Saturday, April 11, 2020

8 Expressions with the Word Quick

8 Expressions with the Word Quick 8 Expressions with the Word Quick 8 Expressions with the Word Quick By Maeve Maddox The English word quick is related to Latin vivus, â€Å"alive.† The version of the Apostle’s Creed I grew up with contains this sentence: â€Å"Thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.† The line echoes 1 Peter 4:5 (KJV): ‘Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead.† The â€Å"quick and the dead† are the â€Å"living and the dead.† When a fetus begins to move in the womb, it is said to quicken, that is, â€Å"show signs of life.† Because motion is an attribute of being alive, quick has come to have the additional meaning of â€Å"rapidity of movement.† The OED entry for quick offers numerous definitions, but this post is limited to eight idioms that employ the word in its senses of â€Å"living† and â€Å"rapid.† 1. quickie In the 1920s, quickie was Hollywood slang for a Grade B movie because such a film was made quickly, often in a few days. By the 1930s, the term was being used to mean â€Å"a quick act of coitus.† Nowadays, the sexual connotation seems to be the most common for the noun, but attributively, the word quickie is used to indicate that something took place quickly or was of brief duration, for example, â€Å"a quickie divorce,† â€Å"a quickie interview,† â€Å"a quickie nap,† etc. 2. quick and dirty The OED entry shows that quick-and-dirty was in use at the turn of the 19th century in reference to a restaurant or diner that served cheap, quick meals: â€Å"I was far too proud to ever think of becoming a house maid or a waitress in one of those quick and dirty lunch places† (1896). In modern usage, the phrase means â€Å"done or produced hastily but effectively; makeshift†- a meaning similar to that of â€Å"jerry-rigged.† 3. quick fix Although in use in the 1960s, the expression’s popularity began to rise in the 1980s. A â€Å"quick fix† is â€Å"a quick and easy remedy or solution.† Such a remedy is often expedient but temporary and fails to address underlying problems. 4. quick on the draw The stereotype of the Western gunslinger is that of a man who could draw his gun from its holster instantly. Another idiom that references the quickness of the gunslinger is â€Å"quick on the trigger.† Both mean â€Å"quick to act or react.† 5. quicksand Quicksand is a bed of sand usually saturated with water. Because it is semi-liquid, it tends to suck down objects that rest on its surface. The name derives from the fact that the bed shifts as if it were alive and breathing. Figuratively, quicksand implies something treacherous, dangerous, and difficult to get out of. For example: â€Å"It may be the only policy that can save us, long-term, from sinking into the  quicksand  of endless  war  and bankruptcy or nuclear Armageddon.† 6. quickset Stories set in the English countryside frequently include mention of quickset. Farmers separate fields with fences and hedges. Fences are made of dead wood. Quickset is a living hedge. Plants with thorns are preferred for this use, usually hawthorn. 7. quicksilver Anyone who has ever broken a thermometer and played with mercury can understand why the element is also known as quicksilver. Shiny silver in appearance, the substance moves as if it were alive. Figuratively, quicksilver is used in the sense of very fast or mercurial. It’s often used as an adjective. For example, â€Å"Colbert was as  quicksilver with  his  wit  as Fred [Astaire] was  with  his feet.†Ã‚   8. cut to the quick If in trimming your nails you cut too far, the pain informs you that you have cut yourself â€Å"to the quick.† This quick is the flesh below the nails or skin that hurts when it is cut. Figuratively, this kind of quick represents the essence of one’s being. The expression â€Å"to be cut to the quick† means, â€Å"to be deeply hurt.† For example, â€Å"His remark cut her to the quick.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Congratulations on or for?Rules for Capitalization in TitlesStarting a Business Letter with Dear Mr.

Tuesday, March 10, 2020

30 Words Containing the Letters sm

30 Words Containing the Letters sm 30 Words Containing the Letters sm 30 Words Containing the Letters sm By Mark Nichol After writing a post about the suffix -ism, I explored the class of words that include the letters s and m in sequence in which the letters are not a consonant blend (as in small) or in which the s is not at the end of a prefix (as in besmirch and dismiss); with some exceptions (specified), they have in common an origin in Greek. Here are the qualifying words I found that do not use the suffix -ism or do not refer exclusively to a medical or scientific condition or phenomenon (though a couple of specialized terms that have acquired one or more figurative senses are included). 1. abysmal: very bad; abysm is a poetic alternative to abyss, from the Late Latin abyssus, meaning â€Å"bottomless pit† (which derives abyssos, meaning â€Å"bottomless pool,† although the sm ending either resulted from the superlative abyssimus or was created in imitation of Greek words) 2. basmati: a variety of rice, from Hindi, meaning â€Å"something fragrant† 3. cataclysm: a deluge, from kataklysmos, meaning â€Å"flood† or â€Å"inundation† 4. charisma: charm, from kharisma, meaning â€Å"favor† or â€Å"divine gift†; originally referred to exceptional authority or leadership 5. chasm: a deep crack, from khasma, meaning â€Å"gulf† 6. chiasmus: the inversion for rhetorical effect of two or more clauses (as in Voltaire’s quotation â€Å"The instinct of a man is to pursue everything that flies from him, and to fly from all that pursues him†), from khiasmos, meaning â€Å"crosswise or diagonal arrangement† 7. chiliasm: belief in Christ’s 1,000-year reign on Earth, ultimately from khilioi, meaning â€Å"a thousand† or referring to the number 1,000 8. chrism: a balm in oil used in church rituals, from khrisma, meaning â€Å"an anointing† 9. cosmetic: a substance used in improving one’s appearance (the plural form, cosmetics, refers to such products collectively), or, as an adjective, pertaining to personal beautification- and the words have an additional sense of â€Å"superficial† or â€Å"for the sake of appearances†- from kosmetikos, meaning â€Å"skilled in adorning or arranging†; these words and cosmetology, the term for the study of beautification, are related to cosmos (see below) in the sense of order or arrangement 10. cosmos: the universe (referred to as â€Å"the cosmos†), from kosmos, meaning â€Å"order† or â€Å"orderly arrangement†; more often seen as cosmic, the adjectival form, and cosmo- is the root word of cosmology (a word for the study of the universe) and other words, and a form of the root is also seen in macrocosm, meaning â€Å"something seen as a miniature version of something larger,† and microcosm, meaning â€Å"a large system consisting of many smaller ones† 11. desmesne: a domain or estate, or possession or use of one’s land, from a respelling in Anglo-French of the Middle English term demeine (â€Å"domain†) 12. dismal: wretched, from the Latin phrase dies mali (â€Å"evil days†) 13. enthusiasm: eagerness or zeal, from enthousiasmos, meaning â€Å"divine inspiration† 14. gismo: gadget (variant spelling of gizmo, of unknown origin) 15. iconoclasm: criticism of conventional beliefs or standard institutions, from eikonoklastes, meaning â€Å"image breaker†; originally referred to literal destruction of images and objects considered idolatrous 16. jasmine: a plant, from Persian 17. kismet: fate, from Arabic qisma, meaning â€Å"portion† or â€Å"lot† 18. melisma: one of several specific types of musical expression, from melisma, meaning â€Å"song† or â€Å"melody† 19. mesmerize: captivate, or hold spellbound, from the name of hypnosis pioneer Anton Mesmer 20. miasma: a literal or figurative cloud or fog of an unhealthy or unpleasant or obscuring nature, from miasma, meaning â€Å"pollution† 21. orgasm: sexual excitement, from orgasmos, meaning â€Å"excitement† or â€Å"swelling† (also a verb referring to the sensation); the noun refers, by extension, to any stimulating experience (note also two slang terms modeled on orgasm: geekgasm, referring to a nerd’s exultation about, for example, a new computer program or video game, and eargasm, the result of an extremely pleasurable song or sound 22. osmosis: movement of a liquid through a solid, or, figuratively, learning or understanding something easily or smoothly; this word is an invention of New Latin and does not come from Greek 23. paroxysm: a sudden attack or a convulsion, from paroxysmos, meaning â€Å"irritation† or â€Å"exasperation†; now also used colloquially to refer to an outburst of emotion 24. phantasm: a ghost or illusion, from phantasma, meaning â€Å"image† or â€Å"phantom†; a related word is phantasmagoria, referring to an exhibition of optical effects or illusions, a constantly changing scene, or a bizarre collection 25. prism: a medium or a shape that refracts light, from prisma, meaning â€Å"something sawn†; also, figuratively, something that colors, distorts, or slants one’s perspective 26. sarcasm: a form of darkly humorous criticism in which the words stated are the opposite of the intended meaning, as in â€Å"Well, that went well!† for a disastrous incident, from sarkasmos, meaning â€Å"jest† or â€Å"taunt† 27. schism: originally referred to dissension within the Catholic Church but now also pertains to any disagreement in philosophy or policy, from skhisma, meaning â€Å"division† 28. seismic: pertaining to earthquakes, from seismos, meaning â€Å"a shaking,† â€Å"a shock,† or â€Å"an earthquake†; several words derived from the root seismo-, such as seismology (the name for the study of earthquakes) and seismograph (the word for a device that measures the motions of an earthquake) also exist (seismic also might be used to describe something of hugely significant import) 29. spasm: a sudden violent muscular contraction, ultimately from spasmos, meaning â€Å"convulsion†; also loosely employed to refer to an emotional outburst 30. talisman: a good-luck charm or something believed to have magical or miraculous powers, from telesma, meaning â€Å"consecration† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Wether, Weather, WhetherUsing the Active Voice to Strengthen Your WritingIs Your Novel "Mystery," "Thriller," or "Suspense"?

Sunday, February 23, 2020

Daoism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Daoism - Essay Example For instance, Du Guangtung created his account using the west queen mother by selecting, re-writing, and combining various texts from the old literature. Some of the sources used by Du Guangtung to record the assembled transcendent of the fortified wall city include; Taoist, Buddhism, historical, classical and other popular sources; which retained his personal tradition of precedence work (Cahill 107). Du’s work is considered allusive and condensed. For instance, his first records are about a queen mother’s biography. The writings express the queen’s primacy in lineage and power. This account is one of the beneficial sources of Du Guangtung, which gives a complete account of the perceptions Taoists have about goddesses (Cahill 146). Du Guangtung gave the Records of the Assembled Transcendent of the Fortified City to the ruling emperor because he was attempting to associate the imperial government with Daoism. The Tang emperor was finally influenced by Daoism (Cahill 144). For instance, Bian’s story is publicized to honor the agreement by recording his transcendence. The book reveals that the founders of Tang Dynasty were sisters who were mothers of Emperor Yang of Sui. These sisters ruled two emperors of different dynasties. From the beginning, Daoism played a major role in the politics of Tang. Li Yuan bid for power by attracting followers through the claim for Daoist and Laozi descents (Bokenkamp 204). Individuals who were bidding for office had to involve monks from Buddhist temples to pray for them openly and they were paid cash donations in return. Buddhism and Daoism were accepted in the Tang Dynasty before Buddhists faced persecution in the 9th Century. Daoism’s spectacular success brought about the reunification of Tang Dynasty. Li Yuan, the founder of the kingdom, became more influential and successful after he was deferred of

Thursday, February 6, 2020

Coca cola Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Coca cola - Essay Example alone recorded more than US$15 billion in 2006 (Kent, para 2-3). In the same year, market consumption volumes for the same product were more than thirty billion liters. This is usually not the same story with many multinationals. Company Overview Coca-Cola Company headquartered in Atlanta Georgia and specializes in soft beverage drinks. The company has operations in more than 200 countries. The plant in Atlanta produces the concentrate and sells it to certified Coca-Cola bottlers worldwide. Bottlers hold agreements with the Coca Cola Corporation, which permit them to produce the finished products. After which bottlers distribute and sell Coca-Cola products to retail stores and vending machines, who in turn sell the products to consumers. Advantages of Coca Cola Differentiated marketing method The most noticeable positional strategy of the Coca Cola Company is differentiated marketing method. This method has enabled the organization to satisfy the needs of a wide range of markets. For instance, it has bottled water products for any of its target segments. It also has Diet Coke which is specifically targeted for the aged or elderly people and those people who are drifting towards a healthier feeding lifestyle. Product levels One of the main advantages of Coca Cola Company over its rivals is that it offers products on three distinctive levels: the core product, the actual product, and the augmented product. In general, features and even materials used make the actual products which in the end avails the core product (Petretti 2-17). Consumers are attracted by Coca Cola products because of their high quality coupled with unsurpassed company standards. As consumers take the products they also end up getting the augmented product which is the extra or additional benefits the consumer derive from the product or the company. However, given that soft beverages are consumables, there is a tendency to pose limits on the augmented level. To counter this, Coca Cola Company not only provides its products in various quantities, it also provides its products in different tastes and coloration to enable the consumer to switch products without crossing over to competitor products. A good example is Diet Coke which is offered in various quantities like the Lagasse Diet Coke, Caffeine-Free Diet Coke, and Chaser Diet Coke basing on the consumer preferences. Global brand Unlike many of its competitors, Coca Cola Company is the leading manufacturer, marketer and even distributor of nonalcoholic drinks worldwide. Presently, the organization has operations in more than 200 countries. The company is a marketplace innovation driver and a solidified investor in local economies. At present, Coca Cola Company commands the beverage industry globally with over 500 beverage brands including about four brands out of the top-five sparkling brands on the planet (Kent, para. 4-6). Coca-Cola Company market share versus other soft drink companies worldwide in 2011, based on sa les value Source: Globalization and Health, Statistica. Disadvantages of Coca Cola Positioned as a monopoly The company has established itself as a monopoly in many countries. As a monopoly, there are many things that are attributed to the company are not encouraging. For instance, the company is likely to produce products that are substance. A case in point, in 2006, in Canada and India, the company was accused on producing

Wednesday, January 29, 2020

What the Utopian World Created Essay Example for Free

What the Utopian World Created Essay Divergent by Veronica Roth and â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† by Kurt Vonnegut Jr, are stories of a dystopian world that take away peoples power and control. In Divergent the leader took over the people’s minds and psychologically controlled them to do what the government wanted to do. In â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† such as the government wanted power so they psychologically controlled people by handicaps where a buzzing sound go off in your ear. In doing this people would lose their train of thoughts, so the people would never know what the government was doing. The government did this so no one would ever gain more power than them, people may have noticed that the government did not do this to make things equal because they did not do it to their selves only to the people. The government/ leader used psychological control in Divergent and Harrison Bergeron through serums and handicaps, making both worlds dystopian societies. In Divergent serums is used to make people be psychologically controlled so the government can have them get rid of another faction. This is a world where they have 5 factions, which are futures for the people to live in. The Erudite which is a faction that all the smarts people live in do not like the Abnegations who are the more selfless people, so they had the dauntless faction take serum so they would kill the Abnegations. The thing is the serum does not work on the divergent people. Divergent people are people that are good at everything and dose not really fit in to a faction. Being Divergent is risky and rare so they enter a faction so no one would know they were Divergent. Beatrice the main character was divergent and found out about the serum because she was not psychologically controlled because she was Divergent, and went to the leader/government. When she got there the government said â€Å"Everyone is awake, but everyone is silent†¦they are sleepwalkers†¦of course. Eric said every Dauntless was injected yesterday. So now the entire faction is brain dead, obedient, and trained to kill† (Roth 416-417). This in psychological control because they use serum to take over a whole faction minds to do what the leader said, which made this world dystopian. In â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† handicaps were used in this a dystopian story to have psychological control. The government of this world would put handicaps on people; a handicap is something that makes the people not be able to perform their talents. Some of the handicaps were a buzzing sound that goes off in your head every 30  second so people lose your thoughts, if you were strong you had to wear weights to make people weak, and if people could see you had to wear glasses to make you see worse. â€Å"A buzzer sounded in George’s head. His thoughts fled in panic, like bandits from a burglar alarm† (Vonnegut). This is an example of George who was Harrison Bergeron; the main characters dad loses his memory which is psychological control. The government wanted to make a perfect society by making everyone equal but in doing that they had to use psychological control (handicaps) which turned the utopian world which they were trying to make a dystopian world. The government/ leader used psychological control in Divergent and Harrison Bergeron through serums and handicaps, making both worlds dystopian societies. With saying that the world were both try to have equality and be a perfect societies and by doing that the government had to do things to make it a dystopian. These stories are both great example of psychological control though handicaps and serum.

Monday, January 20, 2020

Relationship of Dreams to Thought, Memory, and Smell :: Sleep Dream

Dreams involve a fundamental integration and spreading of being and experience at the mid-range of feeling between thought and sense. Since dreams [already] involve a fundamental integration and spreading of being and experience at what is the mid-range of feeling between thought and sense, the sense of smell very rarely occurs while dreaming, and the lighting and sound levels are fairly constant (and proper) therein. Memory integrates experience. There is less memory in the dream because experience is already better integrated, and also because experience is less extensive. Dreams improve upon memory and understanding by increasing (or adding to) the integrated extensiveness of being and experience (including thought) in and with time. The sense of relative familiarity involving dream experience is associated with the improvement of understanding and memory therein. Dreams and memory integrate experience, and both add to the extensiveness of experience (including thought) as well, w hile involving a [relative] reduction in the totality of experience. Since the self has extensiveness of being and experience (in and with time) in conjunction with the integrated and natural extensiveness of sensory experience, we spend less time dreaming (and sleeping) than waking. The integrated extensiveness of being and experience go hand in hand. Emotion that is comprehensive and balanced advances consciousness. Dreams are an emotional experience. The comprehensiveness and consistency of both intention and concern are central to our consciousness, life, and growth. (Desire consists of both intention and concern, thereby including interest as well.) The comprehensiveness and consistency of both intention and concern in relation to experience in general is ultimately dependent upon the natural and integrated extensiveness of sensory experience. In keeping with this, consciousness and language involve the ability to represent, form, and experience comprehensive approximations of experience in general, and this includes art and music as well. If the self did not represent, form, and experience a comprehensive approximation of experience in general, we would be incapable of growth and of becoming other than we are. Thought involves a relative reduction in the range and extensiveness of feeling. In keeping with this, dreams make thought more like sensory experience in general. Accordingly, both thought and also the range and extensiveness of feeling are proportionately reduced in the dream. (This reduction in the range and extensiveness of feeling during dreams is consistent with the fact that the experience of smell very rarely occurs therein.

Sunday, January 12, 2020

Rich vs Poor Essay

The American Dream, the idea that every citizen can be successful if they work hard, is believable to the degree that every student going to school has the same opportunity to learn the skills needed to succeed in society. But if the opportunity for students to attain a sufficient education is imbalanced, then the likelihood of success becomes very slim for some students. Today, inequality has become a serious problem among poor students and their wealthy peers across the country, and the dream of becoming a successful icon is moving farther out of reach for them. In order to succeed in life, one depends on his or her adolescent years and years in college that desperately lean on the socioeconomic status of the parents and not only the quality of education. The achievement gap between the rich and the poor is constantly growing wider, and if nothing is done to aid poor student population the gap will continue to increase resulting in economic consequences and possibly crime among low -income adolescences who can’t cope with school life because they need to support for their family. The problem America faces is the relationship of an underprivileged socioeconomic background linked to poor child development and education. For the longest time, education has been the major lane to success in the United States. One’s life depends a lot on the skills attained from school and from family background, and the lack of opportunities influences the development of children and their future endeavors. Contrary to the middle-class and upper class children, many underprivileged children are deprived of these equal opportunities. In fact, children from low-income families get very little chances to have a normal education at all, and higher education like college and private schooling is essentially an unattainable dream that they can imagine but it never actually comes true. Due to the lack of resources and finances the initial opportunities of people from low-income families are consistently worse than opportunities of the rest of American children. Reading Richard D. Kahlenburg’s â€Å"5 Myths About Who Gets Into College,† he states that a 2004 Century Foundation study found that at the most selective universities and colleges, â€Å"74 percent of students come from the richest quarter of the population, while just 3 percent come from the bottom corner† (495). Correspondingly, SAT scores play an important role in being admitted to a good university. Students who come from areas with high poverty rates and come from low-income families usually score, on average, â€Å"784 points lower than the more privileged and fortunate student body† (Kahlenburg, 495). Even when students from low-income families score high on standardized testing and receive admittance to a university, their families have trouble supporting their children’s education financially. Consequently, these children are basically forced to work to earn enough money to keep his/her family alive, so ultimately college is a very diffic ult education level to attain. Naturally, most people are equally as intelligent, but in society today it matters what environment one lives in and what quality opportunities are presented depending on social status. For most people summer is a time to relax, but if you want to keep up with your classmates maybe its time to pick up a book! During summer break there is a common decline in learning that students experience, and this is called the summer slide. Three researchers from Johns Hopkins University named Karl Alexander, Doris Entwisle, and Linda Olson, researched this issue thoroughly by performing longitudinal studies on Baltimore students from 1st grade through age 22. During the academic year, lower-class children achieved the same reading levels as their middle and upper class peers, but children from lower-class families diminished in reading skills once summer started. Children from more affluent families have more opportunities such as summer school, tutoring, and other programs that low-income children cannot afford. It is concluded: â€Å"two-thirds of the ninth grade reading achievement gap can be explained by unequal access to summer learning opportunities during elementary school† (Karl Alexander, Doris Entwisle, Linda Olson). Another recent study resulted in similar conclusions to the one completed by the researchers of Johns Hopkins University. In an essay written by McCombs, J. S., Augustine, C.H., and Schwar tz, H.L, they acknowledge that during the summer students in elementary school lose about a month of knowledge and skill, and even worse off, lower-income students can lose up to two or three  months. And so low-income students fall disproportionally behind in reading while their middle and upper income peers may even gain skills in reading because of the summer activities available for them. The worst part of it all is that summer learning loss is cumulative and as time progresses, low-income and higher-income students’ performance starts to segregate, thus contributing significantly to a wider achievement gap. If you notice, in Karl Alexander, Doris Entwisle, and Linda Olson study, they talk about lower-class children achieving the same reading levels as their middle and upper class peers in a given academic year. This goes to prove that it is not so much the school and poor teaching that causes such an increase in the achievement gap between the rich and the poor over the last few decades, but the way people make use of their summers and time spent away from school regarding socioeconomic status. Not only does this apply to summers and time from school, but also a child’s success in life greatly depends on his or her family background the years before school even starts. Children have the ability to effortlessly learn a new language or a subject in school because of their cognitive skills that work much better than in later years. So it is apparent that they receive the best environment and treatment from their parents in order to start kindergarten on the right track. What can we do about the problems lower-class children in early years face in relation to poor societal status and low-income? One effective way to narrow the achievement gap between the rich and the poor would be to make sure all students have admittance to a committed, cognitively motivating environment in the comfort of their own home and in preschool locations, so no matter where the children are they can feel safe and secure in these child- friendly areas. In order to do this, we need an economy that can provide poor families with sufficient incomes/wages. More jobs, more affordable health care, and child-care programs are also necessary to increase the average income of lower-class individuals and boost the socioeconomic status so many suffer under. Another good idea to enhance the lives of young children preparing for the educational world, are programs like the Nurse-Family Partnership where nurses help low-income, first-time mothers raise their children and learn skills need ed to become a good parent and give their children the best start in life possible. Getting a good start in life and being ready for Kindergarten years is a very crucial among peers  because, currently, the preparation gap for school considering middle and upper class students is much greater than lower-class students who do not have the resources necessary to catch up to their affluent pupils. Consequently, another solution that may tighten the gap between low-income students and high-income students, regarding preparation for early years of school, would be to start public education at an earlier age. At first the cost may appear to be quite expensive because of the extra years of schooling needing funding, but the social benefits of a decreased inequality gap could outweigh the costs of the extra years in the long run. In fact, it would not only reduce the inequality gap, but it would also upsurge the amount of women remaining at work after pregnancy, resulting in an increase in GDP as well. The best manner in reducing educational inequality is to guarantee that all children begin school on an even note. Schools do not have the power and the determination alone to fix the gap so it the state, federal government, and American citizens to put these issues on top of the list of economic duties. Without a proper education, students living in lower-class areas don’t ha ve the necessary tools that will help them escape the life they would otherwise resort to, crime, if school were not to work out. The Corner: A Year in the Life of an Inner-City Neighborhood by David Simon and Edward Burns is a good example of why improvements in education opportunities and achievement for low-income cities need to be made. Through the eyes of the protagonist DeAndre McCullough, we are introduced to the brutal, threatening conditions of inner city life, which many low-income students suffer from due to a number of socioeconomic problems they face. As a result of being a victim of these conditions, DeAndre has lost all motivation to think about his future, â€Å"Maybe he’d think more about his future if it were clear he had one.†(David Simon). He has accepted the fact that his life could end at any moment, ultimately resulting in a loss of purpose. This acceptance is reflected in others with similar situations, they turn to the streets because â€Å"In this place only, they know what they are, why they are, and what it is that they are supposed to do. Here, they almost matter†(David Simon). Children who are not born with the privileges rich peers have acquired, have a choice between joining the street life to get by or follow an educational route; but unfortunately in society today, the first choice is more promising. However, with proper motivation and  better learning facilities, young teenagers like DeAndre don’t have to make these assumptions. The achievement gap between the poor and rich is continuously widening due to the fact that low-income children can’t break out of their parents’ social status very easily while wealthy children have all the resources necessary to be prosperous. According to Stanford professor Sean Reardon, the difference in average academic skills of children in low-income and high-income families is â€Å"roughly 30 to 40 percent larger among children born in 2001 than among those born twenty-five years earlier† (Reardon). Low-income students usually end up just keeping their parents socioeconomic status because they cannot afford to attend nice schools and acquire all the outside resources and extra help necessary; vise versa, families with high income have a greater chance to send their children to sufficient schools and tend to have saf er learning environments than low-income individuals. It is the poor staying relatively still throughout the twenty-five years regarding increased income, while the middle/upper class group accumulates a lot of money, which, in turn, increases the income gap between the two groups. The increase in the income gap between poor and rich parents means that there is an increase in the achievement gap between poor and rich students. In recent years, a lot of focus has been put on preparing young children for next level education like Kindergarten and elementary school, because ensuring readiness is very important for a proper learning experience. However, let’s take into account all the negative aspects that normally play into the socioeconomic background of students in low-income families: 1) Low-income level of parents, 2) parents unemployed or have minimum wage jobs, 3) either parents never went to college or never even finished high school, 4) single mother/ father in prison (Willis, 2007). Low-income students from these kinds of families have a small chance of social mobility and will likely just follow in the footprints their parents left behind. Adolescences don’t have the motivation to try in school because they know where their life is going to be headed regardless. Many poor families would love to get off of welfare, live on the beach, achieve a better socioeconomic status, etc. but segregation between low-income families and middle/high income families forces the two groups to live in areas  corresponding to their income level. So even if poor students want to gain a sufficient education, they will have a lot of trouble getting it because poverty follows them wherever they go. As we already know, education opportunities of children from low-income families are consistently worse than those of the middle and upper class. Such a situation is very dangerous for the future of children because, currently, education is one of the major conditions that lead individuals to progress and a successful career. In fact, without good education, these children will not have good job opportunities and, therefore, the competitiveness in the labor market will be extremely low. And not only does poverty link to poor education, it also strongly correlates with meager health benefits. Poor health is affecting the low-income population due to low paying jobs having bad health insurance and not giving individuals enough money to get better insurance. Middle-class and upper-class societies are given better health benefits than the poor, less fortunate because they have more opportunities in attaining jobs with good health benefits. As a result, the lack of educational opportunities deprives them of future job opportunities and health benefits, and children from low-income families are stuck in a kind of vicious circle, from which only few can find the way out. The opportunities presented to the middle-class and upper-class population are a lot more abundant and superior quality. The Federal government and the state governments need to find a balance between the two economic groups and offer better schooling to the less fortunate so they can catch up to the standards of the better educated collection of individuals and families. This inequality of achievement between the social classes is leaving the poor in the dust as the middle and upper class individuals take advantage of all the necessities of a good education. 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