Evidence of the Scythians essays

Evidence of the Scythians essays In archaeology the term Scythians refers to the tribes which inhabited the steppers adjoining to the northern shores of the Black Sea. There is also a broader notion of the Scythian world considered as a group of different tribes sharing a common economic and cultural life and occupying a large region. The study and excavation of Scythian burial sites in the territory to the north of the Black Sea coast began over two hundred years ago. The systematic study of Scythian antiquities started with the excavation of Kul Oba barrow near Kerch in 1830. Scythian finds reveal the highest level of workmanship as well as their close ties with many peoples and tribes in the territories between Far East and Western Europe. The distinctive feature of the art and culture of the Scythians were determined by their nomadic lifestyle. Born warriors, horsemen and herdsmen they roamed the steppers near the Black Sea coast with their many herds of cattle and horsemen and herdsmen all year round. Since their dwellings were covered wagons, they had no interest in constructing public buildings or temples and did not erect images of their Gods. The output of the decorative arts was connected with the class differentiation in Scythian society. This process started in the seventh century BC. The military leaders formed the upper class of society. They tried to stand out from their fellow tribesmen and to show their importance and social superiority with the trappings of wealth and power. In the conditions of nomadic life and frequent military engagements these aims could be best achieved by gold and silver decorations worn on ceremonial and ritual clothing or by richly ornamented weapons and horse accessories, as w ell as grooming articles and ritual tools. All these objects were decorated with figures of animals or scenes of fighting beasts. Scythian art, like the whole of its culture, may be divided into three periods: early Scythian or archaic...

Amazon Marketing Services 20 Creative Unique Ways to Use AMS Ads

Amazon Marketing Services 20 Creative Unique Ways to Use AMS Ads Amazon Marketing Services: 20 Creative Unique Ways to Use AMS Ads â€Å"AMS Ads are dead, said the not-so-savvy self-published author.Don’t believe this lie. AMS Ads, or Amazon Marketing Services ads, are stronger than ever, and whether we like it or not they are here to stay. As a matter of fact, Amazon just rolled out a brand-new, improved UI for AMS; they have added new features, and are constantly creating training material to help authors better understand the platform.Would they do that if AMS were on the way out? Not likely.Sure, not every book is a good fit for Amazon ads: that’s why many Amazon published authors grow bitter and blame the platform for not being able to sell a book that would not be marketable anyways.Don’t be discouraged. Now is the time to jump onto the AMS wagon if you want to actually get paid to write. Those who don’t read the Self-Publishing School Blog and believe that Amazon advertising is dying will gradually move away from it, making the space less crowded and much more profitable for all of us. Here are our tips for using Amazon marketing services effectively:Target famous authors with Amazon marketing servicesTarget Amazon published booksTarget books featured on BookBubTarget books that are recent moviesTarget paperback booksTarget audiobooks with Amazon Marketing ServicesThink about Amazon ads for your book seriesGrow your email listAdvertise your backlistUse The Greatest Hits methodThe Amazon Ad puzzleThe Ad stackerPre-populate with pre-ordersUse AMS for reviewsUse Amazons Bid+ systemUse negative keywordsTarget your own bookStay put, don’t give up. When others zig, just zag 🙂What is Amazon Marketing Services?Amazon marketing services (AMS), now called Advertising Console is a collection of effective tools to help vendors drive traffic to their products and sell more.For authors, this means AMS is a hub for increasing low book sales and maintaining a steady income with their books.NOTE: We cover everything in this blog post and much more about how to build a platform and maintain consistent book sales in our Sell More Books Program. Learn more about it hereAmazon Marketing Services for Authors Made EasyI get it, click bids have gotten more expensive, finding profitable keywords is more difficult and winning is harder than ever. But this is only a byproduct of the space getting more crowded. However, let me assure you: those CPC prices are nowhere near what our friends in the physical product markets are paying. Strange as it may seem, AMS is still a happy place for authors. The key is to get more creative, thinking out of the box. Find new ways of using AMS, test and tweak, and you’ll be way ahead of the (still relatively small) competition. How? Here are 20 ways in which you can use Amazon Marketing Services Ads for your book marketing ventures. Each tactic is coupled with a brief explanation of how to implement it in a practical way. Enjoy the list and remember: now is the time for Amazon advertising!#1 Targe t a famous author in your genreYoull do this in order to try to get into his or her also-boughts. You know, the little section in this screenshot that shows you what other people who bought an item havealso bought↓It’s no secret that ‘also-boughts’ are the main source Amazon uses when they recommend new books to readers. And if your book is in one of your competitor’s ‘also-boughts’, then there’s a good chance it will get shown, recommended and ‘pushed’ to the exact audience you’re after. Happy days. Try bidding heavily on one of your competitors as a target so that your book shows up everywhere on their book’s page and ‘steals the show’ in your reader’s eyes.#2 Target books published by AmazonAmazon has various imprints through which it publishes books, the most famous being Thomas Mercer. Targeting authors and books by these subsidiary companies is a great idea. Amazon (and their algorithm) love when people buy their stuff, which they continuously promote left and right. Try to get your book next to one of Amazon’s own babies, and you’ll be a happy writer indeed. #3 Target books that are featured on BookBubOnce a book is featured in BookBub’s daily email (aka their ‘Featured Deals’), it’s likely to get thousands of downloads and a load of traffic on all the retailers. Which of course means more eyeballs on the said book. By keeping an eye on the books that appear daily on BookBub’s email blast and targeting them with your Amazon ads, you’ll be the first to place your book next to the day’s hottest title, thus piggybacking on its visibility and hopefully sales.#4 Target books that have recently been turned into moviesA hot new release (just as explained in point 3) is always going to garner bigger attention, at least for a few days. Keep an eye on new movie releases in your genre, especially b ig blockbuster films that have been inspired by bestselling books. Again, the trick here is to target those hot new titles so that your book shows next to them, thus collecting some love from all those hungry readers.#5 Use Product Display Ads to target paperbacksAmazons Product Display ads give you a unique chance to specifically target paperback versions of your competitor’s titles (unlike Sponsored Product ads). The first benefit of doing thisis that you’ll undoubtedly broaden the reach of your ads. But most important perk is that you’ll also likely increase the sales of your own paperback copies.As it were, ‘physical book lovers’ have a preference for physical books, which are more expensive and thus will likely result in higher royalties for you to pocket!#6 Use Product Display Amazon Ads to target audiobooksSee point 5 above, but this time use PD ads to target audiobooks! Don’t have an audiobook version of your title? You’re de finitely missing out on one of the hottest and fastest-growing trends in the indie publishing industry. You can find a step-by-step guide on creating an audiobook right here.#7 Lose money on the first book in your seriesYour first in series is likely to be free on Amazon(or at least it should be). But don’t fret, pure ROI seekers! Sure, by going a bit ‘heavier’ on Amazon ads pointing to that book, you’ll likely lose money. But you’ll make it back when readers go on to purchase book 2, 3, 4, etc. in your series. Make sure you have a good idea of how to calculate your audience’s ‘read-through rates’, and adjust your CPC bid and daily budget accordingly.#8 Lose money (again) to grow your email listBe sure to display an opt-in form in the free book you’re running ads on (pro tip: also place it in the first pages of the book, so that readers don’t have to ‘wait’ until they’ve read the whole thing be fore parting with their email address). This will inevitably result in more signups to your email list. Again, this isn’t stellar for pure ROI, and you might be losing money now, but in the long term, this will be super-beneficial.#9 Advertise Your BacklistDon’t put all your eggs in one basket (aka, don’t point all your ads and spend all your budget on one book). Running Amazon ads for other titles in your backlist is always beneficial in keeping the books ‘sticky’ in the rankings, often also providing a load of read-throughs to the other titles in the same series (see point 7).#10 The Greatest Hits methodStart your ads by bidding low-ish on keywords and competing authors/book-titles. Once you have a good idea of what is actually performing well, take those successful phrases and compile them in a ‘Greatest Hits’ ad, with higher CPC bids and daily budget.#11 The Amazon Ad PuzzleTry using your own book as a target keyword, but this ti me to advertise your higher-priced titles or box sets. The ‘Sponsored’ results on the latter’s book page will likely populate with all your other titles, just like the pieces of a puzzle. If a reader lands on your one book and sees your other stuff in the Amazon ads, they might buy a higher-priced title in your collection (and go on to become an aficionado fan of yours)!#12 The Ad StackerDon’t limit yourself to Amazon Marketing Services ads. Ad ‘stacking’ is often the best way to get a gazillion eyeballs on a new release (especially if you’re aiming at hitting bestsellers’ lists when running a hard launch). Try your hands at BookBub ads, Facebook Ads, and others. You don’t need to spend thousands on them: a small budget will be more than enough to Discover where your readers are hanging out, so that you can place your books right under their eyes.#13 Pre-populate with pre-orders!Start running AMS ads well in advance, eve n when your book is still in the pre-order phase. If you get your targeting right, this will help add your book to the ‘also-boughts’ of other books in your genre, thus igniting the sacred ‘recommendation loop’ from Amazon.You can do this one week to a few months in advance. The bigger your author platform is, the longer you can get away with putting your book up for pre-order before the actual publication date.Plus, people will be exposed to your book, will pre-order it, and when the book is live, the instant truckload of downloads will shoot it into the stratosphere!#14 Use AMS for reviewsSpend a bit more on AMS during a free promo you have scheduled. This might sound counterintuitive when it comes to pure ROI, but you’ll be amazed at the number of downloads you’ll get. Be sure to add a ‘call for reviews’ to the end of your book. Some readers won’t, but many will actually leave an honest (and verified) review.#15 Bid+Wi th their recent ‘upgrade’ of the Amazon Marketing Services platform, Amazon has given authors the chance to use their ‘Bid+’ system (an old acquaintance of those using Vendor’s Accounts). This new feature basically lets Amazon know you’re willing to spend up to 50% more on CPC for the terms that are performing well.Its really simple to use, as you can see in the example below so dont be afraid to use this! Think about it: if Amazon has given us this new tool, why not take advantage of it? You definitely won’t go broke (the daily budget still being the highest cap on spend): rather, you’ll likely outbid all of your competitors on your most prized keywords and phrases!#16 Use negative keywordsAs you surely know by now, hyper-relevant laser-focused targeting is the name of the game with AMS, but sometimes, this is much easier said than done. Have an epic fantasy novel that appeals to teens, but that YA readers would absolutely hate ? Don’t risk getting one-star reviews by unsatisfied vampire-hungry audiences. Another new feature that Amazon has just implemented into their new AMS platform is the ‘negative keywords’ field. Use it wisely to list all of the keywords you absolutely DO NOT want to associate your ads to through Amazon Marketing Services. The sniper approach has never been easier.#17 Target your own bookWhy on earth would you want to spend money targeting your own book? After all, it already shows up ‘organically’ in the search results for your key terms, no? Well, not exactly. Amazon is putting a lot of emphasis on advertising (another reason why you should use AMS ads), so it sometimes favors paid results over organic something other platforms (e.g. Facebook) have been doing for a while now. Crazy, right? Try punching one of your keywords in the search box and see if your book appears. It doesn’t?Then you might want to give it a nice little push with a coup le super-targeted ads. Bonus: 3 more advanced Amazon Marketing Services tacticsIf yourereally ready to make some money, you can try to tackle some of these more advanced Amazon Marketing Services methods to increase your book sales.These might be tricky for you at first, butwith enough practice, theyll prove to be more than effective.#18 Use a Vendors Account (part 1)An Amazon Vendor’s Express account will let you advertise your ebooks, but also audiobooks or paperbacks. Use this incredibly powerful tool to advertise your physical or audio copies on relevant pages by your target authors. As seen above (point 5), this will often result in sales of your own audios and paperbacks, yielding a lot more royalties!#19 Use a Vendor’s Account (part 2)A Vendor’s Express account through Amazon Marketing Services will also let you advertise titles that you didn’t publish yourself. Why would you want to do that, you say? For multi-author box sets you’re a par t of, for example! This will bring more eyeballs to your stuff and†¦ don’t forget to include an email-optin in your portion of the text!#20 Use a Vendor’s Account (part 3)As seen above, why not use a Vendor’s Account to also promote a traditionally-published book you wrote before going indie? Your publisher will likely not be using AMS, so show them who the savvy author is and get some sales rolling!Hope you enjoyed some of these tactics for Amazon Marketing Services ads. As I mentioned in the introduction to this post, don’t listen to those who want to attract you to the ‘next best thing’.Think out of the box, test, test, and test again. And you will succeed!Ready to Sell More Books?Your books sales can mean the difference between helping a few and helping the many.We have exactly what you need to sell more books- and change more lives.

Abuse of the Elderly in Nursing Homes Research Paper - 1

Abuse of the Elderly in Nursing Homes - Research Paper Example It is hard to identify elderly abuse in nursing homes since old and frail people are prone to various accidents (Bonnie, 34). Residents in nursing homes normally have very poor safety awareness and therefore there many injuries and falls. It is normally hard to know whether their injuries are caused by incidents that cannot be prevented or from negligence and abuse. This paper explores deeply the types of abuse that elderly people go through in nursing homes and what should be done to alleviate this problem. According to studies, almost one in three nursing homes has had a case of abuse of the residents in US (Waxman, 1). Elderly abuse comes in various forms there are however two main types of abuse, physical and sexual. However, I have classified types of abuse as, financial abuse, sexual, neglect, false imprisonment and actual physical abuse. Financial abuse occurs whereby staff members at nursing homes abuse the residents by stealing their properties. They can also be able to access their bank details and use them to withdraw their money from the bank. There have been reported cases of this kind of abuse, in some cases staff take residents’ financial resources. Since most elders in nursing homes are sick and frail, the staffs know that their actions cannot be reported unless a relative of the victim realizes and takes action. Sexual abuse for seniors living in nursing homes involves unwanted, inappropriate touching, and sexual activities. Most residents of nursing homes are weak, frail, and therefore vulnerable to sexual abuse. Nursing homes staff members, visitors as well as residents who are sexually active can commit sexual abuse. Nursing homes can be held accountable for reported sexual abuse in their residence if it is proven that they failed to do a proper background check to an abusive staff. They can also be held accountable if it is proven that they do not supervise their employees adequately. Failures to

Healthcare Reforms Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Healthcare Reforms - Essay Example e services available to customers; and to cut the healthcare costs (Kronenfeld & Kronenfeld, 2004). The Obama administration has introduced a range of far-reaching reforms of the healthcare system, the most comprehensive since the adoption of the Medicare act in 1965 (Parks, 2011). This paper will review these health care reforms since health care reforms would be beneficial by reducing the overall price per family requirement and medical treatment delivered. Having these basic necessities available would make living in this country easier on the mind as well as the wallet. Having the ability to use the hospital’s resources in a time of need is a common resource not readily available to all Americans.The combined public-private healthcare scheme that was in existent before the healthcare reforms of 2010 was one of the costliest systems globally, with the costs of health care being the highest per individual as compared to any other country (Parks, 2011). Besides, United States comes second, after East Timor, in terms of the percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) that is used on healthcare among the member countries of the United Nations (Parks, 2011). An independent research on global patterns of spending on health care indicates that United States uses more than any other member state in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) (Williams, 2011). Regardless of the massive spending, the research indicates that usage of health care servicesis lower thanthe OECD standards by most indicators. In addition, the findings show that costs incurred by individuals for various health care services are appreciably greater in the US (Williams, 2011). Therefore, these healthcare reforms are a relief to most American families as they will have access to more affordable health care resources and services whenever they need them. For instance, they introducecost-free preventative services, prohibition of insurance companies from barring person s with pre-existing conditions from getting their policies among many other comprehensive benefits to citizens (Williams, 2011). Opponents of these reforms argue thatincreasing the hospital’s resources to the general public at a no-cost rate would spark greed. They suggest that these patients and hospitals alike would disregard the cost and expect the government to front the bill. However, this is not true; the fact is these reforms do not make the system a single-payer scheme in which the state has total control over the health care. The changes would still retain the private insurance system (Parks, 2011). The reforms are only intensifying government’s regulation over health care insurance providers. Besides, an alternative for a public insurance scheme, administered in a similar manner to Medicare, brings in additionalstatefinancing into health care and willchange the market whilstchallengingthe private insurers in an exchange (Parks, 2011). The fact is that a publi c schemeincreases the government’s regulation but it is not a takeover of system. Health care reform

China, an Engine of Growth, Faces a Global Slump Essay Example for Free

China, an Engine of Growth, Faces a Global Slump Essay Yardley, J. , Bradsher, K. (2008). China, an Engine of Growth, Faces a Global Slump. New York Times, October 23, p. A6. In the article Yardley and Bradsher discuss China’s’ economic and financial slump caused by the global financial crisis. For three decades China has been one of the most powerful and promising countries in the world. The country has managed to booster its economic development due to flood of low-priced exports. However, global crisis negatively affects the country that faces the possibility of global recession. The question is whether the ruling Communist Party is able to prevent global financial crisis and to support China’s economic miracle. Economists and analysts say that China’s economic development plays crucial role for economies of the United States and European countries as they face serious downturns. Nonetheless, Chinese economic model is to be recalibrated, domestic investments are be stricken with government spending, and policies aimed at increasing consumer demand are to be promoted. China is in need of better health care network, improvements in social safety network, and lower fees for education establishments. Chinese government claims that global crisis insulates country’s financial system and, thus, leaders argue country’s banks would remain domestically concentrated. The overall economic growth has decreased, unemployment rates have increased and many factories have closed export region. China is recommended to use its foreign reserves for purchasing stocks in European as it gives China an excellent opportunity to gain more experience in global business. Some researcher say that America’s decline is inevitable and if China is prepared to manage it, it will be ready to stand as a superpower. In its turns, China isn’t willing to be considered as a replacement of the USA as it is still a developing country with more foreign reserves and more problems than other countries.

The Use of Images in William Carlos Williams, The Young Housewife Essa

The Use of Images in William Carlos Williams', The Young Housewife As is typical of most Modernist poetry, William Carlos Williams uses very specific images in "The Young Housewife" to reveal not merely a particular circumstance or event, but to also suggest underlying themes and ideas of his subject matter. For example, he gives to the reader various real and imagined images, such her moving about in negligee behind closed doors, or her going about her daily affairs, that are at once very seductive and suggestive of ideas that supercede their appearances. These images especially accentuate the young housewife's naturalness and beauty. However, they are quickly contrasted by a comparison drawn by Williams of the young lady to a fallen leaf-a comparison that initially seems completely bizarre and esoteric. One, in fact, wonders what Williams' purpose is in suddenly changing the mood of the poem to make this comparison. Upon close inspection, however, the comparison actually proves to be less confusing than it appears. In fact, when one considers the nature of a fallen leaf and compares it with various aspects of the young housewife's life, possible explanations begin to arise that clarify Williams' possible intent. Primary to understanding the comparison, is of course, understanding the nature of leaves and more particularly fallen leaves. Universally, leaves are considered to play both a functional and ornamental role for trees. On the functional level, leaves enable photosynthesis and thereby give nourishment to the tree. On the ornamental level, they enrich the appearance of the tree, giving it more color and substance. In fact, leaves are widely considered to be the evidence of a tree's vivacity. La... ... young housewife's sexual nature and beauty is to William and how much emphasis he puts on her captivity in her house, it becomes easier to understand the parallel of her to a fallen leaf. To Williams, the young housewife is like a beautiful leaf that needs to stay connected to its life force in order to maintain its beauty and vitality and even continue to nourish the tree. Otherwise it will inevitably dry up, become colorless and eventually die. Her marriage has separated her from the world and from her life force and will eventually cause her to lose her beauty and pristine nature. It is only a matter of time, in fact, before she becomes one of the leaves that Williams drives over in his car. Works Cited: Williams, William Carlos. â€Å"The Young Housewife.† Anthology of Modern American Poetry. Ed. Cary Nelson. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.

The Challenges of Fair Trade

Historically, coffee cultivation had brought a positive influence in developing countries to alleviate rural poverty. Paige (1997) and Williams (1994) also claimed that coffee cultivation had enabled households to develop their land holdings in sustainable, high return activity, and gainfully employ their family labor (as cited in Barham, Gitter, Lewis & Weber, 2011, p. 116). However, the global coffee market has fallen into crisis in recent years. A research conducted by Murray, Raynold and Taylor (2003), with a large decline in the coffee employment, many rural households have been forced to abandon traditional farming and adopt new livelihoods. Meanwhile, small scale but growing number of coffee farmers have participated in Fair Trade to try to survive such crisis. But, according to the research published recently, Fair Trade coffee may not only fail to bring the rural poor better life, it may impoverish them. This claim is supported by unbalanced price premium, limited Fair Trade coffee market and lack of Fair Trade knowledge by households. The higher sale price in Fair Trade coffee comparing to the conventional coffee is claimed to be the most direct benefit to individual rural farmers who participate in Fair Trade. As indicated by Barham et al. (2010), Fair Trade coffee growers receive an average US $344 in net cash income per hectare compared with US $192 for conventional growers (p. 120). Yet such premium price provided by the Fair Trade does not cover the cost to produce certified coffee for rural farmers. Weber (2011) states that if the coffee growers want to sell their products through Fair Trade, first they have to be certified (p. 109). Fair Trade Foundation requires coffee growers to pay high certification fees which the majority of Third World farmers are too poor to afford. In such cases, these growers are likely try to receive Fair Trade certification through cooperatives, but are required to share their net profit with cooperatives. For example, from the article What Price for Good Coffee? by Fieser and Padgett (2009) , Antonio, a coffee producer in Guatemala, receives 1. 55 dollars per pound of organic coffee sold through Fair Trade, approximately 10 percent more than the conventional market price. However, Antonio only receives less than 50 cents per pound after he pays Fair Trade cooperative fees, government taxes, farming expenses, and other costs (Fieser and Padgett, 2009, p. 98). This shows Fair Trade farmers often lose out on the premium price that can be fetched by certified coffee. Fair Trade is filled with contradictions. Even if the cooperatives and organizations are willing to lower the certification fees, the net cash income for growers participating in Fair Trade market is still not enough to cover the cost to produce certified coffee, by the fact that not all the high cost Fair Trade-organic certified coffee are sold at Fair Trade-organic certified coffee price. While Fair Trade coffee being organic is not a requisite for selling in Fair Trade market, most farmers that participate in cooperatives are expected to transit into organic coffee products and pass the organic certification (Weber, 2011, p. 110). However becoming organic certified requires a transition period. Weber (2011) claims it takes 3 years for growers to complete the transition into organic certification where they have to follow organic norms but unable to sell their coffee as organic (p. 111). This implies a significant delay between the time of the cost and when coffee starts yield a return. Such scenario above affects the net cash income received from Fair Trade households. Though some Fair Trade households do not transit themselves into organic certified coffee, the fact that most coffee grown by Fair Trade membership households is sold in the conventional markets is still true due to the lack of Fair Trade markets. Even though coffee is the second highest traded commodity, the market of Fair Trade coffee is relatively small with average 2. 5 % of the global coffee trade (Fieser and Padgett, 2009, p. 99). Barham et al. 2010) state that Fair Trade has limited the supply of coffee that labeled with certificated to keep the Fair Trade-organic coffee price up in the market. Therefore, even though the growers produce their coffee in a high cost Fair Trade-organic certification standards, they may have to sell their certified coffee to the markets that do not give the value of certification once Fair Trade refused their products (p. 122). Going through the effort to produce Fair Trade standards coffee, the farmers are not reaping the rewards they should have obtained. Also, with the lack of a consumer market but continually growing coffee producing households populations, Weber (2010) claims that it leads the cooperatives to increase their membership without expanding the market which results in lower premium for each household member (p. 113). The benefit to Fair Trade sales including price premiums, social premiums, long-term contracts, and low-interest credit are significantly reduced as less coffee is sold in Fair Trade markets (Murrary, 2003, p. 16). As a result, the limited and slow growth in the Fair Trade market has become one of the major concerns confronting Fair Trade production. Unconstrained market is the key to maximum returns; knowledge is the key ingredient to develop a more democratic institution. Yet households of coffee growers are facing the lack of clear knowledge for Fair Trade. Fair Trade is an indistinct concept to coffee growers comparing to coffee growing which appears in their daily farming livelihoods. Murrary et al. (2003) claim that coffee growers have not received regular and detailed training about information on Fair Trade, and have no contact with Fair Trade representatives but the cooperatives and the technical advisers (p. 6). Even more, majority of coffee growers identify Fair Trade with the cooperative. Such misinterpretation, leads some cooperatives to not tout the benefits coffee growers should gain as Fair Trade certification benefits (pp. 16 – 17). Since cooperatives and the technical advisers deal directly with the Fair Trade certification, buyers, and others; coffee growers simply have no control over their products com pare to other coffee investment patterns. For example, the Thrive's system mentioned by LaPorte (2013) in his article. Mr. Lander, an entrepreneur based in Atlanta, created the company named Thrive Farmers Coffee assisted coffee growers to increase their ownership and profit margins by splitting half of proceeds with farmers and by establishing relationships between farmers and local coffee co-ops. Mr. Lander also states that organizations like Thrive are trying to teach these growers the basic knowledge of risk and quality because now they see their products selling to their ultimate consumers (p. 106). If coffee growers can understand the way to prevent risk and way to improve coffee quality, these growers will most likely sell more coffee overall. In conclusion, Fair Trade is not the answer to solve poverty. The system offers limited price improvement to very few primary households, while neglecting the poorest of poor in the sector. With farmers lack of understanding of the structure and operation, Fair Trade can easily prevent the poor from liberating themselves, keep them in their land and restrain their future. And lastly, by raising Fair Trade coffee price for the consumer, it slows down the growth of global Fair Trade economy and limits the market from certain group. Overall, there are benefits to the small-scale farmers from Fair Trade movement, but the benefits are much insufficient compared with other investment patterns. It is nothing but a short-term diversion. If the Fair Trade is unable to put forward a plan for improving their current rate of returns, coffee growers are unlikely to lift themselves out of their poverty through Fair Trade. And, perhaps the only fair choice is to support free trade. References Abad-Vergara, Diane. (Director, Produce). (2009). Living with coffee [Documentary]. New Zealand. Barham, B. L., Callenes, M., Gitter, S., Lewis, J., ; Weber, J. (2011). Fair trade/organic coffee, rural livelihoods, and the â€Å"Agrarian Question†: Southern Mexican coffee families in transition. World Development, 39(1), 134-145. Fieser, E., ; Padgett, T. (2009). What price good coffee? Time International, 171(13) 90-91. La porte, N. (2013, March 16). Coffee’s economics, rewritten by farmers. New York Times. Retrieved 5/20/13 from  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/17/business/coffees-economics-rewritten-by-farmers.html Murray, D. L., Raynolds, L. T., ; Taylor, P.L. (2003). One cup at a time: poverty alleviation and fair trade coffee in Latin America. Fair Trade Research Group, Colorado State University. Weber, J. G. (2011). How much more do growers receive for Fair Trade-organic coffee? Food Policy, 36(5), 678-685

Development of Sexual Identity

Ethical relativism means, that I reject the Idea that there Is a single correct moral view. I think this because I believe that everyone has a right to choose and have their own moral view. I also think that in my own opinion that everyone that wants to do or say or feel a certain way should be able to and that no matter how much people say it may be wrong they should be able to show how we feel. I have also thought about critical thinking a lot different when it comes to sexuality. I think that we as younger adults, considering I am only 28, need to stop and think about the decisions that we eke as we are growing up.Now a days kids are getting younger and younger when they are having their babies, but the problem is that they are still babies themselves. They are ruing their lives and in some cases their baby's lives as well. Society needs to stop with all the media and showing the good things with babies and show the more negative things. With me though if I would have known what I know now I do not think that I would have had a child at 20, but no matter what I would not change it for anything and I know it is hard but in my opinion it was and is worth it. ;Describe the effect of environment and historical perspectives on your sexuality. In the environment that I was raised, I was raised to be tough and to be a manly man. My father really did not like gay, lesbian, or bi-sexual people and even treated them like they were nothing. I understand that if I was gay I would have been â€Å"disc- owned† and probably thrown out of the family, I did though have a lesbian cousin and I think that it must be the way my dad and his family were raised because her dad was very, very rude and really disheartening towards her.Being that my dad Is Native American and his family Is very proud I think that Just being raised around this type of family and their values can really affect you as a person. I think that the historical perspectives have really had no Influence on me personally because I think that we should learn from the past and historical events but we can choose whether or not to actually use them In our lives or make our lives ;our lives† that we live. ; Discuss the development of your gender Identity.A few things that have helped me In determining my gender Identity are that I have always felt that I need to take care of my family and to do my best when I am trying, his is one of the reasons that I chose to go back to school and further my education Ana try to get a netter JODI winner I can earn more money Ana Tell netter Dialectally secure about our future. I always feel that growing up my dad did a lot of working and really never spent time with us kids and I was always told that it was because he needed to take care of us kids and the family.And if I have gotten anything from him it was that taking care of your family was the first and most important thing to do. Another is that I am a sports fanatic and love the competitio n that comes with it. While watching TV. Hen I was younger I really never got what was happening but I knew that my dad did it so I thought it was the right thing to do. And when our team lost he was disappointed and really showed, so I thought that was normal activity, but I know now that it is Just a game and am now teaching my son that it is k to loose but having fun is the main goal.And lastly, and one of the most important things that I would say helped me with my gender identity was that growing up boys were the ;tough† ones and the girls were the ;weak' ones of course now that I am older I know that this untrue and that some girls are in fact stronger than some guys. Even though now that I think about it I and how wrong I really was I Just laugh about it because we were kids and it was only the perception of other kids that influenced me. ; Analyze the effect of attraction and love in your relationships.I think that the effect that attraction has had on me in my relatio nships has a lot of who I dated when I was younger. I used to see a girl that I felt was attractive and try to ask her out on a date. Then as I got older I used to see a girl that was attractive to me and I would try to take her out and start a relationship with her based solely on the first initial attraction. I understand that a real and stable relationship takes a whole lot more than Just looks to be a successful relationship and to be serious.I now am married to the most wonderful women on this planet and really and truly understand love. She is my best friend, my lover, and my world. We have nothing in common but that is what makes it so much fun, every day we either try something different or Just hang out together. Being different I think is Just like people say ;opposites attract† well in our case it has and I believe that life could not get any better. To me love really means something a to deeper than to other people.To me it means to love unconditionally and no matt er what you do not give up on that person Just because you or they are mad. So when I say ;l love you† I really mean it with all my heart and it is not Just a turn of phrase to me, like some of these kids that Just through it out there to Just say it. ; Discuss another topic of this course that is interesting and useful to you. Relate this topic to your life. I think that after taking this course another topic that has interested me and really related to my life is that of child and sexual molesters.The reason that this topic has really interested me is because I personally think that these men and women are very mentally and physically sick people. I think that these people should be giving help but only if they admit that they have done wrong and need the help. Now some people that think that this may be something they need to say to get out of Jail or whatever else that they are being held in, but they are only saying this to get out and are more than likely going to refine d and hurt someone else's child or them personally by raping them.I think that we as a society need to make a law that is a en strike for these offenders and be put away for life. I have a child and I know that being a father and if one was to hurt or molest my son I would be engulfed with rage Tanat may not De addle to nylon Deck IT I met ten person won a a It. So In my pollen I think that this would not only be looking out for the children but for the person who did this and to the parents or loved ones that the sex offender has done this to.Many people think that there should be either stricter rules for sex offenders and some think that the laws are fine as long as they register as a sex offender, but I think that story has shown that many of them go out and refined and hurt another child or person. So instead of stopping this while we could at the first time that they did it we let them out and they go out and destroy another life. I think that this is Just too risky and should leave them in the prisons to live their life out.An idea that I would suggest is that maybe build a facility on an island to serve as a place to put offenders and let them live a normal life but far, far away from people they may hurt and the children they may hurt. Now that I am done with this class I will still be doing my own research on a lot of he things that we have learned here and I hope to be able to pass them on not only to my kids but to anyone that may want to learn about this as well.This class has not only taught me a lot but it has opened my eyes to things that I may have never known or even thought about learning. I thank you and I hope that one day I may be able to share this with people to ensure that we understand our bodies and how they work, and what to do when things happen to us. Format your personal response consistent with PAP guidelines. Post your personal response as an attachment.

Philip Zimbardo and the Stanford Prison Experiment

Philip Zimbardo and the Stanford Prison Experiment Philip G. Zimbardo, born March 23, 1933, is an influential social psychologist.  He is best known for the influential- yet controversial- study known   as the â€Å"Stanford Prison Experiment,† a study in which research participants were â€Å"prisoners† and â€Å"guards† in a mock prison. In addition to the Stanford Prison Experiment, Zimbardo has worked on a wide range of research topics and has written over 50 books and published over 300 articles. Currently, he is a professor emeritus at Stanford University and president of the Heroic Imagination Project, an organization aimed at increasing heroic behavior among everyday people. Early Life and Education Zimbardo was born in 1933 and grew up in the South Bronx in New York City. Zimbardo writes  that living in an impoverished neighborhood as a child influenced his interest in psychology: â€Å"My interest in understanding the dynamics of human aggression and violence stems from early personal experiences† of living in a rough, violent neighborhood. Zimbardo credits his teachers with helping to encourage his interest in school and motivating him to become successful. After graduating from high school, he attended Brooklyn College, where he graduated in 1954 with a triple major in psychology, anthropology, and sociology. He studied psychology in graduate school at Yale, where he earned his MA in 1955 and his PhD in 1959.  After graduating, Zimbardo taught at Yale, New York University, and Columbia, before moving to Stanford in 1968. The Stanford Prison Study In 1971, Zimbardo conducted his most famous and controversial study- the Stanford Prison Experiment. In this study, college-age men participated in a mock prison. Some  of the men were randomly chosen to be prisoners and even went through mock â€Å"arrests† at their homes by local police before being brought to the mock prison on the Stanford campus. The other participants were chosen to be prison guards. Zimbardo assigned himself the role of the superintendent of the prison. Although the study was originally planned to last two weeks, it was ended early- after just six days- because events at the prison took an unexpected turn. The guards began to act in cruel, abusive ways towards prisoners and forced them to engage in degrading and humiliating behaviors. Prisoners in the study began to show signs of depression, and some even experienced nervous breakdowns. On the fifth day of the study, Zimbardo’s girlfriend at the time, psychologist Christina Maslach, visited the mock prison and was shocked by what she saw.  Maslach (who is now Zimbardo’s wife) told him, â€Å"You know what, its terrible what youre doing to those boys.†Ã‚  After seeing the events of the prison from an outside perspective, Zimbardo stopped the study. The Prison Experiments Impact Why did people behave the way they did in the prison experiment? What was it about the experiment that made the prison guards behave so differently from how they did in everyday life? According to Zimbardo, the Stanford Prison Experiment speaks to the powerful way that social contexts can shape our actions and cause us to behave in ways that would have been unthinkable to us even a few short days before. Even Zimbardo himself found that his behavior changed when he took on the role of prison superintendent. Once he identified with his role, he found that he had trouble recognizing the abuses happening in his own prison: â€Å"I lost my sense of compassion,†Ã‚  he explains in an interview with Pacific Standard. Zimbardo explains that the prison experiment offers a surprising and unsettling finding about human nature. Because our behaviors are partially determined by the systems and situations we find ourselves in, we are capable of behaving in unexpected and alarming ways in extreme situations. He explains that, although people like to think of their behaviors as relatively stable and predictable, we sometimes act in ways that surprise even ourselves.  Writing about the prison experiment in The New Yorker, Maria Konnikova offers another possible explanation for the results: she suggests that the environment of the prison was a powerful situation, and that people often change their behavior to match what they think is expected of them in situations such as this. In other words, the prison experiment shows that our behavior can change drastically depending on the environment we find ourselves in. Critiques of the Prison Experiment Although the Stanford Prison Experiment has had a significant influence (it was even the inspiration for a film), some people have questioned the validity of the experiment. Instead of simply being an outside observer of the study, Zimbardo served as the prison superintendent and had one of his students serve as the prison warden. Zimbardo himself has admitted that he regrets being the prison superintendent and should have remained more objective. In a 2018 article for Medium, writer Ben Blum argues that the study suffers from several key flaws. First, he reports that several of the prisoners claimed being unable to leave the study (Zimbardo denies this allegation). Second, he suggests that Zimbardo’s student David Jaffe (the prison warden) may have influenced the behavior of the guards by encouraging them to treat prisoners more harshly. It’s been pointed out that the Stanford Prison Experiment demonstrates the importance of reviewing the ethics of each research project before the study goes forward, and for researchers to think carefully about the study methods that they use. However, despite the controversies, the Stanford Prison Experiment raises a fascinating question: how much does the social context influence our behavior? Other Work by Zimbardo After conducting the Stanford Prison Experiment, Zimbardo went on to conduct research on several other topics, such as how we think about time  and how people can overcome shyness.   Zimbardo has also worked to share his research with audiences outside of academia. In 2007, he wrote The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil, based on what he learned about human nature through his research in the Stanford Prison Experiment. In 2008, he wrote The Time Paradox: The New Psychology of Time That Will Change Your Life about his research on time perspectives. He has also hosted a series of educational videos titled Discovering Psychology. After the humanitarian abuses at Abu Ghraib came to light, Zimbardo has also spoken about the causes of abuse in prisons. Zimbardo was an expert witness  for one of the guards at Abu Ghraib, and he explained that he believed the cause of events at the prison were systemic.  In other words, he argues that, rather than being due to the behavior of a â€Å"few bad apples,† the abuses at Abu Ghraib occurred because of the system organizing the prison.  In a 2008 TED talk, he explains why he believes the events occurred at Abu Ghraib: â€Å"If you give people power without oversight, its a prescription for abuse.†Ã‚  Zimbardo has also spoken about the need for prison reform in order to prevent future abuses at prisons: for example, in a 2015 interview with Newsweek, he explained the importance of having better oversight of prison guards in order to prevent abuses from happening at prisons. Recent Research: Understanding Heroes One of Zimbardo’s most recent projects involves researching the psychology of heroism.   Why is it that some people are willing to risk their own safety to help others, and how can we encourage more people to stand up to injustice? Although the prison experiment shows how situations can powerfully shape our behavior, Zimbardo’s current research suggests that challenging situations don’t always cause us to behave in antisocial ways. Based on  his research on heroes, Zimbardo writes that difficult situations can sometimes actually cause people to act as heroes:   Ã¢â‚¬Å"A key insight from research on heroism so far is that the very same situations that inflame the hostile imagination in some people, making them villains, can also instill the heroic imagination in other people, prompting them to perform heroic deeds.†Ã‚   Currently, Zimbardo is president of the Heroic Imagination Project, a program that works to study heroic behavior and train people in strategies to behave heroically. Recently, for example, he has studied the frequency of heroic behaviors and the factors that cause people to act heroically. Importantly, Zimbardo has found from this research that everyday people can behave in heroic ways. In other words, despite the results of the Stanford Prison Experiment, his research has shown that negative behavior isn’t inevitable- instead, we are also capable of using challenging experiences as an opportunity to behave in ways that help other people. Zimbardo writes, â€Å"Some people argue humans are born good or born bad; I think that’s nonsense. We are all born with this tremendous capacity to be anything.† References Bekiempis, Victoria.   â€Å"What Philip Zimbardo and the Stanford Prison Experiment Tell Us About the Abuse of Power.†Ã‚   Newsweek, 4 Aug. 2015, www.newsweek.com/stanford-prison-experiment-age-justice-reform-359247.Blum, Ben. â€Å"The Lifespan of a Lie.† Medium: Trust Issues. https://medium.com/s/trustissues/the-lifespan-of-a-lie-d869212b1f62.Kilkenny, Katie.   â€Å"‘It’s Painful’: Dr. Philip Zimbardo Revisits the Stanford Prison Experiment.†Ã‚   Pacific Standard, 20 Jul. 2015, psmag.com/social-justice/philip-zimbardo-revisits-the-stanford-prison-experiment.Konnikova, Maria.   â€Å"The Real Lesson of the Stanford Prison Experiment.†Ã‚   The New Yorker, 12 June 2015, www.newyorker.com/science/maria-konnikova/the-real-lesson-of-the-stanford-prison-experiment.â€Å"Philip G. Zimbardo: Stanford Prison Experiment.†Ã‚   Stanford Libraries, exhibits.stanford.edu/spe/about/philip-g-zimbardo.Ratnesar, Romesh.   â€Å"The Men ace Within.†Ã‚   Stanford Alumni, July/Aug. 2011, alumni.stanford.edu/get/page/magazine/article/?article_id40741.Slavich, George M.   â€Å"On 50 Years of Giving Psychology Away: An Interview with Philip Zimbardo.†Ã‚   Teaching of Psychology, vol. 36, no. 4, 2009, pp. 278-284, DOI: 10.1080/00986280903175772, www.georgeslavich.com/pubs/Slavich_ToP_2009.pdf. Toppo, Greg. â€Å"Time to Dismiss the Stanford Prison Experiment?† Inside Higher Ed,  2018, June 20,  https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2018/06/20/new-stanford-prison-experiment-revelations-question-findings.Zimbardo, Philip G.   â€Å"Philip G. Zimbardo.†Ã‚   Social Psychology Network, 8 Sep. 2016, zimbardo.socialpsychology.org/.Zimbardo, Philip G.   â€Å"The Psychology of Evil.†Ã‚   TED, Feb. 2008, www.ted.com/talks/philip_zimbardo_on_the_psychology_of_evil.Zimbardo, Philip G.   â€Å"The Psychology of Time.†Ã‚   TED, Feb. 2009, www.ted.com/talks/philip_zimbardo_prescribes_a_healthy_take_on_time.Zimbardo, Philip G.   â€Å"What Makes a Hero?†Ã‚   Greater Good Science Center, 18 Jan. 2011, greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/what_makes_a_hero.

15 Great Word Games

15 Great Word Games 15 Great Word Games 15 Great Word Games By Mark Nichol Writers and editors are among the most dedicated (read: obsessive) fans of word games. (I play Scrabble once a week a relatively low frequency that may indicate only a mild addiction.) As the name of an old Reader’s Digest feature suggests, they enrich your word power, but they’re also fun. Here is a roster of some of the most entertaining games, from traditional contests like Password to innovative variations like Upwords. Most games listed have children’s versions, and many are available in both analog and digital form. 1. Apples to Apples Players take turns judging which noun selected by a player from a hand of cards, each labeled with a noun, best matches on criteria such as funniest, most appropriate, or least appropriate an adjective printed on another card. (Cards) 2. Balderdash Players take turns crafting fake definition for obscure words in the hope that others will select the false meaning from a set of possible definitions. (Cards) 3. Boggle Players take turns jumbling a four-by-four grid of letter cubes, and all players try to form as many words as they can from letters displayed on adjacent cubes. (Letter cubes). 4. Bulls-Eye Players create words from cards labeled with single letters; they take turns rolling a die to determine the word length that earns points for each round, then advance tokens on a board according to how many points they earned. (Cards and board with tokens) 5.Catch Phrase Players take turns providing teammates with clues to the identity of a secret word before a timer goes off. (Handheld electronic timer with a database of words) 6. Password Players try to get teammates to identify a secret word by providing one-word clues; teams take turns, and the number of points awarded for a correct guess decreases with each failed attempt. (Cards) 7. Scattergories Players list as many words belonging to a category and starting with a given letter as they can. (Cards) 8. Scrabble Players use letter tiles to form words they can attach to words already placed on a grid ; they rack up points based on the relative values of the letters and of grid squares that, when used, multiply the value of letters or words. (Board and letter tiles) 9. Scrabble Upwords Players form words by placing letter tiles on a board, but, unlike in Scrabble, all letters have equal value, and bonuses are earned by forming new words by placing new tiles on top of some existing ones. (Board with letter tiles) 10. Taboo Players try to get teammates to guess a word by providing other word clues, but they are prohibited from using a list of the most obvious clues. (Cards) 11. Text Twist Players form as many words as possible from a randomly generated group of letters before a timer runs out. (Computer) 12. Word Blur Players use word tiles to prompt teammates to correctly guess a secret word. (Tiles) 13. Word Zigzag In this Boggle-like game with a grid of letters (unlike as in Boggle, in this game, the size of the grid is variable), players attempt to find as many strings of letters that form words as they can. Not to be confused with Zig-Zag, described below. (Application, or paper and pencil) 14. Words with Friends This high-tech multiplayer variation on Scrabble, which has achieved phenomenal success thanks, in part, to a number of celebrity aficionados, allows multiple simultaneous games with known or unknown opponents. (Application) 15. Zig-Zag Players try to guess each other’s secret words by testing how many letters of another word are in the secret word, and where the letters in common are positioned. (This game seems to be out of print, but used copies are available online, or prospective players could recreate the game materials from descriptions.) Update: Looking for more? We created another list with 50 more great word games, so check that out Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the General category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:50 Incorrect Pronunciations That You Should Avoid50 Nautical Terms in General Useâ€Å"Least,† â€Å"Less,† â€Å"More,† and â€Å"Most†

Serious Game Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Serious Game Critique - Essay Example The serious games have the capability of changing opinions of the societies of influencing them towards achieving a common goal through educating and funny learning. This has aroused the need to analyze one serious game, in order to demonstrate the way it has the capabilities of influencing the societies towards social, physical, and emotional changes. The research study also identifies if the serious game was successful, and illustrate the way the targeted audience responded to the game. This paper specifically assesses the Climate Defense, which is a defense games educating the player to prevent the global warming through the absorption of carbon dioxide before building up into the atmosphere. The game contains towers that represent quantities of trees that can be planted to absorb the carbon dioxide emitted to the atmosphere. The towers are constructed by the player to destroy the clouds of carbon dioxide, which matches along the pathway from the ground surface to the atmosphere in the form of waves. The game presents the overall impacts to the player, especially after the increase of global temperatures. It gives details of the expected results, as predicted by the economists and scientists after the increase of the global temperatures. However, the games provide an opportunity for the player to approach the problematic aspect of the results by decreasing the wave-size of the emitted carbon dioxide. It also gives the player an alternative approach of increasing the efficiency of energy consumptions by decreasing the waves of carbon dioxide, which the trees must deal with. Therefore, the game achieves its goals of eliminating the player the various approaches to end the issue of global warming, especially the common one of planting the trees. It achieves its notions be even predicting the possible impacts if the situation is not taken under control. Such predictions include the economical point of view and scientific