Native Americans Essay Example for Free

Native Americans Essay Thesis Statement: A city of diverse religion, rich history and fast-paced developing economy, Memphis Tennessee continues to gain respect from locals and tourists alike. Introduction: With nearly 700, 00 estimated population; Memphis is Tennessee’s largest city, and the 19th largest city all throughout the United States. With settlements rooted from the early 16th Century, populace number continues to multiply with an interesting collaboration of white, black and Native Americans, even Asians and other races as per demographics. Strategically located at the center of the state, Memphis continues to target commerce from both the shipping and transportation industries. Innovations in infrastructure, interesting grounds for recreation and a home to reputable educational institutions; makes Memphis inviting enough for permanent settlement. 1. History and Geography a. History- Originally inhabited by native American Indians in the 16th Century, settlement around the river had been distracted by a number of explorers, evasion of union forces and presence of epidemics like the yellow fever. Emerging from the uncomplicated Mississippian tribe is a city with vast social, cultural and economic contributions to the state. b. Geography This city bounded at the south of Tennessee has a humid, subtropical climate with four distinctive seasons. Interesting terrains around the 296. 35 square mile territory include parks all over the city and notable transportation aides like freight railroads. 2. Economy and Government a. Economy Even before Memphis has been officially founded, it was already hailed as an important location for commerce, exchanges and travel. Up to date, economy within the city continues to evolve as transportation industry booms, entertainment and film industry continues to expand and Fortune companies continue to invest. For these achievements, Memphis has been awarded by Inc. magazine in 2000 as the eighth out of fifty best major U. S areas for business. b. Government Memphis has a Mayor and council form of government which originated in 1960s. 3. People A greater number of African/Black American occupies the city though there percentages of white Americans, Asian and Latinos. A home of different beliefs, the city of Memphis welcomes differences in congregation and denomination. 4. Culture and the Arts Home to musical legend Elvis Presley, Memphis locals had also been the founders of various music genres – making it worthy enough to be tagged as â€Å"Birthplace of the Blues† and â€Å"Birthplace of Rock and Roll†. A rich collaboration of culture and the arts makes the city an interesting destination of travel and recreation. 5. Tourism and Recreation Economic advances and cultural distinctiveness plays a major role in the rise of tourism in the city. Surrounded by art galleries, parks and museums; Memphis’s interactive recreation makes it one of the state’s finest destination site. A typical city rooted from rich history, developed to progress as one of the State’s finest, Memphis, an urbanized territory in South Tennessee continues to emerge as a growing metropolitan. With residents increasing in sufficient number, economy rearing to be at par with United State’s top commerce, with welcoming variety of race, religion and belief; Memphis retains reliable statistics and reputable reasons why settlement and livelihood in this city is note-worthy. Bibliography: †¢ â€Å"Memphis, Tennessee†. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 24 August 2010. Web. 25 August 2010. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Memphis,_Tennessee †¢ History of Memphis. City of Memphis, 2010. Retrieved 25 August 2010. http://www. cityofmemphis. org//framework. aspx? page=296 †¢ â€Å"Memphis, Tennessee†. City-data. com. Advameg, Inc, 2010. Web. Retrieved August 25, 2010. http://www. city-data. com/city/Memphis-Tennessee. html

Powdered zinc and copper sulphate Essay Example for Free

Powdered zinc and copper sulphate Essay Temperature after 1minute (i C) Change in Temperature (i C) 1g 17 19 2 As I had decided I was going to use 40cmiof copper sulphate solution in my experiments I was able to calculate the amount of mols of copper sulphate I was going to use, knowing that the concentration of the CuSO4 was 0. 5m/dmi. Amount of CuSO4 (mols) = concentration x volume = 0. 5 x 0. 04 (40cmi = 0. 04dmi ) = 0. 02mols Know that I knew the amount of CuSO4 used I was able to work out the amount of powdered zinc needed to give the highest change in temperature using the calculation shown below: Amount of substance needed = mass / molar mass (Mr of Zn = 65) therefore mass = amount x Mr = 0. 02 x 65 = 1. 3g Thus 1. 3g of zinc should give me the highest change in temperature. As I am not using exactly 1. 3g of zinc I predict that either 1. 25g or 1. 5g of zinc will show the highest change in temperature. Practical Obtaining my evidence Apparatus: powdered zinc, copper sulphate solution, beaker, measuring cylinder, pipette, balance, 5 evaporating dishes, thermometer, polystyrene cup and lid, stop clock. Method: I measured out amounts of   of the powdered zinc separately, using the balance to ensure accuracy. I put the amounts into the evaporating dishes. Using the measuring cylinder and a pipette, I then put 40cmi of copper sulphate solution into the polystyrene cup, which I placed into a beaker for stability. I then added an amount of zinc, placed the lid and thermometer onto the cup and took the temperature of the solution. After a minute I took the temperature again. I repeated this process for each amount of zinc powder. I completed my experiment three times to each amount of zinc powder. I did it three times to establish an average change in temperature for the different amounts of zinc used. Results: Experiment 1: Amount of Zinc (grams)3 Conclusion: As I predicted 1. 5g of powdered zinc gave me the highest change in temperature. After this amount the change in temperature slowly began to decrease. Between 0. 5g and 1. 5g the temperature change increased rapidly. Specific Heat Capacity of Zinc The specific heat capacity (s. h. c. ) of a material is the amount of heat needed to change the temperature of 1kg of the material by 1i C or 1K. Different substances take different quantities of heat energy to heat them up. Specific heat capacity = energy released / (mass x temperature rise) As I know this equation I can rearrange it to find the energy released during a reaction. If I also know the amount of a substance used in the reaction I can calculate the specific heat capacity of it. Energy released = temperature rise x specific heat capacity x mass of solution . 76 KJ/mol (exothermic reactions are always negative) From my results I have calculated that the specific heat capacity of zinc is -32. 76. This is inaccurate as from my data book I was able to find that the correct ? H of zinc is -219KJ/mol. This inaccuracy shows that although my results followed the expected trend, they were not accurate. Analysis In my plan I predicted that either 1. 25g or 1. 5g of zinc would show the highest change in temperature. After this mass I predicted that the change in temperature would either decrease or level off. This is what happened. In my average results 1. 5g of zinc gave me the highest change in temperature and after this the increase in temperature decreased because a layer of copper formed on the zinc, thus making it less reactive. If I were to continue with my experiments I would investigate higher amounts of zinc to prove this theory completely. In all of my experiments the copper sulphate lost its blue colouring and the zinc became red in colour. The copper compounds in copper sulphate cause the solution to be blue in colour. As the zinc displaced the copper, the solution lost its colour. As the copper layer formed on the zinc it became red, as copper is a red metal. My graphs show the general trend that I predicted and concluded on yet there were a few anomalies. I believe that these will have been caused by factors such as contamination and heat loss to the surroundings. The thermometer may also have been inaccurate. An exothermic reaction is one which gives out energy to the surroundings, usually in the form of heat and usually shown by a rise in temperature. I have successfully proved that the reaction between powdered zinc and copper sulphate is exothermic as I recognised a rise in temperature in all my experiments. I have also shown that the reaction between zinc and copper sulphate is a redox reaction (see my plan). Evaluation The anomalies in my results prove that there were points during my investigations where my accuracy left a little to be desired. An inaccuracy occurred in my time keeping, as there was often a small difference in when I began timing e. g. when I added the zinc or when I secured the lid on top of the polystyrene cup. Overall even though my experiment was open to some inaccuracies I believe it was accurate enough to support my predictions. To improve my results I would increase the period of timing from 1minute to 5minutes so that the temperature could be allowed to rise more. I would extend my investigations into the reaction between zinc and copper sulphate by using a finer powder of zinc, which would give it a larger surface area, to see if this would cause the temperature to rise more rapidly. I would also like to complete the experiments using better equipment to prevent heat loss to the surroundings, to see if it has an effect on my results and thus, my conclusion. I would have liked to use better equipment in my practical but they were not available. If I had more time I could use different metals and different solutions to further test the displacement rule e. g. the reaction between magnesium and zinc sulphate. Sources: G. C. S. E Chemistry Revision Guide Richard Parsons Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Patterns of Behaviour section.

Errors Made By Polish Students In English English Language Essay

Errors Made By Polish Students In English English Language Essay Introduction Language is an instrument of communication among people. It is a well structured and special characteristic of human interaction. According to Sapir (1921,p.8) Language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions, and desires by means of a system of voluntarily produced symbols. Learning a new language involves such components as grammar, vocabulary and phonology. It is necessary to make a distinction between two processes: acquiring and learning a language. The former can be defined as a subconscious process that is identical to the process children utilize in acquiring their first language. Krashen (1985, p.1) states that learning refers to the conscious process that results in knowing about language. Ellis (1994) adds that learning is not as successful and long lasting as language acquisition. In order to be able to communicate, people should master the four skills: reading, listening, speaking and writing. The last skill which the researcher focussed on is a very complex process. As Allen and Corder (1974, p.177) say, it is the most difficult of the language abilities to acquire. When learners want to produce a piece of writing in second language (L2), they try to translate some First language (L1) words or phrases by applying rules from their L1. It is presumed that most of the problems facing L2 learners are caused by their mother tongue. If the contrast between L1 and L2 appears, the learners native language knowledge interferes with the target language and problems are difficult to avoid. However, a similarity of two languages in some situations may help L2 learning. The process that is responsible for this is called language transfer which is also known as cross-linguistic influence (Arabski, 1997). Many linguists have been interested in the nature of the learners la nguage and the major mistakes which arise in it. One of those was Corder (1981) who recognised the significance of interference and fossilisation in the process of second language learning, claiming that each L2 learner uses a special kind of a legitimate dialect governed by its own set of rules, some of them being peculiar to the learner and his native language(1981,p.25). Selinker (1974, p.35) also believed in the existence of a separate linguistic system based on the observable output which results from a learners attempted production of a TL norm. Such a system, which he referred to as interlanguage, is always different from the target language until the native speakers competence has been achieved by the learner. The concept of such an interim language added a new dimension to the learner language study. Before that, with contrastive analysis, linguists made only a one direction comparison between the first and the target language. With reference to Selinkers theory, language structure comprises the fundamental processes such as: (1) First language transfer; (2) Errors occurring as a result of this process are attributed to the learners native language influence; (3) Transfer of training; (4) Strategies of second language learning; (5) Overgeneralization of the target language linguistic material (Selinker 1974, p.37) Polish language belongs to the West Slavonic branch of the Indo-European languages; it is closely related to Czech, Slovak and Russian. In some parts of Europe such as : Russia, Lithuania, Belarus and Ukraine Polish is also used as a second language. In terms of the grammar, Polish is a very inflected language. There are numerous features, which distinguish the language from the other languages. A noun for example constitutes gender: masculine, feminine, neuter. Nouns, pronouns and adjectives have seven case forms, which have different endings. Another difficulty for Polish learners refers to phrasal verbs and articles that dont exist in their native language. Moreover Polish language also has indefinite fractional and collective numerals, which depend on the thing that is counted. All these contrasts lead to errors. In Poland people learn English as a foreign language. Polish learners are in a different situation than inhabitants of, for instance, India or Republic of South Africa as English is not their official language. Therefore, they have no need to develop assimilative or integrative motivation for learning English as they do not feel the drive to write and speak like native speakers and sustain high level of foreign language. In this way, Poles are far more interested in studying English for more instrumental purposes, such as: going abroad and finding a well-paid job, or getting a promotion in their native country. It also happens that they friendships acquired by means of the Internet has led to a desire to communicate with them, thus English seems to be most suitable as it is spoken all over the world. One of the benefits of knowing a foreign language skills is intercultural communication. English is becoming the most popular second language in the world. It is used as lingua franca, f or politics, and business and education. After changing the political system in Poland, English has become more popular and is considered an important part of a good education. It became a compulsory subject in primary and secondary schools in Poland (Swan and Smith, 2001). Errors Every foreign language learner commits errors. As Brown (1980,p.164) claims second language learning in contrary to the first language learning is a process in trial-and-error nature. Teachers and researchers realized that L2 learners errors created a new system of language which had to be analyzed carefully. It is very important to make a distinction between various types of language behavior by giving the definition of error and mistake which are frequently misused. According to Ellis (1997,p.17) errors reflect gaps in a learners knowledge; they occur because the learner does not know what is correct As for the mistake Brown (1980,p.165) states that it refers to a performance error that is either random guess or a slip, in that it is a failure to utilize a known system . From the researchers experience as a Polish native it is necessary to state that Poles commit many errors, such as: syntactic, or semantic ones, and they are the ones in which either L1 and L2 (or both) play the mo st important role. This is partially caused by the fact that learners often experiment with prepositions and articles they know they cannot rely on the interference/transfer from Polish. Hence, they build their own hypotheses and try to insert the correct functional word. Moreover, some syntax errors are difficult to classify. Most of the deviances result from applying Polish syntactic rules to English phrases. The main difficulty is that the wrong choice of word results in the emergence of a semantic error, and if a larger phrase is written on the basis of L1 rules, it renders the whole phrase or sentence incomprehensible for a non- Polish speaker. Then, malformed sentences make English difficult to decode even for a proficient speaker. It has also been one of the main concerns of the branch of linguistics, which is, researching similarities and dissimilarities between first and foreign language acquisition, as well as determining the strategies which learners employ in the course of these processes. Teaching adolescent foreign language learners is a challenge for second language teachers and there are many reasons behind it. Firstly it is essential to emphasize the fact that in the case of children, acquiring L2 comes together with general cognitive and affective development of a child, which means that even though children have no meta-awareness, they are capable of automatic acquisition that is not hindered by personality, motivation, attitude or other factors (Brown, 2000). Older learners, such as adolescents or adults undergo the process of language acquisition in a different way. It looks more like a formal sort of learning (which is the result deliberate teaching) in the course of which explicit rules and language content are presented since the cognitive development is already completed in this age group. In other words, adolescents are able to think in abstract terms, they can learn far complex grammatical issues as the already developed meta-cognition and inductive lear ning ability allow them for that (Ellis,1995).There are various factors which influence second language learning. They include individual learner differences such as age, cognitive style, intelligence, motivation/needs, learners grammatical system and learners native language. According to Komorowska (2002) adults and adolescent learning is unnatural; it is much easier if they learn a second language or particular goals or reasons which results in a greater motivation. Littlewood (1984,p.53) confirms the importance of motivation for learning a second language: In second language learning as in every other field of human learning, motivation is the crucial force which determines whether a learner embarks on a task at all, how much energy he devotes to it, and how long he perseveres. According to Hopp (2004), two kinds of motivation can be distinguished: intrinsic and extrinsic. The former one is more prevalent among adults. The learners see language as an instrument to raise their self-esteem and achieve special goals such as getting a better job. The second kind of motivation is characteristic of a childs way of learning. Both these types of motivation are useful in the language learning process. Reason for choosing the topic Writing is a very important skill, however it causes much more problems than speaking or reading especially for L2 learners who think in their own language. In Poland the majority of secondary school pupils have not mastered this skill due to the lack of emphasis on teaching writing. During studies in Poland and working as a teacher of English, the researcher observed a number of errors made by Polish learners. A considerable number of these errors were similar to the ones she used to make as a beginner or even intermediate learner of English. Most of them reflected her lack of competence, knowledge of rules, whereas other errors were very much related to the writers mother tongue. Linguistically speaking, there were transfer errors, or, in other words, errors which involved interference e.g. Polish grammatical rules were applied to English. There are various reasons why the researcher has chosen this topic. One of these is differences between the two languages and also difficulties facing the learners from Poland. Although Polish students learn English language in primary and secondary schools, they are not able to produce correct sentences. They still try to translate sentences from their native language into English. All of the rules that need to be applied in L2 are different in L1. Thus, Polish learners and other non-native speakers (NNS) are prone to make more errors. 1.2. Aim and Objectives of the study The research has been conducted with reference to secondary school pupils from Poland. The overall aim of the study is to examine what type of errors are most common in the written discourse of the students. The associated research objectives are: What sorts of errors are most common in the written discourse of Polish learners of English as a foreign language? What is the percentage of various errors in learners written discourse? What are then the possible sources of those errors? How might the frequency of these errors be reduced? Why these errors occur? What could be done to improve written discourse? 1.3.Outline of the study The dissertation is divided into five chapters. It begins with the introduction describing the general background of the study. The second chapter provides a literature overview of theories related to errors and their sources. This part also shows classification and explanation of language behaviors. The definition of Contrastive Analysis and Error Analysis can also be found it this chapter. A description of methodology can be found in the third chapter. The author discusses the instrument for collecting and analyzing the data. Chapter four deals with results from analysis of students errors in written compositions. Students samples and questionnaires are examined and interpreted in detail. The last chapter draws some conclusions on the research and considers recommendations for students and teachers. It also discusses implications for future teaching and research Chapter II Theoretical background 2.1 Nature of error It is obvious that every language learner is bound to make errors which are typically human characteristic. Errors have been of interest to many researchers as they are seen as a very important element in language acquisition. According to Norrish (1983) they can occur for many reasons; they may arise from the choice of the material, from the learners processing of the material or even from learners lack of attention. However the most serious kind of language deviances is caused by lack of learners knowledge. It is very important to introduce the distinction between errors, mistakes, lapses and slips. These terms are frequently misused by teachers. Although they have a similar meaning, the differences are significant. As for an error, numerous definitions have been given by different linguists with various attitudes towards errors. In most cases errors are regarded as negative language behavior. Norrish (1983,p.7) believed they are undesirable a sign of failure and systematic deviation, when a learner has not learnt something and consistently gets it wrong. Corder (1967) and Richards (1974) also consider errors as deviations from a standard linguistic system. To support this assumption Corder (1967,p.166) says: Errors are systematic, consistent deviances characteristic of the learners linguistic system at a given stage of learning. The key point is that the learner is using a definite system of language at every point in his developmentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦The learner errors are evidence of this system and are themselves systematic A similar attitude was presented by Dulay and Burt (1982,p.138) who considered errors as the flawed side of learners speech or writing. On the other hand errors can also be seen as an important and positive part of learning a language. :As Norrish (1983,p.6) states: the error itself may be a necessary part of learning a language. People are not able to detect errors because they have not learned the particular part of the material. Another linguist who was interested in this area was Ellis (1986,p.9), who also believed in the good side of error, stating: Errors are an important source of information about SLA, because they demonstrate conclusively that learners do not simply memorize target language rules and then reproduce them in their own utterances. They indicate that learners construct their own rules on the basis of input data, and that in some instances at least these rules differ from those of the target language. Lightbown and Spada (1999) agreed with the positive sides of errors, claiming that they can be the result of seeking the correct structure of the language. A different, less serious type of language behavior is called a mistake. According to Corder (1967) mistakes are deviances due to performance factors which include limitation of memory or emotional strain. Ellis (1997,p.17) claims that mistakes are simply the result of slips of the tongue and should not be seen as the result of a wrong interpretation of some rules of the target language. Moreover, the learner who has made this kind of random inaccuracies can correct them when his attention is drawn to them. Norrish (1983) identifies two more terms related to errors such as: lapse and slips. The former one is defined as a type of wrong usage, which may occur due to lack of concentration or shortness of memory. He adds that this kind of wrong usage is not very serious and can be also made by native speakers at any time. The last type of language deviation described by Norrish (1983,p.8) is a careless slip, that is caused by the learners inattentiveness in class. 2.1.1. Significance of errors An essential theory referring importance of errors was introduced by Corder (1967) in his article The significance of learners errors. The author made a distinction between systematic and non systematic error (mistake). He noted that incorrect utterances were a sign of the language development. Moreover he provided evidence that errors are significant in three ways. Firstly to the teachers, errors can tell how far the learner progressed and what knowledge he has to learn to reach the aim. Furthermore they are helpful to the researcher as they demonstrate evidence of the way the language is learned and also methods that are used by a learner to discover the language. Thirdly, making of errors are regarded as a device used by a learner in order to learn. Corder (1967) also claims that making of errors is a strategy employed both by children acquiring their mother tongue and by those learning a second languge. 2.2.Contrastive analysis In 1960 some new theoretical concepts were brought in to foreign language teaching that is: Contrastive Analysis and Error Analysis. As Connor (1996) stated the theory of second language learning assumed that before that time most errors were attributed to interference. Contrastive analysis (CA), a major branch of applied linguistics was a very valuable tool in language teaching methodology for both teachers and learners. It provided comparative and contrastive description of the learners native language and the target language. It was assumed that if teachers knew the structure of the learners MT, they would be able to prepare better teaching materials. Lado (1957 cited in James 1980) explained that the contrastive study was established to transfer some features of the L1 to the L2 .Practitioners of CA aimed at explaining particular aspects of L2 learning. They looked at correspondence between the two languages. Lightbown and Spada (1999,p.23) gave an explanation to that situation, stating: Contrastive analysis hypothesis predicts that where there are similarities between the first and the second language, the learner will acquire second language structures with ease; where there are differences, the learner will have difficulty. As James (1980) observed, there are three things that can be predicted by CA. They include areas which will cause problems, learners difficulties and learners errors. The aims of the method are pedagogical. As Lado (1957) cited in Ellis. The main aim of CA is pedagogical. As Lado (1957 cited in Edmondson 1999,p.92) states: The teacher who has made a comparison of the foreign language with the native language of the students will know better what the real problems are and can provide for teaching them. According to Gass and Selinker (2001) CA was based on several of the following assumptions: theory defining language as habit language learning involves a new set of habits the main cause of errors in the production of L2 is learners mother tongue. CA considers differences between L1 and L2 learners should learn only dissimilarities between the two languages whereas similarities should be ignored difficulties are established by differences and similarities between L1 and L2 Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis developed two positions that refers strong and weak version. In the strong version it was assumed that prediction could be made about learning and the success of teaching material after comparing the two languages. The weak version begins with an analysis of learners errors attempting to account for these errors on the basis of L1 and L2 differences. Besides the positive aspects of CA, researchers saw many problems deriving from comparison L1 and L2. According to Gass and Selinker (2001) CA could not predict all of the areas in learners difficulties. Moreover they claimed that it is inadequate to clarify the sources of certain types of errors. All of the disadvantages of CA led to development of another linguistic notion called Error Analysis. 2.3 Error Analysis Error analysis (EA) is a type of linguistic investigation which deals with the differences between learning a language and using the language by native speakers. According to Crystal (1980: 135) error analysis is described as: As a technique for identifying, classifying and systematically interpreting the mistakes made by someone learning a foreign language, using any of principles and procedures provided by linguistics. A similar definition of Error Analysis (EA) is given by Brown (1980). He described it as a process of observation, classification of errors and after that revealing the systems used by learners. It was expanded when validity of CA was questioned. According Gass and Selinker (2001) EA offered more possible explanations than CA .It uses possibility of accounting for learners errors while CA attributed errors to mother tongue only. Corder (1967) stresses that EA has two aims: diagnostic, which shows the state of learners interlanguage and prognostic which predicts future learners problems. It focuses on the errors learners make in SLA, assuming that these errors can be easy to avoid if the learners mother tongue and the target language were compared (Richards, 1974). The analysis of the errors was carried out in order to detect difficulties in learning and to discover how a student learns a language. Moreover, EA is dealing with the exploring of the language of second language learners. 2.4. Procedures of Error Analysis There were three steps introduced by Corder (1967) in EA reseach: Data collection: recognition of idiosyncrasy Decription: Accounting for idiosyncratic dialect Explanation (the ultimate object of error analysis) Furthermore, Gass and Selinker (2001,p.79) recognized six steps in conducting error analysis. They include: Data collection, Identifying errors, classifying errors, quantifying errors, analysis of sources and remediation. Beside the advantages of EA, researchers found that it fell short in the analysis of SLA data. According to Gass and Selinker (2001,p.83) one of the problematic area was the attempt to ascribe causes to errors. EA assumed that errors belonged to one source or another. Dulay and Burt (1974b,p.115) identified the fact that EA cannot categorize errors. As a result they originate a category called ambiguous goofs which are defined as those that cant be categorized as either Interference-like goofs or L1 developmental goofs 2.4.1. Identifying errors In this step Corder (1974) prepared a model for recognizing erroneous or idiosyncratic utterances in L2. According to this pattern any sentences produced by learners can be investigated for idiosyncrasies. Based on that model, Corder made a distinction between overt and covert errors. As Ellis (1994) claims the first group of errors is very easy to identify due to the fact that a deviation in forms is very clear. Covertly erroneous sentences are superficially well formed but it can not be interpretable. This mean that the learner may create utterances that are produced on the basis of internalized rules. Overt errors involve utterances which are ungrammatical. As Allen and Corder (1974,p.126) added that recognition of error is thus crucially dependent upon correct interpretation of the learners intentions. 2.4.2. Description of errors The next step after recognizing the errors is describing them. There were a few attempts to describe errors using various taxonomies. Ellis (1997,p.18) among other linguists divided errors into categories. He presented a type of classification related to general ways in which the learners utterances differ from the reconstructed target-language utterances. A similar error taxonomy was produced by Dulay, Burt and Krashen (1982), who classified errors into four categories. They include omission, addition, misformation and misordering. The first kind occurs when some items are left out in well formed utterances. For example She writing. Addition involves producing structure that is not required for an utterance to be considered grammatical. As Ellis (1997) claims the most common group of errors is misformation, which considers using sentences with the wrong form of the structure. As an example Dulay, Burt and Krashen (1982 cited in Ellis 1994,p.56) offer some samples of wrong forms such as: He did not went there (Dulay, Burt and Krashen cited in Ellis (1994)). Evidence of misordering is found when some morphemes are in the wrong order. For instance What he is reading?. It is noteworthy that this kind of error taxonomy only shows which errors are the most frequent. However , it was not possible to explain how L2 is learned. Therefore a better framework was introduced by Corder (1973) who presented three steps in learning according to error nature and degree of systematicity: Presystematic stage Systematic stage Postsystematic stage In the first stage according to Brown (1980) learners do not know the language structure well, they experiment what results in making many errors. Moreover, students are not aware of particular systems or rules in L2 and they produce random errors. The presystematic stage is seen as the time when students know some rules which they attempt to apply but unsuccessfully. The learner can explain his errors by providing linguistic messages in different structures. However, self correctness is still not possible in this phase. The next stage assumes that learners appear to have acquired a rule. Brown (1980) mentions a term backsliding to errors which can occur in this stage. Brown (1980,p.170) defines it as a form of linguistic regression arising out of the natural spiraling characteristic of human learning Appearance of postsystematic stage is found when learners make errors which can be corrected. As Brown (1980) claims at this stage errors seem to be infrequent. Moreover, learners are p rone to produce correct utterances but it happens inconsistently. The rules were learned but the learners was unsuccessful due to a lapse or lack of attention. 2.4.3. Explanation of errors After identifying and describing the errors in SLA the researchers tried to find the explanation why these language behaviours occurred. There are numerous interpretations underlying error appearance. According to Taylor (1986) the sources of errors can be psycholinguistic, sociolinguistic and epistemic. The first group of sources regards the nature of L2 system and the problems learners have in using it. Sociolinguistic sources concern learners abilities to adjust his language in terms of the social context. The last category involves the learners lack of world knowledge. Psycho-linguistic sources of errors, were created by Richards (1974) who proposed a special figure accounting for them and enumerating certain mental phenomenon being in charge or certain accuracy failures, that is Performance errors including transfer, interlingual (overgeneralization, transitional competence, induced errors Performance related to processing problems and communication strategies. Apart from the psycho-linguist sources Richard aimed at giving more origins which resulted in a list of three more sources that include Interference related errors 2.Intralingual errors are divided into four following subcategories: Over -generalization involves creating deviant structures in place of two target language structures (Ellis,1994,p.59). It can also be related to redundancy reduction. It may occur with forms which do not carry important contrasts for the learner. This means that ending -ed- in Past Simple can be omitted. As a result learners produce sentences like: I go to University yesterday. ignorance of rule restrictions involves application of rules which should not appear in contexts. This is a type of transfer when the learner uses structures that have been previously acquired. It can occur even when the target language is close to the mother tongue. Some rule restriction errors may derive from analogy which is a major factor in the wrong use of prepositions. Learners may attempt to use the same prepositions by analogy what leads to producing sentences: He explained me the book from the sentence He showed me the book. Another example of the analogy can be seen in article usage. incomplete rule application, that reflects errors related to analogy. The structures in learners production is not fully developed. This may result in producing declarative word order in questions like: You like to swim? instead of Do you like to swim? false concepts hypothesized can originate from faulty comprehension in the target language. This type of error appears when learners use structures was or were as a marker of Past Simple Tense in example: One day it was happened. Developmental errors, which reflect learners competence and show general features of language acquisition. These errors are caused due to learners limited experience. In contrary Richards (1974, p.174) claims that they illustrate the learner attempting to build up hypotheses about the language. Another linguist who attempted to outline origins of errors was Brown (1980,p.173).whose classification was similar to Richards view. However he added a few more sources of errors that are significant in a teachers understanding of learners interlanguage systems The author recognised such sources as: communication strategies, prefabricated patterns and language switch. George (1972) presented a few arguments related to error derivation. He assumed that some sources of errors are universal. Furthermore, Richard and Sampson (1974) distinguished causes of errors which fall into seven categories: Transfer Intralingual interference Sociolinguistic situation Modality of exposure to TL Age Successions of approximative systems Universal hierarchy of difficulty Apart from interlingual and intralingual sources James (1998) attempted to distinguished another type of sources such as induced errors. Another term described this kind of error was introduced by Brown, who called it context of learning. As Stenson (1974) explains these errors derive from the classroom situation. They occur when learners receive faulty explanation of grammatical rules. Such errors can show teachers the level of the students language competence. 2.4.3.1. Transfer The problem of language transfer has been explained by many researchers. It is believed that it plays a very important role in second language acquisition. According to Ellis (1997) transfer refers to an attempt to use the knowledge of languages that have been learned previously. Learners use their mother tongue experience in order to organize the second language data. They try to create their own rules, construct their grammars. Dulay, Burt and Krashen ( 1982: 101) describe it as the automatic, uncontrolled and subconscious use of past learned behaviors in the attempt to produce new responses According to Arabski (1997) there are numerous factors playing role in transfer occurring. They include learners age, type of language structure and interlanguage development. Littlewood (1984) and many other linguists distinguish two types o

Appearance versus Reality in Bertrand Russells The Problems of Philoso

Appearance versus Reality in Bertrand Russell's The Problems of Philosophy Bertrand Russell's method of approaching his subject in Problems of Philosophy embraces the Cartesian technique of radical doubt, in which the author revokes any former assumptions about certain reality and existence. In the first chapters, Russell's enquiry into the nature of reality in comparison to appearance begins with the observation of his immediate surroundings. By examining a table, for example, he determines that the table's colour, texture, and shape are sufficient to prompt doubt as to whether or not the table exists. The sensations of these qualities are not fixed by a reality; they are apparent possibilities and each depends on the conditions of observation, and thus an individual loses confidence in the senses. These observations lead to Russell's first distinction between appearance and reality: "The real table, if there is one, is not immediately known to us at all, but must be an inference from what is immediately known." (11) The reality of the table, he explains, depends on a proces... Appearance versus Reality in Bertrand Russell's The Problems of Philoso Appearance versus Reality in Bertrand Russell's The Problems of Philosophy Bertrand Russell's method of approaching his subject in Problems of Philosophy embraces the Cartesian technique of radical doubt, in which the author revokes any former assumptions about certain reality and existence. In the first chapters, Russell's enquiry into the nature of reality in comparison to appearance begins with the observation of his immediate surroundings. By examining a table, for example, he determines that the table's colour, texture, and shape are sufficient to prompt doubt as to whether or not the table exists. The sensations of these qualities are not fixed by a reality; they are apparent possibilities and each depends on the conditions of observation, and thus an individual loses confidence in the senses. These observations lead to Russell's first distinction between appearance and reality: "The real table, if there is one, is not immediately known to us at all, but must be an inference from what is immediately known." (11) The reality of the table, he explains, depends on a proces...

Indecisiveness :: essays research papers

Indecisiveness In the story Hamlet, there is a prince who is unable to make decisions for himself. A prince who must have good quality proof before he decides to do something. The public refers to people who cannot make decisions for themselves as people who are indecisive. In Hamlet, the prince of Denmark, Hamlet, is unable to make decisions for himself, and relies on the actions of others to make his final choice on wether to kill his Uncle Claudius or not. Many situations confirm this, such as when Hamlet put on a play, when someone was killed with something placed into the actors ear killing him and making Claudius panic and run off. Or when Hamlet says, "I'll have grounds/ more relative than this--the play's the thing/ Wherein I'll catch the conscience of the King" (II.ii.583-585), this suggests that Hamlet is indecisive because he does not have enough information to decide if Claudius is guilty or not. And also in many of Hamlet’s soliloquies, Hamlet speaks to himself an d questions his own judgement at many times during the play. All this can lead one to believe that Hamlet’s fatal flaw was his inability to make a solid choice, or indecisiveness. Hamlet’s friend invited a group of traveling actors to come to the court and preform an act for Hamlet to cheer him up. Hamlet financially supports this group of actors and asks for them to, at the end, have a killing in which a liquid will be placed into the ear of a actor, thus killing him. Hamlet believes this will make Claudius snap and he will have enough proof to kill Claudius. The plan goes as follows and Claudius stands up, shouts for light, and rushes off. Hamlet and his friend Horatio agree that this is enough proof. But still, even after this incident, Hamlet never does anything to capitalize. Because of this incident, where in any other circumstance, Claudius would have no reason to run off, but he did, Hamlet should have been convinced that the ghost of his father that spoke to him months before was the ghost of his father, and not the devil. In act two, scene two, Hamlet says "I'll have grounds/ more relative than this--the play's the thing/ Wherein I'll catch the conscience of the King" (II.ii.583-585), this tells a lot about Hamlet. First off, even though the ghost looked like his father, he would not believe the ghost, fearing the devil may have taken his fathers form.

Increasing :: Computer Science

Increasing The multi-store model of memory has been criticized for its simplicity. Describe and evaluate the multi-store model and contrast it with one other model of memory The purpose of models of memory is to view a larger picture of how the whole system of memory works. One model of memory is the multi-store model of memory by Atkinson and Shiffrin. The multi-store model of memory (MSM) is an explanation of how memory processes work based on the idea that there are three separate stores. This model can be compared with the working memory model (WM), by Baddely and Hitch, where they give an explanation of immediate memory. The MSM shows that information first arrives at the senses. If attention is focused on it, then it is transferred to short-term memory. It demonstrates information is maintained in STM through rehearsal, otherwise it will decay or may be displaced by new information. Increasing rehearsal leads to transfer from STM to LTM concluding that the more rehearsal, the better information is remembered. A strength of this model would be there is general agreement that there is an STM/STM difference, and this is well supported by the experiential evidence. The MSM is also the basis of many late models, even if they were then divided into further STM and LTM stores. However, The model of memory has been criticized for its simplicity. It does not sufficiently explain LTM, as rehearsal doesn’t explain all LTM memories, e.g flashbulb memories. The MSM is over simplified and in practice, there are no clear differences between stores of memory. It presents a passive view of memory and cannot account for active processes such as reconstruction. Research shows that memory does consist of a series of different stores that are linked by rehearsal, as described by the MSM. However, there is more to memory than this, which is explained in other models of memory. For example, the WM is a refinement of the MSM, describing what is happening in immediate storage in terms of a further set of stores specialised for auditory and visual information. The working memory model was proposed by Baddely and Hitch to represent short-term memory in terms of further sub-divisions. WM consists of 3 components: Central executive, phonological loop and a visuo-spatial sketchpad. The Central executive acts like attention and has limited capacity. The phonological loop deals with auditory information and preserves the order of information. Visuo-spatial sketchpad stores visual and spatial information when engaged in such tasks. The model explains how simultaneous performance of two visual tasks interfere with each other, but not when one task is visual and the other auditory.

Do We Have True Separation of Powers in Trinidad and Tobago? Essay

Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely! (Lord Acton, 1834-1902). This phrase aptly demonstrates the reason for the separation of powers, which is meant to prevent abuse of power in a democracy and preserve each and every citizen’s rights through the division of government responsibilities into distinct branches, averting one branch from gaining absolute power or abusing the power they are given. The intent is to avoid the concentration of power and provide for checks and balances. Though it can be traced as far back as ancient Greece, the first modern interpretation of the separation of powers was introduced by the French enlightenment writer Charles Montesquieu in De L’Esprit des Lois (The Spirit of the Laws) in 1748. He believed that for liberty and freedom to be maintained a safeguard against centralisation of power in one person should be provided. Montesquieu wrote that a nation’s freedom depended on the three powers of governance â⠂¬â€œ legislative, executive and judicial – and that these three powers must be separate and act independently to effectively promote liberty. This principle has been widely used in the development of many democracies since that time. The question is asked though: ‘Is the separation of powers truly separate?’ This essay would be focussing on the separation of powers in Trinidad and Tobago and the question of whether there exists true separation of powers in this country. For this purpose we will also examine the differences of the Unitary and Federal State and will be using the USA as an example of a Federal State. Trinidad and Tobago is a Unitary State governed by a democratic system. Unitary States exists in homogenous societies; there is one central government and all taxes goes back to the central government; one law making body and the laws made applies to the entire State. It is a single state. Federal states consists of a heterogeneous society, it is a combination of states and each state has the authority to make certain laws which may differ from state to state but Federal laws can override State laws; power is shared; and there is a State and Federal tax system. The USA is a Federal State. These two countries are governed under a democratic system which abides by the separation of powers and whose governmental systems both  consist of an executive, judicial and legislative branch. The legislative branch is responsible for the making and changing of laws. Trinidad and Tobago has a Bicameral Parliament, which means there are two houses, the Upper House or Senate and the Lower House or the House of Representatives. The Senate consists of 31 members: 16 government senators appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister, 6 appointed senators on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition, and 9 independent senators appointed by the President to represent other sectors of society. They are all appointed by the President. The ratio in the Senate is always fixed because that is what is allowed in the Constitution. The number of members in the House of Representatives is not a fixed ratio because it all depends on the voting process during elections, which are supposed to be free and fair and free from fear, meaning that you can choose to vote for whoever you want without any victimisation or force to do otherwise. Whoever wins the seat will be appointed a Member of Parl iament, by the President, and allowed to sit in the House of Representatives. Currently the House of Representatives, in Trinidad and Tobago consists of: 27 People Partnership seats, 1 ILP seat and 13 People National Movement seats. The party who wins the majority of seats would form the Government for the next 5 years. The United States Congress is also a bicameral legislature consisting of two houses: the House of Representatives and the Senate. Both representatives and senators are chosen through direct election. Members are affiliated to the Republican Party or to the Democratic Party and only rarely to a third-party or as independents. Congress has 535 voting members: 435 Representatives and 100 Senators. The Vice President is also the President of the Senate.The Congress debates on and approves bills concerning various matters and approves all treaties and all nominations to key foreign policy postings. The most important authority given to Congress overall is the power to declare war. But there has always been a tension between this and the president’s constitutional role as commander-in-chief of the armed forces. According to the Constitution of Trinidad and Tobago, Ch 5 (74) and (75), Executive authority is vested in the President and, subject to the Constitution, may be exercised by him either directly or through officers subordinate to him. Supreme command of the armed forces is also vested in the President and the exercise of this power shall be regulated by law. Under Ch 5 (80) 1, â€Å"In the exercise of his functions under the Constitution or any other law, the President shall act in accordance with the advice of the Cabinet or a Minister acting under the general authority of the Cabinet†. The Cabinet falls under the Executive arm and have the general direction and control of the government of Trinidad and Tobago, and is collectively responsible to Parliament. The Cabinet is headed by the Prime Minister who is appointed by the President. The leader of the political party that won the majority of seats via the voting system in a general election usually becomes the next Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is responsible for the allocation of function among Government Ministries. Other members of the Cabinet include the Attorney General and other Ministers of government appointed by the Prime Minister. Apart from the Prime Minister the Attorney General is the only member of the Cabinet specifically mentioned in the constitution relating to the executive branch of government, which is why they must be present for this arm to function. The constitution also provides that in exercising his powers, the Attorney General shall not be subjected to the direction or control of any other person or authority. Also, the Prime Minister can remove any member of Cabinet or a Government Senator because they are chosen by the Prime Minister, but not a member of the House of Representatives because they were voted into office by the peop le. The functions of Cabinet include the initiating and deciding on policies, the supreme control of the government and the coordination of government departments. According to the Constitution Ch 5 (77) 1, where the House of Representatives passes a resolution, supported by the votes of a majority of all the members of the House, declaring that it has no confidence in the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister does not within seven days of the passing of such a resolution either resign or advise the President to dissolve Parliament, the President shall revoke the appointment of the Prime Minister from office by members of the legislature on a vote of no confidence, but this is unheard of since the members of both arms share the same political agenda. They may  also vacate office by replacement or by ceasing to be a member of the house to which they belong. Apart from being the leader of the Cabinet which has effective control of the nation’s affairs, it is most certain that by the power vested in this arm of government it is easy for intimidation to occur, contradicting the very back bone of Montesquieu’s theory on the hallmark of democracy with regards to the separation of powers, with his main argument being for liberty and freedom to be maintained the three arms of government should be separated and apart – entrusted to different people. In a Federal State the President is the head of the executive branch of government. The Cabinet also consist of the vice president and fifteen executive departments – the Secretaries of agriculture, commerce, defence, education, energy, health and human services, homeland security, housing and urban development, interior, labour, state, transport, treasury, veterans affairs and the Attorney General. The purpose of the cabinet is to advise the president on matters relating to the duties of their respective offices. These members of cabinet are appointed by the president and must be confirmed by a majority vote of the Senate. They cannot be a member of congress or hold any other elected office. They can be dismissed at any time by the President, without the approval of Cabinet.The President is responsible for implementing and enforcing the laws written by congress. The main duties of the executive are making sure that the laws of the States are obeyed. They deliver programs and services to the population within the framework of laws, expenditures and tax measures approved by legislature. The Judiciary is known as the third arm of government in a unitary or federal state. The Judiciary of Trinidad and Tobago is headed by the Chief Justice, and in a democratic country as this, the Judiciary is established by the Constitution to operate independently from the executive arm. They interpret and enforce the laws, and acts as a forum for the resolution of legal disputes among citizens of the State. The hierarchical order of the courts is as follows; magistrate, supreme, appeal and Privy Council which is the last and highest level located in England. The Chief Justice is appointed by the President after consultation with the Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition. Under the constitution the judicial and legal  services commission (JLSC) which is made up by the Chairman of the Public Services Commission, one person who was a Judge, two persons with legal qualifications and the Chief Justice, is charged with the tasks of appointing Justices of Appeal, High Court Judges, Masters of the High Court, Magistrates, Registrars of the Supreme Court and the Administrative Secretary to the Chief Justice, all of whom are judicial officers. Although the law clearly protects the Judiciary from political interference, the Judiciary is economically dependent on the executive arm of government for the allocation of funds causing them to not be as independent as proposed. The Attorney General, who is the second in command in Cabinet under the Executive, is the Minister responsible for the administration of legal affairs. There were complaints made by the Chief Justice in 1999, about the Attorney General’s plans to make the Judiciary a department under his Ministry, requiring the Chief Justice and his staff to report to him on matters concerning the operation of the courts in general. A detailed report by the Attorney General to the Parliament argued that a dispute did exist concerning his role in relation to the administration of justice, and he asserted his right of control over administrative matters not pertaining to the judicial function. He saw it fit that he should superintend the administrative affairs of the J udiciary. Another issue facing the judiciary is the national awards. The Chief Justice heads the committee which receives recommendations of citizens deserving of the award, this is then passed to the Prime Minister who has the power to insert and delete nominees. This has caused major concern in the real independence of the Judiciary as it pertains to the separation of powers between the executive and the judiciary and some may see this as being politically motivated. In the past an inquiry into the interference by the other arms of government in the Judiciary was investigated by one of the Lords at the Privy Council. His findings gave no comfort to the allegations made, instead he noted that the real issue was the lack of co-operation by the Executive and the Judiciary arm of government and stressed that they should work together for the good of the country. In a federal judicial system such as the USA more than 600 judges sit on district courts, almost 200 judges sit on courts of appeals, and 9 justices make up the Supreme Court. Federal judges have life terms, therefore, no single president will make all of these appointments.The Supreme Court is the highest court and consists of the Chief Justice and 8 other associates. The Constitution provides broad parameters for the judicial nomination process giving the responsibility for nominating federal judges and justices to the President, who relies on many sources to recommend appropriate nominees for judicial posts.Recommendations are received from the Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, members of Congress, sitting judges and justices, and the American Bar Association. Some judicial hopefuls even nominate themselves. Nominations are also required to be confirmed by the Senate. A special, very powerful tradition for recommending district judges is called senatorial courtesy. This practice allows senators from the state in which there is a vacancy, and who is also of the same political party as the President, to send a nomination to the President, who almost always follows the recommendation. To ignore it would be a great affront to the senator, as well as an invitation for conflict between the President and the Senate. The Constitution guarantees that judges would be protected by any reduction in salaries and removal from office. This concept is the backbone of the judicial independence which was establish by Brittan. The judiciary arm of government in a federal state may serve different purposes. Their functions can range from judicial to non-judicial with its main function being the administration of laws, interpretation of laws, guardianship of the constitution, advisory jurisdiction, protector of the fundamental rights and supervisory to smaller courts. Whilst stressing on the independence of the judiciary in the separation of powers external threats arise from the powers that the Constitution leaves to congress and the president to control the judiciary’s resources. In both the Unitary State which is Trinidad and Tobago and the Federal State which is the USA there exist a system in place for the separation of powers but in Trinidad and Tobago there is an overlapping in the system. The Parliament and the Cabinet has some of the same people, for example the Prime Minister, Attorney General and Government Ministers form the Cabinet  but they are also members of the Parliament. This means that there is no true separation of powers between the Parliament and the Executive because according to Montesquieu to ensure that liberty and freedom is maintained the three arms of government should be entrusted to different people and this has not happened with these two branches. The only one that remains totally separate is the Judiciary. In an article from the Guardian Newspaper, Tony Fraser wrote on the Separation of Powers, he said: â€Å"Having an operational separation of powers is important to achieve democratic and quality governance. It is absolute ly dangerous for the Government/Cabinet and the Prime Minister to have full control of the passage of legislation, to be in a position to implement policies and programmes, the vast majority of which have a base in the laws passed, and to then have control of the judiciary whose responsibility is to interpret the laws. Imagine the power of a prime minister as CEO who could pass legislation which does not require a special majority, have a majority to alter the Constitution to take away the right to free expression, have total control of all major appointments to state office — including the President of the Republic and the Chief Justice, the Commissioner of Police, the operations of the Elections and Boundaries Commission, the Service Commissions — and appoint independent senators and on and on. Imagine, too, a Prime Minister having full control of the operations of the judiciary so that judges and magistrates would have to make judgements based on the desires of the CEO. Effectively, this would mean that the PM could determine who among the political opponents of the Government should â€Å"make a jail† and who among the supporters of the ruling party could engage in corrupt activity â€Å"la blash,† free sheet without fear of prosecution. If the doctrine of the separa tion of powers does not function effectively, the Prime Minister would have total legislative power and power too over the judiciary, and all of this in addition to being in total control of the establishment and functioning of the Cabinet including, for instance, deciding which minister should be fired, who should be protected, and what policies and programmes are to be implemented without a continuing check on the power.† This article clearly illustrates the importance of the separation of powers, and the corruption that could ensue without it. In Trinidad and Tobago the separation of powers does not truly exist because too much power is centralised in one person – the Prime Minister. In a federal state there is true separation of powers because each branch is entrusted to different people. The only exception is that the Vice President is also the President of the Senate, which can lead to abuse of power, such as in the case of Senators who gives recommendations to the President, forcing the President to choose the person they recommended or face conflict in the Senate. Lord Acton could not have said it any better, power truly corrupts but he also said that â€Å"Great men are almost always bad men.† If no one else believed what his words conveyed then a need for the separation of powers would never have been realised. Checks and balances are not just needed for Government officials but also in everyone else’s daily lives. Businesses has managers, supervisors and labourers and they all have different degrees of power which helps to keep staff in check and ensure that everything is running efficiently, if they all had the same status then there would not be an incentive to keep others in check and chaos would reign supreme. There must always be a mechanism to help maintain order/good governance and even though it may not be a perfect system, some abusers of the laws have been brought to justice, more so in the federal system. We do, however, look forward to the day that it works efficiently in a Unitary State. BIBLIOGRAPHY Constitution of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, Act 4 of 1976. http://www.ag.gov.tt/Portals/0/Documents/TT%20Constitution.pdf Constitution of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Retrieved from http://rgd.legalaffairs.gov.tt/laws2/alphabetical_list/lawspdfs/1.01.pdf Encyclopà ¦dia Britannica Contributors, Gaurav Shukla, Grace Young, Separation of Powers, The Editors Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/topic/473411/contributors http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/europe/az.htm Martin Kelly, Separation of Powers, About.com American History http://americanhistory.about.com/od/usconstitution/g/sep_of_powers.htm NCSL, Separation of Powers – an Overview. Retrieved from http://www.ncsl.org/research/about-state-legislatures/separation-of-powers-an-overview.aspx Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago. Retrieved from http://www.ttparliament.org/members.php?mid=25 The Phase Finder: Retrieved from http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/absolute-power-corrupts-absolutely.html Tony Fraser, Separation of Powers, Guardian Newspaper Article. Retrieved from https://guardian.co.tt/columnist/2012-12-19/separation-powers Wikipedia: The United States Congress, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congress