How to Write a Review Article

How to Write a Review Article A review article is a summary that evaluates another writer’s article. In order to write a review article, it is crucial that you understand main points and argument. Writing an article review is not difficult as many people think. In this article, we are going to give you tips that will help you write an outstanding review article. 1. Know what is a review article The first thing that you need to do if you want to write an outstanding review article knows what exactly is an article review and the audience that the article is meant for. An article review is generally an article that summarizes main ideas, position, findings arguments of an already existing article. After writing the review, the writer can express his/her opinion by praising or criticizing the overall effectiveness of the article but it must be based on the author’s research. This type of article usually targets audience who are well educated and knowledgeable and hence should be written well. 2. Understand the article You can only a review of an article that you are well conversant with. The mistake that most writers do before reviewing the work of another researcher is relying on other people’s information as opposed to reading the article by themselves. You need to ensure that you understand the article that you intend to review by reading it in details. You need to read the article entirely to know the overall argument and point that the article is making. Don’t just read the article once, you need to read it twice or thrice to ensure that you know all details and facts at hand. This way, you will not only write a good article review but your review will also be based on facts. The only way to write a good review is to understand what the article is all about. 3. The review in your own words Another mistake that most writers do when writing an article review is lifting every word from the original article. The essence of reading and understanding the article before writing it to be able to write a review on your own word. You need to use your own style but you need to ensure that you remain objective by focusing on main points, arguments, and claims that the article makes. All the points that you make need to be factual based on the article that is reviewing. An article review is usually short, precise and straight to the paint. You, therefore, need to ensure that you only to include the important aspect of the article. 4. Outline your evaluation When writing an article review, you need to determine whether the facts presented by the author are correct or not. That is why it is very important to understand the article in details. You also need to point out if there is the new contribution to the field as well as areas of the article that needs improvement. 5. Write your critique and a compelling conclusion At the end of the review, you need to write an independent opinion on how the author has addressed the topic. Express your thoughts as to whether the article is relevant to the subject, clear and objective. Evaluate the article contribution to the field and whether it was able to address the problem at hand. You also need to point out if there are any biases and decide whether the author addressed the issue well or not. You also need to say if the article will benefit the target audience or not. After that, you need to write a compelling conclusion that summaries the main points of the article. You also need to comment on things that need further research.

Dissertation Help

Dissertation Help Dissertation Help Dissertation Help Welcome to our blog!  Read the following strategies for clear thesis dissertation writing: Stay focused on the point. It is surprising how often a sentence or a paragraph can wander aimlessly. Ask yourself, 'What is this sentence/paragraph about?' and 'What do I try to say?' Be critical, very critical, of what you write in dissertation because your dissertation examiners will be! Write in whole sentences (except for headings). Each sentence should be grammatically correct and thematically justifiable. Lack of careful dissertation editing creates an impression that many students write much worse than they speak. A good dissertation test of whether a sentence is complete is to ask yourself, 'Could I say this to an audience during the formal lecture?' Dissertation statements that are incomplete, emotional or not supported are usually not suitable for a formal lecture. Similarly, they are unlikely to be appropriate for your MBA dissertation. Use linking sentences and paragraphs. Linking sentences are useful because they build a bridge to the next paragraph and, therefore, maintain coherency and flow. Linking paragraphs are also useful at the end of a chapter, usually after a summary paragraph, inviting dissertation reader to summarize what has been just read and introduce the next chapter. Linking sentences such as 'The preceding analysis has demonstrated - can summarize your dissertation argument and build a bridge to the next dissertation section or chapter. Dissertation Proposal Avoid double negatives. While the preceding sentence is true, the accumulation of negatives makes the sentence difficult to follow. Positive statements such as 'Avoiding double negatives makes it easier to follow the flow of an argument' are much easier for dissertation reader to understand. Be aware of prescriptive language. This site is written in prescriptive language ('you should'), but dissertation papers should not be. Junior research students are often tempted to make sweeping judgments ('managers should ..., 'good researchers must ). Your dissertation writing should include more prudent language such as 'the evidence supports ... or 'such a view reinforces... or 'the divergent theories suggest ..., Broad statements invite a critical dissertation examiner to think of occasions that are not very knowledgeable on the issue. .Com You may request professional dissertation help at our site.   Out writers are capable of impressing you with depth of research, professional presenting, and diligent work. We are open for communication and we guarantee excellent results. It means that we provide qualitative dissertation help, not quantitative.   It would not be true if we say that we do not care about the number of orders, we do. However, we are focused on the quality in the first place.   We are able to provide dissertation help and we are available 24/7!

Oral questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Oral questions - Essay Example This meant that doing the good means that an individual knew the Good. On the other hand, Aristotle claimed that recognizing the right thing wasn’t enough, and one should act in a good manner so as to develop a routine of doing good (Vaughn, 244). Philosophically, Plato alleged that ideas had an ideal form, universal form, thus directing him to his idealistic philosophy. Moreover, Aristotle argued that the ideal forms were not substantially involved in each concept or object and that each illustration of concepts or ideas had to be examined on their own. Scientifically, Plato’s work was founded more on insights than on its applicability, and Aristotle’s work was essentially on explanations or extensions of developing ideas and not on insights. Politically, Plato claimed a person must incorporate his or her welfares to those of the society, in order to attain a faultless form of administration. Aristotle disagreed with this idea since he viewed the simple political component as the city that took pre-eminence over family, which consecutively took control of the people. In the allegory of the cave, Plato likens individuals inexperienced in the form’s theory to convicts in a cave, attached to the wall with no chance of spinning their heads. Flames were burning behind the convicts and what they could view was the shades of the puppets positioned in the middle of the fire and the walls cave. Further, the convicts could not comprehend that the echoes heard and flames seen were reflections of real objects. Finally, this allegory recaps majority of philosophical thoughts and views of

'China should prioritise improving its relationship with the ASEAN Essay

'China should prioritise improving its relationship with the ASEAN countries over its relationship with the US'. Discuss - Essay Example It is indeed, an open secret that the relationship between some countries is more cordial, integrative and coordinated than others. Commonly, a nation will consider a number of factors before deciding the type of countries it would forge alliance or relations with. Over the past decade or two, the need for economic advancement and growth has become one of the most paramount factors considered in the stake for selecting partner (Hyer, 2004). Political factors have also been very influential as a means of seeking political dominance. Like all other countries, China has its own international partners and coordinated countries. China’s relations with the United States for instance have been one of the most talked about over the past decade. Apart from the United States, China also has had a higher level of relationship with the Association of South Eastern Asian Nations (ASEAN). In this essay, there is a careful scrutiny to the relationship that exists between China and the United States as well as China and ASEAN to discuss why prioritizing her relationship with ASEAN would do more good to China than a prioritized relationship with the United States. Overview of International Relations International relation is basically the study of relationship that exists between countries. ... ernational relations is a pathway that leads to and brings about an essential and itemized formulation of foreign policy strategy (Dowdy and Trood, 2007). What this means is that countries engage in relationships with other countries as a means of forging and achieving long term foreign policy plans to rule their nations. Commonly, countries want to achieve political and economic power over others. But to make political dominance possible, the counties ought to have several representation and seats in as many international organizations and institutions as possible (Prakash, 1994). To this end, they would relate with other countries so as to gain voting support when the need arises for such international office elections. For economic dominance to be possible also, it is important that countries have as many international markets as possible as the size of a country’s market is proportional to the size of its economy (Shenon, 2005). Against this backdrop also, countries would want to have as many international partners as possible. Indeed, as long as the phenomenon of the League of Nations through the United Nations Organization continues to exists, there is the tendency that such flexibility and allowances that make easier inter-national relations will continue. History of China-US relations The relationship between China and the United States dates back to 1844 when it took place in the form of the Treaty of Wanghia in 1844. Among other factors, the treaty and for that matter relationship was necessitated as a means as allowing much and easier accessibility of the movement of people and good to and from the two countries. To this end, there was the fixing of trade tariffs for the two countries. Citizens of the United States were also allowed the freedom or right to

Equity and Trusts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 3

Equity and Trusts - Essay Example Jeremy Fanshawe, being a the trustee of the estate of his late father with sole beneficiary as his son, Kelvin as well as trustee of a small family trust or â€Å"joint trust† where the beneficiaries are his ex-wife Lydia and their adopted daughter Miriam, has a sensitive role in not only ensuring that the trusts are managed effectively but also beneficiaries received their share. As trustee, he has the fiduciary duty to enforce the agreed contents of the contract he has signed with his late father as well as the small family trust or joint trust2. Under the UK law, he is required a duty of care which is Part 1 of the Act wherein as trustee, Jeremy is expected to be reasonable3: (b) if he acts as trustee in the course of a business or profession, to any special knowledge or experience that it is reasonable to expect of a person acting in the course of that kind of business or profession†4. This would require Jeremy to have prior knowledge and sufficient effort exerted to determine the viability of conducting the business about purchase of art works by the artist Farrah Foster as an investment. Whilst his first purchase, a painting, indeed increased value from  £13,000 to  £26,000, the manner of which this â€Å"investment† has been undertaken without clear purpose and process.  £20,000 worth of money was transferred from the joint trust account to his personal current account. Section 2 of the Schedule specifies that â€Å"when exercising any corresponding power, however conferred† 5 under Compounding Liabilities. On Part II Investment Section 4, it was required under Standard investment criteria, the trustee upon exercising power of investment, whether arising under this Part or otherwise, the trustee must have expertise to the standard investment criteria6. On the same manner, The Act also provides that: â€Å"Application of duty of

Abdullah Badawi’s Effect on Political Economy

Abdullah Badawi’s Effect on Political Economy 1.0 INTRODUCTION Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the fifth Malaysia’s Prime Minister (2003-2009), was born on 26th November, 1939 in Kampung Perlis, Bayan Lepas. He was greatly influenced by his family religious background and further strengthened it through the subject of Islamic Studies in Universiti Malaya, and graduated in 1964. After he was graduated from Universiti Malaya, Abdullah was working as a civil servant, including Assistant Secretary in the Public Services Department and Head Assistant Secretary in the National Operation Council (NOC) (Welsh, 2003). At that time, he also was also being a Director in the Ministry of Youth and Sports; and since 1974, Deputy Chief Secretary in the same ministry. In 1978, Abdullah resigned in the civil service and had been elected as the candidate for Kepala Batas Parliament seat For the year 1978-1987, Abdullah has won the 1978 elections for the Kepala Batas Parliament seat (Sivamurugan Rusdi Omar Mohd Azizuddin, 2010). He was then elected as Parliamentary Secretary and Deputy Minister in the Federal Territory Ministry. He was also been Minister in Prime Minister’s Department (1981-1984), Minister of Education (1984-1986), Minister of Defence (1986-1987). From the year 1987 to 1990, it was climax in Abdullah’s political leadership. The growth of Anwar Ibrahim and the presence of opposition leaders in UMNO had not feared by Abdullah (Sivamurugan Rusdi Omar Mohd Azizuddin, 2010). By this, he finally get the highest position in the party and government. He was trusted by Dr.Mahathir to offer him for involving in 1990 General Elections. He was also elected as the part of Cabinet. The support gained by Abdullah not only particularly on inner support but also because of his inner confidence and strength that had given him a trust by peoples (Sivamurugan Rusdi Omar Mohd Azizuddin, 2010).. Abdullah was served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs during 1991-1999. At that time, Abdullah also succeeded in winning back the UMNO Vice President seat in the 1996 elections after the failure to win Vice President seat in 1993 (Case, n.d). He gained the Dr. Mahathir’s trust and was finally elected as the UMNO Deputy President in 1999 and Deputy Prime Minister, the fourth under the leadership of Dr. Mahathir. In Jun 2002, Dr. Mahathir announced to retire, and announced to the public that he had given trust to Abdullah to be his successor of Prime Minister. The main objective to conduct this case study is to critically examine the political economy throughout his reign of nearly six years. The specific objectives are; firstly, to critically review Abdullah’s political performance by providing the election report between 2003-2009 and figure out the reason why the mass supported him; secondly, to interpret the international economy oil price and its problems; thirdly, to identify issues and challenges during his tenure, whether Abdullah’s political policy affects the Malaysia’s economy or vice versa or both. To complete our research, we will assess the data from books in library, journals articles, newspapers and electric sources to prove whether our argument is valid or not. The research is conducted by 3 members, everyone from each will be divided to collect sources based on their own task. Our finding will dramatically advance our understanding of political economy under the administration of Abdullah. 2.0 LEADERSHIP OF ABDULLAH BADAWI During Abdullah’s premiership, the government policies did not change much. To him, he was presiding over an individual change rather than regime change. Abdullah implemented his promise to address corruption. Abdullah is widely admired for his religious knowledge and credentials, and can confront Islamic radicals (in his own quiet way) while maintaining respect from mainstream society (McCreedy, 2003). Abdullah’s personal style—mild, incremental, consensual—will differ from the fiery tone of his predecessor (Tun Mahathir), and likely improve relations with the West (McCreedy, 2003). Not having as Mahathir aggressive personality as Mahathir had, Abdullah showed an early willingness to listen and work as a team. He attempted to bring economic liberalisation, declared war on corruption, improved governance, and opened up democratic space (Ahmad Fauzi Abdul Hamid Muhammad Takiyuddin Ismail, 2012). To reform policy, he re-attached importance to agriculture, re-emphasized poverty eradication, highlighted human capital development, and shifted focus to regional development which was been practiced by the second Prime Minister, Tun Abdul Razak. Abdullah was so much emphasing on religious and he attempted to establish Islam Hadhari, a progressive approach towards understanding and practising Islam as a modern rather than conservative religion. Thus, Abdullah’s leadership style was soft-personality, but under his premiership, many plans were proved to be more than just declare. 3.0 ISSUES AND CHALLENGES FACED BY TUN ABDULLAH BADAWI 3.1 The Global Financial Crisis (2008-2009) The global financial crisis (GFC), caused by the bursting of a speculative bubble in the US housing market in 2008, affected the capital flows, trade flows, and commodity prices of the world (Athukorala, 2010). Different countries have been affected differently, depending on the nature of their financial/trade linkages with the rest of the world, the quality of financial institutions and polices. As we will see below, for Malaysia, the financial and economic development had worsened in 2008 and 2009. Our GDP remained declining in the year of 2008, ultimately 0.1% growth of GDP in third quarter of 2008. The GDP felt by approximately 3% in the fourth quarter of 2008, which was also the first time in negative territory since 2001 (figure 1) (World Trade Organization, 2011). From the data interpreting above, we could imagine that during Abdullah Badawi’s premiership, the main challenge affected by global financial crisis was the declining of GDP in Malaysia in 2008 and the exportation of Malaysia declined. 3.2 International Oil Price Crisis The second issue and challenge faced by Abdullah Badawi is international oil price crisis by 2008. The oil price has skyrocketed to levels never predicted by the strategists and economic planners, estimated from USD170 per barrel in end 2008 to USD200 in 2009 (D-8 Secretariat Istanbul, 2008). The increasing of oil price at that time also caused the price of food increased beyond the normal abilities to pay by the poor. Abdullah Badawi (2008) said that the oil price crisis was required global-level solutions, and Malaysia was needed to bring up this issue to international community to resolve together. It is undeniably that the oil price crisis also caused the most urgent challenge facing by Malaysia was the food shortage in the world. As the global oil price increased, the food price also increased, and believed to reach more than 75% since 2000 (D-8 Secretariat Istanbul, 2008). These had threatened to the Malaysia’s economic growth under Abdullah Badawi’s tenure. Thus, the methods that used by Abdullah Badawi to solve the issue were to cut off the government subsidy on fuel (since the increasing of oil price has burdened the government subsidy on fuel) and also suggested to produce or creating alternative sources of energy, such as bio-fuels and agriculture. From Table 1, fuel subsidies had raised from RM2.4bil or 3.8% of total operating expenses (OE) and 0.7% of GDP in 2001 to RM7.3bil in 2006 or 6.8% of total OE and 1.3% GDP (Ministry of Finance, 2008). While in 2007, it rose further to RM8.8bil or 1.4% of GDP (Ministry of Finance, 2008). In estimated 2008, fuel subsidies would escalate to estimate RM15.5bil or 12% of total OE and 2.3% of GDP (table 1) (Ministry of Finance, 2008). From Table 2, the petroleum product subsidy had increased from RM16.0bil in 2005 to RM16.2bil in 2007, but had decreased from 43.7% of total subsidy in 2005 to 37.3% in 2007 (Ministry of Finance, 2008). It could be said that the government had begun to cut off the fuel subsidy due to the increasing of oil price in 2007 but had put more effort on gas price subsidy due to Abdullah Badawi’s recommendation policy on replacing the fuel energy. 4.0 POLITICAL POLICY AFFECTS ECONOMY OR ECONOMY AFFECTS POLITICAL POLICY? During Abdullah Badawi’s tenure, whether his political policy had affected Malaysia’s economy or the economy had affected his political policy? Based on our research, we would critic that during Abdullah Badawi’s era, the economy had affected his politcal policy. We would provide few facts at the following to support our critical analysis. The first fact is, the rising of world oil price to between US90 and US100 a barrel is expected to force Abdullah Badawi administration on reduction in fuel subsidies in 2008. According to Asia Times (2008), the fuel and gas subsidiaries approximately cost US12bil a year. The global oil price crisis had put increasing burdens on the family budgets, especially the middle-income family from developing country. Not only that, the oil price crisis also forced governments to curtail expenditures or reallocate resources for development in order to meet the more immediate needs of societies (D-8 Secretariat Istanbul, 2008). Thus, from our analysis, we could comment that the rising of oil price had affected Abdullah Badawi to reduce or cut off the fuel subsidies policy to societies. However, we could not find any other long-term solutions yet to stabilize the price of oil in the market. Perhaps, the reduction on fuel subsidies would be the best alternatives for controlling the government exp enditures. However, Abdullah Badawi’s reduction fuel subsidiary policy had been implemented until today. It could be proven by Malaysian government now (Najib Razak’s era) is following Abdullah Badawi’s step to cut fuel subsidy on ron95 fuel (Athukorala, 2010). In our opinion, there are pros and cons on abolishing fuel subsidy in Malaysia. The pros definitely would be the Malaysia takes advantages of falling global oil price and reduce the burden of government. If cut off fuel subsidy be implemented, the oil price would be followed international oil price, thus, if global oil price reduces, then Malaysia would pay lesser to import oil (McAleavey, 2014). Moreover, abolishing fuel subsidy could benefits government because government could save up the money to use it on other field of subsidiaries. The con on abolishing fuel subsidy in Malaysia would be widen the wealth gap issues. Dismissing fuel subsidy would be benefited to high-income households instead of protecting the l ow-income workers (Palatino, 2014). Nevertheless, in our point of view, if the reduction on fuel subsidy policy would be announced and get opinion from the societies first, it would be more beneficial to both societies and government to achieve a win-win situation. The second fact that we could provide to prove that the economy had affected Abdullah Badawi’s policy is the recommendation on Bio-Fuel Policy in 2006 (D-8 Secretariat Istanbul, 2008) by Abdullah Badawi as a renewable sources of energy to encounter the increasing of oil price issue. The goal to implement this policy is to promote the use of bio fuels as an alternative to petroleum in Malaysia. Examples of bio-fuel or bio-gas could be natural gas vehicles (NGV). Based on our finding, National Biofuel Policy (NBP) provided an alternative to reduce the dependency on petroleum in Malaysia. Palm oil is used as the alternative resource to replace the depleting petroleum as it is more environmental friendly and it could produce investments for it value added-finished products. Oil palm is an energy-efficient crop and the adoption of renewable energy resources started as the crisis of increasing oil price and depletion of crude oil reserve. Palm oil contribute the largest part in Malaysia’s economic. NBP was being launched to sustain the economic growth. Few objectives were formulated to mobilize the local resources for biofuel production and explore new technology to generate energy as an alternative resources (table 2). In 2009, the use of B5 blends (Envo Diesel) of 5% diesel biofuels and 95% petroleum diesel was introduced (Majid, 2015). This was to create an environmental friendly and renewable energy resources. The use of biofuel is definitely a great idea yet the usage of diesel biofuel in Malaysia is still low. Moreover, diesel engined-vehicles is more expensive than petrol engined-vehicles. Thus, less people supported the biofuel policy. It is in fact that until today, the Najib Razak’s era, this policy was not implemented yet in Malaysia. The current prime minister could only implement the reduction of fuel subsidy policy, instead of carrying up the bio-fuel policy. Based on our research, there are a few weakness of this National Biofuel Policy which launched by Datuk Sri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in 2006. Ccsenet.org (2011) mentioned that the weakness of this policy is that the demand from market is small. There is only few diesel users compare to petrol users. Thus, the biofuel policy only benefits some of the populations. Figure 2 shows the difference of energy consumption between petroleum products and biodiesel in Malaysia. The minuscule domestic market could not gain much profits and supports from the people and lastly would fail to reach the objectives of the policy. Besides that, the biofuel infrastructure which could fulfill the basis of nation was not sufficient. People might feel interested and wish to try something which is new and environmentally friendly yet the lack of infrastructure had made the policy unsuccessful. According to Phys.Org (2009), 16 biofuel plants were built but due to low price of biofuel was not being operated. The infrastructure that being built was wasted and made the people feel not confident with the good side of biofuel. The lack of market opportunities of biofuel had also lead to the failure of this policy. Development of biofuel always related to the rain forest deforestation which lead to biodiversity loss. Malaysia has chosen a solution of land-clearing to get plant oil-palm for biodiesel. Climate changes and global warming had become the issue in few conferences and lead to the failure of this policy. Resources and skilled workers and research were not fully utilized to conduct the policy. Thus, National Biofuel Policy is indeed a good policy if we have sufficient manpower, resources and technology intelligence to make it successful and increase the nation’s economic growth. However, the lack of skilled labour and technology and high dependency towards petroleum had caused the implementation of the mandate of B5 biodiesel sale to be delayed in February 2010. 5.0 CONCLUSION The difference in Abdullah Badawi’s leadership style with his predecessor brings about cause for some to consider it as a weakness and loss of control (Utusan Malaysia, 19 September 2006). Under his tenureship, Malaysia had experienced two big challenges, which are the global financial crisis and international oil price crisis during 2008-2009. These two challenges yet never came into a long-term solutions to solve these issues until today. Therefore, in our opinion, the international oil crisis, cut off subsidiaries on oil and increased of oil prices in Malaysia perhaps are the reasons to let him lose his mass support on general election in 2008. REFERENCES Welsh, B. (2003). Malaysias transition: Elite contestation, political dilemmas and incremental change. Washington, D.C: Asia Program Special Report. Sivamurugan, P., Rusdi Omar., Mohd Azizuddin. (2010). Work with Me, Not for Me†: Malaysia under Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (2003-2009). Asian Culture and History, Volume 2, Issue 1. Case, W. (n.d). Abdullah Badawi’s first year as Malaysia’s Prime Minister. Austrialia: Griffith Asia Institute. McCreedy, A. (2003). Passing the mantle: A new leadership for Malaysia. Washington, D.C: Asia Program Special Report. Welsh, B. (2003). Malaysias transition: Elite contestation, political dilemmas and incremental change. Washington, D.C: Asia Program Special Report. Welsh, B. (2003). Malaysias transition: Elite contestation, political dilemmas and incremental change. Washington, D.C: Asia Program Special Report. Welsh, B. (2003). Malaysias transition: Elite contestation, political dilemmas and incremental change. Washington, D.C: Asia Program Special Report. http://www.energyglobal.com/downstream/refining/30102014/Malaysia-reduces-fuel-prices-1527/ http://thediplomat.com/2014/10/why-malaysia-reduced-its-fuel-subsidy/ http://www.twn.my/title2/ge/ge26.pdf APPENDIXES Figure 1: Real GDP and trade growth of Malaysia, 2008-10 Source: World Trade Organization, 2011. https://www.wto.org/english/news_e/pres11_e/pr628_e.htm Figure 2: The Difference of Energy Consumption between Petroleum Products and Biodiesel in Malaysia. Source: National Energy Balance 2012 (Retrieved from Malaysia Energy Statistic Handbook, 2014) Table 1: Malaysia’s Fuel Subsidies 2001-08 Table 2: Malaysia’s Subsidies and Financial Assistance (RM bil) 2005-07 Source: Ministry of Finance, Bank Negara, Department of Information, Malaysia CIMB/GK Research, 2008.

linux encryption Essay -- essays research papers

.: Contents :. I. INTRO - About   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   II. ENCRYPTING - Containers - Drives - Files   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   APPENDIX   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   .: I. INTRO :. [-=] About [=-] This is a quick rundown on how to encrypt files, containers, and drives under Linux. The use of loopback encrypted filesystems and openssl is explained and examples are given. This paper should have you encrypting in no time. The following commands were done running kernel 2.6.9. .: ENCRYPTING :. I'll outline how to create encrypted containers and drives using the loopback filesystem support and file encryption via openssl. [-=] Containers [=-] This is essentially creating a filesystem within a file and mounting it as a device. Containers vastly decrease the tedious task of individually encrypting files since you simply move your files into the mount point and then unmount and they nicely encrypted. First, you need to create a blank file using the dd command. dd if=/dev/urandom of=crypto.img bs=1M count=50 - The first parameter uses the /dev/urandom device to create the file with random data to make it more difficult to distinguish between free space and encrypted data. The /dev/zero device can be used but is not advised. - The second parameter of=crypto.img defines the name to be given to the file and this can be changed to suit your preference. - The third parameter bs=1M instructs the dd command to create the file in 1MB blocks. I recommend you leave this value as 1M - The final parameter defines the size of the file in relation to the bs parameter. Since bs=1M and count=50 the file will be 50MB hence changing the count value to 100 would yield a 100MB file and so on. It is worth mentioning that the file can be resized once created this will be explained in the appendix. Second, the file must be associated to a loop device and encrypted. losetup -e aes256 /dev/loop0 crypto.img - The parameter -e aes256 at the beginning instructs losetup on which cipher to use. The cipher type is dependent on what your kernel supports. In this example the AES 256 bit cipher is used but you can use other cipher types such as blowfish interchangeably. - The second parameter /dev/loop0 is the device to which we bind the file too. Binding the file will allow us to format the file with filesystem. - The final pa... ...utputs at password.txt.enc. (This is a rather redundant explanation but oh well) Now to decrypt a file. openssl enc -d -aes-256-cbc -in password.txt.enc -out password.txt - The enc -d -aes-256-cbc part of the command specifies which cipher to use for decryption. - The -in password.txt parameter specifies which file to decrypt. - The final parameter instructs openssl to output the decryption into a file. This parameter can omitted and the file will be decrypted to stdout. .: APPENDIX :. [-=] Resizing containers [=-] If you formatted your container with the ext2 filesystem you can resize it with the ext2resize app. First, increase the size of the container. In this example the file acting as the encrypted container is called crypto.img and its size is incremented by 20MB. dd if=/dev/urandom bs=1M count=20 >> crypto.img - The of= parameter is omitted and instead >> is used at the end of the command to append 20MB to the crypto.img file. Second, bind the file to a loop device. losetup -e aes256 /dev/loop0 crypto.img Third, extend the ext2 filesystem within the container. ext2resize /dev/loop0 That is all thats needed to resize your encrypted container.

Twelve Keys to Answered Prayer

TWELVE KEYS TO ANSWERED PRAYER Why does God not answer most people’s prayers? Do you know how to pray in a way that will get real results? Here are 12 practical steps that will help secure the favor of God for answered prayer! Key #1—Pray Sincerely to the True God It is absolutely vital that you pray to the very real God of the Bible if you expect genuine answers to your prayers. He reveals Himself to mankind in many ways—in creation, in the Bible, in His foretelling specific divine intervention in world affairs and in direct ANSWERS to those who seek and obey Him through fervent holy worship. In our modern, ecumenical (worldwide) approach to religion, we may think that praying to some vague â€Å"blob† in the sky or to an idol of Buddha is just the same as praying to the CREATOR—the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Israel and Jesus Christ, but it is not the same at all! The true God was revealed by Jesus Christ (Matthew 11:27). To one of His disciples, He said, â€Å"Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known ME†¦? We read of Jesus Christ acknowledging that God was a loving, divine Person—a â€Å"Father. And we see the Father acting through Christ to heal the sick, to comfort the downcast and to teach those whom He calls to keep not only the Ten Commandments, but all of His words as a way of life (Matthew 19:17). Christ also set an example for us in praying to the Father: â€Å"Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said, ‘Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify Youâ€⠄¢Ã¢â‚¬  (John 17:1). We serve an awesome God, with limitless power and glory! When you get down on both knees and lift up your hands in prayer to the great CREATOR of the universe, you should think of to whom you are praying. Remember that He is not only the Creator, but also the active Sovereign ruler of the entire universe and the Bible says that it is God’s good pleasure to give us the Kingdom and all that is contained in it. Be sure you always pray specifically to This God—the true God—and to no other. As you begin your prayer, think about whom you are praying to and consciously worship this Great God who gives you life and breath. Key # 2—Study the Bible It naturally follows that praying to the true God involves believing what He says. And we find His words—instructing human beings how they should live—in the Holy Bible. It reveals essential knowledge that we could not acquire in any other way. It is God’s â€Å"Instruction Manual† for humanity. It tells us who God is what He is like and how we ought to serve Him. In its pages we find God’s own instructions (not suggestions) as to how we ought to live for and pray to Him. You will not receive this full instruction by just â€Å"going to church† or by carelessly reading bits and pieces of the Bible for comfort or inspiration. God commands us in His Word, â€Å"Earnestly study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman unashamed, rightly dividing the Word of Truth† (2 Timothy 2:15). To know God, to understand His will and to believe in His promises, one needs to regularly study His inspired Word in an orderly way—just as you might study a science textbook or a volume on history. A good place to start is the book of Matthew. Read this through slowly and carefully—noting what Jesus actually said, paying particular attention to the many examples of answered prayer. Key #3—Deeply Repent of Your Sins Although from time to time God hears the prayers of anyone who sincerely cries out to Him in time of need, He is not bound by His Word to do this. God’s Word says, â€Å"Behold the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor His ear dull, that it cannot hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear† (Isaiah 59:1-2). It is not our job to psychoanalyze or â€Å"spiritually dissect† those who have not had their prayers answered in the past. But we have a duty to ask ourselves: â€Å"Do I worship the true God? Do I do His will? Please be honest with yourself. It is easy to rationalize or to reason around this very clear scriptural teaching about obeying God’s law for having your prayers answered. As you grow in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18), He will live His life in you more and more fully over the course of your Christian life. Certainly you will not be perfect (mature) all at once, and no human being has ever been perfect (spotless) except Jesus Christ Himself. But you will be walking in the way of the Ten Commandments by surrendering to Him. By walking with Christ in this manner, you can be assured of having more powerful answers to your prayers than ever before. Key #4 Forgive Others Another vital key to answered prayer is our willingness to truly FORGIVE others. Frankly, our loving Father in heaven simply does not hear those who come to Him in a spirit of revenge, bitterness or hatred. Immediately after giving us the â€Å"Lord’s Prayer†Ã¢â‚¬â€the outline prayer describing the right general approach to talking with God—Jesus went on to instruct His followers: â€Å"If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also for give you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses neither will your Father for give your trespasses† (Matthew 6:14-15). And Psalm 66:18-20 says, â€Å"If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me: but verily (truly) God hath heard me: He hath attended to the voice of my prayer. Blessed be the God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor His mercy from me. † Key #5—Seek God’s Will Another key to successful prayer is to be absolutely sure that—as far as possible—you align your will and your requests with God’s will. As you zealously study the Bible and yield to let Christ live within you, His will increasingly replaces your own. It affects how you pray. You come to realize that God has made all men and women in His image—that He will call all mankind to understanding and repentance in His own time. With this in mind, you will not be praying just for your own good, but for the good of others as well. Then you can sincerely say to God, as Jesus did: â€Å"Not My will, but Yours be done† (Luke 22:42). Remember this key phrase from the outline prayer of Jesus in Matthew 6, â€Å"Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven† (v. 10). We all need to focus on this as we pray. What is really best for us and everyone concerned in the long run—only God knows for sure! On the other hand, the Bible contains literally dozens of promises and/or direct indications of what God has done or will do in regard to answered prayer. If we pray in faith that God will hear us—and in accordance to His will—we may be sure that He is listening. â€Å"Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him† (1 John 5:14-15). Key #6—Have Faith in God The more you drink in of the Bible, the more deeply you will realize the importance of FAITH. But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him† (Heb. 11:6). The bottom line is that you cannot please God without Faith, and generally speaking, the Bible makes it crystal clear that God will not hear and answer your prayer s unless you come to Him in faith. â€Å"But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord† (James 1:6). We need to take careful note of this vital teaching of Jesus Christ with respect to prayer and faith: â€Å"Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say unto you, whatever things you ask when you pray, BELIEVE that you receive them, and you WILL have them† (Mark 11:22-24). By continually drinking in of the Bible and praying for faith, you will find that your faith will increase more and more. Understand that living faith is produced by God’s Holy Spirit within us, and Jesus said, â€Å"If you then, being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy spirit to those who ask Him! † (Lk. 11:13). God wants to give us those things we ask for if we humbly ask for them and our motives and priorities are not selfish ones. So we need to pray to Him continually to give us the FAITH we need. We need to learn to BELIEVE in the promises of God. We need to learn to believe that God is REAL—that He has perfect wisdom, perfect love and perfect POWER. Realize that He will KEEP all his promises! We need to learn to imitate Abraham, the father of the faithful (Romans 4:16), for he â€Å"did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also ABLE to perform† (Rom. 4:20-21). This is real faith. This is the attitude you must have to receive genuine answers to your prayers. Key # 7—Be Persistent If your child asks you just once for a bicycle and then seemingly forgets about it and never brings the subject up again how deep is his or her desire for it? How much do you think they would appreciate it if they did get one? And so it is when we ask for something from our Heavenly father. Before He supernaturally intervenes, God wants to know that we deeply desire whatever we ask for, and that we will respect and worship Him for answering our prayer. In other words, God uses our need or desire as a vehicle to draw us closer to Him, spiritually—to cause us to focus on His will and on what is really best for us and for any others who might be involved. If we carelessly ask for something, and then virtually forget that we ever did, what would that indicate? It might tell God that we are not all that interested in His doing what we ask! Or it could be that all our desires are shallow, perhaps constantly changing, and that we would not feel a deep sense of appreciation and worship even if He constantly answered such shallow prayers! (See Luke 18:1-8). God wants us to be persistent. He wants us to walk with Him, talk with Him and commune with Him continually—day after day in this age, and ultimately throughout eternity! The Apostle Paul instructs us to â€Å"pray without ceasing† (1 Thess. 5:17). David said in Psalm 55:16-17, â€Å"As for me, I will call upon God, and the Lord shall save me. Evening and morning and at noon I will pray, and cry aloud, and He shall hear my voice. † So pray regularly. Spend plenty of TIME communing with Jesus Christ and your Heavenly Father. And never—EVER—stop praying to God! For, in more ways than one, your very life depends upon this contact! Key #8—Pray Fervently In Hosea 7:14 God cites as one of the reasons He did not hear the prayers of ancient Israel was that â€Å"and they have not cried unto Me with their heart. The Moffatt translation of this same verse reads, â€Å"They never put their Heart into their prayers. † What about us? Do you and I pray with our entire being? Or do we just rattle off a memorized prayer like some pagan chant or perhaps sleepily mumble a few half-hearted requests to God just before drifting off to sleep? Again, remember Jesus’ example of getting up early to pray to the Father. For prayer was vitally important to Christ. That is why He apparently put it first on His schedule—before anything else could interfere. And he probably came back to God repeatedly as the day progressed. The Book of Hebrews tells us about Christ’s passionate, heartfelt prayers: â€Å"Who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear† (Heb. 5:7). It is good to go to a private place to pray as Jesus instructed in Matthew 6. Alone, we can occasionally cry out to our temptations or difficulties where only the help of God Himself can fully take care of the situation. In Luke 22:44 Jesus was crying out to His Father in such an intense and passionate manner that some of His capillaries may have literally burst—filling certain sweat ducts with blood. In our modern secular, hedonistic, laid back society, we need to grasp that the truly vital issues of life are not material. Rather, they are spiritual—having to do with our Creator and with all eternity. They are certainly worthy of getting excited about. So let us put our hearts into our prayers. Let us be fervent! Let us be passionate as we pour out our hearts to the awesome Personality who wants to be our real Father: the High and Lofty One who inhabits eternity† (Isaiah 57:15). Key #9—Ask God to Fashion and Mold You A genuine man or woman of God is one who has totally surrendered to the will of the Creator. Through the Prophet Isaiah God tells us: â€Å"But on this one will I look: on Him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word† (Isa. 66:2). This attitude of seeking God’s will rather than our own—of total submission to our Heavenly father—is vital to our prayer life if we are to receive constant and powerful answers. Do you want to truly grow spiritually? Listen to Ephesians 4:13: â€Å"Till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. † If you’re serious about growing and becoming mature then we need to all â€Å"wrestle with God† in our prayers as Jacob literally wrestled with Him and prevailed (Gen. 32:24-32). We need to engage Him in long, thoughtful conversation about how we can more fully yield to Him, walk with Him in our lives. We need to constantly ask God to help us fulfill the great PURPOSE for which we were born. It is fine—within limits—to pray for physical things. BUT THE ULTIMATE PURPOSE OF PRAYER IS TO HELP US FOCUS ON GOD, YIELD TO HIM AND SURRENDER OUR WILL TO HIS AS WE CULTIVATE A VITAL INTERACTIVE RELATIONSHIP. In this way He becomes increasingly real to us. Through constant and heartfelt Bible Study and prayer we must seek God’s will. We must grasp that our past ideas and attitudes about God and religion in general need much improvement. This process will bring us to a point in our lives where we learn to walk with Him, talk with Him, quietly commune with Him off and on all day long. Sincerely ask Him to mold you into His own image. The approach of yielding to God as you pray, of asking Him to rebuke and chasten and fashion you, is one of the vital keys to really powerful prayer. Key #10—Give Praise and Thanks to Almighty God Another of the qualities that made King David a man after God’s own heart was the sincere love, worship and adoration that he continually expressed toward the great creator who blessed him, sustained him and guided him. The entire Book of Psalms is literally filled with David’s prayers of worship and adoration. Listen to Psalm 18:1-3, â€Å"I will love you, O Lord my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold, I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies. † Fifty (50) verses and David never asked for one thing! All he does is give God praise and thanks for what He has already done. When was the last time you got down on your knees or walked on your feet and just gave God continuous repetitious praise and thanks for what He has already done? We need to constantly thank and praise God for every good gift and for His help and blessing in every situation (1 Thess. 5:18). Instead of losing control in our enthusiasm for sports figures, rock and rap stars or any other human idols, let us unashamedly pour out our whole being in thanking, praising and worshiping the God who made us and who gives us life and breath. This is the God who forgives us time and time and time again, who guides and blesses us, and who in the end—plans to share His eternal glory with us if we will only respond and learn to love Him as He loves us. Key #11—Pray in the Name of Jesus Christ To truly and correctly use Jesus’ name in prayer we must OBEY Him and again ask according to His will. Remember that in the Sermon on the Mount, Christ warned: â€Å"Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Those who do not really know the true God or His way are simply not capable of properly coming before Him in the name of Jesus Christ. To pray in the name of Jesus is to approach the throne of God through the name—the office and authority of Jesus Christ who gives us access to the very throne room of God. So as you approach God in heartfelt, regular prayer, be sure you are obeying your Lord and Master Jesus Christ. Though He does not expect instant spiritual maturity, He does want us to walk in His way through the help of the Holy Spirit. When we do we can then come to the Father through Christ alone to make the direct contact of effective prayer. And remember, James said, â€Å"the effectual (unceasing) fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much† (James 5:16b). Key #12—EXPECT AN ANSWER!!!!!!!!!!!

Polynomials on ACT Math Complete Guide and Practice

Polynomials on ACT Math Complete Guide and Practice SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Polynomial problems will show up in some way, shape, or form on the ACT two or three times per test. And since polynomials are so deeply connected to other ACT math topics, like operations and functions, it's even more important to take the time to understand them before test day. Luckily, you probably know a lot more about polynomials than you think, and if you're currently rusty on the subject, just a little review will have you knocking out your polynomial questions left and right. This will be your complete guide to polynomials on the ACT- what they are, how you'll see them on the test, and the best way to solve your polynomial problems before time is up. Feature image credit: Linas/Wikimedia What Are Polynomials? A polynomial is any mathematical expression that contains variables, constants, coefficients, and/or non-negative integer exponents. This means that polynomials cover a wide variety of mathematical expressions, so let's break this down. Variable: A variable is any symbol that acts as a placeholder for an unknown value. Some of the most common variables on the ACT are $x$ and $y$. Constant: A constant is any number that exists as a fixed value. For instance, both 7 and -3.278 are constants. Coefficient: A coefficient is any value that is multiplied by a variable. In the term $5x$, 5 acts as a coefficient because it indicates that the variable $x$ is being multiplied five times. Non-negative integer exponent: If we break this term down, a non-negative integer exponent is exactly how it sounds; it is any positive exponent that is also an integer. For instance, $x^3$ fits the definition, but $x^{-2}$ or $x^{1/2}$ does NOT. A polynomial can consist of a single term or multiple terms in a relationship with one another. The values in a polynomial can be added, subtracted, multiplied, or divided together so long as no part of the polynomial value is divided by a variable. For instance, a term of the polynomial could be $4/15$ or $x/4$, but NOT $4/x$. Polynomials can have no variable (e.g. 4), one variable (e.g. $2x^2 - 6x + x$), or multiple variables (e.g. $y(2xy - 8x + 5z) - q^3$). Examples of Polynomials 6 $12x$ $14 + 2x$ $3y^2 - 4x + 2$ $(75k * 23x^12) + 8$ ${3z - 59 + 6x^7}/5$ NOT Polynomials $2x^{-4}$ (Why not? A polynomial cannot have a negative exponent.) $xy^{2/3}$ (Why not? A polynomial cannot have a fractional exponent.) $6/{2 - x}$ (Why not? A polynomial cannot have any term that is divided by a variable.) Degree of Polynomial Polynomials have degrees and you can tell the degree measure of the polynomial by looking at its exponents. The degree of the polynomial is the value of the largest exponent. For instance, the polynomial $x^2 - 6x + x^3$ has a degree of 3, since the largest exponent value is 3. If the polynomial has no variable (e.g., if the polynomial is simply "9"), the degree measure is 0. And if there is no exponent (e.g., $4x + 2$), then the degree measure is 1. [Note: this only applies is the polynomial has a single variable or no variable. You cannot do this for the polynomial $x^3 - 6y^2 + y^5$, for instance, because it has two variables, $x$ and $y$.] Why is it good to know the degree of a polynomial? The degree measure of a polynomial tells us what the graph of a polynomial looks like. Degree Measure Graph Type 0 Constant 1 Linear 2 Quadratic [Note: though there are more polynomial degree measures and types of polynomial graphs, these are the only ones you will see on the ACT.] Once graphed, these polynomials will look like this: Constant Graph Linear Graph Quadratic Graph Now that we've looked at our pieces, let's see how they fit together. How to Solve Polynomial Questions To solve many constant and linear polynomial problems, you will need to have a basic understanding of operations problems and integers. You will also need to know your way around lines and slopes in the coordinate plane. In this guide, however, we will be primarily focused on quadratics. For quadratic polynomials, you will have to understand how to use two mathematical techniques- factoring and FOIL-ing- to solve for your final solution. This concept is closely related to algebraic functions, so it's a good idea to tackle these topics simultaneously. So let's look at factoring and FOIL-ing. Factoring and FOIL-ing Polynomials Factoring and FOIL-ing are ways of manipulating mathematical expressions and polynomials to expand or reduce the expressions and find the information you need. Again, on the ACT, you will be using both techniques together to find the solution(s) to 2nd degree polynomials (quadratics). FOIL-ing You will use this technique whenever you need to multiply two polynomials together. When you're given a series of parenthetical expressions and must multiply them, you must do so by FOIL-ing them out. "FOIL" stands for "first, outside, inside, last" and this mnemonic refers to the order in which you must multiply together the numbers in the parentheses before you add the results together. To clarify this process, let's look at an example. Say we needed to multiply these expressions: $(2x - 3)(x + 5)$ According to FOIL, we must start by multiplying the "first" numbers of each expression. This will give us the F in our FOIL. In this case, that will be $2x$ and $x$. $2x * x$ $2x^2$ Next, we must multiply the "outside" numbers in each expression. In this case, the outside numbers are $2x$ and $+5$ $2x * 5$ $10x$ Next up, we need to multiply our "inside" numbers, which will give us our I in our FOIL. In this case, our inside numbers will be $-3$ and $x$. $-3 * x$ $-3x$ Finally, we must multiply our "last" numbers, which will give us the L in our FOIL. In this case, our last numbers will be $-3$ and $+5$. $-3 * 5$ $-15$ Now, the final step is to add all of our components together. $2x^2 + 10x - 3x - 15$ $2x^2 + 7x - 15$ This will be our final polynomial expression. Factoring Factoring goes hand in hand with FOIL-ing and acts basically as its reverse. In order to convert a longer polynomial (most often a quadratic equation) into smaller parenthetical expressions, we must factor the equation. This will eventually give us the two solutions to our quadratic function. If you remember your functions, then you'll remember that a quadratic equation ($y = ax^2 + bx + c$) will have two solutions. These solutions are the two values of $x$ when $y$ (the $y$-intercept) equals zero. For example, in the graph below: The solutions are at $x = 2$ and $x = 8$ because this is where the parabola crosses the $y$-intercept and so are the values of $x$ when $y = 0$. Now, if we are instead given a parabola as a polynomial instead of as a graph, we can still find the solutions to the expression by factoring. For instance, let us say that this is our quadratic equation: $x^2 + x - 12$ We know we can factor this equation and we do so by setting up a potential FOIL that will lead us to the final result of this equation. So our parentheticals will look like this: $(x +/-$ __$)(x +/-$ __$)$ We're not yet sure whether we will be adding or subtracting our integers in each equation and we don't yet know what the integers will be, but we do know that we will need a single $x$ value in each to give us our F of $x^2$ when we FOIL them out. Now, we know that the L, last, numbers in the parenthesis will make the final integer value in our quadratic equation. This means that we know that the last two numbers in each of the parenthetical expressions must multiply together to equal -12. Since we also know that the only way to multiply two numbers and get a negative, one number must be negative and one must be positive. This must mean that one of the parenthetical expressions will have a minus sign and the other must have a plus sign. To equal -12, our potential integer value pairs could therefore be: $-1, 12$ $-2, 6$ $-3, 4$ $-4, 3$ $-6, 2$ $-12, 1$ Now only one of these pairs of numbers will work as the solution to our equation, so let us test them out to see which will give us our original polynomial once we FOIL them. $(x - 1)(x + 12)$ If we properly FOIL this expression, we will end up with: $x^2 +12x - x -12$ $x^2 +11x - 12$ This does NOT give us the right equation, so we must try again with another pair of integers. $(x - 2)(x + 6)$ $x^2 + 6x - 2x - 12$ $x^2 + 2x -12$ Again, this is NOT our original equation, so we know that this pair of integers is not correct. We must try again. $(x - 3)(x + 4)$ $x^2 + 4x - 3x - 12$ $x^2 + x -12$ This DOES match our original equation and, since there can be only two solutions to any quadratic equation, we know that all the other pairs of numbers must be incorrect. With this, we have now properly factored our polynomial/quadratic equation, but we still have one more step to go; we must complete the problem by setting each parenthetical expression to zero and solving for the $x$-value. Why? Because, again, the two solutions to any quadratic equation are the two values of $x$ when $y = 0$. Spoiler alert: our parabola will look like this when graphed. So let's take both our parentheticals and set them each to 0. $(x - 3)(x + 4)$ $x - 3 = 0$ $x = 3$ And $x + 4 = 0$ $x = -4$ Once we have successfully factored our equation, we can see that the final solutions to our polynomial graph are: 3 and -4. [Do take note: though it may look like factoring is a long and involved process, requiring tremendous trial and error, it will become much faster and more instinctual the more you practice with it.] Just as there are several different types of floofers dogs, there are several different types of polynomial questions. (Perros/Wikimedia) Typical Polynomial ACT Math Questions You'll see three main types of polynomial problems on the ACT. These are: #1: Factoring and FOIL-ing polynomial problems #2: Graphing polynomial problems #3: Operations (multiplication, division, addition, or subtraction) of polynomials Let's look at each of these types of problems in more detail. Factoring and FOIL-ing Polynomial Problems These are the most common polynomial problems you'll see on the test. Generally, these problems will ask you to find the two solutions to a quadratic polynomial expression. To solve these types of problems, you must follow the same process we walked through in the last section on factoring and FOIL-ing. Alternatively, you can also use the strategy of plugging in answers (PIA) if you prefer not to factor and FOIL. If $2x^2+6x=36$, what are the possible values of $x$? F. -12 and 3G. -6 and 3H. -3 and 6J. -3 and 12K. 12 and 15 Solving Method 1: Factoring To solve this problem, let us first set the equation to zero, so that we can work with the full polynomial expression on one side of the equals sign. $2x^2 + 6x = 36$ $2x^2 + 6x - 36 = 0$ Now let us set up our parentheticals. $(2x +/-$ __$)(x +/-$ __$)$ Just by looking at the polynomial in question, we can make an educated guess as to what integer pair will be used to create -36 as their multiple, out of all the possible number pairings. Most likely, the pairing will be -6 and 6 or 6 and -6 (rather than -1 and 36, -2 and 18, -3 and 12, or -4 and 9) and we can see why if we plug them in. $(2x - 6)(x + 6)$ $2x^2 + 12x - 6x - 36$ $2x^2 + 6x - 36$ This matches our given equation, so we know this must be our proper factored expression. Now we need to finish finding our two solutions by setting each parenthetical to zero. $2x - 6 = 0$ $2x = 6$ $x = 3$ And $x + 6 = 0$ $x = -6$ Our final solutions are 3 and -6. Our final answer is G, -6 and 3. Again, the more often you work with factoring polynomials, the better your instincts will become at finding the right numbers to fill in your FOIL-ing. But don't despair if your instincts haven't gotten there yet or if you would rather solve the question by plugging in answers instead! Let's take a look at how. Solving Method 2: Plugging in Answers If we again take our same polynomial, $2x^2 + 6x = 36$ We could plug in our answer choices in place of $x$ to see which two solutions fulfill the equation. If we start with answer choice F, we would get: $2x^2 + 6x = 36$ $2(-12)^2 + 6(-12) = 36$ $2(144) - 72 = 36$ $216 = 36$ Since this solution is NOT correct, answer choice F cannot be true. Answer choice G gives us: $2x^2 + 6x = 36$ $2(-6)^2 + 6(-6) = 36$ $2(36) - 36 = 36$ $72 - 36 = 36$ $36 = 36$ This is correct, but we must also test the second solution to make sure that answer choice G is the final answer. Both solutions must match in order for the answer choice to be correct. $2(3)^2 + 6(3) = 36$ $2(9) + 18 = 36$ $18 + 18 = 36$ $36 = 36$ Both solutions for $x$ fit our equation. This means that answer choice G (and only answer choice G) is correct. Again, our final answer is G, -6, 3. Graphing Polynomial Problems Sometimes you may be asked to graph polynomials, identify polynomial graphs, or answer questions about given polynomial graphs. To answer these questions, it's a good idea to re-familiarize yourself with the basics of linear graphs and functions, if you haven't already. We know that the solution(s) of a parabola is measured at the intersection of the parabola with the $x$-axis (when $y = 0$). By looking at this graph, we can see that the parabola hits the $x$-axis at two distinct points- one point where the $x$ value would be negative and one point where the $x$ value would be positive. Notice that it doesn't actually matter if we know what the values are, just that one is to the left of the $y$-axis and one is to the right of the $y$-axis. (For more on the coordinate plane and its negatives and positives, check out our guide to ACT points). Our final answer is H, 1 positive real solution and 1 negative real solution. Polynomial Operations The final category of polynomial problems you'll see on the test are operations problems involving polynomials. These will most often be located somewhere in the first fifteen or twenty questions on the test and you'll generally be able to solve them just fine if you are familiar with your algebraic operations. What polynomial must be added to $x^2-2x+6$ so that the sum is $3x^2+7x$? A. $4x^2+5x+6$B. $3x^2+9x+6$C. $3x^2+9x-6$D. $2x^2+9x-6$E. $2x^2-5x+6$ Here, we are adding unknown polynomial $a + b + c$ to our given polynomial $x^2 - 2x + 6$ in order to equal $3x^2 + 7x$. If we know our operations, then we know that like terms can only be combined with like terms. So let us take these polynomials piece by piece. $x^2 + a = 3x^2$ $a = 2x^2$ We know that our first term must be $2x^2$, so we can eliminate answer choices A, B, and C. $-2x + b = 7x$ $b = 9x$ We now know that the second term in our polynomial must be $9x$, which means that we can eliminate answer choice E. Even without finishing the problem, we can confidently select answer choice D as the correct answer. But we can also finish up just to make absolutely sure. $6 + c = 0$ $c = -6$ Once we put our pieces together, we know we must add the polynomial $2x^2 + 9x - 6$ to our given polynomial in order to equal the polynomial that we want. Our final answer is D, $2x^2 + 9x - 6$ Now to slot those last few pieces into place and we're all set to go! Strategies for Solving Polynomial Questions Though you will see a few different types of polynomial problems on the ACT, there are a few strategies you can use to make solving polynomial problems as a whole a little easier. Strategy 1: Remember to Review Your Operations and Functions Guides Operations questions and function questions go hand in hand with polynomial questions, so it's a good idea to keep a close eye on all three math topics and learn how they work together. For instance, it would be difficult to solve your graphing polynomial questions or your operations of polynomials without at least a passing understanding of algebraic operations or functions as a whole. Strategy 2: Write It Out It can become very tempting to work with polynomials completely in your head, especially if you're already familiar with polynomials, factoring, and FOIL-ing. But doing this can lead you to make careless errors and select "bait" answer options. The ACT is a fast paced test and the test-makers know that this kind of time pressure can lead students to start working in their heads to speed up the process. To make the test challenging, polynomial questions often use negatives or large numbers, and so it can be all too easy to fall for a bait answer choice if you do all your polynomial math in your head. Just remember to take a breath and write your information down as you work through your problems to avoid careless errors such as these, especially when it comes to your positives and negatives. Strategy 3: Remember to Use PIA When Necessary If you're not that familiar with factoring polynomial quadratic expressions (or it's just been a long time since you've done it in school) and you're struggling to do so quickly and efficiently, it might be a good idea for you to switch techniques and start using the strategy of plugging in answers to find your solutions instead. It may take a little longer to use this technique, but it will always lead you to the correct solution. So if you've come up against factoring and can't quite manage it for any reason, don't panic- you can absolutely still solve the problem just by using PIA. Test Your Knowledge Ready to put your polynomial knowledge to the test? Then let's dive in! 1. Which of the following is a factored form of the expression $5x^2 -13x-6$? A. $(x-3)(5x+2)$B. $(x-2)(5x-3)$C. $(x-2)(5x+3)$D. $(x+2)(5x-3)$E. $(x+3)(5x-2)$ 2. In the equation $x^2+mx+n=0$, $m$ and $n$ are integers. The only possible value for $x$ is -3. What is the value of $m$? A. 3B. -3C. 6D. -6E. 9 3. 4. What values of $x$ are solutions for $x^2+2x=8$? A. -4 and 2B. -2 and 0C. -2 and 4D. 0 and 2E. 6 and 8 Answers: A, C, J, A Answer Explanations: 1. To solve this problem, we can either factor the polynomial ourselves or we can simply test our answer choices and see which is correct. In this case, let us simply test our answer choices using PIA. Answer choice A gives us $(x - 3)(5x + 2)$. Let us FOIL this out. $(x * 5x) + (x * 2) + (-3 * 5x) + (-3 * 2)$ $5x^2 + 2x - 15x - 6$ $5x^2 - 13x - 6$ This is exactly the polynomial we needed to find so luckily for us, we can stop here. We know by the rules of multiple choice that there will only ever be one correct answer, so we know answer choice A will be the one right solution- no need to test any others. Our final answer is A, $(x - 3)(5x + 2)$. 2. If we remember from our earlier lessons, we know that a factored polynomial will typically have two solutions. For example, if our factoring gives us $(x - 3)(x + 4)$, our final two solutions will be $x - 3 = 0$ = $x = 3$ and $x + 4 = 0$ = $x = -4$. This gives us our two solutions of +3 and -4. So what does it mean that a polynomial only has one solution? It would mean that our factored polynomial would have to be a square. That way the two solutions would be the same. For example, if we had $(x + 7)(x + 7)$, our only solution would be $x + 7 = 0$ = -7. So if our polynomial is $x^2 + mx + n = 0$, and our only solution is -3, then we know that our factoring is going to look like: $(x + 3)(x + 3)$ Why? This gives us our final solution of -3, since $x + 3 = 0$ = $x = -3$. Now, to find the value of $m$, we need to FOIL back out our factoring. $(x + 3)(x + 3)$ $(x * x) + (x * 3) + (3 * x) + (3 * 3)$ $x^2 + 3x + 3x + 9$ $x^2 + 6x + 9$ The 6 is now standing in place of our $m$ variable, so our $m = 6$. Our final answer is C, 6. 3. Though you can set up your own quadratic equation to fit the problem, the easiest way to solve this question is to test out point on your graphs and see which one fits the premise. We are told that the y-coordinate value of any point will be the $x$-coordinate squared minus 1, so let's test each graph. Graph H is a constant graph. As we saw from constant graphs earlier and as we can see here, the $y$-coordinate value never changes. This means that the $x$-coordinates will increase or decrease, but the $y$-coordinate for any point will NOT be exactly 1 less than the $x$-coordinate squared. We can eliminate graph H. For the same reason, we can eliminate graph G; the $x$-coordinate value never changes even as the $y$-coordinate value does. This does not fit our criteria. We can also eliminate graph K, as it would be impossible for such a parabola to open downwards. If the $x$-coordinates values were negative, then anything smaller than -1 (say -2) would result in a positive y-coordinate value, according to our rules. For instance, if $x$ were -2, then y would be: $-2^2 - 1 = 3$. So we are left with two graphs- J and H- both which look promising for the moment. Let us test some values for them. In graph J, we can roughly estimate a few points to be $(0, -1)$, $(-1, 0)$ and perhaps roughly $(2, 3)$. If we go off our premise of $y = x^2 - 1$, then all of these points fits our criteria. $0^2 - 1 = -1$ $-1^2 - 1 = 0$ $2^2 - 1 = 3$ It's pretty certain that J is our right answer, but since we were estimating our points, it's a good idea to rule out graph H if we can. We can roughly estimate three of the points on graph H to be: $(0, 1)$, $(2, 2)$ and perhaps $(-2, 5)$. None of these match our criteria. $0^2 - 1 ≠  1$ $2^2 - 1 ≠  2$ $-2^2 - 1 ≠  5$ We have confirmed that graph J is indeed correct. Our final answer is J. 4. Here we have another problem that we can either factor ourselves or use PIA for. This time, let us factor. First, we need to bring everything to one side of the equals sign, so let us subtract both sides by 8. $x^2 + 2x - 8 = 0$ Now, we can factor. We know we need two numbers multiplied together to equal -8, so one of them must be a negative. These numbers must also add together to equal +2, so our likely pairing will be +4 and -2. Let us test it out to be sure. $(x + 4)(x - 2)$ $(x * x) + (x * -2) + (4 * x) + (4 * -2)$ $x^2 - 2x + 4x - 8$ $x^2 + 2x - 8$ Perfect, we've found our factors! Now we just need to set each to zero to find our final solutions. $x + 4 = 0$ $x = -4$ And $x - 2 = 0$ $x = 2$ Our final answer is A, -4 and 2. Whoo, you did it! No need to toot your own horn, we'll do it for you- congrats! The Take-Aways Polynomial questions can sometimes be tricky, but a solid understanding of functions and operations can help you tremendously when it comes to understanding how to visualize and manipulate your polynomial expressions. Just remember to not underestimate the value of keeping track of your positive and negative signs and you'll be knocking out a not-insignificant chunk of your ACT math section in no time. What's Next? Now that you've taken on polynomials (and no doubt rocked them), you might want to take a look at our other ACT math guides for any individual math topic you could need. From ratios to rotations, points to probabilities, we've got your covered. Running into some snags with your FOILing and factoring? You might want to review the distributive property and perfect squares. What does it mean to complete the square and how is that relevant to polynomials and factoring? Learn about completing the square and when you'll need to use it here. Stuck on an ACT math problem? Whether you're stuck on a study guide, a practice test, or you just want to know how to get yourself out of a math bind on test day, don't sweat it. We'll show you how to figure our when you're really stuck and what to do about it. Want to make sure you're really prepared for test day? We've gathered together the best ACT math resources available and compiled them into one ultimate ACT math study guide. No more hunting for tips and resources- they're available at your fingertips in one easy place. Want to improve your ACT score by 4 points? Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes what you study to your strengths and weaknesses. If you liked this Math lesson, you'll love our program. Along with more detailed lessons, you'll get thousands of practice problems organized by individual skills so you learn most effectively. We'll also give you a step-by-step program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Check out our 5-day free trial:

CPR essays

CPR essays Many lives each year are saved because someone in the area of an accident was trained in CPR and was able to keep an injured victim alive long enough for the paramedics to get to the scene. CPR or cardiopulmonary resuscitation is a technique of maintaining blood and oxygen flow through the body of a person whose heart and breathing have stopped. If breathing has stopped, death occurs in over 50 percent of people. Almost all others die within ten minutes. If breathing has stopped step one is to clear out all objects found in the mouth, being careful not to shove anything back down the throat. Also while doing this it is important not to move the spine or neck unless absolutely necessary, because if during the accident damage was done to the spine or neck movement could cause paralysis. If movement must be done be sure to keep the spine straight. Once all objects have been removed from the mouth and it is certain that there is no breathing, rescue breathing should be tried. It is important that the victim is not breathing because if there is slight breathing and rescue breathing is tried it could stop what natural breathing is occurring. In rescue breathing you first must tilt the head back slightly or the tongue could block the airway. Next you pinch the nose so air cannot escape. Third, you seal your lips around the victims and blow air into their lungs. About 12 breathes per minute is good enough for adults; each breath should be approximately one and half seconds. With children or infants two breathes per cycle. After each cycle, whether adult, child or infant, you must check to see if breathing has returned and if there is still a pulse. If the pulse has stopped you have to start chest compressions. Chest compressions help to keep blood circulating and keep oxygen flowing to vital organs. It is important that the heart has stopped completely before chest compressions start. Step one of chest compressions ...

Front-end Web Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

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