The Game of Pig Portfolio Essay Example for Free

The Game of Pig Portfolio Essay To play the game you need a regular 6-sided die. Each turn of the game consists of one or more rolls of the die. You keep rolling until you get a 1 or decide to stop. You may choose to stop rolling at any time. If you stop rolling before you get a 1 your score for that turn, your score is the sum of all of the numbers you rolled that turn (e. g. if you roll a 4, 6, 3, and 2 your score is 15 pts. ). But, if you roll a 1 in that turn your turn is over and you receive 0 pts. for that turn. The central problem in the unit is finding strategies for several different probability games. The key ideas were developed in the unit through the presentation of many games and variations of those games to us. The key ideas helped us to solve the central problem by giving us many opportunities to learn how to solve strategies for probability games. In each different game there was a new game or variation in which we could find a new way to find optimal game strategies for probability games. Why I chose each item: Homework 27: The Pig and I: This piece of work begins to explains the basics of what we learned in the unit. Homework 28: Beginning Portfolio Selection: The pig and I: This explains the main points of the unit (Theoretical and experimental probability) and also begins to show the reasons to choose certain pieces of work. Spinner Give and Take: This was chosen because it shows the basics of theoretical probability in great detail. The Game of Little Pig: This was chosen to show the many variations of games we learned to play, and the beginning steps of finding a strategy. POW 7: Make a Game: This was chosen to show how to make a game based off of the basic principles of probability games, it also shows how to make strategies for new games. Homework 7: Portraits of Probabilities: This was chosen as a basic block that began the whole unit and how to show probability in many different models. Homework 9: Rollin’ Rollin’ Rollin’: This was chosen to show the basics of dice probability, a very important section of this unit. Homework 11: Two Dice Sums and Products: This was chosen to show the many types of probabilities in dice probability, it also shows how to find what is most likely to happen. POW #4: A Sticky Gum Problem: This was chosen to show in depth theoretical probability. POW #6: Linear Nim: This was chosen to show in depth experimental probability, as well as strategies to find the best strategies to win probability games. It was also chosen to display my best work. Homework #25: Should I go on? : This was chosen to show how to make decisions in probability games as well as to display some of my better very thorough work. Personal Growth: For me I feel that the core ideas of this unit will make me think twice on my strategies in probability games before playing using them. I learned a lot about probability in this unit; it’s not as simple as I thought. There are many calculations you must learn how to do and there is obviously so much more behind the strategies and probabilities that I am yet to discover, for example, statistics class. Best Strategy: The best strategy is to get to 20 points and end your turn. This should take roughly 5 rolls of the dice seeing as the expected value per roll is 4. Four multiplied by five is 20. You should take 5 rolls because after five rolls the expected value of points begins to go up by smaller and smaller margins.

Atypical Childhood Social Behavior and Phthalates, BPA Essay -- Medica

The Article describes how endocrine disruptors can produce childhood social impairment and more specifically the effects of bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates exposure during pregnancy produces autistic-like social behaviors in children. The specific social behaviors that occur from phthalates and BPA exposure are difficult interpersonal and social awareness skills. Phthalates and BPA, the independent variable, are endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs). The EDCs interfere with the body’s hormones which are critical to brain development (Braun, 2011). Changes to hormone levels during pregnancy can lead to brain change that can alter childhood behavior. BPA and phthalates are consumer products used in plastics, food can linings, food packaging, cosmetics, personal care products and vinyl plastics. Other studies have found that animals exposed to BPA and phthalates before birth have altered behavior; also, collaborating research shows that same effect in humans (Miodovnik, 20 11). Additional studies also show a connection between these chemicals and hormonal signaling. According to this article 137 mothers and their children were observed over a span of nine years by Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York City (Braun, 2011). These mothers came from varying ethnic backgrounds and came from a lower income area of New York City. These women also were of lower education although a majority of them increased their education levels by the end of this study. The ages of the women were fairly evenly distributed from 20- 30 years of age for the majority of the participants (Miodovnik, 2011). This sampling of woman is representative of their target population because of the varying ages and ethnicities that were used and also those ... ...per it would have given more credence to the research without adding any length to the article. If I had to add anything else to this article I would have liked to have seen some of the supporting research added to the content of the article; because, whenever you support your writing with other people’s work it always adds credence to what you are stating, it is the staple of peer review. Also this media article did not include any type of graphics and it would have been nice to see the scatter point graph included in this article as it does a good job of showing the natural increase in atypical behaviors as the levels of EDC’s increased. Works Cited Braun. (2011, april 06). Enviromental Health News. Retrieved from www.enviromentalhealthnews.org. Miodovnik, A. E. (2011). Endocrine disruptors and childhood social impairment. NueroToxicology, 261-267.

Chance within the play Romeo and Juliet Essay

George Aberto once said â€Å"above anything else, fate is what brings lovers together.† In Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet, fate, chance, and coincidence are all important to the development and eventually the conclusion of this tragedy. Without these three closely related themes the play would not have been able to make it out of the first act. These themes are pivotal to the development of the play and there are many instances where this is very obvious. These themes play a part in the feud between the Capulets and the Montagues, the invitation of Romeo to the ball, and the death of the two lovers, Romeo and Juliet. For as long as the two families, The Capulets and The Montagues, can remember, they have both been at war with each other and held an â€Å"ancient grudge† (Prologue). The purpose and goal of this feud is never revealed thus it must be assumed through the Prologue that their hatred is solely based on tradition from past generations. This feud is visible within the first line of Act 1 Scene 1 where Sampson, a servant of the Capulet family says that he will â€Å"not carry coals† (1.1.1). He says this in talking to another servant, Gregory, about how he will not be humiliated by a Montague servant. This allows the audience to see the importance of the feud between the Capulets and the Montagues. Romeo, a Montague, and Juliet, a Capulet, meet and fall in love at the ball in Act 1 Scene 5. This is visible in Romeos dialogue â€Å"O, she doth teach the torches to burn bright! / It seems she hangs upon the cheek of night / Like a rich jewel in an Ethiop’s ear.† (1.5.46-48). It is chance that Romeo’s true love happens to be part of the family he was brought up to hate. Romeo is aware that Juliet is a Capulet but Juliet is not aware that Romeo is a Montague and even though the feud between the families is existent, fate takes its course and allows enough time for Juliet to fall in love with Romeo. Therefore, once Juliet learns that Romeo is a Montague, she has already fallen in love with Romeo and she cannot turn back now. This is one of the most important examples of fate in the play because if she had known that Romeo was a Montague she would have never pursued a relationship with him and the rest of the play would have never turned out the way it had. Romeo and Juliet’s relationship begins at the Capulets house during the ball  without Juliet knowing that Romeo is a Montague although the fate involved in getting Romeo to the ball is just as important as Juliet not knowing Romeos last name because if Romeo would not have gone to the ball then he would have never met Juliet and fallen in love with her. It all starts with one of the Capulets servants in the streets of Verona with a list of the different guests which are invited to the ball. This list contains the names Mercutio, Tybalt, and Rosaline among others. The servant which is given the list is not able to read and this is another example of fate because once Benvolio learns that Rosaline is going to be at the ball he decides that him and Romeo will attend. Benvolio wants to â€Å"Compare her face with some that I shall show / And I will make thee think they swan a crow.† Meaning that he will bring Romeo to the ball to show that a comparison of Rosaline with other girls will make a difference and possibly relieve his sadness and love for Rosaline. This is also fate because if Rosaline was not invited, Benvolio didn’t create a plan, and if the servant would have been able to read then Romeo would have never been invited and he would have never met Juliet. The meeting of the two lovers is important although the death of the two lovers is probably one of the most important roles fate plays in the play. The first instance where fate makes its mark leading up to the death of the two lovers, Romeo and Juliet, is when the Prince banishes Romeo from the city of Verona for the death of Tybalt. The Prince reacts to the situation by saying that â€Å"for that offence / Immediately we do exile him hence.† This gets the ball rolling on the events that will lead to the two lovers death. After Romeo flees on the recommendation of Benovlio, Romeo finds himself hiding out in Friar Laurance’s Cell and then in Mantua. The next event which fate is involved in is the idea of Juliet faking her death so that she is not required to marry Paris. Friar Laurence devises a plan which he tells Juliet in Scene 1 of Act 4 as they are both talking in the Friar’s cell. He tells her to: Hold, then; go home, be merry, give consent To marry Paris: Wednesday is to-morrow: To-morrow night look that thou lie alone; Let not thy nurse lie with thee in thy chamber: Take thou this vial, being then in bed, And this distilled liquor drink thou off, (4.1. 91-96) These lines explain everything she must do so that she does not have to marry Paris and can be with Romeo instead, although he has forgotten to tell her one thing. That one thing is that the Friar has not told Juliet to tell Romeo that she is going through with this plan, faking her death. Friar Laurence realizes this and sends Friar John to give Romeo, who is hiding in Mantua, the message of his plan. What happens next is a perfect example of chance and coincidence. Right as Friar John is preparing to deliver the message an outbreak of the Plague occurs in the city of Verona and Friar John â€Å"could not send it,–here it is again,- / Nor get a messenger to bring it thee, / So fearful were they of infection† (5.2.14-16). Therefore this causes Romeo to not receive the message of the Friar’s plan but instead he receives news of Juliet’s death so it then becomes a race to the tomb, in which Juliet was placed, to stop Romeo from seeing Juliet dead. So Friar Laurence â€Å"Now must I to the monument alone; Within three hours will fair Juliet wake†(5.2.25-27) . Fates second last appearance in the play occurs Romeo arrives at the tomb first, before the Friar, and he sees Juliet, his love, â€Å"dead†. If the Friar would have arrived first, Romeo and Juliet would have never killed themselves and they would have been able to live together but that was not the case and it led to the suicide of both lovers. The final appearance of fate occurs after the lovers death and it is the end of the feud between the two families. It was fate for the lovers to die and resolve this feud. Fate, Chance, and Coincidence play an extremely pivotal part of the development of the play as well as the ending and without them the play would have turned out anything like it had and it would have never gotten  out of Act 1. The feud between the Capulets and the Montagues, Romeo’s invitation to the ball, and the death of the two â€Å"star-crossed† lovers which led to the end of the feud between the two families are all examples of how fate was able to sway the development of the story so it would lead to the death of Romeo and Juliet, â€Å"For never was a story of more woe /Than this of Juliet and her Romeo†.

MIS Degrees A Versatile Option for Business Majors

Management information systems (MIS) is an umbrella term for computerized information process systems used to manage business operations. Students with an MIS major study how companies and individuals can use systems and the generated data in decision-making processes. This major differs from information technology and computer science because there is more of a focus on people and service through technology.   What Is a Management Information Systems Degree? Students who complete a program with a major in management information systems earn a management information systems degree. Most business schools and colleges offer an MIS major at the associates bachelors, masters, and doctorate levels. Associate Degree in Management Information Systems: An associates degree with a specialization in management information systems  is not a common degree, but you can find some schools that award an MIS degree at the associates level. This is an entry-level degree program that typically takes two years to complete.Bachelor Degree in Management Information Systems: A bachelors degree in management information systems is the common starting point for students who want to major in this field. Some students also choose to earn a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree with a major in MIS. Both programs take three to four years to complete.Master Degree in Management Information Systems: A specialized masters degree in management information systems is a popular option for individuals in this field. Many schools also offer an MBA program with a concentration in MIS. Program length can vary but typically ranges from 11 months to two years. An 11-month program is considered an acc elerated program and may not be available at some schools.  Ph.D. in Management Information Systems: A Ph.D. is the highest degree that can be earned in the management information systems field. Alternately, students can earn a Ph.D. in Business Administration with a specialization in MIS. Programs usually take at least four years to complete if not more. This degree should be reserved for students who want to work in research or go on to teach at postsecondary schools (i.e. colleges and universities). Other degree options include 3/2 programs, which result in a bachelors degree and a masters degree in management information systems after five years of study, and dual degrees that result in an MBA/MS in MIS. Some schools also offer undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate MIS certificate programs. Do I Need a Management Information Systems Degree? You do need a degree to work in most jobs in the management information systems field. MIS professionals are the bridge between business and people and technology. Specialized training in all three of these components is essential. A bachelors degree is one of the most common degrees among MIS professionals. However, many individuals choose to pursue additional education at the masters level to qualify for more advanced positions. A masters degree can be especially helpful for people who want to work in consulting or supervisory positions. Individuals who want to work in research or teach at the university level should pursue a Ph.D. in management information systems.   What Can I Do With a Management Information Systems Degree? Business majors with a degree in management information systems have knowledge of business technology, management techniques, and organizational development. They are prepared for a wide range of careers. The type of job that you can get is very dependent on the level of your degree, the school you have graduated from, and previous work experience in technology and management fields. The more experience you have, the easier it is to get an advanced job (such as a supervisory position). The following is just a sample of some of the jobs in the management information systems field. Business Analyst: A business analysts uses  analysis to help improve an organizations efficiency and effectiveness.Computer Systems Analyst: A computer systems analyst uses  analysis to design, develop, or improve computer systems and solutions for organizations.Database Administrator: As the name suggests, a database administrator creates, administers, and maintains databases, such as information or financial databases, for organizations.Information Security Analyst: An information security analyst analyzes, monitors, and protects an organizations computer networks and systems from cyber attacks.Web Developer: A web developer designs, creates, improves, and maintains websites and web application for individuals and organizations.