ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
I am an international student at Pasadena City College who comes from China. This essay aims to discuss the obstacles, which I met during my learning experience at the college. The primary focus is on cultural differences and their influence on the educational process. One of the primary obstacles that harm my learning circumstances is the language. It may sound obvious, but it is an immensely important part of any communication, especially in an educational institution. Therefore, if you are not proficient in the language of your study, the struggle is inevitable. Firstly, it should be mentioned that the learning material was present to students in advanced English. While I obtain a relatively profound understanding of the text when I am reading it, the perception of the spoken information is significantly harder for me. While my native-speaking classmates were capable of taking notes, listening, and receiving information simultaneously, I was often confused since I was missing a lot of critically important points. Also, I was embarrassed to ask the professor to repeat a particular sentence several times during the lecture. Another problem, which is connected to the language, is informal communication with peers. It is worth mentioning that this aspect of my college experience – the campus life is related to several other discussed issues later. However, in this paragraph, I consider the differences in language proficiency beyond mere listening and speaking skills. People who speak the language as natives have an integral knowledge of how the language work. Even if they make some grammatical mistakes, they are always aware of linguistic and semantic characteristics such as appropriateness, context, and humor. Many jokes were not clear for me, and numerous cultural references, which were too specific to understand with my limited knowledge of American pop culture. Further, it is possible to mention another critical aspect, which hurt my college’s learning experience. It would not be surprising to claim that I missed my home (in a broader interpretation, which includes family and friends) and my homeland as a whole. This aspect is also very complicated since it comprises numerous concerns. First of all, it is an intense emotional pressure of leaving the habitual way of life and transfer into entirely new circumstances. It is possible to connect with old friends through the Internet; however, it is not enough sometimes. Secondly, it is not easy to make new friends because people tend to be less interested in friendship with people outside of their culture. As the most extreme manifestation of such attitude, I have heard racist statements about me. Even though they were presented in the form of jokes, and people might not have the intention to insult me, it was considerably depressing. Nevertheless, I have to assume that the overall impression of my learning experience at Pasadena City College has a positive tonality. This essay was dedicated to the obstacles and problems, which I have met at colle
Introduction Effective communication helps organizations to achieve prolonged success and competitiveness in the market. According to management experts, the quality of communication within an organization affects the quality of its products and services. Therefore, organizational leaders should apply the concept of quality management effectively. The United Arab Emirates is one of the best places to run a business owing to its vibrant economic environment and strong fiscal policy. Developing Effective Organizational Communication Communication within an organization entails building a workforce with the necessary skills that complement the corporate goals and market demands (Blundel 9). In order to develop effective communication within an organization, the employees ought to believe in their abilities to deliver, have the passion for their work, be self-driven, and have the desire to empower each other. In addition, effective communication entails increasing the level of interaction and engagement within the workplace (Lussier 17). Employers have the responsibility of creating a workplace environment that allows employees to integrate various life elements in
Welfare is money that the government gives to people who are in the position of being not able to work. Social welfare is the provision of services like educational, health, cultural, and financial assistance to needy. The following are modern social welfare measures; treatment of the mentally ill, relief, and care for the needy families, and educational activities for the young. Roman and Greek gave public assistance to those who held full citizenship. Social welfare was in connection with churches and later the Muslims. Afterwards, Government took over much of the charitable activities. The first modern Government expanded social welfare (Aaron). It became not only for the poor but also for those with jobs. Provided legislation was to insure workers for health, accidents, and retirement pensions. Most successful social welfare program Social Security Disability Insurance Program is an example of the most successful programs. The following are the features of the program: difficulty of entrance, adequacy of benefits, and difficulty of exit. Strengths and weaknesses of the program Many People who require assistance engage in physical work, but do not have enough salary. Other beneficiaries need the assistance because of physical, mental, or emotional difficulties. Many people who apply for this program are those who lost their jobs and cannot find new ones. It helps the disabled who hardly get jobs because of their conditions in an economy that shed a lot of workers. The program had reports that trust funds that supported it would run out of money. This made it become impossible to pay for full benefits. Later, Social Security’s retirement funds would run out too. Its strength is that, it helps families by providing additional dollars to supplement their normal grocery budget. Works Cited Aaron, Henry J. On social welfare . Cambridge, Mass.: Abt Books, 1980. Print.
Introduction I am a teacher of paper writing at the University and to make my work more successful and useful for my students I use numerous techniques and strategies in my teaching. I conduct lectures and practical classes, so the strategies differ from class to class but all of them are directed at the educational development of my students. I resort to the use of such strategies as New American Lecture Strategy, the Understanding Model and Concept Attainment Strategy, Mystery Strategy, The Inductive Learning Strategy, The Interpersonal Model and Peer Practice/ reciprocal Learning Strategy and the Jigsaw puzzle. In the following paragraphs I will disclose the essence of these methods and exemplify them with my specific examples. Main text The New American Lecture Strategy is a teaching technique that is directed at the usage of all the aspects of students’ activity and of all kinds of the student’s memory. I use this strategy during my lectures, and this allows me to control the attention of my students throughout the lecture. It works because I address students directly; I try to apply the topic of each lecture to their previous experiences and knowledge. The wide usage of visual aids accompanied by sound reproduction of the material of the lecture influences the skills of my students and they begin to memorize the material better. I also resort to using of blank organizers in which students can put their notes concerning the new information from my lecture. One of the strategies that I use in practical classes is the Concept Attainment Strategy which presupposes the analysis carried out by students themselves. I give the notion in general, and students try to find out the specific notion asking questions, answering my questions and writing down their ideas and the results of their brainstorming concerning the given point. This strategy is also called Understanding model, as it involves the development of understanding skills and analytical thinking. Using this strategy, I observe that my students make considerable progress in their study and learn material easier. Another useful strategy that I use in my practical classes is the Mystery Strategy. It implies a kind of game between me and my students, when I give a general description of the notion they have to guess, and they try to find out what is it giving their ideas and sharing the information each of them has. Both these methods help me to increase the interest in study among students and to make my classes more inter
Central Theme The authors argue that the relationship between businesses and societies is being fundamentally redefined in the modern world. For decades, the dominant view on this relationship was that businesses naturally strive for gaining and increasing profits, which is their primary goal. In doing so, businesses use communities’ resources in exchange for certain products or services. This vision led to the emergence of the concept of externalities, i.e. social costs created by companies but not borne by them. A major example of externalities is pollution. As a result, businesses around the world are blamed for problems of societies. The authors of the article suggest changing this paradigm in capitalism by reconnecting success of companies with the social progress. This can be achieved by introducing the notion of shared value to present-day companies’ business models and making creation of shared value the primary goal for businesses. First of all, the authors explain that the concept of shared value acknowledges that markets are defined by societal needs, not conventional economic needs such as increasing profits and ensuring economic growth. It is emphasized that shared value is not a new invention but a rediscovered notion that is fundamental to the market because this notion is about recognizing that businesses and communities need each other. A company needs a community that is not only able to generate sufficient demand but also provides a supportive environment for the company’s development. In turn, a community needs a business that provides jobs and opportunities for the members of the community to create wealth. This connection should be appreciated. The article describes how the majority of companies have been busy with manufacturing demand for decades while ignoring the most important demand of all: societies need products and services that are good for them. Such products and services strive for healthier practices, advance structures and interactions, promote cooperation, improve working and living conditions, and generally contribute in various possible ways to the well-being of the society. For example, for decades, food companies have been focused on producing the food that is tastier and higher in quality. A recent trend rather focuses on the food that possesses good nutrition qualities and is healthier. It proved to be mutually beneficial for food companies and
Introduction This chapter contains a review of existing literature concerning hotel pricing strategies and customer booking behaviors. The analysis is centered on reviewing the main factors influencing pricing in the hospitality industry and their contribution towards understanding customer behaviors in hotel booking. However, before delving into the details of this analysis, it is (first) important to understand the critical forces influencing the hospitality industry. E-Commerce Many studies consider e-commerce to be a critical force defining how hotels interact with their customers (Chae, Koh & Prybutok 2014; Buil, Martínez & Chernatony 2013b). The growth of this form of technological advancement means that the hospitality industry has a new reality in the way it operates. More importantly, the growth of e-commerce means that stakeholders in the sector have to rethink how they do business with each other and with their customers. Studies that have investigated how companies operate on the online platform have shown that consumer-buying behavior is mostly influenced by functional, hedonic, innovation, and aesthetic needs (Chae, Koh & Prybutok 2014; Buil, Martínez & Chernatony 2013b). Before the growth and spread of the internet in the hospitality industry, global distribution systems (GDS) played a key role in facilitating international commerce. According to Buil, Martínez, and Chernatony (2013b), the GDS played a functional role in the industry by coordinating the functions of brick-and-mortar businesses and travel suppliers. However, with the growth and development of e-commerce in the 1990s, hotels and travel agencies changed how they operate their businesses by embracing the virtual platform (Jang, Tang & Park 2013). At the time, major global hotels embarked on an aggressive marketing campaign to popularise their brands online (such as through their websites) (Chen 2014). A more interesting trend that emerged at the time was the reclaiming of value chain controls by hotels from travel agencies, which were their main source of business. Afiouni, Karam, and El-Hajj (2013) refer to this trend as “disintermediation.” Today, hotels and airlines have fully embraced this trend because they reach out to their customers directly to improve their business-customer experience and enhance customer satisfaction standards. Buil, Martínez, and Chernatony (2013a) say that online direct distribution is more important for hotels that have loyalty programs than those that do not have the same programs. This is because when customers visit their webs
Introduction Patients with concerns about gynecologic health may present to the office not understanding the cause of their problems. The condition of one’s reproductive system depends on a variety of factors, including one’s lifestyle. In the case study, a young female athlete presents to the office with a complaint of ceased menses. Her participation in sports, young age, and decreasing weight suggest such differential diagnoses as functional hypothalamic amenorrhea (FHA), polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), and pregnancy. The following analysis will discuss the primary and differential diagnoses as well as treatment and patient education. Differential Diagnosis The first potential diagnosis is functional hypothalamic amenorrhea (FHA), a common type of secondary amenorrhea. The combination of excessive exercise, stress, and weight loss leads to the reduction in the release of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and amenorrhea. It is a problem that is diagnosed by elimination – the patient’s history and anatomy have to be analyzed to exclude any pathologies (Gordon et al., 2017). Then, the patient’s psychological stressors need to be measured to determine the root cause. FHA is a part of the “female athlete triad” – three conditions for which women actively participating in sports are at risk (Kelly & Hecht, 2016). To support this diagnosis, such tests as the GnRH stimulation test are central to the assessment. The second possible condition is polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a disorder that may develop in all women of reproductive age. It is commonly associated with irregular periods, high levels of androgen, and the development of cysts on ovaries (Schuiling & Likis, 2017). A pelvic exam and blood tests (including androgen levels) can eliminate this diagnosis (Tharpe, Farley, & Jordan, 2017). The patient does not report having any other symptoms, and her weight is decreasing, which is uncommon for PCOS, thus making this diagnosis less viable. Finally, pregnancy has to be excluded in the beginning as a potential differential diagnosis. The case does not present any information about the patient’s sexual activity. A conversation with the patient and a pregnancy test will help one to see whether she could be pregnant (Tharpe et al., 2017). After dismissing on confirming the pregnancy, one can move onto other diagnoses. It may also be helpful to discuss safe sexual practices with the patient during this talk. Treatment, Management, and Patient Education The primary diagnosis of FHA is considered for treatment in this case. The first approach to this condition is a lifestyle change as FHA is influenced by sports, diet, and stress. Thus, the patient should reduce her physical activity and consult a nutritionist to increase her caloric intake and ga
The aging population is a global trend that requires reconsidering the policies that are expected to ensure that people aged 60 and over can maintain a high-quality life. According to the National Academies of Sciences (2015), the direct indexation of benefits annually can be an alternative to raising the normal retirement age. On the one hand, the social security system would not be able to cover expenses since the life longevity increases. On the other hand, the suggested policy is likely to offset social security by adjusting payroll tax rates and indexing benefits continuously, which will contribute to the integrity and proper allocation of resources. The LGBT community members face challenges with employment, education, and healthcare, while there are policies that are called to protect them. For example, H-65.983 Nondiscrimination Policy ensures that it is not allowed to discriminate against a person based on sexual orientation (Underhill, 2020). On the one side, this policy confirms that health care providers must provide services equally and reasonably to all sexual minorities. On the other side, not all care providers agree with this policy, and violations that occur in practice are still numerous. People of color have more challenges in the times of the coronavirus compared to the white population. Because of the wealth gap, people of color have more debts, problems with housing, greater unemployment, and other economic issues. It is proposed to introduce some policies that would extend economic assistance to this vulnerable population. For example, urban revitalization policies can resolve the challenges with transportation and unemployment (Maxwell & Solomon, 2020). The other side of the issue is that it takes significant efforts needed to address structural racism and achieve economic fairness.
One might state that a sale is achieved the moment a contract between the buyer and the seller is signed. Such a statement is obviously limited, where the selling process involves many stages before and after a deal was concluded. In that regard, this paper provides a brief overview of the selling process, based on the case of Dennis Thompson, the owner of an insurance store, and Carolyn S. Hardin, a potential customer whose mother has a life insurance policy that requires clarification. It can be stated that in the present case there was no approach or prospecting involved. With the customer, Harding, approaching the office of Thompson on her own, Thompson did not have to do much to identify her as a potential customer. Accordingly, as soon as she walked through the company’s door, she was already identified as a potential customer, and thus, the prospecting stage could be omitted in this case. Additionally, it can be stated that there was no approach as well, as the case revolves around Hardin meeting Thompson with no activities preceding the actual personal contact from Thompson’s side. The same can be also said about gaining entry. The preparation for the presentation can be seen through Hardin’s questions which Thompson answered. Such preparation is related to the seller’s knowledge of the insurance industry, as “[c]ustomers view a good sales representative as a source of valuable sales information” (Marks). During such a discussion, the seller was able to recognize the problems of the customers and identifying her needs. Thompson used closed questions, which are questions that seek specific answers, usually direct, limited, and to the point. The rationale for using such questions can be seen in that the seller can drive such questions in the direction of his interest. In that regard, acknowledging that his interest is to choose the direction of car insurance, rather than life insurance, which policy he could not change. Nevertheless, it can be stated that in this case the burden of responsibility was retained by the buyer, i.e. Hardin, as she was the initiator of the discussion regarding the life policy and she was the one changing the direction of the discussion to car insurance. In that regard, it can be stated that the seller in this case was rather passive, being unable to satisfy the curiosity needs of the customer. The presentation technique used by Thompson is a demonstration, in which he showed Hardin the process of accumulating dividends. Thompson did not use any visual aid material, which could have been helpful in enhancing the customer’s under
After careful thought I made up my mind to visit the church, to see how the Christians worship. On Sunday I was free to join my friend Kennedy at the Hayan Presbyterian Church and as we traveled in his car toward the church, Kennedy made me know that it was a celebration Sunday. That day was a special day and that it was designated that every individual was to come with a thanksgiving gift or offertory to recognize what God had done. So I understood why Kennedy had a box wrapped in a beautiful and shiny material. He made me know that the gift was meant for the widows and the orphans. This is how he opted to present his gratitude to God. The service had been specially announced over the media and so the service was expected to be extremely full because each person was to invite a friend or two into the annual celebration service. Every person, ready and willing to hear the gospel, headed to the same venue. As we approached the church compound, I could see the big signboard which displayed the church services. It read “the morning Sunday services at 7 am, 9 am and 11 am and evening services 1 pm, 3 pm, and 5 pm”. However, this Sunday was unique because the church expected an overflow crowd for the annual celebration. When we entered the church compound, I sensed a holiday mood, a feeling of relaxation and freedom. I realized we arrived one hour early for the 9 am service. This was a good time for me because I had a good chance to follow up on everything as it occurred. I could see some parking attendants dressed in yellow cordons and white hand gloves trying to direct the traffic appropriately to occupy the large parking space on the church square. Crowds of people gathered outside the church and many were still arriving as others moved in and out of the church in preparation for the start of the service. Suddenly people were coming out from the 7 o’clock service to give room for the 9 o’clock service to begin. As the people entered the square, each was given a wooden box filled with rice cakes. In front of the church building, there was a children’s choir dressed in blue gowns with white and shiny collars and they sang melodious gospel songs. This created an extremely joyful atmosphere. At various corners of the compound square, I could identify people issuing pieces of paper in which they were required to indicate the various church activities they intended to participate in. These scenes quickly reminded me of the way Muslims distributed books and articles including the holy Quran to the Muslim faithful. I could clearly note the difference. Whereas at our mosque, one or two people were stationed at the gate to issue the articles to the people as they arrived, here the individuals were positioned in different booths at various corners of the church square. When we entered the church building, we were welcomed by the deacons dressed in red jackets and white hand gloves and were directed to the balcony, which I later understood was set aside for outsid