Writing a Residency Personal Statement

Writing a Residency Personal Statement As most medical students will attest, formulating a residency personal statement is an extremely difficult task. An essay that must articulate the students career intentions as well as his/her passion for the field, residency statements are not exactly a walk in the park. As someone who has written and proofed dozens of personal statements, I would like to offer the following tips on writing one for residency. As if getting into and graduating from medical school isnt difficult enough, young doctors also most complete several years as a resident in a hospital. Now, considering that young doctors arent paid squat while working as residents, you would think that hospitals would be begging them to apply. Not the case. Not only are top residency positions hard to come by, but graduate hopefuls must compete against the best in their field in order to even be considered. That is why the personal statement is so important. As a potential resident, the personal statement is your chance to stand out above the rest and literally plead your case. Residency personal statements are hard to write, but they arent impossible. For more information on writing a quality personal statement for your residency or if you would like to know where you can find an editor to assist you in the process, please access the link provided. In the meanwhile, good luck!

Descriptions and Prescriptions

Descriptions and Prescriptions Descriptions and Prescriptions Descriptions and Prescriptions By Mark Nichol Question: How many dictionaries does it take to screw up the word lightbulb? Answer: How many you got? I’m mildly irritated whenever I see lightbulb styled as two words in an article or a book. (I can’t help it. I’m a word nerd.) That happens all the time, because it’s rarely styled correctly and when I spell-checked this post, lightbulb was flagged as a misspelling. If that’s true, then why doesn’t the dictionary style it as two words? As it turns out, many of them do and correctly is a relative judgment. My favorite dictionary, Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, widely favored by American book and magazine publishers, thus marking me as a man of taste and refinement is nearly anomalous in treating the word as a closed compound. And why is that? Dictionaries, like sensible writers and editors, try to straddle the descriptivist and prescriptivist worlds. (A descriptivist describes things as they are; a prescriptivist prescribes how things should be.) They’ll acknowledge, for example, that alright is a frequently appearing variant of â€Å"all right.† But they don’t advocate favoring it over the dominant form – or employing it, for that matter. They merely admit that it exists, for better or worse. And though rampaging hordes of feckless philistines spell â€Å"a lot† as one word, affirm an opinion by writing definately, or refer to someone else’s opinion as rediculous, you won’t find any of those aberrations in a dictionary. They have not acquired even quasi-validity not yet, anyway (shudder). But how is it that one dictionary can authoritatively display a closed compound as standard, when most others and most usage contradicts it? Compound nouns tend to follow a progression in which they begin as open compounds and progress to hyphenated form and are then closed. (Sometimes, the progression skips the middle step.) The precursor of the incandescent lightbulb was developed 200 years ago, and Merriam-Webster’s cites the first appearance in print of the closed compound in 1884. I prefer to think that this particular dictionary happens to be ahead of the curve in granting the closed compound pride of place as the correct form (without even a nod to the open alternative as a variant). But our mischievous mother tongue requires eternal vigilance. Lightbulb may be the correct form if you consider Merriam-Webster’s your lexicographical authority. But the hyphen stubbornly persists in light-year despite that word’s first attestation about the same time as lightbulb was switched on. (â€Å"Light year† implies an annum nearly devoid of gravity, perhaps, and was passed over from the beginning, while lightyear looks as if it should be pronounced â€Å"lighty ear† the same affliction that presents in copyediting, which inexplicably became favored over â€Å"copy editing.†) Meanwhile, â€Å"light box,† which has been around nearly as long it refers to a platform with an interior light source and a clear surface that allows objects placed on it to be illuminated from below still awaits the bestowal-of-the-hyphen ceremony or automatic promotion to closed compound (and perhaps waits in vain). And then there’s the confusion of referring to someone as light-headed yet lighthearted, and of distinguishing between lightening your load and a lightning strike. Such bewildering inconsistency creates a challenge for the careful writer, but it’s to be expected from such a loose language as English. The tip: Choose a dictionary (one preferred, perhaps, by whoever pays you for the honor of publishing your writing), and stray not and don’t sweat it when an otherwise enjoyable piece of someone else’s writing displays adherence to another dictionary’s dogma. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:The Meaning of "To a T"Hyper and HypoShow, Don't Tell

Early Modern Architecture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Early Modern Architecture - Essay Example While he was working under Behren, Mies developed a design approach that was basically based on advanced structural techniques and Prussian classicism. While still conducting his discovery on architecture he developed sympathy for the aesthetic credos of both Dutch De Stijl group and Russian Constructivism. He also borrowed from the post and lintel construction of Karl Friedrich Schinkel for his designs in steel and glass. In 1923 Mies worked with a new magazine called G which started that every year in the month of July. His architectural philosophies are greatly recognized and were a major contribution in the late 1920s and 1930s as artistic director of the Werkbund-sponsored Weissenhof project and as a director of the Bauhaus (Cohen, 2006). Mies is famously known for his dictum ‘Less is More’ and he attempted to create neutral, contemplative spaces through an architecture that was based on structural integrity and material honesty. After ages spanning twenty years of his life, Mies was able to eventually achieve his vision of a monumental ‘skin and bone’ architecture. Through his dedication, commitment, passion and hard work his later works provide a fitting denouement to a life dedicated to the idea of a universal, simplified architecture. After World War 1, he developed the interest in the skyscraper which eventually led to him studying it and he designed two innovative and ingenious steel framed towers encased in glass. One of the critically acclaimed skyscrapers was the Friedrichstrasse which was designed in 1921 for a competition albeit it was never built but it drew a lot of critical praise and it even foreshadowed his skyscraper designs of the late 40s and 50s. The very same year he desi gned the Friedrichstrasse so did his marriage end and he changed his name.

California and The United States Research Paper

California and The United States - Research Paper Example This is because revealing of gold was an essential indication of the future economic growth of the state. Consequently, this led the U.S to acquire California for its future economic strength and expansion of its territorial boundary towards the west (Olson & Olson, 2011). The need for the United States to expand its territory was also a factor that led to the acquisition of California. The then President James K. Polk influenced the territorial expansion during his tenancy to ensure his region had a wide area of influence as well as security against other rival states at that particular time such as Mexico and Spain (Genovese, 2010). Polk achieved his desire of expanding the U.S territory through the invasion of Texas, ending the Mexican-American war and negotiation of the Oregon treaty with Britain (Genovese, 2010). Finally, the outcome of these activities was an acquisition of California among other states and US’ western advancement in terms of territory. Manifest Destiny focused on US’ territorial boundary growth, in particular, the western expansion in order to spread beliefs and culture of America. Manifest destiny drew support from democratic individuals who were for the spread of American ideologies while employing nonviolent measures for the peaceful coexistence of the people (Paris, 2012). Thereby, Manifest destiny became crucial in the acquisition of California during the process of western expansion. Discovery of gold in California also attracted a large number of emigrants thus prompting global emigration of wealth seekers from Germany, Turkey, Mexico, China, France, Ireland and Chile thus creating suspicion of the US gaining California (Gold, 2012). This created the necessity to establish measures of eradicating suspicion brought by foreign immigration (Gold, 2012). The number of Chinese immigrants was high than the other immigrants that come for the sake of acquiring wealth through the sale and purchase of gold.

Should Gay Marriages Be Legalized Essay Example for Free

Should Gay Marriages Be Legalized Essay With the world going through a state of change, the society across all countries have begun to change their mindset. We have witnessed the different kinds of changes through new inventions and ideologies; some for the better and others for the worse. Today, gay marriage also known as a union of the same biological sex, is one of the most controversial ideas presented. In this essay, the topic about legalizing gay marriages will be discussed such as how gay marriages are a negative repercussion to the society by defining ‘marriage’ in the eyes of the law and addressing concerns about the legalization of gay marriage. There will also be an argument of why gay marriages should be legalized by redefining marriage from an unbiased point of view and providing supporting evidences that gay marriage is of no difference from same-sex marriage. First of all, what is marriage? The law has defined marriage as the formal union of a man and a woman by which they become husband and wife. Many believe that legalizing gay marriage would weaken the definition and respect for the institution of marriage. According to the U. S.  Census Bureau, the divorce rate of first marriage is around 50 percent; second marriages are at 60 to 67 percent and third marriages are at 73 to 74 percent. (Gini, 2012) With divorce rates higher than they have ever been, critics argue that allowing homosexuals to marry would only contribute to an ever-crumbling institution. Thus, it is believed that legalizing gay marriage would increase the number of joke or non-serious marriages. Secondly, it is believed that legalizing gay marriage would affect every nations future as it leads to a lower birth rates and psychology disorders. The traditional family which consists of a man, a woman, and a child has always been the building block of every society. By legalizing gay marriage, research has shown that same-sex marriage would eliminate the incentive for procreation that is implicit in defining marriage as a male-female union as there is definite evidence of at least a correlation between same-sex marriage and low birth and fertility rates, both in the U. S. and abroad. (Sprigg, n. d. Apart from that, it is believed that gay marriage would also result in more children being raised in same-sex households which are not an optimum environment because both a Mother and a Father are essential figures for any child’s upbringing. Studies have shown that girls who are raised apart from their fathers are reportedly at higher risk for early sexual activity and teenage pregnancy. † (Ellis, 2003) â€Å"Children without a mother are deprived of the emotional security and unique advice that mothers provide. (Stacey Bublarz, 2001) If children were exposed to an alternative lifestyle since birth, they are more likely to experiment and date people of the same gender. This could be a vicious cycle of the human beings that our world will not be able to afford. Thirdly, there is an infringement of gay rights on religious liberty since homosexuality is considered sinful by most religions. According to a statement from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and approved by Pope John Paul II, marriage was established by the Creator with its own nature, essential properties and purpose. No ideology can erase from the human spirit the certainty that marriage exists solely between a man and a woman. (Ratzinger, 2003) This has proven that legalizing gay marriage would be incompatible with the beliefs and traditions of many religions. Thus, by demanding the majority of the religious population to accept a relationship which is against their religion, it is not only deemed as offensive but also, morally and ethically corrupted. With all the cons mentioned above, I am sure one would be swayed to oppose to the idea of legalization of gay marriage. Having that said, I believe gay marriage can also be perceived from a different light such that one would think twice before opposing and even learn to accept the legalization of gay marriage. First of all, I would like to re-define marriage from an unbiased point of view: Marriage is a celebration of the unconditional, life-long commitment between two individuals. For better or for worse, they are always ready to share all of life, to love, to cherish and engage in the fullest of communication, the deepest of understanding, and the strongest of personal loyalty and trust. Since marriage only involves two individuals who are deeply in love, should it matter that the couple is of the same sex? Should it matter that the couple does not fit into what the society used to be? Should it matter since this form of marriage isnt hurting the society or anyone at all? If the answers to my questions have been a consistent no, then why should we stop the legalization of gay marriage? Since young, most people have been taught to cherish freedom, encourage differences and never discriminate against other races, then why cant we stop discriminating homosexuals too and accept them for whom they are by legalizing gay marriage? People have to understand that homosexuals are humans too and we are all given the same equal rights. As Hilary Clinton have stated, gays and lesbians are our colleagues, our teachers, our soldiers, our friends, our loved ones and they are full and equal citizens and deserve the rights of citizenship — that includes marriage. (Clinton, 2013) No doubt that it is difficult for discriminations to be omitted in any society in the world but no government should be the one discriminating. As such, by legalizing gay marriage, it will be killing two birds with one stone since it allows both the government to set a good role model for its people and also, the homosexuals to have their very own freedom to love and to make their own decisions. Secondly, marriage does not only revolve around pro-creation. If marriage is only about reproduction, does it mean that infertile couples would not be allowed to marry too? Since the ability or desire to create offspring has never been a criterion for marriage, why should we allow pro-creation to obstruct the love of two individuals? George Washington, often referred to as the Father of Our Country, did not have children with his wife Martha Custis, and neither did four other married US presidents. (Talbot, 2010) Since marriages between a man and a woman do not necessarily end in offspring due to physical problems or personal choice, we should not hold on to the concept of procreation as essential to the marriage bond. Hence, pro-creation should never be a reason why we should not legalize gay marriage. Additionally, gay marriage will make it easier for people to adopt children. However, people worries over issues such as confusion amongst children about gender roles and expectations of society which would consequently lead to psychological disorders and increase in social problems if gay marriage had been legalized. They are worried about how schools are going to teach their children the difference between â€Å"same-sex marriage and opposite-sex marriage. In my opinion, there is no difference and instead, children should always be taught how to embrace all kinds of love since love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things, as preached in the bible. Studies have also found that children of gay fathers were as well-adjusted as those adopted by heterosexual parents, (Gatrell Bos, 2010) and children of lesbian mothers were rated higher than children of heterosexual parents in social and academic competence and had fewer social problems. (Farr et al. , 2010) This has shown that, on the contrary, gay marriage would provide an environment that is just as good or even more conducive for children. As such, this unduly worries of legalization of gay marriage are truly redundant. Lastly, despite the fact that gay marriage is considered sinful by most religions, there has been an increase of religious organizations voicing their support for marriage equality. Parrella (2004a) mentioned Marriage offers us the ideal human setting for us to surrender our own self-importance and discover, through intimacy with another, the real heart and center of the universe in God—whether one uses the word God or not. This unconditional giving of ones self is at the core of a sacramental marriage in the Catholic tradition. . This has shown that it stays true even if a person is a homosexual as this sacramental understanding of marriage can also be applied to two individuals of the same gender. Moreover, a gay or lesbian orientation is not up to ones choice or decision but it is simply the way an individual is. Since all that matters to God is what is in the hearts and souls that God has given to us and that we seek to give to one another (Parrella, 2004b), it is only fair for us to give homosexuals their freedom to express themselves by legalizing gay marriages. In conclusion, although the legalization of gay marriages will lead to negative impacts on the society, it does not justify denying a person his equal rights just based on his/her sexual orientation. Moreover, recent statistics have shown that support for the legalization of gay marriages has risen dramatically in the past decade as younger generation with more accepting views are replacing older generation in the population. This can be seen by using data from 98 national surveys conducted between 2004 and 2011, â€Å"75% of the growth has come from people changing their minds. † (Lewis Hatalsky, 2013). Ultimately, marriage is the celebration of lifelong commitment between two individuals, regardless of gender. Hence, gay marriages should be legalized.

Microsurgery: Sewing Blood Vessels and Nerves Back Together :: Health Medicine

Microsurgery: Sewing Blood Vessels and Nerves Back Together A man came into the emergency ward at one o'clock. His thumb came in an hour later. The surgeon's job: get them back together. The successful re-attaching of fingers to hand requires long hours of painstaking work in microsurgery. In the operating room , the surgeon doesn't stand, but sits in a chair that supports her body. Her arm is cradled by a pillow. Scalpels are present as are other standard surgical tools, but the suture threads are almost invisible, the needle thinner than a human hair. And all the surgical activity revolves around the most important instument, the microscope. The surgeon will spend the next few hours looking through the microscope at broken blood vessels and nerves and sewing them back together again. The needles are so thin that they have to be held with needlenosed jeweller's forceps and will sew together nerves that are as wide as the thickness of a penny. To make such a stitch, the surgeon's hands will move no more than the width of the folded side of a piece of paper seen end on! Imagine trying to sew two pieces of spaghetti together and you'll have some idea of what microsurgery involves. Twenty-five years ago, this man's thumb would have been lost. But in the 1960s, surgeon's began using microscopes to sew what previously had been almost invisible blood vessels and nerves in limbs. Their sewing technique had been developed on large blood vessels over a half century earlier but could not be used in microsurgery until the needles and sutures became small enough. The surgical technique, still widely used today, had taken the frustrating unreliability out of sewing slippery, round-ended blood vessels by ingeniously turning them into triangles. To do this, a cut end of a blood vessel was stitched at three equidistant points and pulled slightly apart to give an anchored, triangular shape. This now lent itself to easier, more dependable stitching and paved the way for microsurgery where as many as twenty stitches will have to be made in a blood vessel three millimetres thick. The needle used for this can be just 70 millimetres wide, only ten times the width of a human blood cell. All this technology is focused on getting body parts back together again successfully. The more blood vessels reattached, the better the survival chances for a toe or a finger. The finer the nerve resection, the better the feeling in a damaged part of the face, or control in a previously useless arm. But the wounded and severed body part must be treated

KFC Culture Essay

culture: 1: believe in all people —–we trust in positive intentions and belivev everyone has the potential to make a difference. we actively seek diversity in others to expand our thinking and make the best decionsion. we coach and support every individual to frow to their full capability. 2. be restaurant and customer maniacs†¦.now!—- we love running great restaurants and our customers rule.we act with ensure every customers sees it and feels it in every restrants. We make sure we have great RGMs who build great teams. We are maniacal about rigorous execution of our core processes to deliver our brand standards as our #1 brand building initiative. It’s the foundation for making customer mania come alive. 3. go for breakthrough. —-we begin by asking ourselves, what can i do now to get breakthrough results in my piece of YUM?!our intentionality drives step change thinking. We imagine hoe big something can be and work future back., going full out with positive energy and personal accountability to make it happen. 4. build know how—–we grow by being avid learnes, pursuing knowledge and best practices inside and outside our company.we seek truth over harmony everystep of the way. We consistently drive outstanding execution by scaling our leanings into process and tools around what matters most. Breakthroughs come when we get people with knowdge thinking creatively. 5. take the hill teamwork—–we team together to drive action versus activity. we discuss the undiscussable.always promoting healthy debate and healthy decisions. our relationships allow us to ask the earth other. We make specific verbal contracts to get big things done with urgence and excellence. 6. recognize! recognize! recognize! —–we attract and retain the best people and inspire greatness by being world famous for recognition. we love celebratng the achievement of others and have lots of fun doing it!

Mitchem Lethbridge Ltd

A Introduction Mitch Leathering Ltd. Is an individual franchise of the parent company Mitch Office Corporation, which holds a contest every third year to award the franchise with the greatest Improvement In net Income. This year the Leathering franchise has won the contest, however the Halifax franchise, who had a net income to reflect higher net income numbers.The Mitch head office has asked us to look at the financial records and interview the Leathering management to determine if an audit is required because of suspect manipulations to the statements. We also have been required to suggest some improvements to the contest rules to the Imitate head office. The Leathering franchise is currently solely owned by Lisa McGovern and had been going through a tough year in 2010. At the end of the period they made many adjustments that had negative effects on the net income in the 2010 year and positive effects towards the net income of the 2011 year.These issues and the effects they had on net income will determine if there is a need for an audit. They will also help provide insight to determine any improvements that can be applied to the rules f the contest to ensure the future winners are indeed complying with the rules. Improvements would also help curb franchises towards the purpose of the contest, which is to be continually improving net income each year. After determine Mitch Leathering Ltd.Financial statement, we comment on some issues them may address, and Issues Commissions Expense At the end of the 2010 reporting period Mitch Leathering Limited decided to pay expected commissions of January 2011 to employees in December to help offset the poor sales year they Just had in 2010. This practice is neither acceptable by GAP ironically nor is it ethical in regards to the competition. Lisa has disregarded the revenue and expense recognition criteria by recognizing the commissions' expenses in one period when the sales that those commissions belong to will not be re cognized until they occur during January 2011.The Leathering division also appears to have favorably bolstered their expectations for January to $150,000. This estimate is far too high despite the upcoming discount sale, especially considering that the December sales were $90,000. That is a $60,000 increase in expected sales when there is not even a seasonal change. If the Leathering division wanted to give the employees a bonus for having a poor sales year when they expect a better year in the next period that is acceptable, but that was not the case.Lisa and Mitch Leathering decided to recognize commission's expenses that belonged to sales that were yet to occur in 2011. This influenced net income by decreasing the expenses in 2011 while the sales remained the same and vice-versa for the previous year. This increased net income by $9120 since actual sales were only $114,000 in January and they decreased net income by the full $12,000 2010. By over exaggerating the losses in 2010 a nd the revenue in 2011 the Leathering division destroys the credibility of their financial records.The representational faithfulness of Lettering's records will also come into question now and in future contests the Mitch Corporation puts on. Show below: $77,250 Inventory Write-down The Leathering division again appears to have ignored GAP principals when they wrote down inventory at the end of the 2010 period. According to inventory write- down information, when a write-down occurs is a Judgment of management, but how you write inventory down is not.When write-downs occur inventory needs to written down to Net Realizable Value, which is what the inventory is worth in the market now as opposed to when it was purchased. However, Jeff wrote inventory down to liquidation value which is what the inventory could be sold for immediately. This value is much lower that what it should have been written down to had the inventory value decreased since its purchase. Jeff also mentions in his no tes that he was not sure that they were going to be able to sell the abnormally high level of inventory in the following months.This is a contradicting statement considering that Lisa had mentioned in her notes that she had planned the bulk sale in late 2010 and had even began advertising in December. She also estimated sales to be $1 50,000 in January which would have exceeded the inventory account before the write-down. This exaggerated write-down affected net income by decreasing the value of the inventory when the sales occurred in the following period. This would have reduced the cost of goods sold expense while sales and revenues remained unchanged by the write-down.

Free Essays on Robert Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

Robert Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance portrays two journeys; it analyzes a physical motorcycle trip and it discusses the individual human interpretation of quality, as determined by the classical and romantic lines of thought. Pirsig describes physical and meta-physical aspects of life, and it portrays how they are interconnected. Pirsig attempts to display the effects of his thoughts on ordinary life. Pirsig’s describes quality as being based on the individual mind, whether it thinks in the classical or romantic way. The physical journeys between Minnesota and Montana allowed the development of the relationship between the narrator and his son. The narrator discovers the love he feels for his son, and he attempts to relate to him as the story progresses. The protagonist’s world metaphorically ends with Chris’ death, as their evolving closeness shatters. The physical journey is characterized by Pirsig’s involvement and commitment towards nature as well as his classical interpretation of motorcycle maintenance. The classic interpretation of technology, and thus motorcycle maintenance, is present throughout. Pirsig attempts to rediscover his former self, who he likes to relate to the secluded and metaphysical philosopher Phaedrus. This process leads to the development of the metaphysical explanations. Phaedrus’ philosophies are infected with contradictions that lead to insanity. Pirsig the writer has transformed his personality from Phaedrus the philosopher. He is no longer influenced by metaphysical perplexities that previously â€Å"hijacked† his mind. These include the complex schools of thought for which there are no right or wrong answers: the nature and definition of quality and the reconcilability of classical and romantic thought. Metaphysics go hand in hand with classicism, as they both concentrate on meaning, purpose, utility, and quality as determined by an object’s contents. Conversel... Free Essays on Robert Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Free Essays on Robert Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Robert Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance portrays two journeys; it analyzes a physical motorcycle trip and it discusses the individual human interpretation of quality, as determined by the classical and romantic lines of thought. Pirsig describes physical and meta-physical aspects of life, and it portrays how they are interconnected. Pirsig attempts to display the effects of his thoughts on ordinary life. Pirsig’s describes quality as being based on the individual mind, whether it thinks in the classical or romantic way. The physical journeys between Minnesota and Montana allowed the development of the relationship between the narrator and his son. The narrator discovers the love he feels for his son, and he attempts to relate to him as the story progresses. The protagonist’s world metaphorically ends with Chris’ death, as their evolving closeness shatters. The physical journey is characterized by Pirsig’s involvement and commitment towards nature as well as his classical interpretation of motorcycle maintenance. The classic interpretation of technology, and thus motorcycle maintenance, is present throughout. Pirsig attempts to rediscover his former self, who he likes to relate to the secluded and metaphysical philosopher Phaedrus. This process leads to the development of the metaphysical explanations. Phaedrus’ philosophies are infected with contradictions that lead to insanity. Pirsig the writer has transformed his personality from Phaedrus the philosopher. He is no longer influenced by metaphysical perplexities that previously â€Å"hijacked† his mind. These include the complex schools of thought for which there are no right or wrong answers: the nature and definition of quality and the reconcilability of classical and romantic thought. Metaphysics go hand in hand with classicism, as they both concentrate on meaning, purpose, utility, and quality as determined by an object’s contents. Conversel...

Examples of Self-Fulfilling Prophecy in Sociology

Examples of Self-Fulfilling Prophecy in Sociology A self-fulfilling prophecy is a sociological term used to describe what happens when a false belief influences peoples behavior in such a way that it ultimately shapes reality. This concept has appeared in many cultures for centuries, but American sociologist Robert K. Merton coined the term and developed it for use in sociology. Today, the idea of a self-fulfilling prophecy is commonly used by sociologists as an analytic lens through which to study student performance, deviant or criminal behavior, and the impact of racial stereotypes on targeted groups. Robert K. Mertons Self-Fulfilling Prophecy In 1948, Merton used the term self-fulfilling prophecy in an article. He framed his discussion of this concept with symbolic interaction theory, which states that, through interaction, people bring about a shared definition of the situation in which they find themselves. He argued  that self-fulfilling prophecies begin as false definitions of situations, but that behavior based on the ideas attached to this false understanding recreates the situation in such a way that the original false definition becomes true. Mertons description of the self-fulfilling prophecy is rooted in the Thomas theorem, formulated by sociologists W. I. Thomas and D. S. Thomas. This theorem states that if people define situations as real, they are then real in their consequences. Both Mertons definition of self-fulfilling prophecy and the Thomas theorem reflect the fact that beliefs act as social forces. They have, even when false, the power to shape our behavior in very real ways. Symbolic interaction theory explains this by highlighting that people act in situations largely based on how they read those situations, and what they believe the situations mean to them or to the others participating in them. What we believe to be true about a situation then shapes our behavior and how we interact with the others present. In The Oxford Handbook of Analytical Sociology, sociologist Michael Briggs provides an easy three-step way to understand how self-fulfilling prophecies become true. X believes that y is p.X, therefore, does p.Because of 2, y becomes p. Examples of Self-Fulfilling Prophecies in Sociology A number of sociologists have documented the effects of self-fulfilling prophecies in education. This occurs primarily as a result of teacher expectation. The two classic examples are of high and low expectations. When a teacher has high expectations for a student and communicates those expectations to the student through his behavior and words, the student then typically does better in school than they would otherwise. Conversely, when a teacher has low expectations for a student and communicates this to the student, the student will perform more poorly in school than she otherwise would. Taking Mertons view, one can see that, in either case, the teachers expectations for the students are creating a certain definition of the situation that rings true for both the student and the teacher. That definition of the situation then impacts the students behavior, making the teachers expectations real in the behavior of the student. In some cases, a self-fulfilling prophecy is positive, but, in many, the effect is negative. Sociologists have documented that race, gender, and class biases frequently influence the level of expectations that teachers have for students. Teachers  often expect black and Latino students to perform worse than white and Asian students. They may also expect girls to perform worse than boys in certain subjects like science and math, and low-income students to perform worse than middle- and upper-income students. In this way, race, class, and gender biases, which are rooted in stereotypes, can act as self-fulfilling prophecies and actually create poor performance among the groups targeted with low expectations. This ultimately results in these groups performing poorly in school. Similarly, sociologists have documented how labeling kids delinquents or criminals leads to delinquent and criminal behavior. This particular self-fulfilling prophecy has become so common across the U.S. that sociologists have given it a name: the school-to-prison pipeline. It is a phenomenon that is also rooted in racial stereotypes, primarily ones of black and Latino boys, but documentation suggests that it affects black girls as well. Examples of self-fulfilling prophecies show how powerful our beliefs are. Good or bad, these expectations can alter what societies look like. Updated by Nicki Lisa Cole, Ph.D.

Financial Modeling Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Financial Modeling - Essay Example It has been argued that this economic turmoil has rendered portfolio management theories irrelevant. This paper explores this assertion. Recent Upheavals in World Financial Markets The global financial crisis of the 21st century has been described as the greatest economic and financial crisis the world has seen since the Great Depression of the 1930s (Ciro 2012). This economic turmoil, unlike the 1930s depression, caught many by surprise. Governments, investors, and the knowledgeable and sophisticated market participants were caught unawares by the speed and intensity of the economic decline. The international credit and financial markets were disrupted and dislocated by this financial crisis especially in 2008 and 2009. Governments in response to this economic crisis came up with policy and fallout responses from 2009 and 2011. These responses to some extent have rendered portfolio management theories irrelevant. Why Portfolio Management Theories Have Become Irrelevant Portfolio man agement theories are two; portfolio theory and capital market theory. ... Brentani (2004) on the other hand defines capital market theory as dealing with the effects of investor decisions on security prices. This theory shows the relationship that should exist between risk and security returns if investors constructed portfolios as specified by portfolio theory. Markowitz (1952) asserts that the process of selecting portfolios is divided into two stages; observation and experience, and beliefs about the future performance of available securities. The impact of the financial crisis disrupted the forecasts on future performance of available securities as asserted by the portfolio theory. According to Ciro (2012), the financial crisis forced most of the banks and lenders to shut their doors as investments in the stocks markets declined drastically. This aspect made the application of forecast facet of portfolio theory difficult. King (1966) basing his argument on the 1930’s financial meltdown and the random-walk theory, claims that this upheaval has se en stock prices move together. Portfolio theory assumes that investors will choose investments that have the lowest amount of risks whenever they are presented with the same level of expected returns. Fama and French (2002) argue that investors will seek to maximize their utility basing the decision to invest on investment’s risk and return. Apparently, the financial slowdown increased the risk levels and as such it was expected that investment rates may fall. This did not happen as expected. According to Amenc and Martellini (2011), this market turbulence has also impacted the wealth levels around the globe negatively and led to doubts about the value added by professional managers by the institutional investors. According to Statman (1987),