English vs. Russian Adjectives

Introduction Paper structure The aim of this paper is to compare the adjectives in the two languages, namely English and Russian. The discussed issues include the formation of adjectives, their structure, morphology, meaning, role in sentences, and peculiarities of this part of speech in each language.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on English vs. Russian Adjectives specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This study will present the special features of Russian as of a Slavonic language. It will also compare the differences of adjectives use in English and Russian, and demonstrate them with different examples. In addition, the paper will show how the findings might be used in pedagogical practice in order to teach Russian. Russian as a Slavonic language Russian, as well as English, belongs to the Indo-European language family, which logically would have to point to a number of similar characteristics between the langu ages. However, in the more detailed specification, Russian belongs to a Slavonic group of languages, namely to its Eastern part. This group has a multitude of features which differ it from the other Indo-European languages. Besides using a different alphabet (Cyrillic), it also is a synthetic language, in contrast to English, which is analytical (Ivanov, 2007). This feature plays a key role in the grammatical structure of the language. The synthetic properties like the wide use of affixes, absence of a set word order pattern, dominance of active constructions over passive and use of impersonal constructions determine the way the words and sentences are being formed and used. This, in turn, means using an approach to morphology, syntax, and semantics, which is completely different from that used in English. Besides the developed morphological system, Slavonic languages have one more significant difference. It lies in the fact that the languages of this group use seven cases, unlike t he four used in English (Ivanov, 2007). They include nominative, prepositive, accusative, genitive, dative, instrumentive, and locative cases (Sussex, 2006). This peculiarity determines the complexity of the language structure, and explains major differences between the use of English and Russian parts of speech. All these attributes of Russian as of a Slavonic language should be taken into consideration while conducting a comparative study between the two languages.Advertising Looking for term paper on linguistics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Role of adjectives in Russian Due to the differences in language structures, the role of different parts of speech in Russian and English also differs. For instance, one should clearly understand, that while in analytical languages the predicative center (which usually consists of a noun and a verb) plays the key role, in synthetic languages such strict hierarchy is absent. This mean s that other parts of speech can be of no lesser significance. Adjectives in Russian have a number of features, which makes this part of speech one of the most important, the one capable of cooperating and agreeing with any other part of speech. In addition, Russian adjectives have a much more complex nature than the English ones, as it will be demonstrated later in this paper. Even though Sihombing (2008) argues that the morphological processes in English adjectives play an outstanding role in enriching the language, in fact there are only few affixes that can be used to change the form of an adjective. In contrast, the opportunities of Russian morphology suggest that the number of affixes to use is almost unlimited, which is combined with a complicated system of declension and gender agreement (Asarina, 2009). Therefore, correct use of an adjective in Russian demands a deep knowledge of the language. Comparison of Russian and English adjectives Morphological structure While compar ing the adjectives in Russian and English, the morphological aspect is the most controversial and voluminous. This is due to the fact, that, as it was already mentioned, Russian is a synthetic language, which points to the exceptional role of morphology for its parts of speech. Concerning adjectives, the first thing to mention should be the existence of short and long forms of adjectives (Matushansky, 2006). Besides some exceptions, all the adjectives in Russian can be used in the both forms, considering that short forms are treated as more formal. The forms are distinguished by certain endings added to the root, but their meaning remains unchanged in both cases (1): ОÐ ½Ã ° Ã'Æ'Ð ¼Ã ½Ã °. – She is smart. (short form)Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on English vs. Russian Adjectives specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More ОÐ ½Ã ° Ã'Æ'Ð ¼Ã ½Ã °Ã' . – She is smart. (long form) ОÐ ½ Ã' Æ'Ð ¼Ã'‘Ð ½. – He is smart. (short form) ОÐ ½ Ã'Æ'Ð ¼Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹. – He is smart. (long form) ОÐ ½Ã ¾ Ã'Æ'Ð ¼Ã ½Ã ¾. – It is smart. (short form) ОÐ ½Ã ¾ Ã'Æ'Ð ¼Ã ½Ã ¾Ã µ. – It is smart. (long form) ОÐ ½Ã ° Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã'Å'Ð ½Ã °. – She is sick. (short form) ОÐ ½Ã ° Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã'Å'Ð ½Ã °Ã' . – She is sick. (long form)Advertising Looking for term paper on linguistics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More ОÐ ½ Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã µÃ ½. – He is sick. (short form) ОÐ ½ Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã'Å'Ð ½Ã ¾Ã ¹. – He is sick. (long form) ОÐ ½Ã ¾ Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã'Å'Ð ½Ã ¾. – It is sick. (short form) ОÐ ½Ã ¾ Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã'Å'Ð ½Ã ¾Ã µ. – It is sick. (long form) This property can be to some extent compared to that of English short and long forms, such as (2): Medic-medical; Hypothetic-hypothetical; Idiomatic-idiomatical, but this only concerns the ic/ical endings. Despite the absence of difference in meaning of the long and short forms of adjectives, there is a difference in therir use. For instance, the short forms can only serve as a predicative adjective, while the long forms can also be used attributively (Levine, 2009). As it can be seen from the given examples, the masculine gender demands not only adding a certain ending for a short form, but breaking the previous morpheme with an inserted vowel. Therefore, in case one is not sure about how to create a correct short form for masculine adjectives, he or she should better use the long ones. What is more, attention should be paid to the movable word stress, which is sometimes placed on the initial syllable in masculine and neuter gender. The tendencies of stress change can only be observed in the Russian speaking environment. It is worth noting that the short forms of adjectives in Russian are unlikely to appear in imperative sentences (3): БÃ'Æ'Ð ´Ã'Å' Ã' Ã ¸Ã »Ã'Å'Ð ½Ã'‹Ð ¼, but not: БÃ'Æ'Ð ´Ã'Å' Ã' Ã ¸Ã »Ã µÃ ½ (Be strong); БÃ'Æ'Ð ´Ã'Å' Ð ºÃ'€Ð °Ã' Ã ¸Ã ²Ã'‹Ð ¼, but not: БÃ'Æ'Ð ´Ã'Å' Ð ºÃ'€Ð °Ã' Ã ¸Ã ² (Be beautiful). What is more, only long forms of adjectives in Russian can receive case (Matushansky, 2006), which makes this form dominant for most cases of use in a certain context. Degrees of comparison Just like in English, qualitative adjectives in Russian have comparative and superlative forms. Their formation pattern for regula r adjectives is similar to the one used in English, as far as in Russian there also are suffixes that can be add to denote the comparative and superlative forms, as well as words equal to â€Å"more† and â€Å"the most†, which can be placed before the adjective(4): Nominative form Comparative form Superlative form rich richer richest Ð ±Ã ¾Ã ³Ã °Ã'‚Ã'‹Ð ¹ Ð ±Ã ¾Ã ³Ã °Ã'‡Ð µ/ Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã µÃ µÃ ±Ã ¾Ã ³Ã °Ã'‚Ã'‹Ð ¹ Ð ±Ã ¾Ã ³Ã °Ã'‚Ð µÃ ¹Ã'ˆÐ ¸Ã ¹/ Ã' Ã °Ã ¼Ã'‹Ð ¹Ã ±Ã ¾Ã ³Ã °Ã'‚Ã'‹Ð ¹ complicated morecomplicated the mostcomplicated Ã' Ã »Ã ¾Ã ¶Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ Ã' Ã »Ã ¾Ã ¶Ã ½Ã µÃ µ/ Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã µÃ µÃ' Ã »Ã ¾Ã ¶Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ Ã' Ã »Ã ¾Ã ¶Ã ½Ã µÃ ¹Ã'ˆÐ ¸Ã ¹/ Ã' Ã °Ã ¼Ã'‹Ð ¹Ã' Ã »Ã ¾Ã ¶Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ Thus, the English suffixes –er and –est correspond to such Russian suffixes, as –Ã'‡Ð µ, -Ã'‰Ð µ, -Ð ¶Ã µ, -Ã'ˆÐ µ, Ð µe, and some others, while t he words more and most in comparative structures correspond to Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã µÃ µ and Ã' Ã °Ã ¼Ã'‹Ð ¹. However, in practical use a significant difference between the two languages is that in Russian most of the adjectives can have two variants in the comparative and superlative forms. Despite the fact that it is also possible for English, it is more typical for this language to apply only one of the form of comparative or superlative degree to a certain adjective. In addition, it is impossible to use the suffixes for creating comparative and superlative forms of long words such as important, while in Russian the number of syllables does not play any role in the formation of degrees of comparison. This once more points to the absence of strict limitations for morphological forms in synthetic languages. Interestingly, while the comparative form created by the word Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã µÃ µ preserves its property of gender, the neighboring form created with the help of a correspondi ng suffix does will be common for all the three genders (5): ОÐ ½ Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã µÃ µ Ã'Æ'Ð ¼Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹. (He is smarter) ОÐ ½Ã ° Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã µÃ µ Ã'Æ'Ð ¼Ã ½Ã °Ã' . (She is smarter) ОÐ ½Ã ¾ Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã µÃ µ Ã'Æ'Ð ¼Ã ½Ã ¾Ã µ. (It is smarter); But: ОÐ ½ Ã'Æ'Ð ¼Ã ½Ã µÃ µ. (He is smarter) ОÐ ½Ã ° Ã'Æ'Ð ¼Ã ½Ã µÃ µ. (She is smarter) ОÐ ½Ã ¾ Ã'Æ'Ð ¼Ã ½Ã µÃ µ. (It is smarter) Intensifying morphemes Analyzing the morphological peculiarities of English and Russian, it is impossible to miss such aspect as formation of affectionate diminutive forms of adjectives. This ability, in fact, is most developed in East Slavonic languages, and presents an exclusively wide range of morphemes that can be used with this purpose (Sussex, 2006). In English the use of diminution is not very spread, which is due to the analytical structure of this language. In fact, the only possible way to make and adjective sound â€Å"small† or â€Å"cuteâ €  is adding the suffix –y, for example as in good-goody. In addition, this suffix does not always denote diminution and can be used with different purposes. In comparison with English, Russian morphology offers a range of suffixes, which can be add to adjectives in order to achieve a certain stylistic effect. The most spread one is the suffix Ð ½Ã'Å'Ð º, which is used to denote the small size of a subject or show affectionate attitude to it (6): Ð ¥Ã ¾Ã'€Ð ¾Ã'ˆÐ ¸Ã ¹ (good) – Ã'…Ð ¾Ã'€Ð ¾Ã'ˆÐ µÃ ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ (good and small) Ðâ€"Ð µÃ »Ã'‘Ð ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ (green) – Ð ·Ã µÃ »Ã'‘Ð ½Ã µÃ ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ (green in a pleasant way) Ð ¢Ã ¾Ã ½Ã ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ (thin) – Ã'‚Ð ¾Ã ½Ã µÃ ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ (exquisitely thin) Ð ¡Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹ (old) – Ã' Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ð µÃ ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ (old and kind) Ð ¥Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ (cold) – Ã'…Ð ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ½Ã µÃ ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ (ple asantly cold) In addition to the mentioned suffix Ð ½Ã'Å'Ð º, two more affixes can be added in the former position in order to express tender emotions. Namely, these suffixes include Ã'‘Ã'… and Ð ¾ (7): ÐÅ"Ð °Ã »Ã'‹Ð ¹ (small) – ÐÅ"Ð °Ã »Ã'‘Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ Ðâ€"Ð ¸Ã ²Ã ¾Ã ¹ (alive) – Ðâ€"Ð ¸Ã ²Ã'‘Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ Ð ¡Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹ (old) – Ð ¡Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ã'‘Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ What is more, it is typical for Russian language to use one and the same adjective twice at one time. In this case, it will constitute one word, which is usually written with a hyphen. This method is used in order to intensify the meaning of an adjective. Interestingly, both regular and diminutive forms of adjectives can be used with this purpose; in case the two forms are combined, the diminutive usually follows the regular form. Furthermore, the helping prefix Ð ¿Ã'€Ð µ can be used for the adjective used fo r the second time. The meaning of this morpheme also can be interpreted as â€Å"very†, or â€Å"much†, which explains the use of this prefix as a meaning intensifier. In the example below, all the possible variations of this tool will be demonstrated, bearing that each of the words will have the meaning of â€Å"very old†(8): Ð ¡Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹-Ã' Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹ Ð ¡Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ð µÃ ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹-Ã' Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ð µÃ ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ Ð ¡Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹-Ã' Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ð µÃ ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ Ð ¡Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹-Ã' Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ã'‘Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ Ð ¡Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹-Ð ¿Ã'€Ð µÃ' Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹ Ð ¡Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ð µÃ ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹-Ð ¿Ã'€Ð µÃ' Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ð µÃ ½Ã'Å'Ð ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ All the mentioned tools for diminution are not characteristic of English language, which increases the level of complexity of Russian for those studying it as a second language. The var ious suffixes and prefixes of different meanings in Russian are replaced by separate additional words like â€Å"very† or â€Å"rather† in English, which illustrates one of the key differences between the use of adjectives in different stylistic contexts in the two languages. Besides diminution, different stylistic contexts demand the effect of exaggeration from adjectives, which is also realized in Russian with the help of certain suffixes. To the most often used ones belong the suffixes Ã'Æ'Ã'‰, Ã'ŽÃ'‰, and Ð µÃ ½Ã ½ (9): БÐ ¾Ã »Ã'Å'Ã'ˆÐ ¾Ã ¹ (big) – Ð ±Ã ¾Ã »Ã'Å'Ã'ˆÃ'Æ'Ã'‰Ð ¸Ã ¹ Ð ¥Ã ¸Ã'‚Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹ (foxy) – Ã'…Ð ¸Ã'‚Ã'€Ã'ŽÃ'‰Ð ¸Ã ¹ Ð ¡Ã'‚Ã'€Ð °Ã'ˆÐ ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ (scary) – Ã' Ã'‚Ã'€Ð °Ã'ˆÐ ½Ã'ŽÃ'‰Ð ¸Ã ¹ ДÐ ¾Ã'€Ð ¾Ã ³Ã ¾Ã ¹ (expensive) – Ð ´Ã ¾Ã'€Ð ¾Ã ³Ã'Æ'Ã'‰Ð ¸Ã ¹ Ð ¨Ã ¸Ã'€Ð ¾Ã ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ (wide) – Ã'ˆÐ ¸Ã'€Ð ¾Ã'‡Ð µÃ ½Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ Ð ¡Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹ (old) – Ã' Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ð µÃ ½Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ БÐ ¾Ã ³Ã °Ã'‚Ã'‹Ð ¹ (rich) – Ð ±Ã ¾Ã ³Ã °Ã'‚Ð µÃ ½Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ Again, there are no such correspondent affixes in English, where the effect of exaggeration is usually achieved with the help of particles â€Å"too† or â€Å"very† put before the adjective. Deriving adverbs For the adjectives of both Russian and English languages it is typical to form adverbs with the help of certain derivative affixes. This process is usually realized in English language with the help of suffix ly, which corresponds to the Russian suffix o. However, while the derivation of adverbs in English demands simply adding the suffix, in Russian it is necessary to remove the ending first, and the suffix is added to the bare root. Let us consider some examples (10): Noun Adverb quick quickly Ð ±Ã'‹Ã' Ã'‚Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹ Ð ±Ã'‹Ã' Ã'‚Ã'€Ð ¾ interesting interestingly Ð ¸Ã  ½Ã'‚Ð µÃ'€Ð µÃ' Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ Ð ¸Ã ½Ã'‚Ð µÃ'€Ð µÃ' Ã ½Ã ¾ abrupt abruptly Ã'€Ð µÃ ·Ã ºÃ ¸Ã ¹ Ã'€Ð µÃ ·Ã ºÃ ¾ It is worth denoting that derivation of adverbs is a property of qualitative, and not relational adjectives, in both languages. Semantics of adjectives As it is known, according to their meaning, adjectives can be divided into qualitative and relational. The former ones denote a certain quality of the object they modify, while the latter point to the relations between words (Levine, 2009). This subdivision is typical of both English and Russian adjectives, and it determines the meaning of these adjectives. However, the semantic functions of adjectives in English and in Russian are quite different. For instance, according to (Ikeya, 1995), in English adjectives are â€Å"basically a one-place predicate†. This explains the wide use of prepositional phrases which consist of an adjective and a preposition in English. Such phrases do not exist in Russian, where the system of prepositions is poorer and less significant. For this language it is more characteristic to have the adjectives strictly following or preceding the word they modify. This means the use of both attributive and predicative adjectives, which I also practiced in English. Therefore, some of the following adjective uses can be met in both languages, while the stable prepositional phrases are typical only of English language (11): It is a typicalmistake. Ð ­Ã'‚Ð ¾ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã ¿Ã ¸Ã'‡Ð µÃ' Ã ºÃ °Ã' Ã ¾Ã'ˆÐ ¸Ã ±Ã ºÃ °. This mistake is typical. Ð ­Ã'‚Ð ° Ð ¾Ã'ˆÐ ¸Ã ±Ã ºÃ ° Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã ¿Ã ¸Ã'‡Ð µÃ' Ã ºÃ °Ã' . It is typical ofher to do so. – This is a goodboy. Ð ­Ã'‚Ð ¾ Ã'…Ð ¾Ã'€Ð ¾Ã'ˆÐ ¸Ã ¹Ã ¼Ã °Ã »Ã'Å'Ã'‡Ð ¸Ã º. This boy is good. Ð ­Ã'‚Ð ¾Ã'‚ Ð ¼Ã °Ã »Ã'Å'Ã'‡Ð ¸Ã º Ã'…Ð ¾Ã'€Ð ¾Ã'ˆÐ ¸Ã ¹/Ã'…Ð ¾Ã'€Ð ¾Ã'ˆ. It is good forhealth to jog. – This person is happy. Ð ­Ã'‚Ð ¾Ã'‚ Ã'‡Ð µÃ »Ã ¾Ã ²Ã µÃ º Ã' Ã'‡Ð °Ã' Ã'‚Ð »Ã ¸Ã ²Ã'‹Ð ¹/Ã' Ã'‡Ð °Ã' Ã'‚Ð »Ã ¸Ã ². This is a happy person. Ð ­Ã'‚Ð ¾ Ã' Ã'‡Ð °Ã' Ã'‚Ð »Ã ¸Ã ²Ã'‹Ð ¹Ã'‡Ð µÃ »Ã ¾Ã ²Ã µÃ º. I am happy tohelp you. – Apart from the semantic functions of adjectives, it is worth mentioning that many adjectives in English and Russian have more than one meaning, which means that they are polysemic. This quality is best realized in certain contextual environments, as far as besides the actual meanings there can be some denotative meanings, derived from certain cultural situations and beliefs. Obviously, only native speakers are capable of distinguishing the full range of meanings of one adjective, as far as it demands a deep knowledge of the cultural background of the spoken language. Let us consider several examples, which show how the multiple meanings of an adjective can coincide or differ in the two langu ages (12): Adjective Meanings poor not rich unhappy Ð ±Ã µÃ ´Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ not rich unhappy blue of the color of the sky melancholy conservative (in Politics) Ð ³Ã ¾Ã »Ã'Æ'Ð ±Ã ¾Ã ¹ of the color of the sky homosexual wooden made of wood awkward in movement Ð ´Ã µÃ'€Ð µÃ ²Ã' Ã ½Ã ½Ã'‹Ð ¹ made of wood insensitive bad oriented in some area warm of high temperature enthusiastic containing yellow or red color Ã'‚Ã'‘Ð ¿Ã »Ã'‹Ð ¹ of high temperature enthusiastic pleasant containing yellow or red color the one that is heated (of a room) Syntactical peculiarities of adjectives It is a well-known fact that morphology, semantics, and syntax are tightly connecter to each other, as far as the structure of the word is always interdependent with its meaning and use in sentences. However, while the morphological and semantic features are lying on the surface of a language, the syntactical relations between words dem and a much deeper analysis. From the syntactical point of view, English adjectives are much simpler than the Russian ones. Indeed, an adjective in English does not change its form, regardless of the word it modifies. In contrast to this, Russian adjectives have to agree with the noun they modify in gender, number, and case (Levine, 2009). Agreement in gender Formally, there are three genders in both English and Russian languages; however, in English the property of one of the cases is only expressed by the pronouns he, she, it. The other parts of speech have no morphological features denoting gender. In comparison with English, Russian morphology provides a number of endings available to denote all three genders. For instance, feminine gender is expressed by the endings –Ð °, –Ã' , -Ð °Ã' , masculine – by the endings –Ã'‹Ð ¹, –Ð ¸Ã ¹, and neuter gender – with the ending –Ð µ. The situation becomes even more complicated consi dering that in Russian the division into genders is applied more often than in English. For instance, in English the abstract notions (like happiness, love, feeling), inanimate objects, animals, and many other words are of neuter gender, which determines referring to them as to â€Å"it†. In Russian practically all the notions have a certain gender, and the adjectives need to agree with them, which makes the task of forming a correct phrase of a combination of an adjective and a noun even more difficult. Let us compare some phrases of English and Russian (13): Hard life (neut) Ð ¢Ã' Ã ¶Ã'‘Ð »Ã °Ã' Ã ¶Ã ¸Ã ·Ã ½Ã'Å' (fem) Happy puppy (neut) Ð ¡Ã'‡Ð °Ã' Ã'‚Ð »Ã ¸Ã ²Ã'‹Ð ¹Ã'‰Ð µÃ ½Ã ¾Ã º (masc) Round plate (neut) КÃ'€Ã'Æ'Ð ³Ã »Ã °Ã' Ã'‚Ð °Ã'€Ð µÃ »Ã ºÃ ° (fem) Green grass (neut) Ðâ€"Ð µÃ »Ã µÃ ½Ã °Ã' Ã'‚Ã'€Ð °Ã ²Ã ° (fem) Kind boy (masc) ДÐ ¾Ã ±Ã'€Ã'‹Ð ¹Ã ¼Ã °Ã »Ã'Å'Ã'‡Ð ¸Ã º (masc) Beau tiful girl (fem) КÃ'€Ð °Ã' Ã ¸Ã ²Ã °Ã' Ã ´Ã µÃ ²Ã ¾Ã'‡Ð ºÃ ° (fem) Agreement in number Besides the property of gender, the adjectives both in Russian can be of singular and plural number. In English this subdivision is implied, but no obvious features of plurality or singularity are present. In Russian, the feature of plurality is expressed by the endings –Ã'‹Ð µ, –Ð ¸Ã µ. Correspondingly, when an adjective modifies a noun or pronoun, it should be of the same number as the word. Agreement in case The last important aspect in adjectival agreement with the modified word is the agreement in case. Similarly to the gender and number, English adjectives do not demand this kind of agreement to be realized. In contrast, Russian adjectives have to be of the same case as the words they modify. As it was mentioned before, Russian language offers seven cases instead those four of English, which means that there are more forms of adjectives, specifically their endings, depending on the case they are used in. What is more, the declension of adjectives is highly dependent on the consonant they are ending in. For instance, the adjectives with the stems ending in hard, soft, and unpaired consonants will have slight differences in endings changes in the process of declension (Levine, 2007). Let us consider each type separately. An adjective, which has its stem ending in a hard consonant will have the following form of declension (the empty boxes denote the same form as on the left) (14): Case/Gender Masculine Neuter Feminine Plural Nominative Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ¹ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã µ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã °Ã'  Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã'‹Ð µ Accusative Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ³Ã ¾ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ¹ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã'‹Ð ¼Ã ¸ Genitive Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ³Ã ¾ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ¹ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã'‹Ã'… Prepositive Ð ¾ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ¼ Ð ¾ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ¹ Ð ¾ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã'‹Ã'… Dative Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ¼Ã'Æ' Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ¹ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã'‹Ð ¼ Instrumentative Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã'‹Ð ¼ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ¹ Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã'‹Ð ¼Ã ¸ Locative Ð ² Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ¼ Ð ² Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã ¾Ã ¹ Ð ² Ð ¼Ã ¾Ã »Ã ¾Ã ´Ã'‹Ã'… The stems ending in a soft consonant will have different forms (15): Case/Gender Masculine Neuter Feminine Plural Nominative Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã ¸Ã ¹ Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã µÃ µ Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã' Ã'  Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã ¸Ã µ Accusative Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã ¸Ã ¼ Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã'ŽÃ'Ž Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã ¸Ã'… Genitive Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã µÃ ³Ã ¾ Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã µÃ ¹ Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã ¸Ã'… Prepositive Ð ¾ Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã µÃ ¼ Ð ¾ Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã µÃ ¹ Ð ¾ Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã ¸Ã'… Dative Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã µÃ ¼Ã'Æ' Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã µÃ ¹ Ð »Ã µÃ'‚ Ð ½Ã ¸Ã ¼Ã ¸ Instrumentative Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã ¸Ã ¼ Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã µÃ ¹ Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã ¸Ã ¼Ã ¸ Locative Ð ² Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã µÃ ¼ Ð ² Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã µÃ ¹ Ð ² Ð »Ã µÃ'‚Ð ½Ã ¸Ã'… In case a stem of an adjective ends in an unpaired consonant, the endings in declension will be the following (16): Case/Gender Masculine Neuter Feminine Plural Nominative Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¸Ã ¹ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¾Ã µ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð °Ã'  Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¸Ã µ Accusative Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ³Ã ¾ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ã'Æ'Ã'Ž Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¸Ã'… Genitive Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ³Ã ¾ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ¹ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¸Ã'… Prepositive Ð ¾ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ¼ Ð ¾ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ¹ Ð ¾ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¸Ã'… Dative Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ¼Ã'Æ' Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ¹ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¸Ã ¼ Instrumentative Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¸Ã ¼ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ¹ Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¸Ã ¼Ã ¸ Locative Ð ² Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ¼ Ð ² Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¾Ã ¹ Ð ² Ã'‚Ð ¸Ã'…Ð ¸Ã'… Pedagogical implications and applications As it can be seen from the presented study, the structures of English and Russian languages differ greatly. Therefore, while analyzing the adjectives of the two languages, all the differences in morphological, semantic, and syntactic structures have to be taken into consideration. The divergence of forms and meanings of Russian adjectives suggests that a teacher should not expect an easy perception of all the information about the Russian language by the students who learn it. First of all, in order to teach students to use Russian adjectives, the teacher should explain the students the property of gender. It is extremely important for the students to learn the basic endings typical of neuter, feminine, and masculine gender. Indeed, this knowledge will allow them not only to use the adjectives correctly, but also to recognize their belonging to a certain gender group in written and spoken forms , which means the increasing of language comprehension. In order to develop these skills in students, it is possible to offer them an exercise based on choosing an appropriate ending for a certain adjective, depending on the gender of the word it modifies. Gapped sentences or phrases can be very helpful in this case. The teacher should bear in mind the wide use of neuter gender in English, which is not observed in Russian. Due to this fact, students may find it difficult to get oriented in the Russian words in respect to their gender. Therefore, some exercises comparing the words of different genders in English and Russian can be developed. Declension of Russian adjectives is another problematic point, which can make the process of learning Russian complicated. The tables containing the needed examples and clear explanation of the material are the only tools that can be used in this case. The tables can be hung in the class room, in order to allow the students use it as a template w hile learning Russian adjectives. Only practical tasks can lead to the automatic use of adjectives in the right form. It is also important for the learners of Russian to know how to form different degrees of comparison. Since the rules of comparative and superlative forms formation in most cases coincide in English and Russian, it is enough to demonstrate the students the parallel constructions and offer them to practice on their own. The same method can be used to explain the position of adjectives in the sentence, which often is similar in the two languages. The use of short and long forms seems to cause no problems for the students, as far as the both forms have the same meanings. The long forms are with no doubt dominant, and play a greater grammatical role; however, in order to achieve a high level of Russian language use and comprehension, the students should know how to use the both forms. This knowledge can be derived from reading Russian literature, where both short and lon g forms of adjectives are being used. In this way, clear comprehension will turn into correct use in the future. As for the meanings of Russian adjectives, it is almost impossible to explain them all in a short course. However, in order to broaden the perception of the language by the students, it is necessary to give them idiomatic structures, phraseological units, and the adjectives used in proverbs and sayings. This will demonstrate the students the fact that there is more than one possible meaning for one adjective, and that in order to understand all the denotative meanings, an understanding of cultural environment of the language is needed. Conclusion This paper investigated the differences and similarities between the Russian and English adjectives, their forms and use. It is based on the broad analysis of the structures of the two languages, and on the deep analysis of an adjective as of a part of speech. The analysis of such aspects, as morphology, semantics, and syntax sho wed the relatively complicated nature of Russian adjectives comparing to the English ones. Wide use of affixes, change of endings depending on number, gender, case, stem ending, – all these features are untypical of English, and characteristic of Russian adjectives. This makes the gap between the languages deeper than that perceived on the general level, and sometimes proves an impediment to learning Russian for English-speaking people. Understanding of these differences is the condition needed for understanding the languages, and, as a consequence, for proper translation. The investigation showed that the problems with Russian adjectives most often occur because of their changing endings. Declension of Russian adjectives plays an outstanding role in the spoken and written language, and automatic correct use of the different forms is crucial for language use and comprehension. That is why, clear explanation of the rules should be combined with the methodologically suited prac tical tasks for effective learning of this part of speech. All these aspects should be taken into consideration by the pedagogical stuff dealing with teaching Russian. However, this study embraces only the main spheres of differences in the languages. Besides the studied problems, there are also archaic and borrowed forms, which have different rules of use in Russian. What is more, the field of semantics is so wide, that its analysis obviously cannot be limited with that presented in this paper. Adjective in practical use can be related to many other parts of speech. The relations of adjectives with nouns, verbs, pronouns, prepositions, as well as the role of adjectives in the sentence are the possible ways of investigation. In addition, while this study is focused on the differences between the adjectives of English and Russian, it could be useful to look for similarities between them. This would make it easier to understand the use of adjectives in each language and to learn one o f them as a second language. Reference List Asarina, A (2009). Gender and Adjective Agreement in Russian. Moscow: SLS 4th Annual Meeting. Ikeya, A (1995). Predicate-Argument Structure of English Adjectives. Amsterdam: Toyo Gakuen University. Ivanov, V, Browne, W (2007). Slavonic Languages. R. K. P. Web. Levine, J (2009). Shaum’s Outline of Russian Grammar, 2nd Edition. NY: Mcgraw Hill. Matushansky, O (2006). How to Be Short: Some Remarks on the Syntax of Russian Adjectives. Paris: IUMR Seminar. Sihombing, K (2008). The Morphological Processes of English Adjectives. A Thesis. Faculty of Letters: English Department. Depok: Gunadarma University. Sussex, R, Cubberley, P (2006) The Slavic Languages. In Cubberley, P (2006) Russian: A Linguistic Introduction. London: Cambridge University Press. This term paper on English vs. Russian Adjectives was written and submitted by user Jason Day to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

The -escent Suffix

The -escent Suffix The -escent Suffix The -escent Suffix By Sharon My five year old is now reading fluently and as a result is asking all sorts of questions about the meanings of words. The other day, she asked why fluorescent bulbs were so named and I realized that I had absolutely no idea, so I set out to find out more about this suffix. It turns out that -escent is used in two ways. The first relates to the play of light and color and is seen in words such as: fluorescent having a type of luminescence caused by the absorption of radiation iridescent having a lustrous, rainbow like play of color pearlescent having a pearly luster opalescent reflecting an iridescent light phosphorescent the quality of luminescence without heat incandescent white or glowing with intense heat luminescent low temperature emission of light The other use of -escent indicates a change of state. Something may be beginning to change, have changed slightly or resemble another object. That use gives us words such as obsolescent becoming obsolete quiescent becoming quiet arborescent resembling a tree effervescent beginning to boil or bubble adolescent becoming an adult convalescent recovering health gradually after being ill florescent beginning to flower Related suffixes are -esce and -escence (as in convalesce and convalescence) Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Words for Facial ExpressionsThe Many Forms of the Verb TO BE50 Words with Alternative Spellings

Post-Structuralism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Post-Structuralism - Essay Example Along with Lvi-Strauss, three of the most prominent post-structuralists were first counted among the so-called "Gang of Four" of structuralism par excellence: Jacques Lacan, Roland Barthes, and Michel Foucault. The works of Jacques Derrida, Gilles Deleuze, and Julia Kristeva are also counted as prominent examples of post-structuralism. Legal theory is necessarily involved with question of language, meaning and interpretation. Language has increasingly become a major object of inquiry within diver's range of legal theory. This is partly due to the work of J.L. Austin and his speech language theory, between 1962 and 1973. 2 At that time discussions were very passionate, then, after a less popular period, it re-finds a great interest at the beginning of the eighties. In France, it has penetrated philosophy thanks to the works of Ducrot and Ricoeur. The first publication on this subject dates from 1974. In Europe the situation is quite similar with one remarkable exception in 1962 with the Swedish K. Olivecrona and the Finish G.H. von Wright3. But in 1972, Alf Ross published an article with a signification title:" The Rise and Fall of the Doctrine of Per formatives ", in one hand he rejected following Austin's first distinction between per formatives and constatives, or more generally, between "saying something" and "doing something", but on the other hand, he didn't accept the second version of the theory, with the distinction between the elocutionary, illocutionary, and perlocucionnary act. Alf Ross distinguished only two main types of speech act: indicative and directive, in his book "Directives and N orms". Each of these acts had one or several norms behind to determine its normative consequences. These norms were called "norms of competence". Contribution to the question of the legal language specificity: a frontal attack against basis of the pure theory of law. The theorical reason of the language theory attraction exercised on jurists is that in the sixties legal theoricians and philosophers went to a saturation point caused by kelsenien theory. Thus per formative theory allowed a frontal attack against the bases of pure theory by suppressing grnd norm "hypothesis". In admitting existence of per formative speech acts, which didn't ask existence of superior norms, we could denounce what Mc Cormick called "the imperativist fallacy". But it is also important to stress that speech act theory allowed to oppose oneself to the epistemological rupture, inherited from Hume and Kant applied in our field by Kelsen between Sein and Sollen, Is and Ought. Some jurists had this deep intuition that this radical scission which closed them in the "swollen world", the one of signification of will act, cut them from reality, and deprive legal reasoning from perception foundations signing by its irrationalism. Though, doctrine of per formatives by its theory o f presuppositions reinaugurates the link between speech act and its factual presuppositions. It is the reason why the speech act theory has

Sasol Company Market Analysis Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Sasol Company Market Analysis - Term Paper Example The strong South African economy provides growing, profitable home market for Sasol. In the stock market, Sasol offers a solid dividend and the stock currently yields a hefty 4.59%. Though recent markets are not satisfying the investors, Sasol is relatively volatile. Though there is fall of oil prices, Sasol probably offers much to its investors. Government regulations and policies also affect Sasol’s marketing. The currency devaluation of Rand has a strong impact on the strategies of Sasol. â€Å"Customers receive a further R1.25 preferential procurement recognition for each R1 they spend with the Sasol Group of Companies.† (â€Å"BEE certificate†). In addition, the political interruptions in pricing decisions, due to the elections, drive the market of oil industry. The increase of taxes and lowering of synfuel subsidies by the government probably affect the product marketing which in turn affects the revenue of the company. Thus, Sasol has to take necessary mea sures to sustain among these regulations of the policies. Black empowerment companies enjoy better benefits as the government insists on 25% indigenous participation to its value chain. (â€Å"BEE certificate†). Sasol, being a BEE verified enterprise, commits to promote and enhance African empowerment. The environmental issues are yet another phenomenon that affects the company’s marketing, particularly from the perspective of social responsibility. Some of the major environmental issues that affect Sasol are pollution.... In addition, the political interruptions in pricing decisions, due to the elections, drive the market of oil industry. The increase of taxes and lowering of synfuel subsidies by the government probably affect the product marketing which in turn affects the revenue of the company. Thus, Sasol has to take necessary measures to sustain among these regulations of the government policies. Black empowerment companies enjoy better benefits as the government insists on 25% indigenous participation to its value chain. (â€Å"BEE certificate†). Sasol, being a BEE verified enterprise, commits to promote and enhance African empowerment. The environmental issues are yet another phenomenon that affects the company’s marketing, particularly from the perspective of social responsibility. Some of the major environmental issues that affect Sasol are pollution created by refineries, introduction of eco-friendly fuels, oil spills, GHG emissions and more. Though Sasol has taken alternative measures for producing fuels, these methods also tend to emit a considerable amount of GHG and lead to pollution of the environment. PEST Analysis: Political: Regulations from the government regarding taxes Political instability Lowering synfuel subsidies Economic: Currency volatility in South Africa Persistent inflation in input cost Price fluctuations of the global market Strong African economy Social: Strikes in African mines Limited access of labor in the local environment Providing employment opportunities on racial lines Technical: Expanding its Gas-To-Liquid (GTL) and Coal-To-Liquid (CTL) technologies for producing fuel Growing chemical portfolio and

Gender wage gap discrimination in Canada, ontario and how it affects Essay

Gender wage gap discrimination in Canada, ontario and how it affects women especially, immigrant women. - 12 font, time new roman - Essay Example Despite the efforts of the international labour organization and the human rights commission to fight against wage differences across genders, this problem still persists. Research shows that wage balance is one way of empowering the economy by providing equal chances for every person in the society to develop. While some analytics argue that wage gap is a result of difference in education level across genders, this paper argues that wage gap is a form of discrimination. The gender wage gap in Ontario has been a controversial issue since early 1980s when this difference was noted. Cornish and Faraday (2008) noted that women salary for equal position in Ontario is 29% below that of women indicating a wide salary gap across the gender boundaries. A close look at the wage gap trends indicates that there has only been slight improvement in the last 25 years despite the numerous efforts to close this gap. In 1987, before the emergence of wage gap activists, the wage gap was approximately 37% in Ontario. These trends indicate that the efforts to bring down the gap have been undermined and the gap remains wide. Cornish (2009) points out the wage gap has affected aboriginal women who have migrated to Ontario in search for a job. This trend in the Ontario employment sector is a matter that has attracted a lot of attention not only from the public but also to the women right activists as many feel that there is a need for equal pay across all gender as part o f diversity management. Cornish and Faraday (2008) point out that the wage gap difference is a matter of urgency that must be addressed to fight gender oppression in the society. Wages gap analysts have come up with myriad argument on the cause of wage gap across gender in Canada, Ontario. A good number of them argue that the education difference in Ontario is the major reason why there is wage gap in this society. The argument of those who feel

Longitudinally Extensive Transverse Myelitis Patients

Longitudinally Extensive Transverse Myelitis Patients Characteristics of Longitudinally Extensive Transverse Myelitis patients: a retrospective analysis of 40 consecutive cases at a tertiary care hospital from North-West India Abstract Longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM), characterised by spinal cord inflammation extending three or more vertebral segments may be caused by multiple disorders most common being neuromyelitis optica(NMO). Such is the frequent association between these two entities that there is a growing concern to regard them as being practically synonymous with each other. However, all potential etiologies should be considered in the assessment of LETM. We conducted retrospective analysis (2010-2014) of 40 patients of LETM for demographic features, clinical presentation, laboratory investigations and neuro-imaging. Result: Majority of the patients presented acutely with bladder dysfunction and paraparesis. Ten out of 40(25%) were classified as NMO among which only 4 were serum NMO antibody positive. Among the rest, there were 6 patients of MS, 3 patients of tubercular, 2 patients each of ADEM, spinal AVM and postinfectious etiology, one patient each of SACD and SLE. A group of 13 pati ents remained in whom no causative factor could be identified from the available investigations. Conclusion: LETM even with optic neuritis does not universally represent a diagnosis of NMO and one needs to be cautious while making a diagnosis of NMO without consideration of other etiologies as the treatment and prognosis differs among different etiologies. Abbreviations: MS (multiple sclerosis); AVM (arteriovenous malformation); SACD (subacute combined degeneration); ADEM (acute disseminated encephalomyelitis); TM (transverse myelitis). Key words: Longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis; Neuromyelitis optica Introduction Longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM) is a relatively recent term designating a transverse myelitis(TM) that extends three or more vertebral segments vertically. These lesions, which may occasionally span the entire length of the spinal cord, are much rarer and in general associated with greater morbidity than the typical lesions of idiopathic TM or multiple sclerosis (MS) associated TM(1). The key discriminating feature of LETM lesions is their length. The most frequent cause of LETM is neuromyelitis optica (NMO). In recent times the association between these two conditions has been so heavily emphasized that when LETM is encountered, an erroneous diagnosis of NMO may be made prior to careful consideration of other potential etiologies of LETM(1). Thus, early recognition and establishment of the aetiology of LETM from appropriate workup is essential for optimizing outcome and in some cases commencing appropriate treatment to prevent future attacks of central nervous system (CNS) inflammation. Studies comparing clinical, laboratory and radiological profiles of the LETM patients are scarce, especially from the developing countries. Thus, this study was conducted to review the characteristics of presentation and etiological classification of LETM at SMS Medical College and Hospital, Jaipur, a tertiary care centre of North India. Patients and Methods The study is a retrospective analysis (2010-2014) of 40 patients classified as having LETM on the basis of clinical manifestations of myelitis and spinal MRI finding of lesions typically extending three or more vertebral segments in length, admitted in SMS Medical College and Hospital, Jaipur with the following objectives:- To study the clinical, radiological and CSF profile of patients with LETM. To determine the aetiology of the myelitis. Patient demographics, presenting symptoms, clinical manifestations and investigations were recorded on data entry forms. The investigations included routine blood profile along with markers of connective tissue disorders (ESR, CRP, ANA, Anti dS DNA), MRI (of involved spinal cord segments in T2-weighted images of spinal MRI and MRI Brain), CSF analysis (including oligoclonal bands) and serum NMO antibody (NMO Ab) which was done by indirect immunofluorescence method. Results 40 patients were found to fulfil the LETM criteria. 22 among the 40 patients were less than 30 years age (55%). Overall Mean age was 28 years with male: female ratio of 1.8:1, suggestive of male preponderance. Apart from it no specific trend was observed among the study group in terms of their demographics. The majority of patients presented with bladder dysfunction, paraparesis and quadriparesis. Most of the patients had an acute presentation. Collectively, thoracic spinal cord segment was most commonly involved. 12 patients had clinically significant vision impairment at the time of presentation of which 10 were classified as NMO according to Wingerchuck et al criteria, one case was classified as MS and another was a case of SACD (Table 1). Table 1: Presenting Clinical features Table 2: Radiological Findings Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pleocytosis was seen in 55 %( 22 out of 40 patients) ranging from 10 to 250 cells/cumm. Among 10 NMO patients, 5 showed CSF pleocytosis of which 2 had neutrophilic predominance. The maximum cell count among NMO patients was 35 cells with lymphocytic predominance. Apart from it, 3 patients of tubercular, 2 patients each of postinfectious etiology and ADEM , one patient of MS and 4 patients of undetermined etiology also showed CSF pleocytosis. The maximum CSF cell count was 250 cells in one of the tubercular patient with lymphocytic predominance. CSF proteins were elevated in 15 out of 40(37.5%) patients of which 3 patients were each of MS and tubercular etiology, 2 patients each of NMO and postinfectious etiology and 5 patients were of undetermined category. Out of 40 patients, 18 had extensive lesions involving >6 spinal cord segments .Among 38 patients in whom MRI brain was done, 10 showed abnormalities, of which 5 patients were of MS, two were each of ADEM and tubercular etiology and another one was NMO (NMO Ab positive) (Table 2).Among the MS patients, abnormalities were seen involving deep white matter of bilateral cerebral hemispheres, corpus callosum, brainstem and basal ganglia. Based upon the above-mentioned clinical presentation and investigations, patients were classified according to their etiologies (Table 3). Table 3: Etiology of LETM patients 10 patients were of NMO fulfilling revised diagnostic criteria for neuromyelitis optica by Wingerchuk et al (7). In 8 out of 10 patients NMO antibody was sent, 2 patients refused for it. 4 out of them were NMO Ab positive and remaining 4 were negative. Among 10 NMO patients only one patient had lesions in MRI brain typical of NMO (Figure 12)). Four of ten patients in whom serum NMO Ab was done showed positivity and one of the NMO Ab positive patient had brain MRI abnormality involving brainstem, posterior part of corpus callosum, left parietal periventricular white matter. Six patients were of MS fulfilling the revised McDonald criteria for diagnosis of MS. Three patients were of tubercular myelitis ,two patients each were of ADEM , postinfectious etiology, and spinal AVM. One was having nutritional cause in form of vitamin B12 deficiency and one patient had SLE (ANA dsDNA positive). Rest of the patients could not be categorised to a definite etiology from the available investigations. Discussion In our series, common presenting symptoms were bladder dysfunction, paraparesis, quadriparesis, and visual impairment. Majority of the patients studied suffered from bladder dysfunction and paraparesis. It is a difficult task to determine the underlying etiology of LETM and it is worth exploring each case for subtle clues that may point toward the correct underlying diagnosis as the prognosis and long-term treatment decision differs in each category. Till now there are no studies describing association of clinical features and demographic features with the etiology of the myelitis (2). In our series the maximum CSF cell count (250) was in tubercular patient. Maximum CSF cell count in NMO and MS patients was 35 and 30 respectively. It is now well established that LETM does not universally represent a diagnosis of NMO, even in the setting of optic neuritis. However, in our series demyelinating disorders were found to be the most common cause of LETM and NMO was the most common etiology among demyelinating disorders. All NMO patients fulfilled the criteria laid down by Wingerchuk et al (3). Among ten NMO patients, four were NMO antibody positive. Three main laboratory techniques are utilized in identifying the antibodies. In our patients it was done by the indirect immunofluorescence method which has the reported sensitivity and specificity of 86% and 91% respectively (4). At present, it is unclear whether there is truly a subset of patients with clinical NMO that are NMO antibody negative, or if this is a result of inadequate sensitivity of existing immunoassays to detect the antibody, or inadequately sensitive and specific diagnostic criteria, or a combination of all of these factors. Although a regular follow up was not available in all NMO patients, a telephonic survey revealed that four NMO patients, of which two were seronegative and in two NMO antibody was not done, had no relapse and are doing well. Apart from this, one patient died from subsequent relapse and one could not be assessed in follow up. Among the four NMO antibody positive patients, who were under regular follow up, two (50%) presented with relapsing- remitting form of illness. One was 25 years old male who initially had 4 episodes of paraparesis with near complete recovery each time and developed vision impairment in the fifth episode and another was a 12 year old girl who had four relapses with simultaneous occurrence of vision impairment and paraparesis in the first episode. Thus, 4 patients had a monophasic disease course in 1 year follow up. However, a diagnosis of monophasic NMO should be considered with caution, because more than 90% of patients with NMO ultimately develop a relapsing cou rse. One prospective Class I study found that the presence of aquaporin-4–specific autoantibodies (AQP4) predicts recurrence of TM or conversion to NMO(5). So was our observation in the form that out of the 3 patients who had relapse, 2 were NMO antibody positive. Therefore, we speculate that AQP4 antibody status, particularly seropositivity, has some predictive value. Median age of onset of NMO is in the fourth decade. In our series all NMO patients were below 40 years of age except one who was a 52 years old female (figure 3).Interestingly this patient apart from late onset, also presented with slowly progressive paraparesis of one year duration which has not been described earlier in the literature. In spinal NMO lesions, the central part of the cord is commonly affected, including both grey and white matter with peripheral sparing (figure 3). These imaging features may therefore help to differentiate MS from NMO in patients who present with LETM(6). Among the NMO antibody positive patients, one had typical brain lesions of NMO (Figure 1). In patients with clinical and radiological features otherwise typical for NMO, 60–85% of cases have been shown to have abnormal brain lesions. Lesions involving the diencephalon and brainstem distinctly atypical for MS have been commonly reported in NMO patients. These distinctive lesions predominately involve the hypothalamus and can extend to brain tissue surrounding the third and fourth ventricle and aqueduct of Sylvius and seem to be characteristic brain lesions of NMO(7). There were 13 patients in whom a definite etiological diagnosis could not be made from the feasible investigations. This group is usually described in the literature as ‘idiopathic’. However, the idiopathic nature is a diagnosis of exclusion. In our series whether these patients were belonging to the category of postinfectious or some other form of demyelinating etiology was not clear from the investigations that were done in these patients as these patients were also later lost to follow up. Among 3 patients who were classified as tubercular on the basis of reactive CSF and positive TB PCR, one had intramedullary spinal tuberculomas (Figure 4). Intramedullary tuberculomas (IMT) are seen in only 2 out of 100,000 cases of tuberculosis and 2 out of 1,000 cases of central nervous system tuberculosis, are even rare as a cause of LETM(8).Out of these three, one had complete recovery with ATT and remaining 2 had poor outcome with bedridden status. Among 40 LETM patients, we were able to categorise only two patients as ADEM on clinical and radiological grounds (Figure 5).Both patients were of paediatric age (14 and 16 years) group, had complete and rapid recovery with no recurrence on 6 month follow up, which made the diagnosis even more certain, and correlated with the fact that monophasic course is the hallmark of ADEM. MRI features of ADEM that are unusual in MS are symmetric bilateral disease, relative sparing of the periventricular white matter and deep grey matter involvement (9). However, 22% of ADEM patients had a periventricular lesion pattern indistinguishable from that seen in MS (10).Similar radiological features were observed by us in both patients (Figure 5 and 6). The radiological features of spinal cord involvement in ADEM in adults have not been well studied. In a small Dutch series, one-third of patients had lesions extending more than two vertebral segments on spinal MRI at presentation (11). Approximately 75 % patients with ADEM have a preceding infection, and by definition there will be evidence of demyelination within the brain, as well as in the spinal cord, as seen in our patients (Figure 6). These features may help to differentiate ADEM from NMO spectrum disorders. Among the metabolic causes, subacute combined degeneration (SACD) of the cord due to vitamin B12 deficiency can produce longitudinally extensive hyperintense signal on MRI imaging as seen in one of our patient (Figure 7). Generally T2 weighted scans demonstrate focal high signal abnormalities in the white matter of the dorsal and posterior columns in SACD (12). In conclusion, the differential diagnosis of LETM is broad. Although characteristically associated with NMO, this diagnosis accounts for less than half of cases of isolated LETM in adults, and may be even less common in children. Patients presenting with LETM require a thorough work-up to exclude other treatable causes particularly infectious and inflammatory. The management of LETM is dependent on distinguishing inflammatory from non-inflammatory aetiologies and in identifying patients who are at high risk of further attacks. Figure Legends Figure 1: MRI brain showing hyperintensities (arrowheads) involving brainstem, left parietal periventricular white matter, posterior part of corpus callosum in seropositive patient of NMO (12 year old girl) Figure 2: MRI cervical spine T2 weighted sagittal and axial images of same patient showing predominant involvement of central grey matter (arrowheads). Figure 3: MRI cervical spine T2 weighted sagittal and axial images of 52 years old NMO antibody positive female showing predominant involvement of central grey matter. Figure 4:T2 weighted sagittal and axial images showing hyperintensity (arrowheads) in cervical cord with contrast enhancement suggestive of tuberculoma. Figure 5: MRI cervicodorsal spine, T2 weighted sagittal and axial images of a 16 year old girl with ADEM.MRI brain of the same patient showed lesions (arrowheads) in basal ganglia, brainstem and cortex typical of ADEM. Figure 6: MRI brain and spine of a 14 years old male with ADEM showing hyperintensities in brain involving bilateral periventricular white matter and long segment hyperintensity in the cord extending upto conus. Figure 7: Hyperintense signal in posterior aspect (arrow) of cervicodorsal cord in T2 weighted axial and sagittal images of SACD patient. References Eckstein C., Syc S. and Saidha S., â€Å"Differential diagnosis of longitudinall extensive transverse myelitis in adults† ENJ 2011; 3 🙠 1). July 2011. Scott T., Frohman E., De Seze J. et al., Evidence-based guideline: Clinical evaluation and treatment of transverse myelitis. Neurology; December, 2011 Wingerchuk et al. Revised diagnostic criteria for NMO. Neurology 2006;66:1485-9 Waters P, Vincent A. Detection of anti-aquaporin-4 antibodies in neuromyelitis optica: Current status of the assays. Int MS J 2008; 15:99-105. Weinshenker B, Wingerchuk D, Vukusic S, et al. Neuromyelitis Optica IgG predicts relapse following longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis. Ann Neurol 2006; 59:566–569 Wingerchuk, DM. Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorders. Continuum Lifelong Learning Neurol 2010; 16(5): 105-121 Brain Abnormalities in Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder K. Woojun, K. Su-Hyun, H. So-Young and K. Ho Jin Multiple Sclerosis International Volume 2012. Imaging Diagnosis of Spinal Intramedullary Tuberculoma: Case Reports and Literature Review Lu Ming J Spinal Cord Med. Apr 2010;33(2):159 162 Kesselring J, Miller DH, Robb SA, et al. Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis. MRI findings and the distinction from multiple sclerosis. Brain 1990;113(Pt 2):291–302 Dale RC, de Sousa C, Chong WK, Cox TC, Harding B, Neville BG. Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis, multiphasic disseminated encephalomyelitis and multiple sclerosis in children. Brain 2000; 123(Pt 12):2407–2422 Ketelslegers I, Visser I, Neuteboom R, Boon M, Catsman-Berrevoets C and Hintzen R. Disease course and outcome of acute disseminated encephalomyelitis is more severe in adults than in children. Mult Scler 2011; 17(4): 441–448 Larner A, Zeman A, Allen C. MRI appearances in subacute combined degeneration of the spinal cord due to vitamin B12 deficiency. JNNP 1997;62:99-101.

Information systems technology Essay

Abstract This paper discusses the scope of Information systems technology. Information Systems Technology can be defined as the use of electronic programs and machines and for storage, processing, presentation and transfer of information. Information Systems Technology also includes technologies of speech processing, speech recognition, speaker recognition (identification, verification, and authentication), word spotting, language and dialect identification, speech coding, and speech and audio signal enhancement. It is also inclusive of Machine learning, Information Assurance, detecting and interpreting attacks against large-scale network infrastructures, securing cyberspace, and evaluating the usage of various tools various environments. For Information Systems Technology to be adequate, static and dynamic analysis of software should be performed regularly, to uncover any vulnerabilities, correlate and prioritize alerts from network security devices, analyze attacks and potential propagation vectors against computer networks, and develop practical solutions of cryptographic protocols and approaches. Introduction It has been said that Survival is a matter of instinct which requires insight to succeed. Information technology is an absolute necessity for any individual or organization that wants to survive in this ever changing world. Information systems technology can be defined as the use of electronic machines and programs for the processing, storage, transfer and presentation of information. When the emphasis was on processing the terms electronic data processing EDP was common in earlier days. All aspect of human life is permeated by information technology; it is no longer confined to high number- crunching machines housed in air- conditioned computer halls. As evident to all, communication technology is today an important part of it. Devices such as the photocopying machine, telephone and the telefax and not only computers and their software should be included in our definition of information technology. Nowadays the use of information technology is no longer confined to huge number-crunching machines housed in air-conditioned computer halls but permeates all aspects of everyday life. Communications technology is today an important part of IT. Not only computers and their software, but also devices such as the telephone, the photocopying machine and the telefax should thus be included in our definition of information technology. Many of the functions of these devices are in fact increasingly integrated. With the latest generation of laptops computers, and is already possible to send and receive faxes and emails. Recently, many mobile phones which incorporate small microcomputers have started to appear on the market much more. (Bo-Christer Bjork 1999) Overview. Information technology and the systems that process it are among the most valuable assets of any organization. Fundamental management responsibility is adequate security of these assets. Each agency must implement and maintain a program to adequately secure its information and system assets, something that is consistent with office of Management and Budget (OMB). There is also increased integration in many functions of these devices Consistent with Office of Management and Budget (OMB) policy, each agency must implement and maintain a program to adequately secure its information. Agency programs must: 1) assure that systems and applications operate effectively and provide appropriate confidentiality, integrity, and availability; and 2) protect information commensurate with the level of risk and magnitude of harm resulting from loss, misuse, unauthorized access, or modification. Description of Framework The Framework approach begins with the premise that all agency assets must meet the minimum security requirements of the Office of Management and Budget Circular. The criteria that are outlined in the Framework and provided in detail in the questionnaire are abstracted directly from long-standing requirements found in statute, policy, and guidance on security and privacy. It should be noted that an agency might have additional laws, regulations, or policies that establish specific requirements for confidentiality, integrity, or availability. Each agency should decide if additional security controls should be added to the questionnaire and, if so, customize the questionnaire appropriately. (Federal Information Technology Security Assessment Framework 2000). References Bo-Christer Bjork (1999) Information technology in construction: domain definition and research issues. International Journal of Computer Integrated Design and Construction, SETO, London. Volume 1, Issue 1, pp. 1-16 Federal Information Technology Security Assessment Framework (2000) Prepared for Security, Privacy, and Critical Infrastructure Committee by National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Computer Security Division November 28, 2000 The NIST Self-assessment Questionnaire will be issued in 2001 as a NIST Special Publication. Swanson, M (2001) Security Self-Assessment Guide for Information Technology Systems.

Prom Nights from Hell Chapter Eight

â€Å"You're crazy,† Sibby said as they walked in. Her eyes were pancake-size. â€Å"You said this would suck. This doesn't suck. This is fantastic.† Miranda shuddered. They'd snuck into the Grand Hall of the Santa Barbara Historical Society by an emergency exit that had been propped open so prom attendees could slip out to get stoned, and glancing around, Miranda could see how getting stoned would be super-appealing. The walls of the room had been covered in blue satin with white stars embroidered on it, the four big columns in the middle were draped in red and white ribbons, the tables off to the side were covered in American flag-print cloths with fishbowl centerpieces in which the fish had been somehow dyed red and blue, and around the edges major American landmarks such as Mount Rushmore, the White House, the Statue of Liberty, the Liberty Bell, and the Old Faithful geyser had been reconstructed-out of sugar cubes. Courtesy of Ariel West's father. Ariel had announced the previous day at assembly that after the prom all the decorations would be donated to â€Å"the poor hungry people of Santa Barbara who need sugar.† Miranda didn't know if it was that, the balloons on rubber cords hanging from the ceiling that bounced lazily up and down as people passed under them, or foreboding, but she had a distinct queasy feeling. Sibby was in heaven. â€Å"Remember-most of the guys here came with dates, so try to be subtle with the Kissing Bandit stuff,† Miranda said. â€Å"Yeah, fine.† â€Å"And if you hear me call to you, you come.† â€Å"Do I look like a dog to you?† Miranda gave her a sharp glance. Sibby said, â€Å"Fine, okay, Funkiller.† â€Å"And if you feel like anything weird is going on at all, you-â€Å" † – let you know. I've got it. Now you go and have some fun yourself. Oh, right, you probably don't know how. Well, when in doubt, ask yourself, ‘What Would Sibby Do? â€Å" â€Å"Can I unsubscribe from that list, please?† Sibby was too busy scanning the room to respond. â€Å"Whoa, who's that hot dinner in the corner over there?† she asked. â€Å"The guy in the glasses?† Miranda looked around for a hot dinner but all she saw was Phil Emory. â€Å"His name is Phillip.† â€Å"Helllllo, Phillip,† Sibby said, plotting a direct course for him. Miranda stashed her skate bag underneath a table and stayed close to the wall, between the White House and Old Faithful, partially to keep Sibby in view and partially to avoid being noticed by any faculty members. She'd changed in the employee bathroom from her work suit into the only other thing she had with her, but although it was red, white, and blue, she didn't think that her Roller Derby uniform was really appropriate prom attire. There were two uniforms in her skate bag, a home uniform-white satin halter top and bottom with blue cape and red, white, and blue stripes on the skirt (if you could call something that was five inches long and required attached panties to be worn under it a skirt)-and an away uniform: the same thing, only in blue. She'd decided white was more formal, but she was pretty sure that wearing it with her black work flats was not helping the look. She'd been standing there for a while, wondering how everyone but her was completely capable of being on a dance floor without debilitating anyone, when she heard a pair of heartbeats she recognized and saw Kenzi and Beth sliding through the crowd toward her. â€Å"You came!† Kenzi said, giving her a big hug. One of the things Miranda loved about Kenzi was that she acted like she was on Ecstasy even when she wasn't, telling people that she loved them, hugging them, never embarrassed about it. â€Å"I'm so glad you're here. It didn't feel right without you. So, are you ready to unshackle yourself from the insecurities of your youth? Ready to own your future?† Kenzi and Beth were dressed to own anything, Miranda thought. Kenzi was wearing a skin-tight blue backless dress and had gotten a black panther with a blue sapphire eye painted on her back. Beth was in a red satin minidress and had a gold snake bracelet with two ruby eyes wrapped around her upper arm (or at least Miranda assumed they were rubies since Beth's parents were two of the biggest movie stars in Bollywood). On them, adulthood looked like a totally cool and exciting party with an excellent DJ that you could only get into if you were on the VIP list. Miranda glanced at her skating uniform. â€Å"I guess I should have known that when the time came to own my future I'd be dressed like a member of the Ice Capades B-squad.† â€Å"No way, you look fantastic,† Beth said, and Miranda would have assumed she was being sarcastic except that Beth was one of those people who was born without sarcasm. â€Å"Truly,† Kenzi confirmed. â€Å"You're deep in H2T territory.† H2T stood for Hot to Trot. â€Å"I see great things for your adulthood.† â€Å"And I see a visit to the eye doctor for you,† Miranda prophesied. In the distance Miranda saw Sibby pull Phillip Emory onto the dance floor. Miranda turned back to Kenzi. â€Å"Do you think I'm a fun person? Am I a Grandma Grim? A funkiller?† â€Å"Grandma Grim? Funkiller?† Kenzi repeated. â€Å"What are you talking about? Did you hit your head at derby practice again?† â€Å"No, I'm serious. Am I fun?† â€Å"Yes,† Kenzi said solemnly. â€Å"Yes,† Beth agreed. â€Å"Except when you get all MLAS,† Kenzi modified. â€Å"And when you have your period. And around your birthday. Oh, there was that one time-â€Å" â€Å"Forget it.† Miranda's eyes drifted to Sibby, who now appeared to be leading a conga line. â€Å"I'm kidding,† Kenzi said, turning Miranda's face from the dance floor to hers. â€Å"Yes, I think you are really fun. I mean, who else would dress up as Magnum P.I. for Halloween?† â€Å"Or think of entertaining the kids on the cancer ward by reenacting Dawson's Creek with Precious Moments figurines?† Beth added. Kenzi nodded. â€Å"That's right. Even children battling cancer think you're fun. And they're not the only ones.† Something about Kenzi's tone when she said the last part made Miranda worried. â€Å"What did you do?† â€Å"She was brilliant,† Beth said. Now Miranda was even more scared. â€Å"Tell me.† â€Å"It was nothing, just some research,† Kenzi said. â€Å"What kind of research?† For the first time Miranda noticed that there was writing up the length of Kenzi's arm. Kenzi said, â€Å"About Will and Ariel. They're totally not going out.† â€Å"You asked him?† â€Å"It's called an interview,† Kenzi said. â€Å"No. Oh no. Tell me you're kidding.† Sometimes having a roommate who wanted to be a journalist was dangerous. â€Å"Relax, he didn't suspect a thing. I made it seem like I was making small talk,† Kenzi said. â€Å"She was great,† Beth confirmed. Miranda started wishing for trapdoors again. â€Å"Anyway, I asked him why he thought Ariel asked him to the prom and he said†-here Kenzi consulted her arm-â€Å"‘To make someone else jealous. So of course I asked who and he went, ‘Anyone. That's what Ariel thrives on, other people's jealousy. Isn't that perceptive? Especially for a guy?† â€Å"He's smart,† Beth put in. â€Å"And nice.† Miranda nodded absently, looking for Sibby on the dance floor. At first she didn't see her but then she spotted her in a dark corner with Phillip. Talking, not kissing. For some reason that made her smile. â€Å"Look, we made her happy!† Kenzi said, and she sounded so genuinely pleased that Miranda didn't want to tell her the truth. â€Å"Thanks for finding all that out,† Miranda said. â€Å"It's-â€Å" â€Å"You haven't even heard the best part,† Kenzi said. â€Å"I asked why he agreed to go to prom with Ariel if they're not a couple and he said†-glancing at her arm-â€Å"‘Because no one made me a better offer. â€Å" Beth reminded her, â€Å"With that cute smile.† â€Å"Right, with cute smile. And he looked directly at me when he said it and he was so clearly talking about you!† â€Å"Clearly.† Miranda loved her friends even if they were delusional. â€Å"Stop gazing at me like I've been one-stop shopping at the Lobotomy Store, Miranda,† Kenzi said. â€Å"I'm completely right. He likes you and he's not taken. Stop thinking and grab him. Go live ITM.† â€Å"ITM?† â€Å"In the Mo,† Beth elaborated. Miranda gaped. â€Å"No. Way.† â€Å"What?† Kenzi asked. â€Å"Nothing.† Miranda shook her head. â€Å"Even if he's single, what makes you think Will wants to go out with me?† Kenzi squinted at her. â€Å"Um, breezing past all the sappy stuff about how you're nice and smart I have to say because I'm your best friend, have you looked in the mirror recently?† â€Å"Ha-ha. Trust me-â€Å" â€Å"Bye!† Beth said, interrupting her and dragging Kenzi away. â€Å"See you later!† â€Å"Don't forget! ITM!† Kenzi added over her shoulder. â€Å"Drink a can of man!† â€Å"Where are you-† Miranda started to say, then heard a heartbeat close behind her and swung around. Nearly banging her shoulder against Will's chest.

10 Facts on Real Estate Finance for a Research Project

10 Facts on Real Estate Finance for a Research Project Like with most industries were business operations are carried out solely for the reason of making a profit, the real estate industry relies heavily on finance to keep its wheels spinning. Therefore, it should come as no surprise if one is asked to conduct research projects consisting of financing in real estate. Finance in real estate affects both sides of the demand-supply chain as real estate owners require funding to build accommodating structures, while home owners or rent seekers require funds to buy or rent the homes they plan to reside in. Therefore, to simplify the task of understanding real estate and the role finance plays in it, this article will be providing some important facts covering today’s subject matter which will aid anyone looking for statistics to back up his or her research project. This article will be the first in a three-part series providing materials on creating a research report  and the follow-up articles will consist of topics which you can choose from as well as a sample essay on how to write extensively on real estate finance. So in that vein, here are the 10 facts promised at the beginning of the series: In the United States, the market crash which occurred in the 1980’s led to the consolidation of lending institutions and this weeded out unstable financial institutions. By 2009, the number of savings and loan banks in the US was reduced from 4,022 by 1990 to 1,158 in 2009 while commercial banks reduced from 15,000 to 6,379 in the same time period. A large number of these financial institutions were put under the control of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Federal Reserve Bank. Although savings and loan banks as well as commercial banks form the larger part of financial institutions that back the real estate sector, credit unions have also played a part in financing residential project in the real estate sector. Statistics show that the 7,244 credit unions in the US currently control $285billion as well as $121billion in loans to its members and the chunk of these loans goes into the real estate sector. The lucrative nature of the real estate sector has also attracted interest from other financing verticals such as the Life and Health Insurance niche. Statistics provided by The Insurance Information Institute show that companies in the life and health insurance niche invest approximately 9.85% to 10.87% of their total asset in residential loans. As of 2008, the amount put to this percentage was $327.4billion in real estate loans and this number spans across both residential and commercial properties in the US. In 2006, substantial losses in the loan and savings industry led to the creation of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act which ensured that all financial institutions- loans, savings, and commercial banks- operated through a mutual Deposit Insurance Fund in other to sanitise the loan and insurance industry. This in turn led to the restructuring of the residential loan market for both mortgage lenders and borrowers. The Safe Mortgaging Licensing Act was created in 2008 to provide regulations for mortgage lending originators (MLO) before a company can function as a mortgage provider for families, households and individuals. To ensure that MLOs function between legal frameworks, they are required to register with the Department of Real Estate (DRE) before going into operation. A maximum penalty of $10,000 can be levied on MLOs that refuse filing with the DRE as required by the act. The real estate market is affected by fluctuations in the economy and appreciations and deflations occur when a boom or recession happens. Statistics show that commercial properties in the United States fell between 40 to 50% between 2006 and 2010 due to the recession that occurred between these periods. While for residential properties, their market value depreciated between 20 to 50% in the same timeframe. The real estate market experienced its largest peak period in the 90’s due to a strong economy and the availability of mortgage and loan rates/plans that were favourable to potential buyers. Statistics showed that the real estate industry experienced a 30-40% growth between the year1990 and 1998. This was due to 100% financing plans and the hunger to make quick profits by flipping real estate ownership. The 2007 economic recession led to the largest real estate meltdown recorded in US history. This led to the largest number of foreclosures in the United States within a one-year period. Statistics showed that in 2009, the situation had deteriorated to a level where there were more foreclosures than marriages recorded for the first time in the US history. The fall of the real estate sector was attributed to poor financial planning from the 90’s boom as well as the economic recession experienced in that timeframe. Statistics from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) showed the aftermath of the economic recession on loans and financial institutions in a public report at the end of 2010. The bleak numbers were that the number of non-performing commercial loans continued to increase for the next 16 consecutive quarters. Also, 775 banks which made up 10% of the total number of banks in the US were listed as problematic depository institutions due to loan defaults primarily from the commercial and residential real estate industry. The state of Utah records the lowest number of homeless people due to the policies set in place by its government. The policy includes affordable housing loans as well as the giving out of free homes to homeless residents since 2005. Statistics in 2014, show that Utah had reduced its homeless population by approximately 74% when compared to its 2005 numbers. Here, we come to the end of the 10 important facts on real estate and finance which you should consider as important facts and statistics which to use in buttressing the arguments or questions raised in your project. This is intended to simplify your research project and the preceding articles in the series will provide more information on how to go about writing a research project guaranteed to get you the top marks you deserve. So we endeavor you stay tuned to our next pieces 20 topics and 1 sample essay on real estate finance as well as the research project guide on the subject. References: Department of Real Estate (2013). Real Estate Finance. dre.ca.gov/files/pdf/refbook/ref12.pdf Babalola, O. (2002). An appraisal of the Impact of Primary Mortgage Institutions in Housing Procurement in Nigeria. Journal of the Nigeria Institution of Quantity Surveyors vol, 13-16. Federal Mortgage. (2003). Mortgage News: A Quarterly in-house Journal of the Federal Mortgage Finance Ltd; vol 1 no. 4. William, B. (2013). Real Estate Finance and Investments, Thirteenth Edition. gbv.de/dms/zbw/516413465.pdf Steve, B. (2008). The Complete Guide to Real Estate Finance for Investment Properties. http://cdn2.media.zp-cdn.com/21275/Steve_Berges_-_Complete_Guide_to_Real_Estate_Finance_for_Investment_Properties-52a7ef.pdf The EPA Journal. (2005). The Anatomy of a Real Estate Development. https://clu-in.org/conf/tio/refinancebasics_050906/prez/FinanceBasics050106bw.pdf Retipster.com. (2011). 35 Real Estate Facts. http://retipster.com/35-real-estate-facts/

Iraq Freedom essays

Iraq Freedom essays The history of the United States has undergone many changes in the past 500 years. We have gone from being a nation governed by a hierarchy in a faraway land, to being a republic governed by the people living in it. We have experienced monarchy and we are now experiencing democracy. We have had our share of wars and political conflicts right here in our homeland. We have also been part of political conflicts elsewhere in the world. The question in everyones mind seems to be...why are we going to war elsewhere in the world? Do we not have enough problems trying to survive as a nation that we have to seek bigger thrills in faraway lands? Why did we go to war with Iraq? Was it because of 9/11? Not necessarily. It seems like U.S. government had been planning to engage Iraq and other Middle Eastern countries in battle for quite some time prior to the events of September 11, 2001. The following is a compilation of this teams research into the above questions. The information gathered by methods of research explored in class, together with polls taken both here in the United States and abroad, will provide an interesting point of view into the conflicts purpose, its effect in society as a whole, as well as a preview into the new Iraq post-conflict. Long before September 11, 2001, the hierarchy in the U.S. Department of Defense had been having heated discussions about the direction in which the Defense Department was headed as far as a strategy. The never-ending arms race around the world seemed to have intensified in recent years, with the U.S. seeking out those countries in possession of WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction). Several terrorist attacks ensued against the United States prior to September 11, 2001, thus confirming the direction and planning principles that were subsequently developed by the Department of Defense. Many believe that the main reason for going to war with Iraq wa...

How to extend and enchance a childs learning Essay

How to extend and enchance a childs learning - Essay Example Basing from relevant information and sources of knowledge, this case study shall attempt to identify ways of enhancing learning on ‘Child A’. The case shall also shed light on relevant theories on learning, and how they contribute to enhancing learning on ‘Child A’. The case study shall also attempt to relate the learning theories to classroom situation of ‘Child A’, as well as conducting an assessment on brain, gender, race, and environment, and contribution in learning. ‘Child A’ is a five year old male of Somali origin. He is newly arrived to the U.K. from Norway (6 months) and has never been to school in England before. He comes from a large family of Mother, Father, two older siblings, male of 9 years and female of 7 years and then two younger female siblings of 3 years and 6 months old. Only father and two older siblings are English speaking in the family, therefore, most of their conversation in the homes is in Somali language. He started in reception in September and is already making excellent progress considering his initial lack of English. From the above background information, it is an obvious assumption that the tutor needs to come up with methods that ‘child A’ of Somali origin will acquire concepts taught in the learning environment. The move for supporting the student must be in concurrence with active learning of the child. As evident in the work compiled by Kay (2005), and Wigfield & Wentzel (2009), direct input in the child’s learning solely depends on the communication mechanisms applied in the school setting. It is evident that once a child attends school, they receive instruction with different languages in different settings, as well as receive instruction from a dissimilar source, as opposed to their parents or caregivers. Additionally, Arnold (2005) and Golper (2012) caution that in an event that the caregivers completely shift focus to the educators, learning may not take

Islam and Christianity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Islam and Christianity - Essay Example According to them, God is caring and merciful. Both religions have a recognized and respected figures regarded as the source of their faith. This figure in Christianity is Jesus while Muhammad is the originator of the Islamic faith. One of the distinct difference between the two religions lies on their beliefs. Christians believe that God is three in one. In other words, they believe in what is known as the Holy Trinity i.e. the Father, Son, and Holy spirit. Therefore, there are three powers in one. On the other hand, Muslims believe that God operates individually (Griffith, 2012). Some of the similarities are seen on the teachings among the two religions particularly on the position of women in the society. Both the Bible and the Quran teaches that both men and women are equal before the God and hence the society ought to treat them equally. There are also other similarities between the two religions. Both believe that human beings were created by God himself in his own image and that they has dominion over all other living things in the world (Gauss, 2009). Gauss (2009) posits that both religions believe in Jesus and that he came to this world. The only difference is that Christians believe God is the son of God while Muslims consider him as a mere prophet. Christians believe that Jesus died, resurrected, and then rose to heaven. Muslim believe that Jesus rose to heaven devoid of death. Another similarity between the two religions is that both believe that the world will one day come to an end. Both believe that this will be followed by Gods judgment and people will either be thrown in hell or they will proceed to heaven depending on their sentence. Christians believe that torture or anguish in hell will be everlasting. Contrary to this belief, Muslims believe that God can forgive sinners thrown in hell and subsequently take them to heaven. Another dominant