Monday, December 30, 2019

Essay on Texas Policy Report - 1242 Words

Immigration Reform Impacts at the State and Federal Levels GOVT 2306-21405 Fall 2013 Word Count: 1082 Texas has a reputation throughout history of differing views from the federal government in laws and politics pertaining to social, fiscal, and educational issues. On the whole, Texas operates as a largely conservative state. Because of this, policy-making is often right wing. With the institution of a Democratic, liberal president, the State’s dissent from the Federal government has only increased over certain issues. One hot topic of the 2012 Presidential election was immigration. With the major increase in immigration, it is no surprise that the issue was so emphasized. Between 2000 and 2011 there was a 30 percent†¦show more content†¦Texas has also long supported an increase in border security. In 2006, Gov. Rick Perry announced a plan that assigned Department of Public Safety personnel as well as other resources to the border to assist in law enforcement. He also added an additional $3.8 million in grant funding for state criminal justice planning funds to the Te xas Border Sheriff’s Coalition. (Texas House of Representatives) The state’s legislative policy has been one of strict anti-immigration. In Texas’s 81st Legislative session, the issue of Voter ID arose. The Voter ID bill would require photo identification or two forms of other identification in order to vote. During the 81st session, Democrats filibustered to prevent the issue from being voted upon, it is very likely this is the only reason the bill did not pass and it likely will pass should it reappear in the 82nd session. Despite its history of harsh policies towards foreign born immigrants, two bills have been introduced into the Texas Legislature which provide some leniency toward immigrants. The first is a proposal would grant undocumented immigrants the ability to legally drive and obtain insurance if they pass a background check and a drivingShow MoreRelatedThe Issue Of Social Services855 Words   |  4 Pagesdepends on many factors including state and federal budgets, current job opportunities, and cost of living. Take Texas, a state which is known for its low cost of living along with its low taxes. Yet, an article by the Burnt Orange Report contends that Texas is one of the states with the highest rates of poverty. (Cadik) Whether or not this claim is true is up for debate. The fact is Texas does face the issue of poverty just like the rest of the nation does. The state has chosen to address the issueRead MoreSenior Vice President For Accreditation And Quality Assurance At Letourneau Universi ty ( Letu )1666 Words   |  7 Pagesalso monitored the submission and quality of assessment reports, and provided administrators, faculty, and staff training and development related to institutional effectiveness, continuous improvement, assessment, and accreditation requirements. Under my guidance in institutional effectiveness, SFA successfully received reaffirmation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) with no monitoring reports, an achievement that only 10 percent of schools couldRead MoreImplementation Of The Institute Of Medicine1016 Words   |  5 Pages Implementation of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) Future of Nursing Report Introduction The focus of this paper is based on the importance of the IOM report on the â€Å"Future of Nursing† in relation to nursing practice, workforce development and the nursing education. The standard of practice coupled with professional accountability in addition to professional development forms the foundation for the nursing profession as it continues to evolve with the ever-changing needs of those they serve, beRead MoreEssay On Texas Senate1018 Words   |  5 PagesKhatiwada5 Sandesh Khatiwada Professor Sharifian Government 2306-71001 19 November 2017 Texas House of Representative is the part of Texas legislature. There are 150 members in Texas house of representative who are elected from single member-district and are served for limited 2 years term. According to the 2010 Census, each member of Texas house of representative represents about 167,637 people. Texas house of representative consist of large numbers of different house committees. Economic SmallRead MoreDespite The Tremendous Economic Success In Texas And Its1568 Words   |  7 Pagestremendous economic success in Texas and its overall well-being, the state continues to face its nonstandard set of challenges that must be addressed immediately. Certainly, the most pressing issue is a deteriorating transportation infrastructure, which requires innovation, long-range planning and, of course, investment (Button Reggiani, 2011). The following study focuses on the deteriorating transportation infr astructure as a major issue facing the state of Texas. The report will also discuss the positionsRead MoreEssay On Texas Rights874 Words   |  4 Pagescitizens in Texas Personal responsibility is very crucial in ensuring tranquility in a society. In Texas, the legislature has passed several laws which are aimed at ensuring personal responsibility. Such policies force people to adhere to activities that do not put other citizens at risks. One policy that has been enacted by the Texas legislature is safe driving. According to House Bill 62 of the 85th legislative session, citizens are not allowed to text and drive anywhere within the State of Texas (PrunerRead MoreEssay On Texas Rights874 Words   |  4 Pagescitizens in Texas Personal responsibility is very crucial in ensuring tranquility in a society. In Texas, the legislature has passed several laws which are aimed at ensuring personal responsibility. Such policies force people to adhere to activities that do not put other citizens at risks. One policy that has been enacted by the Texas legislature is safe driving. According to House Bill 62 of the 85th legislative session, citizens are not allowed to text and drive anywhere within the State of Texas (PrunerRead MoreState Of Texas Assessments Of Academic Readiness Or Staar1430 Words   |  6 PagesResearch Paper Texas contains a lot of issues when it comes to its education policies. The issue that has the most people thinking about and I feel more passionate about when it comes to education is the high-stakes testing in the Texas high schools, middle schools, and even elementary schools. This issue has brought plenty of attention from students and their parents. The testing situation in Texas has been addressed from time to time, but there hasn’t been a proper solution that keeps the studentRead MoreHigh School Dropouts1578 Words   |  7 Pagesstudents with at least a high school diploma or college degree. They want experienced people with diplomas, degrees, and educational backgrounds. Hence, Texas needs to find solutions to increase the number of high school graduates and fix the policies and their goals that contribute to the percentage of high school dropouts. According to the Texas Education Agency (TEA), the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) defines a dropout as â€Å"a student who is enrolled in grades 7-12, does not returnRead MoreTexas Is A State Of Texas1269 Words   |  6 Pages Texas is a state that has a continuous history of arising issues and conflicts dealing with immigration policies, education policies, environmental policies, social welfare policies and many other disputes. Texas has a business mind-set view and the decisions made with only business goals are affecting the environment in a negative manner. â€Å"Rich natural resources, abundant land, a central location within the United States and a business-friendly environment have long attracted both immigrants and

Sunday, December 22, 2019

Alternative Sources of Energy Essay - 829 Words

As the population continues to increase day after day, so does the demand for oil and other natural resources. Eventually we will get to a point where we will need to find different ways of efficiently producing energy at a low cost. Twenty to thirty years ago it was hard to imagine what sources of energy (other than obvious possibilities like solar panels and windmills) that could efficiently supply the world. The advancement of technology today is opening new doors in the energy field that are likely to change the way we think about energy. With so many different sources of energy that are prevalent around the world, the challenge is found in harvesting and securing the energy at its source, and doing so in an efficient†¦show more content†¦Clearly there are many difficulties that would have to be addressed including maintenance, air space issues, safety, etc, but flying wind farms are a potential source of future energy. wind.png Another form of energy that could become v ery useful and resourceful in the near future is the transformation of human waste into energy. An article by Janet Zimmerman describes a process being developed by an engineering firm named UC Riverside. The new process uses heat and pressure to turn human waste into clean energy, saving millions of dollars and reducing pollution in the process. This idea has the potential to change the energy industry since there will never be a shortage of human waste. The first step of the process pumps a combination of municipal sewage, sawdust and water into a pressurized reactor that is heated to almost 1,400 degrees. (Zimmerman). A senior development engineer with UC Riverside, Junior Castillo, explained that the extreme heat transforms the mixture into different gasses like carbon dioxide, methane, and carbon monoxide. In the later stages, these gasses are converted into substitutes for natural gasses. The goal is to eventually use the gas product to heat the reactor to increase efficiency . Although this process is still under development, they plan to have a functioning plant running within the next fiveShow MoreRelatedAlternative Sources Of Alternative Energy Sources1123 Words   |  5 PagesRough Draft: Alternative Energy Sources Imagine a world where sea levels have risen, a world where extreme weather happens more often and with more intensity, and a world that has very few species of animals left due to mass extinctions. (Environmental Protection Agency) But that future is still avoidable. The answer is renewable energy sources. Alternative energy sources are sources of energy that does not use fossil fuels, and generally are clean and renewable. (Jessa) Some examples include solarRead MoreAlternative Sources Of Alternative Energy Sources1704 Words   |  7 PagesAlternative Energy Sources Air pollution, resulting from the burning of fossil fuels, amounts for about 7 million deaths each year. On average, 1 in 8 deaths are caused by some type of air pollution. Fossil fuels are burned every day to keep the world functioning but are accompanied by tremendous amounts of pollution. The world needs energy sources that are as effective as fossil fuels but that come with less harmful pollutants than fossil fuels do. An effort must be made to pull away fromRead MoreAlternative Sources Of Alternative Energy Sources2141 Words   |  9 PagesWhat are alternative energy sources? Alternative energy sources are forms of energy that use natural resources to produce energy. There are three main alternative energy sources that can be used in the place of fossil fuels, which are Nuclear, Solar, Wind, and Hydroelectric. Fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and gas are decreasing and eventually will run out. Usage of fossil fuels cause harm to the environment by producing greenhouse gasses. Alternative energy sources are not harmful to the environmentRead MoreAlternative Sources Of Alternative Energy Sources2142 Words   |  9 PagesWhat are alternative energy sources ? Alternative energy sources are forms of energy that use natural resources to produce energy. There are three main alternative energy sources that can be used in the place of fossil fuels, which are Nuclear, Solar, Wind, and Hydroelectric. Fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and gas are decreasing and eventually will run out. Usage of fossil fuels cause harm to the environment by producing greenhouse gasses. Alternative energy sources are not harmful to the environmentRead MoreSources Of Alternative Energy Sources926 Words   |  4 PagesAlternate Energy Sources Alternative energy sources are becoming more and more popular. The most important alternative energy sources are solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, ocean, and hydropower energies. Their main advantage lies in the resumption of energy resources. This paper will give information about each of sources as well as their advantages and disadvantages. Solar energy The Sun is a leading environmentally clean energy source. The process of generating electricity from sunlight has beenRead MoreAlternative Energy Sources1852 Words   |  7 Pagesmajor problem. This problem is the need for alternative energy sources which can be converted into electricity because the main energy source currently used is coal and the coal deposits will not last forever. The main alternative energy sources that many countries are currently researching are wind, solar, hydro and nuclear. But there is currently another source of energy that is heavily debated to see whether the pros outweigh the cons. This energy source is natural gas. The main reason for the heavyRead MoreAlternative Sources Of Energy Sources2415 Words   |  10 Pages Abstract This report is on Alternative Energy Sources of Nuclear, Solar, Wind, and Hydroelectric energies. It is an exploration of why are they termed â€Å"non-renewable. â€Å"Additionally, I will address the questions for each of the four type’s nuclear, solar, wind, and hydroelectric, how is it generated and what technology is required. I will also explore the advantages and disadvantages to the use of alternative sources as energy sources. Finally, I will address the specific environmental impactsRead MoreEnergy Sources For Alternative Energy930 Words   |  4 Pagesto create diverse methods of generating powerful, dependable energy sources that do not have negative repercussions on our environment. Alternative energy refers to sources that do not create undesired consequences, such as fossil fuels do (Alternative Energy 2015). Not only are emissions from fossil fuels concerning, but also these resources are not going to be available for our use forever, making changes for alt ernative energy sources a pressing topic of discussion. British Petroleum and RoyalRead MoreAlternative Sources Of Alternative Energy3097 Words   |  13 Pages Alternative Energy by Gage R. Shots University of Southern Indiana Global Economic Issues 241 Section 003 Prof. Daria Sevastianova Due December 8, 2014 Alternative Energy Alternative energy is imperative to the continuation and advancement of the world. There will come a time where the unsustainable resources we use to power every aspect of our lives will cease to exist, or become uneconomical. In the same way, the pollutants given off by using these energy materials are believedRead MoreAlternative Energy Sources894 Words   |  4 PagesAlternative Energy Sources â€Å"In United States around half of million deaths each year are attributed to air pollution. It is estimated that air pollution each day kills three people in the city of Hong Kong. Air pollution also contributes to soil and water pollution. More than 15,000 people in the world die each day because of water pollution† (pollutionfacts.com). With these statistics, it is no wonder people are coming up with alternative energy sources. From energy to gasoline, there are many

Friday, December 13, 2019

Probability Theory and Mathematical Systems Probability Free Essays

string(167) " that its expected pro\? t will be 10 percent of A\? Let X be denote the company’s pro\? t at the end of the year, and w be the amount that the customer is charged\." Mathematical Systems Probability Solutions by Bracket A First Course in Probability Chapter 4—Problems 4. Five men and 5 women are ranked according to their scores on an examination. Assume that no two scores are alike and all 10! possible rankings are equally likely. We will write a custom essay sample on Probability Theory and Mathematical Systems Probability or any similar topic only for you Order Now Let X denote the highest ranking achieved by a woman (for instance, X = 1 if the top-ranked person is female). Find P X = i , i = 1, 2, 3, . . . , 8, 9, 10. Let Ei be the event that the the ith scorer is female. Then the event X = i correspdonds to the cc event E1 E2  ·  ·  · Ei . It follows that cc P X = i = P (E1 E2  ·  ·  · Ei ) . c c c c c = P (E1 )P (E2 |E1 )  ·  ·  · P (Ei |E1  ·  ·  · Ei? 1 ) Thus we have P X=i i 1/ 1 2 5/ 2 18 5/ 3 36 5/ 4 84 5/ 5 252 1/ 6 252 0. 7, 8, 9, 10 12. In the game of Two-Finger Morra, 2 players show 1 or 2 ? ngers and simultaneously guess the number of ? ngers their opponent will show. If only one of the players guesses correctly, he wins an amount (in dollars) equal to the sum of the ? ngers shown by him and his opponent. If both players guess correctly or if neither players guess correctly, then no money is exchanged. Consider a speci? d player and denote by X the amount of money he wins in a single game of Two-Finger Morra. a. If each player acts independently of the other, and if each player makes his choice of the number of ? ngers he will hold up and the number he will guess that his opponent will hold up in such a way that each of the 4 possibilities is equally likely, what are the possible values of X and what are thei r associated probabilities? A given player can only win 0,  ±2,  ±3, or  ±4 dollars. Consider two players A and B , and let X denote player A’s winnings. Let Aij denote the event that player A shows i ? gers and guesses j , and de? ne Bij similarly for player B. 1 We have P X = 2 = P (A11 B12 ) = P (A11 )P (B12 ) = 1  · 1 = 16 , since we have assumed that 44 1 Aij and Bij are independent and that P (Aij ) = P (Bij ) = 4 . Similarly, we have P X = 3 = 1 1 1 P (A12 B22 ? A21 B11 ) = 16 + 16 = 1 and P X = 4 = P (A22 B21 ) = 16 . Note that the situation 8 1 is completely symmetric for player B, so the we have P X = ? 2 = P X = ? 4 = 16 and 1 P X = ? 3 = 1 . Finally, we have P X = 0 = 1 ? P X = 0 = 1 ? 1 = 2 . 8 2 b. Suppose that each player acts independently of the other. If each player decides to hold up the same number of ? ngers that he guesses his opponent will hold up, and if each player is equally likely to hold up 1 or 2 ? ngers, what are the possible values of X and their associated probabilities? Neither player can win any money in this scenario. If player A shows 1 ? nger and guesses B will show 1 ? nger, then A can only win if B shows 1 ? nger. But if B shows 1 ? nger, then B will guess that A will show 1 ? nger, and thus neither player will win. The same holds for when A shows 2 ? ngers and guesses that B will show 2 ? ngers. Thus, we have P X = 0 = 1. Mathematical Systems Probability 20. A gambling book recommends the following â€Å"winning strategy† for the game of roulette. It recommends 18 that the gambler bet $1 on red. If red appears (which has probability 38 ), then the gambler should take her $1 pro? t and quit. If the gambler loses this bet (which has probability 20 of occurring), she should 38 make additional $1 bets on r ed on each of the next two spins of the roulette wheel and then quit. Let X denote the gambler’s winnings when she quits. a. Find P X 0 . Note that X only takes on the values ? 3, ? 1, and 1. Thus P X0 =P X=1 P (she wins immediately or she loses and then wins the next two) = P (she wins immediately) + P (she loses and then wins the next two) 18 20 18 18 = +  ·  · ? . 592 38 38 38 38 b. Are you convinced that the winning strategy is indeed a â€Å"winning† strategy? Explain your answer! The expected value of X is negative (? ?. 108), which is accounted for by the fact that although the gambler has a high probability of winning $1, she could also lose $3, and the probability of this occuring is not low enough to make the game worth playing in the long run. 21. A total of 4 buses carrying 148 students form the same school arrives at a football stadium. The buses carry, respectively, 40, 33, 25, and 50 students. One of the students is randomly selected. Let X denote the number of students that were on the bus carrying this randomly selected student. One of the 4 bus drivers is also randomly selected. Let Y denote the number of students on her bus. a. Which of E [X ] or E [Y ] do you think is bigger? Why? We should expect E [X ] to be larger since it’s the per-student average rather than the per-bus average, just as the per-student average class size was larger than the per-class average class size (from the example in class). b. Compute E [X ] and E [Y ]. We have 33 40 50 25  · 25 +  · 33 +  · 40 +  · 50 ? 39. 28 148 148 148 148 1 1 1 1 E [Y ] =  · 25 +  · 33 +  · 40 +  · 50 = 37 4 4 4 4 E [X ] = 27. An insurance company writes a policy to the e? ect that an amount of money A must be paid if some event E occurs within a year. If the company estimates that E will occur within a year with probability p, what should it charge the customer in order that its expected pro? t will be 10 percent of A? Let X be denote the company’s pro? t at the end of the year, and w be the amount that the customer is charged. You read "Probability Theory and Mathematical Systems Probability" in category "Essay examples" The company’s pro? is w if E does not occur within the year, and w ? A if E does occur within the year. Thus P X = w = (1 ? p) and P X = w ? A = p. Therefore E [X ] = w(1 ? p) + (w ? A)p = w ? Ap. We set E [X ] = . 1A to obtain w = A(p + . 1). 2 Mathematical Systems Probability 31. Each night di? erent meteorologists give us us the probability that it will rain the next day. To judge how well these people predict, we will score each of them as follows: If a meteorologist says that it will rain with probability p, then he or she will receive a score of 1 ? (1 ? p)2 if it does rain, 1 ? p2 if it does not rain. We will then keep track of scores over a certain time span and conclude that the meteorologist with the highest average score is the best predictor of weather. Suppose now that a given meteorologist is aware of this and wants to maximize his or her expected score. If this person truly believes that it will rain tomorrow with probability p? , what value of p should he or she assert so as to maximize the expected score? Let X be the score that the meteorologist receives, given that she has asserted that it will rain tomorrow with probability p. Then P X = [1 ? (1 ? p)2 ] = p? and P X = (1 ? p2 ) = (1 ? ? ). It follows that E [X ] = [1 ? (1 ? p)2 ]p? + (1 ? p2 )(1 ? p? ), which we rearrange and write as a function of p to obtain E [X ] = f (p) = ? p2 + 2p? p + 1 ? p? . We di? erentiate with respect to p to obtain f (p) = ? 2p + 2p? , which clearly has a zero at p = p? . It is straightforward to verify that f has a maximum at this zero, so the meteorologist should assert p = p? as the pr obability that it will rain tomorrow. 41. A man claims to have extrasensory perception. As a test, a fair coin is ? ipped 10 times, and the man is asked to predict the outcome in advance. He gets 7 out of 10 correct. What is the probability that he would have done at least this well if he had no ESP? If the man were just guessing, then on each ? ip he would have probability p = 1 of getting the 2 correct answer. Let X be the number of correct guesses out of a sequence of 10 coin ? ips, and we can see that X is a binomial random variable with parameters 10 and 1 . Thus P X ? 7 = 2 10 10 1 i 1 10? i 11 (2) (2) = 64 . i=7 i 51. The expected number of typographical errors on a page of a certain magazine is . 2. What is the probability that the next page you read contains (a)0 and (b)2 or more typographical errors? Explain your reasoning. Let X be the number of typographical errors on a page of a magazine. Then X is a Poisson random variable with parameter ? = E [X ] = . 2. We then have P X = 0 = e?. 2 ? .819 and P X ? 2 = 1 ? P X 2 = 1 ? P X = 0 ? P X = 1 = 1 ? e?. 2 ? .2e?. 2 ? .0175. 57. Suppose that the number of accidents occurring on a highway each day is a Poisson random variable with parameter ? = 3. a. Find the probability that 3 or more accidents occur today. Let X denote the number of accidents on the stretch of road. Then P X ? 3 = 1 ? P X 3 = 1 ? e? 3 ? 3e? 3 ? 9 e? 3 ? .577. 2 b. Repeat part (a) under the assumption that at least 1 accident occurs today. Note that that the event â€Å"there are three or more accidents today,† is a subset of the event â€Å"there is at least one accident today,† and thus the intersection of the two is just the former. It follows that P X? 3 1 ? e? 3 ? 3e? 3 ? 9 e? 3 2 P X ? 3|X ? 1 = = ? . 607. 1 ? e? 3 P X? 1 3 Mathematical Systems Probability 63. People enter a gambling casino at a rate of 1 for every 2 minutes. a. What is the probability that no one enters between 12:00 and 12:05? If X is the number of people entering within the 5 minute interval, then X is a Poisson random 5 variable with parameter ? = 2  · 5. Thus, P X = 0 = e? 2 ? .082. b. What is the probability that at least 4 people enter the casino during that time? Using the same random variable as above, we have 5 55 25 ? 5 125 ? 5 e 2? e 2 ? .242 P X ? 4 = 1 ? e? 2 ? e? 2 ? 2 4  · 2! 8  · 3! 68. In response to an attack of ten missiles, ? ve hu ndred antiballistic missiles are launched. The missile targets of the antiballistic missiles are independent, with each being equally likely to go towards any of the missiles. If each antiballistic missile independently hits its target with probability . , use the Poisson paradigm to approximate the probability that all missiles are hit. Consider one particular missile M . A particular antiballistic missile A selects M as its target with probability . 1, and if A selects M then it has probability . 1 of hitting it. Hence any such A will hit M with probability (. 1)(. 1) = . 01. Then the likely number of times M gets hit is roughly 500(. 01) = 5. Hence by the Poisson paradigm, if X is M ’s likely number of hits then X is a Poisson(5) variable. Thus the probability that M is hit is P X 0 = 1 ? P X = 0 = 1 ? e? 5 . There are 10 missiles, so the probability that all of them are hit is then roughly (1 ? e? 5 )10 . 71. Consider a roulette wheel consisting of 38 numbers—1 through 36, 0, and double 0. If Smith always bets that the outcome will be one of the numbers 1 through 12, what is the probability that a. Smith will lose his ? rst 5 bets; Since Smith will lose with probability 26 38 , we will lose his ? rst 5 bets with probability ( 13 )5 ? .15. 19 b. his ? rst win will occur on his 4th bet? Note that this is a geometric random variable with parameter p = 12 (or alternatively, a negative 38 inomial random variable with parameters p = 12 and r = 1). Smith’s ? rst win will occur on his 38 13 6 4th bet with probabiltity ( 19 )3  · 19 ? .101. 75. A fair coin is continually ? ipped until heads appears for the tenth time. Let X denote the number of tails that occur. Compute the probability mass function of X . Let Y be a negative binomial random variable with parameters p = 1 and r = 10. An appropriate 2 sequence with n tails in it must contain n + 10 ? ips in it total, and thus n+10 (n + 10) ? 1 r n+9 1 P X = n = P Y = n + 10 = p (1 ? p)(n+10)? r = 2 r? 1 9 4 How to cite Probability Theory and Mathematical Systems Probability, Essay examples

Thursday, December 5, 2019

Pressure Promise and Perils of Creativity †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the Pressure Promise and Perils of Creativity. Answer: Introduction: Creative process is made up of some six working phases and these include: inspiration, perspiration, incubation, clarification and evaluation. In every piece of creative work, each of these phases should be experienced severally, without any specific order and in most of the times for a short period of time(Gurteen, 2013). This is whereby a good quantity of ideas is made. It is the enquiry that is based on the generation of ideas. The process is not abandoned by the investigation, instinct and taking of risks. Most individuals are surprised by where the creative people get their creativity from. The answer to the latter question is amongst the use of the huge piles of the bad ones(Fererabend, 2012). Creativity in most occasions is like mining of diamonds since most of what is dug is thrown. However, the throwing away of what is not needed does not make the excavating a waste of spell. Given that a person is not able think of anything that he or she is having difficulty in this phase of inspiration, then most probably this person is too self-critical or having the expectation of the ideas coming too quickly and with ease. The inspiration phase is not given an association with a search for in the field of the creative arts and with the given attempt to summon some deep feelings related to empathy, spirituality or an intense identification with the subject matter. This is not a kind of a phase which to have a negative or get a worry form practicality or quality is applied. The main objective in clarification phase is to give a clarification or the objective of the work that is being done. Losing a sense of direction is easy while handling difficulties in the imaginative work. There is hence a requirement to at given times have disengagement to these from barriers and ask yourself what exactly you are trying to do(De Bono, 2015). In case you get stuck in the middle of the project, instead of coming up with a series of alternatives, it is advisable to get a clarification concerning your destination and then having that in mind, then how to get there is always very easy and straight forward. Clarification has a history of getting people of mire. However, there is a requirement when for example a designer is in a position to agonize between two approaches which are equally attractive and this kind of decision needs a very clear intelligence of objective. If one is stuck, lost, confused or even not certain on how he or she is going to work it out, then he or she needs what is called clarification phase and then have the eye set on the ball, have strategy and be logic enough and keep focus on how the final work will look like In this phase, the ideas are sifted and then the judgement is evaluated in the light of findings that were obtained in the clarification phase. There is the selection of the best ideas for more development or else for better sieving to get better ideas(Beghetto R, 2013). This phase is self-critical since it requires composed scrutiny and decision instead of the slap contented artlessness. This should nevertheless be so serious so as to inhibit the entire output. The ideas that one has should not be however viewed as solutions. This is the phase in which the actual work is done. Here, one is determined and persistent in the efforts towards ones aims and objectives(Torrance Goff, 2013). This is known to involve some further distillation and inspiration and also the clarification phases. This is whereby the examination of the entire work is done for the identification of the strengths and weaknesses. There is then the need to consider the kind of work and also the methods that can be used for its enhancement by the removal of the weaknesses and also the capitalization on its strengths(Dix, et al., 2012). There is then the need for another form of perspiration phase for the purposes of having a positive response and to the suggestions concerning the improvements(Fererabend, 2012). Having known that nothing comes easy to anyone, it is then advisable to cope like the creative people who are easily adaptive to improvements. Most people do not like the evaluation phase at first but those people who are highly creative nearly have the inveterate revisers easily. They are able to tinker with work that is able of making other people gape in happiness (Beghetto R, 2013). This phase of evaluation in most cases is very rewarding and there is not even a single work that can be given in tis absentia. Numerous splendid thoughts have happened in the shower, or in congested roads. In the event that you can stop chip away at an undertaking for a couple of days, maybe to deal with different things, this will give your intuitive time to take a shot at any issues experienced(De Bono, 2015), it will likewise separate you fairly from your thoughts so you are better ready to assess them. 'Brooding' is particularly treasured after a 'motivation' or a 'sweat' stage, or if an issue has been experienced. Imaginative persons are often astonishingly patient and disordered, and are material to let insane thoughts, residual particulars and indiscretions blend away in their sub-conscious until 'something turns up (Fererabend, 2012)'. At whatever point Sir Isaac Newton had an especially prickly issue he generally chipped away at it just before he rested. He said "I perpetually woke up with the arrangement" Those are the six periods of the imaginative procedure. As conflicting to this multidimensional method 'uncreative' persons, nonetheless can have the right substance important for exclusive work, will tend to hook on to the main thought that comes to them, and polish the work fast and uncritically, devoid of update, and without honest pondered what they were trying to complete(Gurteen, 2013). The primary letters of these six stages can be orchestrated to spell "icedip" which may help you to recall them. Keep in mind however, that each of these "icedip" stages ought to be experienced commonly, in some cases for brief periods, and not really in a specific succession. There does not exist so much of anything that shapes the human experience that as much as creativity. Creativity is known to drive progress in every aspect of human endeavors, ranging from the field of sciences and cutting down to the arts(Torrance Goff, 2013). We give celebrations and honor to different people as a result of their levels of creativity and the identification of the eminent personnel as well as the whole culture and society due to their great creative achievement. Creativity is the main body of the entire self-expression and it is what defines us as the kind of individuals we are. A person may therefore expect creativity to be identified as a core topic in philosophy more so because it gives rise to the interesting philosophical questions. Some of the philosophers of the olden days have been up to date taken with the wonders of creativity. A good examples is Plato as the Socrates say in some several dialogues that when some given poets come up with truly great and recommendable poetry, they do it out of inspiration and through the knowledge and mastery that they have. Literally, they are said to be breathed in by cogitates or in a state of possession that shows an exhibition of some kind of madness(Dix, et al., 2012). Aristocrat on the other hand had described the work of a poet as being rational objective coordinated movement of making (poeisis), in which the poet utilizes different means, (for example, thoughtful characters and plots including spots of destiny) to accomplish an end (of inspiring different feelings in the audience)(Turner, 2014). Kant considered aesthetic skillful as an intrinsic ability to deliver works of "commendable creativity" through the free play of the creative ability, a procedure which does not comprise in following principles, can neither be educated nor instructed, and is strange even to prodigies themselves. Schopenhauer focused on that the best craftsmen are recognized not just by the specialized aptitude they utilize in the generation of craftsmanship, yet additionally by the ability to "lose themselves" in the experience of what is wonderful and sublime(Beghetto R, 2013). Nietzsche saw the best accomplishments of imagination, exemplified in the appalling verse of old Greece, as being conceived out of an uncommon participation between the "Dionysian" soul of joyful inebriation, which saturates the work with essentialness and energy, and the "Apollonian" soul of calm limitation, which tempers disorder with arrange and form. This is quite recently the barest look at what each of these logicians needed to say in regards to innovativeness, and numerous different figures could be added to their number(De Bono, 2015). The swell of interest for the study of creativity is a moving case for the philosophy of creativity, however more critically; it offers an asset that thinkers ought to be aware of as they seek after this exertion. Tragically, logicians composing on inventiveness have once in a while had a tendency to overlook the philosophical writing(Fererabend, 2012). Now and again, they have gone so far as to assertin the wake of referring to only a couple of studiesthat creativity is by its exceptionally nature erratic and in this way past the extent of science. Although the topic of whether creativity is reasonable is a philosophical inquiry, it isn't one that is impenetrable to exact work. All factors considered, any individual who pronounces from the easy chair that something can't be disclosed is obligated to be discredited if scientists do discover approaches to reveal clarifications. The subject of whether creativity can be clarified experimentally is itself, in any event halfway, an observ ational inquiry(Fererabend, 2012). Conclusion Creative thinking is the kind of thinking that helps people in the generation and assessment of information, the amplification of concepts, ideas and the seeking of the possibilities, the deliberation of alternatives and the finding of solutions to given problems. Creative thinking is known to involve the learners into thinking broadly and very deeply by making use of the skills, conducts, and the dispositions that include reasoning, logic, imagination and the exemplary innovation in all learning perspectives and in the applications of life after school. The kind of thinking that is productive, purposeful and intentional is primary to the effective learning. Through the application of a series of creative skills, there is the development of a more complex understanding of the processes of usage in the cases were they are met with difficulties. A few people are normally more imaginative than others, yet innovative speculation can be reinforced with training. You can improve imaginative deduction by explaining questions, by getting to be plainly mindful of and relinquishing your presumptions, and through playanything unstructured and unwinding. Notwithstanding staring off into space can offer assistance. Imaginative individuals can devise better approaches to complete undertakings, take care of issues, and address difficulties. They bring a crisp and once in a while unconventional viewpoint to their work and can help divisions and associations to move in more beneficial ways. Work cited Beghetto R, A., 2013. Killing Ideas Softly? The promise and Perils of Creativity. s.l.:s.n. De Bono, E., 2015. Serious creativity: How to be Creative under Pressure and turn ideas into action. s.l.:s.n. Dix, A., Ormerod, T. Silva, S., 2012. Why bad ideas are good Ideas. creativty and bad ideas , pp. 34(3) pp.23-65. Fererabend, P., 2012. creativity and Harmful Ideas:critical enquiry. s.l.:s.n. Gurteen, D., 2013. Knowledge,creativity and Innovation:journal of innovation management 4(6) pp.7-13. s.l.:s.n. Torrance, E. Goff, K., 2013. Fostering academic creativity in gifted students. s.l.:s.n. Turner, M., 2014. The Origin of Ideas: Blending Creativity and the Human Spark. s.l.:Oxford niversity Press.

Thursday, November 28, 2019

Anti-Matter Introduction Ordinary Matter Has Negatively Charged Electr

Anti-Matter Introduction Ordinary matter has negatively charged electrons circling a positively charged nuclei. Anti-matter has positively charged electrons - positrons - orbiting a nuclei with a negative charge - anti-protons. Only anti-protons and positrons are able to be produced at this time, but scientists in Switzerland have begun a series of experiments which they believe will lead to the creation of the first anti-matter element -- Anti-Hydrogen. The Research Early scientists often made two mistakes about anti-matter. Some thought it had a negative mass, and would thus feel gravity as a push rather than a pull. If this were so, the antiproton's negative mass/energy would cancel the proton's when they met and nothing would remain; in reality, two extremely high-energy gamma photons are produced. Today's theories of the universe say that there is no such thing as a negative mass. The second and more subtle mistake is the idea that anti-water would only annihilate with ordinary water, and could safety be kept in (say) an iron container. This is not so: it is the subatomic particles that react so destructively, and their arrangement makes no difference. Scientists at CERN in Geneva are working on a device called the LEAR (low energy anti-proton ring) in an attempt to slow the velocity of the anti-protons to a billionth of their normal speeds. The slowing of the anti-protons and positrons, which normally travel at a velocity of that near the speed of light, is neccesary so that they have a chance of meeting and combining into anti-hydrogen. The problems with research in the field of anti-matter is that when the anti-matter elements touch matter elements they annihilate each other. The total combined mass of both elements are released in a spectacular blast of energy. Electrons and positrons come together and vanish into high-energy gamma rays (plus a certain number of harmless neutrinos, which pass through whole planets without effect). Hitting ordinary mat ter, 1 kg of anti-matter explodes with the force of up to 43 million tons of TNT - as though several thousand Hiroshima bombs were detonated at once. So how can anti-matter be stored? Space seems the only place, both for storage and for large-scale production. On Earth, gravity will sooner or later pull any anti-matter into disastrous contact with matter. Anti-matter has the opposite effect of gravity on it, the anti-matter is 'pushed away' by the gravitational force due to its opposite nature to that of matter. A way around the gravity problem appears at CERN, where fast moving anti-protons can be held in a 'storage ring' around which they constantly move - and kept away from the walls of the vacuum chamber - by magnetic fields. However, this only works for charged particles, it does not work for anti-neutrons, for example. The Unanswerable Question Though anti-matter can be manufactured, slowly, natural anti-matter has never been found. In theory, we should expect equal amounts of matter and anti-matter to be formed at the beginning of the universe - perhaps some far off galaxies are the made of anti-matter that somehow became separated from matter long ago. A problem with the theory is that cosmic rays that reach Earth from far-off parts are often made up of protons or even nuclei, never of anti-protons or antinuclei. There may be no natural anti-matter anywhere. In that case, what happened to it? The most obvious answer is that, as predicted by theory, all the matter and anti-matter underwent mutual annihilation in the first seconds of creation; but why there do we still have matter? It seems unlikely that more matter than anti-matter should be formed. In this scenario, the matter would have to exceed the anti-matter by one part in 1000 million. An alternative theory is produced by the physicist M. Goldhaber in 1956, is that the universe divided into two parts after its formation - the universe that we live in, and an alternate universe of anti-matter that cannot be observed by us. The Chemistry Though they have no charge, anti-neutrons differ from neutrons in having opposite 'spin' and 'baryon number'. All heavy particles, like protons or neutrons, are called baryons. A firm rule is that the total baryon number cannot change, though this

Monday, November 25, 2019

Marketing Sonko Mobile Games

Marketing Sonko Mobile Games Sonko Mobile Games (SMG) is a creator of mobile games involving current or upcoming events. This market plan is intended to reflect our unique market quota, as well as the diverse strategies we are utilizing to acquire clients. The plan also signifies how we have established a stable revenue stream. Basically, we do no just involve ourselves in mobile games just like any other game developer.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Marketing: Sonko Mobile Games specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Our exceptional focus of developing games with unique features provides us with an overwhelming advantage over our existing and emerging competitors. Therefore, this has resulted in us creating unique games which traditional gamers can’t afford to create. More so, we have equally expanded our focus to include games with appealing comical aspects in our creations. The growing marketing and technological challenges have compelled us to undertake extreme measures to cushion our organization and products from competitors. Therefore, we will bank roll creation of our novel games by offering consulting services to develop similar games for marketing purposes. Hence, these consulting engagements will be coming from sponsorship associations that we are establishing with diverse corporations. Also this would entail developing customized games for the interested organization. This would involve entrenching their brand requiring features that are more customized so that they can appear as their own product. Therefore, in the coming years we anticipate consulting to constitute a considerable segment of our income stream. Vision Our vision and objectives is to provide the clients with an uncompromised escape of entertainment over the interlude of their ordinary day. Basically, we achieve this by offering the clients timely interactive games that they have a right to use on their mobile gadgets. These amusements are un complicated to play and have various relationships with contemporary pop culture news. SMG influences our squad’s software creation imagination to develop opportune games swiftly. Our promotional and marketing challenge is to win or attain visibility effortlessly. We anticipate achieving this by influencing a multi-divided approach that embraces social media, internet marketing including search engine exploitation strategies to acquire greater market share.   As we move towards attaining greater traction in the competitive market, word of mouth will considerably lift our game downloads considerably (Laguna, et al 2004).Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The impact of the external operating environment Considering our target markets are essentially etched between the ideal clientele of those aged between 12 and 25 years. It is thus paramount for those using our games to have mobile gadgets that permit applications downloads. Such gadgets may include android, iphone, as well as blackberry. However, diverse external operating environment aspects such as PEST, key competitors, nature and drivers of competition, market potential, customer value concepts, segments and markets are affecting the manner our organization is operating. For instance the organization sales as is shown in the graph reflects these changes. Our competitors have equally developed a number of applications which can be downloaded on the same gadgets our games are being downloaded. This is quite a challenge but with the due consideration we have the capability to overcome these challenges. Some of the approaches employed by our key competitors concerns employing low pricing aspects to attain a greater market shares. Equally, we have to evaluate the key market drivers that are apposite for our own very survival. Some of these market drivers are extremely determined by te chnological changes and emerging market tastes. Therefore, considering the elements of our emerging market base, religious context, significance of our products and their effects on the morals of the users are paramount drivers influencing the mobile game industry. Sony Corporation and Microsoft developers our core rivals have incorporated these attributes in their creations (Lorna 2002). Therefore, it would be of great significance to evaluate the social scope which influences market drivers. This can be from promotional angle to advertising, sales as well as discounted rates on our products. More so, the nature of market drivers has a considerable role in shaping the mobile games development as well as its market prominence. This can be attributed to the manner diverse social, economic and technological features have shaped the industry focus. Hence these factors have shaped the SMG as: Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Marketing: Sonko Mobile Games speci fically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This is per the period ending 2010. The scope of market potential has considerably been affected by the emergence of cheap computing power, vigorous wireless networks, phones, including the growth and development of stable broadband. These features have created a considerable market potential due to the growing mobile games technology and consumer trends. Also maturing of client base is becoming a considerable force influencing the market potential. Therefore, regarding SMG market it would be instrumental for us to exploit these features in order to sustain our market share.  Mobile games consumers are commonly savvy and in most cases must be in a position of having direct access to either a computer or a mobile game compatible phone. These classes have been established to have a considerable range of usable income. They include students, teenagers living with their guardians or parents or those individuals who have managed to joint the growing workforce. To exploit this potential market we have to design and develop games appealing to all economic and social ranks. This can be allied to the fact that for the time we have been in mobile games industry we have been focusing on two fronts namely; mobile game consumers, and organizations anticipating to reach them. Therefore, to sustain these two objectives we have to develop applications that are in nature tools of creating amusing and creative experiences for the users. To understand the scope of our market engagement it would be instrumental to understand that we have created and developed a number of mobile games. Equally, we have created two categories of mobile games in order to sustain a vibrant market. The two categories are free mobiles games, these games acts a taster for our clients while the second category concerns paid mobile games, these games contains diverse and unique features which are appealing to both young and old consum ers. However, the above mentioned factors have played a considerable role in shaping the manner our operations as well as developments of novel game software’s are executed. Regarding the market these features have in some instance propelled SMG to a greater height in the industry.  But there are instances where they have emerged as the greatest obstacle in our organization.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This resulted in dwindling fortunes, low sales including plummeting gains across diverse platforms. However, with established marketing strategies we have managed to establish profound strategies which have continued to be highly effective. All in all, another profound aspects touching on our organizations pertains to PEST (political, economic, social cultural and technological factors)-as we have been creating games touching on all aspects of the society. As a commercial organization we have examined and considered our business environment prior to our marketing procedures (Weingand 2002). This has become a seamless approach in our organization and concerns all feeds relating to planning. Our organizational and marketing environment is predominantly made up of internal and external environments. However, the aspects of PEST have been cited a decisive factor threatening the expansion of SMG in some area globally. Objections From comprehensive analysis of past as well as the present performance, even if historically doing well, the mobile games shares has been hovering at around 12% in the current mobile games markets. This has resulted in an increase in gains in the last two financial periods. The conventional business had been sluggish and there were almost zero investment. SMG anticipates growing and developing the existing market segments in order to achieve 20% market share while developing new markets. Market overview The market shares including its position can be viewed in this table. The effectiveness of the organizations marketing response Examining the organizations marketing strategies as well as the information evaluated through the use of SWOT analysis. It would be imperative to argue that the organizations marketing response is quite superb. This can be allied to the fact that after identifying the key challenges within the market they have employed counter interactive measures. More so, these measures entails having a vibrant marketing team, re search oriented division plus a comprehensive promotional segment. These divisions are exploited in countering any threats or weaknesses. Some of the challenges identified as consequence of marketing audit concerns using alien platforms for their applications, having seasonal marketing plans, as well as relying on other firms to design unique platforms. And this has become a hindrance in marketing as well as developing our own unique designs. Despite such a challenge the effectiveness of our marketing response is principally tied to matching strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. In addition this has resulted in a scenario where our target market is reached. Exploring the diverse mechanisms of effective marketing such as advertising, discounted sales as well as provision of promotion through free game downloads, we have managed to connect our clients with our timely products.  As we carried this analysis we identified three basic features of creating effective marketing response. These features entails having a functional marketing strategy, marketing measurement as well as a well articulated marketing execution. The purpose of these features is to create and enhance effectiveness and efficiency in regard to dealing with market challenges. As a mobile games creators we have over the years experienced a number of marketing challenges such as low sales, new designs, foreign technology as well as social cultural factors. However, to overcome these challenges we have developed market strategies which are designed to sustain a strong market base. It is essential to assert that positive market response in regard to both challenges and opportunities have resulted in higher revenues. The efficiency and effectiveness of the market response can be attributed to the scope of having clear marketing policies. This includes establishing the use of market analytics as well as market performance as the foundation of our marketing response. Consider the fact that w e are experiencing such challenges as poor brand recognition, high delivery expenses of our applications, and extreme reliance on external outsourcing. Also there are market threats which are identified as quality issues from our competitors, emerging mobile games firms providing simple games and software applications as well as established organizations with greater buying and selling power who are affecting online mobile playoffs market share.  In regard to such challenges SMG has gradually established online traffic. This involves a unique system of making repeat customers to influence our market segment through complimentary sales. Also increased use of the websites as well as other online features has proved to be useful. This can be tied to the fact that it has increased our marketing response and efficiency in regard to emerging challenges and opportunities (Slater 2002). Therefore, to reinforce our organizations efficiency in regard to market response we have etched our ma rketing aspects to the dynamics of external environment. These dynamics involves gauging opportunities against consumer needs, satisfaction as well as evaluating their purchasing trends and preferences. Also the scope of our suppliers has been considered in regard to establishing a clear chain of communication this has resulted in a profound and reliable working strategies (Ovidiu 2000). Despite that the mentioned dynamics have illustrated that any organizational response to the market must be established within the tenets of satisfying the intended market. This has resulted in dynamic growth as is illustrated below by revenue as well as market share. This covers a five year period. The table illustrates our organization has increased it dominance. Market data Type Date Volumeunits %Growth: Volume Revenue$m %Growth: Revenue H 31/12/06 2815.0 H 31/12/07 2927.2 4.0 H 31/12/08 3066.3 4.8 H 31/12/09 3235.8 5.5 C 31/12/10 3440.5 6.3 Sonko Mobile Games informati on Type Date Volumeunits Revenue$m Market %Share: Volume Market %Share: Revenue %Margin Margin$m H 31/12/06 272.7 9.7 36.7 100.2 H 31/12/07 293.2 10.0 37.1 108.9 H 31/12/08 282.0 9.2 37.7 106.3 H 31/12/09 337.0 10.4 38.1 128.6 C 31/12/10 385.5 11.2 39.0 150.3 H = History Period, C = Current Year Profits have matured at 11% and 16% correspondingly over the past 2 years including the development in both new application and new markets. As we examined the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats concerning SMG we realized that this organization has subtle mechanisms of marketing. Hence, its efficiency and effectiveness in regard to market responses are well developed. This can be testified by the manner the organization has managed to integrate diverse challenges which are in essence threats with emerging opportunities. Under SWOT analysis we identified a number of threats and weaknesses. That’s why the SMG have developed stringent market respon ses in regard to the market evolution which has been caused by changing mobile technologies.  To underpin the efficiency of market response in regard to emerging opportunities and challenges, the organization has embarked on establishing the apposite marketing mix. This includes adopting new measures of sustaining market efficiency and uncompromised response. This has been necessitated by the fact that mobile game consumers are constantly looking for fresh creation and this has been identified both as a threat and as an opportunity. With the growing news events we have to create market philosophies that correlate with our organization products. Hence, the scope of market response and the manner its efficiency is determined is instrumentally tied to planning (Greenbaum 2001). Based on the emerging challenges the organization has therefore employed diverse structural approaches designed to sustain our existing and emerging markets. It should be noted that the imminent challenges ha ve made us to be more focused. Equally the available opportunities have made us develop effective and reliable market response structures. Due to the concentrated promotional campaigns SMG has thorough definitive market response. This is in regard to both challenges and opportunities developed through systematic concept of brand loyalty, brand awareness as well as brand respect in her products. This illustrates the organization market response is positive and beneficial (Senge 1994). Though there are instances where the entire concept is threatened by growing market challenges it has remained effective. Therefore, as its target audience continue to grow so is its focus on enhancing market response in tackling any likely challenge either on technological scope or marketing platform (Lorna 1999). Due to the necessity of remaining relevant in the exploding mobile games industry the organization has embarked on developing a comprehensive market response measures. These measures are link ed to the creation of alternative marketing, as well as product or software sampling including developing event marketing schedules. Though regarding dealing with issues pertaining to market response in some instance has been misunderstood, SMG has one of the most vibrant efficiency mechanism. As a consequence of today’s mobile games competitive markets, SMG has realized success depends on having effective market response systems. More so, these systems are molded to tackle diverse market aspects be it threats, opportunities, weaknesses or strengths. This illustrates why SMG has been building on empowering its staff in regard to dealing with growing market challenges. By having unique market analysis procedure the organization has managed to forge a profound market response base. Equally, the diverse challenges identified through the market illustrate that SMG deals with the aspects of challenges and opportunities on a similar and equal approach. This is defined by the way th e organization has put in place diverse measures of identifying the emerging marketing changes. In essence, the way this organization has managed to capture and influence the mobile games industry demonstrates its efficiency in dealing with response to either challenges or opportunities. Also its dominance on the mobile games market testifies to this. Segmentation and positioning strategies As mobile games developer’s has grown to be a leader in creation of diverse tools and applications concerning mobile games and news events applications. This being one of the organizations core strengths, it has over the years been challenged by emerging similar organizations. This has been due to its current segmentation which seems to be in a way in effective. Consider that as continental and a global player in application and software development industry, market positioning becomes instrumental. However, due to the growing need to remain in the mobile games industry SMG have formulated dynamic segmentation and positioning plans using the diverse features of market research. Through concentrated market research we have recognized our core market segments, these segments have been compacted into three key groups, linked to mobile games application and development. These segments are defined as user, non-user and former user (Lim 2002).  However, one of the foremost focuses of SMG has been the non-user group. The organizations desire to move beyond the common market aspects has been fuelled by segmentation and positioning. Therefore, looking at the manner diverse aspects has been examined; diversity in consumer needs and the desire to attain and reach specialized markets has equally contributed to the efficiency of the SMG segmentation and positioning scope (Hay 1999).  Therefore, the organization as it identified its weak points and through exploiting the emerging opportunities has embarked on segmenting its existing markets. This scope includes identifying mor e attractive market segments. This has resulted in the organization identifying new markets for its applications, while creating apposite positioning and beneficial strategies. The reason this organization opted for segmentation research relates to its internal and external forces. These forces are calling for a more open market strategy in addition to examining the reasons behind the declining brand, the necessity of launching new brand, plus restructuring their existing structural policies (Gale Research 2000; Scholtes 2000). Therefore, in such observation SMG segmentation and positioning can be said to be effective. Note that, this organization has stayed in touch with the emerging changes within the mobile games industry. The market comparisons as is testified by the following graphs testifies to this concept. One thing is apparent; the organization is strategies are effective. This can be testified by the way the organization has enhanced its market position by creating brand differentiation including targeted promotion. Also the articulate matching of the organizations highly effective and effectual resources to the anticipated market segments illustrates the organizations efficiency on ROMI (return on marketing investment). SMG segmentation reflects its relationship as well as the needs of her consumer. More so, the organizations segmentation and positioning is based on the established market strategies. Which are in essence compacted through breakdown-approach. Hence, the organizations use of both breakdown as well as build-up plans have provided it with a more apposite, accurate and highly profitable view of the mobile games markets. The extent to which the SMG segmentation and positioning can be said to be effective are equally illustrated by the manner the organization embraces customer-related procedures. The approach entails segmenting its products and services market through intricate profile of where the market is including where they are. Ther efore, it can be asserted that the organizations segmentation and positioning is productive. In that they have managed to provide their consumers with what they need not basing their approach on how they design their applications. Thus, looking at the existing mobile games market’s segmentation and positioning strategies the organization has managed to establish improved efficiency in its operations. Also this approach has illustrated the organization is gaining competitive advantage over its rivals. This is well demonstrated by the manner the organization has been segmenting its clients and equally providing them with a number of unique mobile games applications (Drucker 2002).  Concerning the effects of segmentation and positioning, SMG has shown that this approach is highly effective in its operations. The benefits of this approach have made it possible for this organization to undertake mass marketing including offering new applications in the market. Though, the client s are becoming more dynamic and diversified, it is through positioning and repositioning as well as segmentation that they have remained in the industry. Conclusion SMG as a mobile games creator has been in the industry for a number of years. However, just like any other organization it has faced a number of dissimilar challenges, threats as well as opportunities. But with the exploitation of analysis tools such as SWOT, PESTLE, and MOST the organization has managed to identify the diverse facets that needs to be addressed (Ould 2005). This can be attributed to the fact that mobile games industry is ever transforming due to the emerging technologies. The entire concept therefore raises a number of unforeseen opportunities and threats. In some instances, weakening the entire organizational structures. However, SMG has shown that articulate planning and having clear marketing policies makes it possible to remain in the competitive market. Equally, having profound structures of address ing market response in regard to challenges and opportunities is essential. The reason organizations have a value for effective market response is that it determines their engagement with the changing consumer behaviors. Therefore, through seamless focus SMG has shown that business strategic planning is fundamental, either in the realm of segmentation or market positioning. Hence, understanding the major issues within the business environment is instrumental in sustaining a viable business environment. On the other hand, SMG approach to segmentation and positioning shows the organizations prowess in the art of dividing and conquering. This scope has made this organization to effectively differentiate its products in the market. Also, by embracing this concept they have managed to identify the apposite market pool for their diverse products and services (Kiragu 2011). References List Drucker, Peter. (2002) Innovation and Entrepreneurship. NY, Harper. Gale Research. (2000) Notable Cor porate Chronologies. Detroit, Gale Research. Greenbaum, Thomas. (2001) Focus Group Research. New York, Lexington. Hay, Robert. (1999) Encyclopedia of Consumer Brand. Detroit, St. James. Kiragu, Peter. (2011) Market analysis objectives. Nairobi, St.Teresa Books. Laguna, Manuel., Marklun, Johan. (2004) Business Process. NY, Prentice. Lim, Kyung-Sun. (2002) How Products Are Made. Detroit, Gale Research. Lorna, Daniells (2002) Business Information Sources. Berkeley, UCP. Lorna, Daniells. (1999). Business Intelligence. Boston, Harvard. Ould, Martyn. (2005) Business Process Management. London, BCS. Ovidiu, Noran. (2000) Business Modeling.Griffh, Griffh University. Scholtes, Peter. (2000) Making Things Happen.NY, McGraw-Hill. Senge, Peter. (1994) The Fifth Discipline. New York, Doubleday. Slater, Robert. (2002) Management Insights. NY, McGraw-Hill. Weingand, Darlene. (2002) Marketing. Englewood, Libraries Unlimited.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

How can rituals facilitate the Grieving after the funeral Essay

How can rituals facilitate the Grieving after the funeral - Essay Example And so, sooner or later a person dies and the people who love him or her, family, friends and colleagues, are faced with the difficult job of dealing with death and the grief and period of mourning that come with it. Hence, grief brought about by the loss of someone important in one’s life, is an emotion that is felt by almost everyone at least once in their lifetime. It is a universal phenomenon that is unique to man (Jeffreys, 2005b, p. 24). In this context, the grief being experienced is akin to bereavement, â€Å"the loss of a loved one through death† (Archer, 1991, p. 1). Because of this universal nature of grief and bereavement and the intensity that goes with it—with people experiencing it having a tendency to fall into deep depression—grief counseling and therapy have evolved as a useful science that aims to facilitate the completion of the grieving process and help survivors move on as grief is not something that can be handled by most with just one bout of crying or just a shrug indicating â€Å"that’s life.† With the emergence of grief counseling and therapy, grief theories have been reinvented and formulated in order to better understand the grieving process and so that grief therapists and counselors can also be more effective in helping survivors cope and move on. Although much has been written and said about grief, one thing is obvious; and that is, because it deals with human experience, it cannot be completely boxed into just one theory as it varies with each person and situation (Jeffreys, 2005b, p. 24). There are many factors that aid in the successful facilitation of the grieving process and discussing them all will constitute the writing of an entire volume. Hence, it is better to focus on one aspect that has been proven to be effective in easing survivors into the stages of the grieving process. Rituals, whether shared or

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Personal Goal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Personal Goal - Essay Example I am just beginning my professional career. The reason to choose this field of profession was that it offers a chance to gain a never ending knowledge of a particular field of study, whether the knowledge comes from the student or any other source. The future of being an Educator is great as it provides ways to get involved in the field of study directly, a direct interaction with the students helps to gain awareness about the perspective of the young generation and how the future of the world is going to change according to their mindsets. In addition to that, being an educator provides a never-ending professional development and opportunity to learn. This is so because there is always going to be potential of development and research in different fields of education. Emergence of new skills and concepts allow educators to grow and development professionally parallel to acting as an expert in their own field. The career of an educator comes with apparent challenges. A decade ago edu cation was not considered a professional job but today teachers are required to prepare themselves before entering a class. Similarly in coming 4 to 5 years, the level of studies would enhance and a simple explanation won’t be enough to clear the doubts of students. A teacher has to face such challenges and give a logical reasoning and prove his point of view with examples to convince the students. The greatest strength of being a teacher is his knowledge, being a specialized teacher in the field of economics particularly is a benefit in itself. Development is needed in every profession, but specifically for an educator, knowledge of new advancements and discoveries are a must for satisfying and teaching the students. To be a successful educator, communication and interpersonal skills are necessary so that everything is easily understood by all students. Secondly there is a constant need for increasing one’s knowledge and skills with constant revisions in order to teac h effectively. Where as in the coming year I need to enhance few areas to participate and develop professionally. Firstly an educator has to continue his studies, in my case a professional master’s degree in my field of study, secondly adopting the latest way of teaching i.e. through presentations and multi-media and lastly to prepare oneself before a particular lecture. All these areas need development to enhance my current skills and ensure a healthy career as an educator. In addition to that, changing requirements of the students and continuously transforming structure of education system in different parts of the world requires teachers and educators to be more attentive to changes that are being taking place in their field of study. Nowadays, students expect teachers to not only be experts in their given fields but multidisciplinary, furthermore provide them with emotional and professional guidance with a level of individual attention to needs. Hence, a teacher is expect ed to be a mentor along with being an instructor. Furthermore, participation of all kind of students i.e. different ethnic groups, socio-economic classes and disable students, in main education system has introduced further complexities in the education system that has redefined the role of educators.  

Monday, November 18, 2019

Impact of Technology on Individuals and Society Essay

Impact of Technology on Individuals and Society - Essay Example Since human beings apply technology in everyday life, it has led to the emergence of impacts to individuals as well as society. Such impacts have been either positive or negative and have had a significant influence in human life. Therefore, the paper discusses such impacts in detail and thus enlightening society and individuals. With the inventions and innovations of social sites, individuals learn more about different people with relation to culture, practices, and religion of individuals in the environment. For instance, individuals can learn about Chinese culture, Indian culture, or even Japanese cultural practices without having to visit such geographical regions or have face-to-face communication with people from those cultures (Benchmann, Decker, Fiedeler & Krings 2). This knowledge enhances understanding and peaceful coexistence among individuals. The introduction of new and advanced technologies such as telephones, internet, TVs, Radios have ease communication and made it effective irrespective of distance or time barriers. Individuals now efficiently communicate with one another through emails, Facebook, Google+, phone calls, as well as short message services (Hollon 1). Moreover, technology has enabled individuals to share ideas, information, and news very quickly with little effort as compared to the older times. This has made life simple, easier, and enjoyable due to lack of communication stresses. The invention and adoption of technological tools, software and machines such as computers, the internet and search engines like Yahoo and Google have created opportunities for learning (Hollon 1). As compared to the olden days, an individual in the contemporary world finds learning easier and simpler due to the presence of internet search engines. For example, students can now conduct research on any topic by searching for information pertaining to the

Friday, November 15, 2019

Violent Video Games And Aggression Defined Media Essay

Violent Video Games And Aggression Defined Media Essay Video games are a form of entertainment enjoyed by many adults and children on a daily basis. There are sports, dance, and mystery games that often provide hours of entertainment. However, there are also controversial violent video games that have made headlines and have been the subject of many protests. Numerous studies on whether these violent video games are associated with aggressive and hostile attitudes in children have been conducted, and the results are often mixed. One of the first violent video games was released in 1976 and was known as Death Race (Ferguson, Rueda, Cruz, Ferguson, Fritz Smith, 2008). The object of Death Race was to run over tiny gremlins, which looked similar to humans, with a car. The release of this video game caused an outrage and many protests against the game occurred. It was soon discovered that the games original working title was Pedestrian, and this only served to anger those who were against the game even more (Ferguson et al, 2008). Since the release of Death Race numerous other violent video games have been released such as Mortal Kombat and Grand Theft Auto. With the release of each new violent video game, the court cases that aim to prevent children from getting their hands on these games follow. In one such case, for example, an argument for opposing the sale of such games to children was held under the belief that the games are associated with aggression (Brown. v. Entertainment Merchant Association, 2010). In this particular case, Brown (2010) cited the research of Dr. Craig Anderson whose research claims to show a connection between violent video games and aggression in children. However, since it is highly difficult to prove that video games are actually the cause of aggression in children, the court threw them out (Brown v. Entertainment Merchant Association, 2010). The case was eventually decided stating that banning the sale of violent video games to minors was a violation of the first amendment. Since it is often difficult to provide evidence that video games are actually the cause aggressive attitudes in children, numerous research experiments have been conducted to showcase the correlation between violent video games and aggression. For example, a study conducted by Cooper and Mackie (1986) found that the girls who played an aggressive video game engaged in more aggressive free play. This study had children play either a high-violent game or a low-violent game for around 8 minutes (Tang, 2008,). Upon playing either of the games, one group of children were then asked questions about hypothetical situations, the behavior of other children, as well as punishments and rewards for said behavior. Another group was lead to a room with toys to play with for a few minutes. The girls who had played the violent video game often chose to play with the aggressive toy, in this case it was a Shogun samurai that spits, fists, and darts (Tang, 2008, para. 13). Results also found that both genders who were exposed to either video game had a longer punishment and reward system when asked questions about the good or bad behavior of other children (Cooper and Mackie, 1986). Again, this is only an example of correlation between the two variables of video games and aggression; it in no way proves that the video game was the cause of the aggression. Often there are no significant links to be found in the correlation between violent video games and aggression. A study conducted by Scott (1995) found no significant increases in aggression after participants played nonaggressive, moderately, and severely aggressive games. However, results found that there was a big change among the men who had played the nonaggressive game. These men showed a considerable amount of aggressive behavior overall after playing the nonaggressive game. This suggests that perhaps the degree of aggression one feels after playing a violent video game depends on the personality of the player. The men who had played the nonaggressive game were less aggressive both before and after playing than the men in the other two groups (Scott, 1995). Although the men who played the nonaggressive games did experience heightened aggression afterwards, it was generally less significant than the moderate and severe groups. The amount of aggression the men who had played the nonaggressive game did not compare to the amount aggressiveness the men who had played the moderately and severely aggressive games. Not to say that the latter group consisted of very aggressive men, there just wasnt a significant change. The men who had played the nonaggressive game were not very aggressive to begin with, and experienced a higher degree of aggression upon playing the game. Not that the men were extremely aggressive, the change was more significant in this group as compared to the other two groups. Another study conducted by Wiegman and Schie (1998) was interested in not only finding the effect of violent video games on aggression, but on pro-social behavior as well. This study focused on the amount of time spent playing video games each day. The study was based on Banduras (1961) social cognitive theory. The results for Wiegman and Schies (1998) first hypothesis were positive, it was found that those who played video games frequently displayed higher levels of aggression as compared to those who did not play as much. However, since the difference between moderate players and nonplayers was insignificant, the first hypothesis was no supported (Wiegman and Schie, 1998). Therefore, the results concluded that those who do play video games for a longer time do in fact display heightened aggression but the same could not be said for those who play those nonviolent games and no video games at all. A more recent study in 2005 was interested moving past the hypothesis that video games are associated with aggression in general, but took a closer look into whether specific characters trigger aggressive attitudes. Lachlan, Smith, and Tamborini (2005) wanted to decipher whether players who were similar to either good or bad characters would imitate the aggressive or nonaggressive attitudes of such characters. This specific study cited the social cognitive theory in which people are attracted to characters who remind them of themselves, therefore they are more likely to imitate the behavior of these characters (Lachlan et al, 2005). Later studies conducted by Levermore and Salisbury (2009) and Ferguson (2011) also cited Banduras (1961) social learning theory in attempting to understand the association between violent video games and aggression. Brand new violent video games are released every year, and adolescents continue to play them. Numerous studies have been conducted and will be conducted searching for a link between violent games and aggression. With new, sophisticated technology video games are becoming much more realistic. As of yet, there is no strong evidence that aggressive attitudes in youths are directly caused by violent video games. However, there is a continued effort to identify this direct link if it exists at all. Furthermore, various studies have only been able to prove an association between violent video games and aggression (see Lachlan et al, 2005, Scott 1995). The debate on how much of an impact violent video games have on aggressive attitudes in adolescents will continue for years to come. Statement of the Problem Violent video games are popular among children today, yet relatively little is known about how much of an association these games have with youth aggression. On one hand fierce opponents of violent video games argue that video games are definitely associated with aggression, even going so far to argue that violent video games are the cause of aggression in most children (see Carnagey Anderson, 2004). On the other hand, violent video game proponents argue that there is no such relationship between violent video games and aggression at all. With two extreme sides in the violent video game debate and the rising sales of violent video games, its important to know how much of an association, if any, these games have with aggression. Violent video games have been the subject of numerous lawsuits. These lawsuits range from banning the sale of violent video games to minors to developing a requirement for video game companies to include specific labels stating 18+ on violent games. In the case of Schwarzenegger versus Entertainment Merchants Association (EMA), the EMA sought to overturn a law which banned the sale of violent video games to children. The reasoning behind the law was the belief that violent video games increase the chance of violent and aggressive behavior in children, thus directly causing harm to minors (DeWeese Rumpf, 2010). Conversely, the EMA argued that banning the sale of violent video games to children violated the First Amendment by restricting free speech. The court ended up ruling in favor the EMA, stating that although there a correlation between violent video games and aggression, there was not enough evidence to prove that violent video games ultimately caused aggression (DeWeese Rumpf , 2010). Thus, banning the sale of violent video games was found to be a violation to childrens first amendment rights. Much of the evidence brought forward on the anti-video game side was very weak and could simply not prove causation between violent video games and aggression. On the side of the State of California Schwarzenegger, the research of Craig Anderson was brought forth citing a direct causal link between violent video games and real life (See Iowa State University, n.d.) . However, the rebuttal to the above statement was that in order to show that violent video games were the direct cause of aggression; a study would need to be conducted in which a minor would be isolated from all other forms of violence (see brief for Schwarzenegger Vs. EMA, 2010). A minor would need to be exposed only to violent video games in order to prove the direct causation between violent video games and aggression. Since no such study has ever been conducted, it is difficult to prove that video games are the direct cause of aggression. The first amendment rights of children could not be taken away when it could n ot be proven that video games were the cause of aggression. Therefore, a problem lies in determining just how strong of an association exists between violent video games and aggression in youths. In some cases, research points to a strong correlation between games and aggression while others find a weak association. For example, take the research of Anderson and Bushman (2001) who argue that violent video games, without a doubt, pose a threat to children. Note that the above research of Anderson and Bushman (2001) was used as evidence in attempting to prove that video games cause aggression in children in Schwarzenegger vs. EMA. However, a meta-analysis conducted by Ferguson (2007), which was not used as evidence in Schwarzenegger vs. EMA, found that violent video games have no relationship to aggressive behavior at all. As such Ferguson (2007) even argued that violent video games have been associated with positive reactions and prosocial behavior. As noted with two differing studies, its very important to determine whether or not violent vid eo games are associated with aggressive behavior. The work of two different researchers has led to differing results and thus, it is important to get a clear understanding on this relationship in order to avoid further confusion. With all the opposing views, debates, and court cases, researchers ought to be focusing simply on the relationship between violent video games and aggression. Researchers on both sides of the debates are eagerly trying to prove or disprove that the association exists or does not exist, with much of the information ending up as very ambiguous. Perhaps researchers ought to apply concepts such as Banduras (1961) Social Learning Theory and modeling in order to understand the relationship between the two Definition of Terms Aggression Hostile or destructive tendency or behavior (Oxford English Dictionary, 2012). Behavior The way in which one acts either alone or around others. Debate A discussion between two sides on an issue where both sides disagree. Entertainment Something affording pleasure, diversion, or amusement, especially a performance of some kind (Dictionary.com, 2012) E.M.A. (Entertainment Merchants Association) Protects right the right to sell and promote entertainment products (entermerch.org, 2012). E.S.R.B. (Entertainment Software Ratings Board) Assigns age and content ratings to video games and mobile applications (esrb.org, 2012). First Amendment An amendment to the U.S. constitution, ratified in 1791 as part of the Bill of Rights, prohibiting congress from interfering with freedom of religion, speech, assembly, or petition (Dictionary.com, 2012). Free Speech Being able to openly say anything one wishes without the fear of punishment either by authority or the government. Hostile Acting or behaving a negative or intimidating way toward an individual, animal, or property. Lawsuit A prosecution of a claim in a court of law (Oxford English Dictionary, 2012). Media Outlets such as television, newspapers, or magazines that provide information about current events and trends. Observational Learning The ability to acquire a new response as a result of observing a behavior model (Bandura, 1968, as cited in Carey, 2011). Parent The genetic or non-genetic Mother or Father of a child, a protector or a guardian (Dictionary.com, 2012). Politics The art or science concerned with guiding or influencing governmental policy (Merrium-Webster.com, 2012). Prosocial Behavior which is positive, helpful, and intended to promote social acceptance and friendship (Oxford English Dictionary, 2012). Social Cognitive Theory How a person views and respondss the ones social environment, the idea that individuals are more likely to imitate those who they identify and are familiar with (Chegg.com, 2012). Video Game An electronic game usually played on a gaming console or home computer. Video Game Addiction Excessive or compulsive use of computer and video games that interferes with daily life, to the point of isolation, neglecting of relationships, and extreme anger when unable to play video or computer games. (inspirationyouth.com, n.d.). Violence Physically causing harm or abuse to another individual, animal, or property. Youth a person who is young. Limitations of the Study Video games are a relatively new form of entertainment and today they are more popular than ever. Violent content has been found in video games since the late 70s. Violence is a recurring theme in some of the most popular video games today. These violent video games are often associated with aggression and hostility, while opponents of violent video games going so far to declare that these video games cause aggression. It is often a very political issue, with both sides arguing that either violent video games do have a relationship to aggression or that no such relationship exists. In some cases, researchers have even argued that violent video games are associated with positive behavior (Gentile et al., 2009). Most of the research available contains differing research from one another, with often confusing results. A limitation of this study is that much of the information concerning violent video games and aggression is often ambiguous, even vague in some cases. One article may argue that violent video games cause aggression while another argues that video games have no association with aggression at all. A lot of the research appears eager to prove or disprove that violent video games and aggression have an association, without emphasizing other factors that may play a part in this argument. For instance, Vessey and Lee (2000) have argued that exposure to violent video games not only leads to aggressive feelings in the short-term, but also contributes to juvenile delinquency in the longer term. In order to be certain that the sources are accurate and unbiased, extra research in to the author of the article and journal needs to be done. Also, extra attention should also be paid into the funding sources of where this research is coming from. Researchers ought to focus on the association and whe ther it is exists at all. Instead of being solely focused on proving or disproving, attention should be paid to observations, effects, and other factors that increase or decrease aggression upon playing violent video games. There are no longitudinal studies that measure children playing violent video games and aggression over time. Its difficult to determine if aggression in teenagers and adults can be associated with having played a large amount of violent video games while growing up, or other factors. Often studies associated with this topic may last only a few years, for example while a child is in high school. No such study has examined the relationship between violent video games and aggression in children from childhood to the teenager years. Longitudinal studies would provide an excellent amount of information on how much of an impact violent video game play has on aggression over time. Another limitation of this study is the fact that this topic is often a political issue. Politicians have their own opinions on this topic and often push for legislation outright banning the sale of violent video games to children. This is where the information starts to become ambiguous since most of the research is used as evidence in pushing this legislation and in the lawsuits that result. Most of the research that is used is heavily focused on proving whether or not violent video games ultimately cause aggression. Its very difficult to determine causation in this case, and researchers ought to focus on simply the association. Rather than trying prove whether something absolutely does or does not exist, focus on the association between the two and observe the effects. Theoretical Foundation The relationship between violent video games and aggression is one that researchers are still trying to understand. For this project, the relationship will be looked at through the use of the social cognitive theory and behavior modeling. In social cognitive theory, it is argued that behavior is the outcome of outside influences and choices made by oneself (Bandura, 1991). As such violent video games have been considered an outside influence, with children imitating the actions of an aggressive character. Bandura (1986) suggested that in social cognitive theory individuals will identify with and imitate characters that are liked and similar to themselves (cited in Lachlan, Smith, Tamborini, 2005). Children can recognize characters that are likeable, remind them of themselves, and in turn imitate the behavior of that character. In some cases a child will imitate the positive behavior of a character, while other times a child may imitate the aggressive behavior of a character. Determi ning whether or not a child will imitate the behavior a specific character depends on the gender, ethnicity, and social acceptance of a character (Lachlan et al, 2005). For example, a Caucasian boy will more likely imitate the behavior of a Caucasian male character over that of a Caucasian female character. Behavior modeling, also known as observational learning, is also another theory applied to this relationship. Albert Bandura (1961) conducted a bobo doll experiment in which children viewed a video of an individual violently hitting and yelling at a bobo doll with the children later being led in to a room with an identical bobo doll (Isom, 1998). After viewing the video, the children were immediately led to a first room filled with toys, the children were told not to touch any of the toy(Isom, 1998). Later the children were sent to a second room that was filled with attractive toys, however what had caught the majority of the childrens attention was the identical bobo doll that had been featured in the film. Around 88% of the children had violently hit the doll just as they had seen the model do in the video. (Isom, 1998). The theory of behavior modeling can be applied to understanding the effect of violent video games on aggression in children. Although it is difficult to prove caus ation between violent video games and aggression, a concept such as behavior modeling can provide insight in to aggressive actions upon playing violent games. Behavior modeling is a useful tool in understanding why children sometimes imitate the behavior of individuals who they view in movies, television, and video games. Albert Banduras (1961) social cognitive theory and the use of behavior modeling can help to greatly understand violent video games relation to aggression. Although much of the information regarding the two theories is based of work regarding television and movies, the same concepts have been applied to video games (i.e. Lachlan et al, 2005). It will be interesting to determine if the outcome changes when the theory is applied to violent video games. Literature Review Violent Video Games and Aggression Defined In 2011 violent video games sales have soared over the sales of nonviolent video games (Vgchartz.com, 2011). In 2011, violent titles such as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Battlefield 3, and Gears of War 3 all made the top 10 best selling games (Vgchartz.com). Violent video games are very popular on video game consoles as well as on computers. With access to online multiplayer, individuals can face off against other people from all over the world. No doubt, access to multiplayer contributes to violent video games popularity. It may seem as though the ability to partake in a video game with individuals from all over the world is a good idea, however that is not always the case. A search on the internet for video game raging can lead one to find dozens of videos of both teenagers and adults alike angrily yelling at their televisions. One is lead to wonder about the implications of these games and what long term consequences they may have. In some instances, video game addiction can occur, leading players to neglect all other responsibilities in order to dedicate as much time as possible to the game (Van Rooij et al, 2010). However, violent video games have not been associated with video game addiction alone. Often, violent video games are associated with increased aggression and hostility in adolescents. Its very difficult to prove that violent video games cause aggression. One would need to prove that aggression is directly caused by video games alone; as such no research has done this hefty task. Anderson Bushman (1998) argue that there are at least four active types of human aggression including physical, verbal, direct, and indirect. This paper will consider physical and verbal aggression in the context of violent video game play. Many research attempts to measure aggression have been conducted. Attempts include the use of electric shock to study the effects aggression and learning (Anderson Bushman, 1998) as well as the use of observational learning, more specifically Banduras (1961) Bobo doll experiment and the social learning theory. To continue, the release of one of the first violent video games Death Race did not go unnoticed; it sparked on outrage among consumers (Ferguson et al, 2008). Some consumers were so outraged that the video game was protested, some went so far as to pull Death Race machines out of arcades and subsequently burn them (Ferguson et al, 2008). Before the release of Death Race video game titles were rather tame, including hits such as Pac-man and Pong. Death Race was the first of its kind, but it wouldnt be the last. A long line of violent titles would follow which would include Mortal Kombat, Counter-Strike, Grand Theft Auto, and the popular Call of Duty series. Violent video game titles will continue to be released year after year, with much of the research about these video game titles resulting in mostly ambiguous information. Its important to gain a clear understanding of the effects of these video games on aggressive and hostile behavior. This paper will take a look in to the appearances violent video games have made in the news, including the link to the Columbine Shootings as well as the Virginia Tech shootings. This paper will also take a look in to the various court cases violent video games have been a part of, including Schwarzenegger vs. EMA as well as Brown vs. EMA. Various legislation from banning the sales of violent video games to minors to requiring an 18+ title will also be considered, as will the Entertainment Software Ratings Board and their reasoning behind rating various titles M for Mature. Last but not least, this paper will also focus upon various research efforts that have been put forth in order to understand the a ssociation between violent video games and aggression. Violent video games in the news Local News Stories Violent video games have made headlines numerous times. Whether news surrounds the release of the violent video game title or the consumers who play them, controversy isnt too hard to find. For instance, take the story of Daniel Petric who had planned to murder both of his parents because they would not allow him to play the shooting game Halo 3 (Ohio teenager, 2009). Petric proceeded to shoot both his parents in the head, his Father survived. Judge James Burge (2009) who had presided over this case stated that Petric had become so obsessed with this particular video game, he had come to believe that like many of the characters in the game, death was not real (as cited in Martinez, 2009). In the end, Petric was sentenced to 23 years in prison but could have faced life without parole. According the Judge Burges statements, Petric had falsely believed that his Mother would not have died when he shot her. Having become so addicted to the game, Petric believed that his Mother would continue to be alive. As in many video games when the character an individual is play dies, the character will simply come back to life a few seconds later as if nothing had happened. Halo 3 is such a game, it is a shooting based game and when the players character dies, the character will come back to life a few seconds later. Petric had become obsessed with this game, to the point where he was addicted. When his parents forbid him from playing the game, he reacted violently. One cannot argue that Petrics violent reaction was caused solely by the video game; however there is definitely an association between the two. For instance Judge Burge (2009) continued I firmly believe that Daniel Petric had no idea at the time he hatched this plot that if he killed his parents, they would be dead f orever (as quoted in Ohio teenager, 2009). Petric may have been confusing fantasy with reality, thinking that his parents would not be dead forever but instead reappear as a live a few days later, just like in the video game. Similarly to Daniel Petric, take the case of Crystian Rivera who killed his baby sister after becoming frustrated with a video game. 13 year old Crystian Rivera was apparently playing a video game while his baby sister had fallen and began to cry, Rivera had gotten so frustrated with the video game that he picked up his 9-month old baby sister and shook her (Police: Frustrated, 2011). Rivera had reportedly said that he had become frustrated with the video game when the character whom he was play as was killed (Police: Frustrated, 2011). No doubt Rivera had experienced an extensive amount of frustration while playing this video game and acted aggressively towards his baby sister. It cant be said that the video game was the cause of the aggression, as other factors might have played a part. Consider the fact that Rivera was only 13 years old while watching a 9-month old. Some adults get frustrated watching a 9-month old and a distracted 13-year old may have experienced an unnecessary a mount of frustration when dealing with a crying child. Rivera would go on to be tried as a youthful offender because of his age (OKC Boy, 2012). Columbine Massacre These are just 2 of many local news stories that have a link to video games. However, video games have made appearances in national news stories as well. The Columbine Massacre took place on April 20th, 1999 in Littleon, Colorado. Students Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris entered proceeded to shoot at other students and staff. The two students had originally planned to murder hundreds of students with a variety of guns, knives, and bombs (Rosenberg, n.d.). Twelve students, one teacher, and the two shooters were dead by the time the massacre was finally over (Rosenberg, n.d.). There are many theories, ranging from depression and bullying, that have been used to decipher what may have prompted the two shooters to carry out this massacre (Mears, 2007). One popular theory is that the video games the two shooters played may have in some way contributed to the actual massacre. The two shooters were reportedly avid players of the first-person shooter video game Doom (Saldana, 2012). The two even made custom levels and characters to share with other Doom players over the internet (Mears, 2007). In the Doom video game players assume the part of a single soldier who roams corridors and shoots at different space creatures with a number of different weapons (Ward, 2001). Doom is very similar to many violent video games of today coinciding with a military theme. Jerald Block (2007) has argued that a sudden restriction from access to the computer and subsequently the video games may have triggered the Columbine shooting (as cited in Mears, 2007). For instance, parents of Harris and Klebold may have suddenly taken away access to the computer, which may have sparked extreme anger in both and eventually resulted in the school shooting. While researching this area Block (2007) had found evidence that computer use was restricted at home and at school for Harris and Klebold, while threats and violent grew more with each restriction (as cited in Mears, 2007). Both Harris and Klebold were obsessed with the Doom video game and reacted violently when it was restricted. It is important to note that Block (2007) feels that the content in the video games is not what prompted the shooting (as cited in Mears, 2007). Both the computer and video game Doom were outlets for Harris and Klebold, without these outlets they proceeded to unleash their aggression on the real world (Mears, 2007). The video game Doom was subject to much controversy as a result of the Columbine shooting. The video game was highly scrutinized and it was noted that the shooters in the school shootings of Paducah, KY and Springfield, OR were also avid players (Sternheimer, 2007). Since the Columbine shooting, a plethora of newspaper articles were released around the nation alleging that video games were the cause of the shootings (Sternheimer, 2007). Sternheimer (2007) argues that aggressive people have a high chance of buying violently content, but it is difficult to prove that violent content actually causes real life violence. It is difficult to prove causation in video games and real world violence, only that the two exist together (Sternheimer, 2007). Sternheimer (2007) states that many news articles concerning video games and violence ignore other factors that might have played a part in the shootings: News reports of the shootings that focus on video games ignore other research on the meanings that the audiences make from media culture. This may be because its qualitative findings are difficult to turn into simple quotatio