Communication Meaning:: Commūnicāre, Meaning "To Share") Is The Activity of Conveying

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COMMUNICATION MEANING:

Communication (from Latin commūnicāre, meaning "to share") is the activity of conveying
information through the exchange of thoughts, messages, or information, as by speech, visuals,
signals, writing, or behavior. It is the meaningful exchange of information between two or more
living creatures. Pragmatics defines communication as any sign-mediated interaction that follows
combinatorial, context-specific, and content-coherent rules. Communication is an inherently
social interaction, and communicative competence is the ability to engage in inter subjective
interactions.

One definition of communication is “any act by which one person gives to or receives from
another person information about that person's needs, desires, perceptions, knowledge, or
affective states. Communication may be intentional or unintentional, may involve conventional
or unconventional signals, may take linguistic or non-linguistic forms, and may occur through
spoken or other modes.”

Communication requires a sender, a message, and a recipient, although the receiver doesn't have
to be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus
communication can occur across vast distances in time and space. Communication requires that
the communicating parties share an area of communicative commonality. The communication
process is complete once the receiver understands the sender's message

Communicating with others involves three primary steps: Thought: First, information exists in
the mind of the sender. This can be a concept, idea, information, or feelings. ◦Encoding: Next, a
message is sent to a receiver in words or other symbols. ◦Decoding: Lastly, the receiver
translates the words or symbols into a concept or information that he or she can understand.

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IMPORTANCE & BENEFITS OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

1. Ancient Heritage- Depended heavily on oral communication- Greece & Rome had
practices to communicate well on feet in government assemblies & courts.
Writing became permanent record -Authors & books on principles of communication
came up-China-Its political theories mainly framed rules & regulations to communicate
among government & public and made communication to flow smoothly upward &
downward – They tried to minimize bias, falsification of sources, reduced influence of
cliques & opportunists.

2. Life Blood Of Business-In any organization there is a need for exchange of information,
ideas, plans, orders, rules, make decisions, proposals, contracts, agreements.
Organizational activities require members to interact.
3. Internal communication- Downward to get the job done by motivating, giving
instructions, making employees efficient & productive - Upward to get feedback,
opinions, periodic reports, frank suggestions, even new management styles to have
effective participation in decision making - Horizontal to solve problems, cooperate, for
meetings, for duties- So effective communication is important in any organization to
increase job satisfaction, safety, productivity, profits and to decrease absenteeism,
turnover, grievances.
{Large size of Business, for the healthy & even growth. Business activity has
become extremely complex- specialization, different departments, coordination
has become difficult. Promotes spirit of understanding & cooperation – mutual
trust & confidence between employer & employee- beneficial to both.}

4. External communication – Messages to outsiders for good reputation & positive impact
like creating goodwill in society, win customers, motivate performance, increase

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collection, negotiate profitable sale etc. {Government agencies & departments


(licensing, bank, foreign trade, IT, customs, excise- negotiation) Distributors, retailers,
individual customers- more brands- to persuade to select your brand- better
communication, better sale. }
5. Overall cost of communication- Lot of time in meetings, interviews, letters, advertising,
bulletins, memos, reports and articles is devoted. Unclear, incomplete, inaccurate, late
communication can cost lot of money. Ineffective communication to customers alienates
them and spoils goodwill. Even require more communication to rectify and more time
thereby more cost. - More communication means more stationeries -( 29 to 50 % of
professional managers time is used for writing)
Benefits of effective communication in your career

1. Valuable job requirement – Most of the ( 2/3rd ) job vacancies prefer mainly
communication skills - Mental labour certainly needs good communication skills.
Success of such positions is influenced by how effectively you communicate your
knowledge, proposals and ideas to others.- A primary responsibility in customer relations,
labour relations, marketing, personnel, sales & teaching.- both in governmental & non-
governmental organizations.- even to prepare a written report, a mail, fax you need
communication skill. Accounting people mainly dealing in numbers and figures should
also have the ability to communicate to those who read their reports.
2. An essential for promotion – Major forms of communication like letters, reports,
written/oral expressions were the most important factor for promotion in past researches.
Management people spend 60 to 90% of their time in communicating.- Ability to
communicate is the prime requisite for promotion.
3. Global challenge - Developing the right attitude to project right image, preparing
adequately by judging carefully, patience, understanding, integrity, language, applied
knowledge & knowledge of cultures and being flexible in the diverse workforce, changing
demography, can make you to face the challenge among global business scenario.

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Benefits
1. Organisational Functioning

1. Quicker problem solving


2. Stronger decision making
3. Steadier work flow
4. Enhanced professional image of company (culture/working environment)

2. Business is promoted

1. Clearer promotional material


2. Stronger business relation
3. Improved stakeholder response
4. Increased productivity
5. Less turnover
6. Profitability increases due to quick messages, no double work,
7. Market opportunities easily learnt
8. Dissemination/collection of messages easier
9. Customer interaction is better- feedback, needs & wants immediately
known.

COMPONENTS OF COMMUNICATION

1. Context – Environment like country, culture, organization- the broad field where you are
going to plan, design & communicate your message.- Includes external stimuli which
prompts you to send message like letter, memo, note, mail, fax etc – Internal stimuli like
your attitude, opinion, emotions, past experiences, likes, dislikes, job, education etc affect
your idea of message.

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2. Sender-Encoder--- Use symbols ( normally words and sometimes graphics) that express
your message & create the desired response. Select the best symbols to convey your
message in a proper channel.
3. Message – core idea – main point & what are the other information to include in your
message.
4. Medium- Message channel- Internal communication normally uses memos, notes,
reports, mails etc..-External uses Letters, proposals, reports, ads, catalogues, news releases
etc.( Both verbal & Non-verbal )
5. Receiver-Decoder---- Receiver is influenced by context, his mental state. His
experiences, attitudes, skills will decide the interpretation of the message.
6. Feedback- Can be oral/written message, action or even silence. Reaction by the receiver
for your message.

CONCEPTS AND PROBLEMS OF COMMUNICATION

 Conventions of meaning – principle is to have the symbols/words sender uses should


have same meaning in both sender’s & receiver’s minds.
Problems are – Miscommunication occurs when different meanings to same symbols are
interpreted. Reactions to Denotations (dictionary definition of a word) & Connotations
(implicated/ suggested meaning of a word other than the dictionary meaning) are
different.

 Perceptions of Reality – Based on our sensory & mental perceptions we make various
meanings to the world around us.
Problems are – Abstractions (selecting some facts & omitting others), Inferences
(conclusions drawn from evidences) & Evaluations (judging) - Some are desirable and
necessary & some are risky.

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 Values, Attitudes & Opinions – Favourable/unfavourable, Inadequate/Incorrect


information, Credibility of sender, Closed mind (rigid views) and Other circumstances
affect communication. These things affect the readers interpretation of the message.
NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

1. Appearance – the format, neatness, and language of a written message sends a non verbal
message. Even the size, colour, weight of envelopes- the appearance gives a message
regarding the importance. Personal appearance like clothing, hairstyle, neatness, jewelry,
cosmetics convey impressions regarding occupation, social status, age, etc. Similarly the
appearance of surroundings like room size, location, furnishings, lighting, windows also
convey many meanings.
2. Body Language (Facial expressions, gestures, postures, movement of limbs, smell &
touch, Voice & volume).
3. Silence, Space & Time.
Impact of Non-verbal communication
Verbal words --7 %

Vocal (Pitch, volume, tone) –38 %

Gestures, posture, sign, physical movements – 55 %

Action speaks louder than words

KOPPACT

Kinesics- Movement of body including gestures, postures, limb movements (7,50,000 signals)

Hands Clenching, interlocking, slashing in air.

Palms- open, slapping

Pointing fingers

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Handshake

Nodding of head

Occulesics – Grammar of eye movements & facial expressions

Starring, gazing, eye contact, frequent shifting, eyebrow movements,

Mouth/lip movements

Paralinguistics- Vocal cues accompanying speeches- volume, pitch, tone, intonation,

Modulation, rate of speech.

Proxemics - science of space- distance between people & objects

Intimate - up to 0.5 m

Personal - 0.5 to 1.2 m

Social - 1.2 to 3 m

Public - 3m & above

Artifactics- signals individual sends across through appearance, clothing, style, perfume,

Personal objects like pens, cell phones, briefcase..,

Chronomics – Concept of time & impact on people- time keeping is culture bound.

Tactilitics – Science of touch language – bodily contact, touching with hands, pat on a .

Shoulder, Holding hands.

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Gesture cluster- Group of non-verbal signals, which give meaning with/without the words
spoken/written.

NLP- Nero Linguistic Programmes – Matching, mirroring, pacing.

7 C’s OF COMMUNICATION

1. Completeness- (Provide all necessary information-5 Ws, Answer all questions, Give extra if
desirable). Not only providing all necessary information but also how it is given. Answers for
what, who, when, where, why & how.

2. Conciseness – (Eliminate wordy expressions, Include only relevant information, Avoid


unnecessary repetition). Use of only relevant words & phrases – eliminating all redundant/
unnecessary words, unnecessary facts, repetition, wordy expressions. Organise the message.

3. Consideration – Sender gives due importance to the receiver & compose the message keeping
in mind the benefits of the receiver. Saying positive things, which are present than not present.
(You attitude, Audience benefit/interest, Emphasize positive & pleasant facts)

4. Concreteness – (Use specific Facts & Figures, Put action in verbs, Choose vivid image
building words). Clarity & conciseness come with use of concrete words- Use of figures, facts,
names, examples avoiding vague meaning words.

5. Clarity- (Choose Precise, Concrete & Familiar words, Construct effective sentences &
paragraphs) Clear & familiar words that are precise, must know what kind of words receiver will
accept. Use simple words, short sentences, familiar & right words with clear expression. Avoid
camouflaged words, passive voice, long convoluted sentences, rubber stamp words, unfamiliar
words.

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6. Courtesy – (Be sincerely tactful, thoughtful & appreciative, Use expressions that show
respect, Choose nondiscriminatory words). Being aware of listener/ reader’s feelings to create
harmonious understanding for business to grow, develop & retain goodwill. Mere use of words
like Please, Thank you is not sufficient. Be sincere, use positive words, avoid rudeness/anger,
restrain from preaching, avoid discriminatory & negative words.7. Correctness – (Use right
level of language, Check accuracy of Facts, Figures & Words, Maintain acceptable writing
mechanics). Correct use of grammar, message composition, appropriate words, correct facts in

correct time, style & even stationery. Adapt right level of communication to suit the receiver’s
level & right tone.

BUSINESS COMMUNICATION AND THE GLOBAL CONTEXT

- Concept of culture & Intercultural communication


- National cultural variables like Education, Law & Regulations, Economics, Politics,
Religion, Social Norms, Language

•Systems of symbols, beliefs, attitudes, expectations, pattern of behaviour are different for
different cultures.

•Visible in notions of status, attitudes towards time, decision-making habits, use of space, body
language & social behaviour.
- Individual cultural variables like Time, Space, Food, Acceptable dress, manners,
Decision Making, Verbal & Non-verbal communication.

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To Avoid mis communication

•Be more open minded, tolerant, courteous, keenly perceptive of non-verbal symbols & clues
which are different from your socio-cultural norms.

•Treat your foreign counterpart not as you would like to be treated but as he wants to be treated.
Important tip

•While dealing with such people do not take anything for granted.
•Observe carefully their social behaviour, study their values, be meticulous in audience analysis
before encoding & transmitting your messages.- regardless of written/spoken/non-verbal.
-
MODE OF PERSONAL COMMUNICATION

1. LETTER
2. JOURNAL WITTING
3. MAILS
4. SMS
5. GREETING CADRS

JOURNAL WRITING
Journal may be defined as sequential, dated chronicle of events ,which includes the personnel
responses and reflection of the writer on the events and ideas .
TYPES OF JOURALS
1. LEARNING JOURNALS
It is typically hand written in an note book or writing pad or paper for recording thoughts
2. DIARIES
A diary is typically a note book , booklet of bank pages any sources for a person to record
thought , reaction to learning experiences

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3. DREAM BOOKS OR LOG BOOKS


Many people are interested for personal and psychological reason record and interpret.

4. AUTOBIOGRAGPHIES
Autobiographies focuses on self assessment
5. MEMORIES
Memories are more informal approach to narrate a life story
6. SPIRITUALS JOURNAL

It is normally recording personal reaction to religion matters

7. PROFESSIONAL JOURNAL
A professional journal has specific purpose in mind .The conversation is recorded in writing.
8. FINANCIAL JOURNAL

Financial journal is maintained to reach monetary goal to plan the budgeting.

IMPORTANCE OF JOURNAL WRITING


1. It solves the problem
2. Journal writing reduces stress
3. Journal writing promote self growth, self love and acceptance.
4. Lt preserves memories
5. It improves the writing skills
6. It sharpens the mind
TIPS FOR WRITING GOOD JOURNAL
1. Do not concentrate on grammar and spelling
2. Write immediately so that you get your thoughts as quickly a possible
3. You must set a specific time and places where you will be comfortable and alone

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4. Make a list of best things


5. Write from our heart .do not write for anyone else but for yourself.

E-MAIL/MAIL

EMAIL is the exchange of computer stored message by telecommunication .e-mail is useful


in sending and receiving the message quickly to be able to use the e-mail one needs a network
area and pc’ data card or telephone with a modem .one does not need to be an expert to use e-
mail

ELEMENTS OF E-MAIL
1. Sender
2. Message
3. Mail transport agent
4. Receiver
5. Receiver’s mail agent
6. E-mail address

EMOTICONS AND ACRONYMS

The emoticons sometimes called smiley is the sequence of printable character which are used to
represent the facial expression and convey emotion.

Acronyms are formed from the capital letter of each first letter of a descriptive phrases or from a
combination of letter that represent long words.

ADVANTANTAGES OF E-MAIL

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1. Managing e-mail is easy


2. E-mail is fast
3. E-mail is expensive
4. E-mail is easy to filter
5. In contact
6. Transmission is secures and reliable
7. Validity
8. E-mail is valid and acceptable
DISADVANTAGES OF E-MAIL
1. E-mail does not Gurantee secrecy
2. In email messages may not be taken as seriously as traditional letters
3. Sender of the message is not assured that message reaches the receiver
4. Incompatibility of electronic mails prevents the sending and receiving email or messages
between system

SHORT MESSAGE SERVICES(SMS)

Short message services is a popular form non-verbal communication .It is popularly known as
text message .The services allows for short message to be sent from one mobile to another
mobile .Each short messages can no longer be more than 160 character’s .The characters may be
alpha numeric or binary.

GSM-Global System Mobile Communication

CDMA- Coded Division Multiple Access

TDMA-Time Division Multiple Access

FEATURES

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1. SMS supports inputs mechanism that allows inter connection between various sources and
destinations.
2. With SMS an active mobile set is able to receive or send message at anytime even during
voice or call.
3. Message can be stored until the destination device is available.
4. Additional services like e-mail ,fax and interactive banking is available.
5. Addition facilities like instant messaging and chatting is available.
ADVANTANGES OF SMS

1. Gurantee message delivery

2. Ability to receive different information

3. conveniant to use

4. increase the revenue of services provider

5.value added services like e-mail, fax , internet etc provides increased revenue

DISADVANTAGES OF SMS
1. They are limited up to 160 words only
2. The can be very expenses
3. Cannot be delivered to a mobile phone do not disturbs services.

GREETING CARD

Greeting card may be defined as a folded paper or card that consist of text or images on the front
cover and a message of greeting congratulation or sentiment sent on special occasion .

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Selection of card is very important and a sensitive matter .Because reflect the taste of the
person .

IMPORTANCE OF GREETING CARD

1. Conveying message
2. Building relationship
3. Expressing emotions
4. Making people better person
5. Business greeting cards
1. Positioning the business
2. Offers a personal touch
3. Connecting with customers
4. Increasing customer loyalty
5. Increasing profit
6. Increasing brand image
TYPES OF GREETING CARD
1. Congratulating card
2. Consoling card
3. Professional card or business card
4. Romantic
5. Holiday
6. Invitation
7. Online greeting

CONGRATULATING CARD

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These card are common for birth, anniversaries , weddings and engagements or other
occasion .They consist of birth cards. Anniversary card, card for retirement , cards for graduation
.

CONSOLING CARD

Sometime personal tragedies such as death, failure , consoling card can offer an expression of
condolence.

BUSINESS OR PROFESSIONAL CARD

As new categories of greeting card are those business or profession card .They are sent
thanking, announcement on keeping in personal touch with their customers.

ROMANTIC CARD

The category includes those with the sentiments of love, romances missing or belongingness
these cards celebrate love and spread happiness.

HOLIDAY CARD

These is an occasion for everyday and there is a holiday for every season and there are
greeting cards to celebrates these holidays with zeal.

INVITATION CARD

Invitation is a written paper or electronic images that is sent to people for different
occasion .The message informs the receiver about an events to which he is invited it informs the
date ,place, time and purpose of the invitation it also mention the person .who is going to host the
event.

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ONLINE GREETING CARD

It refers to sending the greeting card with use of technology the are in the form of animated
card , e-card’ e-post card and e-greetings with quotations for friends ,relatives and peers.

INVITATION

An invitation may be defined as “a spoken or written request for someone’s presence or


participation .It is a request or an attempt to get another person join in your event”
TIMING OF INVITATION

An informal invitation is best to invite the guest .This type of invitation has to been sent 4 weeks
advance .If it is a informal invitation the following.

GUIDELINES TO BE FOLLOWED
1. 6to 8month if it is seminar for which out station guest are invited.
2. 4 to 6 months before an important dinner if the guest are from out station.
3. 2 to5 weeks for luncheon
4. 4 weeks before an evening reception
5. 2to 4 weeks before a breakfast for a large group
6. 2 to 4 weeks before a cocktail party
7. 2to 3 weeks before a tea party.
GUIDELINES FOR ADDRESSING AN INVITATION
1. Select the guest that you are inviting .If they hold titles like Doctor, professor, dean or judge
they will expect the title .
2. Address business invitation to the individual of the company use Ms if it is a lady, MR if it
is a male and MRs in case of married women

Write the full name and avoid spelling mistake

Use dear as the greeting in business letter.

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RESPONDING TO AN INVITATION
1. Invitation should be responded within a week
2. If there is an enclosure card, It should be completed and returned to the sender
3. Response to the invitation can lead either to accepting or declining an invitation
4. Don’t be straight forward, use kind words to reject an invitation.
ACCEPTING INVITATION AND GUIDELINES FOR ACCEPTING INVITATION
1. Format
2. Say thanks
3. Accept
4. detail
DECLINILNG AN INVITATION
1. Be timely
2. Respond according to invite
3. Decline graciously
4. Couples
5. Send regrets

WRITING TO CONVEY INFORMATION

When we write to conform we must pay special attention to the interest and ability of the
audience to offer quality and quantity of information to the readers . In general the following 2
points has to be in mind while conveying information.

1. Idea
2. languages
 GENERAL RULES FOR CONVEING INFORMATION IN WRITING
1. The information should be audience centric

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2. Writing to inform always need not be a thesis. business report are generally a narration of
what has happened
3. The first part of writing should include background information
4. Don’t be too much scientific .Be objective the writer must be clear that the essay as finished
5. Be informative and include information that is used to the reader.

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BLOG WRITING:

Blogs, or web logs, are one of the fastest-growing means of mass communication. Though blogs
originally gained mainstream attention in the 2000's through articles in prominent newspapers
and magazines, several popular weblogs now rival traditional media outlets in terms of
readership, and, arguably, cultural relevance. The "blogosphere" has affected elections and
corporate policy, and some blogs have millions of readers a day. Moreover, they are fun to read,
and writing them can be enjoyable, too

Blogs are a great way to keep everyone in a family abreast of the latest family news without
running up the phone bill — you can simply read back over important updates to find out the
latest news. In addition, many blogs are being used to host photographs, and their chronological
structure can be a great way to keep track of a baby's growth, a trip, or the process of planning a
wedding.

Professional writers often look down on bloggers, because their informal online writing rarely
benefits from a good editor. Blogs are known for their casual writing and unpredictable subject
material, but the best blogs have proven that — regardless of punctuation and spelling — even
"novice" writers can be entertaining enough to attract a broad audience.

Bloggers with an especially engaging subject, such as chronicling a trip around the world, have
the advantage of inherently interesting material, but even mundane material can attract an
audience if you have an engaging style and voice.

Here are three guiding principles to writing a successful blog:

 Develop a writing style and tone appropriate to your subject material.

 Post often, even if your posts are short.

 Allow your readers to comment on your posts.

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Steps in writing blogs:

Choose what type of blog you want to create. Carve out a niche and pick a catchy title that
captures the essence of your blog. Remember that a blog, like your clothes, is an extension of
you. For most people, your blog site may be the only thing they identify you with and you want
to be sure that who you are on the inside is reflected in your blog.

Decide how often you are going to post. Some claim that posting at least once every day is
best. Some also say that three quick posts a day are far more effective than one long post every
three days. Yet others still claim that, when they update a blog every other day, they get more
readers than when updating two or three entries in a single day. Write whenever you want – it's
the content that matters! Whatever you do, remember that, for most bloggers, it's all about
reading, and many of them would prefer quality over quantity. Once you get started, you'll find
that you attract a certain readership, and you may have to adjust how you work your journal to
appease and keep the readers you've obtained.

Get some things together beforehand. Some recommend putting together about a month's
worth of material before you tell anyone about your blog. It is recommended that you just start
writing and fame will come in time. Feel free to go back and rewrite entries to make everything
just the way you want before or after you "go public." You can edit any entry at any time with
most blog sites. Writing a popular blog doesn't happen overnight. The essence of the blog stems
from making journals which means the blog is FOR YOU. Work it how you feel is most
appropriate.

Tell close friends about your blog and ask them to tell their friends. Often, if you use it as
another way to network with people around you, you'll get a better response. If you push it too
hard, don't be surprised if they ignore your blog, because they may feel you're fishing for
compliments and attention...remember, blogging is about you, and the more attention you put
into yourself, the more people are going to notice.

Look around the Internet for blogs that people love to read. Read and post to them
religiously. Leave a note that actually has something to do with their site so that they know you

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actually took the time to pay attention to the material posted. Do not expect anything back in
return. Just commenting will cause others to be more likely to visit your blog and do the same.
Often, when you make comments to sites, a link to your own personal site will already be
included with your comment, unless you are posting from one hosting site to the next. If you're at
ITW and you read a blog on Myspace, then it would be appropriate to include such a link.

Thoughtfully comment on other people's blogs. On most blogger sites, a link to your own blog
will be automatically included in your comment. So the more blogs you post on, the more people
will be driven to visit your blog. Of course, don't just go on and post one-word spam, because
that might keep people away.

Read the terms of use attentively before using the blog's platform, once you start using the
website; it will be considered that you accept their terms of use and agree to adhere to a
policy. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THEIR TERMS OF USE, DO NOT USE THE SITE.

REVIEW WRITING FOR BOOKS & FILMS:

There are two approaches to book reviewing:

 Descriptive reviews give the essential information about a book. This is done with description
and exposition, by stating the perceived aims and purposes of the author, and by quoting striking
passages from the text.
 Critical reviews describe and evaluate the book, in terms of accepted literary and historical
standards, and supports this evaluation with evidence from the text. The following pointers are
meant to be suggestions for writing a critical review.

Basic requirements

To write a critical review, the reviewer must know two things:

 Knowing the work under review: This demands not only attempting to understand the author's
purpose and how the component parts of the work contribute to that purpose, but also knowledge
of the author: his/her nationality, time period, other works etc.

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 Requirements of the genre: This means understanding the art form and how it functions.
Without such context, the reviewer has no historical or literary standard upon which to base an
evaluation.

Reviewing essentials

 Description of the book. Sufficient description should be given so that the reader will have
some understanding of the author's thoughts. This account is not a summary. It can be woven
into the critical remarks.
 Discuss the author. Biographical information should be relevant to the subject of the review and
enhance the reader's understanding of the work under discussion.
 Appraise the book. A review must be a considered judgment that includes:
o a statement of the reviewer's understanding of the author's purpose
o how well the reviewer feels the author's purpose has been achieved
o evidence to support the reviewer's judgement of the author' achievement.

While you read:

 Read the book with care.


 Highlight quotable passages.
 Note your impressions as you read.
 Allow time to assimilate what you read so that the book can be seen in perspective.
 Keep in mind the need for a single impression which must be clear to the reader.

The review outline


A review outline gives you an over-all grasp of
the organization of the review, to determine the
central point your review will make, to eliminate
inessentials or irrelevancies, and to fill in gaps or
omissions.

 Examine the notes you have made and eliminate those with no relationship to your central thesis.

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 By organizing your discussion topics into groups, aspects of the book will emerge: e.g., theme,
character, structure, etc.
 Write down all the major headings of the outline and fill in the subdivisions.
 All parts should support your thesis or central point.

First draft

 Opening paragraphs set the tone of the paper. Possible introductions usually make a statement
about the:
o Thesis
o Authorial purpose
o Topicality of the work or its significance
o Comparison of the work to others by the same author or within the same genre
o Author.

 The body of the review logically develops your thesis. Follow your outline or adjust it to further
your argument. The aim should be to push your central point. Put quoted material in quotation
marks, or indented, and properly footnoted.

 Concluding paragraphs sums up or restates your thesis or it may make a final judgement
regarding the book. Do not introduce new information or ideas in the conclusion.

Revising the draft

 Allow time to elapse, at least a day, before starting your revision.


 Correct grammatical mistakes and punctuation as you find them.
 Read your paper through again looking for unity, organization and logical development.
 If necessary, do not hesitate to make major revisions in your draft.
 Verify quotations for accuracy and check the format and content of references.

Reviewing considerations

Fiction

 Rule number one: do not give away the story!

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Character

 From what sources are the characters drawn?


 What is the author's attitude toward his characters?
 Are the characters flat or three dimensional?
 Does character development occur?
 Is character delineation direct or indirect?

Theme

 What is/are the major theme(s)?


 How are they revealed and developed?
 Is the theme traditional and familiar, or new and original?
 Is the theme didactic, psychological, social, entertaining, escapist, etc. in purpose or intent?

Plot

 How are the various elements of plot (eg, introduction, suspense, climax, conclusion) handled?
 What is the relationship of plot to character delineation?
 To what extent, and how, is accident employed as a complicating and/or resolving force?
 What are the elements of mystery and suspense?
 What other devices of plot complication and resolution are employed?
 Is there a sub-plot and how is it related to the main plot?
 Is the plot primary or secondary to some of the other essential elements of the story (character,
setting, style, etc.)?

Style

 What are the "intellectual qualities" of the writing (e.g., simplicity, clarity)?
 What are the "emotional qualities" of the writing (e.g., humour, wit, satire)?
 What are the "aesthetic qualities" of the writing (e.g., harmony, rhythm)?
 What stylistic devices are employed (e.g., symbolism, motifs, parody, allegory)?

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 How effective is dialogue?

Setting

 What is the setting and does it play a significant role in the work?
 Is a sense of atmosphere evoked, and how?
 What scenic effects are used and how important and effective are they?
 Does the setting influence or impinge on the characters and/or plot?

Biography

 Does the book give a "full-length" picture of the subject?


 What phases of the subject's life receive greatest treatment and is this treatment justified?
 What is the point of view of the author?
 How is the subject matter organized: chronologically, retrospectively, etc.?
 Is the treatment superficial or does the author show extensive study into the subject's life?
 What source materials were used in the preparation of the biography?
 Is the work documented?
 Does the author attempt to get at the subject's hidden motives?
 What important new facts about the subject's life are revealed in the book?
 What is the relationship of the subject's career to contemporary history?
 How does the biography compare with others about the same person?
 How does it compare with other works by the same author?

History

 With what particular period does the book deal?


 How thorough is the treatment?
 What were the sources used?
 Is the account given in broad outline or in detail?
 Is the style that of reportorial writing, or is there an effort at interpretive writing?
 What is the point of view or thesis of the author?
 Is the treatment superficial or profound?

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 For what group is the book intended (textbook, popular, scholarly, etc.)?
 What part does biographical writing play in the book?
 Is social history or political history emphasized?
 Are dates used extensively, and if so, are they used intelligently?
 Is the book a revision? How does it compare with earlier editions?
 Are maps, illustrations, charts, etc. used and how are these to be evaluated?

Reviewing poetry

 Is this a work of power, originality, individuality?


 What kind of poetry is under review (epic, lyrical, elegaic, etc.)?
 What poetical devices have been used (rhyme, rhythm, figures of speech, imagery, etc.), and to
what effect?
 What is the central concern of the poem and is it effectively expressed?

TIPS FOR WRITING BOOK REVIEWS:

Other readers will always be interested in your opinion of the books you've read. Whether
you've loved the book or not, if you give your honest and detailed thoughts then people will
find new books that are right for them. If you're stuck on what to say in a review, it can help to
imagine you're talking to someone who's asking you whether they should read the book.

1) Start with a couple of sentences describing what the book is about But without giving
any spoilers or revealing plot twists. As a general rule, try to avoid writing in detail about
anything that happens from about the middle of the book onwards. If the book is part of a
series, it can be useful to mention this, and whether you think you'd need to have read other
books in the series to enjoy this one.

2) Discuss what you particularly liked about the book


Focus on your thoughts and feelings about the story and the way it was told. You could try
answering a couple of the following questions

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 Who was your favourite character, and why?

 Did the characters feel real to you?

 Did the story keep you guessing?

 What was your favourite part of the book, and why?

 Were certain types of scene written particularly well - for example sad scenes, tense
scenes, mysterious ones…?

 Did the book make you laugh or cry?

 Did the story grip you and keep you turning the pages?

3) Mention anything you disliked about the book


Talk about why you think it didn't work for you. For example

 Did you wish the ending hadn't been a cliffhanger because you found it frustrating?

 Did you find it difficult to care about a main character, and could you work out why?

 Was the story too scary for your liking, or focused on a theme you didn't find interesting?

4) Round up your review

Summarise some of your thoughts on the book by suggesting the type of reader you'd
recommend the book to. For example: younger readers, older readers, fans of relationship
drama/mystery stories/comedy. Are there any books or series you would compare it to?

5) You can give the book a rating, for example a mark out of five or ten, if you like
Luisa Plaja loves words and books, and she edits the teen book review site Chicklish. Her
novels for teenagers include Split by a Kiss, Swapped by a Kiss and Kiss Date Love Hate. She
lives in Devon, England, and has two young children

WRITING REVIEW FOR MOVIE:

Whether a movie is a rotten tomato or a brilliant work of art, if people are watching it, it's worth
critiquing. A good movie review should entertain, persuade and inform, providing an original
opinion without giving away too much of the plot. A great movie review can be a work of art in

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its own right. Read on to learn how to analyze a movie, come up with an interesting thesis and
write a review as entertaining as your source material.

Gather basic facts about the movie. You can do this before or after you watch the movie, but
you should definitely do it before you write the review, because you'll need to weave the facts
into your review as you write. Here's what you need to know:

Take notes on the movie as you watch it. Before you sit down to watch a film, get out a
notepad or a laptop to take notes. Movies are long, and you can easily forget details or major
plot points. Taking notes allows you to jot down little things you can return to later.

o Make a note every time something sticks out to you, whether it's good or bad. This could
be costuming, makeup, set design, music, etc. Think about how this detail relates to the
rest of the movie and what it means in the context of your review.
o Take note of patterns you begin to notice as the movie unfolds.
o Use the pause button frequently so you make sure not to miss anything, and rewind as
necessary.

1. Analyze the mechanics of the movie. Analyze the different components that came
together in the movie as you watch. During or after your viewing, ask yourself what
impression the movie left with you in these areas:

o Direction. Consider the director and how he or she choose to portray/explain the events in
the story. If the movie was slow, or didn't include things you thought were necessary, you
can attribute this to the director. If you've seen other movies directed by the same person,
compare them and determine which you like the most.
o Cinematography. What techniques were used to film the movie? What setting and
background elements helped to create a certain tone?
o Writing. Evaluate the script, including dialogue and characterization. Did you feel like
the plot was inventive and unpredictable or boring and weak? Did the characters' words
seem credible to you?

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o Editing. Was the movie choppy or did it flow smoothly from scene to scene? Take note
of the use of lighting and other ambient effects. If the move has computer-generated
graphics, think about whether or not they looked realistic/fit in with the rest of the film.
o Costume design. Did the clothing choices fit the style of the movie? Did they contribute
to the overall tone, rather than digressing from it?
o Set design. Consider how the setting of the film influenced its other elements. Did it add
or subtract from the experience for you? If the movie was filmed in a real place, was this
location well-chosen?
o Score or soundtrack. Did it work with the scenes? Was it over/under-used? Was it
suspenseful? Amusing? Irritating? A soundtrack can make or break a movie, especially if
the songs have a particular message or meaning to them. 4

Watch it one more time. It's impossible to fully understand a movie you've only seen one
time, especially if you're pausing it often to take notes. Watch it at least once more before you
compose your review. Pay attention to details you might have missed the first time around.
Pick new points of focus this time; if you took a lot of notes on the acting the first time you
watched the movie, focus on the cinematography the second time aroundComposing Your
Review

1. 1

Create an original thesis based on your analysis. Now that you've thoroughly studied the
movie, what unique insights can you bring to the table? Come up with a thesis, a central idea to
discuss and back up with your observations on the various elements of the film. Your thesis
should be discussed in the first paragraph of your review. Having a thesis will take your review
beyond the plot summary stage and into the realm of film criticism, which is rightfully its own
art form. Ask yourself the following questions to come up with a compelling thesis for your
review:

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o Does the film reflect on a current event or contemporary issue? It could be the director's
way of engaging in a bigger conversation. Look for ways to relate the content of the film
to the "real" world.
o Does the film seem to have a message, or does it attempt to elicit a specific response or
emotion from the audience? You could discuss whether or not it achieves its own goals.
o Does the film connect with you on a personal level? You could write a review stemming
from your own feelings and weave in some personal stories to make it interesting for
your readers.

Follow your thesis paragraph with a short plot summary. It's good to give readers an idea of
what they'll be in for if they decide to see the movie you're reviewing. Give a brief summary of
the plot in which you identify the main characters, describe the setting, and give a sense of the
central conflict or point of the movie. Never break the number one rule of movie reviews: don't
give too much away. Don't ruin the movie for your readers! When you name characters in your
plot summary, list the actors' names directly afterward in parenthesis.

Find a place to mention the director's name and the full movie title. If you feel you must discuss
information that might "spoil" things for readers, warn them first.

Move into your analysis of the movie. Write several paragraphs discussing interesting elements
of the movie that support your thesis. Discuss the acting, the direction, the cinematography, the
setting, and so on, using clear, entertaining prose that keeps your readers engaged.

o Keep your writing clear and easy to understand. Don't use too much technical filmmaking
jargon, and make your language crisp and accessible.
o Present both the facts and your opinion. For example, you might state something such as,
"The Baroque background music was a jarring contrast to the 20th century setting." This
is a lot more informative then simply saying, "The music was a strange choice for the
movie."
o Use plenty of examples to back up your points. If you make a statement about the
movie, back it up with a descriptive example. Describe the way scenes look, the way a
certain person acted, camera angles, and so on. You can quote dialogue to help you make

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your points as well. In this way you are giving your readers a feel for the movie and
continuing to express your critique of the film at the same time.
o Give it some personality. You could treat your review like a formal college essay, but
it's more interesting if you make it your own. If your writing style is usually witty and
funny, your review should be no exception. If you're serious and dramatic, that works,
too. Let your language and writing style reflect your unique perspective and personality -
it's much more entertaining for the reader.
o Wrap up your review with a conclusion. It should tie back to your original thesis and
provide some guidance as to whether the audience should go see the movie. Your
conclusion should also be compelling or entertaining on its own, since it's the end of your
piece of writing.

Polishing Your Piece

Edit your review. Once you've finished the first draft, read it through and decide whether it
flows well and has the right structure. You may need to shift paragraphs around, delete
sentences, or add more material here and there to fill out parts that are stunted. Give your review
at least one editorial pass, and maybe two or three, before you consider it to be editorially sound.
Ask yourself whether your review stayed true to your thesis.

Did your conclusion tie back in with the initial ideas you proposed?

Decide whether your review contains enough details about the movie. You may need to go back
and add more description here and there to give readers a better sense of what the movie's about.
Decide whether your review is interesting enough as a stand-alone piece of writing. Did you
contribute something original to this discussion? What will readers gain from reading your
review that they couldn't from simply watching the movie?

Proofread your review. Make sure you've spelled all the actors' names correctly and that you
got all the dates right. Clean up typos, grammatical errors, and other spelling errors as well. A
clean, proofread review will seem much more professional than one that's full of silly mistakes.
Publish or share your review. Post it on your blog, share it in a movie discussion forum, put it
up on Facebook, or email it to your friends and family. Movies are the quintessential art form of

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our time, and like all art, they spark controversy, provide a venue for self-reflection, and greatly
influence our culture. All this means they're worth discussing, whether they're flops or works of
pure genius. Congratulations for contributing your valuable opinion to the discussion.

TWITTER WRITING:

Twitter is awash with information and headlines calling out for attention. How do you make a
splash and not just a drop in this ocean? Part of the secret lies in having a "catch" to gaining
other people's attention; another large part is to have followers who trust and rely on your
headlines and the content you lead them to. The best ways for grabbing the interest of your
fellow tweeters are about to be revealed...

Think about how you scan Twitter. Nobody opens every single link or even reads every single
tweet; do you? What is it about the tweets you do read and follow through on that make you
notice them? Basically, when there is a cacophony of headlines competing for attention, you're
going to be looking for the tweets that reward your reading effort and that's precisely what your
followers do too. The "rewards" focus on such things as the usefulness of the tweet, the sense of
urgency compelling you to read it, and the unique nature of the tweet content.[1] Summed up, aim
to give the flavor and offer the temptation to learn more when preparing your Twitter headlines.

Keep the tweet short. While Twitter is already short enough, keeping your headline shorter than
the allotted 140 characters is alluring because it stands out and tells the follower "hey, here's one
that is easier to read"! Can you keep your tweet to just eight words and under? Eight words or
less is apparently the optimal amount for gaining instant attention![2] While it may seem tempting
to use text language to shorten words or to use abbreviations to cram in as much information as
possible per tweet, that could simply create a crowding impression and send your followers off to
a simpler tweet.

If you do have a lot to say, can you break it down and feed it through in a series of well-timed
tweets instead of trying to be too clever with too many words at once?

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Keep in mind that there needs to be space for retweeting your information. While some tweeters
simply cut off anything superfluous when retweeting, it's best not to make your followers have to
go to that effort where possible.

Don't mix up ideas, themes, news items, etc. Each tweet should focus only on one thing; plan
how to feed unrelated information in at different intervals instead.

1. Write well. You have very few words, so make them count. Why use plain words when you can
find ones that are far more descriptive and therefore more powerful, moving, and appealing to
the reader? Be sure to explain why your headline will give the reader the best, the worst, the
most, the biggest, the strangest, etc., information possible. Make the most action words,
especially verbs; saying less with more increases the impact of your tweet.

o If you struggle with finding the apt word, make friends with the thesaurus. While they are
online, it's a good idea to invest in a printed copy because it's a feel-thought connection
that arises with flipping through a book; you can also page mark your favorite words.
o Avoid being obscure, obtuse, or obstinately obfuscating. If your follower doesn't get what
it is you're on about, they'll ignore your tweet for one that makes sense. It is as simply –
and ruthless – at that. Leave out puns and inside jokes, and avoid being too clever by half.
Stick with simple headlines that everyone will understand.
2. 4

Ask a question. This usually will cause a person to be engaged, (for at least a second or two),
enough to either answer the question or follow the link referred to by the question. If your
question is about content you're promoting, relate the question to the nub of the issue you're
discussing in the content by identifying a good keyword or two that summarizes your query.
Good question openers include:

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"How would you.

o "Do you know how many people...?"


o "Are you struggling with/overwhelmed by/easily defeated by, etc..." – this is a good one
where you have the answers, especially answers to social media/networking problems,
organizing digital life, fixing known technical hitches, etc. It's also good in relation to
relationships, such as "Are you hopeless with small talk?"
o "Would you like to know an easy way to...?"
o "How many times have you...?"

Ask for help. Related to the previous step on asking a question but different in intent, asking for
help can be another excellent way to engage your followers. Maybe you'd like someone's
opinion, or their input on something. Whatever your need for an answer, a lot of people like to
help others and by asking them, you've just made it easy for them. However, don't just gulp up
the answer and leave it hanging; be sure to engage in a conversation with those who respond, and
provide a round-up of how their answers led to your solution. This tells your followers that you
listen, that you act on their replies, and that you honor them by demonstrating how they have
helped. Some examples of asking for help include.

How do you/I...?"

o "What can I do about...?"


o "Where can I find...?"
o "Who is the author/singer/writer of...?"
o "Can you recommend a good...?"
o Tell your followers something unique and interesting. Your reader will want to know
how your information or observation will affect them in their world. Search Twitter
before adding your tweet to make sure it hasn't already been added a lot that day or
recently and therefore be at saturation point. Find a new angle or way of presenting
information that is already bloated on Twitter.

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o Eyewitness accounts are really interesting. Are you somewhere where the news is
breaking? If so, make it compelling by exploring how what you're witnessing is making
you feel and how you see others responding. 7

Talk about social media content. Headlines likely to pull interest from followers are those
focused on Twitter itself and other social networking sites. After all, if you're on Twitter and
someone suddenly states that "Twitter users are more likely to have better friendships" or such,
that makes followers sit up and read! Think about how Twitter helps, revolutionizes, improves,
changes, etc., people (aka "tweeple" or followers), businesses (from small to large), disaster
relief, communities, and more. Or headlines about ways to improve your Twitter experience and
strategies. These sorts of headlines will cause much interest

CROSS CULTURAL COMMUNICATION

Cross-cultural communication (also frequently referred to as intercultural communication,


which, however, is also used in a different sense) is a field of study that looks at how people
from differing cultural backgrounds communicate, in similar and different ways among
themselves, and how they endeavour to communicate across cultures.

Origin:
During the Cold War, the United States economy was largely self-contained because the
world was polarized into two separate and competing powers: the east and west. However,
changes and advancements in economic relationships, political systems, and technological
options began to break down old cultural barriers. Business transformed from individual-
country capitalism to global capitalism. Thus, the study of cross-cultural communication was
originally found within businesses and the government both seeking to expand globally.
Businesses began to offer language training to their employees and programs were developed
to train employees to understand how to act when abroad. With this also came the
development of the Foreign Service Institute, or FSI, through the Foreign Service Act of 1946,
where government employees received trainings and prepared for overseas posts. There began
also implementation of a “world view” perspective in the curriculum of higher education. In
1974, the International Progress Organization, with the support of UNESCO and under the

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auspices of Senegalese President Léopold Sédar Senghor, held an international conference on


"The Cultural Self-comprehension of Nations" (Innsbruck, Austria, 27–29 July 1974) which
called upon United Nations member states "to organize systematic and global comparative
research on the different cultures of the world" and "to make all possible efforts for a more
intensive training of diplomats in the field of international cultural co-operation ... and to
develop the cultural aspects of their foreign policy.

In the past decade, there has become an increasing pressure for universities across the world to
incorporate intercultural and international understanding and knowledge into the education of
their students. International literacy and cross-cultural understanding have become critical to a
country’s cultural, technological, economic, and political health. It has become essential for
universities to educate, or more importantly, “transform”, to function effectively and
comfortably in a world characterized by close; multi-faceted relationships and permeable
borders. Students must possess a certain level of global competence to understand the world
they live in and how they fit into this world. This level of global competence starts at ground
level- the university and its faculty- with how they generate and transmit cross-cultural
knowledge and information to students.

Aspects of Cross Cultural Communication


There are several parameters that may be perceived differently by people of different cultures.
These may include:

 High and Low Context Cultures: Context is the most important cultural dimension and
also immensely difficult to define. The idea of context in culture was an idea put forth by
an anthropologist by the name of Edward T Hall. Hall breaks up culture into two main
groups: High and Low context cultures. He refers to context as the stimuli, environment
or ambiance surrounding the environment. Depending on how a culture relies on the three
points to communicate their meaning, will place them in either High or Low context
cultures. For example, Hall goes on to explain that low-context cultures assume that the
individuals know very little about what they are being told, and therefore must be given a

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lot of background information. High-Context cultures assume the individual is


knowledgeable about the subject and has to be given very little background information.

 Non Verbal, Oral and Written: The main goal behind improving intercultural audiences is
to pay special attention to specific areas of communication to enhance the effectiveness
of the intercultural messages. These specific areas are broken down into three sub
categories; Non-Verbal, Oral and Written messages. Non-Verbal contact involves
everything from something as obvious as eye contact and facial expressions to more
discrete forms of expression such as the use of space. Experts have label the term
Kinesics to mean communicating through body movement. Huseman, author of Business
Communication, explains that the two most prominent ways of communication through
Kinesics is eye contact and facial expressions. Eye contact, Huseman goes on to explain,
is the key factor in setting the tone between two individuals and greatly differs in
meaning between cultures. In the Americas and Western Europe eye contact is
interpreted the same way, conveying interest and honesty. People who avoid eye contact
when speaking are viewed in a negative light, withholding information and lacking in
general confidence. However, in the Middle East, Africa, and especially Asia eye contact
is seen as disrespectful and even challenging of one’s authority. People who make eye
contact, but only briefly, are seen as respectful and courteous. Facial expressions are their
own language by comparison, and universal throughout all cultures. Dale Leathers, for
example, states that facial expression can communicate ten basic classes of meaning. The
final part to Non-Verbal communication lies in our gestures, and can be broken down
into five subcategories; Emblems, Illustrators, Regulators, Affect Displays, and Adaptors.
Emblems and Illustrators are the easiest to communicate since Emblems refer to sign
language (such as the “Thumbs Up” which is one of the most recognized symbols in the
world) and Illustrators mimic what we speak (such as gesturing how much time is left by
holding up a certain amount of fingers). Regulators act as a way of conveying meaning
through gestures (raising up one’s hand for instance indicates that one has a certain
question about what was just said) and become more complicated since the same
regulator can have different meanings across different cultures (making a circle with ones
hand for instance in the Americas means O.K but in Japan the gesture is symbolic for

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money, and in France conveys the notion of worthlessness). The last two, Affect Displays
and Adaptors, are the two the individual has very little to no control over. Affect Displays
reveal emotions such as happiness (through a smile) or sadness (mouth trembling, tears)
where Adaptors are more subtle such as a yawn or clenching fists in anger. The last Non-
Verbal type of communication deals with communication through the space around us, or
Proxemics. Huseman goes on to explain that Hall identifies three types of space; Feature-
Fixed Space, Semifixed Feature Space and Informal Space. Feature-Fixed space deals
with how cultures arrange their space on a large scale, such as buildings and parks.
Semifixed Feature Space deals with how we arrange our space inside said buildings, such
as the placement of our desks, chairs and plants. Informal space is the space that we place
importance on. Talking distance, how close people sit to one another and office space are
all examples. A production line worker will often have to make an appointment to see his
supervisor however the supervisor is free to visit the production line workers at will.

Oral and written communication is generally easier to learn, adapt and deal with in the
business world for the simple fact that each language is unique. The one difficulty that comes
into play is Paralanguage, “Language refers to what is said, Paralanguage refers to how it is
said. Even though, logically, the same words should convey the same meaning the volume,
rate, and emphasis placed on those words can change the meaning of the phrase. The example
given by Huseman took the sentence “I would like to help you” and simply by placing the
emphases on the words I, Like, Help, You in four different sentences changes the meaning of
the phrase.

GENDER SENSITIVITY IN COMMUNICATION:

Gender sensitivity is the act of being aware of the ways people think about gender, so that
individuals rely less on assumptions about traditional and outdated views on the roles of men
and women. In language and the humanities, this is often expressed through people’s language
choice. People can choose more inclusive language that doesn’t define gender, and many new
words that are gender neutral have entered languages like English to substitute for more
gender specific terms.

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For centuries, many words referring to all people were specifically masculine. Terms like
“man,” and “mankind,” which are used to describe all human beings, exclude females. While
some people argue that such terms do include women, it’s been argued that these words have a
belittling effect on women. True gender sensitivity, it is said, moves past these terms to
include all and exclude none.

It is further contended by experts that the use of such terms is by no means innocent, and they
have a negative cultural effect felt beyond the words. By making women either absent or non-
apparent in terms like “mankind,” they become worth less and society will see them as
possessing less value. This societal view in extreme forms is of detriment and corresponds to
discrimination and even, arguably, things like greater violence against women.

In language and the humanities, this argument is accepted and a number of substitute words like
“humankind,” express the gender sensitivity of the present. In the late 1980s, when Star Trek:
The Next Generation began to air, a noted and more gender sensitive substitution differed from
the original series. The opening narration changed so that “where no man has gone before,”
become “where no one has gone before,” with a great deal of emphasis on the word “one.”

Some feminists suggest changing basic words with a masculine element to those with a
specifically feminine element. Terms like “herstory” have been proposed for “history.” This
substitution merely transfers the power from masculine to feminine, however, disregarding the
male gender. A common compromise is to use gender-neutral terms so that males and females
are both included.

Such terms can be obvious, like firefighter and police officer, in place of fireman or policeman.
Pronouns are often considered carefully, too, and writers may take several tactics to remain
gender neutral. They may oscillate back and forth between male and female pronouns, use plural
pronouns that lack gender bias, or they use terms like “one.” Being gender sensitive with
pronoun choice often takes work.

At the core of gender sensitivity in language is the goal of stripping away assumptions about
limits of gender, and this benefits men and women. A stay at home parent isn’t automatically a

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mom, but can be a dad too. Such sensitivity from a language basis offers more choice and gives
people the opportunity to view each other as individuals with different capacities, shedding
assumptions about the traditional roles men and women may fill.

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UNIT-III

DIGITAL SIGNALING FOR FADING CHANNELS


SYLLABUS

Structure of a wireless communication link, Principles of Offset-QPSK, p/4-DQPSK, Minimum


Shift Keying, Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying, Error performance in fading channels, OFDM
principle – Cyclic prefix, Windowing, PAPR.

Structure of a wireless communication link

Block Diagram

• The information source provides an analog source signal and feeds it into the source ADC
(Analog to Digital Converter). This ADC first band limits the signal from the analog information
source (if necessary), and then converts the signal into a stream of digital data at a certain
sampling rate and resolution (number of bits per sample).
• The source coder uses a priori information on the properties of the source data in order to
reduce redundancy in the source signal. This reduces the amount of source data to be transmitted,
and thus the required transmission time and/or bandwidth. For example, the Global System for
Mobile communications (GSM) speech coder reduces the source data rate from 64 kbit/s
mentioned above to 13 kbit/s. Similar reductions are possible for music and video (MPEG
standards).
• The channel coder adds redundancy in order to protect data against transmission errors. This
increases the data rate that has to be transmitted at interface E – e.g., GSM channel coding
increases the data rate from 13 to 22.8 kbit/s. Channel coders often use information about the
statistics of error sources in the channel (noise power, interference statistics) to design codes that

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are especially well suited for certain types of channels (e.g., Reed–Solomon codes protect
especially well against burst errors).

• Signaling adds control information for the establishing and ending of connections, for
associating information with the correct users, synchronization, etc. Signaling information is
usually strongly protected by error correction codes.
• The multiplexer combines user data and signaling information, and combines the data from
multiple users. If this is done by time multiplexing, the multiplexing requires some time
compression.

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• The baseband modulator assigns the gross data bits (user data and signaling at interface D) to
complex transmit symbols in the baseband. Spectral properties, inter-symbol interference, peak
to- average ratio, and other properties of the transmit signal are determined by this step. The
output from the baseband modulator (interface C) provides the transmit symbols in oversampled
form, discrete in time and amplitude.
Oversampling and quantization determine the aliasing and quantization noise. Therefore, high
resolution is desirable, and the data rate at the output of the baseband modulator should be much
higher than at the input.

• The TX Digital to Analog Converter (DAC) generates a pair of analog, discrete amplitude
voltages corresponding to the real and imaginary part of the transmit symbols, respectively.
• The analog low-pass filter in the TX eliminates the (inevitable) spectral components outside
the desired transmission bandwidth. These components are created by the out-of-band emission
of an (ideal) baseband modulator, which stem from the properties of the chosen modulation
format.
• The TX Local Oscillator (LO) provides an un-modulated sinusoidal signal, corresponding to
one of the admissible center frequencies of the considered system. The requirements for

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frequency stability, phase noise, and switching speed between different frequencies depend on
the modulation and multi access method.
• The up converter converts the analog, filtered baseband signal to a pass band signal by mixing
it with the LO signal. Up conversion can occur in a single step, or in several steps. Finally,
amplification in the Radio Frequency (RF) domain is required.
• The RF TX filter eliminates out-of-band emissions in the RF domain. Even if the low-pass
filter succeeded in eliminating all out-of-band emissions, up conversion can lead to the creation
of additional out-of-band components. Especially, nonlinearities of mixers and amplifiers lead to
intermodulation products and “spectral regrowth”
• The RX filter performs a rough selection of the received band. The bandwidth of the filter
corresponds to the total bandwidth assigned to a specific service, and can thus cover multiple
communications channels belonging to the same service.
• The low-noise amplifier amplifies the signal, so that the noise added by later components of
the RX chain has less effect on the Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR). Further amplification occurs in
the subsequent steps of down conversion.
• The RX LO provides sinusoidal signals corresponding to possible signals at the TX LO. The
frequency of the LO can be fine-tuned by a carrier recovery algorithm (see below), to make sure
that the LOs at the TX and the RX produce oscillations with the same frequency and phase.
• The RX downconverter converts the received signal (in one or several steps) into baseband. In
baseband, the signal is thus available as a complex analog signal.
• The RX low-pass filter provides a selection of desired frequency bands for one specific user .It
eliminates adjacent channel interference as well as noise. The filter should influence the desired
signal as little as possible.
• The Automatic Gain Control (AGC) amplifies the signal such that its level is well adjusted to
the quantization at the subsequent ADC.
• The RX ADC converts the analog signal into values that are discrete in time and amplitude.
The required resolution of the ADC is determined essentially by the dynamics of the subsequent
signal processing. The sampling rate is of limited importance as long as the conditions of the
sampling theorem are fulfilled. Oversampling increases the requirements for the ADC, but
simplifies subsequent signal processing.

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• Carrier recovery determines the frequency and phase of the carrier of the received signal, and
uses it to adjust the RX LO.
• The baseband demodulator obtains soft-decision data from digitized baseband data, and hands
them over to the decoder. The baseband demodulator can be an optimum, coherent demodulator,
or a simpler differential or incoherent demodulator. This stage can also include further signal
processing like equalization.
• If there are multiple antennas, then the RX either selects the signal from one of them for
further processing or the signals from all of the antennas have to be processed (filtering,
amplification, down conversion). In the latter case, those baseband signals are then either
combined before being fed into a conventional baseband demodulator or they are fed directly
into a “joint” demodulator that can make use of information from the different antenna elements.
• Symbol-timing recovery uses demodulated data to determine an estimate of the duration of
symbols, and uses it to fine-tune sampling intervals.
• The decoder uses soft estimates from the demodulator to find the original (digital) source data.
In the most simple case of an uncoded system, the decoder is just a hard-decision (threshold)
device. For convolutional codes, Maximum Likelihood Sequence Estimators (MLSEs, such as the
Viterbi decoder) are used.
• Signaling recovery identifies the parts of the data that represent signaling information and
controls the subsequent de-multiplexer.
• The demultiplexer separates the user data and signaling information and reverses possible time
compression of the TX multiplexer. Note that the demultiplexer can also be placed earlier in the
transmission scheme; its optimum placement depends on the specific multiplexing and
multiaccess scheme.
• The source decoder reconstructs the source signal from the rules of source coding. If the
source data are digital, the output signal is transferred to the data sink. Otherwise, the data are
transferred to the DAC, which converts the transmitted information into an analog signal, and
hands it over to the information sink.

Principles of Offset-QPSK
Offset QPSK (OQPSK) is a modified form of QPSK where the bit waveforms on the I
and Q channels are offset or shifted in phase from each other by one half of a bit time.Figure

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shows a simplified block diagram, the bit sequence alignment, and the constellation diagram for
a OQPSK modulator. Because changes in the I channel occur at the midpoints of the Q channel
bits and vice versa, there is never more than a single bit change in the dibit code and, therefore,
there is never more than a 90° shift in the output phase. In conventional QPSK, a change in the
input dibit from 00 to 11 or 01 to 10 causes a corresponding 180° shift in the output phase.
Therefore, an advantage of OQPSK is the limited phase shift that must be imparted during
modulation. A disadvantage of OQPSK is that changes in the output phase occur at twice the
data rate in either the I or Q channels.
Consequently, with OQPSK the baud and minimum bandwidth are twice that of
conventional QPSK for a given transmission bit rate. OQPSK is sometimes called OKQPSK
(offset-keyed QPSK).
OQPSK signaling is similar to QPSK signaling, except for the time alignment of the even
and odd bit streams. In QPSK signaling, the bit transitions of the even and odd bit streams occur
at the same time instants, but in OQPSK signaling, the even and odd bit streams, mI(t)
and mQ(t), are offset in their relative alignment by one bit period (half-symbol period)

The time offset waveforms that are applied to the in-phase and quadrature arms of an OQPSK
modulator. Notice that a half-symbol offset is used.

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pi/4-DQPSK
The π/4 shifted QPSK modulation is a quadrature phase shift keying technique which
offers a compromise between OQPSK and QPSK in terms of the allowed maximum phase
transitions. It may be demodulated in a coherent or non-coherent fashion. In π/4 QPSK, the
maximum phase change is limited to ±135°, as compared to 180° for QPSK and 90° for OQPSK.
Hence, the bandlimited π/4 QPSK signal preserves the constant envelope property better than
bandlimited QPSK, but is more susceptible to envelope variations than OQPSK. An extremely
attractive feature of π/4 QPSK is that it can be non-coherently detected, which greatly simplifies
receiver design. Further, it has been found that in the presence of multipath spread and fading,

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π/4 QPSK performs better than OQPSK [Liu89]. Very often, π/4 QPSK signals are differentially
encoded to facilitate easier implementation of differential detection or coherent demodulation
with phase ambiguity in the recovered carrier. When differentially encoded, π/4 QPSK is called
π/4 DQPSK.

π/4 QPSK Transmission Techniques


A block diagram of a generic π/4 QPSK transmitter is shown in Figure 6.32. The input bit stream
is partitioned by a serial-to-parallel (S/P) converter into two parallel data streamsmI,k and mQ,k,
each with a symbol rate equal to half that of the incoming bit rate. The kth in-phase and
quadrature pulses, Ik and Qk, are produced at the output of the signal mapping circuit over
time kT ≤ t ≤ (k + 1)T and are determined by their previous values, Ik − 1 and Qk − 1, as well as θk,
which itself is a function of φk, which is a function of the current input
symbols mIk and mQk · Ik and Qk represent rectangular pulses over one symbol duration having
amplitudes given by

where

and θk and θk – 1 are phases of the kth and k – 1 st symbols. The phase shift φk is related to
the input symbols mIk and mQk

Transmitter

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Truth Table

Input Bits Phase shift φk


00 π/4
01 3π/4
10 −3π/4
11 −π/4

Just as in a QPSK modulator, the in-phase and quadrature bit


streams Ik and Qk are thenseparately modulated by two carriers which are in quadrature with one
another, to produce the π/4 QPSK waveform given by

where

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π/4 QPSK Detection Techniques


1. Baseband Differential Detection

The incoming π/4 QPSK signal is quadrature demodulated using two local oscillator signals that
have the same frequency as the unmodulated carrier at the transmitter, but not necessarily the
same phase. If φk = tan−1(Qk/Ik) is the phase of the carrier due to the kth data bit, the
output wk and zkfrom the two low pass filters in the in-phase and quadrature arms of the
demodulator can be expressed as

where γ is a phase shift due to noise, propagation, and interference. The phase γ is assumed to
change much slower than φk, so it is essentially a constant. The two sequences wkand zk are
passed through a differential decoder which operates on the following rule.

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The output of the differential decoder can be expressed as

The output of the differential decoder is applied to the decision circuit,

where SI and SQ are the detected bits in the in-phase and quadrature arms, respectively.

It is important to ensure the local receiver oscillator frequency is the same as the transmitter
carrier frequency, and that it does not drift. Any drift in the carrier frequency will cause a drift in
the output phase which will lead to BER degradation.

2. IF Differential Detector

The IF differential detector avoids the need for a local oscillator by using a delay line and
two phase detectors. The received signal is converted to IF and is bandpass filtered. The
bandpass filter is designed to match the transmitted pulse shape, so that the carrier phase is

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preserved and noise power is minimized. To minimize the effect of ISI and noise, the bandwidth
of the filters are chosen to be 0.57/Ts .. The received IF signal is differentially decoded using a
delay line and two mixers. The bandwidth of the signal at the output of the differential detector is
twice that of the baseband signal at the transmitter end.

3. FM Discriminator

The input signal is first filtered using a bandpass filter that is matched to the transmitted signal.
The filtered signal is then hardlimited to remove any envelope fluctuations. Hardlimiting
preserves the phase changes in the input signal and hence no information is lost. The FM
discriminator extracts the instantaneous frequency deviation of the received signal which, when
integrated over each symbol period gives the phase difference between two sampling instants.
The phase difference is then detected by a four level threshold comparator to obtain the original
signal. The phase difference can also be detected using a modulo-2π phase detector. The modulo-
2π phase detector improves the BER performance and reduces the effect of click noise

Minimum Shift Keying (MSK)


Minimum shift keying (MSK) is a special type of continuous phase-frequency shift
keying(CPFSK) wherein the peak frequency deviation is equal to 1/4 the bit rate. In other words,
MSK is continuous phase FSK with a modulation index of 0.5. The modulation index of an FSK
signal is similar to the FM modulation index, and is defined as kFSK = (2ΔF)/Rb, where ΔF is the
peak RF frequency deviation and Rb is the bit rate. A modulation index of 0.5 corresponds to the
minimum frequency spacing that allows two FSK signals to be coherently orthogonal, and the

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name minimum shift keying implies the minimum frequency separation (i.e., bandwidth) that
allows orthogonal detection. Two FSK signals νH(t) and νL(t) are said to be orthogonal if

MSK is sometimes referred to as fast FSK, as the frequency spacing used is only half as much as
that used in conventional noncoherent FSK MSK is a spectrally efficient modulation scheme and
is particularly attractive for use in mobile radio communication systems. It possesses properties
such as constant envelope, spectral efficiency, good BER performance, and self-synchronizing
capability.

An MSK signal can be thought of as a special form of OQPSK where the baseband
rectangular pulses are replaced with half-sinusoidal pulses . These pulses have shapes like the St.
Louis arch during a period of 2Tb. If half-sinusoidal pulses are used instead of rectangular pulses,
the modified signal can be defined as MSK and for an N-bit stream is given by

where

and where mI(t) and mQ(t) are the “odd” and “even” bits of the bipolar data stream which have
values of ±1 and which feed the in-phase and quadrature arms of the modulator at a rate of Rb/2.
For example, while one version of MSK uses only positive half-sinusoids as the basic pulse
shape, another version uses alternating positive and negative half-sinusoids as the basic pulse
shape.

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The MSK waveform can be seen as a special type of a continuous phase FSK rewritten using
trigonometric identities as

where φk is 0 or π depending on whether mI(t) is 1 or −1, it can be concluded that the MSK signal
is an FSK signal with binary signaling frequencies of fc + 1/4T and fc − 1/4T.

MSK Transmitter

Multiplying a carrier signal with cos[πt/2T] produces two phase-coherent signals at fc +


1/4T and fc − 1/4T. These two FSK signals are separated using two narrow bandpass filters and
appropriately combined to form the in-phase and quadrature carrier components x(t) and y(t),
respectively. These carriers are multiplied with the odd and even bit streams, mI(t) and mQ(t), to
produce the MSK modulated signal sMSK(t).

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MSK Receiver

The received signal sMSK(t) (in the absence of noise and interference) is multiplied by the
respective in-phase and quadrature carriers x(t) and y(t). The output of the multipliers are
integrated over two bit periods and dumped to a decision circuit at the end of each two bit
periods. Based on the level of the signal at the output of the integrator, the threshold detector
decides whether the signal is a 0 or a 1. The output data streams correspond to mI(t) and mQ(t),
which are offset combined to obtain the demodulated signal.

Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying (GMSK)

GMSK is a simple binary modulation scheme which may be viewed as a derivative of


MSK. In GMSK, the sidelobe levels of the spectrum are further reduced by passing the
modulating NRZ data waveform through a premodulation Gaussian pulse-shaping . Baseband
Gaussian pulse shaping smooths the phase trajectory of the MSK signal and hence stabilizes the
instantaneous frequency variations over time. This has the effect of considerably reducing the
sidelobe levels in the transmitted spectrum.

Premodulation Gaussian filtering converts the full response message signal (where each
baseband symbol occupies a single bit period T) into a partial response scheme where each
transmitted symbol spans several bit periods. However, since pulse shaping does not cause the
pattern-averaged phase trajectory to deviate from that of simple MSK, GMSK can be coherently
detected just as an MSK signal, or noncoherently detected as simple FSK. In practice, GMSK is
most attractive for its excellent power efficiency (due to the constant envelope) and its excellent
spectral efficiency. The premodulation Gaussian filtering introduces ISI in the transmitted signal,

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The GMSK premodulation filter has an impulse response given by

and the transfer function given by

The parameter α is related to B, the 3 dB baseband bandwidth of HG(f), by

and the GMSK filter may be completely defined from B and the baseband symbol duration T. It
is therefore customary to define GMSK by its BT product.

GMSK Transmitter

he simplest way to generate a GMSK signal is to pass a NRZ message bit stream through a
Gaussian baseband filter having an impulse response given in Equation (6.109), followed by an
FM modulator. This modulation technique is shown in Figure 6.42 and is currently used in a
variety of analog and digital implementations for the US Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD)
system as well as for the Global System for Mobile (GSM) system. Figure 6.42 may also be
implemented digitally using a standard I/Q modulator

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GMSK Receiver

GMSK signals can be detected using orthogonal coherent detectors as shown in Figure 6.43, or
with simple non-coherent detectors such as standard FM discriminators. Carrier recovery is
sometimes performed, where the sum of the two discrete frequency components contained at the
output of a frequency doubler is divided by four

De Buda’s method is similar to the Costas loop and is equivalent to that of a PLL with a
frequency doubler. This type of receiver can be easily implemented using digital logic as shown
in Figure 6.44. The two D flip-flops act as a quadrature product demodulator and the XOR gates
act as baseband multipliers. The mutually orthogonal reference carriers are generated using
two D flip-flops, and the VCO center frequency is set equal to four times the carrier center
frequency. A non-optimum, but highly effective method of detecting GMSK signal is to simply
sample the output of an FM demodulator.

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Performance of Digital Modulation in Slow Flat-Fading


Channels
Flat-fading channels cause a multiplicative (gain) variation in the transmitted signal s(t).
Since slow flat-fading channels change much slower than the applied modulation, it can be
assumed that the attenuation and phase shift of the signal is constant over at least one symbol
interval. Therefore, the received signal r(t) may be expressed as

where α(t) is the gain of the channel, θ(t) is the phase shift of the channel, and n(t) is additive
Gaussian noise.
Depending on whether it is possible to make an accurate estimate of the phase θ(t),
coherent or noncoherent matched filter detection may be employed at the receiver.
To evaluate the probability of error of any digital modulation scheme in a slow flat-fading
channel, one must average the probability of error of the particular modulation in AWGN
channels over the possible ranges of signal strength due to fading. In other words, the probability
of error in AWGN channels is viewed as a conditional error probability, where the condition is
that α is fixed. Hence, the probability of error in slow flat-fading channels can be obtained by

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averaging the error in AWGN channels over the fading probability density function. In doing so,
the probability of error in a slow flat-fading channel can be evaluated as

where Pe(X) is the probability of error for an arbitrary modulation at a specific value of signal-
to-noise ratio X,
X = α2Eb/N0, and p(X) is the probability density function of X due to the fading
channel. Eb and N0 are constants that represent the average energy per bit and noise power
density in a non-fading AWGN channel, and the random variable α2 is used to represent
instantaneous power values of the fading channel, with respect to the non-fadingEb/N0. It is
convenient to assume is one, for a unity gain fading channel. Then, p(X) can simply be
viewed as the distribution of the instantaneous value of Eb/N0 in a fading channel, and Pe(X)
can be seen to be the conditional probability of bit errors for a given value of the
random Eb/N0 due to fading.
For Rayleigh fading channels, the fading amplitude α has a Rayleigh distribution, so the
fading power α2 and consequently X have a chi-square distribution with two degrees of freedom.
Therefore,

where is the average value of the signal-to-noise ratio. For , note


that Γ corresponds to the average Eb/N0 for the fading channel.
By using above Equation and the probability of error of a particular modulation scheme
in AWGN, the probability of error in a slow flat-fading channel can be evaluated. It can be
shown that for coherent binary PSK and coherent binary FSK,

It can also be shown that the average error probability of DPSK and orthogonal non-
coherent FSK in a slow, flat, Rayleigh fading channel are given by

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For large values of Eb/N0 (i.e., large values of X), the error probability Equations may be
simplified as

Rayleigh fading BER is given by

where

As seen from above Equations for lower error rates all five modulation techniques exhibit
an inverse algebraic relation between error rate and mean SNR. This is in contrast with the
exponential relationship between error rate and SNR in an AWGN channel.
However, it can easily be shown that the poor error performance is due to the non-zero
probability of very deep fades, when the instantaneous BER can become as low as 0.5.
Significant improvement in BER can be achieved by using efficient techniques such as diversity
or error control coding to totally avoid the probability of deep fades,

Digital Modulation in Frequency Selective Mobile Channels


Frequency selective fading caused by multipath time delay spread causes inter symbol
interference, which results in an irreducible BER floor for mobile systems. However, even if a
mobile channel is not frequency selective, the time-varying Doppler spread due to motion creates
an irreducible BER floor due to the random spectral spreading. These factors impose bounds on

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the data rate and BER that can be transmitted reliably over a frequency selective channel.
Simulation is the major tool used for analyzing frequency selective fading effects.
The irreducible error floor in a frequency selective channel is primarily caused by the
errors due to the inter-symbol interference, which interferes with the signal component at the
receiver sampling instants. This occurs when (a) the main (undelayed) signal component is
removed through multipath cancellation, (b) a non-zero value of d causes ISI, or (c) the sampling
time of a receiver is shifted as a result of delay spread. Chuang observed that errors in a
frequency selective channel tend to be bursty. Based on the results of simulations, it is known
that for small delay spreads (relative to the symbol duration), the resulting flat fading is the
dominant cause of error bursts. For large delay spread, timing errors and ISI are the dominant
error mechanisms.
The average irreducible BER as a function of d for different unfiltered modulation
schemes using coherent detection. From the figure, it is seen that the BER performance of BPSK
is the best among all the modulation schemes compared. This is because symbol offset
interference (called cross-rail interference due to the fact that the eye diagram has multiple rails)
does not exist in BPSK. Both OQPSK and MSK have a T/2 timing offset between two bit
sequences, hence the cross-rail ISI is more severe, and their performances are similar to QPSK.

Performance of π/4 DQPSK in Fading and Interference


The performance of π/4 DQPSK in the mobile radio environment. The channel is
modeled as a frequency selective, two-ray, Rayleigh fading channel with additive Gaussian noise
and co-channel interference (CCI). In addition, Thoma studied the effects of real-world multipath
channel data, and discovered that sometimes such channels induce poorer bit error rates than the
two-ray Rayleigh fading model. Based on the analysis and simulation results, numerical
computations were carried out to evaluate the bit error rates at different multipath delays between
the two rays, at different vehicle speeds (i.e., different Doppler shifts), and various co-channel
interference levels. BER was calculated and analyzed as a function of the following parameters:
The Doppler spread normalized to the symbol rate: BDTs or BD/Rs
Delay of the second multipath , normalized to the symbol duration: /T
Ratio of average carrier energy to noise power spectral density in decibels: Eb/N0 dB
Average carrier to interference power ratio in decibels: C/I dB
Average main-path to delayed-path power ratio: C/D dB

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Fung, Thoma, and Rappaport developed a computer simulator called BERSIM (Bit Error
Rate SIMulator) that confirmed the analysis by Liu and Feher [Liu91]. The BERSIM concept,
covered under US Patent No. 5,233,628, is shown in Figure .

Figure 6.56. The BERSIM concept: (a) Block diagram of actual digital
communication system; (b) block diagram of BERSIM using a baseband digital hardware
simulator with software simulation as a driver for real-time BER control (US Patent
5,233,628).
Figure shows a plot of the average probability of error of a US digital cellular π/4
DQPSK system as a function of carrier-to-noise ratio (C/N) for different co-channel interference
levels in a slow Rayleigh flat-fading channel. In a slow flat-fading channel, the multipath time
dispersion and Doppler spread are negligible, and errors are caused mainly by fades and co-
channel interference. It is clearly seen that for C/I>20 dB, the errors are primarily due to fading,
and interference has little effect. However, as C/I drops to below 20 dB, interference dominates
the link performance. This is why high-capacity mobile systems are interference limited, not
noise limited.
In mobile systems, even if there is no time dispersion and if C/N is infinitely large, the
BER does not decrease below a certain irreducible floor. This irreducible error floor is due to the
random FM caused by the Doppler spread, Thus, once a certain Eb/N0 is achieved, there can be
no further improvement in link performance due to motion. shows the BER of the US digital

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cellular π/4-DQPSK system in a two-ray Rayleigh fading channel for vehicle speeds of 40 km/hr
and 120 km/hr, and with extremely large SNR (Eb/N0 = 100 dB).
The average bit error rate in the channel is important for speech coders. As a general
rule, 10−2 channel bit error rate is needed for modem speech coders to work properly. Notice also
that at /T = 0.1, the probability of error is well below 10−2, even when the second multipath
component is equal in power to the first.

OFDM
Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) is a modulation scheme that is especially
suited for high-data-rate transmission in delay-dispersive environments. It converts a high-rate
data stream into a number of low-rate streams that are transmitted over parallel, narrowband
channels that can be easily equalized.

Principle of Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing


OFDM splits a high-rate data stream into N parallel streams, which are then transmitted
by modulating N distinct carriers (henceforth called subcarriers or tones). Symbol duration on
each subcarrier thus becomes larger by a factor of N. In order for the receiver to be able to
separate signals carried by different subcarriers, they have to be orthogonal. Conventional
Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), as described in Section 17.1 and depicted again in
Figure 19.1, can achieve this by having large (frequency) spacing between carriers. This,
however, wastes precious spectrum. A much narrower spacing of subcarriers can be achieved.
Specifically, let subcarriers be at the frequencies fn = nW/N, where n is an integer, and W the
total available bandwidth; in the most simple case, W = N/Ts. We furthermore assume for the
moment that modulation on each of the subcarriers is Pulse Amplitude Modulation (PAM) with
rectangular basis pulses. We can then easily see that subcarriers are mutually orthogonal, since
the relationship

Holds

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Figure 19.1 shows this principle in the frequency domain. Due to the rectangular shape of
pulses in the time domain, the spectrum of each modulated carrier has a sin(x)/x shape. The
spectra of different modulated carriers overlap, but each carrier is in the spectral nulls of all other
carriers. Therefore, as long as the receiver does the appropriate demodulation (multiplying by
exp(−j2πfnt ) and integrating over symbol duration), the data streams of any two subcarriers will
not interfere.

Implementation of Transceivers
OFDM can be interpreted in two ways: one is an “analog” interpretation following from
the picture of Figure 19.2a. As discussed in Section 19.2, we first split our original data stream
into N parallel data streams, each of which has a lower data rate. We furthermore have a number
of local oscillators (LOs) available, each of which oscillates at a frequency fn = nW/N, where n =
0, 1, . . .,N − 1. Each of the parallel data streams then modulates one of the carriers. This picture
allows an easy understanding of the principle, but is ill suited for actual implementation – the
hardware effort of multiple local oscillators is too high.
An alternative implementation is digital . It first divides the transmit data into blocks of N
symbols. Each block of data is subjected to an Inverse Fast Fourier Transformation (IFFT), and
then transmitted (see Figure 19.2b). This approach is much easier to implement with integrated
circuits. In the following, we will show that the two approaches are equivalent.

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Now, this is nothing but the inverse Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) of the transmit
symbols. Therefore, the transmitter can be realized by performing an Inverse Discrete Fourier
Transform (IDFT) on the block of transmit symbols (the blocksize must equal the number of
subcarriers).In almost all practical cases, the number of samples N is chosen to be a power of 2,

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and the IDFT is realized as an IFFT. In the following, we will only speak of IFFTs and Fast
Fourier Transforms (FFTs).
Note that the input to this IFFT is made up of N samples (the symbols for the different
subcarriers), and therefore the output from the IFFT also consists of N values. These N values
now have to be transmitted, one after the other, as temporal samples – this is the reason why we
have a P/S (Parallel to Serial) conversion directly after the IFFT. At the receiver, we can reverse
the process: sample the received signal, write a block of N samples into a vector – i.e., an S/P
(Serial to Parallel) conversion – and perform an FFT on this vector. The result is an estimate ˜ cn
of the original data cn.

Cyclic Prefix

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The OFDM system is thus represented by a number of parallel non dispersive, fading
channels, each with its own complex attenuation H(n/WN) Equalization of the system thus
becomes exceedingly simple: it just required division by the transfer function at the subcarrier
frequency, independently for each subcarrier. In other words, the cyclic prefix has recovered the
orthogonality of the subcarriers. Two caveats have to be noted: (i) we assumed in the derivation
that the channel is static for the duration of the OFDM symbol. If this assumption is not fulfilled,
interference between the subcarriers can still occur (see Section 19.7); (ii) discarding part of the
received signal decreases the Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR), as well as spectral efficiency. For
usual operating parameters (cyclic prefix about 10% of symbol duration), this loss is tolerable.
The block diagram of an OFDM system, including the cyclic prefix, is given in Figure
19.4. The original data stream is S/P converted. Each block of N data symbols is subjected to an
IFFT, and then the last NTcp/TS samples are prepended. The resulting signal is modulated onto a
(single) carrier and transmitted over a channel, which distorts the signal and adds noise. At the
receiver, the signal is partitioned into blocks. For each block, the cyclic prefix is stripped off, and
the remainder is subjected to an FFT. The resulting samples (which can be interpreted as the
samples in the frequency domain) are “equalized” by means of one-tap equalization – i.e.,
division by the complex channel attenuation – on each carrier.

Peak-to-Average Power Ratio (PAPR)


One of the major problems of OFDM is that the peak amplitude of the emitted signal can
be considerably higher than the average amplitude. This Peak-to-Average Ratio (PAR) issue
originates from the fact that an OFDM signal is the superposition of N sinusoidal signals on
different subcarriers. On average the emitted power is linearly proportional to N. However,
sometimes, the signals on the subcarriers add up constructively, so that the amplitude of the

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signal is proportional to N, and the power thus goes with N2. We can thus anticipate the (worst
case) power PAR to increase linearly with the number of subcarriers.
There are three main methods to deal with the Peak-to-Average Power Ratio (PAPR):
1. Put a power amplifier into the transmitter that can amplify linearly up to the possible
peak value of the transmit signal. This is usually not practical, as it requires expensive and
power-consuming class-A amplifiers. The larger the number of subcarriers N, the more difficult
this solution becomes.
2. Use a nonlinear amplifier, and accept the fact that amplifier characteristics will lead to
distortions in the output signal. Those nonlinear distortions destroy orthogonality between
subcarriers, and also lead to increased out-of-band emissions (spectral regrowth – similar to
third-order intermodulation products – such that the power emitted outside the nominal band is
increased). The first effect increases the BER of the desired signal while the latter effect causes
interference to other users and thus decreases the cellular capacity of an OFDM system.This
means that in order to have constant adjacent channel interference we can trade off power
amplifier performance against spectral efficiency (note that increased carrier separation
decreases spectral efficiency).
3. Use PAR reduction techniques.
Peak-to-Average Ratio Reduction Techniques
Some of the approaches are as follows
1. Coding for PAR reduction: under normal circumstances, each OFDM symbol can
represent one of 2N codewords (assuming BPSK modulation). Now, of these codewords only a
subset of size 2K is acceptable in the sense that its PAR is lower than a given threshold. Both the
transmitter and the receiver know the mapping between a bit combination of length K, and the
codeword of length N that is chosen to represent it, and which has an admissible PAR. The
transmission scheme is thus the following: (i) parse the incoming bitstream into blocks of length
K; (ii) select the associated codeword of length N; (iii) transmit this codeword via the OFDM
modulator. The coding scheme can guarantee a certain value for the PAR. It also has some
coding gain, though this gain is smaller than for codes that are solely dedicated to error
correction.
2. Phase adjustments: this scheme first defines an ensemble of phase adjustment vectors
φl, l = 1, . . . , L, that are known to both the transmitter and receiver; each vector has N entries

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{φn}l . The transmitter then multiplies the OFDM symbol to be transmitted cn by each of these
phase vectors to get

receiver can then undo phase adjustment and demodulate the OFDM symbol. This method has
the advantage that the overhead is rather small (at least as long as L stays within reasonable
bounds); on the downside, it cannot guarantee to keep the PAR below a certain level.
3. Correction by multiplicative function: another approach is to multiply the OFDM
signal by a time-dependent function whenever the peak value is very high. The simplest example
for such an approach is the clipping we mentioned in the previous subsection: if the signal attains
a level sk >A0, it is multiplied by a factor A0/sk. In other words, the transmit signal becomes

A less radical method is to multiply the signal by a Gaussian function centered at times when the
level exceeds the threshold:

Multiplication by a Gaussian function of variance 2 t in the time domain implies


convolution with a Gaussian function in the frequency domain with variance 2 f = 1/(2π 2 t ).
Thus, the amount of out-of-band interference can be influenced by the judicious choice of 2 t .
On the downside, we find that the ICI (and thus BER) caused by this scheme is significant.
4. Correction by additive function: in a similar spirit, we can choose an additive, instead
of a multiplicative, correction function. The correction function should be smooth enough not to
introduce significant out-of-band interference. Furthermore, the correction function acts as
additional pseudo noise, and thus increases the BER of the system.

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Wireless LAN

• Goal - replace cabling


• Access to internet
• Higher flexibility to ad-hoc communications

Advantages
• Flexible within the reception area
• Ad-hoc networks without previous planning possible
• No wiring difficulties
• More robust against disasters

Disadvantages
Very low bandwidth (1-10 Mbps)
Restrictions are more
Safety and security is less

1. IEEE 802.11 Architecture

• IEEE 802.11 – simple and robust WLAN


• Time bounded & Asynchronous services
• Wireless networks – 2 system architectures
• Infrastructure based & ad-hoc

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System Architecture

• Components
• Stations (STA)
• Access Point (AP)

• Stations – radio contact – AP


• Stations + AP – same radio coverage – form Basic Service Set (BSS)
• BSS – connected by Distribution System (DS)
• DS – more BSS to AP – form single network – coverage ↑
• Network with extended coverage – Extended Service Set (ESS)
• ESS – ESSID – Network name
• Without ESSID – no participation
• DS – uses portal – connect other networks

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2. IEEE 802.11 Services

Station services – AP , Stations

1. Authentication - Login
2. De-authentication - Logout
3. Privacy
4. Data delivery

Distribution services - BSS

1. Association - logical connection between the AP to the station


2. Reassociation - Similar to the association
3. Disassociation - Manually disconnect
4. Distribution - AP forwarding using the DS

3. Medium Access Control


IEEE 802.11 MAC layer – 3 functional areas
Reliable data delivery
Medium Access Control
Security

Medium Access Control

ub layer of the Data Link Layer

• MAC sub-layer - interface - LLC & physical layer

• Full-duplex logical communication

• Unicast, multicast or broadcast communication service.

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MAC Algorithms – 2 proposals


Distributed Access Protocols
Centralised Access Protocols

Distributed Access Protocols – Carrier Sense Mechanism


Centralised Access Protocols – Central decision maker

Distributed Coordination Function (DCF)

CSMA
NO CSMA/CD – not practical
Set of delays
IFS
Exponential Backoff
Binary Exponential Backoff

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MAC Logic

4. MAC Timing
3 Values of IFS
Short IFS (SIFS)
Point coordination function IFS (PIFS)
Distributed coordination function IFS (DIFS)

SIFS – Shortest – immediate response

PIFS – midlength – issuing polls

DIFS – longest – delay for contending frames

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Basic Access Method

Point coordination Function (PCF) :


Access method
Centralized polling master – point coordinator
Point coordinator – PIFS – issues poll

Eg : Wireless network
Point coordinator – issue poll – round robin fashion – station respond
SIFS – point coordinator – another poll with PIFS – no response – waits
for a time – issues poll – locks traffic with polls - so Super frame
Concept

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PCF Superframe Construction

5. MAC Frame

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MAC Frame :
Frame control
Duration / connection ID - time
Addresses
Sequence Control
Frame Body – data / fragment of data
Frame Check Sequence
Protocol Version - 0
Type – control / Management / data
Subtype
To DS – 1 = frame to DS
From DS
More Fragments
Retry - retransmission

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Control Frames
Power Save – Poll (PS-Poll)
RTS
CTS
Acknowldgement
Contention-Free (CF) end
CF-End + CF-Ack

Data Frames
Data
Data + CF-Ack
Data + CF-Poll
Data + CF-Ack + CF-Poll

Management Frames
Association Request
Association Response
Reassociation Request
Reassociation Response
Probe request
Probe response
Beacon
Announcement traffic Indication Message
Dissociation
Authentication
Deauthentication

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6. IEEE 802.11 Physical Layer

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Feature writing

Unlike a news story, a feature article seeks to look deeper giving readers a wider perspective

Before you write

Consider your audience

- Who they are

- What do they like;

- What is their level of understanding

Understaning your topic

- Read, research

- Visit people, places

[If you are writing about homeless people, visit such people, see the places they stay, find out hy
they stay where they stay, talk to cops, talk to experts NGOs etc.]

- Facts and stats

- Contact experts

[Make sure you know what you are writing about. Read about it. Talk to people about it. Talk to
experts.

Never ever write about something you do not understand. Not even a word that you don’t
understand should be in your piece.---after you submit an article, your editor may call you and
ask you clarifications on a few things and then if he/she realizes that you have no idea about
what you have written, do not be offended if the editor throws the piece on your face.]

Know why you write

- Inform,

- Entertain,

- Call to action, provoke

[Ask your editor what kind of article you are expected to write. There is no point working on an
article and then your editor turning it down.]

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Once you have settled for a topic that you think your readers are interested and your editor
approved, then…

Consider your angle

- Even if you are considering an old topic, you can make it a good read if you have a new angle

- In the internet era it is tough to find topics that are not written about

- So, its all about looking at it from a different perspective

Lead

[Just like news, lead is importat in features too]

- Tease a little, arouse curiosity…have a mystery

- Start with a story, an anecdote, a question

- Make the readers want more

[Make sure the langauge is simple and the stories and everything else you use in the lead is
relevnt to the story]

The body

-Follow from the lead

-The flow – continuty between sentences and paragraphs

-Back your story with facts and figures

- Organise your story well

-Subheads when necessary

- Don’t repeat yourself

The language

-Know your audience an write for them

- Simple, clear, articulate

- Explain foreign phrases, words if you use them

- Strong verbs and nouns

Quotes

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-Makes your story more credible

-Multiple voices even if you may not agree with some of them

-Argue for and against your topic

-Don’t invent people

[just because you can’t find a person you should not write something and attribute it to someone.
It can land you in huge trouble]

READ, READ, READ

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News

News is anything that is interesting, that relates to what is happening in the world

Timing

Proximity

Prominence

[Now, this is just to get us started. We all see news, read it, hear it…so a definition serves no real
purpose]

Where do you collect news from?

-Observation

[You actually see the event taking place. Use your eyes, ears, mind tape recorder, mobile phone,
camera, notebooks. Well, you may not be the only reporter on the scene. But if you are a keen
observer, you will pick up more than the others]

- Research

[Digging out information from the available sources…files, records, experts and people. But
even for this it is important that you read and observe what is happening around]

-News conferences

[When you are reporting for a magazine or news paper you have your beat- a specific area you
are assigned to cover like sports, politics, crime, business etc. If there are anything happening,
lets say an improvement in Jayalalithaa’s health or there is a new cricket match of movie coming
up, there will be a press conference arranged where a spokesperson will share the information
with the reporters]

- Interviews, sources

[It is important to meet people and talk to them to get news. Interviewing people who are news
makers is a sure way to get an exclusive- a news story that no other news paper or TV channel
have received.]

[Sources are people who may have access to information that nobody else have. If you are a
crime reporters, your sources could be the policemen, lawyers etc…sports, films, politics every
beat has such sources. It is important for a journalist to cultivate and maintain sources]

So, before you start writing news, you need to know the news

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Find your angle

- Pick the most interesting/relevant aspect of the story in hand

- Point that adds to an existing story or event

- New development or progress

- Human interest

- Controversy [During an interview or a press conference, the speaker may say a lot of things.
Try to pick a controversial part to develop the story-if that is relevant to your readers and if your
editor agrees to it]

- Consequence [What will be the consequence of a story you have noticed-a political
development, transfer of a player etc.]

Once you have collected news and found your angle, the next thing is writing news

A great lead

- The first, and most important, paragraph of any news story

- Place the newest, most interesting, most important, most attention-grabbing aspect of the story
in the lead

- Great chance to grab the readers' attention

- The main points of the story in no more than 35-40 words

[Why should the lead be short? Because the readers lose their interest soon]

- Interesting enough to make readers want more

[Have a good lead and your readers will read on. Or else you will move on to other stories. The
lead has to convey the main points of the story in no more than 35-40 words - and be interesting
enough to make readers want more. A boring lead will make sure that your efforts will be
wasted.

A lead should have

Who – who is the story about?

What – what is the story about?

Where – where did the event you’re writing about occur?

When – when did it occur?

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Why – why did this happen?

How – how did this happen?

If possible, avoid starting the story with a direct quote or a question

Write Tight

- Keep it short and to the point.

- Convey as much information as possible in as few words as possible

How can you learn to write tight? Write, read, edit

[Why Write Tight?

Readers typically are short on time. They want to be able to quickly scan a news article to
get the information they need.

Newspaper is a business. There will be ads on the page besides the photos and headlines.
So the space available to you is limited. Naturally, the editors will want to pack in as
much information in fewer words. If you do it yourself, you can be sure that the things
that you consider important aren't lost when editors edit it.]

Keep it simple

-Choose right words

(A news story is not the place to try and impress people with your command of the language.
Write in simple language. Nobody will call you a good write because you used a few words that
they did not understand. Too many complicated words and sentences will turn your readers off
and turn them away.)

- Expand the abbreviations the first time you use it

- No foreign words or phrases

- Simple, short sentences

- Use short paragraphs. Just one idea in a paragraph

[Short paragraphs are easier for readers to follow on the page. And stories with short paragraphs
are easier for editors on tight deadlines to cut if needed. Two or three sentence in a para]

- Do not use too many numbers and figures. It might confuse the reader

- Use active voice as it is easier to understand

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- Try not to use too many clichés or jargons—if you use them, explain them

(Words that is commonly used by a sector on people, but others may not understand)

[The nine to five – a business jargon that means a standard work day. Blue sky thinking means
imaginary procedure without practical application. The ashes means a series between the
England and Australia. Duckworth Lewis system is a common jargon used in cricket]

Try to put yourself in the place of the reader

EXMPLE

President Pranab Mukherjee, who was suffering from a cold, which he caught last week in
United States, signed the treaty, which he had originally opposed, because he said the changes
that had been made were good.

President Pranab Mukherjee had originally opposed the treaty. However, he signed it, saying the
changes that had been made were good. At the ceremony he was suffering from a cold that he
caught last week in United States.

Structure it right

- The inverted pyramid is the structural model for news writing

- The most important information at the top – the beginning – of the story, and the least
important information at the bottom.

- Never give important information at the end. A news story is not a novel where the climax is
revealed at the end

[This is for two reasons.

For busy readers who may not have time to read the whole story. He/she may read only the first
few paragraphs and move on two the next story.

For the editor. He/will be forced to trim down your piece for making it suitable for the news
paper taking into consideration the page...(show them a newspaper with the ad and explain how
it is done)

- Provide background information if necessary

[Example

Let’s say you’re writing a story about a fire in which two people are killed and their house is
burned down. In your reporting you’ve gathered a lot of details including the victims’ names, the

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address of their home, what time the blaze broke out, etc. Obviously the most important
information is the fact that two people died in the fire.

That’s what you want at the top of your story.

Other details – the names of the deceased, the address of their home, when the fire occurred –
should certainly be included. But they should be placed lower down in the story, not at the very
top.

And the least important information - things like what the weather was like at the time, or the
color of the home - should be at the very bottom of the story.]

Use the best quotes

So you’ve done a long interview with a source and have pages of notes. But chances are you’ll
only be able to fit a few quotes from that lengthy interview into your article. Which ones should
you use? Reporters often talk about using only “good” quotes for their stories, but what does this
mean? Basically, a good quote is when someone says something interesting, and says it in an
interesting way.

- A good quote, like good writing, evokes images in the reader’s mind and grabs their attention

- Makes your story credible

[quotes from different people provide different perspectives to your story.]

-Do not make it scripted

-The quote should be spontaneous

-Attribute the quote

- Do not give an incomplete/unclear quote or one that’s filled with factual errors.

[If there is an unclear quote but one that conveys something really important, paraphrase it in
your own words. But of course, attribute]

[The quote should be easy to understand. It should also grab the attention of the reader. Yes, you
will need to give a boring quote when an expert opinion is required for a particular piece.]

- Do not ever have profane or offensive quotes

[Most news organisations have policies banning or limiting the use of vulgar or offensive speech
in news stories. So, if a source you’re interviewing starts swearing, don't quote them.]

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Story should follow the lead

-Logical coherence

[The sequence of events should follow from the lead. So if the lead of your story focuses on the
fact that two people were killed in the house fire, the paragraphs that immediately follow the lead
should elaborate on that fact. You wouldn't want the second or third paragraph of the story to
discuss the weather at the time of the fire.

-Do not contradict yourself

Edit yourself

-Read your story and edit it before sending it to your editor

- Check for factual errors

- Trim down sentences, remove unnecessary words, adjectives

- Take care of your grammar, spellings and punctuations

[Now, read again and see if there are any words or sentences that you can do without]

[Take care of your grammar, spellings and punctuations; of course your editor will look into
these. But it’s not a great idea to look uninformed in front of your editor

Follow up

-Your responsibility does not end with writing about an issue

- See if your story has created any impact. If not write about it again. From a different angle

[Okay, so you have written about the bad roads once. Don't leave it there. See if your article has
created any impact. If not, write about it again, from a different angle of course.]

Now, the headline

- Catchy, easy to understand, engaging

- Should evoke curiosity

- Should provide the most important aspect of the story

- Drag the reader into your story

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Put it before them briefly so they will read it, clearly so they will appreciate it picturesquely
so that they will remember it and, above all, accurately so they will be guided by it

Joseph Pulitzer

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Short story

- A story with a fully developed theme but significantly shorter and less elaborate than a novel

Before you write

-Have an idea

-Plan your plot

-Plan your characters

-Do your research

[Just because you are writing fiction, that does not mean you can make factual errors. Know about
whatever you are writing. If your story is about a hospital, college or anything, learn about how it
functions]

Where to get the idea

- Ideas come from anywhere

-A Facebook post

- A news clipping

-Conversation with a friend or even a stranger

- An incident in your life or the life of someone you know

- A journey

The first para

- Pull the reader into your story with your first line

(Know that there are thousands, lakhs of writers out there. If someone has to pick you up and read you,
you need to be interesting…they will throw away the moment you fail to grab the interest.

-Don’t wait for the perfect line, but begin to write

[Rewrite and edit. Once you have a clear idea, you will get that great line that you always wanted]

Example

A. I heard my neighbor shout


B. The neighbor behind us practiced scream therapy in his shower almost every day)

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C. The first time I heard him, I stood in the bathroom listening at our shared wall for ten minutes,
debating the wisdom of calling the police. It was very different from living in the apartment over
middle-aged Mr. and Mrs. Raj and their two young sons

The characters

-Make them unique, embrace idiosyncrasies

[People behave rationally only part of the time; the rest of the time we take stupid risks and do other
things we can’t explain.]

[The challenge is to show a lifetime in a few words. Even if you are writing about a day in a person's life]

- Make your characters lively...they need not be relatable, but they need to be real

[Unless you are creating an alternative universe...unless you are in GoT world]

-Memorable

[Give at least one character for your readers to take home]

-Every person in the story should serve a purpose

[Don’t create a character without any aim or purpose]

- Do not crowd. Don't bring in more characters than you can deal with

The dialogue

-Progress your story through dialogues

-Clear and simple

-No two people should sound the same

-Use different styles of speaking/slangs

- Read the dialogues aloud. Ask yourself, will this person really say this

Go beyond the senses

-Use body language

-Make them convey messages without actually talking

Surprise

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- Twists and turns make your story more interesting

- Kill a character if needed

- Be unpredictable

- Leave the reader thinking - perhaps with a surprise twist

- See Things Differently. Experiment with your short story, break conventions

After writing

-Take a break

- Read it again the next day and you will come up with something interesting

-Edit

-Before sending it for publishing or posting it somewhere, make someone else read it

Read! Stephen King said, “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have time to write.

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Travel writing

Writing about places, persons, things in other places

- Advice on when to travel


- How to travel
- Where to stay
All these based on your experience

Before you write

-Know your audience

[Are you writing for students, working professionals or people who want to go on a family vacation? If
you have a specific audience, then write to suit them]

-Know who you are

[Are you a woman travelling alone through China? Then that may be your angle, your expertise. Perhaps
you are a woman physician travelling alone through China. Suddenly more markets open up. You can
write from the independent female traveller's angle or from that of a physician, or both, simultaneously.
Are you a culinary expert who loves the tastes of the countries you visit? Lots of newspapers have food
sections and there are many magazines dedicated to scrumptious stories from around the globe.]

-Know why you write

[If you are writing a blog it may be just to share your experience. But if you are writing for a travel
magazine or news paper, you would be writing to inform, entertain or even to attract tourists to the
destination]

-Do your research

[Just because you visited a place, it does not mean that you know all about the place. The history and
other such details you will be able to write only if you have done your research]

-Talk to people

[Travel writing isn t all about the places. It is also about the people you met. In order to write about the
people you should first talk to them]

-Have a clear storyline

[A trip is not a story in itself, it s just a series of events. Some of these events will be interesting (you
made it up Kilimanjaro!) and some will not]

Once all these are clear, sit down to write

A catchy opening paragraph

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-Drag your reader into the story with the first paragraph

- Use drama, humour, dialogue or all three

[But those first sentences must grip like glue. Most travel articles start in media res – in the thick of the
story – and then backtrack to explain how you happened to be in this situation]

-A strong – but brief – anecdote that introduces the general feeling, tone and point of the trip and story

-Aim to entertain, inform and not to impress

Write on

- Edit your experience to fit your story

[Stories have characters, dialogue, pace, plot, suspense, drama – they need shaping and organising to
hold the reader's attention. Once you know your storyline, gather the experiences that fit it – and dump
the rest. Most travel articles will be 1,000 to 2,000 words: that s only 10-20 paragraphs. You don t have
time for detours]

-1,000 to 2,000 words

-Avoid tales of personal mishaps – missed buses, sickness, rain

[Moments that affected you personally don't necessarily make interesting reading. Avoid tales of
personal mishaps – missed buses, diarrhoea, rain – unless pertinent to the story. Focus on telling the
reader something about the place, about an experience that they might have too if they were to repeat
the trip]

- Avoid cliches. Try to come up with original descriptions that mean something

-Avoid factual errors

The Language

-Write in the first person

- Past tense or present if the action really justifies it

-Make your story a personal account

- Facts, description and observation

-Subheads

-Paint a picture

[Travel articles are peppered with meaningless words and phrases: stunning, incredible, pretty, diverse;
land of contrasts , melting pot , bustling . Any of these could be applied to thousands of destinations

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worldwide. Try to use language that is specific to what you re describing, and which allows readers to
paint a picture in their mind s eye.]

The style

-A narrative that will run throughout the story

-Show and tell

[Slow down your writing and describe a scene in detail – what you saw, tasted, heard, felt: you are
showing the reader the world through your eyes. Telling is simply moving the story along: We returned
to the tents for a well-earned rest ]

-Casual, easy to read

- Include dialogue and quotes to make it lively

-Write economically – don't waste words on sentences that could be condensed

-Sound natural

[Don't try to be too clever or formal; the best writing sounds natural and has personality. It should
sound like you. Don't try to be "gonzo" or really hilarious, unless you're sure it's working]

-Interesting nuggets of information,

Perhaps things you've learned from talking to people, or in books or other research, but use reliable
sources and double-check they are correct]

TRVEL, READ, WRITE

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