imageryRead More Darkness Imagery In Macbeth Essays909 Words   |  4 Pages Darkness Imagery in William Shakespeares Macbeth nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Ambition and evil are the basic elements in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Macbeth is a tragedy which was written by Shakespeare in the Elizabethan Era. There was much use of Raphael Holinshed’s Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland as it was necessary for creating the environments and situations in the play. Macbeth takes place mainly in Scotland and is a play about an ambitious thane, named Macbeth, and hisRead MoreThe Heart Of Darkness And Macbeth By William Shakespeare1564 Words   |  7 PagesIt can be hidden in the unwritten rules of society or tucked deep into a metaphor for the imperialistic tendencies of Europeans hidden in the darkness of the Congo. Kurtz in The Heart of Darkness, and Macbeth in Macbeth, display the traits of evil taking over perfectly. Although different times and plots, both men share a craving for power, and their superiority complexes ultimately lead to their demise. Their mental and physical health deterio rate, eventually coming out of their experiences asRead MoreElements of Darkness in Macbeth by Shakespeare Essay710 Words   |  3 PagesElements of Darkness in Macbeth by Shakespeare William Shakespeares Macbeth is a play of darkness. Throughout the play, three things in particular play a part in setting this stage, so to speak, of darkness. These three things are characters, theme and mood. Each has its own part in setting up the darkness. The characters (the title character in particular) are dark in their actions, the theme is dark in its subject matter, and the mood is dark in its essence. Macbeth in particular, is veryRead More Heart of Darkness versus MacBeth Essay1677 Words   |  7 Pages Heart of Darkness and MacBeth  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Joseph Conrad and William Shakespeare are not traditionally paired up for a critical analysis. However, the characters MacBeth and Kurtz in MacBeth and Heart of Darkness, respectively, prove to be worthy of comparison. MacBeth and Kurtz share many common characteristics: both have vaulting ambition that leads both to their success and their demise, a superiority complex, and both make similar sacrifices to achieve their goal. DespiteRead More Darkness and the Agents of Chaos in Shakespeares Macbeth Essay1380 Words   |  6 Pages In Macbeth William Shakespeare employs his skills in imagery and symbolism.   The landscape of Macbeth reveals the contours of the title characters psychological turmoil.   Churning with self-doubt about his determination, his ability to connect word and act, and his sexual potency, Macbeth is a man at the mercy of his environment.   The inability to sleep is symbolic of a tormented soul and represents a characters control over their lives.   The imagery of darkness in Act 4 is used to describeRead More Shakespeares Macbeth - Deep Darkness Essay example2747 Words   |  11 PagesMacbeths Deep Darkness      Ã‚   In Shakespeares tragedy Macbeth there is a dark aspect which hangs over most scenes in the play. Let us examine this quality in this essay.    In Macbeth as the Imitation of an Action Francis Fergusson states the place of darkness in the action of the play:    It is the phrase to outrun the pauser, reason [2.3], which seems to me to describe the action, or motive, of the play as a whole. Macbeth, of course, literally means that his love for Duncan

Critical Questions on Animal Farm Free Essays

Critical Questions: Written Assignment 1 7. In Animal Farm the author George Orwell uses animals to represent the Russian revolution. One of the differences in the novel and the two films were old major’s death. We will write a custom essay sample on Critical Questions on Animal Farm or any similar topic only for you Order Now In the novel he dies of natural causes however in the movies he calls a meeting to tell all the other animals about his point of view on the rights of animals and man. He teaches them the song (their anthem) â€Å"beats of England† and mr. Jones hears them all singing in the night and to settle them down he shoots his gun and accidentally shoots old major. Also, the way Napoleon punishes the chicken. In the novel he acts like the chicken betrayed the Animal farm and makes the dogs attack them. In the movies he thinks the same ways but instead of getting the dogs to attack, Napoleon hangs the chickens for all of Animal farm to see. Another difference is how the windmill gets ruined. In the novel, the first time it gets destroyed was when there was a huge storm that knocked it all over. The second time was during the second battle from the humans. The people place dynamite inside and blow it up. In the movies it only gets ruined once. That time was where mr. Jones and his wife decide to place dynamite and blow it up. These changes alter the overall message of Animal farm slightly. We can still see the same point trying to be proven in both Animal farm films and novel. 3. One of the minor characters from the novel would have to be Moses. Moses is a tame black raven in the novel. He is the one to spread around the stories of sugar candy Mountain. Sugar Candy Mountain in the book is the heaven to which Moses believes the animals from the farm go to once they die. Even though he is not a big role in Animal farm, he was very big importance. Animal Farm the author George Orwell uses Moses to show the others that death wouldn’t be such a bad thing. That if they die, it’s ok because they’re going to Sugar Candy Mountain. 6. In my opinion if Snowball got rid of Napoleon instead of the other way around, the working and living situations would be completely different. Improved by a lot. Napoleon is the leader pig of Animal Farm after the Rebellion. Napoleon uses his nine attack dogs (stolen dogs) to frighten the other animals and make them do as he says. Napoleon his a little more in to be the leader and in it for himself than his counterpart, Snowball. He challenges Napoleon for control of Animal Farm after the Rebellion. Snowball seems to win the trust of the other animals and when Napoleon sees that he then takes part to get rid of his competition. I feel like if it were Snowball instead of Napoleon, the farm would have been closer to equality. In class we talked about an equal world and how it was impossible to completely obtain equality. Now if Snowball were to be the leader, it probably would have less usage of alcohol, tobacco†¦ Would have stayed tuck to all the 7 commandments. 4. Animal farm can be seen as a fable even though it does not have a moral stated at the end. Just because there was no moral stated it doesn’t mean there was no message Animal Farm author George Orwell was trying to get through. I believe that my own moral of this story would be that you cannot take and take and take and not expect to give. In the novel Animal farm and like most farms, the human would take all that that the animals could provide so that they could have benefits for themselves. This book made sense that the animals got fed up with it all. Then when the pigs got power, it wasn’t a surprise that they became to think the same as the humans. If it wasn’t for the death of all the animals, I feel like the animals would have treated the pigs as human and the same process would have happened. All because of greed. 2. I think that the Animal farm author George Orwell made readers sympathize with all the animals except for the pigs because even though they were the most intelligent beasts in this case and the closest to the animals, old Major was a pig. That being, the pigs automatically became the first to have power. Once they saw the life of the human and got the ability to obtain so, they fell into the same old bad habits of taking, taking and taking without giving. They then turned into humans. If any other kind of animal would have been in their place the same thing most likely would have happened. For those reasons, the author did not chose to make the readers sympathize the author animals, it’s just the way it played out once the pigs got power and became humans. How to cite Critical Questions on Animal Farm, Papers

Evaluating Training Programs Development and Correlates

Question: Discuss about the Evaluating Training Programs for Development and Correlates. Answer: Introduction The Ulysses program is considered being a program for leadership development that partners with PricewaterhouseCoopers towards the enhancement of the leadership potentials. By incorporating the Ulysses program to PwC has led to the aspect of materializing the diversification of team in the international field. The Ulysses program is associated with the aspect to identify as well as train upcoming leaders who will be finding unconventional solutions for intractable challenges. Learning in the Ulysses Program is designed for occurring at multiple levels such as at the individual, team and organizational level. The gaining of knowledge that occurs is transferred back to the company as well as its clients after the returning members of the team will be resuming their jobs, and in their official debriefing sessions with the global board of PWC. These sessions will be providing a feedback loop that will be permitting PWC for continuous refinement of the Ulysses model for actualizing the leadership requirements in a better way within a dynamic global company (Jehanzeb 2013). After the launching of the Ulysses program, participants were heavily weighted in respect of partners from the US as well as Europe. Candidates in respect of participating in the Ulysses Program are nominated by the head of each of the organizations territorial offices throughout the world depending on the leadership potential of the partners (Arneson 2013). The goals regarding the Ulysses program are associated with the aspect of identifying as well as developing future leaders of PWC for taking on senior leadership responsibilities at national as well as global levels within 5-10 years. The goals also include the aspect of building an international network relating to PWC leadership talent as well as increasing the capacity of PWC for capitalizing on its diverse as well as transnational nature of functioning. Moreover, the goal is associated with the preparation of the leaders for guiding the company in an international world of uncertainty as well as tension amongst diverse interests as well as group of stakeholders. The goal is also associated with the aspect of encouraging the business sector for moving towards a model of business that is considered being more responsible as well as sustainable (Grohmann 2013). The Ulysses Program is associated with developing responsible leaders that are having the capability to assume senior leadership roles at the local as well as global levels. For building an international leadership network, there is the requirement to understand the significance of values to develop trust-based association with a varied range of stakeholders. For assisting the PWC leaders for understanding the changing business roles to influence the economic, political, social as well as environmental welfare of communities as well as markets throughout the globe Also, for developing a model in respect of PWC that will be enabling the next generation for leading in a responsible manner within a global networked company (Arneson 2013). Fitting the Ulysses program within the concept of sustainable management Sustainable management is explained as the application of sustainable practices in the categories related with businesses, to manage them in a manner that will be benefitting the present as well as future generations. The Ulysses program is having the ability towards making PwCs strategy for business as well as objectives successful. The PwC teams come in everyday contact with indigenous people, to create a mutual culture clash. Dialogues with the local population will be fostering the transfer of knowledge as well as mutual understanding. The Ulysses program does the introduction of a new stage of competence as well as confidence into individuals to create a sustainable economic plan for eradicating poverty (Ford 2014). The Ulysses program is considered exceptional in its forceful design as well as purpose for transforming PwC into a value-based community, redefining the major value contribution relating to the business establishments. One of the major challenges regarding the development of talent is preparing leaders for the future in respect of the social, cultural, environmental, as well as strategic business challenges in an environment that is uncertain as well as complex (McCullum 2013). Strengths and weaknesses of the Ulysses program The Ulysses program will be presenting strengths as well as weaknesses to offer leadership development programs in respect of its partners. Within the short time-period that candidates are enrolled in the program, they will be developing leadership skills that will be equipping them with effective network as future PWC leaders undertaking accountability in respect of longer durations of 5 to 10 years. This is a comparatively shorter period of training in comparison with other traditional methods in which courses are taking 3 to 5 years (Stahl 2013). The future leaders of PWC are preordained towards shaping a business model that is having more accountability as well as sustainability and allowing joint ventures amongst business as well as civic societies. Another advantage, which is posed by the Ulysses program, is having direct relation with the development of leaders who, as a result will be having the ability for building businesses (Maak 2014). The program therefore, concentrates on unlocking performance as well as to embrace multiplicity making its models effectively equipped with international business environments. Organizations understand the fact that it is very challenging towards achieving leadership. It has been proved essential in respect of the companies in having hands-on experience such as PWC that has put staffs into volunteer programs that will be testing their teamwork as well as abilities and do their grooming in respect of future roles of leadership. There can occur the acquiring of the cognitive abilities, but the most effective aspect is having the scope for applying those skills relating to leadership as well as teamwork in a real-life circumstance. In addition, the Ulysses program will be building an international network relating to PWC leadership talent, preparing leaders for guiding the company globally associated with diverse as well as varied interests regarding groups of stakeholders (Ehnert 2014). The weaknesses might be associated with the financial aspects since it is considered very costly for sending staffs abroad, paying for their accommodation as well as expenses, along with their salaries. On the other hand, if the outcomes are confirmed, these expenses might be considered to be investments. The Ulysses program is regarded to be a costly program that will be snatching away PwCs original glamour as the vast leading firm for training international world leaders. Effectiveness of the Ulysses program The effectiveness of the Ulysses program can get ascertained with the help of various points such as meeting the goals related with business, turnover of staffs, development of staffs as well as performances. All the two dozen staffs that were sent in respect of the training are still functioning with the organization, half of those staffs have received promotion and majority of them are having additional responsibilities. This is indicating lower turnover as well as effective staff performance. Moreover, the staffs are highly satisfied with the training. The junior staffs are seeing changes in the style of leadership of their seniors, such as having more flexibility. The company is seeing certain positive outcomes in global networking as well (Hartman 2013). The Ulysses program is providing the participants with wider international perspectives having relevance to any organization that is having the presence of its business function throughout the globe. Ulysses got success to do the promotion of a co-learning setting as well as openly functioned with the participants in respect of their interpersonal development skills. Moreover, incorporating varied cultural aspects had the ability of enhancing team acceptance, quality as well as increased innovative aspects that became part of the PwCs cultural aspects. To build associations with clients as well as stakeholders across borders will be bringing increased association that will be resulting in additional success. In addition, the Ulysses program is allowing a scope in respect of the partners for learning what they can actualize without their standard resources for leaning on (Pless 2014). The Ulysses program compels them in undertaking projects that are well outside their proficiencies. The PwC partners already did the adaptation of their experiences relating to the task to do the management of individuals as well as clients. Conclusion In this assignment, regarding training and development, a discussion has been made relating to the strategic aspect of the Ulysses program regarding PricewaterhouseCoopers. It has also been discussed regarding the ways by which the Ulysses program will be fitting within the concept of sustainable management. The strengths as well as weaknesses in respect of the Ulysses program has also been discussed and also the ways by which the Ulysses program has been considered being effective has been described. Ulysses got success to do the promotion of a co-learning setting as well as openly functioned with the participants in respect of their interpersonal development skills. Moreover, incorporating varied cultural aspects had the ability of enhancing team acceptance, quality as well as increased innovative aspects that became part of the PwCs cultural aspects. Reference Arneson, J., Rothwell, W. and Naughton, J., 2013. Training and development competencies redefined to create competitive advantage.Training Development,67(1), pp.42-47. Ehnert, I. and Claes, M.T., 2014. Global leadership for sustainable development.Global leadership practices, pp.149-168. Ford, J.K., 2014.Improving training effectiveness in work organizations. Psychology Press. Grohmann, A. and Kauffeld, S., 2013. Evaluating training programs: Development and correlates of the questionnaire for professional training evaluation.International Journal of Training and Development,17(2), pp.135-155. Hartman, L.P. and Werhane, P.H., 2013.The Global Corporation: Sustainable, Effective and Ethical Practices, A Case Book. Routledge. Jehanzeb, K. and Bashir, N.A., 2013. Training and development program and its benefits to employee and organization: A conceptual study.Training and Development,5(2). Maak, T., Boreck, M. and Pless, N.M., 2014. Developing Global Leaders Who Make a Difference.Developing the Next Generation of Responsible Leaders: Empirical Insights and Recommendations for Organizations, p.115. Maak, T., Pless, N.M. and Boreck, M., 2014. Developing responsible global leaders. InAdvances in global leadership(pp. 339-364). Emerald Group Publishing Limited. McCallum, S., Schmid, M.A. and Price, L., 2013. CSR: a case for employee skills-based volunteering.Social Responsibility Journal,9(3), pp.479-495. Pless, N.M. and Boreck, M., 2014. Comparative analysis of International Service Learning Programs.Journal of Management Development,33(6), pp.526-550. Stahl, G.K., Pless, N.M. and Maak, T.H.O.M.A.S., 2013. Responsible global leadership.Global leadership: Research, practice, and development, pp.240-259.

Le Petit Chef Case Study Essay Example

Le Petit Chef Case Study Paper Le Petit Chef Case 1) What should Gagne do? Specifically, which projects should she fund and why? How should she handle the executive meeting? A fair assessment of the situation at Le Petit Chef is that there are far too many projects on the table. This overflow has led to missed deadlines and therefore missed profit. The gap between LPC and other microwave manufacturers is closing fast and action is required. Essentially, Le Petit Chef needs a cornerstone development. There are five proposed projects: A new intelligent (fuzzy logic) line of microwaves, a low-cost version of an existing microwave line, an entirely new low-cost line, a quick heating model, and a larger cavity Liberte. When choosing which projects to fund, Gagne must evaluate them on three basic criteria: will this project differentiate one product from the next? Will this project spread the rd team too thin? , and will this project provide a competitive advantage? For the short term, LPC should not attempt to enter the low-cost microwave market. Le Petit Chef is correlated with high end, high performance appliances and trying to tackle a low cost market that is dominated by large companies such as Samsung and GE would not be appropriate. Because of this, both projects associated with a low end line should be crossed off Gagne’s list. However, perhaps in the future when the company is on more solid footing a low-end line can be attempted. Adding a larger cavity to the Liberte should also be cut because this just adds another component into the mix. We will write a custom essay sample on Le Petit Chef Case Study specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Le Petit Chef Case Study specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Le Petit Chef Case Study specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Too many components that don’t overlap from one product to the next increases total cost and adaptability. Another reason to cut the larger cavity is because it really does nothing major to differentiate the product. Next, LPC should fund the implementation of a Fuzzy Logic microwave line. This would differentiate the product among high-end competitors, not put too much strain on rd according to a senior design engineer, and promote the high-class label associated with Le Petit Chef. This project is absolutely necessary to undertake. Another project that should be funded is the development of a â€Å"Liberte-express† with a more powerful magnetron. This adds another vital differentiating feature, will be easy to develop, and be finished relatively quickly (6 months). At the meeting, Gagne simply needs to list the facts to the executives since there shouldn’t be too much convincing to do. She needs to present her product choices listed above rationally and stress the need for the company to stay true to its reputation by focusing on high-end appliances. She needs to alert the execs about how thin rd is spread and she should probably prepare a list of projects that could be easily axed. She needs to stress the importance of allowing rd to focus on less projects. The primary theme of her presentation should be realigning Le Petit Chef as the frontrunner in the microwave business. She also needs to outline the current financial issues and how the proposed projects will affect them. 2) What factors explain Le Petit Chef’s poor performance? What actions would you recommend to remedy the situation? Le Petit Chef’s poor performance can be largely attributed to the recent influx of competition from abroad. Essentially, the Asian manufacturers such as Samsung and Sharp infiltrated the low-end market which in turn forced European microwave companies to move into the previously Le Petit Chef dominated high end market. One statistic that basically tells the entire story is that the price of the microwave oven had dropped by 10% each year from 1996 to 2000. In an attempt to ward off competition, LPC spent hefty sums in advertising. This was overkill and caused financial issues. Another key factor was the rd team being spread so thinly across so many products. Exhibit 9 highlights this by showing the products branching out in an almost ridiculous manner. Quite frankly, LPC needs to reduce its projects. In order to remedy the situation, LPC needs to do a handful of things. First, they need to realize that they cannot compete with the large foreign companies. Therefore, any thoughts of entering the low-cost market should be heavily discouraged. LPC has a niche in the high end market and they need to stick to their guns. By focusing on the high end marked, RD is also not as overextended. Next, LPC needs to differentiate their products from the competition. They need to give the buyer some incentive to fork over more cash for their expensive microwaves. Another thing that LPC should try to do is to make more components that are interchangeable between models in order to lower costs. LPC should also focus on the appearance of their microwaves, because to sell a high-end product it has to appear that way. Essentially, the appearance is the ultimate differentiating factor.

I Got the Blues

I Got the Blues I Got the Blues I Got the Blues By Maeve Maddox Blue is not only a favorite color for a lot of people, it is a word that occurs in many English expressions, some of them oddly contradictory. Obscene language is said to be blue, yet blue laws are those that forbid activities considered irreligious to take place on Sunday. A common blue law in the United States forbids the sale of liquor on Sundays. The sky is blue but the gray coats of some dogs are also called blue. A blue mood is a sad mood. To have the blues is to be sad, and the Blues refers to a type of music about unhappy love. People who talk so much that others can hardly get a word in edgewise are said to talk a blue streak. (One can also cuss a blue streak.) Bluegrass (Poa pratensis) is a species of grass that is not native to the United States, but is closely associated with Kentucky, which is known as the Bluegrass State. Bluegrass music is a sub-genre of country music which relies mostly on stringed instruments such as acoustic guitar, mandolin, fiddle, and banjo. A bluebird is what the name implies, a bird with blue feathers. Some have red breast feathers. The Eastern Bluebird is New Yorks state bird. In literature and art, the bluebird is a symbol of happiness. Blue chip stocks are Wall Street investments considered to be safe because they are issued by the most successful, most profitable companies. When the expression was coined, casino poker chips with the highest value were the blue ones. A blue blood is a person of aristocratic lineage. The expression is from Spanish sangre azul. It was coined to distinguish families of Castile that did not have Moorish or Jewish ancestors from those who did. The underlying idea is that blood veins are blue and the lighter the skin, the bluer the veins look. The term Bluestocking was coined in the 18th century. At first it was applied in a derogatory sense to both men and women who attended Elizabeth Montagus fashionable London literary salon. It was the men who wore the blue stockings, but the term quickly became a common tag for a woman who likes to discuss literature. To say that something happens in a blue moon is to say that it rarely happens. Then theres Ol Blue Eyes, a common epithet for singer Frank Sinatra. How many more blue expressions can you think of? More about Blue as color of dogs coat Kentucky bluegrass Bluegrass music Eastern bluebird blue moon Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:The Meaning of "To a T"The Difference Between "will" and "shall"Plurals of Proper Names

Fixes for Ambiguous Headlines

Fixes for Ambiguous Headlines Fixes for Ambiguous Headlines Fixes for Ambiguous Headlines By Mark Nichol Headlines that can be read more than one way, or that contain a confusing or erroneous element, have been a source of amusement for journalists and newshounds and of consternation for the perpetrators since the dawn of written mass communication, but anyone who writes or edits should be aware of the dangers of careless headline writing. Here are several headlines that prompt a double take. 1. â€Å"Gadhafi Forces Retreat† This could be interpreted as meaning â€Å"Gadhafi compelled rebels to retreat† or â€Å"Gadhafi’s military units were compelled to retreat† two readings about as diametrically opposed as possible. Space is often a consideration in print publications, requiring verbal shortcuts and curt words, but â€Å"Gadhafi’s Forces Retreat† or â€Å"Gadhafi Forces Foes to Retreat,† depending on the intended message, adds no more than a few characters. 2. â€Å"Second Toddler Found in Pool Also Dies at Hospital† This headline reads as if the toddler died twice once in the pool, and then again at the hospital. The explanation that two toddlers had been retrieved from a pool, and that one had already died at the hospital, should be introduced in the article, not in the headline. The solution is to not attempt to make a reference to the first toddler at all: â€Å"Second Toddler Found in Pool Dies at Hospital.† 3. â€Å"Retiring Police Officer’s Novel Tactics† This headline can be read three ways, listed in increasing order of likelihood: 1) â€Å"A shy police officer’s unusual tactics,† 2) â€Å"A police department is ceasing to use a police officer’s unusual tactics,† and 3) â€Å"Unusual tactics of a police officer about to retire.† (The headline could also be referring to a full-length work of fiction perhaps the officer, now retired from law enforcement, is applying his or her knowledge of police tactics to the plot of a novel but that misreading is unlikely.) The headline’s intended meaning is the third one, and though no one is likely to assume otherwise, the ambiguity is nevertheless distracting. â€Å"Novel Tactics of a Retiring Police Officer† has only three more characters and spaces than the original headline, and although retiring could still be misconstrued as referring to a personality trait rather than cessation of a career, that’s a stretch; the inverted word order makes the context clearer, diminishing the probability of initial confusion. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Business Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:20 Great Similes from Literature to Inspire YouFive Spelling Rules for "Silent Final E"Drama vs. Melodrama

Media and climategate Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Media and climategate - Research Paper Example Climatic Research Unit (CRU) is an internationally renowned research institution for climate change and global warming. The research done at CRU is globally accepted and practiced, for instance, global temperature record and other data sets.CRU was the key contributor of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report in 2007.It was a   collaboration between World Meteorological Organization(WMO) and United Nations Environment Program and considered to be the most authoritative of the likes(CNN). According to Seymour, climategate proved to be the starting point of a series of leaks that shook scientists’ long held and advocated belief that â€Å"the science is settled†. However, despite the authoritative position of CRU and far reaching impact of the leaked information, news media networks played soft on the whole incident. They seemed unshaken by the unethical course of action taken by the scientists whose claims were promoted by these networks over the years and gradually shaped public opinion. Surprisingly, since November 20, 2009, less than 10 percent of the global warming and climate change related news stories pointed towards any of the climate related scandals. The most disturbing email communication was among CRU Director Phil Jones and Penn State Scientist Michael Mann. The later is internationally renowned for his hockey stick graph of global warming which was the main feature of IPCC’s report in 2001.In e-mail Jones informed Mann that he worked on a trick to make addition in real temperature record of last 20 years in order to hide the decline. Other e-mails encourage criminal act of destroying information rather than passing them on to Freedom of Information requests(Seymour).Daily Mail(UK) reported on January 28,2010 that Information Commissioner discovered that ERU scientists are violating FOI law, but he couldn’t take legal action because of the statute of limitation(qtd. in

Is female genital mutilation a religious requirementbelief in Islam Research Proposal

Is female genital mutilation a religious requirementbelief in Islam - Research Proposal Example Women who did not undergo the procedure may have a hard time looking for a partner. This implies that women who failed to meet the expectation of men will have to suffer perpetual wretchedness. FGM was practiced in some African nations where it had originated and soon adapted by other followers of Islam, Christianity and Judaism. The concoction of these religions who believe in this procedure raised a question on other ardent followers why had these been enjoined in their faith which is very superfluous when basing it in the Holy Book everyone is adhering to. Neither there is a clear substantial basis why this mutilating process occurred. Male circumcision is long been practiced since the time of Abraham. It is to promote cleanliness among male individuals. However, there was no established rationale whatsoever that circumcision binds men to God although Christ himself was also circumcised and several notable apostles have undergone the same. In the contemporary life, this practiced is warranted since it has to do with hygienic condition. Male circumcision is widely accepted and is never being questioned. ... Female circumcision was practiced prior to the birth of Islam which precisely implies that it was not stated therein in the book of Qur'an that circumcision is also through with females. However some FGM advocates quoted this weak proposition: "Um Atiyyat al-Ansariyyah said: A woman used to perform circumcision in Medina. The Prophet (pbuh) said to her: Do not cut too severely as that is better for a woman and more desirable for a husband".1. It is in this text lies the foundation of FGM wherein it is deem important in Sunnah or Tradition of the Prophet to follow the custom of women's circumcision. Several sayings from the prophet Muhammad also surface concurring the FGM practice. However there was no clear statement to confirm the situation as it only states the correct derivation of pleasure. It was on the interpretation surmise the event of female circumcision. Thus there was no authenticity to validate such practice. Part of those who practice female circumcision are Muslims but some religions practice the same. It is part of their tradition to conduct this act without any luminous reason. Cultural reasons dominate over religious traditions although some fervent believers are most likely to adhere on the tradition; it is still an immense question as to what is the point behind the unrelenting practice that until now millions of women are mutilated. Several indicators include: "That female circumcision is rampant in Christian nations such as Kenya and Ethiopia". "That forced female circumcisions are true in all faiths abovementioned. It is a common practice in Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sierra Leone and Sudan". "That FGM was once practiced by Ethiopian Jews known as that Falashas. However

Robotic Surgery Disposal Essay Example for Free

Robotic Surgery Disposal Essay What is the Environmental Collateral Effects of Minimally Robotic Surgery? Two small studies have looked specifically at differences in communication between laparoscopic and robotic surgery. Both studies found a significant increase in oral communication between the surgeon and the rest of the team in robotic surgery, particularly in relation to the orientation and localization of organs and the manipulation of instruments, with the effect found to be more pronounced in teams that have less experience in robotic surgery. If use of robotic surgery interferes with standard practices of coordination among the OT team, the achievement of seamless, efficient, and timely teamwork may be hampered. It is important to understand any change in communication patterns because of the well-documented relationship between communication and patient safety, with failures in communication and teamwork being identified as key factors in adverse events in the OT. Communication and teamwork around robotic surgery are likely to be influenced by processes associated with the introduction of robotic surgery, such as training and changes in team structure, but equally the integration of robotic surgery in surgical practice may be dependent on the extent to which it is consistent with existing practices for coordination. How is Robotic Surgery Disposal conducted? For robotic surgery to provide the most benefit for patients, it is first necessary to understand the organizational and social factors that support the successful integration of robotic surgery, by which we mean that it becomes embedded into surgical practice, being used routinely and successfully for surgical operations where it offers advantages to the patient. It is also necessary to understand the impacts of robotic surgery on communication, teamwork, and decision making in the OT and how OT teams manage those impacts. Robotic-assisted surgery has evolved over the past two decades with constantly improving technology, assisting surgeons in multiple subspecialty disciplines. Patient positioning requirements can cause significant physiologic effects and may result in many complications. Good communication among team members and knowledge of the nuances of robotic surgery have the potential to improve patient outcomes, increase efficiency,  and reduce surgical and anesthetic comp lications. Robotic surgeries of long duration are associated with both increased risks to patients as well as distinct challenges for care providers As robotic surgery is increasingly utilized, operations with long surgical times may become more common due to increased case complexity and surgeons overcoming the learning curve.

Rebecca Wests The Return of the Soldier and Virginia Woolfs Jacobs R

Rebecca West's The Return of the Soldier and Virginia Woolf's Jacob's Room Rebecca West and Virginia Woolf give great significance to the families of their respective main characters in The Return of the Soldier and Jacob’s Room because it gives the reader a greater insight to the formation of and reasoning for both Chris and Jacob’s nature. Each of these characters have multiple families to deal with: Chris has Kitty and Jenny on the one hand, and Margaret on the other, while Jacob deals with his mother and brother as well as his connections to society and academia. The distinctions between each character’s multiple families cause them to behave differently in various situations, and provide reasons for their actions. It is said that we are shaped by our surroundings and molded by our families, and Woolf and West’s male protagonists prove to be no exception to this rule. The opening scene of Jacob’s Room depicts Mrs. Flanders and Archer searching for a young Jacob along the beach, already showing that the titular character is detached and separate from those around him. Instead of walking with his mother and brother on the shore, Jacob is more interested in the escapades of a crab in a tidal pool, an early indication of his future pursuit of knowledge and his penchant for isolation. Aside from this first mention, Jacob’s biological family is mentioned very rarely throughout the remainder of the novel, as Woolf focuses on his social and academic family instead. However, Jacob’s tendency to distance himself from many of his friends probably stems from the slightly distracted air of his mother, who seems to love and care for him but at the same time is scatter-brained and somewhat unaware of her surroundings. Jacob i... ...e complete without the care and heartache handed them by the families they gain and lose throughout the courses of their short lives. Woolf states it perfectly, realizing that â€Å"life is but a procession of shadows, and God knows why it is that we embrace them so eagerly, and see them depart with such anguish, being shadows... Such is the manner of our seeing. Such the conditions of our love† (Woolf, 96). Jacob is only partially loved and cared for by his mother, and therefore carries this half-affection into his social interactions, eventually regretting the supremely human act of falling in love. Likewise, Chris is two completely different people between Margaret and Kitty– loving and content with Margaret, once he is returned to reality he becomes one of the â€Å"brittle beautiful things† that Kitty so loves to have in her presence, a mere shadow of his soul (West, 6).

Research methods in education Essay

This topic will give you the overview of a research report and an example of a research report. After completing this topic, you should be able to explain the chapter contents of: (a) Research Problem; (b) Review of the Literature; (c) Research Method; (d) Research Findings; and (e) Conclusions (Figure 2. 1). Figure 2. 1: Topic Contents 2. 2 EXAMPLE OF A RESEARCH REPORT â€Å"THE EFFECTS OF PREREQUISITE MATHEMATICS ABILITY, TEACHING METHOD AND ENGLISH LANGUAGE SKILLS ON MATHEMATICS ACHIEVEMENT† CHAPTER 1 RESEARCH PROBLEM 1. 1 Introduction State the purpose of research and explain the brief contents/subtopics of section/ chapter. The purpose of this research was to determine whether prerequisite mathematics ability, teaching method and English language skills affect mathematics achievement. This chapter will explain the background of research, statement of the research problem, purpose of research, importance of research, limitations of research, definition of terms, and summary. 1. 2Background of Research Explain the motivation for carrying out this research in terms of theoretical issues or practical problems. Lately, mathematics achievement of most students in both the primary and secondary schools is deteriorating. The teaching of mathematics in English does affect mathematics learning for some students, but it creates significant problems for others. Schools had tried to solve some of these problems, but still could not improve mathematics achievement of these students. 1. 3 Statement of Research Problem Explain the factors/variables to be included in this research, show the conceptual/theoretical framework of research, and state the research problem. The literature on teaching and learning mathematics indicated that prerequisite mathematics ability is necessary for students to understand any new mathematics content. Beside prerequisite mathematics, most of past research showed that proper teaching mathematics can improve students’ performance in mathematics. Lately, research on mathematics learning discovered that English language skills facilitate mathematics learning. The theoretical framework of the research is given in Figure 1. 1. This research attempted to determine whether prerequisite mathematics ability, English language skills, and teaching method affect mathematics achievement. Figure 1. 1 Theoretical Framework of the Research 1. 4Purpose of Research Explain the purpose of research, research objectives, research questions and research hypotheses (if any). The purpose of this research was to determine whether prerequisite mathematics ability, teaching method and English language skills affect mathematics achievement. The objectives of this research were: 1. 4. 1 Research Objectives This research was carried out with the following objectives: (a) To determine the effect of prerequisite mathematics ability on mathematics achievement. (b) To determine the effect of teaching method on mathematics achievement. (c) To determine the effect of English language skills on mathematics achievement. 1. 4. 2 Research Questions This research was carried out to answer the following research questions: (a) What is the effect of prerequisite mathematics ability on mathematics achievement? (b) What is the effect of teaching method on mathematics achievement? (c) What is the effect of English language skills on mathematics achievement? 1. 4. 3 Research Hypotheses The following null hypotheses were formulated to answer the research questions: (a) There is no difference in mathematics achievement between students with low and high prerequisite mathematics abilities. (b) There is no difference in mathematics achievement between students who are taught using direct instruction and cooperative learning. (c) There is no difference in mathematics achievement between students with low and high English language skills. 1.5Importance of Research Explain the importance of research findings in terms of theory confirmation/building or their implications to practitioners. The findings of this research hopefully will create awareness among school administrators and mathematics teachers of the necessity to prepare students with English language skills and prerequisite mathematics knowledge before teaching new mathematics content. The findings also will h elp mathematics teachers to choose appropriate mathematics teaching method to improve students’ mathematics achievement. 1. 6Limitations of Research Explain the limitations of this research in terms of population, sample, instruments, data analyses or other related problems to the research. This research was carried out in two secondary schools in Petaling Jaya area with a sample of 120 students. The prerequisite mathematics ability, teaching method and English language skills were classified into only two categories each. The instruments were limited to prerequisite mathematics test, English language test, and mathematics post-test. Interaction effects of prerequisite mathematics ability and English language skills with teaching method were not investigated in this research. 1. 7Definition of Terms Give the constitutive (conceptual) and operational (measurement) definitions of the terms/variables used in the research. The followings were the key terms used in this research and their constitutive and operational definitions: (a) Mathematics achievement Mathematics achievement can be defined as the ability of a person to solve mathematical problems at a difficulty level that is appropriate to the person. In this research, mathematics achievement was measured using a mathematics post-test that covered the syllabus on area of triangle,rectangle, and circle. (b) Prerequisite mathematics ability †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 1. 8Summary Give a summary of important aspects explained in this section/chapter. This research was carried out to improve students’ mathematics achievement. The purpose of this research was to determine whether prerequisite mathematics ability, teaching method and English language skills affect mathema tics achievement. The research, which was conducted in two secondary schools in Petaling Jaya area, used teacher-made tests to collect the required research data. CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE RREVIEW 2. 1 Introduction Explain the brief contents of section/chapter. This chapter presents the Literature Review which is divided into Related Literature and Related Research. The Related Literature explains prerequisite mathematics, language skills, direct instruction and cooperative learning. The Related Research presents some research on the effects of prerequisite mathematics ability, language skills and teaching method on mathematics achievement. 2. 2 Related Literature Explain concepts, theories, principles or models that are related to the research problem. The purpose of this research was to investigate the effects of prerequisite mathematics ability, teaching method and English language skills on mathematics achievement. This section will explain the two teaching methods that were used in this research, namely, direct instruction and cooperative learning; and also the roles of prerequisite knowledge and language skills in teaching and learning. 2. 2. 1 Direct Instruction Slavin (2006) defined â€Å"direct instruction† as â€Å"an approach to teaching in which lessons are goal-oriented and structured by the teacher†. The teacher transmits information directly to students by structuring class time so that the students achieve the clearly stated objectives as efficient as possible. It is efficient for teaching a well-defined body of knowledge or skills such as mathematics. Direct Instruction comprises of the following seven (7) steps of activities: (a) State Learning Objectives and Orient Students to Lesson; (b) Review Prerequisites; (c) Present New Materials; (d) Conduct Learning Probes; (e) Provide Independent Practice; (f) Assess Performance and Provide Feedback; and (g) Provide Distributed Practice and Review. 2. 2. 2 Cooperative Learning Slavin (2006) defined â€Å"cooperative learning† as â€Å"instructional methods in which students work together in small groups to help each other learn†. The students are prepared with specific skills that will help them work better in a group. These skills include active listening, giving clear explanations, avoiding negative comments, etc. An effective cooperative learning model is called Student Teams-Achievement Divisions (STAD). STAD comprises of the following four (4) steps of activities: (a) Teach – the teacher present the lesson; (b) Team Study – students work on worksheets in their teams to master the material; (c) Test – students take individual tests; and (d) Team Recognition – team scores are computed based on team members’ improvement scores and class newsletter recognizes high-scoring teams. 2. 3 Related Research Explain and comment about previous research/ studies that are related to the research problem in terms of population, sample, instruments, analyses, findings and limitations. Based on the research framework, this section will present the previous research/ studies related to the effects of prerequisite mathematics ability, teaching method and English language skills on mathematics achievement. Specifically, this section will present the research on direct instruction (Systematic Instruction) and cooperative learning (Student Teams-Achievement Divisions – STAD). 2. 3. 1 Research on Direct Instruction The Systematic Instruction (SI) is one form/model of Direct Instruction. SI is a comprehensive Direct Instruction approach with a high degree of structure. Studies on the evaluation of nine programmes using Direct Instruction were carried out (in Slavin, 2006). DISTAR and Behaviour Analysis, the two highly structured Direct Instruction programmes, were found most successful in improving students’ reading and mathematics achievement. Of the nine programmes, only DISTAR was successful in improving low-achieving disadvantaged students close to the national average achievement. DISTAR and Behaviour Analysis students were also highest in self-esteem. About 60% of DISTAR students graduated from high school, compared to only 38% of other students in the same school. 2. 3. 2 Research on Cooperative Learning Slavin (1986) had done a research on Student Teams-Achievement Divisions (STAD). The research found that students learn substantially more in cooperative learning than in traditional/direct instruction, if two conditions are made. First, there must be some reward or recognition given to students, such as certificates. Second, each group must make sure that all of their members are learning, not just the good ones. When these conditions are met, cooperative learning is effective in grades 2 through 12, in all subjects and in many types of schools. Other than academic achievement, cooperative learning had positive effect on race relations, self-esteem, and attitudes toward school (Slavin, 1990). 2. 4 Summary Give a summary of important aspects explained in this section/chapter. This chapter presented the Literature Review for this research. The Related Literature discussed about direct instruction, cooperative learning, and the roles of prerequisite knowledge and skills and language skills in teaching and learning. The Related Research discussed about the research on direct instruction, namely, Systematic Instruction, and cooperative learning, namely, Student Teams-Achievement Divisions. CHAPTER 3 RESEARCH METHOD 3. 1 Introduction Introduction Explain the brief contents of section/chapter. This chapter presents the Research Method which is divided into Research Design, Population and Sample, Research Instruments, Procedure for Data Collection, Procedure for Data Analyses, Pilot Study, and Summary. This research used experimental design to investigate the effects of prerequisite mathematics ability, English language skills, and teaching method on mathematics achievement. 3. 2 Research Design A factorial experimental design was used to investigate the effects of three independent variables; namely, prerequisite mathematics ability, English language skills, and teaching method; on the dependent variable of mathematics achievement. This section will explain the factorial design with each of the independent variable having two levels. The two levels of prerequisite mathematics ability were low and high; the two levels of English language skills were low and high; and the two levels of teaching method were direct instruction and cooperative learning. A (2x2x2) factorial design was used in this research with a total of eight groups/cells. The factorial design is shown in Table 3. 1. Table 3. 1: (2x2x2) Factorial Design on Mathematics Achievement Prerequisite Mathematics Ability Low High English Language Skills: Low Direct Instruction Direct Instruction English Language Skills: High Direct Instruction Direct Instruction Prerequisite Mathematics Ability Low High English Language Skills: Low Cooperative Learning Cooperative Learning English Language Skills: High Cooperative Learning Cooperative Learning 3. 3 Population and Sample Explain the scope/limitation of research in terms of population and sample & how respondents are selected. This was a part of an action research planned for a public secondary school in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia. The research population comprised of all the Form 4 students in the school for the school year of 2009. A total of 240 Form 4 students were randomly selected as research sample. Other population and sample were not considered in this research, since it was an action research for the school. 3. 4 Research Instruments Explain research instruments to be used and how they are developed/ constructed. There were four instruments used in this research, namely: (a) Backgrounds Questionnaire to collect data on backgrounds of respondents; (b) Prerequisite Mathematics Pretest to measure students’ prerequisite mathematics ability; (c) English Language Pretest to measure students’ English language skills; and (d) Mathematics Posttest to measure students’ mathematics achievement. The four research instruments were developed by two mathematics teachers and two English Language teachers from the school. The Backgrounds Questionnaire was focused on students’ gender, ethnic, stream, and PMR Mathematics grade. The Mathematics Pretest and Posttest were developed based on the topic of Probability and Statistics, while the English Language Pretest was developed based on Form 4 syllabus. 3. 5 Procedure for Data Collection Explain step-by-step of the procedure for data collection from obtaining the permission to do research to how the data were collected. The 240 Form 4 students were called to meet the School Principal and researchers at the school’s hall. They were briefed about the research and were given the Backgrounds Questionnaire, Prerequisite Mathematics Pretest, and English Language Pretest. After the results of the Prerequisite Mathematics Pretest and English Language Pretest were obtained, the students were classified into four groups of 60 students each, namely: (a) studentswith â€Å"low† Prerequisite Mathematics scores and â€Å"low† in English Language scores; (b) students with â€Å"low† Prerequisite Mathematics scores and â€Å"high† in English Language scores; (c) students with â€Å"high† Prerequisite Mathematics scores and â€Å"low† in English Language scores; and (d) students with â€Å"high† Prerequisite Mathematics scores a nd â€Å"high† in English Language scores. Each of the four groups of students was later assigned randomly to two groups of 30 students each to form a total of eight groups. One mathematics teacher was trained on how to teach mathematics using Direct Instruction, and another mathematics teacher was trained to teach mathematics using Cooperative Learning. After the training, one of the mathematics teachers taught four of groups of students on the topic of Probability and Statistics for a period of three weeks using Direct Instruction. The other four groups of students were taught by the other mathematics teacher on the topic of Probability and Statistics also for a period of three weeks using Cooperative Learning. At the end of three weeks, all students were given the Mathematics Posttest. 3. 6 Procedure for Data Analyses Explain step-by-step of the procedure for data analyses from marking the test(s) to how the data were analyzed to answer each research question. One English language teacher was asked to mark the English Language Pretest answer scripts, one mathematics teacher was asked to mark the Prerequisite Mathematics Pretest answer scripts, and another mathematics teacher was asked to mark the Mathematics Posttest answer scripts, based on the marking schemes provided by the researcher. The backgrounds information of the students and their Prerequisite Mathematics Pretest scores, English Language Pretest scores, and Mathematics Posttest scores were entered into a computer file for analyses. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze the research data. Frequencies and percentages were used to analyze the backgrounds of students who participated in the research. The Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to test the following null hypotheses on the main effects of the independent variables investigated at 0. 05 level of significant. The following null hypotheses were formulated to answer the research questions: (a) There is no difference in mathematics achievement between students with low and high prerequisite mathematics abilities. (b) There is no difference in mathematics achievement between students who are taught using lecture method and cooperative method. (c) There is no difference in mathematics achievement between students with low and high English language skills. 3. 7 Pilot Study 4 Explain how you carried out the pilot study and improvements you made on your research after the pilot study. A pilot study for the research was carried out in the same school when the two mathematics teachers were given the training on how to teach mathematics using Direct Instruction and Cooperative Learning. A small sample of 20 students was used in the pilot study, whereby the students were given the Backgrounds Questionnaire, English Language Pretest, Prerequisite Mathematics Pretest, and Mathematics Posttest. The students were interviewed by the researcher on their understanding of the Questionnaire, Pretests, and Posttest. The researcher had refined the Questionnaire, and a new set of equivalent English Language Pretest, Prerequisite Mathematics Pretest, and Mathematics Posttest were developed by the same two mathematics teachers and two English Language teachers based on the comments from students. 3. 8 Summary Give a summary of important aspects explained in this section/chapter. This chapter presented the Research Method that was focused on the Research Design, Population and Sample, Research Instruments, Procedure for Data Collection, Procedure for Data Analyses and Pilot Study. The research was carried out on 240 Form 4 students from a public secondary school in Petaling Jaya, Selangor. A Backgrounds Questionnaire, an English Language Pretest, a Prerequisite Mathematics Pretest, and a Mathematics Posttest were used as research instruments. A pilot study was carried out at the same school and the instruments were refined based on students’ comments. Descriptive statistics were used to explain the backgrounds of respondents, while ANOVA was used to test the null hypotheses of the research. CHAPTER 4 RESEARCH FINDINGS 4. 1 Introduction Explain the brief contents of section/chapter. This chapter presents the Research Findings which is divided into the Backgrounds of Respondents and the Results of Data Analyses and Research Findings. The Backgrounds of Respondents discuss the composition of respondents by gender and ethnic. The Results of Data Analyses and Research Findings explain the results of Analysis of Variance on Mathematics Achievement and the hypothesis tests on the effects of Prerequisite Mathematics, Teaching Method, and English Language Skills on Mathematics Achievement. 4. Backgrounds of Respondents Explain the backgrounds of the research respondents, e. g. their gender, age, family income, etc. This research was carried out at a public secondary school in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia. A total of 240 Form 4 students were randomly selected as research sample. These students were assigned to four groups based on the results of Prerequisite Mathematics Pretest and English Language Skills Pretest. The background of respondents in terms of gender, ethnic, mean score and standard deviation (SD) of Prerequisite Mathematics, and mean  score and standard deviation (SD) of English Language Skills are given in Table 4. 1. The respondents comprised of 120 male students (50%), 120 female students (50%); which were made up of 120 Malay students (50%), 96 Chinese students (40%), and 24 Indian students (10%). In terms of Prerequisite Mathematics and English Language Skills, Group 1 (Low Math & English) comprised of 60 students with mean of 31. 8% in Prerequisit e Mathematics and 42. 6% in English Language Skills. Group 2 (Low Math & High English) comprised of 60 students with mean of 32. 1% in Prerequisite Mathematics and 72.

Compare the advertising campaigns for Benetton and Barnardos Essay

â€Å"Advertising is a form of communication that typically attempts to persuade potential customers to purchase or to consume more of a particular brand of product or service.† 1 Advertising is used to either attract an audience’s attention, an audience to a product or cause or to persuade the audience the merit or desirability of the product or cause. Advertisers do this by defining the qualities of a product, highlighting the difference to other products or by using emotional appeal, stressing peer pressure, using aspiration, fear or stressing the benefits to the consumer’s lifestyle. The main focus of this essay is to compare advertising methods and campaigns employed by Benetton and Bernardos, one for selling clothes and the other trying to help children in need. Bernardos’ campaign is trying to achieve an awareness of child abuse, giving an image of a child in the place of an adult in situations ranging from standing on top of a large building to being about to use heroin or some other form of drug. By using these emotional images of children in an adult situation it emotionally blackmails us into donating to their cause because adults are accountable for their mistakes, which children are basked in innocence, to have this ripped from under them is like defiling the greatest gift and because Bernardo’s uses children instead of adults in these situations makes us even more emotional even though they are the fake pictures, while they can be considered more shocking than images used by Benetton. Text used with each image is also emotionally moving and makes the audience want to help. The image of â€Å"Martin Ward age 29† shows a young boy standing atop a handrail on a large building looking down against a background of dull, grey and large buildings. The background is almost colourless except the very top right corner, with the Bernardos advert on top of the only sky in the image, which is a grey-blue. This represents a bleak life for the persona in the image, except one small part which seems to be being almost guarded by the Bernardos logo. Also the use of colourful clothing on the child shows us that though he is put into an adult situation and his life is bleak, childishness remains and isn’t completely destroyed. The use of yellow on the clothing can seem to represent hope due to yellow being the perceived colour of light. â€Å"Made to feel worthless as a child, it was hardly surprising that Martin could see no other way out† by using this text they highlight on how the bleak landscape may be that of his own mind and what he believes, and though a child is being used to stand on the handrail it could infact either be the last of Martin’s childhood and innocence or that Martin, aged 29 had jumped off a rooftop to his death because of his childhood and so, the child in him is the one who committed suicide. By using and giving a name to the image, it creates a link to reality. An ordinary picture could be fake, it isn’t alive and can’t affect most people yet you give that persona in the picture a name and all of a sudden it’s like it’s alive and people either shy away and ignore it, or get up and believe in a cause and by doing so, this adds even more power to the extremely power of the image and text. Benetton’s campaign is trying to sell a product by using racial stereotypes to highlight our own stereotypes and stereotypical views in their first campaign, then going on to use real extreme or violent images to ask us why we accept how violent the world in whole is and why we do nothing to stop such atrocities. Benetton’s â€Å"Rice in hand† ad is black to cause the audience to be alerted to the advertisement, while making the audience think about the poorest people in the eastern world and how little they have. The open palm can be interpreted as a hand asking for help because of so little they have. The â€Å"Rice in hand† ad is focusing on our essential needs, thus the use of a plain background, only an open palm which can symbolize friendship or peace, and the bare essential food we need, cutting out the luxuries that the west can afford. However the white background could also present the idea that white people in history have been seen as a â€Å"superior† race and so have encroached on black people’s lands and taken it from them until they are left with their own bare minimums. Both of these make people want to break the stereotype of the hoarding white man and the poor black man. Where as the â€Å"Handcuffs† ad is showing a white man and black man connected at the wrist by hand cuffs, they also appear to be wearing blue prison overalls. The handcuff around the black man’s wrist appears to be tighter because of the veins being more visible but this may be coincidence. This ad draws the audience to think about cultural stereotypes of black males as trouble makers where as white people are seen as average; normal and yet the handcuffs may be seen as a link between races, that we are both on the Earth together yet we are separated, thus the only link is the handcuffs which are forcefully put there. The purpose of this advert is to show the links between the races and how we racially or culturally stereotype each other and though we may not want to be with the other race, we have to. The target audience is everyone who is able to consider these ideas as sooner or later lots of people are subjected to racism, be it causing it or fighting it. Both these adverts are trying to raise awareness of the way different races come into contact with each other and have racial or cultural stereotypes. Benetton have exploited this to sell their products. They have no intention of giving their profits to starving people in Africa with less than the minimum needed, or to make bridges between white and black communities, instead they use these images to make the potential customer think about the advert and this causes it to become stuck in their head which is known to increase chances of buying the product. The slogan of â€Å"United colors by Benetton† also factors into this because it almost tricks the buyer into thinking that their money is going to a good cause. The images used are from real situations are intended to shock by means of style, layout, central focus or colour. They also raise awareness of issues while selling a product and I believe it is right to use real images of human suffering in this way because it brings the troubles of the world into the fuzzy pink clouds that are our norm and by interrupting that normality people complain, to which you can reply â€Å"Then why aren’t you doing anything?† If it takes a clothing company to exploit these images to make people believe in helping and becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy then images of real human suffering should definitely be used. The general style for the second campaign is much more extreme and violent than the first which originally prayed on stereotypes; the second campaign used shock to instill care into people. â€Å"We need to have images that will make people think and discuss. Ad agencies are obsolete, they’re out of touch with the times; they’re far too comfortable. When the client is happy, they stop trying. They don’t want to know what’s going on in the world. They create a false reality and want people to believe in it. We show reality and we’re criticized for it.†2 The second campaigns images forced people to examine their reactions to violent images outside of the TV where they were accepted as normal, and not realized how truly horrific they were until now. The â€Å"Death of AIDS Victim† or â€Å"La Pietà  Ã¢â‚¬  ad is extremely moving because the settings, the people in the image are like that of Jesus and yet this is an AIDS victim being compared to the son of God and yet the grief is the same, loved ones and a priest. The image of the wasted corpse, ravaged by disease is enough to burn into someone’s memory without the loved ones crying and it also gives it a sense of reality and despair and it is because of this reality that people block it because they aren’t strong enough to have their safe world penetrated by the reality of the world and it’s violent nature. â€Å"Michelangelo’s Pietà   during the Renaissance might be fake, Jesus Christ may never have existed. That was real promotion. But we know this death has happened. This is the thing. And the more real the thing is, the less people want to see it.†2 Bernardo’s uses fake images of children in the place of adults in extreme adult situations to make us more emotional and likely to donate to their cause, yet this is seen as acceptable while people should be angry they are effectively being blackmailed emotionally and yet Benetton uses real life images and is criticized. â€Å"Shocking violence in the news is normal, but when you take the same photo out of the news and put a Benetton logo on it, people pause and reflect on their position on the problem. When they can’t come to terms with it, they get mad at us.†2 and yet it is these images that we should be happier about compared to the fakes supplied by Bernardo’s. â€Å"It seems that an advertisement which misleads the consumer with deception and lies is considered more correct†2 and this is true with life, because people don’t want reality, they want their perfect worlds where bad things happen to other people far, far away with no consequences on them, yet when the bad things happen to other people far, far away and are brought to them they are outraged. â€Å"people don’t want news, they want olds†3 â€Å"It has always intrigued me how fakes have been accepted and reality is rejected.†2 After analysis, the Bernardo’s campaign seems better equipped to achieve its purpose because it uses image which though still troubling, is deemed less so than that of Benetton’s. Also because it uses fake images instead of real ones, context is added and so people are able to keep their bubbles of saneness that the world’s violence desperately wants to burst. Although Barnardos seeks to get its audience to give for a good cause, it does it through deceit, lies and emotional blackmail though the end justifies the means and it is seen as acceptable while Benetton’s campaign images gives real life at its core it does so for what is seen as the wrong reasons and so is shunned and criticized. Bibliography: 1 – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advertising 2 – Oliviero Toscani 3 – â€Å"The Truth: A Novel of Discworld† http://www.amazon.com/review/R3LV503LWFE65Z

A Near Death Experience Essays

A Near Death Experience Essays A Near Death Experience Essay A Near Death Experience Essay How near have you come to deceasing? What value do you put on your ain life? Mary Oliver poses these really deep and challenging inquiries to the reader in her short verse form. ?Alligator Poem. ?In the verse form. the character has an experience in which she comes really close to decease: an alligator walks by her as she drank some H2O out of a river while sitting on a riverside. Oliver describes it in this manner: ?I didn’t understand/I drank up to the really minute it came/crashing toward me/its tail flailing/like a package of swords/slashing the grass/and the interior of its cradle-shaped mouth/gaping/and rimmed with dentitions and/that’s how I about died/of foolishness/in beautiful Florida. ?Clearly she has had a near-death experience. The linguistic communication used in depicting that transition shows true fright: ? tail flailing/like a package of swords/slashing the grass. ? This experience has exposed the character to the really existent possibilities of deceas e. This experience besides was most likely the persona?s foremost near-death experience. Oliver indicates this with the statement ? that?s how I about died/of foolishness/in beautiful Florida. ? People who have many near-death experiences normally ever exercising cautiousness in state of affairss that could be fatal. In this state of affairs. she walked straight up to the river bank and stuck her olfactory organ in. and started imbibing ( ? I didn?t understand/I drank up to the really minute it came? ) . The remainder of the verse form goes on to demo how the character changed and reacted from this near-death experience. She clearly takes a new value for life off from her first near-death experience: ? but about how I rose from the ground/and saw the universe as if for the 2nd time/the manner it truly is. ? The transmutation that she shows after the experience can be attributed to the new value that she places on life. which before the near-death experience was much lower. Most likely. she will exert cautiousness further in the hereafter. Another facet that the character takes off from this experience is her recognition of the life qualities of nature. Oliver explains this with the transition straight after the description of the metempsychosis: ? The H2O. that circle of shattered glass/healed itself with a slow whisper/and lay back/with the back-lit visible radiation of polished steel/and the birds. in the eternal waterfalls of the trees/shook open the snowy plaits of their wings. and drifted off. ?The character now sees populating value of nature. and how it is non simply inanimate objects. but a being merely like us. Before the near-death experience. the character of the verse form was blind to this truism. Unfortunately. it took a turn with decease to expose these facts. but it is every bit of import that she now understands this. This newfound value is already apparent in the persona?s life. Oliver makes certain to demo the persona?s transmutation in concrete inside informations: ? I reached out/I picked the wild flowers from the grass around me/blue stars/and reddish trumpets/on long green stems/for hours in my trembling custodies they glittered/like fire. ? The character picks the flowers and recognize their life qualities. hence the simile to fire in the last line of the verse form. The verse form contains many literary devices that Oliver uses to convey her message in the verse form. The full verse form is a amour propre. or drawn-out metaphor. for a rebirthing procedure. Oliver gives us the sightlessness in the beginning of the verse form ? when the character unwisely walks up to the riverside without any respect for the home ground of the animate beings that live in and around the river ( e. g. the alligator ) . and the possible hazards of an alligator brush ( e. g. decease ) . Next was the near-death experience. as the alligator crossed waies with the character. which caused the transmutation. Finally. the metempsychosis occurs. and the alterations in her life are happening every bit shortly as the metempsychosis happens. Clearly. Mary Oliver illustrates the rebirthing procedure in her verse form Alligator Poem. She attractively demonstrates this procedure with personification. amour propre. and metaphors. She is a great poet. and ?Alligator Poem? is a great illustration of her enormous organic structure of work. Plants Cited Oliver. Mary. Alligator Poem. 50 Great Poems and Short Stories. Random House. 1990.

Acid Rain Essays (1959 words) - Inorganic Solvents, Acid Rain

Acid Rain INTRODUCTION: Acid rain is a great problem in our world. It causes fish and plants to die in our waters. As well it causes harm to our own race as well, because we eat these fish, drink this water and eat these plants. It is a problem that we must all face together and try to get rid of. However acid rain on it's own is not the biggest problem. It cause many other problems such as aluminum poisoning. Acid Rain is deadly. WHAT IS ACID RAIN? Acid rain is all the rain, snow, mist etc that falls from the sky onto our planet that contains an unnatural acidic. It is not to be confused with uncontaminated rain that falls, for that rain is naturally slightly acidic. It is caused by today's industry. When products are manufactured many chemicals are used to create it. However because of the difficulty and cost of properly disposing of these products they are often emitted into the atmosphere with little or no treatment. The term was first considered to be important about 20 years ago when scientists in Sweden and Norway first believed that acidic rain may be causing great ecological damage to the planet. The problem was that by the time that the scientist found the problem it was already very large. Detecting an acid lake is often quite difficult. A lake does not become acid over night. It happens over a period of many years, some times decades. The changes are usually to gradual for them to be noticed early. At the beginning of the 20th century most rivers/lakes like the river Tovdal in Norway had not yet begun to die. However by 1926 local inspectors were noticing that many of the lakes were beginning to show signs of death. Fish were found dead along the banks of many rivers. As the winters ice began to melt off more and more hundreds upon hundreds more dead fish (trout in particular) were being found. It was at this time that scientist began to search for the reason. As the scientists continued to work they found many piles of dead fish, up to 5000 in one pile, further up the river. Divers were sent in to examine the bottom of the rivers. What they found were many more dead fish. Many live and dead specimens were taken back to labs across Norway. When the live specimens were examined they were found to have very little sodium in their blood. This is typical a typical symptom of acid poisoning. The acid had entered the gills of the fish and poisoned them so that they were unable to ext ract salt from the water to maintain their bodies sodium levels. Many scientist said that this acid poising was due to the fact that it was just after the winter and that all the snow and ice was running down into the streams and lakes. They believed that the snow had been exposed to many natural phenomena that gave the snow it's high acid content. Other scientists were not sure that this theory was correct because at the time that the snow was added to the lakes and streams the Ph levels would change from around 5.2 to 4.6. They believed that such a high jump could not be attributed to natural causes. They believed that it was due to air pollution. They were right. Since the beginning of the Industrial revolution in England pollution had been affecting all the trees,soil and rivers in Europe and North America. However until recently the loses of fish was contained to the southern parts of Europe. Because of the constant onslaught of acid rain lakes and rivers began to lose their ability to counter act their affects. Much of the alkaline elements; such as calcium and limestone; in the soil had been washed away. It is these lakes that we must be worried about for they will soon become extinct. A fact that may please fishermen is that in lakes/rivers they tend to catch older and larger fish. This may please them in the short run however they will soon have to change lakes for the fish supply will die quickly in these lakes. The problem is that acid

Economic Growth Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Economic Growth - Essay Example The economic growth of Singapore is not that strong and sustaining. This is because, Singapore’s population is growing at a slow rate that the current economic plan cannot sustain. The available productive population is not enough to produce goods and services that can support the large old and unproductive population. More to that is Singapore had is limited in terms of land availability and has limited supply of water. This makes it hard to sustain its economy as a lot revenue earned is spend in purchasing this resources rather than developing the economy of that nation (Abeysinghe & Choy, 7). However, it has to be concluded that, though Singapore’s economic growth has not attained a level in which it can be referred to us strong and sustaining, its economy has grown tremendously since 2013. The Economic Development Board of Singapore is committed to achieve better and better investment strategies every year while striving to generate jobs for citizens of Singapore. In order for Singapore to grow economically, it should focus on ensuring that it records a high level of GDP and GNI. This is because these are the indicators of performance of a nation. Therefore, in order for Singapore to increase its GDP per capita. This is well attained by ensuring that Singaporeans are advised to consume the locally produced commodities. Consumption of foreign commodities should be limited since purchase involving such commodities lead to loss of local income. Moreover, Singaporeans should be encouraged to make investments. Investments are a way of ensuring that the local currency circulates appropriately within the economy and therefore reduces the imbalance between the poor and the rich (Koh, 2). In addition to that, government of Singapore is advised to increases its expenditure in generating job opportunities and establishment of social amenities like hospitals, schools, road networks, that will

Nursing Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Nursing - Research Paper Example The study will also include any strengths, weaknesses or gaps in the Literature part of it where a few examples will be provided. A conclusion will be provided at the end of the study. Key Words: Orthopedics, antibiotics, infection. 1.0. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM 1.1. Clinical Question Does Giving Antibiotics within 1 Hour before Surgical Incision to Pre-Operative Orthopedic Patients Decrease Rate of Infection Compared to Patients Who Do Not Receive Antibiotics within 1 Hour? 1.2. PICO 1.2.1. Problem/Patient Patients who were sampled for this particular study where those with previous ailments and included patients who are allergic to penicillin. Such patients were administered 600mg of clindamycin (Kim et al., 2010). All 317 patients were undergoing various surgical initiatives such as total knee arthroplasty, total hip arthroplasty and spine surgery (Jamsen et al., 2010). Before the main intervention was carried out, a number of the patients cited a few concerns regarding the whole process. For instance, if the intervention was going to be successful, what would happen if they did not come out of the surgical process? They were, however, assured of success and this made them rest easy. Some of the characteristics indicated above regarding the patients such as previous ailments or current medications should be considered while searching for evidence. 1.2.2. Intervention A medical intervention is usually the main concern for patients or clients. All patients in the study will be subjected to a surgical ‘time-out’ protocol as a way of preventing wrong-site surgery. The protocol will be carried out in the course of a 7-day period where the patients will be administered prophylactic intravenous antibiotics at least an hour before surgical incision. Anesthesiologists will also routinely administer these antibiotics to the patients before or shortly after induction of anesthesia (Maksimovic et al., 2008). Time interval between administering antibiotics a nd performing the incision is, as a result, of the patients being positioned, prepared and draped, where the longest time interval taken will be in total hip arthroplasty procedures (Gillespie & Walenkamp, 2010). In the course of the intervention, identifiers will also be put in use as a means of authenticating the correct patient together with the correct surgical site/side, including the patient’s name, date of birth, and the surgeon’s initials in the operative area as well as a signed operative consent form (Jamsen et al., 2010). As mentioned earlier, there are those patients with previous medical issues and those without. For those patients with, for instance, a history of penicillin or cephalosporin allergy, the administration of 600mg of clindamycin will be done, while those without any previous medical conditions will be administered 1g of cefazolin (Burke, 2001). Upon completion of these procedures, the time of preoperative antibiotic administration, time of in cision, type of surgery as well as specific antibiotic will be obtained for each of the patients from the time out verification sheets and patient charts, where this information will then be identified (Rosenberg, 2008). The time from antibiotic

Choose a company that is involved in international business activities Essay

Choose a company that is involved in international business activities - Essay Example The recent conflicts in the coltan mining Congo have greatly affected the company in numerous aspects (Smith, 2013). Coltan is Columbo-tantalite substance that is used in the production of the modern electronics including smartphones (Richard & Kathreen, 2014). This product is essential in the production of electric capacitors that are used in smartphones because of their capability to hold high electric charges (Cellular news, 2014). The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has the largest world reserve of coltan, and its production has recently been affected by conflicts between DRC soldiers and M-23 militia rebel group (Smith, 2011). The M-23 militia consisted of Rwandese and Ugandan soldiers. This conflict evolved when the M-23 wanted to gain control over the coltan mining areas in DRC (Weebly, 2014). Though the mining of coltan is not large scale, it is mined by a group of men who dig huge craters in streambeds and scrap the dirt in order to get to coltan. The M-23 was involved in the smuggling of coltan from DRC to the neighboring nations. The neighboring countries such as neighboring Rwanda were accused of selling smuggled coltan though there is no coltan available in the country (Smith, 2011). This conflict in the late 2011 caused a decrease in the supply of coltan and an increase in the prices of coltan. Though there are other nations that produce coltan, DRC is the second largest producer and reserve of coltan after Australia (Marlow & Akkad, 2011). The decreased supply of coltan resulted to increased prices that increased the production costs of Apple Inc. by 20% (Weebly, 2014). However, continued conflicts in the area may result to increasing costs of production and may also affect the production level of the company. Additionally, reports by the United Nations indicate that there is a need to institute regulations to limit the production of coltan from conflict-prone areas in order to

Difference Between Takaful And Conventional Insurance Economics Essay

Difference Between Takaful And Conventional Insurance Economics Essay Takaful is an Arabic word which explains as guaranteeing each other (Tan Kin Lian, 2006). Haemala Thanasegaran (2008) also defined Takaful as mutual insurance in the Islamic system with compliant with principles of Shariah which is known as Islamic law. Shariah is attributing to direct Muslims by following principle which is: (W. Jean Kwon, 2007) Fard or wajib also known as halal which is obligation strictly enforced by Islamic law. Haram or mamu related to absolutely prohibition or unlawful activities. Mandub or mustahub which means that what is suggested or the activities that individuals are ought to do as own advantages. Makruh refer to what is discouraged or the activities that individuals are need to deny due to own benefits. Muhab is about permissibility or the activities that under the Islamic law is neutral. Besides, Alsadek Gait Andrew Worthington (2008) agreed that Takaful is a type of collaborate self-help program. Moreover, Ramin Cooper Maysami W.Jean Kwon (1999) who are stated that Takaful is establish on the law of large number whereby in the form of joint guarantee insurance mechanism. It means that a flock of public gathers their capital resource to prevent certain risk of losses. Takaful is an arrangement among a group of people with collective interests which aim to insure or defend each other from certain regulation of misfortunes instance of premature death, disability and property damages (Obaidulllah, 2005). Therefore, Faizal Manjoo (2007) said that Takaful is elicitation by the aqilah and diyah systems which is someone who is among a group of people are aim to financial salvage is possibility confronted with unexpected liability instance of paying for the blood money which means diyah. Takaful is an alternative form of financial instrument to guarantee assets, liabilities and other interests of individuals and organizations. (Zuriah Abdul Rahman, 2009) Therefore, Muhammad Ayub (2009) supported that the alternative of Takaful is according to the concept of social solidarity, cooperation and at the same time indemnification the losses of participants. Indeed, Haemala Thanasegaran (2008) pointed out that Takaful is similar with conventional insurance which is include the distribution of the risk and it is become play an important role as part of our professional and livelihood. As a result, Jamie Reid (2008) suggested that Takaful become a significant role to worldwide financial institution which is widely establish in Asian and Middle East currently and also has an opportunity advance to the western country. Present years, there are a lot of international insurance industries are interest participate in Islamic insurance market. Although, Takaful insurance is mainly expanded at Islamic countries for the sake of the advent of Islamic banking and it has presented its potential as an innovation financial instrument over the past decade. (Haemala Thanasegaran, 2008) Whereas, Ramin Cooper Maysami W.Jean Kwon (1999) examined that Takaful has also grown on religion principle which processes unique characteristic besides grown as an innovation financial instrument. 2.1.1 Concept of Takaful The concept of Islamic insurance which is known as Takaful was first introduced in Sudan in 1979 and the main concept is an alternative to conventional insurance whereas according to principle of Shariah. (Kassar, 2008) Takaful as a concept compliant the principles of Shariah which is Islamic law thereby it is essentially to a system of mutual help which refers to the pooling of resources to help the needy (Browne and Kim, 1993). Therefore, according to Tan Kin Lian (2006), who is examined that before the advent of Islam 14 centuries ago there is possibility that the concept of mutual cooperation among tribal members in the Arabian Peninsula already started. The instance in pre-Islamic history which to prove the argument is: Aqila which is the Pooling System Daman Khatr Al-Tariq defined as Surety System Al Hlif which is utilized by Trade Alliance Confederation Nevertheless, Catherine Stagg-Macey (2007) summarize that Islamic insurance also known as Takaful is a mutual insurance that establish with the concept of tabarru (donation) which means that everyone will be take advantage from a share of investment returns since they are contributes to a fund. It is the combination of guaranteeing each other and mutual or cooperative insurance and there are necessarily to including in Takaful. However, Dawood Yousef Taylor (2005) stated that according to Fiqh Academy in 1985 who judged that conventional commercial insurance was haram (forbidden) which contravened the rules of Shariah and Islamic insurance which is Takaful was halal (acceptable). Accordingly, Haemala Thanasegaran (2008) pointed out that the reason is the operation of conventional insurance is against the principle of Shariah which is involve the elements of Al-gharar (uncertainties in the operation of the insurance contract), Al-maisir (gambling as a consequence of the presence of uncertainty), and Al-riba (interest). Gharar (uncertainty) Gharar is means that uncertainty or ambiguity of the theme of the contract by the insured such as the occurrence of indemnity, the sources and the amount for compensation and the timing of uncertainty (Anwar, 1994). Maisir (gambling) Islamic law is prohibiting speculation or receiving return without effort. Since the policy holders of insurance are look like to bet premiums on the condition that the insurer will make compensation when arise specified accident thereby it is forbidden based on principle Shariah. (Anwar, 1994) Riba (usury or interest) Riba is prohibit by Islamic law which refer to unequal exchange of the same things and also can defined as difference amount and quantity between insurer and insured when transactions. (Anwar, 2004) 2.1.2 Type of Takaful In Malaysia, there is providing two different types of Takaful insurance services which consist of General Takaful and Family Takaful. Family Takaful The family Takaful is a long-term investment and saving. The function of family Takaful is providing protection to the participants family by mutual fund while participant involve in the event of death. Furthermore, the goal of designed this plan is to: Regularity save the contribution of fund during a fixed period which is long term Utilize fund that contribution by participant as investment to gaining profit or return under the rule or principle Shariah, and Assistance in financial while unexpected death of participant prior to the maturity of the plan Commonly, family Takaful can recognize to several form such as: Ordinary family which is composing from endowment, temporary, medical and health. Takaful endowment is same kind with the life insurance. However, there is also has combine with education plan which respond by public is enthusiastically. Investment-linked Takaful is providing participant protection and also get chance earn profit or return in future depend on value underlying assets. Takaful Annuity is attribute to guarantee participant future retirement life by provide periodic income. (Hendon Redzuan, Zuriah, Sharifah Sakinah, 2009) On the other hand, Haemala Thanasegaran (2008) stated that maturity period, amount and the frequency of annual contribution of family Takaful are determinant by participant as well as the fund contribution will save into the Participants Account (PA) which is for savings and investment and the Participants Special Account (PSA) which is for Tabarru or donation. General Takaful A general takaful plan is commonly standing in the period of 12 months which is known as short term mutual financial help. Generally, it is assuring for property, engineering, miscellaneous accident, marine, motor and others. Moreover, general takaful attribute to scheme that purpose to provide compensation to someone who is suffering losses such as destruction or disaster inflicted upon asset of the participant. Method of payment for general takaful is based on tabarru which is donation aim to mutually help and jointly guarantee each others with using the fund compensate for participants who are facing losses. (Hendon Redzuan, Zuriah, Sharifah Sakinah, 2009) Although, Mohd. Masum Billah (1996) suggest that general Takaful should identify as al-Musahamah (contribution) which replace al-Tabarru (donation) due to aim the participant has no against the rule of Shariah which in the risk on the theme of the policy while make a claim. In other words, participants are making a claim or gain return over their own contribute fund. As evidence, under Quran sanction of mutual co-operation has described that Help you another in righteousness and piety. 2.2 Development of Takaful Malaysia Islamic insurance which is also known as Takaful is a new industry compare with conventional insurance. Despite the origin of Takaful was beginning from 14 centuries ago, the first time that Malaysia started operating Takaful was in 1984 which is Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Bhd. (Dawood Yousef Taylor, 2005) Whether or not, Sudan was the first introduced the modern Islamic insurance initially based on cooperative model which similar with conventional mutual insurer in 1979. However, majority of the countries include Malaysia and Saudi Arabia implemented commercial models of Takaful afterward. (IFSB IAIS, 2006) Masum Billah (1996) concluded that Takaful in Malaysia is currently thrives. Nevertheless, Malaysia is the leader which has the largest market in Takaful insurance among non-Arab countries. For instance, Takaful occupy 27% of the total insurance market in Malaysia parallel to Asia Pacific countries which have approximately 9% market, Europe and US are about 1% market and Arab countries which is the head of Takaful insurance hold about 63% market. (Salihuddin Ahmad, 2007) In the Far East, Malaysia was the forefront of Takaful development who conducted by Central Bank of Malaysia (BNM) enact Takaful regulations with separate regulations that enable the prosperity of Takaful insurance. Alter of the regulation is compulsory as to compete with conventional insurance industry. Thus, Malaysia administer Takaful compete with the conventional insurance impartiality. There is possibility that the changes of the Takaful Act and regulations in Malaysia bring on prosperous of Takaful Malaysia and Takaful Nasional which are two major composite Takaful operators. It is lead to development of general and life insurance rather than general Takaful insurance. (Dawood Yousef Taylor, 2005) In addition, in term of Takaful in Malaysia successfully, there are new operators were intent to involve in Takaful industry on several countries such as: Brunei Takaful IBB Bhd and Takaful Taib Sdn Bhd Indonesia PT Syarikat Takaful Keluarga which transacting in family (life) business PT Syarikat Takaful Umum which transacting in general business Singapore Islamic Insurance Pte (Mohd. Masum Billah, 1996) Moreover, Takaful operators of Malaysia have establish joint-ventures in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Sri Lanka which aim to provided technical expertise to the Asian countries especially Indonesia, Brunei, Australia, Lebanon, Bangladesh, Algeria and so on. (Yusof, 2001) Nonetheless, Central Bank of Malaysia (BNM) and the Takaful operators continued struggling to expand Takaful industry as assume in the Financial Sector Masterplan during 2002 which were focused on financial infrastructure development, institutional capacity enhancement as well as product and market development. (Central bank of Malaysia, 2002) On the other hand, Takaful has gradually develop as viable alternative to conventional insurance and may appeal to Muslim and non-Muslim which is a wide range of customers. (IFSB IAIS, 2006) Therefore, Malaysia as multi-racial country which is differences religious and cultural was able to attracted many consumers to purchase Takaful insurance. In Malaysia, Prudential BSN Takaful Berhad (PruBSN) has attracted more than 40% of non-Muslim customers among participant. (Mohamad Salihuddin Ahmad, 2007) Nevertheless, the corporate sector and multinationals in Malaysia are also preferred to select Takaful compare with conventional insurance. Although, there is no enough to promote and expanded Takaful thereby it was a challenges to the development and expanded of the local and global Takaful industry. (Mohamad Salihuddin Ahmad, 2007) Takaful is now implemented by over 60 companies in 23 countries and trend to promptly expanding. Recently, Malaysia initial offer Re-Takaful services in Labuan and also significant develops Re-Takaful which is the equivalent of conventional reinsurance. Presently, majority of Takaful operators reinsure to conventional reinsurers despite it is considered acceptable as long as there is no feasible that Shariah obey alternative. (IFSB IAIS, 2006) Since February 2008, Malaysia already has eight Takaful operators with license which is Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Berhad, CIMB Aviva Takaful Bhd., Hong Leong Tokio Marine Takaful Bhd., MAA Takaful Berhad, Takaful Ikhlas Sdn. Bhd., Prudential BSN Takaful Bhd., HSBC Amanah Takaful (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. and Etiqa Takaful Bhd., as well as two Re-Takaful companies which is Munich Re and MNRB Holding Bhd. (Bank Negara Malaysia, 2006) 2.3 Difference between Takaful and conventional insurance Takaful Conventional insurance It is a co-operative institution according to the principles of contract which is mutual co-operation (taawun). (Ahmad Ali Khan, 2003) It is a business institutions operated upon the principles of contract which is exchange. (Ahmad Ali Khan, 2003) Based on the principle, participants as insured and insurers their own self. Moreover, not insurance operators bearing the losses and risk of transfer whereas are shared by the participants each other. (Ahmad Ali Khan, 2003) The insured is uncertainly due to the transfer of the indeterminate fortuitous economic losses related with the prescribed risks in return for a pre-determined payment which is known as premium. (Ahmad Ali Khan, 2003) There are not endue with involve in the profits generated by the insurance operators. (Ahmad Ali Khan, 2003) Main objective is to gain profit or return from the insurance transactions for the shareholders. (Ahmad Ali Khan, 2003) All participants who pay a certain prescribed premiums are available to vote in the elections of the directors of the company or to check the companys annual accounts. (Ahmad Ali Khan, 2003) The policy-holder has no right to vote in the elections of the directors of the company or to check the annual accounts of the company. (Ahmad Ali Khan, 2003) Exchanging money with money in itself thereby no discrepancy in the amount or time. (Ahmad Ali Khan, 2003) Contribution of participants is attributed to Tabarru which means donation. (Mohd Tarmidzi, 2007) Both premium and claim being exchanged are different and takes place at different times. (Ahmad Ali Khan, 2003) Contribution from participants is due to investment. (Mohd Tarmidzi, 2007) Surplus in the fund will be distributed to participants. (Mohammed Musabah, 2008) Surplus in the fund is belong company as profit. (Mohammed Musabah, 2008) 2.4 Perception As to improve customers perception, companies should frequently adopt customers oriented and considering customers need in their position. Moreover, fully understand, elaborately configure, effectively manage, and exceed customers expectations already as a significant key to improve customers perception. (Frank Yao, 2007) On the other hand, according to Mohd Tarmidzi (2007), who is suggested that Takaful operators need respect the perception of the customers whether their criticism is truth or not. 2.4.1 Services Recently, providing better service quality already as a vital objective for companies to satisfy customers demand and compete with other same trade companies. (Izah Nor Mazlina, 2007) Thus, there is importance of service quality perceptions and the relationship between customer satisfaction and service quality. (Haque, 2009) Indeed, services are definitely related to the total quality management (TQM). Presently, a lot of global company services are adopted TQM as management paradigm since they realized that TQM also may effective in services as such in manufacturing. It is obviously that companies are emphasize to quality of services (Feng Jie, 2009) Regarding to Frank Yao (2007), who is defined that customer perception is very important to measure qualified services such as in operation execution layer, business development layer and others. It is due to adopt customers expectations and requirements will more efficiency to satisfy customers need. Thus, customer perception become a central topic and also as a key consideration. However, Dagmar Recklies (2006) studied that companies only able to develop appropriate strategies as they understand features of the services that consumers need and expectation. Therefore, customers perception considered as most important to the companies which is not merely strengthening relationship between customers but also achieves services improvement. 2.4.2 Reliability According to Arasli (2005), he stated that customers satisfaction may highest influence by the reliability of the products or services which priority had a statistically significant impact from customers perception. Furthermore, Haque (2009) concluded that reliability was primary related to the result of service. Despite, customers satisfaction not merely estimate on customers experiences on service delivery process whereas also the exactitude and reliability of the delivered service. Besides that, Asmak (2008) also suggested that majority of the customers while intend to purchase insurance, they will considered insurance companies in terms of assets and reliability. In the other words, customers perception and decision adoption will influence by reliability of the specified company. Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Bhd (STMB) stated that the reliability of the management information systems is very important which relying to Information System Security Policy (ISSP) Manual due to prevent unauthorized access, disclosure, duplication, negligence error, modification, diversion, destruction, loss, abuse or steal of STMB information systems. (Takaful Malaysia annual report, 2009) 2.4.3 Demographic According to Wilkie (1990) indicated that demographic will affect what kind of products or services customer will purchase, how much that customer willing to pay as people achieve higher education. As a result, customer with higher education may enhance their ability to process more complicated information and decisions making. Nevertheless, Asmak (2008) who is pointed out that the demographic characteristics of a customer which is knowledge regarding the policy, income status household and customer antipathy to risk may influence customers decision or even indeed changing their policies. Regarding to Schiffman and Kanuk (2000), conclude that customers with better education alike to income higher which may affect their expected life-style. Therefore, customers will more willing to consume because power purchasing of them are higher due to their level imposable income better than general labor. Lastly, marketer may redesign, reposition and re-price the services in term of changing demographic attribute to fulfill customer requirement and satisfaction. (Kotler, 2000) In other hand, Lamb (2000) stated that income level which may give impact to customer consumption is significant in demographic variable due to segmenting market.