5.6: Reading- Gifts and Bribes
Gift giving in business is commonplace and contentious at the same time. Business gifts are usually seen as an advertising, sales-promotion, and marketing-communication medium. [1] Such gifting is usually practiced for the following reasons:
- In appreciation for past client relationships, placing a new order, referrals to other clients, etc.
- In the hopes of creating a positive first impression that might help to establish an initial business relationship
- As a quid pro quo—returning a favor or expecting a favor in return for something [2]
Making good decisions about when business gifts are appropriate is extremely complex in the United States. In global marketing it becomes one of the most challenging ethical issues, since the cultural norms in other countries can be at odds with standard ethical practices in the United States. For this reason, gifts and bribes warrant a deeper discussion, especially with regard to B2B marketing.
In considering appropriate business gifts it is helpful to think about the content of the gift, the context of the gift, and the culture in which it will be received. Let’s examine one of Microsoft’s promotions that included a gift.
Case Study: Microsoft’s “Gift” to Bloggers
When Microsoft introduced its Vista operating system, the launch included a noteworthy promotion. During the 2006 Christmas season, Microsoft sent out ninety Acer Ferrari laptops, loaded with Windows Vista Operating system, to approximately ninety influential bloggers.
Different bloggers received different machines, but the lowest model was worth around two thousand dollars. Michael Arrington, editor of TechCrunch, shared the message that accompanied his gift:
This would be a review machine, so I’d love to hear your opinion on the machine and OS. Full disclosure, while I hope you will blog about your experience with the PC, you don’t have to. Also, you are welcome to send the machine back to us after you are done playing with it, or you can give it away to your community, or you can hold on to it for as long as you’d like. Just let me know what you plan to do with it when the time comes. And if you run into any problems let me know. A few of the drivers aren’t quite final, but are very close. [3]
Clearly, Microsoft was hoping to encourage reviews of Vista and wanted to make sure that the bloggers experienced Vista on a high-end machine that would optimize performance. Did they also hope to influence the bloggers’ opinions of the company along the way?
Sending the gift to bloggers was a risky marketing tactic even without the ethical question. Culturally, bloggers are a highly influential group of people with strong opinions, which they share openly to a wide audience. Many of the recipients reacted to the gift by sharing the news of the promotion and their opinions about it. A broad range of ethical issues emerged from the surrounding discussions in the blogosphere. Below are several excerpts.
The Gifts Diminish Trust in the Reviewers
Now that I know these guys (any gals?) have access to a tailored laptop, preloaded, etc., I know their wisdom is no longer that of The Crowd—I suspect it is going to be tainted (even if not the case), so I have already discounted them. And, since I don’t know who has and has not had the gift, I will distrust them all on this subject! [4]
The Laptops Provide a Review Experience That Will Not Match Users’ Experiences
If you’ve ever tried to add a new Microsoft OS to an existing computer, you know you can’t do that without totally f****** up your computer. The only way to switch to a new Microsoft OS is to start with a new computer. And, of course, to wait a year or two while they get the kinks out.  They gave the computers as gifts instead of lending them to the bloggers for review, which is the norm when dealing with traditional journalists.
The Bloggers Should Disclose the Gift in Their Reviews
Microsoft’s approach raises some problematic issues . . . How many bloggers have received a notebook but have not declared it on their blog? Quite a few, I suggest, which highlights the fundamental problem with blogging, which is that bloggers are not trained journalists and not necessarily in tune with the ethical problems that gifts entail . . .
Finally, sending bribes to bloggers is not a good look for Microsoft, and this is exactly how this initiative will be perceived. Even as they try to defend themselves, Microsoft’s PR gurus show that they do not understand the blogosphere. [5]
Another blogger shared the disclosure concern while supporting the promotion:
That is a GREAT idea. After all, how can anyone have a decent conversation about Windows Vista without having put a bunch of time on one of the machines? Now, regarding blogger ethics. Did you disclose? If you did, you have ethics. If you didn’t, you don’t. It’s that black-and-white with me. [6]
While there was not a clear consensus on the ethics of this promotion, the debate drowned out whatever little positive opinion Windows Vista had generated in the blogs. The Microsoft case stands as a good example of a business gift program gone wrong. The company not only wasted the money spent on the gifts (none of the bloggers reported to have returned the laptops) but suffered weeks of bad press—and soured the commercial launch of the product.
Three Dimensions of Evaluating Gifts
The Microsoft example provides a three-dimensional framework by which to evaluate whether a gift crosses the line into bribery. (Remember that a bribe is something given to induce someone to alter their behavior—in this case, to write a favorable product review.) The framework helps establish guidelines for keeping business gifting aboveboard.
Content
The chief problem with Microsoft’s gift was the content. Content refers to the nature of the gift itself (a shiny, new, top-of-the-line laptop) and the price ($2,000 or more). The company claimed that such a high-end machine was necessary to showcase the full capability of the Windows Vista operating system. And, they asserted, since the bloggers were given the option of returning the laptops (or giving them away), the issue of bribery didn’t come into play and the onus of acting ethically fell to the recipients.
Nonetheless, Microsoft’s actions represented a departure from standard industry practice of sending preview disks of software to opinion-makers. While it might be acceptable to give out $2,000 gifts in other industries (like sending out expensive fashion clothing to movies stars), and one can dicker about whether $2,000 is or isn’t too extravagant, the point is that Microsoft broke with the conventions of its own industry.
The key lesson is that what is being given defines the nature of gifting, and extreme care must be taken to determine whether that gift is appropriate. While the market price of a gift item can be used as a benchmark, the type of gift is as important as its price. If Microsoft had given out $2,000 worth of software, it wouldn’t have been so controversial. Another point, which Microsoft surely knew, is that items sent around Christmastime are more apt to be perceived as gifts.
Context
The other objection to the Microsoft gifts was the company’s motives for giving them. People argued that Microsoft sent the expensive laptops to bloggers as a quid pro quo. Though the accompanying email said “you don’t have to write about Vista,” that was mainly a legal disclaimer meant to protect Microsoft against formal bribery charges (U.S. corruption law prohibits corporate gifts designed to induce action by the recipient). The company may have kept itself out of legal hot water, but it remained vulnerable to the charge that it tried to exert psychological pressure on the bloggers to write about their “pleasurable” experiences with Vista.
The other argument was that laptops were given to the bloggers so that they would lack the proper testing environment of mainstream tech journalists. The bloggers were set up to write good things about Vista by seeing it function in a brand-new machine, tuned and tested for this purpose by Microsoft engineers. The experience of actual users—who might be influenced by these bloggers’ opinions—would be different, since they would have to install the software on older machines with no help from Microsoft. Critics argued that the company’s promotion was intended to create a false opinion of the market.
While most businesses define what is a bribe and what isn’t in terms of the content of the gift, in most countries the matter is decided on the basis of context . So, regardless of the size, type, and value of the gift, if it can be established that the gift was given with the intent to induce an action, it will be regarded as a bribe. The lesson here is that it isn’t enough for businesses to set clear value/type limits on corporate gifts; it’s also necessary to scrutinize the motives behind the gift giving, think carefully about how the gift will be received, and stop short of anything that induces the recipient to crosses the line of ethical behavior.
Culture
Other critics held that Microsoft’s blunder was not caused by the content or context of the gifts but that the company fundamentally misunderstood the culture of blogging. This view came primarily from marketing practitioners, who pointed out that giving the laptops to elite bloggers violated the egalitarian and sponsorship-free nature of social media. It’s a culture whose members loathe any kind of commercial taint to their independence and are highly sensitive to charges of “selling out.”
Thus, culture is clearly the third very important aspect of gift giving. It’s crucial to establish clear boundaries and protocols so that gifts are truly received as gifts—not as attempts to influence. To do that means factoring in the recipient’s mindset and culture, since what may be perceived as a gift in one group may seem like a bribe in another. The “cultural” dimension is easily understood in personal gift giving (a toy truck might be an excellent present for your six-year-old nephew, but it wouldn’t be appropriate for your boss or grandparent). Yet, somehow the idea of discretionary gift giving hasn’t gained much ground in business. However, understanding the cultural preferences of the receiver is obviously an important issue in international business—and was a key failure.
- Cooper,M. J., Madden, C. S., Hunt, J. B.,& Cornell, J. E. (1991). Specialty advertising as a tool for building goodwill: Experimental evidence and research implications. Journal of Promotions Management, 1, Pg 41–54 ↵
- Arunthanes, W., Tansuhaj, P. & Lemak, D.J. (1994), Cross-Cultural Business Gift Giving, International Marketing Review, Vol 11, Issue 4, Pg 44 ↵
- http://www.prweek.com/article/1259420/microsoft-vista-blogger-campaign-causes-controversy ↵
- http://www.broadstuff.com/archives/97-Why-giving-Ferraris-to-Bloggers-is-a-bad-idea.html ↵
- http://www.cnet.com/news/microsoft-doesnt-know-when-to-stop/ ↵
- http://scobleizer.com/2006/12/27/i-think-the-microsoft-vista-giveaway-is-an-awesome-idea ↵
Contributors and Attributions
- Revision and adaptation. Provided by : Lumen Learning. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
- Sunday Posts Blog. Authored by : Supriyo Chaudhuri. Located at : http://sundayposts.blogspot.com/2008/10/when-does-business-gift-become-bribe.html#.VoARN5OAOkq . Project : When Does Business Gift Become A Bribe: A Marketing Policy Perspective. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
- Acer Ferrari One. Authored by : Masaru Kamikura. Located at : https://www.flickr.com/photos/kamikura/3976320866/ . License : CC BY: Attribution


7.9: Discussion Resources
After a search, give examples of companies with clear vision but poorly defined mission statements.
2 .What are the pitfalls in crafting a vision statement that is too broad or too narrow?
3 .Place the SMART goals in order of importance and discuss why you chose that order.
4 .How can telling your entrepreneurial story help build a brand?
5 .What is the risk of falling in love with your own entrepreneurial story?
6 .What would it take to rework a pitch deck created for a campus competition and present it to an individual angel investor?
7 .In what ways is an elevator pitch an abbreviation of a longer professional pitch? In what ways does it differ?
8 .Reflect on the Airbnb pitch deck. What would the elevator pitch version of that presentation sound like? What would the ask be for the new elevator pitch?
9 .At what stage of product development for a manufactured good should you file for patent protection?
10 .Are noncompete clauses fair in entrepreneurial work? Why so? Are noncompete clauses always fair for employees? Why or why not?
11 .Research the average time it takes to win a patent in an industry you are interested in. What are some factors that contribute to delays in patent seeking?
12 .It is common to develop a product based on limited feedback using as few resources as possible only to watch as no one uses or buys the product. Can failure be a valuable part of finding product-market fit? Why or why not?
13 .This section advocates using qualitative and quantitative data to develop products and find the right market for them. When might it be appropriate to rely heavily or solely on quantitative data? Can you think of a product that had very high usage rates that was incredibly popular but that almost as quickly fell out of favor? Which is better at predicting a fad: qualitative data or quantitative data?
14 .Imagine entering your campus pitch competition. What is your strategy to win?
15 .If your campus does not have a competition, what national competition might you enter? What is your strategy to win? Do some research online to find what has put past winners ahead.


7.4: Concert Etiquette
Western Classical Music
At classical music concerts, the cardinal principle is to let others listen to the music undisturbed. Instruments and voices are typically unamplified, the music is rich in detail, wide in dynamic range, and poetic in intent. Many audience members want to hear everything, and the normal standard of courtesy is simply to be entirely silent while the music is playing. Thus, during this time experienced concertgoers avoid conversation, try to suppress coughs and sneezes until a loud passage arrives, and muffle these with handkerchiefs. Electronic devices are turned off for the duration of the concert. Concertgoers try to arrive and take seats before the music begins. Late arrivals wait until a break between pieces allows seating by an usher.
Dress expectations for the audience are today rather informal in English-speaking countries. Audiences usually meet “smart casual” standards, with some performance companies explicitly telling audiences to wear whatever makes them comfortable. Hats are removed, as they block others’ view of the stage. Dress expectations may still be very formal for special events, events that are difficult to attend, that take place in traditional venues, or that take place in certain countries.
Concert etiquette has, like the music, evolved over time. Late eighteenth-century composers such as Mozart expected that people would talk, particularly at dinner, and took delight in audiences clapping at once in response to a nice musical effect. Orchestras often stood while playing, and individual movements were encored in response to audience applause.
The nineteenth century brought a shift in venue from aristocratic gatherings to public concerts along with works featuring an unprecedentedly wide dynamic range. Mahler clamped down on claques paid to applaud a particular performer, and specified in the score of his Kindertotenlieder that its movements should not be punctuated by applause.
With the arrival of recording technology in the twentieth century, applause between the movements of a symphony or suite came to be regarded as a distraction from the momentum and unity of a work. Today it is usually considered something of a faux pas (bad form), though a minor and well-meaning one.
Quiet endings have a lingering magic that can be too easily broken by insensitive audience members in a hurry to initiate applause. Conductors signal the finality of a performance by lowering their hands to their sides. When their hands remain in front of them the expectation is that the music continues, even though it may be very quiet or even continuing through the silence. Until the conductor’s hands are lowered audiences normally refrain from making a sound.
Sacred works offered as worship are not applauded. Such works include settings of requiem, Passion, mass, or Kaddish prayer. Presented in an artistic context, such works, along with secular works of comparable gravity, still often get respectful silence for a long moment before any applause.
In opera a particularly impressive aria will often be applauded, even if the music is continuing. Shouting is generally acceptable only during applause. The word shouted is often the Italian word bravo or a variation ( brava in the case of a female performer, bravi for a plural number of performers, bravissimo for a truly exceptional performance). The word’s original meaning is “skillful” and it has come to mean “well done”. The French word encore (“again”) may be shouted as a request for more, although in France itself bis (“twice”) is the more usual expression. In some cultures (e.g., Britain) enthusiastic approval can also be expressed by whistling, though in others (e.g., Italy, Russia) whistling can signify disapproval and act as the equivalent of booing.
Blues Music
It is considered polite to whistle at blues concerts, especially in America. The practice began with Blind Willie McTell, who would often encourage his audience members to whistle during his songs, and would often stop midway for the audience to hum the tune.
Jazz Music
Jazz music is performed in many different settings and venues throughout the world. When jazz is performed in public places such as outdoor jazz festivals and indoor jazz clubs, quiet conversation is usually considered acceptable. When attending a jazz performance in an indoor concert setting, western classical concert etiquette is expected with one exception: it is considered well-mannered to applaud after each artist has completed their extended improvised solo. Other vocalizations during the performance, offered as reactions to improvised phrases, are also acceptable among musicians.
Contributors and Attributions
- Concert_etiquette. Provided by : Wikipedia. Located at : https://en.Wikipedia.org/wiki/Concert_etiquette . License : CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
- DR Concert Hall. Authored by : Andreas Lea. Located at : https://www.flickr.com/photos/andreaslea/3268854799/ . License : CC BY-NC: Attribution-NonCommercial
- Bank of the West Free Concert 012. Authored by : Nate. Located at : https://www.flickr.com/photos/procrasti-nate/672766147/ . License : CC BY-NC-ND: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives


4.5.1: Miscellaneous Application Problems (Exercises)
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SECTION 6.5 PROBLEM SET: MISCELLANEOUS APPLICATION PROBLEMS
For problems 1 - 4, assume a $200,000 house loan is amortized over 30 years at an interest rate of 5.4%.
| 1) Find the monthly payment. | 2) Find the balance owed after 20 years. |
| 3) Find the balance of the loan after 100 payments. | 4) Find the monthly payment if the original loan were amortized over 15 years. |
6.5 PROBLEM SET: MISCELLANEOUS APPLICATION PROBLEMS
| 5) Mr. Patel wants to pay off his car loan. The monthly payment for his car is $365, and he has 16 payments left. If the loan was financed at 6.5%, how much does he owe? | 6) An amount of $2000 is borrowed for a year at a rate of 7%. Make an amortization schedule showing the monthly payment, the monthly interest on the outstanding balance, the portion of the payment going toward reducing the debt, and the balance. |
| 7) Fourteen months after Dan bought his new car he lost his job. His car was repossessed by his lender after he made only 14 monthly payments of $376 each. If the loan was financed over a 4-year period at an interest rate of 6.3%, how much did the car cost the lender? In other words, how much did Dan still owe on the car? | 8) You have a choice of either receiving $5,000 at the end of each year for the next 5 years or receiving $3000 per year for the next 10 years. If the current interest rate is 9%, which is better? |
| 9) Mr. Smith is planning to retire in 25 years and would like to have $250,000 then. What monthly payment made at the end of each month to an account that pays 6.5% will achieve his objective? | 10) Assume Mr. Smith has reached retirement and has $250,000 in an account which is earning 6.5%. He would now like to make equal monthly withdrawals for the next 15 years to completely deplete this account. Find the withdrawal payment. |
| 11) Mrs. Garcia is planning to retire in 20 years. She starts to save for retirement by depositing $2000 each quarter into a retirement investment account that earns 6% interest compounded quarterly. Find the accumulated value of her retirement savings at the end of 20 years. | 12) Assume Mrs. Garcia has reached retirement and has accumulated the amount found in question 13 in a retirement savings account. She would now like to make equal monthly withdrawals for the next 15 years to completely deplete this account. Find the withdrawal payment. Assume the account now pays 5.4% compounded monthly. |
SECTION 6.5 PROBLEM SET: MISCELLANEOUS APPLICATION PROBLEMS
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13) A ten-year $1,000 bond pays $35 every six months. If the current interest rate is 8.2%, find the fair market value of the bond. Hint: You must do the following. a) Find the present value of $1000. b) Find the present value of the $35 payments. c) The fair market value of the bond = a + b |
14) Find the fair market value of the ten-year $1,000 bond that pays $35 every six months, if the current interest rate has dropped to 6%. Hint: You must do the following. a) Find the present value of $1000. b) Find the present value of the $35 payments. c) The fair market value of the bond = a + b |
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15) A twenty-year $1,000 bond pays $30 every six months. If the current interest rate is 4.2%, find the fair market value of the bond. Hint: You must do the following. a) Find the present value of $1000. b) Find the present value of the $30 payments. c) The fair market value of the bond = a + b |
16) Find the fair market value of the twenty-year $1,000 bond that pays $30 every six months, if the current interest rate has increased to 7.5%. |
SECTION 6.5 PROBLEM SET: MISCELLANEOUS APPLICATION PROBLEMS
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17) Mr. and Mrs. Nguyen deposit $10,000 into a college investment account when their new baby grandchild is born. The account earns 6.25% interest compounded quarterly. a) When their grandchild reaches the age of 18, what is the accumulated value of the college investment account? b) The Nguyen’s grandchild has just reached the age of 18 and started college. If she is to withdraw the money in the college savings account n equal monthly payments over the next 4 years, how much money will be withdrawn each month? |
18) Mr. Singh is 38 and plans to retire at age 65. He opens a retirement savings account.
a) Mr. Singh wants to save enough money to
b) Mr. Singh has now reached at 65 and retires.
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8.8: Summary
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All societies have ways of exercising authority, making decisions, and settling disputes. In the 1940s, anthropologists distinguished between those societies with informal means of accomplishing these functions and those with formal roles and systems for doing so. In acephalous societies such as bands and lineage orders, leadership is situational and temporary, and people make decisions using discussion and consensus. Leaders in such societies have persuasive power but no formal means of enforcing their will. In centralized societies such as chiefdoms and states, various forms of power are condensed in the formal hereditary role of the leader. As military leaders, chiefs and kings have coercive power to collect taxes and tribute, enforce their commands, settle conflicts, and wage war to enlarge their territories. As societies become more centralized, they also become more stratified, with social groups ranked according to wealth and power. With social stratification and centralized rule, systems of ideology and hegemony develop to support the social order. Modern nation-states combine the state apparatus with a strategically cultivated sense of peoplehood based on common culture. European colonialism imposed an authoritarian state form to rule over local forms of political organization such as chiefdoms and lineage orders, often malforming those original political forms. The structural and social problems of many postcolonial states are rooted in the destructive processes of colonialism. Outside of the formal realm of government, people seek to influence social and political conditions through social movements. Some social movements provide a means of expressing dissatisfaction, while others press for specific forms of social change or complete reorganization of the political order.


1.13: Discussion Boards
- Explain techniques for effective communication in discussion boards
Discussion Boards (or Forums)
Many college classes utilize discussion boards (or forums) on their learning management platforms (Blackboard, Canvas, etc.). You may or may not have engaged in this kind of writing before. Discussion boards serve to facilitate discussion, but the discussion occurs online and usually asynchronously (not at the same time). What that means is that a student or the professor may post a question or a prompt, and others respond later. Like any kind of writing, there is a format and protocol for writing on discussion boards.
- Use a specific subject line. Using a phrase such as “response to Jacob” for your subject doesn’t tell other readers anything about the content of your response. Be brief, yet specific (e.g., Disagreement with Jacob about Literacy in Generation Z)
- Keep to one main idea or topic per response. If you want to offer two different ideas, do separate posts.
- Differentiate between starting a discussion thread and responding to someone else’s posting. Most discussion boards use what’s called a “threaded discussion,” which means that responses are indented under an initial posting. This type of indentation provides a visual cue to a reader, allowing him to rapidly distinguish the different discussion topics or threads.
- Write informally but not sloppily. There is no need for fancy language or sentence structure but check your spelling before you finalize the posting. Most systems have a spell-check function. If you’re not a good typist, you may want to compose your response with a word processor and then paste or upload it into the discussion board. This is also a good idea in case there are technological issues, which can cause you to lose a post. If you create your post in a word-processing program, you can save a back-up copy of your post.
- Do not dominate the discussion. There’s no need to respond to absolutely every posting from every participant. Respond selectively. Often, a course instructor will let you know how much online participation she expects.
- Be polite, and apply the rules of etiquette. Use standard capitalization and punctuation; do not use all caps, as this is considered “shouting” online; use symbols sparingly to indicate tone when you think that words alone may not convey your meaning fully or accurately.
- Remember that a lot of people may have access to your posts on a discussion board: other students, your instructor, college technical staff, administrators, etc. Write accordingly and professionally. Be sure to check with any guidelines from your professor about appropriate language use, and be thoughtful and generous when engaging in discussions of sensitive topics like race, religion, gender, and politics.
Content is even more important than conventions. Most college courses include discussions as a learning tool, a means for students to offer insights, test out new theories, and apply and share their ideas. Using the interaction below, review the following types of responses to understand what constitutes a good quality posting.
So, how do you write an excellent post in a college course?
- Review the purpose of the discussion. Is there a particular question you’re expected to answer? Is the discussion space intended to be a place for you to ask questions? Make sure you’re responding as expected in the discussion space.
- Work with the background reading required for the discussion. Annotate the text with your own ideas and questions as you read; summarize the main ideas to test your own understanding; stretch your understanding by applying concepts and theories to new contexts. Most discussions are designed as spaces to test out and debate ideas.
- Realize that discussion is a give-and-take situation, a conversation. That means that you should participate frequently during discussions, offering your own ideas and responding to others. You can enter the conversation at different points, with ever-changing purposes and roles, but you need to be there on a consistent basis.
- Realize that each participant can choose from among many discussion roles and functions. You can post initial ideas, respond to ideas, summarize ideas, point out similarities and differences or trends among ideas, ask questions, add examples, extend the conversation in different directions, and bring the conversation back “on track.”
This video reviews effective strategies for participating in online discussion boards.
You can view the transcript for “DiscussionBoardsInReview” here (opens in new window).
Contributors and Attributions
- Online Writing and Presentations. Provided by : Excelsior OWL. Located at : https://owl.excelsior.edu/online-writing-and-presentations/ . License : CC BY: Attribution


2.3: Parallel Circuits
The parallel circuit (Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\)) has completely different characteristics. In a parallel circuit, two or more loads are connected side by side and are controlled by one or more switches. The different loads can each have their own switch, but the major difference is that each of the loads has access to the same amount of voltage and can operate independently of the others. There is more than one path through which the current can flow.
saf
\[\begin{array}{l}{\mathrm{I}_{1}=\frac{\mathrm{E}_{1}}{\mathrm{R}_{1}}=\frac{120}{40}=3 \mathrm{amps}} \\ {\mathrm{I}_{2}=\frac{\mathrm{E}_{2}}{\mathrm{R}_{2}}=\frac{120}{10}=12 \mathrm{amps}} \\ {\mathrm{I}_{3}=\frac{\mathrm{E}_{3}}{\mathrm{R}_{3}}=\frac{120}{240}=0.5 \mathrm{amp}}\end{array}\]
\[R_{T}=\frac{E_{T}}{I_{T}}=\frac{120}{15.5}=7.7 \text { ohms }\]
\[R_{T}=\frac{1}{\frac{1}{R_{1}}+\frac{1}{R_{2}}+\frac{1}{R_{3}} \ldots}\]
\[\begin{aligned} R_{T}=& \frac{1}{\frac{1}{40}+\frac{1}{10}+\frac{1}{240}}=7.7 \text { ohms } \\ R_{T}=& \frac{1}{\frac{6}{240}+\frac{24}{240}+\frac{1}{240}} \\ R_{T}=& \frac{\frac{240}{240}}{31} \\ R_{T}=& 7.7 \text { ohms } \end{aligned}\]


1: Area and Surface Area Last updated Save as PDF Page ID 35047 Illustrative Mathematics OpenUp Resources Section 1: Lessons Reasoning to Find Area 1.1: Tiling the Plane 1.2: Finding Area by Decomposing and Rearranging 1.3: Reasoning to Find Area Section 2: Parallelograms 2.1: Parallelograms 2.2: Bases and Heights of Parallelograms 2.3: Area of Parallelograms Section 3: Triangles 3.1: From Parallelograms to Triangles 3.2: Area of Triangles 3.3: Formula for the Area of a Triangle 3.4: Bases and Heights of Triangles Section 4: Polygons 4.1: Polygons Section 5: Surface Area 5.1: Polyhedra 5.2: Nets and Surface Area 5.3: More Nets, More Surface Area 5.4: Distinguishing Between Surface Area and Volume Section 6: Squares and Cubes 6.1: Squares and Cubes 6.2: Surface Area of a Cube Section 7: Surface Area No image available 7.1: What is Surface Area? Section 8: Let’s Put it to Work 8.1: Designing a Tent


8.2: Small Business
What you’ll learn to do: Discuss the contributions of small business to the U.S. economy
Individual business ownership is a fundamental aspect of the American dream. Through the lens of award-winning documentary filmmaker Ken Burns: “Entrepreneurship is at the heart of who we are in terms of the American promise and the American dream.”
In this section, we’ll discuss the definition and significance of the term “small business” and explore the impact small business has had on the U.S. economy.
Learning Objectives
- Discuss the contributions of small businesses to the U.S. economy
Understanding Small Businesses
The U.S. Small Business Association, referred to as the “SBA,” is the go-to source for all things small business—including the statutory definition of a small business. Classification as a small business is determined by size standards—either number of employees or revenue—based on industry. Specifically, size standards are based on the 6-digit “NAICS” or North American Industry Classification System code that describes a business’s economic activity. Note that the form or legal structure of a business (e.g., sole proprietor, limited liability corporation (LLC), partnership, or corporation) is not a factor in determining whether an enterprise is a small business.
For manufacturing businesses, the standard is generally number of employees, with maximums ranging from 500 to 1,500. For example, the employee maximum for a commercial bakery is 1,000 and for a business brewery, 1,250. For nonmanufacturing industries—think retailers and wholesalers—the standard is based on a three-year average of annual revenue, with the maximum ranging from $750,000 for agriculture enterprises to $38,500,000 for Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses, Hospitals and Building Material and Garden Home Centers. The small business size standard for professional services (NAICS prefix 541) ranges from $7,500,000 for Architectural Services to $38,500,000 for Military and Aerospace Engineering. Research activities are subject to an employee standard. Financial institutions are an exception to the employee or revenue rule; commercial banks, savings institutions and credit unions are subject to a $550 million asset limitation. Clearly, small is relative! Note that size standards change periodically (above data is current as of 10/4/2018). For the most recent criteria information, refer to the source: Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR) Part 121-Small Business Size Regulations , Section 121.201; direct link: Small Business Size Standards by NAICS Industry
Another determination option is to use the SBA’s interactive Size Standards Tool . This tool is designed to answer the question “Are you a small business eligible for government contracting?” The tool provides a determination of either Yes (“you may be”) or No, with the relevant small business size standard. To use this tool, you need to know your NAICS code or codes (multiple selections allowed). You can use the search tool on the census.gov site to determine the NAICS code(s) associated with your primary business activity (activities).
As alluded to above, classification as a small business matters because the SBA size standard is used to determine whether a business, including any affiliates or subsidiaries, is eligible to participate in SBA and federal contracting programs. This eligibility can have significant financial implications, from obtaining access to financing , including access to loans, investment capital and grants to preferential access to government contracts, totaling $392.4B (billion!) in eligible dollars in 2018.
In addition to meeting the relevant numerical size standard, a business must also meet the following criteria in order to be eligible for SBA and government contracting programs:
- For-profit enterprise
- Independently owned & operated
-
Physically located & operating in the United States or its territories
- If located outside the United States, it must maintain a US operation and make a significant contribution to the US economy through the payment of taxes or use of American labor, materials, or products
- Not in a dominant market position nationally
practice question \(\PageIndex{1}\)
Which of the following determines if a business is to be defined as a "Small Business"?
- form or legal structure of a business, such as Sole Proprietor, Limited Liability Corporation, or Partnership
- company assets and year in business
- number of employees or revenue, based on the category of the economic activity
- approval from the Small Business Administration (SBA) based on relevant IRS documents
- Answer
-
c . The size standard dictates that either number of employees (manufacturing activities) or revenue (retailers, wholesalers, agriculture) determines if a business can be classified as a small business
learn more
For perspective, the value of small business contracts rose from $100.1 billion in fiscal 2016 to $105.9 billion in fiscal 2017. To see data by year and category (e.g., Women Owned, Small Disadvantaged Business, Service Disabled Veteran) view the source at Small Business Dashboard . For additional information on federal contracting, visit the SBA’s Federal Contracting page.
Contributions of Small Businesses on the U.S. Economy
When the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council states that “American business is overwhelmingly small business,” it’s not just hype. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, there are over 30 million small business in the United States, with small businesses accounting for 99.9% of all businesses. Small businesses play a crucial role in the US economy, responsible for roughly half of new job creation and economic activity, measured by GDP or Gross Domestic Product. Small businesses employ approximately 60 million Americans, or 47.5% of all U.S. employees. Embedded in the community, small businesses also drive local economic growth and vitality. There’s a multiplier effect—an additional economic benefit that accrues to the community—when people spend locally. For example, If you spend $100 at a locally-owned business, $68 stays in the community. If you spend $100 at a national chain, only $43 stays in the community.
Small businesses are not only economic engines, they represent a source of innovation. In an article for Inc., Babson College entrepreneurship professor Patricia Green refers to small businesses as “the innovators of the world.” In research done with Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Program participants, Green found that the small-business owners were actively engaged in pursuing opportunities that met one or more of the innovation criteria established by economist and author Joseph Schumpeter:
- new products
- new methods
- new markets
- new sources of supply
- new market structures
Entrepreneurs have conceived many of our most beloved products, including beer, chocolate chip cookies, Monopoly and personal computers. More recent innovations include a 3D printer for fabricating living cells, charitable crowdfunding, disinfectant light fixtures, artery stents, microfinance, non-toxic paints, and Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs).
Small businesses are as unique as the individuals that start them. Starting your own business allows you to develop a business concept and future vision that achieves your specific definition of “success.” And different entrepreneurs will pursue different paths in achieving that vision.
practice question \(\PageIndex{2}\)
The two most important contributions made by small businesses to the U.S. economy are:
- Innovation and internships
- Economic activity and social growth
- Economic activity and innovation
- Job training and working capital
- Answer
-
c. Small business accounts for 99% of all U.S. businesses (economic activity) and are the "innovators of the world" (innovation)
biosip
Award-winning architect and Colorado University architecture professor Julee Herdt is developing and testing her green building innovations primarily in the academic environment, using collegiate home design competitions as proof of concept. Herdt’s BioSIP invention was cited by the international Solar Decathlon judges as being critical to the CU team’s back-to-back (2002, 2005) wins in the Solar Decathlon competition.
Since those awards, Herdt has advanced BioSIPs structural insulated wall, floor and roof panels to exhibit strengths surpassing other SIPs in specific areas (compressive and transverse loading) as well as to exhibit super thermal values.
Herdt has been awarded 2 patents and her BioSIPs inventions have garnered a State of Colorado, US Green Building Council (USGBC) “New Products” and “Excellence in Renewable Energy in Buildings” awards and numerous grant awards.
Herdt is CEO of BioSIPs, Inc., a woman-owned tech-based corporation and CU’s technology spin-off for commercialization of BioSIPs and other products from 100 percent diverted waste fibers.
lisnr
LISNR CEO Rodney Williams co-founded Lisnr, a technology start-up, while he was still working at Procter & Gamble. Technology wasn’t new to him; he had 3 patents by the age of 27.
Williams, who had a vision for the Lisnr technology, met co-founder Chris Ostoich at P&G. The two co-found took their idea on The Startup Bus, a 72-hour technology business concept competition. The team met their third co-founder and first investor at South by Southwest, where the aspiring entrepreneurs made their pitches to business scouts and investors.
Their journey includes a number of lessons and cash flow challenges—common challenges for entrepreneurs. Read Williams’ CNBC profile or watch the video for perspective on lessons learned on his journey from a six-figure corporate salary to $100,000 in debt to now, with 40 employees and founding of over $14 million. LISNR leadership was named a 2017 E&Y Entrepreneur of the Year.
additional reading
- Time’s 25 Best Inventions of 2017 .
- Inc. The 14 Coolest Products From Millennial Entrepreneurs


10.25: Hypothesis Test for a Population Mean (4 of 5)
Learning Objectives
- Under appropriate conditions, conduct a hypothesis test about a population mean. State a conclusion in context.
- Under appropriate conditions, conduct a hypothesis test about a mean for a matched pairs design. State a conclusion in context.
This page contains four opportunities for practicing the hypothesis test for a population mean from start to finish. The last two activities guide you through this hypothesis test using data and your statistical software package.
How Much Are College Students Sleeping?
(not including naps in class!)
Scenario: Americans average 6.9 hours of sleep on weeknights, according to a report released in 2011 by the National Sleep Foundation. A student in a statistics class at Los Medanos College wondered if the average amount of sleep on weeknights is different for LMC students. She collected data from a survey of 43 randomly selected students at LMC. Respondents averaged 7.12 hours of sleep a night with a standard deviation of 1.45 hours.
Use this simulation when needed to answer questions above.
Texting and Concentration
Scenario: An instructor at Los Medanos College conducted an experiment with her statistics class to study the effect of texting on concentration. She created two audio clips in which she read two different lists of words. The treatment required students to send a short text message to a friend while listening to one of the audio clips. In the control setting, students simply listened to one of the audio clips. Everyone wore earphones and listened to the audio clips in the same order. But a coin flip determined who was and was not texting each time. After each listening session, students had 2 minutes to write down all the words they could remember. Twenty three students participated in the experiment.
Try It
https://assessments.lumenlearning.co...sessments/3703
https://assessments.lumenlearning.co...sessments/3773
https://assessments.lumenlearning.co...sessments/3774
https://assessments.lumenlearning.co...sessments/3775
https://assessments.lumenlearning.co...sessments/3776
Use this simulation when needed to answer questions above.
Contributors and Attributions
- Concepts in Statistics. Provided by : Open Learning Initiative. Located at : http://oli.cmu.edu . License : CC BY: Attribution


12.1: Introduction to Information Systems?
Learning Objectives
Upon successful completion of this chapter, you will be able to:
- define what an information system is by identifying its major components;
- describe the basic history of information systems; and
- describe the basic argument behind the article “Does IT Matter?” by Nicholas Carr.
Introduction
If you are reading this, you are most likely taking a course in information systems, but do you even know what the course is going to cover? When you tell your friends or your family that you are taking a course in information systems, can you explain what it is about? For the past several years, I have taught an Introduction to Information Systems course. The first day of class I ask my students to tell me what they think an information system is. I generally get answers such as “computers,” “databases,” or “Excel.” These are good answers, but definitely incomplete ones. The study of information systems goes far beyond understanding some technologies. Let’s begin our study by defining information systems.
Defining Information Systems
Almost all programs in business require students to take a course in something called information systems . But what exactly does that term mean? Let’s take a look at some of the more popular definitions, first from Wikipedia and then from a couple of textbooks:
- “Information systems (IS) is the study of complementary networks of hardware and software that people and organizations use to collect, filter, process, create, and distribute data.” [1]
- “Information systems are combinations of hardware, software, and telecommunications networks that people build and use to collect, create, and distribute useful data, typically in organizational settings.” [2]
- “Information systems are interrelated components working together to collect, process, store, and disseminate information to support decision making, coordination, control, analysis, and viualization in an organization.” [3]


18.1: An Overview of Blood
Learning Objectives
- Identify the primary functions of blood in transportation, defense, and maintenance of homeostasis
- Name the fluid component of blood and the three major types of formed elements, and identify their relative proportions in a blood sample
- Discuss the unique physical characteristics of blood
- Identify the composition of blood plasma, including its most important solutes and plasma proteins
Recall that blood is a connective tissue. Like all connective tissues, it is made up of cellular elements and an extracellular matrix. The cellular elements—referred to as the formed elements —include red blood cells (RBCs) , white blood cells (WBCs) , and cell fragments called platelets . The extracellular matrix, called plasma , makes blood unique among connective tissues because it is fluid. This fluid, which is mostly water, perpetually suspends the formed elements and enables them to circulate throughout the body within the cardiovascular system.
Functions of Blood
The primary function of blood is to deliver oxygen and nutrients to and remove wastes from body cells, but that is only the beginning of the story. The specific functions of blood also include defense, distribution of heat, and maintenance of homeostasis.
Transportation
Nutrients from the foods you eat are absorbed in the digestive tract. Most of these travel in the bloodstream directly to the liver, where they are processed and released back into the bloodstream for delivery to body cells. Oxygen from the air you breathe diffuses into the blood, which moves from the lungs to the heart, which then pumps it out to the rest of the body. Moreover, endocrine glands scattered throughout the body release their products, called hormones, into the bloodstream, which carries them to distant target cells. Blood also picks up cellular wastes and byproducts, and transports them to various organs for removal. For instance, blood moves carbon dioxide to the lungs for exhalation from the body, and various waste products are transported to the kidneys and liver for excretion from the body in the form of urine or bile.
Defense
Many types of WBCs protect the body from external threats, such as disease-causing bacteria that have entered the bloodstream in a wound. Other WBCs seek out and destroy internal threats, such as cells with mutated DNA that could multiply to become cancerous, or body cells infected with viruses.
When damage to the vessels results in bleeding, blood platelets and certain proteins dissolved in the plasma, the fluid portion of the blood, interact to block the ruptured areas of the blood vessels involved. This protects the body from further blood loss.
Maintenance of Homeostasis
Recall that body temperature is regulated via a classic negative-feedback loop. If you were exercising on a warm day, your rising core body temperature would trigger several homeostatic mechanisms, including increased transport of blood from your core to your body periphery, which is typically cooler. As blood passes through the vessels of the skin, heat would be dissipated to the environment, and the blood returning to your body core would be cooler. In contrast, on a cold day, blood is diverted away from the skin to maintain a warmer body core. In extreme cases, this may result in frostbite.
Blood also helps to maintain the chemical balance of the body. Proteins and other compounds in blood act as buffers, which thereby help to regulate the pH of body tissues. Blood also helps to regulate the water content of body cells.
Composition of Blood
You have probably had blood drawn from a superficial vein in your arm, which was then sent to a lab for analysis. Some of the most common blood tests—for instance, those measuring lipid or glucose levels in plasma—determine which substances are present within blood and in what quantities. Other blood tests check for the composition of the blood itself, including the quantities and types of formed elements.
One such test, called a hematocrit , measures the percentage of RBCs, clinically known as erythrocytes, in a blood sample. It is performed by spinning the blood sample in a specialized centrifuge, a process that causes the heavier elements suspended within the blood sample to separate from the lightweight, liquid plasma (Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\)). Because the heaviest elements in blood are the erythrocytes, these settle at the very bottom of the hematocrit tube. Located above the erythrocytes is a pale, thin layer composed of the remaining formed elements of blood. These are the WBCs, clinically known as leukocytes, and the platelets, cell fragments also called thrombocytes. This layer is referred to as the buffy coat because of its color; it normally constitutes less than 1 percent of a blood sample. Above the buffy coat is the blood plasma, normally a pale, straw-colored fluid, which constitutes the remainder of the sample.
The volume of erythrocytes after centrifugation is also commonly referred to as packed cell volume (PCV) . In normal blood, about 45 percent of a sample is erythrocytes. The hematocrit of any one sample can vary significantly, however, about 36–50 percent, according to gender and other factors. Normal hematocrit values for females range from 37 to 47, with a mean value of 41; for males, hematocrit ranges from 42 to 52, with a mean of 47. The percentage of other formed elements, the WBCs and platelets, is extremely small so it is not normally considered with the hematocrit. So the mean plasma percentage is the percent of blood that is not erythrocytes: for females, it is approximately 59 (or 100 minus 41), and for males, it is approximately 53 (or 100 minus 47).
Characteristics of Blood
When you think about blood, the first characteristic that probably comes to mind is its color. Blood that has just taken up oxygen in the lungs is bright red, and blood that has released oxygen in the tissues is a more dusky red. This is because hemoglobin is a pigment that changes color, depending upon the degree of oxygen saturation.
Blood is viscous and somewhat sticky to the touch. It has a viscosity approximately five times greater than water. Viscosity is a measure of a fluid’s thickness or resistance to flow, and is influenced by the presence of the plasma proteins and formed elements within the blood. The viscosity of blood has a dramatic impact on blood pressure and flow. Consider the difference in flow between water and honey. The more viscous honey would demonstrate a greater resistance to flow than the less viscous water. The same principle applies to blood.
The normal temperature of blood is slightly higher than normal body temperature—about 38 °C (or 100.4 °F), compared to 37 °C (or 98.6 °F) for an internal body temperature reading, although daily variations of 0.5 °C are normal.  This accounts for its slightly higher temperature.
The pH of blood averages about 7.4; however, it can range from 7.35 to 7.45 in a healthy person. Blood is therefore somewhat more basic (alkaline) on a chemical scale than pure water, which has a pH of 7.0. Blood contains numerous buffers that actually help to regulate pH.
Blood constitutes approximately 8 percent of adult body weight. Adult males typically average about 5 to 6 liters of blood. Females average 4–5 liters.
Blood Plasma
Like other fluids in the body, plasma is composed primarily of water: In fact, it is about 92 percent water. Dissolved or suspended within this water is a mixture of substances, most of which are proteins. There are literally hundreds of substances dissolved or suspended in the plasma, although many of them are found only in very small quantities.
Plasma Proteins
About 7 percent of the volume of plasma—nearly all that is not water—is made of proteins. These include several plasma proteins (proteins that are unique to the plasma), plus a much smaller number of regulatory proteins, including enzymes and some hormones. The major components of plasma are summarized in Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\).
The three major groups of plasma proteins are as follows:
- Albumin is the most abundant of the plasma proteins. Manufactured by the liver, albumin molecules serve as binding proteins—transport vehicles for fatty acids and steroid hormones. Recall that lipids are hydrophobic; however, their binding to albumin enables their transport in the watery plasma. Albumin is also the most significant contributor to the osmotic pressure of blood; that is, its presence holds water inside the blood vessels and draws water from the tissues, across blood vessel walls, and into the bloodstream. This in turn helps to maintain both blood volume and blood pressure. Albumin normally accounts for approximately 54 percent of the total plasma protein content, in clinical levels of 3.5–5.0 g/dL blood.
- The second most common plasma proteins are the globulins . A heterogeneous group, there are three main subgroups known as alpha, beta, and gamma globulins. The alpha and beta globulins transport iron, lipids, and the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K to the cells; like albumin, they also contribute to osmotic pressure. The gamma globulins are proteins involved in immunity and are better known as an antibodies or immunoglobulins . Although other plasma proteins are produced by the liver, immunoglobulins are produced by specialized leukocytes known as plasma cells. (Seek additional content for more information about immunoglobulins.) Globulins make up approximately 38 percent of the total plasma protein volume, in clinical levels of 1.0–1.5 g/dL blood.
- The least abundant plasma protein is fibrinogen . Like albumin and the alpha and beta globulins, fibrinogen is produced by the liver. It is essential for blood clotting, a process described later in this chapter. Fibrinogen accounts for about 7 percent of the total plasma protein volume, in clinical levels of 0.2–0.45 g/dL blood.
Other Plasma Solutes
In addition to proteins, plasma contains a wide variety of other substances. These include various electrolytes, such as sodium, potassium, and calcium ions; dissolved gases, such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen; various organic nutrients, such as vitamins, lipids, glucose, and amino acids; and metabolic wastes. All of these nonprotein solutes combined contribute approximately 1 percent to the total volume of plasma.
CAREER CONNECTIONS: Phlebotomy and Medical Lab Technology
Phlebotomists are professionals trained to draw blood (phleb- = “a blood vessel”; -tomy = “to cut”). When more than a few drops of blood are required, phlebotomists perform a venipuncture, typically of a surface vein in the arm.  An arterial stick is collected from an artery and used to analyze blood gases. After collection, the blood may be analyzed by medical laboratories or perhaps used for transfusions, donations, or research. While many allied health professionals practice phlebotomy, the American Society of Phlebotomy Technicians issues certificates to individuals passing a national examination, and some large labs and hospitals hire individuals expressly for their skill in phlebotomy.
Medical or clinical laboratories employ a variety of individuals in technical positions:
Medical technologists (MT), also known as clinical laboratory technologists (CLT), typically hold a bachelor’s degree and certification from an accredited training program. They perform a wide variety of tests on various body fluids, including blood. The information they provide is essential to the primary care providers in determining a diagnosis and in monitoring the course of a disease and response to treatment.
Medical laboratory technicians (MLT) typically have an associate’s degree but may perform duties similar to those of an MT.
Medical laboratory assistants (MLA) spend the majority of their time processing samples and carrying out routine assignments within the lab. Clinical training is required, but a degree may not be essential to obtaining a position.
Chapter Review
Blood is a fluid connective tissue critical to the transportation of nutrients, gases, and wastes throughout the body; to defend the body against infection and other threats; and to the homeostatic regulation of pH, temperature, and other internal conditions. Blood is composed of formed elements—erythrocytes, leukocytes, and cell fragments called platelets—and a fluid extracellular matrix called plasma. More than 90 percent of plasma is water. The remainder is mostly plasma proteins—mainly albumin, globulins, and fibrinogen—and other dissolved solutes such as glucose, lipids, electrolytes, and dissolved gases. Because of the formed elements and the plasma proteins and other solutes, blood is sticky and more viscous than water. It is also slightly alkaline, and its temperature is slightly higher than normal body temperature.
Interactive Link Questions
Visit this site for a list of normal levels established for many of the substances found in a sample of blood. Serum, one of the specimen types included, refers to a sample of plasma after clotting factors have been removed. What types of measurements are given for levels of glucose in the blood?
Answer: There are values given for percent saturation, tension, and blood gas, and there are listings for different types of hemoglobin.
Review Questions
Q. Which of the following statements about blood is true?
A. Blood is about 92 percent water.
B. Blood is slightly more acidic than water.
C. Blood is slightly more viscous than water.
D. Blood is slightly more salty than seawater.
Answer: C
Q. Which of the following statements about albumin is true?
A. It draws water out of the blood vessels and into the body’s tissues.
B. It is the most abundant plasma protein.
C. It is produced by specialized leukocytes called plasma cells.
D. All of the above are true.
Answer: B
Q. Which of the following plasma proteins is not produced by the liver?
A. fibrinogen
B. alpha globulin
C. beta globulin
D. immunoglobulin
Answer: D
Critical Thinking Questions
Q. A patient’s hematocrit is 42 percent. Approximately what percentage of the patient’s blood is plasma?
A. The patient’s blood is approximately 58 percent plasma (since the buffy coat is less than 1 percent).
Q. Why would it be incorrect to refer to the formed elements as cells?
A. The formed elements include erythrocytes and leukocytes, which are cells (although mature erythrocytes do not have a nucleus); however, the formed elements also include platelets, which are not true cells but cell fragments.
Q. True or false: The buffy coat is the portion of a blood sample that is made up of its proteins.
A. False. The buffy coat is the portion of blood that is made up of its leukocytes and platelets.
Glossary
- albumin
- most abundant plasma protein, accounting for most of the osmotic pressure of plasma
- antibodies
- (also, immunoglobulins or gamma globulins) antigen-specific proteins produced by specialized B lymphocytes that protect the body by binding to foreign objects such as bacteria and viruses
- blood
- liquid connective tissue composed of formed elements—erythrocytes, leukocytes, and platelets—and a fluid extracellular matrix called plasma; component of the cardiovascular system
- buffy coat
- thin, pale layer of leukocytes and platelets that separates the erythrocytes from the plasma in a sample of centrifuged blood
- fibrinogen
- plasma protein produced in the liver and involved in blood clotting
- formed elements
- cellular components of blood; that is, erythrocytes, leukocytes, and platelets
- globulins
- heterogeneous group of plasma proteins that includes transport proteins, clotting factors, immune proteins, and others
- hematocrit
- (also, packed cell volume) volume percentage of erythrocytes in a sample of centrifuged blood
- immunoglobulins
- (also, antibodies or gamma globulins) antigen-specific proteins produced by specialized B lymphocytes that protect the body by binding to foreign objects such as bacteria and viruses
- packed cell volume (PCV)
- (also, hematocrit) volume percentage of erythrocytes present in a sample of centrifuged blood
- plasma
- in blood, the liquid extracellular matrix composed mostly of water that circulates the formed elements and dissolved materials throughout the cardiovascular system
- platelets
- (also, thrombocytes) one of the formed elements of blood that consists of cell fragments broken off from megakaryocytes
- red blood cells (RBCs)
- (also, erythrocytes) one of the formed elements of blood that transports oxygen
Contributors and Attributions
- white blood cells (WBCs)
- (also, leukocytes) one of the formed elements of blood that provides defense against disease agents and foreign materials
-
OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology (CC BY 4.0). Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology


3.6: Exercise- Low-Pass Filtering
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We’ve already filtered out the low-frequency voltage drifts in the continuous EEG data for each participant’s data, but there is also some high-frequency noise (small but rapid deflections in the waveforms). In our lab, we take great pains to reduce the major sources of high-frequency noise (induced voltages from electrical devices in the environment and muscle activity). As a result, there isn’t a lot of high-frequency noise in the grand averages shown in Screenshot 3.4. But there’s a little, and you’ll see a lot more in most experiments (especially in the single-participant waveforms). So, this exercise will show you how to filter out high-frequency noise using a low-pass filter . We’ll apply it to the grand average ERP waveform, but you could instead apply to the single-subject ERPs, the epoched EEG data, or even the continuous EEG data (see Chapter 7 in Luck, 2014 for information about when different filters should be applied).
Make sure that the Grand_N400 ERPset is still loaded in ERPLAB, and then select EEGLAB > ERPLAB > Filter & Frequency Tools > Filters for ERP data . You’ll see a window that looks nearly identical to the filtering GUI you used to filter out low-frequency drifts in the continuous EEG data. Set it up as shown in Screenshot 3.5, which should mainly involve setting the low-pass cutoff to 20 Hz. Then click APPLY to run the filtering routine. You can name the new ERPset Grand_N400_filt .
Now plot the new ERPset. In the plotting GUI, notice that the option for plotting the standard error is grayed out. When you filter the data, the original standard error values are no longer valid—they’re the standard error of the unfiltered mean voltage at each time point, not the standard error of the filtered values. If you want to see the standard error of the filtered data, you’d need to filter the single-participant ERPs prior to making the grand average.
Now compare the filtered waveforms to the original unfiltered waveforms. (If you don’t still have the plot of the unfiltered waveforms, select Grand_N400 from the ERPsets menu and run the plotting routine). You should see that the filtered waveforms look smoother than the unfiltered waveforms. In a later chapter, we’ll take a closer look at filtering and see how filters can reduce noise but can also distort the data, and you’ll learn how to select filters that make your data cleaner without producing significant distortions.