Wednesday, October 30, 2019

How do affect and emotions influence decision making processes and how Essay

How do affect and emotions influence decision making processes and how might this in turn influence the design of a specified in - Essay Example If the situation is dangerous or bad, the brain induces a negative action to counter the bad feeling. Visceral level of the brain is captured by high arousal or increased adrenaline rush that is associated with danger. To most people visceral levels dominates reflective level of the brain. A behavioral level of the brain is concerned with daily behavior of an individual and is often unconscious. It is associated with effectiveness and pleasure of doing or using something. This level of the brain can be enhanced or inhibited by the reflective layer of the brain but it can influence the visceral level. The third level of the brain is reflective level. Reflective level is contemplative and concerns itself with rationalization and intellectualization. It does not control the behavior directly because it does not have direct access to sensory input. It controls behavior indirectly by influencing the behavioral level of the brain and competes with visceral level. Affect and emotions are cr itical in decision making. This is because they influence decision making process in various ways. People make decision based on both immediate and expected emotions. First, immediate emotions affect decision on the basis of good or bad experiences at that particular time when decisions are made. Immediate emotions are affective and affect decision making directly or indirectly. Decision making can be influenced directly as they are made. For example, if a person feel fearful at a time when he or she makes decision concerning his treatment approach, he or she is likely to choose a less risky treatment approach even if the most risky option has better results. Emotions can also affect decision made indirectly by changing desirability or probability expectations of an anticipated future result. For example when a patient is feeling happy, he or she is likely to choose a riskier treatment option that has better future outcome as compared with the less risky outcome with poor future out come (Kattan and Cowen, 2009). Immediate emotions are considered affect program emotions. They disrupt current actions and cognitive inputs making a person to alter his or her actions. Immediate emotions that influence decision making are categorized into negative and positive emotions. Negative emotions include anger, hate, anxiety, fear, worry and stress. Negative emotions make a person feel out of control. If a person has negative emotions, he or she is likely to make pessimistic, radical and aggressive decisions. Positive emotions include happiness, love, kindness and security. A person with positive emotions is more likely to make optimistic, cooperative and mild decisions. Immediate emotions change outcome or probability perceptions as well as the quantity and quality of processing relevant facts and signs for decisions. Secondly, expected emotions influence decision making. The emotional outcomes associated with a given decision affect decision making process. Often, people s elect actions that minimize negative emotions and maximize positive emotions. For example, a patient suffering from prostrate cancer may choose radiation treatment over surgical treatment because surgical treatment is likely to make him impotent. How it influence the design of specified interactive media production First, knowledge is embedded on human emotion, motivation and cognition space. As a result, the knowledge that is embedded in human emotion dictates persons’

Monday, October 28, 2019

The Coming of Age Essay Example for Free

The Coming of Age Essay Childhood is a time where children learn about the world around themselves. They see and experience many factors that influence their everyday lives, which help them grow stronger when they become adults. In â€Å"Girl† by Jamaica Kincaid and â€Å"The Lesson† by Toni Cade Bambara the characters within the stories learn valuable lesson with help them grow to become better individuals. In â€Å"The Lesson† the character of Sugar undergoes a realization that society does not treat everyone equally, that not every individual has the same opportunity and equality that they should have. In â€Å"Girl† the main character learns that she must be perceived as a woman and not as a slut, her mother brings to her attention of how the world is and what she must to do in order to survive in it. Lessons that children learn all help them grow to become better individuals, in â€Å"Girl† and â€Å"The Lesson† the lessons that the characters learn both help them grow to become better and stronger individuals. In â€Å"The Lesson† the character, Sugar undergoes a realization of the world around her, through her teacher Miss Moore, Sugar notices that there is a better way of living in the world besides, her own little world with her friends. Sugar says, â€Å"You know, Miss Moore, I don’t think that all of us here put together eat in a year what that sailboat costs,† (Bambara 452). Miss Moore is an African American woman who has broken through the expectation that society has placed on her class and on her color. Bambara presents Miss Moore as a very educated and intelligent woman, who has a college degree. With her knowledge Miss Moore sets out to educate the deprived and lower classed children and teach them of the world around them. She sets out to open their eyes, as well as their knowledge of the world around them. Miss Moore says, â€Å"Imagine for a minute what kind of society it is in which some people can spend on a toy what it would cost to feed a family of six or seven. What do you think? ,† (Bambara 452). Sugar’s realization of the world outside of her own, opens her mind to many questions that she never imagined before. She realizes that there is a better standard of living in the world and that society is not equal, as it should be, â€Å"I think, . . . that this is not much of a democracy if you ask me. Equal chance to pursue happiness means an equal crack at the dough, don’t it? ,† (Bambara 452). In this quotation Sugar realizes what Miss Moore set out to teach the lower classed and deprived children, her goal was to open their eyes and make them aware of how much more there is out there then making pocket change. â€Å"What kinda work they do and how they live and how come we ain’t in on it? Where we are is who we are, Miss Moore always pointin out. But it don’t necessarily have to be that way, she always adds then waits for somebody to say that poor people have to wake up and demand their share of the pie and place,† (Bambara 452). With her eyes wide open and with her mind curious and educated, Sugar and her friends realize that in order for them to get some where in life they have to work at it, but not as in individual but as a whole, a class. The only way for them to make a difference to change societies view of their class and become part of the rest of societies. In â€Å"Girl† Kincaid lists a series of orders from a mother to a daughter in such a way that the characters’ lives are illuminated and transformed by the mundane household details. The â€Å"Girl† is more of a gender type of a story, but there is also a lesson that needs to be realized by the girl. In this story the mother of this girl is her teacher, she tells her daughter of how the world is around her, just like Miss Moore in â€Å"The Lesson. † The mother in this story tries to make her daughter realize that he needs to be viewed as a woman within society. Who or what the daughter is on the inside can be for herself, but on the outside she cannot let her actions give and impression that she is a slut to society. The mother says, â€Å"this is how you smile to someone you like completely; this is how you set a table for tea; . . . this is how to behave in the presence of men who don’t know you very well, and this way they won’t recognize immediately the slut I have warned you against becoming, . . . † (Kincaid 33). As this story progresses the mother lists various chores and behaviors she must do in order for her to remain a woman and not be viewed as a slut, â€Å"be sure to wash everyday, . . . don’t squat down to play marbles-you are not a boy, you know, . . . † (Kincaid 33). In this story the girl wishes to rebel against what her mother wishes for her to do, but she dose not wish to be viewed as a slut, if she doesn’t do everything her mother has taught her. Mother says, â€Å"this is how to make ends meet; always squeeze bread to make sure it’s fresh; but what is the baker won’t let me feel the bread? ; you mean to say that after all you are really going to be the kind of woman who the baker won’t let near the bread? ,† (Kincaid 34). In this story an issue of gender arises, where a girl needs to be taught how to become a woman and not be viewed as a slut. The daughter in â€Å"Girl† wants to rebel against her mother and not be viewed as a slut to society, therefore hoping that society will not look down upon her, if she does not do everything that the mother has taught her that she must do. In the stories of the â€Å"Girl† and â€Å"The Lesson† different lessons are learned, but the common realization of the world around them is learned by the characters and how each of the characters must learn to rebel against societies views. This realization helps them grow smarter and stronger as they grow older and come of age, from childhood to adulthood. Society has set standards for individuals to live by, but it is up to those individuals to break away, or live by the standards and views of society. â€Å"It is not much of a democracy if you ask me. Equal chance to pursue happiness means an equal crack at the dough,† (Bambara 452). In reality, society has set standards for everyone to live by. Those who break away from it are look down upon if they fail, but if they succeed they are praised by, this may be the only way to change societies views of gender, class, and race; it is by succeeding in everything that you do.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Shakespeares Othello - The Character of Iago :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

The Character of Iago  Ã‚   There is no doubt in  «Ã‚  Othello  Ã‚ » as to the role Shakespeare has given  Iago, he is the villain, masterful at deceit he generates most evil in the play. The clever soldier, his incredible acting allows him to be two or three completely different people. During most of the Act the audience finds itself constantly trying to find a motive for Iago’s actions but finds none that can justify what he is about to do. What does seem to come back again and again is his view on women which he sees as sex rapacious and a danger to his machiavellian plans. Scene 1 offers us a good preview as to what Iago is going to do for the rest of the Act and ultimately the rest of the play. Our first view of Iago is of a hard deceitful man who says  «Ã‚  Sblood  Ã‚ » as opposed to Roderigo’s  «Ã‚  Tush!  Ã‚  Ã‚ », we see already his powers of deception as he explains how he is even worse off than Roderigo, his furious language:  «Ã‚  A fellow almost damned in a fair wife  Ã‚ » manages to convince the intellectual Roderigo who is presented along with Cassio in contrast to Iago. They are polite, educated, fairly wealthy and can not imagine that something as evil and motiveless as Iago exits. Iago has not only lost his promotion but also his hero in Othello. We sense the irony in  «Ã‚  We cannot all be masters, nor all masters can be truly followed  Ã‚ » and see that what Iago says he will do to Othello he is doing Roderigo, he is manipulating him. He gets a bit carried away in his speech about how he hates the Moor to the exte nt that some parts are hard to understand:    «Ã‚  Were I the Moor, I would not be Iago  Ã‚ » which might mean that if he was the Moor he would not like to be followed by Iago (himself) so that we see that although he might be exaggerating to justify taking more of Roderigo’s money he really hates Othello. We see how he enjoys playing the part of the villain and already wonder why Roderigo can’t see that Iago has insufficient motives to do what he wants to do to Othello, we aren’t sure what he plans to do but can tell that it involves extreme sufferance and maybe death. He also acknowledges here that he is not what he seems to be:  «Ã‚  I am not what I am  Ã‚ » which strengthens the impression we have had of him so far.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Evolution of thoughts in Scientific Management Essay

At the first stage where groups of people were insignificant, management in all spheres was carried out by one person – the leader of this group. Further, in process of group growth and complication of functions carried out by them, the necessity of labour division and group differentiation has appeared. But it couldn’t happen at once, it required centuries. The Egyptian pyramids build in 3000 – 2000 B.C. are a good example not only ancient Egyptian’s culture, but also their administrative art. Construction of huge pyramids demanded, first of all, precise planning. While the practice of management can be traced back to 3000 B.C., it was not given serious attention until 1800 when large organisations emerged. Industrial revolution has given a push to development of theoretical researches and management practices. However, till an epoch of capitalism function of management was carried out by the owner himself and a small group of the persons approached to him. The role of the specially trained managers developed during an epoch of monocapitalism. Having been faced with a competition, changeable environment, managers developed knowledge system of how it is better to use resources. During all history of management development we distinguish two approaches: classical and modern. Classical approach allows to allocate four patterns of management thought: 1898 Scientific management 1916 Administrative management 1920 Bureaucracy 1927 Human relations SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT Occurrence of scientific management takes place at the beginning of 20th century and is connected to F.W.Taylor’s name, Henri L.Gantt, Frank and Lilian Gilbreth. Scientific management focuses on worker and machine relationship. Organisational productivity can be increased by increasing the efficiency of production process. In 1911, Frederick Taylor, known as the Father of scientific management, published Principles of Scientific Management in which he proposed to design  work methods to increase productivity. One of his famous experiments was performed at Bethlehem Steel Company in Pittsburgh. He examined the time and movements, developed a better method for performing that job and trained the worker. In addition, Taylor offered a piece rate that increased as workers produced more. Taylor’s studies were followed by Gibreths, a husband and a wife, who also helped to find more efficient ways for workers to produce output. Frank Gilbreth made his contribution in the field of brick lying by changing an 18 step process into 5 step that led to increased productivity by about 200 percent. The Gibreths believed that were was one best way to perform an operation. However this â€Å"one best way† could be replaced when a better way was introduced. Other representative of Scientific Management was Henri Gantt. He developed a Gantt chart, which is used for scheduling multiple task over a time period. He developed a pay system with a guaranteed minimum wage and bonus systems for people on fixed wages and brought in a significant contribution to the leadership theory development. ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT Unlike Scientific Management which focused its attention on productivity, Administrative Management have engaged in development of management in the organisation as a whole and was concerned about administrative part of the organisation. The ancestor of this school was Henri Fayol. He worked as a mining engineer and came to realise that managing an enterprise required a lots of skills apart from technical ones. Henri Fayol was the first to identify the four management functions: Planning Organising Leading Controlling He also developed guidelines for managers to follow. These guidelines form fourteen principles for effective management. Other contributor to Administrative Management was Mary Parker Follet. She pointed out that all managers want flexibility, and she also distinguished between the motivation of individuals and groups. BUREAUCRACY Max Weber, known as a father of Modern Sociology, concentrated on how to structure an organisation for success. Weber outlined key elements of an ideal form of structure, which he believed would develop efficiency and called it bureaucracy. The bureaucratic structure had a number of important advantages for large organisations. The division of labour increased efficiently due to the continued repetition of the task. Hierarchy allowed developing a chain of command. Format selection meant that employees were hired on knowledge and experience and no other criteria would be used. Career orientation ensured that career professionals would give the organisation a degree of continuity in operations. Rules and procedures controlled employee performance. The impersonality of the organisation ensured that rules were applied across the board without personality or other influence getting in the way. HUMAN RELATIONS During the 1920s, an emphasis on the human side of the workplace began to influence management thinking. They started to realise that people are social and self-actualising. People at work are seemed to seek satisfying social relationships, respond to group pressures, and search for personal fulfilment. The human relations movement began with the Hawthorne Studies that were conducted at the Western Electric Company in Cicero 1924 -1933. The intention of these studies was to determine the effect of working conditions on productivity. The illumination experiments tried to determine whether better lighting would lead to increased productivity. Both the control group and the experimental group of female employees produced more whether the lights were turned up or down. It was discovered that this increased productivity was a result of the attention received by the group. In the relay assembly group experiments, six female employees worked in a special, separate area. They were given breaks and had the freedom to talk and were continuously observed by a researcher who served as the supervisor. Once again researches failed to find any direct relationship between changes in physical working conditions and output. Productivity increased regardless of the changes made. Two factors were set up as having special importance. One was the group atmosphere; the workers shared pleasant social relations with one another and wanted to do a good job. The other was more participative supervision. The workers were made to feel important, were given a lot of information, and were frequently asked for their opinions. It was not the case in their regular jobs. The final Hawthorne Study was conducted in the bank wiring room and centred on the role of the work group. A surprise finding here was that people would restrict their output in order to avoid the displeasure of the group. It was recognised that group can have strong negative, as well as positive influences on individual productivity. Two writers who helped advance the human relation movement were Abraham Maslow and Douglas McGregor. In 1943, Maslow advanced a theory suggesting that people are motivated by a hierarchy of needs. Which are physiological, safety, social, esteem and self-actualisation needs. People try to satisfy the five needs in sequence. They progress step by step from the lowest up to the highest. Meanwhile Douglas McGregor represents Theory X and Theory Y. According to McGregor, managers holding Theory X believe that those who work for them generally dislike work, lack ambitions, are irresponsible and prefer to be led rather than to lead. While in the Theory Y managers believe that people willing to work are capable of self-control, are willing to accept responsibility, are imaginative and creative. CONCLUSIONS Scientific Management Analysis of the past allows a better understanding of the present to predict the future Scientific Management improved people’s productivity at work by reducing number of motions choosing one best way to perform the task. However, Scientific Management was not without its critics. Taylor assumed that people were motivated only by money and ignored social and psychological factors. Also, Scientific Management techniques often resulted in lay-offs and it led to job losses. Relationship between the organisation and environment wasn’t taken to attention. Despite these criticisms, we use some of scientific techniques nowadays. For instance, on factory that produces mobile phones, the whole production mechanism is broken down to small tasks. The workers are guided by carefully calculated standards. They know how many details they should approximately produce per hour. Each movement is chosen carefully in order to reduce excess motions. I have been working in a hotel industry for three years. The scientific management techniques have been used in my department as well. To make checking in and out more efficient everyone had his or her own best way of performing the task. Administrative Management. Nowadays Faylol’s five main functions gained widespread recognition. Let’s take a hotel, for instance. Managers have to make plans for the future, organise short-term plans, co-ordinate recourses and finances, and control plans get their goals. In the Royal Bayswater Hotel, where I worked, manager’s aim was to get a â€Å"Service Excellence Award.† They planed to increase service by: training the staff; paying more attention to internal customers because â€Å"happy staff is happy customers† and by trying to exceed customer’s expectations. During all this process managers were controlling if everything was following the plans. And as a result to everybody’s effort the hotel has been awarded with â€Å"Best Excellence Service Award† Bureaucracy While the term Bureaucracy has a negative meaning some of its elements are still relevant. In the earlier mentioned hotel, for example, staff is selected and promoted on ability to perform the task. Workers are career orientated. In order to obtain the organisational objectives procedures are measured and performed according to the organisational rules and standards. Standards and rules applied without personal influence. Human Relations Until the late 20th human relationship hasn’t been taken to serious consideration. It has only been  after Hawthorne Experiments, the improvement of relations between all levels has been accepted as a very important element in the development and improvement of any organisation . This is still have a great importance  nowadays. The job of the manager in the workplace is to get things done through employees. To do this the manager should be able to encourage, teach, control, motivate and lead people. But that easier said than done. At my place of work there were different people with different needs. While some of them were satisfied with physiological and safety needs, the others there seeking for recognition from others, self-control and actualisation. So managers couldn’t expect a good performance at work if an individual’s needs haven’t been satisfied. We also had two types of managers. 1 Those who followed Theory X assumption 2 Those who followed Theory Y assumption As for me it was more difficult to work who doesn’t give you much freedom for your thoughts, and things that supervision is a necessity. On the other hand, it was a pleasure to work with someone who allows more flexibility, and thinks that control and punishment are not the only ways to make people work. As a result they got more commitment to the organisation. LIST OF REFERENCES 1 â€Å"Management†Stephen P. Robbinsons, Mary Coulter, 7 edition 2 â€Å"Management† John R. Schermerhorn, JR. 8 edition 3 â€Å"Management† John R. Schermerhorn, JR. 7 edition 4†³Management† Ricky W. Griffin 7 edition 5 â€Å"Modern Management† Siobhan D. Tiernan, Michael J. Morley, Edel Foley www.sfsu.edu/~erich/slides2/-5k www.ee.uwa.edu.au/~ccroft/em333/leca02.html-12k www.evolutionevent.co.uk/-2k

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Metaphor: exam[les of using Essay

A metaphor is the use of something familiar to understand something less familiar. For instance, if a news report says â€Å"unemployment went down this month,† the familiar feeling of â€Å"going down† helps everyone to understand that the number of people looking for work has reduced. Metaphors are more common than many people think. If you look up the origin of almost any word in the dictionary, you will find a metaphor if you go back far enough. Some psychologists suggest that all of our thinking comes from metaphors, based on how our senses allow us to perceive everyday experiences. In this activity, you will use what you have learned about perception and the embodied mind to make discoveries about how you think. Please answer in complete sentences. Part 1 1. Which of your everyday physical experiences tell you that this hand isn’t actually holding a cloud? How did you learn that clouds are too far away to touch? (5 points) 2. What is the principle of perception that supports the idea that your brain expects that the puff of white between the fingers is a cloud; that is much farther away than the hand? (5 points) 3. Imagine that you are in the scene shown here. You are on a beach, looking out. In the two-track mind model, what are two examples of what the brain is doing on the unconscious level, and what are two examples of what the brain is doing on the conscious level? (10 points) Part 2 1. Think of the concept of leadership. a. What picture comes to your mind when you think, â€Å"leadership†? (3 points) b. What past experiences have you had that make you think of this? (3 points) c. How did your perceptual set and two-track mind contribute to these experiences? (4 points) 2. Think of the concept of unjust. a. What picture comes to your mind when you think, â€Å"unjust†? (3 points) b. What past experiences have you had that make you think of this? (3 points) c. How did your perceptual set and two-track mind contribute to these experiences? (4 points) 3. Think of any concept you have learned about from experience, one where you remember a particular event in your life that helped you learn what this concept meant. a. What picture comes to your mind when you think of that concept? (3 points) b. What past experiences have you had that give you this picture? (3 points) c. How did your perceptual set and two-track mind contribute to these experiences?

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Idioms with Compare

Idioms with Compare Idioms with Compare Idioms with Compare By Maeve Maddox The verb compare comes from Latin comparare, â€Å"to pair together, couple, match, bring together.† It occurs in four common English idioms. to compare someone or something to someone or something to compare someone or something with someone or something to compare notes on something or someone to compare apples and oranges compare with or to Many speakers use â€Å"compare to† and â€Å"compare with† interchangeably; doing so is not an error. However, many writers observe a difference between the two. The Chicago Manual of Style does not state the difference as a rule, but does mention it in the section called â€Å"Good usage versus common usage: To compare with is to discern both similarities and differences between things. To compare to is to note primarily similarities between things. For example, in the context of discussing the history of wartime nursing, one might compare Clara Barton to Florence Nightingale and be done with it; both women are noted for caring for wounded men on the battlefield. Compare with would be reserved for a detailed comparison that notes differences between two people who are similar in some respects, but not in others. compare notes â€Å"To compare notes† means â€Å"to compare observations.† For example, friends attending a conference might go to different sessions and later talk to each other about what they learned. Students reading the same novel might compare notes on their individual impressions. compare apples to oranges â€Å"To compare apples and oranges† is usually used in a context in which two things are so different from one another as to defy meaningful comparison. For example, the tiny country of Finland is often held up as a model for U.S. public education, but American educators protest in such statements as this: â€Å"Finland has free health care and preschool. We don’t. You’re comparing apples to oranges.† Related post: Compared to or compared with? Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:50 Handy Expressions About HandsTime Words: Era, Epoch, and Eon20 Ways to Cry

Monday, October 21, 2019

Flowering Dogwood Care and Identification

Flowering Dogwood Care and Identification Flowering Dogwood grows 20 to 35 feet tall and spreads 25 to 30 feet. It can be trained with one central trunk or as a multi-trunked tree. The flowers consist of four bracts below the small head of yellow flowers. The bracts may be pink or red depending on cultivar but the species color is white. Fall leaf color on most sun grown plants will be red to maroon. The bright red fruits are often eaten by birds. Fall leaf color of Dogwood is more vivid in USDA hardiness zones: 5 through 8A. Specifics: Scientific name: Cornus floridaPronunciation: KOR-nus FLOR-ih-duhCommon name(s): Flowering DogwoodFamily: CornaceaeUSDA hardiness zones:: 5 through 9AOrigin: Native to North AmericaUses: Wide tree lawns; medium-sized tree lawns; near a deck or patio; screen; shade tree; narrow tree lawns; specimenAvailability: Generally available in many areas within its hardiness range. Popular Cultivars: Several of the cultivars listed are not readily available. Pink-flowering cultivars grow poorly in USDA hardiness zones 8 and 9. ‘Apple Blossom’ - pink bracts; ‘Cherokee Chief’ - red bracts; ‘Cherokee Princess’ - white bracts; ‘Cloud 9’ - white bracts, flowers young; ‘Fastigiata’ - upright growth while young, spreading with age; ‘First Lady’ - leaves variegated with yellow turning red and maroon in the fall; ‘Gigantea’ - bracts six inches from tip of one bract to tip of opposite bract. More Cultivars: Magnifica - bracts rounded, four-inch-diameter pairs of bracts; Multibracteata - double flowers; New Hampshire - flower buds cold hardy; Pendula - weeping or drooping branches; Plena - double flowers; var. rubra - pink bracts; Springtime - bracts white, large, blooms at an early age; Sunset - supposedly resistant to anthracnose; Sweetwater Red - bracts red; Weavers White - large white flowers, adapted to the south; Welchii - leaves variegated with yellow and red. Description: Height: 20 to 30 feetSpread: 25 to 30 feetCrown uniformity: Symmetrical canopy with a regular (or smooth) outline, and individuals have more or less identical crown formsCrown shape: roundCrown density: moderate Trunk and Branches: Trunk/bark/branches: Droop as the tree grows, and will require pruning for vehicular or pedestrian clearance beneath the canopy; routinely grown with, or trainable to be grown with, multiple trunks; not particularly showy; tree wants to grow with several trunks but can be trained to grow with a single trunk.Pruning requirement: Needs little pruning to develop a strong structureBreakage: resistantCurrent year twig color: greenCurrent year twig thickness: medium Foliage: Leaf arrangement: opposite/suboppositeLeaf type: simpleLeaf margin: entireLeaf shape: ovateLeaf venation: bowed; pinnateLeaf type and persistence: deciduousLeaf blade length: 4 to 8 inches; 2 to 4 inchesLeaf color: greenFall color: redFall characteristic: showy Flowers: Flower color: Bracts are white, actual flower is yellowFlower characteristics: Spring flowering; very showyThe showy flowers are, in fact, bracts that subtend a boss of 20 to 30 real flowers each of which are less than one-quarter inch in size. The actual flowers of Cornus florida are not white. Culture: Light requirement: Tree grows in part shade/part sun; tree grows in the shade; tree grows in full sunSoil tolerances: clay; loam; sand; slightly alkaline; acidic; well-drained.Drought tolerance: moderateAerosol salt tolerance: lowSoil salt tolerance: poor In Depth: Dogwood branches on the lower half of the crown grow horizontally, those in the upper half are more upright. In time, this can lend a strikingly horizontal impact to the landscape, particularly if some branches are thinned to open up the crown. Lower branches left on the trunk will droop to the ground, creating a wonderful landscape feature. Dogwood is not suited for parking lot planting but can be grown in a wide street median, if provided with less than full-day sun and irrigation. Dogwood is a standard tree in many gardens where it is used by the patio for light shade, in the shrub border to add spring and fall color or as a specimen in the lawn or groundcover bed. It can be grown in sun or shade but shaded trees will be less dense, grow more quickly and taller, have poor fall color, and less flowers. Trees prefer part shade (preferably in the afternoon) in the southern end of its range. Many nurseries grow the trees in full sun, but they are irrigated regularly. Flowering Dogwood prefers a deep, rich, well-drained, sandy or clay soil and has a moderately long life. It is not recommended in the New Orleans area and other heavy, wet soils unless it is grown on a raised bed to keep roots on the dry side. The roots will rot in soils without adequate drainage.