11 Writing Exercises to Inspire You and Strengthen Your Writing

11 Writing Exercises to Inspire You and Strengthen Your Writing 11 Writing Exercises to Inspire You and Strengthen Your Writing 11 Writing Exercises to Inspire You and Strengthen Your Writing By Ali Hale Whether you’re writing just for fun, for school, or with professional goals in mind, these exercises can all help you to improve your writing. Some will give you inspiration, others will help you avoid editing as you write, and many of them will help you pay closer attention to your word choices. I hope you’ll enjoy giving them a go! #1: Cover Your Screen While You Write If you find yourself doing more editing than actual writing, then try covering up (or, on a laptop, turning down) your screen while you draft. If, like me, you can touch-type – try closing your eyes instead. I find it surprisingly relaxing! (Though I tend to stop every sentence or two to make sure I’ve hit the keys I thought I was hitting) At first, it might seem odd not to be able to see the words that you’re typing – but you might well find that you write faster and express your thoughts more freely this way. #2: Set a Daily Writing Goal and Track Your Progress Writing, as most other crafts, only gets better with practice. If you want to improve, therefore, you will need to write pretty much every single day. The best strategy to achieve this objective is to set a goal of how many words you want to write per day, and then to track your progress over time. A simple notebook or spreadsheet should be enough for you to record your daily statistics. The Prolifiko blog has a great piece with more tips to set writing goals and resolutions and to make sure you achieve them. #3: Use a Writing Prompt to Get You Going If you want to write, but you don’t know what you want to write, try using a writing prompt. This could be anything from a story scenario (â€Å"write about someone who gets caught in a lie†) to a blog post title (â€Å"Ten Things I Wish I Could Tell My 15-Year-Old Self†). Here are a couple of sources of prompts to keep you busy for a while: 25 creative writing prompts, a list of prompts you can use to start writing a simple story or even a novel. 365 Creative Writing Prompts, from Think Written – a mixed bag of prompts, with some for stories and some for poems; many would also work for blogging. Even if you’re working on a longer piece, like a novel, prompts can be helpful. A line of dialogue, for instance, might give you just the inspiration you need for your next scene. #4: Don’t Start at the Beginning Start at the End There’s no writing rule that says you need to begin at the beginning. In fact, many writers find it more effective to start at the end. You can do this in a couple of different ways: Start your story (or blog post, etc) close to the chronological end – e.g. you might begin with â€Å"As I stared down the mountain, I couldn’t believe I was actually here† You can then jump back in time and narrate the events that led up to that point. Write the end of your blog post (or story, etc) first. Once you’ve written your concluding paragraphs or final scenes, you’ll know what you’re leading up to. If you prefer not to write it out in full, you could make notes. #5: Rewrite a Masterpiece or a Famous Story Choose a famous masterpiece or classic novel (like Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice or Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet) and write your own version. This is a great exercise because you can do it at almost any level: you could write a short story for children, or you could write a whole novel or screenplay. (Bridget Jones’s Diary, for instance, borrowed heavily from Pride and Prejudice; the children’s movie Gnomeo and Juliet is based, as you might guess, on Romeo and Juliet.) You can do this with fairytales, too, like the story of Cinderella or Little Red Riding Hood. You might decide to bring the stories into the modern world – or you might switch to a completely different genre, like a Western version of Little Red Riding Hood or a sci-fi version of Cinderella. Hopefully, you’ll think of some interesting ways to present an old story in a new way – great practice for avoiding clichà ©s and stereotypes in your own writing. #6: Create a Found Poem from Your Spam Folder A â€Å"found poem† is one created from text that already exists – and some writers enjoy repurposing spam emails for this! Check your spam folder. I’m sure that, like mine, it’s full of emails with some strange wording and dubious promises like: I did not need to find a winning product. he gave it to me Just drinking 1 cup of this delicious hot beverage in the morning sets you up to burn more fat than 45 exhausting minutes on the treadmill. Hello %E-mail_address%, I know your very love Engineer Jobs and want have T-Shirt for Engineer Jobs. It is vital  to have a telephone system that has all the specific functions (All of these are taken verbatim from my own spam folder) Could you pick out a few lines (they don’t have to be consecutive ones) to create your own found poem? Feel free to add some words if needed. There are some wonderfully odd examples here. #7: Write Something Inspired By a Piece of Writing, Music or Art Inspiration can come in all sorts of ways – but if you’re struggling to find an idea, try turning to other people’s creative works.  In my blogging, I’ve often been inspired by other people’s post structures, by an idea of theirs that I want to take further – or even by something they’ve written that I disagree with. You can use music and art in a similar way: they can be particularly potent sources of ideas for stories. If you have a favourite song or artist, what in their work speaks to you? How could you craft a story using some of those themes or thoughts? Alternatively, look through some photos of artworks, and choose one or more to use as the basis for a story. #8: Interview Your Novel’s Characters This is a fun exercise that a lot of writers use to dig into who their characters are: the character interview. You can work through a pre-set list of questions, or you can come up with your own in advance, or you can just start typing and go with the flow! You might do this essentially like a character questionnaire or checklist, or you might want to write it more like a mini-story, with you as the author inviting your character to sit down and talk. Depending on the sort of fiction you write, the setting for your interview could be almost anything – perhaps you’re enjoying a casual chat over coffee and cake with your character, or maybe you’re interviewing them as a journalist, or even in court. Or, if you’re into rather darker fiction, you might be conducting an interrogation However you do this, it’s a great exercise to have fun with, and you might discover a whole backstory to your character that you’d never thought about before. #9: Use the Alphabet This is a fun exercise that can work for almost any type of writing: craft a piece where each sentence starts with the next letter of the alphabet. Here’s the start of one to show you what I mean: At six oclock, Josie woke up. Before shed even opened her eyes, she knew what had woken her: she could hear it, just like shed heard it every Friday morning for months. Cliff, her neighbour, was out  in his garden. Despite all the times shed gone round and asked him, through gritted teeth, to please wait until at least seven, he was mowing the blasted lawn again. â€Å"Excuse me!† she called, over the fence. For a moment, she thought he hadn’t heard her over the sound of the mower. (Yes, it’s tricky once you get to X! You might find this list helpful, or you might choose to use a sentence-starting word that merely contains an X.) #10: Write with a Sentence Length Limit in Place Can you limit every sentence you write to ten words? (Or fewer!) This might be tricky. It’s a great exercise for bloggers and online marketers, though. Short snappy sentences and paragraphs work well online. You might want to draft as normal, then edit ruthlessly. Or you could count the words as you type. Whatever works for you! (Yes, the sentences in this section are ten words max) #11: Write Without Using Any Adverbs This is a common exercise advised for fiction writers: write a whole scene without using a single adverb. Adverbs are words that modify verbs, adjectives and adverbs. They often (though not always) end with –ly. Here are a few sentences with the adverbs indicated in bold: The girl walked quickly to school. (â€Å"Quickly† is modifying the verb â€Å"walked†.) Slowly, the fairly tall man stood.   (â€Å"Slowly† is modifying the verb â€Å"stood†, and â€Å"fairly† is modifying the adjective â€Å"tall†) On the bus, the baby cried dismayingly loudly. (â€Å"Dismayingly† is modifying the adverb â€Å"loudly†, and â€Å"loudly† is modifying the verb â€Å"cried†.) Writing without adverbs forces you to write crisper, clearer (and shorter!) sentences, which often have more impact. In particular, you’ll find yourself choosing stronger verbs. All of these sentences could replace â€Å"The girl walked quickly to school† – and each has a slightly different nuance: The girl strode to school. The girl hurried to school. The girl power-walked to school. Of course, adverbs aren’t bad in themselves – so I don’t recommend avoiding them in all your writing! This exercise can help you, though, to be more aware of when you’re using adverbs unnecessarily. Pick one of the above  exercises to try out during your writing time this week. (If you’re feeling up for it, pick two and combine them – how about rewriting a classic without using any adverbs?) Have fun! 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 Writing Basics category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:4 Types of Gerunds and Gerund Phrases60 Synonyms for â€Å"Trip†6 Foreign Expressions You Should Know

Detailed statistics summary Essay

Detailed statistics summary Essay Detailed statistics summary Essay Topic 1 detailed statistics Global economy Global economic growth rate Recent - 2013 3.0% (Jan 2014, IMF) Forecast - 2014 3.7% (Jan 2014, IMF) GFC - 2009 –0.6% Average 2003-2008 5% Advanced economies growth rate Forecast 2013 1.3% (Jan 2014, IMF) Forecast 2014 2.2% (Jan 2014, IMF) GFC – 2009 –3.2% Trade World trade is 50 times its 1950 level (2011) GFC caused a 2% fall in world trade Financial flows More than 95% of foreign exchange transactions are estimated to be for speculation Investment & TNCs TNCs are believed to account for 10% of GWP FDI flows have risen by almost 100 times since 1970 despite falling since GFC (2010 $1.2tr 2970 $13b) Technology ICT trade is estimated to be worth $4tr (2011) Global labour markets However 3% of world’s population have migrated to work (World Bank, 2010) 60% of these to advanced economies International division of labour Whilst the iphone is assembled in China (3.6% of production costs) and only 6% of production costs are incurred in USA, Japan contributes 34%. GNI per capita PPP (World Bank 2012) Australia US$43,000 (Rank 11) China US$9,000 (Rank 92) Congo DR US$370 (Rank 180) Millenium Development Goals The global poverty rate at $1.25 a day fell in 2010 to less than half the 1990 rate. 700 million fewer people lived in conditions of extreme poverty in 2010 than in 1990. However, at the global level 1.2 billion people are still living in extreme poverty. Most of improvement is from China HDI (World Bank 2012) Australia 0.938 (Rank 2, 2012) China 0.699 (Rank 101) Congo DR 0.304 (Rank 186) China Economic growth Recent - 2013 7.7% (Jan 2014, IMF) Forecast - 2013 7.5% (Jan 2014, IMF) GFC - 2009 7% Fiscal stimulus resulted in recovery from GFC with 9–12% growth Ave. real GDP growth almost 11.6% for 3 decades (1990-2010_ Components of economic growth C: high household savings rate (38%) and low consumption (35%) I: FDI US$185.1b (2010) from US$3.5b (1990), $0 (1978) I: Investment 48% of GDP (2010) from 26% (1990) X: Trade 30% of GDP (2010) from 10% (1978) X/I: TNCs 54% of total exports X: 65% of growth in exports is from Western countries M: Average tariff rate 10% (2010) from 32% (1990) G: SOEs 29% of GDP (2002) from 50% (1990) AS: Agriculture 10% of GDP (2010) from 27% (1990) AS: Increase in agricultural output 61% 1974 to 1984 AS: Labour productivity growth 8.8%pa (2008-2010) HDI HDI 0.404 (1980) to 0.699 (2012) GNI per capita growth 8% for three decades (1990-2010) Life expectancy 73.5 (2011) from 67 (1980) Schooling 7.5yrs (2011) from 3.7yrs (1980) Healthcare spending approx 3% of GDP (Aus 6%) Education spending approx 2.5% of GDP (Aus 4.7%) Absolute poverty 60% (1990) to 13% (2008) Working poor 10% (2011) from approx 30% (2000) Inequality 10% increase since 1990 Gini coefficient 0.474 (2012) Unofficial estimates as high as 0.6 Environment China accounts for 23.5% of global CO2 emissions (Aus 1.3%) Emissions 7.2t/per capita (Aus 16t/per capita) Total cost to of environmental damage 8.9% of GDP Health costs of air and water pollution 4.3% of GDP Challenges IMF estimates 10 fold increase in GDP if State Owned Enterprises privatised and exposed to competition State owned banks dominate (98% of banks are SOEs) and 75% of lending is to SOEs High household savings rate (38%) and low consumption (35%) compared to advanced economies (Aus/USA 70%) Topic 2 detailed statistics Trade direction and composition Change in direction of exports Europe 1950s 62% of exports Asia 2012 almost 80% of exports Australia’s exports to China Current 25% of total exports (2012, DFAT) Historical (1984) 3.6% Australia’s imports from China Current 15% of total imports (2012, DFAT) Historical (1984) 1.3% Mining exports Current 65% of total exports (2012, DFAT) Historical (1981) 29% Agricultural exports Current 11% of total exports (2012, DFAT) Historical (1981) 38% Services exports (tourism & education) Current 17% Historical (1981) 17% Manufacturing imports

Why do nontraditional students who are enrolled in online programs Research Paper

Why do nontraditional students who are enrolled in online programs decide to dropout - Research Paper Example (Gutmann, A.1987). Unlike traditional educational ways involving a classroom and a teacher, online learning does not involve direct confrontations with a teacher and does not provide the environment of a traditional classroom. In most cases, distance learning involves a media center or a computer laboratory. Therefore, distance learning is a field of education that combines technology with teaching methods and techniques to provide an opportunity for students to learn without being physically present in a classroom. (Briel, H. J. 2011). Due to technological advances, there have been a recent explosion in the field of online education but the history of distance learning dates back to as early as 1728, when Caleb Phillips, who was a teacher of Short Hand method, published an advertisement in Boston Gazette to seek students to whom he would send lectures on weekly basis. An Englishman, Isaac Pitman, is regarded has an early pioneer in providing distance education. In 1840s, Isaac Pitma n taught Short Hand using correspondence in the Great Britain. The importance of education in modern democratic society is beautifully portrayed by Amy Gutmann in the following words: â€Å"When citizens rule in a democracy, they determine, among other things, how future citizens will be educated. Democratic education is therefore a political as well as an educational ideal. Because being educated as a child entails being ruled, ‘You cannot be a ruler unless you have first been ruled.’ Because being a democratic citizen entails ruling, the ideal of democratic education is being ruled, then ruling. Education not only sets the stage for democratic politics, it plays a central role in it.’’ (Gutmann, A.1987). Now adays, the world has transformed into a global village and with the passage of time, online learning has become the best possible learning source. Due to increased commitments in life, it is hardly possible for everyone to physically attend a school in order to increase their educational qualifications. The only viable alternative remains are, online courses. Although the growth rate in online programs is high but yet the dropouts have been of great concern to many organizations and higher institutions. (Briel, H. J. 2011). Magnitude of drop out crisis: The non traditional students dropping out of online education fall into various categories: I. Non-starters, II. Students who did not even make an effort to complete the official withdrawal procedure are classified in the category of informal withdrawals, III. Students who completed the official withdrawal procedure fall into the category of formal withdrawals, IV. Academic failures, V. Non-continuers. (Darrow, R. W. 2010). Online education is more flexible and ensures that students can learn and progress to advanced levels at their own pace. Online courses provide more effective learning opportunities than traditional schools because they provide an access to a broad curriculu m so that students can enroll in multiple courses which they cannot in traditional brick and mortar schools. Most virtual schools provide courses that are enriched with challenges to help their students to attain high quality and flexible education. However, according to the retention literature concerning online education, the rate of non traditional students dropping out of online courses occurs at much a faster pace than the number of drop outs from on-ground or traditional brick and mortar classes. According to a report in Meister-2002, 70 percent of the online learners registered for online programs failed to successfully complete the course. The Corporate

Why have the use of illcit substances become more common place amoung Essay

Why have the use of illcit substances become more common place amoung the youth in society - Essay Example Issues like the drug and other illicit substance abuse among youth! So sensitive is this issue that any misgiving can lead to catastrophe. In this research we try to identify and determine that is drug abuse really a threat or an episode of the aforementioned phenomenon. The purpose for selecting the topic is to define how illicit substances and their uses are common among the youth. Media is very popular now days. It occupies a big chunk of teenagers time and at the same time the failure to follow age restrictions are allowing teenagers to use illicit substances. And this curse is growing rapidly and is actually leaving negative effects on youth. The available work done related to this topic. In this project we explore how this influence of illicit substances has become stronger with a passage of time. Considering the amount youth spend using media facilities, this should be taken into account and also to understand the relationship of illicit substances used by youth and the role played by media (McArthur, 1999).. Our youth are considered the considered the most sensitive and receptive during their early years and this is the time in the modern era that exposure to media is at its height. The problem is how the use of illicit substances among youth really leads to believe or its just exaggeration and influence of the media. There is no yardstick to measure this phenomenon so it goes unchecked as it brings revenue to the media industry. This is the growing age of the youth and the involvement of media plays an important role. They tend to forget that there will be repercussions for their actions. It has been scientifically concluded that television as a source of media has a causal relationship. But this does not mean that it creates influence among the youth to use illicit substances. The developers of media were blamed for so me of the more extreme cases of the use of illicit substances. On the contrary many are disturbing in the sense of

The Great Depression Essay Example for Free

The Great Depression Essay The Great Depression (1929-39) was the deepest and longest-lasting economic downturn in the history of the Western industrialized world. In the United States, the Great Depression began soon after the stock market crash of October 1929, which sent Wall Street into a panic and wiped out millions of investors. Over the next several years, consumer spending and investment dropped, causing steep declines in industrial output and rising levels of unemployment as failing companies laid off workers. By 1933, when the Great Depression reached its nadir, some 13 to 15 million Americans were unemployed and nearly half of the countrys banks had failed. Though the relief and reform measures put into place by President Franklin D. Roosevelt helped lessen the worst effects of the Great Depression in the 1930s, the economy would not fully turn around until after 1939, when World War II kicked American industry into high gear. Historical Importance of the Great Depression: The Great Depression, an immense tragedy that placed millions of Americans out of work, was the beginning of government involvement in the economy and in society as a whole. Dates: 1929 early 1940s Overview of the Great Depression: The Stock Market Crash After nearly a decade of optimism and prosperity, the United States was thrown into despair on Black Tuesday, October 29, 1929, the day the stock market crashed and the official beginning of the Great Depression. As stock prices plummeted with no hope of recovery, panic struck. Masses and masses of people tried to sell their stock, but no one was buying. The stock market, which had appeared to be the surest way to become rich, quickly became the path to bankruptcy. And yet, the Stock Market Crash was just the beginning. Since many banks had also invested large portions of their clients savings in the stock market, these banks were forced to close when the stock market crashed. Seeing a few banks close caused another panic across the country. Afraid they would lose their own savings, people rushed to banks that were still open to withdraw their money. This massive withdrawal of cash caused additional banks to close. Since there was no way for a banks clients to recover any of their savings once the bank had closed, those who didnt reach the bank in time also became bankrupt. Businesses and industry were also affected. Having lost much of their own capital in either the Stock Market Crash or the bank closures, many businesses started cutting back their workers hours or wages. In turn, consumers began to curb their spending, refraining from purchasing such things as luxury goods. This lack of consumer spending caused additional businesses to cut back wages or, more drastically, to lay off some of their workers. Some businesses couldnt stay open even with these cuts and soon closed their doors, leaving all their workers unemployed. The Dust Bowl: In previous depressions, farmers were usually safe from the severe effects of a depression because they could at least feed themselves. Unfortunately, during the Great Depression, the Great Plains were hit hard with both a drought and horrendous dust storms. Years and years of overgrazing combined with the effects of a drought caused the grass to disappear. With just topsoil exposed, high winds picked up the loose dirt and whirled it for miles. The dust storms destroyed everything in their paths, leaving farmers without their crops. Small farmers were hit especially hard. Even before the dust storms hit, the invention of the tractor drastically cut the need for manpower on farms. These small farmers were usually already in debt, borrowing money for seed and paying it back when their crops came in. When the dust storms damaged the crops, not only could the small farmer not feed himself and his family, he could not pay back his debt. Banks would then foreclose on the small farms and the farmers family would be both homeless and unemployed. Riding the Rails :During the Great Depression, millions of people were out of work across the United States. Unable to find another job locally, many unemployed people hit the road, traveling from place to place, hoping to find some work. A few of these people had cars, but most hitchhiked or rode the rails. A large portion of the people who rode the rails were teenagers, but there were also older men, women, and entire families who traveled in this manner. They would board freight trains and crisscross the country, hoping to find a job in one of the towns along the way. When there was a job opening, there were often literally a thousand people applying for the same job. Those who werent lucky enough to get the job would perhaps stay in a shantytown (known as Hoovervilles) outside of town. Housing in the shantytown was built out of any material that could be found freely, like driftwood, cardboard, or even newspapers. The farmers who had lost their homes and land usually headed west to California, where they heard rumors of agricultural jobs. Unfortunately, although there was some seasonal work, the conditions for these families were transient and hostile. Since many of these farmers came from Oklahoma and Arkansas, they were called the derogatory names of Okies and Arkies. (The stories of these migrants to California were immortalized in the fictional book, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. ) Roosevelt and the New Deal: The U. S. economy broke down and entered the Great Depression during the presidency of Herbert Hoover. Although President Hoover repeatedly spoke of optimism, the people blamed him for the Great Depression. Just as the shantytowns were named Hoovervilles after him, newspapers became known as Hoover blankets, pockets of pants turned inside out (to show they were empty) were called Hoover flags, and broken-down cars pulled by horses were known as Hoover wagons. During the 1932 presidential election, Hoover did not stand a chance at reelection and Franklin D. Roosevelt won in a landslide. People of the United States had high hopes that President Roosevelt would be able to solve all their woes. As soon as Roosevelt took office, he closed all the banks and only let them reopen once they were stabilized. Next, Roosevelt began to establish programs that became known as the New Deal. These New Deal programs were most commonly known by their initials, which reminded some people of alphabet soup. Some of these programs were aimed at helping farmers, like the AAA (Agricultural Adjustment Administration). The End of the Great Depression: To many at the time, President Roosevelt was a hero. They believed that he cared deeply for the common man and that he was doing his best to end the Great Depression. Looking back, however, it is uncertain as to how much Roosevelts New Deal programs helped to end the Great Depression. By all accounts, the New Deal programs eased the hardships of the Great Depression; however, the U. S. economy was still extremely bad by the end of the 1930s. The major turn-around for the U. S. economy occurred after the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the entrance of the United States into World War II. Once the U. S. was involved in the war, both people and industry became essential to the war effort. Weapons, artillery, ships, and airplanes were needed quickly. Men were trained to become soldiers and the women were kept on the homefront to keep the factories going. Food needed to be grown for both the homefront and to send overseas. It was ultimately the entrance of the U. S. into World War II that ended the Great Depression in the United States.

Model of Leadership Essay -- Leadership, philosophy

A large amount of work has gone into studying, researching, and developing models of leadership. There have been numerous models put forth, examined, applied, and either used or discarded. However, after all this work, there is still not one 'perfect' model or method of leading. Every situation and group is different, therefore a good leader must be flexible. A good model of leadership is one that incorporates different models into one that understands that the only constant is change. Therefore, my model of leadership will be based primarily upon flexibility. I feel that a leader must first understand the basic styles of leadership and how to apply them. Then he/she can know what style is the most appropriate given the task and group composition. Second, he/she must be able to observe his/her group in order to decide when the aforementioned styles are to be applied, and when problems begin threatening the group or its task. Then, that leader must be able to effectively communicate and influence his/her followers in order to fix problems, provide feedback, and inspire a group to be more than the sum of its parts. That is what effective leadership is about. â€Å"Whatever is flexible and flowing will tend to grow. Whatever is rigid and blocked will atrophy and die.† -John Heider, The Tao of Leadership A flexible leader realizes the advantages and disadvantages inherent in each of the three styles of Authoritarian, Democratic, and Laissez-faire leadership. While it seems that most of the researchers agree that democratic style is the most effective, there are certain situations that call for different styles. Effective leadership demands that a leader be able to adjust his/her style according to the circumstances. Autho... ...th honey than with vinegar.’ It is my hope that I have developed a competent model of leadership arising out of flexibility. I hope that I can apply this model in my own practices of leadership, to help me build the confidence I need to grow out of my leadership apprehension. I feel that an understanding of the group process, and of the styles of leadership, working together, can provide one with a very powerful method of effective, flexible leadership that can be applied to multiple groups and situations. First, by learning the styles of leadership, he makes harmony between himself and the group. When understands how the group acts and reacts, he can make harmony between the members of the group. And when this leader understands how to influence and conduct his followers, they can both begin to play beautiful music that no one would have been able to play alone.

What is Chromosome 21?

Down syndrome (DS) is a condition in which extra genetic material causes delays in the way a child develops, and often leads to mental retardation. It affects 1 in every 800 babies born. The symptoms of Down syndrome can vary widely from child to child. While some kids with DS need a lot of medical attention, others lead very healthy and independent lives. Though Down syndrome can't be prevented, it can be detected before a child is born. The health problems that can go along with DS can be treated, and there are many resources within communities to help kids and their families who are living with the condition. Normally, at the time of conception a baby inherits genetic information from its parents in the form of 46 chromosomes: 23 from the mother and 23 from the father. In most cases of Down syndrome, however, a child gets an extra chromosome – for a total of 47 chromosomes instead of 46. It's this extra genetic material that causes the physical and cognitive delays associated with DS. Although no one knows for sure why DS occurs and there's no way to prevent the chromosomal error that causes it, scientists do know that women age 35 and older have a significantly higher risk of having a child with the condition. At age 30, for example, a woman has less than a 1 in 1,000 chance of conceiving a child with DS. Those odds increase to 1 in 400 by age 35. By 42, it jumps to about 1 in 60. How Does Down Syndrome Affect a Child? Kids with Down syndrome tend to share certain physical features such as a flat facial profile, an upward slant to the eyes, small ears, a single crease across the center of the palms, and an enlarged tongue. A doctor can usually tell if a newborn has the condition through a physical exam. Low muscle tone and loose joints are also characteristic of children with DS, and babies in particular may seem especially â€Å"floppy. Though this can and often does improve over time, most children with DS typically reach developmental milestones – like sitting up, crawling, and walking – later than other kids. At birth, kids with DS are usually of average size, but they tend to grow at a slower rate and remain smaller than their peers. For infants, low muscle tone may con tribute to sucking and feeding problems, as well as constipation and other digestive issues. In toddlers and older children, there may be delays in speech and self-care skills like feeding, dressing, and toilet teaching. Down syndrome affects kids' cognitive abilities in different ways, but most have mild to moderate mental retardation. Kids with DS can and do learn, and are capable of developing skills throughout their lives. They simply reach goals at a different pace – which is why it's important not to compare a child with DS with typically developing siblings or even other children with the condition. Kids with DS have a wide range of abilities, and there's no way to tell at birth what they will be capable of as they grow up. Medical Problems Associated with Down Syndrome. While some kids with DS have no other health problems, others may experience a host of medical issues that require extra care. For example, half of all children born with DS also have congenital heart defects and are prone to developing pulmonary hypertension (high blood pressure in the lungs). A pediatric cardiologist can monitor these types of problems, many of which can be treated with medication or surgery. Approximately half of all kids with DS also have problems with hearing and vision. Hearing loss can be related to fluid buildup in the inner ear or to structural problems of the ear itself. Vision problems commonly include amblyopia (lazy eye), near- or farsightedness, and an increased risk of cataracts. Regular evaluations by an audiologist and an ophthalmologist are necessary to detect and correct any problems before they affect a child's language and learning skills. Other medical conditions that may occur more frequently in children with DS include thyroid problems, intestinal abnormalities, seizure disorders, respiratory problems, obesity, an increased susceptibility to infection, and a higher risk of childhood leukemia. Fortunately, many of these conditions are treatable. What is Chromosome 21? According to wikipedia. org, Chromosome 21 is one of the 23 pairs of chromosomes in humans. People normally have two copies of this chromosome. The trisomy of the 21 causes Down Syndrome. Chromosome 21 is the smallest human chromosome, spanning almost 47 million nucleotides (the building material of DNA) and representing about 1. 5 percent of the total DNA in cells. The Human Genome Project announced that they had determined the sequence of base pairs that make up this chromosome. Chromosome 21 was the second human chromosome to be fully sequenced. Chromosome 21 likely contains between 200 and 400 genes. These include: †¢ APP: amyloid beta (A4) precursor protein (peptidase nexin-II, Alzheimer disease) †¢ CBS: cystathionine-beta-synthase †¢ CLDN14: claudin 14 †¢ HLCS: holocarboxylase synthetase (biotin-(proprionyl-Coenzyme A-carboxylase (ATP-hydrolysing)) ligase) †¢ KCNE1: potassium voltage-gated channel, Isk-related family, member 1 †¢ KCNE2: potassium voltage-gated channel, Isk-related family, member 2 †¢ LAD: leukocyte adhesion deficiency (symbols are ITGB2, CD18, LCAMB) †¢ SOD1: superoxide dismutase 1, soluble (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis 1 (adult)) †¢ TMPRSS3: transmembrane protease, serine 3. Effects of Chromosome 21 The effects of chromosome 21 is best felt by the conditions that are associated with its lack or mutation. These include: Cancer Rearrangements (translocations) of genetic material between chromosome 21 and other chromosomes have been associated with several types of cancer. For example, acute lymphoblastic leukemia (a type of blood cancer most often diagnosed in childhood) has been associated with a translocation between chromosomes 12 and 21. Another form of leukemia, acute myeloid leukemia, has been associated with a translocation between chromosomes 8 and 21. Down Syndrome In a small percentage of cases, Down syndrome is caused by a rearrangement of chromosomal material between chromosome 21 and another chromosome. As a result, a person has the usual two copies of chromosome 21, plus extra material from chromosome 21 attached to another chromosome. These cases are called translocation Down syndrome. Researchers believe that extra copies of genes on chromosome 21 disrupt the course of normal development, causing the characteristic features of Down syndrome and the increased risk of medical problems associated with this disorder. Mental Retardation Other changes in the number or structure of chromosome 21 can have a variety of effects, including mental retardation, delayed development, and characteristic facial features. In some cases, the signs and symptoms are similar to those of Down syndrome. Changes to chromosome 21 include a missing segment of the chromosome in each cell (partial monosomy 21) and a circular structure called ring chromosome 21. A ring chromosome occurs when both ends of a broken chromosome are reunited. Alzheimer’s Disease. Duplication in Amyloid precursor protein (APP) locus (duplicated segment varies in length but includes APP) on Chromosome 21 was found to cause early onset familial Alzheimer's disease (AD) in a french family set (Rovelet-Lecrux et al) and a dutch family set (Sleegers et al). Compared to AD caused by missense mutations in APP, the frequency of the AD caused by APP duplications is significant. ALL the patients that have an extra copy of APP gene due to the locus duplication show AD with severe Cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA).