Spanish Nouns of Ambiguous Gender

Spanish Nouns of Ambiguous Gender Nearly all nouns in Spanish can be placed in one of two categories - masculine and feminine. However, there are some words of ambiguous gender that dont fit quite so neatly. Of course, some words, such as names of many occupations, are masculine when they refer to men and feminine when they refer to women, as in el dentista for the male dentist and la dentista for the female dentist. And there are some nouns whose meanings vary with gender., such as el cometa (comet) and la cometa (kite). However, there are also words that, for whatever reason, havent been firmly established as being of one gender or the other. List of Common Gender-Ambiguous Nouns Following are the most common of these words. Where just el or la appears before the word, it is the gender that is viewed most widely as correct, and the gender that should be learned by foreigners. Where both appear, either gender is widely accepted, although the most commonly used gender is listed first. Where no gender is listed, the usage depends on region. la acnà © - acne el anatema - anathema el arte - art - The masculine is used when arte is singular, but the feminine is often used in the plural, as in artes bellas (fine arts). el autoclave - sterilizer el azà ºcar - sugar - Although azà ºcar is a masculine word when standing alone, it is often used with feminine adjectives, as in azà ºcar blanca (white sugar). la babel - bedlam el calor - heat - The feminine form is archaic. la/el chinche - small insect el cochambre - dirt el color - color - The feminine form is archaic. el cutis - complexion la dote - talent la/el dracma - drachma (former unit of Greek currency) la duermevela - brief, light, or interrupted sleep - Compound nouns formed by joining a third-person verb and a noun are nearly always masculine. However, the ending apparently has influenced usage of this word toward the feminine. el enema - enema los herpes - herpes la/el Internet - Internet - The general rule is that nouns imported from other languages are masculine unless theres a reason for making them feminine. In this case, the feminine is often used because the word for a computer network (red) is feminine. el interrogante - question la Januc - Hanukkah - Unlike the names of most holidays, Januc is usually used without a definite article. el/la lente, los/las lentes - lens, glasses la libido - libido - Some authorities say that libido and mano (hand) are the only Spanish nouns ending in -o, other than shortened forms of longer words (such as foto for fotografà ­a and disco for discoteca, or occupational words, such as la piloto for a female pilot), that are feminine. However, libido  is often treated as masculine. la/el linde - boundary el mar - sea - Mar is usually masculine, but it becomes feminine in some weather and nautical usages (such as en alta mar, on the high seas). el/la maratà ³n - marathon - Dictionaries list maratà ³n as masculine, but feminine usage is almost as common, perhaps because maratà ³n is associated so closely with carrera (competitive race), which is feminine. el/la mimbre - willow la/el pelambre - thick hair el/la prez - esteem, honor la/el pringue - grease radio - radio - When it means radius or radium, radio is invariably masculine. When it means radio, it is feminine in some areas (such as Spain), masculine in others (such as Mexico). el reuma - rheumatism sartà ©n - frying pan - The word is masculine in Spain, feminine in much of Latin America. la testuz - forehead of an animal la tilde - tilde, accent mark el tizne - soot, stain el tortà ­colis - stiff neck la treponema - type of bacteria - Like some other words of limited medical usage, this word is feminine according to dictionaries but usually masculine in actual use. el trà ­pode - tripod la/el vodka - vodka la/el web - web page, web site, World Wide Web - This word may have entered the language as a shorter form of la pgina web (web page), or it may be feminine because red (another word for the Web, or a computer network in general) is feminine. el yoga - yoga - Dictionaries list the word as masculine, but the ending has led to some feminine usage. Key Takeaways A few dozen Spanish nouns are of ambiguous gender, meaning they can be either masculine or feminine without any difference in meaning.The nouns of ambiguous gender are distinguished from nouns of variable gender, whose genders vary with meaning or whether the noun refers to a male or female.A disproportionate number of the gender-ambiguous nouns are words with primarily scientific, technical, or medical usage.

Deforestation and the Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Deforestation and the Environment - Essay Example The first case is about deforestation in Sumatra, an Island in Indonesia (Kuhn). Deforestation on the island is mainly because of papermaking. APP, Indonesia’s largest papermaker runs numerous acacia tree plantations on the Island. These plantations have been set up by clearing a vast majority of forestland. Local dwellers have accused the officials of the company of bringing about dilapidation to the local environment. The second case is based in the United Sates, where Cargill Corporation burns large tracts of forestland in order to pave way for soya plantations (Greenpeace International) in Brazil. This, in the region, is coupled with the fact that cattle ranchers, who in other areas typically move into areas that have already been exploited by loggers, are in this case clearing forestland themselves in a bid to expand their operations. The situation appears bleak; with Greenpeace International projecting that deforestation rates will be rising in coming years.Perhaps the m ost immediately felt effect of deforestation in the Sumatra region is the fact that the activity deprives locals of one of their most important sources of food. They recall a time when they could hunt for deer and birds in the forest, an activity they now cannot undertake since animals of this nature do not create habitats in the acacia forests. Acacia trees do not provide enough shade for animals. Another effect of deforestation in Sumatra is the fact that it is destroying the natural habitat of the Sumatran Tiger.

Evaluation of Employee Training Demand Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Evaluation of Employee Training Demand - Essay Example This process is the research problem source between employee and corporation performance. After this process judgment is made whether training can actually assist in solving the problem or not. What kind of training is required is also determined. In order to evaluate and make the judgment if the employee training will assist in solving the problem or not, a number of training and non-training elements need to be considered. The training factors that should be considered include: In this aspect it is important to determine if there is a real need for training or not. This need may arise from the decreasing organizational profits, decreased productivity, increase in the costs and ineffective operations of the organizations due to the lack of proper skills and non-performance of efficient practices by the employees. In this facet of evaluating employee training demand, you need to determine that if the training is needed, why it is needed. The possible reasons can be the changing global trends according to which the skills of the employees need to be polished, it can be a legal requirement, a customer need etc. Here you determine what kind of skills training is required. ... Therefore it is important to determine what core competency needs to be improved. Which employees need training It is also important to know that which employees need what training. This is because employees in different departments need different kind of skill sets and their knowledge and learning requirements are entirely different. For example, it may be necessary for the purchase department people to have the negotiating skills training while it may not be important for the quality control department employees. How and where will the training take place During the evaluation of employee training demand it is also important to know that how will the training take place, i.e. determining will the training sessions be conducted in the office timings or not, will the trainers be hired from within the company or not, will the training sessions be conducted in the office premises or not, etc. The evaluation of training demand should also include some non-training elements, such as organization structure, work environment, salary system and etc. as they have a strong influence on the corporation's conditions. These elements are discussed below: Organizational Structure: Organizations with hierarchical structures are more prone to redundancy of work assignments. Therefore there is usually there is less need for the training of all the employees in such organizations. However in flatter structured organizations, a single employee should have a broad skill set and therefore most of the employees in such organizations have a high demand for training. Organizational Work Environment: The work environment and the working conditions of the organization also are an

Nonprofit Sports Marketing Plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Nonprofit Sports Marketing Plan - Assignment Example It is evidently clear from the discussion that UBA will be operating mainly for the population of Saipan. However, it plans to continue on its success, of organizing inter-Island tournaments. The main target market will be students of public schools who do not get enough opportunities to play high-quality Basketball. UBA plans to build a reputation and differentiate itself from its customer on the basis of its officials and referees. The capital expenditure is nonexistent for UBA thus risk associated with UBA will be very low. With dedication and expertise, UBA will grow into a nonprofit brand which is the symbol of Basketball in Saipan. With the advent of consumerism, a phenomenon not new to the human race has surfaced once again. As a result of capitalism, we live in a society which doesn’t give equal opportunities to everyone; some of our brightest talents are wasted because of a lack of opportunities. Thus the need arises for organizations which would compensate for this i nequality by providing free services to the young minds of tomorrow. Ventures such as these are not only an act of philanthropy, bringing our society together in an act of charity but also entrepreneurial in nature. They create jobs thus reduce unemployment and add to the GDP. Team sports are the basic tool in the upbringing of any child. They instill the basic sense of loyalty that is necessary to a tribal being such as humans. They provide the basic training in how to live in a society, how to belong to something else outside your own personality and a home. This is a feeling which later develops into nationalism and humanity. A very famous team sport is Basketball. With millions of diehard fans in America now the game is expanding fast to other nations of the world. Recently it became part of the Olympics as well. Basketball requires the players to display accuracy, strength, agility, and guile for success.

The History Of Domestic Violence Social Work Essay

The History Of Domestic Violence Social Work Essay Domestic Violence is a widespread problem both internationally and nationally (Tjaden and Tjaden, 2000; WHO, 2000; 2002). In the United Kingdom alone it has been reported that one in four women have experienced domestic abuse, at some point in their lives (BMA 1998; Bacchus et al. 2002 and BCS 2006). These statistics found do not represent the true context of the problem encountered by many professionals who may be in contact with these individuals and families. It has been widely reported that with this being a sensitive topic and the nature of the subject, it has been under reported and therefore not truly representative of how serious the problem is (REF). To define what domestic violence is it may be helpful to understand what kind of behaviours it may entail. The Home Offices definition of domestic violence is; Any incident of threatening behaviour, violence or abuse (psychological, physical, sexual, financial or emotional) between adults who are or have been intimate partners or family members, regardless of gender or sexuality. The issue of domestic violence has no boundaries in regards to gender, age, sexuality, ethnicity, disability or socio economic status. Having said this, it has to be acknowledged that indeed some research does suggest equal prevalence of both male and female perpetrated violence (Straus et al. 1980; Mirrless-Black, 1999 and Morse, 1995). Research has suggested this has failed to account for other kinds of abuse and focused largely on physical assaults. A large error in such studies is in their use of self-completion questionnaires. The use of this tool has been criticised for the heavy emphasis on physical acts that have been taken out of context (Yllo, 1988; Dobash and Dobash, 1992). Thus between acts of self-defence or attack, there is no discrimination nor in the level of impact of the abuse or violence encountered. Mirrlees-Black (1999) however has recognised that the initial findings of her study that showed similar rates for men and women as victims of a violent relationship ma y not mean that men are equally victimised in the same manner as women. After close examination she found that men interpreted and managed their experiences in a different way to women. In fact men were considerably less frightened, much less injured, and least likely to seek professional help. There are cases of domestic abuse present in same sex relationships, or women as the aggressor towards men but historically, numerically and geographically the most occurring pattern is one of men and their violence towards women (Dobash and Dobash, 1992; and Mullender, 1996). Research has also found that for women the impact of domestic abuse is greater emotionally, psychologically as well as physically (Walby and Allen, 2004; Watson and Parsons, 2005; Womens Aid and the Women Abuse Studies Unit, London 2001). In addition it has also found steadily that as many as one in three women will experience domestic violence at some point in their lives (McGibbon et al. 1988; Mooney, 1994; Dominy and Radford, 1996). The presence of children in a household has also shown an association with twice the risk of domestic violence for women (Walby and Allen, 2004). In this sense children cannot help but be affected by their experiences of abuse. Hence, while the focus of study and understanding has mostly been achieved in eliciting women and their views, of shelter workers and of other professionals, it has also pursued a line of investigation directly into childrens experience of contact to domestic violence (Buckley, Whelan and Holt, 2006; Hague and Mullender, 2006; Mullender et al., 2002 and McGee, 2000). A substantial amount of literature in this area exists which concentrates on the effects on children (Hague and Mullender, 2006; Hazen et al. 2006). Edleson (1999) has in fact found more than eighty studies in this area. Childhood is regarded as an important and significant period in anyones lifetime. It is a time that should be guarded. Development and learning during this period should be nurtured and supported in the given environment. If the environment is tainted by fear and violence, the act itself of growing up becomes an arduous task. Osofsky (1995) found that exposure to violence can lead to reverting back to childhood, also known as regressive symptoms such as bedwetting, delayed language development and anxiousness over separation from parents. Other researchers have also found links between domestic violence within a household and children having learning and behavioural problems which can affect their health, emotional and behavioural well-being (Wolfe et al. 1988 and Margolin, 1998). It is important to iterate that no researchers in this area have stated that domestic violence causes these maladaptive behaviours. Often where domestic violence occurs, other social problems have been known to also exist. Devaney (2008) found that domestic violence was present when parental substance and alcohol misuse also existed. As you can see this starts to formulate a slightly less straight-forward area of research where many complexities are involved; though serves to highlight other risk factors which may be helpful to look at. Research in the area has also indicated that there are links between domestic violence and child abuse. Bancroft and Miller (2002) have found that there is a greater chance of a child experiencing physical or sexual abuse whilst living in a household where domestic violence occurs. Indication of how grave the issue is can be seen in a study by Walby (2004) who found that in 40% of child abuse cases there was also co-occurrence of domestic violence. This is further supported by Hester et al. (1998) who suggested that domestic violence is contributory factor in half of all serious case reviews and 75% for those cases placed on the child protection register. This raises domestic violence as a child protection concern in the field of social work and thus has serious implications for practice. The high prevalence of domestic violence in child protection cases is not reflected in the same way in terms of health care professionals who have discovered a much lower proportion of domestic violence (Naumann et al. 1999; Mooney, 1993). The low rate of detection by professionals can perhaps be attributable to many factors. So far enquiry in this area has suggested that the level of knowledge a practitioner may hold with regards to domestic violence and abuse may be a crucial factor. Peckover (2003) goes further to highlight that professionals improper attitudes alongside a general absence of understanding and training regarding domestic violence may also explain the low statistics in uncovering abuse. This highlights a significant gap in an area where research and early intervention should be at its most robust. This could be explained that perhaps there is no infallible distinction or separation in both policy and practice of child abuse from woman abuse (Humphreys and Mullender, YEAR). A reason why the issue exists in such a context i.e. Childrens services, it may be that there is less emphasis on the use of monitoring domestic violence and is not seen as a child protection concern. The services that are available to children living with domestic violence are based on the presumption that is the womens responsibility to protect the child from experiencing harm, which characteristically involves forcing the partner to leave or leaving the household with her children herself. This also signifies the narrow understanding of domestic violence in a multi-professional manner but also its response to it. Lack of early intervention and strategies in place to identify children who may be at a risk of harm may also lead to increased social exclusion and increased financial strain on the state (REF). By addressing such themes in the literature review I will aim to demonstrate how the relationship between domestic violence and abuse is such that, where one is existing enquiries should consistently be made about the other. This will help to form safer, more sensitive assessments and well placed interventions. In light of research shown it may raises questions as to how far the impact of domestic violence is on children who are exposed to it, what possible interventions exist for such a large social problem. Methodology I will use to address the problem Whilst it has been acknowledged that a fully systematic review cannot be undertaken due to the time constraints of my MSc course I intend to use a systematic approach when reviewing literature. I will use a literature review to highlight key themes and issues brought to light by using a systematic approach when conducting and forming my search. I have also recognised that a non-systematic approach can lead to misleading conclusions in research which is not accurately verified. In addition a non-systematic review does not undertake critique of the literature which is needed to form a balanced judgement. Whereas a systematic approach will facilitate my research question/ rationale with a well-focused searching strategy to enhance appraisal and fusion of the literature I will be researching. However, I have realised that whilst a literature review is less time consuming and the least expensive research method. There are advantages and disadvantages to this. The benefit to employing this method is that it will allow me to be rigorous when synthesising relevant data found, and examine the evidence found. Though the weakness is that it will be not me conducting primary research which would be more beneficial to make the social science discipline more evidence based. In conducting a search so far I have already recognised the implications in using the terms domestic abuse, domestic violence and intimate partner violence. I have so far found that some of these terms only take into account certain aspects such as physical assaults. Therefore I will continue to use these terms when searching for relevant literature as it is used quite inter-changeably. To help find literature that addresses the research question I will intend to use established search engines and databases such as Google Scholar; DISCOVER; PsychInfo; and CINAHL. These databases will mostly be used to search for primary sources of research conducted. In addition Dawson Era the online university library will also be utilised for secondary sources such as books and other texts. Through this I will aim to discuss possible themes that have impacted childrens development in relation to domestic abuse and the risk factors associated. I will also aim to look at intervention strategies in place that recognise domestic violence as a co-occurring factor to potential child protection and safeguarding aspects of social work practice. To exactly utilise a systematic approach when conducting a literature review it may be important to have an inclusion and exclusion criteria to help in analysing relevant data. For inclusion I will keep a time frame in mind that is in line with current policy and research. As it is only as recent as the last three decades that children and young people have been directly investigated and researched when concerned with the impact of violence to them. Therefore, I have decided to limit data found in the past two decades to address the question. Therefore in light of research found in this area, it has raised key research questions. The question I have decided to focus my review on which is; what are the impacts of domestic violence on children and what are the implications of this for social work practice. Expected contribution to knowledge I will aim to further analyse my findings by utilising theories useful to underpin data found. Theories which I will use will be the Crisis intervention theory, Maslow and his hierarchy of needs, and person-centred theory. These will help to identify further recommendations that could help child care services to better meet the needs of children affected by domestic violence. To keep from going off topic, I will aim to meet with my dissertation supervisor on a regular basis to uncover and discuss issues in more detail with work presented.

Comparing Woodrow Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt Essay -- Compare Contr

Comparing Woodrow Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt During the 20th century many different presidents went in and out of the doors of the White House serving the country the best they could. However, two of these men hold a place in American history as perhaps the greatest leaders that had ever served our country. Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson are two extraordinary men that symbolize the hope and aspirations of the American people during such a tumultuous time in United States history. Both of these men held leadership qualities like no other, had strong views for America, and held exceptional ideas on foreign policy. Theodore Roosevelt stepped into head of office on September 19, 1901 when President William McKinley was assassinated. He was the youngest man to become president. His motto was â€Å"speak softly but carry a big stick.† President Roosevelt would come into power offering America the square deal. He would take the power away from the industrialists as he controlled big business from the White House. He would soon become known as a TrustBuster. Roosevelt used American power for American interests and was quoted as saying, â€Å"I am an American first and last. â€Å" Although some historians argue that Roosevelt acted like a six-year-old throughout his presidency and that he didn’t think things through, ie â€Å"he thought with his hips†, one can admire the tremendous leadership qualities that Teddy Roosevelt had. First, he was a very bold man who graduated magna cum laude from Harvard. The average citizen was aware of what a â€Å"positive, warm and tou gh, authoritative and funny† president that they had leading them. His leadership qualities stemmed from his time as a New York state Assembly man, a deputy sheriff, a ... ...ir racial characteristics. He also knew the value of the ethnic vote. Wilson on the other hand was a racist who brought his Virginia attitude with him to the White House. Perhaps the most ironic thing about these two men is the fact that Theodore Roosevelt won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1904 for helping resolve the Russian-Japanese fighting, and TR never was in office during the Great Wars while Wilson was. However, we did end up getting the United Nations from Woodrow Wilson’s presidency. In conclusion, Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson were very different people who held different beliefs on America, but nonetheless, these two men gave their all in making America a better place. Without these two leaders, America could have been a very different place today. Who knows, I might have been writing this paper in German had it not been for them.

Nietzsche: Virtues/Life/Morality Essay

Nietzsche was a unique philosopher that had some very interesting ideas about people’s human values and personality types. In the following passage from Nietzsche, â€Å"?. this is the image of all life, and from this learn the meaning of your life! And conversely: Read only your own life, and from this understand the hieroglyphs of universal life! † According to Nietzsche, I think he defines that all morality is a manifestation of the will to power. People stress independence, personal dignity, self-approval and the will to succeed. For such people â€Å"good† refers to whatever leads to self-fulfillment with values such as strength, courage, power and pride. This appeals to those who are uncertain of themselves. They define â€Å"good† as what makes life easier/safer, with such qualities as patience, humility, modesty and compassion. I agree and disagree with Nietzsche. He helps me understand my own life, in that I agree with the will to power. I am living proof. I want to be in charge of my future. I have goals in every aspect of my life that I want to fulfill, and without these goals there would be no motivation for life. Artists wouldn’t want to be artists, scientists wouldn’t care about science, and people wouldn’t care about themselves. I also think we need certain virtues in order to succeed in fulfilling the goals set forth by the will to power. Patience, modesty, charity and compassion are some of the virtues that Nietzsche believes to be â€Å"sour grapes†. The moral that I think is sour is people who are not independent, look at others to follow, and that lack self respect. I believe that virtues such as personal power, strength, courage, pride, independence, and compassion, makes a person complete. However, this is reality and in reality you can have these virtues and at the same time stray from what you believe in. I think the key to life is to find who you are and to be happy. In today’s society, it seems there are too many people who do not know who they are. People tend to follow the group, dress how everyone else dresses and listen to the same music everyone else listens too. This to me is â€Å"weak†. The real root to power is within yourself. Life isn’t as cut and dry as Nietzsche suggests. Life is too complex and the mind is a mysterious thing. Although the qualities and virtues talked about are ideal, I wish it was that simple to apply to a person. I think the persons surroundings, and any influences the person has had in their life plays a role. Unfortunately the environment plays a large part in the development in a person. However, I think it’s never too late for a person to change or find him or herself. In conclusion, Nietzsche’s philosophy really allows me to understand the meaning of life. Nietzsche did not believe in equality. It seems he rejected equality because he believed in the importance of individualism. Nietzsche gives me a good reason for life/existence.