Tutor profile: Rachael P.

How can passive and active voice be used intentionally to bring different tones to the piece of writing? In which types of writing would you typically use passive voice, and in which types would you use active?

Passive voice is traditionally used in academic writing, especially in research papers. Due to this convention, using passive voice (avoiding using "I") can make papers sound more professional and unbiased. It is an expected convention in many academic writing situations. However, I use active voice when I want to sound convincing or confident. Active voice can be appropriate in a persuasive essay, a personal grant proposal, or an opinion piece. It makes readers pay attention and want to believe in what you are writing.

What is the importance of using the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) in the study of phonetics and phonology?

Using IPA is important in phonetics and phonology because each language has its own conventions of orthography and/or transliteration, and so the way that a language is written does not necessarily show the sounds that are being produced. In linguistics we are interested in the actual spoken sounds, not the written letters. In Phonology, this is even more important because we make a distinction between what the speaker thinks they are producing (phonemes) and what they are actually producing (allophones). It is important that we have a uniform way to convey these sounds and not rely on speakers' interpretations or alphabets.

Name one important feature of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's Second New Deal, and explain why it was important.

One feature of the Second New Deal was the creation of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). This was important because the Great Depression, during Roosevelt's presidency, was a time of extremely high unemployment and the WPA created many jobs in the construction of public works projects.