6 Good Reasons to Study English Grammar

If youre reading this page, its a safe bet that you know English grammar. That is, you know how to put words together in a sensible order and add the right endings. Whether or not youve ever opened a grammar book, you know how to produce combinations of sounds and letters that others can understand. After all, English was used for a thousand years before the first grammar books ever appeared. Knowing about grammar, says David Crystal in The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language (Cambridge University Press, 2003), means being able to talk about what it is we are able to do when we construct sentences  Ã¢â‚¬â€ to describe what the rules are, and what happens when they fail to apply. In the Cambridge Encyclopedia, Crystal spends several hundred pages examining all aspects of the English language, including its history and vocabulary, regional and social variations, and the differences between spoken and written English. Why You Should Study English Grammar Its the chapters on English grammar that are central to his book, just as grammar itself is central to any study of language. Crystal opens his chapter on Grammar Mythology with a list of six reasons to study grammar--reasons worth stopping to think about. Accepting the Challenge: Because Its There. People are constantly curious about the world in which they live, and wish to understand it and (as with mountains) master it. Grammar is no different from any other domain of knowledge in this respect.Being Human: But more than mountains, language is involved with almost everything we do as human beings. We cannot live without language. To understand the linguistic dimension of our existence would be no mean achievement. And grammar is the fundamental organizing principle of language.Exploring Our Creative Ability: Our grammatical ability is extraordinary. It is probably the most creative ability we have. There is no limit to what we can say or write, yet all of this potential is controlled by a finite number of rules. How is this done?Solving Problems: Nonetheless, our language can let us down. We encounter ambiguity, and unintelligible speech or writing. To deal with these problems, we need to put grammar under the microscope and work ou t what went wrong. This is especially critical when children are learning to emulate the standards used by educated adult members of their community.Learning Other Languages: Learning about English grammar provides a basis for learning other languages. Much of the apparatus we need to study English turns out to be of general usefulness. Other languages have clauses, tenses, and adjectives too. And the differences they display will be all the clearer if we have first grasped what is unique to our mother tongue.Increasing Our Awareness: After studying grammar, we should be more alert to the strength, flexibility, and variety of our language, and thus be in a better position to use it and to evaluate others use of it. Whether our own usage, in fact, improves, as a result, is less predictable. Our awareness must improve, but turning that awareness into better practice--by speaking and writing more effectively--requires an additional set of skills. Even after a course on car mechanics, w e can still drive carelessly. Philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein said, Like everything metaphysical the harmony between thought and reality is to be found in the grammar of the language. If that sounds a bit too lofty, we might return to the simpler words of William Langland in his 14th-century poem The Vision of Piers Plowman: Grammar, the ground of all.

The Release Of Frozen Assets - 1228 Words

The Release of Frozen Assets One of the key elements of the Iran Nuclear Deal is the lifting of sanctions against Iran by America and the European Union. These sanctions have been imposed over the years following the Iranian Revolution and Iran s pursuit of nuclear weapons. The amount of assets frozen in foreign banks is approximately $150 billion - a large number will go to preexisting debt. According to Kertscher, 2016, â€Å"Kerry had told CNBC s â€Å"Squawk Box† that Iran would get only $55 billion of the $150 billion referenced, saying the rest is committed to China and other countries† (para. 8). Kerry stated that he believed it a likelihood that some of the funds would be released to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or other†¦show more content†¦Furthermore, Iran works to destabilize the region by assisting sectarian elements in Iraq through the use of the Revolutionary Guards and by providing support for Hezbollah – the outcome leading to the Persianisation of the Middle-East. (CONGRESSMAN PITTENGER: ALLOWING TERRORISM-SPONSOR IRAN NUCLEAR WEAPONS IS TOTAL INSANITY , 2015). The U.S. has designated Iran along with Syria and Sudan as state sponsors of terrorism. As early as 1984, the U.S. has accused Iran of â€Å"numerous acts of terrorism against the United States and its interest† (Iran Nuclear Deal Background, 2015, p. 4). Americans at the Iranian Embassy were taken hostage subject to the 1979 Islamic Revolution. During the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war, there was â€Å"limited naval conflict† between the U.S. and Iran (Iran Nuclear Deal Background, 2015, p.4). When U.S. sailors were detained by the Iran s Revolutionary Guard Corp and later released, Secretary of State John Kerry announced the resolution was based upon the success of the newly developed relationship with Iran. In spite of this interpretation, the State Department has submitted a travel warning for Americans urging them to avoid travel to Iran. The U.S. government still does not have diplomatic or consular relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran. According to the DOS: The Iranian government continues to repress some minority religious and ethnic groups, including Christians, Baha i, Arabs, Kurds, Azeris, and others....Iranian authorities

The Secret Circle The Divide Chapter 4 Free Essays

As she walked home from school that afternoon, Cassie finally had a moment to herself to think. Diana and some of the others were going into town to shop for spring festival outfits. You need a spring dress for the spring festival, Suzan had insisted when Cassie said she was feeling too tired to shop. We will write a custom essay sample on The Secret Circle: The Divide Chapter 4 or any similar topic only for you Order Now But Diana interjected on Cassie’s behalf, saying if she was tired it was best to rest. Did that mean Diana didn’t really want her there? Cassie wished she was feeling more confident about her friendship with Diana, but it seemed out of sorts, just like everything right now. Cassie decided to walk the longer, more scenic route home along Cherry Hill Road, where rows of Kwanzan and dwarf bing cherry trees would be on the brink of blooming. It was a blustery March day, and the sound of the wind in the trees was her favorite. She stopped walking for a moment to look up at their leaves, to watch them shake and dance overhead until she was dizzy. â€Å"This is my turf,† a voice behind her said. She glanced around and saw a black leather jacket and black jeans. â€Å"Nick,† she said. â€Å"I walked this way to be alone, so maybe you’re on my turf.† She was trying to sound playfully sarcastic. Then she immediately ruined it by adding, â€Å"But it’s really nice to run into you.† She noticed him shift uncomfortably at the sappy comment, but more of the same started sputtering from her mouth. â€Å"It’s just . . . we’ve hardly gotten to talk lately,† she said. â€Å"And we never hang out anymore.† Nick’s face appeared cold. No smile, not even a hint of one. He obviously didn’t feel the same way. He looked away and patted his jacket pocket for his cigarettes. Then he remembered he’d quit, so he stopped patting and stood still. â€Å"I miss you, Nick,† Cassie heard herself say. And she immediately wished it hadn’t come out sounding so needy and pathetic. Nick had been this way – aloof and closed off – since Cassie and Adam got together. The rational part of her brain knew he was only shutting her out because he’d been hurt, but the other part of her brain, the irrational part, didn’t care at all about that and just wanted him back in her life. She touched the soft leather of his jacket and asked, as innocently as she could, â€Å"Don’t you miss me at all?† A pang of agony shot across his face, like she’d stabbed him in the stomach with a sharp knife. â€Å"Cassie,† he said. He was about to say something important. She could tell by the gentle tone of his voice and the way he was struggling to find the right words. It was so difficult for him to express his emotions that to watch him working so hard at it now made Cassie’s heart melt a little. This was the tender side of Nick not many people had access to. â€Å"Cassie, listen,† he said. But just then Adam drove up, honking his horn. â€Å"Hey, you two,† he called out. â€Å"Want a ride?† Shoot. What terrible timing. She and Nick were finally getting somewhere. But the moment was lost. Nick’s face, which had opened itself up briefly, closed again, tighter and more secure than a vault. â€Å"Do you want a ride home?† Cassie feebly asked him. The sight of her with Adam was the last thing Nick needed, and Cassie knew it. â€Å"I’ll pass,† he said, with the coldest voice he could muster. â€Å"But you’d better go,† he added, when he noticed Cassie’s hesitation. â€Å"Your chariot awaits.† Cassie was torn. For a split second she imagined their alternate future, the one where Adam didn’t pull up, where she and Nick talked the whole long walk home beneath a canopy of trees. She didn’t want to let this possibility go. But she knew not to push Nick too far. After all, her loyalties were to Adam, and they always would be. Nick started shuffling away in the opposite direction of home. Cassie rushed to catch up with him and whispered into his ear. â€Å"You may have earned the right to wall ow a bit,† she said. â€Å"But I’m not going to let you go that easily.† Then she jogged back to Adam’s car, opened the door, and climbed inside. The interior of Adam’s car always smelled the same. It was the sweet musk of autumn leaves and gasoline, oiled leather and rubber, and it never failed to make Cassie feel a charge. Adam looked her over, analyzing every inch of her face with his piercing blue eyes. â€Å"I thought you were going out dress shopping with the girls.† â€Å"I didn’t feel like it.† He rested his warm hand on her knee. â€Å"Cassie, are you sure everything’s okay?† She gazed out the window and didn’t answer. â€Å"Was Nick giving you a hard time back there?† â€Å"What? No, of course not. If anything, I was giving him a hard time, trying to get him to be my friend again.† Adam returned his hand to the steering wheel and gripped it so tightly, his knuckles whitened. â€Å"He needs time.† â€Å"I know.† Cassie watched the more ordinary streets of New Salem give way to Crowhaven Road and decided to change the subject. â€Å"Did you get a weird feeling from the new principal today?† she asked. â€Å"No, why? Did you?† â€Å"Kind of, but I’m not sure,† Cassie said honestly. â€Å"I think I want to ask Constance about it. Maybe she knows a spell or something that can show us his true nature.† Adam tried to suppress a smile. â€Å"I think you’re being a little paranoid, Cassie. Rightfully so, after all we’ve been through. But honestly, the only thing I found freaky about the principal is that Faye is into his son.† â€Å"I know, you’re probably right.† Cassie returned her gaze out the window. She noticed a black sedan behind theirs and strained to see if it was one of their friends. Not too many cars had a reason to turn onto Crowhaven Road. â€Å"Cassie,† Adam said. â€Å"Listen to me. Black John isn’t haunting us anymore. He’s gone. We won.† In spite of all of Adam’s sensitivity, it bothered Cassie that he still glossed over the fact that Black John, though evil, was her father. Whenever Adam mentioned him, it was always, He’s gone, gone forever – which of course was a good thing, but Adam could at least acknowledge that his death was confusing for her. â€Å"I think I’d still like to go see Constance,† she said. â€Å"Will you drop me off there, please?† Adam got quiet then, which meant he had the sense to know he’d said something to upset Cassie. They were just about at Constance’s house now, so he let up on the accelerator and slowed to a stop. Cassie noticed the black car behind them also stopped. It then made a sharp U-turn and headed back to the main road. Weird, she thought. At first no one answered her knock, but then Cassie saw Constance’s gray head of hair appear in the front window. She waved her birdlike hand at Cassie and then opened the door. â€Å"Are you here to see Melanie?† she asked. â€Å"She’s not home from school yet.† â€Å"Actually, Aunt Constance, I came to talk to you.† â€Å"Uh-oh. What’s wrong?† She led Cassie across the spotless hardwood floor to the parlor, where she’d been having tea. Cassie had grown quite comfortable in this house since her mother had stayed there when she was ill. It was similar to Cassie’s own home, but in much better shape. The walls were freshly painted, the silver was polished to a shine, and there wasn’t a speck of dust anywhere. The parlor smelled like the oill soap used to clean wood. Constance refilled her will ow-patterned teacup and poured a cup for Cassie. Then she sat back in her large rocking chair. â€Å"What’s on your mind?† she asked. â€Å"Nothing, really,† Cassie said. â€Å"I guess I just came to ask your advice.† â€Å"About what?† Constance was thin and regal, but she looked almost childlike, rocking back and forth in her chair. â€Å"I’ve been feeling kind of uneasy lately,† Cassie said. Constance stopped the rocking and rested her feet flat on the floor. â€Å"You’ll have to be more specific if advice is what you want, dear.† â€Å"Believe it or not, I’m really trying.† Cassie set her teacup down. â€Å"I guess part of it is that I know I should be happy. The Circle defeated Black John, and my mother is well again. And I have Adam, who loves me very much.† â€Å"But?† â€Å"But I can’t seem to relax.† Cassie leaned in close to Constance and began speaking more softly. â€Å"Like today, when our new principal was introduced. I started to feel all shaky, right there at the assembly. I know it wasn’t about him, but how do I know, or how can I tell. . . . Oh, I don’t know.† â€Å"How can you tell the difference between instinct and anxiety?† Constance smiled. Cassie nodded. â€Å"There’s only one way,† Constance said. â€Å"Years of practice. That’s one of the biggest challenges of having the sight.† She leaned back in her chair and appeared lost in her own thoughts for a moment. Then her thin red lips formed a smile. â€Å"Your grandmother was the same way,† she said. â€Å"What you call nervous. If you only knew how many times she woke me up from a sound sleep, crying about a bad omen that turned out to be indigestion.† Constance started laughing so hard, tears formed in the corners of her eyes. She reached for a tissue and patted them away before she went on. â€Å"I’m sorry, I don’t mean to make light of it. But it’ll get easier with time, Cassie, you can be sure of that.† â€Å"So what you’re saying is there’s no magic way to know for sure who’s good and who’s evil, no spell to test the principal’s true nature?† Constance resisted the urge to start laughing again. â€Å"Honey, if only that spell did exist, it would have been the first one I showed you.† She looked at Cassie lovingly. â€Å"Unfortunately, there’s no shortcut to peace of mind.† When Cassie made no reply, wrinkled lines appeared between Constance’s eyebrows. â€Å"Practice your daily meditations and your invocations,† she said. â€Å"Cultivate tranquility as best you can.† It was simple advice, but Cassie left Constance’s house feeling just a little bit lighter. How to cite The Secret Circle: The Divide Chapter 4, Essay examples

Electrophysiology Activity Of Neurons †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Questions: 1.Describe a method that would allow an electrophysiologist to confidently record the activity from just a single neuron, and explain how this is different to the extracellular recordings performed in the laboratory class?2.What neuronal properties account for the stereotyped shape of action potentials?3.identify and explain the range of frequencies that is critical for resolving, or observing, action potentials. Based on this range of frequencies, describe what filter(s) are most useful for observing action potentials?4.How and why cold temperatures affect action potential conduction in cockroaches. Compare the effects of temperature on action potential conduction in humans and cockroaches and account for any differences?5.When playing music to the electrodes in the cockroach leg, the leg moves. What type of sounds, or music, caused the largest movements of the cockroach leg, and why? Answers: 1. The main aim of electrophysiology is to record the activity of neurons. In vivo methods are used to record the activities from a single neuron. Through this method, the neuron cells are able to pass the important message through integration and propagation of electrical signals. The neurons are of different sizes and shapes but they play the same organized function of the transmission of the signals. The dendrites are able to receive the signals from other neurons through this method and then send them through synapses. The major difference in this method and the extracellular recordings performed in lab is that this method is able to involve both chemical and electrical signals in the transmission of the signals (Gustavo et al., 2012). The laboratory test is able to involve only the electrical signals when transmitting the signal. The fact that the extracellular recordings is under control means that one can divert the signals to follow different paths and therefore able to recor d different recordings from multiple neurons. In addition, the.polarization of the membrane is able to allow the observation of the activity at different potentials and therefore able to record it at different points (Gordh and Headrick, 2009). The action potential is able to pass at one point and therefore causing a recording at that point. The extracellular electrodes are able to detect very small potential changes and therefore making it possible to record those changes. Lastly, the electrode is usually connected to the positive input of the voltage recording. This makes it possible to record the action potential whenever they happen. 2. The neuronal property, which is able to account for the stereotyped shape of action potential, is the distance of placement of the electrodes from the neuron. The stabilization of the electrical conductivity is usually achieved when the electrodes are placed on far distance from the neurons (Gustavo et al., 2012). The stabilization of the acyional potential is able to produce the same stereotyped shape. Similar shaped will be produced at this level and able to lead to similar properties and shape type. When the electrodes are placed near the neuron, the action potential from the positive electrode and the negative potential from the negative electrode are able to collide. This is able to cause difference in the shape produced at any moment. Another key element, which is able to lead to the difference of the stereotyped shapes, is the extracellular fluid. The fluid is able to account for the speed at which the signal will be send and therefore the detection level. Ionic currents ar e able to move at different speed leafing to the.formation of the different shapes at the end (Della, Santinaa and Lewisa, 2013). The electrical potential measuring instrument is at times able to result to the stereotyped shape. The manner on which this instrument is able to measure and record the potentials is able to dictate the shapes, which will be achieved at any given moment between two points. The instrument nature of sensing the signal will therefore be a key property on the shape, which will be produced. The electrical potential between the electrodes will determine the speed and recording of the shape at the different points. 3. The filtering of the voltages is able to range from 0.1Hz and 300 Hz on the high pass and on the low pass filters between 0.3 to 20 kHz coupled with 60 Hz notch filters. Signals have to be filtered and observed properly at different frequencies in order to allow the amplification of action potential. Filtering of the voltages is essential to ensure that the best response is attained at specific voltage during the filtering process. The action of the cockroach's nerve action will differ according to the voltage at which it is exposed unto (Kruszelnicki, 2006). The sensory conduction differs according to the voltages at which the cockroach is exposed. This ensures that the monitoring of the voltage filtering between the given ranges is done closely in order to note the action potentials during the changes of the voltages. Therapeutic effects also depend on the voltage changes and therefore these action and effects has to be monitored well to ensure the effects are noted. Nevertheles s, these effects can be noted at different levels and thus require close monitoring. 4. The nerve conduction changes when the temperature around the bodies changes. The skin temperature is able to change when the cockroach are cooled. Nevertheless, the cooling does not stop the physiological level of response and this is able to induce hypoalgesic effect on the cockroach. Sensorial and tibial motor nerves are are in action and even under cooling, the nerves are still in action (Gullan and Cranston, 2014). The cooling is able to affect the upper skin and its sense and therefore affect the action. Reduction of the sensory nerve conducting velocity is usually achieved when the cockroach is cooled. The conduction parameters are able to change and this leads to change in action of the cockroach body when cooled. The reduced temperature is able to affect the upper skin operation of the cockroach skin. This does not prevent the inner nerves to produce and transmit the signals. This is able to induce the required electrical and chemical signals leading to the action potentia ls. It is possible to record the sensory action potential since the therapeutic effects are able to induce movement on the cockroach and enhance the response required. The difference on the action potential conduction in human and cockroaches are far different. Under the cooling effect, the nerves of the human beings are affected and their action potential is affected. This is contrary to the cockroach aspects where the cooling only affects the upper skills and not the inner nerves (Rentz, 2014). The human nerves will be unable to stimulate the action in order to create the potential difference. Potential conduction in human is usually low under the exposure to low temperature. Therapeutic effect is largely seen where the motor nerves in human beings are unable to act under the cooling effects. This is a key difference, which is attained between the actions of the specimen when exposed to cooling effect. 5. When playing the music, the high frequency sounds are able to produce the most movements. This proves that high frequencies are able to produce high stimulation to the leg muscles (Harper, 2009). The increase in volume leads to low frequency sounds and therefore producing high movements of the legs. The low frequencies are able to produce the best response to the legs of the cockroach. In addition, at high frequencies, coupled with more volumes are able to stimulate the movement of the legs. The sound is able to produce produce some magnetic fields which produce signals for the legs to move. The sound is able to stimulate the cockroach nerves and therefore causing the movements (Dagda et al., 2013). Sound waves produce electrical waves, which make the cockroach legs to respond according to the frequency level on he music or sound produced. Ulnar nerve simulation is able to.depend on the electrical frequencies, which induce the simulation. Increase on the electrical frequencies is able to increase the simulation. This is the same aspect where the increasing the frequency of the sound causes the larger movement of the cockroach legs. The ulnar nerves are able to response slow to the articulation of the low electrical stimulation. The same response is seen in the cockroach when the.sound is made on the legs. High frequency sound high response of the legs whiles the low frequency sound produce low response on the legs. References Dagda R. K., Thalhauser R. M., Dagda, R., Marzullo, T. C., Gage, G. J., (2013). Using Crickets to Introduce Neurophysiology to Early Undergraduate Students. Journal of Undergraduate Neuroscience Education (JUNE), Fall 2013, 12(1):A66-A74 Harper, D. (2009). "Cockroach". Online Etymology Dictionary. Gordh, G. and Headrick, D. H. (2009). A Dictionary of Entomology (2nd ed.). Wallingford: CABI. p.200. Gustavo, R. K., et al. (Nov. 2012). "The Adaptive Bases Algorithm for Intensity-Based Nonrigid Image Registration." IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging, vol. 22, No. 11 pp. 1470-1479. Della, C. C., Santinaa, G., T., and. Lewisa, K., E. (March 2013). Multi-unit recording from regenerated bullfrog eighth nerve using implantable silicon-substrate microelectrodes. Journal of Neuroscience Methods. Volume 72, Issue 1. Rentz, D. (2014). A Guide to the Cockroaches of Australia. CSIRO Publishing. Kruszelnicki, K. S. (23 February 2006). "Cockroaches and Radiation". ABC Science. Gullan, P. J. and Cranston, P. S. (2014). The Insects: An Outline of Entomology. Wiley. p. 508.