Argentina In Turmoil essays

Argentina In Turmoil essays In recent months, the international economy has been adversely affected by the serious slowing of the U. S. Economy, which has had considerable macroeconomic and financial effects. However, the Argentinian crisis is not just the result of unbridled management of the economy. Some people argue this failure to solve the economic problems reflects lack of a common political understanding about which fundamental economic direction the country should take. Despite this, it is my contention that this crisis is the reflection of a countrys corrupt economic, social and political system. Many people believe the precipitate fall in Argentine economic activity is due to the countrys inability to compete internationally. They argue that a 10-year system of pegging the nations currency to the U. S. Dollar helped gain control of inflation but could not remain effective because the countrys economy was not able to keep pace with that of the United States. It is also believed that globalisation has pushed Argentina to the verge of collapse. It is said that the globalising world has divided its rewards unevenly by widening the gulf between rich and poor people. This idea is based on the fact that around half of Argentinas 36 million people now live below the poverty line, unable to buy basics like food and clothing, while unemployment is approaching 25 percent. Some other people would argue that one of the most critical causes of the Argentine crisis is banking system. Banks, which must be committed to guaranteeing depositors predictability and liquidity, lack the confidence of people whose savings have been trapped in the corralito the banking restrictions that were imposed when the economy faltered. In spite of the previous arguments, I strongly believe that corruption is the main cause of the economic problems that have destroyed Argentinas wealth, impoverish ...

Best Scholarship Essay Topics for You Part 1

Best Scholarship Essay Topics for You Part 1 25 Most Promising Scholarship Essay Topics Part 1 The Most Promising Scholarship Essay Topics All undergraduate students know the difficulty of earning scholarship points. Nevertheless, if you choose good scholarship essay topics, these difficulties wont hurt you. These topics will help you start writing, follow the format and create a great essay. If you use them, you will definitely succeed and obtain a scholarship from the university of your dreams! Unmatched Topics for a Scholarship Essay Why did I become a dedicated and diligent student and what experiences encourage me to continue my education? How did I improve the atmosphere in my classroom by becoming a school policymaker? How I graduated from college, despite being extremely poor. How I earned my first $1,000 after becoming a school entrepreneur. How I traveled for a year and learned diverse, unique cultures around the world. How I left my comfort zone, started a new life and succeeded. Why scholarships are unfair to students but are still required for their success. Why students have huge college debts today and how scholarship can help solve this problem. I know the value of discipline, and I am ready to use it to succeed in my studies. I have a vast experience due to being a foreign volunteer. However, the whole life is still ahead of me. Dreaming motivates us to move forward and attain the highest goals, so every person should have a dream, no matter how unattainable it may be. How entering the college will help me resolve some of the most urgent global problems.To be continued

breathless essays

breathless essays Wild Strawberrys has a special technique that is used in it and this thchnique is the use of a dream sequence. In these dream sequences Isak walks through a desolate city, and is approached by a faceless man, he sees a clock without hands, and watches a funeral wagon crash and leave a coffin in the middle of the street. As he nears the coffin, it opens, and the corpse , being Isak once again, emerges and attempts to pull him into the afterlife. The visual and audio symbolism is disturbing, and the entire scene is perfectly incorporated into the 'reality' of the rest of the film. One level of the plot is the dreams representing a journey that takes Isak back home to his past summers In the first dream, there is a representation of hearts as clocks beating and stopping.there is a coffin image as powerful as the shower scene in "Psycho," the dream announces the end-of-life in which Isak finds himself. ...

Pronunciation of -ise in Verbs and Nouns

Pronunciation of -ise in Verbs and Nouns Pronunciation of -ise in Verbs and Nouns Pronunciation of -ise in Verbs and Nouns By Maeve Maddox The letter s represents two sounds in English, the unvoiced sound /s/ heard in sister, and the voiced sound /z/ heard in rose. Note: The â€Å"voiced† s sound buzzes, like the sound of /z/. The unvoiced s sound is â€Å"soft,† like the hiss of a snake. When the spelling combination -ise occurs in verbs and nouns, the s is usually voiced, but not always. Verbs in which the s in -ise is voiced: arise advertise apprise chastise circumcise comprise compromise (BUT: promise with /s/) demise despise devise disfranchise disguise enfranchise excise exercise improvise incise revise supervise surmise surprise While on the subject of -ise endings in verbs, a comment is probably in order on the widespread misconception that the verb ending -ize as in synthesize is an American corruption of lovely English verbs that â€Å"should† end in -ise. The OED recommends the -ize ending for verbs that derive from Greek, and, as demonstrated by the list above, Americans have not altogether abandoned the -ise ending. The usage differs only with verbs in -yze, like analyze and paralyze. OED prefers analyse and paralyse for etymological reasons. In its entry on the suffix -ize, the OED states the rationale for preferring the -ize spelling: the suffix itself, whatever the element to which it is added, is in its origin the Greek -izein, Latin -izÄ re; and, as the pronunciation is also with z, there is no reason why in English the special French spelling should be followed, in opposition to that which is at once etymological and phonetic. For a fascinating comparison of views on the subject of -ize vs. -ise, see Mike Horne’s The -ize have it!† Nouns in which the s in -ise is voiced: chemise demise enterprise franchise expertise surprise valise (British) Nouns in which the s is unvoiced: anise paradise promise premise treatise (a secondary pronunciation with /z/ is given in the OED) valise (American) vise Some of you may be surprised to see expertise listed with the nouns in which the s has the /z/ sound. The pronunciation of expertise with the unvoiced s is rampant on American television, but both the OED and Merriam-Webster Unabridged agree that the pronunciation is [EK-spur-TEEZ]. Some other dictionaries now list the unvoiced pronunciation as an acceptable alternative, but Charles Elster is having none of it: †Careful speakers should make an extra effort to hold the line on this one [EK-spur-TEEZ].† –The Big Book of BEASTLY Mispronunciations, page 189. 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 Spelling category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:"Based in" and "based out of"One Fell SwoopPrepositions to Die With

Journalism and Mass media Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Journalism and Mass media - Essay Example Therefore, from the point of view of the Associate Professor, Carmen uses methodological reductionism that the sites assist only those who require them urgently while in others it is not the case. Alternatively, Piskorski found that the online dating industry has worth of $2billion made of more than 14, 000 businesses that use various methods and techniques of matching up potential partners. For instance, OKCupid, an online dating site with a membership of about 3 million permits its users to surf each other’s profiles (Nobel, 2012). Furthermore, there are algorithms and comprehensive quizzes that allow partners to have compatible matches. Similarly, in a study of about 500,000 members of OKCupid, Piskorski discovered that older, shorter and at times overweight people viewed more profiles compared to their younger counterparts. On that account, there are several methods, data and evidence used to support the claims made in the article. For instance, Carmen uses secondary methods of data collection such as reading books, similar journals and internet sites to prove the validity of the article. Similarly, there is the interview on the Associate Professor of Harvard Business School on his studies and findings concerning various online dating sites (Nobel, 2012). Therefore, the available data to prove the claims made by Carmen include several online sites such as Match.com, eHarmony, OKCupid and Facebook among others that aim at matching up potential partners. ... For instance, Carmen uses secondary methods of data collection such as reading books, similar journals and internet sites to prove the validity of the article. Similarly, there is the interview on the Associate Professor of Harvard Business School on his studies and findings concerning various online dating sites (Nobel, 2012). Therefore, the available data to prove the claims made by Carmen include several online sites such as Match.com, eHarmony, OKCupid and Facebook among others that aim at matching up potential partners. On the other hand, the available evidence is the study of 500, 000 members of OKCupid who view the profiles of each other without any problem. Therefore, these claims hold because the members interviewed participate actively and report their results. There is also the presentation made by Piskorski on his findings in a HBS seminar concerning the various online dating sites (Nobel, 2012). On the same context, there is also the presence of the online dating sites t hat participated in the survey to determine the benefits of online dating. However, there are also biases and other missing information in the article by Carmen Nobel. For example, there is no alternative research on offline dating for comparison purposes with online dating. In other words, there is ecological fallacy in terms of the available statistics to support the benefits of online dating for its members (Nobel, 2012). Additionally, the research by the Professor does not conduct a follow up if the potential partners meet and the superseding consequences. This constitutes to individual fallacy whereby the other groups are not part of the research. Furthermore, Piskorski fails to mention the names of his variables during the findings hence

INTRODUCTION Analysis of Caffeine in Beverages by HPLC Essay

INTRODUCTION Analysis of Caffeine in Beverages by HPLC - Essay Example It is also addictive and the prevalence of caffeine in many drinks available today is a growing, serious health concern because it is a stimulant (Bidlingmeyer 385). The amount of caffeine present in soft drinks like Pepsi and Mountain Dew can be determined by the use high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). This is a process by which a mixture can be separated into its separate components or ingredients by the use of laboratory technique called as chromatography. In this process, the mixture to be separated is dissolved in a liquid, then it is passed or flushed through a stationary material (called as bed) and separated due to different rates of absorption of different materials. It is used to separate complex compounds with high precision using the right adsorbent materials and carrier fluid. A can (12 oz.) of Pepsi has about 38 mg (milligrams) in it while a Pepsi Max has about 69 mg. A can of Mountain Dew (both regular and diet) has approximately 54 mg of caffeine (Center for Science in the Public Interest para 2). Instant coffee has 65 mg, espresso has about 80 mg while Turkish coffee has one of the highest at about 160 mg. HPLC is sim ply an improved version of column chromatography that used gravity to force separation but in HPLC, the process is made faster by using high pressure at up to 400 atmospheric

Week 8 Question 2 Investment Valuation Assignment

Week 8 Question 2 Investment Valuation - Assignment Example Since the assets are already highly valued the economic value of the company is therefore high and this makes it more attractive to investors. The use of market value to value investments has its disadvantages. Though the financial statements may indicate that the company is doing well this may not be the case. In cases where the use of market value inflates the economic value of the company, the company is then exposes to more tax liability in which case the company would pay more tax than it is actually capable of paying (Escaffre, Foulquier & Touron, 2008). Moreover, inflating the economic value of the company makes the company’s shares more lucrative to investors who buy more shares based on this observation. However, should the company revalue its assets at lower than cost, the investors may drastically sell off their shares which may irrevocably damage the company’s reputation. The fall in economic value would be interpreted as a business failure thus it would no longer be a viable

Different Kinds of Scientific Fraud Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Different Kinds of Scientific Fraud - Assignment Example One of the serious cases of scientific fraud involves carrying out a research process that does not conform to the expected rigour. For example, if a scientist adopts a quantitative paradigm, he or she faces the compulsion of formulating both a null and alternative hypotheses. The data collected in such a research should help the researcher test the two hypotheses and adopt one of them depending on the statistical correlation identified. However, many researchers adopting the quantitative approach claim to have indulged in a rigorous data collection, analysis and hypothesis testing while in a real sense, they have not. Some of them face the temptation of manipulating data to soot the hypothesis that they think is right. The use of unreliable statistical tools also compromises the quality of data analysis.Scientific fraud may involve the production of a scientific paper aimed at presenting the different steps adopted in the research process. In a real sense, a scientific paper is a th eoretical reconstruction of all the activities undertaken by the researcher. However, many researchers only report aspects of their research that proved successful. They prefer to omit cases of failed experiments because of poor design, erroneous data analysis. This is the reason why many of the research papers published seem to insinuate that the researcher had a carefully arranged proposal and outline and that implementation of the research paradigm adopted was of a very high standard.

Koyo Jean Internationalization Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Koyo Jean Internationalization Strategy - Essay Example The acronym PESTEL bears its origin from the combination of the first letters of these factors. Discussed under, are the various roles played by each one of these factors in the marketing of premium jeans in both South Korea and Brazil. To begin with the PESTEL Analysis of South Korea, the country enjoys political stability, though in the year 1997, there was a financial crisis in the same country, something which affected the country’s economic status. However, some strategies were laid down and in 1998, one year thereafter, the country’s economic status stabilized again. A few years later, the country’s technology also grew making it one the world’s largest technological markets. Socially, the country is characterized by an aging population due to both low fertility and population growth. Despite the low population, the country has a highly competent labour force that facilitates the production and commercialization of advanced technologies which in turn lead to the flourishing of the marketing of the Koyo Jeans designed by William Cheung. The complex and lengthy legal procedures discourage investors. When it comes to the environment of the country, there is unreasonable breach of emission standards. PESTEL Analysis of Brazil shows some similarities though, at the same time brings a few out some differences. Economically, the prices of premium jeans are high due to taxes. Socially, Brazil has a high population than South Korea, hence presenting a strong work force. The country is also technologically advanced hence able to compete favourably with other errant countries including South Korea (Keller & Price, 2011). Porter’s Diamond, named after Michael Porter is an analysis tool for assessing the ability of a country to compete internationally with respect to: factor endowments, firm strategy, structure and rivalry, related and supporting industries, Demand conditions. As discussed earlier, the populations of the two countrie s are contrasting in that South Korea’s Population is small while Brazil’s is large. The large population of Brazil plays a role in labour provision hence making it compete favourably. On the other hand, South Korea despite having a small population, the population is informed in matters relating to technology. This helps the countries to compete favourably. There is need for both countries to come up with long-term objectives so as to help them cope up with completion not just from each other but even from other like-minded countries; those dealing in the designing and marketing of premium jeans worldwide. One of the major strategies is the evident economic and political stability in both countries. The existence of other clothe industries in these countries also plays a significant role. The benefits accruing from the investment in both basic and advanced factors by related firms can spill over. This is characterized by the existence of other industries designing oth er kinds of clothes, which can be worn together with these premium jeans. The worldwide high demand for premium jeans, starting from the citizens of the designing countries (South Korea and Brazil) stimulates the production since this ensures availability of the market. Mode of entry Market mode of entry is a detailed plan designed by a company that shows how it endeavors to enter into a new market (Root, 1994). It is normally a complex decision to make because of its associated risks creating fear for most companies. Koyo jean's entry to South Korea and Brazil should opt to employ exporting, licensing, franchising or joint ventures. Joint ventures normally start

Entrepreneurship Education as the Emerging Trend in Pakistan Essay Example for Free

Entrepreneurship Education as the Emerging Trend in Pakistan Essay For the developing world, the emerging trend is entrepreneurship education in itself. It is significant and considered a powerful tool for propelling economic growth, as significant as venture capital and incubators. The youth today is exposed to a world of information and rapid change. He is prone to be the captain of his ship more than ever before. Hence the objective is to create awareness of trends and issues being faced in Entrepreneurship Education programs and see how Pakistan can gain from the experience of the developed world. It is also the objective to see how programs have to be designed for teaching and learning by the new generation of the future. The research methodology has been to examine relevant literature of other regions and compare this to the work done in Pakistan. Its been observed that it has acquired its own field of research methodology and finally is a standalone discipline, with ample work to show its breath and depth. Our finding is that it’s going to be a different world, calling for planning for a world unknown? Our conclusion is that it is significantly important to make the youth of today gainfully employed after imparting education to them. And Pedagogy is one of the issues that deserve attention in the Entrepreneurship Education. It is a question of evolving knowledge and evolving pedagogy to impart knowledge. Local experience and theory has to be evolved building the subject. Developing countries will have a host of issues far different from the developed countries. Education policy will play very significant role to resolve these issues. The authors conclude with suggestions that there is now a need to develop theory of entrepreneurship education based on the education theory and not on the theory of management and economics. There should be all out effort to build the ‘entrepreneurship capital’ and to give it central place in the education place. Keywords:Entrepreneurship Education, Entrepreneurial Generation, Pedagogy, Entrepreneurship Capital Entrepreneurship Education as the Emerging Trend in Pakistan: Confronting the Issues I. Introduction: a. Background: The field of entrepreneurship education is in the process of growing and gaining legitimacy and being recognized in the developing countries. In Pakistan it has been an up-hill task and despite efforts it is still an unknown academic field. But it is somewhat different in USA and in Europe and Japan. There it has recognition and there it has immense recognition as an important factor to keep pace with the economic growth and change required for economic efficiency. It is nurtured to impact the economies of the ‘technological tripod’ of economic growth. No doubt USA leads the way but European Council through the Lisbon Proclamation 2000 had launched itself in pursuit of economic growth through Entrepreneurship. The then President of EC committed the European Union to become the Entrepreneurship Leader as it was acknowledged that new economic growth, and productivity is generated by entrepreneurial activity (as cited by Audretch 2008). The statement is proclamation of the significance and importance of Entrepreneurship for economic development. In pursuit of entrepreneurship what is required is Entrepreneurship Education and the observation is that the trail it leaves behind is host of the emerging trends and issues which need to be examined and evaluated and worked out. Entrepreneurship Education is the path and road to developing an enterprising environment, building ‘social capital’ and ‘Entrepreneurship Capital’. â€Å"This refers to institutions, culture, and historical context that is conducive to the creation of new firms. This involves a number of aspects such as social acceptance of entrepreneurial behavior the activity of bankers, venture capital agents â€Å"(Audretsch 2008). The rationale of this paper evolve around the spirit of these terms and the process of evolving this capital is entrepreneurship education. The purpose of this paper is to explain the importance of entrepreneurship education in the light of compelling evidence surrounding us that it produces an enterprising society or ‘The Entrepreneurial Society’ and economic development. There is significant evidence about the impact of entrepreneurship on economic development (Wennekers et al 2005, Verheul Thurik 2003, Caree et al 2002, Audretsch et al 2006). â€Å"The way entrepreneurial activity has an effect on economy is that it is reflected in the macro-economic growth, value addition, employment generation, export growth, industrialization and poverty reduction†. (Wagha 2010) Entrepreneurship in the last two decades has achieved a central place in all recent discourse and debate and policymaking on education. There is a need for appropriate educational program at all academic institutions, universities, business schools and secondary schools. â€Å"So significant is the role of Entrepreneurship Education that it is considered a powerful tool for propelling economic growth as significant as venture capital and incubators†. A look at policy on education recently framed in different countries around the world reveal that there is emerging need to focus on entrepreneurship education and research. (Lee Wong 2005, Khan 2006) We realized through this research that there is a need to look at Entrepreneurship Education from the teaching and learning perspective. And of importance is how Entrepreneurship Education should be taught and the paradigm of research should be education and not merely economic and management. Bechard Gregoire (2002). It was also observed through empirical research and interviews that there is also the need to focus on the faculty of Entrepreneurship Education. There is an acute shortage of such teachers who are well versed in the pedagogy of Entrepreneurship Education. And according to Dr. Hasan Sohaib Murad, Rector, University of Management and Technology Pakistan (while addressing the audience at a Junior World Entrepreneurship Forum Pakistan (July 2011) : â€Å"The problem is our faculty, those who are teaching in business school today. They are teaching in business schools because they were not entrepreneurs. The other factor that has to be taken in consideration is the role of entrepreneurship in economic development. According to Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) entrepreneurship and economic development are exclusively mutual â€Å"GEM is based on the following premise. An economy’s prosperity is highly dependent on a dynamic entrepreneurship sector. This is true across all stages of development. Yet the nature of this activity can vary in character and impact. Necessity-driven entrepreneurship, particularly in less developed regions or those experiencing job losses, can help an economy benefit from self-employment initiatives when there are fewer work options available. More developed economies, on the other hand, can leverage their wealth and innovation capacity, yet they also offer more employment options to attract those that might otherwise become entrepreneurs†. (GEM 2010) It goes onto explain that the capacity of an economy is dependent upon highly competent individuals and positive societal perception about entrepreneurs. â€Å"An economy’s entrepreneurial capacity requires individuals with the ability and motivation to start businesses, and requires positive societal perceptions about entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship should include participation from all groups in society, including women, a range of groups and education levels and disadvantaged populations. Finally, high-growth entrepreneurship is a key contributor to new employment in an economy, and national competitiveness depends on innovative and cross-border entrepreneurial ventures†. (GEM 2010) b. Objectives of the Study: So significant is the role of entrepreneurship that the developed countries are perusing it by adopting new educational policies and by introducing strategies to create an ‘Entrepreneurship Capital’. For the developing world that has lagged behind, this is a wakeup call. Therefore the Objective is: to be aware of the issues and see how Pakistan can gain from the experiences of the developed world and evolve a suitable strategy for implementing entrepreneurship education effectively. It is assumed that, some of the best practices if disseminated will have an impact. c. Justification: As can be seen that it is essential for all developing countries and Pakistan in particular to undertake various studies pertaining to entrepreneurship, simply because this era of entrepreneurship is as potent as the era of Industrial Revolution. It has the potential for developing countries to catch-up with Developed Countries if the national economic agendas are prudently organized. d. Statement of the Problem: However some issues surrounding Entrepreneurship Education are: How should entrepreneurship education courses be designed, what should be the structure of courses? What should be the balance between activity based and text based teaching? What should be the ethical domain, and what disciplines would fall in the entrepreneurial ambit of subject? What pedagogy would be considered appropriate to teach entrepreneurship? In the midst of this expansion of courses, these emerge as a challenge how to make teaching entrepreneurship effective. Years of research and considerable debates has dispelled earlier doubts that entrepreneurship cannot be taught, and it was Drucker (1985) who said, â€Å"like other disciplines it can be taught†. But the emerging trend of Entrepreneurship Education is compounded by such factors as IT revolution and globalization. The youth today is exposed to a world of information and rapid change. He is prone to be the captain of his ship as he sees opportunities far beyond his imagination. He can evaluate the advantage of going for his own venture. He can see that Entrepreneurship is about change and competition, changing in its wake markets and ushering in technologies that entrepreneurship binds as the ‘social glue’ high-tech and ‘main street’ activities (SBA 1998). e. Research Question: Therefore the research question that we will attempt to find answer to is: 1. What issues and trends are being faced by Pakistan in Entrepreneurship Education and what adoption is required to benefit from this trend? II (a)Research Methodology: My goal is to determine the current status of the subject, by looking at the theory based on the published articles of other regions by leading authorities such as Bechard, Audretch Fayolle, Dana, Plaschka, Hindle Kuratko. This will help guide future research, but beyond literature review, I also recorded empirical findings and interviews and survey of literature to see the emerging trends in Entrepreneurship Education in Pakistan. The literature reviewed has been some grey literature and some conference papers as these were very current and contemporary thinking on emerging issues and trends. Furthermore the research has been enhanced by visiting foreign conferences for gathering data at doctoral seminars in Europe and America on Entrepreneurship Education. In that sense this is rather epistemological analysis of educational theories and reports on Entrepreneurship Education Trends and Issues. But the problem encountered was that there is not much data a vailable on this subject in Pakistan. This paper therefore undertakes the qualitative approach based on survey, interviews and literature review of this region and of the academic body that has taught the subject and also of others who have written papers on the status of Entrepreneurship Education in Pakistan. â€Å"Primary data include such facts collected from observation, surveys, and even interviews. When secondary data are unavailable and our research questions are unanswered, we have to collect data from primary sources. This proves useful because they are collected specifically for the particular study† (Ghauri Gronhaug 2002). This is obvious in the case of Pakistan where there is no secondary data on this subject. The investigation attempts to determine differences between the developed and developing countries, describing conditions that already exist, (Say in Pakistan) and why conditions in European and America are different from it. The collection of data is ongoing and eventually synthesized and conclusions are drawn. II (b)Limitation: The fundamental limitation is that hardly any journals are available in Pakistan on Entrepreneurship Education. No doubt that recent support provided by HEC for library data bases and resource centres has been greatly useful. The other fundamental handicap that the Pakistani researchers or students seeking to adopt this as their subject of specialization would face is lack of faculty. Currently there is no known or accessible faculty available in Pakistan having a PhD Degree in Entrepreneurship Education. Hence there are no doctorates of Entrepreneurship Education available to supervise or act as advisers to students desiring to do a PhD in Entrepreneurship. III. Literature Review: Discussing the Definition of Entrepreneurship Education as Emerging Trend: The subject of entrepreneurship education begins with the entrepreneur. The study of the Entrepreneur goes beyond the study of the characteristic and the traits of the entrepreneur which is the psychological profile. The entrepreneur is part of the complex process of new venture creation (Gartner 1988). And new venture creation is new economic growth which brings the importance of entrepreneurship and the education process for developing entrepreneurs. Say (1816) defined the entrepreneur as the economic agent. Hence the entrepreneur is one of the dimensions of economic growth. If we were to examine the quotation by Cole (1946) we realize that this unleashes a host of issues and trends associated with entrepreneurship and the promotion of Entrepreneurship Education. Cole (1946, p.3) states that Entrepreneur is one who â€Å"Unites all means of production – the labor of the one, t he capital or the land of the others – and who finds in the value of the products which results from their employment the reconstitution of the entire capital that he utilizes, and the value of the wages, the interest, and the rent which he pays, as well as the profits belonging to himself†. This statement explains the process of new venture creation which the entrepreneur is prone to do. It is a complete picture of the role which an entrepreneur performs as an economic player in an economy. Whereas the behavioral view of entrepreneur defines the entrepreneur as a very special person but calling for investigation to understand and define Entrepreneur and Entrepreneurship. They even cropped up when Gartner (1988) examined in what way do we define the Entrepreneur. According to him since the entrepreneur causes entrepreneurship you could explain Phenomenon of Entrepreneurship through traits approach or explain Phenomenon of Entrepreneurship through Behavioral approach. Subsequently this leads to disseminating the knowledge of entrepreneurship education. We are once again confronted with trends to adopt in Entrepreneurship Education and issues to deal with to establish the infrastructure of Entrepreneurship Education e.g. there is no evidence to support successful or unsucc essful leaders. The new trend is to focus on behavior of the leader. What they do as a leader, and not on what they are, and this aptly applies to research on entrepreneurship and hence the definition which explains and determines for us what influences behavior and performance which define entrepreneurship. (Van de Ven 1980 p.86) We have been amply warned that we should study the behaviors and activities of entrepreneurs. This brings us to the performance of an entrepreneur, the dynamism by which he proceeds as an entrepreneur and hence we call it entrepreneurship. We have come to realize that entrepreneurship can be enhanced by entrepreneurship education. Hence our question is what is entrepreneurship education. According to Bechchard Toulouse (1998) the definition of Entrepreneurship Education is â€Å"A collection of formulized teaching that informs trains and educates anyone interested in participating in social economic development through a project to promote entrepreneurship awareness, business creation or small business development†. Jones English (2004) define Entrepreneurial Education as: â€Å"Entrepreneurial Education can be viewed broadly in terms of the skills that can be taught and the characteristics that can be engendered in individuals that will enable them to develop new and innovative plans†. The creation of a discipline confronts trends and issues: Therefore the emerging trends and issues are related to multi-dimensional aspect of entrepreneurship education. The gathering of information and knowledge of this aspect is the fundamental activity of research and education to understand the behavioral phenomenon of entrepreneurship (Gartner 1988).Following the line of reasoning if personality traits could define entrepreneurs, the question of education, training and development would seem irrelevant and the foregone conclusion would be that those who possess the requisite traits should be successful entrepreneurs. As that is not the case we seek constantly ways of educating the entrepreneur to behave in a particular way to become successful. The contemplation of this fact has created a series of issues and trends required for the development of entrepreneurship education programs. In our quest for this answer we get a response from Gartner (1988) that we should follow Mintzbe rgs advice. Issues that confront entrepreneurs should be resolved to develop a profound entrepreneurship program along with its multiplicity of dimensions. Each question throws up a new philosophy and search for truth that could be developed into an answer to the issues confronting entrepreneurship education. What roles does the entrepreneur perform in moving information, in making decisions, in dealing with the people? How and why do individuals enter a new venture? The other emerging issue from this kind of reasoning is to what extent is entrepreneurship a science? To what extent is the entrepreneurs work programmable? All such questions resolve the issue of designing new branches of education in the domain of entrepreneurship. These would have to be dealt in accordance to the trends in development, competitiveness, economic growth and resource allocation.

Causes of Stress Among School Teachers

Causes of Stress Among School Teachers The effects of stress upon a persons life can be profound. Different studies have shown that job related stress affects work satisfaction and over all happiness. Increasing stress is becoming recognized occupational hazard in the educational profession. In a country like Pakistan we cannot ignore the situation in educational setting. Teachers` agitations and class boycotts are common practice that shows their dissatisfaction. Both quantity and quality of education are not good. There may be many causes of stress in teachers. To investigate the causes and the nature of stress is of vital importance for improving the quality of education. The present study will be an effort to investigate the causes of stress and to get an orientation of how to explore it on a larger scale. Statement of the problem: The proposed study will investigate the causes of stress among school teachers. Significance of the study: Receiving little practical attention from governmental side education department especially school situation is very bad. Working staff in school is very much frustrated and every one from principal to lowest rank servant complains about his status and neglected condition. It is clear that every one face some kind of stress which is evident in his lake of interest in job. This disinterestedness leads to poor teaching environment and also creates administrative problems for the head of the institution. To improve the situation in school it is must to create stress free environment. But nothing can be improved without knowing the factors involved in creating stress among the staff especially the teachers who are responsible for the better running of the system. So this study will be very important for those who are concerned with the education system; e.g. the following can take help of this study: Heads of educational institutions Education planners Education department Society stakeholders who thinks teachers accountable Delimitations of the study: The research will follow the conceptual theoretical framework developed on the basis of review of related literature. However, the study will restrict itself to primary investigation of government high schools only in district Peshawar only. Hypotheses of the study: The following hypotheses will be tested: there is significant difference between salary of teachers and the level of stress there is significant difference between level of stress and traveling to reach  their place of duty. there is significant difference between personal conflict among teachers and stress in teachers there is significant difference between class size and stress in teachers there is significant difference between level of stress in teachers and lengthy courses there is significant difference between level of stress in teachers and Heavy work load on them there is significant difference between level of stress in teachers and Authoritarian behavior of the principal there is significant difference between level of stress in teachers and lake of rule and discipline in school there is significant difference between level of stress in teachers and lake of community support Sample of the study: Since the research will be restricted to schools of one district only, therefore to see the meaningful effect the sample will comprise 60% of the whole population of teachers in the district. Brief Review of related literature Definition of stress It is not easy to define the concept of stress. Usually it is associated with the less pleasant aspect of life (Sharp, 1977).Hans selye(1956)defined stress as the non specific response of the body to any demand. it was used as a substitute for anxiety conflict and emotional distress. To Bower(1984) it is any force that brings some change in an organism for better or worse. There are many more definitions but their description equates stress with distress. However the literature about stress do not conform this meaning. It refers to a wide range of physiological changes and environment pressures in the health illness literature. It becomes clear when Selye further distinguishes in his definition of stress between eustress, that is an exciting and pleasant kind of demand and distress that is threatening ,unpleasant or even harmful demand. This distinction between eustress and distress lies in the perception of the person. The above discussion leads us to general definition as Sharp has given.Aaccording to him stress is an individual perception and assessment. This definition is broad and means that every thing which we feel with our five senses is a source of stress. The definition also makes it clear that the perception and assessment of the environment is not the same by each individual. For example for a person, moving to a new town might be a source of distress because of some painful loss. The above definition illustrates that stress is the fact of life. We cannot escape from it anywhere. Without stress life means death. So for living a better life we should understand it. Theoretical perspective Stress theory begins with the experiments of Hans Selye (1956) who described stress as biological syndrome; Experiments on rates show that if the organism is severely damaged  by acute non specific cocoas agents such as an exposure to cold, surgical  injury, production of spinal shocka typical syndrome appears, the symptoms  of which are independent of the nature of the damaging agent and represent  rather the nature of damaging agent as such. The apparent state of this syndrome is called stress, which brings biological changes in the organism. Selyes observation was that stress reaction was general and occurred in response to any number of different stimuli. He saw this reaction as an adoptive syndrome of this organism in response to external stress. The form this syndrome takes place is called general adaptation syndrome (GAS). GAS consists of three phases,(i) alarm reaction (ii) resistance (iii) exhaustion. In the first stage the system assesses the situation and prepare for fight or flight but the overall resistance is to a stressor initially decreases. During the resistance the body becomes adapted to the presence of the stressor and begins to resist its impact. It may mean fighting or controlling ones self trying. The exhaustion starts if the stressor continues and the body reaches the end of its capacity for resistance, the result may be a collapse, illness, mental disorder or even death. In general the current rese arch suggests that the stress response is not a simple biological response to no specific stressors but rather a complex, interrelated process including the occurrence of stressor, how it is seen physiologically by the organism, under what circumstances the stressor occurs, how the organism characteristically reacts and what the resources are that the organism has, available for dealing with the stressors. The concept of a general stress reaction may be viable but only if we assume that it represents the sum of a great many psychological and physiological factors rather than a specific all or non response to the occurrence of a stressing event Empirical perspective Stressful life events:- Halms and Rahi (1967) developed the Social Readjustment Scale for measuring the intensity of 43 life events. Newman (1983) found that the intensity of stress depends on the persons impression of the life event and his coping strategies. Two different interpretations have been offered about why life events may be tied to physical or psychological disturbance. One view suggests that all change is stressful and the source is not important. The total amount of life change in a given period should predict subsequent stress responses. The second view focuses on undesirable or negative changes as the primary stressors. In a number of studies, this factor i.e. the undesirable change was more closely related to disturbance than was total change. Apparently there is not a direct relationship between occurrence of crises events and the observed physical and psychological disturbance of crises state. It is difficult to know when a crises event is about to occur. Many of t he important life events occur by change. Two factors will influence the extent to which crises event s lead to crises states. One is persons interpretation of the event. The second is the effectiveness of the persons coping strategies. The hassles of daily life: there are countless minor stress events that have low intensity but greater frequency. According to Lazarus ,et al (1985) these daily life hassles are important sources of stress. They have developed hassles scale on which individual indicates the extent to which he has been hassled by common event during the past month. The list of these hassles includes household, time pressure, inner concern, financial and work. The effects of these hassles also apply to health. Work as a source of stress:- work can also be a source of stress. The factors that make work stressful are work overload, work under load, employees role and change in the work environment. Stress in teachers:- work stress has been recognized as occupational hazard of teaching and its causes have been fairly well established(Smith and Milstein, 1984). According to Kyriacou(1987) teachers experience more work stress than most other occupational groups and according to Pankhurst(1982) they are more distressed than the general population. Nagy and Davis (1985) have found that junior and secondary school teachers in one place are about as stressed as their colleagues elsewhere. At organizational level there are many factors that contribute to teachers stress. Students discipline: managing disruptive students is invariably among the top ranked items in teacher stress. Among various manifestations of school discipline problem i.e. disruptive students, threats of personal injury, verbal abuse, and assault on colleagues are represented three or four times, in the list of top ten stressors. This is evident from the various surveys of teaching stress (Goodlad 1984). Bloch (1978) studied the effects of violence on teachers and compared their symptoms to those of combat neurosis. These teachers suffered from anxiety, insecurity, nightmare, fatigue, irritability, headaches, ulcers and number of other emotional and physical symptoms. Lazarus (1966) pointed out that anticipation of a threat may be as stressful as an actual stress. According to Lortie(1975) teachers who fail to keep control over students soon find that teachers are intolerable work. A related issue is that of students lack of interest. According to Goodlad when teachers were asked, what is this schools biggest problem? they answered, Lack of students interest. Teachers do feel enormously frustrated and deprived of crucial sense of gratification when working with students who are uncaring and unconcerned about learning. These students are not only personally frustrated but they also contribute to a class tone often leading to further discipline problem, that make it more difficult for a teacher to do effectively in the class room. Administrative insensitivity: The complaint is usually linked to the issues of students violence and school discipline. Many teachers think administrators are neither supportive nor sensitive to students violence and do little about enforcing rules or promoting a secure learning environment. Teachers feel that administrators are too content with their proper work in offices and avoid dealing with problem students. Stress has been found to be significantly related to principals participation in problem solving and not supporting the teachers (Jackson, S.E. et.al 1986) Involuntary Transfers This source of stress is much related to teachers. Being a principal my self I witness this phenomenon in teachers community in everyday life. Many teachers are not satisfied with their place of duty and a large number of them complain this when they are prompted and transferred to other station which is not their choice. Such transfer notices demoralize teachers and they think about retirement. Large class size Classrooms generally require structure children attention and the most effective classrooms are generally those in which teachers can individualize lessons to meet the needs of each child. The task becomes difficult with the increase in size of the class. Because large class size provides fewer opportunities to interact individually with each student, the teacher feel less involved and less effective. Moreover with the increase in class size classroom management becomes more difficult. Overcrowded classrooms then are seen weakening the likelihood of effective teaching. Inadequate Salaries Teachers also complain of their low salaries. They compare their salaries with other professional groups and their work at school level with that of the teachers at college level. This situation becomes stressful for teachers. To meet their expenditure they search for other ways. They do private tuition, which is also a blame for teachers to earn from their own school students. Parents and society at large expect from teachers and invest them with an enormous degree of responsibility. Politicians continually declare that our children are our nations future. In response to such statement teachers ask, where are the financial rewards that equate with such important task? This situation shows that inadequate salary is a source of stress for teachers. Role ambiguity, Role conflict and Role overload Role ambiguity is associated with a lack of clarity regarding workers rights, rsponsibilities, methods, goals, status and accountability. Although in some ways teachers role is defined quite explicitly, that is to teach children well, in other ways with regard to school discipline and accountability ambiguity arises. Role conflict occurs when inconsistent, incompatible or inappropriate demands are placed upon an individual. Sutton (1984) pointed to common sources of role conflict for teachers. They are expected to provide quality education to their students, yet they are not allowed to use the best instructional methods or curriculum materials available. They are responsible for maintaining discipline but do not have the authority for doing so. Teachers may also experience role conflict when they are told to perform task that is outside the domain of their professional work. Role overload is one of the common complaints of those who, with their own needs, interest, motivation and achievement level are a big number, for any one person to handle. Role overload may also occur from the efforts necessary to work effectively with children who are seemingly unprepared or unmotivated to attend school. Sutton has pointed out two distinct, though equally dysfunctional responses to work overload. In the first case teachers feel forced either to do low quality work or to not finish the work at all which is psychologically as well as physiological problem. Stress results from either response. This is a general list of work related stressors for teachers. In any given school a number of idiosyncratic stressors impinge upon teachers, their existence is a junction of the type of individuals who have taught and who have learned in that particular setting. Societal Factors Unconcerned parents; parents beliefs, an integral part of the educational process and parental support of childrens work, strongly influence school success. The teachers generally welcome parental involvement in schools but majority parents are not supportive to teachers. Unsupportive parents come under two major varieties; not involved and too involved. In the first group are those parents who are not available.Incapable, uninterested in their childrens education and those who put whole responsibility of educating of their children on teachers. In the second group are those parents who have decided that the real education is only possible if parents constantly monitor what occurs in the school. These parents feel that their child is being overlooked by the teacher and that only constant pressure on their part will rectify the situation. Although all parents are not of such kind but generally parents are perceived by teachers as either unhelpful or unavailable or intrusive. Public criticism; the typical comments about teachers from public include: they have much offs, get much for the little they cannot do anything else etc. charged with the educating and socializing so many children teachers are reminded of their failures and rarely praised for their successes. This evaluation of teachers by the public in such a way make them stressful. Public demand for accountability; apparently it is reasonable to say that public should hold teachers accountable for the success of their work. The public pay taxis ad pay teacher salaries and have right to expect some performance levels. However from the prospective of teachers the demand for accountability is too often the means by which teachers autonomy and sense of professionalism are trampled upon by those who know little about education and educational evaluation. Most troubling to teachers is their feeling that society expects them to educate, socialize every student who comes to school regardless of the social, economic and psychological difficulties some of these students bring with them. If parents, psychologists social workers have failed why teachers should be accountable for all the problems. This demand of accountability is also a source of stress for teachers. Procedure of the study Based upon the objective of the study an occupational stress inventory will be developed regarding job related stress events. In developing the items in the inventory discussion with the local teachers and study of the related literature will be focused. Teachers opinion about stress inducing problems will be given more importance. Like previous researchers Likert Scale will be used for obtaining data about job related stress. BIBLIOGRAPHY Bloch, A.M. (1978). Conflict Neurosis in inner city schools, American journal of Psychiatry, 135, 189-192. Bowers. (1984).n being unconsciously influenced and Informed. American Journal of Psychiatry, 135, 1 Goodlad.J.I. (1984). A place called school, New York ,McGraw-hill. Holms, TH Rahi (1967). The Social Readjustment Scale. Journal Psychosomatic Research, 11, 213-218. Jackson, S.E, et al. (1986). Towards an understanding of the burnout phenomenon Journal of applied psychology, 19 (4) 630-640. Kyriaco, C. (1987). Teacher stress and burnout: An international review of Education and Research 29(20) 146-152 Lazarus, R.(1978). A strategy for Research on Psychological and Social factors of hypertension. Journal of Human Stress, 4, 35-40. Lortie, D. (1975).school teacher. Chicago: university of Chicago press Nagy, D. Davis (1982). The relationship of Type A and B personalities in Farber B.A (1991) Crises in Education, California Jossy-Bass inc. Newman, J, E. Beehr, T.A (1979). Personal and organizational strategies for handling job stress: a review of research and opinion, Personal Psychology, 32, 1-43. Pankhurst, F. (19820 Stress, health and absenteeism in teaching, National Education, 19 (1) 39-51 Selye, H. (1956). The stress of life. New York. McGraw Hill Sharp, R.F. (1977) Thrives on stress. London Souvenir Press Smith, D.Milstein, M.(1984) Old wine in new bottles. Urban Education, 39-51

Asian Crisis Essay -- essays research papers fc

The beginning of the Asian financial crisis can be traced back to 2 July 1997. That was the day the Thai Government announced a managed float of the Baht and called on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for 'technical assistance'. That day the Baht fell around 20 per cent against the $US. This became the trigger for the Asian currency crisis. Within the week the Philippines and Malaysian Governments were heavily intervening to defend their currencies. While Indonesia intervened and also allowed the currency to move in a widened trading range a sort of a float but with a floor below which the monetary authority acts to defend the currency against further falls. By the end of the month there was a 'currency meltdown' during which the Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir attacked 'rogue speculators' and named the notorious speculator and hedge fund manager, George Soros, as being personally responsible for the fall in value of the ringgit. Soon other East Asian economies became involved , Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore and others to varying degrees. Stock and property markets were also feeling the pressure though the declines in stock prices tended to show a less volatile but nevertheless downward trend over most of 1997. By 27 October the crisis had had a world wide impact, on that day provoking a massive response on Wall Street with the Dow Jones industrial average falling by 554.26 or 7.18 per cent, its biggest point fall in history, causing stock exchange officials to suspend trading. Countries such as Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines have embraced an unusual policy combination of liberalisation of controls on flows of financial capital on the one hand, and quasi-fixed/ heavily managed exchange rate systems on the other. These exchange rate systems have been operated largely through linkages with the United States (US) dollar as their anchor. (1) Such external policy mixes are only sustainable in the longer term if there is close harmonisation of economic/ financial policies and conditions with those of the anchor country (in this case, the United States). Otherwise, establishing capital flows will inevitably undermine the exchange rate. Rather than harmonisation, there seems to have actually been increased economic and financial divergence with the US, especially in terms of current account deficits, inflation and interest rates. The... ..., 'Crisis into Catastrophe?' Financial Times (London), 31 October 1997, p. 15. 8.Max Walsh, 'Aid Parcels to Japanese Banks', The New Zealand Herald, 18 November 1998, pp. 25-26; Max Walsh, 'Time for Japan to Save the World', The New Zealand Herald, 21 November 1998, pp. 29-30. 9.John McBeth, 'Big is Best: Indonesia's Rescue Package Draws on the Thai Experience', Far Eastern Economic Review, 13 November 1997, pp. 68-69; Greg Sheridan, 'The Asian Malaise is Curable', 28 November 1997, p. 13. National Business Review 10.Charles Lee, 'The Next Domino?' Far Eastern Economic Review, 20 November 1997, pp. 14-16. 11.Eric Ellis, 'Kim Inspects Mouth of IMF Gift Horse', Australian Financial Review, 24 November 1997, p. 12. 12.Teresa Wyszomierski and Christopher Lingle, "Fortress Japan Under Siege', Australian Financial Review, 19 November 1997, p. 20. 13.Ian MacFarlane, Forbes Magazine Business 1998, pp24-27. 14. Forecasts Lowered', The New Zealand Herald, 20 November 1998, pp. 29-30. 15.Reserve Bank of New Zealand, semi-annual Statement on Monetary Policy, November 1997, pp. 2-13. 16 A New Revolution by Peter Smith As published in NZBUSINESS, August 1998, PP

Henry Flemming Age Comparison :: essays research papers

Henry Flemming Age Comparison Henry Flemming underwent a major change as he became older. He became more courageous as an older man than he was as a youth. It may have been that he had not matured at the time of the war or that the war had changed him and made him more courageous. Regardless the reason, the older Henry Flemming was much more courageous than he was as a youth and there are a few situations in which he was able to prove that his courage had grown.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many times Henry would sit around and tell his stories of war. When he was asked if he was ever scared, Henry would tell the people listening that in fact he did get scared during battles. In fact, he even told them that at his first battle, he was so frightened that he fled from it. Telling a group of people that you had a weakness and were so scared that you had to flee from the danger takes a lot of courage. When Henry was a youth at war, he was terrified that someone would find out that he had fled and he was terrified of what people would say if they found out that he had fled, but Henry developed the courage to be able to freely admit to it and even laugh about it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Then, when he was in bed one evening, he arose out of bed to find his drunken help blabbering that the barn was on fire. When Henry ran outside, he discovered that the drunken help’s lantern had caused the fire. Then, without thinking twice, Henry ran into the barn to rescue the animals. He rescued them even after he had been injured by one or more of them. When Henry was younger at war, he would always think twice or even more than twice before he went into battle, but the older Henry did not.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After Henry thought he had rescued all of the animals and that they were safe, the drunken help reminded him of the colts that he had left in the burning barn. Henry automatically decided that he had to get the colts out of the barn. The crowd of neighbors that had gathered told him that it was too dangerous and that it was just a suicide mission. Henry looked at the burning barn and, knowing that he was risking his life, he said that he had to at least attempt to rescue the colts anyways. Henry Flemming Age Comparison :: essays research papers Henry Flemming Age Comparison Henry Flemming underwent a major change as he became older. He became more courageous as an older man than he was as a youth. It may have been that he had not matured at the time of the war or that the war had changed him and made him more courageous. Regardless the reason, the older Henry Flemming was much more courageous than he was as a youth and there are a few situations in which he was able to prove that his courage had grown.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many times Henry would sit around and tell his stories of war. When he was asked if he was ever scared, Henry would tell the people listening that in fact he did get scared during battles. In fact, he even told them that at his first battle, he was so frightened that he fled from it. Telling a group of people that you had a weakness and were so scared that you had to flee from the danger takes a lot of courage. When Henry was a youth at war, he was terrified that someone would find out that he had fled and he was terrified of what people would say if they found out that he had fled, but Henry developed the courage to be able to freely admit to it and even laugh about it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Then, when he was in bed one evening, he arose out of bed to find his drunken help blabbering that the barn was on fire. When Henry ran outside, he discovered that the drunken help’s lantern had caused the fire. Then, without thinking twice, Henry ran into the barn to rescue the animals. He rescued them even after he had been injured by one or more of them. When Henry was younger at war, he would always think twice or even more than twice before he went into battle, but the older Henry did not.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After Henry thought he had rescued all of the animals and that they were safe, the drunken help reminded him of the colts that he had left in the burning barn. Henry automatically decided that he had to get the colts out of the barn. The crowd of neighbors that had gathered told him that it was too dangerous and that it was just a suicide mission. Henry looked at the burning barn and, knowing that he was risking his life, he said that he had to at least attempt to rescue the colts anyways.

If the Coat Fits Wear It Essay

The Oceanic Corporation, a Chesapeake, VA based company, was established in 1994. Glenn Rodgers III founded the corporation, which was privately owned at the time, after his retirement from Norentech Corporation. The Oceanic Corporation was originally formed to provide ship repair services and quickly earned a Department of Defense (DOD) certified Alteration Boat Repair (ABR) designation. Among its specialties were structural welding, piping system installation and repairs, electrical, painting, rigging, machinery and dry-lock work, as well as custom sheet metal fabrication. Other divisions of The Oceanic included Habitability Installation, Industrial Contracting, and Alteration/Installation Teams (AIT). With its initial success and good return on investment the firm opened and operated facilities in California, New Jersey, Florida, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Washington. In 1998, the company went public and its initial public offering was very successful. The stock price had risen from its initial value of $10 to its current level of $35 per share. There were currently 5 million shares outstanding. In 1999, the company issued 30-year bonds at par, with a face value of $1000 and a coupon rate of 10% per year, and managed to raise $40 million for expansion. Currently, the AA-rated bonds had 25 years left until maturity and were being quoted at 91.5% of par. Over the past year, the Oceanic Corporation utilized a new method for fabricating composite materials that the firm’s engineers had developed. In June of last year, management established the Advanced Materials Group (AM Group), which was dedicated to pursuing this technology. The firm recruited Larry Stone, a senior engineer, to head the AM Group. Larry also had an MBA from a prestigious university under his belt. Upon joining Oceanic, Larry realized that most projects were being approved on a â€Å"gut feel† approach. There were no formal acceptance criteria in place. Up until then, the company had been lucky in that most of its projects had been well selected and it had benefited from good relationships with clients and suppliers. â€Å"This has to change,† said Larry to his assistant Stephanie, â€Å"we can’t possibly be this lucky forever. We need to calculate the firm’s hurdle rate and use it in the future.† Stephanie Phillips, who had great admiration for the boss, replied, â€Å"Yes, Larry, why don’t I crunch the numbers and give them to you within the next couple of days?† â€Å"That sounds great, Stephanie,† said Larry. â€Å"My years of experience tell me that when it comes to the hurdle rate for new projects, one size hardly ever fits it all!† As Stephanie began looking at the financial statements, she realized that she was going to make some assumptions. First, she assumed that she assumed that the new debt would cost about the same as the yield on outstanding debt and would have the same rating. Second, she assumed that the firm would continue raising capital for future projects by using the same target proportions as determined by the book values of debt and equity (see Table 1 for recent balance sheet). Third, she assumed that the equity beta (1.5) would be the same for all the divisions. Fourth, she assumed that the growth rates of earnings and dividends would continue at their historical rate (see Table 2, for earnings and dividend history). Fifth, she assumed that the corporate tax rate would be 34% and finally, she assumed that the flotation cost for debt would be 5% of the issue price and that for equity would be 10% of selling price. The 1-year Treasury bill yield was 4% and the expected rate of return on the market portfolio was 10%.

Digital Fortress Chapter 4

The crypto door beeped once, waking Susan from her depressing reverie. The door had rotated past its fully open position and would be closed again in five seconds, having made a complete 360-degree rotation. Susan gathered her thoughts and stepped through the opening. A computer made note of her entry. Although she had practically lived in Crypto since its completion three years ago, the sight of it still amazed her. The main room was an enormous circular chamber that rose five stories. Its transparent, domed ceiling towered 120 feet at its central peak. The Plexiglas cupola was embedded with a polycarbonate mesh-a protective web capable of withstanding a two-megaton blast. The screen filtered the sunlight into delicate lacework across the walls. Tiny particles of dust drifted upward in wide unsuspecting spirals-captives of the dome's powerful deionizing system. The room's sloping sides arched broadly at the top and then became almost vertical as they approached eye level. Then they became subtly translucent and graduated to an opaque black as they reached the floor-a shimmering expanse of polished black tile that shone with an eerie luster, giving one the unsettling sensation that the floor was transparent. Black ice. Pushing through the center of the floor like the tip of a colossal torpedo was the machine for which the dome had been built. Its sleek black contour arched twenty-three feet in the air before plunging back into the floor below. Curved and smooth, it was as if an enormous killer whale had been frozen mid breach in a frigid sea. This was TRANSLTR, the single most expensive piece of computing equipment in the world-a machine the NSA swore did not exist. Like an iceberg, the machine hid 90 percent of its mass and power deep beneath the surface. Its secret was locked in a ceramic silo that went six stories straight down-a rocketlike hull surrounded by a winding maze of catwalks, cables, and hissing exhaust from the freon cooling system. The power generators at the bottom droned in a perpetual low-frequency hum that gave the acoustics in Crypto a dead, ghostlike quality. TRANSLTR, like all great technological advancements, had been a child of necessity. During the 1980s, the NSA witnessed a revolution in telecommunications that would change the world of intelligence reconnaissance forever-public access to the Internet. More specifically, the arrival of E-mail. Criminals, terrorists, and spies had grown tired of having their phones tapped and immediately embraced this new means of global communication. E-mail had the security of conventional mail and the speed of the telephone. Since the transfers traveled through underground fiber-optic lines and were never transmitted into the airwaves, they were entirely intercept-proof-at least that was the perception. In reality, intercepting E-mail as it zipped across the Internet was child's play for the NSA's techno-gurus. The Internet was not the new home computer revelation that most believed. It had been created by the Department of Defense three decades earlier-an enormous network of computers designed to provide secure government communication in the event of nuclear war. The eyes and ears of the NSA were old Internet pros. People conducting illegal business via E-mail quickly learned their secrets were not as private as they'd thought. The FBI, DEA, IRS, and other U.S. law enforcement agencies-aided by the NSA's staff of wily hackers-enjoyed a tidal wave of arrests and convictions. Of course, when the computer users of the world found out the U.S. government had open access to their E-mail communications, a cry of outrage went up. Even pen pals, using E-mail for nothing more than recreational correspondence, found the lack of privacy unsettling. Across the globe, entrepreneurial programmers began working on a way to keep E-mail more secure. They quickly found one and public-key encryption was born. Public-key encryption was a concept as simple as it was brilliant. It consisted of easy-to-use, home-computer software that scrambled personal E-mail messages in such a way that they were totally unreadable. A user could write a letter and run it through the encryption software, and the text would come out the other side looking like random nonsense-totally illegible-a code. Anyone intercepting the transmission found only an unreadable garble on the screen. The only way to unscramble the message was to enter the sender's â€Å"pass-key†-a secret series of characters that functioned much like a PIN number at an automatic teller. The pass-keys were generally quite long and complex; they carried all the information necessary to instruct the encryption algorithm exactly what mathematical operations to follow tore-create the original message. A user could now send E-mail in confidence. Even if the transmission was intercepted, only those who were given the key could ever decipher it. The NSA felt the crunch immediately. The codes they were facing were no longer simple substitution ciphers crackable with pencil and graph paper-they were computer-generated hash functions that employed chaos theory and multiple symbolic alphabets to scramble messages into seemingly hopeless randomness. At first, the pass-keys being used were short enough for the NSA's computers to â€Å"guess.† If a desired pass-key had ten digits, a computer was programmed to try every possibility between 0000000000 and 9999999999. Sooner or later the computer hit the correct sequence. This method of trial-and-error guessing was known as â€Å"brute force attack.† It was time-consuming but mathematically guaranteed to work. As the world got wise to the power of brute-force code-breaking, the pass-keys started getting longer and longer. The computer time needed to â€Å"guess† the correct key grew from weeks to months and finally to years. By the 1990s, pass-keys were over fifty characters long and employed the full 256-character ASCII alphabet of letters, numbers, and symbols. The number of different possibilities was in the neighborhood of 10120-ten with 120 zeros after it. Correctly guessing a pass-key was as mathematically unlikely as choosing the correct grain of sand from a three-mile beach. It was estimated that a successful brute-force attack on a standard sixty-four-bit key would take the NSA's fastest computer-the top-secret Cray/Josephson II-over nineteen years to break. By the time the computer guessed the key and broke the code, the contents of the message would be irrelevant. Caught in a virtual intelligence blackout, the NSA passed a top-secret directive that was endorsed by the President of the United States. Buoyed by federal funds and a carte blanche to do whatever was necessary to solve the problem, the NSA set out to build the impossible: the world's first universal code-breaking machine. Despite the opinion of many engineers that the newly proposed code-breaking computer was impossible to build, the NSA lived by its motto: Everything is possible. The impossible just takes longer. Five years, half a million man-hours, and $1.9 billion later, the NSA proved it once again. The last of the three million, stamp-size processors was hand-soldered in place, the final internal programming was finished, and the ceramic shell was welded shut. TRANSLTR had been born. Although the secret internal workings of TRANSLTR were the product of many minds and were not fully understood by any one individual, its basic principle was simple: Many hands make light work. Its three million processors would all work in parallel-counting upward at blinding speed, trying every new permutation as they went. The hope was that even codes with unthinkably colossal pass-keys would not be safe from TRANSLTR's tenacity. This multibillion-dollar masterpiece would use the power of parallel processing as well as some highly classified advances in clear text assessment to guess pass-keys and break codes. It would derive its power not only from its staggering number of processors but also from new advances in quantum computing-an emerging technology that allowed information to be stored as quantum-mechanical states rather than solely as binary data. The moment of truth came on a blustery Thursday morning in October. The first live test. Despite uncertainty about how fast the machine would be, there was one thing on which the engineers agreed-if the processors all functioned in parallel, TRANSLTR would be powerful. The question was how powerful. The answer came twelve minutes later. There was a stunned silence from the handful in attendance when the printout sprang to life and delivered the cleartext-the broken code. TRANSLTR had just located a sixty-four-character key in a little over ten minutes, almost a million times faster than the two decades it would have taken the NSA's second-fastest computer. Led by the deputy director of operations, Commander Trevor J. Strathmore, the NSA's Office of Production had triumphed. TRANSLTR was a success. In the interest of keeping their success a secret, Commander Strathmore immediately leaked information that the project had been a complete failure. All the activity in the Crypto wing was supposedly an attempt to salvage their $2 billion fiasco. Only the NSA elite knew the truth-TRANSLTR was cracking hundreds of codes every day. With word on the street that computer-encrypted codes were entirely unbreakable-even by the all-powerful NSA-the secrets poured in. Drug lords, terrorists, and embezzlers alike-weary of having their cellular phone transmissions intercepted-were turning to the exciting new medium of encrypted E-mail for instantaneous global communications. Never again would they have to face a grand jury and hear their own voice rolling off tape, proof of some long-forgotten cellular phone conversation plucked from the air by an NSA satellite. Intelligence gathering had never been easier. Codes intercepted by the NSA entered TRANSLTR as totally illegible ciphers and were spit out minutes later as perfectly readable cleartext. No more secrets. To make their charade of incompetence complete, the NSA lobbied fiercely against all new computer encryption software, insisting it crippled them and made it impossible for lawmakers to catch and prosecute the criminals. Civil rights groups rejoiced, insisting the NSA shouldn't be reading their mail anyway. Encryption software kept rolling off the presses. The NSA had lost the battle-exactly as it had planned. The entire electronic global community had been fooled†¦ or so it seemed.

Smoking Should Be Made Illegal

Kelvin Omogbeme CIGARETTE SMOKING SHOULD BE BANNED IN THE SAME WAY AS OTHER ILLEGAL DRUGS Tobacco is one of the most widely used drugs in the world, mainly in the form of a cigarette. Although most countries have tried to restrict the use of tobacco, people still smoke everyday despite the fact that it is poisonous and harmful to their health. Cigarette smoking has been part of our lives for many decades now. Whether cigarettes should be banned or not becomes an object of controversy for many countries. Smokers claim that smoking helps in reducing their stress and also it strengthens the economy.But the negative aspect of smoking outweighs the positive. Smoking is a bad habit, and it is not good for human health. Cigarette smoking has seriously negative effects and it should be banned completely because it is hazardous for smokers and non-smoker’s health, it costs a large amount of money, and also it tends to influence people around us. Firstly, smoking undoubtedly helps many people to relax. For some, it even improves concentration. Many people like to smoke before exams or when they are relaxing with friends. A further point is that governments throughout the whole world make huge profits from levying taxes on cigarettes.This provides funds which are used for building schools, hospitals and other public amenities. The tobacco industry also employs tens of thousands of people throughout the world, particularly in poorer countries. Without cigarettes, these people would have no jobs and they will be suffering. However, despite these points, the arguments against smoking are strong. Smoking has been shown to be hazardous to people’s health. Smokers are taking into their body large amount of toxic such as; nicotine, carbon monoxide, and ammonia daily. These chemicals are dangerous to our health.First of all, cigarettes contain 4000 chemicals in it, and 69 of them are known to cause cancer. Smoking too much causes first-hand smokers to get yellow tee th, swollen gum, skin disease, and bad fingernails. They are also known to get headaches, lung cancer and bad breath much more easily than nor-smokers do. Years ago, millions of people died of lung cancer because of smoking. It was a dreadful scene. Those families were sad and they went bankrupt because of the amount of money they spent on treating their loved ones illness, while they were sick in the hospital. Smoking can cause damage to the respiratory system and circulatory system.Furthermore, people who smoke get heart attacks and their kidneys no longer function properly. About 400 thousand Americans die each year, and 5. 4 million die globally from smoking related disease. The most common illness causing deaths are respiratory disease such as, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and heart disease like high blood pressure and heart attacks. From x-rays results, a smokers’ hearts is known to be much darker than a non-smokers heart. The most amazing p art about a smoker is that he knows that it is terribly hazardous to him, yet he continues killing himself slowly.Cigarettes contain nicotine which is an addictive substance and that is why it is hard for smokers to stop smoking. Smokers are occasionally outside smoking, making the people beside him or her breathe in smoke too. These people are known as second-hand smokers or non-smokers. When second-hand smokers breathe in first-hand smoker’s smoke, they also get badly harmed by it. Cigarette does not just harm the people who smoke, they also harm the people who are near them and breathe the smoke. Non-smokers do not like to breathe polluted air; they feel annoyed when someone around them smokes.For instance, if you are trying to enjoy a meal in a restaurant, and you suddenly inhale the smoke from your neighbor; you will feel uncomfortable. Studies show that exposure to cigarette smoke for as little as thirty minutes a day can raise a non-smoker's risk of suffering a heart a ttack. Children are being harmed by first-hand smokers and it is unfair. Children's lives are being put at risk every day because people make the bad decision to smoke. When children breathe in cigarette smoke, they have an increased risk for childhood illnesses such as asthma and ear infections. It is also harmful to pregnant women and unborn children.If the health of a pregnant smoker is not enough for her to quit smoking, then the health of her baby should be. Smoking during pregnancy affects you and your baby's health before, during, and after your baby is born. The nicotine (the addictive substance in cigarettes), carbon monoxide, and numerous other poisons you inhale from a cigarette are carried through your bloodstream and go directly to your baby. Another reason why smoking should be banned is because it helps to save money for better use. Many people who smoke cigarettes are not even aware of how much they spend on cigarettes every month.Depending on how much people smoke, it can run up to a couple of hundred dollars per month. People spend lots of money on buying cigarette. If people are not allowed to smoke, they gradually reduce the number of cigarette they smoke; thereby, saving lots of money. All the money they spend in buying cigarettes can be saved and used for something much more important and useful like paying off a loan or a saving for a child’s education. After all, we can better our society by educating the future generation to be financially sound and debt-free. Just try stopping smoking cigarette; you will be surprise how much amount of money will be saved.Finally, another reason why smoking should be banned is because smokers tend to influence people around them. For instance, when your son or daughter sees you smoking, he or she would become interested in trying it; thereby he or she may be addicted to it and that makes him or her become smoker. Same thing goes with a teenager, who just entered high school, and he sees his teac her smoking, or even at work when your colleagues see you smoking, he might be influenced too especially when the smoker gives it so much importance and glorifies it like it is the best thing to do.This definitely has an impact on the way a person thinks about smoking, and more often, leads people to begin smoking. As you can see, smoking causes a lot of problems in our society. The reasons why smoking should be banned is because it is dangerous for smoker’s health and non-smokers health, it helps to save a lot of money and it tends to influence other people around. What people don’t realize is that they have the power to control, and stop the terrible habit that affects them and millions of people across the globe.If smoking is banned, the food that smokers eat will begin to taste better, their sense of smell will return to normal and they will gradually be able to exercise or do normal chores such as taking out the trash without loss of breath and wheezing, their blo od pressure becomes lower, the carbon monoxide level in their blood drops to normal, coughing and shortness of breath decrease and the lung cancer death rates will reduce and people will be able to save a lot of money. If smoking is banned, the environment would be a better, and a safer place to live for us and our future generations.Overall, I think the world would be a better place without cigarettes. I suggest the government take immediate action and stop the puff of smoke from coming out of a person’s mouth and make them happy and invincible from smoke! Therefore, cigarette smoking should be banned in the same way as other illegal drugs. REFERENCE Rachael Rettner. (2013, January, 25). Should cigarette smoking be illegal. Retrieved from http://www. foxnews. com/health/2013/01/25/should-cigarettes-be-illegal/ Andy Phan. (2011, July). Should Cigarette Smoking Be Banned. Retrieved from http://www. tudymode. com/essays/Should-Cigarette-Smoking-Be-Banned-707870. html Tom Head. (2009). Should cigarettes be made illegal. Retrieved from http://civilliberty. about. com/od/drugpolicy/i/cigarettes_ban_2. htm S Chapman, R Borland, M Scollo, R C Brownson, A Dominello, and S Woodward. (1999, July). The impact of smoke-free workplaces on declining cigarette consumption in Australia and the United States. American Journal of Public Health July 1999: Vol. 89, No. 7, pp. 1018-1023. Retrieved from http://ajph. aphapublications. org/doi/abs/10. 2105/AJPH. 89. 7. 1018

How to Write Dialogue 10 Simple Rules (Plus 5 Mistakes to Avoid!)

How to Write Dialogue 10 Simple Rules (Plus 5 Mistakes to Avoid!) How to Write Dialogue: 10 Simple Rules (Plus 5 Mistakes to Avoid!) No matter what your genre, learning how to write dialogue effectively is a vital part of any writer’s education. Poor dialogue can make readers put your book down in disgust - but great dialogue can transform your characters into truly believable people, and your readers into satisfied customers.Of course, the best kind of dialogue isn’t just believable. It also provides exposition, involves distinct language depending on who’s speaking, and - perhaps most crucially - moves the story along. Without dialogue, you’d just have pages and pages of description with barely any character dynamics or interpersonal drama. How boring would that be?Because dialogue is essential to a strong narrative, we want to help you get it exactly right. To that end, we’ve put together this list of rules, examples, and more that will have you writing sparkling conversation in no time! We’ll also cover in detail how to format and punctuate dialogue, for those who a ren’t sure exactly what goes where.If you’re especially curious about formatting, go ahead and skip to #10 using the table of contents on the left - otherwise, let’s jump right in with dialogue rule #1.1. Enter the conversation lateAlfred Hitchcock once said that â€Å"drama is life with all the boring bits cut out.† Comparably, we could say that good dialogue is like a real conversation without all the fluff. And one of the best ways to cut out that boring fluff is to enter the conversation as late as possible.Think about it: few "classic" scenes start with characters going, â€Å"Hey buddy! How are you doing? Wow, long time no see.† This is because people enjoy making inferences based on details in action and speech - and the last thing you want to do is insult their intelligence by spelling everything out for them.For a more tangible taste of this technique, here’s screenwriter Aaron Sorkin talking about the first scene of his Oscar-win ning screenplay for The Social Network:â€Å"We started at 100 miles an hour in the middle of a conversation, and that makes the audience have to run to catch up. The worst crime you can commit with an audience is telling them something they already know. We were always running ahead.†Sorkin's ability to give the audience just the right amount of detail is a huge strength, and something all writers should strive for. So don’t slow down to accommodate your readers - make them catch up to you. id=attachment_19354 style="width: 1047px" class="wp-caption aligncenter">Now that you know exactly what to do when it comes to writing dialogue, let’s talk about what not to do - with these five critical mistakes to avoid.5 dialogue mistakes to avoid1. Too many dialogue tagsAs you may have already gathered, one of the most egregious errors you can make when writing dialogue is using too many dialogue tags. Constantly repeating â€Å"he said,† â€Å"she said,† and so on is boring and repetitive for your readers, as you can see here:â€Å"Hey, how’s it going?† Billy said.â€Å"Not bad,† said Ann. â€Å"Just warming up for the day.†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Ah. Liquid courage,† said Billy.â€Å"Yeah, those customers aren’t going to yell at themselves,† Ann said.So keep in mind that you can often eschew dialogue tags if you’ve already established the speakers, like so:Billy approached Ann as she was pouring a cup of coffee.  "Hey, how’s it going?†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Not bad.† She gestured to the cup. â€Å"Just warming up for the day.†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Ah. Liquid courage.†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Yeah, those customers aren’t going to yell at themselves.†One can tell from the action beats, as well as the fact that it’s a two-person back-and-forth conversation, which lines are Billy’s and which are Ann’s. Dialogue tags just distract from the conversation - although if you did want to use them, â€Å"said† would still be better than fancy tags like â€Å"announced† or â€Å"effused.†2. Lack of structural varietySimilar to the â€Å"too many tags† issue is the lack of structural variety that can sometimes arise in dialogue. Not sure what we’re talking about? Take a look at this:â€Å"This is going terribly. We need a new plan.† Sophie started erasing the blackboard.â€Å"Wait, stop! I have another idea.† Ethan grabbed her hand to stop her.â€Å"Oh yeah? When has that ever helped us before?† She glared at him, uncompromising.â€Å"I mean it this time. I think this could really work.† He grabbed the chalk from the table and began to write.Now, action beats are great, but here they’re used repeatedly in exactly the same way - first the dialogue, then the beat - which looks odd and unnatural on the page. Indeed, any recurrent structure like this (which also includes putting dialogue tags in the same place every time) should be vehemently avoided.Luckily, it’s easy to rework repetitive structure into something much more lively and organic, just by shifting around some of the action beats and tags:â€Å"This is going terribly. We need a new plan.† Sophie started erasing the blackboard.â€Å"Wait, stop!† Ethan shouted, grabbing her hand. â€Å"I have another idea.†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Oh yeah? When has that ever helped us before?†Ã¢â‚¬Å"I mean it this time. I think this could really work.†3. Restating the obviousAnother common dialogue mistake is restating the obvious - i.e. information that either the characters themselves or the reader already knows. For example, say you want to introduce two brothers, so you write the following exchange:â€Å"Say, Gary, how long have we been brothers?†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Thirty-five years, Barry. Ever since Ma gave birth to two bouncing baby boys in ‘84.†This is clearly awkward and a bit ridiculous, as the characters obviously know how old they are. It also insults the reader’s intelligence - even if they didn’t already know that Barry and Gary were thirty-five-year-old brothers, they wouldn’t appreciate being spoon-fed like this.If you wanted to convey the same information in a subtler way, you might write it into a different conversation, like:â€Å"Hey, Gary - Raiders of the Lost of Ark came out in 1984, right? Wasn’t Ma was about to see it when she went into labor with u s?†Ã¢â‚¬Å"That was Temple of Doom, Barry. No wonder we keep losing at trivia night.†This makes the dialogue more about Indiana Jones than the brothers’ age, sneaking in the info so readers can figure it out for themselves.4. Unrealistic smooth-talking and clichà ©sThough you want your dialogue to flow, you don’t want it to flow so smoothly that it sounds fake. Unfortunately, there’s a fine line between enthralling, Sorkin-esque dialogue and unrealistic smooth-talking, so be careful!Saying your dialogue out loud, as we mentioned in rule #8, should help with this problem. It can also be helpful to record dialogue (with the participants’ permission, of course) and study it for natural speech patterns and phrases. Of course, we’re not saying you should include every â€Å"um† and â€Å"er† that people say in real life - only that authentic-sounding written dialogue reflects real life.In a similar vein, you want to watch out for clichà ©s in your dialogue as much as in the rest of your writing. While it’s certainly true that people sometimes speak in clichà ©s (though this is often tongue-in-cheek), if you find yourself writing the phrase â€Å"Are you thinking what I’m thinking?† or â€Å"Shut up and kiss me,† you may need a reality check.For a full roster of dialogue clichà ©s, check out this super-helpful list from Scott Myers.5. Disregarding dialogue entirelyFinally, the last mistake you can make when writing dialogue is†¦ well, not writing it! Circling back to one of the very first points we made in this article, dialogue is a super-important element in almost any story - it provides exposition, indicates personality and character relationships, and may even reveal a major plot twist during the climax. Suffice to say, if your story doesn’t have enough dialogue, it’s not going to have many readers either.We know that writing dialogue can be intimida ting, especially if you don’t have much experience with it. But that should never keep you from including it in your work! Just remember that the more you practice, the better you’ll get. And with the help of the tips and in this article, you should already be a little bit (if not a lot!) closer to writing dialogue that captivates your readers just as much as their real-life conversations. ðŸâ€" £We hope you enjoyed this post on how to write dialogue! If you’d like to learn even more, check out our course on Writing Dialogue That Develops Plot and Character. How to Write Dialogue 10 Simple Rules (Plus 5 Mistakes to Avoid!) How to Write Dialogue: 10 Simple Rules (Plus 5 Mistakes to Avoid!) No matter what your genre, learning how to write dialogue effectively is a vital part of any writer’s education. Poor dialogue can make readers put your book down in disgust - but great dialogue can transform your characters into truly believable people, and your readers into satisfied customers.Of course, the best kind of dialogue isn’t just believable. It also provides exposition, involves distinct language depending on who’s speaking, and - perhaps most crucially - moves the story along. Without dialogue, you’d just have pages and pages of description with barely any character dynamics or interpersonal drama. How boring would that be?Because dialogue is essential to a strong narrative, we want to help you get it exactly right. To that end, we’ve put together this list of rules, examples, and more that will have you writing sparkling conversation in no time! We’ll also cover in detail how to format and punctuate dialogue, for those who a ren’t sure exactly what goes where.If you’re especially curious about formatting, go ahead and skip to #10 using the table of contents on the left - otherwise, let’s jump right in with dialogue rule #1.1. Enter the conversation lateAlfred Hitchcock once said that â€Å"drama is life with all the boring bits cut out.† Comparably, we could say that good dialogue is like a real conversation without all the fluff. And one of the best ways to cut out that boring fluff is to enter the conversation as late as possible.Think about it: few "classic" scenes start with characters going, â€Å"Hey buddy! How are you doing? Wow, long time no see.† This is because people enjoy making inferences based on details in action and speech - and the last thing you want to do is insult their intelligence by spelling everything out for them.For a more tangible taste of this technique, here’s screenwriter Aaron Sorkin talking about the first scene of his Oscar-win ning screenplay for The Social Network:â€Å"We started at 100 miles an hour in the middle of a conversation, and that makes the audience have to run to catch up. The worst crime you can commit with an audience is telling them something they already know. We were always running ahead.†Sorkin's ability to give the audience just the right amount of detail is a huge strength, and something all writers should strive for. So don’t slow down to accommodate your readers - make them catch up to you. id=attachment_19354 style="width: 1047px" class="wp-caption aligncenter">Now that you know exactly what to do when it comes to writing dialogue, let’s talk about what not to do - with these five critical mistakes to avoid.5 dialogue mistakes to avoid1. Too many dialogue tagsAs you may have already gathered, one of the most egregious errors you can make when writing dialogue is using too many dialogue tags. Constantly repeating â€Å"he said,† â€Å"she said,† and so on is boring and repetitive for your readers, as you can see here:â€Å"Hey, how’s it going?† Billy said.â€Å"Not bad,† said Ann. â€Å"Just warming up for the day.†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Ah. Liquid courage,† said Billy.â€Å"Yeah, those customers aren’t going to yell at themselves,† Ann said.So keep in mind that you can often eschew dialogue tags if you’ve already established the speakers, like so:Billy approached Ann as she was pouring a cup of coffee.  "Hey, how’s it going?†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Not bad.† She gestured to the cup. â€Å"Just warming up for the day.†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Ah. Liquid courage.†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Yeah, those customers aren’t going to yell at themselves.†One can tell from the action beats, as well as the fact that it’s a two-person back-and-forth conversation, which lines are Billy’s and which are Ann’s. Dialogue tags just distract from the conversation - although if you did want to use them, â€Å"said† would still be better than fancy tags like â€Å"announced† or â€Å"effused.†2. Lack of structural varietySimilar to the â€Å"too many tags† issue is the lack of structural variety that can sometimes arise in dialogue. Not sure what we’re talking about? Take a look at this:â€Å"This is going terribly. We need a new plan.† Sophie started erasing the blackboard.â€Å"Wait, stop! I have another idea.† Ethan grabbed her hand to stop her.â€Å"Oh yeah? When has that ever helped us before?† She glared at him, uncompromising.â€Å"I mean it this time. I think this could really work.† He grabbed the chalk from the table and began to write.Now, action beats are great, but here they’re used repeatedly in exactly the same way - first the dialogue, then the beat - which looks odd and unnatural on the page. Indeed, any recurrent structure like this (which also includes putting dialogue tags in the same place every time) should be vehemently avoided.Luckily, it’s easy to rework repetitive structure into something much more lively and organic, just by shifting around some of the action beats and tags:â€Å"This is going terribly. We need a new plan.† Sophie started erasing the blackboard.â€Å"Wait, stop!† Ethan shouted, grabbing her hand. â€Å"I have another idea.†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Oh yeah? When has that ever helped us before?†Ã¢â‚¬Å"I mean it this time. I think this could really work.†3. Restating the obviousAnother common dialogue mistake is restating the obvious - i.e. information that either the characters themselves or the reader already knows. For example, say you want to introduce two brothers, so you write the following exchange:â€Å"Say, Gary, how long have we been brothers?†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Thirty-five years, Barry. Ever since Ma gave birth to two bouncing baby boys in ‘84.†This is clearly awkward and a bit ridiculous, as the characters obviously know how old they are. It also insults the reader’s intelligence - even if they didn’t already know that Barry and Gary were thirty-five-year-old brothers, they wouldn’t appreciate being spoon-fed like this.If you wanted to convey the same information in a subtler way, you might write it into a different conversation, like:â€Å"Hey, Gary - Raiders of the Lost of Ark came out in 1984, right? Wasn’t Ma was about to see it when she went into labor with u s?†Ã¢â‚¬Å"That was Temple of Doom, Barry. No wonder we keep losing at trivia night.†This makes the dialogue more about Indiana Jones than the brothers’ age, sneaking in the info so readers can figure it out for themselves.4. Unrealistic smooth-talking and clichà ©sThough you want your dialogue to flow, you don’t want it to flow so smoothly that it sounds fake. Unfortunately, there’s a fine line between enthralling, Sorkin-esque dialogue and unrealistic smooth-talking, so be careful!Saying your dialogue out loud, as we mentioned in rule #8, should help with this problem. It can also be helpful to record dialogue (with the participants’ permission, of course) and study it for natural speech patterns and phrases. Of course, we’re not saying you should include every â€Å"um† and â€Å"er† that people say in real life - only that authentic-sounding written dialogue reflects real life.In a similar vein, you want to watch out for clichà ©s in your dialogue as much as in the rest of your writing. While it’s certainly true that people sometimes speak in clichà ©s (though this is often tongue-in-cheek), if you find yourself writing the phrase â€Å"Are you thinking what I’m thinking?† or â€Å"Shut up and kiss me,† you may need a reality check.For a full roster of dialogue clichà ©s, check out this super-helpful list from Scott Myers.5. Disregarding dialogue entirelyFinally, the last mistake you can make when writing dialogue is†¦ well, not writing it! Circling back to one of the very first points we made in this article, dialogue is a super-important element in almost any story - it provides exposition, indicates personality and character relationships, and may even reveal a major plot twist during the climax. Suffice to say, if your story doesn’t have enough dialogue, it’s not going to have many readers either.We know that writing dialogue can be intimida ting, especially if you don’t have much experience with it. But that should never keep you from including it in your work! Just remember that the more you practice, the better you’ll get. And with the help of the tips and in this article, you should already be a little bit (if not a lot!) closer to writing dialogue that captivates your readers just as much as their real-life conversations. ðŸâ€" £We hope you enjoyed this post on how to write dialogue! If you’d like to learn even more, check out our course on Writing Dialogue That Develops Plot and Character.