the mexican war essays

the mexican war essays From the research detected in the articles and in the book, both the U.S. and Mexico are at fault for the start of the Mexican War. In 1820, some Americans led by Stephen Austin went to Texas to settle. The Mexican Government said they could settle there as long as they obeyed two laws, one was to pay the Mexican taxes and the other was to convert their religion to Catholicism. By 1833, there were about 35,000 American settlers in Texas. They werent obeying the laws either. The Mexican government was against the Texas settlers bringing slaves into Texas, but the Americans did anyways because they didnt want to waste $1,000. Santa Anna the new dictator of Mexico began to clamp down on the Texas settlers and threatened to use Military force to make the Americans obey the laws. In 1836, Santa Anna led several thousand troops to meet the 150 Americans and the Americans had to take refuge inside the walls of the Alamo. Santa Anna first bombed the inside, and then sent troops climbing over the walls to kill the Americans. Santa Anna was now in pursuit of Sam Houston and his 700 Texans. The forces met at San Jacinto. The Americans pulled off a surprise attack and won. Santa Anna was captured and signed the treaty that gave Texas its independence. On March 1, 1845 Texas tried to become part of the U.S. John Tyler tried to convince Congress and finally Texas was annexed as a slave state. Mexico had a problem with the boundaries though. Mexico still thought they had control of Texas, even after losing at San Jacinto. Mexico then stopped talking with the U.S. The U.S. regarded war with indifference, while Mexico had inability to inflict serious injury upon it. The U.S. sent Sidell to Mexico City to talk about the border, but Sidell was not received. Mexico wanted Nueces River as the boundary, but the U.S. wanted the Rio Grande as the boundary. Polk ordered troops to North Bank of the Rio Grande. 63 Americans w ...

How and Why to Comment in Your PHP Code

How and Why to Comment in Your PHP Code A comment in PHP code is a line that is not read as part of the program. Its only purpose is to be read by someone who is editing the code. So why use comments? To let others know what youre doing. If you are working with a group of people or plan on anyone else ever using your script, the comments tell the other programmers what you were doing in each step. This makes it much easier for them to work with and to edit your code if needed.To remind yourself what you did. Although you may just be writing a quick script for yourself and dont see the need for comments, go ahead and add them in anyway. Most programmers have experienced coming back to edit their own work a year or two later and having to figure out what they did. Comments can remind you of your thoughts when you wrote the code. There are several ways to add a comment in PHP code. The first is by using // to comment out a line. This one-line comment style only comments to the end of the line or the current code block, whichever comes first. Here is an example: ?php echo hello; //this is a comment echo there; ? If you have a single line comment, another option is to use a # sign. Here is an example of this method: ?php echo hello; #this is a comment echo there; ? If you have a longer, multi-line comment, the best way to comment is with /* and  */ before and after a lengthy comment. You can contain several lines of commenting inside a block. Here is an example: ?php echo hello; /* Using this method you can create a larger block of text and it will all be commented out */ echo there; ? Dont Mix Comments Although you can nest comments within comments in PHP, do so carefully. Not all of them nest equally well. PHP supports C, C and Unix shell-style comments. C style comments end at the first */ they encounter, so dont nest C style comments.   If you are working with PHP and HTML, be aware that HTML comments mean nothing to the PHP parser. They wont work as intended and are likely to execute some function. So, stay away from:   !Comment

LAW OF EVIDENCE examine critically the rules regarding sexual history Essay

LAW OF EVIDENCE examine critically the rules regarding sexual history of the complainant in relation to prosecutions for sexual offence in the light of the cou - Essay Example Although this new definition did improve the old version in that it included marital rape , male rape & anal intercourse previously classified as buggery, it still does not include forced oral sex and penetration by objects which may be no less traumatic than â€Å"connentional rape†. Furthermore, this defintion shows that a woman cannot be guilty of rape. The Scottish Executive (2000) explored this issue in its discussion of the law on sexual history evidence. The report’s authors noted the following commonplace beliefs that are often deployed in legal reasoning and indeed were evident in debates on section 41. (1) ï€  Someone who has had sex with persons A and B is more likely to have sex with person C. (2) ï€  Someone who is ‘sexually promiscuous’ has less right than someone who is not to choose who they have sex with. (3) ï€  Someone who is ‘sexually promiscuous’ is generally less trustworthy, and therefore less likely to be telling the truth. (4) ï€  Women had a tendency to ‘lead men on’ and are therefore to blame if men fail to resist their physical impulses. This is an adaptation of a table that appears in Kelly (2002). (5) ï€  When women say ‘no’ they do not always mean it. (6) ï€  False allegations of rape and sexual assault are more common than fals e allegations of other crimes. The Scottish Executive report concluded that all these statements not only have no foundation in fact, they are also â€Å"both illogical and at odds with any system of morality which places a value on the individual’s right to self-determination† (Scottish Executive, 2000, p.6). It considered that the frequency with which these ideas are â€Å"constantly reiterated† amounts to a form of prejudice that can result in the complainant being treated with a lack of respect and in the worst cases being publicly humiliated. Alongside, and

Messaging apps Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Messaging apps - Research Paper Example Some of the most common messaging apps that allow users to send free messaging texts, images, photos and free calls over a data connection include Whatsapp, Tango, Viber and iMessage, Skype among others (Olson, 2013). These apps have been a threat to the conventional message carriers considering that they have done away with the fees that people used to pay for the same services. As such, the traditional message carriers have to close shop or innovate better ways to attract customers. Therefore, the use of messaging Apps in sending contents through mobile networks has led to a transformation in the usage of mobile phones, making them ideal gadgets to communicate and receive content in real time. Messaging apps have challenged the incumbent social messaging sites such as Facebook and Alibaba. The apps facilitate chatting and sending of different contents a much better way compared to the conventional methods of sending the same contents. Tango is one of the most commonly used messaging apps. Currently, Tango has over 70 million monthly active users and enables members to send video and voice calls along text messages in real time (Kan 2014). Tango has capitalized on the fact that most of the calls that people make are not answered, especially at nights. As such, the company has come with special services to users that facilitate recording of messages, which are then viewed later after the person wakes up (Kan, 2014). Thus, the company has to store such messages in their servers, where they are accessible to any member with an android device, devices using apple operating system or through any web browser (Kan, 2014). The company plans to start making money by requiring that users pay minimal charges on using special services such as the Tango surprises that allows animations of messages. For instance, users of the Tango Surprises will get a single animation free of charge

Apocalypse Now Analysis Essay Example for Free

Apocalypse Now Analysis Essay The line â€Å"Mistah Kurtz – he dead† from T. S. Elliot’s poem ‘The Hollow Men’ refers to one of the movie’s main characters: Mr. Kurtz, a European trader who had gone into â€Å"the heart of darkness† ie the middle of the vast Vietnamese jungle with European standards of life and behavior. Because he’s alienated from the morals and spiritual strengths he cannot maintain his sanity and soon turns into a barbarian. â€Å"Eyes they dare not meet in dreams† – in my mind, these are the eyes of the innocent Vietnamese whose death they ordered. They’ being the American soldiers who, throughout the duration of their journey through the jungle lost their sanity and were brainwashed because of the weapons they were given. What I was particularly fascinated by in the film ‘Apocalypse Now’ was the way the good can somehow turn into the evil, not on their own, but because of their surroundings. â€Å"[.. ] We were in the jungle, there were too many of us, we had access to too much money, too much equipment and little by little we went insane –said by director and producer, Coppola at the Cannes film festival in 1979. Even the director had, little by little, gone insane being exposed to the Vietnamese jungle for so many years. The making of the film had taken more than 10 years and $30million to create which had brought Coppola to attempted suicide a couple of times. The film is based on the novella ‘Heart of Darkness’ which took place during the Vietnam War, where the American and the Vietnamese soldiers showed no mercy when it came to a matter of life and death. Throughout the film, I realized that the main character, Captain Willard, sent to assassinate Colonel Kurtz, began to be more and more captivated by Kurtz’s achievements and was beginning to think like him as he was exposed to immoral atrocities of the Great War. When General Corman described Willard’s mission to him he told him â€Å"In this war, things get confused out there, power, ideals, the old morality, and practical military necessity. Out there with these natives it must be a temptation to be god. Because theres a conflict in every human heart between the rational and the irrational, between good and evil. The good does not always triumph. Sometimes the dark side overcomes what Lincoln called the better angels of our nature. Every man has got a breaking point. You and I have. Walter Kurtz has reached his. And very obviously, he has gone insane. † This quote reminds me of Dante’s Inferno mentioned in the poem â€Å"The Hollow Men† – a journey through the different circles of hell depending on the type of person one was and the type of crime they had committed during their lifetime. The man is clear in his mind but his soul is mad. † Like Alberto Giacometti, Kurtz and Willard develop two faces during the time of the war. The only difference is that Giacometti didn’t need a war to show this, his dual personality was natural in criticizing himself, his paintings and his sculptures. Whilst watching the film I found it mainly disturbing how these men, men with families, men who had peaceful souls, could casually blow off the head of a Vietnamese person without feeling just a tiny bit of hurt in their hearts. They could â€Å"kill without feeling without passion without judgment without judgment! Because its judgement that defeats us. † The fact that these characters, sent out on mission through the rivers of a foreign place, were simple men, one a chef, the other a surfer, and the other a sailor gives the audience the feeling that this could happen to anyone. Being placed in the jungles of Vietnam with nothing but weapons would turn us into these animalistic beings with only one instinct: kill to survive. Do you know that if is the middle word in life? If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you, if you can trust yourself when all men doubt you This film is, in fact, all about losing one’s mind, being brainwashed by the immoralities of society, to be converted into an emotionless killer. It’s about the delusion of what an evil man is in the normal person’s eyes compared to what an evil man is in the brainwashed personâ €™s eyes.

Sexual Health Education in China Essay -- lack of sex education, abstin

Does the lack of sexual health education in the Chinese education system pose serious consequences within Chinese society? This summary of my thesis argument intends to present more understanding regarding the comprehensive literature surrounding sexual health education in China. My thesis will aim to contribute a focused argument to the sexual health education dialogue by providing a case study of the sexual health education system in China, in order to analyze the current problems of the system and the possible serious results regarding the Chinese population because of these problems. While conversing about the current state of sexual health education, I will focus on the different ways that sexual health education is carried out in the school systems throughout China compared to other countries, what these effects have on society and how this could be changed. This is only a short compilation of the number of sources I will eventually have, as I plan to find much more information as I continue my research. Professor Zhou-Yu Feng touches on the problems within Chinese society in her thesis â€Å"The Comparative Research on Sex Education for Adolescents of China and the US†, by saying â€Å"it is known that sex education is a blind spot in China’s basic education. Many social problems are caused due to the lack of sex education, which has gradually aroused people’s attention† (Yu-Feng). The importance of providing clear and correct sexual health education by the education school system is also of great importance because as many Chinese citizens are increasingly having premarital sexual relationships without concise or clear sexual health education, this poses the risk of sexually transmitted diseases, HIV, unplanned pregnancies,... ... of Comprehensive Sex Education in China: Findings from Suburban Shanghai†, International Family Planning Perspectives (2005): 63-72. Wen, S.H., J.D. Zeng, and M.L. Ng. 1990. Sex and Moral Education. Hong Kong: Joint Publishing. Will, Rachel. "Contraceptive Use In China." US-China Today:. 30 Mar. 2012. Xinhua News Agency, First sex education VCD for youngsters released, May 31, 2002, , accessed July 16, 2003. Yifen, Wang, and Chen Wei. "Progress or Pornography." News China Magazine RSS. News China, Dec. 2012. Web. 12 Apr. 2014. Yu-feng, Zhou. "The Comparative Research on Sex Education for Adolescents of China and the US." US-China Education Review 408-417 (2012): 408-17. Web. . Zhu, WeiJing. "The World of Chinese." The World of Chinese. 20 Aug. 2013.

Antiaging

Initiating tips–put ice on face before putting moisturizer on as it helps skin absorb the ingredients sleep on silk pillow Unionized alkaline watt I stand on my head every day for five minutes to engorge my face and head with blood and keep a youthful look â€Å"Use sunscreen even on days you don't think the sun Is out: Skin cancer Is a silent killer. Know the difference between VA and PUB. And remember, It takes 30 minutes for the sunscreen to activate.Fewer wrinkles and sun spots, and less of a risk of cancer â€Å"l take 10 breaths, three times per day (in through nose, out through mouth), at a 2 to-3 ratio. For example, breath in four seconds, then breath out six seconds. Focusing on your exhale releases more toxins, and allows more oxygen in cells. And when you're working out, do two to three all-out bursts for 12 seconds each during cardiac†¦ His can strengthen the inner membrane of mitochondria, which slows or reverts deterioration of cells†¦ â€Å"Wet (but don't drain) caffeinated tea bags and freeze. Use the frozen tea bags on closed eyes for 20 minutes three times a week to reduce dark circles, puffiness, and disconsolation. Tea bags can be any brand but MUST have caffeine, which does the work. † prevents deterioration of cells. â€Å"Wet (but don't drain) caffeinated tea bags and freeze. Use the frozen tea bags on work. †

Mindfulness & Majjhima Nikaya

Primarily the reading from the Majjhima Nikaya, Sutta 10, discusses the purpose of mindfulness in a context of rightful meditation strategy and thinking. The first part deals with the importance of the body. It is shown through the breathing activity which somehow established mindfulness through awareness of the existence of the body. The person shall himself attach from his body as he observed its breathing in and out through meditation. The second thing that one will observe through mindful meditation is the body’s posture. Accordingly, one will realize if the body is standing, sitting or lying.According to the reading, this helps one realize the external and internal activities of the body. Through giving full attention a person could observe the activities of the body more closely and completely. The person shall then reflect about the body and all of its components in such a manner that the person will know the body in a more intimate level. Through repulsiveness of the b ody, the person will be able to identify one part from the other and what the purpose of each part is. Further reflection would be gathered when the person learned about the elements that makes up the body.Through observing the death of other human body, the person shall have an understanding that the same things can happen to him self upon death. The person understands that life has end and like any other body that dies, the person’s body is also subjected to death. That death is something that is inescapable. Aside from the body, the person shall also be able to understand his feelings through mindfulness. In this part of the reading, there was a distinction between worldly feeling and spiritual feelings. The person is either experiencing a good feeling or a bad feeling.Through meditation, the person shall be able to administer a mindful observation of the origination and dissolution factors of the feeling which he has. The person could observe internally or externally, thr ough himself or through other’s experience. The person shall also be able to understand the mind by familiarizing oneself with how the mind works. In the discussion of the mind, there is a comparison between the being and the mind such that when the body has lust, the mind also has lust, if the body hates so as the mind. The fourth thing that a person in a mindful state observes is mindful things.The person shall also be able to apprehend mindful objects. The mental objects are also the five hindrances. The first of the five hindrances is the sense-desire. The person in a mindful state is a person who knows when a sense desire is coming from him or is affecting him in any way. This way, the person is able to observe sense-desire. The other hindrances are anger, torpor and languor, restlessness and worry and doubt. The mindful person shall be able to observe these five hindrances as mental objects. The person would be able to observe the five aggregates which helps dismiss the five hindrances.The five aggregates is composed of contemplation of the arising and disappearance of a material form, feelings, perceptions, mental formations and consciousness in a way or in another. The person shall be able to contemplate through the use of the six internal and external senses. For instance were the eye and the visual form that it captures the nose and the sense of smell, the ears and the sounds, the tongue and the taste, the body and the tangible things and the mind with the mental objects. Lastly the person shall be able to learn to observe the seven factors of enlightenment.The first enlightenment factor being the act of mindfulness. The second is the investigation of the mental object. This is when the person is aware that he is investigating a mental object or is not and how such investigation proceeded. Energy, joy, equanimity and concentration is the third enlightenment factor that shall be present. This through knowing that there is or if there is no ener gy, joy, equanimity and concentration present or involve. Finally, the person shall live under the Four Noble Truth which includes understanding Dukka or suffering.One should learn that there are experiences and paths that may lead to one’s suffering, thus suffering shall be understood as something that exist externally, internally, may cease to exist or may come to existence in reality . The practice of the Four Noble Truth may lead to either the Highest Knowledge or the state of not returning. The Falun Gong also has teachings that discussed what could be found in Sutta 10 or the teachings of Buddha. The instruction of Budha which also includes the four Noble Truths and the eight fold paths can basically be reflected upon the meditation techniques mentioned in the article.With the acknowledgement of Buddha’s basic teachings such as nothing is lost in the universe, things undergone constant change and the basic law of cause and effect, the reading have illustrates tha t a Buddhist meditation must be done in accordance to the basic teachings. Mindfulness as a state that can only be attain through an understanding of the natural process of life which always has a beginning and an end. The meditation somehow reflects a cyclic process that undermines careful understanding, realization and possibility of changes.Understanding the four noble truths and advocating them is also practiced in the meditation. The observation and acknowledgement of the body reminds one that the body is a material thing that experiences pain. Observing that pain could be understood internally and externally provides an understatement regarding the way by which pain is observed to be possessed by and can be experience by anyone. By undergoing an internal observation of seeing pain and suffering, one is able to identify that through proper meditation a person is the cause of his own pain and sufferings.A realization that suffering has its roots and its end determines that suffe ring could be stop or ended. Lastly, through meditation and proper understanding of how things works and how suffering produces the pain that are felt, one should help others become unlightened. The act of mindfulness is tantamount to having a clear awareness of the things and events as it pass observation of the person. Current practices of Buddhist meditation often neglect the goal of meditation. According to the primary source the only way of overcoming â€Å"sorrow and lamentation† is through purification or through the right path.Most often the modern practices focus on correcting bad behaviors. Sometimes the main focus was on finding truthfulness, displaying forbearance and benevolence. While the focus should be on extending enlightenment to other people. Most of the time, people enlighten themselves and stay stagnant without the purpose of expanding the enlightenment to other people. There are current meditations that only focus on the physical well being or fitness; w hile the real intention must include spiritual and mental fitness as well.There are also types of modern meditation that is tied up with supernatural goals that needs increase of concentration like those that are required in yoga. Works Cited Buddhism: A Brief Introduction. Developing Virtue Secondary School. Burlingame, California: Buddhist Translation Society, 1996. Buddhist Studies. Curriculum Development Institute of Singapore. Singapore: Pan Pacific Publications Pte Ltd, 1984. Cohen, Joan Lebold. Buddha. New York: Delacore Press, 1969. Following the Buddha’s Footsteps. http://online. sfsu. edu/~rone/Buddhism/footsteps. htm Lecture Notes. Person. 2008.

10 Facts About Carbon

10 Facts About Carbon One of the most important elements for all living things is carbon. Carbon is the element with atomic number 6 and element symbol C. Here are 10 interesting carbon facts for you: Carbon is the basis for organic chemistry, as it occurs in all living organisms. The simplest organic molecules consist of carbon chemically bonded to hydrogen. Many other common organics also include oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur.Carbon is a nonmetal that can bond with itself and many other chemical elements, forming over ten million compounds. Because it forms more compounds than any other element, it is sometimes called the King of the Elements.Elemental carbon can take the form of one of the hardest substances (diamond) or one of the softest (graphite).Carbon is made in the interiors of stars, although it was not produced in the Big Bang. Carbon is made in giant and supergiant stars via the triple-alpha process. In this process, three helium nuclei fuse. When a massive star turns into a supernova, carbon scatters and can be incorporated into next-generation stars and planets.Carbon compounds have limitless uses. In its elemental form, diamond is a gemstone and used for drilling/cutting; graphite is used in pencils, as a lubricant, and to protect against rust; while charcoal is used to remove toxins, tastes, and odors. The isotope Carbon-14 is used in radiocarbon dating. Carbon has the highest melting/sublimation point of the elements. The melting point of diamond is ~3550 °C, with the sublimation point of carbon around 3800 °C. If you baked a diamond in an oven or cooked it in a frying pan, it would survive unscathed.Pure carbon exists free in nature and has been known since prehistoric time. While most elements known since ancient time only exist in one allotrope, pure carbon forms graphite, diamond, and amorphous carbon (soot). The forms look very different from each other and display dissimilar properties. For example, graphite is an electrical conductor while diamond is an insulator. Other forms of carbon include fullerenes, graphene, carbon nanofoam, glassy carbon, and Q-carbon (which is magnetic and fluorescent).The origin of the name carbon comes from the Latin word carbo, for charcoal. The German and French words for charcoal are similar.Pure carbon is considered non-toxic, although inhalation of fine particles, such as soot, can damage lung tissue. Graphite and charcoal are considered safe enough to eat. While non-toxic to humans, carbon nanoparticles are deadly to fruit flies. Carbon is the fourth most abundant element in the universe (hydrogen, helium, and oxygen are found in higher amounts, by mass). It is the 15th most abundant element in the Earths crust. More Carbon Facts Carbon usually has a valence of 4, which means each carbon atom can form covalent bonds with four other atoms. The 2 oxidation state is also seen in compounds such as carbon monoxide.Three isotopes of carbon occur naturally. Carbon-12 and carbon-13 are stable, while carbon-14 is radioactive, with a half-life of around 5730 years. Carbon-14 is formed in the upper atmosphere when cosmic rays interact with nitrogen. While carbon-14 occurs in the atmosphere and living organisms, it is almost completely absent from rocks. There are 15 known carbon isotopes.Inorganic carbon sources include carbon dioxide, limestone, and dolomite. Organic sources include coal, oil, peat, and methane clathrates.Carbon black was the first pigment used for tattooing. Ãâ€"tzi the Iceman has carbon tattoos that endured through his life and are still visible 5200 years later.The amount of carbon on Earth is fairly constant. It is transformed from one form to another via the carbon cycle. In the carbon cycle, pho tosynthetic plants take carbon from air or seawater and convert it into glucose and other organic compounds via the Calvin cycle of photosynthesis. Animals eat some of the biomass and exhale carbon dioxide, returning carbon to the atmosphere. Sources Deming, Anna (2010). King of the elements?. Nanotechnology. 21 (30): 300201. doi:10.1088/0957-4484/21/30/300201Lide, D. R., ed. (2005). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics (86th ed.). Boca Raton (FL): CRC Press. ISBN 0-8493-0486-5.Smith, T. M.; Cramer, W. P.; Dixon, R. K.; Leemans, R.; Neilson, R. P.; Solomon, A. M. (1993). The global terrestrial carbon cycle. Water, Air, Soil Pollution. 70: 19–37. doi:10.1007/BF01104986Weast, Robert (1984). CRC, Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. Boca Raton, Florida: Chemical Rubber Company Publishing. pp. E110. ISBN 0-8493-0464-4.

Avoid Common Mistakes That Beginning Reporters Make

Avoid Common Mistakes That Beginning Reporters Make Its the time of the year when introductory reporting class students are submitting their first articles for the student newspaper. And, as always happens, there are certain mistakes that these beginning reporters make semester after semester. So here is a list of common mistakes that novice journalists should avoid when writing their first news stories. Do More Reporting Too often beginning journalism students turn in stories that are weak, not necessarily because theyre poorly written, but because theyre thinly reported. Their stories dont have enough quotes, background information or statistical data, and its clear that theyre trying to piece together an article on the basis of meager reporting. A good rule of thumb: Do more reporting than is necessary. And interview more sources than you need to. Get all the relevant background information and statistics and then some. Do this and your stories will be examples of solid journalism, even if you havent yet mastered the newswriting format. Get More Quotes This goes along with what I said above about reporting. Quotes breathe life into news stories and without them, articles are arid and dull. Yet many journalism students submit articles that contain few if any quotes. Theres nothing like a good quote to breathe life into your article so always do plenty of interviews for any story you do. Back Up  Broad Factual Statements Beginning journalists are prone to making broad factual statements in their stories without backing them up with some sort of statistical data or evidence. Take this sentence: The vast majority of Centerville College students hold down jobs while also going to school. Now that may be true, but if you dont present some evidence to back it up there is no reason your readers should trust you. Unless youre writing something thats plainly obvious, such as the Earth is round and the sky is blue, make sure to dig up the facts to support what you have to say. Get Full Names of Sources Beginning reporters often make the mistake of just getting the first names of people they interview for stories. This is a no-no. Most editors will not use quotes unless the story contains the full name of the person being quoted along with some basic biographical information. For example, if you interviewed James Smith, an 18-year-old business major from Centerville, you should include that information when you identify him in your story. Likewise, if you interview English professor Joan Johnson, you should include her full job title when you quote her. No First Person Students who have been taking English classes for years often feel the need to use the first person I in their news stories. Dont do it. Reporters almost never resort to using the first person in their hard news stories. Thats because news stories should be an objective, dispassionate account of events, not something in which the writer injects his or her opinions. Keep yourself out of the story and save your opinions for movie reviews or editorials. Break Up the Long Paragraphs Students accustomed to writing essays for English classes tend to write paragraphs that go on and on forever, like something out of a Jane Austen novel. Get out of that habit. Paragraphs in news stories should typically be no more than two to three sentences long. There are practical reasons for this. Shorter paragraphs look less intimidating on the page, and they make it easier for editors to trim a story on a tight deadline. If you find yourself writing a paragraph that runs more than three sentences, break it up. Short Ledes The same holds true for the lede of the story. Ledes should generally be just one sentence of no more than 35 to 40 words. If your lede gets much longer than that it means youre probably trying to cram too much information into the first sentence. Remember, the lede should just be the main point of the story. The small, nitty-gritty details should be saved for the rest of the article. And there is rarely any reason to write a lede thats more than one sentence long. If you cant summarize the main point of your story in one sentence, then you probably dont really know what the story is about, to begin with. Spare Us the Big Words Sometimes beginning reporters think that if they use long, complicated words in their stories they will sound more authoritative. Forget it. Use words that are easily understood by anyone, from the fifth-grader to the college professor. Remember, youre not writing an academic paper but an article that will be read by a mass audience. A news story isnt about showing off how smart you are. Its about conveying important information to your readers. A Few Other Things When writing an article for the student newspaper always remember to put your name at the top of the article. This is necessary if you want to get a byline for your story. Also, save your stories under file names that relate to the topic of the article. So if youve written a story about tuition increasing at your college, save the story under the file name tuition hike or something like that. That will enable the editors of the paper to quickly and easily find your story and place it in the proper section of the paper.

Examine the view that dividends are irrelevant to rational investors Assignment

Examine the view that dividends are irrelevant to rational investors when considering the value of shares from a theoretical and empirical perspective - Assignment Example Primarily, when firms make enormous profits, the managers can either decide to use it for expansion by investing in new projects or pay it to the shareholders in the form of dividends. The dividend policy usually guides this process. Dividend policy is the set of guidelines or principles that companies adopt to decide the amount of the profits that shareholders are to receive (Miller and Modigliani, 1961). Even though, the business uses these sets of principles to determine the value of the dividend the decision on whether to pay the dividends or not lies in the board’s decision. In fact, when the board of directors declares the dividends to be paid it becomes a debt to the corporation and cannot be recanted or rescinded quickly. Dividends can either be paid on temporary or permanent basis or sometimes it can be paid once or twice a year. Deangelo (1995) argues that, investors are usually interested not only in the stability of this payment but also the level of dividend payment. From this perspective, therefore, the managers should be aware of the impacts of unexpected changes in the dividend payment to the potential investors. Both the existing investors and potential investors are affected by the changes since such uncertainties could alienate them from investing with the organization. According to Bhattacharya (1979), unstable dividend payment aspect may negatively influence the perception of the investor based on the long term company’s performance in the financial markets. Even though, most economists believe that it is the value and stability of payment of dividends that the investors should rely on while making decisions; research ascertains that this is irrelevant and should warrants sidelining. Many from other schools of thought including Miller and Modigliani believe that what the company pays in the form of a dividend is totally