The concept of beauty in anthropology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The concept of beauty in anthropology - Essay Example Due to this it is considered a great challenge to find a uniform definition of beauty because what a person finds beautiful is not the same as another. Beauty is based on personal perspective and own concepts honed by own culture and society. It is a universal word but has many definitions and meaning. Scrotun (1) cited the idea of Pato and Plotinus that beauty is an ultimate value  ­Ã‚ ­Ã¢â‚¬â€œsomething that people pursue for its own sake and for the pursuit of which no further reason is needed to be given. As Santayan stated beauty is truth, the expression of the ideal, the symbol of divine perfection and the sensible manifestation of the good. According to Scruton (5) beauty pleases us, it is always a reason for attending to the thing that possesses it, and it is a subject-matter of judgement: the judgement of taste where it is all about beautiful objects not the subject’s statement of mind. Beauty is always associated with aesthetics and is always associated with arts. Stout as cited by Van Damme (40) defined aesthetic as a branch of philosophy dealing with the beautiful and the tests by which the beautiful may be judged. Beauty can be found in different works of art. Paintings on the wall that give joy to the audience; sculptures that please the eye and resonate the beauty that can be touched; and other works of art that are considered as important possessions because of beauty. According to Santayana (126), our judgment of aesthetic is intrinsic when based on the perception of beauty and based on the character of immediate experience and never consciously on the idea of eventual utilities of the object. Judgements about moral worth, on the contrary, are always based, when they are positive, upon the consciousness probably involved. However, in Africa, art forms are made to illustrate ugliness (Van Damme 41). This is the definition by the word anti-aesthetic introduced by R. Thomson

Uses of Computer in Schools Essay Example for Free

Uses of Computer in Schools Essay Computers are-machines that accept incoming data process them and produce outputs-depending on the users applications. Present time, we are so much associated with these devices that without them we would not be able to live the way we do. They play a crucial role in everybodys life. They bring a major socio-economic revolution not only in India but also in the whole world itself. From pocket calculators to personal computers (PC), food processors and microchips entering through VCRS at home, their uses are manifolds. The computers are employed to assist men in business organizations, in space and other researches and in many other walks of life. The personal computer (PC) is marching into the office where it is improving productivity by replacing paper works, customer services and job satisfactions for some. Why Computers are used widely? The computers process informations that come in all shapes and sizes from any fields so accurately that, some people may call these Informatics— The Science of Informal ion Processing, i.e. the methods of recording, manipulating and retrieving informations. It may be from a mathematical equation to a companys work-force necessary to produce a payroll or from meteorological department to forecast tomorrows weather or from space research to project a new space craft. Whatever may be the case, why computers are used widely? The following characteristics that make the computers very popular for its multifarious uses may give the befitting reply. (i) Speed First, the computers are regarded as high speed calculators. They can process voluminous data within a fraction of second which no human being could do earlier. If we want tomorrows forecast today, meteorologists can use the computers for necessary calculations and analyses. The units of speed of a computer are the microsecond, the nano (10)-9 second and even the picot second. (ii) Storage As human brain can store the knowledge in memory and can able to recall it, the Central Processing Unit (CPU) of a computer can do the same job without any failure. But the internal memory of CPU is only large enough to retain a certain amount of information. So, to store each and every information inside the computer, an Auxiliary or Secondary Storage Device is being attached outside the memory of the CPU. (iii) Accuracy The computers are much popular due to their high speed along with consistently very high accuracy. Sometimes, the machinery may give errors, but due to increase in efficiently error-detecting techniques, these seldom lead to false results. Most of the errors in computers are due to human himself. (iv) Automation Once a programme is in the computers memory, it will start processing the input informations; thus leading to automation. (v) Versatility The computers are versatile in nature. They can perform any task given to them provided they are well programmed, (vi) Diligence Being a machine, a computer is very diligent in its duties. It never suffers from human fatigue and tiredness or lack of concentration. It can perform thousands after thousands calculations with exactly same accuracy and speed as the first one without any rest.

Problems And Opportunities By Transition Towns Movement Politics Essay

Problems And Opportunities By Transition Towns Movement Politics Essay Transition Towns also known as Transition network or Transition Movement is an environmental and social movement founded upon the principles of permaculture initialized by Rob Hopkins in Kinsale (Ireland) and in Totnes in the United kingdom. The Transition Towns network is a fascinating and deeply significant grass roots response to the converging ecological, economic, cultural, developmental and wider geo-political/security crises of the coming century. (Quilley) The aim of the Transition Network is to inspire, encourage, connect, support and train communities to self-organise around the transition model, creating initiatives that rebuild resilience and reduce CO2 emissions. The vision of local resilience and self-reliance emerging from community engagement with sustainability issues lies at the heart of the Transition Towns concept. Their goal is to equip communities for the challenges of climate change and peak oil. The Transition Towns movement is an example of socioeconomic loca lisation where resilience is considered to be the driving force. Resilience refers to the ability of a system, right from an individual to the whole of the economy, to hold together their ability to resist the changes and shocks from outside. The focus here is to minimize the CO2 emissions as a result of resilience building. Peak oil and Climate change also referred to as hydrocarbon twins are the major factors this concept is based on. The major fear is the end of availability of the cheap oil since the oil discovery is believed to have peaked 40 years ago thereby forcing change to the wholly oil dependent society to sustainable ways of living. Out of 94 discovered oil reserves, 68 have already got exhausted and the oil production is believed to have peaked in 2005 i.e. 40 years from the peak in discovery which was in the late 1960s. Also climate change which is the issue of greatest severity has been occurring at a faster rate than what was expected and this can be noticed by stud ying the reports on global warming, green house gas effects and the extent of melting in the Arctic sea of the recent past. The concept of Transition Towns concept was designed as a strategy of helping the small towns move away from fossil fuel dependency. It promotes public participation and citizen action within the context of a sustainable and self-sufficient community where local forums are created for the citizens to get together and decide on ways to develop low-carbon energy resources or in other words to discuss on better to survival prospects in a post peak-oil world. Planning for a future with economic disruption, dramatically lower energy consumption, and climate instability, the Transition Town movement encourages re-localization of decision making and seeks to unleash the collective genius of our communities to create networks of mutual support. The Transition Towns network is a grass roots response to the climatic and resource crisis of the near future. This concept focuses on planned relocalisation which in turn includes: local resilience, carbon reduction, decentralised energy infrastructu re, re-skilling, localised food, energy descent plans, local medicinal capacity and local currencies. The Transition town movement is considered to be a social innovation where climate change is its major challenge. The ESRC (Economic and Social Research Council) after investigations has made the social and economc aspects of climate change a priority for its research funding. The maintenance of social justice, opportunities for the fulfilment of livelihoods within the local economics and the role played by the culture and the creative classes as the new drivers of growth will all be the social issues caused due to the increase in the fuel prices and the downfall of the economy ultimately caused by the latter. The Transition Town movement is a social innovation that can be viewed as a radical response to the need for a different way of life post peak-oil and post climate change. It is focussed on reducing the carbon emissions to control climate change and to control peak-oil crisis which suggests that it has an ideology which is an alternative way of organizing the economy. The Transition Town movement has spread rhizomically from Totnes to 134 other places all around the world. Also according to an article The two limits debates: Limits to Growth and climate change, the real solution for the problem of climate change should include the reorientation of public values away from consumption and must emphasize more on sustainable production and resource usage. The Transition Towns movement which is based on community level action and awareness; communication across multiple sectors, community and governmental levels; and local adaptation to environmental changes is one such approach. Indeed these two notions: values reorientation and governmentally provided technological solutions are mutually constitutive. The people have lost their interest in politics and the democratic institutions are in a crisis. Democracy has not been able achieve power for the people in most parts of the world. Democracy basically means political equality i.e. equal rights of participation in the political decisions made by the governments. On the contrary, democracy does not guarantee political equality anymore. In times like this, with people not interested in voting, the concept of Transition Towns gives way to Participatory democracy in which there is a greater involvement of the general public in making political decisions for their prosperity and thereby democracy becomes a reality again. Participation lets people and officials make decisions on how the broad policy commitments can be carried out. The Transition Initiatives can be successful only when there is a bridge between the transition community and the government. For example, when an Energy Descent Plan has been created by a transition network, it will be progressive only if there is a positive and productive relationship with the local authorities of the government. This creates an opportunity for democracy. The Transition movement engages people in a way that even conventional politics are failing to do in the present world and emotions like enthusiasm, idealism and passionate commitment can be observed in the people as a result of this concept. The Transition movement generates local-activism on the issues of peak-oil and climate change which would ultimately force the political intervention in these issues which also shows that the governments are forced to take action concerning the interests of the people which can again be seen enabling the functioning of the democracy. In this concept, transition normally results with the failure of the government and the market in convincingly and effectively not being able to address the issues of peak-oil and climate change. The assumption of the social innovator that he is on his own and that the market has failed to achieve sustainability results in a liberated political action as a need to answer the political problems by the micro-political community processes instead of normal macro-political approach. Although, lobbying and involvement of transitioners in dialogue with the local authorities is not a key aspect of the Transition concept, Penwith transitioners are invite to be a part of their local Sustainable Communities Strategy. The six district councillors in Stroud are huge supporters of the Transition process and also the US peak-oil expert, Richard Heinberg was invited to give a speech in the cabinet which was attended by 450 attendees. All these scenarios take democracy to very new levels encouraging the free will of the common public which is a very good sign for the future in this perspective. According to Deleuzean, micro-politics involve minorities doing something motivated by desire. These actions disrupt the dominant practices showing them c reative solutions. Deleuze argues that, a minor or deviant element is capable of destabilizing the macro socio-economic codes and the actuality here depends on the internal and the external factors of the force relations between those elements that enable and those that restrain the change. The Transition Town movement can therefore be considered to be a tactical approach where resistance is used to achieve democracy but this approach cannot be taken for granted to deliver positive effects always. There have been questions raised on the development of sustainable cities because of the complexity involved in their planning and implementation. It has been observed that sustainability obligations demand not only active involvement of civil society but also leadership from government. As discussed earlier, the Transition Town concept is based on the fact that the idea of sustainability is introduced into their local areas by the communities as a result of their resilience. All the features of insurgent planning can be clearly noticed in the Transition Town concept. Insurgent planning or oppositional planning is a type of planning which challenges the already established structures of power, transgresses time and place through a re-claiming of historical consciousness and imaginesthe concept of a different world as being both possible and necessary. A significant principle that differentiaes the Transition Towns concept from other community-focussed sustainability initiatives such as Local Agenda 21 is that the latter is initiated and driven by the community rather than the government. The way in which the Transition representation has been scattering shows its insurgent nature. The framework of this concept is very easily accessible to any community or individual with interests in sustainable living which ultimately leads to the unstructured spread of the Transition Towns thereby causing varied expressions to meet the local concerns. The problem that arises here is that, different people have different mindsets and when every individual comes up with a different solution for the same concern, it might lead to tension which is a problem for democracy. The insurgent nature of this concept makes it anti-democratic. And also the fact that the transition network has a list of 14 criteria to be fulfilled in order for a community to be considered as a Transition Town or a Transition community raises questions on the very basic principles of the concept. Rob Hopkins states that this concept is not prescriptive but the fulfilment criteria for formalisation are in fact a prescription. Rather than allowing communities to be Transition Towns for the sake of sustainability, this concept seems to be forming Transition Networks which doesnt support the concept of the Transition Town movement as a whole and this is also an emerging problem for democracy as this will have major impacts on the smooth-functioning of the local governments. The Transition Town concept is based more on a survivalist principle which is not very similar to the green activist principles which are more inclined towards the ideologies like democracy, liberalism, global engagement and universalism. (Quilley) The Transition Towns movement can be viewed as a social movement with an eco-authoritarian perspective evolved as a result of the limits to growth and the ecological collapse of modern industrial society ending the liberal democracy in the long run. Questions are also being r aised about resilience on which the Transition Town concept is solely based, whether it is attuned with the features like individualism, liberalism and pluralism and the impacts re-localisation would have on the gender relations which are all again problems in the democratic system. Individualism is not limited in human nature and therefore it raises concerns that the members of the transition communities might get carried away and over-enthusiastic and end up acting against the law which is also not healthy in a democracy. Alex Steffen Transition Towns or Bright Green Cities, argues that even though the Transition town movement has successfully inspired the communities to take action, its places of interest have sadly remained very low. There are also fears that re-localisation and resilience which are the main principles of the Transition Town moment might lead to self-sufficient tribalism which thereby reverses the direction of the civilising processes. According to Quilley, any reduction in the territorial scale of state pacification is believed to cause a decline in the pervasiveness and intensity of relations of the interdependency between individuals and the various groups. This shows that on a long run, the Transition Town concept becomes a very predictable phenomenon in the grounds of the basic principles and goals of democracy being directly or indirectly getting affected by the latter. Reactions have not been entirely positive in Totnes where the Transition town movement was initially started. Many say that this movement was made up of ideas of other people and networks who had already been trying to make Totnes a more sustainable town at that time and this situation raised questions in relation to aspects of the Transition town movement and its impact on communities and also its reputation there were doubts that it was colonizing existing networks. The interesting fact is that this concept cautions against taking a strong political stand on specifi c issues, leaving it partly up to individuals Transition Towns to decide what is applicable in their context. The Transition Network stresses the importance of Transition towns creating and maintaining links to local government but it can be argued that even though it is necessary for the local initiatives to have the support of local government but the basic fact is that the local governments are not bottom-up institutions. They operate within legislative frameworks and receive their funding from central governments and therefore they need to comply with the governing legislation. There is very high scope for the local governments to initially support the Transition communities but later decide on withdrawing the support which might create tension between these communities and the local governments which ultimately leads to political disturbances as a result of the tension created between the public and the local authorities which is again a problem for democracy as a whole. The Transition Town movement is like any other social movement but has been more successful because of the two core drivers it is based on peak-oil and climate change which have got obvious attention from the public. It has had good results in small towns around the world so far but there are doubts about its success more at a national level which still remains a question. As discussed, this concept has been very effective among communities in making them participate in decision making and the organizational aspects for making the Earth a better place to live in. It has succeeded in bringing the people of these communities together to get prepared for the post peak-oil world and also a world affected by climate change. As mentioned by Rob Hopkins, this concept has made the government respond to the actions of the transition communities fulfilling the basic goal of democracy. It has created room for what is known as participatory democracy and therefore it can be clearly said that th is concept has generated opportunities for democracy for sure. This concept also has few areas where more research needs to be done. This concept aims at creating sustainable livelihoods outside the normal economy by self-provisioning and by creating alternative currencies. These ideas when looked at in a broader perspective dont seem practically possible and might also lead to political imbalance. When there is a government in place to administer, the presence of smaller groups having their own networks and currencies make the conditions very critical for the smooth functioning of the government and it seems more like a rebellious or an anti-social group i.e. when it goes out of hand. I also think that this concept cannot be successful in the global South. I strongly believe that there should be official representation in a democracy and networks like the transition town movement should only play a vital role in instigating the governments to take actions on issues of peak-oil and climate change or any other issue for that matter but they should not be forming their own communities and currencies which is against democracy. The freedom can be misused of and this concept might ultimately result in forming groups and networks which might prove unhealthy to the community as a whole with growing self interests of these networks. After all, man is a selfish being!

The Epidemic of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Essay -- Post-Tr

The human brain is extremely complex, top scientists and surgeons still struggle to comprehend how it works. The way that the brain can process information and help a person to problem solve is amazing, but another part of the brain can hold memories. Some are good--like a memory of a family vacation or of family holidays--but there are also frightening memories that can haunt a person until his or her death, if they don’t get help. For a very long time researchers have focused on combatant PTSD, for very good reason, but now a problem has risen among civilians, and they have not been focused on the growth of PTSD right here in regular everyday people’s lives. Not just soldiers can be affected; civilian men, women, and children can be affected by the things they see every day. It can be the paramedic that is first on the scene or it could be the child who watches a robbery goes wrong and a loved one is caught in the cross-fire. Either way these people are all just as im portant to the american society as the soldiers. The importance of the military is massive, and yes I agree that we should help the soldiers who suffer from PTSD, I even have my own personal connections. My uncle went to Vietnam for the Vietnam war and when he came back he was paranoid and scared of anything that reminded him of Vietnam. He like so many other soldiers then and now has PTSD from what he had seen while overseas. The only problem with helping the soldiers is that we don’t focus on the others who also need help getting through their PTSD. There are so many research projects on how to help soldiers get through their PTSD, but their are a limited amount of PTSD research papers on the civilian side. Researchers will only focus on certain things, and pr... ... 07 Dec. 2013. Marais, Adele, et al. â€Å"Domestic Violence in patients visiting general practitioners: Prevalence, phenomenology and association with psychopathy.† SAMJ South African Medical Journal 89.6 (1999): 635-640. Web. 07 Dec. 2013. Schwarz, Eitan D., and Janice M. Kowalski. "Malignant memories: PTSD in children and adults after a school shooting." Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 30.6 (1991): 936-944. Web. 07 Dec. 2013. "Survivor Care." LOVE146. LOVE146. Web. 06 Dec. 2013. Tarrier, Nicholas, and Lynsey Gregg. â€Å"Suicide risk in civilian PTSD patients.† Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology 39.8 (2004): 655-661. Web. 07 Dec. 2013. The Amazing Spider-Man. Dir. Marc Webb. Perf. Andrew Garfield, Rhys Ifans, Martin Sheen, Emma Stone, Denis Leary, and Sally Field. Sony Pictures, 2012. DVD. 07 Dec. 2013.

Great Expectations and Oliver Twist Essay

Every author has his own style of writing. He may use an idea in one of his novels in another. In the books Great Expectations and Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens, the author uses descriptive plots, exiting characters, and a meaningful message to prove that two ideas in a book although similar can be presented differently. Throughout the plot of Great Expectations and Oliver twist, Dickens uses robbery to show the similarities and differences within the book. After a young child, Pip, visits his parents’ tombstone in the graveyard, he comes across a petrifying convict on the run; the convict threatens to hurt Pip unless he bring the man food and makes the child keep his whereabouts a secret. Pip wakes up in the middle of the night and admits, â€Å"I was in mortal terror of myself, from whom an awful promise had been extracted†¦. I had no time to spare. I stole some bread, some rind of cheese, and about half a jar of mincemeat†¦. and a beautiful round compact pork pie. The child is terrified of the convict and is afraid what will befall him if he does not do as the convict instructed. The boy steals food , not out of the evil within his heart, but out of fear that the felon might hurt him. On the other hand, Oliver, a homeless orphan, is welcomed into the home of Fagin (also known as the Jew) who brings in stray children. A while later, while walking through the city streets with his inmates, what appears before the child is, â€Å"†¦. Oliver’s horror and alarm as he stood a few paces off, looking on with his eye-lids as wide open as they would possibly go. o see the Dodger plunge his hand into this old gentleman’s pocket, and draw from thence a handkerchief, which he handed to Charley Bates†¦. In one instant the whole mystery of the handkerchiefs, and the watches, and the jewels, and the Jew rushes upon the boy’s mind. † Fagin always teaches Oliver how to snatch handkerchiefs, jewels, without oliver realizing what he is doing it for and now the boy understands that they are all robbers and they wanted to turn him into one as well. Seeing Dodger and Charlie rob the old man brought pip to such a realization as to stop himself into falling into their trap. Pip robs out of fear of a threatening felon but Oliver stops himself from committing such a crime using the clues around him; Pip could have stopped himself from stealing from his home if he was smart enough. Similarities are found between Magwitch, a runaway convict, and Bill Sikes,a dangerous robber, as they do fairly identical actions with opposite outcomes. keep still, you little devil, or I’ll cut you’r throat† Magwitch is bullying Pip, an innocent child, by telling him that he will kill him if he does not do as the criminal instructs. Though traumatizing the child forever, Magwitch benefits Pip thought his childhood to sooth guilt brought about through his terrible actions. â€Å"If you speak a word out o’doors with me, except when I speak to you, that loading will be you’r head without notice. † Bill Sikes forces young Oliver, a lone orphan, to help him with a major robbery, willing to shoot the child if he does not listen. Bill shoots Oliver and does not regret it one bit, acting as the perfect villain. Magwitch may have started out like Bill but he was exposed to be a good hearted man. In Dickens’s novels it is presented how ones wrong doings does go unpunished. â€Å"It was two years more before I saw Estella. I had heard her as leading a most unhappy life, as being separated from her husband, who had used her with much cruelty†¦ † Estella, a cruel woman who breaks a young boy’s heart, lives her life suffering through a tragic marriage. Estella pays the price of her actions, feeling the pain that she gave the boy who’s hart she broke when she was younger. â€Å"There was nobody there ti speak to him; but fell back to render him are visible to the people who were clinging to the bars. † Fagin, the robber, influenced many children to believe that robbing for a living is justified, showing them his many methods of robbery from previous experience of his own. The man is forced to face his fate by eternally rotting in. prison. Both Estella and Fagin pay for the price of their actions.

Abortion: Make It Illegal

Dallas Chambers Mrs. Baker English 112 03/26/13 Abortion: Make It Illegal Some people believe that there is nothing wrong with abortion, and that it is perfectly moral. Meanwhile others believe that abortion is murder regardless of how far along the baby has developed. No matter what a person believes, abortion is not the right choice. I believe that every child has the right to live even if the mother is young or not financially secure. Abortion is the termination of an innocent child. There are many reasons why abortion should be illegal: ethically and physically.There are many reasons why women choose to have an abortion. Some are selfish and others are selfless, or to protect themselves or the child from future harm. The selfish reasons include that having a baby would interfere with school/work, that they cannot afford a baby or that they are having problems with their significant other. These are merely excuses for not wanting to accept responsibility for their actions. Some of the selfless reasons include medical problems, either with the mother or child, and because the woman was raped. These are the two main qualifiers for this argument.Some women say it is their right to choose whether or not they want to abort a baby. This is true and that right is protected in the Constitution. Also, in the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court case in 1973, the Court ruled that abortion is a woman’s fundamental right. However, when considering an abortion a woman is not just making a choice about her own life, she is deciding whether or not to terminate another. It is fine to make a decision when it only concerns one person, but when it is a decision for that person and someone who cannot speak for themselves it is not fair.There are plenty of other options to choose from rather than aborting a baby. These women could give the baby away to a loving family who can’t conceive children or who has health problems. They could have the baby adopted, granted it is not easy to give away a child but it is better than terminating it and never giving that child a chance to grow. There are open adoptions and closed adoptions. It is very easy to find a place to arrange an adoption considering in today’s society the world is at our fingertips. If a person looks on Google they can find plenty of websites that can arrange adoptions.For example, just in North Carolina there is achildshope. com, christianadopt. org, littleangelsadoption. net and many more. A woman could also put the baby in the foster care system or take the â€Å"path less traveled† and keep the baby themselves. It is better to have a child and give them to a deserving home or couple than to terminate it before he/she even had a chance. Think about it. Any of the lives terminated could end up becoming a doctor, lawyer, or even the next Einstein. Another reason not to terminate a life is because abortion can cause health problems to the woman who receives it.These health probl ems do not only include physical but also mental. Some physical side effects of abortion are bleeding, hemorrhage, infection, inflammation of organs, and increased risk of miscarriage in the future. Some psychological side effects include anxiety, depression, use of alcohol and marijuana, and also suicide. Abortion can cause many health problems and may even kill you, not to mention it is terminating the life of an unborn child†¦ Why would a mother risk that? However, if there are risk factor brought on by a pregnancy then the subject of right or wrong gets more complicated.Either the mother or the child’s life could be in danger. If the mother could possibly die by giving birth to the child then it is not right for anyone to prevent her from terminating the pregnancy, if she chooses to do so. Also, if the child will be terminally ill from the moment of birth, than the mother should be able to determine whether she should terminate the life of that child. Another qualifi er would be if the woman was raped. A woman should not have to endure the pain of pregnancy when it was not her choice to have intercourse in the first place.However, a woman cannot just go to a clinic and say they were raped. There must be a police report on file stating that the woman was raped in order to go ahead with the abortion. Abortion has been a very controversial subject for the past few years and throughout all the debates regarding it I have heard some very interesting comments made by the Pro-Choice believers. Some of these comments included that women should be able to make their own decisions, the baby isn’t alive until it exits the womb, and it is better to kill a baby than have it suffer in a family who doesn’t want it or cannot provide for it.While all women have the right to decide what to do with their bodies, they all have to take responsibility for their actions as well. If a woman is headed to work and drinks a fifth of vodka before getting in t he car to drive there, that is her choice. However, if she ends up killing someone she can’t just say â€Å"well, I’m pro-choice† and then walk away. That woman would have to face the consequences of her actions and go to jail. Why is it any different to kill a human being outside of the mother’s womb than it is when the child is still inside of it?Either way a human being was killed. Whether they were born yet or not is irrelevant. â€Å"A baby isn’t alive until it exits the womb. † Some people do believe that a baby is not alive until it takes its first breath, which is at birth. However, whether you consider the baby alive at the moment of conception or not, the baby will grow into a human being and for someone to terminate the child’s life before it has a chance to grow and develop is wrong. The only moral termination of pregnancy is through miscarriage and nobody has control over that.As previously stated, there are other options than just keeping the â€Å"unwanted† child. There is foster care, open adoption and closed adoptions. In conclusion, abortion is morally and ethically wrong. It is the termination of an unborn child and a woman should not be allowed to terminate a pregnancy without any consequences. There are plenty of other options to choose from besides just terminating a pregnancy. This is why abortion should be illegal in the United States.

Joe essays

Joe essays Joe Oliver was born on December 19, 1885, in Abend, Louisiana. He moved to New Orleans in his youth and is often credited with being born in that city. During his childhood, he lost the use of one of his eyes in an accident. This medical condition did not diminish his musical ability in the least. Between 1908 and 1917, he played in several local bands around New Orleans. These bands included: The Olympia Band, The Onward Brass Band and The Original Superior Band. Joe Oliver started off playing the trombone, but he soon switched to playing the cornet. The trumpet playing of Buddy Bolden originally influenced his style of play. Oliver soon developed his own personalized style of playing the trumpet. It was with this modified style that he would gain his recognition and fame. King Oliver is...reported to have been the first cornet player to play with mutes, cups and bottles. The use of mutes allowed King Oliver to produce new and unusual sounds on his cornet and to present these sounds to his audiences. This technique gave his music a distinctive sound and has been copied by cornet players throughout the world. Bubber Mileys style of play is reported to have been inspired by this unique array of sounds. While in New Orleans, Joe Oliver played in a band with Edward Kid Ory. In 1917, Kid Ory gave Joe Oliver the moniker King. According to legend, Oliver was playing his trumpet while walking through the red-light district of New Orleans. He played the most varied and fanciful improvisations (while) defiantly pointing the mouth of his trumpet toward the cabarets and honky-tonks... His playing began to draw people outside and he soon had a large crowd following him. The crowd ended up at the Aberdeen Caf where Joe Oliver was scheduled to play. Kid Ory named him King because of this event. While in New Orleans, King Oliver became a m...

The Cinematic Signifier

The Cinematic Signifier Introduction Christian Metz was a very important film theorist who made a significant contribution to the art of cinema by his theories on cinema studies. He defines the cinematic signifier through a thorough analysis of the imaginary signifier. This is a broad topic that he set out to analyze in order to explain the elements that affect and greatly influence the art of cinema. He used a psychoanalytical approach to cinema studies.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Cinematic Signifier specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More He explains it as an imaginary factor, which is meant to replace or account for the fact that there is an absence of elements. These elements are time and space which are made transparent by the imagination. In this topic, the main emphasize will be on desire as a necessity, spectator identification which focuses on semantics and identification with both the camera and the characters. The cinematic sig nifier is an imaginary element that is absent, but despite its lack, its realization is still evident. Desire as a commodity Metz analyses the cinematic signifier from the viewpoint of the Freudian aspect on desires. These desires he believes when incorporated together make a combined set of aspects that are different from other art forms. This element must be well understood before the cinematic signifier can be dwelt on. Desire for the ego He views the cinema signifier as perceptual. This is because it stimulates more senses than any other art form. The sense of sight is satisfied by the fact that it is a visual medium. Everything we see from the shots, actors, actions and scenes is visual. This is the biggest sense that cinema aims at satisfying as this can go a long way in ensuring ones cinematic experience has been realized. The sense of hearing is because of the fact that it relies on the aspect of sound. Sound has gone through various stages of evolution in relation to cinema . This is from the silent era to the other periods that saw the necessity of other aspects of sound. Sound plays a crucial role in influencing perception. The incorporation of sound is in the dialogue, sound effects and choice of music. This is an advantage that cinema has over other art forms. It can simulate the senses as opposed to the different art forms that stimulate one sense e.g. Music relies on the sense of hearing whereas reading relies on sight.Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More An important difference between cinema and other art forms such as theatre or the opera is the time and place factor. Despite the fact that these art forms are also perceptual that is stimulating the same senses i.e. Visual and auditory such as cinema they take place within real space and time. The actions and dialogue are all performed in front of the audience at the same time the perf ormance is taking place. In cinema, this is different as the actual content is recorded at a different time and location and then shown to the audience through a screen. The audience does not get to see what is unfolding at first hand. Cinema in a way can also stimulate the other three senses of smell, taste and touch. Taste can be brought out in the way the food is made to look. The use of things like colour, presentation and even the actions and words of a spectator can bring out this sense. Smell can be brought out through the words, actions and facial expressions of the characters. The sense of touch can be communicated to the spectator through how the surface looks i.e., if it is smooth or rough or through the words, actions and emotions of the spectators. Cinema can be used to bring out all these senses despite the fact that it is not happening in real space and time. He also argues that the perceived is not the reality but acts as a kind of mirror to it and this aspect is uni que to it in comparison to the different field of arts. He uses the example of a child held up to a mirror in which the child comprehends his or herself as being held by the mother who he describes as â€Å"its object per excellence.†This leads to the child to perceive his or her identity, which makes the child to form an ego. The difference, however, between cinema and this deduction is that cinema is not an actual perception of the person. The viewers’ personal experience is not the centre of attention. The viewer instead relates to something different that is governed by aspects that in a way are close to reality. It is a mirror to a different reality. The second desire achieved through cinema is the desire to desire. This refers to the passion to perceive. Most art forms utilize this factor of distance. E.g. In music it is received at a distance in relation to where it was recorded and where it is heard, even in theatre the performance is at a distance from the aud ience. This element of distance is explored by these art forms, but what stands out is the element of lack.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Cinematic Signifier specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Since what is portrayed in the films is taken from real objects, which existed in a different time and space the spectator is still in a way removed from them. Despite the lack of the actual immediate experience, the spectator still gets to perceive what is contained in the final product hence still receiving the full experience. This desire is associated with voyeurism. The third desire is the desire for an object, which is satisfied by fetishism. This is in the fact that the audience knows what they are viewing is not real but they still want to watch it. That is why it is important to make the spectacle as real as possible through factors like the unfolding of events. They audience is aware that the characters, plot and story is fictional. They are aware that what they are seeing is not real but they knowingly filter out this factor so as perceive what is before them as real. (McCabe, 1974) He views the spectator as an artificial construct. This is because cinema can be used to bring out or make certain effects in the viewer such as causing some emotions in the spectator. The courses of renunciation as well as refutation are the procedures that are considered vital in the apprehension of the need. The film spectator exists in a state that is dreamlike. The spectator at one point believes that the story, plot and characters are real. This is still considered despite the fact that the spectator is fully aware that it is just a movie. This he attributes to disavowal. This he compares with fetishism and the castration anxiety of a child. Freud described disavowal as â€Å"a way of the subject refusing to acknowledge reality due to a traumatic event or other factors associated with it† (McCabe, 1974, p.44). This explanation is on child development. When a child perceives that the mother does not have a penis, he gets a fear of being castrated. The child believes that at one time, the mother also had a penis but due to reasons that he cannot comprehend has lost it. This gives the boys a fear of castration. The boy will then develop a way of forgetting what he has seen to deal with the trauma, and this can lead to the development of a fetish to try to cover up the trauma.Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This realization of a lack of in the child will make the child to develop two opinions. This factor is what Metz puts as the spectators ability to have two different experiences. In one the spectator knows that what he or she is seeing is fiction, while in the other case the spectator believes that what he or she sees on screen is real. Metz believes that for a good cinematic experience to be realized there must be back and forth shifting of consciousness and belief. Cinema as a technique of the imaginary Cinema has characteristics that are capitalistic and in line with the social industrialized epoch. The capitalistic aspect being that film relies on pictures and sounds this he describes as photography and the use of a phonograph. These he sums as the factors that are combined to lure ones ego and eventually end up satisfying ones desires. Cinema depends on key areas for its realization. These are the cinema industry, which is the recording of films to make profits, and the audienc es desire to watch movies. The second characteristic dwells on the necessity and aim of film, which is to satisfy the viewers’ desires. The cinema industry serves to finance a film as well as to research and modify various areas to satisfy the needs, taste and to bring something different to the spectators. This leads to the production of good films through the coordination and understanding between these sides hence making sure that the moviegoers continue to go to the cinema halls. The cinema writers, film historians, theorists and critics also contribute and influence a lot on cinema. Spectator identification with the camera The spectator identifies with the device that projects the image on the screen, which is the projector, the camera and lastly the screen. Metz stated, â€Å"The projector in context just duplicates the act of perception† (Metz, 1982, p.54). Vision has projective characteristics and characteristics that one acquires subconsciously, the spectator projects what he or she sees and then the data is translated back in a way that the spectator feels. Cinema just serves to duplicate this experience; the screen just records what is seen. Metz sums this up with the statement that the spectator is the projector receiving the information, the spectator is also the screen, and with the combination of these, the spectator is the camera, which is pointed and still recording. (Metz, 1982) Metz argues that the spectator identifies with the camera to a big extent. The spectator is in a way not in the screen but the fact that he or she is watching it and perceives it the cinematic signifier is realized. Spectators when watching a film become so focused in the film that they may not even be aware of themselves. This makes one identify with the camera completely. The cameras movements become the spectators’ movements. When the camera pans to the left, the spectator moves to the left and when it pans to the right so does the spectator. T he tracking shots also become the spectators’ movements and turns. Using different camera angles and movements, the spectator can be made to either be present or absent in the film. Spectator identification with the character Though the spectator knows what is unfolding before him or her is fictional, a feeling or form of connection is still made between the spectator and the character. The spectator connects with the character emotionally even when the character is not at the same place and time. The characters feelings become the spectators. The emotions shared become mutual between them. When the character is happy the viewer is also happy, when the character is sad the viewer also becomes sad and so on. This can only be realized through self-identification of the viewer first due to perception then after the spectator gets to identify with what is on the screen before identifying with the character (Lacan, 1989). Psychoanalysis, structure and the linguistic theory Metz ad opted a lot from the field of semiotics. He focused on how cinema can be used to signify or make the spectator to come up with meaning. The process of signifying depends on certain aspects which are mostly material signifiers these include images, words, titles, music in line with connotative and denotative meanings. He referred to the signifying practice as the way stories were told in movies. He evaluated cinematic equivalents that could be used to stand in for language and this made him to define codes that he believed worked in cinema. In order to understand text one has to break down these codes of signification or the meaning would be lost (Rushton, 2009). The different camera angles and shots also have various meanings, as a shot can serve to communicate meaning to the viewer, whether they know it or not. E.g. a close up can be used to highlight an important element that is being focused on in the film (Lapsey, 1989). Metz states that the analysis of cinema from a linguistic or semiotic angle is possible as it can be used to communicate. However, He maintained that in the language of cinema there is no intercommunication. There is uni-articulation and it is a replication of reality as opposed to the unmotivated arbitrary relationship between the signifier and the signified. The language of cinema comprises of both words and other smaller units. The smaller units are meant to bring meaning to the overall message or signification. Lapsey stated, â€Å"The narrative syntax is divided into eight parts ranging from the smallest segment to the largest part, which is the sequence† (Lapsey, 1989, p.37). Dreams and Fantasy This is focused upon in line with desire because although a spectator should always perceive the difference between a film, and dream, daydream and fantasy this aspect is important as through this desire the cinematic signifier is realized. Conclusion The imaginary signifier is what Christian Metz used in the understanding of the cinema tic signifier. He stresses on points such as identification, perception, lack and other factors in the understanding of the cinematic signifier. He describes and analyses the need for the element of desire as an important aspect in cinema. He focuses on the three types of desires. The first one is the desire for the ego, which is perceptual and is analyzed from the viewpoint of the characteristic of cinema of satisfying the sense of sight and hearing at the same time. The second desire he dwells on is the desire to desire. This is when the spectator overlooks the fact that there is the element of lack in the film and instead just enjoys it. The third is the desire for an object. The spectator experiences this through the fact that despite he or she knows that what is being viewed is not true in a way he or she still gets to enjoy it and perceive in some instances as if it is true. The role of the film industry as a whole makes a big contribution to cinema. The spectator gets to iden tify with both the camera as a medium and the characters on screen largely. Cinema relies on the use of signs; different things are put in a scene to mean different things. The use of semiotics has been used and is evident through the careful analysis of the titles, words etc. The absence of time and space is an important aspect in the study of the cinematic signifier. The cinematic signifier is a key element in the study of cinema. References Lacan, J 1989, Ecrits: a selection, Routledge, London. Lapsey, R 1989, Psychoanalysis in film theory: an introduction, Manchester University Press, Manchester. McCabe, C 1974, From realism and cinema, Longman , New York. Metz, C 1982, The imaginery signifier, Macmillan, London. Rushton, R 2009, Film, theory and philosophy, Acumen, Durham.

CARL ROGERS PERSON-CENTRED APPROACH

CARL ROGERS PERSON-CENTRED APPROACH Introduction Carl Rogers (1902-1987) a psychologist developed the person-centred approach theory mainly in relation to the therapist and the client and initially named it the client-centred approach. Rogers later referred to this theory as person-centred rather than patient-centred in order not to reduce the individual’s autonomy and consequently lend the client to difficulties. The approach therefore is to turn individuals (clients) into subjects of their own therapy. In his theory it was noted that individuals are endowed with the power of self actualization and through their own perception of resources inherent in them, they can provide remedy for change in their difficult situations, provided a facilitating environment exists This view as expressed by Rogers implied that every person has a tendency to grow and attain a certain level of actualization. He observed that in order to allow the client (person) asses his/her own wisdom and self defeating behaviours and also enga ge in therapeutic movement with the therapist, there must be a conducive climate. Three conditions were identified for this relationship to thrive favourably: Genuineness (Congruence), Empathy and Unconditional Positive Regard. GENUINENESS (Congruence) In this relationship the therapist is expected to show a real sense of genuine attitude towards the client’s feelings and thoughts, be willing and ever present to assist them in whatever situation they may be. He should be transparent and discourage the attitude of being the superior in the situation. This attitude would in turn retain a high sense of confidence in the client towards realization of him/herself in therapy. Any deviation from this attitude renders the process unworkable. UNCONDITIONAL POSITIVE REGARD (Total Acceptance) According to Rogers, the therapist in this situation must show non-judgemental and total acceptance to the client’s feelings and his perceptive world as a whole to enhance his process of rec overy. This total acceptance of the client’s attitude and perception should be devoid of whatsoever differences that might exist between them either culturally or socially. However in doing so the therapist should ensure the safety and security of the client. EMPATHETIC UNDERSTANDING In his theory, showing empathy refers to the ability of the therapist to show positive sensitivity to the client’s world, his perception towards recovery and also communicate his feelings to the client. This will convey a special meaning to the client of his relationship with the therapist and consequently solidify their mutual relationship towards the expected therapeutic movement. Rogers continue to state that any deviation from these attitudes on the part of the therapist makes it difficult for the process to continue. This empathetic attitude is more exhibited by therapists who are more confident about their own identity and can cope with other person’s world without any fear. P ERSON-CENTREDNESS AS A CONCEPT Person-centeredness a concept in health care delivery has poor and conflicting definitions over the years and is considered one of the best ways of health care delivery in which patients are valued as individuals (Winfield et al. 1996). It has further been observed by

Relevance of Standard Costing & Variance Analysis Essay - 1

Relevance of Standard Costing & Variance Analysis - Essay Example From this paper it is clear that  the standard cost is a predetermined unit cost i.e. the price and standard amount of each resource to be utilized in manufacturing a product and providing a service. A variance is the difference of actual cost incurred and expected standard cost. The variance analysis involves breakup of total variance to explain how much variance is caused by difference in use of resources from the standard usage quantity and how much variance is caused by the difference in prices of resources from the standard costs. The standard costing can be advantageous only if the cost standards are carefully established and prudently used. The use of standards solely for placing blame can have negative impact on management and employees. The major advantages include better management planning, promotes economy by making the employees understand importance of cost reduction, setting selling price, management control, highlights variances in management by exception and simpli fy the inventories’ costs reducing clerical costs.As the study stresses the standard costing is suited to the control of variable and direct costs but not fixed and indirect costs, the usefulness of standard costing has been questioned because the in recent times the overhead costs have become the relevant factory costs whereas the importance of direct labour costs has diminished.  JIT is an inventory system which works towards keeping zero inventories.

Pick one topic from the attachment, which includes the description of Essay

Pick one topic from the attachment, which includes the description of what the instructor - Essay Example Like a uniformed police officer shows by his dress that he is a police officer. The most important functions of nonverbal communication is to make the speech more effective, to convey emotions, to show attitude and presentation of one’s personality. According to my observation nonverbal communication is used vastly. Nonverbal communication is compiled with other type of communication to get better results. Nonverbal communication plays an important role in a person’s life. Including me, all the persons I observed used nonverbal communication in their speech. Facial expressions and hand gestures are used during my observation. Most of the persons mixed their facial expressions with gestures. In my observation the nonverbal for the return is a moving hand gesture with thumb pointing backwards and commonly known facial expressions for the joy and sorrow with lips lifted up and down. The nonverbal for compliment is an arm and hand gesture with four fingers pointing upward. The results show that most of the persons use hand gestures, eye movement and facial for the nonverbal communication. Most of the people use gestures as nonverbal communication but chronemics has much importance in a nonverbal communication. Chronemics is the usage of time in a nonverbal communication. Chronemics has two distinct time patterns one is monochromic time and the other is polychromic time. If one thing is done in a single space of time is called monochromic time and if more than one thing is done in a single space of time is referred as polychromic time. Paralanguage is also an important factor of a nonverbal communication. In my observation, I found proxemics a little less important. Haptics is a type of nonverbal communication that utilizes sense of touch. It is more important in interacting with animals and where touch is necessary and in dealing with touch based technological materials. Shake hand is an example of haptic communication. In my observation haptic commun ication is in use from centuries to express a person’s feeling and most people will find them incomplete if they don’t find a person to express their emotion through touch. Posture identifies the attention of a person towards a certain mater or towards a person and in my observation it is the most noted nonverbal communication tool. Gesture is a body movement like a wink, a wave of hand or shake of head. Eye movements are considered a method of nonverbal communication that is used to express emotions, rituals and attitude. Eye movements are used for multiple tasks like to show interest, liking and disliking, attention and the how a person is involved in the other person. There is a need to emphasize more on the nonverbal communication in order to interact with other people more emotionally and show our devotion and dedication towards them. Consider a world without the nonverbal communication, you would found it colorless. Touch, posture and eye movements convey such me ssages that cannot be conveyed easily by utilizing verbal communication. If the nonverbal communication would not there, it would be a difficult task for the baby to identify the love of his mother. Nonverbal communication not only gives a person a sense of love but also a sense of reliability, sense of security, and also a sense of care. We see a police officer and consider that we are secured. We see our mother and consider that someone cares for us. I always prefer to read more about a nonverbal behavior of a person. Nonverbal commun

1. Asian economic integration and production networks OR 2. Review the Essay

1. Asian economic integration and production networks OR 2. Review the following paper online - Essay Example is that back in the mind of millions or even billions of people who contribute the know-how, skills and labor towards the production of a single piece of pencil, most likely never have a pencil in mind as the final product of their contributions (Read, 2008). The only thing that binds all the numerous people together towards the production of a small piece of pencil, which they may never even use throughout their lifetime, is their personal needs. The people involved in cutting down the trees used to produce the wood pieces that are eventually turned into a pencil, do not even know what the tree will be used for, while the people who make the power saws and logging machines never take their time to think that the end product for their inventions is likely to be (Read, 2008). Similarly, the miners in the Mexico mines who produces graphite, the farmers in the Dutch East Indies who cultivates the rape-seed oil crops in their farms, the farmers who cultivate coffee in Brazil to be eventually brewed and served to the workers in the pencil manufacturing factory and offices, as well as the producers of pumice in Italy, do not know the end product of the labor. The fact of the matter is that all the small contributions that the billions of people make in their respective areas while in different countries, end-up as a piece of pencil in the shelves of book stores and shops. To this edge therefore, a single product that reaches the consumer is a factor of millions or billions of laborers, who do not actually know what they are contributing to, but only understands their desires and necessities (Read, 2008). Simply put therefore, the goods, services and innovations that have transformed the world are a product of people who neither know nor care about them. The desire to exchange the skills, know-hows and labor by different individuals for the goods and services they need is the ultimate source of a consumable product. The second main argument that has been advanced by

Philosophy class Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Philosophy class - Essay Example This foundational belief is no other than the cogito, i.e. the â€Å"I†. But how does Descartes arrive at the cogito? On what grounds is Descartes certain that this â€Å"I†, which he claims to be the foundation of all his knowledge, is invulnerable from any deceiver? These are the questions that I shall systematically address throughout this essay. Let me begin with Descartes’ vision. Descartes had a vision, a plan to establish a unified physical science wherein all sciences would form into one systematic whole. This unified science was, for Descartes, a rationalistic one. For, it ought to be based on the methods and principles of mathematics. Why mathematics? For mathematics is the only reliable means for arriving at genuine knowledge of reality, i.e. truth. Indeed, truth was Descartes’ passion. He sought to find this truth even if it means overthrowing all his existing beliefs. For, he realized that all his ideas were doubtful and all his beliefs are fa lse. Of course, how can one claim to have knowledge if the very foundations for my knowledge are either doubtful or false? It is in this regard that he decided to overthrow all these existing beliefs and ideas and use only reason as his sole basis for establishing a permanent truth. Herein, mathematics was Descartes solution. He will use mathematics as his model for his use of reason, in achieving absolute certainty. What is so special about the methods of mathematics? Mathematics uses two principal mental operations: intuition and deduction. It is in this regard that Descartes’ goal as a philosopher is to build a system of philosophy based on intuition and deduction. For, his ultimate goal was to do a total reconstruction of human knowledge. He was determined to find his self-evident or foundational principle, which will serve as his first principle, from which absolutely certainty can be deduced. But what are the requirements for such a foundational belief? First, it has to be clear and distinct insofar that it cannot be doubted. Second, It should be absolute and independent, and should not be based on any other belief. And third, it should be something that exists. So given these said requirements, how then will Descartes establish his foundational belief? Descartes will use the method of doubt, which he terms methodological skepticism. He defines this as the use of doubt methodologically, in order to arrive at true knowledge (Lavine, 1984). So, in doubting all his beliefs and ideas, he classifies then into categories, starting with his beliefs on sense perception. Why? Descartes says that these are by nature, deceptive, and that we cannot tell whether we are dreaming or not. Next, he doubted his beliefs in material objects. Why? For material objects and the physical world are based upon sense perception, which we have established to be deceptive. Third are his beliefs on natural sciences. Why? For it uses objects that are based on sense perception, which we have already established to be deceptive and thus untrustworthy. And fourth, Descartes surprisingly doubted his belief in mathematics. Herein, he invented a malevolent demon that conditions his mind and deceives him with his mathematical ideas. For, even if mathematics is his sole basis for clear and distinct ideas, he sometimes falls into error. One may wonder, why does he have to create a demon to doubt his belief in mathematics? Mathematics was just one of Descartes’ reasons for inventing this demon. For, he uses this

Exam Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Exam Case Study - Essay Example It should be noted that as bureaucratic leader, he has set out specific procedures and guidelines which should be strictly followed by his subordinates. Being task oriented, his main concern is efficiency, which he strongly believes to be attainable only by following the preset work directives. In his aim of having ultimately control of the plant, he even devises a system where all the administrative processes supporting craftsmen still needs his approval. He has little or no concern that his employees are demoralized by his behavior. His only interest is to get work done through people. He ultimately treats workforce as resources which should be used in order to attain organizational goals without considering the issues of motivating and retaining them. Eradour should be commended in his recognition that efficiency is the top priority of his plant. As previously discussed, production cost of aluminium is relatively high which necessitates the focus on efficiently utilizing organizational assets in order to reduce wastage thereby reducing production cost. Being a plant which operates on highly technical processes, the carbon plant thus needs to be guided with procedures to ensure that processes are being carried out as they should. The most important issue in the Carbon Plant is the lack of employee empowerment. The organizational structure is very centralized noting that Eradour is in control of almost everything through his establishment of guidelines which should be followed at all times. The manager should look into giving more autonomy in making some decisions. The fact that problems still arise amidst the strict guidelines signal that there are inevitable situations which should be left at the discretion of the employee. Giving enough empowerment leaves the workforce more motivated as this communicates that his insights are valued. More empowerment should be given most especially to the craftsmen. Intervention in this department

1. Asian economic integration and production networks OR 2. Review the Essay

1. Asian economic integration and production networks OR 2. Review the following paper online - Essay Example is that back in the mind of millions or even billions of people who contribute the know-how, skills and labor towards the production of a single piece of pencil, most likely never have a pencil in mind as the final product of their contributions (Read, 2008). The only thing that binds all the numerous people together towards the production of a small piece of pencil, which they may never even use throughout their lifetime, is their personal needs. The people involved in cutting down the trees used to produce the wood pieces that are eventually turned into a pencil, do not even know what the tree will be used for, while the people who make the power saws and logging machines never take their time to think that the end product for their inventions is likely to be (Read, 2008). Similarly, the miners in the Mexico mines who produces graphite, the farmers in the Dutch East Indies who cultivates the rape-seed oil crops in their farms, the farmers who cultivate coffee in Brazil to be eventually brewed and served to the workers in the pencil manufacturing factory and offices, as well as the producers of pumice in Italy, do not know the end product of the labor. The fact of the matter is that all the small contributions that the billions of people make in their respective areas while in different countries, end-up as a piece of pencil in the shelves of book stores and shops. To this edge therefore, a single product that reaches the consumer is a factor of millions or billions of laborers, who do not actually know what they are contributing to, but only understands their desires and necessities (Read, 2008). Simply put therefore, the goods, services and innovations that have transformed the world are a product of people who neither know nor care about them. The desire to exchange the skills, know-hows and labor by different individuals for the goods and services they need is the ultimate source of a consumable product. The second main argument that has been advanced by

Exam Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Exam Case Study - Essay Example It should be noted that as bureaucratic leader, he has set out specific procedures and guidelines which should be strictly followed by his subordinates. Being task oriented, his main concern is efficiency, which he strongly believes to be attainable only by following the preset work directives. In his aim of having ultimately control of the plant, he even devises a system where all the administrative processes supporting craftsmen still needs his approval. He has little or no concern that his employees are demoralized by his behavior. His only interest is to get work done through people. He ultimately treats workforce as resources which should be used in order to attain organizational goals without considering the issues of motivating and retaining them. Eradour should be commended in his recognition that efficiency is the top priority of his plant. As previously discussed, production cost of aluminium is relatively high which necessitates the focus on efficiently utilizing organizational assets in order to reduce wastage thereby reducing production cost. Being a plant which operates on highly technical processes, the carbon plant thus needs to be guided with procedures to ensure that processes are being carried out as they should. The most important issue in the Carbon Plant is the lack of employee empowerment. The organizational structure is very centralized noting that Eradour is in control of almost everything through his establishment of guidelines which should be followed at all times. The manager should look into giving more autonomy in making some decisions. The fact that problems still arise amidst the strict guidelines signal that there are inevitable situations which should be left at the discretion of the employee. Giving enough empowerment leaves the workforce more motivated as this communicates that his insights are valued. More empowerment should be given most especially to the craftsmen. Intervention in this department

The importance of literacy Essay Example for Free

The importance of literacy Essay Literacy is known as the ability to read and write. It is the ability to communicate with each other, and to understand the concepts of everything. It does not mean that you will find literacy in a book because it can be found at any place on a daily basis. For example, while watching television, reading a magazine, when communicating with people in social networks, and especially in school. All of that has something related to literacy because there are words and signs that have a significance. It is very important for us to read and write, because it is a way to express and communicate with each other. Strong literacy skills are closely linked to the probability of having a good job, decent earnings, and access to training opportunities. Individuals with weak literacy skills are more likely to be unemployed or, if employed, to be in jobs that pay little or that offer poor hours or working conditions Without literacy civilization as well as communication would be entirely different, it is the key for our future, because it means education, and with education we all would have a better future. Literacy is fundamental for learning in school. It has an impact on an individuals ability to participate in society and to understand important public issues. Since we were kids, we were taught to learn a language step by step. We first learned to understand it, then to speak it, and at school we learned to write it and read it. Nowadays the population of people that know how to write and read is bigger than before. Some of our grandparents are illiterate due to their poor education. My grandmother said that back in the day there was not enough money for education and only a few could afford it. But things had changed, now the government helps the students by providing them with financial support and it is easier for them to afford and education. I am one of the luckiest people that have the privilege to attend to college. I said privilege because not everyone can do it and I am the first one in my family that made it to college. A literate person has more possibilities to succeed in life. Why? Because it opens more paths tosuccess, more job opportunities and better earnings. For example if a company is looking for people to hire and they have a couple of options in which there are people with high education and people with less education, of course they are going to hire that ones with the most education. It is because they want the best for their company and they know that people with higher education would make a good job, because they have knowledge and the capacity to understand things better. An individual that is unable to read and write is called illiterate. He cannot calculate his own income and expenses, nor can keep his own accounts. An illiterate man is generally exploited by the clever men in the society. They take full advantage of his ignorance of the language or wisdom. For example, let’s suppose that you own a business, but you do not know how to administrate it. You must hire a person to do it for you, because you have no idea of how to deal with numbers. What if the person you hire is taking money from your business and you do not notice it, due to your illiteracy. That is why it is very important to go to school and learn. Some people think that going to school is a waste of time, but it is not. We need education in order to survive the daily basis. It makes a big difference in an individual’s life. Literacy is found in our daily basis, the internet, television, books, etc. But in the social networks it is very common to find a lot of misspellings. This is why you have to be aware and not believe that every word in there is right spelled. This all happens because people are being more and more adapted to the way of texting, or they simply do not care about how they a spell a word on their social networks. It is affecting our society because it makes them look illiterate and is affecting other people that are learning a language, for example English, and these people make them think that what they write is spelled right. I had a hard experience with literacy before. When I was a freshman in high school I had to learn English, since my first language is Spanish it was difficult for me to understand the English language. It took me a long time to learn it. My teacher told me that it would be very helpful if I started to read books for at least one hour a day and also to watch television in English. She told me to practice as much as I could. So I did it and as time passed by, I started to notice that my learning skills got better and my pronunciation too. The hardest part of learning a new language is when you write it, but with time and dedication you will understand itbetter. Comprehending English can be difficult, because sometimes a word sounds the same but means something different. For example, â€Å"they’re† and† there† sound exactly the same but both have completely different meaning. We get confused, that is why it takes time to dominate it, but with practice and dedication you would notice that little by little it would get easier. I read all the books I could and every time I read these books I learned new words and their meanings. Books can seem boring but once you start reading them, they are really interesting. By reading you will notice that your writing and reading skills would get better. My English teacher would always tell me that reading was very important when it comes to learning a new language, because in a book I would find different words that would help me with my literacy skills. I am looking forward to pass this course and I would do my best in this class. My expectations for this course are to better my writing skills and learn how to develop and organize a good essay, since I have problems with it. I would like to learn new strategies of writing and understanding words. I know this class would not be easy but I am going to give my best and turn in all my work. My goal is to be a highly educated person, so I need to study hard to achieve this. I hope that my literacy skills get better with time and practice and I am motivated to do it. I know that by the time I graduate I would be more educated, and this all would be because of what I learned in college, and I know that everything I learned in school would be very useful in my future. Literacy is essential in our lives. Without it we would not be able to communicate with each other or to be successful in life. We would have less chances of getting a nice job and we would be exposed to be manipulated by other individuals that want to take advantage of our ignorance. Education is the key to success and the laws state that every person has the right to an education. This is why we have to take advantage of the government help, to improve our learning and education. I feel honored to be in college right now, because not everyone has the chance to attend to school, and I will do my best in order to succeed and accomplish my goals. â€Å"Once you learn to read. You will be forever free†. – Frederick Douglass.

Platinum Resistance Thermometer

Platinum Resistance Thermometer Platinum Resistance Thermometer How it works: The simplest resistance thermometer configuration uses two wires. It is only used when high accuracy is not required as the resistance of the connecting wires is always included with that of the sensor leading to errors in the signal. Using this configuration you will be able to use 100 meters of cable. This applies equally to balanced bridge and fixed bridge system. Temperature range: Operating Range -200  °C to 1200  °C Advantage: It has a wide range and is very accurate. It is best for small steady temperatures. Disadvantages: Unsuitable for rapidly changing temperature. Slow to respond. Optical Pyrometer How it works: A pyrometer has an optical system and detector. The optical system focuses thermal radiation onto the detector. The output signal of the detector (Temperature T) is related to the thermal radiation or irradiance of the target object through the Stefan-Boltzmann law, the constant of proportionality, called the Stefan-Boltzmann constant and the emissivity of the object. This output is used to infer the objects temperature. Thus, there is no need for direct contact between the pyrometer and the object, as there is with thermocouple and Resistance temperature detector (RTDs). Uses: The optical pyrometer is widely employed for accurate measurement of the temperature of furnaces, molten metals and other heated materials. It is primarily used in the range of 1000 to 50008F. Most optical pyrometers are manually operated and thereby are somewhat limited in their application. Pyrometers are suited especially to the measurement of moving objects or any surfaces that cannot be reached or cannot be touched. Temperature range: Optical Pyrometers with a range of 700C 1250C have an accuracy better than  ± 58C while those having a range of 1100 -1900 have an accuracy better than  ±108C. Temperature ranges can be measured between approximately 1,300 to 5,800oF (700 to 3,200oC), and with appropriate filters, the disappearing-filament pyrometer temperature ranges can be ex-tended to approximately 18,000oF (10,000oC). Advantages: Measures high temperatures. Thermocouple How it works: It consists of two dissimilar metals, joined together at one end, which produce a small unique voltage at a given temperature. This voltage is measured and interpreted by a thermocouple thermometer. Uses: A thermocouple is a sensor for measuring temperature. However, thermocouples have a wide temperature range (-200 to 2000  °C) and are often needed simply because alternative devices do not operate at the desired temperature. In addition, they are relatively low-cost and versatile. Temperature range: Operating Range -200  °C to 2000  °C Advantages: Wide range, robust and compact and good for rapidly changing temperatures. Disadvantage: For good quality a milli voltmeter is needed. When to use RTDs or thermocouples The two most common ways of measuring industrial temperatures are with resistance temperature detectors (RTDs) and thermocouples. But when should control engineers use a Thermocouple and when should they use an RTD? The answer is usually determined by four factors: Factors: Temperature, time, size, and overall accuracy requirements. If process temperatures fall from -328 to 932 °F (-200 to 500 °C), then an industrial RTD is the preferred option. Thermocouples have a range of -180  °C to 1300  °C (-300 to 2300  °F) so for extremely high temperatures they are the only contact temperature measurement choice. If the process requires a very fast response to temperature changes-fractions of a second as opposed to seconds (i.e. 2.5 to 10 s)-then a thermocouple is the best choice. Keep in mind that time response is measured by immersing the sensor in water moving at 1 m/s (3 ft/s) with a 63.2% step change. A standard RTD sheath is 3.175 to 6.35mm (0.125 to 0.25 in.) in diameter, while sheath diameters for thermocouples can be less than 1.6mm (0.062 in.). If the process only requires a tolerance of 2  °C or greater, then a thermocouple is appropriate. If the process needs less than 2  °C tolerance, then an RTD is sometimes the only choice. Keep in mind, unlike RTDs that can maintain stability for many years, thermocouples can drift within the first few hours of use.

Colonial Woman and Religion-?Woman and Witchcraft? :: essays research papers

It was at staid Boston that Anne Hutchinson marshaled her forces; it was at peace-loving Salem that the Devil marshaled his witches in a last despairing onslaught against the saints. To many of its readers there seemed to be little or no connection between witchcraft and religion; but an investigation of the facts leading to the death sentence of the various martyrs to superstition at Salem will convince the skeptical that there was a most intimate relationship between the Puritan belief and the theory of witchcraft. Looking back after the passing of more than two hundred years, it was said to believe the bizarre explanation, skilled and thoroughly intelligent folk as the Puritans could have believed in the possession of this evil power. It especially appeared incredibly when it was remembered that here was a people that came to this country for the exercise of religious freedom, a citizenship that descended from men trained in the universities of England, a well-built band that under extreme privation has created an institution within sixteen years after the settlement of wilderness. It was borne in the mind that the Massachusetts colonies were not alone in this belief in witchcraft. It as common throughout the world, and was as aged as humankind. Deprived of the aid of modern science in explaining odd methods and activities, man had long been adapted to fall back upon devils, witches, and evil spirits as premises for his arguments. While the execution of the witch was not so common an event els ewhere in the world, during the Salem period, yet it was unknown among ‘so-called’ open-minded people. In 1712, a woman was burned near London for witchcraft and several city clergymen were among the prosecutors. The religion of Salem and Boston was well fitted for developing this very theory of hateful power in â€Å"possessed† persons. The teachings that there was a personal devil, that God allowed him to tempt mankind, that there were myriads of devils under Satan’s control at all times, ever watchful to trap the innocent, that these devils were rulers over certain territory and certain types of people. These teachings naturally led to the assumption that the goblins chose certain persons as their very own. The constant reminders of the danger of straying from the strait and narrow way, and of the tortures of the afterworld led to self-consciousness, introspection, and morbidness. The idea that Satan was all times seeking to weaken the Puritan church also made it easy to believe that anyone living outside of that church was an agent of the devil or bewitched.

Candide- A Contrast To Optimism :: essays research papers

Candide- A Contrast to Optimism Francis Marie Arouet de Voltaire was the French author of the novella Candide, also known as â€Å"Optimism†(Durant and Durant 724). Many of Voltaire’s works were popular in Europe during his time, yet it is his satire, Candide, which is still studied today. In Candide, Voltaire sought to point out the fallacy of Gottfried William von Leibniz’s philosophy by criticizing worldly superiority, the theory of optimism, and the brutality of war. Leibniz theorized that God, having the ability to pick from an infinite number of worlds, chose this world, â€Å"the best of all possible worlds†(18). To dispute that contention, Voltaire created Martin. Martin was the quintessential pessimist, and Candide’s trusted friend and advisor. Martin continuously tried to prove to Candide that there is little virtue, morality and happiness in the world. When a cheerful couple was seen walking and singing, Candide told Martin, â€Å"At least you must admit that these people are happy†(94). Martin quickly replied, â€Å"I wager they are not†(94). The only basis Martin had for his judgment was the sight of two outwardly content people, yet somehow he was compelled to characterize them as unhappy. Martin’s pessimistic outlook on life is the antithesis of Leibniz’s theory that this world is the best. The evil that Martin perceived blinded him from the good that existed in the world. The land of Eldorado was the realization of Leibniz’s theory that this world is the best. In reference to Eldorado, Candide stated that â€Å"there’s no comparison between this country and the castle where I was born†(70). The fact that Eldorado was the perfect city revealed the flawed world in which Candide lived. Martin’s ability to focus on the evils in the world and the contrast between reality and Eldorado reflect Voltaire’s criticism of Leibniz’s belief that this world is the best possible. To emphasize his criticism of optimism in the novel, Voltaire created Dr. Pangloss, an unconditional follower of Leibniz’s philosophy. Pangloss believed that everything had its purpose and things happened for the best. Even the horrendous Lisbon earthquake and fire were for the best according to Pangloss. He stated that although the disastrous earthquake took over 30,000 lives, â€Å"all this is for the very best. . . For it is impossible that things should not be where they are†(30). According to Pangloss’ philosophy, there was a purpose behind the earthquake. He believed that there was a rational explanation for the earthquake, even though he was unable to provide substantial evidence to support his claim.

New HR Strategy Makes Lloyd’s a “Best Company”

Bohlander discussed in chapter one. One of the biggest things I took from the chapter was evolution of HR managers from being a person consumed by company personnel matters to playing an active role in improving the business model a company has through innovation and providing advice to company executives. Ms. Black spoke of the need of Lloyd’s employees to be challenged in their work. In Human Behavior in Organizations, Sinclair, Cuttell, Vandeveer and Menefee write about how it is essential to provide employees with work that challenges them, because challenging work is viewed as being rewarding work, this in turn provides for an increase in employee motivation and makes them feel as though they are true stakeholders in the organization (pgs 50-51). Additionally, the workers cited community involvement and health incentives as reasons for their continued motivation. Clearly, these workers prove Snell and Bohlander to be correct when those authors wrote about the need for companies to be seen as being socially responsible and offer innovative incentives to keep their employees not only motivated, but wanting to work for a company (pgs 10,11,20,28). This ability to think outside the normal work paradigm of salary raises and promotions with regards to employee benefits backs up Blacks claim that HR managers will need to be able to see change and work within in that change. This is vital with the changing American demographics(Census Bureau) and the values that younger workers and different cultures have when it comes to work motivation and success. The idea of attracting these new workers highlights the concept of strategic thinking that Black spoke of to be successful in the new HR. From reading the case study, it appears as though Blacks strategy has been a success. It has been a success not only for Lloyds, but it appears as though it also successful for the employees. Often when one thinks about improving the company the image of layoffs, furloughs and other morale crushing decisions come to mind. It seems that these changes have positively changed worker attitudes, with Lloyds being ranked as one of the most desirable companies to work for. Even the website Payscale shows employees at Lloyds giving the company four out of five stars for workplace environment (Payscale). This recognition as a great place to work from respected media outlets like the Sunday Times can only help to recruit and retain the best talent for Lloyds. The ability for the employees to develop their career, and know that they can be rewarded for their work, has to provide incentive for those workers to make Lloyds a more successful company filled with happy, productive workers. Companies are finding that many advantages can be gained by going global. As with anything however, there are also pitfalls to entering into global markets to sell, or make items. If I were the HR manager for a company that is creating offices around the globe, I would lobby for each country to have separate culture specific HR policies. What works for American companies will not even work in many parts of France. Snell and Bohlander spoke of the French workers taking their managers hostage(pg 19). While such an action would be cause for termination without much protest in America, the French have a different attitude towards work relations. If another western nation has such a different outlook towards work issues, imagine the pitfalls inherit with going to Asia, Africa, or Latin America with totally different norms and societal expectations. Not only would it be a necessity to learn and become adroit in that cultures values and ways of work, you would need to ensure to meet compliance for all laws in that nation, which could be very different than our laws. The need for precise translations would be paramount to ensure that all employees know precisely what the companies expectations are and how the employees are expected to act and what they are expected to do. The power of â€Å"no† is immense. Employees, managers and executives alike need to be bound by the rules and regulations that run a company for that company to have success. Since I have not worked in an office environment, I am more limited in the potential conflicts that I could see arising where as an HR manager, I would have to be firm and follow the guidelines established by the company and their protocols. One instance I could see arising, that has happened in a school setting, is habitual employee tardiness. Many companies, in order to retain talent and keep their employees happy and motivated, have adapted flex time. The schools systems can not do this, as we have a set bell schedule. If an employee consistently asked to come in late, or leave early, the time would come when you would have to say no to the employee. Hopefully, the prior incidents had been documented so that you could prove you tried to accommodate the employee to the extent possible. If other workers notice what they see as another employee receiving preferential treatment, I imagine a cascading effect where the other workers would naturally insist upon being treated the same, or they may become resentful towards the company and the employee who seems to be treated differently. Any situation that violates company policy, or more importantly the law, must be told no. As an HR manager I am responsible for protecting the company, the executives and the employees. Recently at school we had an issue with coworker harassment and bullying. While I do not know the specifics of that incident, I do know that if the administrators or anyone from the Board of Education had received information about the issue, they would have to explain to the parties that such things are not acceptable, damage the school community and open the possibility of civil litigation. Whenever a potential conflict exists that could violate company procedure, or the law, HR must be firm and stand by their convictions and ensure that all workers are treated equitably and fairly.Works Cited Barnes, N.G. (2010, Spring). How do the most successful companies use social media? Marketing Research, (10). Retrieved June 1, 2013 from http://www.marketingpower.com/ResourceLibrary/Publications/MarketingResearch/2010/1/Tweeting.pdf Payscale. (2013). Retrieved on June 1, 2013, from Payscale website: http://www.payscale.com/reasearch/UK/Employer=Lloyds_of_London/Salary Reinhart, C. (2013). The Relationship between Marketing and Human Resources.Houston Chronicle. Retrieved June 1, 2013, from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/relationship-between-marketing-human-resources-10287.html Sinclair, G., Cuttell, D., Vandeveer, R., & Menefee, M. (2002). Human Behavior in Organizations (4th ed.) Boston: Pearson Custom Publishing. Snell, Scott & Bohlander, George. (2013) Managing Human Resources. (16th ed.) Mason, OH: South-Western. U.S Census Bureau. (2013, May 15) Population Projections. Retrieved May 30, 2013 From the World Wide Web: http://www.census.gov/population/projections/data/national/2012/summarytables.html

American Beauty – Paper

American Beauty In the movie â€Å"American Beauty† there is a list of interpersonal conflicts. Lester and Carolyn Burnham are a seemingly ordinary couple in an anonymous suburban neighborhood, whose marriage and lives are slowly unraveling. They both have become so distant but remain together to keep up appearances. This relationship shows all the factors that Daniel Dana considers being a conflict. Two people are independent; they each need something from the other, both parties blame the other or find fault with them for causing the problem, one or more of the parties is angry or emotionally upset, the parties’ behaviors are affecting their relationship with each other and/or their relationships with others. †(Dana, 2000) In the movie there are many conflicts but the interpersonal conflict that stands out is that between Lester and Carolyn. The conflict between Lester and Carolyn is hard to ignore. They have stopped communicating effectively to one another. Les ter is a middle aged man, whom sees no satisfaction in his life anymore.Carolyn is a middle aged woman, whom only shows her satisfaction, but it is a mask; to make it seem that she is happy. Lester, at first, seems to have a passive communication style, compared to Carolyn’s aggressive communication style. In the narration from Lester in the beginning of the film; he seems to be tired of his life and how it is going. They live in a big white house with a red door and a white picket fence; living the American dream. Unfortunately it is anything but. They have a daughter Jane who Lester believes he has failed. One night, Lester and Carolyn go to one of her work functions.Almost immediately they go their own ways at the function. Carolyn is being entertained by the â€Å"King† of real estate, drinking. While Lester has found himself outside with the new neighbor boy Ricky Fitts, smoking the illicit drug marijuana. When they go home and are in bed, their problems come to f ruition. At this point the â€Å"blame game† comes into the picture; with much negativity. They fight back and forth sarcastically, saying hurtful things, until Carolyn jumps up out of bed and bursts out â€Å"This isn’t a marriage†. Then Lester finally speaks up and tells her what he has been feeling for years.One factor is the lack of sex between them. Also, he states that he has been her puppet for years; since she received her realtors license, and finally that he has been extremely unhappy. Then he continues saying that the only reason she is mad and saying anything is because he is finally fighting back. His dramatic and angry speech makes Carolyn silent. At this point in the film, I am more aware that they haven’t had effective communication to resolve their conflicts, for many years now. This situation escalated from their root cause of both of them becoming withdrawn, and not resolving their conflicts. When conflict erupts, emotions are involved, and the relationship can be threatened if the conflict is not resolved amicably. †(Sole, 2011) I think what started their downfall, years ago, is that they avoided conflict. This can be destructive in any relationship and/or marriage. If you don’t have the skills of resolving conflict; you run the risk of ruining your marriage, separate friendships, and shatter your family. Since both parties did not obtain the skills necessary to resolve their conflicts, it resulted in Carolyn stepping out of their marriage; to have an affair with her real-estate rival, Buddy Kane the â€Å"King†, of real-estate.Also, resulting in Lester acting out, quitting his job, smoking marijuana, buying a 1970 Pontiac Firebird, and working out to impress a 17 year old girl; what some may call a mid-life crisis. Amazingly enough, this could have all been resolved, as long as they both are willing with positive emotions during their conflicts. Research has shown that interjecting positive e motions, along with negative emotions, during discussions result in happier marriages.I think that is Lester and Carolyn would have used some basic elements like humor, light-hearted fun, or some playfulness during their conversations, their marriage could have remained happy. Then if they could know and understand one another’s communication style, they would be better at resolving conflicts between them. Lester started out having a passive communication style, and then it quickly moved to a passive-aggressive communication style. I believed this happened because he was fed up with how his life was going and started to display resentment.With negative feelings, this indirectly sabotaged his life. If Carolyn held an assertive communication style, rather than an aggressive communication style, I believe they would have been able to eventually resolve their conflicts. All in all, if they had effective interpersonal communication, they would have continued to go down the path, t o be a happily married couple. References Sole, K. ,Making Connections: Understanding Interpersonal Communication,(2011),BridgePoint Education Inc. Retrieved From: https://content. ashford. edu/books