How to Describe the Past in Spanish Imperfect vs. Preterite

How to Describe the Past in Spanish Imperfect vs. Preterite Maile Proctor When youre taking Spanish lessons, you may be confused by new concepts and grammar rules. In Spanish, there are two different ways to describe the past; the imperfect and the preterite. Here, Carmichael,  CA Spanish teacher Joan B. shares some helpful hints to help you describe the past in Spanish As a beginning Spanish speaker, it can be difficult to determine which form of the past tense you should use: imperfect vs. preterite. Once you learn the following simple tricks, however, you should be able to figure out which tense to use in any situation where you need to describe the past in Spanish. Lets start by looking at the differences between the imperfect and the preterite. The Imperfect The imperfect is used to describe past actions that have no clear beginning and end. This includes descriptions, age, weather, time, and emotions. It also refers to repeated action (translated as used to) such as, iba todos los veranos  (I used to go every summer). Learn more about conjugating the imperfect tense. The Preterite The preterite is used to describe a completed action in the past, with a clear beginning and end. For example, ayer fui al cine  translates to yesterday I went to the movies. This is an action that occurred once, instead of many times over a period of time. Learn more about conjugating the preterite tense. How to Decide? Sometimes, sentences in Spanish will only use one form of the past tense, and you will have to decide between imperfect vs. preterite. Other times, there are contextual clues that will allow you to use both forms in the same sentence. When to Use Both A common use of the preterite and imperfect within one sentence is when the imperfect describes an ongoing past action, and the preterite describes an action that interrupted the ongoing action.  For example,  mientras leía el libro, ella me llamó  (while I was reading the book, she called me). Whenever you see the word mientras  in a sentence describing the past, you can be sure that the imperfect will immediately follow mientras, and that the preterite will be used to describe any subsequent action that interrupts the ongoing action. Watch out for sentences that use the word  cuando. Some sentences with  cuando  function similarly to mientras  in the sense that theres an imperfect followed by the preterite, for example, cuando caminaba en el parque, vi un accidente (when I was walking in the park, I saw an accident). In other cases, however, the order of tenses can be reversed, cuando llegué a casa, mi madre estaba cocinando (when I arrived home, my mother was cooking). Understanding the imperfect and the preterite can be confusing, but if you identify the type of action being described and watch for contextual clues, you should be able to recognize which form of the past tense to use. Interested in learning more about imperfect vs. preterite? Taking lessons with a private instructor is a great way to get customized and personalized help on your way to becoming a fluent Spanish speaker! Sign up with a Spanish tutor hoy! Joan B. lives in  Carmichael, CA  and has been teaching high school Spanish for more than 18 years. A lover of language, she’s studied French, Arabic, and Italian and spent time living in Spain. Joan aims to help students improve on tests and increase their conversational ability when traveling to Spanish-speaking countries.  Learn more about Joan here! Interested in Private Lessons? Search thousands of teachers for local and live, online lessons. Sign up for convenient, affordable private lessons today! Search for Your Teacher Photo by  Zachary R

My Experience at Yale University

My Experience at Yale University The tutors behind Varsity Tutors are not just here to teach theyre sharing their college experiences as well. Murat earned his Bachelors degree in Religious Studies from Yale University in 2014. He is a Washington, D.C. tutor specializing in many subject areas, including Spanish tutoring, SAT prep tutoring, and Algebra tutoring. Check out his review of Yale University: VT: Describe the campus setting and transportation options.How urban or safe is the campus?Are there buses or do you need a car/bike? Murat: The Yale University campus is located in New Haven, Connecticut. While the university maintains close ties with the city, the campus is a world unto itself. Most buildings are located within walking distance of one another. The farthest section of the campus is Science Hill, where most of the science lab and lecture courses are taught. It is located about 10-15 minutes from the residential areas (called residential colleges). All the other buildings are located very close to the residential colleges, so everything can be reached by walking. There is a free shuttle service that takes you to most places around campus, and it comes in handy during the cold winter months, especially for students who take a lot of science courses. A car is not needed, and while a bike might be useful, most students do not use them during the winter months. Yale University is a safe campus, and while crime does occur in New Haven, the Yale Police Department does a fantastic job of keeping students s afe. At night, there are free door-to-door shuttle services that any student can use. They are useful when you are visiting friends who live far from your residential college. The Yale University campus is beautiful (perhaps the most beautiful college campus in the United States), and walking its grounds every day is a treat that I know I would not have gotten at any other college. VT: How available are the professors, academic advisers, and teaching assistants? Murat: The faculty at Yale University is as available as a student wants them to be. All professors are required to hold office hours, and most are willing to meet with students at other times as long as an appointment is made in advance. Professors love meeting with students and helping them not only with course material, but also with academic and career counseling. Freshman year, your residential college dean is your main academic adviser, and they are fantastic when trying to navigate Yale Universitys abundant resources, from choosing an adequate course load to thinking about study abroad experiences. Sophomore through senior years, you get to choose your own academic adviser, and he or she can be any professor at Yale University. Each major also has a Director of Undergraduate Studies who serves as the main academic adviser for seniors. In addition, those students writing a senior thesis have thesis advisers who meet with them several times throughout the entire writing process. Most, although not all courses, have teaching assistants, who teach one section (in addition to the lecture/seminar hours) every week. Teaching assistants are also readily available via email and in person, and they really make an effort to create a positive class environment. For some of my courses, my teaching assistants were actually much more interesting and engaging than my professors. I would like to emphasize that it is really up to the students how much advantage they take of the facultys availability. Even if you are not taking a class with a professor and you want to meet to talk about career paths or potential future classes, he or she is always happy to talk to and advise students. VT: How would you describe the dorm life rooms, dining options, location, socialization opportunities with other students? Murat: Yale Universitys dorm life is unique in that it is divided into 12 residential colleges (soon to be 14). Each student is randomly assigned to a residential college at the start of his or her freshman year. Each college has its own courtyard, dining hall, gym, library, recreational areas, laundry room, movie screening rooms, and many other amenities that make residential life very fun and practical. Each residential college holds between 200-400 students, and most are very centrally located. The thing that I liked about the colleges was their sense of community. Colleges compete against each other in intramural sports, and each college has a particular color and mascot/symbol. While most of your friends will probably be those in your college (simply because you live so close to them from freshman year on), inter-college socialization happens all the time, and most students have many friends outside of their colleges. Each college has a Master, who is in charge of the social and emotional well being of all students. Masters organize events, such as barbecues, field trips, shopping trips, and workshops, that all students can participate in. Yale Universitys residential units are called suites, and each suite has a bedroom and a common room. Juniors and seniors can live in co-ed suites, while freshmen and sophomores can only live in single-sex suites, although most floors are also co-ed (single-sex floors are available for people who require it for special reasons). Students are required to live in a residential college their freshman and sophomore years, and they have the option of living off-campus their junior and senior years. VT: Which majors/programs are best represented and supported?What did you study and why? Did the university do a good job supporting your particular area of study? Murat: While most students major in the humanities and social sciences, Yale University has been investing millions of dollars into its science department, which is one of the most sophisticated and advanced in the world. I undertook a unique career path, in that I pursued pre-medical studies while majoring in something related to the humanities (Religious Studies). I wanted to be a doctor, but I did not want to limit my undergraduate education to just social sciences. Like most majors at Yale University, the Religious Studies department gave me a lot of flexibility in assembling my own set of courses and in molding the major to my own interests. I took a lot of courses in the Latin American Studies and History departments, and was even able to take PhD-level classes that counted toward my major. Very few people major in Religious Studies (there were only eight of us in my class), but that makes for a better learning experience because each student has much more access to the faculty . The advising that takes place is also much more personalized. The advantage of other larger majors, such as History, Political Science, Biology, or English, is that those departments have a lot of money available for students to use for their research. One of my close friends, for example, was able to travel to France for two weeks (paid for by the English department) to do research on Albert Camus for his senior thesis. I would say, however, that there is room for improvement in certain area studies. Most humanities and social science programs have strong offerings in courses related to Europe, East Asia, and America, but there are very few courses that focus on Latin America and Africa. VT: How easy or difficult was it for you to meet people and make friends as a freshman? Does Greek life play a significant role in the campus social life? Murat: Yale University students are very hard working, but also very sociable. The residential college system makes it very easy to establish friendships from day one. Extracurricular student groups are extremely active on campus, and they make a good effort to attract and recruit freshmen. There are also cultural groups that facilitate friendships between students of common heritages. While Greek life exists at Yale University, the majority of students do not rush fraternities or sororities, and it really does not play a significant role in campus social life. Yale Universitys unofficial motto is work hard, play harder, so most students do take the time to have fun and enjoy their college experience, especially during the weekends. VT: How helpful is the Career Centerand other student support services?Do many reputable companies recruit on campus? Murat: It really depends on the career you are pursuing. From personal experience, I can say that Yale University has a very poor pre-medical advising center, and pre-medical students often end up feeling confused and dissatisfied when seeking the Career Centers services. For students wanting to go into a career in consulting and finance, the Career Center is a great place to go, as most counselors have a lot of experience dealing with large firms like J.P. Morgan, Deloitte, and McKinsey Company, all of which do heavy on-campus recruitment. For students pursuing a career in the public sector, while public firms/organizations do not really recruit on campus, counselors have a lot of knowledge in this area, and they will advise you properly on potential fellowships and jobs that you might want to pursue. The Career Center also has a fantastic International Experience section, which does a great job in advising students who want to pursue a semester, or even a career, abroad. VT: How are the various study areas such aslibraries, the student union, and dorm lounges? Are they over-crowded, easily available, spacious? Murat:It also depends. Most of the year, there will be plenty of space in libraries and recreational areas to study comfortably. When finals come, however, libraries do tend to become overcrowded, and many students prefer to study in their dorm rooms. Libraries have private study rooms that students can book in advance, but they tend to be overbooked (during finals, its impossible to get one). Most classroom buildings are also left open throughout the night, and students can freely wander into different classrooms to study by themselves or in groups. All students have ID access to two main libraries, the libraries of the different professional schools, and their own residential college libraries (more than 10 libraries in total). On a side note, the Yale University libraries are a great resource for all students. Each student has a personal librarian that is readily available to guide students through the millions of sources that exist. One time, for example, I asked my personal libr arian if Yale University had access to Chilean newspapers between 1973 and 1976 for an essay that I was writing. A couple of hours later, I was in the library going through digital microfilm that included every single issue from a Chilean paper called El Mercurio from 1970 to the present. VT: Describe the surrounding town. What kinds of outside establishments / things to do are there that make it fun, boring, or somewhere in between?To what extent do students go to the downtown area of the city versus staying near campus? Murat: Despite the fact that New Haven has a bad reputation, it really is what you make of it. While most of my friends who did not go to Yale University do not believe me when I tell them this, New Haven has one of the best restaurant scenes in the country. Most restaurants are located within a short walking distance from the central campus, and they offer delicious (although expensive) options from all around the world. The city also has a good shopping scene, with brands such as Urban Outfitters, Apple, and J. Crew right on the heart of campus. Yale University has a lot of museums that are open to the public, and a wonderful theater scene that offers shows year-round. New Haven also has a great natural environment, with pleasant hiking trails and lots of forest space. For those students over 21, the bar scene is very varied (and its growing at a fast pace), and while expensive, it is a lot of fun. Most parties and socializing, however, take place on campus, not in the city. Yale University also offers many opportunities to get involved with the New Haven community at large. There are many student organizations that are devoted to improving the life of people in the community in various ways, from offering free health services to undocumented migrants, to tutoring students in middle school, to working in soup kitchens to help the poor. In fact, many of my friends who were very involved with New Haven loved the city and ended up staying afterward, working for grassroots or political organizations. VT: How big or small is the student body? Were you generally pleased or displeased with the typical class sizes? Murat:Each class has about 1,400 students. Classroom sizes vary, depending on whether you take a big lecture course or a small seminar. Because I was both a pre-medical and Religious Studies student, I ended up having a combination of both. I highly preferred small seminars to large lecture courses because they allowed me to participate more actively and to get to know the professor better. My largest biology course, for example, had more than 200 students, and interactions with the professor during class were very limited. VT: Describe one memorable experience with a professor and/or class. Perhaps one you loved the most or one youregretthe most. Murat: Like any other school, Yale University has wonderful professors and bad professors (thankfully, more wonderful than not). I will begin by describing the class that I liked the least: Organic Chemistry I. Not only was this a huge lecture course with more than 100 students, but the professor also made no effort whatsoever to create an engaging class environment. The one time that I went to see him for office hours, he fell asleep as I was asking him a question, so I awkwardly stood up and left without disturbing him. Naturally, for such a difficult subject, having such a horrible professor made the experience even worse. But most of the time, I felt incredibly lucky for being at a place like Yale University. For one of my favorite courses, Tibetan Buddhism, my professor decided to hold class one day at the Beinecke Rare Book Manuscript Library. Inside one of the seminar rooms in the library, my professor uncovered ancient Buddhist paintings that had been saved from Tibet prior to the Chinese occupation and that only existed in few other places in the world. That day, my professor also invited a Tibetan Lama (spiritual leader) to speak. As I sat in class that day, listening to the Lama unlock the secrets of the Tibetan paintings, I knew that only at Yale University would I ever have an opportunity like this. Check out Murats tutoring profile. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Varsity Tutors.

Target Structures

Target Structures Target structures to use with the Target Structure tool What are target structures? Optimal second language pedagogy involves a repeating exchange of meaningful messages with a focus on target structures. By exchange, I mean that teachers should provide learners with opportunities to create sentences, paragraphs, stories, essays, blog posts, articles or reports that are meaningful to the learner. Learners should express those messages to someone, not as an empty display. That means learners should express those messages to other learners, their teachers, or with the online world. Repetition is important to help the language stick. There should be multiple opportunities to express those messages to different interlocutors, in different modes, and in different contexts. Each time the message is expressed, it should contain specific and appropriate target vocabulary, target grammar structures, or target multi-word formulas. The pedagogical reasons are simple. Learners often avoid error by avoiding complexity. Teachers must requires target structures taught in their lessons so that the student incorporates those new structures into their messages. The second reason is based on the production effect. In the future, when the learner encounters a real-life situation requiring the construction a similar meaningful message, those same target structures that were practiced and produced should activate in the learners memory and become available for use instantly and effortlessly. In this way, creative automaticity is ensured. It is easy to use the Virtual Writing Tutors target structure checker. Click the Check Target Structure Checker button Step 1 Use the Target Structure Checker Step 2 Select if you want to your search to case-sensitive or if you want all derivations and conjugations of the base forms listed Step 3 Review your target structure checker results Target structures to use with the Target Structure tool Here are a variety of lists of target structures to use with the VirtualWritingTutor.com grammar checker. Adverbs of frequency every day, always, almost always, usually, normally, generally, often, frequently, sometimes, occasionally, seldom, hardly ever, rarely, almost never, never Negatives wasnt, werent, didnt, dont, doesnt, isnt, arent, not Past negatives wasnt, werent, didnt, not Common prepositions in, on, at, to, by, for, beside, behind, between, next to, in front of Downtoners a bit, a little bit, a tiny bit, hardly, a little, barely, only just, somewhat, kind of, sort of, not so much, mildly, to some extent, simply, all but, pretty, relatively, rather, fairly, slightly, almost, nearly Target structures for the Actively Engaged at College / on the Job old, have been, every day, always, almost always, usually, normally, generally, often, frequently, sometimes, occasionally, seldom, hardly ever, rarely, almost never, never, dream, wasnt, werent, didnt, not, when, while, if, punched, kissed Vocabulary from the Actively Engaged Online listenings foot in the door, abolish, alienation, background check, bias, come in handy, compensation package, cursory, dead-end job, deter, drawback, dread, drudgery, flirtation, fulfillment, getting sucked up in, hinder, HR, in-depth, income, ins-and-outs, intern, internship, invaluable, lack of, learn the ropes, leave of absence, leg work, maddening, misconduct, more often than not, mortgage, office politics, OJT, on-the-job-training, overtime, overwhelm, pension, perpetrator, premium wage, pull off, purpose, put aside, recipient, retirement, set aside, sexual harassment, straight As, test drive, the drive of work, thoroughly, though, thoughtful, time management, trainee, undermine, vacant position, wage, withholding, worthwhile 295 most common past tense verbs accepted, achieved, added, admitted, affected, afforded, agreed, aimed, allowed, answered, appeared, applied, arrived, asked, attacked, avoided, based, was, were, became, began, believed, belonged, broke, built, burned, bought, brought, called, caused, changed, charged, checked, chose, claimed, cleaned, cleared, climbed, closed, collected, came, committed, compared, complained, completed, concerned, confirmed, connected, considered, contacted, contained, continued, contributed, controlled, cooked, copied, correct, cost, could, counted, covered, created, cut, damaged, danced, decided, delivered, demanded, denied, depended, described, designed, destroyed, developed, did, disappeared, discovered, discussed, divided, drew, dressed, drank, drove, dropped, ate, enabled, encouraged, ended, enjoyed, examined, existed, expected, experienced, explained, expressed, extended, fell, fastened, fought, filled, found, finished, flew, folded, followed, forced, forgot, forgave, formed, founded, gained , gave, went, grew, handled, happened, hated, had, heard, helped, hid, hit, held, hoped, hurt, identified, imagined, improved, included, increased, indicated, influenced, informed, intended, introduced, invited, involved, joined, jumped, kept, kicked, killed, knocked, lasted, laughed, laid, led, lent, liked, limited, linked, listened, lived, looked, lost, loved, made, managed, marked, mattered, might, meant, measured, met, mentioned, minded, missed, moved, had, needed, noticed, obtained, offered, opened, ordered, ought, owned, passed, paid, performed, picked, placed, planned, played, pointed, preferred, prepared, presented, pressed, prevented, produced, promised, protected, proved, provided, published, pulled, pushed, raised, reached, read-red, realized, received, recognized, recorded, reduced, referred, reflected, refused, regarded, related, released, remained, remembered, removed, repeated, replaced, replied, reported, represented, required, rested, resulted, returned, revealed, r ang, rolled, ran, saved, said, saw, seemed, sold, sent, separated, served, set, settled, shook, should, shared, shot, shouted, showed, sang, sat, slept, smiled, sorted, sounded, spoke, started, stated, stayed, stuck, stopped, studied, succeeded, suffered, suggested, suited, supplied, supported, supposed, survived, took, talked, taught, told, tested, thanked, thought, touched, trained, traveled, travelled, treated, tried, turned, understood, used, visited, voted, waited, walked, wanted, warned, washed, watched, wore, willed, won, wished, wondered, worked, wrote Transition words indeed, further, as well, either, not only, also, moreover, what is more, as a matter of fact, in all honesty, and, furthermore, in addition, besides, to tell the truth, or, in fact, actually, to say nothing of, too, let alone, much less, additionally, nor, alternatively, on the other hand, not to mention, such as, particularly, including, as an illustration, for example, in particular, for one thing, to illustrate, for instance, especially, notably, by way of example, speaking about, considering, regarding, with regards to, as for, concerning, the fact that, on the subject of, similarly, in the same way, by the same token, in a like manner, equally, likewise, that is to say, namely, specifically, thus, that is to say, I mean, to put it another way, in other words, but, by way of contrast, while, on the other hand, however, yet, whereas, in contrast, when in fact, conversely, still, even more, above all, indeed, more importantly, besides, but even so, nevertheless, even though, on th e other hand, admittedly, however, nonetheless, despite this, notwithstanding, albeit, still, although, in spite of, regardless, yet, though, granted, be that as it may, either way, whichever happens, in either event, in any case, at any rate, in either case, whatever happens, all the same, in any event, at least, rather, instead, for the simple reason that, being that, for, in view of the fact, inasmuch as, because of the fact, seeing that, as, owing to the fact, due to the fact that, in that since, for as much as, on the condition that, granted that, if, provided that, in case, in the event that, as/so long as, unless given that, granting that, providing that, even if, only if, as a result, consequently, hence, for this reason, thus, because of this, in consequence, so that, accordingly, as a consequence, so much so, so, therefore, for the purpose of, in the hope that, for fear that, so that, with this intention, to the end that, in order to, lest, with this in mind, in order that , so as to, under those circumstances, then, in that case, if not, that being the case, if so, otherwise, in the first place, initially, to start with, first of all, thirdly, to begin with, at first, for a start, secondly, subsequently, previously, eventually, next, before, afterwards, after, then, to conclude, as a final point, eventually, at last, last but not least, in the end, finally, lastly, to change the topic incidentally, by the way, to get back to the point, to resume anyhow, anyway, at any rate, to return to the subject, as was previously stated, so, consequently, in summary, all in all, to make a long story short, thus, as I have said, to sum up, overall, as has been mentioned, then, to summarize, to be brief, briefly, given these points, in all, on the whole, therefore, as has been noted, hence, in conclusion, in a word, to put it briefly, in sum, altogether, in short Alternatives for the word said spat, sighed, blubbered, stammered, blurted, mused, lied, panted, added, frowned, whispered, spat, stammered, sighed, sneered, seethed, frowned, shouted, demanded, insisted, screamed Thesis action verbs in the present tense accentuate, accept, access, account, adapt, address, advance, affirm, agree, allege, alter, amplify, analyze, argue, arrange, ascribe, assert, assign, associate, assume, attain, attempt, attest, attribute, augment, authorize, bestow, bolster, broaden, build, carry, cause, censure, challenge, characterize, claim, clarify, coach, compare, complicate, conceal, conceive, conclude, condemn, condense, configure, confirm, conflate, conflict, conjecture, connect, connote, consider, construct, contend, contradict, contrast, contribute, convey, counteract, craft, create, criticize, critique, deconstruct, defend, defy, demonstrate, denote, denounce, depict, deride, descend, describe, detach, detect, diagnose, direct, disclose, discuss, disguise, dismantle, dismiss, display, disprove, dispute, distinguish, divulge, document, dramatize, echo, elaborate, elevate, elucidate, embody, emphasize, enable, enforce, engage, enlighten, entertain, epitomize, establish, evaluate, evince, evoke, examine, exe mplify, exhibit, exist, expand, explain, explicate, explore, expose, expound, express, fail, fashion, feature, focus, foreshadow, form, frame, generate, grasp, guide, heighten, highlight, hint, identify, illuminate, illustrate, implies, imply, includes, indicate, infers, inform, informs, initiate, insinuate, insist, instigate, instruct, intends, intensify, interpret, interrogate, invent, investigate, ironize, isolate, justify, juxtaposes, link, maintain, manifest, manipulate, mediate, misconceive, multiply, navigate, necessitate, negate, negotiate, renegotiate, obscure, obstruct, offer, oppose, organize, perceive, persuade, portray, posit, position, predict, present, prioritize, probe, problematize, produce, profess, pronounce, propose, prove, provide, question, radicalize, rationalize, recall, recognize, reconfigure, reconstruct, refer, reflect, reinforce, remain, render, renounce, represent, respond, reveal, review, scrutinize, shape, shroud, signal, signify, simulate, situate, sp ecify, study, succeed, suggest, support, sustain, transform, treat, trigger, uncover, underscore, unmask, validate, veil, verify, warp, witness, work, accentuates, accepts, accesses, accounts, adapts, addresses, advances, affirms, agrees, alleges, alters, amplifies, analyzes, argues, arranges, ascribes, asserts, assigns, associates, assumes, attains, attempts, attests, attributes, augments, authorizes, bestows, bolsters, broadens, builds, carries, causes, censures, challenges, characterizes, claims, clarifies, coaches, compares, complicates, conceals, conceives, concludes, condemns, condenses, configures, confirms, conflates, conflicts, conjectures, connects, connotes, considers, constructs, contends, contradicts, contrasts, contributes, conveys, counteracts, crafts, creates, criticizes, critiques, deconstructs, defends, defies, demonstrates, denotes, denounces, depicts, derides, descends, describes, detaches, detects, diagnoses, directs, discloses, discusses, disguises, dismantles, dismisses, displays, disproves, disputes, distinguishes, divulges, documents, dramatizes, echoes, echos, elaborates, elevates, elucidates, embodies, emphasizes, enables, enforces, engages, enlightens, entertains, epitomizes, establishes, evaluates, evinces, evokes, examines, exemplifies, exhibits, exists, expands, explains, explicates, explores, exposes, expounds, expresses, fails, fashions, features, focuses, focusses, foreshadows, forms, frames, generates, grasps, guides, heightens, highlights, hints, identifies, illuminates, illustrates, implies, implies, includes, indicates, infers, informs, informs, initiates, insinuates, insists, instigates, instructs, intends, intensifies, interprets, interrogates, invents, investigates, isolates, justifies, juxtaposes, links, maintains, manifests, manipulates, mediates, misconceives, multiplies, navigates, necessitates, negates, negotiates, renegotiates, obscures, obstructs, offers, opposes, organizes, perceives, persuades, portrays, posits , positions, predicts, presents, prioritizes, probes, problematizes, produces, professes, pronounces, proposes, proves, provides, questions, radicalizes, rationalizes, recalls, recognizes, reconfigures, reconstructs, refers, reflects, reinforces, remains, renders, renounces, represents, responds, reveals, reviews, scrutinizes, shapes, shrouds, signals, signifies, simulates, situates, specifies, studies, succeeds, suggests, supports, sustains, transforms, treats, triggers, uncovers, underscores, unmasks, validates, veils, verifies, warps, witnesses, works Thesis action verbs in the past tense accentuated, accepted, accessed, accounted, adapted, addressed, advanced, affirmed, agreed, alleged, altered, amplified, analyzed, argued, arranged, ascribed, asserted, assigned, associated, assumed, attained, attempted, attested, attributed, augmented, authorized, bestowed, bolstered, broadened, builded, carried, caused, censured, challenged, characterized, claimed, clarified, coached, compared, complicated, concealed, conceived, concluded, condemned, condensed, configured, confirmed, conflated, conflicted, conjectured, connected, connoted, considered, constructed, contended, contradicted, contrasted, contributed, conveyed, counteracted, crafted, created, criticized, critiqued, deconstructed, defended, defied, demonstrated, denoted, denounced, depicted, derided, descended, described, detached, detected, diagnosed, directed, disclosed, discussed, disguised, dismantled, dismissed, displayed, disproved, disputed, distinguished, divulged, documented, dramatized, echoed, elaborated, elev ated, elucidated, embodied, emphasized, enabled, enforced, engaged, enlightened, entertained, epitomized, established, evaluated, evinced, evoked, examined, exemplified, exhibited, existed, expanded, explained, explicated, explored, exposed, expounded, expressed, failed, fashioned, featured, focused, foreshadowed, formed, framed, generated, grasped, guided, heightened, highlighted, hinted, identified, illuminated, illustrated, implied, implied, included, indicated, inferred, informed, informed, initiated, insinuated, insisted, instigated, instructed, intendsed, intensified, interpreted, interrogated, invented, investigated, ironized, isolated, justified, juxtaposed, linked, maintained, manifested, manipulated, mediated, misconceived, multiplied, navigated, necessitated, negated, negotiated, renegotiated, obscured, obstructed, offered, opposed, organized, perceived, persuaded, portrayed, posited, positioned, predicted, presented, prioritized, probed, problematized, produced, professe d, pronounced, proposed, proved, provided, questioned, radicalized, rationalized, recalled, recognized, reconfigured, reconstructed, refered, reflected, reinforced, remained, rendered, renounced, represented, responded, revealed, reviewed, scrutinized, shaped, shrouded, signaled, signified, simulated, situated, specified, studied, succeeded, suggested, supported, sustained, transformed, treated, triggered, uncovered, underscored, unmasked, validated, veiled, verified, warped, witnessed, worked Business vocabulary accelerated benefits, account, accountant, accounting, actuary, administrator, agent, agreement, amortization, amount, annual report, appointment, asset, associate, auditor, average, balance sheet, banking, bankrupt, bankruptcy, benchmarking, benefits, bill of, lading, bond, bookkeeping, brand, break even, broker, budget, business, business analyst , business card, business law, business plan , business proposal, calculation, calculator, capital, capitalize, cash dispenser, cash flow, chain store, civil servant, clear, my desk, cold call, commodity , communication process, company, competitors, competitors, consumer, contract, contractor, cooperative, core, corner office , corporation, cost, credit, credit account, cubicle, currency, currency, customer, damage, deadline, debt, deduction (taxation), deficit, deposit, depreciation, derivative, development, direct investment, discount, distribution, dividend, division, down payment, downsizing, economy, economy , economy of scale , effi cient, employee, end-user , entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, equities, evolution, exchange rate, exhaustion, expenditure, expenditure-based budget, exponent, export, facility, factory, fee, fee, file, finance, finance charges , financial, financial accounting, financial analyst, financial, analyst, financial assistance, firm, framework, franchise, freight, fund, gain, gainful employment, general journal, get the axe, goodwill, gross, headhunter , headquarters, image, import, incentive, income tax, income taxes, income taxes, insurance, integral, interest, inventory, investment , investment funds, investor, invoice, joint venture, label, labor standards, launch, lay-offs, leadership, legal tender, lend, let someone go, leverage, liabilities, liabilities, liability, linear function, loan, logarithmic, loss , lucrative, mail order, management, management, management strategy, manager, market, market economy, market research, marketing, maximizing, meeting, meeting agenda, microeconomics , microfinance, money, mortgage, mortgagee, motivate, mutual fund, negotiation, night deposit box, offer, office, office automation, operating budget, opportunity, organization, overdraft, partner, patent, pay, pay a bill, pay back, payment, point of sale, president, pressure, price, price analysis , prime rate , probability, product, product development, production, profit, profitable, project management, promotion, proxy, publicity, purchase, purchase order, purchaser, range, rate of change, real estate , record of tax, refund, representative, request, retail, retail sale, retailer, round, safety deposit box, salary, sale, sales figures, secretary, seller, senior executives, service, share, share, shareholder, shareholder, software package, speculator, spreadsheet, staff, standard, statement, statistic, statistics, stock exchange, stockbroker, store, strategy, subscription, subtraction, sum, superintendent , supplier, supply, survey, tax, tax accounting, tax levies, tax system, te am, team based organization, tbo, technology, teller, tender, terms of sale, the amount, to compete, trade, trader, trainee, transaction, transaction, treasurer, trend, trust, underwriter, union, upgrade, value, vault, venture, viral marketing, warranty, waybill, wholesale, withdraw, withdrawal, workload, workshop, year plan, yield Chart, Graph, and Diagram Vocabulary above, according to, apparent, are compared, are presented, bar graph, below, can be seen, chart, climbed, comparable, compares, considerable, considerably, decline, decrease, demonstrates, detailed, details, difference, dipped, diving sharply, downward, dramatic, dropped off, evident, falls, fell, fluctuation, fluctuations, gap, gradual, graph, greater, grew, grows, high, higher, highlighted, highlights, highs, histogram, illustrated, illustrates, increase, indicates, jump, leads, led, level, leveled, levelled, leveling, levelling, levels, lists, low, lower, lows, moderate, narrowed, note, number, observe, peak, peaks, period, photo, pie chart, pinpoints, plummeted, presents, proves, rapid climb, rates of, reports, reveals, remained, remains, rise, rises, rose, shown, shows, significant, slid, slight, steady, summarizes, results, value of, to every, to the left, to the right, total, trend, upward, we can see, widened, widening, widens Words and phrases for establishing the importance of your topic a factor in, a vital factor in, an important factor in, the main cause of, the leading cause of, the primary cause of, the major cause of, a common part of, a useful part of, a critical part of, the most widely used, the most commonly discussed, the most well-known, the most well-documented, the most widespread, the most commonly investigated, recognized as being, believed to be, widely considered to be, well known that, generally accepted that, common knowledge that, increasingly becoming, set to become, sure to become, certain to become, undergoing a revolution, generating considerable interest, attracting increasing interest, attracting widespread interest, undergoing a revolution, generating considerable interest, attracting considerable interest, attracting widespread interest, has many uses, has many roles, has many applications, have many uses, have many roles, have many applications, striking feature of, useful feature of, remarkable feature of, the main characteristics of, the principal characteristics of, the fundamental characteristics of, the main characteristic of, the principal characteristic of, the fundamental characteristic of, accounts for, is responsible for, are responsible for Please follow and like us:

How to Stay Motivated While Studying for the GRE

How to Stay Motivated While Studying for the GRE GRE/MAT Graduate School Blog What’s the hardest part of preparing for the GRE? In my experience as a GRE test-taker and a GRE tutor, I’d say it’s not any one skill or a single section of the exam. It’s motivation. Beating the GRE is a big, high-stakes undertaking. It can be easy to get discouraged if you run into difficultiesâ€"and you will! So many test-takers delay their entry into grad school, or get disappointing scores, because it was just so hard to stay motivated and on task during their studies. Don’t let this happen to you. Stay motivated by making the right study plan A good study plan can be a fine balancing act. You want to study enough to build your skills and make real progress. But you also want to schedule your studies realistically, making a plan that you have time for. A typical plan for GRE prep lasts about a month, but it’s also possible to improve your plan by extending it to last two or three months long. Keep your plan focused, organized, realistic, and flexible. Flexibility is especially important for staying motivated, because it’s easy to get discouraged if you set up a rigid, detailed study schedule, and fail to follow it exactly. Flexibility gives you the ability to get “back on the horse” even if you miss a day or two of your study plan. But even flexibility can only go so far. Sometimes the best-laid study plans of mice and men (and women) can go awry. So to be in the right, motivated mindset…. Be mentally prepared for setbacks You may fall behind on your study plan for reasons beyond your control. You may even need to put your study plan on temporary hiatus for something else in your lifeâ€"a move, a greater workload at your job, illness, family obligations… who knows? Life happens. And when life puts an obstacle on the road to your academic goals, that doesn’t mean your goals are truly out of reach. Make sure you think about how you’ll feel if you have to take a break from your GRE studies, either for a few days or longer. Think about ways you can stay in practice, at least a little, if you are on break. In other words, be ready to continue your GRE prep no matter what. Have the mindset that you will finish practicing for the GRE, and that no possible setback could be permanent. This is thekey to staying motivated,and this attitude decreases the chances that setbacks will actually delay your goals. Have fun Learning to enjoy your GRE studies is probably the biggest factor in staying motivated. It’s also a “motivation ingredient” that test-preppers often overlook. And this is understandable; at a glance, GRE prep doesn’t look like fun to most people. But GRE prep really can be a lot of fun. For GRE Verbal practice, you can read GRE-like articles from interesting news websites, such as the New York Times, BBC, and the Atlantic. You can play vocabulary games or math games with fellow study buddies. You can practice AWA by writing on Internet message boards that interest you, or posting to social media websites with your friends. There are many other possibilities as well. To say motivated, look for the ways that you can take the language and math skills on the GRE and use them in activities you enjoy. Keep your eyes on the prize This really ties it all together. While you’re carrying out your study plan, bravely weathering distractions and setbacks, and having fun, never let yourself forget that passing the GRE will get you into your dream school. And always think of passing the GRE as a matter of when, not if. Study time will pass, studying activities will be completed. And motivation will be your best friend along the way, walking with you on the road to your target score, and beyond. About David Recine David is a test prep expert at Magoosh. He has a Bachelor of Social Work from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and a Masters in Teaching English to Speakers of other Languages from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. He has been teaching K-12, University, and adult education classes since 2007 and has worked with students from every continent.

Catch Em All (With Safety And Intelligence)

Catch 'Em All (With Safety And Intelligence) youtube.com But, some people are throwing caution to the wind entirely and doing anything to catch all of the Pokémon they possibly can. Catching  Pokémon and getting hurt in the end is not worth the hassle. Here are some tips to indeed catch em all, but with safety and intelligence. 1. DO NOT CATCH POKÉMON AND DRIVE. This is just like texting and driving: You cannot do both at the same time and be safe. There is no reason that you can’t wait until you arrive at your destination to catch more Pokémon on your app. Virtual non-existent little monsters in an app are not worth a car wreck or the financial mess that would follow a car wreck. It doesn’t matter if you’re not texting. Looking at your phone, in general, is a driving distraction. According to www.cdc.gov:  â€œEach day in the United States, more than nine people are killed and more than 1,153 people are injured in crashes that are reported to involve a distracted driver. Distracted driving is driving while doing another activity that takes your attention away from driving.” Catch Pokémon with this app at your leisure, but do not endanger yourself or others because of a game. facebook.com 2. WATCH YOUR DATA. It is very easy to download an app onto your phone, not really caring about the data usage and just playing whenever you feel like it. Who needs WiFi, right? Well, you might. Sure, there are plenty of people out there who pay their own phone bills and might even have a WiFi hot-spot on their phone. But, those who belong to a shared data plan with family members or do not have much of a data plan at all need to be aware of data consumption. Going into settings and then apps on iOS devices allows users to turn off an app’s ability to use cellular data. On Android devices, you can set your phone to stay within your data limit and prevent further worries. 9to5mac.com asus.com Some cell phone companies may offer unlimited data but not all of them do. Make sure you are being smart about data consumption and if you do go over your limit, be prepared to pay for it â€"literally. 3. OBEY PHONE RULES/REGULATIONS. Whether you are at your job or on campus, obey the phone regulations already set into place. For example, if you are in the middle of a lecture, do not whip your phone out checking for Pokémon and then proceed to ignore the lecture due to being obsessed with catching the Pokémon should any be present. Moreover, do not almost lose your job over the app. Reddit user scarstruck4 explained that having used the app at work almost cost him his job. Scarstruck4 wrote that he works, “in a Banking/IT company,” and, “Employees of my company are allowed to use smartphones inside the premises [but] using camera is strictly prohibited as we have access to clients personal data.” When he began using the app in order to catch a Pokémon  for it, a higher-up accused him of “clicking photographs,” and his “iPhone [was] confiscated.” While the Reddit user did not lose his job, he was still put through the hassle of having his phone checked for anything incriminating and let off with a warning. That should be enough to take to heart this phrase from Professor Oak himself: “Theres a time and place for everything, but not now.” http://e.lvme.me/mdus4ch.jpg 4. DO NOT TRESPASS. http://cdn.smosh.com As much as the joke keeps being made that the legendary Pokémon MewTwo could be at Area 51, by no means should you travel into restricted areas. That is not only putting your safety in jeopardy, but you could face legal issues for trespassing. The hassle of a lawsuit is not something anyone with a job or college career and opportunity for work in the future should have to deal with. Have fun but do not be outright stupid and enter dangerous or restricted areas that you should be nowhere near. Go ahead and catch ‘em all but with safety and intelligence.

2014 italki New Years Language Challenge Review

2014 italki New Years Language Challenge Review Congratulations to everyone who participated in our 2014 italki New Years Language Challenge!  This was our largest Language Challenge to date with  hundreds of Challengers learning more than 30+ languages on italki! We had representation from Challengers from over 50 countries all over the world! Language Challenge Results   Heres a quick summary of the Language Challenge results! The Language Challenge is Completely  Achievable! Out of the hundreds of Language Challenge participants, just under  50% (48%) completed the Challenge!  Is this Language Challenge too easy?!? Out of the Language Challenge Winners 40% actually completed more than 30 sessions or more! Instant Tutoring  significantly helped many of the Challengers finish the Challenge!   If you really want to improve your Language ability, the Language Challenge works!   In just 6-weeks many of our Language Challenge participants went from zero language ability to fluency!  Some of our Challengers were so happy with their results that they submitted videos of their speaking ability before and after!  We were very impressed. Watch these before and after videos! John was one of our Challenge participants who was learning Portuguese because he is going to the World Cup in Brazil!  He pretty much  started with ZERO Portuguese ability.  His improvement is absolutely amazing and inspiring!  Click here to view his before and after video. Challengers who made a Public Video Pledge are more likely to complete the Challenge! 85% of the Challenges who actually put up a Public Video Pledge actually completed the Challenge (compared to only 48% of those who did not). (Our Challenge  confirmed what  Life Hacks research  concluded that  if you put yourself up to something by doing it in public, you follow through!  Things that you put on the Web have a better chance of getting done!) Advice:  If you are planning on taking the Challenge in the future, make a Public Video Pledge, it will help you reach your goal! Challenge Demographic Breakdowns Challenger Distribution North America (U.S.A. Canada) 30% Western Europe 25% Eastern Europe 11% Asia 16% South America 4% Top 10 Languages Learned in the Challenge 1.  English 2.  Spanish 3.  French 4. Chinese 5.  German 6.  Japanese 7.  Russian 8.  Portuguese 9.  Korean 10.  Arabic Interesting Tidbits! We had a lot of italki teachers who took the Challenge as well!  Actually Teachers as a whole did much better than students!  More than 60% of the teachers who took the Challenge completed it! Chinese, Germans, Russian and Spaniards have the highest completion rate!  50% or more of Challengers from these countries complete the Challenge! Challenge participants from the United States are on par with a 48% completion rate! We had  one italki Language Challenger who completed over 100 sessions during the Challenge!  That’s more than 2 session a day!  You know who you are and you absolutely rock! We’ve gotten tons of positive responses from our 2014 italki New Years Challenge.  If you enjoyed this challenge or would like to participate in future italki Language Challenges, please click on the link below. I want to receive more information about  future italki Language Challenges! One Last Note As a surprise bonus, we actually decided to give away free italki t-shirts to all the winners! This was quite difficult to do as we needed to mail out the t-shirts by hand to winners in over  50+ countries! If you send us a post a photo of yourself online wearing your italki t-shirt and let us know the link, we know there is at least one guy who would be very, very happy that he took the trouble to navigate through the Chinese Postal System. Lamar pushing a box of t-shirts to the Post Office 2014 italki New Years Language Challenge Review Congratulations to everyone who participated in our 2014 italki New Years Language Challenge!  This was our largest Language Challenge to date with  hundreds of Challengers learning more than 30+ languages on italki! We had representation from Challengers from over 50 countries all over the world! Language Challenge Results   Heres a quick summary of the Language Challenge results! The Language Challenge is Completely  Achievable! Out of the hundreds of Language Challenge participants, just under  50% (48%) completed the Challenge!  Is this Language Challenge too easy?!? Out of the Language Challenge Winners 40% actually completed more than 30 sessions or more! Instant Tutoring  significantly helped many of the Challengers finish the Challenge!   If you really want to improve your Language ability, the Language Challenge works!   In just 6-weeks many of our Language Challenge participants went from zero language ability to fluency!  Some of our Challengers were so happy with their results that they submitted videos of their speaking ability before and after!  We were very impressed. Watch these before and after videos! John was one of our Challenge participants who was learning Portuguese because he is going to the World Cup in Brazil!  He pretty much  started with ZERO Portuguese ability.  His improvement is absolutely amazing and inspiring!  Click here to view his before and after video. Challengers who made a Public Video Pledge are more likely to complete the Challenge! 85% of the Challenges who actually put up a Public Video Pledge actually completed the Challenge (compared to only 48% of those who did not). (Our Challenge  confirmed what  Life Hacks research  concluded that  if you put yourself up to something by doing it in public, you follow through!  Things that you put on the Web have a better chance of getting done!) Advice:  If you are planning on taking the Challenge in the future, make a Public Video Pledge, it will help you reach your goal! Challenge Demographic Breakdowns Challenger Distribution North America (U.S.A. Canada) 30% Western Europe 25% Eastern Europe 11% Asia 16% South America 4% Top 10 Languages Learned in the Challenge 1.  English 2.  Spanish 3.  French 4. Chinese 5.  German 6.  Japanese 7.  Russian 8.  Portuguese 9.  Korean 10.  Arabic Interesting Tidbits! We had a lot of italki teachers who took the Challenge as well!  Actually Teachers as a whole did much better than students!  More than 60% of the teachers who took the Challenge completed it! Chinese, Germans, Russian and Spaniards have the highest completion rate!  50% or more of Challengers from these countries complete the Challenge! Challenge participants from the United States are on par with a 48% completion rate! We had  one italki Language Challenger who completed over 100 sessions during the Challenge!  That’s more than 2 session a day!  You know who you are and you absolutely rock! We’ve gotten tons of positive responses from our 2014 italki New Years Challenge.  If you enjoyed this challenge or would like to participate in future italki Language Challenges, please click on the link below. I want to receive more information about  future italki Language Challenges! One Last Note As a surprise bonus, we actually decided to give away free italki t-shirts to all the winners! This was quite difficult to do as we needed to mail out the t-shirts by hand to winners in over  50+ countries! If you send us a post a photo of yourself online wearing your italki t-shirt and let us know the link, we know there is at least one guy who would be very, very happy that he took the trouble to navigate through the Chinese Postal System. Lamar pushing a box of t-shirts to the Post Office 2014 italki New Years Language Challenge Review Congratulations to everyone who participated in our 2014 italki New Years Language Challenge!  This was our largest Language Challenge to date with  hundreds of Challengers learning more than 30+ languages on italki! We had representation from Challengers from over 50 countries all over the world! Language Challenge Results   Heres a quick summary of the Language Challenge results! The Language Challenge is Completely  Achievable! Out of the hundreds of Language Challenge participants, just under  50% (48%) completed the Challenge!  Is this Language Challenge too easy?!? Out of the Language Challenge Winners 40% actually completed more than 30 sessions or more! Instant Tutoring  significantly helped many of the Challengers finish the Challenge!   If you really want to improve your Language ability, the Language Challenge works!   In just 6-weeks many of our Language Challenge participants went from zero language ability to fluency!  Some of our Challengers were so happy with their results that they submitted videos of their speaking ability before and after!  We were very impressed. Watch these before and after videos! John was one of our Challenge participants who was learning Portuguese because he is going to the World Cup in Brazil!  He pretty much  started with ZERO Portuguese ability.  His improvement is absolutely amazing and inspiring!  Click here to view his before and after video. Challengers who made a Public Video Pledge are more likely to complete the Challenge! 85% of the Challenges who actually put up a Public Video Pledge actually completed the Challenge (compared to only 48% of those who did not). (Our Challenge  confirmed what  Life Hacks research  concluded that  if you put yourself up to something by doing it in public, you follow through!  Things that you put on the Web have a better chance of getting done!) Advice:  If you are planning on taking the Challenge in the future, make a Public Video Pledge, it will help you reach your goal! Challenge Demographic Breakdowns Challenger Distribution North America (U.S.A. Canada) 30% Western Europe 25% Eastern Europe 11% Asia 16% South America 4% Top 10 Languages Learned in the Challenge 1.  English 2.  Spanish 3.  French 4. Chinese 5.  German 6.  Japanese 7.  Russian 8.  Portuguese 9.  Korean 10.  Arabic Interesting Tidbits! We had a lot of italki teachers who took the Challenge as well!  Actually Teachers as a whole did much better than students!  More than 60% of the teachers who took the Challenge completed it! Chinese, Germans, Russian and Spaniards have the highest completion rate!  50% or more of Challengers from these countries complete the Challenge! Challenge participants from the United States are on par with a 48% completion rate! We had  one italki Language Challenger who completed over 100 sessions during the Challenge!  That’s more than 2 session a day!  You know who you are and you absolutely rock! We’ve gotten tons of positive responses from our 2014 italki New Years Challenge.  If you enjoyed this challenge or would like to participate in future italki Language Challenges, please click on the link below. I want to receive more information about  future italki Language Challenges! One Last Note As a surprise bonus, we actually decided to give away free italki t-shirts to all the winners! This was quite difficult to do as we needed to mail out the t-shirts by hand to winners in over  50+ countries! If you send us a post a photo of yourself online wearing your italki t-shirt and let us know the link, we know there is at least one guy who would be very, very happy that he took the trouble to navigate through the Chinese Postal System. Lamar pushing a box of t-shirts to the Post Office

Censorship Its Not What You Think

Censorship It's Not What You Think Picture of Said and Cherif Kouachi executing French police officers Ahmed Merabet (photo credited to CBS News) On January 7, 2015, two armed gunmen burst into the headquarters of a small French satirical newspaper called  Charlie Hebdo  and killed  12 people in and around the building. The attackers were reported to have claimed to be from Ansar al-Sharia or Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). The attackers, later identified as Chèrif and Saïd Kouachi fled the scene, killing a police officer and stealing a car at gunpoint. They took hostages at, ironically, a Print Works after evading capture for two days. There they made a final stand and were killed by police. This attack was coordinated with others across the country. The attackers made claims that this attack was perpetrated to punish blasphemers. In Islam, it is blasphemous to depict the Prophet Muhammad according to various hadiths or supplemental religious texts. Charlie Hebdo has repeatedly depicted The Prophet in their satirical cartoons and has been attacked before by Islamic extremists. As soon as the attack occurred, debate raged over Charlie Hebdo and their satire on multiple world religions, usually Christianity, Islam and Judaism. Many backed Charlie for their outspoken viewpoints and strong messages, but others questioned the value of mocking a religion when such attacks were certain to continue. Hashtags and trends popped up on social media like #JeSuisCharlieor I am Charlie in Frenchas a move of solidarity. The next issue of the weekly magazine was published despite the attack with another depiction of Muhammad and a caption stating “Tout est Pardonnè”: “All is Forgiven.” The issue sold over six million print copies globally. The paper normally reaches around 50,000 individuals in France. The attacks raised controversy about free speech globally, opening up attacks in Niger and other countries on Christians and Muslims. Pope Francis spoke out against the attacks, condemning them saying “One cannot offend, make war, kill in the name of one’s own religion â€" that is, in the name of God.” However, his Holiness also said that to insult someone’s beliefs is imprudent and may result in violence from some because of human nature. A rally was held in Paris to commemorate the victims and stand against censorship and affirm free speech. French President Hollande, 40 other world leaders, and 3.7 million French held a rally of national unity. President Obama initially stated his intent to join them, but the Secret Service and CIA convinced the President that given such recent attacks in France, attending a rally of 40+ world leaders might be ill advised. Throughout the world, a large portion of people have constitutions that protect their rights to peaceful demonstrations of dissent and free speech. Credited to blahblahblog.wordpress.com Exceptions are made in the case of liable or slander, but it is a United Nations right that citizens be permitted the right to protest when they disagree with a government policy or social issue. Notable exceptions include the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Eritrea, Syria, Belarus, Iran, Equilateral Guinea, Uzbekistan, Cuba, Burma, Morocco, Turkmenistan, Ethiopia, Vietnam, Sudan, and Azerbaijan. All these countries censor media, restrict access to the internet, prosecute journalists, control state media and forcefully break up protests. While active censorship exists in the above countries, heavily restricting the amount of information that gets to the people, the people still share their ideas. Inside undercover footage from North Korea proves that people cooperate and spread illegal media and ideas among each other openly. Despite state control, Big Brother-like surveillance is not a possibility in most of these countries. In the “free world,” a different type of censorship occurs. You probably already know about it yourself, but don’t think of it as censorship. It is subversive, difficult to control, and very dangerous to freedom. It is self-censorship. Self-censoring is any blockage of ideas that occurs on your own end of communication. Like editing a paper, self-censorship acts to trim off bits, but usually things that are controversial. This means not tweeting about controversial topics. It means not disagreeing in class so you don’t make a scene. Self-censorship means not letting ideas flow to other people. The worst part is that we are doing it to ourselves. The term “politically correct” may be familiar to you and you may even actively shun it, but it has been a means of censorship in this nation of otherwise limitless free expression. So long as anyone does not publish untrue or classified information, you can and really should. The majority of people, on the other hand, love to use politically correct terminology to avoid conflict. Of course, this does not mean using terms like midget or the N-word are not bad or that Native Americans should be called Indians, but it does mean that no one is willing to challenge ideas. Even in American politics this is true. Each political party has a member of each house of Congress designated as “The Party Whip.” Their job is to ensure political conformity from moderates who might vote in favor of the opposition’s bill. This ensures a strong vote one way or another and does not allow for real discussion or persuasion to take place. It pervades all areas. Science even has taboos. No one wants to study human cloning, homosexuality, physics contrary to Einstein, and a plethora of other disciplines that deserve attention but are blocked out. This form of social censoring keeps discoveries from being made. Its not new either. Darwin and Galileo are just two examples of radical scientists who are largely accepted today because they talked about what no one wanted to at the time. Socially, this means no one wants to debate anything. Most people would rather be silent, and wait until they are among friends of similar persuasion to discuss their ideas. If you talk to friends of similar beliefs though, wouldnt that be the equivalent of talking to yourself? By surrounding yourself with people of similar beliefs, you prevent yourself from ever learning anything new. If you are unwilling to listen, you cannot hear when someone answers your question. Instead of seeking to surround yourself in a cocoon of parrots, seek dissension. Look to find places where you may respectfully disagree and do so with your real face and real name. Do not seek the internet to hide yourself when presenting your views. Put yourself out on a limb. Dare to disagree. Speak your mind, but remember to listen as well. YouTube content creator Derek Muller spoke about this in terms of science. Check it out below. Be sure to share you ideas below and please share this on social media. Feel free to challenge this article too.