The role of technology Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The role of technology - Research Proposal Example According to him it is the driving force behind the major social and cultural adaptations. This paper seeks to evaluate the various technological factors that affect a great deal in altering the social structure and cultural trends. The facets where these factors bring evident alteration are also identified and explored and discussed in this study. Culture does not have a stringent definition. It is rather more of a concept which defines the collective practices, perceptions and doings of individuals constituting a social group. The magnitude of a social group while defining culture varies to all extents. It might be a culture within an organization, a city/town or a whole nation. What holds importance is the common ground that gives birth to a particular trend in culture. However, the trends and extension of culture is not the point of relevance here. What this paper attempts to evaluate is that how changes are brought in a culture and what are the channels which bring these changes as well the facets where these changes are felt the most. We can trace the effects of technology on culture through history but the study focuses the effect of technology on culture in the current scenario. Internet, email, television and mobile phones are some of the aspects that have revolutionized the way we think, act and live our lives in the past few decades. Now man is no more bounded by limitation in any facet of life. He has got access to any place, individual or happening since things now are just a few clicks away and very easy to approach. These inventions were just not mere creations which were going to be totally replaced by some other thing later on. On the other hand, they have developed into mediums which are now borrowing heavily from even the slightest of cultural trends and social needs. These inventions have progressed and developed themselves to be tools which have got their own self prevailing mechanisms. They tune themselves towards the needs of the public and boomerang them back to the society after injecting them with self formulated mechanisms. The impact of internet in reshaping our social and communal lives has been vastly debated by L. Siegel (2009) in his work Against the Machine: How the Web Is Reshaping Culture and Commerce": And Why It Matters. He comments that everything from every day living to shopping and business has been modified itself according to the web. Results & Discussions The modern day technology has grasped all of us in a way that we can not opt to live outside its sphere. Individual independence along with knowledge and awareness has considerably increased. The speed and accuracy for things have remarkably increased along with the ease in handling stuff. On a general level, people are becoming more and more alienated from social groupings and getting confined to their own zones. Each person is equipped and occupied with his own virtual world and real time interaction and actions have

Disc Arthroplasty Essay Example for Free

Disc Arthroplasty Essay Degenerative disc disease have been a problem for many people as this disease brings about low back pain that seems to paralyze the working force,   the middle adulthood population (Smeltzer, 2004). Not only does it bring impaired quality of life to those who suffer from it, but Arvind Kulkarni adds large health care expenses to the list of problems brought about by this disease as seen in his article entitled Prosthetic Lumbar disc replacement for degenerative disc disease. Spinal fusion, which is the medical management for degenerative disc disease, has been criticized by several doctors in the practice due to its untoward effects in the patient’s overall recovery and lifetime improvement. Specialist in the field, Christoph Siepe, identified these unpleasant effects as accelerated adjacent system degeneration, pseudarthrosis, spinal canal stenosis, and donor site morbidity. Adjacent segment degeneration, as mentioned by Peter Ullrich in his article entitled Fusion versus Artificial Disc Arthroplasty for Lumbar Degenerative Disc Disease, stated that this is the major complication of spinal fusion and the reason why most surgeons want this procedure replaced. Adjacent segment degeneration or ASD happens when mechanical stress is transferred to the adjacent segment, also mentioned by Peter Ullrich. But research showed that this procedure can be modified to show more positive results. An anterior lumbar interbody fusion showed a low occurrence of revision surgery needed, which meant low frequency of adjacent segment degeneration, all pointed out in Mr. Ullrich’s paper.   However, to achieve this outcome, Mr. Ullrich declared that there should be an improvement in patient selection and in the procedure. The patients should be those patients having degenerative disc disease in their 5th lumbar to 1st sacral segment, because there is minimal motion at this level. By doing so, he states that fusing these segments do not change the patient’s mobility as much.   But not all are satisfied of this result. Doctors and specialists are continuously making efforts to totally changing the primary medical management for degenerative disc diseases. Studies have been conducted, and several replacement procedures were approved by the FDA. Peter Ullrich stated in his paper that the total disk replacement procedure was approved for medical use by the FDA in the year 2004 using the Charite artificial disc but for only one level of the spinal vertebrae, being the L4 – L5 or the L5 – S1. This is not the first time that a total or partial disc replacement was done. The history of this procedure was mentioned in an article in a website by Spine-Health that disc nucleus replacement was done first in 1955 by David Cleveland by injecting methyl-acrylic. Ever since then, there have two other FDA approved products aside from the Charite, the website Spine-Health states that the Prodisc was approved on August 2006 and the Kineflex lumbar on June 2005.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A total disc replacement is being described by Jose Reyna in his article, Advances in Artificial Disc Technology, as being composed of two pieces of plates made of metal that has teeth to be able to attach itself to the end plates of the vertebral bones above and below it. This means that the particular intervertebral disc that is causing pain has to be removed and replaced by an artificial disc. Several artificial discs have been developed by various manufacturers in the country and they only differ in design and composition. The Charite, as mentioned earlier, is made up of a unique sliding core with two metal alloy end plates. The Prodisc being based on spherical articulations is made up of cobalt chromium molybdenum alloy as stated in the website Spine-Health. Inventors Qi-Bin Bao and Paul Higham developed a hydrogel prosthetic nucleus made up of PVA powder and a solvent mixed together, as seen on the article, Hydrogel intervertebral disc nucleus with diminished lateral bulging. The total disc replacement procedure has its advantages and disadvantages. Even after some models being approved by the FDA, it is still being assessed thoroughly by specialists in the field. Charles Rosen and Douglas Kiester report poor results and complications in the total disc replacement procedure. As it was mentioned in their study, this procedure causes fractures, severe pain, dislocations, extrusion of the implant, facet joint degeneration, and unexplained radiculopathy. They attribute these substandard results to the fact that the center of rotation of segmented motion is erroneous. Jose Reyna Jr. also mentions several disadvantages of the procedure in his study, stating that the anterior approach to the surgery can cause injury to the aorta and the common iliac vessels, can cause retrograde ejaculation in men by injuring the superior hypogastric plexus, hemorrhage can result from the retroperitoneal approach, and infection can occur. However, he also stated some advantages, as this procedure is said to maintain range of motion in majority of the patients as a long-term outcome. There are still a lot of studies to be conducted, and patients to be experimented on. A three year study conducted by Christoph Siepe et al., entitled Clinical Results of Total Lumbar Disc Replacement With ProDisc II: Three-Year Results for Different Indications, intended to assess total disc replacement outcome in patients who actually underwent the operation. Their results showed that not all degenerative disc diseases can be treated with this medical management. The best outcome was seen in patients exhibiting degenerative disc disease condition plus soft disc herniation or nucleus pulposus prolapse. Outcome was measured against the patient’s improvement from their preoperative levels. There were inferior results from the patients who had bisegmental damages, and a higher complication rate. Also it was mentioned that the younger patients, more specifically those aged below forty exhibited better outcome than those older than forty. Technology like this is still being developed, studied and modified as we speak. What is important is that there are people out there who care and who try to make a difference, whether it is by inventing, criticizing or being the experimental person wherein these new devices will be made a reality. References Charles Rosen, Douglas Kiester, Thay Q. Lee: The Potential Biomechanical Etiology for Lumbar Disc Replacement Failures: Review of 24 Patients and the Rationale for Revision . The Internet Journal of Minimally Invasive Spinal Technology. 2007. Volume 1 Number 2. Medscape. (2002). Advance in Artificial Disc Technology. Retrieved January 22, 2008 from http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/445057 Medscape. (2002). Clinical Results of Total Lumbar Disc Replacement With ProDisc II: Three-Year Results for Different Indications. Retrieved January 22, 2008 from http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/542479 Neurology India. (2005). Prosthetic Lumbar disc replacement for degenerative disc disease. Retrieved January 22, 2008 from http://www.neurologyindia.com/article.asp?issn=0028-3886;year=2005;volume=53;issue=4;spage=499;epage=505;aulast=Kulkarni Neurospine. (no indicated year). Fusion versus Artificial Disc Arthroplasty for Lumbar Degenerative Disc Disease. Retrieved January 22, 2008 from http://www.neurospinewi.com/newsletters/fusionvsartificial.html Patent Storm. (1996). Hydrogel intervertebral disc nucleus with diminished lateral bulging. Retrieved January 22, 2008 from http://www.patentstorm.us/patents/5534028-fulltext.html Smeltzer, S. and Bare, B. (2004). Medical-Surgical Nursing. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams Wilkins. Spine-Health. (1997-2007). Lumbar artificial disc surgery for chronic back pain. Retrieved January 22, 2008 from http://www.spine-health.com/research/discupdate/artificial/artificial01.html

Extreme Sports Essay -- Skydiving Snowboarding Sporting Essays

Extreme Sports Works Cited Missing â€Å"Extreme sports have boomed since the early '90s† (Petrecca 16). It is hard to believe that such activities as sky diving, snowboarding, bungee jumping, and the up and coming razor scooter have been labeled as so-called â€Å"extreme sports†. What characteristics must a sport have to labeled extreme? Perhaps it is the lack of safety, or the inability to create specific rules for these sports. Maybe it is the fact that these sports are just recently becoming mainstream so there is no other classification other than extreme sports. In any case, these activities are definitely something new and interesting to sprawl out in the mainstream of sports, which will do nothing except become larger and more popular. â€Å"Man, I shouldn’t be here† (McClearn 165). Looking down at the earth from 1,200 meters up, through an open airplane’s door, anyone will probably feel the same way. The thrill and the risk of jumping out of a plane sends shivers down some person’s backs, however there are also those who it makes want to live even more. â€Å"Some are drawn to the sphincter-wrenching terror of free fall† (McClearn 165). The excitement of jumping out of plane may be enjoyable for the person, but not for the wallet. For the first year of sky diving, a person can expect to pay up to $7000; however the price does decrease as more equipment and experienced is accumulated. The price, although expensive, is worth it, â€Å"And the feeling of cheating death is simply pric... Extreme Sports Essay -- Skydiving Snowboarding Sporting Essays Extreme Sports Works Cited Missing â€Å"Extreme sports have boomed since the early '90s† (Petrecca 16). It is hard to believe that such activities as sky diving, snowboarding, bungee jumping, and the up and coming razor scooter have been labeled as so-called â€Å"extreme sports†. What characteristics must a sport have to labeled extreme? Perhaps it is the lack of safety, or the inability to create specific rules for these sports. Maybe it is the fact that these sports are just recently becoming mainstream so there is no other classification other than extreme sports. In any case, these activities are definitely something new and interesting to sprawl out in the mainstream of sports, which will do nothing except become larger and more popular. â€Å"Man, I shouldn’t be here† (McClearn 165). Looking down at the earth from 1,200 meters up, through an open airplane’s door, anyone will probably feel the same way. The thrill and the risk of jumping out of a plane sends shivers down some person’s backs, however there are also those who it makes want to live even more. â€Å"Some are drawn to the sphincter-wrenching terror of free fall† (McClearn 165). The excitement of jumping out of plane may be enjoyable for the person, but not for the wallet. For the first year of sky diving, a person can expect to pay up to $7000; however the price does decrease as more equipment and experienced is accumulated. The price, although expensive, is worth it, â€Å"And the feeling of cheating death is simply pric...

Assault Written Assessment

Priyanka Thirumurti Mrs. Harris Language A HL 1 – Written Assessment 2/25/13 Question: How is the incident on page five a metaphor for Anton’s quest throughout the novel? In the prologue of the Assault, Harry Mulisch broadly foreshadows the entirety of the novel through an underlying, quintessential theme that provides great insight into human nature.The image of the solitary man depicted in the opening scene reveals the generalized theme of an unchanging continuity between the past, present, and future that in the protagonist’s case, can only be broken by the will and/or desire to endure pain by dealing with and forgetting the past; an ordeal that serves as a comparison to Anton’s quest of self discovery thoughout the novel. Tying this universal theme with the characterization of Anton, Mulisch portrays how the protagonist’s identity is significantly based on his[Anton] childhood experiences, which reveals his[Anton] curious and innocent nature.Ant on’s innocence is revealed through his thought process: â€Å"Anton used to think that Carefree meant a place where cares entered freely, not a place free from cares†(3). Only a child would note nuances in words to give them more meaning. Anton’s inclination to make literal, child-like observations about his surroundings factors his approaches to situations in his later life, including his outward display of defiance to accept his own mistakes when confronted with the truth. In addition, in the aftermath of World War II Anton speculates on retrieving a capsule replete with knowledge: â€Å"Inside the capsule. . be of interest long before then? †(11)Anton’s curiosity reflects his potential because of his thirst for knowledge. The protagonist’s thirst for knowledge and child-like naivety remain with him, setting the stage for hardships and adversity in his future. For example, after the heart wrenching incident in which Anton is separated from his parents, his child-like curiosity leads him to discover his own weakness; â€Å"It was much more painful. . . wrists crossed under his chin†(28).Unable to defend his family, Anton puts much blame on his inability to take care of his family without fully realizing his duty as a child. As Anton grows he encounters many more hardships that he is unable to handle without fully realizing his duty as a child and with the maturity his age implies. For instance, when Mrs. Beumer invites him his attention drifts to his surroundings and he avoids many of the questions through a tangential thought process that is his undoing. Making his life much more difficult than it should be, Anton shares a likeness with the man on the barge in the prologue of the novel.Similar to the way the man â€Å"planted the stick sideways in the bottom of the canal, grasped it firmly, and walked backwards†(5) Anton uses an equally difficult means of handling situations— deliberate evasion. By taking the path less traveled by, Anton finds himself living in stasis though recurring episodes of past memories that hinder his psychological development. The death of his brother, Peter Steenwijk, and that of his father and mother caused him great suffering as he made transitions from childhood to adolescence and finally to adulthood.When Anton returns to Harlem, his home and the general setting remind him of the painful past, which he leaves behind without any semblance of peace, but only of disturbance and uncertainty:â€Å"Care, care†¦It was wartime, one big disaster, my family was murdered, and I stayed alive†(117). His perceived ignorance reflects on his complex characterization. The actual events diminish in impact, but they still remain in his memory and affect him to such an extent that he decides to become an anesthesiologist, an irony in and of itself.This pattern of stasis can be directly related to the motion of the man on the barge because he stays in the same place as barge moves through the water as Anton’s development remains stagnant although he changes physically. Similar to the stage of denial portrayed by the Kubler Ross theory, Anton lives in denial, exemplifying the â€Å"action† of staying in one place and not moving forward, without directly showing or accepting, even to himself, any signs of stagnant behavior.To comfort himself, Anton blames his surroundings for his problems: â€Å"The cypresses were flames of black fre. . . Something was wrong with the world, not with him†(156). This type of erratic behavior suggests that Anton is stymied from moving forward because of physiological symptoms of events in his past that causes him suffering, which is also connected to his perception of the world around him. The use of strong diction such as â€Å"flames† and â€Å"black fire† evoke an ominous tone that can be related to Anton’s fear of his own health, which only worsens as time progresses.For instance, when Anton goes to the beach with his family, after having successfully attained his position as an assistant anesthesiologist he goes into a lengthy daze during which he loses his sense of time: â€Å"He himself was floating like a dot at its center, in an empty, rose-colored space that was rapidly receding from the world†(127). The â€Å"floating dot†(127) and the â€Å"solitary man on the barge†(5) are similar in that they emulate the sense of strangeness that the prologue indicates: â€Å"There was something very strange about it but it was his secret that he didn’t mention to anyone. The secret is revealed through Mulisch’s use of metaphor and diction, with words such as floating and receding, to indicate a lapse in Anton’s thought process that takes him back to his simple, carefree lifestyle, but simultaneously urges the reader to think about Anton’s position and how the past, present and future are al l tied together to make a cohesive whole that is Anton’s life up to the climax of his psychological development.As time progresses, Anton’s perception of time becomes skewed as his mental health gradually deteriorates and as his patience decreases. For example, when given the antidote for his troubles Anton angrily refuses: â€Å"The doctor also left a prescription. . . but Anton tore it at once†(156).In addition, â€Å"He felt tired and depressed, nightmares troubled his sleep, and the minute he woke up he was plagued with worries and anxieties† The repercussions of the traumatic events of his childhood continue to cause Anton pain, a motif that plays a big role in his characterization as someone who reminisces too much for his/her own good, and so the action of grasping a stick firmly, as stated in the incident in the prologue, can be related to Anton’s method of dealing with the past by holding on to memories steadfastly such as the memory of Tr uus Coster ingrained in his brain.Finally, as Anton reaches self-acceptance by letting people into his life he is able to see the light in the midst of the dark which Mulisch reveals through the use of characterization and theme. As Anton learns to listen to other people like Cor Takes and Karin he learns to appreciate the people, things and places that hold true meaning and value. For example, Anton and Cor Takes, two grown men, start crying after a funeral: â€Å"When Anton saw Take’s tears he begun to weep himself. . . They must have been surprised to see two grown men so much affected by the death of a friend†(120). The emotional climax between Cor Takes and Anton reveals the extent to which memories of people, specifically that of Truus Coster, can affect the stability of two grown men. It also reveals the universal theme that emotion speaks across differences, including age, experience, and maturity. Karin, by far had the greatest impact on Anton’s return to normal life because she revealed the most important truth behind Anton’s past: ‘Tonny, there’s something I have to tell you†¦My God the lizards! ’†(181).The contradiction between the complicated repercussions of such a simple accident portrays the shocking truth, which serves as a comparison to the incident in the prologue. Anton describes the solitary man’s primitive means of travel by saying, â€Å"Only in movies about Africa or Asia could one still see such things† which juxtaposes the complicated V shaped ripples caused by the more modern motorboats, representing the ease of travel. The metaphor indicates a very important aspect of the characterization of Anton – someone who took the hard path in life rather than the easier path, which ultimately depends on perspective.In essence, Anton and the solitary man on the barge share specific characteristics that give the novel meaning and substance, including Anton’s determination to evade his past without any destination and the solitary man’s invariable consistent approach to travel. Despite their differences, including Anton’s inability to see past his own perspective and the traveler’s primitive ways, both individuals portray the theme of continuity and self-centered nature that any reader could relate to, giving the novel itself much more depth and value. Word Count: 1463 Works Cited Mulisch, Harry. The Assault. New York: Pantheon, 1985. Print.

Hamlet’s Delay Essay

In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the main character continually delays acting out his duty of avenging his father’s murder. This essay will discuss how Hamlet’s nature and morals (which are intensified by difficult events) prevent him from carrying out the task. In the opening scenes of the play, the Ghost of Hamlet’s late father reveals to him the true means by which King Hamlet died. The Ghost tells Hamlet that Claudius pouring poison into his ear caused his father’s death. He exhorts Hamlet to avenge the murder. Hamlet’s initial response is to act on the Ghost’s exhortation quickly. Hamlet says; â€Å"Haste me to know’t that I with wings as swift†¦May sweep to my revenge, (Roberts, pg. 1370).† Yet by the end of the same scene, his reluctance to murder King Claudius is evident. Hamlet says; â€Å"This time is out of joint, O cursed spite, that I was ever born to set it right, (Roberts, pg. 1374).† Hamlet is like a soldier that is thrown into a war where he has to do some things he rather would avoid doing, but under the given circumstances he bites his teeth and carries himself well (Stratford, 128). In this war, the circumstances brought on by Claudius’s murdering of King Hamlet are Hamlet’s enemy. His dead father is the destroyed country, painful truth that leaves so much hatred and resentment in his heart. Being a loyal prince and son, and one whom entire kingdom respected, he should seek revenge and bring justice back in the royal court. Many theories have been put forward as to the reasons for Hamlet’s delay in avenging the King from hereon in. One theory suggests that Hamlet wished to determine the nature of the Ghost before acting, for he says in Act II: Scene 2 that â€Å"The spirit I have seen may be a devil.† However, even after the ‘play within a play’ through which Hamlet has obtained his ‘proof’ as to the nature of the Ghost and confirmed that Claudius is guilty, Hamlet says † I’ll take the Ghost’s word for a thousand pound,† but fails to act and can only contemplate the event. Similarly, when Hamlet stumbles upon Claudius praying, he does not take the  opportunity to kill the King, rather he makes excuses, saying he does not want Claudius to go to heaven. However, this is little more than a delay tactic, and Hamlet also does not make any further plans to kill the King, for we seem to be puzzled by it (if we were in the audience, the whole scene would have lasted only moments, but as readers, we have the freedom to ponder about it). At least so was Professor Dowden, to name one critic, who holds that Hamlet â€Å"loses a sense of fact† because he puts every event through his mind, filtering it until every deed seems to have an alternative – in not doing the deed, but evaluating it even more (Bloom, pg. 66). In addition, Hamlet was a philosopher rather than a man of action, unlike Claudius and Laertes. He himself sees that one of his problems is to â€Å"think too precisely on the event.† He is intellectual and reflective, preferring to ponder rather than take action. Hamlet is very brave and impulsive Prince, but the plot seems to prevent him from finding an â€Å"external model or a simple solution for conduct,† so that he must depend more on thinking, and less on acting (Stratford, 105). He realizes that killing a King is a great crime The most plausible explanation is that Hamlet’s own nature and values continually hindered him from performing the task. Hamlet is a sensitive, introverted young man, who is naturally prone to melancholia. Coleridge and Goethe would agree with this, holding that Hamlet’s soul is too philosophical and it lacks ability to instinctually act on impulse, and that he is â€Å"too sensitive to avenge himself,† (Grebanier, pg. 159). But if one only reads what goes on in the play, Hamlet could by no means be called too sensitive or passive. The Ghost’s revelation and also the fact that his mother has remarried to King Claudius, intensify his already melancholic disposition. His mother’s remarriage is an abomination in Hamlet’s eyes. This is because the marriage was soon after his father’s death; King Hamlet was â€Å"But three months dead.† This shows little sensitivity to those who are grieving and also implies that their relationship was initiated before King Hamlet died. Secondly, the marriage was against canon law, which made it a sin. Hamlet says to his mother in Act III: Scene 4, â€Å"Have you not eyes? You cannot call it love. O shame! Where is thy blush?† These successive shocks  deepen Hamlet’s depression. In Act II: Scene 2 Hamlet says to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, â€Å"I have of late†¦lost all my mirth.† He falls deeper and deeper into the slough of fruitless brooding. In his first soliloquy he says; â€Å"O that this too solid flesh would melt.† Thus, the task is too onerous for the fragile, melancholic Hamlet. Hamlet also delays killing the King because he is unsure of the morality of carrying out such a task. This factor is important, as Hamlet is a very idealistic and moralistic person. Revenge was prohibited by ecclesiastical law, but the duty of ‘personal honor’ prevalent in Elizabethan times often won through. In the play, Hamlet debates the morality of revenge, saying that â€Å"Is’nt not perfect conscience and isn’t not to be damned to let this canke of our nature come in further evil.† At this stage it is clear that Hamlet is having serious doubts about killing the King. After all, to kill an anointed King, even in an act of revenge, was considered a serious offence. Furthermore, as Hamlet points out in the above quote, he would be carrying out the very act he was condemning. In addition, in regards to his mother’s sin, the ghost had told Hamlet to â€Å"leave her to heaven.† This creates a moral dilemma for Hamlet because if it is God’s duty to deal with his Mother’s sin, surely the same applies to Claudius. In conclusion, Hamlet delays in killing the King because of his own character; he is a philosopher and is of a melancholic disposition. External events in the play do not contribute to Hamlet’s delay, but are rather used to Hamlet’s advantage as excuses to further delay avenging his father’s murder. Works Cited Grebanier, Bernard. The Heart of Hamlet, The Play Shakespeare Wrote. New York:Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1960. Hamlet. Editor Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, a division of MaineLine Book Co., 1990. Hamlet. Stratford-Upon-Avon Study. London: Edward Arnold Ltd., 1963. Roberts, Edgar V. and Henry E. Jacobs. Literature: An Introduction to Readingand Writing, (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall Inc., 2001),pgs. 1349-1451.

How to Use ABC Books All the Way Through High School

How to Use ABC Books All the Way Through High School We often think of ABC books as being educational only for young children. However, alphabet books can be successfully used for students in the elementary grades all the way though high school. No, not your typical A is for apple, B is for bear books, but ABC book format. Using the ABC outline  as  a guide for writing  allows for a creative, concise presentation of the subject matter and is versatile enough to use for nearly any age, ability level, or topic. What You’ll Need to Create an ABC Book ABC books are simple to make and dont require anything beyond basic supplies you probably already have in your home or classroom unless you want to get fancy with them. Youll need: A composition book or supplies for making your own book (such as a mini book or accordion book)​Pencil or penCrayons, markers, or other art medium for illustratingSample ABC books (The series, Discovering America State by State  provides a wonderful example of how much or how little detail can be included in a book using the ABC format.) If you want to get a bit fancier, a blank book, available at craft stores or online retailers, is a good option. These books have a blank, hardback cover and blank pages, allowing students to customize and illustrate every aspect of the book. A book intended for journaling can also make a  fabulous option for an ABC book. How to Write an ABC Format Book An ABC format book is an excellent alternative to a  traditional written report and an ideal tool for review. By listing a fact for each letter of the alphabet  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ one letter per page of their book  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ students are pushed to think creatively (particularly for letters such as X and Z) and write concisely. The requirements for an ABC book can be adjusted based on a students age and ability level. For example: Elementary-aged students may be required to write one or two sentences for each fact, A-Z, or even. Primary grade students may even be required only to write, â€Å"A is for†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Older elementary and middle school students may  be required to write a paragraph for each letter.High school students might have a lengthier expectation for written work or simply be expected to include greater detail. All ages should illustrate their work with  the  level of  detail  expected based on their  age and ability level. How to Use ABC Books The ABC format allows for versatility across all subjects, from history to science to math. For example, a student writing an ABC book for science might choose space as his topic, with pages such as: A is for asteroidP is for planetZ is for zero gravity A student writing a math ABC book might include pages such as: F is for fractionG is for geometryV is for variable You may have to allow your students to be creative with some words, such as using words like eXtra or eXtremely for the letter X. Otherwise, those can be difficult pages to fill. When creating ABC books with students, consider using them as a long-term project over the course of a particular unit of study. For example, your students might spend six weeks on one ABC book. This time-frame provides time for students to spend a bit of time on the book each day. Suggest that students complete a rough outline on regular paper or in an extra composition book. They can add facts as they progress through the unit or lesson and spend time developing the concepts before transferring them to the final book and completing the illustrations. Encourage your students to complete their ABC book by creating a cover design and including  an author page on the inside of the back cover. Dont forget your authors head shot! Students  could even write a synopsis for the book on the back cover or inside the front cover, and ask their friends for review blurbs to include on the front or back cover. ABC books provide children with a framework for summarizing facts and details. This framework helps kids stay on track and flesh out the details of the summary without feeling overwhelmed. Not only that, but ABC books are a fun project for students of all ages  and one that might even get your reluctant writers excited.

How To Write For Social Media To Create The Best Posts - CoSchedule

How To Write For Social Media To Create The Best Posts Social media success requires strong writing skills. However, not all social media managers consider themselves writers. Fortunately, writing great social media content doesn’t have to be difficult. Not every post needs to reinvent the copywriting wheel, after all. Still, taking the time to get your writing right is worth it. Lets  learn how to write for social media and start creating better content now. Why Does It Matter If You Write Well On Social Media? Every social post you publish reflects on your brand. If you’re sloppy, your company will look sloppy too. Even worse, it could undermine your success on social media. Thats why its important to write well on social media. Social media copywriting requires some unique skills.  You need to be able to cram as much value into as few words as possible. You also have to be consistent and engaging at all times. Plus, every network is unique. What works on Facebook might flop  on LinkedIn. This makes becoming a master social wordsmith even more difficult. And thats exactly why we wrote this post. How To Write For Social Media To Create The Best Posts Consistency Counts (So Build A Social Media Style Guide) Keeping your social copy clean and within brand standards can be a challenge. Developing a simple style guide can help with this. A basic style guide can be one or two pages long, and should include the following: Mission Statement: This can be twofold:  why does your business exist, and why are you on social media? Audience/Persona Summary: Briefly describe your core audience on social media. Who are you writing for, anyway? Social Media Brand Voice: Describe what your social brand voice should sound like (casual, serious, professional, irreverent, etc.). Tone: Describe your social tone (helpful, funny, authoritative, etc.) Branding: List requirements for brand spellings (and other copy-related branding elements). Message Types (By Network): Not all content needs to go on every network. Create some guidelines on which types of messaging are appropriate on which of your social networks. If you need help building a style guide, this guide from Hubspot  is a great primer. TIP: Use the Social Media Style Guide Template included in this post to build your own style guide. Put Together a Social Media Writing Toolbox The first thing you'll need is the Social Message  Optimizer! It's the latest FREE tool from your friends at .  Ã°Å¸Ëœâ€° The Social Message  Optimizer helps you nail the mechanics behind writing amazing social media messages. That means it analyzes your message type, character length, number of hashtags, emoji count, and more to help you optimize the perfect message for every social network! When you use the Social Message  Optimizer, you'll: Stop guessing what works (and what doesn't). Learning and then remembering all of the best practices for writing on every social network is super time-consuming and tedious. Now you have a clear place to start writing every social media message! Just write, review your score on each network, and optimize further based on real data. Get immediate feedback to improve quickly. Consider the Social Message  Optimizer your expert who is always there to answer your questions. You'll A/B test your messages before you publish them to get the most engagement on each network. Get even more engagement than ever before.  Capture more eyeballs with your messages! Get more likes, comments, shares, and link clicks by using the data from  6,399,322 social messages to refine yours to be among the top 10%. Use the Social Message  Optimizer now. Grammarly We've all published a social post with a typo before. And we've all felt like this as a result: This is where Grammarly's free browser extension (available for Chrome, Firefox, and Safari) comes in handy. It's a life-saving spelling and grammar checking tool. Install it on your browser, and it'll check your spelling and grammar on everything you write, anywhere (including on social media). Hashtagify.me Looking for relevant hashtags to incorporate into your tweets? Hashtagify.me should fit the bill. It's an easy-to-use hashtag search engine to help you find hashtags people are actually using. 9 Basic Social Media Writing Tips Like we said earlier, every network has its own quirks and best practices. However, there are some standard best practices that generally apply to most networks, too. Let's review those now. Start writing better on social media now.Understand Active Vs. Passive Voice Using active voice helps produce more engaging copy. According to PlainLanguage.gov, Readers prefer active voice sentences, and we should try to use the active voice in most of our business writing to communicate our message most effectively. Active voice clearly identifies the action and who is performing that action. Most writers are familiar with active and passive voice. If you’re not sure what the difference is (and were afraid to ask) though, then never fear. There’s no shame here. Let’s walk through each one: Hear the difference? The first example puts the subject (â€Å"I†) in the driver’s seat. It’s more action-oriented. The second example, however, sounds a bit more flat, factual, and lacking action. Writing for social media? Use active voice.Put Your Audience First It's rude to only talk about yourself. So, write in a way that puts your audience at the center of the story instead. How do you do this? Simple. Say â€Å"you† more than you say â€Å"us.† Here’s a good example from Threadless’ Twitter bio: Write Stuff People Want To Share This requires understanding why people  share content. Let's  break this down into five major reasons: Delivering value to their audience. People want to share things their audience will find valuable. This could mean content that’s helpful, entertaining, or otherwise worth paying attention to. Try writing posts that convey a clear benefit. If you create how-to content, consider writing copy that hints at what the linked article will help readers do. You can also create unlinked social messages that include a useful tip in your post copy or image copy. Here’s an example from Bobcat Company: To  express and define themselves. When sharing posts, people often think, â€Å"How does sharing  this reinforce my identity?† Use surveys or create personas to understand your typical audience member. From there, figure out how they identify themselves. For example, if you sell construction equipment, your audience might see themselves as â€Å"tough† or â€Å"hard-working.† Pickup truck manufacturers know their customers connect their identities to what they drive. This post from Ram Trucks capitalizes on this: To feel connected to others. Social media is about building connections and relationships. People naturally want to share posts that shows they’re part of something bigger themselves. They also like to share posts likely to start a conversation (so they can converse with other people). One way to do this is to write messages that encourage tagging and sharing. Like this: To make themselves feel valued. People want to share posts that are likely to get likes, shares, and positive comments. It feels good to share something your friends like, right?  You might also consider writing messages showing appreciation for your audience. To express beliefs or support causes. People love sharing opinions on social media.  You probably don't need to be told that, either. If it’s appropriate, take a stance on something or show your support for a cause. You don’t have to get too controversial (although sometimes a little bit of controversy is okay). Here’s an example from the United Nations: This tweet does each of the following: It promotes a cause (gender equality). It incorporates a relevant hashtag in the middle of the tweet. It uses positive language. It links to a page where viewers can take action. It also achieves each of these goals without being offensive or inflammatory. Before writing social posts, ask 'Why would someone share this'?Make Sure You Have Clear  Message-Match Between Your Posts And Destination Pages If your post is linking to an external page, then your post messaging needs to match your landing page messaging. In short, your social media content needs to follow through on the promises your posts make. Here are a few tips to keep in mind: Double-check that links are accurate. Only link to substantive pages with good information. And make sure your post copy is relevant to your destination page. Check out this tweet from Esquire. It’s written to stoke curiosity and intrigue. What will  happen on season 2 of Stranger Things? Who knows? I don't, but the destination page here better tell me. Once I reach the page, it’s immediately clear that the post copy directed me to a relevant link. The destination page’s headline is well aligned with the tweet, too. That’s a good thing, because if this ended up being click bait, I would have thrown my keyword. Don’t make people want to throw their keyboards. Make sure your social messaging matches your  destination page.Make Sure Your Copy Matches Your Visual Content, Too If you’re writing image copy, consider connecting it with your post copy too. Here’s a great example from Gary Vaynerchuk: See how the post copy connects with the image copy? One leads into the other to communicate one clear message. Here’s another example from the NFL that creatively incorporates a player’s number (in this case, Randall Cobb of the Green Bay Packers, the greatest sports franchise in history*): *Your favorite team is great, too. This creative campaign counted down the days until kickoff, including a different player down to opening day. Be Clear And Concise Avoid complex language and use short sentences. People skim on social media, so punchy posts tend to work better than long-winded paragraphs. Try to limit yourself to just one or two sentences, if possible. This isn’t a firm rule, but it may be a useful guideline to keep yourself from rambling. Struggling to keep your posts short? Try working through this simple exercise. Start by reading  this example post: â€Å"Here is our latest blog post about a very awesome topic you’ll enjoy.† This isn’t that bad, right? Well, there are a lot of wasted words we could do without. Let’s try minimizing stop words (is, a, etc.) and see how it sounds. We could also make the end of the sentence more specific, focusing on one detail to use fewer words. â€Å"Here’s our latest blog post about blogging.† Hear the difference? The second example says essentially the same thing. It just does it with fewer but more specific words, and sounds much better as a result. Clarity and conciseness are key for writing well on social media.Avoid Pushy, Overly Sales-Driven Messaging At least when it comes to writing organic social media content. While social ads need to be written to sell, organic social posts should be written to inform, entertain, or otherwise make a connection with your audience. That doesn’t mean you can’t promote yourself. It just means it’s best to find a way to sell people on the idea of taking an action without directly sounding like you’re making a sales pitch. Here’s an example from music distribution platform Bandcamp: If you must write a sales message, focus on benefits to the consumer. This tweet from Threadless lets people know there’s a sale going on without forcefully saying, â€Å"Buy Now† or â€Å"Shop Here.† It also uses a nice, clear image. Invoke Curiosity Write in a way that makes people want to click through. If you’re linking to another article or blog post, you don’t need to tell the whole story in your social media update. Instead, leave some details unanswered while implying your linked articles will answer their questions. What is the mystery on "The Curse of Oak Island," anyway?  You don't have to care about construction equipment to want to find out. Recommended Reading: How To Use Social Media Analytics To Create The Best Content Social Media Writing Tips For Each Network Every social media network is different. Different audiences. Different purposes. Different expectations. Your writing and messaging should be adjusted accordingly. Instead of writing one message for every network, tailor your messaging to each one individually. To do this, it helps to understand the purpose of each network, and what works best on each one: Consider audience expectations for each network when writing social media posts.Facebook Writing Tips With declining Facebook organic reach, sharp copy is now more important than ever. Keep Posts Short There’s some wiggle room on this one. However, data shows short posts perform best. Avoid Promotional Calls-To-Action Facebook’s algorithm can detect overly promotional language. This means wording like, â€Å"Buy Now!† or â€Å"Sign up here!† Posts with a hard sales message get demoted in the newsfeed, and with organic reach already in decline, that’s something you can’t afford. Write Shareable Article Headlines If you’re writing blog posts or articles, keep Facebook in mind when crafting catchy headlines. Think short, punchy, and conversational. Recommended Reading: Facebook Marketing Strategy: Why You Need One (And How to Build It) Twitter Writing Tips You can do a surprising amount with just 140 characters. Here are some tips to make the most of your tweets. Do More Than Simply Reshare Headlines As Post Copy This one is okay in moderation. However, it’s better to write copy that adds to the story your article is telling.  Here’s an example of what we mean: Instead of reusing the article headline as a social post, the post outlines the story in the article. This helps build interest in clicking the link, and prevents wasting people’s time reading the same text twice. Incorporate Hashtags Directly In Tweet Copy It’s easy to add hashtags to the end of a post. However, consider cleverly incorporating them directly into your tweets instead. In this example from Electronic Arts, a single hashtag is the entire post. This creates a clean look for your hashtags, and ensures they get seen. Get creative and directly incorporate hashtags in your social posts.Go Easy On Hashtags, Though Make sure your message isn’t lost in a sea of hashtags. Aim to use two, or maybe three, at the most. Recommended Reading: How To Use Hashtags Effectively Without Being Annoying Be Mindful Of Your Character Limit You have 140 characters here. Stay under that limit without cutting corners. Conciseness is no excuse for lack of clarity. If you can’t use complete sentences, you need to rewrite your tweet. Try Adding URLs In The Middle Of Tweets (Instead Of At The End) This tip comes from Dan Zarrella at Hubspot. This data is a little old at this point, but in 2011, he discovered that â€Å"the best area for clicks is about 25% of the way through the Tweet.† As a writer, testing this requires you to consider writing in a way that would let you place a link after just two or three words. Try following this formula: [Short Intro] + [URL] + [Longer Explanation]. Have you tried putting URLs in the middle of tweets, instead of at the end?Tag Other Relevant Accounts Within Your Tweet Copy This helps alert other folks that you’re talking about them. In turn, they’ll be more likely to share your posts. It’s win-win. Be sure to write your posts with other accounts in mind. Incorporate Emojis Into Your Tweet Copy Like it or not, â€Å"emoji† is turning into a language all its own. Used creatively, they can add a splash of character to your tweets. Check out this example from Sporting Kansas City, a Major League Soccer team: Tell A Story In A Tweet It’s possible to tell a complete story in a tweet. Here’s an example from Microsoft: This tweet outlines the entire article in under 140 characters. Recommended Reading: 15 Tactics to Boost Twitter Engagement (Backed By Research) Google+ Writing Tips Google+ is different from other social networks and allows for some interesting formatting options. Use that to your advantage. Write Compelling Post Headlines Google+ is unique in that it allows you to write bolded headlines. General best practices for writing headlines applies here. Don’t Be Afraid To Tell A Whole Story Google+ posts can run a bit longer than on other networks. Take advantage of that. Go into more detail than normal if you feel you need to. LinkedIn Writing Tips LinkedIn is a professional network. Here's how to make sure your writing reflects that. Be Clear Avoid using professional lingo if it won’t be understood by your audience. Be Concise Get to the point. Don’t ramble. Busy professionals don’t have time to waste. Stay Professional LinkedIn is a professional network. Don’t forget this when writing your posts. Stick to a professional tone. Instagram Writing Tips Instagram is a visual-driven network. However, the written word still has its place there. Think About Alignment Between Your Image Copy And Post Copy Instagram is a visual network, but the written word still has a place there. Write image copy that hooks people’s attention while connecting with your post text. Don’t Forget Hashtags Instagram likes hashtags. Don’t be afraid to use them liberally at the end of your posts. Recommended Reading: How To Improve Your Visual Marketing On Pinterest And Instagram Pinterest Writing Tips Pinterest is a highly visual network, but that doesn't mean you can neglect your writing chops here. Write Longer Pin Descriptions According to a study from Dan Zarrella, descriptions over 200 characters long received more repins. That could be thanks to those pins having more detailed context around what they're about to entice people to click and share. Include Links in Pin Descriptions If people like the images you pin, they'll probably want to learn more about where they came from. Adding a link helps, and don't be afraid to add a call to action, either. Include Relevant Keywords in Your Pin Descriptions Including keywords in pin descriptions can help them show up in searches on Pinterest. How To Define And Develop Your Voice And Tone People expect social media accounts to have a consistent voice. Your presence needs personality, even if you’re representing a brand. Social media is about generating conversation. No one wants to talk to someone boring. This means you’ll need to develop a consistent voice. One that’s both true to your brand or personality, while fitting for each social network you’re on. What Does Your Social Media Voice Sound Like? Your voice is essentially your personality on social media. Are you fun? Serious? Creative? What's The Difference Between Voice And Tone? Voice and tone are often used interchangeably. However, there is a difference, and it's important to understand them both. Your tone is the inflection you apply to your voice. Depending on the context, you could sound happy, sad, angry, or any other emotion that's appropriate. Buffer's Kevan Lee may have put it best: Essentially, there is one voice for your brand and many tones that refine that voice.  Voice is a mission statement. Tone is the application of that mission. How To Develop  Your Brand's Social Media Personality Start by asking these questions: What is my/our mission or purpose? What are our values? What kind of language and tone does our audience use? Then, try filling in the blanks here a few different ways: â€Å"We are ________ , but we’re not __________ .† An example answer here could be, â€Å"We are funny, but we’re not offensive.† Or, â€Å"We are professional, but we’re not stuffy.† The idea is to narrow down who you are, and who you’re not. Recommended Reading: This Is The Social Media Posting Schedule That Will Boost Your Traffic By 192% Are You Personable? Professional? Or Both? Social media is often used to keep in touch with friends, family, and colleagues. That means your social media content has to compete against updates from people users are close with. It's a simple fact that most people don’t log into a social network to see content from brands, companies, or bloggers. There are exceptions, of course. In any case, you need to write to stand out and hook people’s attention. This requires understanding what your audience expects to see from you. And that might be hard if your brand isn’t inherently â€Å"fun.† So, what can you do? Know Your Audience Who are your customers? What are their values, concerns, and interests? It’s important to figure this out if you don’t already know. Survey your audience if you have to. You need to know who you’re writing for before you can understand what they want from you. Creating a social media audience persona might help. This essentially entails creating a character description of your average target audience member. Building personas takes a little bit of work, but it can help you get a clear idea of who you’re writing for. TIP: Know who you’re writing for on social media. Do this by running surveys, building personas, or even just listening to what they say on social media. Know Your Competition Seeing what kind of content your competition is writing can help inspire your own approach. Check out some of your competitor’s social profiles and make note of the following: What does their brand voice sound like? Does their content appear to drive engagement? If this company were a person, would I want to talk to them? This can give you an idea of what works in your industry. TIP: Pay attention to competitors in your space on social media. Note their writing style. Take inspiration from what works, and then do it better yourself. Know Yourself. Cat videos, memes, and other distractions dominate on social media. Those things might work for your brand. They could also be totally inappropriate. The key is to find the right balance between personable and professional content and tone for your audience. Start by defining yourself under one of these three categories: Personable. Your brand is fun, warm, and inviting. Professional. Your brand is serious, authoritative, and orderly. Both. Your brand bridges both of the above, tying fun content into more professional themes. How do you know which is best for your brand? One answer is to use common sense. If you’re a legal firm, for example, you probably don’t want to sound lighthearted. If you run a pet adoption center, however, you’d likely want to sound fun and inviting to get people in the door. What do you do if it isn’t immediately obvious which of these three categories best fits your brand? Try working through these three exercises to figure it out. Exercise 1: Determine Who You Are (By Determining Who You’re Not) One way to help understand your brand voice is to ask â€Å"We are ______ , but we are not ______ â€Å" questions. This can help you know who you are, and just as importantly, who you’re not. As an exercise, fill in those blanks a few different ways. Here are some examples: â€Å"We're fun, but we’re not goofy.† â€Å"We're informative, but we’re not boring.† â€Å"We're authoritative, but we’re not arrogant.† Exercise 2: Try Summarizing Your Brand In Just Three Adjectives Another idea is to simply think of three adjectives that describe your brand. In traditional advertising parlance, this could be thought of as a â€Å"tag line.† According to The Balance, A variant of a branding slogan, a tagline can be used in marketing materials and advertising. The idea behind the concept is to create  a memorable dramatic phrase that will sum up the tone and premise of an audio/visual product, or to reinforce and strengthen the audience's memory of a literary product. Your mission (should you choose to accept it), is to do one of the following: Keep your company’s existing tag line in mind when writing on social media. Ask yourself, â€Å"How does this messaging support or reflect what we’re about?† Come up with a new tagline. It doesn’t have to be one you use publicly. It could even just a short phrase you use internally to guide your copy. Let’s try developing a simple tagline using three adjectives. Taglines can be short phrases (typically no longer than five to seven words), but we’ll make this easy. The goal is to help you summarize who you are, in order to inform your social media voice. Start by choosing three adjectives that fall into one or all of the categories below: An adjective describing what you do. Another addressing how you do it. One more pertaining to why you do it. Let’s say you run a car dealership. What are some things you might value? Honesty Experience Quality service Put that together, and you could come up with a tagline like: Honest. Experience. Quality. How To Write For Social Media To Create The Best Posts Social media success requires strong writing skills. However, not all social media managers consider themselves writers. Fortunately, writing great social media content doesn’t have to be difficult. Not every post needs to reinvent the copywriting wheel, after all. Still, taking the time to get your writing right is worth it. Lets  learn how to write for social media and start creating better content now. Why Does It Matter If You Write Well On Social Media? Every social post you publish reflects on your brand. If you’re sloppy, your company will look sloppy too. Even worse, it could undermine your success on social media. Thats why its important to write well on social media. Social media copywriting requires some unique skills.  You need to be able to cram as much value into as few words as possible. You also have to be consistent and engaging at all times. Plus, every network is unique. What works on Facebook might flop  on LinkedIn. This makes becoming a master social wordsmith even more difficult. And thats exactly why we wrote this post. How To Write For Social Media To Create The Best Posts Consistency Counts (So Build A Social Media Style Guide) Keeping your social copy clean and within brand standards can be a challenge. Developing a simple style guide can help with this. A basic style guide can be one or two pages long, and should include the following: Mission Statement: This can be twofold:  why does your business exist, and why are you on social media? Audience/Persona Summary: Briefly describe your core audience on social media. Who are you writing for, anyway? Social Media Brand Voice: Describe what your social brand voice should sound like (casual, serious, professional, irreverent, etc.). Tone: Describe your social tone (helpful, funny, authoritative, etc.) Branding: List requirements for brand spellings (and other copy-related branding elements). Message Types (By Network): Not all content needs to go on every network. Create some guidelines on which types of messaging are appropriate on which of your social networks. If you need help building a style guide, this guide from Hubspot  is a great primer. TIP: Use the Social Media Style Guide Template included in this post to build your own style guide. Put Together a Social Media Writing Toolbox The first thing you'll need is the Social Message  Optimizer! It's the latest FREE tool from your friends at .  Ã°Å¸Ëœâ€° The Social Message  Optimizer helps you nail the mechanics behind writing amazing social media messages. That means it analyzes your message type, character length, number of hashtags, emoji count, and more to help you optimize the perfect message for every social network! When you use the Social Message  Optimizer, you'll: Stop guessing what works (and what doesn't). Learning and then remembering all of the best practices for writing on every social network is super time-consuming and tedious. Now you have a clear place to start writing every social media message! Just write, review your score on each network, and optimize further based on real data. Get immediate feedback to improve quickly. Consider the Social Message  Optimizer your expert who is always there to answer your questions. You'll A/B test your messages before you publish them to get the most engagement on each network. Get even more engagement than ever before.  Capture more eyeballs with your messages! Get more likes, comments, shares, and link clicks by using the data from  6,399,322 social messages to refine yours to be among the top 10%. Use the Social Message  Optimizer now. Grammarly We've all published a social post with a typo before. And we've all felt like this as a result: This is where Grammarly's free browser extension (available for Chrome, Firefox, and Safari) comes in handy. It's a life-saving spelling and grammar checking tool. Install it on your browser, and it'll check your spelling and grammar on everything you write, anywhere (including on social media). Hashtagify.me Looking for relevant hashtags to incorporate into your tweets? Hashtagify.me should fit the bill. It's an easy-to-use hashtag search engine to help you find hashtags people are actually using. 9 Basic Social Media Writing Tips Like we said earlier, every network has its own quirks and best practices. However, there are some standard best practices that generally apply to most networks, too. Let's review those now. Start writing better on social media now.Understand Active Vs. Passive Voice Using active voice helps produce more engaging copy. According to PlainLanguage.gov, Readers prefer active voice sentences, and we should try to use the active voice in most of our business writing to communicate our message most effectively. Active voice clearly identifies the action and who is performing that action. Most writers are familiar with active and passive voice. If you’re not sure what the difference is (and were afraid to ask) though, then never fear. There’s no shame here. Let’s walk through each one: Hear the difference? The first example puts the subject (â€Å"I†) in the driver’s seat. It’s more action-oriented. The second example, however, sounds a bit more flat, factual, and lacking action. Writing for social media? Use active voice.Put Your Audience First It's rude to only talk about yourself. So, write in a way that puts your audience at the center of the story instead. How do you do this? Simple. Say â€Å"you† more than you say â€Å"us.† Here’s a good example from Threadless’ Twitter bio: Write Stuff People Want To Share This requires understanding why people  share content. Let's  break this down into five major reasons: Delivering value to their audience. People want to share things their audience will find valuable. This could mean content that’s helpful, entertaining, or otherwise worth paying attention to. Try writing posts that convey a clear benefit. If you create how-to content, consider writing copy that hints at what the linked article will help readers do. You can also create unlinked social messages that include a useful tip in your post copy or image copy. Here’s an example from Bobcat Company: To  express and define themselves. When sharing posts, people often think, â€Å"How does sharing  this reinforce my identity?† Use surveys or create personas to understand your typical audience member. From there, figure out how they identify themselves. For example, if you sell construction equipment, your audience might see themselves as â€Å"tough† or â€Å"hard-working.† Pickup truck manufacturers know their customers connect their identities to what they drive. This post from Ram Trucks capitalizes on this: To feel connected to others. Social media is about building connections and relationships. People naturally want to share posts that shows they’re part of something bigger themselves. They also like to share posts likely to start a conversation (so they can converse with other people). One way to do this is to write messages that encourage tagging and sharing. Like this: To make themselves feel valued. People want to share posts that are likely to get likes, shares, and positive comments. It feels good to share something your friends like, right?  You might also consider writing messages showing appreciation for your audience. To express beliefs or support causes. People love sharing opinions on social media.  You probably don't need to be told that, either. If it’s appropriate, take a stance on something or show your support for a cause. You don’t have to get too controversial (although sometimes a little bit of controversy is okay). Here’s an example from the United Nations: This tweet does each of the following: It promotes a cause (gender equality). It incorporates a relevant hashtag in the middle of the tweet. It uses positive language. It links to a page where viewers can take action. It also achieves each of these goals without being offensive or inflammatory. Before writing social posts, ask 'Why would someone share this'?Make Sure You Have Clear  Message-Match Between Your Posts And Destination Pages If your post is linking to an external page, then your post messaging needs to match your landing page messaging. In short, your social media content needs to follow through on the promises your posts make. Here are a few tips to keep in mind: Double-check that links are accurate. Only link to substantive pages with good information. And make sure your post copy is relevant to your destination page. Check out this tweet from Esquire. It’s written to stoke curiosity and intrigue. What will  happen on season 2 of Stranger Things? Who knows? I don't, but the destination page here better tell me. Once I reach the page, it’s immediately clear that the post copy directed me to a relevant link. The destination page’s headline is well aligned with the tweet, too. That’s a good thing, because if this ended up being click bait, I would have thrown my keyword. Don’t make people want to throw their keyboards. Make sure your social messaging matches your  destination page.Make Sure Your Copy Matches Your Visual Content, Too If you’re writing image copy, consider connecting it with your post copy too. Here’s a great example from Gary Vaynerchuk: See how the post copy connects with the image copy? One leads into the other to communicate one clear message. Here’s another example from the NFL that creatively incorporates a player’s number (in this case, Randall Cobb of the Green Bay Packers, the greatest sports franchise in history*): *Your favorite team is great, too. This creative campaign counted down the days until kickoff, including a different player down to opening day. Be Clear And Concise Avoid complex language and use short sentences. People skim on social media, so punchy posts tend to work better than long-winded paragraphs. Try to limit yourself to just one or two sentences, if possible. This isn’t a firm rule, but it may be a useful guideline to keep yourself from rambling. Struggling to keep your posts short? Try working through this simple exercise. Start by reading  this example post: â€Å"Here is our latest blog post about a very awesome topic you’ll enjoy.† This isn’t that bad, right? Well, there are a lot of wasted words we could do without. Let’s try minimizing stop words (is, a, etc.) and see how it sounds. We could also make the end of the sentence more specific, focusing on one detail to use fewer words. â€Å"Here’s our latest blog post about blogging.† Hear the difference? The second example says essentially the same thing. It just does it with fewer but more specific words, and sounds much better as a result. Clarity and conciseness are key for writing well on social media.Avoid Pushy, Overly Sales-Driven Messaging At least when it comes to writing organic social media content. While social ads need to be written to sell, organic social posts should be written to inform, entertain, or otherwise make a connection with your audience. That doesn’t mean you can’t promote yourself. It just means it’s best to find a way to sell people on the idea of taking an action without directly sounding like you’re making a sales pitch. Here’s an example from music distribution platform Bandcamp: If you must write a sales message, focus on benefits to the consumer. This tweet from Threadless lets people know there’s a sale going on without forcefully saying, â€Å"Buy Now† or â€Å"Shop Here.† It also uses a nice, clear image. Invoke Curiosity Write in a way that makes people want to click through. If you’re linking to another article or blog post, you don’t need to tell the whole story in your social media update. Instead, leave some details unanswered while implying your linked articles will answer their questions. What is the mystery on "The Curse of Oak Island," anyway?  You don't have to care about construction equipment to want to find out. Recommended Reading: How To Use Social Media Analytics To Create The Best Content Social Media Writing Tips For Each Network Every social media network is different. Different audiences. Different purposes. Different expectations. Your writing and messaging should be adjusted accordingly. Instead of writing one message for every network, tailor your messaging to each one individually. To do this, it helps to understand the purpose of each network, and what works best on each one: Consider audience expectations for each network when writing social media posts.Facebook Writing Tips With declining Facebook organic reach, sharp copy is now more important than ever. Keep Posts Short There’s some wiggle room on this one. However, data shows short posts perform best. Avoid Promotional Calls-To-Action Facebook’s algorithm can detect overly promotional language. This means wording like, â€Å"Buy Now!† or â€Å"Sign up here!† Posts with a hard sales message get demoted in the newsfeed, and with organic reach already in decline, that’s something you can’t afford. Write Shareable Article Headlines If you’re writing blog posts or articles, keep Facebook in mind when crafting catchy headlines. Think short, punchy, and conversational. Recommended Reading: Facebook Marketing Strategy: Why You Need One (And How to Build It) Twitter Writing Tips You can do a surprising amount with just 140 characters. Here are some tips to make the most of your tweets. Do More Than Simply Reshare Headlines As Post Copy This one is okay in moderation. However, it’s better to write copy that adds to the story your article is telling.  Here’s an example of what we mean: Instead of reusing the article headline as a social post, the post outlines the story in the article. This helps build interest in clicking the link, and prevents wasting people’s time reading the same text twice. Incorporate Hashtags Directly In Tweet Copy It’s easy to add hashtags to the end of a post. However, consider cleverly incorporating them directly into your tweets instead. In this example from Electronic Arts, a single hashtag is the entire post. This creates a clean look for your hashtags, and ensures they get seen. Get creative and directly incorporate hashtags in your social posts.Go Easy On Hashtags, Though Make sure your message isn’t lost in a sea of hashtags. Aim to use two, or maybe three, at the most. Recommended Reading: How To Use Hashtags Effectively Without Being Annoying Be Mindful Of Your Character Limit You have 140 characters here. Stay under that limit without cutting corners. Conciseness is no excuse for lack of clarity. If you can’t use complete sentences, you need to rewrite your tweet. Try Adding URLs In The Middle Of Tweets (Instead Of At The End) This tip comes from Dan Zarrella at Hubspot. This data is a little old at this point, but in 2011, he discovered that â€Å"the best area for clicks is about 25% of the way through the Tweet.† As a writer, testing this requires you to consider writing in a way that would let you place a link after just two or three words. Try following this formula: [Short Intro] + [URL] + [Longer Explanation]. Have you tried putting URLs in the middle of tweets, instead of at the end?Tag Other Relevant Accounts Within Your Tweet Copy This helps alert other folks that you’re talking about them. In turn, they’ll be more likely to share your posts. It’s win-win. Be sure to write your posts with other accounts in mind. Incorporate Emojis Into Your Tweet Copy Like it or not, â€Å"emoji† is turning into a language all its own. Used creatively, they can add a splash of character to your tweets. Check out this example from Sporting Kansas City, a Major League Soccer team: Tell A Story In A Tweet It’s possible to tell a complete story in a tweet. Here’s an example from Microsoft: This tweet outlines the entire article in under 140 characters. Recommended Reading: 15 Tactics to Boost Twitter Engagement (Backed By Research) Google+ Writing Tips Google+ is different from other social networks and allows for some interesting formatting options. Use that to your advantage. Write Compelling Post Headlines Google+ is unique in that it allows you to write bolded headlines. General best practices for writing headlines applies here. Don’t Be Afraid To Tell A Whole Story Google+ posts can run a bit longer than on other networks. Take advantage of that. Go into more detail than normal if you feel you need to. LinkedIn Writing Tips LinkedIn is a professional network. Here's how to make sure your writing reflects that. Be Clear Avoid using professional lingo if it won’t be understood by your audience. Be Concise Get to the point. Don’t ramble. Busy professionals don’t have time to waste. Stay Professional LinkedIn is a professional network. Don’t forget this when writing your posts. Stick to a professional tone. Instagram Writing Tips Instagram is a visual-driven network. However, the written word still has its place there. Think About Alignment Between Your Image Copy And Post Copy Instagram is a visual network, but the written word still has a place there. Write image copy that hooks people’s attention while connecting with your post text. Don’t Forget Hashtags Instagram likes hashtags. Don’t be afraid to use them liberally at the end of your posts. Recommended Reading: How To Improve Your Visual Marketing On Pinterest And Instagram Pinterest Writing Tips Pinterest is a highly visual network, but that doesn't mean you can neglect your writing chops here. Write Longer Pin Descriptions According to a study from Dan Zarrella, descriptions over 200 characters long received more repins. That could be thanks to those pins having more detailed context around what they're about to entice people to click and share. Include Links in Pin Descriptions If people like the images you pin, they'll probably want to learn more about where they came from. Adding a link helps, and don't be afraid to add a call to action, either. Include Relevant Keywords in Your Pin Descriptions Including keywords in pin descriptions can help them show up in searches on Pinterest. How To Define And Develop Your Voice And Tone People expect social media accounts to have a consistent voice. Your presence needs personality, even if you’re representing a brand. Social media is about generating conversation. No one wants to talk to someone boring. This means you’ll need to develop a consistent voice. One that’s both true to your brand or personality, while fitting for each social network you’re on. What Does Your Social Media Voice Sound Like? Your voice is essentially your personality on social media. Are you fun? Serious? Creative? What's The Difference Between Voice And Tone? Voice and tone are often used interchangeably. However, there is a difference, and it's important to understand them both. Your tone is the inflection you apply to your voice. Depending on the context, you could sound happy, sad, angry, or any other emotion that's appropriate. Buffer's Kevan Lee may have put it best: Essentially, there is one voice for your brand and many tones that refine that voice.  Voice is a mission statement. Tone is the application of that mission. How To Develop  Your Brand's Social Media Personality Start by asking these questions: What is my/our mission or purpose? What are our values? What kind of language and tone does our audience use? Then, try filling in the blanks here a few different ways: â€Å"We are ________ , but we’re not __________ .† An example answer here could be, â€Å"We are funny, but we’re not offensive.† Or, â€Å"We are professional, but we’re not stuffy.† The idea is to narrow down who you are, and who you’re not. Recommended Reading: This Is The Social Media Posting Schedule That Will Boost Your Traffic By 192% Are You Personable? Professional? Or Both? Social media is often used to keep in touch with friends, family, and colleagues. That means your social media content has to compete against updates from people users are close with. It's a simple fact that most people don’t log into a social network to see content from brands, companies, or bloggers. There are exceptions, of course. In any case, you need to write to stand out and hook people’s attention. This requires understanding what your audience expects to see from you. And that might be hard if your brand isn’t inherently â€Å"fun.† So, what can you do? Know Your Audience Who are your customers? What are their values, concerns, and interests? It’s important to figure this out if you don’t already know. Survey your audience if you have to. You need to know who you’re writing for before you can understand what they want from you. Creating a social media audience persona might help. This essentially entails creating a character description of your average target audience member. Building personas takes a little bit of work, but it can help you get a clear idea of who you’re writing for. TIP: Know who you’re writing for on social media. Do this by running surveys, building personas, or even just listening to what they say on social media. Know Your Competition Seeing what kind of content your competition is writing can help inspire your own approach. Check out some of your competitor’s social profiles and make note of the following: What does their brand voice sound like? Does their content appear to drive engagement? If this company were a person, would I want to talk to them? This can give you an idea of what works in your industry. TIP: Pay attention to competitors in your space on social media. Note their writing style. Take inspiration from what works, and then do it better yourself. Know Yourself. Cat videos, memes, and other distractions dominate on social media. Those things might work for your brand. They could also be totally inappropriate. The key is to find the right balance between personable and professional content and tone for your audience. Start by defining yourself under one of these three categories: Personable. Your brand is fun, warm, and inviting. Professional. Your brand is serious, authoritative, and orderly. Both. Your brand bridges both of the above, tying fun content into more professional themes. How do you know which is best for your brand? One answer is to use common sense. If you’re a legal firm, for example, you probably don’t want to sound lighthearted. If you run a pet adoption center, however, you’d likely want to sound fun and inviting to get people in the door. What do you do if it isn’t immediately obvious which of these three categories best fits your brand? Try working through these three exercises to figure it out. Exercise 1: Determine Who You Are (By Determining Who You’re Not) One way to help understand your brand voice is to ask â€Å"We are ______ , but we are not ______ â€Å" questions. This can help you know who you are, and just as importantly, who you’re not. As an exercise, fill in those blanks a few different ways. Here are some examples: â€Å"We're fun, but we’re not goofy.† â€Å"We're informative, but we’re not boring.† â€Å"We're authoritative, but we’re not arrogant.† Exercise 2: Try Summarizing Your Brand In Just Three Adjectives Another idea is to simply think of three adjectives that describe your brand. In traditional advertising parlance, this could be thought of as a â€Å"tag line.† According to The Balance, A variant of a branding slogan, a tagline can be used in marketing materials and advertising. The idea behind the concept is to create  a memorable dramatic phrase that will sum up the tone and premise of an audio/visual product, or to reinforce and strengthen the audience's memory of a literary product. Your mission (should you choose to accept it), is to do one of the following: Keep your company’s existing tag line in mind when writing on social media. Ask yourself, â€Å"How does this messaging support or reflect what we’re about?† Come up with a new tagline. It doesn’t have to be one you use publicly. It could even just a short phrase you use internally to guide your copy. Let’s try developing a simple tagline using three adjectives. Taglines can be short phrases (typically no longer than five to seven words), but we’ll make this easy. The goal is to help you summarize who you are, in order to inform your social media voice. Start by choosing three adjectives that fall into one or all of the categories below: An adjective describing what you do. Another addressing how you do it. One more pertaining to why you do it. Let’s say you run a car dealership. What are some things you might value? Honesty Experience Quality service Put that together, and you could come up with a tagline like: Honest. Experience. Quality.

History of the Gatling Gun and Dr. Richard Gatling

History of the Gatling Gun and Dr. Richard Gatling In 1861, Doctor Richard Gatling patented the Gatling Gun, a six-barreled weapon capable of firing a (then) phenomenal 200 rounds per minute. The Gatling gun was a hand-driven, crank-operated, multi-barrel, machine gun. The first machine gun with reliable loading, the Gatling gun had the ability to fire sustained multiple bursts. Inventing the Gatling Gun Richard Gatling created his gun during the American Civil War, he sincerely believed that his invention would bring an end to  war by making it unthinkable to use due to the horrific carnage possible by his weapons. At the least, the Gatling guns power would reduce the number of soldiers required to remain on the battlefield. The 1862 version of the Gatling gun had reloadable steel chambers and used percussion caps. It was prone to occasional jamming. In 1867, Gatling redesigned the Gatling gun again to use metallic cartridges; this version was bought and used by the United States Army. Life of Richard Gatling Born September 12, 1818, in Hertford County, North Carolina, Richard Gatling was the son of planter and inventor, Jordan Gatling, who held two patents of his own. Besides the Gatling gun, Richard Gatling also patented a seed-sowing rice planter in 1839 that was later adapted into a successful wheat drill. In 1870, Richard Gatling and his family moved to Hartford, Connecticut, home of the Colt Armory where the Gatling gun was being manufactured.

Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 19

Essay Example Scuba diving often assists in enabling shallow investigations. Earlier people used to restrain their breath while diving. In this way they used to hunt underwater creatures like fish. This was called free diving. Many competitions were also held around this theme. Accompanied with the technique of scuba diving the use of eco sounds helped in exploring the seabed. (Reed, 2009) Though men have interacted with the ocean since time immemorial, visual exploration of the seas were possible with the advent of scuba diving which made use of breathing apparatus to be carried for diving underwater. Helmet diving and diving bells in addition helped a diver to stay below the waters for long and explore the depths. These helped the scuba divers to adapt to the changes in the pressure and the physiology in order to hold back death. Thus scuba diving has a profound application in the world of marine science. The main idea is to carry self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA) instead of depending upon air pumped from the water surface (Bhootra, n.d., p.96). Using breath-holding processes these divers manage to remain underwater for a long time. Thus apart from recreation, scuba diving’s application in different fields of science related to the marine world makes it an indispensable part of science and technology in the topical time with an ever-expanding knowledge base. Studying this area would be interesting especially with the aim of understanding its application in the world of science and discoveries. Dr. Lamberstein who was the pioneer of scuba diving apparatus initially built the LARU (Lambertsen Amphibious Respiratory Unit) and undertook the first close circuit scuba dive in New York. 12 dives were undertaken and Dr. Lamberstein during one of the dives underwent an attack of oxygen toxicity. The instruments

Administration and Executive support Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Administration and Executive support - Essay Example On the other hand, other than key skills administrative assistants must have certain key qualities that will make them effective and efficient. Some of the key qualities include the ability to prioritize as well remain calm within the organization. In addition, an administrative assistant must have the quality of working under pressure whilst remaining focused. The reason behind such qualities is the fact that MA (administrative assistant) role is usually directly under the manager who may transfer their stress to the assistant or even pressurize them when operations are not going on as planned (Frisch, 2002). (b) Demonstrate with the use of a visual aid (individual Action plan), the different methods for developing your MA skills to help you to develop in your role in supporting formal meetings, projects and personal scheduling Document production, filing, and dispatch training will provide an opportunity to the administrative assistant to learn how to produce documents, file the same, as well as dispatch the documents to various departments or individuals within the organization Through secretariat courses, administrative individuals will be able to develop knowledge and skills that are involved in not only liaising but also performing various functions of a secretary, which directly correlates to the manager or role performed such as acting as personal assistant In the event that accounting and finance department are unable to handle petty cash within the manager’s office, the administrative assistant should be given the mandate to handle such cash. However, handling such cash requires accounting skills obtainable through accounting and finance courses (a) Define the term stakeholder and produce a table to identify and classify at least ten different stakeholder groups (both internal and external) for this organization. For each stakeholder identified, explain their power and influence. A stakeholder is defined as any person, group,

How organised is Organised Crime Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

How organised is Organised Crime - Essay Example ?How organized is Organized Crime?†, it is difficult to provide a straightforward answer, given the complexities and flexibility that signify these groups. Hence, this essay will try to present to the reader those aspects of Organized Crime groups that is well organized and also point to those elements in it that is more fluid. One of the notorious crime groups of the twentieth century is the Medellin Cartel of Columbia. The perennial political instability of Columbia is a key factor for the evolution of this group. The civil war of 1948-1958 had the harshest impact on the country and its surrounding areas. The civil war was essentially one of struggle between poor campesinos and the rich landowners. It is no coincidence that most of the populace of Medellin are poor and are à ©migrà ©s from the countryside. The industrial city of Medellin served as the operating base for the Medellin Cartel, whose founders include Pablo Escobar, the Ochoa clan, and Carlos Lehder-Rivas. The city is also notorious for smuggling and picks pocketing (Griswold 2005). Some of the leaders of the Medellin cartel were even involved in active politics, which ironically gave the cartel an air of legitimacy. In 1982, Escobar was elected as an alternate Colombian representative in Envigado, a region nearby Medellà ­n. There he established himself as a saviour of the underprivileged by implementing construction projects for slum dwellers and soccer fields for the youth. He even had his own newspaper, which acted as his public relations equipment. It portrayed him as an up-from-the-slums statesman. Escobar enjoyed immunity from arrest as long as he was a public representative. Hence, in this Columbian example, organized crime was part and parcel of mainstream politics. In this sense, we can call the cartel a sophisticated, powerful and well organized group. (Griswold 2005) Having said so, not all underworld groups achieve popular recognition the way Medellin cartel did. For most

Managed health care Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 4

Managed health care - Essay Example The patient’s confidentiality must be protected by the provider. A provider is liable for breach of patient’s confidentiality if they disclose confidential information related to the patient without their consent as required by the law (Roberts, 2000). When a managed care organization asks for the client’s personal information to make payment decisions, it may undermine the confidentiality of the patient (Wellspring Counseling, 2005). Providers should be careful in limiting the ability of the managed care organization to modify or amend the contract on its own. If it is possible, the provider is supposed to negotiate the amendment provision, which necessitates the consent of the concerned parties before any amendment is done (Roberts, 2000). Majority of the managed care contracts possess dispute resolution clauses. These clauses deal with the manner in which disputes associated with the agreement will be resolved by the entities. The dispute resolution process includes mediation, arbitration, and litigation in court (Roberts, 2000). The contract must indicate that the provider is not mandated to offer, â€Å"any services under the contract that it does not ordinarily and customarily provide to its patients who are not members of the contracting MCO and its affiliate plans† (Ziel, 1997). The concerned entities may consider adding a clause that particularly lists all the services provided by the MCO and the plans (Ziel, 1997). One of the key issues in quality assurance and utilization management is that providers can be subjected by the managed care organizations to utilization management procedures and policies, which are administered inconsistently and unjustly. There are cases where the providers are not even offered the copies of the policies (Roberts, 2000). A provider is supposed to think about its mandates under the agreement before the contract is

Price of Hawaiian Punch Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Price of Hawaiian Punch - Essay Example Sales oriented objectives are setup when marketers plan to target Bottom of the Pyramid segment, where playing on margins is very difficult, since the disposable income is minimal. In the given situation, Hawaiian Punch has placed its product at such a price point that it has allowed companies to play on margins as well as volumes, and giving tough competition to Nestle (Buy The Case: Hawaiian Punch Lemon Berry Squeeze 2012). Markups are a major issue when it comes to distribution of products. Numeric Spread and Weighted Spread of a firm’s products depends on the distribution markup costs that a particular company faces. Retailer margins add to the costs that the company incurs. The sole purpose of every company or MNC in the market is profit maximization. In today’s highly competitive market where national and regional markets have integrated to form one common globalized arena, marketers have a tough job to come up with ideas and innovations which bring us to the idea of increasing the ‘size of pie’ strategy. Today consumers are highly aware of their needs and want about the latest technology about what suits them, who is offering what to them, and at what prices is the desired product offered. Customers today are well connected and up to date to such an extent that they can and do access any supplier in case of MNC’s and any producer in case of individual customers, w ho offer them premium quality products at affordable prices. This easy access to premium products all around the world has back fired in some cases. For example now companies face such immense competition coming from all around the globe that they have to create discounts, personalized pricing, negotiable pricing strategies and psychological pricing to generate instant sales and ensure market share growth. In case of discounts, companies plan to

Air Pollution Cause and Effects Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Air Pollution Cause and Effects - Research Paper Example It’s not healthy for those who are not sick or old too and the problem is not getting any better. Air pollution is also affecting the earth’s climate, causing it to warm. The consequences of this reality are far-reaching, cataclysmic and are happening now. Hundreds of coal-fired electric power plants and other smoke-stack industries along with hundreds of thousands of vehicles contribute to a significant public health problem by emitting the waste fumes produced by burning fossil fuels. Many studies have acknowledged that a wide array of undesirable health issues occur due to air pollution exposure including higher instances of respiratory illness, cardiovascular disease, heart attacks, atherosclerosis, emergency room trips and premature death. Exposure to the particulate matter found in air pollution has also been connected with low birth weights, birth defects and premature births. About 38 million kids are estimated to live in air polluted areas. Several types of ill nesses linked with air pollutants have risen dramatically the past 30 years. During that time, though the occurrences of death from childhood cancers have decreased considerably due to advances in medical science, the cancer incidence rates among children have gone up by a full third during that same period. â€Å"It is well known that children and infants are uniquely at risk from air pollution both because of physiological susceptibility and greater relative exposure.† (Gasping, 2011). For example, children breathe more air and inhale more pollution as a ratio of body weight as compared to adults. In addition, children play outside much more than adults. And, because their smaller bodies are still developing, kids are more vulnerable to the health problems caused by poisons in the air, principally cancers and reproductive issues which they and their children will suffer with later on in life. In addition, children have a longer life expectancy than their parents therefore h ave a better chance to develop illness from exposure to air pollutant toxins during their lifetime. (Gasping, 2011). Simply but factually stated, air pollution is causing the earth’s climate to change. Greenhouses gasses such as carbon dioxide, the most prevalent pollutant, are warming the earth. Basically, the greenhouse effect occurs by this method: When sunlight penetrates the atmosphere and strikes the surface of the earth not all solar energy from the sun is absorbed. Roughly a third of this energy it is bounced back into space. When living creatures exhale they emit carbon dioxide, it occurs naturally. The amount of naturally occurring carbon dioxide maintains a delicate balance with other forces of nature allowing one-third of energy to escape which has kept the earth’s climate fairly stable for thousands of years. Air pollution gases functions the same way as greenhouse glass, allowing sunlight to enter but retaining the solar heat. Tons of supplemental man-mad e gases being added to the atmosphere during the past century has produced a much thicker layer of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere than normal trapping more solar energy and allowing less to escape. â€Å"In the past 150 years, such activities have pumped enough carbon dioxide into the atmosphere to raise its levels higher than they have been for hundreds of thousands of years.† (â€Å"Air pollution,† 1999). This preventable set of circumstances is making the earth warmer by the year. Lesser known but just