Comarative Analysis of Video Games

Comparative Study of Video Gaming Systems Final Report Due Date: August 10, 2011 Table of Contents Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦4 Research Data†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦5 Results†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 17 Conclusions†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã ¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦24 Recommendations†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 25 Bibliography†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 27 List of Figures Graph 1. 1: Role-Playing Games Bar Graph Graph 1. 2: Adventure Games Bar Graph Graph 1. 3: Platformer Games Bar Graph Table 1. 1: Xbox 360 – Hardware SpecificationT able 1. 2: Xbox 360 – Total Games in Preferred Genres Table 1. 3: Wii – Hardware Specification Table 1. 4: Wii – Total Games in Preferred Genres Table 1. 5: Playstation 3 – Hardware Specificaton Table 1. 6: Playstation 3 – Total Games in Preferred Genres Table 1. 7: Comparing Costs Table 1. 8: Comparing Hardware Specifications Table 1. 9: Comparing Games Offered pt. 1 Table 1. 10: Comparing Games Offered pt. 2 Table 1. 11: Comparing Target Demographic Table 1. 12: Comparing Common Hardware Malfunctions and Glitches Table 1. 13: Comparing Movie-Playing Features Table 1. 14: Overall RankingTable 1. 15: Retail Locations and Prices Introduction Pascal, after remodeling your house and adding a bonus/entertainment room, you mentioned that you would love to buy a new video gaming system. The last video gaming system that you owned was a Nintendo 64, which pales in comparison to the systems available today. Since owning a Nintendo 64, your experience with playing video games has been limited to playing MMORPGs (Massive Multi-player Online Role Playing Games) on your personal computer. I have been researching your options and am constantly considering your preferences and restrictions.Your primary preference is game genre, with your most preferred genre being Role-Playing. Several other genres that you are interested in are Action, Adventure, Platformers, and Strategy. Your only real restriction is a spending limit of $700 for your entire gaming setup. Other preferences that have been noted are the system’s Blu-Ray capabilities, and that the system targets a mature audience. The three most prominent video gaming systems on the market that fit your preferences are Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Nintendo’s Wii, and Sony’s Playstation 3. The following criteria are being used to evaluate your options. Cost * Hardware Specifications * Games Offered * Target demographic * Common Hardware Malfunctions and Glitches * Movie- Playing Features The remaining contents of this comparative study will be organized into the several sections. RESEARCH DATA will be presented organized first by option and then by evaluative criteria. Each of the evaluative criteria will be compared in the RESULTS section by showing the results for each option side-by-side. These results will be totaled and a final CONCLUSION will be made. Finally, I will make a RECOMMENDATION as to the most appropriate course of action.Research Data Microsoft Xbox 360 Cost: $199. 99 – includes a 4GB console with built-in wi-fi, one wireless controller, A/V cables, and a one-month subscription to Xbox LIVE Gold. Hardware Specification: The following table shows vital hardware specifications that are important to your gaming preferences. Table 1. 1: Xbox 360 – Hardware Specification * Media Type| * DVD| * CPU| * 3. 2  GHz PowerPC Tri-Core Xenon| * Internal Memory| * 4 GB Flash| * RAM| * 512 MB| * Online Services| * Xbox Live| * Onlin e Multi-Player Services| * Yes| * Connector Types| 1 x AV cable port,5 x USB 2. , 1 x Kinect port,1 x HDMI output1 x SPDIF output,1 x Ethernet| * * Games Offered: The following table shows how many Xbox 360 games are offered in your three most preferred genres. Table 1. 2: Xbox 360 – Total Games in Preferred Genres Genre| Titles Available| Action| 563| Role-Playing| 108| Strategy| 48| The following images show compiled game review scores by genre to show which console does best for several preferable genres. The results have been split into two types for each console. The lighter shaded color bars show the average score for all games for the specified system in that genre.The darker shaded color bars show the average score of just the top 5 best-scoring games in that genre for the specified system. Graph 1. 1: Role-Playing Games Bar Graph Graph 1. 2: Adventure Games Bar Graph Graph 1. 3: Platformer Games Bar Graph Target Demographic: The target demographic of the Xbox 360 is most easily identified and quantified by looking at the ESRB ratings of the most popular game titles. The following is a list of the number of Xbox 360 titles offered for each ESRB game rating. EVERYONE – 303 Titles rated E (Everyone) have content that may be suitable for ages 6 and older.Titles in this category may contain minimal cartoon, fantasy or mild violence and/or infrequent use of mild language. EVERYONE 10+ – 213 Titles rated E10+ (Everyone 10 and older) have content that may be suitable for ages 10 and older. Titles in this category may contain more cartoon, fantasy or mild violence, mild language and/or minimal suggestive themes. TEEN – 535 Titles rated T (Teen) have content that may be suitable for ages 13 and older. Titles in this category may contain violence, suggestive themes, crude humor, minimal blood, simulated gambling, and/or infrequent use of strong language. MATURE – 491Titles rated M (Mature) have content that may be suitable for persons ages 17 and older. Titles in this category may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content and/or strong language. RATING PENDING – 149 Titles listed as RP (Rating Pending) have been submitted to the ESRB and are awaiting final rating. (This symbol appears only in advertising prior to a game's release. ) Common Hardware Malfunctions and Glitches: The ten most common hardware malfunctions and glitches for the Xbox 360 are as follow: * 3 red flashing lights, also known as â€Å"Red Ring of Death† * Open tray and/or disc error messages * No video or only audio DVD laser replacement * DVD drive replacement * System freezes, dotted video or similar issues * 1 red light, E74 * 2 red lights * Stuck DVD tray * White screen Most of these issues must be dealt with by professionals and will be costly. Self-repair is a possibility, but is not recommended. Most systems run into issues eventually, but the Xbox runs into hardware problems more frequently than the other options. Movie-Playing Features: The Xbox 360 is capable of playing the following types of multimedia discs (list does not include Blu-Ray): * Xbox 360 Discs * Xbox 1 Discs * DVDs * CDs * DVD-R * DVD+R * DVD-RW * DVD+RW * CD-R CD-RW * Dual Discs Nintendo’s Wii Cost: $149. 99 – includes one remote controller, one nun chuck controller, one wheel controller, one sensor bar, and Mario Kart for Wii. Hardware Specification: The following table shows vital hardware specifications that are important to your gaming preferences. Table 1. 3: Wii – Hardware Specification * Media Type| * Flash Memory Card, * Nintendo Wii Disc, * Nintendo GameCube Disc| * CPU| * 729 MHzIBM PowerPC â€Å"Broadway†| * Internal Memory| * 512 MB| * RAM| * 512 MB| * Online Services| * Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, WiiConnect24,| * Online Multi-Player Services| * Yes| Connector Types| (4 pin USB Type A),4 x Game controller,Component video output,Composite video output,S-Video output,2 x USB| * Games Offered: The following table shows how many Wii games are offered in your three most preferred genres. Table 1. 4: Wii – Total Games in Preferred Genres Genre| Titles Available| Action| 593| Role-Playing| 33| Strategy| 32| Also, see the graphics and information in the section Microsoft’s Xbox 360 – Games Offered. Target Demographic: The target demographic of the Nintendo Wii is most easily identified and quantified by looking at the ESRB ratings of the most popular game titles.The following is a list of the number of Wii titles offered for each ESRB game rating. EVERYONE – 916 Titles rated E (Everyone) have content that may be suitable for ages 6 and older. Titles in this category may contain minimal cartoon, fantasy or mild violence and/or infrequent use of mild language. EVERYONE 10+ – 355 Titles rated E10+ (Everyone 10 and older) have content that may be suitable for ages 10 and older. Titles in this category may contain more cartoo n, fantasy or mild violence, mild language and/or minimal suggestive themes. TEEN – 374Titles rated T (Teen) have content that may be suitable for ages 13 and older. Titles in this category may contain violence, suggestive themes, crude humor, minimal blood, simulated gambling, and/or infrequent use of strong language. MATURE – 57 Titles rated M (Mature) have content that may be suitable for persons ages 17 and older. Titles in this category may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content and/or strong language. RATING PENDING – 61 Titles listed as RP (Rating Pending) have been submitted to the ESRB and are awaiting final rating. This symbol appears only in advertising prior to a game's release. ) Common Hardware Malfunctions and Glitches: Three common hardware malfunctions and Glitches for the Wii console are as follows: * Power Supply Issue * WiConnect 24 Issue * Dual Layer Wii Disc Problem All of these minor issues are covered by warranty and do not occur on the same scale as other video gaming system. The most common issue relating to the Wii system occurs when an excess of light interferes with the Wii Remote. Movie-Playing Features: The Nintendo Wii is only capable of playing Wii and GameCube discs and does ot support the playing of DVD or Blu-Ray Discs. Sony’s Playstation 3 Cost: $299. 99 – Includes access to the Playstation Network at no charge, 160GB harddrive, and one wireless controller. Hardware Specification: The following table shows vital hardware specifications that are important to your gaming preferences. Table 1. 5: Playstation 3 – Hardware Specificaton * Media Type| * Blu-Ray| * CPU| * 3. 2 GHz IBM Cell Broadband Engine (8-core)| * Internal Memory| * 160 GB HDD| * RAM| * 256 MB XDRAM| * Online Services| * Playstation Network| * Online Multi-Player Services| * Yes| Connector Types| 2 x USB,1 x Ethernet,1 x HDMI output,1 x PlayStation 3 AV output,1 x SPDIF output| * Games Offered: The fol lowing table shows how many Playstation 3 games are offered in your three most preferred genres. Table 1. 6: Playstation 3 – Total Games in Preferred Genres Genre| Titles Available| Action| 536| Role-Playing| 117| Strategy| 33| Also, see the graphics and information in the section Microsoft’s Xbox 360 – Games Offered. Target Demographic: The target demographic of the Playstation 3 is most easily identified and quantified by looking at the ESRB ratings of the most popular game titles.The following is a list of the number of Playstation 3 titles offered for each ESRB game rating. EVERYONE – 481 Titles rated E (Everyone) have content that may be suitable for ages 6 and older. Titles in this category may contain minimal cartoon, fantasy or mild violence and/or infrequent use of mild language. EVERYONE 10+ – 186 Titles rated E10+ (Everyone 10 and older) have content that may be suitable for ages 10 and older. Titles in this category may contain more car toon, fantasy or mild violence, mild language and/or minimal suggestive themes. TEEN – 529 Titles rated T (Teen) have content that may be suitable for ages 13 and older.Titles in this category may contain violence, suggestive themes, crude humor, minimal blood, simulated gambling, and/or infrequent use of strong language. MATURE – 373 Titles rated M (Mature) have content that may be suitable for persons ages 17 and older. Titles in this category may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content and/or strong language. RATING PENDING – 145 Titles listed as RP (Rating Pending) have been submitted to the ESRB and are awaiting final rating. (This symbol appears only in advertising prior to a game's release. ) Common Hardware Malfunctions and Glitches:The five most common Playstation 3 hardware malfunctions and glitches are as follows: * Yellow light of death (3 red light beeps) * Not reading games/blu-rays * No video * Stuck discs * No power Doing self-re pair is very difficult on the Playstation 3 is highly discouraged. Most of these issues are not easy fixes and require the replacement of key components. Movie-Playing Features: The Playstation 3 is capable of playing the following types of multimedia discs (list includes Blu-Ray): * Playstation 1,2, and 3 Discs * Blu-Ray Discs * DVDs * CDs * DVD-R * DVD+R * DVD-RW DVD+RW * CD-R * CD-RW * Dual Discs RESULTS Comparing Costs The following table shows your three options with their prices and a ranking based on affordability. Table 1. 7: Comparing Costs Option| Cost| Ranking (1-Best Option)| Microsoft’s Xbox 360| $199. 99| 2| Nintendo’s Wii| $149. 99| 1| Sony’s Playstation 3| $299. 99| 3| BEST OPTION: All Because you have already identified that your spending limit is $700 for a gaming setup, none of these options go against your cost preference. Cost is not a preventative factor in purchasing a video gaming system based on this information.However, if you decide th at you would like to readjust your spending limit given the substantial difference between your limit and the prices of the systems, the Wii is your best option. Comparing Hardware Specifications The table below lists the hardware specifications for each option, and also includes the online capabilities of each system and their respective networks. Table 1. 8: Comparing Hardware Specifications | Options| Hardware Specification| Xbox 360| Wii| Playstation 3| * * Media Type| * * DVD| * * Flash Memory Card, * Nintendo Wii Disc, * Nintendo GameCube Disc| * * Blu-Ray| * * CPU| * * 3.   GHz PowerPC Tri-Core Xenon| * * 729 MHzIBM PowerPC â€Å"Broadway†| * * 3. 2 GHz IBM Cell Broadband Engine (8-core)| * * Internal Memory| * * 4 GB Flash| * * 512 MB| * * 160 GB HDD| * * RAM| * * 512 MB| * * 512 MB| * * 256 MB XDRAM| * * Online Services| * * Xbox Live| * * Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, WiiConnect24,| * * Playstation Network| * * Online Multi-Player Services| * * Yes| * * Yes| * * Yes| * * Connector Types| 1 x AV cable port,5 x USB 2. , 1 x Kinect port,1 x HDMI output1 x SPDIF output,1 x Ethernet| (4 pin USB Type A),4 x Game controller,Component video output,Composite video output,S-Video output,2 x USB| 2 x USB,1 x Ethernet,1 x HDMI output,1 x PlayStation 3 AV output,1 x SPDIF output| * Ranking| 1| 3| 2| BEST OPTION: Microsoft’s Xbox 360 Because your preference is to play online Role-Playing Games, the focus of the hardware specification criterion has to be online capabilities. When it comes to online game-play, Xbox 360 has the technical specifications to make it the best option.One of the most important specifications in a system is its processor speed. The Xbox 360 boasts a 3. 2  GHz PowerPC Tri-Core Xenon processor, which is the same speed as the Playstation 3, but far superior to the Wii. When it comes to intense online game play with potentially dozens of other players, it is important to have a processor that can keep up. To keep the whole system running smoothly and minimize lag time, it is also important to have a substantial amount of RAM. The Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 have 512 MB or RAM, while the Wii only has 256 MB.At this point, the Xbox and Playstation 3 are nearly equal in terms of specifications that lean toward online gaming. What really pushes the Xbox 360 in the lead is their network: Xbox Live. As of 2011, Xbox Live has over 30 million users worldwide. Most of the games that are played on the Xbox Live network are geared toward your gaming preference of Role-Playing and Adventure games. However, due to the massive size of the network and the sheer number of users, even a less popular category like Strategy is available for multi-player gaming.According to Michael McNeilly, an experienced Xbox 360 online gamer, â€Å"There is really nothing like the Xbox Live network out there. The network for PS3 is okay, but it isn’t nearly as big and has a lot of bugs that still haven’t been worked out. † Michael Mcneilly has played all of the other systems extensively, but due to his love for online gaming, he chose the Xbox 360. Ralph Jones, an avid Wii owner and player, explained to me that he really has no need to play online. He mostly enjoys the physical nature of the Wii’s gameplay, and doubts that the Wii is even capable of serious online gaming.According to Kyle Johnson, an avid gamer and owner of all three options, the Wii is not a competitive option in terms of online gaming. When asked about the Playstation 3 and its online gaming community, Kyle explained that there is a reason that the Playstation Network does not have a subscription fee. It is not adequate when compared to Xbox Live, and the number of users sometimes makes it hard to play the less popular games online. Clearly, the Xbox 360 offers the best of both worlds. It has a massive online gaming community and also boasts a powerful 3. GHz processor. With processor speed and RAM that are equal to the Pl aystation 3 and far superior to the Wii, the Xbox Live community is what gives the Xbox 360 the top ranking and makes it the best option in terms of hardware specification. Comparing Games Offered Table 1. 9 lists a calculated average of the two figures previously provided in graphs 1. 1, 1. 2, and 1. 3. These figures were mean game-review scores of all games in three genres, and mean scores of the top-five best-selling games for the three genres. Table 1. 9: Comparing Games Offered pt. 1 | Options|Genre| Xbox 360| Wii| Playstation 3| Role-Playing Games| 79. 4| 72. 7| 71. 75| Adventure Games| 76. 1| 76. 7| 77. 9| Platformer Games| 76. 2| 72. 2| 76. 2| Ranking| 1| 3| 2| Table 1. 10 shows how many games are available for each system in your most preferred genre: Role-Playing Games. Table 1. 10: Comparing Games Offered pt. 2 | Options| Genre| Xbox 360| Wii| Playstation 3| Role-Playing Games| 108| 33| 117| Ranking| 2| 3| 1| BEST OPTION: Microsoft’s Xbox 360 Based on the averages found for all five relevant genres, the Xbox 360 is the best option for the Games Offered criterion.Even though the Playstation 3 has a slightly higher total number of Role-Playing Games available for sale, it does not outweigh the fact that the Xbox 360 scored significantly higher on overall game-review scores. It is generally more important to have higher-rated games than a greater quantity of lower-rated games. For this reason, the Xbox 360 is the best choice for the Games Offered criterion. Comparing Target Demographic Table 1. 11 displays your three options and the total number of ratings received for each rating category out of all games available for each system. Table 1. 11: Comparing Target Demographic Options (Number of Ratings)| Rating| Microsoft’s Xbox 360| Nintendo’s Wii| Sony’ Playstation 3| Everyone| 303| 916| 481| Everyone 10+| 213| 355| 186| Teen | 535| 374| 529| Mature| 491| 57| 373| Rating Pending| 145| 61| 145| Ranking| 1| 3| 2| BEST OPTION: Microsoft’s Xbox 360 Based on all of the games available for each gaming system, the Xbox 360 has the most games with ratings in the Mature and Teen categories. Since you, Pascal, are an adult and prefer the types of games that are most commonly rated Teen and Mature, the Xbox 360 gets the top rank for the Target Demographic criterion.Sony’s Playstation 3 comes in second with a comparable number of games in the Teen and Mature rating categories, but they are not quite as high as the Xbox 360. Nintendo’s Wii has least number of ratings in each of those categories. The Wii has a staggeringly low number of games in the Mature category at 57, and roughly 150 less games in the Teen category than the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. This makes it clear that the Xbox 360 is geared toward an adult audience, and will likely have more games that suit the preferences of an adult. The Playstation 3 is a close second, but still offers significantly less games in the Mature catego ry.The Wii seems to be geared toward a younger, less mature audience, and will likely have the least number of games that will fit your preferences. With all of this considered, it is clear that the Xbox 360 is the best option for the Target Demographic criterion. Comparing Common Hardware Malfunctions and Glitches Table 1. 11 shows all of the common hardware malfunctions and glitches for each option. This table also assigns a ranking (1 being the system with the overall least severe hardware problems relative to the other options). Table 1. 12: Comparing Common Hardware Malfunctions and Glitches | Options| Microsoft’s Xbox 360| Nintendo’s Wii| Sony’s Playstation 3| Common Hardware Malfunctions and Glitches| *Complete System Crash – â€Å"Red Ring of Death†*Basic Hardware Failure (eg. DVD tray and laser failure)| *Power Supply Issue*WiConnect24 Issue*Dual-Layer Wi Disc Failure| *Complete System Crash –â€Å"Yellow Lights of Death†| Ra nking| 2| 1| 3| BEST OPTION: Nintendo’s Wii Based on this table and other research, I have identified Nintendo’s Wii as your best option for the Common Hardware Malfunctions and Glitches criterion. Even though the Wii does run into problems occasionally, they are rarely as severe as they are with the other options.All of the problems listed for the Wii are covered by warranty and are not worthy of complete system replacement. Alternatively, the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 both commonly run into full system crashes, which render the system unusable. Kyle Johnson, an avid gamer and owner of all three options, has never run into a problem with his Wii, but has experienced full system crashes on both his Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. The only reason the Xbox 360 is ranked higher than the Playstation 3 is because self-repair on the Playstation 3 is strongly discouraged.Kyle Johnson and Michael McNeilly have both performed minor repairs on their Xbox 360’s, but have neve r dared to open up their Playstation 3’s. With all things considered, Nintendo’s Wii is the best option for the Common Hardware Malfunctions and Glitches criterion. Comparing Movie-Playing Features Table 1. 13 below shows all of the media discs played by each option, and whether or not that option satisfies your preference of having a built-in Blu-Ray player. Table 1. 13: Comparing Movie-Playing Features | Options| | Xbox 360| Wii| Playstation 3|Media Discs Played| * Xbox 360 Discs * Xbox 1 Discs * DVDs * CDs * DVD-R * DVD+R * DVD-RW * DVD+RW * CD-R * CD-RW * Dual Discs | * Wii Discs * GameCube Discs| * Playstation 1,2, and 3 Discs * Blu-Ray Discs * DVDs * CDs * DVD-R * DVD+R * DVD-RW * DVD+RW * CD-R * CD-RW * Dual Discs | Satisfies Preference? | No| No| Yes| Ranking| 2| 3| 1| BEST OPTION: Sony’s Playstation 3 Based on the media discs that each option offers, Sony’s Playstation 3 is the obvious choice for the top rank in the Movie-Playing Features criteri on.The Playstation 3 is capable of playing both DVDs and Blu-Rays, while the Xbox 360 is only capable of playing DVDs. The Nintendo Wii, however, cannot even play DVDs. Because you have identified that you prefer a video gaming system that has a built-in Blu-Ray player, the Playstation 3 is the best option for the Movie-Playing Features criterion. CONCLUSIONS Table 1. 14 lists the rankings of each of the six evaluative criteria used throughout this report. In order to come to an overall conclusion as to which option to select, I have assigned reversed point values to the previously determined rankings.If, for instance, an option received a ranking of 1, it would be valued a 3. A ranking of 2 receives a value of 2, and a ranking of 3 is valued a 1. The total number of points will be shown at the bottom of the table along with the final ranking. The video gaming system with the highest number of points will be ranked as 1 and will be your best option. Table 1. 14: Overall Ranking | Op tions| Evaluative Criteria| Xbox 360| Wii| Playstation 3| Cost| 1| 1| 1| Hardware Specification| 1| 3| 2| Games Offered| 1| 3| 2| Target Demographic| 1| 3| 2|Common Hardware Malfunctions and Glitches| 2| 1| 3| Movie-Playing Features| 2| 3| 1| Total Points| 16| 10| 13| Overall Ranking| 1| 3| 2| RECOMMENDATIONS It has been determined that Microsoft’s Xbox 360 is the best option, and I would like to recommend to you several retailers where it is available for purchase. The price is universal when bought new, but may vary depending on bundling and other promotions. I have prepared a table showing three popular retailers, the nearest location, and the price of the Xbox 360 4GB system. Table 1. 15: Retail Locations and PriceRetailers and Locations| Price| GameStop(425) 895-833116475 NE 74TH STRedmond, WA 98052| $199. 99| Target(425) 482-641013950 NE 178th PlWoodinville, WA 98072| $199. 99| Walmart(425) 741-94451400 164Th St SwLynnwood, WA 98087| $199. 99| Throughout my research I b egan to realize that the final outcome would depend heavily on how much any criterion was valued. Based on your personal preferences, the best choice is the Xbox 360. However, if you decided that you valued having a Blu-Ray player above everything else, then the Playstation 3 would be the best option.If you decided that the only way to play Role-Playing Games was to use a remote and a nun chuck, then the Wii would be the best choice. It all depends on the valuing of any particular criterion. If you are interested in doing further research, the bibliography lists all sources used. My personal interviewees may be available if you would like to ask them questions, and all of my other sources have a variety of useful and reliable information. Based on everything I have learned from this report and my personal experience with the system, I believe that the Xbox 360 is the best choice for a video gaming system.Bibliography â€Å"Console at Nintendo – Wii. † Nintendo Wii Cons ole. Web. 07 Aug. 2011. Dotree, Phil. â€Å"3 Common Wii Technical Problems. † Associated Content from Yahoo! – Associatedcontent. com. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. â€Å"ESRB Ratings Guide and Definitions. † Entertainment Software Rating Board. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. â€Å"How to Fix Common Xbox 360 Problems: Same Day Repairs, Low Prices. † Same-day Xbox Repair. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. Johnson, Kyle. Owns All Three Options, Personal interview. 29 July 2011. Jones, Ralph. Wii Owner, Personal interview. 30 July 2011. McNeilly, Michael. Xbox 360 Owner, Personal Interview. 0 July 2011. â€Å"Microsoft Xbox 360 Slim Specs (4GB) – Consoles – CNET Reviews. † Product Reviews – Electronics Reviews, Computer Reviews ; More – CNET Reviews. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. â€Å"Nintendo Wii Specs (original, Wii Sports Bundle) – Consoles – CNET Reviews. † Product Reviews – Electronics Reviews, Computer Reviews ; More – CNET Revie ws. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. â€Å"PlayStation 3 – 160 GB System. † PlayStation – PS3. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. â€Å"Playstation 3 Search – GameStop. † Games for PS3. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. â€Å"Sony PlayStation 3 Slim Specs (160GB) – Consoles – CNET Reviews. Product Reviews – Electronics Reviews, Computer Reviews & More – CNET Reviews. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. Towell Justin, Games Radar UK, â€Å"Which console does best and worst in each genre? † 09 Aug. 2011. â€Å"Wii Search – GameStop. † Games for Wii. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. â€Å"Xbox 360 4GB Console – Xbox. com. † Xbox 360 – Official Site – Xbox. com. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. â€Å"Xbox 360 Game Search – GameStop. † Games for Xbox 360. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. ——————————————– [ 1 ]. â€Å"Xbox 360 4GB Console – Xbox. com. â₠¬  Xbox 360 – Official Site – Xbox. com. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. [ 2 ]. â€Å"Microsoft Xbox 360 Slim Specs (4GB) – Consoles – CNET Reviews. † Product Reviews – Electronics Reviews, Computer Reviews & More – CNET Reviews. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. . [ 3 ]. â€Å"Xbox 360 Game Search – GameStop. † Games for Xbox 360. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. . [ 4 ]. Towell Justin, Games Radar UK, â€Å"Which console does best and worst in each genre? † 09 Aug. 2011. [ 5 ]. Towell [ 6 ]. Towell [ 7 ]. Towell [ 8 ]. Towell [ 9 ]. Towell [ 10 ]. GameStop [ 11 ]. GameStop [ 12 ]. â€Å"ESRB Ratings Guide and Definitions. † Entertainment Software Rating Board. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. . [ 13 ].Xbox 360 Game Search – GameStop [ 14 ]. ESRB [ 15 ]. Xbox 360 Game Search – GameStop [ 16 ]. ESRB [ 17 ]. Xbox 360 Game Search – GameStop [ 18 ]. ESRB [ 19 ]. Gamestop Xbox 360 Search [ 20 ]. ESRB [ 21 ]. â€Å"How to Fix Common Xbox 360 Pr oblems: Same Day Repairs, Low Prices. † Same-day Xbox Repair. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. . [ 22 ]. Johnson, Kyle. Owns All Three Options, Personal interview. 29 July 2011. [ 23 ]. Johnson [ 24 ]. Johnson [ 25 ]. â€Å"Console at Nintendo – Wii. † Nintendo Wii Console. Web. 07 Aug. 2011. . [ 26 ]. â€Å"Nintendo Wii Specs (original, Wii Sports Bundle) – Consoles – CNET Reviews. Product Reviews – Electronics Reviews, Computer Reviews & More – CNET Reviews. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. . [ 27 ]. â€Å"Wii Search – GameStop. † Games for Wii. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. . [ 28 ]. Towell [ 29 ]. Wii Search – GameStop [ 30 ]. Wii Search – GameStop [ 31 ]. ESRB [ 32 ]. Wii Search – GameStop [ 33 ]. ESRB [ 34 ]. Wii Search – GameStop [ 35 ]. ESRB [ 36 ]. Wii Search – GameStop [ 37 ]. ESRB [ 38 ]. Xbox 360 Game Search – GameStop [ 39 ]. ESRB [ 40 ]. Dotree, Phil. â€Å"3 Common Wii Technical Problems. † Assoc iated Content from Yahoo! – Associatedcontent. com. Web. 4 Aug. 2011. . [ 41 ]. Dotree [ 42 ]. Jones, Ralph. Wii Owner, Personal interview, 30 July 2011. [ 43 ]. Jones [ 44 ]. â€Å"PlayStation 3 – 160 GB System. † PlayStation – PS3. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. . [ 45 ]. â€Å"Sony PlayStation 3 Slim Specs (160GB) – Consoles – CNET Reviews. † Product Reviews – Electronics Reviews, Computer Reviews & More – CNET Reviews. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. . [ 46 ]. â€Å"Playstation 3 Search – GameStop. † Games for PS3. Web. 04 Aug. 2011. . [ 47 ]. Towell [ 48 ]. Playstation 3 Search – GameStop [ 49 ]. Playstation 3 Search – GameStop [ 50 ]. ESRB 51 ]. Playstation 3 Search – GameStop [ 52 ]. ESRB [ 53 ]. Playstation 3 Search – GameStop [ 54 ]. ESRB [ 55 ]. Playstation 3 Search – GameStop [ 56 ]. ESRB [ 57 ]. Playstation 3 Search – GameStop [ 58 ]. ESRB [ 59 ]. How to Fix Common Xbox 360 Prob lems [ 60 ]. Johnson [ 61 ]. Johnson [ 62 ]. Johnson [ 63 ]. Johnson [ 64 ]. McNeilly, Michael. Xbox 360 Owner, Personal Interview. 30 July 2011. [ 65 ]. Johnson [ 66 ]. Johnson [ 67 ]. McNeilly [ 68 ]. Jones [ 69 ]. Jones [ 70 ]. Johnson [ 71 ]. Johnson [ 72 ]. Johnson [ 73 ]. Johnson [ 74 ]. Johnson, McNeilly

Chapter01: Defining Marketing for the 21st Century

vKT: 601 Chapter01: Defining Marketing for the 21st Century Importance of marketing The scope of marketing Services, Events, Experiences, Persons, Places, Properties, Organizations, In formations, Ideas Markets and prospects 1. Negative demand- Consumers dislike the product and may even pay a price to avoid it. 2. Nonexistent demand – Consumers may be unaware or uninterested in the product. 3. Latent demand – Consumers may share a strong need that cannot be satisfied by an existing product. 4. Declining demand – Consumers begin to buy the product less frequently or not at all. 5.Irregular demand – Consumer purchases vary on a seasonal, monthly, weekly, daily, or even hourly basis. 6. Full demand – Consumers are adequately buying all products put into the marketplace. 7. Overfull demand – More consumers would like to buy the product than can be satisfied. 8. Unwholesome demand – Consumers may be attracted to products that have undesirab le social consequences. Markets Key customer markets ?Consumer Markets ?Business Markets ?Global Markets ?Nonprofit and Governmental Markets ?Marketplaces, Market spaces and Metamarkets (search for product) Needs, Wants and DemandsTarget markets, Positioning and Segmentation Offerings and brands Value and satisfactions Marketing channels Supply chain Competition Marketing environment The New marketing realities Major Societal forces ?Network information technology ?Globalization ?Deregulation ?Privatization ?Heightened Competition ?Industry convergence (Combining, home theater) ?Consumer resistance ?Retail transformation (Direct mail) ?Disintermediation/reintermediation The New Economy: Consumer benefits ?Substantial increase in buying power: More disposable income and inclination to spend ?A greater variety of goods and services: Brand proliferation, can purchase from Internet also ? A greater amount of information about practically anything: Mass media and other sources availabili ty ? A greater ease in interacting and placing and receiving orders: Places order from home, office or can shop traditionally ? An ability to compare notes on products and services: One can use Internet to compare prices and other attributes of various brands The New Economy: Companies’ benefits ?Websites provide powerful information and sales channels. Can collect fuller and richer information about markets, customers, prospects and competitors. ?Can speed up communications among employees. ?Can have 2-way communication with customers and prospects ? Can send ads, coupons, samples, information to targeted customers. ?Can customize offerings and services to individual customers. ?Internet can be used as a communication channel for purchasing, training, and recruiting. ?Can improve logistics and operations for cost savings while improving accuracy and service quality.Company orientation towards the marketplace ?The production concept ?The Product concept ?The selling concept ? The marketing concept ?The Holistic Marketing concept ?Relationship marketing ?Performance Marketing ?Financial accountability ?Social responsibility Marketing management tasks ?Developing Marketing strategies and plans ?Capturing Marketing insights ?Connecting with customers ?Building strong brands ?Shaping the market offerings ?Delivering values ?Communicating values ?Creating long term growth

Argument essay on organic food Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Argument on organic food - Essay Example Researchers who used grapes grown under similar conditions of the two contrasts did this. The findings by the researchers who advocate for organic food simply indicated a similarity in nutrient except for chemicals employed in the production process of the conventional food production, which affect humans and the environment. This criticism based on traces doesn’t hold much since the effects on humans is almost negligible except for the young babies farther, the chemicals used are regulated thus barely any gets to the ecosystem to the non intended use. More specifically, considering fruits and vegetables, the application of pesticides eliminates the organisms that may otherwise destroy the crops. The crop, therefore, survives attack by the organisms. However, residues of pesticides are left on the crops in most cases. These residues have a potential health risk in small amounts whereby children are said to be more vulnerable. To curb this, recommendation by environmentalists are usually done for the consumption the products that are less sprayed. Nutrition is said to be more in organic food compared to the ordinary foods. This is according to a French study. However, ordinary food may also have a high content of nutrients in case they are grown in soil rich in minerals. For dairy and meat products, organic meat originates from genetically engineered treatment or using antibiotics. As such, it is said that organic milk has more vitamin levels due to the feeding based on fresh grass and clover (Manuel 3). Father, according to the British journal of nutrition, organic milk has the potential to improve lactating mother’s milk. It is, in addition that, milk produced though through organic method that is generally better for the environmental. The argument behind this is that, through this method, toxins have no leeway into

Appropriateness of Assessment Tools for the Achievement Of Literacy Essay

Appropriateness of Assessment Tools for the Achievement Of Literacy Goals - Essay Example The level of literacy that an individual should acquire is a matter of personal choice depending on his or her inclination and the role that he or she will be required to play in society. This offers scope for learning choices with regards to the tools of learning. This compels the teacher to personalize his or her pedagogy to meet the needs of the individual learner in the group. Training in literacy should be connected to actual use of it in real-time situations. The social context in which we live is democratic and multicultural and literacy training should take into consideration these aspects of our society. A comprehensive literacy assessment should test whether these tasks are fulfilled in actual end product of instruction. Based on the realization students develop on a dynamic continuum and they have different rates of progress, teaching should be tailor made to suit the needs of individual learner. Dr.Bonnie Campbell Hill has analyzed the levels of achievable benchmarks for different age groups and the level of competencies that students should have in that age. By bringing also the parents as active partners he has reiterated the concept that learning is a social activity that extends beyond the four walls of the classroom. The benchmark books are chosen by Dr.Hill to give the student a chance to relish reading and experience success (Hill, 2001). Page 3 Assuming that we have a curriculum that is apt for the American student, the effectiveness of the learning process will depend on the tools of assessment that are employed by the teacher. Standardized tests are inadequate as diagnostic tools. This is because they provide only final answers, record scores in numbers, and are administered to a group. They do not give any clue to the skill of the learner in problem solving. Standardized tests do not accommodate the individual differences of the learners. American society is multi-ethnic and standardized tests do not take into account this aspect of our culture. According to Wagner, Assessment methods do not need to be major entrepreneurial enterprises, but rather just robust enough to answer key policy questions at the national and local levels (Wagner, 2003). In order to make learning effective the approach should be primarily learner centered. The child, its parents, the community and the need of the American Society for resources should be the main factors of consideration. The education research around the globe has developed what is called the authentic literacy testing movement and Page 4 American educators have whole-heartedly embraced this methodology because of its interface with the American reality. One important tool that can deliver results is the student portfolio. In this method learner's activities are documented throughout. These include short paragraphs, essays, longer writing samples as well as collections of student-authored books, videotapes of plays written and produced by the class. This portfolio does not capture a moment of student's performance; it gives a wider view of the stage-by-stage

Do you Believe in Feng Shui Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Do you Believe in Feng Shui - Essay Example This is thus harmful energy and brings bad luck and negative energy from the surroundings into a house facing a T-junction because a house that is facing such a junction is said to have all the negative energy coming in from the road directly into the house without any place for it to escape. If the house is very close to the road then the bad energy seeps in with immense force and is very aggressive. For the purpose of this paper, I interviewed my parents and they tend to believe in Feng Shui a great deal; they have placed objects in their home on the basis of the same because they believe it helps to secure a better present and bring in the maximum amount of positive energy. Superstitions of Feng Shui are believed by many people around the world and as per personal opinion, I do feel that it is true as I have seen my parents practicing it on a daily basis and it has helped to make the home a lighter and more positive place. Every object in the household emanates a certain form of e nergy; the area that one’s home is placed in has a surrounding environment filled with different forms of energy and in order to churn out the most amount of positivity, it is important to place the objects carefully. It may be regarded as a cultural superstition but is indeed very scientific because it talks about the positive and negative forces of the earth; Feng Shui helps in calming the home by directing all the positive vibes inside. Having superstitions is not detrimental in nature because they help people to be careful; Feng Shui is a very positive superstition and thus it is only beneficial to people that follow it as it helps to channel good vibes into one’s home and keep oneself in a better mood throughout the course of the day which is brought on by positive vibes. It is suggested that if people live in T-junction facing homes, then they should try and get some landscaping done around the house for the energy to dissolve into the surroundings and not focus completely on the home and the members present within. Another way by which the effect of the bad energy can be mitigated is to be living near a road with very less traffic. In order to improve the positive energy in the household, every possible open space in the house should be landscaped in order to minimize the sharpness of the energy; doors and windows should be covered with plants to give out more oxygen and reduce the level of pollutants from the road. Yet another cure is to place a Bagua mirror inside the house which is another superstition that will be discussed further. It is believed that Bagua mirrors protect a household and bring it good luck and positive energy according to Feng Shui, especially if the home is placed in a wrong area or faces an environment consisting of bad or negative energy. The mirrors should ideally be hung outside the house in order to repel or ward off any kind of bad luck or energy passing through the house. Buildings and homes that are placed n ear T-junctions should ideally include these mirrors in order to ward off the negative energy that approaches them. The origin of this particular superstition may be traced to the i-Ching or the Chinese Book of Changes said to have been created more than 200 years BCE.     

Understand customer service policies within business and services Assignment

Understand customer service policies within business and services contexts - Assignment Example It provides individual services to every guest in the rooms as well as to conference groups and meetings. Services include navigation of desktop, tablets, T.V, mobiles and other gadgets that require online facility. It offers easy access to hotel services for example meal service, housekeeping service and pick up service without any hold. Spok Inc. is another organization that offers a better communication system to hotels. It is majorly famous for its service-enhancing mobile communication. Along with that it offers smart and reliable solution for individual guests communication to the hotel management. This communication system is very famous in hospitality industries. It helps hotel improve their efficiency and profitability as it connects hotel’s network internally and externally. It offers interfacing systems for example web booking engine, Sales & Catering, PMS and CRS. It offers easy access to hotel services for example meal service, housekeeping service and pick up service without any

Merchant Trade Around the World During World Colonization Research Paper - 2

Merchant Trade Around the World During World Colonization - Research Paper Example The movement’s â€Å"diversification and lack of centralized leadership† strengthened their ability to survive whenever they were persecuted (King, Bays and Foster xv-xvi). Leonard Howell, who is known to establish the Pinnacle, a commune where his followers lived, forming a community, was just one of the first preachers of Rastafari, who returned to Jamaica in the midst of an upsurge of Revivalism after being discharged from Panama to join the U.S. Army Transport Service as a cook was a defiant anticolonialist. â€Å"He is said to have encouraged or threatened peasants not to pay taxes† (Chevannes 121-122). In 1932, he encouraged Jamaicans to reject the authority of the King of England and to give their loyalties to the new emperor of Ethiopia, selling pictures of Haile Selassie as future passports to Ethiopia. He was arrested, together with his deputy for breaking Jamaica’s sedition laws and sentenced to two years of hard labour, and his deputy to one ye ar(King, Bays and Foster xv-xvi). According to Ennis B. Edmonds and Michelle A. Gonzalez, â€Å"the rise of a new generation of Rastafarian artists †¦ Artists†¦have focused the critical eye of Rastafari on continued inequities and exploitation in Jamaican society†¦ It has grown from small beginnings to become a religion known and embraced around the world.† The movement spread to other countries because people, particularly students from other places such as the Caribbean islands who study in Jamaica brought Rastafari to their own countries while Jamaican students who study in other countries like Barbados, Trinidad, Cuba and other countries shared their belief and convictions, together with their reggae music.

Explore how Bob Dylan portrays transient figures in Like a Rolling Research Paper

Explore how Bob Dylan portrays transient figures in Like a Rolling Stone, and discuss how these portrayals contribute to t - Research Paper Example Bob Dylan was growing up personally and evolving his music in the context of the early Beat movement at this time. However, what was an underground movement in the early 60’s rapidly became mainstream with the Beatles and other rock groups gaining mass popularity in 1965. This transition can be seen on Bob Dylan’s album â€Å"Bringing it Back Home† (1965), which included one side of folk songs in the style he had popularized and come to be known by, and the other side featuring Dylan’s first electric guitar based rock songs. (Kemp, 2001) Thus, in the classic song â€Å"Like a Rolling Stone,† Dylan composed a morality tale in the style of an anthem addressed particularly to this division within the movement, discussing the different aspects involved with the mystical and revolutionary path of the underground when it meets the mainstream acceptance and propagation. Eastern Mysticism rooted in Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, Yoga, and Sufism was highly inf luential on the Beat Poets of the 1950’s and forms the metaphysical basis for many of their works of literature. Bob Dylan can be considered highly influenced by the Beats, and also widely read in their literature at the time. This influence can be seen in the counter-culture lifestyle promoted by Dylan in his music. As Dylan biographer Sean Wilentz wrote in a New Yorker article on the Beats titled â€Å"Penetrating Aether: The Beat Generation and Allen Ginsberg’s America,† â€Å"Dylan knew the poems, Ginsberg later claimed. ‘Someone handed me Mexico City Blues in St. Paul in 1959,’ Dylan told him. ‘It blew my mind.’ It was the first poetry he’d read that spoke his own American language, Dylan said—or so Ginsberg said he said. Maybe, maybe not. Without question, though, Dylan read Mexico City Blues and was deeply interested in Beat writing before he left Minneapolis for New York. (Like other Beats and hipsters, his friend Tony Glover ordered a paperback copy of William Burroughs’s Naked Lunch from France, where it had been published by Olympia Press in Paris in 1959 as The Naked Lunch— uncertain whether the book, deemed obscene by American authorities, would clear customs. The book indeed arrived, and Glover lent it to Dylan, who returned it after a couple of weeks.) And Dylan’s involvement with the writings of Kerouac, Ginsberg, Burroughs, and the rest of the Beat generation is nearly as essential to Dylan’s biography as his immersion in rock and roll, rhythm and blues, and then Woody Guthrie. ‘I came out of the wilderness and just naturally fell in with the Beat scene, the bohemian, Be Bop crowd, it was all pretty much connected,’ Dylan said in 1985. ‘It was Jack Kerouac, Ginsberg, Corso, Ferlinghetti †¦ I got in at the tail end of that and it was magic †¦ it had just as big an impact on me as Elvis Presley.’† (Wilentz, 2010) Ro lling Stone magazine states that Bob Dylan was the first musician of the modern era to have his lyrics considered by critics and the public to be works of literature. (Kemp, 2001) In this regard, Bob Dylan can be considered a Beat Poet, and his music concerts were played in venues with audiences made up of

Movement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Movement - Essay Example In my opinion, the human brain is quite a powerful organ for it normally plays a major role when it comes to the issue of sight because whereas it is capable of making the visible become invisible, it can also do the vice versa. In this study besides addressing the aspect of visual illusions, it also analyses the issue of movement, this is by relaying information on whether movement is actual or is it just an illusion. Illusions normally come when one tends to perceive something is in a form different from the actual form (Conway et al.). Illusions are of different types, in the case of movement, optical illusion is an illusion related to sight. During the occurrence of an optical illusion, a number of brain regions are involved in accordance with aspects like shape and color. Studies contend the most common form of optical illusion is that of movement especially when objects appear to be in motion but it is the contrary in reality. For instance, when in a film theatre, one normally has the perception that he or she is watching a motion picture though studies prove this is not the case. Films are not motion pictures but rather comprise of thousands of still pictures shown in series and in so doing make the viewer have the perception that they are moving (Carrol & Choi 287). I think this perception is true, whereby a motion comes because of static repeated patterns. Mainly, this comes due to the in voluntary eye movements such as blinking, normally triggered by the brain intentionally in a move to create a shortcut, hence not showing some of the information. Studies show that eyeballs of humans are normally in constant vibration, which is imperceptible. However, when one sees an object, neurons end up emitting negative signals stronger compared to the positive ones (Llg & Guillaume 19). This is due to the optical illusions that take place. Optical illusion, also known as illusionary motion is a situation whereby static

African American Essay Example for Free

African American Essay Literature gives writers of all creeds the vehicle to express themselves in numerous ways – love, hate, fear, sadness, and hope. Writers give their interpretations of life through verse and bring readers of their works into their world for just a moment. Although some may consider race and ethnicity the same, they are totally different. An example of this is in the poems, What Its Like to Be a Black Girl by Patricia Smith and Child of the Americas by Aurora Levins Morales. Both authors give their view of how race and ethnicity plays a part in one’s life when it comes to even the simplest decision. Growing up in a diverse community has its advantages. It is amazing to see people trying to guess each other’s race and ethnicity. Innocent as it may seem at a young age to do this, it may have been the precursor to feelings towards the opposite race. The United States is a melting pot of different races coming together for one purpose – to have a good life. This means raising a family, having a good job, buying a car and home without fear of being discriminated against. In the stories by two diverse women shows how race and ethnicity played a large part in developing their lives. Race is defined in layman terms as â€Å"the concept of dividing people into populations or groups on the basis of various sets of physical characteristics which result from genetic ancestry† (Diffen, 2013). Race encompasses the color of one’s skin (Causcasion – white, Asian – yellow), facial features (African American – physical features, Latinos – height) and so on. Ethnicity is defined in layman terms as â€Å"an ethnic group or ethnicity is a population of human beings whose members identify with each other, on the basis of a real or a presumed common genealogy or ancestry† (Diffen, 2013). Ethnicity encompasses ancestry of one’s family tree. Some believe they may be the descendants of Roman culture and others feel they are descendants of a culture before the time of Christ. Thanks to modern day technology, most have found they are part of a past culture or cultures – a mixture of cultures. According to the website, Difference Between explains the difference between race and ethnicity as: 1. Ethnicity gives us room to change because we can reject our own and embrace another. You can move from one region to another and assimilate your beliefs, actions and customs to identify with that ethnic orientation. You cannot do the same with race. 2. Race is your biologically engineered features. It can include skin color, skin tone, eye and hair color, as well as a tendency toward developing certain diseases. It is not something that can be changed or disguised (Difference Between, 2013). In the story, What Its Like Being a Black Girl by Patricia Smith, the author gives the audience an insider’s view into a young black girl’s transition into black woman-hood when being African American (Black) was not as welcomed as being white. â€Å"It’s being 9 years old and feeling like you’re not finished like your edges are wild, like there’s something, everything, wrong. † (Smith, 2013). Smith writes that growing up in this era for a young â€Å"black girl† is having the feeling of being awkward her body is changing and people will see her differently. For Smith, this hope is for the opportunity to live a life where she can become a doctor, lawyer or celebrated writer. In addition, a hope that people will see her through eyes of respect for her work and not her skin color or ethnic background. Author Aurora Levins Morales writes for those struggling to find their identities and their voices and speaks on issues pertaining to history and the multicultural experience. In the poem, Child of the Americas, Morales gives her views on life as an American of mixed race. It is a poem about an American who came from a mixture of various cultures that comprise her heritage and her identity as an American. â€Å"I am a child of the Americas, a light-skinned mestiza of the Caribbean, a child of many diaspora, born into this continent at a crossroads. I am a U. S. Puerto Rican Jew, a product of the ghettos of New York I have never known† (Morales, 2013). Morales continues â€Å"I am not African. Africa is in me, but I cannot return. I am not taina. Taino is in me, but there is no way back. I am not European. Europe lives in me, but I have no home there† (Morales, 2013). Morales believes she is a melting pot filled with different ethnic backgrounds but will not be accepted in these native countries because people of that country will only see the outside – her skin color, her hair, her eyes. We have all done this – guessing the ethnicity of a person – is she mixed with African or is she mixed with German, is he Italian or is he French? We do not get to know the person – we automatically judged them by the way they look. Both Morales and Smith write about what most people in this country are experiencing on a daily basis – racial and ethnic prejudice. However, in the 1970’s, African Americans embraced their African background by donning dashikis and wearing their hair in Afros and braids. This led to most people in this country to investigate their ethnic backgrounds. Now in the 2013, people are going to sites such as Ancestry to find out about their ethnic and racial history. People want to know more about their past in hopes it will show them where they are going. Even in the writing arena, both authors faced challenges getting their works published because of their race. Luckily, according to author Lee, brave publishers have pushed to have more and more authors of color works published. â€Å"Much of the work by mixed-race artists, though certainly not all of it, reveals the fault lines and pressure points that still exist in a rapidly changing America. It is on these rough edges that many multiracial people live, and where many artists find the themes that animate their work: the limits of tolerance, hidden or unacknowledged assumptions about identity, and issues of racial privilege and marginalization† (Lee, 2011). Still, a small percentage of publishers will not published women of color’s literary works. This is why many ethnic writers have established their own publishing houses and stores, such as Wal-mart, stock ethnic materials from not only well-known authors but those new to the literary arena. In an article by Martin Arnold detailing his interview with author and publisher Melody Guy, she states, â€Å"most of our first novels have an initial printing of between 17,000 and 20,000 copies, and a majority of them went back for second and thirds, and most are paying royalties. This is true for other women of diverse ethnic backgrounds. Smith and Morales gives the reader insight into their complicated lives as writers with diverse backgrounds. Although they differ in race and ethnicity, both encounter the same problems living in a country whose racial make-up is rich with diverse personalities. Smith wrote about growing up with a stigma already attached to her as an African American female wanting to be like her white counterparts. â€Å"it’s dropping food coloring in your eyes to make them blue and suffering their burn in silence. It’s popping a bleached white mophead over the kinks of your hair and primping in front of mirrors that deny your reflection† (Spoken Word Academy, 2013). In Morales’s world, it about being a born in this country, speaking a different language in addition to having a different skin color and being told she is still a foreigner. â€Å"I am a U. S. Puerto Rican Jew, a product of the ghettos of New York I have never known. An immigrant and the daughter and granddaughter of immigrants. I speak English with passion: it’s the tongue of my consciousness† (Diaz, 2013). Literature gives writers of all creeds the vehicle to express themselves in numerous ways – love, hate, fear, sadness, and hope. Growing up in the United States, race and ethnicity is a big issue especially when it comes to finding a job, a home and getting an education. People should not judge each other by their race or ethnicity. Getting to know the person – their thoughts, dreams, ambitions – should be first and foremost. Smith and Morales found a common outlet for their frustrations with life where they live and how they live – literature. With their literary writings about growing up in America struck a familiar cord with many in this land of many races. It is because of their writings, people can gain a better understanding of how life is on the other side – the diverse side – of life in America. What It’s Like To Be A Black Girl (For Those Of You Who Aren’t) By Patricia Smith first of all, it’s being 9 years old and feeling like you’re not finished, like your edges are wild, like there’s something, everything, wrong, it’s dropping food coloring in your eyes to make them blue and suffering their burn in silence. It’s popping a bleached white mophead over the kinks of your hair and primping in front of mirrors that deny your reflection. It’s finding a space between your legs, a disturbance at your chest, and not knowing what to do with the whistles, it’s jumping double dutch until your legs pop, it’s sweat and Vaseline and bullets, it’s growing tall and wearing a lot of white, it’s smelling blood in your breakfast, it’s learning to say **** with grace but learning to **** without it, it’s flame and fists and life according to Motown, it’s finally having a man reach out for you then caving in around his fingers. (Spoken Word Academy, 2013).

Education Systems In Australia, Singapore And The Uae

Education Systems In Australia, Singapore And The Uae The primary goal of this project is not just to study, analyze and assess the currently prevalent systems of education being followed in Australia, Singapore and the UAE but also to be able to draw a comparative analysis citing the advantages and drawbacks of these in comparison to each other. For this purpose, it is important for us to understand what an education system of a country means and how they can vary with respect to each other. Education is defined as an act that is responsible for having a positive developing impact on the person indulging in it, not just on the mind, but the character as well as the physical and mental abilities of the individual. Education is a means through which the society in general is responsible for the transmission of all the collective knowledge set along with certain values and the acquired skill that has been accumulated over the generations. This makes education a sequential continuous process and therefore, different countries and societies and establishments employ different techniques as deemed correct and necessary by them to transmit this knowledge. Education system in Australia In Australia, education is considered by the system as the responsibility of the respective states or the territories as appropriate. The state governments are held responsible for being able to provide the funds for education as well as regulate and monitor public and private schools. The federal government, on the other hand, is engaged in funding the universities, which however set their own curriculum. In Australia, like in a lot of other places around the world, a three-tier based system or model is followed which comprises a compulsory primary education for all in primary schools, which is then followed up by a secondary education in secondary/high schools. The final tier in this system in the tertiary education in federal government managed universities or TAFE colleges across the country. The Australian system of education has been ranked at 6th for their Reading on a worldwide scale, on 8th for their Sciences and on 13th for their Mathematics also on worldwide scales by the Programme for International Studnt Assessment in the year 2006. Also, Australia has been listed as 0.993, being among the leading in that scales, in the Education Index that as published by the UN in 2008. They are tied at the first position for Education Index with other countries like Denmark, Finland and New Zealand. Education in Australia is mandatory till a specified age, which may vary between states which have complete jurisdiction over the education in their respective states. However, this age varies between 15-17 years in general, which means that education up to the secondary level is compulsory for all. Besides monitoring and regulating the activities of a school in a state by the state government, each state also has a Vocational Education and Training(VET) or otherwise a Technical and Further Education system(TAFE). The main objective and function of VET is to be able to prepare people for work in a career that may not necessarily need a university degree to be attained. It is the responsibility of each state in Australia to manage and coordinate their own system for VET and the training and education of individuals and prepare them for their work, and state representatives meet on a national level to synchronize and coordinate their efforts and unify them in a common direction towards the education of these individuals for specified tasks. Also, the national meet ensures that VET continues to be acknowledged between different states and remain applicable and valid even if a personal travels from one state to another. A VET course done in on particular state is applicable in all t he other states within the Australian domain. Typically, the course of VET takes around two years of study. The universities in all the states are funded by the central or the national government. However, each of these universities is entitled to set their own course curriculum and the government has no jurisdiction over this matter. However, for a course to run in a university set by its governance, the course must be endorsed by some professional body. A course in one of the universities in Australia takes a time period of roughly three to four years at the minimum. In the work place and the offices as well as other places of employment, the employers take into account only the courses endorsed by some professional body to employ new staff for the purpose of training or employment. The training received as one of the ongoing work places of a company, if provided in some form of documentation, adds to the advantage of the student and counts into the overall qualification of a student pursuing a course. Education system in Singapore the entire system of education in Singapore is coordinated, and managed by the Ministry of Education, or the MOE, which has the responsibility of controlling the proper governance, development and management of the state schools, which receive funding from the central government. The government also has a role in advising and supervising the activities of private schools. There are set principles to determine the role of the government in the curriculum and the autonomy the schools have, along with the nature and kind of aids that the government provides and the admission policy to the various private and public schools. There are SPEDs or schools with special education for children with disabilities and the funds for these come in parts from Voluntary Welfare Organizations as well as the MOE and the national budget, of which about 20% is contributed to these schools. In Singapore, education is compulsory till the age of primary school level, and it is a criminal offence for parents to not be able to provide their wards with this. English is the primary medium of communication in the education system in Singapore and is even the first language for the children in their preschool age. The education system in Singapore is defined as world-leading and it is one of the very few that were picked out especially for praise by the education minister Michael Gove of the United Kingdom. Singapore also follows a system which is in a manner of speaking a three-tier model but in existence has four fundamental levels. The difference comes in the precollege/pre-university level which is considered an intermediate level between school and college but essentially is an extension of senior school itself. The following tiers are maintained in the learning process of a student right from the beginning: Kindergarten: the first phase in the education cycle is the preschool phase or the kindergarten. This is meant for children from ages groups three to six years, after which they move to the next level of education. Primary school: this is the post kindergarten phase which is further divided into the following: Foundation stage, in which a basic introduction is given to the students about English, their mother tongue or a regional language, Mathematics, History and Civics and sometimes even basic sciences. The next is the orientation stage where more in depth knowledge in English, mathematics and other related courses is given depending on the ability of the student assessed so far in the preschool and the foundation stage. At the end of this, there is a primary school leaving examination (PSLE) conducted on the national level which determines whether a particular student is ready to leave the primary school at this stage. Also, the scores in this examination determine what seat the student gets in the secondary level of education. Secondary education: based on the score achieved in the PSLE, the students get different tracks or streams in the secondary school. The different streams or tracks are: Special, Express, Normal (Academic), or Normal (Technical). At this level, the aim of the education system in Singapore is to make a clear distinction between students belonging to different levels of aptitude. This has its pros as well as cons. The criticism made against this system is that the age of ten to twelve years in a students life is too less to make a comparison of him with his other peers and it may be de-motivational towards the student in not granting him a chance to study and excel with students of higher academic capabilities. Also, the distinction made creates a divide among the students and the general sense of belonging to the same class is lost. The sixth grade, some believe is too early for competitive studies and this kind and degree of competition can often become very difficult for the students to handle. However, the traditionalists believe that it is this system which is in a way helping students of all levels of aptitude cope with the pressure of academics. By putting all the high performers of the exam together and similarly, dividing the class up into separate sections, each having different difficulty levels of academics not only helps the weaker students as they no longer have to compete with the academically brilliant students who are not of the same league, but also the smarter students by putting them in a competitive environment where they get a chance to interact and learn with other students of similar potential. Hence, the Singapore system of education does believe in having students of equal intellect and aptitude studying together, while always emphasizing and encouraging the need for having a competitive environment where every student is aspiring to do well. The grading system followed by most of the schools in Singapore is similar to the one followed at the Singapore-Cambridge GCE examination at the level O. This exam is taken by students after they have completely about four to five years of education at the secondary level, with each student appearing for a minimum of six subjects or courses. The marks obtained in this exam have a corresponding grade attached to them and therefore, and these obtained grades have a meaning attached to them as mentioned below: A1/A2 (Distinction) B3/B4 (Merit) C5/C6 (Credit/Pass) D7 (Sub-Pass/fail, that is, passing at a lower standard in the exam or fail) E8/F9 (Fail) The overall total performance of a student academically is calculated through various different systems of scoring which include the L1R5, the L1R4 and L1B5 systems. For the purpose of evaluation of exams that are of a non-major kind, many schools are known to use the Mean Grade per subject method of evaluation. Schools that have currently been running the Integrated Program have also been known to use the GPA system for the purpose of evaluation, that is, the Grade Point Average method of grading. Extra-curricular and co-curricular activities are mandatory for all students at the secondary level in schools, in which all the students are required to participate in a minimum of one such activity, and this participation and their performance is graded along with other academic achievements through the four years of their education. This system of scoring is known as LEAPS (Leadership, Enrichment, Achievement, Participation, Service). There are however a few criticisms made of the prevalent education system in Singapore, often by parents of students there, that the education system is too rigid, sometimes even elitist and over-specialized in certain cases. A sharp contrast to the education system in the United States, an often faced criticism is that there is little or no support and encouragement in the system for creative thinking and little emphasis on arts and creative vision. The argument put in response to this has always been that the students of Singapore have always outperformed the others from different parts of the world in international competitions of mathematics as well as the sciences. However, what is argued is that the fact that Singaporean students performing better shows only that they are better prepared and more oriented towards preparing for these particular kinds of examinations than developing skills and the ability of free creative and critical thinking. Education System in UAE With the amelioration that United Arab Emirates has been undergoing over the past few years, one can very well predict the development in the system of education. The administration of the country has not only increased academic opportunities in big cities like Abu Dhabi and Dubai abut also in every remote area constituting the country geography. The country now has mature enough to offer education comprehensively to students ranging from kindergarten and going all the way to university levels. In fact the academics department has also made education free to the citizens of the country. This is the reason that the policies like Emiritization are seen to be successful in UAE. The students are being trained from the early days so that once they are grown-ups they have the capability to beat the best in the world. Moving further into the advancements that the countrys education has seen in the recent past, private education is provided to children of both sexes who pursue higher educati on abroad. Several thousand students in the country have done exceptionally well and have also made the country proud by being amongst the best by this system of the country. If one compares the education system existing in the country in the 1970s when the seven Emirates were formed, there has been a drastic change. With consistent policies of privatisation, UAE has been going great guns. This can be seen in the re-evaluation of the Governments role. There is a special organization in the countrys capital that is looking after this privatisation policy helping the country and its citizens mutually. This body is called the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC). Pioneer institutions like United Arab Emirates University (UAEU), Zayed University (ZU) and also Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) are doing a remarkable job in the context. So, now that the country is seeing so many reforms, one can very well see that the motive behind the same is the country wants its youth to be able to mee t the challenges of the new century. Also, the quality of education given to the individuals is good enough so that once they are graduates; they are capable enough to have jobs in the corporate world. (UAE Education Centre General information, 2010) The country has provided the following breakdown to the education system: Kindergarten: 4 -5 years old Primary: length of programme 6 years old with an age level between 6-12 years old Preparatory: length of programme 3 years old with an age level between 12-15 years old Secondary: length of programme 3 years old with an age level between 15-18 years old In this program, secondary school certificate is awarded Technical Secondary School: length of programme 6 years old with an age level between 12-18 years old In this program technical secondary diploma is awarded The education system of the country has become so strict on the past few years that it has made primary education compulsory for all levels of the society without any discrimination of its citizens. The best part of the system is that the ratio of staff to children has been kept as 1:20 which was much beyond reckoning when the Emirates were formed. This ratio is increased to 1:15 at intermediate and secondary levels of education. Another very significant mark in the development of the education system in the country is the formation of Federation. The weekend schedule of the education system was also revised in the year 2006 with Friday and Saturday being considered to constitute the weekend. Levels of Education Primary and Secondary Education As it has been mentioned, education at this level has been made compulsory in the part of the world. It has four-tiers in this sector. This has been mentioned as follows: 4-5 years old: Kindergarten 6-11 years old: primary Schools 12-14: Preparatory Stage 15-17: Secondary School In order to ensure that the children of this age are well-equipped with Islamic principles and the traditional culture of the place, the teaching staff is also chosen in the basis of Emiritization to an extent which would reach 90% by the end of year 2020. At the moment, the number of pupils attending primary school is of the order of 40%. Many of them offer foreign language courses as well but at the same time maintain the integrity of the place. The Government has allowed admissions to expatriates but on the basis of merit which would also levy fees. As far as the citizens of the country are concerned, they are experiencing the highly liberal policies of ADEC where the organization has taken the responsibility to bear all the fees of model school. Integration with Zayed University has also planned to improve English speaking capability of the masses. There are 30 faculty members from the same to look after English speaking courses in the schools at the primary and secondary levels. (Zayed University announces the five year strategic plan , 2009) IT Education The Ministry of Education in UAE is making its best possible efforts so that the plans and strategies related to the development of educational programs are able to meet international standards. As a part of all the educational strategies made by the company, there is special attention given to the introduction of latest IT resources at every level of education. Being at par with the latest IT services would make the country highly competitive on the global front. The education system is working on providing a computer amongst every ten children at the kindergarten level. The stupendous success of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid IT Education Project (ITEP) has advanced the IT system of education in the country. It has not only installed various labs in the region but it has also provided a highly valuable education resource available at www.itep.ae. ITEP serves about 40 schools in the country so far including about 13,000 students. The success rate of the students is of the order of 97%! Higher Education The most remarkable fact about UAE education is that it has been able to diversify itself in very little time. The Government institutions are available free of charge. Even some internationally accredited private institutions are also available free of charge making it highly easy for the citizens to receive impeccable education. Universities like United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) offers leading research facilities in higher education. There are more than 70 undergraduate degrees and also a substantial number of streams at the graduate level. As the country has now collaborated with many international institutions, the quality and diversity of education has gone up tremendously. Talking about Al Ain, there is more than 280,000 square meters of space available for residential as well as educational purposes. The country is also focussing to a large extent on public-private partnership in education. Top organizations of the fame of Mubadala Development Company and also UAEU have undergone the execution of a 30-yrs concession agreement. This will allow BOOT (Build Own Operate and Transfer) basis development. (build, own, operate, transfer, 2010) Zayed University This University was established with a motive to educate the women citizens of UAE. It has a facility of the worth of 370 million Dhms which encompasses an area as large as 711,000 square metres. There are in all six colleges with different departments and laboratories. The academic division of the university has been mentioned as follows: Arts and Sciences Business Sciences Communication and Media Sciences Education Information Systems The main motive of the University is to infuse bilingual knowledge in both English and Arabic with a proficiency in IT and also a considerable capability of quantitative and research skills. The University has been undergoing tremendous innovations in the past few years. Dubai Internet City (DIC) is an example of this. ZU has also partnered with IBM so as to make an enhancement of its e-business and also communication activities. The University also organized, Women as Global Leaders conference in 2006. This is done to ensure that the students of the University are prepared well enough so that they could make an active participation in the society. Higher Colleges of Technology In order to provide technically a more sound system of education, a system of UAE colleges was devised in the year 1988. It started with only 4 colleges but has 12 colleges for men and 12 for women in cities like Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Fujairah. The advancement in the number of students has gone from 239 to 15,000 in only about 2 decades. There are a number of examples in this area. As for example, Dubai Mens College provides a cent percent digital atmosphere. Academic assignments, examination mark sheets, the number of classes missed and also the library can now be accessed online in the college. The commercial arm of Higher Colleges of Technology is Applied Research and Training (CERT) has made a number of alliances with multinational firms and many elite organizations which helps in the professional development in the region. CERT is also planning to make a separate CERT City. The idea behind doing the same is to have a fully integrated facility for research, innovation and also e ntrepreneurship. Conclusion of Comparison If one puts it on the developed and the developing scale, Australia and Singapore would certainly lie on the developed side and United Arab Emirates would lie on the developing scale. The reason for the same is that it has been only about 30 years since the formation of the Emirates. As we have seen, most of the development in the country has come from the making of the federation. Such bodies were significant mush before the UAE system of education even started. But as far as the growth in education system is concerned, one would definitely put UAE right on top. The provision of free and compulsory education for the citizens is one of the traits of a country that is developing its education system. But with the rate of growth that UAE has been witnessing over the past few years, in little time, the country would be able to catch up with the likes of Australia and Singapore which are relatively developed. Very soon the results of organization like ITEP and UAEU would certainly see in ternational levels. It is the collaboration with multi-national concerns that by the end of this decade, the country could be of the likes of Singapore and Australia. As far as the International Maths and Science Study is concerned, Singapore was placed at the first place showing the mark that it has made in the mentioned subjects. This is contrast with UAE where the focus has never been specifically on Maths and Science. As the stage of development has begun in the technological era, the country focuses largely on IT than in any other subject. The education system in Singapore is more specialized and rigid than any other country. It has also been seen that the education system in Singapore involves lesser amounts of creativity. As we have seen, there is also a segregation of the more intelligent ones and the lesser ones in the education system of Singapore. The teachers are also allotted in the same order of quality. This is likely to make the intelligent more intelligent but the lesser intelligent ones would not get a chance. This has been criticised especially in the primary and the secondary levels. (A guide to universities in Singapore, 2010) As far as Australia and UAE are concerned, there is a similarity in the fact that both the countries have implemented compulsory education at the primary level. But as far as Australia is concerned, this at times is not called education at the kindergarten level where play-school is highly prominent. Such availability is not very common in UAE. To be more precise, education is considered to be compulsory in Australia between 5 and 15 only. As far as world raking is concerned, the countrys rank of 6th in Reading, 8th in Science and 13th in Mathematics does place Australia behind Singapore in the latter two subjects. If one compares UAE for that matter, it does not even include Maths in its compulsory system of education. Moreover, there is a huge amount of consideration that is given to Arabic and English in order to make bilingual scholars. The conditions as we have seen are contradictory in both Australia and Singapore. Funding and management of the education system is looked after from territory which is different from that we have seen in the case of UAE. There are certain centralized bodies that have the authority to don the particular job. Moving on to the system of free education, as we have seen, UAE is a pioneer in providing free education. The case is not similar when compared to Australia and Singapore. In fact it is highly expensive to study in the two countries. When the same is compared to UAE, for the citizens it is absolutely free. This service continues for even abroad studies. Also, the existence of expatriate-citizen is more pronounced in UAE than in the other countries. Singapore and Australia do not have policies like Emiritization to educate the natives more liberally. There are many expatriates who have been going to Australia particularly for their education. UAE also allows meritorious expatriates to study with fees levied on them but it is not as much pronounced as in Australia and Singapore. The distribution of education is also more segregated in Australia as compared to UAE and Singapore. This is visible in the chart mentioned in the Australian education sector. As far as flexibility in switching subjects is concerned, Singapore in the most liberal of the three countries. This allows the students of Singapore to be able to choose a subject of their liking. Unlike the other two countries, Singapore allows continuously improved standards to target rather than a single target set of the highest standard and expectations. As we have seen, Singapore is also alleged to have educational streaming not giving equal opportunities to all to study. In UAE this is there with respect to natives and expatriates, but in Singapore it is on the basis of talent and intelligence. This should certainly be resurrected in the future so that Singapore can produce larger masses of qualifies professionals. As far as preparation for examination is concerned, Singapore is not considered to be a favourable place. This is because; the country has always ranked in Maths and Science and not in other subjects. This is an indication of rote learning which cant be considered to be optimal in the education system. But the Singapore Ministry of Education takes pride in the fact that it ranks in the Maths and Science streams as the countrys text books are sold as far as in North America. When it comes to Australia, as the level increases from primary to secondary, the countrys education system gets all the more regularized. This is taken care of from the primary level itself in UAE to a considerable extent. (Singapores Education System, 2010) References UAE Education Centre General information. (2010). Retrieved on July 27, 2010 from http://www.uaeinteract.com/education/ Zayed University announces the five year strategic plan. (2010). Retrieved on July 27, 2010 from http://www.ameinfo.com/198293.html Build, own, operate, transfer (BOOT). (2010). Retrieved on July 27, 2010 http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/build-own-operate-transfer-BOOT.html A guide to universities in Singapore .(2010). Retrieved on July 27, 2010 http://www.uniguru.com/studyabroad/Singapore/top-best-university/education-system-in-Singapore.html Yes Australia official website .(n.d.) retrieved on July 27, 2010 from http://www.yesaustralia.com/cursoestudo-sistemaensinoing.htm SG Box official website .(n.d.). retrieved on July 27 2010 from http://www.sgbox.com/singaporeeducation.html MOE official website. (n.d.). retrieved on July 27, 2010 from http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/

Alzheimers Disease Essay -- essays research papers fc

Alzheimer 1   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It is inevitable that eventually each of us will grow old and begin to face more and more health problems as our age rises. Elderly people are challenged by many illnesses and diseases that unfortunately, are incurable. One disease that becomes more common as people age is Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s a common cause and a form of dementia and can severely damage a patient’s cognitive functions and can ultimately cause death. Living with Alzheimer’s disease can be saddening for both the sufferer and the family. Family and friends will find it very hard to cope when a loved one begins slipping away and losing memory of who they are.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Alzheimer’s disease comes from the last name of a neuro-psychiatrist from Germany, Alois Alzheimer. The disease was first diagnosed when a woman in her early fifties began experience memory problems. â€Å"Alzheimer recounted the now famous case of ‘Auguste D.’ a 51-year-old housewife who had been failing mentally for several years. As a result she had been admitted to his care in the Asylum for the Insane and Epileptic†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Maurer and Maurer 1). After her death, he continued to examine her brain to find causes and explanations for her behavior. He discovered â€Å"†¦classic neuro-pathological signs of plaques and tangles† (Maurer and Maurer 1). â€Å"Plaques are chains of amino acids that are pieces of the amyloid precursor protein†¦tangles are aggregates of the protein tau† (Secko 1). As plaques develop they produce tangles and â€Å"these two abnormalities ultimately lead to loss of cognitive function† (Secko 1) Alois Alzheimer’s research has allowed many specialist to conclude that the apolipoproetein E gene may contribute to the disease. Alzheimer 2 The occurrence and deposits of these proteins in the brain and in the body may ultimately lead to whether or not someone will be susceptible and diagnosed with Alzheimer disease.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Alzheimer’s disease is rising at a very high rate. â€Å"The number of new cases per year is estimated at 360,000 equating to 980 new cases per day or 40 new cases every hour† (Cummings and Cole 1) This evidence shows that an increasing number of people will discover the effects of a cognitive impairment that will most likely be due to Alzheimer’s disease. As people age, their risk of being diagnosed with this disease increases ... ...† (Cummings and Cole 1). This astounding figure should encourage people to become aware of the disease and its signs and symptoms so that they are able to seek help and medical treatment in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease in attempt to live and cope with this condition. Works Cited Cummings, Jeffrey L., Cole, Greg. â€Å"Alzheimer Disease.† Journal of the American   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Medical Association. May 2002: 287-18. Health Source. EBSCOhost. Utica   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  College Lib. 15 Apr 2005. . Maurer, K., and Maurer, U. â€Å"Alzheimer: The Life of a Physician and the Career of a   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Disease.† Journal of the American Medical Association. February 2005: 293-6.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Health Source. EBSCOhost. Utica College Lib. 15 Apr 2005. . Santacruz, K. S., and Swagerty, D. â€Å"Early Diagnosis of Dementia.† American Family   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Physician. February 2001: 63-4. Health Source. EBSCOhost. Utica College Lib.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  15 Apr 2005. . Secko, David. â€Å"Alzheimer’s Disease: Genetic Variables and Risk.† Canadian Medical   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Association Journal. March 2005: 172-5.

Internet Radio Essay -- Expository Technology Essays

Internet Radio When a new technology is pioneered or discovered it is often the case that this new technology is used to emulate the function of old technologies, for example, when Marconi was inventing the radio he was trying to emulate the function of the telegraph system and saw the defracation of radio waves as an obstacle. Eventually these new technologies mature and the advantages and disadvantages are weighed up and used in their most effective capacity. Internet radio is a prime example of this kind of technology convergence, which uses the world wide web, â€Å"the publicly available worldwide system of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching over the internet protocol (IP)†¦..made up of thousands of other, smaller business, academic, and government networks†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (WWW.WORDIQ.COM 2004) to transmit live, streaming audio information from all over the world. Whilst this media cross over is still in its relative infancy, current developments show t hat internet radio has the potential to make local broadcast radio almost obsolete. Arguably, the first regular internet radio ‘broadcast’ started in 1993 when Carl Malamud established Internet Talk Radio featuring a regular Geek of the Week interview segment. (Naughton, John 2004) This was radio by name only, in reality the radio show had to be down loaded in full as a sound file before it could be listened to, the technology had not progressed far enough to listen to the interviews ‘live’. The other down side to this system was that the files were exceptionally large and took a long time to down load. This all changed in 1994 (Naughton, John. 2004) when a company called ProgressiveNetworks created audio streaming technology in which a file could be p... ...ssed 11 September, 2004] Naughton, J. (July 21, 2002), "The Golden Age of Internet Radio", (The Guardian), Available: http://observer.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,6903,759023,00.html(Accessed: 2004, September11). Naraine, Ryan (July 26, 2002) â€Å"Web Radio Law Changes Introduced† (www.internetnews.com) available at http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/1433921 [accessed 11 September, 2004] Reed, Fred (August 5, 2004), " Internet Radio - Redefining through Personalization ", (Knight Ridder Tribune Buisness News), Available: http://www.digitalhollywood.com/SanJoseWedSix.html [Accessed 11 September 2004]. Sawhney, Harmeet and Lee, Seungwhan (October 2000), â€Å"Areas of Innovation, Fringe Groups and Discovery of New Liberties of Action†, (www.slis.indiana.edu), [Available] http://www.slis.indiana.edu/CSI/WP/wp00-03B.html (Accessed September 11, 2004)

The Significance of Dinosaur Art Essay -- Exploratory Essays Research

The Significance of Dinosaur Art Dinosaurs are creatures that seem to fascinate humans, since all we have left are their fossils. Although, through art, their bodies can be put back together and we have a better sense of what they looked like. The problem with art is that pictures can sometimes be disproportionate, unrealistic, or even made up. Young children who learn about dinosaurs may think that they are actually different colors and can talk for example. This is why it is important to make dinosaur art as realistic as possible and more informative. In an article titled, "Do They Really Look Like That? The Science Of Dino Art", writer John Roach discusses people who do art and paleobiology for a living. A man by the name of Chris Sloan is a paleo artist for National Geographic in Washington, D.C.. He's not just a simple artist for the magazine, but also a researcher. He has to do activities such as "attend paleontology conferences, read scientific journals, study dinosaur fossils, talk with scientists, and go on digs"(National Geographic Society 2). This is in order to make dinosaur illustrations attractive to the eye and scientifically accurate. Being a paleo artist also requires paying close attention to the most recent discoveries. New discoveries happen all the time, and artists are very dependant on the information so that they can start their next project. It is important, however, not to be fooled by incorrect information, or hoaxes, which also happens a lot. A good paleo artist will do extensive research on the new information and get to the bottom of it before beginning a piece of art. Sloan, for example, will "read scientific papers, visit paleontologists, or sometimes travel to where a dino... ...r work published. In the future, many more discoveries of dinosaurs will be made. This way, paleo artists are never without jobs. Their work is very important and will be used always. It is important to note that â€Å"art is a reflection of science† (Sloan 2). Generations to come will need to know the truth about dinosaurs, what they looked like, and environments they lived in, so as long as scientists keep making more discoveries, dinosaur art will continue to become more realistic and accurate. Sources 1. Roach, John. â€Å"Do They Really Look Like That? The Science of Dino Art†. National Geographic Society. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/03/0310_030311_dinoart.html 2004 2. Speed, William. â€Å"What Did Dinosaurs Really Look Like†¦And Will We Never Know?†. Discover. http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dlm/m1511/9_21/64698201/p7/article.jhtml?term= Sept 2000 The Significance of Dinosaur Art Essay -- Exploratory Essays Research The Significance of Dinosaur Art Dinosaurs are creatures that seem to fascinate humans, since all we have left are their fossils. Although, through art, their bodies can be put back together and we have a better sense of what they looked like. The problem with art is that pictures can sometimes be disproportionate, unrealistic, or even made up. Young children who learn about dinosaurs may think that they are actually different colors and can talk for example. This is why it is important to make dinosaur art as realistic as possible and more informative. In an article titled, "Do They Really Look Like That? The Science Of Dino Art", writer John Roach discusses people who do art and paleobiology for a living. A man by the name of Chris Sloan is a paleo artist for National Geographic in Washington, D.C.. He's not just a simple artist for the magazine, but also a researcher. He has to do activities such as "attend paleontology conferences, read scientific journals, study dinosaur fossils, talk with scientists, and go on digs"(National Geographic Society 2). This is in order to make dinosaur illustrations attractive to the eye and scientifically accurate. Being a paleo artist also requires paying close attention to the most recent discoveries. New discoveries happen all the time, and artists are very dependant on the information so that they can start their next project. It is important, however, not to be fooled by incorrect information, or hoaxes, which also happens a lot. A good paleo artist will do extensive research on the new information and get to the bottom of it before beginning a piece of art. Sloan, for example, will "read scientific papers, visit paleontologists, or sometimes travel to where a dino... ...r work published. In the future, many more discoveries of dinosaurs will be made. This way, paleo artists are never without jobs. Their work is very important and will be used always. It is important to note that â€Å"art is a reflection of science† (Sloan 2). Generations to come will need to know the truth about dinosaurs, what they looked like, and environments they lived in, so as long as scientists keep making more discoveries, dinosaur art will continue to become more realistic and accurate. Sources 1. Roach, John. â€Å"Do They Really Look Like That? The Science of Dino Art†. National Geographic Society. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/03/0310_030311_dinoart.html 2004 2. Speed, William. â€Å"What Did Dinosaurs Really Look Like†¦And Will We Never Know?†. Discover. http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dlm/m1511/9_21/64698201/p7/article.jhtml?term= Sept 2000