Word Choice Discrete vs. Discreet

Word Choice Discrete vs. Discreet Word Choice: Discrete vs. Discreet You know those times when your friend has a massive zit on their face but you don’t say anything because you don’t want to embarrass them? That’s called â€Å"being discreet.† Or should that be â€Å"discrete†? No, it shouldn’t. But many people confuse these terms due to the fact that they sound  identical when spoken. It’s therefore worth taking a minute to run through what these words mean and how to use them correctly in your work. Discreet (Careful or Prudent) As suggested above, the correct term to use when describing something which has been done to avoid embarrassment, or to keep something confidential, is â€Å"discreet†: When I went to the clinic, the nurses were very discreet. Until you left. Then they laughed about your genitals. [Photo: OnCall team/Vlastimil]It can also be used to describe something designed to be subtle, or not attract attention: The pattern on the lapels is complemented by discreet stitching on the collar. â€Å"Discreet† is related to the quality of â€Å"discretion†, although â€Å"discretion† can also mean â€Å"freedom to make decisions† and â€Å"discreet† is not used in this sense. Discrete (Separate or Distinct) When something is â€Å"discrete†, it is separate or distinct from other similar things: Wagner’s Ring Cycle is divided into four discrete parts, played in series. The valkyries were anything but discreet. â€Å"Discrete† also has some specific, technical meanings, though these tend to be related to the idea of being â€Å"distinct† or â€Å"separate.† Discrete mathematics, for instance, is a field of math that focuses on discontinuous structures (e.g., integers, graphs and logical statements). Discreet or Discrete? As you can see, these terms have very distinct meanings (you might even say that they’re â€Å"discrete†). As such, you should take care to use them correctly in your work. When describing a situation in which someone is being secretive or careful not to cause offense, the correct term is â€Å"discreet† (e.g., â€Å"You can tell me your secret. I’m very discreet.†) When you’re describing something which is separate from other similar things, the term to use is â€Å"discrete† (e.g., â€Å"Any machine can be broken down into its discrete components.†) Remember: Discreet = Careful/subtle Discrete = Distinct/separate

Catholic Art verse Protestant Art essays

Catholic Art verse Protestant Art essays In this essay I am going to show the differences and similarities between Catholic and Protestant art works. I am first going to give a brief background into the history of the time. I am going to explain how the Protestant movement started and how it effected the art works of the relevant countries. I am going to show that the conflict between the two religions created war and social unrest between countries. I am then going to show the differences and similarities between the two. I will then use examples of art works from Vermeer, Rembrandt, Caravaggio and Rubens to show the differences and similarities. At the beginning of the 16th Century, there was a group of people who broke away from the Catholic Church. They were led by Martin Luther, and the group which broke away was called the Protestants. The Protestant group challenged the workings of the Catholic Church - they believed that if a person wanted to speak to God, they did not have to go and speak to a priest, to have what they wanted said to God. The Protestants believed that the Catholic Church had been taking an unfair advantage of the people. The Catholic Church at this point in time was losing members to the Protestant movement. They were not pleased with this. They tried in all their power to get people back to the church. One of the main ways that they tried to get people back was through the art. They had work that was bold and striking, it caught the imagination of the viewer. It awed them, tried to get them to belong to the Catholic Church. During this time in history, the Kings and Queens of countries where very religious. They were either Catholic or Protestant in faith. In these specific countries the art work of the chosen faith was supported and even promoted. Hence, the Catholic faith was based around the countries of Spain and Italy. The Protestant faith was based around the Netherlands and Germany. Due to...

Dictatorship and the Neoliberal Markets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Dictatorship and the Neoliberal Markets - Essay Example More to this, social programs in the country have been abandoned, and most of the industries run by government previously have been privatized. The ejido lands in Mexico, which refer to land given to the community, or a group of people, under the agrarian reform have also been taken over. Neoliberalism in Mexico can be traced back to the Mexican crisis of 1982. The country, under the leadership of President Jose Luis Portillo (1976-1982) borrowed heavily from external sources, with an intention of investing in railways, nuclear power, oil pipelines, freeways, and the steel industry. The borrowings were done against the oil revenues of the country, given that previous years had shown a constant increase in the oil prices. However, the prices of oil began to deteriorate in 1982, due to overproduction, and OPEC price cuts. More to these, world interest rates increased, followed by devaluation in the Mexican peso, leading to a financial crisis in Mexico. Following these events, a debt moratorium was declared in 1982. These compelled the country to accept worldwide support from the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, the US Federal reserve, and the US department of the treasury. However, they offered conditional support, which required Mexico to adopt neoliberal poli cies (Thomas, James, William, & Browning-Akien, 4). Adoption of neoliberal policies required the Mexican government to cut on its spending. This led to a reduction in the subsidies given to members of the country to promote production. Consequently, the farmers faced difficulties in production, which worsened their economic ability. More to this, reduced government spending decreased the resources allocated to important sectors of the economy. These include the health sector, education, and welfare sectors. Consequently, the rates of unemployment increased, thus making Mexicans poorer. Accessing health and education services became problematic, hence

How violent video games have positive and negative effects on children Essay

How violent video games have positive and negative effects on children - Essay Example Harmless games like Pac-man started catching the child’s attention for hours and this was the beginning of game addiction in kids. With time, development of graphics and better appealing games started appearing in the market. With rapid increase of the gaming market, the genres of games started to change and new eon was set, where games did not look harmless anymore and the violence level inhabited by these games started becoming pretty alarming. One of the first high violent games that caught the world by storm was ‘Mortal Kombat’, a unique two player fighting game. The violence however was the nature of fighting and the brutal moves that were incorporated by each character. The game also showcased extreme violence in the end of each level, in which the losing game character would die a sadistic death by getting his body parts ripped by the other character. Due to this attribute of the game, it became an instant rage especially amongst teenagers. Media has played a major part installing ideas of violence amongst children and teenagers. Violence filled games has taken this to the next level. The following study of comparison between a violent game and a non violent game indicates the impact they can have on teenager’s mind: â€Å"They also found (Study 2) that participants who played Wolfenstein 3D (a violent game where the player â€Å"walks â€Å"through a castle, armed with various weapons, and attempts to kill people) in the lab behaved more aggressively than participants who played a nonviolent game† (Bruce D. Bartholow & Craig A. Anderson. Page 2.2001) The question that arises is can we co-relate extreme violence in schools with violence in video games. Pre-teens boys are always using the techniques and moves shown in the games on each other. However the alarming part comes, when these school kids decide to kill their classmates and teachers in similar game fashion. The one player shooting games has a deep effect on teenagers and if the child is

Nigeria's point of view in the UN SECURITY COUNCIL REFORMATION Essay

Nigeria's point of view in the UN SECURITY COUNCIL REFORMATION - Essay Example The submission of these issues was considered timely following the September 2008 decision (GA) 62/557 to move the issues from Working Groups to the Intergovernmental Negotiations’ (Martini 2). The Nigerian undertaking was in accordance with policies laid down by his Excellency, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and his Cabinet, and consisted of proposals to increase the elected members to thirty-five, to change the nature of the power of ‘veto’ from being an instrument of ‘individual power’ to a collective and democratic instrument and to subject nuclear powers to accountability within a circle of client states. The meeting was attended by all fifteen members currently sitting, and there was a standing ovation after the conclusion of Mr. Oedin’s speech. Private consultation prior to sitting had also yielded some positive results – there is clearly a ‘climate for change’ among the members. However, when two of the delegations late r approached the Nigerian desk, with the intention of arranging a private meeting in April, it became immediately clear that there was a discrepancy between the intended content of our document and the interpretation by these delegations. Nevertheless, a window of opportunity has opened up for further discussions. Background to Problems The UN Security Council (UNSC) is the enforcement arm of the United Nations and has been in operation since 1945, with initially eleven members of which five were permanent, with individual powers of ‘veto, and six were elected members. In 1965, the latter body was increased to ten, bringing the total number of UNSC members to fifteen. The mandate of the UNSC has remained unchanged during the 55 years of its operation and it is now – as it was then – charged with keeping the Peace. The missions the UNSC carried out under this aim were greatly hampered during the ‘Cold War’1, obscuring systemic problems within the stru cture of the UNSC for over forty years. It is therefore mainly during the past twenty years that these problems have become obvious, through repeated unauthorized military actions by states as well as self-motivated use of veto powers by the permanent five members (Butler 10pp). In addition, the increase in member states of the United Nations between 1947 and 2011, from 50 to 1921 is in no way reflected in the increase in the numbers in the UNSC during the same period. The former nearly quadrupled whereas UNSC membership has only been increased by less than a quarter, making it questionable that member states are now adequately represented. This is particularly true when viewed from a regional perspective, as Latin America, the Middle East and Africa do not currently have a permanent voice through a permanent UNSC member (Jaramillo). Although Nigeria has been able to represent its concerns on three previous occasions3, this does ultimately not amount to permanent representation. Thi s is clearly also a general sentiment among the UN member states, which have often felt that the decisions of the Security Council do not reflect the will of the General Assembly as a whole but rather are often motivated by self-interest (Martini 2). There have been numerous past reform proposals for both the membership numbers and the powers of veto but, despite all efforts so far no solution has emerged that might have success of being debated in the UNSC (quotation needed) Nigerian proposal for reforms tabled at the March Council: His Excellency,

Research methodology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Research methodology - Essay Example It will be argued in the following that this is the guiding thread for his critique of religion. His critique of religion, it will be argued is a critique of metaphysics. His aim in the critique is to refute the idea that history is marked by spiritual progress, and in turn, replace this with a progress defined by a 'class struggle', and in particular, the material relations surrounding the means of production. Thus, the relationship between his critique of religion and his political economy, is the replacement of spiritual progress with that of the class struggle. Concerning the issue of research methodology, the following analysis will pay careful attention to what is employed by Marx. His approach on this issue, includes textual interpretation. That is, he provides analysis of key texts like the philosopher, Georg Hegel. Second, his methodology in the following is historical interpretation. In particular, he focuses on economic history but also social history. â€Å"The German Id eology† is his most decisive criticism of religion. ... Thus, the reformation can be regarded as a change of consciousness that emancipates the individual consciousness from the determination of the consciousness by the church. In turn, this change of consciousness or of thinking, helps to shape and change history itself. By contrast, Marx outlines the material conditions which determine the social relations manifest in any given culture, and further, these material conditions are the cause of forms of consciousness. Consciousness in this sense, includes also the various forms of belief systems which religion consists of. He describes the ‘priority’ of material conditions against consciousness as a determinant for human behavior and of politics, therefore, in the following: â€Å"Men distinguish themselves by consciousness, by religion or anything else you like . . . they . . . distinguish themselves from animals as soon as they begin to produce their means of subsistence . . . by producing their means of subsistence men are indirectly producing their actual material life† [Marx, 1997: 341]. Marx's critique of Hegel is central to his critique of religion. It will therefore require some analysis to demonstrate Marx's 'materialistic' interpretation of history over and against Hegel's spiritual reading of history. Marx views Hegel's philosophy, along with religion, as essentially a â€Å"mystical† position [Marx, 1970, p. 27]. By ‘mystical’, it is implied in terms of an argument which is beyond the bounds of reason, and by ‘reason’, it is implied in the material or physical sense of the term. Or, it is implied in terms of something which can be verified empirically or through sense experience. In other words, and in keeping with what was said above, it can be said that the person which Hegel is describing is

Fishers narrative paradigm Essay Example for Free

Fishers narrative paradigm Essay One could argue, for instance, that the narrative of Translators without Borders ultimately sustains and justifies an ethics of consumerism through the commoditization of human grief. By blurring the boundaries between commercial and humanitarian agendas, the narrative accommodates itself to the established cosmetic use of good causes by big business to improve its image and deflect attention from its less savory practices. Finally, the Translators Without Borders story feeds into hegemonic cultural narratives of social responsibility that are ultimately designed to make the donors feel good about themselves rather than directly address the needs of the recipients. This is evident in Lori Thicke s article, published in Multilingual Computing and Technology, where she explains the attraction of the humanitarian exercise as follows: Giving away translations for Ð ° worthy cause is Ð ° win-win scenario. Eurotexte feels good about it. The translators feel good about it, and they see Eurotexte as an agency that really cares which we do. And last but not least, our customers consider this to be Ð ° point of distinction. (2oo3:4) In the final analysis, as Hinchman and Hinchman point out, we extend or withhold allegiance to communities depending on our rational judgments concerning the narratives on which they are based (1997:238) Fishers narrative paradigm, as І have tried to demonstrate with the narrative of Translators Without Borders, offers us Ð ° framework not only for making rational judgments but also for assessing narratives in terms of fidelity and, thus, their ethical import. Gumperz (1982) demonstrated that speakers in Ð ° conversation are engaged in an ongoing and immediate process of assessing others intentions and producing responses based on the assessment of those intentions. He calls this situated or context-bound process of interpreting meaning conversational inference and the meanings themselves are flexible and evolve as conversations proceed (Gumperz 1977). To talk back and forth-to speak as well as listen-entails both sending and receiving multiple levels of meaning. In numerous examples, he illustrates how meanings are conveyed from multiple levels of language consisting of, but not limited to, lexical or phonological choice, syntactic patterns, use of formulaic expressions, code-switching, prosodic cues (intonation and stress), and paralinguistic (e. g. , pitch, register, rhythm, and volume). Meaning is not only determined by features of language, but also, as Gumperz demonstrates, by background expectations, prior knowledge or relationships, roles, cultural knowledge, and other social knowledge. According to Gumperz, interpreting meaning is Ð ° process of contextualization in which Ð ° listener associates certain kinds of cues within the language, called contextualization cues, with information content on the one hand and with background expectations, or social knowledge, on the other ( Gumperz 1978; 1982). Contextualization cues refer to any aspect of the surface form of utterances that, when attached to message content, function as Ð ° way of signaling how to understand what is said. These cues signal to listeners when speakers have made their points, which information is foreground and which is background, what the relationship is between comments, how what is said should be heard (whether anger or joking is meant), and many other kinds of information. Adopting Ð ° cross-cultural perspective, Gumperz developed Ð ° method for investigating the process of contextualization cues by examining situations where they fail to work. When speakers share similar cultural backgrounds, then contextualization cues are also shared and speakers rarely misunderstand. However, when cues are not shared, misunderstandings prevail. Schiffrin ( 1994) interprets his main contribution as emanating from his studies of the way people within Ð ° larger culture, who are members of smaller, distinct cultures, may share grammatical knowledge of Ð ° common language (such as English) but may also contextualize what is said differently than Ð ° member of the larger culture. In this way, messages are produced that are understood perhaps partially, but not completely, such that people take away different interpretations of what was said and done. The following is Ð ° well known example from Gumperz (1982: 3o) cited by Schiffrin (1994: 7): Following an informal graduate seminar at Ð ° major university, Ð ° black student approached the instructor, who was about to leave the room accompanied by several other black and white students, and said: Could І talk to you for Ð ° minute? І am gonna apply for Ð ° fellowship and І was wondering if І could get Ð ° recommendation? The instructor replied: oK. Come along to the office and tell me what you want to do. As the instructor and the rest of the group left the room, the black student said, turning his head ever so slightly to the other students: Ahma git me Ð ° gig! (Rough gloss: І am going to get myself some support. ) Before exploring how different interpretations were made by listeners, this example can serve to illustrate what interactional sociolinguistic data is and how its analysis proceeds. First, Ð ° sociolinguist analyzes actual utterances that have been written down immediately or recorded on tape by an investigator. Significant to sociolinguistics is that these are not data generated from the analysts mind or experience but rather have been actually uttered by Ð ° human being in Ð ° natural context. Second, examples from data are always accompanied by Ð ° brief explanation of the contextthe physical setting, social roles, relationships of other participants, and other information. Any utterance can be the focus of analysis by asking, how was this utterance understood by the people who heard it, and how did these participants arrive at their interpretation? For the sociolinguist, this entails describing the grammatical knowledge of participants and the socio-cultural knowledge that listeners rely on to understand the messages conveyed. Specifically, such an analysis accounts for the way explicit linguistic signs, such as word choice, intonation, rhythm, stress, and lexical and phonetic choices indicate speaker intent and also how social knowledge influenced Ð ° listeners interpretation. When these cues are tacitly shared by speakers, interpretive processes tend to go un-remarked. However, when Ð ° listener does not react to Ð ° cue or is unaware of its function, interpretations vary, misunderstandings occur, and judgments are made.