Failure and Success Essay Example

Failure and Success Essay â€Å"If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again† Failure is often a better teacher in life than success. Because we go through so many things in life, both good and bad, we have to learn from our mistakes and hope we won’t have to go through them again. One may consider success as being a major influence on whom we are to date, but in all reality it’s our own failures that help us learn, encourages us to keep going, and prepares us for future failures that are bound to happen. Failure is by far the only way we can truly learn, and by doing this you realize the mistakes that you’ve made. You learn how you should have done things in order not to make the mistakes that you did. The next time you try to succeed at the same task you can easily apply what you learned from your previous mistakes. I personally believe that the more we fail in life, the greater the chances we have in learning from them and therefore becoming successful. Everyone has failures in life obviously, but it’s the way we overcome them that reflect on our true selves. Success will for sure keep us motivated and encourage us to continue doing good, but if we never had our downs as well as ups then we wouldn’t have the knowledge and experience that others have. We will write a custom essay sample on Failure and Success specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Failure and Success specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Failure and Success specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer I think that the only way to learn is to fail because if you get things done right the first time I’d consider you lucky since that rarely occurs. Sometimes even though you may succeed at something it might not necessarily be your best work. Perhaps having failed, the next attempt shall bring better results. Although our failures may have a negative feeling on us at first, it’s those mistakes that teach us important life lessons. We learn what doesn’t work which actually gets us closer to being successful in life. Lastly, our mistakes are what prepare us for our future failures that are bound to happen. By having gone through these experiences, we are able to better prep for these incidences that we will encounter many more times in our lifetimes. By definition success would only be proving that we can do something right the first time, but we wouldn’t be getting the whole feel to it. Overall, I believe that everything happens for a reason even if it is failure. We shouldn’t view failure as being a bad thing, but rather look at it as an attempt in which we will need to work harder at. There’s always something to learn and we should therefore see failure as just that, an opportunity to grow and improve ourselves.

Chloroplast evolution Essay Example

Chloroplast evolution Essay Example Chloroplast evolution Paper Chloroplast evolution Paper Chloroplast evolution Introduction Chloroplasts are the particular class of plastids in plant cells where photosynthesis takes place. They are subcellular organelles that perform various specific functions in plant cell and algae. Many research studies have confirmed the fact that evolution of chloroplasts occurred from cyanobacterium through the process of endosymbiosis (Raven and Allen, 2003). This has been revealed by studying the genetic sequence of cyanobacteria (Raven and Allen, 2003). There are many kinds of plastids in plants but chloroplasts are concerned with photosynthesis. One kind of plastids is etioplasts, a primitive stage of cholorplasts, and found in abundance in the leaves of plants that grow in darkness. However, these are instantaneously converted into chloroplasts when they come in contact with sunlight. Chloroplasts are present in cytoplasm of a cell bears the green pigment chlorophyll. Chlorophyll absorbs sunlight to provide energy for photosynthesis. These are present in autotrophic plants (Briscoe). Many theories have been suggested for the evolution of chloroplasts. The chloroplasts are monophyletic. Their genome and gene structure matches the genetic sequence of cyanobacterium (Raven and Allen, 2003). In chloroplasts evolution the most important theory is endosymbiotic gene transfer theory. Theory defines that throughout the stage of evolution endosymbiont events take place and gene transfers from symbionts to the host. The intergenomic transfers and genetic interactions between the nucleus and organelles are highly regulated (Raven and Allen, 2003). Plastids are derived from cyanobacteria by process of endosymbiosis was first hypothesized by Mereschkowsky (1905). However, further studies in molecular genetics, biochemical, and microscopic studies have revealed that plastids contain ribosomes, DNA/RNA that responsible for inheritance of certain characteristics (Briscoe). The genome in plastids replicates as normal genome, and carry out all other functions of transcription and translation (Briscoe). Plastids are evolved from blue-green algae (cyanobacteria). A number of studies have confirmed this fact that cyanobacteria are the closest bacterial homolog of plastids. They have a system of sunlight absorbing, oxygen production and water split same that of cholorplasts (Molnar, 1999). All proteins that are actively involved in plastids functions are encoded by genes. This is said to be the result of evolution of cyanobacteria and gene transfer (Doolittle et al 2003). During this transfer certain genes are moved while others are retained. â€Å"It also becomes possible to see clearly the algal ancestry of cells that have vestigial and otherwise unrecognizable plastids, and even to discern the unmistakable genomic footprint of plastids long lost from organisms one might never imagine to have descended from plants.† (Zhou et al 2006) Genomes in plastids encode above 100 of proteins (50-200), however there are inmureaable nuclear encoded products found in cytoplasms. Cyanobacterium gneome codes 1500 proteins. Many similarities have been found between proteome of cyanobacterium and other organelles of cells. It is said that the genes of cyanobacteria evolutes from endosymbiotic pre-plastids (Briscoe). When genes transfer from one location to another it is most probably that some of it will be lost, some will be transferred and some will be retained. â€Å"The process of transfer of genes to the nucleus would have involved duplication of each plastid gene, and a nuclear copy of the gene becoming able to produce a functional product in the cytosol or, with appropriate targeting sequences, in other compartments.† (Zhou et al 2006) It has been hypothesized that transfer from cyanobacterial genome into the plant genome took place in horizontal gene transfer. Different metabolic pathways are determined for encoding purpose of chloroplast genome and nuclear genome. Zhou et al (2006) compared the photosynthetic networks of chloroplasts and cyanobateria. It was postulated that compound reactions in chloroplasts are less than cyanobacteria, the path length of metabolic network was longer, less dense, with localized high density areas in chloroplasts. Enzyme proteins are encoded by genomes. These enzymes actively participate in different cellular functions. Chloroplast’s modular organization is organized in a much better way than cyanobacteria. Zhou et al (2006) concluded that as there are metabolic network differences between the two, cholorplasts and cyanobacteria, it shows that modifications may occur during evolutionary period during the process of endosymbiosis. Photosynthetic process of light absorption, efficiency of energy absorption, water split and oxygen release depends on the overall metabolic network. Clegg et al (1996) studied different patterns of genes that facilitate evolution. During the process of evolution nucleotide replacement. â€Å"The chloroplast genome (cpDNA) of plants has been a focus of research in plant molecular evolution and systematics. Several features of this genome have facilitated molecular evolutionary analyses. First, the genome is small and constitutes an abundant component of cellular DNA. Second, the chloroplast genome has been extensively characterized at the molecular level providing the basic information to support comparative evolutionary research. And third, rates of nucleotide substitution are relatively slow and therefore provide the appropriate window of resolution to study plant phylogeny at deep levels of evolution.† (Clegg et al 1996) DNA sequencing in chloroplasts is a new technique and depends upon how reliable a method is for DNA sequencing. Researches across the United States have developed very latest and sophisticated techniques for DNA sequencing. However, the process is very delicate, that even very minor error can disregard the whole process. Scientific labs have new latest technology implemented and DNA sequencing is made very comprehensive, easy and done locally as well. With new changes and advances in genetic engineering and its implication in plant genomics and evolution, it has become mandatory to further research in this field, as this can become strong scientific evidence. DNA sequencing is gaining popularity because of its unique and un-identical pattern, which is unique in different plastids. With DNA sequencing use in the research, its fair and valid use is important. Other problem in studying evolution and DNA sequencing is a factor of contamination. The DNA samples collected from the chloroplasts can get contaminated. There might be contamination of bacteria, dust or organic material in the samples. DNA can also be degraded if left for long period at the labs.   Degraded DNA can give false positive or false negative increasing the probability of error in the results. The allele frequencies are often used for studying evolution in chloroplasts because chances of random match are very great and not appropriate for small number of plastids and it does not affect probability of being similar or dissimilar. Errors produced in first case does not leave enough samples for further sequencing in many cases which cause much of the frustration to scientists and law professionals Evolutionary studies show that various benefits for DNA sequencing are that DNA patterns are very unique and complete sequencing will differentiate chloroplasts from several other kinds of plastids. DNA when acted upon with polymerase can be amplified and hence smaller sample sizes are sufficient to use for sequencing. Because on single DNA strand can be split into many pieces several samples can be used for sequencing. Any cyanobacterium cell can be examined for DNA sequencing as every cell is nucleated. This gives preference of DNA sequencing of chloroplasts over other sequencing techniques. DNA sequencing also gives it preference over protein sequencing as it is more resistant to degradation. â€Å"Modular structures differ among different organisms. The similarity of overall modular structure among chloroplasts, photosynthetic bacteria, E.coli, Arabidopsis thaliana and Cyanidioschyzon merolae has been calculated and is shown as a dendrogram in Figure 2 (see Methods section for d etailed description of the similarity measurements of modules). Remarkably, all cyanobacteria exhibit very similar modular organization and are different from chloroplasts. Arabidopsis thaliana and Cyanidioschyzon merolae are clustered together with high similar modular structure. This result is consistent with the topological results (Table 1) that chloroplast metabolic network shows different characteristics.† (Zhou et al 2006) With new changes and advances in genetic engineering and its implication in plant evolution, it has become mandatory to further investigate and research in this field, as this can become strong scientific evidence. DNA sequencing is gaining popularity because of its unique and un-identical pattern, which is different in every different kinds of plant cells. With DNA sequencing use in the research, its fair and valid use is important. What genetic information is valid as evidence in chloroplasts evolution? It is of immense importance to understand that the two bands of DNA are a match even if they’re not aligned with each other. However, it is clear to the experts that band shifting requires additional analysis for interpretation of the correct results. There are so many intricacies in DNA profiling that with a slight mistake with a false similarity in different plastids. Possibilities lies in the fact that band shift can shift either more like a match or away from match. â€Å"Only comparative studies of molecular sequences have the resolution to reveal this underlying complexity. A complete description of the complexity of molecular change is essential to a full understanding of the mechanisms of evolutionary change and in the formulation of realistic models of mutational processes.† (Clegg et al 1996) Band shifting is one of the major problems in evolutionary studies today’s research face while making decisions and this has to be understood and checked for reliability in the chloroplasts evolution. In addition, they are developing special probes. In another study probe was conducted and evidence was provided even when bands were shifted but later the evidence was withdrawn because in a second probe a correction factor was found. In many such cases DNA evidence was not accepted because of the discrepancies in the results. DNA typing is becoming more popular in the chloroplasts evolution.   The Geneticists and law professional will need to work strong relation to implement DNA evidence in conviction cases.   Researchers must get trained and educated in DNA patterning and sequencing system to decide for an authentic results. There is need to set standards for the procedures and techniques used. Absence of any universally adopted system may produce discrepancies in the results. Technicians and the professionals hired for this purpose must have skilled and experienced background. In many research cases it was found that the professional involved in Lab for sequencing purpose were not skilled and had forged credentials. It is very important to update current research studies with new technology to get more and more reliable method of scrutinizing results in chloroplast evolutionary studies. However, it must be reliable and useful to investigate previous researches as well. â€Å"The work of Brinkman et al. [8] re-examines the processes that have led to the high proportion of proteins of a bacterial human pathogen, Chlamydia, that are similar to those of plants. This similarity was formerly attributed to horizontal gene transfer from plants, or plant-like host organisms, to the bacterium. Brinkman et al. [8] point out that such gene transfer is unlikely since all extant Chlamydiaceae are obligate intracellular parasites of animals. Instead, the analysis by Brinkman et al. [8] shows that the majority of the plant-like genes in Chlamydia are, in plant cells, targeted to the chloroplast. But the conclusion that this targeting of proteins to chloroplasts is necessarily a function of their origin from a plastid ancestor is not always sound. Furthermore, Martin et al. [6] did not find much similarity between Chlamydia and Arabidopsis (see Figure 1 in [6]). Clearly, further investigation is needed.† (Raven and Allen) One of the many problems cited by professionals in the plant evolution fields are the evidentiary flaws in the studies.   There are some technologies available to extract evidence from such as leaves, but they are not routinely in use.   Unfortunately, these fluids lack a â€Å"definitive set of useful genetic markers† that proves a regular handicap for a conclusive test of DNA that results in usable evidence.   In watching the results a viewer can easily assume that this type of evidence is easy to collect and test, and that it would be used in a case. The chloroplast genome has been a major focus in studying plant evolution and plant genetics (Golenberg et al., 1993; Clegg et al. 1994; Morton, 1995; Clegg et al. 1997; Morton, 1999; Stoebe and Kowllik, 1999). It is now commonly believed that chloroplasts are the consequence of an endosymbiotic event between a eukaryotic host cell and an ancestor of the cyanobacteria (Curtis and Clegg, 1984; Delwiche et al. 1995; Barbrook et al., 1998; Turmel et al. 1999). Plastids developed either from a primary endosymbiotic event or from a secondary event. One of the main points of conjecture is the whether all plastids are monophyletic or polyphyletic. The evidence appears to overwhelmingly support a monophyletic origin (Delwiche et al., 1995), yet some cases are not so clear cut (Penny and OKelly, 1991; Lockhart et al. 1992). Plastids in the red algae appear to be of polyphyletic origin relative to the green plastid lineage.   On the other hand the green algae, from which green plants evolved, later acquired their plastids from a different cyanobacterial species, in which case they would be polyphyletic to the rhodophytes. Ultimately, all plastids are monophyletic assuming there was only one universal ancestor to all life. Throughout evolution, chloroplasts (and mitochondria) appear to have lost most of their ancestral genes. If chloroplasts are descendents from free living cyanobacteria, then there has been a major reduction in the genome sizes since their endosymbiotic origin. Some chloroplast genes are thought to be transferred to the nucleus, while some genes are thought to have been transferred to the mitochondria as well (Gray and Joyce, 1989; Menaud et al., 1998). For example, in Arabidopsis thaliana, a gene coding for methionyl-tRNA synthetase in the mitochondrial genome may have originated in the chloroplast (Menaud et al. 1998). Therefore the mitochondrial genome is a mosaic of genes with different origins (Gray and Joyce, 1989) as is the nuclear genome, and possibly the chloroplast genome. Creating transgenic crops, determining the gene flow, determining the inheritance patterns, etc will be the most highlighted issues. Another fact may be the events in transgenic crops that a mechanism might be elucidated by catching a transfer event in the act, which could shed some light on the early evolution of endosymbionts with their hosts. â€Å"Despite a conservative rate of evolution and a relatively stable gene content, comparative molecular analyses reveal complex patterns of mutational changes. Non-coding regions of cpDNA diverge through insertion/deletion changes that are sometimes site dependent. Coding genes exhibit different patterns of codon bias that appear to violate the equilibrium assumptions of some evolutionary models. Rates of molecular change often vary among plant families and orders in a manner that violates the assumption of a simple molecular clock. Finally, protein-coding genes exhibit patterns of amino acid change that appear to depend on protein structure, and these patterns may reveal subtle aspects of structure/function relationships.† (Clegg, 1994) Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) which is a technique that analyzes the lengths of DNA fragments using an enzyme that cuts a specific sequence that carries a particular recognition site.   The presence or absence of the sire identifies the DNA sequence in the sample.   RFLP is one of the original applications, though it is in use to a lesser degree as newer techniques prove more efficient in DNA analysis and because it is more easily contaminated than newer techniques. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Analysis is capable of amplifying tiny samples of DNA and allows for degraded samples to be analyzed.   It is also easily contaminated so great care must be taken in the collection and preservation of the samples. Short Tandem Repeat (STR) Analysis evaluates specific regions of nuclear DNA because the variability of the regions are used to distinguish DNA profiles from one another.   It is with this technology that the FBI uses a standard set of 13 regions to match DNA profiles to individuals in real cases as well as on television shows using the national CODIS database. (HGP, 2004) Conclusion Therefore, only highly skilled, educated and trained professionals should be hired for this purpose. Skilled professionals, reliable procedures, well working equipments should be used. Scientists should be trained and educated about the new techniques and methods and their validity so that they may take accurate decisions. While discussing such an important topic, it’s very crucial to understand the mechanisms of Gene transfer. Here the question arises why would genes be transferred to the nucleus in the first place? What selective advantage could there be etc.   One opinion in this regard is that when a gene moves from the chloroplast to the nucleus, there is a change in context from an asexual to a sexual genome. Recombination can then take place to reduce genetic load (Race et al. 1999). The case in plants is, however, different, i.e. much lower. Concluding the matter, it can be stated that, understanding chloroplast genomes and mechanisms of gene regulation will be of utmost importance in future. Though a lot of work has already been done but there’s still the room for improvement. References Dear Customer: I have finally revised this document as per your request. If you need further help then don’t hesitate to contact me. Don’t forget to add positive feedback if you like this work. Please note down my email and delete this message. Thank you! From Writer: Sam Shf [[emailprotected]] Barbrook, A.C., Lockhart, P.J. and Howe, C.J. (1998) Phylogenetic analysis of plastid origins based on secA sequences. Current Genetics. 34:336-341 Briscoe, Katie. Plant cell plastids. Retrieved from http://sun.menloschool.org/~cweaver/cells/c/plastids/ Clegg, M.T., Cummings, M.P. and Durbin, M. (1997) The evolution of plant nuclear genes. PNAS USA. 94:7791-7798 Clegg, M.T., Gaut, B.S., Learn Jr., G.H. and Morton, B. (1994) Rates and patterns of chloroplast DNA evolution. PNAS USA. 6795-6801 Curtis, S. and Clegg, M.T. (1984) Molecular evolution of chloroplast DNA sequences. Mol. Biol. Evol. 1:291-301 Delwiche, C.F., Kuhsel, M. and Palmer, J.D. (1995) Phylogenetic analysis of tufA sequences indicates a cyanobacterial origin of all plastids. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 4:110-128 Doolittle WF, Boucher Y, Nesbà ¸ CL, Douady CJ, Andersson JO, Roger AJ. How big is the iceberg of which organellar genes in nuclear genomes are but the tip? Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 2003;358:39–58. [PubMed] [Free Full Text] Golenberg, E.M., Clegg, M.T., Durbin, M.L., Doebley, J. Ma, D.P. (1993) Evolution of a noncoding region of the chloroplast genome. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 2:52-64 Gray, M. (1989) The evolutionary origins of organelles. TIG. 5: John A Raven 1 and John F Allen2. Genomics and chloroplast evolution: what did cyanobacteria do for plants? Genome Biol. 2003; 4(3): 209. Published online 2003 March 3. Copyright  © 2003 BioMed Central Ltd Joyce, P.B.M. and Gray, M.W. (1989) Chloroplast-like transfer RNA genes expressed in wheat mitochondria. Nucleic Acids research. 17:5461-5476. Human Genome Project. DNA Forensics. September 2004. ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/elsi/forensics.shtml Lockhart, P.J., Howe, C.J., Bryant, D.A., Beanland, T.J. and Larkum, A.W.D. (1992) Substitutional bias confounds inference of cyanelle origins from sequence data. J. Mol. Evol. 34:153-162 Mereschkowsky C. ÃÅ"ber Natur und Ursprung der Chromatophoren im Pflanzenreiche. Biol Centralbl. 1905;25:593–604. M T Clegg, B S Gaut, G H Learn, Jr, and B R Morton (1994). Rates and patterns of chloroplast DNA evolution. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. v.91(15); Jul 19, 1994 Molnar, Sebastian (1999) Chloroplast Genetics. Retrieved from geocities.com/we_evolve/Plants/chloroplast.html Morton, B.R. (1995) Neighbouring base composition and transversion/transition bias in a comparison of rice and maize chloroplast noncoding regions. PNAS USA. 92:9717-9721 Morton, B.R. (1999) Strand asymmetry and codon bias in the chloroplast genome of Euglena gracilis. PNAS USA. 96:5123-5128 Penny, D. and OKelly, C.J. (1991) Seeds of a universal tree. Nature. 350:106-107 Race, H., Hermann, R.G. and Martin, W. (1999) Why have organelles retained genomes? TIG. 15:364-370 Stoebe, B. and Kowallik, K.L. (1999) Gene-cluster analysis in chloroplast genomics. TIG. 15:344-347 Turmel, M., Otis, C. and Lemieux, C. (1999) The complete chloroplast DNA sequence of the green alga Nephrselmis olivacea: insights into the architecture of ancestral chloroplast genomes. PNAS USA. 96:10248-10253 Zhuo Wang, Xin-Guang Zhu, Yazhu Chen, Yuanyuan Li, Jing Hou, Yixue Li   and Lei Liu  ,  (2006) Exploring photosynthesis evolution by comparative analysis of metabolic networks between chloroplasts and photosynthetic bacteria

Urgent Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Urgent - Essay Example The Indians would be under the protection of the government of United States. If a white man is killed by an Indian, The responsible Indian would be brought for trial and punishment. The converse would also be true. The Indian tribes were also promised annuities by the U.S. government. The Indian were largely satisfied with the provisions of this treaty as their concerns were addresses. However, the treaty could not last long due to encroachment by tribes. According to this treaty, Spain returned to France the territory of Louisiana which France had ceded to Spain in 1763. When the government of United States became aware of the transfer, it raised concern over a threat to its security. With this treaty, France and Napoleon became very powerful as it had the mouth of Mississippi and the outlet for the produce of seven states. Later Napoleon disregarded the treaty and sold Louisiana to United States which was reluctantly agreed by

Kuder and Major paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Kuder and Major paper - Essay Example Workplace is extremely important to me where everyone’s views are respected with people being supportive to each other. I strongly believe that workplace must be attractive enough so that one can devote maximum time there willingly and not out of compulsion. I would like to earn prestige from my colleagues and seniors through my hard work and commitment and therefore organization should provide me enough leeway to go ahead in my chosen field. That is what precisely I mean by prestige and why it is important to me. I know that I will be able to climb higher ladders in my career path through my zeal and devotion to the work that I willingly choose. So I am not concerned about salary as much as I am bothered about my recognition in the job and that is necessary to have a sense of achievement in my life. While pursuing my high school in Qatar, I was determined to acquire a Bachelors degree from a good university in the US. The variety of subjects in my course provides me a basic and essential understanding about several important disciplines such as management, administration, finance, managerial accounts; banking, general management; knowledge of all these subjects provide me a basic platform to choose from the numerous career paths available to me. Often, I think and work innovatively too; however, I see that ‘innovation’ in work values, in Kuders assessment is registered low. As I said I would prefer to do my work independently without much of the supervision except wherever necessary. From my self-knowledge, I can state that while working at Qatar Petroleum for almost four months, I worked with my colleagues and modified ways so that the total service time to customers got reduced by 25%. I always have a feeling that my work is important to me and I see myself as an important link in the whole chain of process to accomplish a given task. I do recognize that my inefficiency will affect not only the work of others

The Alcohol Advertising And Adolescent Drinking Media Essay

The Alcohol Advertising And Adolescent Drinking Media Essay Alcohol is the most popular recreational drug in America, so beer and liquor companies advertise on various television channels. Recent research has discovered cable television shows with a significant proportion of teenage viewers are also those that have the most commercials for alcohol. There are many explanations why adolescents are influenced in to drink alcohol and there is reason to believe television advertisements have a large role. As alcohol advertisers turn towards cable television the exposure to younger viewers will escalate. The amount of money spent on alcohol advertising on cable television increased by 137% from 2001 to 2006. The extra money spent attributed to an increase of the number of alcohol commercials by 176% (Chung, Garfield, Elliott 2010). With over double the amount of new advertisements many alcohol companies started to compete against each other for the best commercials. For instance, Miller lite aired a commercial about a group of friends at a bar who all agree their one friend is unmanly for ordering a Bud lite. Competitive advertising of alcohol has resulted in new branding techniques that are effective across all viewers including the adolescent audience (Jones Jernigan, 2010). Assessing the influence of alcohol advertising on peoples drinking habits is a challenging task. Alcohol is an adult product, yet most underage consumers are already aware of its existence. This unavoidably limits the potential effects that alcohol advertising could have on increasing overall consumption. Due to the existing popularity of this product, advertisers focus on creating an appealing brand rather than increasing the total market. While new consumers are not advertisers target, the power of alcohol advertising campaigns to shape consumption habits cannot be neglected. Criticism has been directed toward alcohol advertising, particularly regarding the use of image (lifestyle) advertising, and its potential influence on adolescent alcohol consumption. This research study sought to determine if adolescents who drink, or intend to drink alcohol at some future time, find image advertisements for alcohol more appealing than product advertisements. 40 college students, ages 18 to 20, volunteered to fill out the survey. This study is focused on attitudes and beliefs towards alcohol brands and advertising rather than on consumption behavior. Attitudes and beliefs about alcohol advertisements are not irrelevant to understanding how advertising might influence consumption. Evidence of an association between preference for image advertisements and intent to drink in the future has been found in previous studies and experiments. When considering whether advertising has an impact upon young peoples alcohol intake, it is important to recognize that drinking alcohol can be influenced by a range of psychological, social and environmental factors. Parents, siblings, and groups of friends can have a significant influence. They can provide behavioral role models and establish a positive attitude towards drinking. Although this research survey is concerned with the effects of advertising of alcoholic beverages on adolescents alcohol consumption, it is beneficial to understand the other factors associated with the onset of alcohol related behavior. Surveys of teenagers and young adults have determined that alcohol consumption is often significantly related to peer-group influences. A particularly powerful predictor of their drinking behavior is whether their friends drink alcohol. Research has indicated that adolescents may be especially inclined to consume alcohol if their best friend also does. It was also found that if a teenagers best friend drank they were more likely to label themselves as a drinker (Wilks, Callan Austin, 1989). In a televised commercial for 1800 tequila an actor posed the question, What ever happened to best buddies? He goes on to demean people who have hundreds of virtual friends online then finished the commercial with the statement, A buddy is somebody who you share your 1800 tequila with. Parental influences can have important effects on teenager alcohol consumption as well. Most of the time parental rules about drinking come into conflict with peer-group norms. These rules may exert a powerful influence over teenagers expressed intentions to drink alcohol in the future, possibly weakening those intentions. However, such effects may be limited to young people who have so far not felt any social pressures to drink from their peer group. Teenagers with friends who drink may be more likely to reject family restrictions on alcohol consumption especially if they had their own involvements that lead to positive experiences about alcohol. An important note to keep in mind is further evidence has indicated that drinking onset is not a simple matter of copycat behavior. Dissimilar young people make different assessments of relevant group activities and beliefs linked to drinking (Thomsen Rekve, 2006). According to the World Health Organization, alcohol advertising can produce positive perceptions of drinking in all people and as an outcome young people may be more susceptible to possessing pro-drinking attitudes. The World Health Organization has two reasons to believe why advertising can cause this. The first of these is that exposure to alcohol advertising over time can lead young people to perceive drinking as a normal behavior and, as a result, an activity in which they wish to participate. The second reason is that alcohol advertising may reach children and encourage alcohol consumption well before they are legally old enough to purchase the product. In a survey with children, the majority answered that they believed alcohol advertising can cause alcohol consumption. This discovery along with evidence that mere awareness of alcohol advertisements could be linked to positive beliefs about alcohol, which is in turn related with future intent to drink. In this context, there is no surprise that liking of alcohol advertisements has also emerged as a significant factor in understanding potential effects (Babor, 2003). In 1984 an experiment was led by Kohn and Smart who showed a recording of Super Bowl 1982 to 125 male college students. Three versions of the program were produced that included zero, four or nine beer advertisements. Refreshments were available and among the drinks, participants could choose from soft drinks or beer. One half of the students were given immediate access to beer while the second half had to wait 30 minutes before given beverages. When beer was available it was consumed and the delay in beer resulted in compensatory behavior in the second group who had the largest amount of consumption. This experiment found that when alcohol advertising occurred there was a temporary upward in beer consumption. Even in conditions where consumption was decreasing, a first time appearance of beer advertisement could temporarily boost consumption again (Kohn Smart, 1984). Kohn and Smart conducted a similar experiment with college women except the independent variable was switched with w ine. This experiment proved women consumed more wine when they saw four or more wine advertisements compared to none. These results indicate that television alcohol advertising is capable of triggering a short term effect on alcohol consumption. Such studies may demonstrate the ability of advertisements to shape a preference for one type of drink over another, but they do not indicate anything about the role advertising might play in the genesis of alcohol consumption in individuals (Kohn Smart, 1984). Alcohol advertising is often associated with sports and athletic activities. For example Coors beer had a campaign that honored multiple athletes including the Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway. Advertisements that feature athlete images tend to perpetuate both the brands and consumers denial of potential consequences of drinking. Along with athletic imagery, critics view other lifestyle imagery as inappropriate. Some alcohol advertisements give the consumer an unrealistic view of what the products do, how they make the consumer feel, and how they fit in with an individuals lifestyle. For instance alcohol may be portrayed in a commercial as a reward at the end of a work day. In advertisements drinking is often viewed as a complement to a celebration of life. Certain television advertisements present alcohol as having the ability to make an individual attractive to the opposite sex or a romance booster. For example, Bud Lite Lime had a commercial on Ultimate Flight Club 132 featuring a young attractive women lying across hundreds of limes. She was not dressed and the limes were used to censor her private parts. She also had a tattoo on her rear end of a Bud Lite Lime logo. Even though she was not holding a beer, this television commercial led the viewers to associate sex and attractive women with Bud Lite Lime. Some critics agree alcohol commercials are associated with sexual imagery more than any other products (Fox, Krugman, Fletcher, Fisher 1998). I conducted an original research survey involving students, ages 18 through 20, from Temple University located in Philadelphia. The questions pertained to the students memory of alcohol advertisements they were exposed to while watching their normal television shows. The goal was to determine how many underage students were exposed to alcohol advertising through the television medium. The survey also sought to determine what kind of advertising appeal techniques they noticed and how they felt about the advertisements. These seven multiple choice questions were asked to 40 college students: How many hours a day, on average, do you watch TV? a. Never; b. less than one hour; c. 1-2 hours; d. 2-3 hours; e. More than 3 hours What are your favorite types of television programs? (Circle all that apply) a. Reality TV; b. Music related/music video; c. Game shows; d. Talk shows; e. Sitcoms/comedies; g. Drama; h. Nature; i. Sports; j. News. Do you ever see alcohol advertisements while watching TV? a. Yes; b. No. What do you remember about any of these TV ads you saw? (Circle all that apply) a. An animal or cartoon like character; b. The people drinking look attractive or sexy; c. A great party was happening; d. The actors who were drinking were physically attracted to each other; e. The people drinking looked like they had strength and athletic ability; f. The people in the advertisements looked popular or part of the in-crowd; g. The ads were funny or amusing; h. The ads portrayed drinking as a great way to meet people; i. the ads discussed contests and prizes; j. I remember the alcohol brand. Did anyone in any of the TV ads look like they could be under 21 years old? a. Yes; b. No. As a whole, did the TV ads you see make you think any of the following? (Circle all that apply) a. Drinking was a boring thing to do; b. Drinking was a good way to get guys or girls; c. Drinking was important for a real good party; d. Drinking will make you popular; e. drinking was fun or funny; f. drinking could be harmful to your health; g. It is better for people to drink responsibly; h. It is better for people to wait until they are 21 to drink; i. The advertisements had no effect at all on what I thought or felt. The role of alcohol advertising appeal was investigated in further longitudinal research that followed though 18-year olds until the age of 21 years old. The study had 630 participants and examined the effect of televised alcohol advertising and allegiance to specific brands of beer. The results found that earlier liking of televised alcohol advertisements and accompanying brand allegiance were associated with greater volume of beer consumption later on. Many self-reports of aggressive behavior from the participants were associated with drinking. Almost all of these individuals expressing aggressive behavior were documented with liking alcohol advertisements when the experiment began (Casswell Zhang, 1998). Although many critics recognize that college students decisions to drink often come from peer pressure, the images presented in advertising positively reinforce such decisions. Alcohol is the most popular recreational drug in America, so beer and liquor companies advertise on various television channels. Recent research has discovered cable television shows with a significant proportion of teenage viewers are also those that have the most commercials for alcohol. These advertisers are reaching the wrong demographic and are certainly affecting the younger audiences. (The Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth) Should alcohol advertising be modified to limit exposure to underage viewers? There are many explanations why adolescents are influenced in to drink alcohol and there is reason to believe television advertisements have a large role. As alcohol advertisers turn towards cable television the exposure to younger viewers will escalate. The amount of money spent on alcohol advertising on cable television increased by 137% from 2001 to 2006. The extra money spent attributed to an increase of the number of alcohol commercials by 176%. (Schuster) With over double the amount of new advertisements many alcohol companies started to compete against each other for the best commercials. For instance, Miller lite aired a commercial about a group of friends at a bar who all agree their one friend is unmanly for ordering a Bud lite. Competitive advertising of alcohol has resulted in new branding techniques that are effective across all audiences including the adolescent audience. (Jones) The use of iconic characters, humor, and sexual innuendo are some methods used in alcoholic commercials that evidently attract younger viewers. For example, Keith Stone is portrayed as an influential character who acts smooth because he always has a 30 pack of Keystone. The Most Interesting Man in the World is another iconic character that many underage viewers can relate to the product Dos Equis. Young people can also be drawn to the music used in these commercials and associate the songs with the alcoholic product. It is true that no matter what anybody does, teenagers will never stop viewing TV. It is also true that alcohol companies have to support their business somehow. Just like any other company, advertisements are important to get a product out there and known. However, it is possible to do it in a way where they do not have to make drinking look so appealing to younger kids. Companies could easily not use sex appeal or partying in their ads and still get their product out and known to everyone.

The Role of Technology in Education

Our school has an extremely low budget of approximately eighteen million dollars. Where should the money go? Should it go to the English department, or the math and science buildings? Should the money be invested in expanding our school and giving raises to hard-working teachers? Or should the money be invested in the ever so popular increasing demand of computers†¦ Should we get linked to the increasing Information Superhighway? In education, the issue of technology is constantly rising in debate. Should schools spend money on computers and networking which is an extremely hard field to keep updated both in software and hardware? Schools have found both the benefits and the drawbacks in investing in computers and technology. The use of Information Technology benefits students greatly in many areas. Information technology has encouraged the development of productivity, increased student involvement and enabled students to complete joint projects with students in other cities, states and even countries (Carey 26). Studies on students who have twenty four hour access to laptops have shown that students shown an increase in problem-solving and critical thing sills, enhanced learning in core academic subjects, produce higher quality work and have even provided more one-on one time between teachers and students (THE Journal 16). Technology is an integral component of learning. Being that students learn at different rates, technology can individualize instruction. They can move at an appropriate pace providing a solid foundation of basic skills. Computer based technologies can administer individualized lesson sequences that branch and remediate according to student's unique needs, quickly and automatically track progress and generate reports (Peck and Dorricot 11). The Internet provides a communications tool, which can assist students in networking within and between schools. Internet technology permits swift student-to-student communication through relatively inexpensive e-mail. Through the Internet students are also able to find Internet pen pals and experience the world through the vision of other students (Carey 24). The Internet can also be used in cooperation with the library. It can provide students with an enormous and readily accessible database with research materials and therefore may be used to research different topics (Carey 25). Not only can students learn on the Internet, but they can also teach about areas in which they have knowledge and sills. Students have been able to create web pages to display to people all over the world. School newspapers and college web pages can also do the same. These pages can be read anywhere by anyone and has thus provided for greater publication (Carey 25). Although computers and technology provide for much advancement in education, there are some basic problems. These difficulties range from psychological addiction to unethical behavior and inappropriate actions of technology producers and users. As for addiction, some persons are so addicted to its use to the extent that they have actually flunked out of college, lost their marriage partners, become mentally sick, given up their jobs, and decreased their human contracts. Some persons avoid personal contacts by overusing the Internet so to decrease their personal communication with persons. Some have also gone into Internet seclusion, while still taking care of daily routines so failing to work and deal with people. With such addiction there provides no room for advancement in education (Eddy and Spaulding 392). Technology can alter the content of what schoolchildren think about. Many computer experiences for students are through virtual reality and are visually appealing. Students can look at three dimensional animals, such as sharks, seals and whales on their computer screens. But what teachers don't realize is that students get easily engaged in these instances, and only get to see what is on the computer screen and not outside. Instead of being subjected to such images, students must be able to realize that they should take the chance and look at the things outside and not just the through the technological world (Schwarz 79). Computers are also high-maintenance supplies for schools. Unlike books, which represent generally fixed costs, technology requires a significant, continuous monetary input. The useful lifetimes of computers and their software are sometimes measurable in months, not years. Costs for potentially short-lived computer hardware and software quickly become enormous. Also, these costs may be difficult to predict with accuracy as new products are developed (Garrett 114). Many schools have attempted to spend the money, take risks and jump onto the attractive road of technology. Among these schools are the schools in Tasmanian, the Milwaukee Public Schools and Seton Hall. The Tasmanian government has announced that they are buying fourteen thousand computers to ensure that each government school would have at least one modern computer for every five students. The plan is due to take effect during the next three years with a total of forty-nine million dollars being spent. Under the program, every State school will have Internet access and full-time teachers will receive laptop computers. Schools will be cabled to provide high-speed local networks connecting school computers while the use of video conferencing and related technology will be extended to help remote school and professional development (Colman 11). The Milwaukee Public School district just passed a proposal to give laptop computers to twenty-four thousand high school students in their school system. As for funding for this proposal, most money would be raised through public donations. An article in the Business Journal Serving Greater Milwaukee criticized this decision making some very important key points. They stated that the Milwaukee Public School system should worry about their problems basic to education before they should worry about computers. The article stated that too many students cannot read at a sufficient level, lack sufficient math skills, do not show up for class regularly and are dropping out of school. In all the article states, â€Å"Milwaukee Public Schools must first resolve its basic problems before it can even think about throwing cash around for computers that students will take with them when they graduate (Laptop Lunacy 62).† On a similar tract, Seton Hall University has enabled a new program that provides each incoming freshman with a new laptop. This laptop then becomes their responsibility, which they should do most homework on and bring to class daily. Each dormitory and classroom is equipped with hookups for the Internet (Eddy and Spaulding 391). In North Carolina, IBM has even had the privilege of working with educators in Charlotte and Durham on the introduction of an Internet technology that helps parents, students and teachers collaborate together. In the two years it has been in place in Charlotte, parents have found ways to volunteer such as editing the electronic newspaper, teachers have developed web sites for homework assignments and students have begun online discussions of schoolwork (Coggins 54). Working as a computer consultant, I see the impact computers and technology have on each and every student daily. When I work, I see students e-mailing their teachers homework, preparing presentations for class and even finding research without opening a book. And most of this work not only has to be done in the library, but can be carried into the student's dormitories if they would like to work after hours. In all, I believe that technology in education is a good thing. It provides for a greater and more extensive way to research, prepare and work altogether.

Exploring Deborah Tannen’s “Sex, Lies, and Conversation

Miscommunications Deborah Tannen’s â€Å"Sex, Lies, and Conversation† is a brief look at how men and women communicate with one another and the cross-culture differences between their individual styles and needs for conversation. Women often say that men do not listen or do not want to talk. Tannen gives reasons why women tend to believe that men are not listening, and shows that just because men have a different approach to communicating does not mean they are not listening to what women are saying.She uses several different examples to back up her statements including early childhood differences in communication between girls and boys, the body language men use and how women tend to interpret it, and how women tend to receive information while communicating. Men and women have very different expectations when it comes to communicating with one another. The way women converse varies greatly from the way men tend to converse. Even young girls and boys have very differen t ways of communicating with one another.Young children tend to play with other children of the same gender, and the boys and girls tend to have completely different social interactions with one another. Tannen states that â€Å"these systematic differences in childhood socialization make talk between women and men like cross-cultural communication, heir to all the attraction and pitfalls of that enticing but difficult enterprise (51). † We see in women and in young girls, talk creates intimacy and intimacy creates friendships, but men and boys tend to bond more on doing things with one another rather than talking to each other.Even the stance men take when talking varies from a woman’s. Women tend to think men are not listening to them based on the position men take when carrying on a conversation. Most women, when talking, tend to look one another in the eye. Men on the other hand tend to look around the room, occasionally catching a glance at the person they are con versing with. Women also tend to stay on one topic for longer periods of time than men. Women are also active listeners and tend to â€Å"make more listener-noise, such as ‘mhm,’ uhuh,’ and ‘yeah,’ to show ‘I’m with you’ (53). Men tend to be more silent listeners. All these misinterpretations of communication tend to drive a wedge between men and women. A big reason communication fails between men and women is a lack of understanding the different ways in which men and women communicate. When women expect the person they are communicating with to face them directly, make listener-noises, and stay on topic, it is easy to see how they view men’s unfocused attention, silent listening, and scattered topics as men not listening to what they are saying. These differences begin to clarify why women and men have such different expectations about communication in marriage (54). † Women use talk as a form a gossip, where men a re usually more antagonistic in conversation. Women tend to be offended by the oppositional form of communication, and men find the random babblings of a woman to be useless and unimportant. Understanding these differences as cross-cultural rather than individual can help forge solutions to these problems without placing blame on the individual. Communication between men and women is certainly cross-cultural.Some examples of this theory are early childhood differences in communication between girls and boys, the body language men use and how women tend to interpret it, and how women tend to receive information while communicating. The differences between men and women should not be judged but rather accepted and respected. If they can do that, improvement in our communication will surely follow. Men and women will always communicate differently, but at least if they understand the differences they can move forward. ? Work Cited Tannen, Deborah. â€Å"Sex, Lies, and Conversation. â €  The Norton Mix. Ed. Sieg, Judy. New York: W. W. Norton, 2012. Print.